I never planned on going to Pangasinan; it was just a place we happened to pass by on our way to Ilocos. But a couple of text messages exchanged with my sister and a week later, I found myself waiting with Miwa, Bri and 11 strangers for the van that would take us to Bolinao, Pangasinan for an overnight stay at
Solomon's Paradise (aka SP) and a guided tour of Bolinao's beaches, caves, and uh, beaches.
And did I mention beaches and caves?
DAY 1We left Makati a little after 2am last Saturday and arrived at the resort (owned by Brett and Rosie Solomon) around 9am. Before I continue, I'd like to put names on the different groups of people we went with so you and I won't get too confused.
a.) "Spice Girls" - 5 female officemates (I think)
b.) "The Couple" - the name speaks for itself, yes?
c.) "Desperate Housewives" or DH - they're not necessarily housewives and I don't think they're in any way desperate. They're just a group of four friends on a trip. DH was just the first 4-female group that came to mind.
Anyway, our tour guide (Jonathan) let us settle down in our cottage-like rooms (we got room #2, between the Spice Girls and The Couple). Miw, Bri and I tossed our bags on the bed and went straight to ordering breakfast and taking pictures.
Ah yes, such wonderful priorities.
After breakfast and a quick change of clothes, Kuya Jov (the driver) took us to our first stop - the Enchanted Cave (or is it? Dun dun duuuuuuun). I have not entered a cave since that field trip to Biak Na Bato way back in highschool (or was that elementary?). No, that Bantay Abot Cave in Ilocos is not a cave but a hole on the side of mountain. No caverns, no bats poo, nothing. So I don't consider it a cave. I didn't even hear an echo.
But I digress. Inside the cave was a pool of the clearest water I've ever seen where the tourists are welcome to swim in. Most of us (Miwa, Bri, The Couple, and 3/5 of the Spice Girls) couldn't resist the water. The Desperate Housewives weren't feeling it and went back to the surface after taking a couple of pictures. I stayed behind and watched people float, paddle, take pictures, pretend as mermaids, and scream bloody murder when they hurt their foot on the rocks. Oh, and of course I took pictures. They suck, though. I'm new to cave photography.
Next stop was Bolinao Falls 1 (yes, there's more than one). The ride to the waterfall was a tad bit uncomfortable with a damp younger sister sitting beside me. Anyway, it was when we got there that I realized that going to see a waterfall meant going down (and then up) a lot of steps. Lots of steps + partially healed ankle = ARAY. I had to take extra precaution to avoid any accidents. The waterfall was pretty but the water wasn't too enticing so all we did was take pictures. The Spice Girls wanted to swim some more, so they suggested that we go hunt for the 2nd waterfall. Jonathan had no idea where it was, so we had to use the services of a young boy a Spice Girl picked up nearby.
That didn't come out quite right but I think you get my drift.
We finally found the 2nd waterfall, and then my slipper broke. Shet. I had no choice but to stay behind and talk with Kuya Jov, who is actually very insightful and opinionated in a good way. He also fixed my slipper but it was too late to go after the others by then (which, according to Miwa, was a good thing - she thinks I won't be able to climb the steep terrain because of my slipper, ankle, and lack of trekking skills). After the others had had enough of the water (DH finally gave in and got themselves wet), we were all ready to go back because we forgot to have lunch, and that was when Kuya Jov saw a flat tire. Shet #2. To cut the long story short, he changed the tire, drove to the town proper to drop off the others who wanted to buy dinner and have it cooked back at the resort, fixed the flat tire at a nearby vulcanizing shop, then went back to SP to watch the sunset.
DAY 2I woke up to the sound of soft music (Low, Bartender, Disturbia, etc) coming from The Couple's room. It was supposed to be a free day, meaning we could do whatever we want (that includes sleeping in) but we decided to go see the lighthouse and go to the beach since we weren't able to visit the day before.
Sadly, the lighthouse was closed so we took pictures of the exterior and the perimeter instead. I don't think it was a waste of time; lighthouses all look the same anyway. And I don't think I could climb all those stairs to the top. Next was the Patar White Beach. The Spice Girls couldn't resist the water again and ran to meet the crashing waves, while the rest of us took pictures, walked along the shore, took more pictures, "climbed over the fence" to a resort, took more pictures, were chased away by the resort security guard and took more pictures. At around 12 noon, we decided to go back to SP and have lunch before going home to Manila.
I'm going to make this short since I'm running out of words. We passed by Alaminos for some boneless bangus and banana-q, I kept shifting in my seat to get the blood flowing back in my legs, feet and buttocks, had dinner in Tarlac, watched Wanted on Bri's PSP (I couldn't hear anything because we didn't have enough earphones but I still understood a bit of what was going on), got to Makati around 10pm, arrived home at 11.
And that, my friends, was my trip to Bolinao.
BAD LUCKA week before the trip, I twisted my ankle and I had to walk in crutches.
Somewhere during the trip, I broke my glasses.
I kept hitting my shoulder on that aircon whatever extension inside the van.
My slipper broke just as we were about to go to the 2nd waterfall.
The van had a flat tire because of the terrain. Lots and lots of sharp rocks.
I accidentally spilled Pepsi on Miwa and Bri (it was actually Miwa's fault, she told me there was a spider right behind me).
The DSLR started acting up, that's why we don't have any digital pictures of the lighthouse and the beach.
Miwa's Adventure. It's her story to tell.
We almost ran out of gas in Tarlac, and Jonathan's credit card wasn't working.
Saya, diba?
SOLOMON'S PARADISEFantastic view. Accomodating hosts. Clean bathrooms and showers. Great food. Affordable prices. Nice and simple rooms. Comfortable beds. Roof deck. Very few insects. In other words, I love the place.
FOODBoneless bangus. Grilled liempo. Grilled chicken. A huge, 3-foot fish that only costs Php450. Hotdogs. More liempo. Piattos. Oishi. Banana-q. Hamburger with the thinnest burger patty in the world. More hotdogs. Twister fries.
Yep, no time to do some major pigging out but we're pretty content with what we ate. Masarap eh.
I guess that's it. I'd love to go back without the bad luck. LOL.
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ecstatic and accomplished
sore
tired
okay
