PALAWAN-OF-A-KIND: 3D-2N Vacation at The City of the Living God

One item on my bucketlist is to see the Underground River which is one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. Since boyfie's sister, Michelle, graduated and I passed the Real Estate Broker Exam last May, we decided to go to Puerto Princesa to unwind and celebrate. :)

We availed of the 3D-2N tour package of Shadow Travels and Tours which is inclusive of roundtrip airfare, airport transfers, and accommodation for Php 8, 614.00 each. This is our first shot at a travel agency. I was so engrossed in studying for the exams that I couldn't find time to plan our budget and itinerary as I always do for our trips. I also wanted to spare myself the hassle. Hihi.

DAY 1 (CITY TOUR)

We were scheduled to arrive at Puerto Princesa International Airport at 11:10 AM but we're an hour early. This is a first! :) Kudos to Air Asia. It could be the other way around if it's Cebu Pac. Hehe.

Excited peeps

Hongkong Tour (Day 2)

Our second day was jam-packed so we got up in the wee hours of the morning to make the best out of our last day in Hongkong. 

Avenue of the Stars at Victoria Harbour

From TST station, the Avenue of the Stars can be reached via passenger subway. Just follow those arrows. A lot of HK denizens don’t understand English so it’s best to print maps before you explore on your own.

Hongkong Tour (Day 1)

Hongkong has always been in my travel bucket list since I was a kid. I mean, who doesn't know Disneyland? Finally, I was able to tick this off my list October last year with my boyfriend and his friends (Yes, my blog post is 4 months late. :p ). This isn't my first out-of-the-country jaunt but it’s my first time to plan a trip outside PH. All it took was my computer and some advice from friends to pull off a 2D-2N trip to Hongkong which I am sharing in this blog post. :)

AIRFARE TICKETS

We scored piso fare tickets from Cebu Pacific. Airfare per person is Php 3, 753.85, inclusive of 15 kg baggage already. Thing is, our departure point is at Clark International Airport so we had to wake up really early to catch the bus from Trinoma to the airport.

ACCOMMODATION

A month before our trip, I booked us 2 budget double rooms at Apple Hostel in Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) via HostelBookers.com. Apple Hostel is inside Chungking Mansions which is popular for bargain hunters. A lot of cheap accommodations can be found here. The location is good since the subway (MTR) station is only a couple of walks from the hostel.  

1 room costs 77.40 USD (Php 3,412.95). For each room, I paid a reservation fee of 9.29 USD (Php 409.64) which is deductible in the total bill.  The balance was paid on the day of check-in. This is pretty rad since in other accommodations you have to pay the total bill in full just to reserve. 

Ultimate Taste Test 2014: The Ultimate Gastronomic Adventure

Last September 27, 2014, my officemates and I joined 900+ foodies at Rockwell Tent for the ultimate food event of the year: Ultimate Taste Test 2014. We had the chance to become food critics for a day and try out a smorgasbord of dishes from 53 home-based food concessionaires and some establishments from Powerplant Mall. The participating establishments were personally handpicked by food blogger Anton Diaz. 

The event is actually the 12th series of the UTT and this is the 4th time it was held at Rockwell Tent. It was hosted by Mr. Spanky Enriquez, a blogger and a certified foodie.

We bought our tickets days before the event. One ticket costs Php 600.00 but we got 1 free ticket because of the Buy-5-Tickets-Get-1 promo. :)

Maginhawa Street Food Trip

 

Maginhawa Street in UP Teacher's Village, QC is a mecca for food junkies. Boyfie and I had been planning a food trip to the so-called "Eat Street" since August; due to our busy schedules, the plan came about a month after. This 3-kilometer street is brimming with restaurants which offer a potpourri of cuisines so it was a big challenge for me to choose which food stores to try. After some research, the 4 restaurants below emerged on top of my list. :)

Brunch: The Breakfast Table

The Breakfast Table is a farm-to-table restaurant which offers breakfast all throughout the day.  "Farm-to-Table" (or farm-to-fork) is a restaurant concept wherein food is locally sourced.

Breakfast at Stacy's

One fine Saturday morning, Cancio and I decided to eat at Stacy's which has long been in my list of restos to try. You see, I'm a sucker for retro diners. ;)

Cebu Escapade (Day 3)

We checked out of Moalboal Backpacker Lodge at 5am and rode a tricycle to Kawasan Falls. We were supposed to ride a bus but the driver misheard our instructions and directly drove us to the falls. 

There were local tour guides waiting when we arrived. Our plan was to trek without a guide since the trail to the falls is easy; since we have our bags with us, we gave in. The trek to the falls took a good 15 minutes. 

We passed by these natural wonders on our way to Kawasan Falls.

Cebu Escapade (Day 2)

We're supposed to wake up in the wee hours of the morning for our Moalboal trip but we were too clingy to part with our beds. Yep, we overslept. My normal OC self would blow a gasket for not sticking religiously to the itinerary but I promised myself that this one would be a vacation, not mere travel. Like they say, travel is getting there, vacation is being there. :)

And so, Day 2 was started with a hearty breakfast from the pension house's affordable menu.

Pancakes and Tosilog for Php75.00 each.

We checked out of Robe's Pension House at  11:00 am  and rode a taxi to Cebu South Bus Terminal where buses headed to Moalboal are.

Bus fare for the four of us is Php 520.00. We considered riding a cab instead but when the boys asked for the fare, the driver said it's fixed at Php 3,500.00 Hilarious, right?

We arrived in Moalboal terminal after 2 1/2 hours and rode a tricycle to Moalboal Backpacker Lodge where we are checked-in. 

Accommodation in Moalboal

We stayed at Moalboal Backpacker Lodge which I came across on Trip Advisor. It's just in front of Panagsama beach and there are a lot of restaurants and diving centers nearby.  The villa with 2 fan rooms costs Php 1,300.00.

Studio Cottage "Blue Gecko" with bathroom, balcony, and chill-out hammock

Cebu Escapade (Day 1)

Last June, our friends Ernest and Ann invited me and my boyfriend to tag along in their pre-wedding vacation in Cebu. Cebu is not actually in my travel bucket list. However, since Ernest proposed to shoulder the expenses, I answered a resounding YES! :) We also did a mini-prenup so I was in charge not just of the itinerary but also of the props and photo shoot concept. Boyfie was the photographer. Yes, it's a 2-man team. If you wanna see how we did it, read on. :)

Day 1

Upon arrival at Mactan Airport, we immediately looked for the white metered taxi stand and queued up. There are two types of metered taxis present at the airport -white and yellow taxis. The flag down rate for a white metered taxi is Php 40.00 while yellow metered taxis start at Php 70.00. You have to cross the street in front of the arrival gate and climb up the stairs to reach the waiting area for the white taxis. Still, the yellow and white metered taxis are way cheaper than the private taxis waiting just outside of the arrival gate. 

It took us 10 minutes before we were able to ride a cab. Our fare was Php 320.00 from the Airport to Robe's Pension House where we are checked-in. 

At the waiting area for white metered taxis

Shoe selfies! :)

Accommodation

I highly recommend Robe's Pension House located in Cebu City. For 2 deluxe rooms, we paid Php 2,400.00 for 2 days and 1 night. It has budget-friendly rates, accommodating staff, clean and cozy rooms, and good location. It's situated in the heart of tourist attractions within Cebu city. They also have strong wi-fi connection. The only downside is that they have no elevator which is a bummer if your room is located on the upper floors. They’re pretty transparent with this minor setback which is reflected in their website. I forgot to take pictures of the rooms but the photos in their website are quite accurate.

Our rooms are located on the 2^nd floor.

Sci-fi Café: Awakening The Geek In Me

Last Friday night, boyfie wanted to test his new camera body and I wanted to eat at someplace unique. We immediately thought of The Sci-Fi Café which was recommended by a friend.

"The Sci-Fi Café is a concept restaurant located at the 4th floor, West Wing of Robinsons Galleria Ortigas Ave. corner EDSA, featuring pop culture reflected in sci-fi, fantasy and other fictional movies through the use of prop replicas, 1/6 scale action figures and movie posters as the overall theme of the restaurant serving American comfort food."

The concept started when the owner, Richard Chua, realized he had a vast toy collection which started in 2002. Majority of the toys on display are imported items from US and Hongkong. Some of them were acquired in Singapore and Australia, but the bulk of them was purchased locally.

We had passed by at this café countless times before but I was under the misconception that this was a toy shop.