For decades, the Filipino culture has been stricken with local myths, legends and folklores that have been passed from one generation to another. We grew up hearing myriad stories about the origin of almost everything. We have the stories of Pina (Legend of the Pinapple), Daragang Magayon (Mayon Volcano) and Maria Makiling to name a few. We also grew up hearing sinister stories about mythical creatures like the cigar smoking giant (kapre), shape shifting evil spirit (aswang) and warlocks or enchanters (mangkukulam). A few well-known provinces in the country, to this day, are still infamous for the “said” existence of such creatures. Until now, some people are hesitant to visit and travel these places because such spine-chilling reputation continues to live on. One of these places is Siquijor.
One of the local airlines had another round of ticket sale. Of course, we didn’t let it pass and booked for another travel destination. After checking several locations, we chose Dumaguete.
A Taste of South Korea
After completing and submitting all the visa requirements, we finally got our South Korean visa approved. It's our first time to travel out of the country and we were so thrilled to immerse ourselves on a not so peculiar culture. Apart from the K-dramas and movies we've watched, which could have been the subliminal catalyst of our interest to embark on this trip, our knowledge of South Korea is limited to what we see in social media. Though we're utterly sure that whatever is in store for us, it will not be less than fun.
I looked at my watch and it's already 6 AM. Just one more hour and its FREEDOM for this corporate slave! Friday office shift ends, and our most anticipated awesome weekend starts.
For this weekend, Camille and I together with our friends from Cupcake Travellers planned to go to Bauan, Batangas to swim and practice our freediving skills (Camille has just finished her freediving lessons so she’s excited). Bauan is one of the diving spots in Batangas known for its wondrous and spectacular marine life.
During one of our usual conversations in messenger, one of my best buds said he’s proposing. I asked when and where? He said: “This April in Pagudpud, are you coming?”. I was silent for a while… not because I didn’t want to come, but because I was contemplating whether I still have vacation credits left. From what I know, Camille’s vacation credits have been also allotted exactly for our upcoming travels this 2018. Bahala na si Batman, I said “Of course man – with bells on!”.
Time to travel!!! Our first legit vacation/travel after the wedding. For more than a year, Milot and I turned aside any plans of travelling. Two main reasons: one is because we wanted to give our 100% focus to all the wedding preparations and second is of course to save money for the wedding (we’ll post a separate blog covering all the details of our wedding 😊).
This time, we decided to visit Puerto Princesa, Palawan. We were supposed to go here last 2015, but for some reasons we chose Davao instead. So, what has the “the city in a forest” have in store for us? Well apart from the savory food selection and friendly locals, Puerto Princesa offers a majestic getaway from the busy city life. Let’s go over the fun activities we had!
WHAT TO EAT?
NOKI NOCS SAVORY HOUSE
While we were researching on the must try foods and restos in Puerto Princesa, NOKI NOCS' halo-halo came up several times. Thus, we made sure to have it included in our itinerary. The verdict? Well, it doesn’t disappoint. Indeed, it has the best halo-halo in town. We even visited this place twice during our stay in the city. LOL. Note: It’s comparable to Razon’s halo-halo. But, with more toppings.NEVA'S PLACE
It is a known go to place for romantic dates or for those who just want to have a sumptuous afternoon snack. They’re locally famous for their original brick-oven pizzas and Spanish colonial era themed resto.LA TERRASSE CAFE
Our sweet tooth still can’t get over the halo halo we had at Noki Nocs. Lucky for us La Terrasse Cafe is just as stone’s throw away from our hotel. This place is famous for their honey nougat dessert. A little bit pricy, but a bang for the back for sure.EIGHTYNINE CAFÉ
On our way back to the hotel we dropped by at Eightynine Café to try their unicorn tears and spam fries.KA JOEL’S INATO
Puerto Princesa also offers their own version of chicken Inasal thru Ka Joel's Inato (We suggest you grab a bite during dinner as the mood lights make the place cozier. 😊)RENE’S SAIGON
We noticed that a portion of Puerto Princesa’s rich culture has been deeply influenced by Vietnam. This could be due to the Vietnamese refugees who fled to the province of Palawan in the 70’s after the Vietnam war (ehem, history trivia!!). It’s apparent to the number of Vietnamese restaurants found in and out of the city. We had the chance to try the delicious local chaolong and Vietnamese-French bread at Rene's Saigon. Tho’m ngon!!!PALAWEÑO BREWERY
And what’s the best thing to do after all those exhausting activities the entire day? DRINK SOME BEEEER!! Fortunately, in Puerto Princesa they have Palaweño Brewery which offers a variety of cervezas straight from their brewhouse! Skol!! #PalawanlocalbeerBAKER’S HILL
For our pasalubong, we went to Baker's Hill and tried their mouth-watering hopiang baboy. It’s also a theme park so we had some photoshoots while indulging on a few pieces of that “pasalubong”. 😊Woodworms! Or most commonly known as tamilok. Here it is considered a local exotic delicacy. We tried one and it tasted like oysters (or so I thought?).
WHERE TO GO?
UNDERGROUND RIVER
Puerto Princesa is known not only in the Philippines, but the entire world because of its famed UNDERGROUND RIVER. It’s considered as one of the wonders of the world as well as a UNESCO world heritage site. Despite the striking smell of bat dung inside the cave, you would be amazed by the rock formations. Truly magnificent!UGONG ROCK CAVE
On our way to the underground river, we had a little side trip and went spelunking at UGONG ROCK CAVE.We also visited several landmarks within downtown Puerto Princesa city like the IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CATHEDRAL.
PLAZA CUARTEL
Beside the cathedral is Plaza Cuartel which is a witness to the brutality of WWII. In this same place, around 150 American prisoners were tortured and burned alive on December 14, 1944. We peeked inside the eerie underground tunnel where the incident took place. Oh boy, it certainly gave us the chills!We also dropped by at the PALAWAN HERITAGE CENTER and PROVINCIAL CAPITOL to know more about the history of Palawan.
Then we took a slow stroll around PUERTO PRINCESA BAYWALK PARK while enjoying the picturesque sunset.
We also visited and watched the magical FIREFLIES OF IWAHIG
ISLAND HOPPING
Last stop of our Puerto Princesa tour is HONDA BAY ISLAND hopping. We went swimming and freediving at PAMBATO REEF, LU-LI and COWRIE ISLAND. On the spot, the stunning beauty of these islands captivated us. The clear sea water, marine life and white sand, what’s not to love?Want to see more of our Puerto Princesa escapade? Watch the video below!
