Last month, my former teammates and I went on an overnight trip to Zambales. It was supposed to be a Christmas party but because everyone was busy last holiday, it was moved to a later date.
. . . 1st trip for year 2018
The timing of our getaway couldn't get any better. It's off peak season meaning less people at the beach and cheaper accommodation.
We stayed at Canoe Beach Resort in Zambales. Simple, no frills accommodation that fitted our budget.
Our group of 18 occupied 2 dorm type rooms good for 20 pax. In fairness, the rooms are clean. Each bed has its own pillows and blankets.
My only complaint, the air conditioning cannot handle the midday heat. It's like it was not working at all.
I'm sorry but I didn't have a lot of photos to share.
I have turned into a rusty blogger. Slacking off in taking pictures and documenting important details.
Sometimes I think that it's a good thing. You know, living in the moment.
Then there are times I think I am missing out.
Sigh.
Still trying to figure out how to balance it.
Zambales is still as beautiful as I remember it. I stepped into this paradise twelve years ago. I love how the mountains meet the sea. Whether you wanted a mountain view or an ocean view, you get the serene feeling of being one in nature.
I'm sure I will be back to this place. And when that day comes I'll make sure to bring Tapioca and the Munchkin with me.
Finally we have arrived at the last post of the Coco Beach series. One last day to enjoy. I woke up early because we still haven't toured the entire resort. Tapioca on the other hand was not in the mood since it will surely require a lot of walking. He would rather enjoy his slumber than to hike up and down the hill. While I was getting ready, I realized I have forgotten to charged up the camera's battery. Darn. No choice, I plugged the camera's battery and waited for a few minutes until it gets enough power.
Actually it wasn't so bad I got stuck in the room for a few minutes
since I got to enjoying this view which I only have a few hours to see. Could have
been nice to have a cup of tea however the Carabao restaurant
was still close and room service won't be available until six am.
. . . the early morning view from the balcony
When the battery had enough charge, I went on my own ala Dora The Explorer. I got to explore the plants and vegetation of the resort which was quite nice. It's amazing they were able to maintain everything. From the huge palm trees and fruit-bearing trees to the flowering plants, all of them were in perfect condition.
the cottage . . .
That's our cottage. Pardon the towels. We have to hung them out like that to dry.
. . . the pathway
. . . my feet and the seashell details
the gym . . .
This was suppose to be the gym area however you won't see any of the equipments as they were under maintenance.
. . . the crossroads
Pathway leading to different directions.
Touch of Asia Restaurant . . .
I passed by the Touch of Asia restaurant which we weren't able to try. Maybe next time. This restaurant operates during lunch and dinner time only. The food they served were mostly Asian from Chinese, Thai, Malay, Indian etc. I got to explore it in the morning where no one was around.
I went back to the silent pool so I can take pictures of the place without interfering other guests.
the silent pool and its lush greens . . .
. . . shower room and cable car
The Coco Beach had a cable car which they also called cable jeepney. With that it makes going up and down the cottages more convenient specially for guests staying in the hilltop rooms (like we do). Unfortunately, during the time of our visit, the cable jeepney was out of order.
. . . wooden chairs for lounging
the jacuzzi . . .
. . . beautiful orchids
pool cleaning time . . .
. . . last shot taken before my camera died again
It felt good to roam around in the morning as there were less chance of bumping into one of the guests and I can take as much picture as I like. My only issue was my camera's battery. It was not charge fully therefore I didn't really get far away from our cottage.
I went back to the cottage and charged up the battery some more. When Tapioca woke up we headed down to the restaurant for breakfast. The plan was to eat as much as we can since we will be leaving the place at exactly twelve noon. We still needed to pack our stuff and we won't have enough time to eat lunch.
And eat a lot we did. Check out my brekkie plate . . .
deep-fried surprise (you won't know what you'll get until you bite on it), roasted tomato, picadillo . . .
I had two rounds of this.
. . . cheese omelet, more cheese slices and ham
cereal with fresh fruits . . .
After all those food, chillax naman sa beach. I wanted to take a nap but I couldn't resist the sea. It was calling me. This was our last day and I have to take advantages of the last few hours to enjoy the sand and the water on a nice weather like this . . .
. . . blowfish spotted
I changed into my bikini and enjoy a nice swim. Now, now since we pigged out at the breakfast buffet my tummy was so full I looked like I swallowed a whole melon. Seriously. Kapal pa ng mukha ko magpictorial.
Eeek. Itago ang mga tiyan!!!
I tried to do a jump shot but it failed. I looked like a butete jumping kaya wag na lang. Hirap pa tumalon ng busog. Si Tapioca na lang tingnan nyo!
one, two, three . . . jump!!!
yay! nice one!
We still haven't tried the jacuzzi and this was going to be our last chance. We hurriedly went up the hill to enjoy the few minutes we got.
Finally jacuzzi! And once again, we're the only guest in the silent pool area. Nice. My third fruit shake - banana shake. And it was just as good as the watermelon and the mango. Di maciado matamis as always. Tapioca had a San Mig light.
At exactly twelve noon our boat that will transfer us back to Batangas arrived. It was a perfect time to sail off as the water was calm. Just like the time when the dolphins welcomed us, the showed up again to bit us farewell. What an incredible experience it was. This time we're able to catch them on video.
Some huge ships we saw on our away. The ocean maybe big but these ships were sailing not to far from our small outrigger boat. The though of bumping into one of them was nerve-wrecking.
When we arrived at the private port, a Toyota Fortuner was waiting for us. Social talaga. Since there were just four of us (me, Tapioca and another couple) they've used the Fortuner instead of a van. We had a few minutes stop over at a gas station for wee-wee break.
With kuya driver. He was actually younger than us and I kept on calling him kuya. What a shame. Lol.
Coco Beach is not a 5 star resort but the type of service we received,
the hospitality, the friendly staff, the VIP treatment made it feel like
we are in a 5 star resort. If you wanted a different kind of Puerto
Gallera experience with more exclusivity and isolation, I highly
recommend this place.
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Despite the stressful experience of last night, Tapioca and I were able to sleep like a baby and woke up early feeling fully charged and ready to start another day. We had arranged a fishing trip and other water activities for our 2nd day. Fishing wasn't really the kind of activity that appeals to me except of course for Tapioca. He loves fishing. In fact, he even has a computer game for fishing. I thought it was boring. When he found out it's being offered at the resort, he did all he can to convince me. Seeing all the excitement on his face, I knew I have to oblige. After all, this is going to be his chance to do the real thing.
We met up with Chito, the boatman who'd assisted us for the said activity. As early as 5am, the sky was already bright and the sun was out in the horizon. Perfect day for fishing.
The view was gorgeous. The morning breeze was fresh and salty. We were in a private boat. Just me and Tapioca and of course, our boatman. He brought us to the open sea where we see nothing but water. It was like we're on the edge of the world. If you look at some of the photos I might say parang infinity pool lang ang drama. When we can no longer see any island it became scary. For one thing, I do not know how to swim. Second thing, I couldn't find any life vest in the boat. I told Chito about my concerns and he showed me where the life vests were. He didn't really recommend to put one on kasi maiinitan daw ako. Also the water was calm so there's nothing to worry.
We saw other small fishing boats in the area. Pretty much it's the place where the locals catch fish to bring to their families. These fishermen uses traditional technique for fishing. No nets or anything high-tech. What they have were nylon fishing lines rolled on a piece of bamboo, fishing hooks at the end with some baits. Exactly the same thing we're using on the trip. Tapioca said it's more easy than using a fishing rod especially for beginners.
It took us quite some time before we're able to caught some fish. It's because we were chatting most of the time and before we knew it the fishes already ate the baits without getting hooked. So we decided to get down to business and focus on the task at hand. No more chikahan.
Chito was the first one who was able to caught a fish. Then he got another one. Tapioca and I were getting impatient. Those damn fish kept eating our baits but for some reason nakakawala sila. Para tuloy kaming nagpa-feeding program. We became more vigilant and thought of a way to catch those fish. Tapioca and I constantly check the bait just to be sure if its still intact or nakain na ng mautak na isda. The moment we felt something bit the line, we immediately pulled it out para di na makawala pa.
. . . hermit crabs
These babies are what we used as baits. It was amazing how Chito takes them out of their shells.
Finally, we were able to catch some fish. Between Tapioca and I, he was the first one to catch a fish.
See how proud and happy he was after the first catch? After he caught his first, I got something biting on my line, too. My turn.
Surprise, surprise! I caught not one but two fish in one line :-) Yeah he maybe the first one to caught a fish but I got two-in-one. Lucky me! When we already got the hang of it and learned the right technique, timing naman we ran out of bait. Pasaway kasi yung mga isda. Nautakan kami.
Now we have to go back to the resort and get more baits. However, it's not
going to be the hermit crabs. It will take us forever just to get a lot
of those. Chito went to the kitchen of the resort and asked for more
bait. They have given him tiger prawns. Social! Naku po, hindi na pwede
ang fish feeding program. Mahal ang bait.
Once we have the baits, Chito brought us to a different area to fish. It was somewhere closer to the resort. As soon as we dropped our lines, we felt the fish biting. It's like ang dami nila at nag-aagawan. Ang saya. I was able to caught lapu-lapu, bisugo and more but I forgot their names. I caught most of the big fish (yabang). We already caught a lot of fish and Tapioca wanted to stop na. I was like Noooo! Let's fish some more. I'm so good at it I think I can do this as a profession *joke*. Who said fishing is boring? Oops, I did. Now I'm taking it back. I highly recommend this activity.
tiger fish . . .
Chito caught this tiger fish. He said it's edible. Just like the rest of our catch, they were all edible. We can cook them all for lunch later. I love tiger fish. I used to see them a lot back in the days when I still do scuba diving. They're so pretty to look at. Actually, all of the fish we caught were all good looking. I don't think I wanted to eat them :-(
. . . our catch
In less than two hours, we caught this much fish. Not bad. Tapioca shared my sentiments about them. We didn't want to eat them. We're just after the fun of trying to catch some fish. We ended up giving all the fish to Chito. Perhaps it would be much better to order something from the Coco Beach's menu for lunch or have room service again. Still, it's too early to think about lunch. We haven't had breakfast yet.
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Dinner started at exactly 7:30pm. The Coco Beach staff showed us to our reserved table whom we'd share with a mother and her pretty daughter hailed from Denmark. It's their first time in the Philippines, make that in Asia and they were staying at the resort for two weeks. The only time they'd been to Manila was when their plane landed at the airport and then they went straight to Coco Beach. It was prearranged by the resort and their travel agent in Denmark. Based from our conversation with them they were quite pleased with the way Coco Beach took care of everything. We also sensed they were having fun and enjoying themselves in the resort. Imagine staying at Coco Beach for two weeks? I'm envious. Sana kami rin :-) We noticed that most of the guests were foreigners, specifically Europeans. We've never felt so outnumbered in our very own country. *shocking*
. . .The Coco Band
The band opened the dinner party with some Jamaican-vibed song called Puerto Galera. The mother and daughter had high praises for this band. The Coco Band had a pretty extensive repertoire as they played both international and local songs, from the oldies but goodies to the latest songs playing on the airwaves.
cocktails in paper cups . . .
While waiting for dinner to be served, we were given this cocktail served in paper cups. As usual, it had this very strong alcohol flavor. Though the good thing was it had bits of fresh fruits you can nibbled. Next came the appetizers . . .
. . . salad
Lettuce, onion, bell pepper, black olives, mango balls, chicken and shrimp bits with vinaigrette.
tanigue fillet with capers and papaya in lemon butter sauce . . .
This was good except I didn't think the papaya complemented the fish and the lemon butter sauce. I tried squirting some calamansi juice on it and surprisingly, it saved the dish.
. . . Thai-style chicken in coconut milk with warm bread on the side
When this was serve on the table, I checked out Tapioca and see if he will eat it. He didn't like coconut milk as it gives him upset stomach. Before I knew it he was slurping the soup with gusto and polished off his bowl. In fairness, they knew how to make good coconut milk-base dishes. I kinda wish it was more spicy para mas ganahan kami for the next dish which we're really looking forward to . . .
Mr. Porky Pig . . .
Actually, di na kelangan ng pampagana.
. . . eat-all-you-can lechon!!!
my first plate . . .
Salad, baked potatoes and lechon galore! On my second plate, I ditched the carbs and went for more more salad and more more lechon. We were in luck as most of the foreigners prolly didn't know the best part of the lechon - the crispy skin. Nagfiesta talaga kami ni Tapioca sa lechon skin. Yum!
While enjoying the feast, high school students from Puerto Galera entertained us with some folk dances.
At this point mejo low-bat na our camera's battery. They danced those popular folk dance like tinikling and pandanggo sa ilaw. We were amaze at how these kids balanced the candles on their head. And afterwards they also asked the guests to try the basic steps of tinikling. The foreigner kids had fun with it. Too bad I didn't have any pictures or videos.
. . . the dessert
Dinner will not be complete without dessert. They served some kakanin and fresh fruits but my favorites were biko (the best!), fresh watermelon and mangoes. I had two rounds of these sweets. We were satisfied and happy with dinner but didn't have the energy to party so we called it a night. All we wanted now was a hot shower and a good night sleep.
I thought everything went well for our first day at Coco Beach. We loved everything the place has to offer except for some boo boos we encountered that night. As we hiked up to our cottage, I was happily counting each step we're taking when suddenly there was this stupid, ugly and slimy frog sitting smugly in one of the steps. I was almost about to step on it. It was dark but the pathway was well lit so I knew what I saw was a frog. I screamed from the top of my lungs and gosh my scream echoed. I started to run back down but I realized they might be more frogs in the area or maybe something more scary I didn't want to over think so I just went behind Tapioca and begged him to do something. I would like for him to carry me to the cottage but that's so not going to happen considering it was 170+ step and both of us we're full from the dinner buffet not to mention exhausted. Tapioca tried to shoo the frog away but the darn thing won't move so he had to kicked it out of the way. I swear I was so restless and afraid of another frog encounter. I really wanted Tapioca to give me a piggy back ride LOL.
Aside from the frog incident, we also got lost so it took more time and more steps to get to our room. We went up and down the hill, left and right, and me getting all paranoid thinking about the big chance of seeing another frog or creatures with all these walking. Until finally we found the right pathway. Thank God!
our bed at night - very romantic noh?
When we got to our room and saw the bed all made-up (thanks to the service family), I totally forgot about my anxieties. But only for a few minutes. From our room we also heard someone screaming. Hah, I'm not alone. Siguro nakakita rin ng palaka or something hehehe.
Tapioca and I decided to take a shower so we can sleep na. While taking a shower, I heard this *tu-ko, tu-ko* sound coming from the outside. I haven't heard that sound for a long time. Back then when I was a little girl my family would go on vacation to the province. My cousins would scare the heck out of me telling stories about mumu and the tiktik and how that tuko sound was somewhat associated with aswang. I was like O-M-G. I was enjoying pa naman my hot shower but no choice, I hurriedly dry myself and went to bed.
I was so stressed out talaga. I do know that tuko is just an
ordinary lizard and the aswang thingy was just some mythical creature
created to scare people like me. I also didn't
like the idea of sharing our room with lizards or any nocturnal creatures
for that matter. I wanted to close all the windows including the balcony but I realized we didn't have aircon. If I did that it's going to be hot inside the room and we might suffocate. For peace of mind, I made sure na naka-tuck in ng mabuti yung mosquito net sa bed so if there would be any creatures na maligaw sa room they won't be able to get onto the bed. And cyempre pa I prayed. I prayed nothing bad would happen to us. You know while all these was happening Tapioca made some remark that somehow lighten up my super tensed nerves. He was like "Babe, the bird was trying to say something." And I was like "What bird?" He said "Listen . . . There. . . It says 'f**k you, f**k you' ". Natawa naman ako ng bongga. Oist, wag green minded ha (effect ng pagbabasa ng Fifty Shades of Grey ^__^). He thought the lizard (tuko) was a bird and it was saying the f word instead of the tuko sound. During our stay in the afternoon we mostly heard birds chirping away and each bird had a different sound from another so ayun akala nya bird pa rin yon LOL.
Basically, eto lang inaman nagpa-stress out sakin during our entire stay. But if I'm going to sum up everything, mas nangibababaw ang magaganda at happy moments namin sa resort. I guess sa sobrang saya namin, we totally forgot we're staying in a different environment. And I did not anticipate any of these. Well, I knew better now and I didn't regret we chose this kind of adventure. This just made our vacation more memorable because of this experience.
My Coco Beach kwento will not end here. There are still more to come. Just bear with me, okay.
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