I love Dumaguete along the baywalk.

One of the benefits of being a photographer is the opportunity to travel. It brings me places I never been into. This time, it brought to the beautifully City of Dumaguete.

@ San's Rival

Our First stop was in Lab-as Restaurant, a filipino seafood restaurant. As the name suggests, Lab-as Restaurant indeed offers fresh catch from the sea and land. Try their talaba and there fresh shakes. 

Address: Flores Ave. cor E.J. Blanco Dr. beside Hayahay, Dumaguete City

Don Roberto's Restaurant in Dumaguete

@Sans Rival Bistro

Ceres Bus From Cebu City bound for Dumaguete City.

How to get to Dumaguete City from Cebu City?

• Make your way to the Cebu City South Bus Terminal.
• At South Bus Terminal, take a Ceres bus bound for Dumaguete. Fare from Cebu City to Bato, Samboan is 180 PHP and travel time takes about 4 hours.
• From Bato Pier, a barge will take you to Tampi Pier. Fare is 70 PHP and travel time takes about 30 minutes.
• Upon arrival at Tampi Terminal, the Ceres bus will take you to Dumaguete City. The fare is 25 pesos, travel time is about 30 minutes.

El Nido, Palawan is known for its pristine white beaches, beautiful islands, amazing rock formations and water adventure activities such as swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, island hopping and scuba diving. However, did you know that in El Nido, it is also nice to go trekking and mountaineering. And one of the ever famous peak for trekking in El Nido is the Taraw Peak.

Taraw Peak as seen from downtown of El Nido, Palawan

Taraw Peak is just 230 meters above sea level and it is not highest peak in El Nido, Palawan but many tourists who happened to visit El Nido will always try to reach the peak. Why? Because on top, you will get to see the nicest view of Bacuit Bay. Moreover, the route has amazing landscape nice for landscape photography and the sharp limestone path also gives thrill to adventurers.

It was my second day in El Nido when I planned to reach Taraw Peak. But before heading to the its summit, I loaded myself with indulgence foods from the 99 PHP breakfast buffet in Austrias Resort.

After breakfast, I started my adventure trek in Taraw Peak. I was just wearing slippers when I trekked because I wasn't able to prepare a shoes for the climb and the path was not that steep but the limestone path was so sharp that it keeps hurting your feet when you step.

Climbing my way to Taraw Peak

Along the way, my guide told me amazing facts about the peak. He said that the current route was discovered by the locals who takes birds nest for soup. Moreover, there was an instance when an tourist had an accident in there while reaching the peak because he uses a different path and he falls down. I noticed that there were plants holding the limestone he explained that those plants will help the limestone not to scramble because its roots are holding the the stones together. And many other facts I forgot. ^_^

On my way to Taraw Peak

Tour guide escorted me to the top of Taraw Peak

We had a very fast pacing that on our halfway there, we passed by another tourists having difficulties in the path to Taraw Peak. There were instances when slippers got stuck in the sharp limestone. I also hit my knee while climbing a steep path.When we reached the top, the view of Bacuit Bay was just amazing! As in amazing! It was the most picturesque place in there. I was hard to describe but it was a pure beauty.

View of Bacuit while on top of Taraw Peak in El Nido, Palawan

We stayed in Taraw Peak for around twenty minutes chilling and enjoying the view before we headed back downtown. It was a lot on our way back since I already know what to expect from the path and there was no more climbing. It was easier to descend.

All in all, trekking in Taraw Peak is another option for adventure in El Nido, Palawan, Philippines.

Osmeña Peak is the highest summit in Cebu - approximately 1000 meters above sea level. It is located in the boundary between two municipalities, Dalaguete and Badian. Because of its high altitude, the temperature on top may sometimes reach 15 degree Celsius, one of the coldest place in Cebu. It is also a very well known destination for adventure activities such as trekking and camping in the province. It is also hard to miss its amazing terrain and picturesque landscape.

Lake Danao is one of the barangays in Ormoc City. It was named after its lake. Lake Danao is one of the three lakes in Ormoc City and it is part of a national park. The lake is located in the mountain areas of Ormoc and 18 km away from city proper. It is around 30 min to 1 hr drive from Ormoc Terminal.

MY TRAVEL ADVENTURES

It was our last day in Ormoc City when we went to Lake Danao. As we started our adventure by finding a jeep to ride, the weather was already not on our favor - it was raining. There were only few jeeps going to Lake Danao. We were able to find those jeep near in Ormoc Bus Terminal, beside Ormocs' Public Market. The fare was 35 pesos but we still have to wait until the jeep gets full. However, if you are in a hurry, you can negotiate with habal2x driver to bring you to the lake but with a higher fare.

As we arrived, we went to the registration area and pay for the 10 pesos entrance fee. There were few local tourists who were enjoying the lake. 

In Lake Danao, you can do fishing, trekking, swimming and boating. For boating, there will be 150 pesos rent for the bangka "a small boat". You can either hire a bangkero to maneuver the bangka for you or you just do it by yourself.

Ormoc City - Taking pictures in lake danao

Because of our limited time, we decided that we just go boating and went on without hiring a bangkero. At first, it was a challenge because we don't know how to maneuver the bangka. A few locals saw us having a hard time, so they help us by instructing us on how to use the paddle. Along the way we were able to learn on how to paddle. Then, we reached the other side of the lake where the viewing deck is located. The view from the viewing deck was just awesome.

There are no restaurants or carenderias around the lake. But there is another option though - look for Mylene who can cook tab "bland clamps from the lake" for you. Those clamps are taken from the bottom of Lake Danao. It is a must try food there. You can contact her at 0946-954-2172.

After Mylene finished preparing our lunch, we take-out the cooked foods and headed back to Ormoc Pier to catch-up with Oceanjet Fastcraft, our ride to Cebu.