Foodtrip at CamSur Watersports Complex

After an almost 4 hour  journey from Caramoan, we were back in Naga City. We asked the van driver to let us know where we should alight to go to CWC in Naga City. The driver stopped at a 7/11 convenience store and told us we could ride a tricycle there and tell the driver to bring us to CWC.

If riding a bus or a jeepney, tell the driver you are going to Capitol or Kapitolyo. There you could hire a tricycle at Php 10/pax. The place is called Kapitolyo because it is where you could find the municipal hall and other government offices in Naga City.

Can you go to CWC even if you will not do wakeboarding? Of course! There is no entrance fee in CWC. However, if you will just watch those who are wakeboarding and wish to be seated near the lagoon, out of courtesy, at least buy something to drink or eat. The food in CWC is not too expensive and the servings are huge.

We ordered 3 Cheese with Roasted Garlic Pizza and Pork Barbeque with rice and some sodas. If you wish to try something different, they have a Bicolano (or laing) pizza. Laing is a local delicacy in Bicol that has taro leaves stewed in coconut milk and chili. Bicolanos are known for spicy dishes, most of which are infused with coconut milk. 

Here’s their 2-pc. Barbeque with Java Rice. The serving is big enough that you could just order another rice and it will be good for two!

I love their pizza! Thin-crust pizza with Garlic and Mozzarella, Cheddar and Parmesan cheese. Yeah, it’s the CHEESY me again.

Their pool is big enough., but it seems that people here are more interested in watersports than having a dip in the pool.

This is their snack bar where you could order some tummy filling pica-pica or even rice meals! They also have sumptuous desserts.

If you will go wakeboarding, there are a variety of equipment available for rent.

The good news is, if you are a  group and wants to have an extreme adventure in CWC, they have an ongoing promo. Promo is until November 30, 2011, so you have still have a month to tag your friends along!

After lunch, we headed back to SM Naga to buy some pasalubong (Suspiros de Pili, Pili Tarts, Shirts, etc.). Then we rode a bus bound to Lagonoy and alight at the corner going to the airport, where we hired a pedicab at Php 15/pax.

That ends our Bicolandia birthday bash. ‘Til next year!

A Quick Food Tour at Naga City, Camarines Sur

 Because of the delayed/cancelled whatever you call that flight, we arrived in Naga City a little before 6:00 pm. So, we weren’t able to go to CWC as originally planned. 

We checked in at the Golden Leaf Hotel, where I booked a double room for Php600 a night. The website says the hotel is walking distance from SM Naga and the bus terminal. The distance though is like from Paseo Ave. in Makati City to the Ayala MRT station. So if you have heavy baggage or doesn’t want to walk that far, hire a tricycle and it will take you to the hotel at Php 8/pax.

The hotel has very basic amenities. At Php600, do not expect duvet blankets and a pillow bar. The double room has obviously a double bed, a TV that’s mounted on the wall (I am almost convinced we were in a hospital), a dinning table and 2 monoblock chairs. The room is airconditioned though, so for Php600, I guess it’s worth it. Anyways, we just slept a night here.

The bathroom has provision for hot water but we couldn’t figure out how to operate it so we just dealt with a cold morning shower instead.

After leaving our stuff at the hotel, we hired a tricycle to go back to SM Naga. Actually, we were still entertaining the idea of going to CWC but was told that public transpo there is until 9pm only and that I could be difficult for us to go back once we missed the last trip to the city center.

As we were so hungry because our first flight was supposedly at 12:00 nn, and Cebu Pacific did not even bother to give us something to eat while guessing whether will be able to fly for the day, we went straight to the food court to have dinner. We were clueless where to eat so we just watched the food stations and see which one has the most number of customers. It turned out it was GEEWAN. So we browse at their offerings and binggo! We saw Bicol Express!

Here’s GEEWAN’s Bicol Express. Do not underestimate this dish,as you may find its serving too small. But this one is terrible! It’s spicy to the max! Now I believe what my friends told me that in Bicol, Bicol Express is a chili stew with a bit of pork, not the other way around, as what it is in Manila. This one gets a double thumbs up from me.

Hubby ordered Dinuguan and puto. For one, this is the only time I saw Dinuguan with “colored/flavored” puto on the side, as it is usually Putong Puti that comes with this Pinoy delicacy. And two, this is also the first time I tried Dinuguan with Gata! It’s yummy! Later that evening, I saw myself digging into his bowl than my bowl of Bicol Express. LOL

We also ordered Lechon Kawali to match the 2 dishes. Nothing special but it goes well with both the dishes. And take note, we ordered rice for 3 pax. =)

 After eating dinner, we went back to the hotel and realized that we cannot do a thing in there so we decided to go out again and have a walk around the city. We came across this church in the plaza, where you can also find Bigg’s Diner, Mc Do and Starview Hotel.

Here’s the statue at the plaza.

Then we saw Bigg’s Diner and told hubby I want to eat dessert. So we went in and saw for ourselves the reason why many people recommends this place.

The setting is very London-ish. It also looks like FRIDAYs. It was a bit late already but the diner is still ooozzzzinggg with customers.

When I went near the counter, I immediately saw a row of ramekins containing what appeared like chocolate souffle. I told myself, aha! Molten Chocolate Cake! I immediately ordered 2, ala mode. I also saw their wide range of offerings and promised myself I will definitely go back to try their chicken and burger. Looks so yummy!

This one is so cute! 

And this is my favorite piece inside Bigg’s Diner, a very huge Audrey Hepburn’s glass panel. So nostalgic!

I wonder why there is no Bigg’s Diner in Manila? Or is there?

Here’s my Molten Chocolate Cake ala mode. The outer part is crispy why the inner part is rich, chewy and chocolatey! It’s a bit heavy but I finished this one. Though it is not at par with Purple Oven’s and NYORk’s Choco Lava cake, it is one thing you should try when you go to Naga.

After having that yummy dessert, we went back to the hotel to sleep early, getting ready for the next day’s adventure – Caramoan, here we come!

Deja Vu: Cebu Pacific’s flight to Naga City

Yearly, I and hubby celebrates our birthday with a “major, major” trip. So this year, we decided to go on a 4-day Naga-Caramoan trip. Thanks to Cebu Pacific’s piso seat sale, we scored our RT tickets at P900+ for two pax. 

Cebu Pacific’s flight to Naga utilizes an ATR plane. Remember my post about ATR’s and Q400’s in my Coron post? Yeah, I was nervous while we wait for boarding, as I smell flight cancellations that day since the weather was quite mad.

But then, when we were asked to board, I almost jumped in excitement! 

ATRs are said to be unable to withstand bad weather conditions and are more susceptible to flight cancellations. That is why until we took off, I am still crossing my fingers that we land safely in Naga.Airphil Express Q400 aircrafts are faster and tougher than ATRs. So next time you book a Turboprop, check if it’s Q400 or ATR.

So while praying aboard, I kept myself busy by taking aerial photos. I love taking aerial photos because it makes me feel as if I am on top of the world, literally speaking. 

i saw some islands  and sandbars. It makes me more excited! I am not sure if these are still part of Camarines Sur, but one thing is for sure, I am so happy we have these in the Philippines. Why go abroad, when I have yet to see the best places in the Philippines?

 Then I realized we were roaming on top of these island for like four times already. Uh-oh, now I can really smell “CANCELLATION”. And I am right, the pilot announced that we have to go back to Manila since the weather in Naga is unfavorable. Oh no, has this happened before? Am I on a deja vu?

So we went back to Manila with no concrete explanation nor guidelines as to what to do next. We never hear anyone from Cebu Pacific say the flight is indeed cancel. Even the flight attendants said they do not know what’s going to happen. Talking about customer service…Paging Cebu Pacific.

The shuttle brought us to the arrival area. Still no one from the airline was there to lead us where to. We just followed the other passengers. This led us to the arrival area, where Customs usually is during international flight arrivals, and they have a signage that says “Cancelled flights proceed to E11”. So there, that says it all. Our flight was cancelled. 

We went to the E11 counter and asked the ground attendant what are our choices. He said, “Re-schedule the flight tomorrow.” Oh, as if that’s a choice. I believe choices are made where you could choose between options. Here, I cannot see any other option than to “re-schedule” the flight the next day. I got irritated. I told him if can we join the last flight for the day or just re-route the ticket elsewhere (even if it’s bound to Tuguegarao, believe me  I’ll grab it! We need a vacation!). He said they can only re-reoute the ticket to the nearest destination, and that the nearest destination is Legazpi, whose flight was also cancelled. He also said that he can rebook our flight to the last Naga flight of the day but we have to run because it’s boarding already. After he said that, he talked to someone over the radio and they were like grinning and having the time of their lives while we wait for our new boarding pass for a flight that was supposedly boarding already. Urgency apparently doesn’t ring a bell to him. Okay, now I am really annoyed. 

For one, I do not see the logic why airlines would only re-reoute your ticket to the nearest destination. Why would you push your passengers to the “nearest destination” when the weather in the original destination is unfavorable? Isn’t it non-sense to do so because the weather in the “nearest” destination might be the same as the weather in the original destination? Think about typhoon diameter. I know that weather is something beyond the airline’s control, but customer service is your call.

Number two, why would they tell us that the only option is to book the next day when the next thing they said is about re-booking it to the last flight of the day? Had I not ask about it, would they offer that option? I don’t think so. 

And lastly, why the hell would you consume your time talking to somebody on the radio with a not so urgent matter when in fact you have to attend to a more urgent matter? Remember, the flight you are giving us is “boarding” already. 

So we ran to the boarding gate after we got our boarding passes only to find out that the plane hasn’t arrived yet. And it follows that it is not yet time for boarding. GRRRRRR.

After how many minutes of waiting, we heard the boarding call and alas! We are going to Naga. 

I took photos again aboard. And finally, the pilot said “Cabin crew, prepare for landing.” Yahoooo!

I took photos of this mountain, thinking it was Mt. Mayon. I know I am wrong! It’s Mt. Isarog.

Naga City, here we go!!!!!

Upon arrival at the Naga Airport, taxis will call your attention and offer you a ride to the city. Taxis here are not metered. Fare is P250 up from airport to city. So we opt to ride the pedicab instead. This brought us to the main highway. Fare is P10-15, tell the driver ahead because when they know you are not from the place, they charge P20 up each. From the highway, ride a bus to Naga and tell the driver to drop you off at SM City Naga. The bus will actually have a pit stop at the terminal near SM City, so you could just walk to the mall. Fare is P10/pax. You can also alight at the Our Lady of Penafrancia Shrine before SM.