celebraTINg exisTENce

The paradise of Eastern Visayas Region: Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte.

I have always wanted to see a sandbar but I have not made a plan on going to one because none of the sandbars on the list I read is located in Luzon. A proof is that I have no mention of such desire in any post here in my blog although I was kind of vocal about it. Madalas kasi, pag may gusto ko puntahan nababanggit ko kahit sa isang post lang pero wala pala kong nalagay tungkol sa sandbar kasi siguro inisip ko rin na medyo impossible pa. In short, it never occurred to me that I'll be able to visit one soon. Pano pa 'to na second quarter of 2015 pa lang, 'di ba? But thankfully, I'm now here sharing my experience to you. Grabe. Kilig to the bones!

'Yung details kung paano saka kung bakit ako napadpad sa Leyte e pinag-iisipan ko pa kung ilalagay ko ba rito pero ito na nga muna, Kalanggaman Island: My accidental dream come true. :">

HOW TO GO TO KALANGGAMAN ISLAND:

FROM MANILA:

The gateway via air to Leyte is the Tacloban Airport but it's now under rehabilitation (April 14 - April 30, 2015).
From Tacloban Airport, you may ride a jeep or a van that would drive you west of Leyte to Palompon and this will take you approximately 2 1/2 hours to 3 1/2.
From the terminal, you may ride a tricycle or jeepney that would take you to Palompon Tourism Office.
From the Tourism Office, you may hire a private pumpboat (rates are available below) and the boat ride will take you from 45 minutes to an hour.

FROM CEBU:

From Cebu City port, you may ride a ship that is bound to Ormoc or Palompon, Leyte and this will take around 3 to 4 hours then follow the directions above.
From Malapascua or Daangbantayan, resorts and/or boatmen are offering trips to Kalanggaman.

Here are the current rates and the contact numbers of Palompon's Tourism Office.

Before the pumpboat leaves, one staff from the Tourism Office will orient you.

1. You will be given two garbage bags. One for non-biodegradeable and one biodegradeable.
2. You're not allowed to swim in the part of the sandbar because the waves there are strong.
3. You're not allowed to take home shells and sands from the island.

"Take nothing but pictures, bring nothing but memories and leave nothing but footprints." - Chief Si ahl

Ako may sabi...
#4. Mga mahuhuling magkakalat at mag-uuwi ng kung ano e ilalaglag sa dagat habang pabalik ng Palompon. Hahaha. Pero seryoso, respeto pls. Kaya nga may binigay na basurahan eh at ano naman gagawin mo dun sa buhangin at mga batong iuuwi mo? Itatapon mo lang din naman 'yon.

Ayan na siya. <3
Hindi pa nga nagsi-sink in sa'kin noon na andun na ko eh. Wala, sobrang ganda talaga.

On my way to paradise.💜 #sandbar #nature #philippines #beach

A video posted by Tin Gallemaso (@xtintina) on Apr 12, 2015 at 10:25pm PDT

'Yung time na nagb-boat kami e oras 'yon ng labasan ng mga dolphin pero dahil malakas 'yung alon e wala kaming nakita.

Sobrang linis at clear ng tubig kaya pag tingin mo e parang nakalutang lang 'yung boat. Although nakalutang lang naman talaga 'yon. Muntanga lang ako mag-describe forevs. Hahahaha!!

As soon as I placed my bags at our cottage, I walked straight to the sandbar. And yes, I haven't eaten my breakfast nor applied sunscreen. Yan. Yan. Tas magre-reklamo ako na ang itim ko saka nangangayayat ako. Hahahaha. Jk lang. Maitim pero hindi payat.

I didn't expect the sandbar to be that long. Perfect for a morning walk!

Hirap mag-decide kung alin ang maganda..., 'yung island mismo, 'yung mga puno sa likod, 'yung sandbar o ako? HAHAHA. Jk. Sandbar syempreeeeeee. :))))

May parts na maliliit na shells and corals.

May part na powdery white sand. White talaga 'to tignan to beige e sobrang init kaya overexposed 'yung ibang pictures.

'Yung tubig sa magkabila ng sandbar e parang yinyang. 'Yung isa kalmado, 'yung isa naman e sobrang lakas. Malakas kasi 'yung hangin na papunta dun sa isang direskyon kaya 'yon. Kbye. Haha.

Panoramic View taken at the end part of the sandbar. <3

Shampoo commercial eh.
Thanks, Head and Shoulders and Creamsilk gold para sa buhok kong may stunning shine at mabango pa rin kahit maaraw. HAHAHAHA!

Dalawang beses akong naglakad dito sa kahabaan na 'to kahit sobrang init ng sikat ng araw dahil sa kadahilanang hindi ko rin alam o maamin.

Morning walks like this tho. rtkopls. #beach #nature #sandbar #kalanggaman #pinas

A video posted by Tin Gallemaso (@xtintina) on Apr 13, 2015 at 12:42am PDT

Kalanggaman Island is called Kalanggaman because you'll find a lot of ants in the island. Joke. Kalanggaman means bird in their language.

Island Tour.
Ansabe buti may papaya soap at may sunblock. hehehe.

You'll find this small chapel of St. Francis in the other end of the island.

SWIMMING TIME NA!

Aside from swimming, you may rent a kayak, snorkeling gears etc.

Sorry, EDSA Shangri-La pero kung gandang natural lang naman ang pag-uusapan e sa Kalanggaman Island na ko magpapaka-sirena. hehehe. So masakit sa mata 'yung saltwater but it was surprising that the water remained cold even if it was so sunny.

At sorry rin, Blue Lagoon ng Ilocos but Kalanggaman Island now tops my list of the Most Beautiful Beaches that I've been to.

HAHAHA! Selfie pa more.

And we headed back to Palompon. <3

I don't know if they also rented those but aside from the huts, some people who spent the night were staying in tents.
There is no fresh water supply in the island. There's a water pump but the water that's coming out from the pump is salt water.
There are policemen in the island for the safety of the tourists.

Will definitely be back for more of Palompon, Leyte.

And, I heard that it was the Quezon City Government who adopted Palompon after typhoon Yolanda ravaged the area. Maganda kaya congratulations to Q.C Government because infrastractures, like this area of the Tourism Office, were built well and are still in good condition.

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I've just checked ourselves in hence this post. Airasia Web check-in can be done 14 days to 1 hour before your scheduled flight.

Anong advantage ng Web Check-in?
Especially to those who travel light/ to those who don't check their luggages in, this is a great help 'cause you won't have to fall in line to get your boarding pass. If your checking your luggages in, you would still have to wait for the counter to open but your line would be shorter since it's exclusive for those who've also checked in online, pregnant, senior citizens... and based on experience, it's way shorter.

For example e nasa NAIA Terminal 4 ng domestic ka, bago ka makarating sa waiting area tapos travel itinerary lang dala mo di ba maghihintay ka pa na mag open 'yung counter? Pag nakapag check-in ka na, diretso ka na dun sa waiting area kaagad. Papakita mo lang 'yung boarding pass mo sa guard tas tapos na. Hintay ka na lang ng boarding time.

Step by step talaga akong nag screenshot eh at sobrang ganda kung paano ko tinakpan 'yung mga details. Hahahaha.

Dun sa travel itinerary na is-send sa e-mail mo kapag nagpa-book ka, makikita mo 'to. Pindutin 'yung web check-in. Pag may account ka sa Airasia, pwede naman na dun mo na lang i-diretso. Log in tas check-in.

Supply the necessary information.

Pag within 14 days pa rin 'yung return flight, check-in mo na rin para isang beses mo na lang gagawin 'to.

You will be given the option to increase your check-in luggage limit, change your seats, etc before the check-in process ends.

If successful, you'll have your boarding pass ready to be printed or have it sent to your e-mail if you're not connected to a printer. But be sure to print the document because this serves not only as your boarding pass but your ticket as well. Di ka makakapasok ng airport kapag wala kang mapapakitang ganito.

Ito 'yung itsura nung ip-print mong boarding pass.
May name, reserved seat number, booking number, destination etc.

For domestic flights, boarding gate opens 40 minutes before your scheduled flight.

Ito na lang 'yung ipapakita mo sa boarding gate tas pupunitin na lang 'yung lower portion nito bago ka maka-akyat sa plane. Madali lang, noh?

Don't forget your ID.

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I've always wanted to try eating here at Cafe Shibuya eversince I first saw it back during the time when I'd go running to a Family Mart branch for their now-phased-out matcha softserved ice cream.

This strawberry matcha toast picture always looked as if it's telling me,
"Bakit hindi mo pa ko kinakain?!"

Relax with a matcha green tea latte. :)) Ramdam na ramdam ko ang forever namin ng matcha. As in. Buti pa 'to kahit panira ng diet (Baka nagd-diet) at budget (baka hindi gastadora!!!) e nakaka-relax at hindi nakakasisi. Hahaha!

I have been really craving for matcha that even if I was already meaning to order a matcha-flavored toast, I still ordered this iced matcha green tea latte which, unfortunately, was too creamy for my liking.

P 130.00

I don't know what's with toasts like this but I've been eating them a lot lately. Uso?

Baby Strawberry Matcha Toast
P 195.00

Okay naman 'to pero I don't know, may kulang. :( Hindi ko maipaliwanag pero may kulang eh. But I liked the matcha ice cream.

Alab. Minsan watawat Madalas itong toast. #damingsinabi #heavenly #mango #caramel #toast #dessert #cafeshibuya #ilove

A photo posted by Tin Gallemaso (@xtintina) on Feb 23, 2015 at 1:40am PST

My friend and I chose this mango caramel for our second visit and I found this a lot better compared to the strawberry matcha toast I previously had. Alam mo naman, mahina ako sa pag-describe pero mas masarap talaga 'to ng mga 95%.

Mango Caramel

Regular

P 235.00

It's obvious that I liked this a lot more than their matcha strawberry toast so if I'll ever find myself returning there which is very likely since they have a lot of food options to choose from, I'll just order a scoop of their matcha ice cream with other toast variants.

Do you know a good cafe here in Quezon City or anywhere near Q.C that serves delicious and potent matcha latte or matcha anything? Sabi nila, ang pagkain binabagayan ang personality ng tao eh. Ayoko ng matamis kasi bitter ako. hehehehehehe. Jk. Mas gusto ko 'yung matcha na malalasahan mo talaga 'yung pait kesa sa mga matatamis saka mga pina-creamy ng sobra.

Tell me plssssssssssssss. Maraming salamat! :)))