Surigao

It was dated February 18-21,2009. After 2 years, my friend Lorie finally decided to visit her parents at Surigao and of course, we, as her friends, decided to tag along with her..Lets go Mindanao!

Too bad one of our girlfriend was not able to join us. Everything is well prepared. Her plane ticker, bag, pocket money except for one thing, "her mom's permission" lol
At the very last moment, I have to revise our budget so we can still have a great vacation!

So it's just me, Lorie and Coy plus our Tour Guide,who I met through Multiply, Carl and his gf Gretchen..Caving and Beach Bumming.

Plane ticket back then is P1,600 per person via Cebu Pac. Our plane is Manila to Butuan - Butuan to Manila. If you're wondering why in Bututan instead of Surigao Airport, back then Surigao Airport is not yet existing so our nearest way is through Butuan.The Airport is very remote and there are even soldiers guarding the place. Geographically, this is how it looks like as we head to Surigao Del Norte.Upon arriving at the Airport, it's a 2-3 hours ride to Surigao City through Bus..

As recommended by online reviews, we decided to stay at Hotel Tavern. The hotel is located beside the "Bay Walk" so we took a Standard Sea View Room instead of the City View (which I don't find interesting when it comes to view). True enough, looking at the big glass window makes me feel like I'm in a boat overlooking the sea. The room is clean and big enough to accommodate 4pax even if it's only said to be good for 2 pax. Staff are also friendly and you can even request for utensils to be delivered at your room so you can enjoy "take out" from a nearby barbecue house called "Bebi's" (too bad I don't have picture to show.It is somewhere here in my computer and I can't find it). Anyway, if you're around Surigao City, just ask for Bebi's Barbecue and they'll take you there. It's only a walk from Tavern Hotel. They serve the best barbecue in town!

Here is their website: http://www.hoteltavern.com

Common mode of transportation in Butuan and Surigao is either a Tricycle or a Multicab. Since this is our first time in Mindanao, we were surprise to know that you can't just ride any Multicab. Every Multicab has a code (found at its side) which will tell you where it will be heading. Seriously, you can get lost if you don't know what the codes are just like what happened to us.So it will help if you do a little research or ask around to be sure.

For our Day 2, we met Carl and Gretchen (our Multiply friends) at the Bay Walk which is just in front of our hotel. The boat rental cost P2,000 and it's good for the whole day Island Hopping and Spelunking (aka Caving). Aside from that, we also went to the longest footbridge in the Philippines, San Pedro Cantiasay Footbridge. At 391 meters long, the bridge was originally created to ease movement among families in Sibale and Nonoc Islands. Walking at the bridge is quite scary at first since there is no railing to hold on to but as I get used to it, it felt like I'm at the middle of the sea, enjoying the cool breeze of air and relaxing.

For 3D/2N, we paid P4,400 for the entire stay in Hotel Tavern (this already includes our half day extension). Then we went to Lorie's house and spent our last night with her family.

So we wrap-up our Surigao Escapade away from the city and into an unknown place in far South..
There are still a lot of things to be develop in Surigao. It is a tourist destination for those people who wants to enjoy a simple and quiet life with fun at the side.