iambreathinglife

Discover Cebu - Medellin

Four hours in a bus. I have been awake for almost 48 hours. And I am not complaining. I know I look freakish with hairs on end and dark circles getting darker by the hour. But who cares? I’m just so excited to start our “discover cebu-travel edition” sunday. hehe.

We’ve decided to go to Medellin. We’ve only seen the pictures. There are not a lot of articles on the interweb that you can find about this place. And we knew, yup, this should be right. We’re actually alright without itineraries. That’s how spontaneous we are, and that’s how we want to see it.

Start off point was in North bus terminal. We rode the 7am bus and travel time was 4 hours. It’s probably because of the ongoing road construction. We got directions from the “konduktor”  and reached Kawit. Then hired a three wheeled vehicle (trisikad) to reach the port. The ride was just 5 minutes or less. It’s a good thing we asked about the fare beforehand coz I think the guys who own the bancas will definitely try to ask for a higher price if they have a chance. And so we met Mang Rudy. I like him. Not because he asked for less but because he looks like my grandfather. Honest and hard working.

Sitting on the boat riding the waves, with the sun’s rays caressing my skin and the wind blowing my hair in all directions I feel so overwhelmed with emotions. Well, I tend to be overly dramatic when I see beautiful places. And this ride is definitely breath taking. As the motor pushes the boat forward, the scenery gets better and better. If you look down the water is crystal clear. If you look to the right, you have these rock formations, kinda reminiscent to el nido (though el nido is a different world of its own). I’m not exaggerating. When you look up you have this vast clear blue sky and its just a constant reminder that it’s summer.

And we’ve reached Funtastic Resort. Yeah, the name does sound like the place has plastic slides, sprouting mushroom like cottages and lots of people overcrowding the beach. But no, this place just reminds me again that Cebu has a lot of hidden jewels. An island where locals have to take a 30 minute boat ride to the city to get their supply of drinking water. The do have cottages whose prices range from 50 pesos to 250 pesos. But we opt to just frolic in the sand. We walked for less than 5 minutes to reach the other end of the island. I know its fun to rent cottages and huddle with your friends but we thought it would be more fun if we have a nook all for ourselves. This place is beautiful. I shared about how I don’t want people to learn about this place to keep its mystery. Yes, it’s selfish but I have my reasons. Coz for sure, once the island gets known then what I saw that day will be forever just a memory. But then again, you have Mang Rudy who will benefit from this growth. Well, well, well…

After lunch, we’ve decided to walk to the village. The village was really small. We thought to walk to the other side of the island and found ourselves a place where we can see the whole place. I know I’ve been spewing a lot of words about how grandiose, how beautiful this place is. But know that I don’t give out such compliments not unless I mean them.  I think the reason why we had so much fun and why we enjoyed the place so much is because we did not limit ourselves with just staying in a cottage. We paid 10 pesos each for a priceless experience. Can’t wait for what will come next.

discovering cebu every sunday…

My friends and I have decided to do something fun and exciting every Sunday. Instead of just doing the ordinary meet-ups and eating at a restaurant and spending money, we came up with an idea that will make our weekend different. Since most of us are into travelling and we really like new adventures, and we can all meet on a Sunday we thought that it will be nice to go to places that are hardly visited by tourists. Or go to cities or provinces where only a few has been to. Or eat in a restaurants that specializes on a specific tradition.

We all love Cebu. I even write on comment boards to defend Cebuanos. Yes, I go crazy over this island. And I know that behind all the headache inducing traffic, the noise, the skycrapers , Cebu has a LOT to offer and a LOT of beautiful places that have not been discovered. So I came up with the name Discover Cebu (travel/food edition). I know the name is over used but it literally describes what we do. Every Sunday, five girls on a journey to find places within Cebu where few has been to (eeekkk, that rhymed). Eat food in places or restaurants that we usually don’t go to.

With all these adventures that we’re looking forward, one thing’s for sure. A lot of good memories will be made. Our friendship will be stronger. Hopefully one of us will meet her destiny (which is unlikely but i’m still crossing my fingers). I know I said one, but then again…

Every Sunday will definitely give me more reason to fall in love with this island, Cebu.

WENT TO A PARTY, MOM (do not drink and drive)

I went to a party,
And remembered what you said.
You told me not to drink, Mom
So I had a sprite instead.

I felt proud of myself,
The way you said I would,
That I didn’t drink and drive,
Though some friends said I should.

I made a healthy choice,
And your advice to me was right,
The party finally ended,
And the kids drove out of sight.

I got into my car,
Sure to get home in one piece,
I never knew what was coming, Mom
Something I expected least.

Now I’m lying on the pavement,
And I hear the policeman say,
The kid that caused this wreck was drunk,
Mom, his voice seems far away.

My own blood’s all around me,
As I try hard not to cry.
I can hear the paramedic say,
This girl is going to die.

I’m sure the guy had no idea,
While he was flying high,
Because he chose to drink and drive,
Now I would have to die.

So why do people do it, Mom
Knowing that it ruins lives?
And now the pain is cutting me,
Like a hundred stabbing knives.

Tell sister not to be afraid, Mom
Tell daddy to be brave,
And when I go to heaven,
Put “Daddy’s Girl” on my grave.

Someone should have taught him,
That it’s wrong to drink and drive.
Maybe if his parents had,
I’d still be alive.

My breath is getting shorter, Mom
I’m getting really scared.
These are my final moments,
And I’m so unprepared.

I wish that you could hold me Mom,
As I lie here and die.
I wish that I could say, “I love you, Mom!”
So I love you and good-bye.

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Drivers)

Mt. Manunggal

This was supposed to be a momentous event for all Filipinos. A world breaking record worthy of the Guinness, unfortunately there were people who’d decided to take the money for themselves and run away…

This was the first time I have met the people who will be my climbing buddies for the rest of the year. It was my first time meeting all of them so I was a little nervous, just in case I won’t fit in. I thought I will just use my charms on them, I was not sure it will work though so I thought of many excuses to sms the organizer on the reason why I could not come. Good thing I changed my mind. 

Regardless of all the controversies that surrounded this climb, it did not really bother me. I planted a looooottttt of seedlings and met interesting individuals. And I was there because climbing and mountains are two of my passions.

Mt. Manunggal is located in Balamban, Cebu. There was not a lot of climbing though since we were there for the freedom climb event. There were three locations for the freedom climb. Osmeña Peak, Mt. Manunggal and in RCPI in Guadalupe. Our group chose Mt. Manunggal since it was near the city and there were a few who would join us after their shift. 

stop over for lunch

how we look after taking a bath…heheheh…

You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down again. So why bother in the first place? Just this: What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen. There is an art of conducting oneself in the lower regions by the memory of what one saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least still know. Rene Daumal

Mt. Lanaya, my last climb for this year…

I climbed mt. lanaya october this year. we drove for around 4 hours before we reached alegria, cebu. It rained. Hard. We got ourselves registered in the barangay hall, and were excited to start the climb. The rain did not stop us from starting on the trail. Instead of a raincoat, I had my trusted umbrella. I know it’s not practical, but it’s a minor climb. ;P

The oldest person in the group decided not to take a guide. Since it’s just in Cebu and we’ve climbed a lot of mountains here we thought that we could do it on our own, armed with our research. Huge mistake. We got lost. We had to retrace our steps thrice. Good thing I was with people who did not mind a little misadventure. 

The view were awesome though. This is why I love Cebu. You have the bustling city, the beautiful beaches, the amazing mountains. In just a few hours ride. I should have brought my point and shoot camera with me. 

soaked and out of breath

Good thing we passed a house whose mother offered to have her son show us the camp site. Darkness covered the forest and we’re still a long way to go. We thought that we had reached the camp site but our guide got lost as well. After tracing our steps, back and forth, we’ve decided to just camp somewhere flat. We started our trek around 2pm and it was already 7 in the evening. Yup, we’re bone tired. 

cannot find the campsite. hehehe

Come morning we walked for about 30 minutes to reach the peak. And found out that the camp site is just a few steps away. Hehe. Oh well. The view on top was breath taking. And the weather was on our side. 

Going down we noticed a lot of trash left by previous climbers. Empty bottles, plastic cups, foils, etc. It was sad how others don’t show respect to mother nature. Just a simple thing to do for what mother nature has provided. Hayyzzz…

                        trashes we’ve collected along the path

Climbing mountains is a hobby that will last for a while. Yes, it is exhausting both mentally and physically. It is during these treks, when it is just me, the earth beneath my feet, the foliage on my side and the blue sky on top that makes me realize again how lucky I am to have parents who gave me these opportunities to travel. To find people who share the same interest as I am. To be alive and experience everything that nature has offered. I think about these things all the time, but it is on these climbs wherein I can shout what I feel with fervor, and hear it answer back.

team eskapo

siquijor, you ain’t scary at all…

I have always wanted to visit Siquijor. Yes, I was a little curious if the stories were true, but most of all it’s an island rarely visited. I did some research to check out places to stay and realized that there were not a lot of blogs written for this beautiful island. And I think it should stay that way.

I went with my two boy friends. We rode the 3am bus and arrived in Liloan around 6:30am. A ferry departs every 30 minutes so we were able to ride the 7am ferry to Dumaguete. We had no sleep and the weather was really hot. First ferry to Siquijor left at 6:30am so we decided to have our breakfast in Chowking and waited for the 9:30am ferry.

photo op while waiting

We rode Delta ferry which was a 45minute boat ride to siquijor. My complaint though was that it’s really hot inside, even with aircondition. And I always have this mindset when I ride a boat, a bus or any mode of transportation to check which would be the best exit if an accident happens. And my options were very limited when I scanned the inside of the ferry. Oh well, when it’s your time….

And we’ve arrived!! As soon as we went outside the port gate we then got a lot of tricycle drivers offering us their tours. We were sleep deprived and needed a bath so we chose the driver who was sitting atop his tricycle calmly.

We had kuya tata drive us to Villa Marmarine. I read a few good reviews about this place and it did not disappoint. Since there were just three of us we paid 2,300 pesos for the up and down Mato cottage. They served us welcome drinks but I was too tired to give it a taste. We decided to sleep for 2 hours and had our tour at 1pm.

picture overload next…..

overlooking the sea and the island of cebu

being extra careful

three is a crowd. but not this time.

coco grove resort. these wooden totems are just too coot to pass up.

100+ year old balete

while kuya tata was driving we saw this awesome view that we just had to stop

san isidro labrado convent

san isidro labrador church

cambughay falls

second level of cambughay falls

salagdoong beach resort

the road going to salagdoong beach. it was really dark. kuya tata said that we were the first one who stopped in the middle of the dark road just to have our picture taken…sure??!!

i slept on the second floor. two beds. a balcony. just me.

going home. yeah, we look like high school students. tsk.

we had a really good time. we were supposed to go caving the next day but it rained, and the bed was really comfortable that we got too lazy to move our butts. yes, i did not bring any extra slippers….

i like siquijor so much that i decided to go back just for the caving. and i did…

cebu-liloan(via oslob) aircon: 169.00 - 3 hours

liloan-sibulan (dumaguete): 62.00 - 30minutes

sibulan-dumaguete proper: 11.00 - 10-15 minutes

dumaguete-siquijor (with terminal fee) delta ferry: 175.00 - 1 hour

tricycle to villa marmarine: 10.00

villa marmarine accomodation (mato cottage) 2,300: 767.00 / person

whole day tour 800: 267 / person

siquijor-dumaguete (delta ferry): 175.00

dumaguete-sibulan: 11.00

sibulan-liloan, cebu (pumpboat): 42.00

liloan-cebu city: 169.00

TOTAL: 1858.00

*food in villa marmarine ranges from 150.00 to 200.00. we had our lunch there but for dinner kuya tata brought us to this canteen in larena where the food is really affordable, within our budget. 

my stand….

i know what i did yesterday is wrong. i should not have laughed with them. and i am sorry. if what you tell him is either true or not, it does not give me the right to ridicule you. to make fun of you. to laugh at your expense. what has happened to you is scary. i am not sure what gives them the courage to make up stories. make assumptions. i won’t be  like them, coz that’s not who i am. that’s not the person i want to be. again, i am sorry…