Aside from the food tasting bonanza that we did, my most favorite part of the whole tour was the fish feeding. Nuvali has a man-made lake which has various purposes. You can enjoy fish feeding in lake at the Solenad, the shopping and dining district in Nuvali. Fish feeding is free but you have to buy the fish feeds from them. It costs Php 15 per small bag. As you can see in the video above, the Japanese Kois enjoyed the feeds that visitors feed them. They’re actually a lot, I can’t really say how many they are, but there are gigantic Kois. Many say that Kois can live up to a century and I could just imagine that if it’s already the next century, the Kois in this lake can actually take over the entire province! Haha, just kidding.

FYI, you do not need to be a resident of Nuvali to enjoy the amenities and restaurants there. For more information about Nuvali, please visit their website at www.nuvalievoliving.com.

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Good news for those who travel frequently from the Central Business District of Makati to The Fort, Taguig. The Fort Bus now has pick up points in different locations in Makati. Please refer to the map for reference. Unfortunately, this will not go straight to The Fort but will drop you off at the usual area where you can ride the Fort buses (near MRT Ayala Station). I hope that one day, they will have a bus that will go directly to the Fort from the Makati CBD so that it will be more convenient for us. It would be nice if the two business districts will have public transportation links because it will be advantageous for the both cities.

Fare is still at Php 11.00.

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One of the exciting things to do when in Puerto Princesa is island hopping. If you’re an adventurer, this is the one for you. This begins in Honda Bay, a 20 – 30 minute drive from the city proper. We booked a package at gopalawan.travel and paid $68 (for 2 people) via Paypal. Method of payment is very convenient, we didn’t have to go to the bank or pay cash. A van picked us up at Pads (our hotel) and also brought us back after the tour.

We arrived at the Honda Bay dock station at around 8:30 am. This is the time that it’s packed with tourists, ready to go island hopping. The pump boat can accommodate around 10 people. Our first stop was Pambato Island where we snorkeled and saw beautiful corals and fishes. This was actually my first time to snorkel and I really enjoyed it. Seeing the fishes and other sea creatures in their natural habitat was heavenly. As my body was floating while snorkeling, my mind was floating as well, just like in a state of grandeur which I can’t really explain. I am seeing another world within our world which I haven’t explored in my entire life.

Snake Island, Puerto Princesa

The next island that we visited was Snake Island. The reason it was called as such because of the shape of the island and not because it’s infested with snakes. This island has a sandbar which is very evident when it’s low tide. It also has mangroves in some parts areas. We spent around 2 hours in the island and we also had our lunch here (already included in our package). We also fed the fishes here with the bread that we bought before we began the island hopping.

Our next stop was Pandan Island. For me, this is my most favorite island. It’s very peaceful and it’s like you’re lost in the middle of nowhere. I enjoyed the moment by swimming in the clear, pristine waters and fishfeeding! I said to myself, “ahh, this is the life”.

This was where some of our tour companions had fun with jump shots. Here’s one Canadian lady we met who enjoyed the jump shots:

We left early because some of our companions have a flight back to Manila so we headed back to the base at around 4 pm. This was one of my most memorable experiences in the Philippines and I am looking forward to seeing more of like this in other provinces.

Actually, you can go there without a package. You can rent a boat for around Php 3000 – 4000 for a whole day. If you’re worried about food, you can either bring your own or buy fresh seafood in the island and pay the locals there to cook them for you (or called “paluto”). There are also other islands there that you can visit but according to our tour guide Gloria, the must visits are really Pandan, Snake and Pambato Islands. But if you are lazy to think of where to go for island hopping, I would suggest that you get a package. There are a lot of travel packages that you find when you step into the Puerto Princesa arrival area.

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Planning your next vacation or adventure?

The Philippine Tour Operators Association (PHILTOA) will once again hold the Philippine Travel Mart, now on its 21st year. The event will be held on September 3 – 5 at the Megatrade Hall in SM Megamall. Cheap domestic travel packages around the Philippines are up for grabs. Different tour operators from the different regions in the Philippines will participate in this event. Aside from personal holiday packages, they will also offer the Local Corporate Buyer’s Program for companies that wish to have team building activities, conferences and seminars outside their office vicinity.

There will also be a Tourism Quiz Bee, Cultural Dance Competition and Eco-Chorale during the event.

For more information, visit their website: www.philtravelmart.com or follow their Twitter: @philtravelmart.

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One more day to go to get a discount on Sea Air flights! Selling period is only until June 20, 2010 and travel period is from July 1 – October 2010. Travel destinations of Sea Air are El Nido, Caticlan, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga, Tablas, Jolo and Manila. Don’t forget to enter the promo code: ilovephilippines2010 when you book your desired flights.

You may visit their website www.flyseair.com to book your tickets online.

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Mount Banahaw in Quezon

To be honest, I’ve never been to any festival or fiesta in my entire life. Yes, yes, what a loser of me but that’s the reality. I’ve always wanted to experience going to a fiesta because I know that in Philippine culture, this is one of the events that many Filipinos (and even foreigners) anticipate. So when the opportunity came from Samsung, I immediately agreed to be part of their group to test their cameras during the Pahiyas Festival.

San Isidro de Labrador (St. Isidore, the Laborer) of Lucban, Quezon

All I knew about Pahiyas Festival are the colorful houses but I didn’t really know what it’s all about. When I was there, I learned that the Pahiyas Festival is a tribute to San Isidro de Labrador (St. Isidore, the Laborer).  This is also the time that Lucbanons show their produce by decorating their houses with their own harvested produce. So basically, the whole Pahiyas celebration is a thanksgiving festival for the abundant harvest and hopefully they’ll be blessed for the next year’s harvest. By the way, the Pahiyas Festival happens every May 15.

Families watching the parade

Not all streets have houses decorated because it will be too expensive for a family to spend decorating their houses for the festival every year. So the local municipalityl decided that each street will have their chance every other year. As you know, they have a yearly competition for the most beautifully decorated house every year so it’s good that they have more time to prepare.

You will see that the most common thing that they decorate their houses with are kiping, vegetables and other produce that the family has. Kiping is a local delicacy which is made of ground rice flour shaped into cabal leaves which are dipped into color pigments. You can actually eat the Kiping either by grilling or frying it.

Carabaos were also part of the parade. I guess that this is because of the carabaos participation in the harvesting process.

The whole Pahiyas festival experience was very tiring (because we had to walk and no vehicles can go inside the festival proper). Even though it was a busy day for us, it was worthwhile. The view of the Mount Banahaw is breathtaking and the temperature there is not very humid. Surprisingly, it felt like I was in Tagaytay. The locals say that it’s the highest part of Quezon that’s why the temperature there is much cooler compared to other places in Quezon.

The experience of going to the Pahiyas Festival is an enjoyable experience. Finally, I can say that I have been to a fiesta!

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In the whole duration of our trip in Puerto Princesa, we stayed at Pads by Legend Hotels. Pads is situated just beside Legend Hotel and both share the same entrance, same frontdesk and same staff. By the time we arrived in front of the hotel entrance, we were welcomed by festive music while a garland made up of shells were hung around us.

I’m not sure though if they do it for each guest that arrives there but it was also the same time when some members of the Knights of Columbus arrived.

Twin Flat

The room we got in Pads is a Twin Flat which has two single beds that are perpendicular to each other. The room has a flat screen television with Cable and air-conditioner. There’s also a telephone inside the room that you can use if ever you need room service. It also has a private bathroom. If you’re planning to have your stay there, you do not need to bring towels since they have one already. Inside the bathroom, there’s soap and shampoo (of small sizes) provided.

Outlets provided in the room are enough. Me and Sha can charge our phones and cameras simultaneously.

Even though the area of the room is quite small, I’m satisfied with our stay in Pads since our purpose in going to Puerto Princesa is to travel around.

A hotel booking in Pads is inclusive of one-way airport transfer (airport to the hotel). Breakfast is not included but you can dine at the restaurant of Legend Hotel and avail their buffet breakfast 350 pesos per head). If you’ll be in Palawan for a business trip, it’s also good to stay there since their lobby has Wi-Fi The rate of our room is 720 pesos per night. FYI, the room rates vary depending on the date you’ll stay there. The rate that we got was actually lower than what was quoted to me. We stayed there from March 5 to 7, 2010 (2 nights only).

For me, the rate that we got is reasonable.

Pads by Legend Hotels
Malvar Street
Puerto Princesa City
Palawan, Philippines
Tel. No.: +632 7022700 to 04 and 0917.7022700
Fax No.: +632 638.9255 and +632 702.2780

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Baker’s Hill is known to have delicious baked goodies such as Chocolate Crinkles, Hopia, Brownies and many more but aside from that, it is also known to be a theme park for Puerto Princesa citizens and tourists as well. Baker’s Hill is like a kiddie wonderland filled with fiberglass sculptures adapted from popular Disney characters. This will certainly make you feel that you’re in Disneyland, but without the gigantic and flashy carnival rides. The place is great for families because there is a playground wherein kids can just be themselves and adults can be kids again.

Baker’s Hill started out as a usual bakery but they eventually expanded and decided to make it into a theme park. And now, this has become a popular destination for the Puerto Princesa City Tour. Our friendly tricycle driver brought us there after coming from the Mitra Ranch which was just nearby. We heard that the owner was not originally born in Puerto Princesa, but also a tourist just like us who decided to stay in Puerto Princesa and venture into this kind of business.

There were houses that seemed like what we imagine in fairy tales. It brought me back to my childhood because the houses were so adorable especially fictional characters. Unfortunately, you can’t picnic there. Food establishments are just around the corner and food is not that really expensive (around 50 to 80 pesos per meal?).

There is no entrance fee in Baker’s Hill. In fact, you can just go there and take a look around. For us, we stayed there for about 30 minutes. After looking around, we headed to the bakery and bought ourselves pasalubongs for our families in Manila.

Baker’s Hill is located at the Mitra Road, Barangay Sta. Monica, Puerto Princesa City.

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I took a video of some of my blogger friends while riding the tranvia. It was a wonderful experience, and it made me feel like a child again. When you’re in Luneta Park, Manila, this is one thing you can do aside from strolling around or just take a rest in one of the benches there.

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Binondo, Manila’s third district, is also known as Manila’s Chinatown. We just had a photo walk here where our route began a couple or more meters away from the foot of Jones Bridge (just outside Original Savory). We were then welcomed by the picturesque Filipino-Chinese Friendship Arch.

We then headed to New Po-Heng Lumpia House where we had fresh lumpia (spring roll). Then, we walked some more and upon reaching the corner of Ongpin and San Nicolas streets, we saw there a shrine of Santo Cristo de Longos. Garlands of sampaguita can be found around the cross. At the foot of the cross, you will see there a jar with incense sticks lit up by the devotees.

Santo Cristo de Longos

With this imagery, you will surely notice the fusion of both Catholicism and Buddhism. After a few snaps, we walked some more and then we passed by another arch. As we reached the corner of Salazar and Ongpin streets, we saw this interesting street sign. We were not just interested to take a photo of this one because the pole had dragons. We noticed that the N in Ongpin is flipped horizontally. I’m not sure if it was just a mistake.

Street signs with dragons

Then, we had dumplings at Wai Ying Fastfood since Dong Bei was closed (not operating on a Black Saturday). Then, we walked towards Tomas Pinpin St. to try out the Singapore Hainanese Chicken Rice restaurant. On our way there, we passed by some interesting subjects to take photos of.

Calesa in the streets of Binondo

It would have been a nice idea to ride on a calesa (horse-drawn carriage) around Binondo. But since we’re quite a big group, we just chose to walk.

An old building in Binondo

The old buildings in Binondo are interesting subjects as well. Just by looking at the old buildings, you will easily notice the influence of Spanish and Chinese architecture.

Inside Binondo Church

A visit to the Binondo Church is also a must. Anyway, this was not included in our recently concluded photo walk.

Strolling around Binondo is like a time travel. Engaging in such activity will let you discover the beauty and charm of old Manila.

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