Malacañang of the North - Paoay, Ilocos Norte

This was Ferdinand Marcos’ official residence in Ilocos Norte (also known as the White House of the North, or Malacaňang Ti Amianan).  For an entrance fee of Php20, you can have a grand tour of one of the 29 summer residences built during Marcos’ term, which has now been turned into a museum.  Great architecture, a mixture of Spanish and Ilocano designs.  I love the wood paneled floors, the antique grand furnitures, and such spacious dining rooms, bedrooms and veranda which overlooks the Paoay Lake.  A testimony to an extravagant living, this house has accommodated those upper class visitors they had for their high society parties.  I think I can do 5 full cartwheels in the living room alone J.

Nagcarlan, Laguna

The day started with me waiting for my brothers to come over and install the new house gate which I had them made.  They arrived with their wives and kids with them, hmm, I wonder what’s up?  Oh I see, a friend from the old neighborhood had invited them to go swimming in Nagcarlan, did they just say swimming?  No way was I gonna be left behind!  That was at the end of May but summer was still at its peak, I would jump at any chance to get a long dip in a pool, and it’s in a place I’ve never been to or even heard before, great bonus, sounds fun!

Nagcarlan is located in Laguna, it can be reached via San Pablo or Sta. Cruz.  I cannot remember much of the trip coz the gate installation finished late so we started on the road at around 9pm.  We did take the Sta. Cruz route, from thereon it had been frequent stops to ask people for directions.  It was utterly dark in those parts but I must commend their congressman for the nicely constructed roads, equipped with guide rails for easier and safer driving on those swerving highways.  We reached Villa Martha Resort at midnight so you would think that we would best unpack and call it a day, but no siree!  Our dear friends got energized by our presence and literally threw us one by one into the ice-cold pool.  Wow!  If Pansol resorts boast of their hot springs, this town should be known for its cold springs.  The water in the pool actually comes from the mountain, directed to the pools through a series of pipe system, and the pools are built by which excess water spills off from the other end and goes back to the river.  So, by essence, the water in the pool is continuously being replaced.  Great, clean and chlorine-free water J.

Soaking and shivering, I decided to have a very late dinner, gave in to a shot of vodka, and crept back into our room to bathe and dry.  That room was packed with kids, so I went out and crawled into the tent my brother had set up and went to dreamland.

I was awaken with so much noise, I thought the previous night that we were the only people in this resort. Boy, was I mistaken!  The pool was packed, and that darn noise, hahaha.  Got no choice but to get up, have my breakfast and my daily vitamin intake of hot coffee.  It’s time to roam around.

The resort has 3 pools, one for kids, one that’s 6 ft deep, and one for me, well, for my size at least.  To reach the cottages and pools from the parking lot, you will have to cross a bamboo bridge to pass a river which flows from the mountain downhill.  The river reminds me of old movies where women do their laundry while the men flirts J.  We spent most of the day pool-hopping, eating, and trekking uphill where there is a small falls. There is a famous falls, called Bunga falls, but it was farther away and we were told that we had to go through another resort to get there which we sadly had no time to do.  Still, it was a fun-filled day, playing with the nephews and nieces and bonding with family and old friends, right in the middle of another one of God’s beautiful cradle of nature.

I love the place for its refreshing cold water and the well-tended forests.  It was a very nice escape from the summer heat and the pollution in the metro, soaking in those pools of running water and being one with nature beats any spa treatment.  Nagcarlan definitely is on my list of places to visit again and by then I’ll make sure to see their church (another baroque architecture of adobe stones and red bricks), the Bunga Falls the locals rave about, and of course, a side trip to Liliw for their shoewears wouldn’t hurt… women! J

Marcos Museum and Mausoleum - Batac, Ilocos Norte

This was Ferdinand Marcos’ former house in Batac, which was turned into a museum housing all his memorabilias from his stint in the Armed Forces down to his presidency. Here you can see various photos of him in his youth (he was a hunk, may I say!), military awards, books on legislations during his term as senator and president, and some handwritten letters/speeches. Entrance fee is free and taking pictures is allowed in this area. The mausoleum is a different story, absolutely no pictures. Here is where Marcos’ deposed body lay under a glass enclosure, or shall I say, his waxed remains? I have my doubts on the authenticity of his preserved body but if Imelda insists that it is his actual remains, then so be it. The embalmers sure did a good job of preserving his body (and youth) and the matching regal outfit gave him that royal aura. I was expecting a super strong AC here but it wasn’t, maybe they have limited it in that glass box? Wouldn’t there be condensates on the exterior if it were? And where was the Gregorian chant music I read about? Okay, ignore my wondering and wandering mind, the place was still creepy nonetheless, thanks to the dark room, candles, and flowers.

 

Ship Wreck Sites - Coron, Palawan

Also included in the Coron Island Loop is a visit to one of it's ship wreck sites. Coron boasts of several of these dive sites, remnants of WWII Japanese ships which were sunk down. These are well preserved and currently have become a home of abundant marine life. Dubbed as "The Wrecks of Coron", these have been a favorite diving spot for both local and foreign tourists. Several PADI accredited diving agencies can be found in the town of Coron offering their services for the amateur and professional divers.

Honestly, I was not really looking forward to this stop simply because of my fear of the unknown creatures of the deep sea. But since the wreck we were going to was the nearest and located on not so deep waters, I decided to go for it. The best way to conquer our fears is to face them, so they say. Besides, our guide guaranteed that the site is safe.

the wreck

Now, I am glad that I went for it. Even if I did not dive to the actual wreck, it was visible enough in the clear waters surrounding Coron. Merely seeing it gave me this morbid feeling of how it must be when these ships were gunned down during the war. It was like WWII, though ended decades ago, was simply there hidden below the waters' surface, with a lot of stories to tell.

lots of hungry fishes

But enough of the morbidity, the site also offers an abundance of marine life, thanks to the care the people of Coron have given to their seas. Healthy corals abound around the wreck, which drew a habitat of different species of fish. No wonder our guide, Kuya Anthony, insisted that we bring some bread, the highlight of this stop was actually when we started feeding the fish. It was so much fun really, feeding them and swimming with them. I'm sure my nephews and nieces would have loved this experience, I better bring them along next time.

this one is so hungry, it even nibbled my finger