Daily Archives: 25 June, 2012

Cagraray Island (Bacacay, Albay)

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From Viento de Mar Beach Resort, we made our way back to the Bacacay municipal hall where we our driver and the Isuzu Crosswind was waiting to bring Bernard and I to the 5-hectare, Class “AAA” Misibis Resorts, Estate and Spa.  Opened in late 2009, this resort is located on the southeastern tip of Cagraray Island and is being touted as the “Boracay of Bicol.”   The island itself is an eco-tourism destination with rich limestone deposits, waterfalls and 28 caves (ancient burial jars were found in 2 of these caves).  Joining us as guide was Mr. Patricio Bechayda, the Fishery Law Enforcement Team (FLET) officer of Bacacay.

Sula Channel

This 71-sq. km., low island is a 20-km. (45-min.) drive from the town.  The fine, white sand Misibis Beach (Brgy. Misibis), one of the town’s 11 white sand beaches, is located on the island’s southeast corner. From the mainland, we crossed over the narrow Sula Channel  to the island via the newly-built,  2-lane Sula Delta Bridge.  Built at a cost of PhP150 million, this bridge is 265 m. long, has 5 spans and was built with modular steel paneling (Delta) with steel decking.  Prior to its construction, motorized bancas and cable cars on a hill, both used to transport people, and barges (for cars) were used to cross over to the island.  During bad weather, the placid Sula Channel was used in olden times as a sanctuary by Acapulco (Mexico)-bound galleons.

Sula Delta Bridge

Past the bridge, the road is lined with eco-friendly solar cell-powered street lamps.  Along the way, we made a short stopover at a covered concrete view deck with a fantastic view of Lagonoy Gulf and the islands of Rapu-Rapu, San Miguel and Agutaya.  We also passed a roadside fishpond with 3 native-style cottages raised on stilts, all connected to the shore by a wooden footbridge.

Bernard and Mang Patricio at the view deck
View of the islands of Lagonoy Gulf

We didn’t have time and the permit (the resort charges a substantial entrance fee) to explore the resort’s 37 luxurious, Asian-inspired villas, swimming pools and small beach.  Instead, we dropped by the 100-hectare Misibis Bay Eco-Park, part of the Misibis Bay Complex just adjacent to and outside the perimeter fence of the beachfront property.

The Eco-Park’s Information Hut

Past its gate is the Information Hut (with its man-made waterfall) and the picturesque, open-air mini-amphitheater, perched on the edge of a cliff, with its stunning backdrop of a shimmering bay and  its surrounding greenery.  The amphitheater was featured in the 5th leg, Philippine pit stop of the 4th season of The Amazing Race Asia which was won by a team from the Philippines.  It was also a shooting venue for the telenovela Dulo ng Walang Hanggang.

The mini-amphitheater

Further up the hill is the Eco-Energy Park Adventure Zone.  It has 4 different zip lines, an obstacle course and a towering climbing wall for adrenaline junkies.  Each zip line differs from the other in length, speed, duration and view.  However, all are exclusively for the use of resort guests.

The Adventure Zone

Eco-Energy Park Adventure Zone: open Mondays to Fridays, 8-11 AM and 1-5 PM; Saturdays, 8-11 AM and 1-3 PM.  Holidays by special arrangement.  Admission: PhP25/pax.

Church of St. Rose of Lima (Bagacay, Albay)

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Church of St. Rose of Lima

The Church of St. Rose of Lima was said to have been started in 1660 (stamped on the church entrance), the year Bacacay became independent from Tabaco.    In 1952, it was heavily damaged by super typhoon “Trix” and again, in 1987, by another super typhoon, “Sisang,” which destroyed the roof and broke its glass windows.

AUTHOR’S NOTES:

Its 2-level façade, built with volcanic rock from Mayon Volcano, has semicircular arched main entrance with a poorly conceived and totally inappropriate white-painted concreteportico  built over it.  An earlier, late 1900s photo of the church shows it without one.

 

It is flanked by paired pilasters and statued niches with single pilasters at the end.  Above is a triangular pediment with a centrally located oculus. The church’s orientation is peculiar as it faces northwest instead of the bay, contrary to the stipulations of the Laws of the Indies.

The 3-storey bell tower

On the left is the 3-storey bell tower with a domed roof and receding storeys. Also on the left side of the church are the ruins of the old church and belfry, with meter-tick walls of volcanic rocks an high windows.  Outside the church is a statue of the risen Christ.

The church’s modern interior

Church of St. Rose of Lima: Bes St., Bagacay, Albay. Tel: (052) 487-2003. Feast of St. Rose of Lima: August 30.

How to Get There: Bacacay is located 502.6 kms. (a 10-hour drive) from Manila and 37.2 kms. (a 1-hour drive) from Legaspi City.

Bacacay: A Blend of History and Nature (Albay)

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From Sto. Domingo, Bernard and I motored to the nearby town of Bacacay where we paid a courtesy call on, and had lunch with, 72 year old, first term Mayor Tobias B. “Tobing” Betito, the former vice-mayor and schoolteacher, at the newly renovated (last 2008), 2-storey municipal hall.  Mayor Betito granted us the use of an Isuzu Crosswind and the services of a driver so that we can explore Cagraray Island, the home of the 20-hectare, world-class Misibis Resorts, Estate and Spa.

The 2-storey municipal hall

Before leaving for Cagraray Island, we walked over, across the street, to the Church of St. Rose of Lima (a Peruvian saint).

Check out “Church of St. Rose of Lima“

Church of St. Rose of Lima

At the left side of the church are the ruins of the old church and belfry.  My guess is these are the ruins of the church built in 1660.  The present church was probably built in the 1800s.

The old church ruins

We next walked over the hardly discernable remains of Roca Baluarte in Brgy. 3.  Formerly a Spanish-era fort with a lookout tower used to warn against Muslim pirates, it was converted into a beach resort but now lies abandoned, amidst nipa palms and mangroves, after the resort was ruined during super typhoon Reming (international name: Durian) that hit the Bicol Region on November 30, 2006.

Roca Baluarte
Mayor’s Office:  Municipal Hall, Poblacion, Bacacay, Albay. Tel: (052) 588-3243.  Website: www.bacacay.gov.ph.

Sto. Domingo: Birthplace of the Sarung Banggi (Albay)

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The next day, Bernard and I left the Governor’s Mansion in Legaspi City and took a jeep to Quick & Hearty for a buffet Filipino breakfast.  Here, we met up with Mr. Martin A. Calleja, head of Bicol Adventures Philippines and Viento de Mar Beach Resort in Bacacay. After breakfast, we made a short stopover at the DOT Region V office at Rawis where we met up with Regional Director Maria O. Ravanilla.  From here, we made the short 11.5 km. drive to the nearby quaint town of Sto. Domingo.

The author with Bernard and Dir. Maria Ravanilla

Sto. Domingo, formerly called Libog (a corruption of the Bicol term libot meaning “roundabout”), is nestled at the foot of Mayon Volcano. The town is noted for its numerous beach resorts along the jet black sand Kalayukaii Beach in Brgy. Kalayukaii, located 3 kms. east of the town.  At the Spanish-era (the former tribunal and presidencia built in 1832) municipal hall in Plaza Pugad Lawin, we made a courtesy call on Mayor Herbie  B. Aguas.

The municipal hall and fountain at Plaza Pugad Lawin

Also at the plaza, across the fountain and municipal hall is the picturesque Church of St. Dominic Guzman, the town’s most prominent landmark.

Check out “Church of St. Dominic Guzman“

Church of St. Dominic Guzman

The town is also the birthplace of Potenciano V. Gregorio (May 19, 1880-February 12, 1939), the composer of the famous local ditty Sarung Banggi (meaning “one night”), the best known song in the Bicol dialect, on May 10, 1910.  The 8-day (May 18-25) Sarung Banggi Summer Festival, which features a folk song festival, immortalizes this love song and pays tribute to its illustrious local son.   His ancestral house was burned when a fire hit the town in 1961.

Potenciano V. Gregorio Mausoleum

On May 2005, Mayor Aguas, together with then Albay Gov. Fernando and First District Rep. Edcel Lagman, had Gregorio’s remains exhumed in La Loma Cemetery and brought home to Sto. Domingo for a municipal vigil and reinterred at the town’s cemetery with military honors. In 2006, a mausoleum and his bust, also at the town plaza, was erected and his remains transferred there.  In 2010, Gregorio was declared a municipal artist by the Sangguniang Bayan.

Mayor’s Office: Municipal Hall, Plaza Pugad Lawin, St. Domingo, Albay.  Tel: (052) 435-1357.
Department of Tourism Regional Office V: Rawis, Legaspi City.  Tel: (052) 435-0085 and 482-0715.  Fax: (052) 482-0712. E-mail: dot_bicol@yahoo.com. Website: www.wowbicol.com.

Church of St. Dominic of Guzman (Sto. Domingo, Albay)

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Church of St. Dominic Guzman

First built in 1785 with wood and basag (bamboo splits), the second church was built with lava blocks in 1789 and completed in 1832.  Built with forced labor, during its construction, a mixture of lime, egg albumin and tangguli (molasses) was used to bind its massive stone walls. Burned in 1882, the present picturesque Church of St. Dominic Guzman was built with piedras ladradas, chiseled balustrades and twin domes.

The church’s Baroque facade

AUTHOR’S NOTES:

The church’s Baroque façade has a semicircular arched main entrance flanked by rectangular windows and two bell towers with dome-shaped roofs, giving it a graceful symmetry.  On the second level is a centrally located statued niche flanked by two occoli while the triangular pediment’s tympanum also has an occoli.

The church’s modern interior

Church of St. Dominic of Guzman: Tel: (052) 258-7111. Feast of St. Dominic of Guzman: August 4.

How to Get There: Sto. Domingo is located 469 kms. (a 9.25-hour drive) from Manila and 11.5 kms. (a 19-min. drive) northeast of Legaspi City.