Will I survive Sagada?

 It’s been a while since I last traveled. Last time was when we traveled to Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte with my family. It’s been almost 4 months since the last trip and now the travel bug has bitten me once more and I feel the need of traveling again. That is where Sagada comes in. Together with Rachel and Mina, my former office mates ( yes, just the three of us ), we will be conquering Sagada. 

Sagada Rice Terraces. Photo not mine.

Why Sagada? Sagada was really not the plan. A friend told me that the place is boring. While some reactions were " SAGADA? Saan yan? Sa Pilipinas ba yan?" Its actually off the beaten path compared to the famous Baguio City. My first glimpse of Sagada was through the Piolo and Juday movie "Don’t Give Up On Us”. In a most unexpected place, love finds its way... But will it survive the journey? Oh ha, ansaveh ng tag line. Haha. Maybe it’s a nice place to fall in love or fall out of love. CHOST! Haha.  I’ve learn some infos about the place from the blogs I’ve read before and I was kinda intrigue on why people would travel more than 12 hours just to be on that place. Maybe there is really something special with Sagada, aside from the cool weather of course. Thanks to my sister too who suggested that Sagada is a must visit place if you’re into hiking, caving and nature tripping. I am not a fan of hiking and long walks but for the love of Sagada, then go lang ng go.

Sagada is a 5^th class municipality in the Mountain province. There are no direct trips from Manila to Sagada. Its either you take the 6 hour bus to Baguio then take another 5 hour bus ride to Sagada. In our case, we will be taking the 9 hour Manila- Banaue bus trip because we wanted to make a side trip to Banaue and at the same time, see the world famous Philippine landmark, the Banaue Rice Terraces. From there, we can catch a 3 hour jeep ride to Bontoc, and then transfer to another 45 minute jeep ride to to Sagada. Ini- imagine ko pa lang parang nakaka haggard na ang trip. But then again, I know it will be a different kind of journey. As what others always say, it’s the journey and not the destination that matters. 

Hanging coffins of Sagada. Photo not mine.

Here are my to do list that I should accomplish ( or maybe TRY to accomplish ) for this Sagada trip:

1. See the famous Banaue Rice Terraces
2. Topload the jeepney.
3. Go caving and spelunking in Sagada’s famous Lumiang and Sumaguing caves
4. See the majestic Bomod-ok or Pongas falls. Either of the one will do.
5. Witness the sunrise at Kiltepan.
6. Food tripping in Sagada ( Lemon Pie and Yoghurt house )
7. Meet locals and new friends ( or meet someone to fall in love with ) Hahaha
8. Experience EXTREME hiking and see the hanging coffins and the echo valley. Take note: EXTREME hiking. Ihanda na ang body pain relievers. Haha
9. Reflect, contemplate and learn something new about myself. ( EMOTERO ) Haha
10. And lastly, the toughest of them all: Spend not more than P4000 for this backpacking trip. Yes, this is a budget trip that is why I will do all my best not to exceed my P4000 budget.

I can’t wait for next week to come. I know this will be another great experience. I hope that I will be able to accomplish everything on my list ( or maybe at least half of it ) so that will all pride, I can say that “I SURVIVED SAGADA!”

Bomod-ok Falls aka The Big Falls. Photo not mine.

Hundred Islands of Alaminos, Pangasinan

Date of Travel: March 2011

Hundred Islands- BEEN THERE, DONE THAT!

After arriving in Clark together with my travel buddy Joey from our 2-day trip in Kota Kinabalu Malaysia, we still have like a day and a half to spare before my flight back to Davao. Since we were unable to check the beaches in Borneo due to the fact that we always end up staying longer in bed after waking up, we have to make up to it and at least we would be able to plunge in one of our beaches in the country. And Hundred Islands in Alaminos, Pangasinan was our destination to be.

The Hundred Islands National Park is a national park in the Philippines. The protected area is located in the city of Alaminos, in the province of Pangasinan. he islands, totaling 124 at low tide and 123 at high tide, are scattered in Lingayen Gulf covering an area of 16.76 square kilometres. Only three of them have been developed for tourism: Governor Island, Quezon Island, and Children's Island.

From Clark, we took a bus going back to Manila to meet our friend Rachel and at the same time leave some of our things in her place para less hassle na carrying our bags ( baggage counter lang ang peg ). We had dinner in SM Megamall and just killed the time while waiting for our bus to Alaminos via Victory Liner.

Catching the last bus to Alaminos in Victory Liner Cubao terminal

We went to Victory Liner’s Cubao bus terminal by 10pm to catch the last trip to Alaminos, Pangasinan. Fare will not cost more than P400.00 for a 5 hour bus ride. We took the last air-conditioned bus trip to Alaminos at 11:30 pm which is scheduled to arrive in Alaminos by 5am. At least we have some ample time to sleep and take a short rest. Pero ang ending, no rest pa rin. Bus has wifi connection so avail sa free internet. Haha. It was a smooth trip, and we arrived earlier than we expected. I woke up and manong conductor told us “ Alaminos na po! “ Hay naku, ambilis lang. kulang pa sa tulog. Haggardness pa. The bus terminal in Alaminos is a small and old one, more like a tricycle terminal. It was just near the market. Since its still 4am and still dark, we had no choice but to stay and sleep in the terminal’s benches. Wag nang arte arte. “ Let’s just wait till 6 am or until sumikat na ang araw”. While we were there trying to have our quick rest, some drivers are already asking us if we were going to Hundred Islands and some of them were offering transport to Lucap Wharf and boat tours too. “No kuya, NO! May inaantay kami! Di kami pupunta dun”  I don’t mean to be rude but at that time, I just want to take a nap.

Welcome sign in Lucap wharf, Alaminos, Pangasinan.

As sunlight came, we just strolled around downtown Alaminos, looking for a place to eat and looking for some drinking water and food for us to bring in our island hopping. And of course there’s Jollibee. We ate breakfast and bought some food as our baon. We thought “ Baka mahal ang food dun, wala na tayong pera. Jollibee na, delicious na, afforda-licious pa”.Haha. Then we saw manong  trike driver outside Jollibee waiting for some passengers. I asked if he can take us to Lucap wharf which is the starting point of the tour. He seems nice and friendly naman and he offered a reasonable price of P60/ ride so we took his trike.  He know some boat operators too and he can give discount since its just the two of us and its still not the peak season. For a price of  P1200 for the whole day island tour is not bad. And the fact that I am so keen to hit the beach already, then it’s a go. So we started the  tour and wasted no time.

Lucap wharf- island hopping's starting point

Here are some of the islands that we visited for the whole day island hopping:

Governor's Island- home of the PBB house in Pangasinan, the amazing view deck and pristine, secluded white sand beach. 

The PBB house in Alaminos found in Governors Island.

Force evictees sa bahay ni kuya. Haha

Amazing veiw at the Governors Island view deck. 

Spelunking, Alaminos style.

Children's Island- known for its very shallow, knee deep waters

Acting like a kid in Childrens Island. Chost.

Quezon Island- most developed island among all. This is where we took our lunch and spent most of our time. There are accommodations available in the island if you opt to stay overnight. Sari- sari stores and some small eateries are also available. Perfect for snorkeling and a quick swim. 

Mandatory selfie shot. Haha

Snorkeling around Quezon Island

Pathway going to several huts in the island.

Marcos Island- this is my favorite among all the island. Still a white sand secluded beach but what made it special is that there is a cave that is also a dive/ jump spot for thrill seekers. Jumping that 10 feet high cliff was such an achievement. James Franco aka 127 hours ang peg! Haha

Marcos Island's secluded part of the beach. Beauty, isn't it?

Above the Marcos Island, on our way to the cave.

Tempting yet nerve cracking. Look at how high the cliff we have to jump.

Still alive after the jump. Haha

WHOOAAAHHHH!!!!! Best experience ever!

Thanks M/V Sherwin for the amazing island hopping experience.

By 3:30 in the afternoon, were already heading back to Lucap wharf to cap off our Hundred Islands experience. Overall, I had fun. It is indeed one of the most visited tourist attractions in North Luzon and in the Philippines as well. I only heard about it before during my elementary days on how it was made, all those alamat thingy in my Filipino subject and stuff. It is a wonder on its own. Now I was able to experience it personally. It is one place that should not be missed especially if you’re a beach junkie. One thing I can assure you for sure, there are more than a hundred reasons to enjoy the Hundred Islands of Pangasinan.

My own piece of paradise.

Till the next time Pangasinan.

Going solo in Indonesia this Summer

It was an achievement for me to travel solo for the first time outside the country. The backpacking trip I did last August 2012 covering three countries, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand was like a huge achievement. SOUL SEARCHING? Hindi, nag iinarte lang. Haha. Gusto ko kasi ma feel ano yung feeling mag solo backpacking abroad. Arte lang. Now I know how it feels and im giving it a shot again.

 














 Went on full-board solo backpacking in 3 countries. Maya Bay in Krabi, Thailand and Ho Chi Minh were some of the attractions visited.

Here comes another seat sale from AirAsia. Ilang beses na akong naka sakay sa kanila, both domestic and international flights and I have no issues with them. Now they're celebrating their 5th year as world's best LCC and they have this P5 fare on all domestic and some international flights. Travel period is Feb to August of 2014. Not bad ha. Napaisip ako. UY, summer sa April. Walang pasok. PWEDE. 

                                                      High Five Seat Sale of AirAsia. Happy soul.

My ultimate dream is to travel to India. I always imagine myself riding their sleeper trains, the picturesque Taj Mahal at mag feeling Bollywood star at sumayaw ng Jai-Ho. Haha. India ha this special charm that makes me wanna come and visit the country. Airsia has direct llights to Kolkata from Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. Then pwede nang mag train papuntang Delhi. CARRY LANG! So sige, search na ng at makipagsapalaran na. But checking their flights and schedules the night the seat sale was out, ay mahal pa ren. Would cost to P7,000 more for return tickets. Di pa kasali Manila to KL dun. So there, the India plan was put to scratch. Maybe someday. I know India can wait. So I decided to sleep and deadma na sa seat sale. Wag nang mag book. Wala pang gastos.

The next day, I was tempted to check the site again. Ma try nga, baka maka lusot na naman at may uber low fares pa. Then I checked Manila to Kuala Lumpur. Still expensive for flights this summer season. Manila to Kota KInabalu. All in fare: P465.00. Hey, this is cheap. I can book this. But ive been to Sabah before. I want something new. So I checked all flights out of Kota Kinabalu and boom, there's Bali with an all in fare of P1600. Wow, this can be a great adventure. Davao-Manila-Kota Kinabalu- Denpasar is feasible. Then I can do land trip from Bali to Lombok, then a long bus and train ride to Surabaya, Yogyakarta then Jakarta covering 12 days. AYOS! Good plan. So I booked the flights and now im all pumped up for the upcoming summer of 2014. 

                                       

                                     Manila- Kota Kinabalu- Denpasar at almost P2000. Still a good deal.

So if traveling solo abroad is in your bucket list, dont hesitate. It wlll help you grow. The experience you will gain is incomparable. So go ahead and book that flight and you will know how it feels. And good luck to me in my Indonesia trip.

                                                My Indonesia route map. O ha, career na! Haha

The traveler teacher is back!

Well its been almost 5 years since I created my travel blog and unfortunately, I realized blogging was a hard thing to do. Ang hirap pala! Been to almost around the Philippines and to most Southeast Asian countries and no single blog was posted. Hiyang hiyang naman ako sa pagka- tamad ko. Haha.  Due to my hectic schedule plus my laziness, my blog site rojinoshe.blogspot.com  officially came to end. All efforts and attempts were tried to recover that blog but still I failed.  WALEY!

Now its 2013 and im giving blogging another chance.My New Years resolution was to come up again with another travel blog that will be helpful to my fellow backpackers and travelers. July na at kahit half of 2013 na ay achieved pa rin.  The past 5 years ive been to many places, in and out of the country and I was able to make it and survive my trips because of the blogs that ive read. Research kung research. Kung maka study eh daig pa ang magbo-board exam. Halos ma duling na kakabasa ng mga travel threads. Thats how eager and passionate I am when it comes to traveling.

  

                                          Your passport, ticket and determination is all you need.

Now its payback time.  Through this I can give back and I can share my experiences to my readers who are hungry to travel and explore new places. In my own little way, I can help and inspire them to do try traveling.

So enjoy my blog and have fun. Hope I will be able to inspire you to venture on your own, with your family, with your friends and loved ones. Basta enjoy and travel lang. Whether locally or abroad. Book that ticket and pack your bags na. Experience and immerse different cultures. Meet the locals. Try authentic cuisines. Or fall in love maybe. WHO KNOWS? Kelan mo pa gagawin yan, kung kelan di na pwede and kaya?.

                                                     Beach bumming in Boracay, 2010



“To move, to breathe, to fly, to float, To gain all while you give, To roam the roads of lands remote: To travel is to live.” —Hans Christian Andersen