I Found Nemo!

Would you believe I found Nemo?!?!!! And I haven't even seen the film yet! HAHAHA!Ü Seriously!

My friend Assunta has been prodding me for the longest time to try scuba diving, and finally, one Sunday last April, her prodding emerged victorious! Armed with nothing but a brave heart and a clear mindset, my friends and I hied to Anilao, Batangas hoping to Find Nemo...meet the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...and see Sebastian and Flounder dance to the tune of Under The Sea.Ü

Rex, Eunice, and I were to have our intro dive at Pier Uno Resort in Anilao, Batangas, while the rest (those who already had their certification) took a boat and went scuba diving at a different location than us. Since we were just going for an intro dive, the three of us had to wait for our turn to dive with the dive master. But before heading out to the beach, we had to have a some sort of lecture with Albert, a Malaysian national, who was to be our dive master for the day.

He first taught us the basics, such as:

• He'll be staying at our left side the whole time and that he'll be doing all the work which basically boils down to one thing: pulling us around so we don't even have to swim. All we really had to do was to remember to breath through the regulator and enjoy the sights under the sea.


• The hand gestures to remember when under water because obviously, we can't speak underwater, and all conversations should be done via hand gestures. The most important ones are:
  (1) OK - touch the tip of the thumb to that of the forefinger, with the rest of the fingers spread wide
  (2) STOP - do the thing that Diana Ross does when she sings "Stop In The Name of Love" Ü
  (3) GOING UP - like the thumbs up sign with the knuckles of your hand facing outward
  (4) GOING DOWN - opposite of 'going up,' with your knuckles facing you
  (5) GOING LEFT - similar to (3), only point to the left
  (6) GOING RIGHT - similar to (3), only point to the right
  (7) SLOW DOWN - similar to the FIRST hand movement one does when dancing "Pearly Shells"...but with only one hand (the one with palms facing down)
  (8) NOT OK - like a 'so-so' sign; palm open, facing down with fingers spread wide, then rotate your wrist a little less than halfway to the left then to the right repeatedly


• What SCUBA actually means (it's Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus)


• A lecture on the compressed air inside the tank (and how it got in there)


• And a lot more that I can no longer remember.Ü

We were given a choice to go one-by-one or a maximum of two in one dive (which means the other will go solo). The pros of the former is that he can take our pictures and videos underwater, while with the latter, he won't be able to do as such. Guess what we chose? Of course we opted to go solo and have pictures and videos to remember this experience by!Ü

The intro dive is supposed to last for only half an hour. But my-oh-my, mine lasted for almost an hour! Why, you may ask? Because I had a hard time relaxing and breathing underwater. I actually find it weird seeing as I've snorkled a lot of times before so you'd think I've mastered breathing in and out of an apparatus. But golly wow, NO! The dive master had to take me back to the shore 3 TIMES just so I can regroup and try to relax a little! Alas, when I suggested that the mask I was wearing be tightened, only then was I able to relax a bit and complete my intro dive (finally!). I guess the reason why I wasn't able to relax the first few times was because of the feeling that water might enter my nose because (I felt like) the mask wasn't tight enough (FYI: the mask protects & covers not just the eyes but the nose as well). After adjusting the mask, I was finally able to start and finish my intro dive (Thank you, my lucky stars!Ü).

One thing I'll remember about this experience though is this: SUPER BIGAT NG TANK! Such that I had a hard time walking the distance from where I was seated (at the resort) to the beach. I was afraid I'd fall backwards and bump my head into something hard...then blood will start squirting out of my head...then in no time, a pool of blood would've poured out on the floor...teka, mejo morbid na 'to. Basta, I was just scared that I might fall and bump my head, then I won't be the same Candy you once knew who sings and dances even when there's no music in the background. HAHA!Ü

Kidding aside, I'm not sure if I will be scuba diving anytime soon. I enjoyed the experience but I've seen more and nicer fishes when I snorkled at a different place in Anilao before. And I didn't have to pay P3,300 for that! I just had to pay for the boat ride back and forth to where we were staying, and I assure you, the fee won't reach P3,300 per person. However, I am not at all considering the experience not worthit. At least now I can say that I've tried scuba diving and it was a fun experience. I'll think twice though if I would go ahead with the certification like my friends did. But with the video that our dive master showed us when he went diving at Palau, you'll definitely be awed and would want to get a certification...just so you'll experience diving with the reef sharks, the manta rays, giant turtles (or are those tortoises?), and different schools of fishes. And THAT, you won't see by just snorkeling...although in the video, one girl there was skin diving (she was just wearing her swimsuit and a mask-snorkel set), which sounds fun just as long as there are no jellyfishes around. WINK!Ü

Bye for now! 'Til next month's blog!

For pictures and videos, check these links:
Pictures
Videos

Thanks to the following sites for helping me out in this month's blog:
http://scuba.about.com/od/divemedicine/a/handsignals.htm
http://www.ehow.com/how_7452_communicate-underwater-scuba.html

Summer at the Cove

Last Saturday, my family and I went to Nasugbu, Batangas for a day of swimming at the beach & frolickin' under the hot summer sun. We had no reservations whatsoever and no idea what resorts are out there, except for those in our ever-reliable map. So, off with our summer gear and overnight bags, we headed down South hoping for a weekend getaway that involves the beach, sun, and sand.Ü


THE ROAD TO THE COVE
The good thing about Nasugbu is that it's not that far from Manila and it's easy to get there. All you have to do is watch out for the signs along the way and, if you have a map like I do, check every once in a while if you are indeed driving on the right highway. From SLEX, we exited at Sta. Rosa and took the route going to Tagaytay City Proper. Once at the Tagaytay Rotonda, make sure you veer towards the leg of the road that should lead you to Batangas. You'll know you entered the right road when you pass by Taal Vista Lodge & Mushroomburger before reaching a traffic light at an intersection that should take you either to Mendez (a town in Tagaytay) or Batangas. You might encounter a bit of traffic before reaching the intersection so just be patient since it will be smooth-sailing afterwards. The next landmark you'll come across is the arc with the NASUGBU sign. This is yet another intersection but i'm sure you won't miss this given the big arc that says Nasugbu all over it. From this point, you still have around 30km of pavement to traverse, but this will be over sooner than you think. The next marker you should take note of is some sort of V-intersection where the left leg shall lead you to a different part of Batangas (Balayan, I think), while the right leg shall lead you to Nasugbu. Once you've driven through this, the last landmark to take note of is the T-intersection with a Shell gas station on the left side. You must turn right here since the road to the left is going to Calatagan. Don't worry though since all the intersections I mentioned above has signs that should lead you to your intended destination (in this case, Nasugbu). Now back to where we were: once you've turned right at the Shell gas station, after passing through the Bgy. Wawa sign, right after the bridge and on the left side of the road, is the uphill entrance to Canyon Cove Residential Beach Resort. (Whew! That was a mouthful!Ü)

So, you may ask, among all the resorts at Nasugbu, why Canyon Cove? Well, a new-found-friend told us about it (we were already in Nasugbu when she suggested it), and since we'll be passing by it (Canyon Cove is one of the first resorts you'll see en route to the end point of Nasugbu, which I think is Punta Fuego), why not check it out and see if they can accomodate us. And check it out we did! We were forewarned though that the resort is still ongoing renovation so the pool might not yet be functional but the beach is sure to be available (it's the beach we're after anyway). True enough, the buildings surrounding the resort look like it's been through hell and back. Most are unfinished and look like it's been left that way for years.

As we were driving through the uphill entrance of the resort, we thought that this place looked familiar. It turns out, we stayed overnight here several years back when its name was still White Cove. From what we can remember, the room we stayed in last time was nice and the beach was just OK. We never went back and I can't seem to remember why. Anyway, we checked out the resort and after seeing the beach and taking a look at their shower room, we decided to just take a Day Tour at this place, since all 11 of their units are already booked (they currently only have 11 since most of the other units are still under renovation).


DAY TOUR
The Day Tour is P350 and is inclusive of nothing! HAHA! Seriously! Well, it includes unlimited beach access (of course!), use of the shower room, one monoblock chair, and free use of their large casita, which is on a first come, first serve basis. Since the large casita was already too crowded, we decided to rent a tent (P500) that can be set up anywhere you wish along the beach. We also rented a monoblock table (P65) to place some of our things and food since it was almost lunch time when we settled at the resort.

If you get to the resort early and are just planning on a Day Tour, it would be better to rent the bahay kubo (currently, they only have 2) for P1,000. This is more worthit than the tent since it can sit more persons and already includes a table and is a bit more private than the tent.


WHY I LIKE IT THERE
1. Exclusive beach. The thing that got me hooked to this place is their exclusive beach. Since it's between two mountains, the entire beach is solely for the resort-goers. And considering that we went there on a Saturday, I was expecting that there'll be quite a lot of people at the beach. But I was wrong. There was just a handful of us enjoying the vast beach of the resort. Such a big change in scenery especially if you've just been to Galera where it's super crowded and you actually have to compete with other people to have even just a tiny spot along the shore for sunbathing.

2. Clear water. The water at the beach is clear and you can actually still see your feet even if you're already in chest-high waters. It helps that their sand is white because your feet definitely stands out in the whiteness of the ocean floor.

3. White sand. The sand at the beach is white but not fine & is a bit rocky along the shore. So you better watch your step to avoid inflicting pain on your footsies when you step on a rocky surface. But it gets better once you're a bit further from the shore since there are less rocks and the surface of the ocean floor is smoother. So basically, you'll just have to endure a bit of ouchy moments when you get into and out of the water. But it's definitely something that a beach sandal can easily solve.Ü

4. Clean shower rooms. The shower room for Day Tour-istas is clean except for the sand on the floor. Of course I only saw the Ladies' shower room since obviously, I'm not allowed to enter the Guys' shower room.Ü But judging from my dad's reaction (he's a super pihikan person when it comes to bathrooms such that everytime we go on vacation and stay at a hotel or resort, it's the toilet/bathroom that he checks out first), and the fact that he's willing to go back there next year, then I can say that the Guys' shower room is a-OK as well.Ü

5. Short travel time. Since Nasugbu is just a few hours drive from Manila (approximately 2.5 to 3 hours), it's definitely possible to just have a Day Tour here, leave at the end of the day, and get back home to have a good night's sleep in your own bed rather than at the resort. Also, there are no rough roads to deal with so you won't have second thoughts of bringing your knight-rider of a car. Moreover, since it's near the town proper, having lunch or merienda at Jollibee (or any of the establishments nearby) won't be too big of a deal to those who are not fond of packing their own lunch during summer getaways.

6. Ample parking space. Need I explain this?Ü


CONS OF THE COVE
Of course nothing's perfect, so here's some of the things that might make you have second thoughts on going to this resort.

- No night life. If you're used to partying the summer night away at Bora or Galera, then expect the total opposite here at Canyon Cove. I'm not sure though if this will still be the case once they've finished renovating the place (scheduled at around June of this year). However, if you're looking for barkada bonding sessions and kwentuhan to the max with your friends, then this is a nice place to consider.

- I've already mentioned that the sand is a bit rocky along the shore, and that's one of the things I don't like much about this place.

- They have no restaurant...yet. But the good thing is that the resort is near the town so you can just drive there to have a bite or two. Hopefully they'll open their own resto once renovation is done so that resort-goers won't have to drive just to get a bite to eat or bring their own food.


OTHER THINGS TO TAKE NOTE OF
Bring coal or uling if you intend to cook at the beach. They have their own ihawan that you can use for free so there's no need to bring that (unless you really want to). Also remember to bring gas or lots of paper in order to be able to start the fire of your uling. We brought our own rice cooker (my Mom's a real girl scout!Ü) so we had no rice issues to tackle.Ü

[Side Trip: I would like to thank my Mom for being such a trooper and bringing super yummy food to our outing! Would you believe that we feasted on sirloin and lamb chops for lunch on that day?! YUMMEEE!!! We didn't know that grilled sirloin and lamb chops were that delicious! We usually just have it roasted on our turbo broiler and the option of grilling those never really crossed our minds until now. So, thanks Mom!Ü *MUAH!*]

We checked out their condotels (Studio, One Bedroom, and Special Room; all available for sale to those who intend to buy a unit there) and their units look good...pwede ipanglaban sa rooms ng Baguio Country Club if you ask me. Also, the bathroom is big and nice. All bathrooms in the rooms I mentioned has a separate bathtub AND shower area. So two people can actually take a bath at the same time (given that it's OK for them to see each other in the nudeÜ). How cool is that?!Ü

We'll be going back there on May 6, which means that we really, really liked the place (watch out for more pictures of the place from our next trip, which I will be posting here).Ü And, my mom is already talking about going there next year for our annual summer getaway, even mentioning that, "I should have our reservations ready as early as Feb." Wow, talk about planning ahead, huh?!!!Ü Now you know from whom I inherited my "planning talent" and my being O.C.Ü

For more info on Canyon Cove Residential Beach Resort, check out their website at www.canyoncove.com.ph. You can also view their price list and flyer (just click on the links).

'Til next month's blog everyone! Ta-ta!Ü

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