Bacolod's Sweet Scenes and Treats

Sweets are the first thing that comes to my mind when ‘Bacolod’ is mentioned. The sweet smiles of the locals, sweet time from partying at the Masskara Festival, and sweet goodies from home-grown businesses and family secret recipes. The province of Negros Occidental is known for its sugarcane plantations as well, and most of the affluent businessmen who thrived from the sugar industry are said to reside in Bacolod. My main mission the first time I went there was to witness the colorful Masskara Festival, but I would be stupid to miss some of the city’s popular foodie delights.

Masskara Festival, Color and Smiles All Around

I don’t know what got into me when I booked this solo trip to Bacolod for Masskara Festival of 2011. Maybe it was the rampant advertisement of cheap airfares that made me hit that ‘Book Now’ button. Maybe it was craving to see more festivals after just experiencing the Pahiyas Festival of Quezon the same year and that pushed me to see at least one more before the year ended. Or maybe it was the plain feeling of wanderlust, the need to see and experience more and escape for a while from the pollution of the city and stress from work.

Cebu City Tour With the Family

2010 was a great year for me; I just got out of college, accepted my first job and was able to travel to my first destination, Hong Kong. This overjoyed feeling was what prompted me to book a round trip ticket for the family to Cebu,. For me, there’s no better way to share my happiness than to travel.

Weekend of Nature and Adventure at Bohol

You may be wondering why I have been posting some old photos of my travels recently. I haven’t really been traveling much since 2014 and posting these throwback travels is one way to keep me sane the passion for travel flowing while I am not traveling :( This post will also serve as a reminder of how beautiful Bohol is, I guess I need to take a trip back there again and observe how it has changed, hoping there have been good developments done by the government ever since the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that hit the province last 2013.

This trip to Bohol was really memorable for me because it was a first for many things: first time to be on a trip with a big group, first time to be really scared during plane check in and boarding (I am not telling the funny story behind this but my companions should know why hehe) and first time to try some death-defying activities. The planning for this two-day trip was CRAZY and come to think of it, this trip was supposed to be about Cebu! If I remember correctly there were 17 of us and everyone wanted to do different things. Good thing the guy in charge of our itinerary was super meticulous and he was able to devise a plan that will satisfy everyone's craving for an awesome adventure.

Huge credits to my friends/previous officemates for these pictures. I didn’t have a camera yet at that time so I borrowed some of their pictures.

Labor Day Weekend 2013 at Boracay

My first two labor weekends as an office employee has been very menial. I am used to taking long vacations and frankly, one day simply isn't enough. So finally, me and some friends from office booked a four-day trip to the island of Boracay. Everyone on the group admits that it was their first time going to the island so we were all so excited even months before the trip. Labor day = perfect time to get away from the stress from work!

Sunset at Boracay