Archive for June 2017

Last June 20-21, 2017, we went back at Real Coast & Surf (formerly Real Surf PH) for quick dip on the beach. It’s already my 3^rd time here since I first went here last June & July 2016 which I blogged here and here. It’s a 3-4-hour drive from Manila and it’s the one of nearest beach and surfing spot.

Before going to the beach, we drop by at the Market first to buy things we needed as well as there are affordable sea foods sold in the market.

Real Coast and Surf is located at Barangay Malapad in Real, Quezon province. Went there on a Tuesday morning and so glad that we we’re the only guests on the place. Though this time, their lounge or common area was still on renovation so we didn’t get that chance to hang out there.

Worried about your security? There’s a security guard on the place and with CCTV camera. By the way, the staffs were friendly and very accommodating to us, as always J

Since we we’re 8 in the group, it’s our first time renting the big cabanas on the left side. Last year, we rented the small cabana good for 4-6 persons. I liked our cabana this time since it is bigger and spacious. This time all the cabanas includes 2 cushion beds unlike last year that they only have 1 cushion per cabana. The cabana rental also included an electric fan, hammock, beach chair, small table and 1 table outside. You can pitch a tent here for free. Though I was also expecting that they have more outlets for charging but still they only have 2 outlets despite that it was a bigger cabana.

Our cabana located the back part.

It’s already the rainy season and off-peak rates are now applicable if you want to stay at Real Coast & Surf. You can check out their rates on this LINK.

We arrived there at around 11am and since it was the peak of the sun, we decided to rest until the sun’s starts to go down. Even though it’s already the rainy season, the weather in Real is still hot and humid that’s why it was only at 5pm when I started to go to the beach.

And yes! I finally had a chance to swim on the beach until 6pm I guess. The security guard had to ask us to not to go further as it was getting dark. But the sea was so tempting! We just decided to chill out near the beach until it was night time.

At night, we ate our dinner and chill at the beach. And went for a STARGAZING!!! There were lots of stars their compared in Manila. It was such a nice and relaxing experience to just look at the sky and stars.

Btw, there’s NO SIGNAL at the place so save your batteries and just experience the nature. My service provider is Globe though I’m not sure with other networks.

And again, as a part of titas-of-manila, I went to bed at around 9 or 10pm and slept soundly until I woke up at 6am. By the way, if you’ve read my previous blogs about Real Surf, I did mention that on my first time here I had a difficulty sleeping since I wasn’t prepared. No blankets, no pillow and I was so cold. Came here the 2^nd time and brought a pillow and blanket and had the best 8-hour sleep by the beach. If you’re a sensitive sleeper like me, I suggest that you bring a pillow and blanket with you if you go here.

And I woke up at 6am. Didn’t get the chance to see the sunrise since I’m too sleepy to catch the it. I’ve seen the sunrise here twice so I rather sleep.

View in the morning.

Didn’t had a chance to swim again since the sun was already up at 7am.I just took photos of the place and roam around the area. And I had nothing to do until 12pm.

We check out at 12pm and glad that we only paid for the cabana with no entrance fee since the place is under renovation. Arrived in Manila at around 5pm. (Blame the traffic in Manila).

By the way, I do apologize for the almost-the-same-outfit-in-my-Puerto-Galera-experience since I wasn’t really prepared for this trip. And didn’t vlogged since I already vlogged here twice. I only took some clips for memory purposes.

Still, Real Coast and Surf is a great place if you want a quick dip on the beach and recommended for everyone. J

I love travelling! Who doesn’t? But being a busy girl with different priorities in life, I rarely travel in a year. Honestly, I’ve only been to one beach just a year ago (Blog post about my first beach experience here) and I always say that I want to travel to other places this year.

Why I was Disappointed at First.

Finally, my friend and I decided to look for cheap beach accommodation last April at Metrodeal and found a nice and affordable villa at Puerto Galera called Amihan Del Sol or formerly known as Amihan Villa. We already booked for May 16-17 last April 9 so I was kind of disappointed when they called me regarding canceling the date we chose a week before our supposed booking date. They told me that the dates we chose were already full booked and they had a slow internet connection so they received the notification or email from Metrodeal late as well. Honestly, don’t know what happened since we confirmed the booking a month before that and so they should have informed us about that much earlier. We already planned our schedules last April and even filed our leave at work. I kept on insisting that we already filed our leave and our schedule was already set but seems like they left us no choice but to book our stay on a different date. Why are we the ones adjusting instead? Maybe it was because we paid for a cheaper price at Metrodeal? I don’t know but I was so excited for this trip so imagine my disappointment when we had to wait for another 3 weeks for this. We re-booked it this June which I think is also a great time to hit the beach since it’ll be easier for us to commute and there will be few people around.

The Trip.

Last June 6-7, 2017, we finally made it to Puerto Galera!!! My friend and I met at Araneta Bus Port in Cubao and rode a bus from Goldstar going to Batangas Pier. It took us 3 hours to get to Batangas Pier since I think the bus we rode was driving so slow. At Batangas Pier, there were people waiting for passengers outside the bus and based from what I read, you must not talk to them as they “fixers” who will help you but will ask for money in return or something like that. We trust our instincts and followed the people in front of us until we found the Minolo Shipping Lines counter and told them that we will be going to “Amihan” two-way-trip. Fee was Php600 with free shuttle service included. We waited for about 15-20 minutes near the gate/terminal since the security just told us to wait without giving any time.

Inside Minolo Shipping Lines

Travel time going to Muelle Port took us 1 hour. It was first time riding “the boat” so I was scared at first. The ride was a bit bumpy and hot inside since they closed most of the windows to avoid the water coming inside. I wasn’t prepared for this ride and I haven’t slept yet, haven’t eaten breakfast nor lunch and was dehydrated already since I had no time to buy another water.

View at Muelle Port

At Muelle Port, we immediately saw the MSL shuttle at the right side and told them we were going to Amihan. We were joined by another 6 people also going to Amihan in the shuttle. By the way, the shuttle we rode was a L300 van. It took us 15-20 minutes before arriving at Amihan.

Best Accommodation.

Amihan Del Sol is suited at the top so we had to take the long hike just to be able to get there. I must admit, going up added up to my tiredness so good thing they gave a glass of iced tea (welcoming drinks) upon reaching the villa. Ms. Gemma along with their staff warmly greeted us. The reception area is located at the 2^nd floor as well the dining or common area. We rested for about 5 – 10 minutes while enjoying the nice view outside. Then we handed our voucher and ID and we're ready to check-in.

Our room was located at the 2^nd floor left side which I’ve been crossing my fingers to get this room as I believe it has the BEST view for me. We were HIGHLY IMPRESSED on how HUGE the room was for 2 persons. It has a queen/twin size bed, a TV with cable, air condition, lamp shades, lots of electric sockets, large cabinet, toiletries, towels, huge CR with shower and a bathtub, 2 small windows, a huge window with ocean view and a balcony. What more could you ask for?

The view you'll see right outside our room. (Balcony view)

I immediately went in for the bed as it was so relaxing. Took some to take selfies since I spotted a good place to take selfies beside the window. Haha

It was 3pm already and we decided to rest for a bit while we ordered lunch from their menu. Surprisingly, their menu was affordable for me.

Here’s what we ordered for lunch:

Sweet N’ Sour Fish Php 229

“Catch the day fish, served with rice”

Vegetable Curry Php199

“Mixed vegetables cooked in coconut milk and curry paste”

It was around 5:30 – 6pm when we decided to go down to see the beach. The staff advised us that not to stay that late since there are no lights in the area. We went down from Amihan, turned right and walked at the highway. Just look for the rope on the left side of the road and you’ll see the way to the beach. We walked for about 3 minutes on a trail and it was a bit dark since it was nearing sunset. The trail was okay though we were a bit scared since we’re 2 girls walking alone.

Entrance/Exit to/from Aninuan Beach

Aninuan Beach is Paradise!

Then we saw the beautiful Aninuan beach. Can’t believe that we have this place all to ourselves because no one, as in NO ONE was there except us. The sea and sky was so perfect. We took some photos though we didn’t swim since the waves was high and a bit scary for us. We were 2 girls who doesn’t know how to swim and alone in a beach so we’re kind of worried for our safety since there are no life guards around. Though this is such a perfect place to swim, sit, unwind and/or explore. The beach is so quiet and relaxed.

During the night time, we took our time in the Amihan pool while waiting for our dinner. Honestly, I’m not a fan of night swimming since I always get cold easily. But Amihan’s pool is warm and relaxing at night. We hang out at the pool for 30 minutes until til they called us for our dinner.

By the way, you can order you dinner at Amihan before 7pm only. Here’s what we ordered for dinner:

Tasty Amihan Chicken Php169

“Only at Amihan! This chicken was trapped in paprika, calamansi juice and spices found here in Mindoro. Sautéed and topped with Bermuda Onion Rings.”

Cordon Bleu Php299

“Fillet of chicken filled with ham, cheese and herbs served with French fries and salad on the side”

After dinner, we slept at around 9-10pm and woke up at 5am. I wasn’t able to witness the sunset since I was too sleepy to get up early. We went down the beach at around 7am for a quick dip at the beach.

The Next Day.

And again, we were alone for a while until a group came to swim too. We swam for a bit, took photos then went back to the villa since it started to rain. I didn’t bring my umbrella since I didn’t expect that it would rain.

At the villa, we had the time to swim at the pool while waiting for our breakfast. I love their pool as it is big and it has a nice picturesque view.

By the way, here’s our complimentary breakfast:

Tocilog Php160

“Sweet Pork, fried rice and egg”

Coffee

After breakfast, we just went back to our room to take a bath, prep our things and relax. By the way, Ms. Gemma was so kind enough to call Minolo Shipping Lines Shuttle for us to pick up at our desired time.

While waiting, I took photos and videos of the place. Also, the perfect time to take selfies!!!

We asked to be picked up at 12:45 pm and at around 1pm, we were called already since the shuttle is already waiting for us outside. By the way, I wanna thank Ms. Gemma and the staff of Amihan Del Sol as they were so warm, very accommodating and friendly. J

Travel time from Amihan to Muelle Port was 10-15 minutes. At Muelle Post, we paid P10 for terminal fee and then we waited for the next available boat for about 15-20 minutes. It’s kind of weird that it only took us 45 minutes going to Batangas Pier. From Batangas Pier, we were looking for Goldstar Bus going to Cubao Alimall but there was none. The closest one is from DLTB Co. Bus going to Cubao Kamias. It was already 6pm when we arrived at Manila which is rush hour already and we had to pass by EDSA. It was 7:30pm already when I asked the driver to drop us off at the nearest provincial bus stop which is in Boni. Anyway, I got home at by 9pm already.

The Experience.

The whole experience was FUN and EXCITING since it was my first time commuting to a place I’ve never been to. The travel going to Puerto Galera was long, hard and tiring on my part since I didn’t have sleep during that time and I’m not that prepared for a trip. I anticipated that our travel time would be fast so I didn’t bought foods and more water that’s why I felt to uneasy during the trip.

While our stay at Amihan Del Sol is the BEST and the villa itself is very homey. The place is very beautiful, relaxing and quiet. The staffs were friendly and very nice to us. Despite the troubles we had during the booking, I think they exceeded our expectations when it comes to accommodation. (Though still I think they should improve on their bookings). And the foods are affordable and the servings were huge!!!

Going up at Amihan Del Sol.

Aninuan Beach which is the nearest beach in Amihan Del Sol is PARADISE!!! It was peaceful and the view is so relaxing. I Though I didn’t get the chance to explore the place and swim on the beach that much. There’s still lots of things I want to do and places I want to visit in Puerto so I will come back to this place this year, for sure J