We went to this Langang Bar in Bagumbayan Sur. It looks like a old house turned into a resto bar. The normal drinking session happened and before we turned our glasses over we planned on going on a trip to Albay for the weekend. Its more of like a weekend getaway. So it was decided, we are going to Albay on Saturday and we have to be at Mcdonalds at six in the morning since the travel time would be around two hours. I asked if we could also pass by Kawa Kawa Hill since its one of the places I badly want to go to.
Saturday came and as usual I was late but its okay since Monica was not there yet. I was met by Ryan, French and JR who was supposed to bring his car with him to be used as our means of transpo but unfortunately his parents did not allow him to. We were having second thoughts now whether or not we are still going to push for Albay since we do not have a car thanks to JR. But since its gonna be probably 5 months before we get an opportunity like this again, we decided to push through with it. We went to the van terminal and I was very happy that our first stop would be Kawa-Kawa in Ligao City, Albay.
Kawa-Kawa is basically a hill in Ligao City, Albay which was developed to become a tourist spot. What is amazing about this hill is that it does not have a hilltop. From arial view it would look like the top most part was cut off and would resemble a basin. Most tourist would visit the place during holy week because of the gigantic stations of the cross that where strategically placed as you go up the hill.
It was definitely a struggle for us going up the hill. We were panting and sweating and since the air gets thinner as you go up, it was definitely harder to breath. We never expected that the hike would be this toiling. We were exhausted at the first station and you can imagine how we were at the second. But we decided that since we have already started the hike better finish it. So after blood, sweat and tears we were able to finally reach the top. It was a surreal feeling beaing able to pass through all the stations and as promised the view was definitely spectacular. For those of you planning to go to Kawa-Kawa make sure that you have a bottle of water, an extra shirt and rubber shoes. It's a tough climb but its definitely worth it.
Our next destination was the Cagsawa Ruins in Daraga Albay. We had to take a jeepney ride from LIgao City to Daraga which I think took us around ten to fifteen minutes. We had to ride a trike to be able to reach the actual site. I remember visiting this place when I was in grade school but since I had no camera during that time I took the liberty of taking as many pictures as I could. On the other hand, it was Ryan's first time to visit the place so we told him to find a stone which he can bite ( a silly tradition for first timers) Sadly, Ryan protested.haha. We also decided to take our lunch there at the site.
Our next destination was the Cagsawa Ruins in Daraga Albay. We had to take a jeepney ride from LIgao City to Daraga which I think took us around ten to fifteen minutes. We had to ride a trike to be able to reach the actual site. I remember visiting this place when I was in grade school but since I had no camera during that time I took the liberty of taking as many pictures as I could. On the other hand, it was Ryan's first time to visit the place so we told him to find a stone which he can bite ( a silly tradition for first timers) Sadly, Ryan protested.haha. We also decided to take our lunch there at the site.
Just a little history, Cagsawa Ruins is what is the belfry of the Cagsawa Church which was buried underground when the Mayon Volcano erupted somewhere in the 19th century. Myth say that people have tried to dig the other remains of the church but everytime they do something catastrophic happens. With that said, the Cagsawa Ruins remains a popular tourist spot because of its eerie history and also its picture perfect layout, with the Mayon Valcano standing majestically behind it.
The best thing about Cagsawa Ruins is that the site has a lot of tour guides who would actually help you out especially if you are on you photo op session. Mind you, they do not charge a penny. Well they would if you would ask them to take your picture with their camera and have the photo developed. But if you just need someone to take your pic and help you out find the best spot for a picture, the tour guides are there willing to help.
Our next stop was at Sto. Domingo Albay where we would spend the rest of the night later on. It a thirty minute ride from Daraga to Sto. Domingo Albay. We road a tricycle going in and was originally going to Punta Vista Resort but we found out that the resort was not connected to a beach so we ended up following the shoreline to find a resort which was connected to a beach then we found Sarung Banggi Beach Resort which was a place Frech visited before but just couldnt rememebr the name. We settled down and rested for while before we went out to take our dinner.
Luckily, the town's center was just a ten minute walk from where our resort was located. The most amazing thing about it is that the public plaza was a wi-fi hotspot. I wonder why we still dont have this one in Naga. We ate our dinner of chicken roll at one of the resto bars in the centro. Ill be talking about the public plaza later since we actually went back to take our breakfast there. :)
When we went back to the resort we spent some time taking pictures. Since its low tide we were able to go the beach and there is this kind of extension where we were able to take amazing pictures of the shore line with the Mayon Volcano in the background. One thing I noticed in particular about the beach is that it has lots of stones. I figure probably it was spewed out of the volcano during its eruption. After taking pictures we swam in the pool, it was really dark so we were afraid of swimming in the open sea, and then drank the night away.
As I said, we went back to the town's center to eat breakfast and we also took this opportunity to do a photo op session with the other tourist spots in the area. If you would be able to visit Sto. Domingo you would be able to observe that the town's center is constructed very much like that in the Spanish Era where the Municipal Hall is adjacent to the Town Plaza and the Church. Such is true for places where the Spaniards have lived and have built communities. One amazing thing about the town plaza is that instead of a Rizal monument what you find is a Bonifacio Monument and the plaza is actually called PugadLawin (which is also the name of their WIFI hehe). Also, the plaza serves as the burial place of Potenciano Gregorio Jr., the infamous composer of "Sarung Banggi" the most well-known Bicolano song ever. His tomb lies in a tomb located behind his monument.
We checked out of the resort at exactly 12 noon and was able to reach legazpi city twenty minutes after. Before we finally went to the van terminal we stopped over at Pacific Mall since French was so famished. We ate lunch at Shakey's and then proceeded to the van terminal to Naga. But of course, Albay adventure would not be complete without a picture with the Mayon Volcano which this time was very clear and stading majestically, looking like it was just waiting for us to take a picture of it. We gladly complied and though it was on the roadside we had to take our chances.
The best thing about Cagsawa Ruins is that the site has a lot of tour guides who would actually help you out especially if you are on you photo op session. Mind you, they do not charge a penny. Well they would if you would ask them to take your picture with their camera and have the photo developed. But if you just need someone to take your pic and help you out find the best spot for a picture, the tour guides are there willing to help.
Our next stop was at Sto. Domingo Albay where we would spend the rest of the night later on. It a thirty minute ride from Daraga to Sto. Domingo Albay. We road a tricycle going in and was originally going to Punta Vista Resort but we found out that the resort was not connected to a beach so we ended up following the shoreline to find a resort which was connected to a beach then we found Sarung Banggi Beach Resort which was a place Frech visited before but just couldnt rememebr the name. We settled down and rested for while before we went out to take our dinner.
Luckily, the town's center was just a ten minute walk from where our resort was located. The most amazing thing about it is that the public plaza was a wi-fi hotspot. I wonder why we still dont have this one in Naga. We ate our dinner of chicken roll at one of the resto bars in the centro. Ill be talking about the public plaza later since we actually went back to take our breakfast there. :)
When we went back to the resort we spent some time taking pictures. Since its low tide we were able to go the beach and there is this kind of extension where we were able to take amazing pictures of the shore line with the Mayon Volcano in the background. One thing I noticed in particular about the beach is that it has lots of stones. I figure probably it was spewed out of the volcano during its eruption. After taking pictures we swam in the pool, it was really dark so we were afraid of swimming in the open sea, and then drank the night away.
As I said, we went back to the town's center to eat breakfast and we also took this opportunity to do a photo op session with the other tourist spots in the area. If you would be able to visit Sto. Domingo you would be able to observe that the town's center is constructed very much like that in the Spanish Era where the Municipal Hall is adjacent to the Town Plaza and the Church. Such is true for places where the Spaniards have lived and have built communities. One amazing thing about the town plaza is that instead of a Rizal monument what you find is a Bonifacio Monument and the plaza is actually called PugadLawin (which is also the name of their WIFI hehe). Also, the plaza serves as the burial place of Potenciano Gregorio Jr., the infamous composer of "Sarung Banggi" the most well-known Bicolano song ever. His tomb lies in a tomb located behind his monument.
Our last destination was of course the church. The Sto. Domingo church reminds me much of the old spanish churches that I have seen in the past. Too bad that it was closed which was interesting since we were there on a sunday. But that would not stop us from taking advantage of the nice scenery. We grabbed the opportunity of posing for the camera with the beautiful church in view.
Our amazing Albay adventure ended and we are looking forward to another come this October. The Drinking Buddies are thinking of conquering either Sorsogon or somewhere in the North. Whatever it is, I am sure its going to be another fun ride. Having great friends to spend time with definitely makes summer exciting!
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