A Day in Zoocobia

Last January 16, we had a really tiring but fun experience at Zoocobia in Clark. It was an impromptu trip but luckily, everything turned out well.

They picked me up outside my office and in less than 2 hours, we're already at the gates of Clark Freeport Zone. While on our way, I bought our tickets online. I immediately received the confirmation number without any hassle. The ticket costed P295 per head.

Since we'll be spending the day at the zoo, we dropped by Pure Gold first and bought some snacks and drinks, then we had an early Lunch at McDo.

At around 1pm, we're already at Zoocobia. They offer several activity packages at the Main Entrance like Horseback Riding, Camelback Riding, Zooc Gravity Ride.

After they gave us the map, we went to see the birds first. We were given the chance to feed the love birds and it's a wonderful experience. After that, we went to feed the Ostrich and the Turkeys. We roam around the zoo and saw different kinds of eagles, constrictors, deers, camels, and other animals from other parts of Asia.

We were able to tour around the whole zoo in an hour and a half and our feet were so tired from all the walking but it's really worth it.

Zooc Gravity Car Ride

The zoo is worth the visit. For a cheap price, you'll get the chance to see a bunch of different animals upclose and kids will really enjoy the place. 

The zoo opens from 8am-5pm daily.

A Piece of South Korea in Bulacan

My mom messaged me that they're going to visit and asked me if there's a park near our house. The nearest in our place is Ecopark but they've been there a couple of times and I think she wants a place she haven't been to yet. Then I remembered I saw on the internet this Korean Temple in Bocaue. It's actually an hour drive from our place but it's the nearest I can think of so I showed her the photos and she said she's good with that.

The following day, we left our house at almost 1PM. We arrived there at 2:10PM. We parked at The Parish of Sto. Cristo. It's still a 5-minute walk to the Shrine of St. Andrew Kim but there are trikes lined up at the parking area that could take you to the shrine if you don't want to walk 400 meters. They charge P10/head.

Going to the shrine itself was a challenge for me because of my knee surgery. I didn't expect that we have to take a trike then walk a narrow street just to get to it. But I think it's worth visiting this place once to relax, meditate, and have cool selfies. You'll indeed get a taste of Korea in this hidden part of Bocaue.

The Shrine is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 10-12in the morning and 2-4 in the afternoon.
We were able to get to the place through Waze, but the route is easy if you're coming from Manila. You can just take McArthur Highway or NLEX Marilao Exit.

Baguio on a Budget 2018

Wondering how much to spend for your Baguio trip? You can actually spend less without settling for less as long as you have travel buddies to share the expenses with. Below is the summary of our itinerary/expenses during our Baguio Trip.

ITINERARY

Day 1

• 11:30PM   -  Off to Baguio
• 4:30AM    -  Breakfast at Good Taste
• 6:00AM    -  Mass at Baguio Cathedral
• 7:00AM    -  Camp John Hay
• Butterfly Sanctuary
• Cemetery of Negativism
• Liberty Loop
• Bell House
• Bell Ampitheatre
• Secret Garden Walk
• 10:30AM  -  Snacks at Choco-late de Batirol
• 11:00AM   -  The Mansion and Wright Park
• 12:00NN   -  Minesview Park and Good Shepherd
• 1:00PM     -  Lunch at a Restaurant outside Minesview Park
• 2:00PM    -  Check in at Cafe Caridad
• 7:30PM    -  Dinner at Pizza Volante in Session Road
• 9:30PM    -  Night Market at Harrison Road

Day 2

• 7:00AM   -   Breakfast at Chowking (just a minute walk from our Transient House)
• 10:00AM   -   Check out at Cafe Caridad
• 10:30AM   -   Early Lunch at 50s Diner Session Road
• 12:00NN   -   Tam-Awan Village
• 1:30PM   -   Baguio Market
• 3:00PM   -   Meryenda at my Uncle's house
• 7:00PM   -   Off to Cubao

So far, we're able to make the most out of our trip and we didn't had a hard time travelling from one tourist spot to another because the taxis are everywhere. There are still a lot of tourist spots to visit but there's always a next time.

For the expenses:

so for less than P2500, you'll get to tour around several tourist destinations and eat at several local restaurants in Baguio. If you want to buy some pasalubong, an additional P300-P500 in your budget will be more than enough.

DIY Baguio Tour 2018

After three years, we were finally able to visit Baguio again and I'd say this time, we're able to make the most of our trip.

In this post, I'll be sharing our itinerary during our 2-day stay. Before our trip, I already planned the places we'll be visiting that's why  we didn't have much idle time there.

It's already past 11PM when we arrived at the Victory Liner Terminal in Cubao (the one located beside Grand Prix). i was actually planning to take the 11:55PM trip but since they have a bus departing at 11:30PM, we rode that one instead. There's not much people travelling at night so everything was smooth. I only spent 5 minutes in their ticket booth and in no time, we're already being boarded. The fare is still at P455 (Student fare is P356).

We didn't mind the zig zags and the long travel time since we're all sleeping during the 5-hour trip.

Upon arriving, we went off to Good Taste to have our Breakfast. The taxi fare from Victory Liner Terminal to Good Taste is P50 and there are a lot of taxis waiting outside the terminal so you could easily hire one. The generous serving of their delicious Buttered Chicken made sure that we'll be full during our city tour.

After taking our Breakfast, we walked all the way to Session Road to attend the mass in Baguio Cathedral. We're just in time for the 6AM mass.

After the mass, we went off to Camp John Hay. The taxi fare from Baguio Cathedral to Camp John Hay is P70. The Bell House is still closed and the guard said it opens at 8AM so we just explored around. We took photos in the Liberty Loop first, then went around the Cemetery of Negativism. Then we went to visit the Butterfly Sanctuary. There is an entrance fee of P70 and for that price, you'll get to have unlimited photos with the Butterflies. I think that's overpriced but we paid it anyway for the experience. At exactly 8AM we're already walking towards to entrance of the Bell House and they're already open. We paid an entrance fee of P60 each and for that amount, you'll get to visit the Bell House, the Bell Ampitheatre, the Secret Garden, and the Trail. We spent an hour and a half roaming around, taking pictures and appreciating the place.

Our next stop after the Bell House is Choco-late de Batirol. Our taxi fare costed P50. The place is hidden behind trees and it's cozy but Instagrammable.Since all of us are still full from our heavy Breakfast, we opted to just try their Hot Chocolate. I loved their Baguio Blend. It just has the right amount of sweetness unllike the Choco Mallows. We spent 40 minutes in this place before we went off to Wright Park.

From Choco-late de Batirol to Wright Park, the taxi fare is P50. We took pictures in front of the Mansion first before roaming around Wright Park. Just outside the park, there are a lot of vendors selling strawberries and grapes, and Strawberry taho. Inside the park, there are stalls selling souvenirs and pasalubong so I was able to buy my kids tshirts. There are a lot of empty picnic chairs and tables so we're able to rest there and had some snacks.

It's already past 11AM when we left Wright Park and headed off to Minesview Park. The taxi fare to Minesview Park is P50. There are also a lot of stalls there just outside the park selling pasalubongs but we will still visit the market tomorrow so I will just buy my pasalubongs there. We took the stairs to go to the View Deck and since the place is so crowded, we just left after a few minutes and walked all the way to Good Shepherd. At around 12:30PM, we're already walking back to Minesview Park but I was disappointed when I learned that there's no 50s Diner there contrary to what I read in Google so We have to settle in one of the carinderias. We're all done by 1:30PM so we headed off to Cafe Caridad in City Camp Alley where we'll be staying.

At Cafe Caridad

Everyone's really tired after a half day tour so we all went to sleep right after checking in. We woke up at 7:30PM already and we're all hungry so we took a taxi to Pizza Volante in Session Road to have our Dinner. Fare is P50. It's already past 9PM when we finished our Dinner so we just walked to Harrison Road to check out the night market. After a few hours of going through all stuffs and cheap finds, we're all tired and went back to our transient.

The following day, we're still tired from a lot of walking during our first day so we just bought coffee from 7 11 and went back to our room. It's a good thing everything we need is just a few minute walk from our place.

After checking out at 10AM, we walked all the way to Session Road again and took our Brunch in 50s Diner. Finally, we're able to dine here and I'd say it's the best I've ever had in Baguio. After eating, we're supposed to be visiting Bell Church but since it's already past 12NN, they're already closed and will open again at 1:30PM. We visited Tam-Awan Village instead and it's not really for me since I haven't fully recovered from my knee surgery yet. The fare is P90. I was challenged by the trail but I survived even though I almost faint  because of my acrophobia (fear of heights). I loved the paintings displayed in their gallery and I'm hoping to buy a masterpiece or two in the future.

After visiting Tam-Awan, we finally headed off to my favorite place in Baguio, the market. The fare from Tam-Awan to the market is P90. After buying pasalubongs, we went to my Uncle's house and spent the afternoon there and come evening, they accompanied us to the terminal.

It's another great experience for us being in Baguio and I'm already excited to visit next year.

Puerto Galera during the Low Season 2016 Part 3: The Superb Experience

At 8:30 in the morning, all ten of us were already inside the bus. I thought the bus will depart at 9 but it's only 8:45 when we left. We took the ALPS bus going to Batangas Pier and as expected, we paid P175 per person but the kids were given student discount. The trip was smooth although we experienced moderate traffic in Batangas. It was 11:20 when arrived the port.

Waiting at ALPS

At Batangas Port

At the port, a lot of fixers are following us especially when they saw that we're in group but when I told them we live in Puerto Galera, they turned away from us. I know it's funny but I can't think of any other way we could get rid of them. Anyway, someone from MSL approched us and wanted us to sign up and upon seeing he is wearing the MSL T-Shirt, we started inquiring. We asked for a discount and I told them it's our Mom's birthday (thinking that might help), and after a few minutes of negotiation, they gave our Mom a free round trip ticket. The two kids are also free. We paid our terminal fee through them so I was really glad that our trip this time was hassle-free. We just paid them and after handing us our tickets, we went to the Departure area. We didn't make it to the 11:30 trip but at 12:12, we were already asked to board the ferry and in no time, we're on our way to Puerto Galera.

At the Departure Area

Inside the Ferry

We arrived at Muelle Pier at 1:26PM where Minolo's free shuttle service picked us up and took us to White Beach. It was a 30-minute zigzag trip. After we were dropped off, Ate Merlyn from VM approached us and offered us a family room for P2500, but since it was in 3rd floor, I just requested for two Quad rooms in 2nd floor which they readily gave us. I tried to haggle to get the room for P1000 each but they told us it's a weekend so the price is really higher. Well, I'd say their price of P2500 is fair enough.

Our room at VM Resort

After we unpacked our stuff, we went to Food Trip to have our late lunch. The place is full even though it's already past 2. Their kind staff seated us in a separate dining area that has a huge industrial fan. The food is just okay as expected.

We all went back to our resort and they changed to their swimming attires except me because I opted to take a short rest before dinner. It's already past 11PM when I woke up and I was surprised to see everyone's already sleeping. Too bad they missed Mindoro Sling and the fire dancers but I'm pretty sure they're all excited for tomorrow's island hopping organized by Queen Reyna.

At 5 in the morning, everyone's already awake and ready to have breakfast. We were scheduled to be picked up at 6. We had a little walk until we reached Terminal. They offer the usual breakfast combos plus unlimited rice. Their service was very slow. It took almost 30 minutes before we were served our orders plus the staff who waited our table forgot to list down one order and so we had to wait another 30 minutes. It's already past 6 when we finished our breakfast and the tour organizer was already waiting for us. She was really nice and even though we're late she just smiled at us and asked if we're ready to go.

Two trikes picked us up and drop us off to the port where our boat was waiting. By the way, we paid P2100 for unlimited island hopping and round trip transfer from our resort to the dock.

At the dock

The boatman asked us if we want to avail of the optional trip to the Underwater Cave, Coral Garden, and Giant Clams. To visit those sites, we need 3 small boats. Each trip would cost P200 per head but if we want to visit all three it will only cost us P300 per head, so we agreed to visit them all.
(I will provide the details of our island hopping on a separate post.)

It took us three hours to visit the three sites and after that, our boatman brought us to Maliklik Beach so we can have our early lunch before we go snorkeling again.

After our lunch, we then headed off to Bayanan Beach where the boys enjoyed snorkeling. They spotted different kinds of fish.

By 1PM we're already on our way back to our resort as we still have to catch the 3PM trip to Batangas Pier.

By 3PM, we walked to the far end of the White Beach where the MSL ferry is docked and after paying the exit fee of P10 per head, we boarded the ferry and in a few minutes, we're off to Batangas Pier. We were the last ones who boarded and unfortunately, there were no seats anymore so we just have to sit down at the entrance. So for an hour and a half, we have to endure it. I wasn't able to take a nap but the person seated behind me was playing some good music and at least that helped made the trip enjoyable. The ferry ride was smooth and I was happy it wasn't like the last time we're in Puerto Galera where there was a storm and everyone was nauseous because of the waves.

At the pier, the buses going to Cubao are all full but we were able to catch one in a few minutes. I was not able to check what time we left the pier. I think it was around 5 and we arrived in Megamall at around 8.

The trip was really fun. I was expecting the worst but only the best happened. We never encountered any issues before and during our stay and it was one of the most unforgettable trip to Puerto Galera I had ever experience.