Ever wonder what is seen at the upper tip of the Philippines? Well we did.
Together with our travel buddies, we saw the upper right tip of the Philippine archipelago by traveling all the way to Sta. Ana, Cagayan. Our main destination was Palaui, but the travel to see Palaui unraveled a beautiful provincial landscape that one must watch out for. Our first ride was a plane to Tuguegarao. We rode the Cebu Pacific flight to Tuguegarao just because we were able to buy cheaper flight tickets to the province. It was a blessing in disguise because our plan to ride a sleeper bus would have backfired. The sudden legal issues of our preferred bus company to Tuguegarao would have made the purchase invalid. We arrived a bit late in Tuguegarao.. Our flight was delayed because of NAIA air traffic so we had to rush to the Van Terminal to be able to follow our itinerary. At the terminal, we started our "explorer" mode by trying out the Pancit Cabagan. Ofcourse, it wasn't the most exemplary, but the taste we just had to deal with. Our hungry tummy grumbled insanely at the thought of food. It was then 2pm. After eating, we rode the van to Sta. Ana. Vans from Tuguegarao to Sta. Ana aren't the best vans. You have to be "OK" with no A/C, old cushions, and open windows.. With the cost of 180php for a very long ride, you cannot expect too much. I hope this travel issue can be solved by the province because there is great potential to enjoy that scenic ride. Sayang, the view while onboard the van were breathtaking views of Cagayan. Without proper transportation, people wouldn't notice. Before dusk, we were able to reach Sta. Ana. I wasn't able to capture photos of the casinos, the big ships, the car pools, and the economic zone character of the area. I was actually expecting a more laid back appeal of the municipality but upon arriving within its borders, I realized Sta. Ana was a Subic of the Northern Tip--an economic zone. We stayed at Jotay Resort. We were able to rent a room with bunk beds for a group of 7 (300+php each pax per night). I am particularly happy that we chose this resort for our Sta. Ana accommodation as there were pets to entertain us and a pool that we can use anytime. Food at the resort alone was just ok. We explored the market for dinner just to have that feel of Sta. Ana. Adjacent to the market is a "Barbequehan"- A Grill Restaurant. We finally had better dinner. Probably that was what this municipality lacked despite its economic zone character, or probably people from this side of the archipelago doesn't necessarily eat a lot compare to Manila. We weren't able to find a lot of restaurant, no malls. We had to deal with what the locals rather call as "karinderya" or "eatery". We went back to the hotel right after dinner, had a quick dip in the pool after being drenched with the sudden rainfall (you have to prepare for this weather in Sta. Ana... erratic and hard rain falls are common), and slept till early morning. The following morning, we were Palaui bound. And yes, we were all excited to get our feet moving to our main destination. |
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Lifeisatravelogue by CDSNadal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. |