Boodle fight experience

According to Urban Dictionary, boodle fight is a military style of eating where long tables are prepared and food are on top of the banana leaves.  Viands and rice ready to eat using your bare hands, jugs of water are  prepared on the side to wash hands before the "eating combat".

My boodle fight experience was close enough to military boodle fight because we were hungry at the time,   we ate fast and the food was gone in a flash.  We used aluminium foil instead of banana leaves and  satisfied our tummy with grilled fish  and left over adobo  as we  ate by hands. It is just right to eat fast or  be alone in an empty table and empty stomach. :)

.

Weekend at Benisa Resort, Bataan

As the saying goes, the more elements you join together, the merrier the result. And so is true because we had lots of  fun as this weekend getaway was an awesome one with  Agulto, Mendiola and Borje family.

We decided to join the group for Agulto's prenup and at the same time spend a weekend in one of the resorts in Bataan.

We  were booked  at  Pamarta Bali Beach   Resort  but  the location and the actual view of  the  place  was an  issue so  we headed another resort and found ourselves in a cozy place,  Benisa.  

As soon we settled ourselves,  we had our lunch near the beach  and rest for while.  And because it was too hot  at the beach, we isolated ourselves in our rooms and  spent more time to catch some power nap between 2 to 3pm.   

An early morning scene near the beach area for our breakfast buffet, oh not a buffet but  a boodle breakfast. 

And boodle dinner, haha. Guess what,  we were just so lazy to clean more utensils and  left  the table empty with only our hands to wash. Lol.

Sunset view at Benisa

and 6am sunrise

Before heading back to Manila we stopped by at     Our Lady of the Pillar Parish Church  and headed Segara Villas  for lunch.

The weekend that was

A short post to update where we've been last weekend. I'm afraid I won't be able  to post an entry  soon. The image I posted below was taken early morning at the resort where we stayed in   for our 2-day trip. I woke up as early as  6am to catch this view and  this is the best shot I could get with my camera.

I so love the smell of  the  sea as it always gives me a  refreshing feeling. It  was another wonderful weekend trip with friends and  another  exciting and jampacked one is coming... Azkals on  Saturday and  Pacquaio on Sunday! .. So there you go  folks,  I'll be posting a separate entry soon.

Pawikan Conservation Center

We saw a road sign going to Las Casas but  we headed first to Pawikan Conservation Center.  We have no idea on how far it would   take us to get there and only relied on the signs, "Straight Ahead to Pawikan."    There were a  few signs but not  the approximate  kilometer or  minutes  away  from the center.   I was thinking  we're   just  a  few  meters  or  ten minutes  away  to the destination. After  about  more than half an hour,  we saw this arrow pointing us to  Pawikan Center and behold,  we finally reached  Pawikan!    We  would like to extend our  big thanks to  Joy's  husband,  John for  this "Straight Ahead to Pawikan"   trip.   That  was  a  no retreat- no surrender trip!    We already had two stops,  Dunsulan Falls  and  Mt. Samat  before this trip  and  already  needing and wanting  for rest.
 

We went there to visit  sea turtles  but we really don't know what to expect.  It was included in  the  itinerary but I  did not  google   it  before the trip.   We have no idea what awaits us at the center.  We were already cracking jokes on our way  to the center  that there were no  turtles  anymore and have already returned to  the sea.   And  we said it right,   but there were  three.   We were a little bit unlucky  because a hundred and fifty  baby Pawikan  were released  to the sea, a little late,  just a week before our visit.

 

The  volunteer/guide  was very kind to us and explained  about  the program of  the Pawikan Conservation Center.    There were quite a few volunteers inside  the center  and some of  these men  once  were  hunters of  Pawikan  as their  means  of   livelihood,   now turned  volunteers  to help save the Pawikan.

 

 
 There were different informative posters in the center.  It was another knowledge trip and we learned more of the Pawikan and their importance to ecological balance.

There were only three Pawikan left in the center,  Olive Ridley, Green Turtle and Hawksbill.   Olive Ridley  (above photo)  was donated to them by the owner  because the owner cannot sustain anymore to have a pet   Pawikan.  This Pawikan stays only in one corner   because,  it  grew up  living in  a  basin,  finds home  in  the corner  of the pond   and  that   corner  becomes its  habitat.  They couldn't  free Olive Ridley  to the sea because  it doesn't  know how to dive.

Hawksbill, (hunchback) and Green Turtle (see photo below)  are also  resident sea turtles at  the center. 

See more photos below.

The Life Cycle of Sea Turtle

Visiting the Pawikan Conservation Center was a great experience although we didn't  get to see eggs or little hatchlings. If you are planning to visit the center,  better call them  first  to know the perfect time to visit if  you want to see baby  turtles.  There is a season where the sea turtles come to the beach to lay their eggs  from November to December. The  turtles that  were  born here come back after 25 years.
 

There are rooms for rent in the center for those who  want to stay overnight. I can stay here for the whole day,  listening to the  waves of  the sea  while waiting  for the turtles to come.  The sound of the waves rushing to the shore make my heart beats faster.  I love the sea  but  not  for  swimming.  We  then  proceeded  to our final destination  Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar    right after that  quick visit.

And because we came here on Monday,  there were no other guests again and that's the only thing I love about  Mondays!


It was all worth the trip. It's another great exposure for the kids, and adult as well. :)

There are 7 Pawikan species in the world,   five can be found in the Philippines. Of these five,  three Pawikan  (includes  Hawksbill, Olive Ridley and the Green Turtle)  can be found in the entire coasts of  Bagac and Morong.


Pawikan Conservation Center
Nagbalayong, Morong, Bataan

Dunsulan Falls

From Mt. Samat, we  asked the locals about  Dunsulan Falls. We were  told  that  it would take us about  15 to 20 minutes going to the falls.   We then proceeded to the road as instructed,  but after only about fives minutes on the way,  we saw a sign pointing to  Dunsulan Falls.  We concluded that the 20-minute travel probably  is estimated  going to Dunsulan Falls on foot.   The road going to Dunsulan  is quite narrow where you need  to give  way or a full stop  if there's a vehicle coming on the other  side.  

 

A caretaker met us at the entrance and told us that the water is not ideal to swim.

This is what I love traveling on Monday.   There are no tourists inside.  The caretaker told us that during peak of  summer,  families and travelers flocked to this place  for  vacation.

 We did not swim so we just took more photos inside.

 

 The falls is about 5 meters in height and with 40 feet deep.  You would see a sign,  "Bawal Maligo sa loob ng Falls,  Delikado!"  There's  an area where tourists could swim but  the bad weather and hard rain  made  the water turned muddy green.

.

At the peak of summer,  the place is a favorite  picnic area  and others  who included the falls as side trip  from  their  visit  to  Mt. Samat. 

  Tourists could do other activities like ziplining and horseback riding.  I also spotted a sign of  firing range nearby.   Taking a zipline   to a length of 540 meters,  the longest zipline in Luzon that  will give you  an enjoyable  trip with the mountain view  from Mt. Samat to Dunsulan Falls.  

It was a quick  visit to Dunsulan Falls.   We just took some photos around the picnic area and  went  straight to Pawikan.  See my next post.

Dunsulan falls is located at Barangay Liyang, Pilar Bataan.
Entrance fee is P50  for adult and 20 for kid.
The cost for a zipline ride is  P350 per person.

Mt. Samat National Shrine

If  I were to  take an exam about history,  probably, I would  get a  6/10 score.  I am not really good in this subject.  I only  know a few from my elementary days and the rest,  I've learned  from my father  who loved history.    My  father knew almost all the details  about  the Spanish era,  the historical  date, the colonization,  and  the story   during World War II.  He would always tell us about the war although he was just  a few months old  when  WW2  begun and  barely  6 years old  when it ended  and  the  fall of  Bataan  happened.

During our visit to Bataan,  I told my children some  information about Bataan, those only that I knew and heard  from my  father's story.    They are smarter than me and the stories from the books are still fresh from their memory.   Their  grandfather,   on my  husband's side, however  is a war veteran and that  made them prouder to  know  what  the heroes  of  veteran war did  to fight  for the country.

Dambana  ng Kagitingan  is  on  the summit  of  the Mt. Samat.  Visiting  historical landmark  is another  way  to learn and remember  the story   aside from reading  the book.  It's  easier remembered and appreciated once you see the place  yourself.  

     

At the memorial ground,  there's an altar, esplanade and museum. As soon as we entered  the  Mt. Samat,  we  were given  tickets  that  served  as  entrance to  The Shrine  and  Museum. 

Shrine of  Valor is a memorial shrine erected on top of   Mt. Samat  in Pilar,  Bataan as a remembrance to the soldiers who fought and lost their lives in the battle.  The Memorial Cross stands  about  311 ft (95m) high.

There's another option going up to the shrine, either by car or  by  stairs.  We chose to get  there on foot.    At first  I thought it was just an easy  journey  but I realized that taking the stairs up was a bit tiring  and  it made me  stopped for  a rest  for several times  before I finally reached  the top.   From the  Shrine,  we took the elevator going to the arms of the cross.
 

A  little sacrifice getting there on foot made them appreciate the place more.  The  cool breeze  on  top makes  it  all worth it.

The view  from the cross.

A  lift that took us to the  towering cross can only  accommodate ten  people and that's the maximize count. We're  ten  plus the guard and  shrunk ourselves inside.  I  was  hesitant at  first  to join with them but my children were eager to see what's on top.  The guard reminded us to be quiet to keep the sacredness of  the place.  The highest point of  Mount Samat  is 555 m above sea level.

The viewing deck where you could see the panoramic view of Bataan.

April 9,  Araw ng Kagitingan  or  Day of Valour  was declared as a National Holiday in the Philippines.  It was  formerly known as  Bataan Day  to commemorate  both  the Fall of Bataan  (April 9, 1942) and Fall of Corregidor (May 6, 1942.)

I hope that the stories of  our ancestors'  heroism  be  always  remembered and  be passed on to future generations.