Palawan Roadtrip: Puerto Princesa to El Nido

I'm ending my summer series with a trip I took with my family to Palawan. 

We wanted to hit both the Underground River in Puerto Princesa and the beaches of El Nido so we embarked on a Palawan road trip.

Our journey started at the Puerto Princesa Airport...

where there were a lot of car rental and tour agencies offering their services... 

We, however, booked this van in advance to take us from Puerto Princesa to El Nido. Travel time is around 6 hours.

First order of the day was to pass by a few attractions in Puerto Princesa. We visited the boardwalk which was a waste of time as there was nothing to see.

For lunch, our driver recommended for us to eat at Dampa.

Wish we made the effort to go to the popular restaurants in Puerto Princesa like Kinabuch or KaLui because eating at a Dampa in Palawan was obviously not a good idea.

Liempo

Fried Chicken

Vegetables

Tiny Crabs

A popular attraction in Puerto Princesa is Baker's Hill. Baker's Hill is a complex that families can go to during Sundays.

The bakery at Baker's Hill is popular with most of their items out of stock. Tried some of their goodies and I don't get the hype.

The Seafood Buffer at Baker's Kitchen is another hit among tourists. 

Restaurant

Other Things to See and Do at Baker's Hill:

Park

Playground

Zen Garden

From Baker's Hill, we also passed by Rancho Zipline Adventure where we were all too scared to zipline. 

After Rancho, it was a LONG van ride to El Nido.  We were stopped in the middle of the highway by this guy from Dept. of Agriculture warning us that it's not allowed to bring mangoes into El Nido. At least we had little distraction.

After what felt like forever, we reach finally reached El Nido. Given how popular El Nido is, I was pleasantly surprised to see that it's not very commercialized. It still had the sleepy small town charm and vibe. 

We stayed overnight at the El Nido Beach Hotel.

The room we stayed in at El Nido Beach Hotel was far from the bright spacious pictures I saw on their website.

I no longer cared and just focused on the bright side:

In less than 24 hours, I was about to go back to one of my favorite spots in the Philippines! 

(To be Continued)

El Nido Beach Resort is located at El Nido Beachside, Palawan. For more information, call (63)9208673777 or click here.

Our private van service was courtesy of www.palawanvanforrent.com operated by Dudz Valencia. For more information, contact him at (+63)9399064804 or 9175902001. You can also email him at borjok_9@yahoo.com. Rates for a two way private van trip from Puerto Princesa to Palawan starts at 18,000php.

Ilocos Diaries: Food Pasalubong from Ilocos

I am ending my Ilocos diaries with Ilocano food delicacies we can all bring back home to family and friends.

No trip to Ilocos is complete without buying Ilocos longganisa, bagnet, and empanada. We bought our stash at the Laoag Market and it's ideal to buy the day you are leaving Ilocos in order for it survive the long commute home.

Chichacorn is another popular Ilocos pasalubong. Buy the chichacorn with packaging below because it was the best from all the brands we tried.

Photo Grabbed from Open Rice

Tupig is a native delicacy made from glutinous rice. Unlike in Pangasinan where tupig is wrapped in banana leaves, tupig in Ilocos is cooked inside bamboo shoots. It's bulky and heavy but an interesting pasalubong nonetheless

Tupig vendors also sell kalamay but its appearance didn't appeal to me. 

Onions from Ilocos are supposedly stronger and more aromatic. When in Ilocos, buy Ilocos onions because it's around 50% cheaper compared to Manila.

Tongson's Royal Bibingka is another popular delicacy from the North. I didn't particularly appreciate that the bibingka was more sticky than starchy. 

Our tour guide/van driver also made us stop at Pasuquin Bakery which is famous for its biscochio. We tried it out but didn't get what the fuss was all about. Even so, I wouldn't discourage those who are  biscochio lovers to visit the store.

My favorite pasalubong from Ilocos was the malunggay bread we bought from Durong's. 

The mini breads were baked to order ensuring freshness.

I didn't expect to even like this little veggie bread but it was love at first bite. Sweet and hot with flavors that  didn't remind me of vegetables. I'm not the only one because out of all the food I brought home, this was the big hit with my family.

Ilocos Diaries: What to See in Pagudpud

Pagudpud is a coastal town in Ilocos Norte and it's an hour away  from Laoag City. It was also our last stop during our 3 city tour of the North.

Aside from Saud Beach, I listed down the places we visited in Pagudpud from my most to least favorite. Here goes:

1. BANGUI WINDMILLS

It's a must to go to the giants fans of Bangui when visiting Pagudpud. It's the first wind farm in the Philippines and the largest of its kind in South East Asia.  The project provides 40% of the electricity needs of Ilocos Norte. 

2. PATAPAT VIADUCT

The Patapat Viaduct is 4th longest bridge in the Philippines. Known as the French Riviera of the North for the beautiful coastal drive, it's a winding bridge hugging the cliffs of the Northern Cordillera Mountain Ranges. 

3. BLUE LAGOON

Compared to Saud Beach, Blue Lagoon has a shorter shoreline but has calmer waters. It's also prettier and more scenic in my opinion with its deep blue waters and powdery sand. I would have loved to have taken a dip at the Blue Lagoon but we didn't have time.

4. KABIGAN FALLS

Kabigan Falls which is about 80 feet high, is surrounded by lush forest and drops to a concave basin.

Having a guide is required to trek to the falls because it's easy to get lost in the jungle.

The hike is supposedly just 30 minutes but it took us 45 minutes to get to Kabigan Falls. Here are the scenes we saw along the way.

How I wish I hitched with this vehicle as I was very very tired from all the walking.

When you see this bridge, the end is near!

My picture doesn't do this falls justice...

Swim at the refreshingly cold waters of the falls as a reward for making it!

5. BANTAY ABOT CAVE

Bantay Abot means a mountain with a hole. The hole in the middle of the mountains came about as  waves crashed until it was wrecked in a huge tremor in the ‘80s.  

6. TIMMANGTANG ROCK

Timmangtang Rock is a bell-shaped rock covered with vegetation. The only reason why we went to Timmangtang Rock is because it was in the same area as the Blue Lagoon. No reason to go here really because it's just a giant rock.

Overall. I enjoyed Pagudpud for its small town charm and it being devoid of commercialism even though it's one of the more popular destinations of the North.