zoom zoom with mazda cx-7

"Anything Goes!" This was the theme of our road trip. And true enough, the 45 hours following our departure from my house was filled with the most random of events imaginable! Begining with this sunrise in Tarlac City.

We got lucky again. This time Mazda Philippines loaned us a gorgeous Mazda CX-7 2010 to test out. We tossed a coin and it was decided that we zoom north.



Way before Boracay became a household name for summer and weekend getaways, there was Baguio City. It is situated ±1500m above sea level and known for its cooler temperature compared to the rest of the country. It is about 250km north of Manila and takes between 5 hours drive via SCTEC and the famous Kennon Road.

Baguio is known as the Summer Capital of the Philippines. It was the favorite (and as a kid, seems like the only) destination of family vacation and friends excursion. People pack the city specially during holy week and Christmas holiday, so that's why way before backpacking was popular in the Philippines, they already have a lot of guest houses and hostels in the 70's. For many years, it was the most famous tourist spot in the Philippines. Until the tragedy of the 1990 earthquake that devastated the whole city.

Today Baguio City is back on its feet. But it has gotten overcrowded, dirty, and traffic jam is a fact of life. Life is bustling, that's for sure. The temparature is still cool though. I was afraid the climate change has caught up there.

Baguio City Country Club for brunch

Eco trailing at Tan-Awan Village

Strawberry picking at Trinidad Valley

I have no photos but between above and below activities, we found ourselves joining the motorcade campaign of Baguio city mayor hopeful Mark Go. He incidentally is the father of one of our dive buddy. Unfortunately he came to a far 2nd place in the race.

A bit of culture at Ben Cab Museum

After what we thought was a fully packed yet balanced day in Baguio City, we decided to head down to La Union. Zara's family owns a rest house in San Juan, and we decided to spend the night there and hit the beach tomorrow. Maybe even do a bit of surfing.

There was a sign.

It says alternate route via Circumferential Road. The road less traveled, off the beaten track, alternative always sounds good. The sky is still white and La Union takes 1.5hours from Baguio. We decided to go for it.

And we were rewarded with the most scenic view as we ride into the sunset...

The sky got dark and we realized it's been more than 1.5hours and we don't look anywhere near La Union. We also noticed the road got a little bit rough. Actually a lot! At times, it doesn't even look like there is road ahead!

And then a road block! This is after about half an hour of steep and really rough downhill ride.



It's a joke! The road is closed because they were concreting this morning. But it's absolutely unimaginable to go back! The road is narrow (one lane narrow) and we've been traveling for 2 hours already. The sky is black and there were no street light/lamps. Actually the few and scattered houses we saw along the way doesn't seem to have electricity.

What boggles me is how the hell did the responsible person decide to concrete this particular 20m portion when there were kilometers and kilometers of unpaved roads before and after this part? H.O.W?

We came out of the car, jumped on the concrete a few, and decided it's cured! Let's drive through it and continue. But oops! a group of men showed themselves and inquired what we were doing. We relayed our predicament and offered our solution. They wouldn't let us! These guys are the contractors and said that they need to allow proper concrete curing or they will not get paid. They proposed the car to pass through the side of the road, wall of the mountain, the non-road. They said that the mayor did the same this morning. Fine! Let's see what Mazda CX-7 is made of! hahaha!

And it passed the test! And we move along.

And we're happy that we finally hit the ground. But somehow found ourselves in the middle of a big flat land, no road, no light, no houses. We don't know which direction to go. We saw tire tracks but they all lead to the river...

We came out of the car again and surveyed the river. It's shallow but bottom is soft. Do we dare cross the car? What if it sank? Or got stuck in the soft bottom and we couldn't pull it out? But all the tire tracks went this way...

We had the headlight on and decided to take a moment and wait for inpiration. Maybe a car will pass by here, and we can ask for direction. Then we saw 2 lights at the other side of the river coming our way. It might be a motocycle for the headlight seem small. Then as it came nearer, we realized it's not a bike but 2 men with flashlights. They came over to see if we needed help, awwwww... so we were assured that the car can cross the river and they gave us direction to La Union.

The following day is less eventful. We basically just lie on the beach. We periodically came out to take our meal at the resorts then went back to our mission to lounge. It was frightfully 39 degrees! Luckily we were able to charm our way to squat under one of the surf board rental shed.





We ended up not surfing because of the exhausting heat, except for Lu-ann who tried it for the first time despite growing up stone's throw away from Siargao.

she eventually stood up, but i fell back to sleep already

The final verdict: Mazda CX-7 is one super smooth ride! It was pretty inside and out. It looks like a stylish sedan. It was spacious with sufficient leg room and very easy to drive. If I'm in the market for an SUV, I would definitely consider it. It was stable during the rough mountain terrain. It glided smoothly during the river crossing. And the airconditioner put the 39 degrees temparature outside to shame!

Tubbataha: The Underwater Wonder

And so it happened!

Our hearts were set to Tubbataha this season, even if it means we had to put our faith in Expedition Fleet once again. It's funny how we were all mum about the whole thing, up to the night before we leave for Puerto Princesa, a complete opposite to the noise barrage we created the first time. Obviously we were afraid to jinx ourselves. Vangie, Zara, and I purposely didn't book the last flight to Puerto Princesa, so that we have room for flight cancellation or delays. We were skeptical like that. :)

When the boat set sail at 7:00 p.m., we were bursting with excitement but tried (really hard) to conceal it. Stephen would periodically remind everyone, bawal magsaya (no display of happiness), because the last time, we also sailed, but ended up in Mamburao (hence, the group name). It was deja vu when the boat manager did his briefing. We were rowdy and cracked plenty of inside jokes that we had to explain to our boat mates what happened the last time (flashback: Almost Tubbataha). We were 10 from the old gang and made up half of the divers.

I awoke the next day and heard Lau-tzu said:
"The journey of a thousand miles brought you to Tubbataha.

Tubbataha was everything promised and more! The minute we back rolled into the water, I'm transported into a fantasy world of bedazzling colors and shapes. It was feast for the eyes to have enchanting wall of corals to one side and bottomless abyss of blue on another.

For 50 minutes every time, I feel like a part of the underwater world, finning weighlessly alongside free swimming pelagics: sharks! school of jacks, barracudas, sea turtles, rays, wrasses, groupers, and all those I have yet to consult my fish book.

Now speaking of sharks, everyone I know knew the sharks had been elusive to me. With almost a hundred dives before this trip, I have never seen one! I warned my dive buddies that I am a living shark repellant.

But Tubbataha broke this spell. On my very first dive at the ATOL, I encountered my first to 50th shark!

And the succeeding dives after, we continue to encounter them.

Delsan is a super highway at rush hour where it literally confused us where to focus our attention. We saw a turtle digging as if the world depended on it, then came a densely packed school of jacks on the left, then to our right a long school of barracuda trailed by a couple of white tip sharks. Seriously, were we in Shark Tale?

slide photos by Neil Que, Stephen David, & DM Padoy

This is also where I dove the deepest at 40m. I actually didn’t realize it was already so deep because of the incredible visibility.

I was told by many that by third day, I’ll be tired of sharks. They were obviously kidding. On our last day of diving, at the Shark Airport, where full grown sharks rest at shallow depth, my heart still beats like mad at the the close encounters. It was a fantastic way to wrap this dive expedition.

clip by Zara Arzadon

Life in Tubbataha is out of this world.

Literally, it's "eat, dive, sleep, repeat."

We did 4 dives per day and food is served 5 times a day. If we were not doing either, we were talking about diving, reading books on fish, watching videos about the ocean, or looking at photos and videos taken that morning dives.

During the introduction by the boat manager at the beginning of the trip, he told us that we will be hearing bells a few times a day. This will only mean two things, either it’s time to eat, or it’s time to dive. And if we were confused which is which, he suggested to just touch your hair. If hair is wet, it’s time to eat. If it’s dry, it’s time to dive. It's funny but we've heard the line the last time. :)

This trip was made 10x more memorable because it was shared with a bunch of my closest buddies. I'm super glad I decided to rebook for this trip. Who else but your dearest friends would celebrate your 100th dive with a full production? We set aside time for photo shoot and a surprise awarding of my SDI Advance Rescue C-Card by my friend and instructor, Neil Q.

photos by Stephen P. David

On our last day, we visited the ranger station on a beautiful islet of white sand. A team of rangers is stationed all year round to police the reef. We went over to say hello, photo ops, and bought souvenirs that help fund the Tubbataha organization.

The one with the Ranger Station

As if life is not already perfect, every night, we were greeted by the most glorious sunset. A firework of colors that left everyone enthralled and breathless as we prepare to rest for another wonderful day of diving.

Roll Call of Mamburao 10

Zara, Vangie, Monette, Bembong, Kriz, Neil, Stephen, Michael, Bernard, and yours truly.

Tubbataha Dive Log:

Day One (April 17, 2010)
Dive # 1: Amos Rock
Dive # 2: Gorgonian Channel
Dive # 3: Wall St. - Amos Rock
Dive # 4: South Park

Day Two (April 18, 2010)
Dive # 5: Ko-ok - South Islet
Dive # 6: Lighthouse
Dive # 7: Staghorn
Dive # 8: Delsan Wreck/Crack

Day Three (April 19, 2010)
Dive # 9: Delsan Wreck/Crack
Dive # 10: Delsan Wreck/Crack
Dive # 11: Delsan Wreck/Crack
Dive # 12: Staghorn/Triggerfish City

Day Four (April 20, 2010)
Dive # 13: Black Rock
Dive # 14: Black Rock
Dive # 15: Malayan Wreck
Dive # 16: Ranger Station

Day Five (April 21, 2010)
Dive # 17: Washing Machine
Dive # 18: Shark Airport
Dive # 19: Washing Machine
Dive # 20: Washing Machine

Additional Note:

On April 6, 2010, Republic Act No. 10067 was signed into law by President Gloria Macapagal. The landmark law establishes a 10-mile buffer zone around the park and increases the penalty of violators where the fund will be for the sole use of its management.

Fore more tubbataha info: www.tubbatahareef.org

the evil sisters promote Philippine diving

Anilao Ride-and-Dive Escapade

I move in multiple circles for work and play. But for diving, my default group lately is composed of women, all untethered (by, say, raising a young family) as of yet and so relatively easy to round up for adventure. Lilliane, Zara and Vangie are in the family business; Beth and I are agency "slaves." But frequently enough, we find ourselves shedding weekday identities and heading for a dive site somewhere, geared and suited up for underwater escape. Sometimes, we get a little help on the thing that we are driven to do anyway. This time, Ford Philippines lent us a vehicle for the weekend, one that goes by the tagline "...as adventurous as you want to be." Escape, it's called. We couldn't have named it better ourselves.
But first, some Friday-night city driving for the girls to get a feel of how the vehicle responds to the road and to their handling. Me, I bring in the passenger perspective. There's always one in every "family" anyway -- the one who, based away from kin, redirects resources to living space instead of a car; the one who can't imagine slugging it out on our kind of a highway amid the bully-like buses. Mobility comes by way of strategic location (in the heart of the city, as my real estate agent would quote from the brochure), by way of cabs and the MRT and, yes, of friends who drive my way. I would call it a nice benefit to have girlfriends who drive fast and safe. Not once in our many trips to and from Anilao did I ever fear for my life. And the one time I felt like a turtle would be faster than the vehicle, a boy was behind the wheel.
With Ford Philippines having already fueled up its Escape, we do the same for ourselves. In fact, the bonds from diving have extended to (now and then, and with a larger circle of girlfriends) sampling the offerings of a restaurant new to us. That's very Filipino, pairing up our passions with food. We're still working on being able to properly relay in writing why exactly we like the taste of something apart from just photographing empty dishes as proof. Good stuff deserves the right description after all.

Who doesn't like paella? Comfort food hits the spot as we plan the coming weekend: overnight at Anilao resort Planet Dive as we wait for more friends (even more of a comfort) to join us for next day's dives at the sites Beatrice, Mainit and Twin Rocks. Some of these friends joining us we only just met from a few dives before. The community is welcoming that way, seemingly bound by an understanding of the joys and risks of an activity that isn't convenient at all (waking up before light, traveling a few hours, struggling with wetsuit tightness, setting up then cleaning up gear, troubleshooting underwater sometimes). It must really be love then.
We pile up on the back (Ford Escape sits five), ready to part with the city awhile for more natural scenery. My Mindanao childhood, in particular, is one of lowland forests and coast lines. Now I live in a business district. No wonder I need to regularly get away from the concrete city like a parched man.

Anilao gave us mostly drift dives that day. Anchored by our hooks, we flew like kites. Hook-and-release, fly awhile, repeat. Albino frogfish, a "yawning" octopus, circles of jacks -- a million and one reasons make diving in our waters special.

The day also proved to be one for test-diving new gear (from camera light to video equipment) especially bought for a Tubbataha liveaboard that the girls were booked to leave for barely a week after. A phrase often heard from diving friends: "This is my last dive-related purchase for the year." It never is :)

New roles were tested too: critter spotter, three-way buddying, video handler. We're flexible that way.

We almost always take over the deck of Planet Dive. We like sunning ourselves in between dunking. Cublicle land coudn't be any farther.
With this group, escapes are perpetually being planned. Get on a banca, plane, van. Whine, laugh, feast. Get lost, get found. Return to find everything just a bit different. Give thanks.

Sunday late afternoons are always a little bittersweet. We are grateful for the shared place and time even as we already feel the tug of Monday. But as the youngest of us all say: it's the work that makes the diving possible. So until the day when our passion for the outdoors pays for itself, we squeeze in the periodic escapes, all the more precious for the can't-be-helped intervals.

coron wrecks!

not a bad plan b for our failed tubbataha trip.

after organizing our messed up lives and successfully negotiating with expedition fleet to refund/rebook/reimburse our Tubbataha expense, we scrambled to salvage what was left of our supposed to be 8-day live aboard trip.  since everybody had their hearts set on diving, we figured the next best thing and next best place to go would be to palawan, specifically coron for their wrecks and it did not disappoint.

after the Tubbataha fiasco, you would think that fate would cut us some slack and allow us a bit of respite from the roller coaster of emotions and energy-draining, amazing race-like running around from here to there, but no.  the journey to coron was fraught with drama, flight rebooking and an almost cancellation -- through it all we persevered and were rewarded with the sweetest of all victories when we finally reached our destination: coron!

since the first goal was finally achieved, there was only one thing in everybody's minds...diving!  

we started our coron dive adventure with an unusual and interesting dive at the freshwater barracuda lake.  

to get to the dive site, we had to swim to shore and do a 10-15 minute climb over the limestone mountain in full scuba gear! (good thing there were locals who were around to carry the our tanks and all for a minimal fee).

the climb (even without scuba gear) was difficult but the view was spectacular and the dive site even more so.

the lake got its name from the lone barracuda that had taken residence in this stunning paradise, although we were not able to get a glimpse of it during our dive. we were forewarned that the temperatures in the lake can get really hot so we discarded our wetsuits and dove in our swimsuits and boardshorts.  diving barracuda lake was a totally awesome experience, the landscape was distinctively palawan, there none of the reefs teeming with corals and fishes, here you see limestones and lots of tiny shells, mud-like sulfur sand instead of the regular white sand and the warm water was quite enjoyable but the deeper we went, the hotter it got. no pun intended, but for our first coron dive, that was way cool! 

the first dive set the bar for the rest of our dives in coron, we conquered and explored 6 of the 24 or so japanese supply ships which sunk around the calamian islands - akitsushima, olympia maru, irako, tangat, east tangat, taeie maru - plus the beautiful reefs in cyc. 

sea dive, our dive operator is also worth noting, aside from the good rates and service they gave us, they have really big and beautiful dive boats.

we ended our last dive day with a visit to cyc, an uninhabited island with a wide expanse of white beach where we just relaxed and chilled while waiting for the sun to set.

it was a blissful 5 days of diving, but there are a lot of other things to in the area - like head on to el nido or go camping in some remote island, the only time we got to go around town was at night and there was not much to see or do, the locals and most of the shops close at around 9 pm.  

there aren't really any notable restaurants or bars to go to and the best bet that you have for a good meal is to buy from the market and have it cooked.  We were lucky to have stayed in the WG Sea Lodge whose kitchen offers to cook anything you buy from the market for a fee, not bad since the seafood (crabs, shrimps, crabs!!!), veggies and fruits  were way cheap.  we feasted on fresh seafood every night.

our coron adventure passed by all to quickly. good thing this paradise is just a plane ride away, must schedule the next getaway.  thank you coron!