Two years ago, I celebrated my 33rdbirthday in La Union. Last year, a month after my 34th, I left for
Cebu to swim with the whale sharks. This year, a month before my 35th
birthday, I decided to go to the very picturesque Caramoan, Camarines Sur.
After our adventure filled day 1 in Caramoan, day
2 of my trip started out with me buying old school chichirya at the
sari-sari store near the port. Kuya Ruel said that it would take us about an
hour to get to our destination, which would be at the Manlawi Sandbar.
Chichirya kayo dyan! Arranging these chips is AAHHRRTT!
My haul. I only ate a Rinbee and the rest, we used to feed some fish
With Kuya Ruel the tour guide and Kuya Mark the bangkero
The port
Clear water of Caramoan
The stretch
of this sandbar is wider compared to the one that I went to in Camiguin years
ago. I decided to walk around barefoot and took some photos of the creatures
that I saw. There were huts that you can rent for P200 should you want to stay
there and probably have lunch, and these huts float during high tide.
Manlawi Sandbar
A lone tree
Mr. Crab
Saw this starfish camouflaging at the sandbar.
And this....I don't know what this is. I was scared to touch it though.
The macro setting of this Samsung Galaxy K Zoom is really amazing. Say Hi to the Hermit Crab!
In the middle of nowhere, there was a kuya who was selling buko so I bought one.
Ang galing nya. When I was done with the juice, he cracked the buko open and made this makeshift spoon from it so I can scoop the meat.
Our
next destination was just a few minutes away, and it was another sandbar but
prettier compared to Manlawi. The Bugtong Sandbar had crystal blue water surrounding it and everywhere you turn, you would see starfish, different
kinds. I swam here for a bit, and also took the chance to sunbathe and say a
really short prayer thanking Papa Jesus for all of these beautiful places and everything in it that
he has made and allowed me to experience.
Say hello to Mr. Starfish!
At the Bugtong sandbar
Kuya Ruel showed me this. This is called a Sand Dollar and it's not a rock, it's actually a sea creature. This is what it looks like when it's alive. It turns into this fossil looking thing when it dies.
Next
stop was where we ate our lunch, at the Cotivas Island. It’s one of the go-to
islands where you can leisurely have a break because there are huts for
rent. While on our way there, I asked Kuya Ruel if we can get some of them edible seaweed called lato as well as uni, since he mentioned that there were
lots of sea urchins near the shore, and God bless his soul, he was able to
deliver. He asked Kuya Mark the bangkero to get us lato while he demonstrated
to us how to get fresh uni. Getting it out from the ocean is the easiest part
but the actual cracking of the thing, uhhmm, I just made him handle that duty
since it was a bit scary. We had the most wonderful lunch there, relaxed a
little bit before heading out to do a bit of snorkeling.
Kuya Ruel removing the sea urchin's thorns
Couldn't get any fresher than this! UNI!!!!
Yum!
First time I held a live sea urchin. This is my "acting" face.
My non-acting face! I was scared of being pricked. What was I thinking?
Sea urchins
Cotivas Island
One of the best island lunches that I've ever had in my life!
Inihaw na liempo
Adobong pusit
Fresh uni
Snorkeling in Caramoan
Before heading back to the resort, we passed by another island called Bagieng. The sand there was also really fine.
The sand at Bagieng island
Kuya Ruel saw another crab
On our way back to the resort. It was a beautiful weekend.
I
had one of the best weekends ever in Caramoan, trips like these make it all
worth it to wake up and be alive. There’s so much beauty in my country and in
this world to explore, and I’m glad I’m doing it at a pace that I can
reasonably allow myself. Sometimes I wish that I can give myself more time to
travel but I live in a world where I also have “grown-up” responsibilities, wherein
I have to wake up and hustle but I’m not one to complain. I love my life, I’m
still not contented with it since I know I still have ample room for
improvement, but I do love my life. This year, I’m wishing myself and everybody
that I love, good health and the happiness we all deserve. I wish that we all
wake up every day realizing how lucky we all are because of where we are at and
we have become. Off to plan my next dream destination!
No comments:
Post a Comment