BACOLOD by itinerary

I am the type of traveler who would know how to arrange  my travel or cross border Odyssey on my own based from research and google. I do list down the popular destinations or spots I want to visit but I don't necessarily follow an itinerary. So it was different the last time when I traveled with my friends. Ren, my friend made an itinerary which to my surprise we followed religiously the time we got to the destination. Everytime I ask her to skip one spot we couldn't easily find, she would fret and flip telling me we should follow her itinerary she copied from 'Byahe ni Drew".

.....so here goes her itineray....

Bacolod Itinerary (December 05 -06)

Day 01: Bacolod

·         Arrival in Bacolod Silay Airport @ 5:50am

·         Tour in Silay City - Paris of Negros

How to get there from the airport:

ü  Airport Shuttle Service approximately 10mins via J. Pitong Ledesma Street; drop off at Rizal Street 

Places to visit:

Ø  El Ideal Bakery for Breakfast (118 Rizal Street)

§  Drop off to El Ideal is just 1min by walking for us 5mins

The van dropped us off near the bakery. We arrived too early, the bakery was still closed. And we had to eat here since eating here was what was dictated on her itinerary, so we had to wait.

It was cool to eat here. The place must have been really famous. Imagine a bakery in the province that offers dining and pasalubong.

 One of the best pasalubong. We snacked on some dried squid while discussing where to go next.

My brekky!

§  El Ideal to Pink House ; 10min-walk (just go straight ahead to Rizal St)

Ø  Don Bernardino - Jalandoni Ancestral House - Pink House (Rizal St)

Ø  San Diego Cathedral - must visit! Looks like St. Peter's Basilica in Rome

§  Pink House to San Diego Cathedral and Silay City Hall; 7min-walk (right to Burgos St - left to Roque Hofileña St - left to Zamora St)

Ø  Picture at Silay City Hall

Ø  Angel Araneta Ledesma House - Green House (Gamboa St)

§  Silay City Hall to Green House; 2min-walk (from Zamora St turn right to Gamboa St)

§   Green House to Hofileña; 3min-walk (from Gamboa St turn left to Burgos St - left to Cinco de Noviembre St)

Ø  Hofileña Ancestral House (Cinco De Noviembre St) 

§  Hofileña to my hacienda; 1min-walk (beside each other)

§  My Hacienda to Balay Negrense; 3 min-walk (same street)

Ø  Carlos JAVELOSA Jalandoni Ancestral House :) (Cinco De Noviembre St)

Ø  Balay Negrense - Heritage House and Museum (Cinco De Noviembre St)

What's with the colored houses? seriously.

§  Done in Silay City

·         Talisay City

Ø  The Ruins

Ø  Go Hotel to leave things or if possible to check in

§  Go Hotels to The Ruins; approx 20mins by transpo

We had to ride a jeepney going to Talisay and ride another tricycle to take us to The Ruins. Tourists are gold mine here. Tricycle drivers charge so high, taxi/cab charge high as well 

My friends paid Php 95 and I paid P 40 since I'm a graduate student :P

The beautiful Taj Mahal of Philippines

LUNCH

·         Murcia City

Ø  Mambukal Mountain Resort

Trekking to 7 Waterfalls, Zipline

§  Libertad Terminal minibus ride going to Mambukal

There were no airconditioned buses. 

I don't get why we went here, upon arrival my two friends got us a Tour Guide to see the 7 Waterfalls.

I was surprised again for the nth time we had to Trek to see those waterfalls. We were not prepared, I was wearing my ballet shoes and I had my heavy camera with me. 

My first time in a long time to Trek, in my ballet shoes. 

Ø  Back to Hotel to change clothes, freshen up, rest

We had to be at the foothill exactly at 5:30PM to catch the last bus at 6:00 PM. The window of the minibus was open my face caught all the dirt carried by the wind. 

Ø  Manokan Country for Dinner

Bacolod is famous for 'Chicken Inasal' and according to Byahe ni Drew, Aida's Restaurant is the best place to get the authentic inasal.

 My favorite! Oysters

 The 'authentic' bacolod chicken inasal

 The day was freaking tiring

 The adventurous mates I've got

Ø  Party!!!! 

(Ren's itinerary says PARTY, which never happened)

Ø  Bong-Bong's pasalubong (GaisanoCity)

Day 02: Bacolod to Dumaguete

·         ETD in Go Hotels @ 6:00am to catch the 6:55am trip to Dumaguete

·         Off to South Terminal; 15 mins from Go Hotel

(From Lacson Street turn left to Luzuriaga Street then right to Lopez Jaena Street)

The evergreen plains and field of Bacolod, Negros Occidental

Pancake house | eating dinner alone

WHY IS LIFE LIKE EATING DINNER ALONE?

Sometimes I catch myself completely zoned out, probably due to avalanche of work that I can't help but worry and think about all the time. The best comforting for worries like this is spending time alone and eating alone. 

Pancake house has the best blueberry cheesecake, but I wouldn't want to eat pancake for dinner. I wish I could spend a morning breakfast here alone. 

Ritz for snacks

Always needed that 'me time' not talking to anybody just relaxing alone while munching on my favorite chips. 

Ritz is best with black coffee! And this biscuit with cheesy filling is what I always try to find everytime I walk in the grocery.

It has made my life even more convenient since Mercury Drug stores now have it on their shelves! 

Go hotels Bacolod

I am not so fussy and finicky about my hotel rooms. The only things that are important to me are security, safety and cleanliness. Hospitality of the staff is a bonus. And I always prefer hotel rooms with double lock and doors with a peephole. 

When we went to Bacolod, the only decent accommodation we found was Go Hotels, it's just at the back of Robinsons mall so it was easy to find. 

The beds were crisp and fresh and the light inside the room was very relaxing. After a day of trekking the mountains, it felt so good to sleep in a hotel room. And the bed was mine alone as my mates shared the other bed.

The only downside thing for travelers is, you pay for just a sleepover. It's not that economical, imagine we only slept like less than six hours for we had to get up early and head to our next destination. And the room already costs us less than three thousand without breakfast.

My friend booked us the hotel room so I didn't get her when she was telling me something about Go hotels room reservation being the same as booking flights. What she meant was the earlier you book the cheaper you'll get your room. 

The reception looks like a ticketing office.

The lobby is spacious and the seats look like seats in the lobby of a company.

The staff were nice. Hotels should really be keen on training their staff especially the front office to be nice and accommodating not only to the guests but to their workmates.

Tea latte @ Coffee Bean

Thanks to Mega World Planner with loads of coupons, we had a relaxing afternoon while sipping on double vanilla tea latte we got at 50% OFF!

My best friend is crazy for Coffee Bean's hot chocolate drink ever since, and I always remember her whenever I see this cafe. I think I should invite her to try their tea lattes since she's back in PH for short vacation.

Happy Tummy at Manam MOA

'Twas my students' graduation, and I had to be there and see them march their way to success even if I ain't teaching in college anymore. So after work I went straight to the event.

 Seeing how they smile in front of the camera, they for sure were happy to see again their one and only favorite Tourism Instructor :P

And my closest student who is like a sister to me relied on my expertise on choosing the best restaurant in the metro for celebration and dinner. Since she's still on medication that time and on recovery from her allergy, I suggested we eat at Manam for dinner. 

Manam in MOA is more spacious than the one in Greenbelt, and the servers here are more accommodating.

We only ordered few dishes, since the celebrant couldn't eat and was not allowed to eat anything but vegetables.

I forgot the name of this dish, not so pretty yes, but definitely tasty.

SOUP

I never expected how good Manam's fried chicken was! The juice of the chicken dances in full flavor inside my mouth and it smelled so good like a plate wouldn't be enough.

And my favorite watermelon beef brisket soup that I recommend to all my friends. Killer!

Antigua Cafe in Lucena

It's been quite awhile since I last ate in one of those old existing restaurants of Lucena. Aside from Hacienda Inn and Dex Diner, Antigua located downtown Lucena has marked its credibility for sumptuous servings of homey dishes.

Viands sold here would range from Php 120.00 and up if I am not mistaken. My mother would always buy their Jumbo Asado Siopao, and my father would always bring that siopao as pasalubong for my mom. And my personal favorite here is their cathedral gelatin that melts in the mouth.

The clattering sound of plates and the chitchats of old people made me feel like we're in China. Lucena in fact has a very active Chinese Community, one specialty of Antigua that people comes here for is the 'chami'. The Pansit Chami is a native delicacy derived from the Chinese words Cha/Chăocài which means stir-fry.

Quezon Av, Lucena City

(042) 710 3531

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