PJB » vacation

Our Hong Kong Adventure – Day 1

PJ — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 23:45:28 +0000

Guess where I’m writing this right now… In Hong Kong! :)

We were finally able to make that long awaited Hong Kong trip as a family. We’ve been planning the trip since last year but had to defer it a couple of times because “something came up.” This trip is actually Conne’s birthday gift to me! :)

We touched down at Hong Kong International Airport at around 10AM yesterday, July 4th, via Cebu Pacific. We were expecting the flight to be delayed but, fortunately, everything went according to schedule!

Here are some pictures taken upon arrival at the Hong Kong International Airport:

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Holy Week 2008 – Fort Ilocandia and Pagudpud – Day 2

PJ — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 14:18:43 +0000

The itinerary for Day 2 of our Ilocos holy week vacation was a half day swimming excursion at Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte.

Here are some early morning shots of Fort Ilocandia taken from my mobile phone:

Here are some pictures taken while on the way to Pagudpud, which was roughly a one and a half hour’s drive from Fort Ilocandia in Laoag.

We came across the scenic coastline of Cape Bojeador in the municipality of Burgos, Ilocos Norte:

Here are some pictures of us featuring the awesome windmills of Bangui, Ilocos Norte (the first power generating windmill farm in the country) in the background:

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Related Blog Entries:
Holy Week 2008 – Fort Ilocandia and Pagudpud – Day 1

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Holy Week 2008 – Fort Ilocandia and Pagudpud – Day 1

PJ — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 15:30:26 +0000

After two years, Conne, CJ and I finally decided to revisit Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte for the holy week. We decided to stay at the Fort Ilocandia Resort Hotel and Casino, in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. We were accompanied by our close friends, Cocoy and Li-ann.

We left Manila yesterday at around 11:30AM but had to make an initial stopover at Clark, in Pampanga, for lunch and some provisions. We also had to meet up with Li-Ann, who had to come from Subic.

We left Clark at around 7:30PM yesterday evening and arrived in Fort Ilocandia at around 5:30AM this morning, which makes it roughly about a 10-hour drive (9 hours on the road, 1 hour for stopovers) . Cocoy and I took turns at the wheel, where I drove the first half of the journey, and Cocoy the final half. Our first stopover was at 8:30PM at the Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac. We stayed there for about 30 minutes to have dinner. Our next stopover was at 12 midnight at a gasoline station somewhere near the border of Pangasinan and La Union.

Here are some pictures taken today.

CJ in the shade:

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Related Blog Entries:
Holy Week 2008 – Fort Ilocandia and Pagudpud – Day 2

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Directions to Laiya, San Juan, Batangas

PJ — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 09:09:36 +0000

Now that summer’s near and a lot of people are looking for some fun at the beach, my blog has been getting a lot of search hits on how to get to San Juan, Batangas, particularly on how to get to Barangay Laiya, one of the country’s top beach resort destinations.

If you plan to take a car, here are self-drive instructions on how to get to Laiya, San Juan, Batangas if you’re coming from Manila.

From Manila:

- Take the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx) all the way to the second to the last exit (Exit 50 going to Batangas, Lucena and Legaspi).

- Drive approximately 6.5 km along this National Highway and turn right towards the Star Toll Way entrance.

- From Star Tollway, drive all the way to Lipa City (approximately 20 kilometers) and take the Tambo/Lipa Exit at the end.

From Lipa City:

- After exiting the Star Tollway, turn right and drive towards Lipa City where La Salle Lipa will be on your left while a Petron gas station will be on the right.

- You’ll come across a Y-intersection just before the McDonald’s restaurant, where you must veer right. This is C.M. Recto Avenue.

- Traverse C.M. Recto Ave. then turn right at the corner of the Mercury Drug store. This is P. Torres St. Drive 8.5 km towards Padre Garcia town.

- Make a left turn at the road sign pointing to Padre Garcia.

- Turn right after passing the Padre Garcia town market.

- Drive approximately 4.5 km and merge with the road coming from Rosario. This road leads all the way to San Juan which is approximately 19 kms.

- When you see the main signage leading to the Batangas Racing Circuit veer left. This will lead you to the San Juan town proper.

Upon reaching the San Juan town proper:

- Drive past the Dunkin Donut and Park n’Go store (on your right) until you reach San Juan Municipal Hall.

- Immediately turn right after the San Juan Municipal Hall. This is the main road of Laiya. Just follow the main road where you will find a lot of beach resorts along the way approximately 25 km (20 minutes) onwards.

I hope this helps.

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Puerto Galera – v1

PJ — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 04:04:56 +0000

We were finally able to take a family vacation at Puerto Galera over the weekend. Conne has been egging me all these times to try Puerto Galera out, and so, off we went.

This was sort of a post-valentine date, family vacation and celebration (Conne’s promotion to manager-lvl2) – rolled into one – event.

Conne, CJ and I had lots of fun. And we thank the Lord for giving us the opportunity to have a safe and wonderful trip.

Cheers!

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San Juan, Batangas outing

PJ — Thu, 24 May 2007 03:38:00 +0000

These pictures were taken last May 12 and 13 at the Kabayan Beach Resort in Laiya, San Juan, Batangas.

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Kabayan Beach Resort – San Juan, Batangas

PJ — Wed, 23 May 2007 08:13:00 +0000

My family and I had a lot of fun at the Kabayan Beach Resort in San Juan, Batangas last May 12 and 13.

In our opinion, the resort’s facilities, in terms of space and ambiance, are better suited for family and group outings than that of the Blue Coral Beach Resort, where we held our company outing, which is situated roughly half a kilometer away from Kabayan. Even though the rooms at Blue Coral were better looking than that of the simple yet cozy Kabayan rooms, the Blue Coral beach front was too cramped for our liking.

We definitely recommend Kabayan Beach Resort as one of the places to go to in Laiya, San Juan, Batangas.

Update:
This has turned out to be one of the most popular pages in my blog and a lot of readers have been asking about the rates, amenities and facilities of the resort.

The resort area itself is quite clean and well maintained. Facilities-wise, they have a playground, an aviary, a chapel, fresh water swimming pool, gardens, multi-purpose hall, restaurant, souvenir shops and a convenience store.

Some of the amenities or activities offered by the resort include beach volleyball, kayaking, cove hopping, snorkeling, hiking/trekking, billiards, and massage.

We particularly liked the fact that big trees supply decent shade from the scorching sun throughout most of the “inner” resort area, except when you’re at the beach area, of course.

The rooms/cottages are clean, well maintained and have air-conditioning and cable TV. And we also liked the fact that you could bring your own food and not be charged with corkage fees or other charges like what other resorts do. Some of the cottages even have their own kitchen, complete with cooking equipment and a refrigerator, and all you have to do is bring your own cooking ingredients.

If it’s a Sunday, and if you’re religious, a priest actually comes over to celebrate mass at the resort’s chapel. Which is quite good, since you won’t have to worry about hurrying back home to hear mass. (No excuses here, ha!)

And if you’re finicky when it comes to the type of sand the beach-front has, the downside is – don’t expect it to be the powdery-white, Boracay-type sand variety. Taking a stroll while barefoot can sometimes be a challenge.

All that being said, I can say that the overall beach vacation experience we had at the place was pleasurable and worth repeating.

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