Balancing Work and Wanderlust: My 2024 Travel Calendar As I Strive To Get 5/5 APR At Work

"One a year, go somewhere you have never been before."

I have this line from Dalai Lama pasted on a page of one of my diaries. As far as I'm concerned, I'm following this for the rest of my life.

Side Note: My monthly brunch with my best friends is not on this post. You may reach them here: https://bit.ly/2024_The_Exploderz_Brunch_Diary.

JAN (Weekend Travel): My year started with a trip to Zambales with my work circle. It's a weekend trip lang since lahat kami eh sadyang busy the following week. We just

needed a breather from everything we did during the holidays. And I'd say, goal achieved!

Sobrang chill lang ng experience namin sa Limliwa Beach Resort: watching the sunset while having random conversations with cocktails in our hands, swimming even before the sun rose the next day, and also, having that seafood lunch right before we went home!

Then, came the last weekend of the month. This was my second year attending the Lupi Festival in Lumban, Laguna through the invite of my partner's friend.

Aside from the festival experience of suddenly getting wet because the people had a free pass na mangbasa on that day, I super enjoyed our side trip to Liliw where we got to see artisans-made shoes and slippers plus got to have coffee and kesong puti cheesecake at Arabela.

FEB (Art Appreciation): Nothing much happened this month except randomly discovering the yummy food of Bistro Ravioli. This month was supposed to be the Art Appreciation Month of 2024 pero wala kaming naging ganap kahit isa sa museum.

But to still enjoy the public holidays sa buwan na 'to, we went to Binondo the day before Chinese New Year for that Chinese food goodness. We also had coffee sa isang rooftop cafe, sarap ng flat white nila.

Mabuti na lang talaga eh hindi kami sa actual na Chinese New Year pumunta, napakaraming tao, hirap na hirap kaming maglakad, parang pila papasok sa concert venue ni Taylor Swift if ever man na magkaroon dito sa Pilipinas.

We are yet to have a proper Binondo Food Crawl but I'm hoping that we'll have one before this year ends. Probably dalawa lang kami ni Art para hindi mahirap magdecide kung saan kakain at ano lang ang kakainin.

Last entry for this month ay ang first time coffee experience namin sa The Usual Coffee. It's a nearby coffee shop, siguro mga 15 minutes from our house. Your usual coffee orders lang ang nasa menu nila, talk about being true to their name, right? The good thing about it eh talagang perfect ang pagkagawa nila sa bawat order. I had Sea Salt Latte but it's the best I ever had.

MAR (Food Appreciation): Pagpasok pa lang ng buwan, may entry na kaagad ako. My constants sa work and I spent three nights sa Dasol, Pangasinan. Dagat pero super calm, hindi mo talaga ramdam ang alon.

Chill lang talaga: kain, tulog, Netflix, inom, repeat. Ganda sanang mag-island hopping pero sobrang init kaya hindi na namin pinush. Tampisaw na lang sa mababaw ding beach nila kaya sobrang enjoy din kami kahit na wala kaming activities.

Kahit na medyo disappointing ang accommodation na nakuha namin, we found new friends sa restaurant kung saan kami kumain ng pitong beses dahil sa sarap ng mga luto nila. It's just called La Manila, managed by two friends na chefs ng Philippine Airlines bago mag-pandemic. Sa trip na 'to first time kong natikman ang Tequila Rose at Baileys.

It's our second time attending the Manila Coffee Festival, una noong introductory year nila. Ang daming bago this year. Pero ang pinakatumatak sa akin eh ang chocolate coated coffee beans. Sarap! We bought a jar and three tin cans, inuunti-unti namin ng kain. Though grabe ang tapang, kapag antok na antok ako, I ate five pieces at naitatawid na ako until end of my shift.

This month, we also tried a new restaurant sa Glorietta, new to us, at least. It's called Mamak Kopitiam. I super enjoyed their strawberry syrup coolers and roti. Sarap ng dips ng roti nila, my fave dip was the one that kinda smelled like bagoong pero may hindi ako ma-figure out na ingredients that probably made it the Malaysian version.

Since mawawala na rin sa Ayala Museum ang Hymen, oh Hymenee ni Juan Luna, we decided to see it for the second time since libre din naman ang entrance. All I can say is nagkaroon ako ng deeper understanding of the painting when I saw it for the second time. That feeling na nagkaroon ako ng rush of ideas dahil sa nakita kong painting, I couldn't explain the feeling pero para siyang pinagsama-samang rage and love. Maybe intense passion is a better to describe it?

On another subject, it's my first time meeting my online Filipino teammate since malipat ako ng department last July 2023. It was just a very short meet-up, we just had coffee but what I liked about it was we were able to set up a then monthly teambuilding kahit na dadalawa lang naman kami.

Dapat luluwas kami ng Metro Manila for the Holy Week and enjoy the beach kaso ang sobrang traffic paalis at pauwi ang naisip namin. So we just stayed in a nearby hotel on Maundy Thursday, visited seven churches for the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday, and went to Taal, Batangas on Black Saturday. We were supposed to attend an Easter Mass pero nagkasakit ako kaya we just stayed at home.

APR (Birthday Travel): This is my partner's birthday month so we went to San Juan, La Union to celebrate. We spent four days and three nights in San Juan savoring the food, coffee, and some alcohol of the nearby restaurants, cafes, and bars in between enjoying sunrises and sunsets on the beach.

I finally had a photo beside a surfboard on the beach! And of course, my morning taho ritual on the beach sa unang umaga ng travel.

For the places that we went to, I enjoyed Karruba Cafe and Bakery for its creative pastries, Sabong Fried Chicken for its honey-bagoong fried chicken, Shogun Cafe & Bar for its cocktails and coffee, Putik Friends Pottery Studio and Cafe for its coffee and mugs, and Kabsat for its delicious dishes.

Disappointment for me ang Coco Mama saka El Union. Coco Mama kasi ordinary dessert lang siya, nothing new. I thought it's something na hindi ko makakain anywhere else. El Union, dito ako sobrang na-disappoint. Akala ko napakasarap ng dirty horchata nila, without the cinnamon, ordinary coffee lang na nilagyan ng gatas.

We also had a side-trip to Luna, La Union to see Bahay na Bato and Baluarte after naming mag-check-out sa hotel. Iniwan na lang muna namin ang mga gamit namin sa hotel since pwede naman daw, para wala kaming gaanong dala. Nag-enjoy ako sa Bahay na Bato. Well, it's a museum kaya given na enjoy talaga ako doon. Although the second part of this side-trip which was the Baluarte, one of the old lighthouses of La Union eh medyo na-disappoint ako. Ang ganda ng view, yes! But since hindi naman managed ang lugar, ang daming tambay sa mismong lighthouse, hirap makakuha nang maayos na photo, kailangan mo pang magpapicture sa mga nag-o-offer doon na mag-picture sa'yo bago umalis sa background ang mga nakatambay na locals.

All-in-all, sobrang nagustuhan ko ang trip na 'to. I'll probably go back to learn how to surf. Maybe on my birthday next year?

Chill at Papakape's Pop-Up Cafe in Luneta Park.

Dulaang UP's Kung Paano Nanalo Sa Karera Si Rosang Taba and roamed around UP Diliman's acad oval after a very long time.

MAY (Anniv Staycation): No idea yet.

JUN (Class Break): Weeklong Vacation (Ilo-Ilo, Bacolod, Guimaras)

JUL (Travel Break):

AUG (Travel Break):

SEP (Birthday Travel):

OCT (Travel Break):

NOV (Travel Break):

DEC (Winter Holidays):

Sagada 2023: Fulfilling A Childhood Dream

"Bata pa lang ako, pangarap ko nang makapunta sa isang lugar na malamig kapag Pasko, iyong tipong ang taas ng araw pero balot na balot ang buo kong katawan."

This would have never happened this year. After feeling under the weather for over a week, I convinced myself this trip had to be canceled. Thanks to my partner, he persuaded me to go on this trip with him, of course.

Packing for a trip had always been a challenge for us, and it's no different this time. After four hours of packing, we finally went to the bus station. As an additional challenge, taxis were nowhere to be found. So, we decided to just take a tricycle. The bus left the station at exactly 07:00 PM, just five minutes after our arrival. The trip was smooth as I expected, with occasional coughs and sneezes in the background from several passengers, including myself.

After five hours, we arrived at the Baguio City terminal, but we had to wait for almost two and a half hours for our connecting bus trip to Sagada. At the bus station, people flocked as we waited for the first trip, which thankfully left around 02:30 AM. It took us six hours to get to the Sagada Centro, after several stop-overs and many steep zigzag roads, just in time to register at the Tourist Information Center.

Our supposed check-in time was noon, but the guests before us had already checked out a couple of hours ago; that was why the receptionist checked us in around 09:00 AM. After settling in, we decided to have a late breakfast at the inn's restaurant. The food was generally good, except for some weird combinations of vegetables and mixed condiments. After, we decided to take a nap and explore the nearby establishments in the afternoon.

Around 03:00 PM, we went to the only museum in the town proper, Ganduyan Museum. It showcases things that the people of Sadada use in their daily lives. There's not much in the museum except for the catalogs with short narratives of the artifacts in the exhibit. There's an entrance fee of Php 100.00 per person.

I know that it's for the maintenance of the museum and the salary of its personnel, but I think it's a bit much. For one, the artifacts don't look well-maintained. It's as if after putting them on the shelves, that's it, no cleaning of any sort. Also, visitors have to remove their footwear before entering, which I understand was a measure to keep the place clean. But if you're exploring in slippers, good luck with the cold floor. All-in-all, it's a good experience to see what the lives of their ancestors looked like, but the museum could use some more love and care.

After spending half an hour in the museum, we decided to grab some snacks at Yoghurt House and Gaia Cafe. Yoghurt House's best-selling yoghurt was amazing. I think the coconut shreds and honey elevated this dessert, not to mention the perfect strawberry marmalade. We also ordered Bolognese pasta. I think there's nothing special about this pasta, except for the fact that the pasta was cooked al dente. Also, toasted bread could have been a better side. After an hour here, we decided to visit Gaia Cafe. From Yoghurt House, we had to take a roughly 10-minute tricycle ride. Good thing, our driver was so chatty that she informed us that it would be better if someone would fetch us after our stay, since tricycles were rare in the area. We ordered coffee and cookies while waiting, and we just basked in the cold breeze of the afternoon with the picturesque view of the fields at the back of the cafe. The cafe closed at 06:00 PM, but our tricycle driver arrived 15 minutes later because of heavy traffic.

We spent the time before our dinner at 08:00 PM just resting. I was able to catch some sleep while my boyfriend was browsing social media. Dinner at the Log Cabin was exceptional. We had to wait for almost 30 minutes while standing because many customers were still in the queue when we arrived. Good thing, the line for two people was very short. I ordered their smoked ham, and it's the best homemade ham that I've tasted so far.

For our second day, we woke up around 04:30 AM to catch the 05:00 AM bus to witness the sea of clouds at Isang Wow Cafe during sunrise. Unfortunately, the place was already crowded with other tourists, so we decided to only order a cup of coffee. It was disappointing, though, that it took them almost two hours to serve two cups of coffee. And the coffee tasted of nothing. It's as if it's just hot water with black food coloring. As for the view, it's nothing less than spectacular. We were able to see the clouds moving, and if they had moved a little towards us, we could have touched them.

Around 07:00 AM, we decided to go back to downtown to get our breakfast. We initially planned to eat breakfast at Sagada Bistro, but we found out that they open around lunchtime. We then opted to eat breakfast at Salt & Pepper. However, around this time, they only served breakfast items on their menu. There's nothing much to say about their breakfast other than marami, but your typical Pinoy breakfast items. After, we decided to have dessert at Lemon Pie House. Their lemon pie and egg pie were to die for. I will go back to Sagada to eat them again. They were perfect with their hot lemon tea.

After this, we returned to our accommodation to get some rest and resume our tour in the afternoon. Around 01:00 PM, we were already heading to Sagada Pottery. It's very near our accommodation, but since we didn't know that at first, we took a tricycle to get there. The demo they provided cost us Php 200.00 per group, regardless of the number of people in a group. I'd say it's a very short demo. It only contained a 2-minute brief history of Sagada Pottery and almost 10 minutes of telling us the basics of making a vase, pitcher, bowl, and cup. The items on sale cost at least Php 700.00. They also had an online shop, which was why we decided to only buy one item, and thought that it was better to buy the rest online since they sell them at the same price. After spending 45 minutes here, the extra 15 minutes waiting for another tricycle, we went to Sega Tours to book our Hanging Coffins itinerary.

It only took us 15 minutes to book our tour, and then we found ourselves already having a mini trek to go to the starting point, St. Mary's Church. I think this was the most challenging part of this activity since, instead of utilizing the paved road, to avoid traffic, we took some outskirt paths through the residential areas. Before we started our trek, we had to pay an entrance fee of Php 10.00 per person. While on our way to the scenic site, we passed through an Anglican cemetery. After almost 10 minutes of downhill and uphill trekking, we finally reached the hanging coffins of Sagada. As a talkative person, I was able to get as much information from our tour guide. Knowing the rich culture and tradition behind this practice was worth the breathtaking trek. After our trek, we decided to rest in front of St. Mary's Church. We just sat there, appreciating the beauty of the structure itself. Sobrang peaceful sa pakiramdam just sitting there with my partner kahit na medyo marami ring tao sa paligid. And I found myself daydreaming that someday somewhere I'll be in a place in winter enjoying the first fall of snow, holding a hot coffee in my left hand and a croissant in my right hand beside my partner with our dog. Then, I was pulled back to reality when my boyfriend said that we had to go and eat a late lunch.

So we walked to Sagada Bistro, it's just walking distance if you're used to walking. I had their pork sisig, and it's the best among all the sisigs that I've tasted. The ambiance of the place was very homey. Though I just didn't like that the place was a bit warmer than I would have wanted it to be, probably that's just because they wanted to keep the warm air inside since it's very cold during the night. But their food was very good, even the baked chicken that my partner ordered.

To cap off our day, we decided to have coffee at Bana's Coffee. I ordered their Spanish latte and it was one of the best that I've ever tasted. Although their al fresco tables were already occupied, we decided to stay for an hour while having our coffee. The place was decent enough for me to enjoy my stay while drinking my coffee, despite not being able to order any pastry.

Once we were back at our accommodation, we decided to take a nap. However, it led to a full-blown sleep, at least for me. Around 09:00 PM, my partner was a little hungry and decided to have cup noodles downstairs. I was so recharged after this much-needed rest because we had to check out around 07:00 AM the following day to catch the bus to Baguio. The trip was a bit longer than we anticipated because of traffic. We arrived at Baguio around 02:30 PM. Since a Good Taste branch was only a few steps from the Dangwa Bus Terminal, we decided to have a late lunch there. Their food was still as good as our first lunch there a few years ago. And their servings, good for two people, were still good for four to five people, just like before. As expected, we had to take out some leftovers.

Around 4:00 PM, we checked into our accommodation, City Center Hotel, which was just a walking distance from the bus terminal. Unfortunately, we were unable to participate in some nighttime activities, such as the night market and dinner, because my partner fell ill. We just slept in since our bus trip down from Sagada was also very taxing. Around midnight, I woke up and decided to eat the leftovers from the restaurant.

After having breakfast, I went to Baguio Public Market alone and just let my partner rest in our suite. I bought our supply of coffee beans, strawberries for my homemade jam, some lemons, and honey. Around 11:00 AM, we decided to check out already and left our bags in the reception because we still had some plans before heading home.

Right after checking out, sakay kaagad ng taxi pa-Camp John Hay. Since we were only there to have coffee, we were seated in a cozy corner near the coffee bar. I had a cappuccino and jowa and I shared a slice of ube cheesecake with macapuno. One of the best cheesecakes I've tried, I must say. Masarap din na may caramel sauce. We also spent some minutes strolling around The Manor and taking some photos.

Massage at North Haven Spa

Dinner at Tsokolateria

Left Baguio at 1145PM