My Subic Sequel

Click here for part 1 of the Subic series

At dusk we found ourselves lounging by the pool, beer in each hand, thankful for the rest after the road trip and the zoo trek. Fatigue combined with alcohol stirred up my appetite. Where to have dinner? I wanted to go out but since dinner was complimentary we decided to stay. Unlike the usual hotel offering of free breakfasts, at Subic Park it was dinner that was free - 2 meals per room to be exact. Although the selection was limited, only 4 set meals to choose from, i was happy to avail of it.

After dinner and a couple more beers, it was time to put the kid to sleep. I should have brought the yaya along, I told myself. With the comfort of airconditioning, a soft bed, fluffy pillows, and the fresh scent of it all, I couldn't help but fall asleep myself. Consequently, I missed a fun-filled night of drinking, singing and dancing! Actually my friends were involved only in the drinking part but still I missed it and I was angry at myself. Again: I should have brought the yaya along! The next morning my friends told me how they enjoyed watching the band at Pier One, which was a short walk from our hotel.

We had breakfast at Daddy Ed's Bar which was next to our hotel. I had boneless bangus, egg, and fried rice. Servings were generous and most of us enjoyed the meals as much as the setting, as we had a nice view of the sea and the coconut trees lining the beach. It was a little weird that the waitresses were wearing revealing outfits so early in the day. Not that I'm complaining :).

We spent the rest of the morning at the beach. It's no Boracay but the kids had a lot of fun playing, building sandcastles, and doing a little swimming. The beach was rocky at the shallow parts, but gets better when you get to the deeper, chest high areas. The beaches at Subic are not really swimming-friendly, but just relaxing and enjoying the sun, the sea breeze and the landscape are enough for me to enjoy the day.

Lunch was at the Meat Plus Cafe along Sampson Road, where they specialize in steaks, large cuts that can be shared by 2 adults. This place is really famous as you have to wait in line to be seated, unlike any other restaurant I saw in Subic. I had the salmon steak. It was really big, a little overcooked, but good enough for me. It would have been excellent if cooked just right as I don't put a lot of gravy in my steaks.

We went for a little duty-free shopping after lunch. This is the least enjoyable part of the trip for me although I didn't mind walking around the supermarket after that heavy meal.

The rest of the afternoon was spent back at the hotel, napping, swimming and relaxing by the pool. We had dinner by the poolside. Good thing the selection of complimentery set meals was different this time.

It was then time for a night out and this time I wasn't going to miss the fun. I sent my son to my friend's room where there were 2 others kids and a yaya. I should have done this the previous night, I know, but that's the past now. Tonight is a new night, I'll get a chance too see what the fuss is about the bands in Pier One.

The bands were different this time, but the attractions were equally satisfying. Beer, loud pop music, lovely singers; the music could have been better, but it was a genuinely fun night, and not a bad finale to my Subic trip. Not bad at all.

My Subic Trip

I've been so busy juggling work and night-outs that I'm blogging about this only now, more than a month after the trip. This was my 3rd trip to Subic. My first trip was pretty forgettable - it was a company outing at a resort whose name is not worth remembering. The second time was better, a very liesurely vacation with family where we lounged by the beach most the time, going out only when hungry. This 3rd trip was with friends and it was the most fun because there was a little more activity and much less sober time.

The rain was pouring hard and the wind was howling 2 nights before we left Manila. As fate had it, there was a typhoon - in the middle of summer! I was out that night, drowning out stress with a few bottles of Light (this drink has become so popular that you don't even have to mention the brand when ordering), seriously discussing with one of my would be Subic companions if we will cancel the trip.

Fate was good to us. The typhoon would be leaving the country in the afternoon, as I heard from CNN's weatherman the next morning while having (sigh!) instant coffee, hoping that it would cure my mild hangover. And so we went the next day. The light drizzle on our way to Subic did not bother us. There was no typhoon :D. Summer stayed around for a little while longer.

It was too early to check-in when we arrived so we decided to have lunch at Pier One along the Waterfront Road, a short walk from our hotel. Food was okay, the usual Pinoy fare, just what I expected from one of the many similarly themed Filipino restaurants ("bar & grill") in the country. Nothing special here.

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Check-in time. The Subic Park Hotel is a 3-storey building with well-designed interiors, good rooms, a restaurant/bar and swimming pool, also along Waterfront Road. What do I mean, you might ask, by "good" rooms? Given the price (P2,100/night for a standard room - 2 single beds or one queen sized bed) I was happy with my room. The room looked and smelled clean, the sheets looked and smelled new, it was basically well maintained. The furnishings were classy enough for me - it didn't have the old, cheap feel of some similarly priced hotels, although I don't know anything about good furniture so you can take that statement with a grain of salt. The only downside was that the bathroom was cramped. There's airconditioning of course, cable TV, and a small refrigerator with nothing inside.

At the back of the hotel, facing the beach, is the swimming pool. The view from the pool area was very picturesque. The kids loved the pool, and so did some adults although it was just 4 feet at the deepest end I think. The restaurant is just beside the pool - the tables by the pool are basically an extension of the restaurant, which is very convenient for those who do not want to leave the poolside, watching over kids who refuse to eat their meals on time.

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Zoobic was also on our agenda that day. There were several kids with us so we just had to show them animals - plenty of them. There were indeed plenty, although it would have been better if they were in glass cages as the bars really are bad for viewing. The pace of the tour around the zoo was too fast for me as there were too many tourists that day, and the each guide had to hurry their group around the area. Easily, the highlight was the "safari" where we were caged inside a jeepney-like vehicle and rode around the area where a few huge tigers were roaming, walking right beside us, jumping on top of the jeep. For a short moment I felt that we were the lesser animals because we were caged and the tigers were roaming free - good thing that we were the ones who fed the tigers and not the other way around. It was not the safari I was expecting, but it was still good fun especially with kids around.

This entry has gotten much longer than I planned and is getting dangerously boring. I will stop this now and will continue another day with my Subic sequel.

Click here to continue to My Subic Sequel

Calatagan, Batangas

I was happy that the drive from Alabang, Metro Manila to Calatagan, Batangas was pretty smooth. Traffic was light that Friday afternoon. I was in a good mood, anticipating a nice, relaxing, 3-day vacation at a beach resort, my first beach trip this year.

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We were welcomed by the lovely, calm surroundings of the Ronco Beach Resort. I loved the sea breeze, the landscape, great views, and the amount of greenery in the property. The beach itself, well, what can you expect of a beach in Batangas? It was okay, not white, clean water, good for quick dips and short swims. If you've been to the La Luz Resort in San Juan, Batangas, I would rank it a bit higher than Ronco. Still, it was a nice resort, I told myself. I can enjoy myself here. Then I realized that first impressions don't last.

When we arrived, we found out that we weren't given the room that we booked. If the room we were given was airconditioned it wouldn't have mattered but it wasn't! Nevertheless, I easily convinced myself that this wouldn't stop me from enjoying the weekend.

Next we found out that there was a videoke machine at the restaurant which was close to our (non-aircon) room. Now I have nothing against videoke singing, but I was afraid of not getting a good night's sleep if (and I was almost sure this would happen) drunk, overly enthusiastic tourists would still be singing their hearts out at 2 in the morning. The resort owner assured us however that the videoke would be open only until 11 PM. I had a feeling that this rule was most likely going to be broken so I told myself that I should get drunk to be able to sleep despite the noise that I was sure would come.

After walking around the resort, I went back to our AUV and alas, the left front tire AND the spare tire were both flat! We were able to put air into and use the spare tire then I drove to town 12 kilometers away to get the tire vulcanized. What a great start to my weekend getaway! I was now anxious to chill out, have a couple of drinks, have some peace and quiet.

Nothing unexpected happened the next couple of days. It was hard to sleep the first night because of (you guessed it!) the videoke. The next night we decided to have our own videoke night and to my pleasant surprise, nobody else sang after us. Ah, how wonderful my sleep was that night!

I took it easy, enjoyed the sun, relished the view and the breeze, and made sure I had my shot of alcohol every now and then. Food was great as we prepared our own - mostly grilled and pan-fried. All in all a moderately satisfactory vacation. My recommendation? Try looking for another resort in Calatagan. Ronco is not bad but you might get a better overall experience elsewhere. Calatagan is a lovely town and I will come back here if I find a good alternative resort.

My email address is jobotonio@yahoo.co.uk

What's In A Name / A Pansol Discovery

This blog's title is a dedication to a Karaoke bar formerly called "Beat The Heat" in Quezon City, Philippines, where I met this wonderful singer named "Maxene".  The bar has since changed it's name and Maxene no longer works there, but I sure miss both... a lot!

That bar has nothing to do with the content of this blog, but the name is a perfect title for what would probably make up most of my first few posts... beating the heat this summer! 

Recently a friend recommended this private pool in Pansol, Laguna. I hadn't seen the place before, I was just shown a few "okay" photos, so I had low expectations. This was one of the cheaper private pools in town even before the discount that was given to us, so we decided to try out "Zac & Ice" private pool.

     

I was pleasantly surprised at how appealing this place was. It was constructed in good taste. I loved the colors on the wall and the arched entrance as seen in the above photo (click on a photo for a bigger and better version). There are 2 bedrooms - the main bedroom was really nice, it had it's own big bathroom. This room is much better than what I have seen in many other resorts in Pansol. The second room was not as good, I'd say it's pretty average. There's a second bathroom with 2 shower stalls and a toilet - the showers were not working at that time - there was one huge pail (Orocan?) inside however. This common bathroom was not as good as the one in the Master's bedroom but it was also clean. Each room had 2 beds - a big (queen sized I think) bed and a single bed. Nice, clean and well-kept rooms overall.

 

There's a Karaoke area at the other end of the pool (opposite the bedrooms/kitchen), a grill, 2-burner stove, 2 refrigerators - a standard ref and a Coke ref that could probably easily fit 10 cases of beer I believe - no need to worry about cold beverages! In the kitchen there's a kaldero, a wok, and some cooking/eating utensils but hardly complete. I would advice those who would come here to bring additional cooking and eating implements.

     

About the swimming pool itself, well, what can I say? It's the usual suberb hot-spring water from the mountains of Mt. Makiling... very soothing and perfect for night swimming. 

One more good thing about this place - there are no other private pools within shouting distance so you wouldn't hear any other loud videoke singing drunks from the neighborhood but yourselves!

All in all, I would recommend this to those who want a quick affordable weekend getaway. If you wish to contact the owner email me at jobotonio@yahoo.co.uk