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San Lorenzo Windmills
Category Archives: 2015
ROCA ENCANTADA
NAVALAS CHURCH & BELFRY
Navalas Church & Belfry
- No entrance fee
- a place to retreat
- fresh windy place
Smallest Park
Smallest Park
- No entrance fee
- Along the highway
- A monument of Rizal
Mysterious in Silhouette. Why always Rizal?
Researched Reasons:
- National Hero of the Philippines (but there’s more to that is it?)
Balaan Bukid of Guimaras
Balaan Bukid
- No entrance fee
- Trek for 30-40 minutes.
- Notice the different markers that symbolizes the stations of the cross.
- Along the trails, huge and beautiful trees will welcome you while on top awaits the mystical church and the cross; miracles are said to be granted here.
- Witness the majestic view of the seascape surrounding Guimaras.
- Buy atis from the locals (if no mangoes available).
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Back to DIY Iloilo – Guimaras Blog
Island Tour | BALAAN BUKID | SMALLEST PARK | NAVALAS CHURCH & BELFRY | ROCA ENCANTADA | SAN LORENZO WINDMILLS | CAPITOL | TRAPPIST MONASTERY | MANGO PLANTATION | GUISI LIGHTHOUSE |
What To Do in Guimaras That You Never Read in Other Blogs?
Tired of reading the same stuff about Guimaras over and over again?
Here is a extraordinary spice added to what to look out for.
- HUG A TREE – see the beauty of trees and marvel with their power to connect with our souls.
2. SELFEET – featuring the different landscapes of Guimaras and it’s limestone foundation.
3. Church Hopping – I’m gonna be remarried here 🙂 
4. Make Friends & Take a Jump – awesome people from GenSan. I love jumpshots but it doesn’t love me. hehehe
5. Meeting the Locals – encounters are truly enriching.
Kuya Boy who helped me out with my 3 island hops. A bangkero from Raymen. Please give them some tips, it does help.
The Tres Marias of the Trappist Monastery buy their goods please, you might get discounts and free item from them.
These kids are the naughtiest of all. I asked them if the Bell is working and if I can ring it, they told me that I can. And so I did. Then all ran in different directions including me. Afraid to be caught tugging the cord. 🙂 That was fun anyway. LOL
6. Take Panoramic Pictures
The picturesque ruins
The buwis buhay panoramic shot with the wind blowing too harsh and standing in the old rusty lighthouse is another fear factor experience
The Raymen beach. Short beach walks are too awesome in the morning and noon
7. Try Local Food – the veggies called “Laswa” and their own version of dinuguan.
8. Sea Creature Encounter
Gigantic Bangus
slug
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9. Play with the Colors
no filter. real.
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10. Make Your Own Trail and Chase Sunset – near Raymen is an ecopark and nobody seems to go that way and things unnoticed is what I really like.Plenty of things to see and so I will write more of it with another post.
DIY ILOILO + GUIMARAS (MY FIRST SOLO BACKPACKING)
Violet’s desire to see the world hasn’t changed, even if means to travel alone.
Solo backpacking. What a big change that sounds. It had never ever happened before. Violet – a traveller always accompanied by friends, now gone solo. What lies ahead for her with no one but herself to depend on? This is definitely no ordinary trip for a girl running solo for the very first time.
Day 1: Planning Iloilo-Antique-Guimaras
That was the original plan but the delayed flight from Manila 4:45 PM went beyond what is expected. Violet arrived more or less 8:00 in the evening in the beautiful Iloilo International airport but was delighted with the tourism office full of beautiful maps of Western Visayas. She knew what to look for next, a van taking her to SM Iloilo (Php 50.00) and then arrived 9:00 PM.
Seeing SM Iloilo closes, she is screaming her panicking heart out. Good thing, a very kind looking Ilocano is also waiting for a ride and she asked for directions going to Robinsons Place Iloilo for the Ong Bun Pension House, and she wasn’t disappointed.
She said to herself, “that wasn’t that bad or scary. Iloilo is good. It was just like Metro Manila. Nothing to fear.”
So, she rode the Mandurriao jeepney, paid Php 7.00, scanned every turns on the road and checked google map. Happy not to encounter any traffic.
Where to Stay in Iloilo?
Going to Ong Bun Pension House is an easy find. It’s very near Robinsons Place Iloilo but the street where it is located is quite dark and lots of girls where roaming the dark alleys. Not my biz anyways. I just noticed them when I bought my chicken joy meal at Plazoleta Gay.
Remarkable about my first Day in Iloilo: Good roads. No traffic. The yema is too good to ruin my diet (bought it infront of Jollibee). A night time to plan my solo exploration since I had no itinerary prepared. Sleep.
Day 2: ILOILO – GUIMARAS Island Tour
How to Get There: From Ong Bun Pension House going to Ortiz Port, ride a jeepney going to La Paz (7.00). Get off at the University of Iloilo and walk straight to the port, unfortunately the pumpboats going to Jordan Port transferred to Parola Wharf as per advised the coast guard (Typhoon in Luzon). Hence, another ride with a tricycle worth 20.00 just to get there (approx. 15 minute ride).
Once there, bought my ticket for 14.00 and register. It was just a short boat ride and then there’s Guimaras. Welcome! Welcome to Guimaras Province!
I was greeted to sign in the tourism office and I was greeted by Kuya Cherald – my tour guide. Yes. If you’ve read about him. It’s him. 🙂
ISLAND LAND TOUR
Do not underestimate this small island, it did look small in the map but in a ride, you have to prep the butt for the long bumpy ride.
Here is the list of the places Violet explored (in order, with gallery and notes):
| BALAAN BUKID | SMALLEST PARK | NAVALAS CHURCH & BELFRY | ROCA ENCANTADA | SAN LORENZO WINDMILLS | CAPITOL | TRAPPIST MONASTERY | MANGO PLANTATION | GUISI LIGHTHOUSE |
violetxplorer 