22 June 2007

So many islands, so little time


It was, first and foremost, a business trip. A business trip that happens to be in one of the more famous tourist destinations in the Philippines.

The City of Alaminos in Pangasinan is home to a place called Hundred Islands National Park. How that group of over a hundred islands came to be in that place is a marvel to me. Incidentally, the event was going to be held in an open-air restaurant that affords a wonderful view of the island group beyond. So... they want their guests to enjoy the scenery while on this business trip! Yep, that was our cue.

(Is it obvious that I'm trying to justify our little excursion? hahaha)

Very early the next day, we set off for the Hundred Islands. We only had a couple of hours to spare, so our boatman sped off to our first stop, Governor's Island. Incidentally, this is also the place where an alternate house of the reality TV show Pinoy Big Brother is located. We curiously looked around and took photos.

We took a dip and lingered only for a few minutes before setting off to Quezon Island. The beach here was nice. Not white sand, but fine nonetheless with relatively calm waters.

Soon enough, we found ourselves at Children's Island where the water is quite shallow. So shallow that you can actually go to the next island just by wading.

These three islands are the main focus of the tour. There are caves to explore, but we just didn't have the time to do so, with the event drawing near. We nevertheless felt rejuvenated from this side trip.

And of course, it's off to the local market and souvenir shops for pasalubong!


Longganisa is a popular delicacy here. This is the first time I saw these sausages tied like it was meant to be a necklace! Each tasty lump is separated from each other by toothpicks.
Bagoong, or fish sauce, is also popular.
Of course, shirts and decorations made from shells are not to be missed.

With my souvenir shirt to remind me of this quick but wonderful trip, it's back to bustling Manila. Til next time!

9 comments:

  1. Anonymous1:48 am

    di pa ko nagagawi dyan, ganda... :)

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  2. Anonymous5:36 am

    ang ganda!! natakam ako dun sa bagoong na sinabi mo saka sa longganisa!! saraaaappp...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous6:04 am

    Believe one of their specalty in that place is "boneless bangos".
    Nice pics and other one seems overcast and ready to dump more rains, hehehe..goodhealth.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I've never been to hundred islands, but my sister and cousins have been there. i should check it out b/c it's so close to baguio.

    so i wonder why white sand is held in such high esteem. other than color, i don't think there's anything special about white sand versus gray sand. hmmm.... that's my next blog post. hehehe

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  5. Anonymous2:39 pm

    WOW, longganisa! heheh, favorite ko :) ang sarap naman ng business trip na yan, may kasamang lakwatsa. and youre getting better and better at taking photos (but im a newbie in photography, so maybe my observation/compliment wont mean anything to you, hehehe).

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  6. Lino: I wish there was more time. There are more than 3 caves to explore!

    rho: magluluto sana ako for breakfast kanina... ubos na shellane namin! waaah

    Trublue: Yes, sikat ang boneless bangus rin, as they culture milkfish in this region.

    Wil: I guess sa aesthetics kasi...?

    Cess: Believe it or not, ang pangit nung unang batch of photos ko. Tapos I discovered na may blue enhancement thingamajig yung camera , kaya lang gumanda. hehe

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  7. I went to Hundred islands before. I counted the islands, it's short by one.

    Ginamit pala sa salad dressing ng Thousand Islands. hehehe.

    Then we stayed in one of the houses by a bangus fish farm. I do not know if it still exists.

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  8. ohh hundred island, i missed going there... my dad grew up in alaminos, my grandpa's house just near the shore.

    yummy longganisa, whenever we go there we never missed buying a couple of dozen of that.

    nice shots! :)

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  9. Anonymous8:41 am

    Nice shots!

    It must be nice to work for a company that allows you to travel.

    ReplyDelete

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