DAVAO ESCAPADE: DAVAO CITY PROPER

We woke up the next morning in Samal fully recharged and ready to see what is there to see in Davao.
But of course, not until we have enjoyed our last morning in paradise.

There's my boy enjoying the early morning sun in Samal.

 After some time, we left na the island aboard the resort's pumpboat.  It was only  a mere 15 minute ride so it was free and easy for all of us.

We reached Davao City in no time and saw this 4X4 pulling a pumpboat to shore.

Nothing extraordinary really it's just that I got so amazed that I had to take a picture.

Lunchtime saw us eating at Penong's (again!) eating the same items we ordered the previous day.
Adik lang di ba? Hehehe

After eating, it was time to go to our hotel in the city for check in.
I did my research of course and decided on Green Windows Dormitel located within the City.

It was NEW, CLEAN, COMFY and CHEAP!  Another great discovery, hooray!

We liked the hotel so much that we had to put off our plan for the afternoon and decided to just "stay in" and enjoy our hotel for the night.

We had food delivered in our rooms and the Oldies could not be more happy and satisfied.

As for J and I, we went out to enjoy Davao's nightlife and had so much fun as expected.

The next day, we were all up early for our Davao (and its environs) Tour.

Again, we hired a Van with Driver for the day.

First stop, Pasalubong Shopping. Haha. We are weird that way. :)

As per our Kuya Driver, this is the place to be and we believed him.

As expected, Durian was turned into every delicacy possible.

And my  boy just had to take his pick!

Then, we went out of the city limits to go to Eden Natural Park.
I am not so sure now but I think travel time was more than an hour.
It was an uphill climb with a very good view along the way.

At dahil nga nasa mataas kaming lugar, the weather was cooler there.
 It was like you are in Baguio or Tagaytay in the chilly months.

It was a family owned private property, we heard. 

We were surprised that the Entrance to the said Park was  very expensive.  It was almost P500. per head that already includes the tour and snacks.

We started with theMeryenda at Vista Restaurant.

Kuya Spi, may mga tao kaya sa likod mo!

And, it is very hard to decipher from the looks of my travelmates whether they enjoyed 

their food or not.  Ano ba talaga guys? 

It was my boy's first time to see a Peacock.  He was in awe!

After sometime, we were ushered to a "tram" that would bring us around.

Hi fans!

We were met by our pretty tour guide who was very articulate and accommodating.

We enjoyed and  appreciated the Park even more because of her.

We started our ascent with many interesting stories and trivia courtesy of the lovely tour guide. 

There were many "hydrophonic" gardens everywhere!

I am salivating at this point as I so love vegetable salads!

Mom loved this garden specifically.

Group shot muna. Ako na naman ang photographer.

 #mayibapaba?

Midway, we were treated to a cultural show.

Hala bira!

May photo op pa after the performance. San ka pa?

We were given a few minutes after that to go and explore the Park on our own.

My boy looking every inch a 'Probinsyano".

I likey!

We had a lovely time in Eden Natural Park and we felt that it was worth every centavo that we paid for the entrance fee.

Double thumbs up!

The next mission was to eat lunch at Jack's Ridge - another "must see" and "must eat" as per my researches.
Unfortunately, they were closed when we arrive.  Noone could give a sensible reason why but from what we gathered, they close yata after lunch and open again in the evening.

SAD.

Pero "keri" na din kasi nag piktyuran naman kami eh. Hehehe

NR ka anak.  May problema ba tayo my hijo? Hehehe

 By this time, we were hungry already.
And, I had to find a place to eat very quickly.

I remembered Luz Kinilaw from my readings and asked Kuya to bring us there pronto!

When we got there, we all stopped dead on our tracks and for a moment, we wondered if we were in the right place.

The place was well, old and unkept (that's putting it mildly pa).
Call us maarte pero hindi talaga siya patok sa amin in the beginning.
As in, we would never go to this kind of eatery when we're in Manila. Ganun ka unsightly.

Dirty and dilapidated ceilings, creaking wooden floors.  A diner's nightmare indeed.

But since we were really hungry, we decided to give it a try.
I heard that this is very popular for really palatable "kinilaw" and grilled foods.

Kuya, may sanitary permit po ba kayo?  

Me:  Anak, don't make yapak. The uods will enter your feet and that's yuckyyuckyuck.

Hubby gave me a dirty look that kept me silent the whole time. Hehehe.

Ang arte ko lang kasi, hehehe.

Alas, the food started arriving one by one.

Hmmm.  Mukhang promising.

When we started eating, something magical (hypnotic perhaps) happened.

Ngasab.  Ngasab.  Ngasab ang mga Socialites kuno kuno.

For that particular moment, we forgot about the squeaky floors and the ceilings that needed a major overhaul and all we thought about was how good the food tasted.

As in, EVERYONE.
Without exemption.
We all loved the food and was satisfied to high heavens.

Luz Kinilaw is the best!

We would learn later that the eatery was 40 years old.  The owners did not want to "modernize" their establishment no matter how rich they got because of fear that the place would lose its "charm".

Owkie.

Pero I stll think a little renovaton will not hurt them.
Mukhang mag co-collapse na kaya ang building mga bakla!

Anyhoo, we continued our Davao Tour and went straight to whereelse? Pasalubong shopping again.
Only this time, tinodo na namin to the highest levels kasi we had a Palengke Tour.

Take me there Kuya as in NOW!

Afterall, this is what we came to Davao for.

Tumpak mga Ateng: POMELO MELO YUM YUM!

DURIAN!

MANGOSTEEN Maniacs unite!

Dito na nawala sa sarili ang Mommy ko at si Nanay.

As in, we had to remind them na eroplano ang sasakyan namin pauwi at hindi barko o barge.
Aba, balak ba naman na bumili nang tag-iisang kaing? Hahaha

As fate would have it, Air Asia refused all the fruits that we bought.
Good thing, Mom and Grace (her assistant) were flying Cebu Pacific on the way back to Manila.
Kesa masayang, we had to pay extra baggage to be able to bring all the fruits that we made "kamkam" the whole time.

Hayaan na.  Happy naman mga Oldies.

Yun naman ang importante sa amin. :)

After Bankerohan, we went to the People's Park to unwind a bit before calling it a day.

As expected, the place was screaming DURIAN everywhere!

We slept soundly that night.

At around eleven the next day, we all trooped to the airport for our return flight.

Homebound.  

And, as Ate Lyn would say:     Davao? CHECK!  Saan naman tayo next po?

Thank you Lord for your grace.  We have seen another part of the Philippines and appreciated your wonderful creation even more.

Saan na nga ba next?  Stay tuned.  :)

DAVAO ESCAPADE: SAMAL LEG

It was September last year when J & I decided to bring our folks to Davao.

It was a timely trip for the family as we were all just adjusting to our new life without my Dad who recently passed on.

Sakto din that my in-laws decided to join us.

So, what was supposed to be just a trip for Jon and I, turned out to be a big group that ballooned to a total of eight (8).  Mas masaya pag mas madami (magastos nga lang, hehe)!

So, bring out the stroller and the wheelchairs - this family is hitting the road once again!

We flew Air Asia in Clark this time as I have already purchased the tickets a long time ago when they had a big inaugural sale.  I just bought additional tickets for the late joiners.

The trouble with flying from Clark is that you have to leave at least four hours before your flight considering the distance. Pero with tickets costing around 200 pesos only, I really could not complain.

Maga pa ang mga mata ng mga Oldies sa puyat  pero all smiles pa din sila.

Di man kami nainip, we already heard our boarding announcement.
At, dahil budget airline itey, we prepared ourselves for the long walk to the airplane.
Thanks to our old yet  trusty wheelchairs and strollers who have been with us  everywhere.

At kung kasing pogi naman ni Kuya Spi ang magpapayong sa amin, keribels

na keribels na di ba?

Fast forward to approximately an hour and a half later, we were already fastening our seatbelts in preparation for landing. Yahoo!

It's big, it's new, it's international.  

Isa lang ang ibig sabihin noon: Mahal ang terminal fee! Waaaaa.

"MALIGAYANG PAG-ABOT" so says my boy.

   Even if he does not look it, hehe.

 Upon arrival, we looked for our hired Van with Driver for the day. This is a must when travelling with babies and oldies.  Hindi puwedeng makipagsapalaran sa pag co-commute.

At para masaya ang paglilibot, we decided to have lunch first.

Our Driver recommended PENONG'S.  Sabi niya it is their version of Mang Inasal.
Di na kami nagpatumpik-tumpik pa.... ATTACK NA!

As in TWICE lang ha.  

Pag THRICE, bubuhusan ka ng mainit na sabaw!

Here's the picture of the whole gang minus J and I who were the photographers/taga-order/tagapag-pakain ng Driver forever.

Kuya Spiro:  YES ! Mukhang unlimited rice ito ah.  Ready na si Kuya Waiter sa likod oh.

So, did we like the food?
WE. LOVED. IT. IMMENSELY.
As in, we are still dreaming about it now.

Here were our orders:

Seafood Bilao - yes those are scallops!

Fried Hito - My Mom and my Father in Law fell in love with this!

Chicken Inasal - Super mouthwatering, I kid you not.

As in, it tastes good as it looks. No bola yan.

We actually ordered more than those I posted pero we failed to take pictures na dahil kinakain na ng large intestines namin ang mga small intestines.  Nuff said.

The best part of it all, very affordable ang Penong's.  Sayang lang that they have not brought it to Manila yet. Pero I understand, it is all around Mindanao na.

After lunch, we went directly to Samal Islands where we would spend the night.
This is the mala-Boracay beach ng Davao and it is around thirty (30) minutes away via pumpboat.

Let's do Samal, shall we?

While there is the famous Pearl Island for a luxurious stay, we opted not to go that route as we were watching our expenses of course.

So, I searched and searched on the internet for alternatives and found Bluewaters.

Promise, blue talaga ha.

Well, it is not comparable to Pearl Island really (I have stayed there a few years ago) pero pasado na sa amin because it is clean and best of all, affordable and value for money.

Bluewaters in Samal Island: Check!

Say Cheese!

After settling in our respective rooms, we all relaxed by the poolside to watch the sun go down.
It was a relaxing experience especially when both of our Parents were with us...

Another day is over.  Thank you Lord for all the blessings. :)

Sunset by the infinity pool.  Precious bonding moment ng aking Mag-Ama.

 At diyan na muna nagtatapos ang blog entry na ito.

Soon to come:  Davao City tour.  Thanks for reading. :)