JURASSIC PARK & PUNTA DIWATA CAVE: Carmen, Agusan del Norte has improved a lot!

JURASSIC PARK

Time flies swiftly fast. Once again I am here enjoying the beautiful and tempting scenery of Jurassic Park and Punta Diwata Resort of the progressive municipality of  Carmen, Agusan del Norte. Several friends have asked me as to how this getaway looks like considering that I've been here before. I can still recall how exactly I answered their queries and it goes like "AWESOME, however the road is unpaved so expect the worst."  

Despite those butt-aches that I've encountered during my first leap in this place 5 long years ago, I can still remember that I promised myself to be back here in full gear. I mean, I have to bring a better camera to capture every contrary inch of this stunning place.  With those added facilities and well-maintained surroundings, the place has retained its description.  This one-of-a-kind spot is more than worthy for garnering superlative reviews from critics and travelers. This tourist destination is the nicest place in Agusan del Norte, I bet! 





CAVE POOL

Cave Pool entrance fee is Php 100.00

  

DIWATA BEACH RESORT

  

Diwata Beach Resort is another paradise adjacent to Jurassic Park.

Savor God's gift to mankind. Visit CARMEN, AGUSAN DEL NORTE and experience a simple touch of Heaven. For inquiries and reservations, call 0930826 or 09484178232.

BOHOL, the countryside tour!

Chocolate Hills

Tourists are still eyeing Bohol even it was struck with a 7.2 magnitude earthquake last October 15, 2013 that destroyed several historic churches.

Bohol has long been listed in my travel fantasies but due to financial constraint, I wasn't able to turn this fantasy into reality. Year 2016 is somewhat generous to me. I could no longer count the blessings I received this year. With that, I have fulfilled my promise to my brother...that is to spend our 2016 summer vacation in Bohol.

We opted to hire a van since we are all strangers to this paradise. This escapade was not planned so I never had a chance to google everything about the place. As part of my anticipation every holiday season, room’s price rocketed so I humbly asked for a help to our friendly tourist driver who picked us up in the Tagbilaran Port. After several tries to find a low-priced yet cozy accommodation, we ended up chosing Bolod Beach Resort. 

Bolod Beach is situated in Panglao Island. It is roughly 100meters away from the white and fine powdery beach. It is a typical resort wherein there are no bars to hit on during night time. So if anyone wishes for partying all night, stay in Alona Beach. Restaurant is more or less 400meters away from the said resort, a barefoot walk along the shore will do. Picnic huts and motor banca for dolphin watching and island hopping are available in this resort.  

ROOM RATE	INCLUSION
Php1,600 / night	Rooms good for 2 pax w/ complimentary breakfast
Php2,600 / night	Rooms good for 4 paxw/ complimentary breakfast
Php3,600 / night	Cabin good for 6 pax w/ complimentary breakfast
Php 300 / night	Per extra person w/ complimentary breakfast
Picnic huts	Php 500 / overnight ; Php 300 / daytime

****Rates may change without prior notice. Check in time 2:00PM while check out is at 12:00 noon.

If you plan to choose Bolod Resort as your home away from home, you may get in touch with them through mobile numbers 09206039927, 09156823187, 09179509296 and landline numbers (038) 502-4046. You may also contact them at the email address: bolodbeachresort@yahoo.com

I really love Bohol because it is simply different. The van driver/ tour guide named Mr. Eric Navarro clearly discuss the history of Bohol while he's driving that interest us and even to my youngest brother aged 10. I will definitely recommend him to everyone. You may reach him at his mobile number 09464860199.
We've chosen a countryside tour which costs Php3,500.00. We've visited the following:

Chap Top- Since floating restaurant in Loboc River is not available, our driver brought us here for us to have lunch. Eat all you can is Php350.00/pax. The price is quite similar to Floating restaurant. 

Chocolate hills- Going to hilltop is the reason why I got tired. People really get what they deserve. With that excessive sweating, my eyes deserve a wonderful and relaxing scenery. 

Blood Compact Site

Blood Compact Site - "The more you know about the past, the better prepared you are for the future" by Theodore Roosevelt. The shrine represents sealing of friendship between the Filipinos and Spaniards. This historic event is locally known as "Sandugo" which means "one blood."

Chocolate Hills in Carmen – To add a little adventure in our tour, we tried All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) to see the other side of chocolate hills. Our rent per ATV is Php500.00 / 30 minutes. It’s very an enjoyable experience.   

ATV @ P500 / 30mins.

3-sister chocolate hills

Sipatan Hanging Bridge - My sister is quite interested upon knowing that this is part of our itinerary. This twin bridge was featured in Dolce Amore primetime teleserye of ABS-CBN. Entrance fee is only Php 10.00. Peonut kisses, a known delicacy of Bohol, is cheaper here. Also the keychains, refrigerator magnets and other souvenir items are sold here at a very affordable price.  

Sipatan Hanging Bridge

Man-made forest - Green is not my favorite color but I still love green. Among the inclusion of the countryside tour, this one is my favorite. It seems like I'm not in the Philippines. I love the climate. I love the view. I love everything in this place. This is conducive for pre-nuptial activities, ROMANTIC - it is how I describe it in one word. 

Butterfly Garden - Seeing different colors of butterflies in their fairly cold habitat is a great experience. Good to know that the guide enthusiastically explained everything about the  butterflies. Entrance fee is Php 25.00. 

Tarsier - Entrance fee is Php 60.00. To my dismay, I've only seen 8 tarsiers that time. I thought tarsiers are found everywhere. At least we've witnessed how these small creatures look like in reality.

Loboc River Cruise - It's Good Friday and all floating restaurants are close. So we were not able to take our lunch there. Since I am really good in haggling, we were triumphant in our quest in seeing how this river cruise actually looks like. 

Phyton - Dare to touch different colors and sizes of snakes. It's definitely scary yet fulfilling. Entrance fee is only 25. Taking picture with the phyton costs Php 150/hard copy. You can also take unlimited pictures with the friendly snakes using your camera for free. 

Prony, the phyton

                               

    

Baclayon Church - This is one of the oldest church in Bohol which was partly destroyed by the monster 7.2 magnitude earthquake last 2013. They are trying to fix it this time and hopefully the original feature will be restored soon. 

We've managed to visit it all in just 1 day. It was a bit tiring but insanely an amazing experience. It's worth the price. Couldn't even believe that I got tired when I am physically fit, I mean I regularly did some strenuous physical exercises. 

As to my own assessment, I can say that this beautiful province is finally back on its feet. It is unquestionably a home to myriad tourist attractions. I have seen it with my naked eye how tourists from different countries mingled and enjoyed to the fullest as they hopped from each known destination. They can't even resist in taking selfie pictures even if they are having a difficulty to find their best angle.

Butterfly Garden

Alona Beach Resort





2016 TRAVEL FANTASIES

Better late than never!

Posting my 2016 travel wishlist is kinda late as I did not have much time to open my account. Well, I have to work harder to feed my travel fantasies this year. I couldn't find a single word to describe best about the demand of my present job. All I can say is I'm darn busy! However, if given a long holiday break I still wanted to explore several places like the following:

1. Bohol - I had the chance to be there last year but I only visited Panglao Island and Blood Compact. I'm a bit curious of what Bohol Tourism can offer after the traumatic earthquake.

2. Cagayan de Oro - Really wanted to visit Divine Mercy Shrine simply for thanking Our Almighty for all the blessings that He has bestowed. I also wanted to try another interesting activity which I've never tried before: Firing at NMPSA Bulua.

3. Iligan falls - Iligan is dubbed as "City of Waterfalls". Seeing the falls is way sweeter the second time around.

4. Dakak Beach Resort - Dakak is being listed in my 2015 travel wishlist. Been waiting for a perfect holiday to enjoy its enticing white beach. Hope to visit Dakak this year.

5. Infinity Resort - Pictures of the said resort is getting viral in Agusan del Norte. It'll be an insult if I will not be able to see that place considering that it's only few minutes away from my work station. :-)

Now that I got a new camera, I will try to capture the best and snappiest picture of each place. Taking picture is not a problem this time 'coz God gave me a travel buddy for a lifetime. yay!

GOOD LUCK 2016!

TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE: BRITANIA GROUP OF ISLANDS & SARNIMIAN RESORT :-)

Summer is absolutely fun and worth-remembering if you spend it with your silly friends. Unplanned get-together is often the successful one. We intend to spend our summer in Samal Island for 2days but due to financial constraint, we were not able to push-through with our 1 month old plan. However, the idea of going to Britania Islands popped up when I and my cousin talked about white sand and island hopping activities. At the last minute, we decided to have our summer break in Britania instead of having it in Samal Islands.

We made itinerary and estimated the budgetary requirement. We called our batchmates pertaining to our plan wherein they cheerfully seconded the motion. We made it!
 

We traveled 4 hours from Cabadbaran City to San Agustin, Surigao del Sur. We arrived there around 7:00 o’clock in the morning. We paid the environmental fee amounting to Php 25.00/head. We have also paid Php 1,500.00 for the pump boat for our island hopping. The boat can accommodate up to 12pax.

We started our island hopping activity at 8AM and we ended around 12NN. There are actually four major islands in Britania, to wit:  Naked Island, Hagonoy Island, Boslon Island and Hiyor hiyoran Island.

SARNIMIAN RESORT

Sarnimian Resort is not part of our planned route.In fact, it is located in Rosario, Agusan del Sur or 2 hours away from Britania, San Agustin. As far as we know, it is the only resort in Caraga that offers sky cycling. Sky cycling (which we’ve never tried before) is the sole reason why we unanimously agreed to go there. Why go to Bohol when Caraga can feed your desires, right?

Entrance fee is Php 75.00/pax. Sky cycling is only Php 50.00 for two-way ride. Isn't it affordable?

Cebu: traveling to the South!

As a poor travel enthusiast, it is indeed a great fulfillment to travel miles away from my comfort zone. It was definitely my lifelong wish to travel outside Mindanao area.

 

My Cebu escapade is the most memorable travel I’ve ever had considering that I traveled with my family (all expense paid by me). Meeting my father’s siblings and other relatives for the first time is perhaps the most rewarding part of my year-long savings.

 

From Nasipit to Cebu via Cokaliong Shipping Lines:

Travel schedule - Monday, Wednesday and Friday

	Regular Fare	Student/ Senior Citizen
Cabin	1295
Tourist	1065	923
Economy	865

Only Cebu pacific offers a direct flight daily from Butuan to Cebu (vice versa).

 

Prior to our trip, I’ve googled anything what Southern Cebu has to offer to make our travel worth remembering; there we got Osmeňa Peak, Moalboal Beach, Lambug Beach and Kawasan Falls. We were kinda excited upon seeing the pictures of O-peak. However, I found out that the road going there is too difficult. I cannot afford to put the life of my love ones at risk, I backed out.

MOALBOAL BEACH
 

I’ve chosen Basdaku beach because it’s the only white beach I knew that offers a lowest price when it comes to cottage rental, food, drinks, etc. But then again, it’s a holy week and as expected the owner charged higher compared to normal days. The cheapest cottage is 400.00 even if we only stayed there for 3hours. Haggling is of no effect. We also paid 25/shower each. We've also paid several entrance/environmental fees. 

 

Our quick beach experience regardless of the charges was fabulous. 

Basdaku Beach

LAMBUG BEACH & KAWASAN FALLS

I was able to hit 2 prime destinations in Badian: the Lambug Beach and the famous Kawasan Falls.

 

Lambug white beach has finer sand compared to Moalboal Beach. You don’t even have to worry if you walk with bare foot along the shore. The pristine water is simply alluring. I’ve seen no garbage on its shoreline. Should you wish to stay there for overnight, you may contact Grandeur Beach Resort at their mobile numbers 09262789880 and 09089992490 or email them at grandge78@yahoo.com for your accommodation. 

Lambug Beach around 5PM

Kawasan Falls- The 11^th waterfalls I’ve been to so far. According to beauty and uniqueness, this one ranks second among the 11. This falls is really tempting. 

I went to Kawasan for picture purposes, but my plan swiftly changed the moment I’ve seen its fantastic cascades. I decided to swim with my bra and short’s on only. We rent a life vest for Php75.00 each. The bamboo raft including the guide costs Php 300.00/group.

 

We’re able to enjoy the heat of the Badian summer without compromising our budget.

SIMALA SHRINE 

It is a very beautiful holy place which is 2 hours away from the Cebu City Terminal. Van fare is 100. There is no entrance fee. Taking of pictures inside is not prohibited, however as a devoted Catholic, I prefer to respect the sacredness of the place.

 

Things to remember:

           1.    Simala is a sacred place, so wear proper attire. Wearing of shorts, above the knee skirts and sleeveless shirts are not allowed inside. If you happened to wear such attire, a piece of cloth/ veil is available for free inside the shrine, you can just borrow it at the security guard. Other option is to rent a veil outside the gate.

        2.    Observe silence!

                   3.  Keep an eye to your stuffs.