beautiful bicol - part tu

I thought Day 2 was hard to top.  Pero kapag back to nature ang usapan, it’s something else.  And Morga – an area just outside Guinobatan proper - gave it to us where we were hosted by Mark’s family sa kanilang coconut hacienda.  The crisp, clean air and the lush greenery was so relaxing habang nakikipag-kwentuhan with Daddy Ronnie and Mark’s Dad while Mark poses with his mom and sisters sa kubong nasa tabi ng bahay nila na ginawa naming kainan at tambayan the whole day.

 

Buko juice with luscious buko meat greeted us pagtapos ng medyo mahabang lakaran paakyat sa lugar nina Mark.  Then lunch is served – inihaw na tilapia, ginataang yellow fin tuna, at gulay na lubi-lubi na noon ko lang natikman. At ang meryenda – ang masarap na nilupak na kamoteng kahoy na hanggang ngayon ay natatakam pa ako pag naaalala ko. yummm

As usual, nabusog sa masarap na pagkain kaya inantok.  But as I tried to get some sleep dahil very conducive to siesta ang sarap ng hangin, naririnig ko ang masayang kwentuhan. Ah to heck with siesta,  nakigulo na rin ako sa masayang tawanan

 

Na nauwi sa masayang tagayan with the cool dads and dudes of Guinobatan.  Gabi na naman kami nakauwi ng aming homebase with wide smiles on our faces dahil sa masayang araw sa Morga

Day 4 and we’re off to Ligao to visit the Kawa-kawa Natural Park.  It’s actually a hill kaya akyatan na naman ang labanan.  But it’s one climb we didn’t mind dahil may religious relevance ito.  This is where the Divine Mercy Shrine and Oratory is located.  Sa mga relihiyosong tulad ni Kuya Eddie, it’s something you should’nt miss when you’re in Albay area. The pic above is the Basilica na under construction pa pero dinadayo na ng mga nagsisimba specially that Sunday morning na nandoon kami .

Right after the Basilica is this impressive rendition of the Last Supper which is the First Station of the Cross.  Kung mahina-hina ang tuhod mo, dito pa lang mag-pray ka na na bigyan ka ng lakas to carry you through the climb! Sabi sa signage, 1,043 meters ang total height ng aakyatin namin.  Lord have mercy!

 

But unlike Lignon Hill na wala kang gagawin kundi humingal at umaray, dito sa Kawa-kawa ay hindi mo masyadong mararamdaman ang pagod.  You’ll surely do stops dahil dadaanan mo ang 2nd to 7th station of the cross as you make your way to the top.  Pagdating sa tuktok, doon nakapaikot ang iba pang stations up to the 14th.  Yong bundok kasi ay parang isang maliit na volcano na may dip sa gitna at rim na paikot sa itaas.  Think of a kawali or a wok.  Ganon ang porma noong taas ng bundok, thus the name. So as you circle the rim passing through the stations of the cross, may option ka to look out and see the view surrounding the bundok or look inwards and down to the base of the kawa where there’s an inviting bed of sunflowers waiting for you. 

Here’s a couple of breathtaking views when you’re looking out from the top rim of the Kawa-kawa park.

Pagtapos mong kumpletuhin ang stations of the cross at mamangha sa view ng paligid, baba ka naman sa pinaka-dip sa gitna noong kawa where you can get chummy with the cheerful sunflowers or ram your ATV into a tree! Hahaha..

 

By lunch time balik na kami ng homebase where another mouthwatering lunch courtesy of Daddy Ronnie awaits us. At habang kumakain, may kumakanta na dahil dumating na ang videoke (they call it video singko) na ni-rent ni Mommy Cel. 

At syempre pag may videoke, may kasunod na tagayan!  Again with the cool dads and dudes of Guinobatan, it was a night of tawanan, tagayan, kwentuhan at kantahan which is a fitting way to end our Bicol experience.

 

Need I say na super enjoy kami kaya noong paalis na kami the following day, I felt sad.  It’s something you wouldn’t want to end kahit alam mong bakasyon lang yon at kailangan mo nang bumalik sa dati mong buhay.  Well, again, it’s because of the place and specially the warm, nice and sincere faces we met kaya super enjoy ang Bicol vacation na ito.  It’s something I’ll definitely do again. Soon, I hope!