One Memorable Trip of Chasing Mayon

the famous Mayon Volcano hiding from me..'

Last July 12 to 16 , my "Galang Paa" brought me to Albay to see my long time dream destination, the famous "MAYON VOLCANO". I planned to go to this place for the nth time but I'm not able to fulfill it(hanggang plano lang talaga haha!). But good thing one good friend of mine (let's call him Mr. C) agreed to guide me and to take me to Albay with no plans nor itineraries.

So it happened exactly on my birth date, aboard a little bumpy Cebu Pacific flight we arrived

ang laing at tinutungang manok..

at the Legazpi airport that sunny afternoon. Since it's so freakin' hot, we decided to have our first stop in Albay at the Pacific Mall Legazpi where I had my first true bicolano meal, "Ang Laing at Tinutungang Manok" from the 1st Colonial Grill. I liked the laing, its spiciness and the rich coconut milk that you can taste. I didn't like the tinutungang manok since I'm not a fan of saging na saba in a viand. Then came to us for our dessert

is the equally famous Sili, Pili, and Tinutong na

my certified Uragon pose with Mr. C and
the sili, pili, bigas ice cream

Bigas flavors of ice cream. I chose the level 1 for my sili ice cream and Mr. C had level 2, the experience is surprising. The sili ice cream tastes good you will feel the kick after a few spoons of it(ang hot sa lalamunan. haha!). I also liked the tinutong na bigas flavor it's something new for my taste buds, then the pili tasted like a regular vanilla ice cream. After this sumptuous meal, we headed to the transport terminal for Tabaco City. So aboard a public transport van we reached Tabaco in an hour ride. At Tabaco, kuya driver dropped us at the Church of St. John the Baptist, where I prayed and thanked God for another year He gave me, all the blessings, and of course for the safe trip to Albay. Then after this we headed to Malinao, Albay where I was adopted by Mr. C's family for 5 days.

On day 2 of my Chasing Mayon trip, we rented a tricycle for the entire day from Malinao Albay. Our first stop was the Cagsawa Ruins.

my feeling matangkad
shot by Mr. C

 The famous bell tower is the only thing left after the explosion of the Mayon in year 1814. Just like a regular park, it has souvenir stores around and here you can also have your "feeling matangkad" pictures with the bell tower. 

Next stop after the ruins is the Daraga Church, where you can see a beautiful backdrop of Mayon. Sadly, the clouds is all over Magayon when we reached Daraga so I'm not lucky like Athena and Kenji.(haha! feeling dating a gangster ang peg)

Before lunch time, we stepped foot at the Embarcadero Mall in Legazpi City. This is one of the reasons why I wanted to go to Albay, but when I got there I was dismayed of the place since it looks so dry and lifeless.(pictures does not depicts reality all the time) Or probably we just got there at a wrong time and day that's why.(haha! parang love ba? wrong timing!)We had our lunch at Embarcadero after the long travel from Cagsawa and Daraga. After lunch, we traveled almost 30 kilometers to get to Misibis Bay, but since this is an exclusive area for elites we went up to Cagraray eco-energy park.

after all the uphill and downhill of the road,
this view is all worth it.

Cagraray is a park that was funded by the government. It has a small chapel, swimming pool, an overlooking amphitheater, zip line, and a hanging bridge. It's recommended for families and group of friends who wanted to spend some quality time in a picnic and enjoy a scenic and serene place like Cagraray. 


On day 3, Mr. C brought me to one of the hidden falls in Malinao, the "Vera Falls". We rode a habal-habal (single motorcycle) for around 30 minutes with an uphill and downhill of the road(so don't imagine how we looked like while aboard), then we walked down the stairs around 100 steps before we reached Vera Falls. This falls made me realized how lucky and blessed we are with God's creation. I can't stop staring at the water falling down from the mountain, I feel so amazed of what's in front of me. The water is cold, clear, and so relaxing.

stolen shot taken by Mr. C while I'm staring at the Vera Falls

ako at
ang mushroom

After lunch, we headed back to Mr. C's home and rest for a while. Then around 3:00 in the afternoon, we trekked to what I will call "Hacienda C". We walked for almost 30 minutes before we got to Hacienda C, where I saw a lot of root crops, coconut trees, and banana trees in different kinds. So this is what Mr. C is telling me, it's all organic. He said Tatay C (Mr. C's dad) only use natural fertilizer for their crops, though it takes a lot of waiting time before you get the fruits of your hardwork, this is safe and all natural. In the hacienda, we looked for fresh mushrooms and different leaves(I don't know the name basta halo-halo, niyog niyog) that Mr. C cooked for dinner. By the way, I also had my freshest coconut juice at the hacienda when Mr. C climb at one of the

ang halo halong
gulay ni Mr. C

coconut trees(iba talaga pag fresh. yummy!). It's almost dark when we descend from Hacienda C, back home Mr. C show off his cooking skills by preparing the "halo-halong dahon" we harvested from the hacienda. Well, as a chef myself, I admit that the "halo-halong gulay" he cooked is delicious. I did not expect it to taste that way since it's only pure "halo-halong dahon", mushrooms, and coconut milk. I had my first fresh button mushroom and it really tasted so good unlike the mushroom you can buy in a store.(iba talaga ang fresh!!)

@Salvacion
Church

On day 4, it's Mr. C's birth date. :)
We rented the same tricycle again to tour us around the other side of Albay. Since it's Mr. C's birthday we decided to go to Joroan Albay, where we came to pray at Nuestra Senora de Salvacion Church. I lit 5 candles, for my family's good health, safety, for kuya's embarkation(wish granted. thank you papa God), and the two other candles for my secret wish and prayers. Then after this we dropped by at a school to meet one of Mr. C's bestfriend, Sir Dao. After a short talk, we headed to San Lorenzo Church we offered our prayers and thanksgiving for another year given to us and this overwhelming experience of our trip. After visiting the Churches, we dropped by the famous DJC Halo-Halo of Albay.

DJC Halohalo

It was a powerful halo-halo, unlike the regular halohalo that you can buy in Manila. I specifically like the overflowing leche flan and ube on top of my halo-halo. Then we went back to Tabaco to buy something to cook for Mr. C's birthday bash at home. Tatay C cooked 5 kilos of pancit bato(derived from the name of the town where it is being manufactured)and bihon while Mr. C cooked the fried chicken. The entire day spent well with family and friends.

Day 5 came in an instant, I did not expect that I'll fall in love with the place in my short stay. I simply want to extend my days there but I won't be permitted, I need to go back to reality, to my real world. So with a heavy heart, I packed all my bags and waved goodbye to the place where I called home for the last 5 days. I said see you again to the people who treated me as family and who made me realize how simple life is. I can say that this is really One Memorable Trip of Chasing Mayon.#

with the C family