candaba wetlands: of fisherfolks and sunset

from their favorite fishing spot

Like the migratory birds, a lot of things are seasonal in Candaba wetlands. The road, for one,  "disappears" during the rainy season. You'll see the fields transform from  rice fields to fish ponds (and vice versa) depending on which month you go there.

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candaba swamp: a solo trek on the day of saints

Typhoon Santi derailed my plans to go to Polilio island on the long weekend of Nov 1 (All Saints Day). Flights were grounded and boat trips were canceled. Everyone braced for the incoming storm.

When it came it blew strong winds for a couple of hours and poured several millimeters of rain. And then as suddenly as it came, the rain stopped and the sky cleared. So there I was with nothing to do on a cloudless Sunday morning, too late to go to where I planned to spend the weekend.

Without thinking too much on where I was going, I grabbed my pack and headed to the bus station. By the time I arrived at the station, I had decided to catch the sunset in Candaba wetlands. Its bird season and I thought I might get lucky with some bird shots, with a beautiful sunset as bonus.

candaba's wide open space

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manila bay: bay of colors

famous Manila Bay sunset

Manila Bay undergoes a transformation when the sun dips below the horizon. Its just like a Jekyll and Hyde thing, but this time it goes from ugly to beautiful.

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bangui windmills: wind of change on renewable and clean energy

windmills of Bangui Bay

The first time I saw them, I could not help but ask myself if I'm still in the Philippines. The wind farm scenery looked like it was in some distant shores in a foreign country. But no its not. The giant wind turbines, spaced 236 meters apart, are on a 9km strip of deserted beach in Brgy. Baruyen in a sleepy town of Bangui in Ilocos Norte.

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maira-ira: the journey north to blue lagoon

"A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” – Lao Tzu

It seemed like we were at that moment. No, not good travelers exactly, but travelers not intent on arriving.

My first clue? A 6-hour wait to board the bus. It was a long weekend, and the PARTAS bus station in Cubao was packed with all sorts of travelers heading north, young and old, and surfer dudes in between. We were at the station by 10PM, but was able to board the bus only at 4AM the next day. By the time we were on the bus, I am already awake for 24 hours. Nevertheless I was happy to start the trip.

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samal: monfort bat cave

fruit bats in Monfort Bat Sanctuary

Before I visited the Monfort bat cave (officially known as Monfort Bat Conservation Park) in Samal island, I heard that the place has a large concentration of Geoffroy’s rousette fruit bats (Rousettus amplexicaudatus). "Large" turned out to be a huge understatement: the caves are packed with over a million fruit bats!

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