I fell in love with my own country....

Last December 2012, after the releasing of my french residence, I immediately booked a flight to the Philippines. I was very excited because this is the first time after 8 years of leaving in europe to celebrate my Christmas, New Year and my birthday with my family and friends. Since its been a long time, I decided to maximize my time by giving quality yet memorable experiences and exploring some of 7,107 islands in the Philippines. My itineraries were Laguna, Manila, Subic, Cebu and its beautiful islands, Bantayan and Malapascua in the North of Cebu. 

My first few days in Laguna spent with family and by attending  parties with my elementary batch mates, reunion parties with high school mates and bonding and reunion with college classmates. The rest of the days were spent with the Wassmer, my friends from Switzerland we headed at Subic Bay. 

Laguna and  Subic 

with Wassmers

      


 

 classmates from Elementary, high school, college and my family

  

Good Morning Manila! my view when I wake up in the morning.

Manila is a fast growing and booming city in the south east asia. And because the economy is getting better and better I was surprise with the shoot up of buildings and infrastractures spread out like a mushrooms in the metropolis. This time I really enjoyed the taste of Manila life. It is vibrant, colorful and dynamic. Very different 8 years ago when I  was there. I really love Makati, Manila Bay and Ortigas area.

View from my bedroom

 

view from the penthouse building in Taguig overlooking the BCG

Thank you to my dear friend Pat and Chris for staying in their

condo near Market Market in Bonifacio Global City in taguig. They have the most beautiful view from the pent house of the building. 

Bonifacio Global City in Taguig

Bonifacio Global city in Manila is a fast growing and very dynamic community in Taguig City. A combination of green and chic environment with tremendous bars, cafe, boutique and restaurants. This is where I celebrated my Christmas. There are few high end hotel in the area if you want to stay overnight like SEDA Hotel.,the F1 Hotel and more.

Manila Bay, Philippines

        

New Years Party  at the Bay Area (MOA)

I celebrated my new year with my mother and brother in the bay area. There was a new year count down in the Mall of Asia where I booked a table for a buffet dinner while watching performers from TV networks. The fireworks was still vivid in my mind. It was more than 30 minutes of artificial fireworks in the sky. Its was magnifique!

After celebrating New Year and Chrismas, its now my turn to celebrate my birthday alone in the island. Acrually, I was with my dear friend AJ. We visited Bantayan and Malapascua island in Cebu. Bantayan Island is situated at the western portion of the  tip of Cebu, Philippines.

Bantayan island has been dubbed as the quiet version of Boracay. Located just west off the northern tip of Cebu in Southern Philippines, Bantayan is known for its white sand, crystal clear waters, and friendly locals. It is composed of three municipalities – Sta. Fe (where most of the resorts are), Bantayan and Madrilejos.

My favorite place to stay here are Kota Beach Resorts, Bantigue Cove and Marlins Beach Resorts.

 Bantayan Island

Bantayan Cebu

The sand bar in front of Marlin Beach Resort

   


Bantayan Island, Sta Fe ( view from Bantigue  Cove Beach Resort)

 

How to Get There

From the Mactan-Cebu International Airport, take a taxi to the North Bus Terminal in Cebu City, where you can then catch a bus that will take you to Hagnaya. The bus ride takes approximately three hours. Upon arriving in Hagnaya port, you can take the Island Express Ferry Boat to Sta. Fe, Bantayan Island. The ferry boat ride will last for about an hour. There are also ro-ro boats that can take you from Hagnaya to Sta. Fe.

Note: You can ride or rent a motor bike to explore the whole island and its very cheap. 

After Bantayan we stayed at Bantigue Beach resort in Malapascua. The name means "Unfortunate Christmas" but time spent on the Philippines' tiny Malapascua Island is anything but an ill-fated holiday. Shimmering aqua-blue waters greet visitors as they land from bancas (outrigger boats) onto the white sands of Bounty Beach, on the island's south side.Malapascua is both a peaceful remote tropical island with an awesome beach and diver's paradise destination.There are some fantastic dive sites near the island the most famous is the Thresher Shark dive and the coral garden.The main beach is called Bounty Beach packed with night activities and lots of tourists.The west coast is ideal for swimming and snorkling. A walk or tour of the whole island can be done whithin half day. Malapascua hotels and resorts are mostly budget, but the higher end hotel are of good value. One of my unforgettable activity were diving in the coral garden and snorkling at the japanese wreck ship sunken during the world war II.

Malapascua Island

   



Bounty Beach Malapascua



Bounty Beach Malapascua

Bantigue beach resorts is a very private, secluded beach in the southern part of Malapascua. It has its own beach cove, very quiet and very serene, perfect for honeymooners. Though the place is like paradise we still want some night life and fun filled adventures. Me and my friend decided to move to Bounty Beach the following day. In this part of island there are lots of nice bars, resorts and nice foods. One of my favorite resto is Angelinas Italian Restaurant. Super! 

How to get there:

You can take a taxi from the airport to Ceres Bus station bound to Maya. Its 3 to 4 hour travel. From Maya port you will then transfer to an outrigger boat going to Malapascua island travel time is only 30 minutes.



Bantigue Beach Resort