Overnight Stay at the Llamar Beach Resort in Laiya, Batangas

Alfred and I celebrated our first anniversary as a couple last May 7 and we decided to take a trip to Batangas with the baby girl.

We left Manila at around 2pm because Alfred had to bring the car to the car doctor, as Brianna calls it, to have some parts changed to make it safe for us to travel. We took the SLEx, naturally, and exited at the Calamba toll gate then headed towards the STAR Tollway. We exited at Sto. Toribio, Batangas to get to Lipa.

To those who need to know how much the toll fees at each exit are:

SLEx Brgy. Mapagong Calamba City, Laguna: Php 91.00

SLEx Brgy. Sainsin Calamba City, Laguna: Php 25.00

STAR Brgy. Sto. Toribio, Batangas: Php 29.00

STAR Brgy. Tambo Lipa City, Batangas: Php 6.00

Total: Php 151.00 (one way)

After 2 hours of driving in the vicinity of Batangas, we reached Brgy. Aplaya and headed straight to the Llamar Beach Resort. After checking in with Ate Baby - they didn't have a reception area, Ate Baby just welcomed us and led us straight to our room - we went to the beach to just walk on the shore for a bit, since the little girl wanted to play on the sand:

After a few minutes, we went back to our room - which, I don't have a photo of - and ate. We bought food at Andok's and drinks at the 7-11 in San Juan City since we weren't sure if there were such stores in Laiya (they have an Andok's shop, but no convenience store). Llamar Beach Resort doesn't require for you to pay for corkage fee for whatever you bring into the resort. Great, right?

We stayed in an apartment room, nearest the shore. It has a double-sized bed, a plastic table and stool set, a cabinet, and a basic restroom. The restroom was small but it was really clean. I just wished there was hot water because I had a toddler who isn't really used to taking a bath with cold water. 

Since we didn't bring anything from Manila except our clothes, we had warm beverage from 7-11. We had to ask Ate Baby for some ice and a bottle of Coke Light for our one-on-one drinking sesh. We also asked her for paper plates, paper cups, and plastic spoons and forks for our dinner.

A plastic of ice: Php 50.00

A bottle of Coke Light: Php 65.00

Paper plates and cups, and plastic spoons and forks: FREE! YAY!

After a good night's rest, we went to the beach after a very light breakfast to soak up the morning sun:

An hour after, Brianna asked us if we could finally eat breakfast:

We ate our leftovers, naturally, but we were told we could buy food from the resort. They had a common dining area near the pavilions where you could eat.

Anyway, after a few more hours at the beach, we headed home but not without fighting with a toddler who didn't want to leave the beach. Okay, I admit: Even I didn't want to leave yet.

The Llamar Beach Resort is quite cheap compared to all the other resorts in Laiya. Their rates start at Php 3,000 (that's the cost of our room!) Quite easy on the wallet, if you ask me.

There are 2 types of rooms in Llamar Beach Resort. There's the apartment:

And then the cottage, costing Php 6,500, at the most, and has 2 types:

They also allow daytrips in their resort. There are cabanas near the shore as well as a shower room beside the pavilion for those who chooses this option:

We haven't had the chance to see it because they were undergoing some maintenance when we were there.

Anyway, the rate for the cabanas start at Php 1,500. Quite cheap, especially if you are a group of 10 people. 150 a pop! Plus the Php 150 entrance fee for the daytrip, that's just Php 300. Of course, that's just an example. Hihi.

If you need more information about the Llamar Beach Resort, you can reach them through the following:

Contact numbers:
+639178137799 (Globe)
+639436904247 (Sun)
+639175326775 (Globe)
(02)7519863 (Landline)
Email Address: info.llamarbeachresort@gmail.com
Website: www.llamarbeachresort.com

They prefer to be contacted from 8am-5pm, Mondays to Sundays. You can also walk in, but of course, you'd have to pay in full instead of in an installment basis if you choose the reservation option.

If you are looking for a cheap place to stay in Laiya, Batangas, you should definitely give the Llamar Beach Resort a look. Pwede pang humabol sa summer vacation!

Day 2: #TeCasIlocosTour2015

I know I took a hella long time since I last posted about our Ilocos tour back in January but better late than never, right? Hihi!

We woke up really early January 16th for the second leg of our tour. We stayed at one of the resthouses along Saud Beach in Pagudpod. It's not much of a room, but that's to be expected in a place along the shoreline. I mean, you wouldn't spend much time in the room anyway.

We drove half an hour from the place we were staying at to visit the Patapat Bridge when we saw this pretty rainbow.

And then, the Patapat Bridge...which they also call the Patapat Viaduct.

Fun fact: The shoreline at the foot of Patapat Bridge is literally the edge of the Philippines. I would've taken a screenshot of the Google Maps app to let us know where we were but we were all Globe subscribers and Globe didn't have reception in the area. As in the whole of Pagudpod...I think. Haha!

After Patapat Bridge, we went to Paraiso ni Anton.

Paraiso ni Anton - also known as Calvario de Patapat - is a small waterfall that's believed to be magical. People who want to heal themselves or to prevent any sickness would drink or bathe water from this waterfall. Of course, I had Brianna experience this:

I just have to mention: I love Ilocos not only because it is the most beautiful place I have been to but also because their pasalubongs are really cheap! Their souvenir shirts cost PHP150 each and the quality of the shirts are great! I mean, I remember seeing shirts in Bora with the same price but the shirts would, like, melt after a few washes. But the Ilocos souvenir shirts? Pwedeng ipanglakad! The designs are classy, too!

After that miraculous waterfall, we headed to Blue Lagoon, the Boracay of the North but we just had to pass by the Timmangtang Rock - which I don't have photos of because the wind was blowing hard and no way was I risking getting sick during the trip - and the Kapurpurawan Rock Formations:

Pagbigyaaaaaaaan...

The Kapurpurawan Rock Formations was a very beautiful place and it gives a great view of the West Philippine Sea. It was quite gloomy the day we went there but the view still took my breath away. The rock formation itself, too, is something else:

We headed to the Boracay of the North for a little beach time and for lunch.

The shoreline of Blue Lagoon was where the 1980 movie starring Brooke Shields with the same title was shot. Of course, the name of the movie was where the place was named after.

Brianna is so addicted to the beach that she still went to play on the damp sand despite the very very very cold air.

We had food cooked by the locals who live by the beach. It cost us around 500 to have a kilo of crab, a kilo of shrimp, a whole clump of puki-puki (tortang talong but soooooooo much better than the way !), and like 5 kilos of rice cooked for us. The fee also included plastic spoons and forks, and paper plates and cups. Not bad, eh? You'd think I'd taken photos of the boodle table but noooooo. Everyone was so hungry, including me, that our phones hadn't made it out of our purses 'til we got back to the van.

We then headed to the Kaibigan Falls after but Brianna and I stayed behind because she was too tired, she fell asleep the moment we sat in the van. When they got back, they all were raving about how majestic the falls was, I was so jealous.

That was our last stop for the day and we headed back to Saud Beach for more beach time...

...and of course, take a photo of the sunset.

That ends our second day in the beautiful province of Ilocos. Day 3's packed, like day 1 so I might be writing it in 3 parts again. Hihi.

The problem with still living with your my parents...

I am a single mom. I got pregnant by my then-boyfriend - who's 10 years older than me and who I was going out with for a total of 3 months when it happened - but in the end, I decided against marrying him. I broke it off 2 years ago because, for the most part, I just stayed in the relationship because I thought that's what's best for my daughter and only then did I realize that's not the case. Not in that relationship.

Anyway, fastforward to 2015. I'm 26 now and I'm still living with my parents. I have enough money from online rakets (eh?) to move out and support Brianna and I for a few months - I've done, like, countless of budget computations and such - but I've this weird thing about money that I will only spend it if I have extra money. Pag saktuhan lang sa budget, no deal...  Yes, I am a scaredy cat like that.

Going back, I am thankful for the freebies and all. I mean, there are a lot of things that we get to have for free like a roof over our heads and water and stuff but alongside all that is one huge problem - at least for me: I don't get to make a decision without hearing the "Di mo man lang naisip mararamdaman namin" speech.

I am a pretty sensitive gal. A lot of my decisions, actually, are made by taking other people's emotions into consideration. Where I eat, what I do with my hair, everything. From time to time, yes, I decide on something that I feel is good for me - and it's not that often - but whenever I do, that's when I get the extended dance studio remix of the same song. I mean, yes, I understand that they're just looking out for me my daughter and I am thankful for that but I always tell them - because it's the truth - I won't do anything that will harm my daughter physically, emotionally, psychologically, etc. I have a couple of things in my head that they might be thinking of as reasons for me to be on the receiving end of such a sermon but I can assure them now that that is not the case...if only they could actually stop pretending that I'm an up-to-no-good teenager on a rebellion phase.

I am sure I don't have the answers to everything and I am most especially sure that I am going to need a lot of help in the coming years but I am also sure that I am capable of doing great things, if given the chance and that I am old enough to make decisions on my own, for me and my daughter, without ANYONE making me feel about them. I mean, she is MY daughter.

<End of Rant>

(I am so sorry for the run-on sentence right there but I want for you to read it that way because that's the way I would say it out loud.)

I don't know why I want to publish this here instead of in my personal blog. I guess I'd like to hear what other people has to say about the situation I am in. I know there aren't any details in here which will make it seem like I am just acting up - and maybe I am - but whatevs. I am just at the point in my life where I want to actually take control of my life, the way that it's meant to be.