From Lake Danao, we again boarded our AUV and proceeded to Tongonan Hot Spring National Park. Located at an elevation of 2,000 ft. amid densely forested hills, this 272-hectare park is at the west end of the Leyte Mountain Trail, 18 kms. (a 45-min. drive) northeast of Ormoc City. It also has a cool climate, lush tropical vegetation and underbrush, a warm medicinal pool, a cavernous hillside geyser that spouts boiling water and steam hourly and formations exuding sulfuric vapors. It is also home to wild pig, monkeys, deer and birds. Its 112.5 MW Tongonan Geothermal Power Plant is the first geothermal power plant to operate in the Philippines. It supplies the region’s less than 100 MW consumption as well as that of the Luzon and Visayas grid. A little farther off is the 5-hectare Lake Kasudsuran, located in a virgin forest at Brgy. Ga-as and Mt. Hanagdan, 1,000 ft. above sea level.
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| Tongonan Hot Spring National Park |
After the Tongonan tour, we returned to Ormoc City for lunch, switched to Roy’s car and next paid a visit to the house of our host, Mr. Sabin Larrazabal. We were greeted by his widowed daughter-in-law, Daya and his son Dr. Mario “Butch” Larrazabal who served us coffee and snacks. Mr. Larrazabal arrived after a few minutes. Already in his 70s, his still very active lifestyle belies his actual age. Roy introduced us, but due to Mr. Larrazabal’s hectic schedule, could only talk to us for a short while. After saying farewell, we proceeded back to the resort to check out our luggage.
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| Back at the city proper |
Before we were brought to the bus terminal, Roy showed us around the city. We also visited the Philippine-Japan Peace Memorial on Carlota Hills (a marker overlooking Ormoc Bay put up by the relatives of Japanese war veterans from the Nagoya and Gifu Prefectures) and the nearby cross-shaped common burial vault of the unknown victims of the Ormoc tragedy.
Near the port, we visited the marker showing plaques of the city’s achievements, the remnants of the old Spanish-era Fuente de la Reina bridge and the 7,000-person capacity Ormoc City Superdome (where the PBA provincial games are played). Ending our city tour, Roy dropped us off at the city’s bus terminal where we took a PhP100 per person Hi-Ace van for the 2-hr. trip back to Tacloban City.
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