Marinduque Holy Week 2011

I think it was about March when my best friend asked me if I'd like to go to Marinduque for the Holy Week. She said it was a guided tour organized by her friend. Told her that I'd think about it. So, I did a little research about Marinduque via Wikipedia to know what the island is even if I heard it before. My bf said he had nothing to do for the Holy Week so why not drag him along, right? While my best friend didn't want to stay home during Holy Week. She wanted to get out of the house. While I on the other hand declined to go with my parents to Batangas. Also, my mom said that I'd be left out since I'd be surrounded by their peers..hahahah :)

Day 0

We were scheduled to meet up at 7PM at Mcdo Quezon Ave., the one next to Quezon Ave. MRT station. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the time was moved to 9PM. Well, it was ok since we had time to eat dinner, get some cash from the ATM just in case.


After eating at Burger King, we went to Mcdo about 10-15 minutes before 9PM. We met the tour organizers Carla and Risha. We even got cute pink neck pillows. Yey!!! Waited for the others and boarded our van. It was a big black, Toyota Hi-ace. Introduced each other and now off to Lucena Port, Quezon. On the way I was sleeping...zzzzzzz...and a stop over then zzzzz...was to sleepy to get out..so zzzz...waking up a few seconds then zzz...oh why did I have to go to work that day....


We arrived about 1AM..couldn't remember. We waited since we weren't able to board the Roro so next Roro was at 4AM. So had a few hours to rest and wait. Now I couldn't sleep til 4AM. Wah!!!


So me and my bf walked around the port, couldn't see the sea. All I could see was black. So much for a view. Well, it was a big port, you could see cars, vans and jeeps all parked there. Perhaps waiting to board the Roro as well.


Before 4AM we headed back to the van to board the Roro. After getting the van in the ship we went out of the van to get ourselves seated in the ship. Hmm...so we waited, sleepy...becoming agitated since it was taking so long for the ship to leave. Turns out of course we weren't only the passengers. By the time 4:30AM the ship was filled with all of the passengers. Finally, the ship is sailing...haha...then zzzzz.....


Day 1

It was 5:30AM as we approached the island of Marinduque. Bf was sleepy...aww..he only slept a few hours 'coz of his insomnia..huhu :'( Well he said it's fine and he's used to it. But still..huhu..


We went out to the balcony to take some photos, a little bit of scenic viewing then disembarked the ship. Again more scenic viewing and photo-ops. :) Our tour guides to our orders for breakfast. Then back to our van again. I think it was about 30-45 minutes from the port to our hostel at Boac City. We checked-in at Lucky Seven. It was in a building...3rd floor...past the shops. Ok so we settled into our rooms. We got the biggest room. :) So it was me, my best friend, our bfs and my best friends brother in the room. Ate our breakfast and changed into our swimwear.


SO after an hour we headed to the beach. I think it was about 20 minutes or so to get to the beach and then ride another boat to the puka beach. We rode this small pump boat or bangka...wee good thing there wasn't that much waves. So a good 20 minute boat ride to puka beach. Haha I forgot the name of the small island. There were I think 3 islands but we settled for the puka beach. :)

Some island along the way

View of the sea..

Since it's a Holy Week, at the town's plaza was a "Senakulo" or play about Christ's life. So, for those who are conyo, too bad everything is in Tagalog. :P We didn't finish it since we were so tired from the travel and the beach.

Somc scenes from Senakulo

Somc scenes from Senakulo

Me and bf strolled for a while, around town..admiring some old colonial-like houses. We were even discussing if we could live in the province away from the busy and stressful life of Manila. We went back to the hotel about past 9PM. Well we needed to get ready for the next day. Wake-up call was at 6AM or 7AM in time for the Moriones festival...hayy...good night's rest for day 1. :)


Day 2

Woke up around 6AM, showered and then ate breakfast at Boac Hotel. It's just near the town's plaza and the cafe I talked about earlier. Breakfast was great and they even had free Wi-fi access. :) Since it's the start of Lenten season, bf had to endure no-meat rule. After breakfast, me and bf broke from the group to do a little sight seeing of our own. Caught a glimpse of the Moriones parade or "Moriyons". Took some pictures of the "Moriyons". Very colorful costumes, looked too hot to wear on a sunny day. Oh well, "Moriyons" at "Marinduki" XD
We met up with the group at the basketball court since they painted some "Moriyon" masks.

Me with a "Moriyon"

Haha..so come lunch, my bf was forced to eat something not meat. No choice also since the restaurant where we had lunch was chaos. Long line, waiting, not much food left. They should have expected visitors would be jam packed since it's a Holy Week...tsk tsk for service... :(

After lunch, more sight seeing and headed to the town's old church. Uphill climb to the church..on a hot day. At least bf gets some exercise. :) We attended mass even if we stayed somewhat outside of the church.

One of the old houses

Dinner and then strolled some more of the small town.

That sums up day 2. Hope next day would be better. :)

Day 3

I think I woke up around 5AM or half an hour before 5. Anyway, got dressed and packed my stuff for the day. Uggghh..had to drag my bf out of bed...hayy...ate pandesal and eggs then boarded our van. I slept most on the way to the Cave and Hiking area. Arrived around 8AM I think the last time I checked. So on the site there was this kubo/nipa hut house and outside they were serving Halo-Halo.

Now off for hiking. For those of you who have experienced hiking, I guess you would know how tiring it is. It was so hot that day..ack!!! Lots of walking and climbing!!! Explored some caves, did a bit of a stretching to climb up the caves and stuff. Too bad we didn't see some pythons at the Python Cave. The most memorable experience I had was with this certain cave. Secret Cave...secret bleh!!! Ok, flashlight, check! :) Bf was in front of me the whole time. We reached this dark area and then he said "Don't look". Well, I just had to look and to my surprise I saw ewwwwy cockroaches...black ones...a lot...crawling up the walls and on the cave floor. No way to get out of the cave than to go forward or back where we entered. Going back is pain!!! It's so hard to go down then back up...so no choice forward past the hordes of cockroaches. I panicked and so did bf too..hahah..we ran past the ewwwwyy black creepy crawling insects...took less than a minute to climb up hahaha...note to self, insects or creepy crawly things makes you climb up much faster. Bf went back for me when he remembered that he left his gf behind. :( wah!!!

Posing pa more..

Inside the cave...

More stones...

View of the outside world..

Posing pa more 2...

Secret Cave was the last to be explored. There were steps leading back to the Kubo. Couldn't wait to wash off and drink some water. Didn't bring water that whole morning. :( Bf ate about 2 servings of Halo-Halo. It was so refreshing. The best Halo-Halo. :)

After that we headed of somewhere for lunch. We stopped over at this town for lunch. Then after lunch we went to the beach.

Swimming, sand, posing...

4PM we headed back to Boac. We somewhat, well we circumnavigated Marinduque on the way back. I think the caves were up north haha am not sure...all I know is we dindn't take the same road back. So we circled the island.

We showered and readied ourselves for last night's dinner. We ate at Boac Hotel. Thank God that the service wasn't horrible. Food arrived on time. Me and bf splurged for dinner. P200 for both of us and we ordered a lot. :) Really worth your money when ordering food in Marinduque. :) Bf and I did some last minute shopping at the plaza and then went back to the hotel. Will miss this place because of the laid back provincial lifestyle and of course, the ever affordable low-priced food. :)

Day 4
We woke up around 5AM I think. We were to leave early so that by afternoon we would be back home in Manila. :) I think it was mid-morning when we boarded the Roro. By lunch time we arrived at Lucena Port. We ate lunch at Max. The driver was driving so fast that by around 4PM I think we were at Edsa. All I remembered he was driving so fast. Not a problem for me. I wanted to go home. :)

5PM or so, not sure we were back at Mcdo Quezon Ave.

We loved the trip. "Moriyons" and "Marinduki" island was fun. :) A very memorable way to spend Holy Week. Schedule was tiring but we made each day the most out of it. Only thing that made me really tired was the traveling from van then Roro. I also slept most of the time while on the Roro. Remember to pack light. :) Swimwear, sunblock, light clothes, towel, small bag for traveling and most important of all...your camera. Need to take all the pictures you can while on vacation, right? :)

Ok for the breakdown...
Tour: P4750 each
Food: P600 each for 4 days. Food there is really cheap promise :)
Pasalubong: P100-P300 depends really..

Total: P5450 to P5650

So for those who want to go to Marinduque, you may visit the website below:
http://certifiedviajero.blogspot.com/2011/03/celebrate-marinduque.html

For inquiries, comments, suggestions, send your email to certified.viajero@gmail.com with your name and contact number or contact the Viajeros: Carla +639178324432 or Risha +639178207502

Korea Day 6: DDP, Edae and Hongdae

Day 6: Technically, this is our 2nd to the last day in Seoul. Next day is lunch time flight back to Manila so no more time to stroll around Seoul. :( This day, well just mostly strolling around. You could say that Day 6 is the most chillax day. :)

7:00 AM	Wake up and Freshen Up
8:30 AM	Breakfast @ Suitcasers
9:30 AM	Leave for Dongdaemun
	Take City Hall Subway Station Line 2 to Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station Line 2
	• Near Exit #14, Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station, Subway Line 2, 4, & 5
	• Near Exit #8 or #9, Dongdaemun Station, Subway Line 1, & 4
	visit Dongdaemun Market, Dongdaemun Design Plaza

You can visit Dongdaemun via Dongdaemun Station or Dongdaemun History and Culture Park Station. We took the subway going to Dongdaemun Station.Just exit #8 or #9, cross the street and cross Cheonggyecheon Stream going in the direction of the DDP.

If you want to go straight to the malls then exit via Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station. You'll arrive at the DDP, cross the street going to Migliore, Doota and the other malls. Opening time is around 10:30 AM for the malls.

Shopping in their malls is not as cheap as 168 or Tiendesitas. Well, more on the price range of Forever 21 for the quality items. Suffice to say, after buying 2 clothes, it was time to leave.

We just crossed the road going to DDP. You really can't miss it. :) DDP is like a bigger version of Chicago's Millenium Bean. Silver, round, futuristic...that's how I would describe DDP (Dongdaemun Design Plaza). It also has a huge park and some artsy stuff as well.

Here are some shots taken at DDP: 

Notice the stockings? Happy Halloween!

Pathway down to DDP

Weird..but so cool and shiny..

After walking around in DDP, we then headed to Edae (Ewha University).

12:00 PM

Lunch in Edae

We ate at a small restaurant in Edae where they served up some delicious hot Japanese meals. It's reasonably priced and the servings were big. :)

Lunch!!! Noodles!!!

Can anyone translate?

We walked in Ewha University. A large open campus, huge spaces, lovely gardens. It was just lovely. :) A must visit. :) Edae is kinda like a shortcut for Ewha University (in Korean) well something like that.

Edae shopping district is just nearby the main entrance of the open campus. It's located in one of the side streets near Edae. Just stroll along and see for yourself. :) If you get lost or something, there are Korean Tourist Volunteers who will gladly assist you. Usually they have the red uniform and are in famous shopping districts or tourist sites. :) 

Shoeaholics!!! This is along one of the main shopping streets in Edae

After an hour or so we took the subway going to Hongdae, just like Edae another shopping district for teens, young professionals and students. It's just one subway station away. :) Pretty convenient. 

Hongdae (shortcut again for Hongik University(korean)). 

Hello Kitty Cafe in Hongdae

Cool building along Hongdae main shopping street

Near Hongik University, didn't go inside...

Hongik University

Hongik Children's Park

Happy Halloween!

I did get lost walking along Hongdae's main shopping street. I was looking for the wall paintings but didn't get to see it. :( I also didn't go to the Coffee Prince cafe, most people said the coffee there is overpriced. But for fans of Coffee Prince have a look and relive the K-Drama scenes. :) 

5:30 PM

Subway Back to Suitcasers

 So that's about it for my Korean Travel. :)

Korea Day 5: History Lessons, Cultural Traditions, New and Old Art

Day 5: I couldn't seem to come up with a better title, something interesting since my entry today is well mostly about history. History...sounds boring but I love history. :) Korea's history is very rich even going back as far as the 15th century, from what I remember from our tours.

I allotted one day to visit the main palaces. First, we visited Jongmyo Shrine. It is not a palace it is a shrine. This is the place where they enshrined the ashes (I think) of the royal family. It is also the place where they celebrate a good harvest back in the old days. This is where the kings are prepared before they pass on to the next life.

7:30 AM	Wake up and Freshen Up
8:30 AM	Breakfast @ Suitcasers (4th Flr)
9:00 AM	Go to Jongmyo Shrine
	City Hall Station Line 1 to Jongno 3(sam)-ga Station Line 1, Exit 11 10-min walk from station
	Buy integrated ticket KRW 10,000 (entrance to palaces, secret garden and Jongmyo shrine)
10:00 AM	English Guided tour of Jongmyo Shrine

Before I forget, please check the schedule for the tours at Jongmyo Shrine. Click on this link to get the schedule for the English Tour.You cannot go inside Jongmyo Shrine without a guided tour except on Saturdays or some special occasions. All guided tours like in Jongmyo Shrine are free. :) Only need to pay for the entrance fee.

Middle path is reserved for royalty/spirits

more than a hundred year old tree

Main Royal Shrine

Our Tour Guide

Family Picture at the Main Royal Shrine

Next up is Changdeokgung Palace. We didn't visit or tour the palace. We toured the Secret Garden or Biwon/Huwon Tour. It is a really, really big garden behind the palace. It covers 2/3 of the whole Changdeokgung Palace. Jongmyo Shrine is about 15-20mins walk to Changdeokgung Palace. Use google maps to get around. :)

11:00 AM	End of Tour, walk to Changdeokgung Palace
11:15 AM	ETA Changdeokgung Palace
	Present online reservation for Secret Garden tour and present Integrated Ticket
11:30 AM	Changdeokgung Secret Garden English tour

According to the blogs I've read, prior reservation is a must since they only allow limited number of people to go inside the garden. Tour for the Secret Garden is also by schedule, you may click on this link for details. However, we didn't need to show our online reservation. Also, before the start of the tour, our guide said we can go inside the garden and walk around or listen to the tour of the garden. I guess it was that time of the year or season where people can go and walk around the garden grounds.

Here are some of the pictures I took inside the garden.

Bulromun Gate, says you will

have a long life if you pass under it

Lovely Autumn Colors

Red Autumn Colors

The Juniper Tree, I think 800 yrs old? 

Main entrance of Changdeokgung Palace

For more info about the different pavilions do check out this link. :)

1:00 PM	End of Secret Garden Tour
	Go to Tosokchon for late lunch

You could take the subway from Anguk Station line 3 to Gyeongbokgung Station line 3. But, subways are quite tricky in Korea since there are lots of stairs and some exits may be far from where you're going. Depends really...so we just walked, walked some more before finally reaching Gyeongbokgung Palace. :)

Before going inside, it was time for lunch, a ver very late lunch?

1:30 PM	Arrive at Tosokchon
2:00 PM	Were seated at our table

Tosokchon is one of the popular restaurants in Seoul. Their specialty is the Samgyetang, Ginseng Chicken Soup. Wait time was around 25-30mins. If we arrived here during lunch time the lines would be so long and we would have to wait for more than an hour!

How to get here: From Gyeongbokgung Station Line 3, Exit 2, walk straight then you'll see a yellow building. It's just past that yellow building. Basically if you see a line, then that's Tosokchon

Not convinced? Check out the reviews from Tripadvisor right here. 

Outside of Tosokchon

Samgyetang/Chicken Ginseng Soup

The Chicken Ginseng Soup was so good. It may taste bland for people who love flavorful dishes. BTW, they serve the dish with a shot of Ginseng. You pour the shot into your dish if you feel like there's not enough ginseng flavor. The chicken is like the size of a spring chicken, with rice stuffing and of course ginseng.

2:45 PM	End of lunch
	Go to Gyeongbokgung Palace
3:00 PM	Watch Changing of the Guards

We went back to Gyeongbokgung Palace to catch the Changing of the Guards Ceremony. Click on this link to view the schedule of the performances.

Changing of the Guards

The performance is about 20 mins. There's a 3:30 PM English Guided Tour of the palace.

3:30 PM	English Guided tour of Gyeongbokgung Palace
5:00 PM	End of Tour

Gyeongbokgung Palace is like the most popular and must-visit palace in Seoul. If you don't have time and just need to visit one palace then go for Gyeongbokgung. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and the stories about the palace was entertaining.

Here are some of the pictures inside Gyeongbokgung Palace:

The English Tour begins right at this spot

Interior of the rooms, lower left picture: part of the roof

The tour is free, you just need to pay the entrance. Click on this link for the tour schedules.

For my itinerary, I checked out the schedules of the English tours and the Changing of the Guard Ceremony. The schedules were the basis for my "history lessons" itinerary.

We visited Insadong after the palace tour. Insadong is about 15 mins. walk from Gyeongbokgung. By subway it's Exit 6 of Anguk Station Line 3. 

PAINTBRUSH, main entrance of Insadong

Insadong is the artsy-touristy place to be if you like to look at modern or traditional art. There are lots of tea houses and traditional restaurants. You can also buy souvenirs here at Ssamziegil, a spiral type of building, well since you can walk up to the highest floor. The paths are inclined but you don't notice it that you're walking up to top floor.

Ssamziegil bulding

After walking around Insadong we had our traditional Korean dinner at Insadong Chon.

7:00 PM

Dinner at Insadong Chon

Hanjeongsik

Hanjeongsik is like a royal feast. They bring out all the dishes, side-dishes and more. Back in the day, royals used to have Hanjeongsik. Based from my research, Insadong Chon is a good restaurant to experience this traditional feast.

Insadong Chon

From the main entrance, turn left on the first alley from the main road. It's located along other restaurants like Jirisan, also a restaurant that serves Hanjeongsik.

8:30 PM

Visit Cheonggye Plaza (City Hall Station (Seoul Subway Line 1, 2), Exit 4.)

After dinner, we decided to go back to Suitcasers. But I needed to see Cheonggyecheon Plaza so I went there alone. My parents went back to our hotel to rest up.

Cheonggyecheon Spiral :)

Cheonggyecheon Plaza

From Cheonggyecheon Plaza, I walked all the way to Gwanghwamun Square..

And then ended up walking to Gyeongbokgung Palace...The Palace looks so beautiful at night. Great lighting. :) 

I think it was about 15mins walk from Cheonggyecheon Plaza to Gyeongbokgung Palace. Walking in the city at night was very safe. Then after visiting the palace, well just the outside of it, I walked all the way back to Suitcasers.

9:30 PM

Walk back to Suitcasers