Sunday, September 2, 2018

Honeymooners in Siargao


Let me tell you a story about this place where you will find good vibes, friendly people, nice beaches, great waves, and delicious food everywhere.

You won't need to plan your itinerary, just be sure to take things slow and stay longer.  


WHY SIARGAO? 

I had Siargao in my list to visit in the Philippines before it went trending on social media. 
Its virginity, coconut trees, happy locals and all the surfing vibes are some of what captured my attention. 
I am really grateful to Cebu Pacific Piso Fare Promo for being able to book a cheap flight and make one of my dreams come true. 


TIPS BEFORE GOING TO SIARGAO

·Look for a good place to stay for days
-I recommend booking on a hostel so you'll make friends and might end up planning DIY trips with them. Aside from that, some also offer a place for you to cook, budget friendly tricks.
I highly recommend PAGLAOM HOSTEL.


·Don't make any plans 
-Just let time plan for your itinerary, cause depending on your mood you might want to do a different kind of activity, or just do what the lazy song by Bruno Mars tells you to do.

· Stay longer cause days will go faster than you think
-When Den and I arrived, we thought that we booked to much days, but ended up wanting more.

· Withdraw enough money
-Cause most places don't accept visa.

·Be ready to meet awesome people! 


#JDADVENTURE 7DAYS AND 6NIGHTS ITINERARY

We didn't book any itinerary nor followed. But we're happy to share our experience with you! 

DAY 1: Arrival

MNL - CEBU - SAYAK - SIARGAO

When we booked our hostel, we also added for an airport transfer (Php 300/head).
It took us around 45 minutes to reach Siargao. 
We arrived around 10:00am and was really hungry, so we opted for a carinderia near our hostel. 
We had our groceries, recharged ourselves and spent the afternoon on the beach 10 minutes away from Paglaom. 


Some guests of the hostel did a DIY island hopping tour for the next day. We ended up joining them for we would be saving a lot of money, and duh! NEW FRIENDS! 


DAY 2 : ISLAND HOPPING

We left the hostel around 5AM to have the 3 islands on our own, because tours arranged by agencies usually start before lunch. 
We visited Naked Island, Daku Island, and Guyam Island in less than 4 hours and I think it's enough for the sun rays gets stronger over the day.  


We were all 10 people in 1 boat. Each paid 280 for this  DIY tour! Very cheap compared to others, although our tour didn't include lunch in the island. But we had Brunch in Harana.


In the afternoon, we joined some of Paglaomers in Cloud 9 for a surfing session. But before such, we just had to try the fruit bowls in Shaka.



Surf instructors are found everywhere near Cloud 9, so don't worry about getting one.
Surfing session per hour is Php 500/head.
Entrance fee in cloud 9 is Php 50.00/head.


After the surf, our hostel had a Family Dinner, wherein everybody brings different kind of dish and eat all together. We forgot to take a picture because some good times are not always captured, right? 


DAY 3 : JOYRIDE TO TANGBAYAN CAVE + MAASIN BRIDGE 

It was our time to rent a bike so we can roam around the island. 

(If you're heading somewhere up to Pilar, you'll pass by this sea of coconut tress.)


Our first stop was in Tangbayan cove. Entrance fee is Php 70.00/head. 
You have to enter a cave for like 10 minutes until you'll reach this beautiful spot. 
You can dive or just swim with some fishes. 
We stayed here for maybe 30 minutes. 



On our way back to the hostel, you'll pass to MAASIN BRIDGE, you have to stop there because it is hiding really special, A SWING ROPE FROM A COCONUT!!! 

You'll encounter many kids having fun, they'll lead you the way,  although it's really near from the road, don't forget to tip them for passing you the rope when you're up there. 


I tried to swing but my arms failed me. Haha. It's really fun though. 


Went back to our Hostel, recharged and had our dinner date in Kermit. Had to try their best seller, margarita and pizza! 



DAY 4 : JOYRIDE TO PACIFICO + MAPUPUNGKO 


We woke up really early to have Mapupungko on our own but it was high tide!!! 

So we opted to have our breakfast in a resort called Pacifico. 


It's like 80minutes away from our hostel, so enjoy the coconut trees and the fresh air. Don't forget to take pictures like this! It's a must! haha 

 

Pacifico is a really nice place to surf as well. There's less people compared to Cloud 9, and surfing lessons are also cheaper! 
We had to stay like 2 hours in Pacifico because we were waiting for low tide for the Mapupungko Pool. 

 

When we arrived in Mapupungko, it was sooo crowded we didn't feel like taking photos in the pool. We just swam and enjoyed it. 

Entrance fee is Php 50/head and parking fee for bike is Php 20.00


Here's the difference between high tide and low tide, now you get me? 



At the end of this day, we watched a beautiful sunset in Cloud 9. 



DAY 5 : SUNRISE AT CLOUD 9 + DIY SUGBA LAGOON TOUR 

Here's a tip, if you want to have a photo in Cloud 9 with no people, wake up early and be there before sunrise, like we did! 



Nice, right? Skip the CROWD 9. LOL 

------
Organized a DIY Sugba tour with the some Paglaomers.

Our expenses were: 
Van: 445/head 
Tour: 355/head which included Sugba Lagoon and Kahagan Island. 

In Sugba Lagoon, there's a lot of activities like Paddle board, snorkeling, bamboo raft, kayak, etc. 
I think we spent around 2 hours in Sugba eating and simming. 



Really fell in love with this island called Kahagan Island.
I even prefer it compared to the 3 island hopping tours. It's something magical, specially if you go there before sunset time. It has a sand bar and you can also order food there and buko!

Our group doing yoga while i was sleeping. 


DAY 6 : SURF AND CHILL 

Woke up early for a surfing session and had breakfast in Arka.

And partied cause it was our last night in Siargao :(


DAY 7 : SURF AND DEPARTURE

We had to surf again to make the most of our time in Siargao


And had our lunch in homemade before we left the paradise... 


-------


EXPENSES BREAKDOWN 


We budgeted 20,000 for the both us for this trip and spent less! (exclusing our airfare)


TOTAL OF = 17,831 for the both of us. (not including the  airfare)


For more questions, just comment below! :) 




SIARGAO is a place where you'll be proud to be a Filipino for you can call this paradise "your home". 

Monday, April 16, 2018

Things you need to know before visiting Marrakech!!!


I have this goal in life which is to be able to set a foot in all the 7 continents of the world, and visiting Marrakech crossed out Africa in my list.


So why did I plan to visit Marrakech and not another European country?

Here are some of the reasons why:

1. Barcelona to Marrakech is only around 2 hours travel by plane. Airline tickets are really cheap if you buy them ahead of time. I got mine for 70€ only!  (I had to treat myself since i just ended by temporary job in The Pink Peony last feb.)

2. The culture and the city structures and their hidden gems. Got a little bored with the touch of Europe structures so decided to opt for another experience.  

3. I've been also curious about the taste of their food (since i never tried it before)

4. Because of their local products such as leather, carpets, herbs, and many more!

5. And getting lost in the small alleys of Marrakech is a must!

So here comes March and was really excited about this new adventure for 2018!


4 days 3 nights Itinerary in the Enchanting City of Marrakech


Day 1: ARRIVAL




During our flight, we were seated with a Spanish woman who seems to be a regular visitor in the city and really knows how things work there. She recommended us to just visit the city itself since it's really interesting and there's a lot to see and we were just staying there for 3 days.

And maybe we'll just do the day excursions the next time we visit the place with more days of stay.

This option left me with an empty itinerary, so we just opted to "enjoy the moment and get lost".

Arrived in the Menara International Airport about 13:00h and left the airport at 16:00h because waited for my friend, Dianne, who came all the way from London.

We got our taxi (airport - Riad Wardate Rita) for 150DH/around 15€

The taxi had to left us somewhere because the Riad was not accessible to it. We had to walk and ask locals where was our Riad.


Here comes a group of guys who started following us and lead us into small alleys. In short we got lost. We we're telling them that it was okay, that we can handle things but they didn't leave us anyway.

BEWARE OF THESE KIND OF SCAMS! I was aware of it since i also searched blogs about their trip to Morroco but it is inevitable because they keep on following you even though you're pushing them away.

When we reached the Riad they asked for tip. We just gave them 5 pounds but they wanted 20 pounds! That's crazy! Luckily, the manager of our Riad was able to talk with them.


Riad Wardate, welcomed us with their traditional tea. Later on we unpacked our things, rest a little bit and we searched for the night life of Morroco.






 Day 2: CAMEL RIDE + CITY TOUR


We had the Camel 1h Ride in the morning to avoid the direct hit of the sun. It was 20 minutes away from the city centre. Kinda tiring at the middle so i recommend you to just do the 30 minutes ride. 


Afterwards, they offered us again the traditional marrakesh tea.  





We had our lunch around the city, went back to the riad to rest for a while then prepared ourselves for the city tour at 2:00 PM


Undiscovered alleys brought us to awesome places, with delicious food and unique products. 

Was also able to visit some our the important tourist spots.

Jemma el-Fnaa or the Big Square

You'll see dancing cobras during daylight and food stalls during the night


El Badi Palace


Bahia Palace

and more local products along the way




After a long day of walking, we had dinner in Mama Africa. It was recommend by our tour guide and after tasting it, we understood why. Yummers! 




 Day 2: DIY TOUR (Majorelle Garden + Tanneries)



We had to get up early for Majorelle Garden to skip the long line. We were one of the first tourists to enter. 

Tip: If you want to achieve a good photo in the Blue house, go in the first our to avoid a lot of tourists taking photo as well. 

Achieved! LOL

 

We took a cab from the Garden going to Tanneries around 10 minutes only. 

Entrance is free but, afterwards they men will follow you and ask for a tip. I don't really understand their system. 

The guide will give you mint because the smell of the place is unpleasant. 

Since we are adventurers, we followed the map to reach the Big square and had our delicious lunch.


We took the afternoon free for souvenir shopping, etc. 

Day 4: Departure

You really have to go the airport early because the processing and lines are long. You still have to go the your designated desk even if you already checked in online. So better be there 2-3 before your flight to avoid stress! 




Thank you Marrakech! 
You were splendid! 

Will come back again hopefully with longer days of stay and with the love of my life. 




Expenses:

70€ RT BCN- RAK
less than 20€ for Taxi rides 
50€ Accomodation (3 days 3 nights with free breakfast)
20€ City tour
20€ Palmeral tour (1h camel ride)
10-15€ per meal
50€ souvenirs

Tips:

TRY TO AVOID SCAMS!
Bring extra baggage allowance
Eat local food 
Bring out your haggling power 
Don't show to much skin if you don't want to get stared at
Enjoy the moment! Don't stuck yourself with your gadgets. 



DON'T FORGET WATCH MY VIDEO TRIP HERE!!!