reinasthoughts

It is been a while since I had been to a beach. Thanks to my husband's cousin, Jed, we were able to relax in the beach. Jed was married to a Danish and had two daughters. She was able to acquire a property in San Remegio, Samal near in Kaputian. Since they will be on vacation this year, Jed's father is preparing the place where they will stay in that property. Jed's father was alone in their so we decided to visit him. We stayed their for two nights and two days. It was relaxing to stay there, away from the busy life of the city with a constant beautiful view of the sea. Till the next visit.

      The weather is so hot and staying in a cool place would be the perfect thing to do. It would be more fun if you would stay in a camp. We are now fortunate that our place had been able to establish a camp ground at our province. It is situated in a high place, that the air is cool in there and the place is nice.       For kids out there, there is Montreal Day Camp that offers activities which include sports, arts, academics and healthy living. While in Summer camps in Montreal , if parents would want their kids to focus on academics, Montreal tutors  is also available.   Smoothies is also offered daily. this is open for kids ages 5-14 and co-ed. It is located in the heart of downtown Montreal. 

      Today is the last day of work before the long holidays will start. There would be no work on Friday because of the Kadayawan Festival that will be celebrated here in Davao City. Monday and Tuesday is also a holiday because of Eid'l fitr and National Heroes day. It would be a long weekend and would mean a lot of days for relaxation. My husband send me an sms text message yesterday of our initial plan about what we would do over the long holidays. Our initial plan was to go to Cagayan to his main office and visit Iligan at the same time to visit the second longest falls in the Philippines which Maria Christina Falls and another famous falls which is Tinago Falls. I got excited about it but after thinking about the long distance we will travel and the tiredness we will encounter, we decided to cancel our first plan and we would just go home to our province. We would rather spend it with our love ones and have more days of relaxation. Maybe we will visit some resorts n...

        Pearl Farm was our suggested place for our team building. At first, we thought it would never be approved because it is quite expensive at 2,500 pesos per person. Thank God, it was approved by our BPO Head who was currently at Barcelona who at same time appreciated our initiative to do so. Since we haven't had issues to resolve, it became more of a company outing than a team building activity. It was my first time in Pearl Farm and I was amazed by the beauty and luxury of it. It was amazing how they combined native and modern design of cottages. The beach and their infinity pool is very conducive for swimming. The white sand beaches and the delicious food is too good to forget. Thank you Amicorp for the free getaway!

              A Regional Men's Conference was held at Panabo City. So the men in our church, who were composed of married men, set out to travel to Panabo City. They included in their itinerary a visit to Cannibad to relax. The travel party composed of six motorcycles, one car and one passenger vehicle. Our travel time had been five hours from our place to Davao City. All in all maybe we are about forty people who traveled. At around 8PM we been able to arrived at Davao City. Cannibad is part of Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS) wherein we had to sail in a barge. From the wharf to Cannibad, would take up a couple of kilometers of land trip. We had been travelling at the middle of the night and the road was quite stiff. Some of the men  were already exhausted and keep on asking how far is it. At last we finally arrived at eleven in the evening but there is still one challenging thing to do before we have to take a rest. From the ...

     When I started working in my new job, my travel time had been one hour and thirty minutes. In one week's time, there had been a lot of overtime that we usually go home late in the evening. When it is already late, I find difficulty in finding a ride. My one and a half hour of travel time would be added by another one and a half hour of waiting. It is really tiresome and my rest is not enough because I have to wake up early the next day. That is why I decided to look for room for rent. Since I don't have much time to do this, my husband was the one who did this for me. Luckily, he was able to find a room for rent near my workplace. It was a two-storey house wherein the second floor is where the room is located. It has hardwood flooring and enough space for occupants. The rental fee is already inclusive of water and electric expense but I paid additional fee for the rice cooker and laptop. Being able to find a place like this is already a great help. I could be a...

        The picture was taken at the shoreline of Lebak, Sultan Kudarat. This shows a typical "bayanihan" at the shores. They were fishermen who were pushing their boat to the shoreline. They had been at sea for a week already and just returned home to their families. They usually stayed fishing at the sea for a month but because of the incoming storm, they returned early. When I was able to witness these scenario, it answers the question on my mind on how did big boats moved to the shores. The fishermen will put logs under the boat and coconut leaves under the logs so that the logs could easily roll on it. Aside from the logs and coconut leaves, it involves a lot pushing by the fishermen. The seawater to the shoreline where the boat must be situated is about ten to fifteen meters. This could not be done by one person alone that is why before they will sell their fishes, fishermen cooperate in pushing their boat to where it must be properly situated. One.. Two.. Thr...

        Motorcycle is such a great source of fun ride. It is a vehicle that could bring you to different places. The last place we had been with our motorcycle had been in Lebak, Sultan Kudarat. We went there to attend the Men's Rally of the church. It is an activity for married men of the church. I go along with them to visit the place. We rode on motorcycle on going there and it is fun because almost all that went there rode in a motorcycle. Sometimes we chased each other's motorcycle or simply follow them from behind. There are also instances that we have to cross rocky or slimy with mud roads that is prone to accidents. Good thing we had with us motorcycle gear that would protect us from accidents. No matter how careful we are to avoid accidents, some of our colleagues experienced it along the way. We are very grateful that no one was injured. Motorcycle may be a risky ride but it is fun to ride because of the 360 degrees of the view of the pla...

         My husband and I had been traveling for months already and sometimes we stay in our house once a week. We had been to Nabunturan, Lebak, Davao, Manila and the longest travel ever is the road trip from Manila to Cotabato which mostly covered up the whole Philippines. We travel mostly for leisure, family events and for church activities. We travel by motorcycles, cars, airplanes and boats. We had been to different terminals, airports and wharfs. Though some wharfs we had been, may not be as nice as aldermastonwharf  but no matter how simple they had been, I love it. It is truly been a blessing to be able to travel safely and to be able to reach different places. It is nice to reach different places and be awed of how beautiful they were. Aside from the scenery, places, transportation, and products, we never forget the people of the places we had been on how gracious they had been to accommodate us. Our only remembrance had been the different pictures...

      It has been a long trip from our house to the town of Lebak, Sultan Kudarat but it is all worth it. I was able to reached Lebak because my husband had to attend a church activity that since I've got nothing to do, I was able to come with him. We travelled for almost five hours through Upi to Lebak road. The road is still under construction but there are only few kilometers left of rough road. The scenic view along the way to Lebak is so beautiful.      Lebak was such a wonderful place. It is nearer to the sea which is conducive for fishing and at the same time it has ricefields. Almost all of the things you needed are already available in the town from medicines to groceries. Eventhough it is away from the city, you won't feel that you are in a remote place especially if you are looking in their seashore which is really an attraction. It has a nice view of the color blue and green seas. There are also lodges to choose from. Though it might n...

Hot Water in the Steam Bathhous e      Another hot spring experience is added in my list. The first one had been at Lake Agco on which is located at the foot of Mt. Apo, the highest mountain in the country. Now, I got the privilege to be able to experience again the leisure of what a hot spring could provide. This is at Davao Toyozu Resort located at Brgy. Mainit, Nabunturan, a two-hour ride from Tagum City. The entrance fee is 40 pesos per person and the cottage fee is 100 pesos. The resort has two steam bathhouses, five warm water swimming pools and a lot of cottages. Although the cottages may not be like holiday cottages cornwall , it is already ok for a whole day accommodation. There are also man-made falls that you could take showers on it.     I, my husband and his siblings really enjoyed their steam bathhouses and the warm water of their swimming pools. What we liked about the steam bath is that there is no sulphuric odour in the place unli...

      Renibon is a remote barangay of our town but still UPC has a church in there. Every once a month, the Men's Department, the  married men of the church, visit this little church in Renibon. Eventhough I am not part of it my husband invited me to come. We traveled by motorcycle, crossed seven rivers and tracked down the steep road. It was very challenging with the drizzle but it is full of fun with the splashing of water in every river we crossed. No matter how challenging the road had been, we never turned back and had been able to achieve our intention to have a fellowship at Renibon. Thank you Lord for the safe travel and for the adventure we experienced.       

Swimming pools Scenic View   Sizzling Ostrich Steak                  Many of my friends say that Seagull is a nice place to visit. It is situated in Brgy. Lorega Kitaotao, Bukidnoon along Davao-Bukidnon (Buda) Road.Out of curiosity, my husband and I visited it. It was a two-hour ride from our place in Mintal. Along the way, we track down stiff roads with a lot of curves but the scenic view we experienced was truly amazing. Upon arriving we head out at their information office.We first decided to accommodate a cabin and stay for a night but because of the several minutes we waited for us to been entertained, we decided to try their day tour. We paid P150 per head with a free use of open huts, swimming pool and waterfalls pools. Since it was already lunchtime when we arrived, we tried their food specialty - sizzling ostrich steak. It looks and tastes like beef. I am not a fan of exotic foods t...

Dinner at Kuya Ed Back of  David Jack's Ridge                 My mother's birthday will be on March 4. Since she went home to the province last Saturday, my husband and I treat her out last Friday. First, we had dinner at Kuya Eds at Magallanes St. It was an eat-all-you-can dinner at an affordable price that satisfied our hunger. Then, we went to Queensland at Matina Aplaya. It was my mother's first time to be there. She noticed the controversial David statue and the sharks which were grown there. After taking some pictures at Queensland, we proceeded to Jack's Ridge at Shrine hills Matina. My mother wants to go there to know if there had been changes at Jack's Ridge after several years had passed. Same as before, the colorful lights of the city is still beautiful to look at in Jack's Ridge. We didn't loom that long at Jack's Ridge because of the rain. I hope my mother had a wonderful advanced birth...

My brother recently comes home after nine months of working at the sea in a cargo ship. He treats us into a beach getaway. Our former plan is to be at the Kaputian Beach. But when we pass by into one of our family friends, he led us into the Florenda beach resort. It is the beach resort next to Punta del sol at the town of Penaplata. It is a newly open resort fitted for relaxation, swimming or an overnight stay with their available fully-furnished guest houses. With the location of the resort, you would have a nearer view of Davao City and the MT. Apo from the Samal Island. The swimming area is also a natural scenery wherein you will get to see starfish, sea urchins, corals and small fishes. Since, it is a newly open beach resort it is not yet crowded with guests. In fact, at the time we visit it, my family is their sole customer. It is like having the resort exclusive for us. I had a relaxing, enjoyable and memorable Samal Adventure at Florenda.

Yesterday was a day of celebration in the city.A local holiday was declared in celebration of "Araw ng Dabaw"'. Anywhere within the city is busy. My mother and I decided to stroll around the city. We went to the busiest street, the San Pedro street.A lot of people were there because it was the venue of drum and bugle competition. Aside from the competition, it is also were a lot of things for sale were displayed in the sidewalk. We bought a house decor, slippers and fruits at a cheaper price. After strolling in the street, our next destination had been the park in the city named as the People's Park. My mother had never been there before so even if a lot of people were there we never hesitated to enter the park. There was a competition for magicians in the event area of the park. We watched it for a while and then stroll in the park.We took pictures, watch the different views, sat in the benches and then finally decided to go home.What a busy day it was in the city an...