incessant rambling

the restaurant, non-guests are not allowed to go to the other areas of the resort After going through the town of Maria and Lazi, it was almost noon and I asked Nonoy to drive us to Coco Grove resort in San Juan town to get some lunch. The place is the only upscale resort in Siquijor situated in San Juan that boasts of a very long coastline of fine white sand. rocky formations create a natural "cove" that gives the resort an "exclusive" feel. too bad i wasn't allowed to go inside the resort itself as it was only for staying guests, we had to content ourselves with getting a short rest in the restaurant, away from the heat. Cheaper resorts are available in the area with the same access to the gorgeous beach front, in some cases, you can even access the beach front from the poblacion. Coco Grove boasts of carefully manicured lawns, gardens and a pool aside from a decent enough dining outlet where non-guests can stay. there are limited number of

the old balete tree provides shade the spring that comes out of its roots. it is purported to be 4 centuries old. i would have missed the last tourist stop in Lazi if not for Manong Nonoy who pointed out a towering balete tree whose trunk is so huge that it would have taken a dozen people just to put their arms around it. Nonoy quipped that the tree is close to four hundred years old, i'm inclined to believe him. heck, Nonoy looks like he's a century old. just kidding. at the foot of the tree is a natural spring where you can take a dip, and in some instances, locals wash their clothes here. they should discourage the practice too close to the source of the spring as it pollutes the otherwise pristine waters. a fox keeping watch over the spring. well, not really a fox, but he does look like one :) biking tourists while we were there, a gang of bikers drove by - i'm guessing siquijor is a popular destination for bikers because of its circumferential hig

CAMBUGAHAY FALLS three layered cambugahay falls, the water invites you to take a dip in its cool embrace Cambugayay falls  is accessible from the main highway of Lazi, Siquijor. a marker with Kris Aquino's face promoting Casino rubbing alcohol marks  the top of the 135 steps that leads to the landing area of the three tiered waterfalls that beckon visitors to take a dip in its gorgeously blue green water. side note, manong nonoy totally avoided the trek down to the pool in the pretext of watching over our car. moderate fitness is required for this one. looks inviting for a jump? some of the locals enjoying a splash in the pool. met a family having an excursion, this is the required "wacky" pose. interestingly, when i got the chance to chat up the family, they told me that while i was doing my "acrobatics" trying to frame my pictures, a monitor lizard casually walked behind me, paused for a bit while looking at me before sauntering of

"there is no black magic in the island-province and if someone offers you these services they are fakes and should be reported to the local government." the big billboard literally screams at you from the entrance of the port of Siquijor. you can just imagine the reaction of my friends when i told them that i was heading there, alone, first time, no contacts. the last time i traveled alone to a completely new place was way back in 2003 for a business trip to kuala lumpur im malaysia. then again, one of my "bestest" friend is based there so it was not such a daunting experience as i had someone to meet me up during my down time. some koreans i met that were having their photo op in the Siquijor port, yes, this is the port of Siquijor - gorgeous beach and all the reputation of the place precedes the island-province. and if i paid any attention to the jokes of my friends, i will soon find myself a grand addition to a buffet in the middle of the mount

ST. ISIDORE LABRADORE AND CONVENT St. Isidore Labradore Church, viewed from the convent and framed by gigantic acacia trees St. Isidore Labradore Church and Convent are National Historical Shrines that date all the way back to 1857 when Agustinian Recollects started the construction of these magnificent structures. The convent is considered to be the biggest in Asia during its time and feature wooden floors and pegs that hold together the structure instead of the modern iron nails. interiors of the convent, a bit run down though it still had the original flooring and wooden pegs used to hold the structure together old furniture, a place where you can sit and gaze at the main street overlooking the church wooden pegs are used to hold the pieces of the floor together this table is cut from a single tree stairs heading to the second floor of the convent