KITCHEN MISADVENTURE SERIES 12: Polvoron ala Lucy

Today, my daughter and I shared another bonding moment when we made polvoron using a recipe from Lucy Torres-Gomez which I read in an old newspaper entry( I just forgot when???) The recipe called for the following ingredients (which we were lucky to have on hand) – ½ c toasted flour, ½ c skimmed milk (in lieu of Birch Tree which I understand Lucy is endorsing), 2/3 c white sugar, ½ c unsalted butter.

My daughter just watched and asked a myriad of questions while I was toasting the flour, then she helped measure out the sugar and milk and in mixing in the butter. But what was truly fun for both of us was the molding and wrapping process – we used pretty red Japanese paper to wrap the 23 pieces we were able to make…well, some of them got eaten even before they got wrapped! Which is why our plans to sell sana our polvoron went pfft! The resulting polvoron was so good so we just decided to eat them all!!! Next time we vowed to double the ingredients and take note of the cost of the items we bought (well, because the flour and the sugar was already on hand, I couldn’t recall how much they cost!) so that even after we’ve had our fill of this very delectable dessert, we’d still have something left over to sell…

ON KIDS AND COURTSHIP


Yesterday, I had a funny yet totally disturbing conversation with my daughter - she told me that her cousin who is nine years old (just one year older than her) already had a boyfriend…a classmate who was also her textmate…When I asked how he became her boyfriend, she just said that he was her crush and she was likewise his crush and when they both knew that simple fact – that was it! They were ‘ON’ na!!! And I go what??? It’s that easy!?! No more courtship??? No more getting-to-know-you stage??? Grabe naman! I never realized how quickly times have changed…before courtship was a very long and tedious process that starts with friendship…(well, my grandma can argue they had a more difficult time – I’m sure!) But still…I wonder??? What happens when they realize they don’t like each other pala…they drop the relationship like one hot potato??? Oh dear, so that’s why I have been noticing that this niece of mine has long stopped playing with her other cousins whenever we come home to the province to visit, while my daughter and her other cousins play ball and bathe outside by the poso, she just sits in her corner, texting and mostly keeping to herself…I just hope that my daughter won’t do the same thing her cousin did and have a boyfriend at such a young age…if my wish would be granted, I hope she enjoys her youth and plays with her friends and her girly toys for a long…long…long…time! After all, she’d have the rest of her adult life to worry about boys and getting into (and out of) relationships!!!

PIAO outing @ Subic and Olongapo

Finally, we had the chance to experience another real outing with the PIAO staff… because for the past two years we have not been able to go on what others may consider a REAL team-building because we only just go to Tagaytay to eat and tour the sites (visit zoos, ride the zip, do some souvenir shopping) then eat; pose for pictures and eat again…before heading home without sleeping over…really just one big food trip and daytour (whatever you may wish to call it…)






But this time, we decided to visit Subic and sleepover at a nondescript inn at Olongapo city that’s well within our budget (hehehe coz we can’t afford to stay inside Subic eh) …our group left early at 6am so we could travel to Subic within three hours. We had a short side trip at Jolibee in Tabang for breakfast. We reached Ocean Adventure at 9am but only Kaye, Kit, Jairah and I entered because the others didn’t feel like watching e…or maybe they didn’t want to shell out that much money. Instead, they went to JEST camp for some trekking and survival training (which I believe only cost about PhP150 or PhP200). But then again, I wouldn’t trade our Ocean Adventure for anything because WE HAD SO MUCH FUN!!!...and its PhP 500 price tag is truly truly worth it!!! Just too bad for the others huh?







The adventure started with a short briefing about the animals we would soon encounter – the seals and dolphins they have acquired and named liked regular pets. Then, we visited them in their pens and cages and we saw even then that they were truly such playful creatures…after about 30 minutes of just idle browsing, off we went na to our first show – The Sea Lion Show!








It was funny and at the same time educational – the seals displayed their tricks and antics really well and taught the people (esp the kids) in the audience the importance of caring for the environment. The next show was a bit boring – on jungle survival and they showcased some jungle animals that had been trained to do some tricks but it wasn’t as engaging as the previous show. The most exciting part (well, for me that is) is the Diving Act It was truly amazing and quite funny too – how the Australian divers interacted with the audience and with each other so they just didn’t do one dive after another but instead had a funny story to tell – their stunts were truly death-defying and breathtaking! And last but not the least is another great show which the kids truly loved – the dolphin show! It would have been fun to be able to interact live with the dolphins but we heard it cost an arm and a leg so we just contented ourselves to watching them from afar…anyway, it was fun just being there and watching them perform…













It was even worth it to have missed the lunch that they had at JEST camp because the show ended at past 1:00 PM already and so we only passed by a Jollibee drive-thru en route to Olongapo’s By the Sea Resort so the kids and I can eat lunch in the van. We reached Olongapo after an hour and we rested a bit inside the room before the kids hankered to swim in the pool and so I just let them go ahead while we just stayed inside to enjoy the room's airconditioning. Around 5, Joey and I went out to try to scout around for a restaurant for our dinner tonight and luckily we found one just walking distance from the hotel/inn. By 5 and it was already a bit cool, the hubby and I decided to join the kids in the pool.













At around 7 we took a bath na so that we could be ready for dinner at 7:30… After dinner, we went back to the inn where the boys had some drinks (at an outdoor bar) while we just hanged out and took advantage of the free wi-fi in the bar. By 10, we went back in the room, watched a bit of TV and fell asleep shortly…









The next day, we had breakfast at a nearby Andok’s resto then the kids took an early morning dip (both in the beach and in the pool) The hubby and I decided against swimming with them na and instead just took a bath in the hotel bathroom. By 11:30 we checked out of the hotel na and proceeded to buy some Lotus slippers (in Olongapo market) and do some duty-free shopping at Puregold, Subic. By 1PM, we had lunch at JEST camp (again!) although we should have called them first so that they could have prepared for our meal ahead of time… as it was we waited a bit for the food to be cooked. Ended up leaving for the office at 3PM na and reached VLuna at 5:00 …waited a bit for the shuttle and finally got home at 7:30 PM…truly tired but so much satiated at how well everyone enjoyed our office team-building no matter how simple and tight-budgeted it was…

A BROKEN MP5


…my daughter’s heartbroken…because her MP5’s LCD got broken…We were home for BP for the weekend and I was inside the room alone since the kids were noisy - dancing and singing outside. When suddenly my daughter barged inside the room crying, she said her MP5 was inside her pocket and as she was trying to take it out to play with it, it suddenly slipped from her hands AND …IT…JUST…BROKE! And it totally broke her heart too…I knew how devastated she felt but there was nothing much I could do about it??? I’m not even sure if they do repairs for such kind of damage…or if I could go to Quiapo to have it fixed…well, considering that I still have to pay for the MP5 for two more months (we just bought it last month as a graduation present!)…I guess I should be more devastated than she is!?!

A new credit card!

I got a surprise visit today from Metrobank who came to deliver my NEW CREDIT CARD! It was truly a surprise because the last time I heard I was blacklisted from ever getting a credit card because as my dad says my name was included in the list of people who still have pending loans…mine was incurred from my previous credit card when I was still in college. Then, when we moved from place to place, my address was changed constantly so they had no way to trace me anymore…and besides they have already been charging me for incurred interests that amounted to almost P10K when in fact my credit limit was just P4K!

I am just glad that Metrobank merely took into consideration the fact that I am currently an accountholder with their bank and so they offered to give me a card and notwithstanding my previous record, decided to take a risk on me since anyway, they could always freeze my money if I don’t get to pay diba? And besides, they just gave me a teensy credit limit of 15K so I guess it’s one drawback I had to live with after all I still have to prove that I am quite capable of keeping and holding a credit card once again…

TAKE 2 AT KWEBANG LAMPAS

It’s our second time to visit ‘Kwebang Lampas’ at Pagbilao, Quezon but this time we’ll be joining Ate Ne’s family (her sisters and their families plus Inang) …my only regret is that Kit would not be able to come with us because they have quite a big brood and so it was quite difficult to fit him in anymore …anyway, he says it was OK naman daw for him since he had already been to that place before…but still I could not help but worry…

With a heavy heart, we left him alone at home last Saturday morning at around 3 am to pick up Ate Ne’s sister and mother at Sapang Palay and Garay, respectively. Then, we proceeded to Lagro to unload some of the passengers to Ate Ne’s Revo and April’s car. We finally left at around 4:30 and after 3 ½ hours of traveling reached Ate Ne’s house in Pagbilao. Her new house there was huge and very airy…with very large windows that lets in so much air…it was already quite finished except for the paint and we ate breakfast there first upon arrival before leaving for Kwebang Lampas at around 10 am. Kwebang Lampas was still as beautiful as I remembered it – its water still pristine, its pure white sand beaches still untouched by commercialism. The wooden huts still remained the same, just blending in the background, never sticking out like a concrete sore thumb like in most popular resorts like Puerto Galera or Boracay…and I hope it stays that way…







The only thing was that there were more people now, so I guess the place is not our secret anymore…it’s become popular not just among the locals here but even to some outsiders since it truly is like Boracay but without the crowds and noise. I guess it would be quite difficult to keep a secret like this for very long huh?











We returned to Ate Ne’s house for dinner and to retire for the night…the main house had (I think) four bedrooms and a huge sala upstairs which can be slept in too… but we slept in our own room in the next house (where Analyn stays in) which had three more rooms – so I guess her place is truly fit for an office outing eh? Maybe next year? (saying, I forgot to take pics of her house)

We had a good night’s sleep and were, in fact, the last ones to awaken. We then had our breakfast, took our baths, packed our things to leave and waited for the others to get ready. It turns out we’d still have our lunch here pa pala and so we ate first before leaving for Tayabas, Quezon or maybe it was already Lucena …to visit the Kamay ni Hesus shrine. We went up some 300 or so steps to reach the statue of Christ with arms upward to the sky while the old ones stayed down and heard mass lang. We said a prayer and lit candles lang for our own personal intentions. After that, its time for more picture-taking, souvenir shopping before finally leaving for home at around 6 pm…just stopped over at McDonald’s at Tiaong, Quezon for a bit of dinner and finally got home at 12…

KIDS ON VACATION AT AUNTIE JING’S

Today, I left after lunch to bring my kids for a short vacation with Auntie Jingay in her house… she has long been asking me to let the kids come over and stay even for just a few days and finally after so much thinking over I finally relented and allowed them to stay for three days in Pasig…why just three days? Well, because our office had an outing on Thursday so I had to pick them up Wednesday afternoon so that they will be able to join us in our Subic-Olongapo outing.

But why the dilly-dally when in fact, I myself have been the product of too much shuttling from one relative's house to another…especially during the summer break. Well, it’s actually because times are different now and I do not trust my kids to behave properly if they are away from me for too long…it’s actually Kaye’s first time not to sleep beside me (although she has slept with Ditse or even Inang or Alona) whenever she goes on vacation in the province…but this is different, these are relatives she sees only very momentarily at least once a month or not even that often… so I wouldn’t know for sure if they would enjoy being there…or even if my relatives (Auntie Jing, in particular) would enjoy having them around…hence, the reason for my hesitation.

But I guess the time has come when I should learn to let them go and start living on their own…and what better way to train them than by starting now…anyway, I am sure my kids will be well-fed there. And they would have no time to get bored since the entire house is equipped with numerous games/gadgets for kids to enjoy…and there’s always the swimming pool…I just hope they have fun there! And maybe…just maybe, (if they behave well) I’d let them stay even longer next year…

FAS OUTING AT ANAWANGIN

…this is our first outing without Ate Ne …well, because her hubby is home and I guess he wasn’t really in the mood to join the entire office in some jolly-making just yet... which was just too bad for us – because the outing just wasn’t the same without her!







…We had an early start because we would be going back home in the afternoon, so we left the house at around 3 am to pick up Ging then Jojo and we reached the office at 4 am…however, we waited for the others to arrive so it was thirty minutes later when we started traveling to Zambales. We reached Pundaquit in 3 ½ hours and after a bit more of waiting we were on the boat to Anawangin …by 9 am we had our first glimpse of the beautiful cove.






…upon arrival they prepared lunch while I headed out to the beach to take some pictures and watch over the kids already swimming… the water was great – it was calm but not too shallow that it would impede the swimmers from swimming freely, but the waves weren’t crashing either which makes it ideal even for the little ones just as long as they stay within their depth…By 12, we had a fun and raucous lunch, there was so much food with one table laden with pork bbq, grilled fish, the usual adobo, and so much more while the other table was filled with fruits…just too bad that I wasn’t able to take any pictures – everyone was just too hungry to bother with the camera na e!
















…after eating and while the others were playing games, we went back to enjoy the water some more since they said we need to be ready to leave at 2 pm… too bad huh because we truly enjoyed swimming in the cool clear waters of Anawangin even if the sand wasn’t pristine white, it was soft on our feet…I guess the only complaint was that the tables were quite far from the water so when resting, you couldn’t see the people swimming in the water. Also, the distance was difficult to traverse especially if walking on the very hot sand… and the flies…though the place seemed clean enough there were just too many flies!








…we left the island of Anawangin after we all had our baths and got dressed using the poso and some makeshift bathrooms in the island. The place had no true facilities - no water, no electricity, no hotels, no restaurant… but I guess it’s better that way otherwise, all its purity and simplicity would be spoiled… as it is we said goodbye to the beautiful island with a promise to return and savor its raw beauty once more.

EASTER EGG HUNT AT AFPOVAI

the hunt begins…






even the kids-at-heart joined the fun!













…and the winner is…

Keith got 10 eggs @ 50 each that’s a whopping P500.00

Kaye got 6 eggs – P300.00

Alex had 3 eggs – P150.00

Xuey found 2 eggs – P100.00

and Tweet 1 egg – P50.00 (pang-load din daw! hehehe)




After that we all feasted on the sumptuous buffet spread that was prepared to celebrate Christ’s rebirth… we had pancit bam-i, fried bangus, adobo, pork and chicken inihaw and of course, lechon cebu!







Well, truly a redeeming ending for what could have been a most boring vacation ever…

Kaye’s recognition day


Today VMS holds its Recognition Day for exemplary students for the elementary level…and I am so proud to say we’re attending this year’s recognition as a real participant this time (unlike last year when my daughter only received a citation for being Best in Writing since even if she ranked third in her class, she failed to make it to the Overall Top Ten of Grade 1). This time, however, in her second grade she was consistently within the Top Ten circle – sometimes number six or seven and was finally able to finish at ninth. So that would make her the sixth honorable mention for this year! I guess, it helped that she now belonged to the cream section of her level…the students there are very competitive so my daughter had to do everything just to keep up. I am glad that finally she made it inside the Top Ten circle…I just hope that next year she would do even better!

Thus, to celebrate we had dinner at Max’s restaurant – admittedly our family’s fave resto - with everyone in the house… including the dog, Patrick hehehe (actually he’s our little boy/pet apo) We also gave her an MP5 as a gift! Congrats baby! Keep it up!

KITCHEN MISADVENTURE SERIES 11: Tuna and mango pudding

This is a problem when I don’t post recipes of food that I cook immediately after I do them…most of the time they end up forgotten in the archives of my computer until a photo suddenly and mysteriously appears and I suddenly remember… like what happened with this two puddings I made. The file photo was dated March 21 and when I checked my diary, it said that indeed I baked two different puddings on that day – a mango pudding and one with tuna and cheese. But no reference was made to the recipe and more specifically its source. I searched my archives and still nothing came up so I guess I won’t be able to post the recipe I followed, just pictures of the pudding … sorry???

MY FIRST DERMA SESSION (after such a long time!)

Well, I guess the title says it all…it’s my first derma session after such a long time…I don’t even recall how long! You see, in high school I did not really have much pimples just the small regular breakout in the forehead whenever my monthly period draws near. But when I entered college, that’s when I had truly major major breakouts – everywhere on my face! I guess the fact that I had to travel for more than an hour through the smoky streets of España and Taft did not help my face any. Plus the fact that I began to keep late nights and put on a bit of face powder (which I sometimes forget to remove before sleeping) compounded my problem more… and so I tried everything – astringents, magic creams…name them, I may have probably tried all of them! Then, when I started working part-time and began earning my own money, I started to see a real dermatologist with clinics somewhere in Manila. Even though each session makes me cry – both literally and figuratively (because it truly hurts and the cost!) and makes my face like a swollen beehive, I still go religiously…just to ensure that my acne would go away… and eventually it did go away though I am not sure anymore if it was the derma sessions that helped me or maybe the pimples grew tired of growing on my already much-troubled skin…

This time, however, I decided to visit the derma for a new session to treat my acne marks naman… Anyway, I had some money left over from one of my rackets (thanks cyber summit!) and so I figured why not! I am not getting any younger so I might as well start taking care of my skin now. I chose a derma clinic near the office in Quezon City. The doctor was kind and even her staff was engaging. The session itself was, expectedly painful. She gave me a facial and found so many things wrong with my face – so she prescribed so many medicines and creams to put over my face – in daytime and at night before I sleep. So expectedly, the session itself was made even more painful (on the pocket, that is!) But I do hope it would be worth it… would I return for a follow-up session? Maybe…let’s just wait and see.

Our Bohol vacation (February 23-26, 2010)

Feb 23 - Tuesday

We woke up early on D-day to have an early breakfast and traveled for two hours from our house in Bulacan to the airport. Our flight was scheduled at 12:10 and we got there 2 1/2 hours early - I guess that just shows how excited we all were for this trip. We initially planned to just eat sandwiches (which I made and packed the night before) at the airport and then eat a full lunch upon arrival in Tagbilaran so for the first hour we did nothing much but engage in one of our favorite past time - people watching. But with too much time on our hands and after all the running around that the kids did to keep from being bored - they eventually got hungry so our plan to subsist on sandwiches did not materialize.





It was almost 11 when we finally decided to eat at a Jollibee food kiosk at the NAIA 3. We had to eat hurriedly and almost ran to the boarding gate which seem a mile away...or so it felt! Then, when we passed thru the airport x-ray there was a bit of a delay because they scanned a blue torch lighter in the hubby's bag which they had a bit of difficulty locating! By the time we finally got through ...they were already making the final call for passengers bound for Tagbilaran. All this made me realize that maybe it's not so cool an idea being too early after all coz even if we checked in early... we were almost the last ones to board the plane...





Plane left on time and arrived ahead of schedule at 1 pm at the Tagbilaran airport. Upon arrival, we were met by Albert, the van owner/driver who will take us to the Panglao resort where we will be staying for four days and three nights. The driver/owner was a good guy and he charged us the regular rate of Php 500 for the airport transfer even if we didn't go straight to the resort. We requested for a slight detour to buy some food stuff and groceries at Plaza Marcela in Tagbilaran city.



Finally, after about 20 minutes of travel - we arrived at Alonaland resort and were given House number 10 - truly a very pretty place - a quiet and relaxing resort with our neighbors (mostly foreigners) keeping mostly to themselves, and with very clean and comfy surroundings. The only downside is that we had to walk about two blocks to get to the beach - well, at least we figured we could all use the exercise. They do provide free shuttle service that goes to Alona beach every hour...so I guess it's a bit OK. Also, at the rate we got this place, it already is a bargain (@2500 a night for an entire bungalow with 2 rooms, our own kitchen and living area)coz all the other beachfront cottages range from 5k and up. If we had wanted someplace near the beach, the ones within our price range were only fan rooms that could accommodate 4-5 pax and didn't have a kitchen. So we saved much not only on the lodgings but even our food since we cooked most of our meals. Never mind the walk to the beach...hehehe







After checking out the rest of our "house" the kids decided to take a dip in the pool - it was only 3 pm by then so I let them go while we prepared dinner. Here are pics of the rest of the house...






By 5 pm, we decided to have an early dinner so that 30 minutes later we were on our way to the beach. It was just our luck that the shuttle sked is 5pm, 6pm, 7pm and so forth so we were thirty minutes early for the next one. But rather than wait, we decided to walk the two blocks. Besides it gave us the chance to check out the area and saw that there was a bakery a few houses away where we could buy our morning bread... we also passed by an ATM and a convenience store in the street corner - things we never would have noticed if we rode the shuttle.






Finally, the beach! and boy ...Alona beach did not disappoint - the sands were so white and fine, the water so clear and blue --- my only problem was the very limited coastline available to swimmers. With the proliferation of too many shops and restaurants on the beach, there was very little space left for the swimmers to sunbathe or for the kids to play in...the kids and the hubby swam for about an hour and a half, I and my mother-in-law preferred to keep ourselves warm on the sand and just watched them and the beautiful sun set view. We then took the shuttle back to the resort, played billiards, and frolicked in the pool some more before finally taking a hot shower and settling in for the night.



ITINERARY FOR DAY 1 + EXPENSES:

8:00 AM - left early for airport
9:30 - check-in at the NAIA terminal 3 (terminal fee PhP 200.00 each)
early lunch at Jollibee food kiosk (PhP 500.00)
12:00 - departure from Manila
1:30 PM - arrival at Tagbilaran airport
travel to Panglao (van transfer PhP 600.00)
side trip @ supermarket for groceries (around P2K)
3:00 - arrival at Alonaland resort (house rental @ Php2500 per day)
unpack/cook early dinner/ SWIM time for the kids @ the resort pool
5:00 - early dinner
5:30 - to Alona beach for more swimming!
7:00 - back to resort for some billiards and frolicking in the pool
9:00 - time to rest...


February 24 - Wednesday



Today is the day of our countryside tour so we woke up early, had breakfast and took our baths. The van picked us up at 7:30 and we were all out and ready by then. Our first stop was the Chocolate Hills at Carmen, we decided to go to the farthest place first and go inwards toward the city... and besides, we wanted to go while the sun wasn't so high and hot yet. The trip to Carmen took two hours and we made the uphill trek slowly to savor the breathtaking beauty of the hills. I was glad that I didn't view the hills the first time I was in Bohol in 2007 when I attended my sister's graduation coz it allowed me to gaze at the hills with the same awe and amazement as my kids did... we had the usual picture taking at the view deck, took some wacky/tricky photos then we went down for some ice cream near the souvenir shops then left for our next destination - the Bilar man-made forest. We already passed this earlier on our way to the Chocolate Hills but this time we stopped for some more picture taking. The trees were quite majestic looking and provided a very cool respite from the very hot sun.



After the pic taking, off we went to the Hanging Bridge at Sevilla to buy some souvenirs. According to most travel websites I browsed, this is the place to buy cheap souvenirs and indeed they are cheap as compared to the souvenir shops we saw at Carmen and even much later near the Tarsier sanctuary, the Loboc river restaurant and the Blood-compact shrine. After we crossed the hanging bridge, we were met by a man showcasing his prowess in opening a coconut with his mouth - the Buko king of Bohol. We were able to buy some keychains, bracelets, coin purses, ref magnets and other trinkets to give away as pasalubongs to friends and officemates. After that, we proceeded to a tarsier sanctuary where the tarsiers can only be photographed but not touched - so unlike the tarsier place I went to the last time where they allowed us to have the tarsiers photographed on our shoulders. Well, I am sure I couldn't get my daughter to do that anyway, she was afraid to even stand next to one even if I reassured her that they were sleeping or even half-asleep being the nocturnal animals that they are.





After the visit with tarsiers, we were getting quite hungry so off we went to eat lunch at a floating restaurant of the Loboc River Cruise. The van driver (Ludy) did not take us to the usual site (near the church), instead he brought us to a newer and more popular site (or so he says!)...turns out though that the package was much higher than the ones in the regular boat ride because we were charged Php 350 per person...quite steep really coz the other site was only PhP 250-300 but we didn't bother arguing with the driver and just took the cruise (I figured he had a 'percentage'). We had a nice leisurely lunch buffet - the food were plentiful but not really spectacular. It was the funny musician that kept us entertained throughout the hour-long ride across the river. Of course, the refreshing view helped made the meal a totally enjoyable experience,too. There was a stop in one of the coves in the river bank where there were waiting natives (in complete costume get-up) who showcased their fire-breathing skills while the others were jump-diving in the water, some tourists had their pictures taken with the 'natives' but we just watched and returned to the boat when the show was over. The boat turned back after a while and returned to our point of origin where our van driver/tour guide was waiting.





After eating so much food, we wanted to sleep the afternoon off but there were still three more places to go to in our itinerary - The Python mini zoo, The Baclayon church and The Blood Compact Shrine. We saw different animals in the zoo although the most memorable was the famous large python featured recently by Kuya Kim in Matanglawin. After that, it's off to the church we went...I would have wanted to take another look at Loboc church but we already went past it on our way to the river cruise and besides the children's choir wouldn't be there anyway so we just let it go. Anyway, the Baclayon church is also quite beautiful and we spent a few minutes in



its cool interiors to pray and thank the Lord for allowing us to visit beautiful Bohol. After that we left for the Blood compact shrine but since it was so hot by then (around 2pm), there was no more pic-taking at the shrine itself. Besides, the kids were already sleeping in the van. Instead, we just bought some shirts at the nearby souvenir shops and by 3 pm we were back at Alonaland resort to rest the afternoon away.



After an hour, the kids were itching to go swimming and since I wanted to buy some fish at the beach, I relented and went with them and left the others still sleeping. We took the shuttle to the beach where we swam and had fun making sand castles. After a while, I browsed the beach area and searched for fresh fish but there was none available. Some locals I talked to say some fishermen sell their wares on the beach in the early morning but not always...I guess they prefer renting out their boats to tourists than going out to sea to fish...or maybe it's just the season. Nonetheless, we went home an hour later without any fish. So when the hubby awoke, I asked him to go with me to a nearby market where we were able to buy some fish (tulingan at PhP 120/kilo and tamban at Php 30 per kilo) and alimasag (PhP 120 per kilo) for our dinner and baon tomorrow. Getting there was a different story - Jun and I took the habal-habal after a trike driver charged us PhP 200 to go the market and then back again to the resort. Good thing I saw this motorcycle beside the resort who charged us only PhP 120, he was also kind enough to tell us the current prices so we'd know if the market vendors are overcharging us for being tourists. . After our sumptuous dinner(where we also had ice cream! ...an advance celebration for my mom-in-law and so that we could use the plastic gallons for our baon tomorrow), we all slept early to get ready for another big day.



ITINERARY FOR DAY 2 + EXPENSES:

5:00 AM - wake up sleepyheads! bath time
7:30 - leave for COUNTRYSIDE TOUR
9:00 - Chocolate Hills - Php 50.00 entrance fee
picture taking (PhP 100.00 for a 5R pic)
Bilar man-made forest (FREE)
Sevilla Hanging bridge - PhP 10.00 entrance fee
souvenir shopping (around PhP 500.00)
11:00 - Tarsier sanctuary - PhP 50.00 donation
11:30 - Loboc river cruise - PhP 350.00 per pax
12:30 - Python mini zoo - PhP 10.00 entrance fee
Baclayon church (FREE)
Blood compact shrine and souvenir shop (around 1K for shirts)
2:00 PM - back to Alonaland resort (PhP 2,500 for tour/van rental)
2:30 - short nap/rest
4:00 - to the beach for swimming
6:00 - back @ the resort
7:00 - to the market to buy some fish (PhP 120.00 for the habal2 /PhP 500.00 for fish/crabs/fruits/bread etc)
8:00 - eat dinner
8:30 - Sleeping time

February 25 - Thursday



Another early day for us...I was awake at around 4am to cook our baon/breakfast then I woke them up na so they can get dressed and help fix the food and things to bring for our dolphin watching trip. By 5:30 our boatman arrived at the resort to pick us up and walk with us to the boat docked at Alona beach. We had to walk the entire two blocks because the earliest shuttle leaves at 7 am pa. And that would be too late for us na. So off we went with all our stuff and we even stopped by a nearby store to buy pandesal and more mineral water.



By 6 am we were out at sea and we began our quest for dolphins. We saw the sun rise and it was truly amazing...the boatmen said this is the usual time for dolphins to feed but at first we were frustrated when we only saw very few of them...then as we speed up to get a bit nearer, they would suddenly disappear below the water's surface. After a while we transferred to a different location and we were rewarded with numerous sightings of dolphins...they were quite playful and some even jumped above water like in dolphin shows but these ones aren't trained. I guess they are really quite used to human interaction in these part of the waters...it would have been more fun though to actually be able to swim with them but considering the speed with which they swim, I guess it would be impossible.




By 7:30 am we grew tired running after the dolphins and decided to go to Balicasag island to have breakfast. We also ordered some fish which the locals cooked for our lunch. After eating breakfast, we took another small boat to the fish sanctuary for some snorkeling. Fish feeding in Bohol was a totally awesome experience - they were quite plentiful and swam freely in a protected area where the fishermen aren't allowed to catch them. The only downside though was that since it was still early in the morning, the water was a bit cold...so my daughter had to get out at once and did not spend more time with us feeding the fish like in Palawan. Then, my mother-in-law who didn't fancy swimming but gamely fed the fish while in the boat, felt a little dizzy since the waves were rocking the boat a bit. So she and Kaye decided to return to our cottage on the beach and left the other boat for us to use. We stayed in the water for another hour more feeding the fish and even went farther out into the sea.





It was already around 10:30 when we decided to return to our cottage and get ready for lunch. But instead of having our lunch there, the boatmen recommended that we pack up and have lunch at Virgin Island. And boy we were not disappointed! We ate lunch on the boat amid the breathtaking view of the island and the calm tranquility of the deep blue sea. I guess I would just let the following pics speak for themselves.





After a delicious lunch we all felt sleepy and tired (some of us were looking for a restroom already and since there were no resorts ...not even a store in Virgin island) we decided to head back to Alona beach and back home to the resort. We each took our baths and spent the afternoon sleeping. By 7, we had dinner of fried fish, sinigang and some pork BBQ bought at the street corner. We, then spent the evening just watching TV while the boys played billiards outside before going to bed.



ITINERARY FOR DAY 3 + EXPENSES:

4:00 AM - wake up/cook breakfast/fix things to bring to the beach
5:30 - walk to Alona beach (Php 1500 boat rental)
bought mineral water and bread for fish (Php100)
6:00 - Dolphin watching at Pamilacan
7:30 - Balicasag island to eat breakfast
bought more fish/pusit(PhP350.00) for lunch(paluto at PhP 100.00)
snorkeling at the fish sanctuary (smaller boat rental at PhP150/pax)
(snorkel mask - PhP100@/aqua shoes - PhP100/pair)
10:30 - Virgin island for more swimming and LUNCH
1:00 - back to Alona beach / Alonaland resort
take bath...short nap
4:00 - watch TV/ prepare dinner
7:00 - eat dinner
10:00 - sleep...

February 26 - Friday

We woke up a bit later than usual and had a leisurely breakfast. We had nothing much planned in our itinerary today except the airport pick-up at 10 and a short visit to Dauis church. After eating, we proceeded packing our things na, took our baths and got ready to leave. I paid the resort the remaining Php 5000 balance (since I deposited Php2500) as our downpayment. We left at 10 am and went to Dauis church to once again thank God for granting us the opportunity to visit Bohol as a family. I hope we would be able to do this again some time soon - in another famed tourist spot in the country...or even back here in Bohol to savor once again the treasures Bohol had to offer.



After that we left for the airport, had lunch at a nearby cafe and waited for boarding time at their small waiting area. By 3:30 we touched down at NAIA airport and we boarded a bus that would take us straight to our place in Bulacan. Indeed, the past few days have been a bane on the budget but no amount of money can beat the happiness and excitement in the faces and hearts of my kids and mother-in-law. I am sure, this experience will be something that they would cherish and treasure for the rest of their lives.