Although January is about to end, I would like to share with you my top 10 nooks and crannies for 2008 before starting on new adventures for this year. The year 2009 has started off with gloomy skies, strong winds and big waves. This has somehow curtailed my travel plans.
Since the sun seems to be back to his old jolly self, I will be off to a new adventure. I will also be in hiatus for a short while from the blogging world. For now, I give you my favorite destinations of the past year…
Here we go…
10. Hda. Isabel, La Castellana, Negros Occidental
It may indeed be one of the most popular cliches around but it’s true: there is no place like home! This nook will always be an essential destination for me… To avoid the risk of being biased, it is with a heavy heart that this is only ranked 1oth. Haha!
9. Buagsong, Municipality of Cordova, Cebu
This fishing community is popular for its eel delicacies believed to be potent aphrodisiacs. But I like this place because of its fiery sunsets reflected in the shallow waters during low tide and its “sandbar” which turned out to be mounds of shells dug up by the locals living near the area.
8. Bagacay Point, Municipality of Liloan, Cebu
This cranny is popular for its century old lighthouse built during the early years of American occupation. In my last visit, heavens gifted me with a wonderful display of light transitions in the sky and a cow eager to be photographed!
7. Trancentral Highway, Taptap, Cebu City
The snaking highway offers picturesque panoramas on clear days. What made this specific trip special was my arduous walk on a foggy morning and a slight drizzle halfway to my intended destination. Since I always experience leg cramps and I am helpless without my muscle pain killers, this trip without cramps was an achievement! And the stop-over for sweet corns in Taptap is a must…
6. Kan-irag Nature Park, Ayala Heights, Cebu City
This place is for leisurely walks. The comforting serenity of walking its trail and its windy high spots invite reminiscences. I was glad that through this entry, some people actually checked out the place and agreed with my review.
5. Gawahon Eco-Park, Victorias City, Negros Occidental
It is not just always about the destination. The journey is as important. In spite of the seemingly poor maintenance, this place still has much to offer if one is contented with sight-seeing. The sceneries along the way are very relaxing.
4. Malubog Dam, Toledo City, Cebu
This man-made lake in General Climaco is very distinguishable from the airplanes that ply the Bacolod-Cebu route. After two cancellations, our trip to this intriguing place pushed through along with sumptuous food and a bypass inside the mining areas of Toledo City.
3. Mount Manunggal, Municipality of Balamban, Cebu
The king of all mountains in Cebu! All trekkers and mountaineers in order to be accomplished peripatetics must conquer this summit and pay homage to the great life whose blood drenched its forest floor: Ramon Magsaysay. Below is the prominent monkey-face rock formation visible from the Balamban field office on the top of Mount Manunggal.
Visiting another country is always a unique experience. Although I was confined to Penang for the time I was in Malaysia, the stroll, the food and the opportunity of meeting new friends were well worth it. And the best part for a nature lover like me was the chance to visit the Penang Butterfly Farm – a lepidopteran haven. Aside from butterflies they also have other interesting collections from the Arthropods. The leaf insect for me is the most unique creature there.
1. Malapascua Island, Daanbantayan, Cebu
Malapascua is first and foremost for divers. Being in the northern part of the province, this island offered me an unhurried and relaxed getaway from the city – no pollution, loud music, television and blasting car horns. For aspiring bird photographers, the diversity of its fauna is amazing with many different birds challenging the power of one’s lenses and stalking patience. Despite being quite inferior still to the sands of Boracay, all of these with the warm smiles of it’s local inhabitants, Malapascua brings the bar of tourism to a different level against the commercialism of Boracay.
Being a lover of lighthouses, featured below is the Malapascua lighthouse.
I am looking forward to visiting more nooks and crannies this 2009. I also bid you to explore the outdoors! There may be an economic crisis but ironic as it may seem, moving money around responsibly will help to alleviate its ill effects. As Mark Twain has said:
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the tradewinds in your sails. Explore… Dream… Discover…
———–
A great travel blog inspired me to have this post. Miss Beth Tamayo (does that sound familiar?) was my Chemistry professor when I was still a student in the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod. She made easy the 10 grueling units of the subject, handling both lecture and laboratory. Now she is married, had migrated to the United States and still continues to teach. While balancing chemical equations, rattling off esoteric elemental properties and deriving electronic configurations to her students, she has taken photography as a hobby just recently. Fast learner that she is, her pictures are now phenomenal. Photography complements the affliction that we share: travel itch. She is maintaining three travel blogs and California Today is one of them. Despite her busy schedule, she spares her time to comment on almost all my entries here. Presenting… her top 20 destinations in California Today…
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the tradewinds in your sails. Explore… Dream… Discover…”
– I CAN RESONATE WITH THIS!
It’s amazing to get to be connected with people of same passions and interests. The world is indeed very small.
Travels and Photography — perfect combination!
I wanna see “Malubog Dam”. I always miss the opportunity to go to “Malapascua Island” each time I go to Cebu. I promise to see them when I’m back in the Philippines.
BATANES is a sanctuary that I want to explore too.
Hoping to join your escapades when the right time comes.
Let’s declare it to the universe TODAY!
P.S.
Checked out Beth’s site. I became an instant fan.
no. 1 looks interesting… daw gusto ko bisatahan…
Ang gaganda talaga ng mga lugar sa pinas, sadly, nde pa ako masyadong nakakalaboy sa atin, puro dito sa malaysia. Anyway, superb photos as usual! Galing galing! Congrats!
Godbless!
HI Mark, first, thanks a lot for the feature. Now I understand why rev got to my site, really thanks to you for sharing my joy of “travel itch” (as you would describe) and photography. You’re very correct about there, travel itch, my feet always itches where to go and my mind wanders where, what, how and why to take pictures of.
Oh, and so love your quote of Mark Twain of exploring the outdoors. I agree with you, the outdoors just offer a sense of relaxation and it is so rejuvenating, one can even just start with their hometown, you see, i love so much your number 5 and it is just in our Negros Province. All your pictures are great, my favorite aside from #5 would be #4, I still have to practice how to take pictures of flowing water like that, I am just so impressed and it seems like you just got the correct shutter speed and exposure there. That will drive me to go out more and seek dam, river and waterfalls.
at last nabisita ko na tong site mo…and im impressed.ganda ng mga pics.imagine ang daming magagandang lugar sa pinas.dapat talagang iexplore ang mga yan before going abroad.sadly,puro sa northern part pa lang ako nakakapunta.i’ve been to vigan,pagudpud.tapos we also visited anawangin cove sa pundakit,zambales..
btw,mark din name mo? tokayo pala tayo.hehe.explore ko tong page mo later.work muna ko.
p.s.
thanks sa pagbisita sa blog ko.add kita sa flamindevil’s angels ko ha.
thanks for sharing your travels and adventures with us. you’ve been to really great destinations. been here in cebu for almost 2 years pero di ko pa napuntahan lahat ng magagadang lugar dito. hehe. ingat lagi sa biyahe kuya mark!
as always…. i enjoy reading your travel spree. i am even more curious of malapascua. i’m still trying to squeeze that in val’s schedule. hehehe…
i like 8,7 and 3. very interesting.
anyway all photos are masterfully taken.
great pictures, Naked Photographer! hehe… lalo akong humahanga kapag iniisip ko na film ang gamit mo dito. me, i only have my point-and-shoot digicam. ang advantage ko lang eh i can take pictures where it’s forbidden like inside museums and churches. hehe…
nakakahiya pero I haven’t been to any of these places. there’s so much to discover in our country! in Manila alone, there are quite a handful of sights I’ve visited and quite a number of places more I want to check out pero sobrang lost in the corner silang lahat.
as for batanes, dream ko rin yun. my sister has been there several times and said it’s not at all expensive. rugged ka nga lang talaga dapat. flight scheds vary according to weather kasi 10seater na fokker lang daw ang eroplano dun.
I would like to recommend also Mt.Batulao and Mt.Makulot of Batangas. Sobrang ganda!
#4 is really, really nice! kanami gid katama.
How I wish I can go to batanes too but like you said, it’s really expensive. Explore ko na lang ang Negros before I head out and explore the rest of the country and the world.
Hi! Nice photos you got here. By the way, have you been to Malapascua in 2004 with your engineering club before? Would love to see some more photos from there. Thanks.