Holy Week Vacation

Two months ago I planned to take a long vacation/leave during the holy week season yet didn't have any idea what to do and where to go. A month after, I got an illness and I badly needed to take a rest that made me decide to use my 1 week leave for it. To make the long story short, we spent my vacation in the northern part of Mindanao, in the city of "The Golden Friendship."

 It was an 11th hour booking so we couldn't avail the usual Cebu Pacific airline ticket promo, plus it's a super high peak season so we gave up on flying and decided to just enjoy our 12-hour stay on the ship. Woah! 12 hours??? Yes! No joke! You have to sail for quite a long time when you travel to Cagayan de Oro from Cebu city. We used the Trans Asia Shipping Lines for Php880.00 for economy but in our case, I chose the Php1,200 for the tourist accommodation. For those who want to use this shipping line, their schedule is daily but they only have 1 trip a day every 8 o'clock in the evening. Not a bad experience. It was cozy for me and could sleep deeply.

I could only take photos for the economy accommodation. For the tourist one, berths are the same but they seem like in the room with a narrow aisle and you cannot feel awkward to the strangers near you because they put a thick curtain to cover your berth whenever you want a privacy, plus you have your own light bulb inside and an electrical outlet so you can charge your gadget whenever you want to

https://youtu.be/0Mlvbx4gazQ 

Here's the beautiful sunrise welcomed us! Time check? It was 5:15AM when we saw it. Fantastic!

We arrived in Rich Manor Penshion House at exactly 8:30 in the morning. Since it was too early for us to check-in, we decided to eat first our breakfast in their cafeteria and luckily, this hotel offers free  unlimited coffee to their guests anytime we want. 

I'm a coffeeholic person so this was heaven for me! haha :D

After an hour of eating, we were able to check-in, relax for a while, take a shower and lakwatsa! hahaha!!! We stayed in Mindanao for 5 days and let me share to you guys those fantastic nature that we've visited. Please visit my other blog for the detail of those tourist attraction.

Tourist Spots:

1. DIVINE MERCY SHRINE http://malurulida.blogspot.com/2016/04/divine-mercy-national-shrine-philippines.html

Address: El Salvador, Misamis Oriental

2. WHITE WATER RAFTING

http://malurulida.blogspot.com/2016/04/white-water-rafting-in-cagayan-de-oro.html

Address: Brgy. Mambua, Cagayan de Oro

3. MAPAWA NATURE PARK 

4. MARIA CRISTINA FALLS

Address: Brgy. Buruun, Iligan City

5. MIMBALUT FALLS

Address: Brgy. Buruun, Iligan City, Lanao Del Norte

6. TINAGO FALLS

Address: Linamon, Iligan City

Half of our trip we spent for eating, going to shopping malls, etc. Detailed posts will be coming soon...

Let It Begin 2ksixteen

First Stop Of This Year's Journey

As I've mentioned from my previous blog ( https://malurulida.blogspot.com/2016/02/did-you-enjoy-on-new-years-day-in.html ), me and my boyfriend ended up spending the rest of my holidays in the beach. 

We decided to go to the sleepy town located in southern Cebu. Best known as a place of great diving, colorful underwater and the best snorkeling site called MOALBOAL. I've been here for a lot of times already but still could enjoy everytime I visit, especially this year that my man was with me. We also visited Kawasan Falls located at Badian town on the next day. Our original plan was to only have a 2D/1N trip but due to a lot of passengers going back to the city, we couldn't able to catch a bus. We decided to stay again for a night in Lambug beach in Badian. It is 15 minutes away from Brgy. Matutinao, where the bus stop located when you are from Kawasan falls. 

It was around 4PM when we arrived in Lambug beach, It was our first time and we were amazed looking at the view, it was simple, natural and yet to be developed. We decided to just use a tent instead and it was a dream come true for me... I haven't tried using tent and indeed I was glad and delightful to have had tried it with my man. For us, it was a fun adventure!

For those who haven't visited yet, let me share our simple itinerary.

From Cebu City to Moalboal:

We took about 2.5 to 3 hours going to Moalboal. We just directly went to south bus terminal and looked for a Ceres bus, fare was about P110. We asked the conductor/driver that we were going to Moalboal and they dropped us off to their town. If you are not in a hurry, you can also ride a Librando bus bound to Badian but it is a little slower than Ceres bus, and if you want a more comfortable one, you can use a van located at One Citilink Terminal, it takes less than 5 minutes from south bus terminal on foot.

When we arrived in their town, my boyfriend were shocked seeing those numerous motorcycle /habal2x driver trying to convince passengers to hire them for going to the beach. Since I experienced a lot here, I was able to manage the situation and could avoid being ripped off. He asked only P50 for 2 people but we gave him P100 since he was kind to us and he helped us find a hotel nearby the beach. We found the only one available room in Basdaku for P1,000 per night. 

Our Expenses:

Day 1

110 - Ceres Bus to Moalboal

50 - Motorcycle to Basdaku

50 - Dinner

500 - AirCon Room (1,000/night)

TOTAL: 700

Day 2

30 - Motorcycle back to Moalboal Town

115 - Brunch

30 - Bus to Kawasan Falls, Brgy. Matutinao

30 - Falls' Entrance Fee (60 for foreigner)

60 - Motorcycle to Lambug beach

250 - Tent 

100 - Dinner

TOTAL: 615

Day 3

60 - Tricycle from Lambug to Badian Town Center

30 - Breakfast

114 - Bus back to Cebu City (We used Librando Bus)

TOTAL: 204

OVERALL TOTAL: Php 1,519 per pax for 3D/2N - 2 people

Amazing price, huh? I was amazed really!!! And trip wouldn't be complete without visual proof!!! LOL! Let me share some of our photos :)

At 2PM I walked around, soothing under the sun and saw this fantastic nature

I forgot to share that we arrived at 9AM here and slept right after we checked in. Hunger woke me up so I searched for food outside and saw this emerald sky. My "Me Time" while he was still asleep.

This was not filtered, swear! It looks like I'm knocking on heaven's door and being opened and accepted.
GRATEFUL!

I so love sunsets.. so we decided to enjoy swimming while watching the sun setting. Wonderful!!!

These are just some of the memories we had in this sleepy town. Thank you Moalboal! I'll be back again~

He looks having a blast in these photos, right? Because he really did!
Kawasan Falls

Here's my most favorite moment.. the TENT! hehe~ It reminded me of our Baler Trip last year.

 TWO - THUMBS UP!

Moalboal is one of those beautiful beaches in the Philippines. There are a lot more.. See you then ~

Did you enjoy on New Year's day in the Philippines? What did you do?

New Year 2016

Although this was not my first time to spend the New Year away from my family but I still felt a bit lonely not staying home. Last few years, I spent and celebrated the countdown with few of my closest friends but this time they chose to have the celebration in their respective hometown with family. I wasn't feel so lonely though because of this one of the most important people in my life who chose to be with me for the rest of the year and more, besides him, my other important friend was with us. We decided to celebrate our countdown on the roof top of Golden Peak Hotel. 

It was pretty fun! Consisting of people from different places and nationalities, listening to live bands, watching the countdown and numerous fireworks all around the city, taking photos, eating unlimited food and drinking unlimited beer and cocktails until 3 AM the next day. Since I didn't have work on New Year's Day, me and my boyfriend ended up spending the rest of my holidays in the beach.

So, how about you guys? How did you spend your New Year's Day in the Philippines? I'm sure you enjoyed too! Let me hear your story here...

Here are our photos, credit to the owner - ♥ Sam Petrov ♥

We started eating our dinner before the countdown

Do I look tipsy? Yeahhhh... you're right! hahah.. This is it! We're ready to say goodbye to 2015!    

Try to find me and my friend Alms :)

The view itself looks stunning!

It seems like me and my friend haven't met for a long time.. couldn't stop the chikahan!! hahaha.. find us~

We couldn't resist to take selfies with this fantastic event and place!
WELCOME 2016!!!

It's A New Day,
A New Start
A New Chance To Make Your Dreams
Come True

New Life 2014 ^_^

Hello guys, let me include this one of my favorite events of my life 2014 - MY NATAL DAY. 

I love you all and I wanna thank you for the lovely gift and wonderful wishes you have showered on me. Thanks a lot for making it the best birthday I have ever had. I promise to keep all your wishes in my heart and stay happy.

I thank God for giving me such sweet and caring people in my life. I wished for happiness and love and I got them all from all of you. Thank you guys for being in my life and making it that much more amazing! ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ 

She was the one who celebrated my birthday a month before my birth month... she treated me in this cozy place/hotel. I am so lucky to have this generous friend of mine - "Karma". I enjoyed and still enjoying having a girls talk with her. She's so amazing!

A week before my birthday, these wonderful also celebrated with me. I really had a blast in Apple One - Blue Elephant Restaurant, Karaoke and ended up in Mango Square! haha!

Gumbology Restobar

Address: City Time Square, W.O Seno Street, Mandaue City, 6014 Cebu

Phone:(032) 236 0386

Hours: Open today · 10:00 am – 3:00 am

I'm not a food critic. However, I was fortunate enough to have discovered a hidden gastronomic treasure - GUMBOLOGY

New cuisine to satisfy our hunger... A new gastronomic experience. Let's try to be adventurous and it surely pays to be so. Try some good gumbo and have fun! 

 Upon arrival, I immediately noticed an attractive and yet, extremely colourful decor.

The mardi gras ambiance meant that our dining experience was going to be relaxing, fun and enjoyable.

 Lighting and furnishing bring a festive ambiance to its interior...

An eye-catching tissue holder

As for the food - well, we found it difficult to choose. The photo-style menu was well-designed and perfectly detailed. After talking to the friendly staff, me and my friends decided to order the more palatable favourites and specials:

Complementary Bread and Butter

Chicken Empanada w/ Salsa Verde

P118.00

Bolognese

P208.00

Pizza Favorite

P228

(The drinks were also refreshingly soothing)

Cucumber Juice for our Cooler

P128

This restaurant is the perfect spot for gumbo and pinoy food lovers . I was here with my friends/colleagues to experience gumbo in Cebu.

(We finished the dinner with more photos...)

We Got To Get The Whole Thing In The Shot.

My overall opinion is simple: Try it! The food was simply wonderful and I will definitely go back for another round of gumbo delights. Pricing is affordable and service is excellent and incredibly friendly. It is an excellent dining experience for the whole family, especially if you're thinking of having a party there. It is truly a unique experience that I've not seen or savoured anywhere else.

I recommend Gumbology to all those who want to wine, dine and enjoy the good things life has to offer.