Davao... our trip down south

Our Davao flight has been booked way back March and just like our last year's trip to Cebu, I chose September because 1) it was Colin and Mita's birth month so double celebration and 2) it's a lean month to go to Davao. It was only a week before the trip that I was able to firm up our IT for. Thanks to a fellow n@wie, Cathee I was able to list down places to go to, things to do and where to eat. Originally there were six of us (Benji, me, Colin, Mita, MIL and SIL) booked to go there but because of Benji's new work in Macau it was trimmed down to just three - me, Colin & Mita. MIL being the tempo companion of Benji for the meantime while starting out in Macau and SIL had a sudden business trip around the same time that's why they weren't able to come along. We missed them as it was more fun if you are traveling and checking out sights if you're a group. But we tried nonetheless to enjoy the four day trip. A lot of the locals we've talked to said this was a good year to visit as this was a bountiful year of harvest. They say bountiful harvest skips a year and that this year was a good one.

Going to Davao - September 21, 2007

Our flight was at 9:20am so we had to be at the airport by 7:30am at least. Little boy slept a bit late the night before but surprisingly he also woke up just about the same time I did. I was planning to let him sleep a bit more and just dress him up while still snoozing. But no, the moment I got up which was around 6:00am, he was up too. Had him drink milk and eat some cereals before dressing him up. Mita and I just had something hot to drink and after that we were already on our way to the airport by 7:30am. Good thing Mita slept over our house so it saved us time since we didn't have to pick her up from their place (although they were just 5-10mins. away from the airport). We were already checked in between 7:45-8:00am so we still had time to grab a bite. By 8:30 we were already seated at the lounge and Colin being ever so impatient wanted to move around. So we both went around the lounge are when we stumbled upon the Kiddie Play area. Didn't know there was one at the Domestic airport. It's a good way to kill time. Colin was kept busy playing. Had a small chit-chat with another mom that was in there too. She was with her chatty little daughter who was I think a year and a half younger than Colin. She's married to someone from the Carribean and I learned that they too were bound for Davao which they consider home. Also met another parent-child while in the playhouse but this time it was a father-son duo. The guy is American married to a Filipina and to them Surigao is home. They named their son Tarzan; isn't that cute!... well actually it's just their pet name for him. His son's real name is Anthony. Went back to check on Mita as she might be bored already. We didn't wait long and we heard our call for boarding. Soon we were airborne.

Arrived Davao at a little past 11am; boarded a taxi and headed to our hotel, Crown Regency. Our hotel was a villa type of hotel. Going there would actually make you feel weird since it's also situated in an area with two motels. Our villa was actually ok. Good enough for us to be able to rest and sleep. There was just a big group that checked in same time we did so the pool was almost always never empty. We just rested for awhile then headed out for lunch. We ate at Dencia's Restaurant. It's know for its goto but since it was lunch time we weren't able to sample it. We ordered Sinigang na Lapu-lapu and omelet instead. After filling our tummies we headed off to Aldevinco Shopping Center for pasalubong shopping. I figured we won't have enough time already on the succeeding days so we did the shopping already. We flagged down a taxi and the driver will later turn out to be our hired transpo for sightseeing cum tour guide. I made 'chika' to Manong Ponsing about the nice places to visit and he recommended Eden Nature Park and Crocodile Farm. I asked him how much is the usual going rate for hired transpo if one wants to go to these two places and quoted us P1,500 for a whole day trip. Not bad. At the shopping center we bought shirts for all of us as well as sarong and comfy house dresses for Mita and MIL. After shopping which was around 3:30pm, we went back to the hotel to rest a bit since I wanted to have dinner at Jack's Ridge that night. By 5pm we were ready to go out again but before heading to Jack's Ridge we stopped by Gaisano Mall to buy bottled water. We toured the mall a little and by 5:45 we were already on the road to Jack's. It was already dark when we got there; it looked like it was going to rain. And rain it did! Good thing we were already seated and waiting for our order when it poured down. When we got there, there weren't too many guests yet so we were able to choose a nice spot with a good view of the city down below. The only disappointment I had was service was slow. Our meal took around 30 minutes to get served. Although we were there fairly early, we were really hungry by the time food was served. Only consolation was the nice view. By the time we left the place the rain already stopped. We didn't get to stay long to look around as I was afraid we'd have a hard time getting a taxi going back. But since people had just started to come in the place, there were still taxis waiting outside. We were back at the hotel by 9pm. Lights out by 11pm. Pics can viewed here.

Day 2 - September 22, 2007

I contracted Manong Ponsing to take us to Eden and Croco Farm and asked him to pick us up at around 8:30am. He was already at the hotel by 8am. We were still having breakfast so we had to ask Manong to wait a little while longer. The trip going to Eden Nature Park took around an hour and a half but it wasn't boring. It was so nice to view Mt. Apo from afar. Barangay Eden was a bit hard to reach. There were roads that were still under construction so for the majority of the trip when you enter the barangay it was rough roads. We reached Eden Nature Park at a little past 10am. By the way I wasn't able to make reservations in Manila for a day tour. I was thinking it's just ok if we just walk-in. But I was advised by the hotel staff that since we were going on a weekend there might be a lot of visitors and usually if that's the case, those who came by walk-in are sometimes turned down. And the travel there isn't a big joke... imagine traveling for an hour and a half only to be turned down because the place is full and you have no booking. No way! So the night before I asked the hotel staff to make reservations for a day tour for us three. I did the payments upon getting there and first thing we did was go on a guided tour. The tour takes about 45 minutes and the place is... WOW! For those who are nature lovers, this is heaven. It was so relaxing. By the time the tour ended it was lunch time already. And yes we had a buffet lunch. Although food wasn't really spectacular (he he) but it was good enough and boy was there a lot! After lunch we strolled around the playground since I promised Colin that we would play a little. While little boy was busy with one ride, Mommy was also busy trying out the Indiana Jones thingy.


After a little more playtime at the slides we looked for Manong already so we can now go to Crocodile Farm which was our last sightseeing stop for the day. We left Eden Nature Park at 1:30pm and on the way to Croc Farm Colin fell asleep. We were at Croc Farm at around 2:45pm and little boy was still fast asleep. Had our picture taken with a baby croc held by Mita... yep! a live one that is... didn't even dared touch it... he he he... You won't only see crocs inside, Croc Farm is like a mini zoo too and I took as much pictures as I can of almost all the animals you can see inside. Before heading back to the hotel we had a little snack at the kiosk inside the farm andmade one last trip to the tiger's cage to have Colin's picture taken with them as background. We were at the hotel by 5pm just enough time to rest awhile before heading out to have dinner with a couple of Mita's friends. We were taken to Iron Horse for dinner which serves buffet of mostly Davao dishes plus grilled food. After dinner, we strolled around the capitol area then headed back to the hotel to finally get some rest from a very tiring day. Still had topack for our check-out and trip to Pearl Farm next day. Yipee! Pictures taken for this day's travel can be viewed here.

Day 3 - September 23, 2007

Colin woke up pretty late as he was soooo tired from all the walking we did yesterday. As soon as he woke up we had breakfast and went back to the hotel room for last minute packing and I also took pictures of the villa we stayed in. We checked out at around 11:30am then had a quick lunch for we needed to be at the marina by 1pm. Left the hotel a little before 1pm since was just like 10 minutes away. Bad thing is the driver of the cab we took didn't know where the Pearl Farm marina was even if I showed him a map on how to get there. Oh boy! To make along story short, we barely made it to the marina on time. We were like the second to the last to board the boat that was going to take us to PF; everybody was already there waiting. Colin fell asleep on the almost 1 1/2 hour boat ride. The breeze would really make you fall asleep. But the moment I saw PF from a distance it got me all excited. There was welcome drinks for everybody and as soon as we got our keys to the room we asked for a shuttle to take us there. The room I got was on a hilltop which wasn't bad at all. Going down to the main area (restos, swimming pool, etc.) was ok but going up can be a bit tiring so you really need a shuttle to take you there. The room was cozy.

We just changed into swimming clothes since Colin has been asking me if we can already go swimming. Good thing there weren't too many guests so the pool area and the beach were practically (almost) empty. Little boy did enjoy the pool. We had a little play of sand on the beach too. We had a good two hours of swimming time before begging (he he) Colin if we can go change for dinner already. Food was great although we didn't go for buffet. Their chicken pork adobo was really tasty. After dinner we roamed around the pool area and also checked out Parola Bar which is actually where the dock was. We just sat there at the bar enjoying the breeze. It was around 9:30 when we went back to the hotel to get some shut eye. Pictures for this day can be seen here.


Departure for Manila - September 24, 2007

Woke up quite early considering I had a hard time sleeping last night. We had buffet breakfast but oddly enough I wasn't really feeling that hungry. At least Colin had a full breakfast, feasting on pancit, bread and lugaw with watermelon and pineapple juice. We had the whole morning to tour the island. We first went to Malipano Island which is still part of Pearl Farm only it's a separate island on its own just across the main island. We took a motor boat going there. This island houses 6 big villas which are actually the most expensive accommodations in PF. Nobody's checked in that time but there were a few who were swimming in that island's beach area. We toured the island on our own. Checked out the villas. Three villas were by the shore and the other three were on top of mini hills. The owner's own villa is also in this island. Nothing much to see though so the tour was a quick one. Went back to the main island and did our tour of the whole PFR. Before going back to the room we stopped by the "butik" (boutique) for pasalubong buying. We weren't really hungry yet for lunch so after packing and checking out we just lazed at Parola bar until the boat that will take us back to Davao City arrives. By 1pm we were already on our way back to the city. This time I've asked Manong Ponsing again to pick us up from the marina and to bring us to the market for last minute fruits shopping. We were at the airport by 3pm which was a bit early as our flight was still at 5:50pm. We had a very late lunch after which it was time to check-in already. Was back in Manila by 7:20pm but took us long to gather our baggages. It was raining again in Manila by the time our plane landed. Last year it was also the same thing; when our plane from Cebu landed it was also raining. We got home by 9pm and we were all dead tired and starving already. Pics from our last day here.

All in all it was a fun and different experience. Fun since we got to visit yet again another wonderful place here in the Philippines; different because we weren't complete as a family. Hopefully even though we'll be moving for good by next year, we can still get to do this again.