THOUGHTS by Anonymous: IT'S MORE FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES

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On the day of our trek, August 7, 2016, we woke up to a gloomy weather in Capas, Tarlac. It was raining so hard when we arrived in Capas, August 6, 2016. We woke up at 6:00 AM prepped ourselves for the trek then ate our breakfast. The Mt. Pinatubo Tour Operators follows a strict itinerary for the tourists' safety since Mt. Pinatubo is still an active volcano.

Just in case you missed the first part of this blog entry here's your guide on How To Get To Mt. Pinatubo?

After we ate our breakfast, we were asked to stand by since the tourism office of Capas still didn't give the go signal that it was okay to proceed with the Mt. Pinatubo trek. It was just gloomy and cloudy by the time we woke up but an hour later it started to drizzle! I was getting paranoid that our tour might be cancelled. If our tour gets cancelled, we would not be able to go to Bataan our next destination. The reason why they don't permit trekking to the crater lake because there are still lahar flows within the area when it rains. And then we waited and it drizzled...then it was rain...drizzled again. After waiting for an hour and a half, the tourism office gave their go signal and off we go to the crater lake! Woot!

Before anything else, let me enumerate a few things that you should bring during the trek. If you are a climber, then I think you already know what to bring and wear.

WHAT TO WEAR IN A MT. PINATUBO TREK?

- LIGHT LONG SLEEVED SHIRT AND LEGGINGS. Cover up to protect your skin. The sun was friendly by the time we started trekking Pinatubo because it was cloudy hours before we started our trek. I was complacent of not putting too much sunblock on my exposed skin. As a result, I got burneddddd!

- TREKKING SHOES AND SPORTS SOCKS. I don't want to risk my toenails get hit with those volcanic rocks. Some of my friends who also went to Pinatubo wore slippers or those gladiator rubber sandals. It really depends on the footwear you are most comfortable with. My initial plan was to wear my Keds sneakers but it is a 4 hour trek to and from Pinatubo. I guess I would have to buy another pair of Keds had I worn it during our trek. You can also wear trekking sandals if you don't want to get your shoes wet. There were some who managed to stay dry all through out the trek. Well, lucky for them. =D

- SUNGLASSES - To protect your eyes from the sun and dust.

- HAT. To protect your face from the sun.

The start off point of the trek is in Brgy. Sta Juliana. We drove by in our 4x4 ride in a vast stretch of land that resulted from the eruption. It was a one hour ride.

Belgian joiners

Before we reached the jump off point, we stopped by and was amazed by these jagged mountains. The mountains were like a cake that was sliced through. It is ironic how amazing it is when it was caused by the 1991 eruption.

Around 8:45 AM, we started our trek to the crater lake of Mt. Pinatubo. The trek was mostly on a flat surface but you have to maneuver your way through the rocks (small and big), volcanic sand (be careful on stepping on those sandy surface because it camouflages like a hard one and once you step on it, it breaks) and little streams of water (yes, you have no choice but to get your shoes wet). Don't forget to bring your PHP 700.00 Botolan fees to be collected halfway thru the trek by the municipal government of Botolan, Zambales.

We trekked between "sliced mountains". It was like a natural wonderland.

Twenty minutes before we reached the crater lake, we came across this signage. I guess I belong to the senior citizens. LOL!

So where do you belong? =D

I was already exhausted. We were walking for almost 2 hours already and the surface started to ascend plus we still have to maneuver thru rocks, sand and streams of water. That is two times the effort. I thought to myself "Mt. Pinatubo, you better be good. I'm so tired already.". =D

I have to disagree with this. MAJESTIC is for MT. MAYON. The suitable adjective for MT. PINATUBO is BREATHTAKING. =)

And so, the breathtaking Mt. Pinatubo crater lake didn't disappoint. I was walking thru the stoned stairs and caught a glimpse of the crater lake. I was so excited to actually witness the lake in whole so I ran. It was breathtaking. It had all these dreamy atmosphere.

We rested and took our lunch. It was already 10:30 AM when we reached the crater lake. It is prohibited to take a swim in the lake. The tour guide let us stay for an hour and a half only. As I've said earlier, they follow a strict itinerary because Mt. Pinatubo is still an active volcano. After we took lots of pictures, we started our trek back to Brgy, Sta Juliana. It was still a 2 hour trek and it was exhausting. We arrived in Bognot home stay around 3:30 PM. We took a rest for awhile and prepped ourselves because we are still bound to Bataan the same day.

WHAT TO BRING IN A MT. PINATUBO TREK?

In a trek, you always have to pack light. Don't bring unnecessary things because it will just add unnecessary load on your backpack. It will just add also to your exhaustion.

WATER or ENERGY DRINK - bring lots of water but just enough for your load. There are snack vendors when you reach the crater lake but they also have a tourist-y price.

SNACKS - I was hungry during our trek. We bought sliced bread with Nutella spread. It is also important to bring sweets since this also adds up to your energy.

SUNBLOCK - Don't be complacent. Even though it will be cloudy when you trek, still put lots of sunblock! I have learned my lesson the hard way. =D

EXTRA CLOTHES - There are comfort rooms when you reach the crater lake so if you want to change you can.

SMALL TOWEL - To wipe all those sweat off your face.

WALKING STICK - optional only. If you have the right balance, you will be fine.

PIECE OF ADVISE...

I don't want other tourists to experience the possibility of the tour being cancelled. That agony while waiting whether it will push through or not produced so much anxiety. I advise to schedule your tour during summer months from March - June. We went there in the month of August and that's the start of the rainy season. A week after we visited Pinatubo, the scheduled tours of the same agency we booked with was cancelled because it was frequently raining.

If you have doubts visiting Mt. Pinatubo because of the long trek, just go. It will be worth it. =)

The Aeta kids says thank you for coming...=)

The Aetas had been given the Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title on May 27, 2009. According to ABS-CBN news article, the title covers over 7,000 hectares of land in some parts of Zambales and Pampanga. This gives the Aetas legal ownership of the lands near Mt. Pinatubo.

LET ME LEAVE YOU WITH THE "LEAVE NO TRACE" PHILOSOPHY...

"Take nothing but pictures."

"Bring nothing but memories."

"Leave nothing but footprints."

-Jen

9/11/2016 11:21:00 AM

Okay so I am not a fashionably inclined person. Wearing a shirt and jeans or shorts I am good to go but--! Whenever I go on travels, I make sure I have a good set of clothing of course for pictorial purposes. Teehee! I would always buy new clothes whenever I go travel outside Cebu. I am going to share how I came up with my Baguio City outfit. Char naman parang fashion blogger lang! =D Baguio City has an average weather of 16 to 20 degrees Celsius so scarfs. sweaters and jackets are your bestfriend when you visit Baguio.

For my Day 1 outfit which I wore from Cebu, I donned a tube jumpsuit, sandals with gold accent and a fedora hat. I wore a spaghetti strap top under my tube jumpsuit because I am not comfortable with tube tops.

Color of the day is Aquamarine!

During our long bus ride from Manila to Baguio, the aircon in the bus got so cold so I had to wear my jacket. So I advise to bring essentials like scarf, bonnet, jacket, leggings that could give your legs heat and sneakers. I could say we were lucky because when we visited Baguio the temperature reached 10 degrees Celsius during the night around 10:00 PM - 12:00 AM! Just the way I wanted!

Just arrived!

During the night...

I wore a blazer together with the scarf! A t shirt and jeans girl wearing this outfit is like a milestone! LOL!

When you visit Baguio, try learning the different ways of using a scarf. It can make a difference in your outfit. But really, I just invented that scarf style. =D

Before our trip, I bought this navy blue sweater from the Surplus Shop in SM City Cebu. I prepared 2 outfits during our day tour in Baguio one with a sweater and leggings if the weather didn't match a pair of shorts and a plaid polo. And so I wore this....

Navy blue sweater, leggings, scarf, bonnet and sneakers for day 2.

Unless you are used to cold weather, I guess you can take wearing a pair of shorts the whole day in Baguio City.

Last night in Baguio. I just realized I had 4 different scarf style. Lol!

For our 3rd day, we were to travel back to Manila so I wore a pair of shorts and my plaid polo which I prepared for my day 2 outfit but decided to wear sweater and leggings instead because of the cold weather.

Day 3 in Fort Santiago in Manila. I was supposed to wear this outfit during day 2 but the cold did BOTHER me!

I hope my blog entry helped you decide what to wear in the City of Pines!

You might want to read our DAY 1 , DAY 2 and DAY 3 itineraries.
For more of my travel pictures, follow me @darlingsanity on Instagram and like Thoughts by Anonymous on Facebook!

Till then!

-Jen

*This is not a sponsored post.

BAGUIO CITY FOR THE LOVE OF TRAVEL IT'S MORE FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES LOVE and LIFE RANTS and PRAISES WHAT TO WEAR

2/22/2016 11:20:00 PM

It has been two weeks since our Baguioventures and I still miss the cold Baguio weather. Originally our plan during our 2nd day in Baguio, we should have traveled back to Manila during the night and sleep in a 9 hour bus ride. We were not able to buy Baguio to Manila tickets due to a huge number of passengers falling in line in the terminal when we arrived during our first day. As a result, we rented again the van we hired during our day tour to take us to Manila for Php 7,000.00. The bus fare of Php 800.00 we budgeted for our Baguio to Manila trip was used to pay for the van to take us to Manila. Luckily, our branch manager shouldered the additional cost.

February 8, 2016
We woke up early at 4:00 AM. Traveling in a private van saves a lot of time! We departed Baguio City around 5:00 AM and arrived in Manila at 10:00 AM. Our itinerary for today is to go to Intramuros and Cash N' Carry mall. Our van driver agreed to drive us from Intramuros to Greenbelt. We added Php 1,000.00 as his tip for driving us around the metro.

First stop was the cobbled street of Intramuros. According to Wikipedia, it is an old district and historic core of Manila. It was the seat of the Philippine government during the Spanish colonial times. It's similar to Vigan's Calle Crisologo.

Nostalgic about my Vigan City trip 2 years ago.

According to an article from the Philippine Star, Intramuros was awarded the Heritage Prize 2015 by the Association of UNESCO World Heritage Cities of Spain. It is an award given to institutions that works in the preservation of Spanish and cultural heritage.

Security forces around Intramuros are dressed in "gwardya sibil (Civil Guard)" uniforns.

Next stop is Fort Santiago where Jose Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines, was imprisoned before his execution in 1896. Entrance fee is Php 75.00.

After having a taste of history, it's time to go perfume and chocolate shopping in Cash N' Carry. In the second floor of this mall, you can find a haven of imported perfumes and chocolates that sell much cheaper than in department stores.

Some of my Cash N' Carry loots!

After we went to Cash N Carry, we stayed in Greenbelt while waiting for our 10:00 PM flight back to Cebu. This entry concludes my 3 day vacation in Baguio and Manila with my Cebu Lahug branch office mates. Traveling in groups are always fun and lets you get to know the person you are traveling with even more. You always have someone to share the memories with whenever you miss the places you have been to. So to the beautiful specie reading my blog, ALWAYS INVEST IN MEMORIES because material things deteriorate but memories stay with you FOREVER. <3 nbsp="">

Don't miss our FIRST DAY and SECOND DAY in the City of Pines!
For more of my travel pictures, follow me @darlingsanity on Instagram and like #ThoughtsbyAnonymous on Facebook!

All pictures in this entry are all mine unless stated otherwise.

Till our next adventure!

-Jen

Thank you for taking the time in reading #ThoughtbyAnonymous! =)

BAGUIO CITY FOR THE LOVE OF TRAVEL IT'S MORE FUN IN THE PHILIPPINES LOVE and LIFE RANTS and PRAISES TRAVELLING

2/21/2016 04:05:00 PM

Travelling with 7 people requires a super early wake up call! On our 2nd day in Baguio, we were not able to go to all the tourist spots in our itinerary because some of my travel companions woke up late plus the traffic around the city was worse but that didn't stop us from having fun! If you plan your trip in Baguio during Panagbenga month make sure you have 5 days vacation in the city because the traffic takes a lot of time in your travel.

Let's start our day shall we?

READY TO GO!

WE RENTED A VAN FOR PHP 2,800.00 FOR OUR TRANSPORTATION AROUND THE CITY. THE PERKS OF BEING A BANKER: ONE OF OUR CLIENTS PAID FOR THE VAN RENTAL! =)

The start of our 48th hour in Baguio City was the LAPERAL WHITE HOUSE also known as the haunted house. To get inside the house, there is an entrance fee of Php15.00 which is also a donation to the Baguio-Benguet Bamboo Initiative's Ifugao Bamboo Carving Exhibit. One friend who used the comfort room in the bamboo museum felt a sudden warmth on her nape when she went used the comfort room. Personally, I didn't feel any spookiness. Maybe the best time to go inside the White House is around 5:00 - 6:00 PM to experience something creepy! After we viewed the bamboo museum, we went inside the house and took pictures.

BAMBOO DISPLAYS

STRIKING A POSE!

SMILE!

AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE WHITE HOUSE HAVING THAT FAKE SCARED LOOK.

Next on our list is the BOTANICAL GARDEN. Right at the entrance were real native Igorots who were willing to take a pose with a fee of Php 20.00/each but we decided to just take a photo of the signage because there were around 10 natives so that would cost us Php 200.00! There is NO ENTRANCE FEE when you get inside the park.

NATIVE IGOROTS.

There were native Igorot costumes that we could rent for Php 20.00 for photo ops. And so we were stuck in picture taking in Igorot costumes for like an hour! Haha!

RENTED AN IGOROT COSTUME FOR PHP 20.00

We stroll around the garden and went inside the Japanese Tunnel. There was nothing much inside the tunnel. The government could have posted a history or pictures or Japanese statues inside the tunnel to make it interesting for us and to feel the war ambiance inside the tunnel.

ENTRANCE OF THE JAPANESE TUNNEL

We started touring the city around 11:00 AM already so we didn't have that much time. We finished at the Botanical Garden around 2:00 PM and we only have visited 2 tourist spots! =( After Botanical Garden, we proceeded to THE MANSION. The Mansion is used by various Philippine presidents for official engagements in Baguio City.

AT THE MANSION.

We were supposed to visit Wright Park, Camp John Hay and Mines View Park but due to our time constraint we decided to just proceed to the PHILIPPINE MILITARY ACADEMY in Loakan Fort Gregorio del Pilar. There is an entrance fee of Php 20.00. Before we got inside the academy, there were war tanks displayed for photo ops.

ONE OF THE WAR TANKS DISPLAYED.

COURAGE. INTEGRITY. LOYALTY.

Around 5:00 PM, they conducted a flag down ceremony inside the PMA grounds. One soldier manning the entrance told us to stop and pay our respects to the Philippine flag. I can't explain how I felt that time. Patriotic feels just flowed being in a place where men and women sacrificed their lives in protecting our nation.

HEADQUARTERS.

WEEEE!

A Baguio trip will never be complete without a picture of strawberries!

A STRAWBERRY FARM JUST BESIDE THE PMA GROUNDS.

The PMA was our last stop. We went back downtown Baguio City to check in to our transient house for the night. We stayed in PHILOCA TRANSIENT HOUSE. They charged us Php 400.00/each person for a room good for 8 persons. After we put our bags, we went out and looked for a place to dine.

Baguio has a SM mall ---- with no aircon! I thought we should check this mall out and indeed there were no air cons. It was colder during our 2nd day in Baguio with an average temperature of 10 - 13 degrees during that night. It was like haven! SM Baguio is located uphill so it was much colder.