In true office fashion, our farewell party for an outgoing colleague brought us in miles away from Naga to the south of Bicol in Albay and particularly Sorsogon*
Leaving Naga right after lunch and after a three-hour drive that could have been a four hour drive in a bus, our first stop was in this Holy Family Parish dating 1916. It was a very long drive so we got out of the car just to walk around.
We stopped by Pilar port in Albay where we extended a few moments taking pictures of the scenery. After approximately five cementeries and traces of the recent El Verde trees planted along the highway, we arrive at Donsol, Sorsogon* in search for an affordable resort that would allow us to camp in. The Shoreline resort and resto looked the part so we pitched our tent within their territory – after waiting for the sun to set and taking pictures along the shore, that is.
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Us "foreigners" building the tent.
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| the closest we can get with the butandings |
Since Butanding (or whaleshark) watching season was still in March, April and May and would cost a littlemore around Php 3,000.00 (Php 1,700 = 7 people in a boat), we opted to go firefly watching in the river instead. We had arranged through the restaurant staff to inform their contacts in the boat boarding area that our group would be viewing fireflies so we left Shorelines fifteen minutes before 8 pm as advised.
Stopping by a boat boarding area we had passed by the Donsol River, we found out that they close at 8 pm and they weren't informed of our arrival. Fortunately, there was another boarding area a few miles away in Ugod River, where we were actually listed. Cost? Php 1,500 per boat, good for five people.
A sign that an area is not yet polluted are the presence of fireflies, which dwell in coastal areas like Calabanga (like that one night during Summer A-WILL immersion when I walked out in the yard to fetch water and suddenly felt like a fairy with all the fireflies around me!). The motor boat took us along the path of the river and stopped by the few mangroves that had fireflies swarming in it. Their yellow green lights flickered on and off while our guide Josh gave us details about the firefly’s life cycle.
Capturing their lights on camera turned out to be harder than anyone of us anticipated. The use of flash was not allowed – you’d find yourself merely picturing the mangroves while the fireflies would disperse and get themselves together afterwards. I had to set my simplistic digital camera’s setting to 'night mode' and 'cloudy' while I increased the ISO to 1400 and exposure to +2 to capture anything at all. Here’s what I got.
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| Close-up of a firefly. Ate Jen cupped one with both of her hands while I attempted to click my camera at the same time its bulb-like little butt glowed. It’s great working with a cooperative model. Ha! |
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| Mga alitaptap/alipopot iyan. Maniwala ka! |
So far Fr. Ritche’s got the best shot of the bunch, though he admits not recalling how he got it. I had all these mental notes to myself with all the tidbits of tips of information from Father to Son: increase appecture, adjust the shutter speed, higher ISO...
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The weather was cloudy that morning, thus we saw no sunrise. We left the Shoreline that morning for the Astillero nearby (the Astillero is supposedly the largest shipyard in Bicol). But it turned out the archeological site of the place was no longer there; any remnants were relocated somewhere else by a high official of the land. O_O
Our next stop was in Ligñon Hill back in Albay where one could view Mount Mayon and the whole town of Albay at its feet. The first time I went there a few years ago with relatives, the place was still under construction and the sky was cloudy. It was still cloudy and rainy when we came up, though cars and food were no longer allowed to go all the way to the top and the small center is open for a few business enterprises. The zip line is still there, but this all the rain and the budget consideration (cost of the riding the zip line=P250 per head), all we can do is watch wistfully at the lucky boy or girl gliding in the air.
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Tribe Art Souvenir shop, where I bought a simple but this pretty pendant below that almost looked like a moonstone.
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| tumbling down? |
We also checked out Embarcadero, the lighthouse along the port in Albay, though it would have been better to visit these venues at night. The weather didn’t seem to cooperate this time.
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embarcadero!
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| best friends forever |
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| a sour note during the trip. |
Last stop was in Cagsawa ruins, which managed to survive Reming back it 2009, though I’m not so sure whether the stores now stationed outside the park actually did back in those times. With the limited time, all I did was hop from one store to another in search for a sturdy backpack or a hat. I ended up with a hat:
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| A cute summer hat in the store. Better than spending Php 500+ for ones they sell at the malls. |
To whom do we dedicate this trip? Why for none other than Jenny Fernandez, of course! Adios, Ate Jen! Who will do my liquidation for me? Who will bring me my favourite kandingga? Who will disrupt me from work and agitate ourselves with the freaky public announcement system? With your dedication to your work and not to mention calmness amidst all complaints, who wouldn't hire you? I sincerely hope that you have a good (and safe) time while you're in Manila. Don't forget to shower us with your blessings once you're on the top! Hehehe! ;)
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| Adios, Fernandez! See you later! |
*from the word Solsog, meaning "against the tide."
