Pakikipagtagpo kay Mt. Tagapo

Mount Tagapo, aka Susong Dalaga Mountain, is a conical peak on the lake island of Talim at Laguna de Bay with 438 m in elevation and is the highest point of Talim island (Wikipedia).

It was an after-office night, Laguna people (the syana) went to Makati to meet my buddy Carina, we will stay at her place because we need to be in Binangonan Port at 6 AM, that's our entry point sa pakikipagtagpo kay Mt. Tagapo.

and because we came straight out of the office, we had dinner first in the Metro

We had a glimpse of what it's like to work in the Metro, it's already late but the Metro is still so awake. We had a taste of riding the Metro train, we had to make sure everyone gets in with their huge backpacks. Then after this night, I said to myself that I made the right decision of not working here in Manila. We stayed at Cai's condo along Pasig River, it's huge that we didn't need to cramp to sleep. The following morning, we took a van going to Binangonan Port, from the port we ride a motorized boat going to the jump-off point of Mt. Tagapo. When we reached Barangay Janosa, we registered our group and get a local guide (I already forgot the name of our guide) then say a little prayer first then off we go to our destination.

from Cai's flat, we went to Jollibee (our official breakfast and baon stop every hike) 

then a van ride, as if we rented this van, but no, it's a pampasahero van

now riding the motor boat, it's huge and equipped with a life vest, it looks safe

leaving the port and reaching Barangay Janosa for registration

start of our endless walking =P

with a lot of stops for photo ops, every stop is a photo booth

you can't blame us, every portion of Mt. Tagapo is beautiful

we had our lunch and rested for a bit before we proceed to the summit

assault going to the summit passing through this cogon grasses

we take pictures, lots and lots of them in the beautiful summit of Mt. Tagapo

From the summit, we can see a 360-degree view of Laguna de Bay, the coastal municipality of Rizal, Mount Sembrano is the nearby mountain and you can also see other mountains but I don't know which mountain are they.

Then after feasting for a beautiful view and good weather, we descended our way back to Barangay Janosa. We freshen up a bit in the house of our guide and had a photo op with his family. Then rode the boat again, it was already afternoon and we are greeted with orange skies as we navigate in Laguna de Bay.

you can find  a lot of bamboo here, we even pass a bamboo forest and because they have  a lot of bamboo they produce charcoal and furniture out of it

picture picture ulit with the family of our guide

navigating Laguna de Bay on a lovely sunset (golden hour)

and since it was May's birthday before this hike, 

the Singaporean treated us at Mesa for a sumptuous dinner to end the day.

We stayed for another night at Cai's place then we went to the mall the following day before we went back to the province =P. Maximizing our City lakwatsa.

last meal together before going home, the morning after

syana and syano went to the mall

thank you May and Otep for the photos

Hacienda Villanueva Again

Panahon na naman ng corn harvesting sa Hacienda Villanueva, at since malapit ng i-develop ang area na ito ng Hacienda eh nagpatawag ulit ng harvester ang Itay ni Dondon, kaya kami naman na available na maghaharvest, sugod. Mas marami kami nung unang beses, click mo to: Unang Harvest para may experience ka din ng unang harvest. At ito naman ang pang 2nd season =)

ang balkonahe ng mga Villanueva na palaging tambayan namin pag-nagawi jan

ito din pala ang time na mag-photo op suot ang aming kulay putik na hiking shirt

jan ang huntahang walang humpay, preparation area din pag may hike kami sa Daguldol, dami ng narinig na istorya ng balkonaheng ito =P

photo op muna bago tuluyang lumarga

practice hike na din ang pag-corn harvesting dito sa Hacienda Villanueva, masaya ang nadadaanan, may mga alagang kalabaw, baka, kambing at baboy na nakatali lang usually sa tabi ng bahay o sa may bakuran; CR break din sa kubo nina Britney Spears at Iwa Moto

at ayan na ang harvesters in action and posing =P

photo op din kay Puti, habang hinihintay ang nilalagang mais na ni-harvest namin

at nag-harvest din ng paboritong naispatan sa Hacienda, atis!!!

at ayan, kami din ang unang nag-sampol ng aming ni-harvest, ansarap, actually LUGI ang Itay ni Dondon sa pakain sa mga harvesters na ito, kainaman

at bago bumababa, namahinga muna at ayan tumoma ng kwatro kantos, 

ayun si Sonia! bagsak, sa pagod ba yan o sa lasing?

at ayan ang na-harvest namin

habang nagmemeryenda ulit eh sinabay na din ang birthday greetings kay Chromes

kainan ulit, dito naman kay Marimar (D Original), gotong Batangas for the win

salamat sa mga nag-share ng photos

You are sunlight and I moon

Lyrics yan sa Miss Saigon na musical at kaya yan ang title kasi byaheng Saigon kami na Ho Chi Minh City na ngayon or HCMC. Nakakita kami ng murang flight to HCMC, kaya naman kahit October 2011 palang eh nag-book na kami for a trip in HCMC in February 2012. Seat sale kasi, sabagay ganito naman kami dati pa,matagalan ang booking, yung ma-e-excite ka tapos lilipas ang excitement kasi matagal pa naman talaga ang byahe then dadaan ang panahon at magiging normal lang ang ikot ng mundo, huhupa ang excitement, pero, hindi mo malilimutan na may byahe ka kahit next year pa yun. Masayang trip with May and Carina (my buddy). At aliw kasi mauuna lang ng ilang araw sina MamaJo and friends at ayun, nagkitakita don. At WOW ha, nakakapag-byahe ako ng 5 days, amvongga ko pala dati, or vongga kasi mga kasama ko =P? So, eto na nga, pagkalipas ng maraming taon, mapapalathala din ang aking Ho Chi Minh City travel! 

Welcome to Saigon!

Vietnamese Dong, kung saan via color kami kung magbayad =P

Same hotel kami ni MamaJo, kaya nagkitakita, may same tour din na ni-take, kaya naman na-meet sina Dewi at Mich, mga friends nya. Since may language barrier sa Vietnam, we opted for a package tour, ang first-day namin, visit around HCMC and Cu Chi Tunnel. The tunnels were used by Viet Cong soldiers as hiding spots during combat, serving as communication, and supply routes, hospitals, food and weapon caches, and living quarters for numerous Vietnamese fighters. The 75-mile-long complex of tunnels has been preserved by the government of Vietnam and turned into a war memorial park.

meet-up for the tour package, kasama namin ni Buddy Carina (katabi ko) sina Mich (naka-violet) at Dewi (short-haired girl sa likod ko), mga bagong kakilala thru MamaJo na katabi naman ni May sa shuttle, si Manong naman na may mic ang aming tour guide na nakalimutan ko na ang name =P

One of the most special temples daw ito sa Vietnam kaya naman kasama sya sa HCMC tour, Cao Dai Temple, the faith originated in Tay Ninh around 1926 and gained followers mainly in South Vietnam. It's a bombastic and colorful building where hundreds of worshippers flock daily in fluttering white robes.

another part of the tour is a visit to Vietnamese Lacquerware where you can do Vietnamese Lacquer Painting aka "Son Mai"

lunch first before we proceed with the next and final stop of the tour

Visiting the Cu Chi Tunnels is one of the most rewarding things to do in Ho Chi Minh, located 60 kilometers to the northeast of HCMC, it is an extensive; a labyrinth of underground tunnels that stretch all the way to the Cambodian border. It is a network of tunnels built within 25 years from 1948 during the war against the French and served as means of communication between villages. Believe it or not, there were hospitals, schools, theaters, and kitchens, all built into this extraordinary tunnel network.

entrance to the park and the orientation inside the bunker

entrance to these tunnels was covered with a secret wooden door and camouflage leaves above, it's so small that only the Vietnamese could fit in

Visitors can only visit 2 sets of the Cu Chi Tunnels: 

1.) Ben Dinh Tunnels - located next to the Saigon River, this section is a perfect location for Cu Chi Commissioners to lead the people during the war. They could easily escape to the river. It may take you 1 hour to take a tour around this section. Here, there are examples of underground sleeping quarters, command posts, and medical posts; 

2.) Ben Duoc Tunnels - five times bigger than Ben Dinh Tunnels (17 hectares). Here, you can get the most practical experience of the war in the southern part of Vietnam. You can see how tough a life in these cramped tunnels can be, and challenge yourself to overcome the odds. 

structures like these are all over the area for photo op

the entrance and the exit to the park

We capped the day with an authentic Vietnamese dinner at this beautiful restaurant called "Ngon Restaurant" it was good, can't remember if it was pricey or just fair. Anyways, visit it to try, meanwhile here's our photo there, we did enjoy the place.

the tour barkada

the food and drinks we tried

the ambiance

Another good to visit when in HCMC is the floating markets in the Mekong Delta, this is a way of life and trade for over 100 years, because of the complex and extensive river system of the Mekong region. And according to the Local Vietnam website, these are the 6 best-floating markets in the Mekong Delta: 

1.) Kai Rang - the largest and most popular, starts at 5AM and last until noon; 

2.) Cai Be - starts later in the day and until late at night and is close to HCMC; 

3.) Long Xuyen - located in the Hau River, in the less touristy province of An Giang; 

4.) Phong Dien - a traditional trading place for local people where usually everyday products are resold at local markets or wholesalers directly on board; 

5.) Tra On - starts even at 2:00 AM and the main goods sold here are fruits and seasonal agricultural products, here the higher the tide, the busier the market; 

6.) Nga Nam - the most central market in the region where you can find most of the Mekong specialties, the market starts at 3:00AM and its peak is at 5:00AM. 

We took the Cai Be and Vinh Long package since Cai Be is closest to HCMC. 

the floating market area

we visited villages along the Mekong Delta

trying out what seems to be tilapia turned into a Vietnamese spring roll

taking a sampan (xuong ba la in the Vietnamese language) ride to Mekong Delta

We went out of HCMC and travel the whole night on a sleeper bus to Nha Trang. Nha Trang's mineral-rich clay is said to be therapeutic and has skin healing benefits, so this place is famous for mud baths and we wanted to try it, so we went. We made a booking in Thap Ba and to date, it's the oldest and best-known mud bath in Nha Trang. We were not able to get photos of our mud bath experience, so I cannot post anything about it. 

When in Nha Trang, the Po Nagar Cham Towers is a must-see, built in the 8th century by the Cham people with an impressive architecture that blends many different religious influences. Another to visit is the Long Son Pagoda, a towering Buddha statue that watches over the city from a hilltop. And of course, we heed the call, we visited them, look.

Nha Trang's greatest lure is a sandy beach facing a stunning day dotted with 19 islands and islets. It is also the seafood capital of Vietnam. Had I known this before coming here, we could have stayed for 2 days. But at least we were able to visit what looks like their Rizal Boulevard and tried some coffee shops.

trying Vietnamese coffee, the beach area of Nha Trang, street food, and Pho (soup noodles)

Next time I will take the "A Tourist's Guide to Love" tour of Vietnam, hopefully, I'll be able to find the same tour guide as in this movie. So, not to forget, let's make  a list of next to visit in Vietnam according to this movie: 

Ho Chi Minh City - Ben Thanh Market for the shawl and the bargaining skills

Hoi An - Fujian Assembly Hall and experience a lion dance

Da Nang - My Son Sanctuary

Ha Giang - home village

Hanoi 

thank you May, Mamajo, Dewi and Mich for the photos na hindi ko kuha

thank you Wikipedia, Local Vietnam, Trip Advisor for the information on places we visited