DMZ Archery Range, Unlimited Arrows for only P199.00/hr

Few weeks ago, DMZ Archery Range was already trending on social media and when I found out that the location is within Quezon City,  I invited my college friends at once.  Our initial plan was to have a day hike in Mt. Maculot, Batangas, but ended up to unleash the inner Katniss Everdeen within ourselves.

DMZ Archery Range is located at 18 Mystic Rose Drive Sanville Subdivision, Project 6, Quezon City.  You can take a jeep going to Visayas Ave/Project 6 in SM North Edsa, drop off at Shell Gasoline Station, and take a tricycle going to DMZ Archery Range.  They are open from Tuesdays thru Fridays, 1:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Saturdays 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Sundays.  Accommodation of guests is "First Come First Serve" basis and I suggest that you come a bit early especially during weekends.

The staff will assist you on the basics of archery, the do's and don'ts, safety precautions, and that you will have the chance for unlimited arrows for an hour for only P199.00/hour.  First things first.  Look for a bow that you think is enough for you and make sure to grab an arm guard fitting you well enough for the rest of the hour.

To add up some spice with our first ever Archery experience, we agreed on a deal that whoever hits the target the least will have to pay for all of us.  Below is our group photo after trying out archery and with those smiles are evident that this kind of indoor activity is MUST TRY especially during the rainy season wherein you can't go to the beach or climb mountains.

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Hulugan Falls in Luisiana, Laguna

Hulugan Falls, Luisiana, Laguna

How To Get There?

From Buendia, we took the first trip (4:00 a.m.) of DLTB bound to Sta. Cruz, Laguna and arrived at Suncres Mall by 6:00 a.m.  At the side of the mall were jeepneys bound to Lucban/Lucena wherein you can ask the driver to drop you off in San Salvador.  From the arch, you can start walking if you want to have a warm up or take a tricycle down to the house of the Capt. Ramon Rocreo for registration and a short orientation.  According to the wife of the captain, Hulugan Falls was just accidentally discovered by a lost man in their area up until it was visited by Biyahe Ni Drew sometime in November 2015 that tourists started gone wild  to see the 70-meter waterfalls in Luisiana.

We paid the P20.00/head registration fee and start our chasing waterfalls for the Hearts' Day.  Our tour guide during our visit was Mr. Rommel Fernandez, the head of the 120 tour guides.  According to him, it is best not to contact any of them for your future visits so that all of his other colleagues will have equal chances.  Even though, they have this numbering of tour guide, might as well respect their rules which I think is fare enough especially that being a tour guide is one of their livelihood nowadays.

We didn't know that it rained the night before our visit and Sir Rommel warned us about the muddy trail ahead.  After roughly 30 minutes, we reached Talay Falls.  Mona decided to wear her slippers instead of her shoes and eventually ended up bear foot as we go along.

Talay Falls (Mona, Joan, and Me)

Hidden Falls

Kuya Rommel informed us that we can eat at the cottages located before the Hidden Falls, but we opted to continue with the trail after our photo ops.  Besides, the three falls were merely 30 minutes apart and it's a good thing to enjoy the beauty of Hulugan Falls while having our snacks.  We went back at the Captain's House for tidy up and asked about side trips nearby.  They suggested Kamayan sa Palaisdaan for lunch and Kamay Ni Hesus later that afternoon.  After we ate at the Palaisdaan, it is already raining so were not able to visit Kamay ni Hesus.  We went back to Manila and still in awe of the our chasing waterfalls experience in Luisiana.

Backpacker Tips:

• Take a weekday trip to avoid the large number of tourists.
• Cut off time is 3 p.m. for tourists coming in and they should be back at the jump off by 5:00 p.m.
• Bring insect repellent.
• Wear trek shoes/sandals for  your safety especially during the rainy season where the trails gets a bit hard for you to reach one waterfall to another.
• Bring enough water and trail food since there were no stores inside the forest.
• Always check for weather forecast before scheduling a visit.

Expenses: (P457.00/head; food not included)

• DLTB Bus (Sta. Cruz): P132.00/head
• Jeepney (San Salvador): P30.00/head
• Tricycle (Captain's House): P20.00/head
• Registration Fee: P20.00
• Standard Guide Fee: P300.00/3 pax
• Tidy Up: (P15.00)
• LLI Bus (Buendia):  P140.00

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Enchanting Coron, Palawan: 4D3N Travel Guide on a budget!

Enchanting Mt. Tapyas Viewdeck.  Photo credits to @ky1r5a

In celebration of our birthday month, Kyra (my travel buddy) and I booked a trip to Coron, Palawan.   I got mine in the early week of March 2016 while hers was about a week before the trip during the Cebu Pacific Air seat sale and that's for only  P1, 100.00 RT!

Coron, Palawan is my ultimate dream destination for 2016 as a lot of backpackers were being hypnotized by it's unspoiled white-sand beaches, vast of greens, stunning gray-colored limestone rock formations, and alluring sunsets.  I'm glad to be with Kyra again after our trip to Leyte last July.  What's new this time is that we have a guided tour, but before I dig in through the details of the package quotation that we availed, allow me to share with you our D.I.Y. town tour that we did on our first day in Coron, Palawan.

Day 1:  Coron Town Tour (D.I.Y.)

After checking in to Coron Vista, we only brought our valuables so that it is easy for us to transfer from one to place to another for our town tour.  On top of our list is Mt.  Tapyas, which is commonly crowded during sun down and for us to ditch the crowd, we grabbed the chance to climb the 720+ steps of Mt.  Tapyas for an early morning hike.

One advantage of doing the town tour for yourselves is that you are in control of your time plus the fact that you will not have struggles of taking Instagram-worthy pictures.  (No photo bombers at all.)  And I'm telling you, it will be worth the sweat after all!

Photo by @biyaheniinday

Upon descend from Mt. Tapyas, you can drop by to St. Augustine Church and take a tricycle ride for only P10.00/pax going around the town and visit Lualhati Park, Centennial Shrine, Pasalubong Centers, and Cashew Factory.

St. Augustine Church.

You may opt to save Maquinit Hotspring as your last spot for the town tour.  You can go there by hiring a tricycle for P300.00 RT.  Don't pay yet because the driver will have to wait for you.  The best time to go here is during sundown where the heat of the water is just right to warmth your body.  Entrance fee is P200.00/each for adults, P100.00/each for children below 5-10 years old, and it's free for children below 5 years of age.  They are open everyday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. entrance cut off time and closes at 10:00 p.m.

Day 2: Coron Ultimate Tour (Twin Lagoons, CYC Beach, Skeleton Ship Wrecks, Kayangan Lake, Siete Pecados Marine Park)

There are a lot of good reviews that I've read to D.I.Y. Travel Philippines about Mr. Michael Yao of Tripidito Travel who offers a hussle-free Coron Island Hopping Tour.  After a series of discussions on what to pick for our 4D3N getaway, we ended up for Coron Ultimate Tour and Coron Island Escapade tour for P5, 399.00/each.   Inclusions were as follows: picnic lunch with fruits and drinks during island hopping,  accommodation at Coron Vista Lodge with daily breakfast, back and forth airport transfers, island entrance fees, licensed tourist guide/boat, life vest, cottage rental, pick up and drop off to the port, and government taxes.

First on our itinerary for today is the Twin Lagoon, a must-see destination in Coron, Palawan.  The First Lagoon is where the boats dock while the second one is Hidden wherein you need to swim through a small opening in between or take the ladder on top of the rocks.

First Lagoon.

Hidden Lagoon.

Up next is CYC (Coron Youth Club) Beach where we did the human octopus led by our tour guide, often times recommended for tourists who are non-swimmers, but still wanted to enjoy the gems of CYC Beach underwater.  If you happen to notice the boat visible with our photos below, that's where we came from and that it is not allowed to go beyond that point as a protection of its marine life.

You can just lay here and calm your eyes with blues and greens.

Before we head towards our next stop, it's time to fuel up peepz!  While all of us were busy having our photo ops, the crew were also busy for the lunch preparation.  Below is our group photo before having our lunch.  We were only 3 Filipinos out of 14 guests in our boat.  Most of them had a month or two in the Philippines to visit the different tourist destinations in our country.  Maybe they're taking the time of their lives and I'm glad that they're really having a good time in our country.

Our menu for lunch was primarily seafood (steamed crabs/grilled fish/enseladang talong) and for dessert?  Welcome to Kayangan Lake view deck, beat that view?   Be sure to have extra batteries or power banks with you for you to have unlimited snapshots.  All visitors must observe visitation hours from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and should abide with the rules and regulations in Kayangan Lake.  Upon descend to Kayangan Lake, there are guests telling us to stay safe as the stairs were a bit slippery and a good pair of aqua shoes is of big help.  The castle-like formations that you will see as you go deep into Kayangan Lake will make you fall in love with Coron even more.

Kayangan Lake up close.

Our last stop for the Coron Ultimate Tour is the Siete Pecados Marine Park where we were about to explore its gems underwater, but some guests who were done at this point were stung by jellyfish.  A reason why we just spent our last few moments with the team sharing our travel stories and taking selfies of course!

Our mandatory shot before we left Siete Pecados Marine Park.

We reached the port before 6:00 p.m. and immediately head back to the lodge to change clothes and look for a good place for dinner.  As we walk around the town, there are a lot of restaurants along the streets, but most of them were full and you have to wait to be seated.  Thanks to google, we found La Sirenetta Seafood Restaurant and Bar, owned by Mika Batchelor, the sexy chef representing the beautiful islands of Coron in Survivor Philippines Palau.  It took us roughly 15 minutes walk from our lodge before we finally arrived into the place.  A floating resto with a chill out vibe, the perfect place to be after your island hopping.  Their pasta and pizza were already good for sharing and so we tried their Spicy Tuna Penne and Posidon's Pizza.  We enjoyed both and it's already a good deal for dinner I guess (P500.00 for 2 pax).

Day 3:  Coron Island Escapade (Malcapuya Island, Banana Island, and Bulog Dos Island)

We still can't get enough of our photos taken from yesterday's tour, but we're excited on what more Coron can offer.  We woke up early enough to have our breakfast and prepare ourselves for our last day of island hopping.

We were at the port around 8:00 a.m. and we're about disappointed because the tour started a bit late.  The orientation started a few minutes before 9:00 a.m. plus the fact that our first destination for the day is Malcapuya Island, derived from the word "kapoy" which means "tired"  because it's approximately two hours away from the port.  But for beach goers who wouldn't mind the distance just to have this cross out with their bucket list, two hours is not an issue.

Upon arrival in Malcapuya Island, we went at the view deck at once to have a top view of the island, which I guess is not much explored by tourists since the way up is not that developed.  (Advantage for hikers who don't mind the trails as long as the view will satisfy their IGs.)

Lost for words.  Photo Credits to @ky1r5a

The most photographed spot in Malcapuya Island.

We weren't able to be at the fish feeding area so we stayed by the beach, enjoying the vibe where the sea meets the sky.  Buko juice is available in the island, a perfect drink for the moment while everybody awaits for lunch!  After everybody was fueled up, it's time to head to Banana Island.  It is filled with coconut trees (coined as Bananas on aerial view of the island) where hammocks were attached for relaxation.  You can just lay here or have a book with you just like what the foreigners did. (aside from tanning by the beach of course)

Chill vibe in Banana Island.

Bulog Dos Island is our last destination in our Coron, Palawan island hopping.  There is also a view deck here where you can have the mini sand bar as your background for your photos.  

So much love.

On our way back to the port, I'm so overwhelmed with Coron's sunset taken from the back side of our boat.  It is absolutely free, so be sure not to miss so many of them every time.


After settling down in Coron Vista Lodge, we spent our last night walking through the little town of Coron and searched for the location of Coffee Kong, a Korean-inspired cafe recommended by Kyra's friend.  We tried their Caramel Macchiato (P120) and Cafe Mocha (P120) since their Strawberry Latte is not available.  This laid-back coffee shop is just perfect for backpackers who wanted to kill their remaining hours in Coron.

Thank you Sir Michael for always checking on us just to be sure that everything is sailing smoothly.  This is our first time to have a guided tour and we have no regrets for having you.  Definitely a memorable birthday month for me and Kyra.  If we happen to go back here in the future and explore more of Coron, you'll probably our travel agency of choice.

Happy travels everyone!


Travel Essentials:

• Dry bag (must have for your valuables)
• Sun protection (sunblock, cap, malong, shades)
• Aqua Shoes
• Hydrating Body Gel (optional)
• Powerbank/Extra Batteries for you camera/s

Expenses:
Island Hopping with Lunch
(Accommodation with Breakfast)                     P5, 399.00/pax

Day 1:

• City Tour (D.I.Y.) Tricycle Fee               P100.00/pax
• Maquinit Hotspring Tricycle Fee            P300.00/2 pax RT
• Entrance Fee                                            P200.00/pax

Day 2:  Dinner at La Sirenetta                           P500.00/2 pax

Day 3:  Coffee Kong                                          P120.00/pax

Day 4:  Terminal Fee                                         P100.00/pax

Total:   P6,319.00/pax

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Up Close with DavOr, The Whale

Mati City, Davao Oriental (October 2016)

This is the second part of my solo backpacking in Davao Oriental.

From chasing waterfalls in Cateel and Campawan, Kuya Tito took me to the highway where we waited for his friend, Jimmy, one of the van operators.  Good thing that they were able to reserved one seat for me bound to Mati.  Travel time is about 3-4 hours (P250.00).  From Mati town proper, take a habal-habal (P75.00) and tell them to take you to Dahican Beach.

I stayed overnight in Menzi Beach Park and Campsite.  Entrance fee is only P50.00 (adult) and P10.00 (child).  They have cottages for rent:  P300.00 (daytime), P600.00 (overnight) and tables for P200.00.

An early morning dip would be both a good sun and sand therapy for your tired feet.

Subangan Museum



I really wanted to see DavOr up close, the sole reason why I spent a day in Mati.  The museum is open from Mondays thru Thursdays from  9:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. and from  8:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.  Entrance Fee is P50.00.

DavOr, The Whale, Subangan Museum's main attraction, is considered as the 7th largest whale on exhibit in the world and first in the Philippines.  Davao Oriental (DavOr) gave its own name to this gentle giant who considered its shores his final resting place.

Spotted these Girls Scouts on the second floor who were also having a tour in the museum. 

The museum showcase nature's gift to the province from marine biodiversity, waterfalls, white sand beaches, tribal groups, history and people, memorial of the typhoon Pablo, garden park and souvenir shops.

Forest Walk.  My favorite part of the museum where you can hear the sound of the so-called canopy trees and see these 3D pictures.  Of course, the famous "Pitcher Plant" is the one that got me at first sight.

Mt. Haguimitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary, the only inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage in Mindanao.

Trade and Industry and Governance

Cultural Heritage

For booking and reservations:
Mobile number: 0910 567 6414
Telephone Number:  (087) 811 3397


Before heading to Davao for my city tour the next day, I took The Ceres Bus Transit for me to meet The Sleeping Dinosaur in Badas.  There are few canteens here, so after taking souvenir photos, you can stay for awhile to fuel up before taking another 3-hour ride.

The Sleeping Dinosaur

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Isla de Gigantes island Hopping for P999.00!

City of Love (Sept 2016)

How To Get There?
Ilo-Ilo Airport is just an hour and 15 minutes away from Manila.  From there, you take a van for P50.00/each bound to SM Ilo-Ilo with an hour travel time.  Then, you can hire a taxi for a city tour for P1, 000.00 and negotiate for additional fee if you wish to include Miag-Ao Church in your tour. We got ours for P1, 800.00 (3 pax), which I think is a good deal especially that we have our tall packs with us.

Ilo-Ilo City Tour

Miag-Ao Church a.k.a Sto. Tomas de Villanueva Parish Church was declared as a UNESCO Worl Heritage Site.

Molo Church is known throughout the Philippines as the "Feminist Church" because of the all-women ensemble of saints along the pillars in the aisle. I failed to take photos inside since there's an on-going mass during our visit.

    Jaro Church (National Shrine  of Our Lady of the Candles)

We started at 11:15 a.m. and ended our city tour at around 3:30 p.m. We then headed to Ceres Bus Terminal bound to Carles afterwards.  Ordinary bus fare is P165.00/each for 4 hours travel time.  We checked in at The Palm Garden Resort located in Brgy. Barosbos Carles, Ilo-Ilo.  You may settle your bookings with them ( 09081485653) without any reservation fee provided that you are really going with your chosen dates.

Isla de Gigantes Island Hopping (Day Tour)

From the resort, take a tricycle straight to Bancal Port for P20.00/each.  Register to the Tourism Office and wait for your designated boat.

For a smooth and hassle-free transaction with your island hopping, you may reach Mr. Paul through his Facebook Account. He is very responsive to messages and immediately attends to your queries at once.

They offer a day tour (P999.00/each for a group of 7) and a two days one night tour (P1, 699.00), both open for joiners.  We availed their day tour which includes the following:

• private charter boat service from Bancal Port to Isla de Gigantes (back and forth)
• lunch with soft drinks (steamed crabs, chicken binakol, scallops fillet)
• purified water all throughout the tour
• unlimited coffee/milo
• Islands to visit:

1. Balbagon Island

2.  Pulupandan Island: From afar, you can see that forever alone coconut tree, which made our photo ops upon arrival a bit quick because of the unforgiving heat of the sun.

3. Antonia Island:  We tried their banana boat ride for P200.00/each, but since we are only 5 and the minimum number of persons is 6, we paid P240.00/each instead.

Below is our group photo after our banana boat ride along with Geraldine and Lian whom we met at the start of our island hopping.

Before we proceed to the highlights of our tour, time to fuel up! We have scallops fillet, chicken binakol (sinigang), steamed crabs, unlimited rice and soft drinks which were all included in the package.

Scallops fillet

Chicken Binakol (Sinigang)

Steamed Crabs

4.  Bantigue Island Sandbar:  Overjoyed photos of our sandbar experience.

5. Cabugao Gamay Island:  The most photographed island and probably the highlight of our island hopping.

The next day, we left at The Palm Garden Resort at around 6:00 a.m. going to Balasan Terminal (P20.00/each).  We then transferred to the passenger van bound to Tagbak terminal (P150.00/each) for 3 hours.  The driver offered us to add P40.00/each and he will take us directly to Ortiz Wharf and so we grabbed it at once.  We are already at Ortiz Wharf at 10:30 a.m. which is just 15 minutes boat ride to Guimaras. (P14.00/each).

Upon arrival at the Tourism Office, the staff gave us an orientation about their land tour (P850.00 for 3 pax).  They grabbed a tricycle which will be our service for our remaining hours in Guimaras. Before anything else, we drop at The Pitstop to try their famous mango pizza.  The cheese blends with the mangoes so well.  For pizza lovers like me, this is definitely a must try.

Mango Pizza (P240.00)        

 Pasalubong Center

 A quick tour at the Mango Farm.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in Raymen Beach Resort, Alubihod, Nueva Valencia.  Entrance Fee is P25.00.  Our original plan is to avail their island hopping tour, but then we decided to just enjoy its fine white sand and calming waters.



We went back to Ilo-Ilo at 6:30 in the evening and have our dinner at Netong's Batchoy House located inside La Paz Market.  I'm not a fan of batchoy, but I enjoyed every sip and every bite of its ingredients, truly made with love.   We're lucky enough that we found the place before their closing time.




                                                La Paz Bachoy (P80.00-120.00/bowl)

We also tried Madge Cafe's iced coffee for P45.00.

Photo Credits to @hannamirs 

We also spent some quiet time in Ilo-Ilo Esplanade (Park) since our flight back to Manila is still at midnight.  While waiting at the airport, upon browsing our photos, we are planning to get back here for more.  Perhaps, the Tangke Saltwater Lagoon is already open to public again.  Have enough time for Guimaras Island Hopping and to reach Bacolod as well.  But, overall, we are fortunate enough for the experience and for the good weather of course during our stay here.

Expenses (Transpo Only):

Day 1

Ilo-Ilo City Tour with Miag-Ao - P600.00/head (taxi)

Day 2

Day Tour of Gigantes Islands - P999.00/each

Banana Boat in Antonia's Island - P240.00/each

Day 3

Tricycle from Palm Garden To Balasan Terminal - P20.00/each

Van from Balasan Terminal to Tagbak Terminal  - P150.00/each

Additional Fee of Van going to Ortiz Wharf - P40.00/each

Ortiz Wharf to Jordan Wharf - P14.00/each

Land Tour via tricycle from Tourism Office (back and forth)- P850.00 (3 pax)

Jordan Wharf to Ortiz Wharf - P20.00/each

Jordan Wharf to La Paz Market - P7.00/each

La Paz Market to Esplanade - P100.00

Esplanade to Ilo-Ilo Airport - P300.00 

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