Puerto Princesa, Palawan has been one of the most visited places in the Philippines today; much more when it was declared as one of the seven wonders of the world.
I have been to Puerto Princesa in 1996 together with our Science Teacher and 2 of my classmates, Bjorn and Sharon. We went there to join the National Science Quiz Bee. We did not win but the memory of riding a plane and Superferry for the first time was indeed unforgettable.
Regie and I did not really plan to visit the place. Actually, we both decided to delay our trips until next year as we still have expenses to deal with. But, we both cannot resist a very good airfare offer. For just P500.00 one way from Cebu to PPC, inclusive of taxes, we impulsively booked and poof! There we went again.:) For just a month to go, I did what I usually do when we travel: read reviews for hotels/inns to stay, called some friends for advise as to what to do in PPC and of course, read some blogs about the best restaurants and foods in Puerto Princesa. I thought I got the best value for our accommodation but unfortunately, we did not.. Well, sometimes, reviews are biased- peace reviewers.hehehe
We went there with my son, my youngest brother and his wife last February 3, 2012. It was an early celebration of our wedding anniversary as we celebrate ours every 15th of February. Since there was no direct flight from Davao to Palawan, we have to make a double booking: one from Davao to Cebu then Cebu to Puerto Princesa. Both route gave a 500-peso airfare, all in.
It was raining when we arrived in Puerto Princesa. The inn where I booked our stay sent a van to fetch us. Well, Mercedes Bed and Breakfast (Mobile no. +63 918 2044563 or +63 916 7145220) was just infront of the airport but carrying all our baggages in a heavy downpour was not part of our plan. We rested for 2 hours then we already headed to our city tour.
It took us 3 hours to go around the city and to see the “must visit” destinations there. We went to their park, their pasalubong center, the famous bakers hill where we devoured newly cooked hopias (with an s coz we ate ALOT,hehehe), Mitras Ranch and Binuhatan weaving.We did not go to Iwahig Colony because of time constraints. We also visited the crocodile farm. Though, I must admit, the crocodile farm in Davao is way bigger and better than that in Puerto Princesa.:)
As per our itinerary, we were supposed to have dinner at Kalui but our hotel was not able to make advance reservation despite our early confirmation that we will be there on February 3. Anyway, we had one at Kinabuch where I got to taste tamilok, the woodworm from magroves..An order cost us P105.00 and it was like eating earthworm,less the worry that its yucky.hahaha
What I appreciated most about Kinabuchs and other restaurants in PPC was the affordable food. We were 5, 2 adults and 1 almost adult kid (as Josh weighs around 46kls), and we ordered 4 viands with huge servings and our bill was only a thousand bucks..I was really a feast without huring our pockets.
After the sumptuous dinner, we decided to walk from Kinabuch to our inn. I was only a kilometer away and having a nice evening walk wont hurt..
We headed straight to our rooms and rested early for our Honday bay tour the following day.
I first went to Puerto Princesa 15 years ago. We went there to join the National Science Quiz Bee and it was my first time to travel by plane and by ferry. I do not remember that much about that trip except that we rode a philippine airlines plane and that was the only plane that travelled to Puerto Princesa that time.
Last March 3-6, i went back to Puerto Princesa but this time, I travelled with my family. It was my husband’s first so was my only son. I will be posting our pictures soon. For now, let me give you the itinerary that we had for this particular trip:
March 6(Day1)
Arrival at PPC, Palawan -12 noon
Checked in at Mercedes Bed amd Breakfast -not recommended since the place is not well maintained. Well, I just found it online and their rate is kinda cheap so i decided to have it. We ended up having cheap service too good points though, its just accross the airport..
2pm-5pm – joined the city tour ( budget: 600/head)
- visited places during the tour:
a. Their plaza (forgot the name)
b. Mitra’s ranch
c. Bakers Hill ( i bought alot of hopia here.hehehe)
d. Crocodile Park
We had dinner at Kinabuch’s restaurant and spent around php 1000 only for 5 people.. Cheap foods and delicious too!
Day 2: Honday Bay Tour
This was the most frustrating trip of all or maybe, my expeactation was too high. We paid 1000( it was discounted actually- regular ratemis 1,100) each for this trip. More details on my other post.
After our tour, we had dinner at Kalui’s. Spent around 1,400 for our dinner.
Day 3: Underground River tour
Fee: 1,300/head (discounted from 1,500). I will be posting a separate blog for this particular trip
Day 4: Bound to Davao City
Going around is not so complicated as there are already pre arranged trips that you can avail from your hotels. Food is not expensive too..
I remember what my mentor in real estate told me before: “if you buy a property, you only have these criteria in mind: location, location, location”..
True enough, location plays an important role when you want to invest in real estate. Location determines the rate of apreciation of your property.
When Avida Towers Davao was introduced to us a week ago, the feature that struck me most was its location: CM RECTO (former Claveria St.),very near Ateneo de Davao University and Other key universities in Davao: University of Mindanao and University of Immaculate Conception. If given the chance to buy and if budget permits, I really want to have a unit there.
Avida Towers Davao will nest in a 6,124sqm property in CM Recto, Davao City. 2 towers will be constructed with the first tower having 23 storeys, taller than the 5- star hotel Marco Polo just few steps away from it. They expect to launch the project this May 2012.
By the way, Avida Land is the affordable property developer of Ayala Land, the number one property developer in the Philippines.
If you want to know more about the project, my line is open.
I have a hard time teaching Filipino (or tagalog) to my son. Although he grew up speaking in English, he is already catching up with tagalog. However, I noticed that every time he tries to speak tagalog, he mixes it up with some bisaya words. I am trying my best to correct his grammar in Filipino but still the same, he speaks Filipino- the Davao way.
Until I read an article in SUNSTAR about the so-called Davao tagalog. It was written by Rene Lizada. I was smiling as I went through his explanation of the Davao tagalog. True enough, my son speaks the same way and sometimes, I also unintentionally talk that way to others.
It took us a while to decide where to buy our property in Davao City. Scouting from the sprouting subdivision projects in the city, we opted to settle for Villa Senorita,a middle class subdivision, still on its pre-selling stage, because of the following reasons:
Since we started going to CCF last April, I never got tired listening to Ptr. Peter Tanchi’s messages. One of the series that really struck my heart was the Family Series. It was actually the start of our every Sunday trip to Davao just to attend the worship service. It made us realize the importance of exposing your children as early as you can with the Word Of God and letting them get involved with church activities. We need to focus on our family because our first ministry is supposed to be them and not other people.
A person who intends to borrow money from a bank or any lending institution needs to have a good credit standing. While others enjoy this privilege, others find it difficult. More often than not, an average person may have had a history of bad credit which could eventually affect his credit score.
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good points though, its just accross the airport..
