Category Archives: ACTIVITIES

Stopovers at Sariaya (Quezon) and San Pablo City (Laguna)

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After 4 days in Marinduque where we attended the Moriones Festival and did a lot of sightseeing, it was now time to return to Manila.  It being Easter Sunday, we wanted to avoid   the huge afternoon rush for tickets going home so we went to Balanacan Pier very early in the morning.  I was able to secure tickets for the 8:30 AM trip back to Dalahican Pier in Lucena City (Quezon) on board the Roll-On Roll-Off (RORO) ship MV Maria Rebecca of Montenegro Shipping Lines.

Disembarking the MV Maria Rebecca

The 2.5-hr. boat trip was uneventful and we arrived at Dalahican Port by 11:15 AM.  We promptly boarded my parked Toyota Revo and left the harbor for the return trip to Manila.  Upon reaching Sariaya, we stopped over at a local eatery for a much needed lunch.  As the others were still eating, I decided to burn some calories by making a quick tour of the town, especially the Rodriguez Ancestral House where Jandy and I once stayed in 8 years ago.

The Rodriguez Ancestral House

Together with the others, we dropped by the town’s Church of St. Francis of Assisi. At the back of the church, we visited the devotional park where life-size statues  re-enacting the Last Supper were set up.

We just had lunch but now we’re joining the Last Supper

We again boarded the Revo and continued on our way, exiting Quezon Province and entering Laguna Province at San Pablo City where we made a short stopover at the stone balustrade across the street where we had a panoramic view of the 105-hectare Sampaloc Lake, the largest, nearest and most accessible of the city’s 7 iconic lakes and, from afar, the hazy silhouette of Mt. Cristobal.

Lake Sampaloc

 

Nagtangco Island (Mompog, Marinduque)

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Our trip to Marinduque wasn’t complete without a visit to one of its outlying islands.  I opted to visit the 8-hectare Nagtangco Island.  The next day we took a jeepney to Balanacan Pier, one of two ports of entry into Marinduque.  Offshore from this fine natural harbor is an imposing statue of Ina ng Biglang Awa (the patron saint of the province).  The statue is located atop a concrete view deck which is connected to the mainland by a concrete causeway.  Curious, we all made the crossing to the view deck.  

Balanacan View Deck
At the fisherman’s wharf, we approached a fisherman and negotiated for the use of his motorized outrigger boat.  We finally settled on the amount of PhP1,000. The boat trip to Nagtangco Island was smooth and uneventful and took all of 30 mins.
 
On our way
Nagtangco Island
Nagtangco Island, together with nearby San Andres Island, have spectacular white sand beaches and we still haven’t had our fill of these beaches.  However, unlike our Poctoy White Beach visit the day before, the beach where our boat landed was packed with picnickers.   Fronting the beach was a concrete resthouse, currently unoccupied, and I approached its caretaker.  Along the way, I noticed that the beach on the other side was deserted.
 
The beach open to the public
The private beach

The caretaker told me that the beach I noticed was private and off limits to outsiders.  However, with a touch of diplomacy, I was able to get access to this beach.  While my companions were enjoying a private, uncrowded swim, I climbed its nearby craggy viewpoint where I had a panoramic view of San Andres Island.   This island visit truly capped our stay in this lovely province.

San Andres Island

A Tour Around Marinduque: Boac to Buenavista

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On our second day in Marinduque (Good Friday), we hired  a Toyota Tamaraw FX, owned and driven by Mr. Herman Matre, for PhP1,200, to tour us around the island.  For food, we brought along packed lunches prepared for us by Ms. Laura Lahm, the owner of Barbarosa Restaurant (said to be the best place to eat in Marinduque).  We can actually drive around the island in 3 hours, as the main highway connects all 6 towns, but we opted to do this in a more leisurely pace.
 
Gaspar Island
Baltazar Island
Melchor Island

Traveling along the road, we espied, from afar, a  number of beautiful islands.  The 11-hectare, aptly named Elephant Island, has sheer cliffs, a half-kilometer long white sand beach and a soon-to-open, world-class resort (now Bellaroca Island Resort & Spa).  The Tres Reyes Islands consists of Baltazar (also called Pangikol Island), Gaspar (also called Manya Island) and Melchor (also called Polo Island) islands, all named after the Biblical Three Kings.  Uninhabited Baltazar and Melchor Islands have steep cliffs and underwater caves.  Gaspar Island has a small village, clear blue-green waters and a short, lovely white coral beach which offers fine snorkeling and diving.  In 1980, the wreck of a 15th century Chinese junk was discovered, in 38 m. of water, near Brgy. Pingan about 100 m. north of the island.  A large number of ceramic pieces were recovered including Swatow porcelain, stoneware jars and some iron skillets. All three Tres Reyes islands are ideal dive sites, having several good caves and walls and gorgeous sea fans.

Malbog Sulfur Springs

Our first stopover would be Malbog Sufur Spring (formerly known as Susana Hot Springs), located a few kilometers inland, at the foot of 1,157-m. (3,797-ft.) high, rarely climbed Mt. Malindig(with its 3 unique peaks), the highest mountain in the province.   Located 3 kms. from Buenavista and volcanic in origin, the spring has 5 main pools with hot therapeutic waters heated by Mt. Malindig and said to cure certain skin ailments, a welcome relief for us.  After paying a small entrance fee, we all took a dip in one of its tepid pools.  After this refreshing break, we all later partook of our packed lunches.

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception ( Boac, Marinduque)

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We first visited, via a short hike up a hill, the fortress-like Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.  Built in 1656, this church houses the statue of the miraculous Ina ng Biglang-Awa (translated as “Mother of Instant Mercy”), the province’s patron saint (since 1792) to which is attributed deliverance from a 19th-century Moro attack. The revolution’s flag was brought here by Canuto Vargas to be blessed in 1899.

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception

The cathedral has a simple brick facade and a 4-storey (square at the first 2 storeys and octagonal at the upper 2) bell tower on its left.  Its carved wooden portals are decorated with flora and fauna, cherubs and the images of the Four Evangelists: John, Luke, Mark and Matthew. Within the church grounds is an old, broken bell.

Cheska with the old, broken down church bell

As the church doors were locked, we weren’t able to see the church’s well-maintained and faithfully restored interior said to have brick walls, wall-hung period lamps, a ceiling with designs of Muslim brass gongs, two sets of Stations of the Cross (in wood and stained-glass windows) and three richly decorated and intricate retablos (altar backdrops).

Taking Chances in Marinduque

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Holy Week was again around the corner, and I was again browsing my bucket list of must-see places to visit.  Tired of mainland Luzon, I opted for some island-hopping and decided on Marinduque Island to witnessed its trademark Moriones Festival which happens only during Holy Week.  For company, I brought along my kids Jandy and Cheska, plus Jandy’s Jesu-Mariae School teachers (and my friends) Mr. Jowel Fatlaunag and Ms. Veneriza “Vener” Trillo with her son Yor.  For the short-haul drive to Lucena City (Quezon), the gateway to the island, I used my 2003 Toyota Revo.  Though not enough to accommodate all six of us, I still brought along my 2-pax tent and camping equipment (portable stove, sleeping bags, etc.).  Vener also brought along a similar tent.

Balanacan Pier in Mompog

I met up with Jowel, Vener and Yor at Jesu-Mariae School and we all left Manila by 4:30 PM, Wednesday.  The trip took longer than the usual 3 hours, with traffic delays, toilet breaks and a stopover at a gas station for dinner (packed by Vener).  We arrived at Lucena City’s Dalahican Port by 9 PM. I was thinking of staying overnight at the city and leave for Marinduque in the morning but the sight of a long queue for ferry tickets made me change my mind, so we decided to take a chance by taking the 10 PM Blue Waters fast ferry to Balanacan Port (Mompog).  After securely parking the Revo at the pier, we all boarded our ferry.  It being a holiday, the ferry was packed with travelers, from the deck all the way to the pilot’s cabin where we stayed,  sitting on monobloc chairs.  Being overloaded, the crossing took much longer.  Coupled with this, the sea during that time was rough and waves made the boat sway left and right, at one time making me fall off my chair and almost out the cabin door and into the sea.  I was lucky enough to hang on for dear life.  After this rough, wave-tossed crossing, we all made it to Balanacan Pier by 12:30 AM. 

 

Country Nook (Basco, Batanes)

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Country Nook

On the day prior to my departure, I was invited to joined a picnic at Country Nook hosted by youthful Basco Mayor Manuel Viola, again feasting on true Ivatan seafood fare.  Country Nook had a couple of magnificent rock formations just offshore.  Joining us was Ms. Carol Pobre (of DOT Region II) and Francis “Chico” Domingo, a certified PADI divemaster and A.D.S. instructor.  They were to dive deeper portions of Batanes’ marine environment which is rich with marine resources.  Batanes is one of the few remaining sites where pink and red corals (Corallum sp.), some of the rarest sea corals in the world, are found.  Chico has a vast knowledge of the province’s dive sites.

Carol and Chico take a dive

I could only watch in envy as Carol, accompanied by Chico, explored the offshore marine sanctuary’s beautiful underwater scenery and marine life.  I was offered and wanted to join them but, according to Chico, diving wasn’t allowed 12 hours prior to my flight (I was leaving 8 AM the next day).  Carol was leaving a day after my departure.  However, my disappointment was later dispelled by a beautiful Batanes sunset. 

A beautiful Batanes sunset. Carol is in the foreground

Country Nook: Sitio Vavayat, Brgy. Chanarian, Basco, Batanes

A Tour Around Sabtang (Batanes)

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Church of St. Vincent Ferrer

Once through with the blessing, Mayor Caballero allowed me the use of the municipality’s Toyota Revo plus the services of driver Rolando Fidel, to tour the island’s many sights.  Before leaving, I dropped by the St. Vincent Ferrer Church, a relic of the island’s tumultuous Spanish past. Started in 1844, this church was built in the espadana style (having two round arches at the roof level for the bells).

The Savigug idjang

Along the road to Savidug, Mr. Fidel pointed out, from a distance, a picturesque idjang, a pre-Hispanic mountain fortress where the natives sought refuge during tribal conflicts.  This idjang is distinctly different from all the others in the province because its sides were carved to make entry more difficult.

Chavayan village

Upon reaching the showcase barangay of Savidug, our Revo had to negotiate a narrow road between rows of traditional lime and stone cogon thatched houses.  Alighting here, I explored the village on foot, espying one of the barangay’s two (there are only three left throughout Batanes) animal-driven sugar mills that churn out a native wine called palek.

A carabao-driven sugar squeezer

A scenic, winding road next leads us to the equally rustic village of Chavayan and its landmark Chapel of Sta. Rosa de Lima, the only house of worship on the islands that is still in its traditional form.   The southernmost community in the province, Chavayan faces the northern tip of Luzon Island. Here, I observed, on another walking tour, the traditional detached Ivatan kitchen as well as glimpses of the Ivatan way of life including the making of the vakul or canayi.  

An Ivatan woman wearing a vakul

Serving as protection from the scorching heat of the sun or the wind and rain, these are woven by the womenfolk from carefully stripped and dried banana or voyavoy leaves. I also observed, up close, 99-year old Ireneo Hornedo weave an alogong, a men’s headgear that normally goes along with the canayi.  Before leaving, we were requested to looking up into the cliff and make out Mother Nature’s most perfect sculpture; the phallic-looking Monument of Satisfaction.

Irineo Hornedo (left)

A Sabtang Welcome (Batanes)

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The third day of my 5-day stay in Batanes was reserved for a visit to the 40.67 sq. km., beautiful, mountainous and extremely rugged Sabtang Island.  According to a coffee table book published by the DOT in 1994, Sabtang Island was chosen as one of the 12 best destinations in the country.  I wondered why.  Having left Mama Lily’s Inn very early in the morning, I was able to hitch a ride, via Batanes Gov. Vicente Gato’s van, to Radiwan Port in Ivana, the gateway to the island.   I was to travel with distinguished company.  Joining me in the falowa (a round-bottomed boat) for the nearly 1-hr., 5-km. and fairly rough crossing across the Ivana Channel was Gov. Gato himself and Congresswoman Henedina Razon-Abad (wife or former Education Secretary and Congressman Florencio “Butch” Abad), both inaugurating a school library on the island, plus guests Ms. Carol Pobre and Ms. Bing Talla, both of DOT Region II, and Ms. Margarita Garcia, a Fil-American Fullbright scholar teaching art to Ivatan schoolchildren (I later found out she was living at the lighthouse at Naidi Hills in Basco).

The scenic, winding road to Chavayan

Sabtang’s beautiful shoreline is similar to Batan Island, having intermittent white sand beaches, deep canyons, sand dunes that rise up to a hundred feet and steep, 200 to 350-m. high mountains that run down the island’s spine, making the island slope outward to the coast.  Small level areas are sporadically found along the northeast coastline and mountains have to be terraced to accommodate communities.   The only town, the picturesque Sabtang (also called Centro or San Vicente), is located on the island’s eastern seaboard.  The waters around the islands are said to have one of the richest fishing grounds in all of Batanes.

Church of St. Vincent Ferrer

It seems one half of the island’s 1,678 Isabtang population came out to greet our party upon our arrival.  I, however, mistook the town’s parish priest for the mayor but soon corrected myself and paid my respects to the boyish-looking Mayor Juan “Johnny Caballero, smartly attired in a Hawaiian-style polo shirt. The blessing soon got underway.  

Uyugan and Back (Batanes)

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Songsong Ruins
Old LORAN Station

Entering Uyugan, we passed by the old LORAN (Long Range Aid to Navigation) Station, in Alapad Point in Brgy. Imnajbu and the ruins of Songsong, a cluster of roofless old stone houses of a once thriving community of fishermen that was abandoned in 1955 after the inhabitants experienced severe famine as a consequence of the strong typhoons and tsunami in 1953 and 1954. The villagers resettled to Maramag, Bukidnon. Some of the ruins are now being restored while others are already inhabited.

Entry to Dipnaysujuan Tunnels

Along the Vajangshin Road, we passed by one of the 5 openings of the the Dipnaysujuan Tunnels, an abandoned Japanese-built World War II network of 8-ft. high and 6-ft. wide bat-filled tunnels. Too bad, we didn’t have kerosene lamps or flashlights to explore the dark tunnels.  Finally, on the way back to Basco, we also passed by an idjang (one of 17 throughout the province), a rocky castle-like natural fortress where pre-Hispanic Ivatans lived.

Basco idjang

Tour of Batan Island: Ivana (Batanes)

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Church of St. Joseph the Carpenter

The next town we visited was Ivana.  In front of the town port is the Church of St. Joseph the Carpenter, built in 1785 and renovated in 1844. It has 3-m. thick walls and is the only church not built in the espadana style. Its separate fortress-like campanile, the only one in the province, has a crenellated top.  Here, Filipino revolutionaries hoisted their flag after renouncing their loyalty to Spain on September 1898. Due to its elevation, the church offers a panoramic view of the sea and the surrounding countryside.

Honesty Coffee Shop

Near the church is the Honesty Coffee Shop, opened in 1995 and owned by retired public school teacher Ms. Elena Gabilo.  Perhaps the only one of its kind in the country, Elena still believes that people are generally honest and therefore leaves nobody to tend to her store, concentrating, instead, on farming and cane vinegar production. A plaque inside is inscribed with the words “The Lord is my Security Guard.” The store sells snacks, candies, soft drinks, bottled water, souvenir items (vakuls) and Batanes T-shirts.  Here, we picked out soft drinks and snacks from the shelf, listed them in a logbook and dropped our payment into a drop box.  

Radar Tukon
The hilltop Radar Tukon, about 300 m. above sea level and 2.75 kms. from Basco, was formerly a pre-war U.S. weather station that presently houses the PAGASA Radar Station (the last weather station in the north) where typhoons (Basco is a reference point for all typhoons that enter and leave the country’s area of responsibility) are monitored. Its huge satellite disk was ripped off by gale-force winds even before it was put to effective use.  The hill offers a magnificent view of Batan Island, the South China Sea, Mount Iraya and the magnificent pastoral beauty of hedgerows and fields on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other side. Also nearby is the beautiful house cum gallery-museum of the late great Ivatan artist Pacita Abad.