Chepaiichix & Her Cherry Chopsticks

Bucket list moment with Oslob's Whale Shark

9/26/2015

This is the 1st pit stop for our Cebu-Dumaguete-Siquijor
amazing race adventure.
Flight in was to Cebu via Cebu Pacific. We were able to book a flight for 900 Pesos/Person round-trip during a promo sale
(no baggage allowance).

Oslob is famous for its "Gentle Giant" better known as
Oslob's Whale Shark.

A list on my travel bucket has been checked for I was able to personally meet and swim with them.

Bucket List Moment ACHIEVED!

Our Itinerary & Cost for Cebu Adventure:
0420H - Flight going to Cebu, we departed 20 minutes earlier.
0500H - Arrived at Cebu (Mactan International Airport).
0530H - Took a cab from the Airport to South Bus Terminal (Address: Natalio B. Bacalso Ave, Cebu City, Cebu). Travel time is 30-40 minutes. Fare: 210 Pesos/Taxi.
0600H - Waited for our friends who arrived a day before at Cebu and had breakfast before boarding a bus going to Oslob.
0730H – We took the earliest possible bus that will depart going to Dumaguete and will pass by Oslob. Bus is via CERES. Travel time is 3 hours. Fare: 155 Pesos/Person.
1100H - Arrived at Oslob, Cebu.

Since we don't have a specific resort where to avail the whale shark activity the bus conductor drops us at Aaron's Beach Resort. I think he has a cut for every tourists he can refer which is A-Okay for us because it's less hassle for us to find a place to avail the activity.
FYI Whale Shark Watching/Encounter is a morning activity so better arrive as early as 8AM if you can to avoid the crowd.
If you're a hygienic conscious traveler better bring your own snorkeling gears with you. Use Goggles and Flippers so you can freely swim deeper with the Whale Shark. Also, the whale shark smells slimy and awful so be prepared.
If you don't have underwater camera you can rent one from them.

There are 2 types of Whale Shark Activity at Oslob both are for 30-40 minutes. Fees for the activities includes: Banka, Snorkeling Gear, Vest & Guides. Locker is also available for 100 pesos/locker; sharing of locker is allowed and it's big enough to fit 7 hand-carry bags. If you avail their locker rental you can freely use their shower facility.

Whale Shark Watching - 300 pesos/person.
Whale Shark Encounter (Swimming) - 500 pesos/person.

Before one can proceed with the activity there's a 5-minute orientation for the do's and don'ts during the whale shark encounter.
See photos for the guidelines.

Adventure begins:

5-Minute Banka Sailing going to the Whale Shark Action.

Brave the sea, explore and swim.

My Travel Ballerina Pose with the Gentle Giant.

The Gentle Giant at its beauty.

1200H - After our whale shark activity we availed an extra tour at Aguinid Falls. Transportation to & from Aguinid Falls is via Tricycle (good for 4 persons). Travel time is about 20-30 minutes from Aaron's Resort. Fare: 250 Pesos/Person.

NOTE: If you'll avail an extra tour be sure to know the inclusions of what you're paying so that you won't pay for any extra charge/s.

Entrance fee at Aguinid Falls is 20 Pesos/Person.
Tourists are required to have a tour guide (Guide Fee depends on the tourist).
There are 7 Levels of waterfalls from 0-6. You can trek and swim for 1-2 hours depending on how long you will stay per level. There are levels which you are allowed to swim and there are levels where you will only pass through.

Entrance at the Aguinid Falls.

Level where you are allowed to do some rock jumping/swimming.

Level 3 of Aguinid Falls.

Steepest way going to the next Level.

1600H - End our our Cebu trip; we then headed to Liloan Port to catch the hourly fast craft trip.
Tricycle Fare from Aaron's Resort to Lilo-an Port: 25 Pesos/Person.

From Lilo-an Port, Cebu-Sibulan Port, Dumaguete (Negros Oriental) travel time is about 15-20 minutes. We took the Cuadro Alas Navigation Lines, Inc.
Fast Craft Fare: 62 Pesos/Person.

Last fast craft is until 1900H/7PM only.

Lilo-an Port at Cebu.

Fast Craft Ticket going to Sibulan Port, Dumaguete.

--end of our Cebu trip; next adventure Negros Oriental--

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Cool Waves & Life-size Figures at Amana Waterpark

5/20/2014

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My family & I planned a summer getaway for the kids so we chose a place which is accessible to&from Manila; we ended up with Amana Waterpark located in Pandi, Bulacan. Instructions going to this place is easy peasy. From Manila you can just take a bus via Del Carmen who travels to&from Edsa-Sta. Maria, Bulacan. Bus fare is 40 pesos only per person from Cubao. Upon arriving in Sta. Maria alight at Waltermart then take a tricycle for like 15 minutes up to the resort. Fare for the tricycle depends on the driver. We were asked to pay 50 pesos per person from Waltermart-Amana and 40 pesos per person from Amana-Waltermart.

Upon arrival at Amana Waterpark we were greeted by the action figure of Hulk. We then proceeded to their reservation office to settle my balance for the room reservation. Btw, I booked a Vigan Room 2 weeks prior to our visit; it is advisable to book ahead of time for a better room/cottage/cabana for the family because it tends to fully booked upon booking on the day itself. The Vigan Room is good for 2-4 persons for an overnight stay but can be use by more than 10 persons on Day Swimming. Vigan Room is 2,500 pesos per rental per day. Our room has its own shower & toilet, it is also equipped with air-conditioned, 1 double bed, 1 extra foam and cabled TV. Entrance at the resort is 250 pesos/adult and 200 pesos/kid (2 years old and below or less than 4 feet). For those who have their private vehicle parking is available for free.

So??? What's so special about this resort? Aside from the pool waves which is normally available in different resorts in Bulacan. I guess it’s the life-size action figures that the kids and kids at heart like to strike a pose for photo-ops. Also, this place is child friendly with life guards all over the place and most of the pools are 3-5 ft. only. This place is accessible to anyone be it by commute or by private vehicle. Complete amenities with grills & videoke rentals. However, just be reminded that NO ALCOHOLIC DRINKS & SOFT DRINKS are allowed inside the resort but you can bring water along with your packed food. You can purchase alcoholic drinks (SanMig Light only) and soft drinks inside. Don't worry they're selling it at reasonable prices. They have dress code for swimming but it is not strictly implemented, so you can wear pretty much anything.

I guess this is one of a kind. I don't know the exact schedule of this performers but Amana Waterpark has Mascots of your favorite cartoon characters and action heroes who performs a dance number for the guests. The performance happened at exactly 3 o'clock in front of the wave pool. Photo-ops are allowed. Sadly for me I wasn't able to personally witness their performances because I was sleeping. Hahaha. What a loser.

Additional information for the commuters: please be aware that hand-pickers are everywhere whether you're just walking on a crowded place or you’re riding a bus. We encountered this on our way back home and we're very thankful that it’s not us who they chosen as their victims. Please don't sleep on the bus especially if you're travelling alone so you can avoid this scenario.

Okay. Enough with the traumatic experienced. We will definitely going back to re-visit this resort again because my nieces & nephews enjoyed their summer adventure at this place.

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Haler (Hello) Baler

4/19/2014

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Most of my friends are asking me about my recent trip in Baler so I am in an insistent obligation to publish my recent trip ASAP!

This was a spontaneous trip with one of my travel buddies Rachel (former co-worker at PPR). We’ve been to countless trips together and we suddenly decided to pack our stuff and hop on the bus going to Baler, Aurora.

We left Manila at around 2:30 AM, we were lucky enough to have boarded the Joy Bus going to Baler. The Joy Bus is operated by Genesis Transport Inc. they don’t accept reservation via phone or online so it is advisable to go directly at their terminal to reserve a seat and pay for your reservation. The Joy Bus is their deluxe non-stop 5-hour bus trip to & from Baler which cost P700.00/person/way. For someone who wants to be in Baler immediately you can take their Joy Bus but if you are in a tight budget you can still take a bus via Genesis which will only cost you P450.00/person/way. Travel time via their regular AC bus is about 9-10 hours depending on the stop-over.

So we left at 2:30 AM and arrived in Baler, Aurora at 7:30 AM. Since it’s our 1st time to visit Baler, Aurora and we don’t have any place to stay & we have no plans yet of what’s the first thing we should do so we asked around. We then met Kuya Lino one of the tricycle drivers/guides in Baler, Aurora. We accepted his offer to tour us around Aurora for P800.00 we haggle up to P700.00 and he accepted the deal. I’ll tell you guys what once you saw how risky and full of efforts the tour is you wouldn’t wish to haggle for a lower price so we ended up giving Kuya Lino the P800.00 for the tour.

By the way, Kuya Lino helped us looked for a place to stay. He directed us at La Flor (Swimming Pool & Restaurant) for P1,100.00/night stay good for 2 persons with breakfast but then again we haggle for P1,000.00 and Ate Angie accepted our request. Place is average if you’re just looking for a place to sleep and where to keep your stuff.

Start of our day tour. Our 1st stop: Baler Church a very remarkable part of Philippine history during Spanish colonization. The church has been renovated as per Kuya Lino.

2nd stop: Museo de Baler which showcases portraits of our former president Manuel L. Quezon and the clans who survived the tidal wave on December 1735. No entrance fee at this place but donation is accepted.

They also allotted a space for photo-ops using the social media boards such as Twitter, Facebook, IG etc.

3rd stop: Dona Aurora’s house in front of Baler Church. No entrance as well but donation is highly appreciated. Honestly, there’s nothing much here just portraits of the late president and his wife Aurora.

Then we went straight to Daguisit Falls; took some photos after hiking a very short but risky steps going up.

We had a short picture taking at this monument (see photo below) re-enactment of what had happened during the tidal wave in Aurora.

Next stop: Aniao Islets where people are allowed to camp-out and stay overnight with their own tents. Place is good for some picture taking. Entrance is P20.00/person.

Dropped-by at Ermita Hill for an over-view of Baler, Aurora.

We then headed to our 2nd to the last stop “The Millennium Tree” which is better known as the Balete Tree. As per the “Batang Balete” (Balete Kids) the tree is almost 600-Year old. No entrance for this place of course but if you want to have good photos to be uploaded on your social accounts you better talk to one of the Balete Kids to have your photo taken. All you have to do is strike a pose and give them a tip. Here are some of my photos courtesy of one of the kids:

Please visit and like their Facebook Page: Batang Balete Ako. Thank you!

Last but not the least on our day tour list is the Mother Falls. It’s an hour drive and trek going to the falls. Be careful because trekking up to the falls is very dangerous ‘coz of the slippery stones along the way & don’t forget the way up to the entrance of the falls is full of stones as well. The struggle going to the falls is all worth it. Oh and btw, there’s no entrance fee for this place; food and drinks are not allowed inside but there’s a drinking pit stop along the way if you’ll get thirsty.

Food for the ladies; we had lunch buffet for 2 consecutive days. 1st day at Gerry Shan's Place for P185.00/person and 2nd day at Carlito’s Inn and Restaurant for P150.00/person.

We had our dinner and night-out at Yellow Fin Bar & Grill. Food is super cheap and taste good. Prolly will recommend this place to eat. The place is located at the back of Aliyah Surf Camp.

Finally the reason why we had this Baler trip is because we wanna surf. This is my 1st time to surf and I’m anxious and excited at the same time. Our surfing activity was arranged by Ate Angie and we paid P350.00/person for 1 hour only but they given us an additional half hour to surf. I enjoyed this activity because it’s new to me and I like adventures. I really had so much fun so I’m planning to go back again. Planning for a surfing experience? You can contact them at Freedom Surf School owned by Christian Aries M. Blancaflor. Contact Nos: 0918-3564727 & 0915-9746489.

If you are looking for a tour-guide you can contact Kuya Lino. Please be aware that the P800.00 day tour is good for 3 persons only using tricycle as your transportation. Other places to visit on the photo are subject for additional costs.

There’s nothing much to buy in Baler, Aurora for “Pasalubong” so we settled for some native stuff like fan, wallet and their yummy “suman” (rice cake?).

In my opinion Baler, Aurora is worth a visit but not with kids alongside not that it’s not a kid friendly environment but because they won’t appreciate it much. Baler is not Baler without surfing so it’s a must to dance with the waves.

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Summer Love at Baguio City

4/3/2014

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Baguio City has been my sweet escape every summer from the scorching weather in Manila. For two consecutive years I went to Baguio City for an unplanned “Panagbenga” Festival visit and to celebrate my boyfriend’s birthday.

Since its holiday due to the festivity it is advisable to book your bus ticket(s) ahead of time (2-3 weeks before your travel date) to get a guaranteed seat and a good schedule going to Baguio. We normally go directly at Victory Liner to buy our tickets before we travel.

We planned our Baguio trip almost a month before but the accommodation are almost sold-out by that time. I checked my best friend site (Agoda) for an accommodation but I failed to get a hotel for our travel date so I personally emailed some of my preferred hotels and was put on waitlisted for three days; fortunately enough after almost giving up and days of waiting Citylight Hotel called me and confirmed our reservation. I was able to get our hotel room at P3,200.00/room/night good for 2 persons with breakfast (room is actually big enough to accommodate 4 persons). Location wise Citylight Hotel has an advantage for a very good location it’s situated at the heart of Baguio’s city proper. It is a 2-minute walk going to Session Road and a 5-7-minute walk going to SM Baguio.

What is Panagbenga without a float? Here’s the only photo we have for the Panagbenga Festival. hehehe.

Given that it’s Panagbenga Festival and there are a lot of people witnessing the activity we decided to go to BenCab’s Museum located at Asin Road. Entrance for the Museum is P100.00/person. We were lucky enough to met Kuya Ryan who becomes our instant museum guide/photographer. It’s actually my 2nd time visiting the BenCab Museum and still fascinated by the art works inside. Here are some of our photos at BenCab's museum.

As a tourist per se we took advantage of visiting the normal places a tourist visits such as:

The Mansion also known as the official summer residence of the President of the Philippines.

The Strawberry Farm at La Trinidad, Benguet.

Price per kilo of strawberries depends on the owner of the field but normally it ranges from 300-400/kilo. Our strawberry picking is 300/kilo. Picking and eating strawberries at the same time is fun. hehe. Its okay to eat a few pieces; again depending on the owner.

Baguio will never be Baguio if you will not bring home “Pasalubong” for your family. A very famous place to buy “Pasalubong” is at the Good Shepherd located at Gibraltar road operated by nuns. You can buy freshly made Ube Jam, Strawberry Jam, Peanut Brittle etc. Again, holiday and people are everywhere so queues are everywhere as well and there’s a limit of “Pasalubong” item to buy per person.

Talking about food on our 1st night we ate at PNKY Café at 12 Leonard Wood, Baguio City. We just ordered pasta & vegetable quesadillas with nachos. I love this place because it’s romantic, peaceful and relaxing. Food is okay and you get your money’s worth.

We had a buffet breakfast at Citylight Hotel. Their breakfast buffet has a lot of food to choose from; from Filipino, Chinese, European and English dishes. Breakfast is included on the room rate.

We also tried street food at night & the Takoyaki for P5.00/piece is to die for because of the fresh cabbage.

We also ate at Inihaw Republic where your only utensil is your own hand to be able to eat your food (Pinoy style; kainang naka-kamay) which is actually fun. Hehehe. And their combo meal is P150.00 only with Pork BBQ, Liempo and Longganisa. Inihaw Republic is only a part of the food booth during the "Panagbenga" Festival.

I checked one of the local Cafés in the area the Beanstalk and ordered some hot coffee to beat the cold weather.

We also visited the most-talked The Ketchup Community across the Wright Park for Lunch. We ate at the Green Pepper and ordered their Sinigang which is less P300.00 good for 4 persons.

And lastly, I will never miss the chance to eat at my favorite pizza parlor in Baguio the Pizza Volante along Session Road. They have the best hot sauce in town. hahaha.

And oh, did I mention that once you arrive in Baguio you need to buy ticket(s) ASAP going back to Manila before the schedules are fully-booked? Well, unlucky for us we weren’t able to buy tickets going back to Manila on our preferred date so we extended our stay and booked a different hotel at Chalet Baguio which is P2,300.00/night good for 2 persons with plated breakfast (cheaper than Citylight Hotel because it’s no longer a holiday stay). For an affordable rate we had a premier deluxe room at Chalet Baguio.

Btw, getting around Baguio is easy because of the metered Taxis, unlike in Manila Taxis in Baguio ask for the exact amount only and its the discretion of the passenger to give the change to the driver; flag down rate starts at P25.00.

Even though we spent additional night and money in Baguio it was still a good birthday-cation for me and my boyfriend because Baguio City is one of our favorite places for vacation.

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Bucket list moment with Oslob's Whale Shark

Before one can proceed with the activity there's a 5-minute orientation for the do's and don'ts during the whale shark encounter.
See photos for the guidelines.

Adventure begins:

Cool Waves & Life-size Figures at Amana Waterpark

Haler (Hello) Baler

Summer Love at Baguio City

CJ Magno

Destinations

Bucket list moment with Oslob's Whale Shark

Before one can proceed with the activity there's a 5-minute orientation for the do's and don'ts during the whale shark encounter.​See photos for the guidelines.

Adventure begins:

Cool Waves & Life-size Figures at Amana Waterpark

Haler (Hello) Baler

Summer Love at Baguio City

﻿CJ Magno﻿

﻿Destinations﻿

Before one can proceed with the activity there's a 5-minute orientation for the do's and don'ts during the whale shark encounter.
See photos for the guidelines.

CJ Magno

Destinations