Trip Ko 'To

MediRun: Running for Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sun, 20 May 2012 00:07:00 +0000

MediRun is a running event sponsored by MediCard this May 19 at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig in celebration of it’s 25th year of service as one of the leading Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) in the Philippines.

Fun Run or running events have been popular in the Philippines since 2005. In fact there are various organizers leading such event every week and more often held at the Bonifacio Global City, which is a former Military base and Headquarter now turned to be the Central Business District of Taguig City.

I have participated in various running events before and always wanted to participate in BGC events but the odd part is that it’s too far from my home. Instead most events that I have participated with are the Greenfield City Run for 4 consecutive years and also in Nuvali which is close to my house. Since I’m busy with my travels and work, It’s been almost a year now that I have joined another fun run for a cause. This was the Clean Air Run held at Greenfield City Laguna where it promotes the theme that is to have a clean air for us to breath. I missed the Outbreak Manila Run in Nuvali this March because of our company summer outing. I missed everything, I am supposed to be a runner and now being not able to do what I have been doing before.

My friend at the office encouraged me to participate in a run. Since I have not participated for quite a year now. I decided to join and was able to register again with the MediRun this May 19 held at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig sponsored by MediCard, one of the largest and leading health maintenance organiztion in the Philippines celebrating it’s 25th years of service. We chose the 3K run since we’ll be running with our daughter though there is a 500m run for kids. Since it’s our first time to run at BGC, we woke up as early as 3am to get on time before gun start. My daughter enjoy running but upon passing by One Serendra she got tired easily so we decided to walk instead.

After finishing the run we went at the redemption area to claim our loot bag which are freebies given to runners not just for participating but also for finishing the run. One of the best part of our loot bag is the 4gb especially designed USB Card . In fairness, MediCard has plenty of sponsors compared to other running events. Included in our pre-registration is a couple of voucher from Medicard like free check-up and consultation, free cholesterol testing, and free Triglycerides test to name a few though we have health providers of our own this one is truly useful because consultation cost Php400 to Php600 now a days.

Overall, the run event is truly awesome and fun, the organizers are really great in leading this event. Parking has never been a problem. You can actually park right beside the site because there is a plenty of parking space at the BGC. I am looking forward again to participate in this kind of event sooner and hopefully it’s not months or not a year will pass to experience it again.

Pahiyas Festival: It’s More Fun in Lucban

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Wed, 16 May 2012 04:30:00 +0000

Philippines is known to have a colorful festivals celebrated from different provinces of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Aside from Flores de Mayo and Barangay Fiestas celebrated in month of May.

Trip Ko ‘To have given a chance to experience one of the biggest and grandest festivity celebrated in the province of Quezon, this is the Pahiyas Festival.

About Pahiyas

Pahiyas Festival in the town of Lucban, Quezon is a brilliantly colorful celebration happened every 15th of May in honor of the farmers Patron Saint San Isidro de Labrador for a bountiful harvest. This is the only fiesta celebrated in the Philippines where residents mark the agricultural abundance by decorating their homes with flowers, fruits, and kipings (a thin wafer made of rice dough and dyed with tropical hues).

Highlights

At the heart of fiesta is the grand parade composed of marching band, street dancing, ADgiants or Higantes, Parikitan (ladies wearing colorful costumes made of various indigenous materials), Sunduan (beautiful ladies and their escorts in Filipiniana costumes), colorful floats, and the main highlights of the event is the procession of the image of San Isidro and his Wife pass through the entire town and bestow blessings for another good year. As the end of the procession passing each home, there is a mad scramble to remove or tear down the decorations (a tradition called Kalas) which embodies the event joyful spirit.

It’s 5am of May 15 when the entire family took off from our home in Laguna towards the town of Lucban. We took the Calamba-Sta Cruz-Pagsanjan route (Laguna Route) which is lesser in traffic than the usual Tiaong-Lucena (Quezon route). Roads in Laguna route are better and with less vehicles passing by the road particularly trucks and buses unlike in Tiaong-Lucena Route where buses bound to Quezon-Lucena and Bicol also bigger trucks passes by this 2 lanes and rough roads which added to the traffic. Btw, another reason of traffic in the Tiaong-Lucena route is the fiestas being celebrated in the towns of Candelaria and Sariaya where they also have their own versions of Pahiyas. We arrived around 7:30am at Lucban and the traffic at this side is very light where we able to get inside the town proper and get a very nice parking space.

The other side of the town (Quezon Lucena Route) has a different story where a very long queue of vehicles lining up to The Kamay Ni Hesus. So many people started walking from the Kamay Ni Hesus Shrine all the way to the town proper. Luckily, since we arrived early, the place where we park is Nanagas Village which is just a few blocks from the festivities.

It’s a bit cold and few rain showers when we arrived but the weather became hotter at around 11am till afternoon. Thousands of tourist, locals and foreigners alike roam around the streets of Lucban to witness every house decors. Most are enjoying taking pictures even inside each houses, windows and balconies.

In this year’s festival theme ‘It’s More Fun in Lucban, several houses with Kiping decorations became more grandest. Lucbanuenos showed their greatest creativity and grandeur where new forms and sizes are seen for the first time in this years festivals. Some houses or decorations though are covered with plastic as few rain showers occasionally poured but every one ignored it as the mood is undeniably festive. Just by being here makes you feel the joyous mood of the people and will admire the creativity and ingenuity as you pass each house.

As I have already been here and witnessed this celebration, I am determined to participate in Philippine Festivals since aside from the natural beauty we treasure, we have this festivities where we can say again that, It’s More Fun in the Philippines.

See more pictures below, thanks to PictoBuilder

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Manila Ocean Park: The Funtastic Tour

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sun, 06 May 2012 04:49:00 +0000

Manila Ocean Park is believed to be larger than Singapore’s Sentosa Underwater World in terms of floor space. Located at the back of the the Quirino Grand Stand at the famous Rizal Park in Manila.

I have been here a few years back to accompany my daughter in her field trip but the place is now so different in terms of attractions and venue.

We have bought tickets at a group buying site to experience once again the fun, fun, fun at this place tagged as an All Seasons Holiday Destination within the City.

I was amazed by the renovations made and somewhat upset at the thought that I was not able to come here sooner to appreciate the efforts made by China Oceanis Philippines Inc to improve this theme park.

Our first stop is the Penguin Talk Show where you will interact with Hamboo, and will narrate some of the important details of everyday penguin life. Though this one is little boring for adults, for kids this would be informative. But the jokes by the talking penguin may sometime be upsetting for the few. Just remember that this is an interactive talk show where everyone can talk to Hamboo and ask everything in only 45 minutes.

We went to the All Star Bird Show next. This one is very exciting too since all the Birds have different talents and skills to show. Dazzle the cackatoo knows how to identify shapes, Sassy the green winged macaw can do the math, there is even a basketball game for two Sassy and Bandit. And Strike the eaglet, also shows off his flying skills, the Philippine eagle. At first he is hesitant to fly from the back across the audience but then he flew towards his trainer in front.

The third show is hilariously funny since the two sea lions (Vincent and Yeni) shows off their various know how in entertaining. The sea lions swim, dance, portrays a mission impossible role and all other stuffs making those watching feels like a child again.

Last of the show is the Musical Fountain Show. The musical is amazing and dazzling until the Rising Starfish, Falling Starfish, Shooting Starfish with their team comes into view. My daughter is quite happy with it but the concept of the show is boring again, maybe it’s the choice of songs accompanied with poor choreography and sound that makes it less entertaining. I was somewhat bothered by the lobster that was being catch by the chef, since all the audience can hear is the buzzing sound.

Now don’t get me wrong but overall the place is very entertaining. H2O Hotel, the upper deck where you can view sunset over the Manila Bay, whatever took your fancy, pasalubong and many other shows to choose from.

We’re going back to Oceanarium and Trails to Antartica soon. There maybe not so good views about Ocean Park but I’m still thankful that they were finding ways to improve the park. Congratulations for the improvement well done. It’s really fun fun fun Philippines.

Capones Island

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:28:00 +0000

After Camping at Anawangin Cove. Fernando, our boatman arrived on the agreed pick up time at 7am. But we have not packed our things yet because of the rain that early morning though we woke up as early as 5am.

It is already 7:30am when we left Anawangin Cove and sailed straight towards Capones Island.

The main attraction in Capones Island is the Lighthouse. It is a historic lighthouse that was first lit on August 1, 1890 to guide international vessels coming from north to northwest towards Subic Bay or Corregidor Islands. The original lamp and lantern were replaced with modern solar powered lighthouse as part of the maritime improvements of the Philippine Coast guard. Only the tower was renovated but the keeper’s house and most part of the station were left deteriorating due to limited budget.

Climbing into the lighthouse is not like walking in the park because you will have to walk towards a rocky shore from your boat and climb a steep atop of the mountain. So be ready to carry only what you need like water and camera, all the hard work climbing over a rocky mountain comes a magnificent view of the Coastline of the West Philippine Sea.

We may have not seen this if had I not asked Fernando, the boatman, to take us to the lighthouse because it was raining that time. The request was truly worth it since the view from the top is truly breathtaking.

Nature's destructive power has also an opposite, just like in Anawangin Cove. Nature created it after Mt Pinatubo eruption and I thank God that we have seen it's magnificent beauty. May people learn to treasure this masterpiece because if not, Nature will always take it back and will forever be gone. Some people told us that a portion of the beach near the cave are gone, its like that the sands are going back underneath the sea. Whether it is true or not, we have our responsibility to keep the place prinstine and beautiful. What ever kind of garbage you brought when you set foot in the sands of Anawangin or Nagsasa, bring it with you when you get back to the mainland. Philippines are blessed with beautiful and wonderful sceneries that are natural while other countries have only man made. This is yours Filipino, treasure it, keep it clean.

Camping at Anawangin Cove, Zambales

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:04:00 +0000

Anawangin Cove is a famous place in Zambales that has been popularized by postings in different social media sites and blogs. This time my Family decided to explore the Cove and see the beauty in our own perception.

As compared to my trip before, this one also has been planned weeks ahead. After finishing my reports in my corporate life at the office, I went home to get our things and brought our daughter with us this dark night off from Laguna to spend a night in an old place in Caloocan where we live before we moved to Laguna. It’s early in the morning of 3am Thursday when we ride towards Victory Liner Caloocan to commute towards San Antonio Zambales. Like boy scout and girl scouts ready for adventure, we already brought with us our foods and all the things that we needed for camp at Anawangin so we didn’t go to the Market, instead, hopped at a Tricycle towards Barangay Pundaquit where our arranged boatman are waiting for us. Btw, this is our first time trip that we arranged through a travel agent, but it’s still cheap I guess.

A 15 to 20 minutes boat ride in a very strong waves will be truly worth it by seeing a magnificent surroundings until an Agoho Tree-lined beach came into view. Often mistaken for a Pine, it is actually a flowering tree that grows mostly on sandy seashores just like in Anawangin Cove.

The serene cove is truly delightful. Few tents were lined up beneath the Agoho Trees as we expected in a regular Thursday would be less crowded but compared to weekends so we were right, it is so peaceful. Some people are now preparing their foods and some were having a relaxing moment in this peaceful beach. Unlike the commercialize beaches in the Philippines such as Boracay and Puerto Galera, this one is truly remarkable.

The fact that the Province has been truly devastated by a volcanic eruption of Mt Pinatubo back in 1991, nature has truly has its own healing process. After days of ash falls where this cove and the nearby provinces of Zambales and Pampanga has been badly recognizable before and been said to be erased in the map and years of typhoons and lahar flows, a new haven have emerged, one of natures masterpiece.

We arrived at around 9 am and Fernando with his assistant boatman installing our tent while we preparing our lunch. We have brought rice, canned goods, bread, eggs, snacks but you may also bring dried fish, fruits or your choice of ihaw ihaw but this should be cooked right away to avoid being stale. A 5 gallon water is provided by Kuya Joven, our travel agent contact in Brgy Pundaquit who owns several banca’s and camping gears.

We also brought two small pots but Joven is kind enough to lend us an extra pot, pan, knife, sandok.

Cooking in charcoal is challenging, aside from it takes a long time to cook foods, starting a fire will sweat you out.

After we prepared lunch, we took a nap and this, I can say, is one of the best nap I ever had. The cool breeze that touches you while looking at the Agoho trees above is something that is very rare for urban people whose stress and anxiety is part of everyday life. I like this part.

We spend our afternoon swimming, taking pictures and just enjoying the scenery because here, time seems to stop and you have plenty of time to ponder, that is, to think that everyday that your alive is a special occasion, next day is another day to look forward to and God has been gracious so start and end the day by giving thanks to Him.

It’s nighttime now and also pitch dark because there is no electricity in the area so better bring emergency portable lamps. There are rechargeable lamps and flashlights that only cost 280 to 650 pesos at ACE Hardware or at any hardware store. After supper, we buy woods for bonfire for P100. There is a small store that sells basic commodities, it’s open 24 hours but I suggests that you bring your stuff aside from food, anti mosquito lotion, matches, sponge, dishwashing paste, etc because it is quite pricey.

Now, as I told you above, cooking in charcoal is challenging, starting a bonfire is another. It took us at least 25 minutes to have a decent fire plus a lot of kerosine thrown into it just to start. An improvise lamp, gasera, costs P50.00. But hey, look at my bonfire, isn’t that something?

We wake up around 4am because its raining, luckily not in torrents, but just some pitter patter and stop around 5am, Fernando will fetch us at 7am because we will be going island hopping and to Capones Island where the lighthouse is located.

Camping is truly a remarkable experience, this is another adventure I’ll be looking forward to again, soon.

Aliwan Festival, the Grandest Fiesta

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 11:30:00 +0000

Aliwan Festival is a must see since this cultural extravaganza brings together the country’s major festivals in just a single venue.

April 14, 2012 marks the 10th annual cultural show organized by Manila Broadcasting Company and the Cultural Center of the Philippines in cooperation with the cities of Manila and Pasay.

Aliwan is a Tagalog Term for amusement or entertainment has invaded Manila once again where the participants paraded along Roxas Boulevard from Quirino Grandstand to Aliw Theater grounds located at the CCP Complex near Star City.

Dubbed as the Philippines Grandest Fiesta, showcasting the different Filipino culture through Festival Street dance, Float Parade and Search for Festival Queen. Winners for this years Street dance for the 3rd consecutive time is the Dinagyang Festival from Iloilo taking home worth 1 Million Pesos in cash. Float parade is the Pamulinawen Festival from Laoag Ilocos, and Search for Festival of Queens goes to Angeli Gomez who represented Hinulawan Festival of Toledo Cebu.

There are also shopper's bazaar where outstanding products from different regions where displayed in their respective kiosks.

This shows that Philippines has a very diverse and rich culture and it’s worthwhile seeing this annually, till next year.

Visita Iglesia

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 01:31:00 +0000

Visita Iglesia is a Filipino tradition of visiting 7 churches or 14 churches during lent. Visiting the churches must recite 1 or 2 prayers for station of the cross for each churches. This is to contemplate on the Passion of Christ.

Other countries celebrate the Lenten season for two days only and most celebrate it only on Easter Sunday. But for Filipino Catholics, the Lenten Season is being celebrated in a whole long week with passion to reflect and repent.

Since it is also the longest holiday in the Philippines, there are still some who spend the whole season on a lavish vacations and holiday getaways either at the beach or somewhere else. There are still families and devotees seek serenity at their home and follow traditions like by doing Visita Iglesia on holy Thursday to contemplate on the Passion of Christ. Visita Iglesia in Spanish term means Church Visit.

Trip Ko ‘To was created to keep tag of the memorable things and places that me and my family visited both local and international. Since it’s Lenten season we would like to share and encourage as well our dear Filipino readers to rediscover the roots of our faith while unraveling in the religious destinations in the Philippines. Here are the churches in southern Luzon that are filled with historically rich churches that are usually complimented by intriguing old Spanish style architectures that we visited this Maundy Thursday particularly in the Province of Quezon. Although we did not able to visit the 14 churches or even reach 7 churches as truly the meaning of the Visita Iglesia, we still would like to share it with you.

San Juan Baustista Parish in Candelaria

The church was renovated in 2005 and it is where the famous Candle Festival was celebrated every 5th of February as an annual offering to the Blessed Virgin of Candelaria or in spanish called Nuestra Senora de Candelaria. The church complex also has a human size images of catholic saints and Jesus which has attract more visitors and devotees to pray.

St Francis of Assisi Church in Sariaya Quezon

The present church (the picture above)was built in 1748. The church houses the Sto Cristo de Burgos image which is more popular than the patron saint Francis of Assisi because devotees and pilgrims considered Sto Cristo de Burgos to be miraculous. The town suffered major calamities including widespread fire and the only sculpture or image remain was the unscathed image of Sto Cristo de Burgos. According to legend that 4 men carry the crucified Christ of Burgos wrapped in white cloth in search for a new church. After resting under a tree the 4 men cannot carry the image even with the help from other people. Taking as a providential sign, the town people built a church on the exact site where the present Saint Francis Assisi Church was located.

Minor Basilica of St Michael the Archangel in Tayabas Quezon

The church is considered to be the longest-standing Spanish Colonial church and one of the most beautiful church in the Philippines. One of the famous here in this church is the bell tower which features an 18 century clock that is still unbelievably working today despite of its being way way old . It also has the longest aisle where getting married couple will experience a very longer wedding march.

St Louis of Toulouse Church Lucban Quezon

Like the other churches in the Philippines, this one has also undergone a test of time built in 1593 but it is still stands tall and the pride of Lucban which houses their patron saint San Isidro de Labrador. Every year on May 15th celebrated a grand fiesta known as the Pahiyas Festival to honor Lucbans Patron Saint showcasting different agricultural products particularly the famous Kiping that are being decorated on every homes external walls that are still edible afterwards. This is a celebration for a whole years bountiful harvest through the guidance of their patron Saint San Isidro de Labrador.

Kamay ni Hesus Shrine

The shrine features one of the country’s tallest Christ statue located about 292 steps atop and believed to be the 2nd tallest Christ statue next to the famous Christ the Redeemer Statue in Brazil. It also has live replicas of the Garden of Eden, and a model of Noah’s Ark. It is also the center for the healing ministry of Fr Joey Faller.

Earth Hour: I Will If You Will

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 09:23:00 +0000

The world turned off its lights again for an hour of March 31 at 8:30pm to 9:30pm local time to show of support for tougher actions to confront climate change.

Hundreds of millions of people, businesses, and governments around the globe unite each year to support the largest environmental event in history – Earth Hour.

Earth Hour started five years ago March 31, 2007 in Sydney Australia to look at new ways to take climate change seriously and find alternative solutions and sustainable energy sources. 2.2 millions Australians and 2,100 businesses participated in the event. The following year, plans to make Earth Hour as Sydney’s national event became an international interest amid support for more than 100 millions of people across the globe in more than 5 thousand cities and 135 countries. Since then Earth Hour became an annual global event that held every last Saturday of March. This year commemorated the exact date of its inauguration five years ago with a new theme “I Will If You Will” to showcase how everyone has the power to change the world we live in through social media like You tube, Facebook, Twitter, Google +1, and other. The task is simple, head to You Tube or other social media and tell us what are you willing to do to save the planet.

This is our home, our only home, our only planet. We have our own responsibilities same as we have in our own house. “Great things can achieve when people come together for a common cause.”

La Luz, Romantic Getaway

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 23:55:00 +0000

There’s really no stopping the summer fun, this time my wife and I decided to leave our daughter to Lolo and Lola and have the vacation by ourselves for two days and one night stay at La Luz.

Just like the White Cove Beach Resort, La Luz is situated in San Juan Batangas only a couple of kilometers more because it is located at Barangay Hugom next to Barangay Laiya Aplaya.

The funny part here is that we decided to commute since we were trying to “elope” from the prying eyes of my daughter and bringing car along is not a good idea because there will be lots of questions that will be bombarded upon us and whining before we can go by ourselves.

We ride a bus JAM Liner in Cubao and alighted at the Candelaria Quezon, we then took a Jeepney from the intersection to San Juan. At San Juan Market we again ride a Jeepney towards Laiya / Hugom. We have no idea at all what the trip will be until some of the passengers decided to ask the driver to get them off in their respective houses, we were surprised when a cloud of dust envelope us due to the side streets is not yet cemented that time. Imagine the tiny particles of sands that covers our hair, clothes and bags,we laugh our hearts out because we look like vampires ashen with dust.

La Luz is a perfect for a weekend getaway. We booked for two days, one night stay with full board meals. Check-in time is 12 noon but since we commute we arrived at almost 1pm. It’s nice that at 11am someone from La Luz have already texted to inform us our check in time and when the 12 noon check in time have passed, another text from La Luz asking for our whereabouts.

We felt sudden relief that one of the passenger in the jeepney is working at the resort so she lead us towards the resort and texted that we will be arriving soon. Upon arrival we were welcomed by their staff and brought us to the dining area as our food is waiting for us. We were so lucky that the management gave us the upgraded room good for 6 persons instead of a standard room. I missed my daughter and regretted that we should have brought her with us.

There’s plenty of activities here such as kayaking, trekking(upon request), island hopping, and snorkeling. We rent a boat for Php700 to do some snorkeling.

Stroll along the beach in the early morning to see fisherman sell their catch.

After paddling, snorkeling, and sunbathing on the beach, we prepared our things and went back home. Getting home is more convenient because a good Jeepney driver and his wife showed us the easiest way to get back to Manila. We discovered that there is a shuttle van or GT Express near the Market that lead us to Lipa City. Then off at Lipa Cathedral there was also GT Express terminal nearby that lead us to Balibago Sta Rosa which is just near to our house in Binan. The ride going home took us only 1.5 hours.

We really enjoyed our stay at La Luz. It’s so relaxing and quiet. Unlike other beaches such as Puerto Gallera and Boracay, Batangas beaches has only few active night life. Laiya is the best romantic getaway at an affordable price.

For the updated Package Rate of La Luz click here

How to get there via Public Transport visit my previous post Summer Time at Laiya Batangas

Summertime at Laiya, Batangas

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 00:39:00 +0000

Batangas is known for kapeng barako, natural attractions and numerous resorts among others. Canyon Cove, La Luz, Munting Buhangin, 4V Beach Resort are just among the few places I’ve been for this known place.

It’s fun, fun, fun summer once again and our destination for this time is barely two hours ride from our home in Laguna. Laiya located in San Juan Batangas was divided in two barangays which is the Laiya-Aplaya and Laiya-Ibabao that both has a majestic coastline with several beach resorts to visit for swimming, diving, and other outdoor activities.

My family including my parents and brother tag along to enjoy our weekend here at White Cove Beach Resort located at Barangay Laiya-Aplaya in San Juan, Batangas

Entrance fee is only Php150.00, we have paid for another Php150.00 for corkage since we brought in foods, for a day tour. You may choose to have a buffet meal for Php600 rate for day tour and Php950 for overnight food package that includes Dinner, Breakfast, and Lunch. Rent for a Picnic Hut cost Php900.

Cost for our day tour swimming for 5 pax child is free of charge

Toll Fee from Binan – Round Trip	Php 252
Gas – Round Trip	Php 900
Own Food and Drinks	Php 1200
Entrance and Corkage Fee	Php 1500
Picnic Hut	Php 900
Total Expenses (Group)	Php4652

* Note: if you will be coming from Magallanes-Makati Area Toll fee is Php214 to Calamba then same Php25 flat rate for ACTeX and Php57 Star Toll Fee Ibaan exit

Just like the other resorts, this has other amenities such as Billiards, Videoke, Kayak, Beach Volleyball, and Free WiFi access but limited range only which is near the Bar. The Resort also has Pavilions located at the 2nd floor good for large functions such as meetings and seminars. They also arrange wedding receptions and other occasions such as company outings and events.

They have Sunday Mass too at the Clubhouse every Sundays.

How to Get There via Public Transport

It’s easy to find and accessible. There are buses plying to Batangas daily from Manila like Jam Transit, Alps and Solid North Transit that usually leaves every 15-30 minutes from its stations in Cubao. You can choose between two routes going to Laiya via South Expressway-Star Tollway Lipa Batangas Route which is the fastest way or via South Expressway-Laguna-Tiaong-Candelaria-Batangas Route.

Via Candelaria

Take a bus from Manila to Lucena (Jackliner, Tritran, BLTB, Jam, etc) but get off at the Town of Candelaria. (Approximately 2 hours)
Get off at Chow King right after the town proper of Candelaria.
Go to the nearest intersection, which is about 10 meters and take a jeep to the town of San Juan, Batangas. (Approximately 30 minutes)
Get off at the San Juan, Town Market and take a jeep to the Barrio of Hugom where you will pass by White Cove Beach Resort beside Kabayan Beach resort. (Approximately 30 minutes)

Via Lipa

Take a bus from Manila to Lipa City (Jackliner, Tritran, BLTB, Jam, Alps, etc.) (Approximately 1.5 hours)
Get off at Bus Terminal near McDonalds, Jollibee, and Shakey’s.
Take a tricycle to the jeep terminal located at the City Market (approximately 10 minutes)
Take a jeep bound for San Juan, Batangas. (Approximately 45 minutes)
Get off at San Juan Town Market
Take a jeep to Barrio Hugom you will pass by White Cove Beach Resort near Kabayan Beach resort. (Approximately 30 minutes).

How to Get There via Private Vehicle

Take South Super Highway (SLEX) up to STAR toll way. The 2 highways are now connected via the new Alabang Calamba Expressway (ACTeX). Please do not exit the highway and stay on until the SLEX turns into the STAR highway.
Drive 45 kilometers on the Star Toll way (STAR) and take the San Jose-Ibaan Exit (after the Lipa exit). After exiting, turn left and drive 2.5 kilometers. You will reach an intersection with a sign pointing to Rosario, at this point please turn left at this intersection. After turning left, the Municipal Hall of Ibaan will be on your right while a church will be on your left. After passing the church on your left you will reach a forked road. Turn right at the road sign pointing to San Juan. Drive 8 kilometers along this road to Rosario town proper.
Upon reaching the Rosario town proper, there is a Jollibee outlet at your left. Drive past the Jollibee Rosario outlet and the South Star drug store outlet. This road leads all the way to San Juan town proper, which is approximately 23 kilometers away. You will pass a sign for the Batangas Racing Circuit along the way. Please veer left at this point.
Once in the town of San Juan, make a right after the Municipal Hall. You will see a Petron Gasoline Station, a Frank’s burger Stall and a Dunkin Donut Store right before the Municipal Hall. This road, will take you to straight towards the Barangay Laiya-Aplaya and Baranggay Hugom at the end of the road . The total distance from the Municipal Hall is about 24 kilometers. Please follow the road until you see sign of Playa Laiya at the right and only few minutes you will pass by the entrance of Kabayan Beach Resort and next to it is the White Cove Beach Resort entrance to your left. The drive is approximately 30 minutes.

For inquiries about the Resort click http://www.laiyawhitecove.com

Fireworks, Wish I May, Wish I Might

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 15:00:00 +0000

The 3rd Philippines Pyromusical Competition closes with colorful flairs that lit the dark sky at the Mall of Asia.

It’s the 3rd Pyromusical and the 2nd time that I enjoyed this event. The 1st time I watched this event is that we stayed only at the parking lot with a drizzle showering upon us.

This time, I happen to get a discounted ticket (GOLD) where I get a better view of the awesome lights that illuminates the sky with matching music.

We arrived around 5pm and I could hardly get a parking space where I almost drove 1 hour just to look for parking space so we end up at the back of Teleperformance near SMX.

We bought food at the stall since almost all the restaurants have long queue but believe me, the pork chop and fried chicken is not as tasty at it should be so I suggest to refrain buying from some of the stalls that promise affordable but good food because it’s not.

The areas for Silver, Gold and even VIP are so crowded. People are so excited and eager to see the dark sky illuminated with colorful flairs of fireworks even they will be standing for 3 hours (not including the waiting time or the time they arrived at the site) or sitting on the floor covering with mats, or sitting on portable chairs.

I made several settings on my camera. Capturing fireworks is not as easy. I made several shots before and I over exposed most of it especially during the fireworks at Hongkong Disneyland. Every new year I always challenged my self to capture the best photo. This time I tried it again to the finale of this years Pyromusical Competition.

It’s 7:30 pm when the colorful flairs lit the sky as Finland showed their own spectacular performances synchronized with music but all in all Canada was crowned champion of the event.

The Platinum Fireworks of the Philippines, a non-competing company, showed their best display which amazed the crowd. It’s so spectacular even the selections of music is awesome which includes Close-up theme song. But when the “ I Will Always Love You” sang by the late Whitney Houston played there were no fireworks that lit the sky due to technical issues. People shouted and almost all songs have been played but the sky remains dark as people in the crowd begun to cheer up and asking for more. A couple of minutes the sky again became colorful as the Platinum Fireworks of the Philippines poured out its way to the last minute to redeem itself and wowed the crowd to the hilt. People are cheering up specially when Manny Pacquio’s song played with awesome lights and display.

We went out the Mall of Asia almost 10pm and the crowd also flock on streets like exodus to find their rides whether by Bus, Jeepney, or Taxi. Traffic in all streets started to queue up but after passing by Pasay Rotonda felt sudden relief as the traffic goes smoother. Anyway, that’s just the dilemma of the day but all in all, driving all the way from Laguna to see this spectacular lights conquer the sky is just at all, worth it.

Tips On Watching this event or Any Fireworks Show.

Go to the site as early as 4pm and get the best spot
To avoid buying expensive food or beyond your budget, bring your own food and snack
Expect that Food stalls, fast food and QSR have long queue so better eat as many before going to the event or bring your own food and snack. You could try buying at the cheapest grocery store such as Hypermart or SaveMore if you are commuting.
Bring your own mat or portable chairs to be comfortable while waiting for the show. You could even play your favorite games with mobile phones, tablets, or ipads while sitting comfortably
Never forget to bring you own bottled water although there are lots of water kiosk around they are bit too pricey which is worth Php20 for a 330ml plastic bottle.
Bring your own garbage bag or avoid leaving your garbage after the show. Because tons of garbage are being cleaned up every time there are events such as this. So help contribute to society, I am not saying that you should pick up all the garbage even not yours but instead try to put your garbage on trash bins or even on your own garbage bag. You can leave it next to trash bins if already full as long as it is properly sealed. Its better that way instead of leaving it scattered anywhere else.
If you are commuting, expect that you could not be able to find the easiest public transport at the mall complex going home and expect heavy traffic, instead start walking towards Macapagal Boulevard or worst at the Roxas Boulevard to get your own ride. Remember that it is not only you or your folks commuting, there are other hundreds of people also waiting and trying to get their ride home either by Bus, Jeepney, or Taxi.

Cebu Pacific Promo

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 11:21:00 +0000

Just booked a flight to a destination that I would love to visit ever since for only Php114.90 base fare.

Hurry! you still have until tomorrow to book your favorite Philippine or International Destinations for a 90% discount.

Pansol Laguna’s Private Resort Pools

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Pansol Laguna is known for its hot springs resort, private resort pools for personal getaway, family or corporate outings or simply barkada’s outing.

It will be in a few days and my Tito Danny and Tita Tessie will be off to Las Vegas after a month long vacation hear in Manila.

They decided to try the hot spring at Pansol Laguna but after scouting at different resorts we ended up in a private pool with warm water instead.

There are several private resorts to choose from, the only difference is the price and amenities it will offer.

We choose JLO Ville Resort at a price of P4,000 for a whole day stay and the use of its amenities.

Rooms

Actually there are 3 rooms included in our rental, 1st at to top of a children’s pool which has double Bed, 2nd room near the billiards with 1 double decker bed and 1 bed good for two, and the 3rd room which is near the 2nd Sala has 2 double decker beds. Photo below right is the room near the billiards.

Nipa Hut and Tables and Chairs

Billiard Table

Mini Pool (Children)

Large Swimming Pool

My daughter enjoyed as usual the swimming pool for children as well as for adults.

And the crowd’s favorite, for my favorite kind of crowd…

VIDEOKE

You can also use their refrigerator, gas tanks and stove for cooking.

The days pass by with lots of singing I can say, artist such as the Carpenters, The Beatles, and the oldies but goodies revived by our singers for the day that includes my mom, dad, tito and titas, cousins and siblings.

Pansol Laguna truly offers a satisfying weekend getaway for family get together and its worth remembering

See below for the list of Private Pools and Resorts and their contact numbers.

CALAMBA

JLO VILLE PRIVATE RESORT
Nathalie St. Purok 5, Bgy Pansol, Clamba Laguna
Smart: 09183733380
Sun : 09231850852

88 Hot Spring Resort and Spa
Bagong Kalsada, Calamba City
(02) 804-0608
(049) 536-1388

A and A Resort
Miramonte Village, Bgy. Pansol, Calamba, Laguna

Agua Caliente Resort
275 Purok 2, Calamba City
(049) 545-2001

Aqua De Sorgente Non-Hot Spring Resort
Pansol, Calamba, Laguna
(02) 425-3362

Al-Fa Spring Resort
Purok 3, Calamba City
(049) 834-4128

Batis ng Makiling
Brgy.Bukal, Calamba City
(049) 545-1733 / 545-0090

Bay Breeze
L & D Summerville Subd.
(049) 545-5670

Casa Ligaya Resort
Miramonte Village, Bgy. Pansol, Calamba, Laguna
(049) 545-4666 / 09274998216

Crystal Springs Waterworld, Inc.
Km. 57, Calamba City
(02) 896–1318

Doña Jovita Garden Resort
Km. 57, Nat’l. Hi-way, Bagong Kalsada, Calamba City
(049) 545–3740 / 545-0368

El Castillo Royale Hot Spring Resort
Purok 5, Calamba City
(049) 545-2005

El Pansolito Resort
Purok 5, Calamba City
(049) 545-1935

Executive Well Spring Resort
Purok 5, Calamba City
(049) 545-5771

Garden Inn Resort
Bagong Kalsada, Calamba, Laguna
(049) 545-1495

Golden Star Resort
Brgy. Masili, Calamba City
(049) 545-1667

Grand Bay Resort
609 Solemar Del Sol, Calamba City
(049) 834-1195

Green Spring Resort
Purok 5, Calamba City
(049) 545-3890

Jaycee Resort & Realty Dev't. Corp
Purok 5, Calamba City
(049) 545-3205

Jonel Spring Resort
Bagong Kalsada, National Hi-way, Calamba City
(049) 244-4245

La Bea Resort Corp
Shangrila Village, Bagong Kalsada, Calamba City
(049) 890-3919

La Vista Pansol Resort Complex
Pansol, Calamba City
(049) 545–1850 / (049) 834-1121

Laguna Hot Spring Resort
Purok 3, Calamba City
(049) 545-2170

Le Bea Resort, Corp.
Shangrila Village, Bagong Kalsada, Calamba City
(02) 890–3919

Luisa Ridge Hot Spring Resort and Spa
Bucal, Calamba City
(049) 545-9252 / 545-7909
(02) 524-6739 / 521-6078

Makiling Highlands Resort
Capt. Mamon Rd., Purok 7, Calamba City
(049) 545-9710

Monte Vista Resort Hotel & Restaurant
Pansol, Calamba City
(049) 545–1259 / 545-2102

New Riverview Resort & Sports Complex
Parian, Calamba, Laguna
(049) 545–1940

Orchid Villa Hot Spring Resort
Pansol, Calamba, Laguna
(02) 425-3362

Plums Resort
Sampaguita St., Miramonte Village, Bgy. Pansol, Calamba City
(049)549-1927/(049)549-1217

R & R Resort
Km. 55, Pansol, Calamba City
(049) 545–2952

Riverview Resort and Conference Center
National Highway, Parian, Calamba City
(049) 545–3421
(02) 420-8507

Rock Point Hotel and Conference Center
Makiling Village, Calamba City
(049) 545-3234 to 35 / 545-1372
(02) 520-8824

Spring Forest Resort
96 Arvin St., Purok 7, Calamba City
(049) 545-5514

Southwinds Resort
National Highway, Bo. Pansol, Calamba Laguna
(049) 502-8060 / (049) 502-8854

Sun City Resort
Purok 7, Pansol Road, Calamba City
(049) 545-0243 / 545-0244

Valleyview Spring Resort & Rest., Inc.
Brgy. Masili, Calamba City
(049) 244-5850

Villa Rufina Hot Spring Resort
Pansol, Calamba City
(02) 425-3362

White Paradise Resort
Calamba City
(02) 425-3362

Wonder Island Resort
Calamba City
(049) 545-1766 / 545-6491 to 92
(02) 520-8556

Yahweh's Spring Retreat and Resort Inc.
Bo. Pansol, Calamba City
(049) 545-5098
sa_montano@yahoo.com

LOS BAÑOS

Alviar’s Lake Resort
Tadlac, Los Banos, Laguna
(049) 245-2785 / 244-0084

Arisabel Clubhouse
Economic Garden, Timugan, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-6109 / 536-3119

Art Maligaya Resort
2526, Maahas, Los Baños, Laguna
(049) 536-0340

Baden Haus
Libis, Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 562-0347 / 536-6820

BSP (Boy Scouts of the Philippines) Swimming Pool
Jamboree Camp, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-0081 / 536-4759

City of Spring Resort And Hotel
#147 N. Villegas St., Los Banos, Laguna
(049) 536-0731 / 536-1001(02) 520-8364

Hillspa Resort
Nat'l. Rd., Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-5049 / 249-4394

Horizon View Hotspring
#29 Matapat St., Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
536-0494 / 807-6482

La Marea #20 Matapat St., Lalakay, Los Baños
(049) 536-0816

La Roca de Trinidad Resort
58.8 Km., Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 827-0180

Lakeview Resort & Hotel
Lopez Jaena, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-0101

Lakewood Swimming Pool
Los Baños Laguna
(049) 827-2794

Laroca De Trinidad
Lalakay, Los Banos, Laguna
(049) 536-1258

Libis ng Nayon Resort
Nat'l. Hi-way, Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-5398

Maquiling Breeze Resort
Springdale Subd. Los Banos, Laguna
(049) 536-3710

Palm Springs Resort
Lalakay, Los Banos, Laguna
(049) 536-0252 / 827-0213

Pook ni Mariang Makiling
Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-3489

Ralph's Hot Spring Resort
Km.59 Nat'l. Hi-way., Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-0066

RV Resort Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-6260.

Splash Mountain Resort
Km 58, Nat'l. Hi-way, Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-6397 / 536-6399 / 536-6400
(02) 520-8365

Teakwood Resort
Brgy. Lalakay, Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-7619

Villa Conrada Los Baños Laguna
(049) 536-3188

Villa De Javier Resort
Km. # 65 Maahas, Los Banos, Laguna
(049) 827-7421

Windy Hill Resort Los Baños Laguna
(049) 827-0291

Il Mercanti Food Bazaar

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 14:00:00 +0000

It’s a usual Friday when my wife and I decided to hang out in the talk of the town food bazaar near her office. The Il Mercanti Food Bazaar located at the Metrowalk in Orgias Pasig City.

It’s only 6 pm when we arrived and there’s so many foods to choose from to satisfy one’s cravings.

I am a food lover and this place will provide many choices that we’ll not run out, even if you are a picky eater or simply a food lover.

Tita Carol’s Food Stall where I bought my favorite sisig for only P90…crunchy and yummy.

Il Mercanti was just established last September 7, 2011 which opens every Thursdays to Sundays from 7pm to 5am which is the best time to dine with friends and family and have plenty of choices of foods to eat or have a food trip of their own from desserts, fish, barbeque, and a lot more. This is not just a place for working people or call center agents though the place is just a walk from the Ortigas Business District but in fact there are also full time moms visiting the place when we were there to take the foods out for their home meal because foods are really cheap and affordable. There are also Barkada's having their nice salu-salo to celebrate one of their friends birthday.

Try visit the place and hope you'll enjoy as much as we did. Parking space is not a problem because they have plenty of space and the ambiance is really nice. Ventilation is really good even during summer because stalls are tented.

MEGA SALE, MEGA DISCOUNTS

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 07:00:00 +0000

I’ts fun fun sale of shoes and bags again at the Megatrade Hall 1 and 2 from March 02-04, 2012.

Hurry! you still have few hours left to take your favorite brand of shoes and bags in your home.

We usually watch out for this kind of shoes and bags sale since I am fond of buying shoes, slip on, sandals for my family, and travel bags at discounted price.

It’s really nice to know that SM have come up with this kind of event where you can the best deals in terms of quality and affordability.

But sales events such as this usually put my patience into challenge since there are always throngs of people, long queue, but in spite of this, I always end up having a nice choice of item to bring home at half a price of it’s worth.

For updates on MEGA SALES click on www.megatrade.com.ph

Happy 5th Birthday, Nuffnang!

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 22:26:00 +0000

Nuffnang is celebrating it’s 5th Birthday to be held at Borough at the Podium Mall in Ortigas Center Mandaluyong City this coming February 27. The evening of celebrations starts at 8pm to 12mn, so expect Nuffnangers and bloggers alike to be there in this important event.

As the Asia Pacific's first and Leading Blog Advertising community which is serving ads to more than 200000 blogs, it had also grown to be a successful community for bloggers with full of funs and activities.

I don’t have memories to share with Nuffnang communities as I just started my blog 5 months ago. Well I should have started 5 years ago but that time I do not have internet access at home and only surf the net at the internet café’s. Way back my college days, web designing and internet blogging are starting to emerge in the Philippines. I kind of ignore it that time specially during my computer subject (my main subject) which discussed html, css, php etc because for me it’s so boring. After I graduated, I started to realized that everything that was being discussed during college days will be more useful than I think. As I never really listened to my teacher before, I realized that I should have. So I tried to learn html, css, web design little by little at home. Some people calls me a late bloomer. Well because I only act and start do something late instead of taking the opportunity when I already had the chance to grab it.

Mine is a different story compared to Timothy Tiah and Cheo Ming, the founder of Nuffnang.com whom to be a student that time. They sees an opportunity to establish a business as the web phenomenon started to boom. They took the chance with dedication and perseverance. Today, Nuffnang is one of the most successful and reputable advertising flatform industry. Thousands of bloggers have been served ads by numerous bluechip companies such as Nike, Citibank, Nokia, Honda, Samsung, Procter and Gamble, and KFC are just to name a few.

So lets go at Borough at the Podium Mall in Ortigas Center on the 27th of February. Let us celebrate the fun with full of surprises which starts at 8 in the evening till 12 midnight.

It’s Happy 5th Birthday to Nufnang , let’s party

The celebration is brought to you by the following sponsors

Puerto Galera on a Shoestring Budget

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:47:00 +0000

My wife’s friends invited me to hop in with them for an adventure in Puerto Galera. With a very tight budget of just 2,000 box each, we decided to travel to Puerto Galera via public transport. At first I was worried about my budget, but what the heck.

We decided to meet at the Jam Liner Terminal at Kamuning near GMA channel 7 after work. We headed towards Batangas Pier for only 280 pesos fare. It was 10:30pm when we arrived at the Batangas Pier then bought a ticket for 11:00pm RORO trip towards Calapan for only 180 pesos and 20 pesos terminal fee.

Our buddy Roy has a home at Calapan City so we decided to stop over at their place to take a rest. It was 2:30am already when we arrived at Calapan City Port. Roy hired 2 tricycle and lead us to his home, it was darn cold that time and I did not bring a jacket. We stayed overnight with a very hospitable family who catered yummy foods and let us take a deep sleep for our weary bodies.

The following morning, that was Saturday, we wake up at around 6 am with just a few hours of sleep since we’re very excited.We took our delicious breakfast (thank’s to Tita Angelica, Roy’s mother) and took a tricycle for 15 pesos to the town where we ride a van for a 100 pesos to the Tamaraw Falls.

Tamaraw Falls is a beauty to behold, it is situated alongside the road and is a great attraction to passers-by. We took lots of pictures and proceed to White Beach resort via Jeepney for 35 pesos.

Luck must have sought us that day since Roy and Leanne were able to get an accommodation for only 1500 at the VM Beach Resort. We then take our personal belongings to the hotel and find a place to eat, here’s the funny part, we were able to take our sumptuous lunch at the Food Trip, the same as my blog page on Foods. There are several value meals to choose from, from 100 pesos onwards and I can say that it is so delicious an all comes with unlimited rice.

We enjoyed the rest of the day swimming, taking pictures, sand bathing, and just doing anything we can think of. As the Sun goes down party does not stop there and more people are coming in every restaurants in White Beach as Puerto Galera has known to have an active night life. We’ve witness people are dancing in an array of disco restaurant bar nearby and some are enjoying the sand staring at the stars above. We also witness different fire dances from our left and to our right which is truly more fun.

The guys enjoyed their evening drinking the famous Mindoro-Sling at the Svend Ristorante Pizzeria.

We then spend the next day (Sunday) swimming and buying souvenir since we took a banca reservation at around 1 pm for 200 and a terminal fee of 10 pesos.

Imagine spending our weekend on a very enjoyable and relaxing Puerto Galera without costing us the whole world.

Coron Islands: Adventures on Natural Wonders

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 03:51:00 +0000

It was my 2nd time to visit Palawan. The 1st was in Puerto Princesa City last March 2011 where I have visited the famous Under Ground River which is listed as one of the new 7 wonders of nature.

Now on the 3rd week of 2012, we chose Coron as our 1st destination of the year. Actually I already listed my top destinations for 2012 and this trip was planned since May 2011. Yes it’s May 2011 that I made my bookings with Cebu Pacific thru their Piso Fare promo, It’s a one way trip back then and made my hotel reservations with Ralph Pension House last June 21 which is exactly 7 months away to our maiden trip. I just booked our return trip with Philipine Airline only this December because I was saving my money on my Hong Kong Trip that time and decided to splurge the rest of the 2012 plan after the trip. Luckily I found this “chance in a lifetime promo” from PAL which is the Payday Special Promo. I called it chance of a lifetime promo because it is rare to see Philippine Airlines offered promo sales except for the Midnight Fare Promo which is during midnights of Sundays.

There are lots of attractions to do in Coron like snorkeling, kayaking, trekking, and diving. We made a package arrangement with Ralph Pension House because we are always do DIY tours. We are also happy that Ralph Pension House arranged a boat for only the 3 of us and our Licensed Tour Guide Kuya Nonoy from day 1 to day 4. It's like that we are VIP's because we enjoyed our time in every tour and stayed as much as we want.

Trekking at Mt. Tapyas

One of the Major activity offered to us during our first day is to climb Mt Tapyas. It is very extraordinary to experience a panoramic view of the entire Island at the top of the mountain that stands of about 200 meters above sea level. It’s about an hour or less to reach the summit depending on your physical conditions. It took us just 35 minutes to climb the 715 steps of the makeshift ladder even though our daughter are with us, she is so energetic and eager to reach the top. It is best to climb the mountain late in the afternoon between 4 to 6pm to avoid extreme heat from the Sun.

Upon reaching to the summit, tiredness and exhaustion faded easily when we saw the spectacular view of the surrounding islands. The great weather and pollution free air that we breath deeply after a long steps of climbing, we felt a sudden peace and serenity enjoying the greatest view we have seen in our lifetime. With the greatest sunset that I have ever captured which took me to shoot over and over again until the light continue to die down and a dominant blue hues starts to unfold across the horizons.

It is truly a very astonishing experience in our first day in Coron which will truly be the most memorable.

Maquinit Hot Spring

After mesmerizing with the beauty of the surroundings, we headed to Maquinit Hot Springs to enjoy our Dinner. Maquinit Hot Springs is the only salt water hot spring in the Philippines which actually coming from a volcano located underground. It is extremely hot with a temperature of about 40 degrees Celcius or 104 degrees Fahrenheit. We only stayed for an hour and head back to our place to take a rest and rejuvenate to prepare for tomorrows new adventure.

Kayangan Lake

This lake is said to be the cleanest lake in the Philippines. Some calls it The Blue Lagoon which amidst sheer limestone cliffs. This beautiful picture-perfect scenery can be seen after a walk up a mountain trail. The crystal clear water allows you to see the bottom of the lake despite it being more than 10 feet deep. Take a dip, swim or snorkel around the lake and feel the calm waters. For me I took a sit and relax, did nothing but stared the beautiful scenery and took the opportunity off course to take pictures because this one is truly a chance of a lifetime experience for me to take a picture of my own that I only see it in the internet before. Only this time that then and there, experiencing the place with my own sense of perception. Seeing the real thing made me utter which that I would love to say and express deeply that it’s really more fun here in the Philippines.

Coron White Sand Beaches and Tiny Islands

Coron truly has beautiful beaches. Aside from the towering limestone and a numerous islands elsewhere with fine white sands and crystal clear blue waters.

Banol Beach and Atuayan Beach is a small beach with just a couple of nipa huts to rent from the locals. We stopped at Banol Beach on Day 2 and at Atuayan Beach on Day 3 for a lunch and stayed until 2pm because my daughter loved the fine white sands and and crystal clear water that she can even see white fishes and tiger fishes swimming on her feet. There are other foreign tourist enjoying their moment sunbathing and swimming.

Siete Piscados Marine Reserve. One of the best snorkeling site in Coron which translated in English as Seven Sins. The name originated through local tales about 7 kids left the island to escape but no one made it out to sea alive. Until few days new 7 isolated islands was formed in the middle of the sea. Some locals says that the biggest and the farthest island was the eldest one. Behind this local tales about the islands lies a true and extremely beautiful corals underneath and great fishes as well which will definitely made your trip enjoyable than ever. As the place declared marine reserve, corals and fish life appear to improve almost monthly according to divers and tourist that went back and fort twice a year here in Coron which is very overwhelming. The outstanding features of this reef are large formations of pristine staghorn corals and table corals according to experts. There are school of reef fish and small barracuda with green sea turtles found here and at the Coral Garden near Atuayan Beach and more small barracuda at the barracuda lake.

Twin Peak and Twin Lagoon is nestled in a cathedral of huge limestone formation. The twin peaks can be access in two ways (the hard way and the not so hard and not so simple way). During low tide, both can be access by a small and narrow opening which also serve as water passage where fresh water meets the salt water from the other side. While on high tide, one can make a deep swim underneath to reach the other lagoon or climb over the limestone wall, but to make easy, locals built a makeshift ladder to make it more accessible to the tourist. Upon reaching this narrow crevice of the peak you will see the beauty and cleanliness of the twin lagoon where you could feel gradual changes of water temperature by swimming from the opening to the middle. I only brought my cell phone to capture what is it inside the lagoon, off course it is covered in a waterproof case because it is impossible to bring a non-water proof camera inside that I have to swim all the way from the boat and inside the lagoon and to the other side where I exerted all my energy. But it’s very overwhelming though when I felt the water getting colder upon reaching into the middle. The place is extremely beautiful and calm.

Coron, Palawan

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:02:00 +0000

Palawan which is known to many as one of the greatest and most wonderful Island Paradise in the Philippines. I’ve been here in Palawan twice now. My first travel in Palawan was last March 2011 in Puerto Princesa City. In fact, it was my first blog debut that I featured on my site.

It was truly an amazing experience to travel in Palawan. Seeing the place the first time was truly awesome, it’s like falling in love in a place that seems to be perfect and serene. People are very nice, and hospitable. So me and my family decided to visit again Palawan and this time in the island of Coron, actually it’s the 2nd largest island municipality in the Calamian Group of Islands.

Unlike the city of Puerto Princesa, Coron has few commercial establishments. But in fairness to the town itself was very safe with zero crime rate where you can safely walk on streets even at night. The airport known as Francisco B. Reyes Airport was located in the municipality of Busuanga which is located couple of miles away which about 30 minutes to 45 minutes away from the municipality of Coron. It is even more dumfounding to know that the airport has only 400 square meters of total land area because it was first design as an airstrip for small private plane before it became a commercial airport, but the local government are planning to rehabilitate the airport to accommodate more flights in the future since Coron and Busuanga are now becoming the island paradise of the south next to Boracay when it comes to pristine beaches and clean waters. Coron was before part of Busuanga but later on was separated into 2 municipalities.

Main source of income in Coron was fishing, but when Coron became famous in its marine treasure, Tourism started to boost which added to its income and most fisherman and residences have benefited to this new opportunity and made a joint effort, which is a new version of Bayanihan in Filipino to protect its natural resources and marine reserves by maintaining cleanliness and promote environmental awareness to everyone.

Like some parts of Palawan, The islands of Coron are surrounded by limestone cliffs or limestone base and wildlife. Small islands at the surrounding area are exquisite, with bleach white sand beaches, calm and clean waters which attracted most tourist to visit the place over and over again. It is also rank as one of the top ten best dive sites in the world in Forbes Traveler Magazine. There are lots of activities to do here in Coron like island hopping, diving and snorkeling in a fabulous Japanese ship wrecks of the World War 2 which is still in its pristine condition, different kinds of coral reefs, and wildlife eco-tourism to discover diverse number of species are among the few attractions.

We stayed at the famous Ralph Pension House for 4 days and 3 nights with tour packages and full board meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner). The foods served are great and we ate a lot. They prepared 3 different sets of dishes in every meal. Ralph Pension House is the number one choice of most tourist coming from Europe and China and it also featured as a recommended travel accommodation in most online forums and travel review sites including Tripadvisor. Ralph Pension House is manage itself by the owner Mr. Oscar “Jun” Gutierrez Jr where you will personally be welcomed by him upon your arrival. He is so friendly and approachable. He can tell you everything about Palawan specially about Coron and the attractions that you would want to visit.

We were accompanied by our licensed Tour Guide kuya Pepito "Nonoy" Dionela since day 1. He is so polite and cares about nature where he picks up any trash he sees during our tour and put it in trash bins. He worked as a Security Guard and a Social Worker Volunteer for DSWD that is why he cares about people. We recommend this very simple and nice Guy if you are planning to visit Coron, his nickname is Nonoy and he has his own tricycle too if you would want to explore the side streets of Coron and even to go to Maquinit Hot Spring.

See more stories about Coron Islands click here.

Check below my Coron Photo Gallery to see the real treasure of the Islands. Courtesy of PictoBrowser.

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Aysee Sisig - The Best Sisig in Town

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 05:30:00 +0000

It’s holiday season again, lots of work, pressures, and rushing up with deadlines. That means people are too busy. Me and my wife decided to ease the pressure and took a little spare time to unwind with friends at Aysee Sisig, Pasig famous Sisig restaurant.

Way back 9 years ago when I first have a taste of their best sisig. I was working in an International bank that time and was invited by a friend and co-employee of the bank to have a memorable treat for the four of us since it was our last day at work. He invited us to this hole-in-the-wall eatery along the Philippine Sports Complex formerly known as Ultra Complex. In any sisig that I’ve tasted this one is definitely the best and ever since then when I passed by the Pasig area I always try this one and only best sisig with just a couple of penny to spend with.

This time I visited again Aysee food stall in Tiendesitas with a couple of friends, colleagues of my wife in a multinational bank where she is currently working. They are so crazy and happy to be with. We had a wonderful evening together.

Their sisig is served popping hot on a sizzling plate, with a dollop of fresh egg. It is best to put a teaspoon of soy sauce with it and mix the egg when it is still hot. The taste is awesome and crunchy. This whole plate can serve 2 very hungry people for only Php 90.

They also have other dishes such as Papaitan served on a bowl that’s being continually heated with a burner. The taste is so terrific. I usually only eat Papaitan if my mother was the one who prepared and cooked it. But this one gave me way beyond my expectation when I first taste it.

Pla-pla which is a Big Tilapia Fish sprinkled with bawang and serve with a cup of soy sauce seasoned with red sili and calamasi.

other dishes we tried are Calamares, Squid Balls and Lechon Kawali

Calamares

Lechon Kawali

Over all experience was truly a memorable one. We had fun, laughed together, and the most important thing is relaxed even for just a couple of time.

I find myself thinking for another place that we could all together have another moment of bonding, laughing, and talking someday. See you all again folks.

Learning Adventures for Child's Development

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 12:30:00 +0000

Recently we attended an important child learning activity held at the Alabang Town Center sponsored by Mead Johnson. This learning activity focuses on child's development by exposing her into five important learning tools that maximizes the child's mental, physical, and social development.

LEARN system is infused here, stands for Language, Entertainment, Art, Recreation and Nutrition. It is nice to know that Mead Johnson sponsors this kind of activity that exposes my child to more dimensions of learning and brain stimulation.

The activity were segmented into 4 namely: Farm in England, Milk Land, Beach in Bali and Carnival in USA.

Farm in England, where they were ask to point to the animals and pull the corresponding mimic sounds the animals make. They sing Old Macdonald Had a Farm, helping boosts LANGUAGE skills, incorporated with ENTERTAINMENT through music that helps develop self-confidence

Milk Land, a nutritionist explains the important role of NUTRITION for a child's overall learning development.

Beach in Bali, this activity uses LANGUAGE and ART tools. Origami making were held here. It taught them how to follow directions while helping improve motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

Lastly, Carnival in USA, lots of activities happens here such as listening and following directions that develop comprehension skills. Jumping, running, playing catch and participating in physical activities enhance their motor skills and singing-along and dancing encourage them to express themselves.

Imagine in such a short time, my child experience an overall learning advantage plus we enjoyed the activity a lot.

Want to learn more?Visit their site at www.enfalearn.com.

Aristocrat: Dining with Pleasure

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:02:00 +0000

The month of November to January is the most important month for the entire family as we celebrate 7 natal days for all of us. Four of us celebrate our birthdays in November, my younger brother in December and my Mom and Wife on the Opening of the year.

After we arrived from Hong Kong I asked my brother what he want for his birthday and he said that he want the entire family to have dinner together which we usually do to spend time with each other and leave for a while what we usually do from work and from our business. So he invited us to have dinner at SM North Edsa. Wow North Edsa, well, even the place is too far from our house in Binan, it is the best venue to make the whole family re-unite again in a one fine simple dinner since I’m working at Marikina, my wife in Ortigas and my elder brother in Manila.

My brother chose Aristocrat because it symbolizes the love for Family which is truly a Filipino Tradition and it is a “place oriented to Filipino families with small income and large appetites”.

Although it is my brother’s birthday, he dedicated this simple fine dinner to our parents who always serves as our inspiration. Their sacrifices when we were still young to the time when we graduated at school, they always put the family first rather than anything else. My father worked so hard everyday to support us and make sure that there will always a meal for every one. My mother, a retired teacher and plain housewife makes sure that in every meal she prepares would be as tasteful even it is just a simple dish.

This story is the same as why Aristocrat was established and it may also be the same story with you and your family. It all started with a simple couple whom a diligent government employee and a plain housewife were inspired to make a change to their lives by starting a very small mobile canteen business which later became a known bonafide restaurant that is love by many.


Chicken Honey	Kare-Kare
Tender and juicy chicken deep fried to a golden brown	Beef knuckles, tripe and oxtail in savory peanut sauce


Lumpiang Shanghai	Pancit Canton
Deep-fried spring rolls filled with pork, shrimp, and vegetables	Homemade egg noodles with stir-fried meat, shrimps, and vegetables


Pinakbet (Hipon)	Chopsuey
Native vegetables with shrimps stir-fried in bagoong	Stir-fried vegetables with chunks of chicken, pork, and shrimp

Aristocrat is a Filipino Cuisine that serves classic Filipino dishes with a unique taste in every palate serve than with any other restaurants, because it has recipes inspired with love for self, family, and dignity. This bonafide restaurant have done some great histories and wonderful stories before it became as what it is today.

Lunch At Crisostomo

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 23:30:00 +0000

It's holiday Wednesday, and an important day for me. We had lunch at Crisostomo located at Nuvali Sta Rosa, a Filipino Cuisine owned by a famous Chef Florabel Co Yatco.

As the waiter handed their menu, I noticed that most of the dishes are named or soundlike names of the characters in Jose Rizal's novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.

Kapitan Valentine: Chopsuey with Tokwa and quail egg

Chiken Inasal

BAM Guisado

Sinigang Mestizo

The interiors of Crisostomo are quite unexpected. Lush settings with modern artwork bathed in warm, soft lighting.

Chef Florabel has some other chains of restaurants like Florabel in Podium, Sweet Pea in McKinley, Johnny Chow at Resorts World, Felix in Greenbelt, and Sumo Sam which are all dedicated and named after her love ones. So I've searched for the truth behind the name Crisostomo and turns out that Crisostomo was not named after Rizal's protagonist, but after her husband, Christopher.

"It's amazing how she has been able to run a concept of an old spanish colonial setting suited to the name of Crisostomo and came up for dishes that are trully Filipino classics. Chef Florabel keeps on pushing the envelope, steadfastly providing more choices for the Filipino palate and in her own way, telling us, that there will be more exciting things to expect and hope for in the future."

- The Manila Bulletin

I've read this on Manila Bulletin and Crisostomo is truly an original Filipino Inspired Cuisine that has it all. Chef Florable is truly one of the Filipino's pride.

Trip Ko 'To: Hong Kong: Best Places to Visit [Digg]

Digg — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:17:09 PST

I'll share to you the Best Places Must See and Visit in Hong Kong with your family. Five days for us is truly an amazing and unforgettable experience in Hong Kong.

Trip Ko 'To [Digg]

Digg — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:05:37 PST

Trip Ko 'To is all about the things that jamesbiven usually love to do under the sun and even under the moon. He likes to do whatever he thinks of and do it with all fun. Jamesbiven is a travel junkie, adventurous, health buff and a food addict. He always plan his trip a head of about 5 months and wanted to make it a tipid-sulit one (cheap but fun and very memorable)

Hong Kong Trip Planning

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 21:00:00 +0000

Finally after five months of planning and budgeting, we are here at Hong Kong, Hurray!

Booking a Flight to Hong Kong
We wanted to go to Hong Kong last year of November to celebrate my daughter's seventh birthday, but doubtful enough we decided to move it this year and planned it carefully because we knew visiting Hong Kong is too expensive.

I've began looking for an airfare promo during summer, and it was June that I first made my booking reservation with Tiger Airways for only Php 888 per person. It just came into my mind that traveling from my home down to Clark in Pampanga would only waste my time then upon reading on various online forums in the internet I started to have doubts over the airline. I've searched again over the various airline websites until I found the Cebu Pacific's zero fare promo. At first I wasn't able to connect to their online booking until lunch time. I didn't pay thru my Credit Card because I did not brought it with me, so I paid thru bank deposit which is very safe and convenient. I don't have to worry about credit card dispute and I may still have enough time to settle my payment because I have until 11:50pm to pay my booking.

Thanks to Cebu Pacific that I was able to booked a flight to Hong Kong in the morning of November 23 where I could still enjoy the rest of the day in Hong Kong compared to Tiger Airways which I believed would only waste my entire day traveling to Clark Airport from Laguna and wait for only 1 flight available to Hong Kong which I wouldn't know yet if the airline would cancel the flight or something went wrong because the flight was 9:45 in the evening. In Cebu Pacific, I still have options if something went wrong like flight delays, cancellation, etc. because we are at the NAIA where there are plenty of flights going to Hong Kong. Too bad that I paid my ticket with Tiger Airways and couldn't convert it as travel fund in case that I would still want to book a flight with them, so bye bye 5K plus, charge to experience.

It was in July that I booked a flight ticket from Hong Kong to Manila with fifty percent off airfare promo also with Cebu Pacific for only Php 1849.50 per person (tax and fuel surcharge are not included) because I wasn't able to get round trip ticket during the Zero Fare promo.

Booking for a Cheap Accommodation in Hong Kong
There are many Hotels in Hong Kong to choose from and offers free shuttle service in and from the airport. But if your in a tight budget, there are also cheap accommodations in Hong Kong from Kowloon and Causeway Bay which are also very accessible, safe, and clean but the difference is there is no free shuttle service. But who needs that in Hong Kong, as I said on my previous blog in Hong Kong Part 1 that touring the city is very easy, its a tourist friendly city and it is safe. Who else needs of a five star or four star hotel if you will spend your entire day touring Hong Kong streets and attractions and be able to go to your accommodations just to sleep.

I made my hotel reservation at Golden Crown Guest House in Tsim Sha Tsui Kowloon for only Php 9400 for five days and four nights stay. Actually it's not a hotel but it's a hostel with a small room but very clean and quiet, they also offer free wifi (very fast and strong signal) and free refill of distilled water (hot or cold) so you can bring noodles if you like. They also offer 10 to 20 percent discount in all theme park tickets such as Disneyland, Ocean Park, The Peak-Tram-Sky Terrace-Madame Tussauds package, Ngong Ping 360 to name a few. This one good accommodation is also best for first timers in Hong Kong. For hotel bookings you can choose Hotels Combined found on my right side bar or visit this link of Golden Crown Guesthouse.

I suggest that in cities like Hong Kong, you should book your hotel accommodation three months or five months before your flight or before your set date of going to Hong Kong because many cheap hotels can be fully book earlier because every month in Hong Kong is peak season. Try searching the web thru reputable online booking sites like Hotels Combined and Agoda. They only require you of 10 to 15 percent downpayment which is very affordable and the room already reserved and will pay the full amount upon arrival. Try reading online forums about the hotel you choose and recommendations from others. Ours we booked early as June and we never had read about negative feedback from the online forum and thru our experience it is very comfortable even our room is very small.

Paying Travel Tax at TIEZA Ofiice

One month before our flight, I paid our Travel Tax at the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority or TIEZA at their office at the Philippine Tourism Authority in TM Kalaw Street in Ermita Manila.

It is only in the Philippines that everyone pays Travel Taxes either you are leaving for a vacation outside the country or if you are a foreigner visiting the Philippines. For those leaving Philippines for a vacation outside the country you will only pay for Travel Taxes once and will no longer have to pay upon return. This is also on top of another fee that you will pay using the airport terminal.

Preparing the Hong Kong Tour Itineraries

I updated my itineraries which I drafted last July and there are some entrance ticket increases for the last four months which is the Disneyland and the Ocean Park.

Day 1: Arrival at HKIA, Clock Tower, Ferry Tour, The Peak,
Madame Tussauds

0500h - Rendezvous at NAIA Terminal 3

0755h - Departure from NAIA Terminal 3

It was a smooth ride with Cebu Pacific and all our plans worked well.

0955h - Arrival at Hong Kong International Airport

1100h - Check-in at Golden Crown Court in Tsim Sha Tsui

1200h - lunch at KFC, couple of steps away from our hostel

1240h - walk thru at Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade

1310h - walk thru at Hong Kong Art Exhibits, Museums.

1345h - walk thru at the classic Clock Tower Tsim Sha Tsui

1400h - ferry ride from Star Ferry Pier to Central Pier 6

1420h - walk thru towards Exchange Square Bus Terminus to ride at Bus 15

going to the Peak

1530h - picture taking at the peak, tour at the Madame Tussauds,

Sky Terrace

1730h - ride at the Classic Peak Tram going down to the Lower Peak Tram

Terminus, ride at Bus 15C

1810h - ferry ride going back to Star Ferry Pier Tsim Sha Tsui

1900h - Grocery at iSquare Mall Nathan Road for everyday needs

noodles, coffee, biscuits, bread

1800h - Dinner at McDonald's near our hostel

Day 2: Whole Day Tour at Hong Kong Ocean Park

0700h - MTR ride from Tsim Sha Tsui station to Admiralty Station

0715h - Breakfast at McDonald's Queensway Plaza

0800h - picture taking at the Famous China Bank Tower

0900h - Bus 629 ride towards Ocean Park

0930h - rendezvous at Ocean Park Entrance

1000h - Park Opening, picture taking, Cable Car Ride towards the Summit,

1230h - Sea Of Dreams at the Ocean Park Theater

1300h - lunch at the Golden Chicken

1400h - ride at Ocean Express towards the Waterfront

1415h - walk thru at the Giant Panda Habitat, Aqua City Lagoon,
Birds Theatre

1700h - ride at Ocean Express to watch the Sea of Dreams the second time

1730h - Sea of Dreams at the Ocean Park Theater

1800h - walk thru at the Rain Forest

1900h - departure at the Ocean Park

Day 3: Cable Car ride at Ngong Ping, tour at the Giant Buddha,

Tai O Fishing Village, Shopping

0700h - Breakfast at McDonald's

0800h - MTR ride towards Tung Chung Station from Tsim Sha Tsui

0840h - Picture taking at the Citygate Center Mall, coffee at Starbucks

1000h - Cable Car Ride at the Ngong Ping 360

1045h - tour at the Ngong Ping Village towards the Giant Buddha

1200h - ride at Bus 21 towards Tai O Fishing Village

1300h - exotic lunch at a small restaurant at the Venice style village

1400h - departure at Tai O fishing village, NP360 cable car ride back to

MTR Tung Chung Station

1530h - shopping at the Sham Shui Po, Golden Computer Center or Arcade,

Golden Dragon Center,

1645h - MTR ride towards Monkok

1700h - shopping at Monkok, CTMA Center, Fa Yuen Street

or the Sneakers Street, Ladies Market

1830h - Bus Ride towards Heritage Hotel Tsim Sha Tsui

1900h - walk thru at Avenue of Stars

2000h - Symphony of Lights

Day 4: Whole Day Tour at Hong Kong Disneyland

0700h - Breakfast at favorite McDonald's (now valued customer)

0800h - MTR Ride towards Sunny Bay

0840h - Picture taking at Disneyland Pier Station, Park Hotel and Entrance

0930h - Early Park Opening due to volume of Visitors piling up at the Entrance

1000h - meet and talk to Disneyland Characters, rides, picture taking

1030h - Disney Sparkling Christmas Parade,

Santa Mickey's Toy - Riffic Street Party

1130h - The Golden Mickeys at the Fantasyland Theater

1230h - lunch at the Clopin's Festival of Foods

1330h - rides at Toy Story Land

1430h - ride at Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad

1530h - Colorful Flights of the Fantasy Parade

1630h - Festival of the Lion King

1730h - Jungle River Cruise

1800h - Rafts to Tarzan's Treehouse

1845h - Christmas Illumination at Main Street USA

1900h - Shops for Souvenir

2100h - Disney in the Stars Fireworks

2130h - Departure at Disneyland

Day 5: Kowloon Park Tour, Wanchai Shopping, Departure at HKIA

0800h - walk thru at Kowloon Park

0900h - Ferry ride from Star Ferry Pier to Wanchai

0930h - tour, shops at SOGO Shopping Complex

Times Square

1330h - Lunch at Delicious Kitchen Causeway Bay

1530h - departure at Hostel towards HKIA

1630h - last minute souvenir shops at HKIA

1730h - departure at HKIA

Travel Expenses (per person):

Php 5330.66 = Cebu Pacific Round Trip Airfare

Php 1620 = Travel Tax
Php 750 = NAIA 3 Terminal Fee
Php 3916.67 = Hotel accommodation
Php 4950 = Food
Php 1091.20 = Land Fare (MTR, Bus, Ferry)
Php 4417.60 = Discounted tickets (Disneyland, Ocean Park, NP 360

The Peak including Tram ride and Madame Tussauds)

Php 1600 = Souvenirs

___________________________

Php 23, 676.13 Total Expenses

Best Time To Go To Hong Kong

Anytime of the year is the best time to visit Hong Kong depending on the events and festivals you wanted to experience. Chinese New Year in February, The Dragon Boat Festival every June, Lantern or Moon Cake Festival which happens every September or every 15th day of the 8th month. If you want to include Macau in your itinerary try to visit on the 1st week to 2nd week of November to watch the Macau Grand Prix. But if I would be ask, the latter part of November is the very best since on this month that my daughter and I celebrates our natal day. It's near Christmas time too, and the decorations and mood of the place is truly captivating and memorable.

Hong Kong: Places to Visit within your Budget

noreply@blogger.com (Andreu Curameng) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 05:00:00 +0000

Hong Kong is truly a must see place to visit especially with your love ones. It is also known to be one of the most expensive travel destinations, from food to eat, to hotels and accommodations to stay with, this concerns will truly put your budget skills into a challenge. But there are places in Hong Kong that is worth of more than just a sightseeing. Based on the review I got from the Guidepal Iphone application, I would like to share to you the places that we visited without paying extra from our budget.

Avenue of Stars

Just like Hollywood Walk of Fame, The Avenue of Stars celebrates the history of Hong Kong filmmaking.

Jackie Chan Plaque

There are plaques honouring the achievements of local filmmakers and handprints of local stars who have won international acclaim. There's also a two-metre tall statue of the legendary kung-fu star Bruce Lee. It also offers scenic views of the harbour and Hong Kong's famous skyline.

Price: none

Symphony of Lights

Upon visiting the Avenue of Stars, you could also enjoy watching Symphony of Lights which takes place nightly at 8pm.

It's a spectacular light performances that involves 20 to 40 key skyscrapers and holds the record as "the world's largest permanent light and sound show" in the Guinness Book of Records.

This stunning spectacle display lights synchronized to music and narration has five main themes: Awakening, Energy, Heritage, Partnership and the finale, Celebration. This magnificent photo opportunity is also best when viewed from Star Ferry which pauses for several minutes during the show.

Price: none

The Clock Tower

Then not so far away from the Avenue of Stars is the Clock tower which is standing next to Star Ferry Pier, this landmark recalls the Age of Steam, when it graced the southern terminal of the Kowloon-Canton Railway and then demolished and moved further east but the Clock Tower was saved for posterity as a declared monument.

Price: none

Star Ferry Cruise

There is no better way to get a feeling of freedom than cruising between cargo ships and container vessels.

It is especially cool to check out all of the vessels at night, when the skyscrapers begin to light up and the South China Sea becomes dark.

This is a cheap, convenient and pleasant way to travel between Hong Kong's two main areas, the Wanchi and Central in Hong Kong Island.

Price: HKD 5.00 round trip Tsim Tsa Tsui-Wanchai or Tsim Tsa Tsui-Central

Art Exhibits and Museum in Regular Wednesday

Learn the history of Hong Kong from the Devonian period to the reunification with China in 1997. Visit the museums every Wednesdays because it's free admission. Never miss to discover hidden gems of Hong Kong in a fascinating history through cultural objects, dioramas, film reels, and mock shops and homes from throughout the ages.

Price: free admission every Wednesdays

Picnic or Dine at IFC Mall

Hong Kong authorities have come up with an excellent idea to offer the rooftop at the waterfront to the public and that is the International Finance Center Mall. That means you can bring your own drinks, food and snacks, and sit comfortably at the resort-style sofas, tables, and armchairs for use of the public and no restaurants has jurisdiction over it and stare out towards the skyscrapers across the harbour. Ignore fancy restaurants and club along the IFC mall rooftop, instead eat what you have brought. Try buying some foods or fancy wine at CitySuper Deli located at Level 1. The free tables with excellent views, like the ones offered here, are rare find. This is truly a hidden gem.

Price: none, just bring your own food and enjoy the view