I've had a training in Cebu last week of October. It coincided with the MFPI Mid-year Congress. It broke my heart to tell Bolo that he would have to forgo attending the latter. Even at the last minute we were looking for a substitute who could possibly act as Baby's "yaya" while we were in Cebu. I begged Mama to go but she said she could not, owing to a seminar they will be having at school. In the end, we hastily arranged for Bolo's ticket and that of Baby.
At the Davao airport Baby is clowning around as usual while we were waiting for our plane. There's no containing him these days. He had to be up and about.
Still clowning around.
Bb: Nanay, put me down, I wanted to walk around!
It meant eating up at our savings again. But there never really was any hesitation for Bolo and I. To us, savings or not, Baby's welfare is all that matters. It's a good thing though that God truly provided for this trip (as usual, He never did fail me... Thank you Father God). I had a chance at a documentation job and it gave us enough to buy Bolo's plane ticket, some pocket money and allowance for a side trip hehehe Truly, when God bestows blessings, it overflows :)
Baby: Nanay, see me making pa-cute hehehe At the Cebu airport. Bolo feeds Baby while we were waiting for our ride to the hotel.
Even at the last minute Bolo and I were quite hesitant about going on a sidetrip. I was pretty excited about Bantayan. It was supposed to be mine and Bolo's "honeymoon destination" but work and then the pregnancy got in the way. So we had to postpone it for another year. Our anniversary have come and gone. Instead of going to Bantayan, the opportunity to go to Legazpi presented itself so off we went there instead. It wasn't even for a leisure trip but work. And our stay in Legazpi saw Bolo being cooped up in the hotel, taking care of Baby and me being too busy with the training and some take-on work to truly notice we were in a new place. We did appreciate the fact that we were given the opportunity to tour Legazpi on our free day though. I've already posted the pictures of that trip here already.
Back to Bantayan. On our stay in Cebu, there was a brewing typhoon somewhere in the north. And Bantayan being at the north most tip of Cebu, it looked as if the odds are against us. Bantayan, by the way, is four hours away from Cebu City by bus and another hour of ferry-ride from mainland Cebu Island. If it had just been Bolo and I, typhoon or not, it would not matter to us. We would still give it a shot even if it meant we might not be able to board the ferry because of the typhoon. To us, we just might get lucky and be given the clear weather over at Bantayan. However, having Baby meant some hesitation. Of course, we couldn't just risk it. We have his well-being and safety to consider.
But anyway, (I really love to linger at the details huh? Before going on to the meat of the story hehehe sorry. I just love to lay down the details to get them over and done with. And besides, details such as this is really pretty much a part of the experience, if one would think about it...) given the title of this entry, I guess one can deduce that we were indeed able to go to Bantayan hehehe We did, in the company of Juliet -- a PLSD (what my training was about) point person who turned out to be a mountaineer too.
As I said I was on a training in Cebu. And not only that, Ate Jean and I are slaving over some proposal too. So on my last night in Cebu, I did not sleep at all. After the training, I helped Bolo packed our stuff. There were the training materials and equipment that have to be taken cared of and stowed while we will be on our trip so we took care of that first. Then, we packed our clothes. The dirty ones and those we will not be wearing anymore went to the trolley and another bag. That will be stowed along with the training stuff. Our "Bantayan" clothes -- shorts and swim wear -- and that we will be wearing on our trip back to Davao went to a Backpack. Baby's sterilizer, bottles, bowl, spoon and milk went to another.
We were packing when Gladys and Geian arrived -- two of my pamangkins in Cebu. I was so busy I was not even able to squeeze in some time to visit them. So they visited me instead. It was unfortunate that Baby was already asleep when they came...
After packing, Ate Jean and I went down to the lobby (it's the only place in the hotel that had bright lights on) to work on the proposal. Upon Bolo's advice, I showered and changed into my trip attire already. It was a good idea considering at 3 AM he, Juliet and Baby emerged from the elevator adjacent to where I'm sitting all packed and ready to go. We had to catch the 4 AM bus bound for Hagnaya where we will catch the ferry for Bantayan. Ate Jean and I hastily wrapped up everything, making sure I had the files saved to my flash disk. I would have to look for an internet cafe at Bantayan to email the files back to the office. Yeah, work again while on a vacation. I'm not complaining though.
We had to take a taxi for the northbound terminal. Upon reaching there, we made a wrong decision of not taking the Ceres ride. That would have been more comfortable. But there was no one to ask as all of us have never been to Bantayan at all. All that we knew was that it is important that we get to Hagnayan on time to catch the first ferry for the island.
It did not help that it was pre-todos los santos. Many, it seems, were bound for Bantayan or the municipalities along the way. The bus was jam packed. Most of the passengers have flowers with them and some big, tin cans of biscuits. It reminded me that we have to enjoy the little time we will be spending at Bantayan since we had to catch our plane ride back to home to make it for the Nov. 1 celebration.
I was really tired from the training, not to mention the lack of sleep so I was asleep most of the way. At one point I woke up to receive a call from Te Jean as there were some concerns with the participants who were still at the hotel. That's when Bolo and I discussed we were compromising Baby somewhat. It was not a comfortable ride. But Bolo and I are trying to make Baby as comfortable as possible. By the looks of it, he is not feeling any discomfort at all still Bolo and I grew sober. We vowed we won't do any travelling anytime soon. At least not in those conditions.
At 7:30 AM we reached Hagnaya. We had to wait awhile before the offices of the ferries open to buy our tickets. There were two options -- to go by the fast craft or the slow boat. The former proved more expensive but we took it because of the time factor. Still, it took as some time to be on our way since we had to wait for the Mayor of Sta. Fe who is also taking the ferry. It was quite a delay I did not relish experiencing. I was growing impatient by the minute but there was no choice but to sit it out. Once the ferry was underway, I slept along with Baby.
On board the ferry.
It was a good hour before we docked at Sta. Fe. While we were at the ferry terminal in Hagnaya, we were already asking some of the passengers there as to a preferred resort in which to stay. No one really gave us a straight reply so we settled to a place recommended by Renee. She, Bambie, Suzette and some of the guys have been to Bantayan also recently. We were not able to go with them since I was in Cagayan for some work at that time.
We stayed at the Marlin's Place. It was a big room. The beds were tiny though but Bolo, Baby and I managed to share one bed. The other bed went to Juliet. I would have wanted to nap awhile but Bolo was eager to be up and about already. He engaged the services of a tricycle that would take us around the island. The one at the resort recommended some places for us to see. Some were quite at a distance from the resort but he urged us to see them. So, we just changed into shorts and off we went.
First stop was Bantayan proper. It was quite at a distance from Sta. Fe where we are staying. Bolo directed the driver to head straight to the market. We intended to buy some crabs for breakfast hehehe Actually, one of the reasons why we went to Bantayan was because we heard that we could buy crabs at 10 pesos a kilo hehe imagine that. Well, it wasn't really just at 10 pesos but we got it cheap just the same. Bolo bought a kilo, went to one of the nearby bar-b-q stalls and had it cooked there. To Juliet's delight, we found out that it wasn't chicken bbqs being lined in front of the stall but "pague" bbqs. She eagerly told us how it is considered a delicacy in Pangasinan where she is from. She told us too that the reason why it is such a treat in Pangasinan because it is noted for its therapeutic properties. She told us it does wonder for the digestive system. That was enough to convince me that we should order some too.
Bolo left us momentarily to scout for Ukay2x. After awhile, he arrived while the crabs are about done -- empty-handed. He said there wasn't any good finds. We were halfway through our feast of sea crabs ("lambay"), fish bbq and pague bbqs when a lady selling another type of cooked crabs came along. They were bigger than "lambay" and their outer shell looked a lot sturdier... We asked how much she is selling them for. She replied twenty bucks for three. I looked at our half-finished feast and told Bolo, three is fine. I had my back turned to the lady. So I did not see her hand Bolo three large "necklaces" of crabs. Each "lei" has about ten average-sized crabs. When Bolo laid it in front of me I was stupefied hehehe.
It was really a bad thing we were not able to take any pictures then. It should have been documented how our table was filled with a mountain-like pile of crabs. I guess we were very much intent on the feast that we forgot about taking pictures. Haaay, what a picture it must have made. Haaay too late...
Of course between the four of us -- we urged the driver to eat with us too -- it was close to impossible to consume the whole thing. So we had them packed. They will have to do for dinner.
After our feast, off we went. First stop was the St. Peter and Paul Church of Bantayan which is several centuries old church. It was beautiful. And I've been around and seen lots of old churches already...
St. Peter and Paul Church, Bantayan
The church's door
Stained glass window
The altar.
Upclose
Father and son clowning around with the church in the background
After the church, we proceeded directly to Kota Park in the municipality of Madredejos. It was quite far but I was thankful we chose to go there. On the way, Bolo and Baby slept. I came close to sleeping myself but I was the one holding Baby so...
The walkway at Kota Park
Family picture at Kota Park
The Kota Park
Baby holding on to a pre-war canon missle weighing over a ton. Believe me, Bolo and I tried lifting it to no avail...
Bb: Nanay put me down
After Kota Park, we were eager to go back to the resort to finally take a dip in the sea. It was a humid afternoon and our excursion left us all sweaty and thirsty. Getting back at Bantayan proper, I scouted for an internet cafe so I could email the files to the office. I was lucky to have found one. I managed to catch Candy and Sean over at YM. Couldn't resist teasing them about my being in Bantayan hehehe
We stopped at a nearby Ukay2x before proceeding to the resort. It was fun. We were able to buy Janin some sweater that is Indian inspired - really suitable for Baby's Birhtday party. We found a Tiffany jacket for her too which looked brand new and still in good condition. We were also able to buy Baby some Ralph Lauren Sweats. Really nice.
Off to the beach!!!!
After that it was off the beach for us!!! Truly heavenly :) We just changed into our swimwears and off we went. Baby had some moments in the sand. Bolo and I just enjoyed watching him. I feared he would put a handful of sand in his mouth but he did not. Instead, he enjoyed touching the sand for a full thirty minutes. He languished in it, played with it in his hand... At one point he swam in it... After a while, as most babies do, he did manage to put a mouthful in his hand before Bolo and I could prevent it.
It was a treat watching Baby play. Oh well, even when he is asleep, I enjoy the moment just by watching him. It must really be like that for parents. It's as if every nuances of one's Baby is heaven-sent designed to be enjoyed and savored...
Baby: Look Nanay, I have sand in my hand...
Baby: Is that the sea out there Nanay? Baby looking much like a beach model hehehe
Baby: I think I'll practice swimming here first Nanay
Baby: Nanay, come and get me. I think I'm now ready for the sea...
Tatay: Hmm... many sand on your head right here..
Finally enjoying the water...
With Ate Juliet. Bb: Nanay, cramps... huhuhu
Playing around with Tatay...
Mother and Son
Nanay: Okay, are your eyes close now? Bb: Hehe you can close them if you want but I ain't closing mine... hehehe
Bb: Tatay, can I sleep on your back?
Family Picture...
Baby: Brr... Nanay, I think I just had my first taste of sea water...Hmm.. make that the second. I just remembered drinking a mouthful over at Samal...
Bb: Tatay, the water tastes salty hehehe
Ah.. Isn't this baby really something?
The water was really nice and the sand is comparable to Boracay's fine white sand... Hmm.. which had me thinking... Maybe our next stop should be Boracay hehehe I just hope more blessings will come in so we will be able to do just that... :)
