Donsol: Our Vacation in a World of Giants 2

Donsol, still Day 1

From Legazpi terminal to Donsol Terminal, it takes 1.25 hours give or take 10 mins. It is 65.00 per person. Give an extra 25 and they will drop you in the resort where you are staying.
We stayed at Amor Beach Farms. Not a 5 star pace but it's clean and the food is good. The people are cheerful and helpful too.

Donsol has dark sand but it is fine and swim-able.
















That night, we went Firefly watching. To have this, inquire at the DOT office. It is located beside Vuitton Resort. They charge 1,200.00 per boat. Max boat capacity 4 persons. Bring off lotion.

See fireflies in their multitude. Can't photograph them. Camera wasn't strong enough. Using flash might scare them. The night river tour with firefly watching is worth it. Ask your guide all sorts of questions, including scary stories!

Tips:

• Food costs around 150.00 per meal per person plus drinks. Tap water is potable and may be requested any time. If you have sensitive tummy, you can buy mineral.
• Put lots of sunblock before going out of the sun.
• There is a rocky span on the beach before the sandy part. Bring swimming shoes if you have them.
• have Off-lotion in the night!
  

Donsol: Our Vacation in a World of Giants

Hi, Maita ere to share my travel experiences to Donsol. It's a Worth-it trip. If you have a Bucket list, this you must add. We swam with Giants and viewed some and became some!
I'm adding costs and tips to help you all out there what to expect. I know it helped me to read other people's experiences before travelling to places.

So at 5 am, we went to NAIA3 to board Cebu Pacific bound for Donsol. Got a good package. Make sure to eat a heavy meal in the terminal. Prices on board's a rip-off. c2 350ml is 50 pesos each. It only takes 45 mins so read the inflgiht magazine. By the time you're half way, it's time to land.


Day 1!
Giant 1- Mayon Volcano

We arrive at Legazpi Airport. Of course, we had to picture, picture right away. Mayon was getting cloudy on the spot.


Giant 2- Bell Tower

What was 4 tourists to do at 8am in the morning? See the sights!
We had to have more memories and we had to have it stored. With one trusty camera, we haggled the tricycle driver to drive us to the Cagsawa Ruins (Bell Tower) to view Mayon Volcano. We ended up with Super shooting galore with Kuya Rolly.


Trivia: Mayon Volcano has the most perfect cone in the world. It is still active. The most recent eruption was 1998. The Bell Tower still stand.
Giant 3- US! Take not: not photoshop! This picture is raw!
My tower! I'm not letting go!

Tips:

• Don't be afraid to haggle. These people are nice but they do want to make a profit. Haggle. They can understand Tagalog and bits of English. Trike ride from Airport-Cagasawa (30 mins)-Legazpi Terminal= 50/person.
• There is a mall, Banks, and lots of restaurants in Legazpi. Try outunique restos and withdrw money here.
• When in Cagsawa ruins, look for Kuya Rolly.(that's him, the thin guy) Give him your camera and ask him for a tour and take artistic shots. Give him tip= 100.00 It's worth it!
• Wear sunblock!
  

Hanoi Trip

Three sisters, one destination. Me, Aki ria and Diki Marie boarded the shuddering Cebu Pacific Plane praying the Maiden Flight won't end up like Titanic. I know back in our minds, we were singing "On a Maiden Voyage, One a Maiden Voyage..."
Thank God, we landed! And lived to get conned by a colorum "taxi." Yes, we are not the only country with colorum taxis and taxis who tamper their meters. The good people of Hanoi may prefer to use motorbikes but that doesn't stop road accidents. they are hell-drivers, very much like us!

So, we immersed ourselves in culture and history. Going around one of Hanoi's most important Lakes, Hoan Kiem. Hoan Kiem Lake is the center of commerce in Hanoi. The Old District surrounds the small pond-like lake. Legend says that the old emperor took a boat trip in the lake and a giant turtle appeared and gave him a golden sword which he used to win a war. After, the turtle took it back and was never seen. You can find a stuffed giant turtle in the pagoda in the middle of the lake. Strange such big creatures actually exist in the small lake. Whether the turtle is the actual turtle of the story, no one can confirm nor deny.

The shopping district is basically everywhere close to the lake. You can buy anything and everything if you can find the streets. The Old Hanoi were ruled by guilds. Each street had its own wares, its own guild. So, you may find yourself in a street full of Musical instruments, a street of shoes, lapidaries or a street of greeting cards. There are no malls so you can find Nine West in front of the Lake. It is a law in Hanoi not to demolish old structures especially in the Old District. but they are renovated. The downstairs are all turned commercial but the top floors retain their colonial touches. By the way, Vietnam was conquered by the French.

So you can see a lot of the French influences like architecture food and theatres. It was to our delight that Hanoi has an Opera House and we were fortunate to be at the last night of the Spring Ballet entitles "Chopiniana" and for the second part, West Side Story.

Vietnamese culture cannot be complete without a Vietnamese Theatre. In front of Hoan Kiem lake is the Water Puppet Theatre where the famous art form is performed with traditional music using traditional instruments are used. The Water Puppet performance are little segments depicting Vietnamese life and culture like Dragon Dance, Dance of the Phoenix, Planting Rice, Catching Frogs, The story of the Emperor and the Turtle (One where the emperor is given the Sword and its return). Of course there is also a segment where a Scholar returns home and the whole town celebrates.
Do you think Valentines Day is popular in Hanoi? Nothing can compare to teachers day. Flower prices rise tenfold during Teachers Day. Vietnamese revere their teachers. A one point in history, they were revered as gods.
To me and my two sis' delight, we found a place of reverence to one of the most important things in our life, Literature. We went to the Temple of Literature. It was built by Emperor Ly Thanh Tong in 1070. Later it was made into "University of the Sons of the Nation," Hanoi's first university. Today, we find the names of the scholars and teachers immortalized in stone on the back of stone turtles.

After seven days, we ready to go home. Bringing culture, memory and a whole bunch of silks, we arrived in Manila, tired and hungry. Nope, Cebu Pacific did not feed us in the four-hour journey plus one hour delay. And Hanoi Airport closes its restaurant at ten so no food for us.
But boy! What experiences we now carry, from the trip to the tours to going home, our Hanoi experience is incomparable. One day, we hope to return and tour more sights that were not part of the itinerary we set for ourselves. We would also wish to see Saigon, Ho Chi Min and possible take the train up all the way to Beijing. It is a ten-hour experience!

Pictures from maita

From: maita rue You're invited to view my pictures at Shutterfly. Enjoy! Pictures from maita rue
	(1 of 182 pictures)

If selecting "See pictures" doesn’t work, copy-and-paste this address into your browser:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=9AcuGjZw3bsMi

http://maitypix.shutterfly.com

A Day of Plays

Day 6 in Hanoi
Water Puppet Show, shopping and Spring Ballet

An Emerging Dragon

Day 5
Ha Long Bay
Ha Long Bay is a river system described as an emerging dragon. The limestone islets protruding in a line like formation gave it it's name.
When visiting Ha Long Bay remember these: Wear comfy clothes that blocks sun and weather. Wear good shoes that you can trek with. Although food is provided, bring your own drink. They only have coke on board and it is a dollar each. Water is not so safe inn the islands.

I did enjoy my Ha Long experience. The 4-hour cruise was leisurely and perfect for relaxing. We went into an island where you can go inside a cave with natural grottoes with stalactites and stalagmites. Some contain fossilized creatures.
Food is a simple fish and vegetables but rice-all-you-can. There is not water on board to drink and you must buy your own coke. In the islands and the harbor, there are water, sodas, chipos and souvenirs for sale but they charge a tourist price.

A Street Lined with Silk

Day 4 in Hanoi

Silk Village to shop for silk.

Super Chocolate

Chocolate Buffet at Sofitel Metropole, $15 a person. Worth it? Yum! Super chocolate!!!!!!!!

Temple of Literature

Day 2 in Hanoi

The Temple of Literature or Van Mieu was dedicated to culture and history. Aritsans and scholars all came together in the temple to pay homage to literary heritage immortalized in stone.

Day 1

Hanoi Trip. Arrived this morning.
So far...
Hoan Kiem Lake and vicinity.

Food Places and More

Davao is a home to a variety of restaurants and food chains. Here are some Sulit places I've been to na good food and affordable.

Chickies and Patties
Chickies has been around since I can remember which is more than 20 years na siguro. They are known for their chicken and other short orders. I love it here. I remember eating here is a treat. They were the best fast food chain in Davao until Jolibee and later McDo came into the scene. They have my fave gravy, macaroni salad and yummy arachibuteric Leche Flan. Yum yum! Make sure to get two pieces of Chicken!!!

Pritong Manok
Pritong Manok is known for Duh! Fried Chicken. Translate Diba!
They are found in most all mall food courts and even near markets. They sell chicken per piece. They now have diversified their products to include Tender Juicy Hotdogs with rice. Try ordering three pieces of chicken smothered in gravy! Yum. They sell their chicken depending on the part you want. The cheapest is the neck which is about 18 pesos. A big breast is 47 a piece.

Boyd's
Italian? Try a bowl of pasta for about 85 pesos. It includes a long (definitely long!) slice of garlic French bread. They bake the bread themselves! Good food, cheap too. Don't worry about the ambiance. Looks can be deceiving. The inside is actually cozy.

Picobello
It's on top of JS Gaisano. Nice place if you love Italian. They have a kilm (exposed brick oven) where everyone can see and smell the yummy pizzas baking. The prices are cheap and you can avail of their offer of buy one take one during 2pm to 5pm. Excellent food!

Harana
No, nobody's serenading you there but the food feels like a serenade of the senses. Harana is practically older than me. It started as a backyard barbecue place. Then they rented the place at Torres St. and built a playground for children to play while waiting for the food. Now, the playground and good bbq are the trademark of Harana.

Kuya Ed's

Nobody can beat a buffet like Kuya Ed's. For 2 years, they still boat their 99 peso-buffet. You may choose from a variety of Filipino dishes. Occasionally, they bring out siomai and tempuras. Guaranteed busog!

Cecil's
Cecil's mainly sells cake. But they are the yummiest cakes! Need cakes fast? They are better and cheaper than Goldilocks! Doesn't taste commercialized either. They have kiosks in malls where they sell cakes per slice. They also sell short orders. A hefty slice of chocolate cake is about 47 pesos. A cream puff or éclair is 18 pesos each. Dessert anyone?

Merco
Before Goldilocks even set her lacy foot in Davao, Merco was there. They are known for their birthday cakes and sandwhiches you can eat in the cafe with ice cream topped on them. No kid! They don't mind what you eat! As long as you're having a blast! A big 8-10 slice black forest cake costs about 300plus pesos. 500 in Goldilocks and Red Ribbon and they taste commercialized. Merco has retained their quality for more than three decades.

So, when "libot-ing" Davao, don't be afraid to try out the food. Try any place! Food is good in Davao, that is a guarantee!

Eden

Eden Tour 2008 with Aki Ria, Achi Bel and Ahia jun.
The forests in Eden were man-made. They have lots of herbariums and flower gardens, including this Prayer Garden.
Flowers in the wishing well.

Eden seems like a well kept place. The forest is teeming with life. The flowers are diversified and the guides all know about them.
It's a good place to tour and bring the family. There are good activities to be enjoyed by anyone out in the wild!
Just don't forget your "Off" lotion.