Barely two months after my last visit to Camarines Norte, covering the quadricentennial of three town parishes, I was again invited, this time by professional surfer Mr. Joey Cuerdo of Power Up Gym and MOJO Slippers and Sandals, to cover the 4th Bagasbas Summer Surf Festival in Daet, held in line with the province-wide Bantayog Festival (the provincial foundation day).  This wasn't the first time I was to cover this event, having done so in 2009.  This time, I was joined by fellow Camarines Norte companion (but first timer to this event) and blogger Mark Vincent Nunez and we were both picked up by a van at Starbucks in Magallanes, hitching with co-event organizer and MOJOS Vice-President for Operations Ms.Thea Yusay and other Mojo staff also on their way to Daet.  We arrived at the town by 2 AM and we both checked in at Canimog Hotel, the 3-day home of most media men out to cover the festival.

Part of my itinerary during my first week of February visit to Camarines Norte was to camp overnight at the famed Calaguas Islands, a group of 17 islands northeast of Daet under the jurisdiction of the town of Vinzons.  This was not to be as three days of continuous rain prevented us from doing so.  Two months later, I was again invited back in the province during the peak of summer, covering the 4th Bagasbas Summer Festival in Daet (held in line with the province-wide Bantayog Festival, the provincial foundation day) with travel blogger and good friend Mark Vincent Nunez.  This time the weather was perfect, with bright sunshine, clear skies and calm seas, and Mark and I were again invited by Provincial Tourism Officer Atty. Debbee Francisco to visit these islands  famed for their Boracay-like (minus the commercial development) white sand beaches.

Half of our North Philippines Visitors Bureau (NPVB)/Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC)-sponsored Lakbay Norte 2 Media Tour was to cover Cagayan province (the other half being Ilocos Norte), and one of this province’s major draws is the second-class fishing municipality of Sta. Ana, located 158 kms. from Tuguegarao City (a 2-hr. drive) and 651 kms. (an 11-hr. drive) from Manila. The town is home to the 125-hectare Cagayan Special Economic Zone and Freeport, the fastest-growing industrial, logistics and ecotourism hub in the country. The Cagayan Export Zone Authority (CEZA) manages the free port and attracts new locators into the economic zone.  It was already late in the evening when we arrived at the 7-hectare Sun City Holiday and Leisure Resort. Sta. Ana Mayor Darwin A. Tobias and a delicious supper awaited us at the resort’s fine-dining Chinese restaurant. Owned by Hong Kong-based Sun City International, the resort used to cater to just mainland Chinese, Taiwanese and Hong Kong high rollers.

A major destination during our 3-day (April 4-6, 2011) Pangasinan Media Tour (with events organizer Bernard Supetran, travel writers Kara Santos and Vince Lopez, travel blogger Mark Vincent Nuñez and my travel photographer daughter Cheska) was the premier tourism town of Bolinao whose  69,568 people speak the unique Bolinawen dialect.  This wasn’t my first visit to this paradise place, having gone there during a 2005 Holy Week break with my son Jandy and two friends at Patar Beach.  We arrived in town in the midst of a high school graduation in front of the town hall and first visited its venerable Church of St. James the Great. This solid, stone church, built by the Augustinian Recollects in 1609, used to double as a fortress against attacks by pirates, the English, Japanese and Americans.  Today, this church (as well as 25 other churches) is listed by the National Museum as a National Cultural Treasure.

Pampanga was a major destination during our Manila North Tollways Corporation (MNTC) and North Philippines Visitors Bureau (NPVB) sponsored Lakbay Norte 2.  In fact, almost 3 days of our 6-day media tour were spent in this history and culture rich province with its many Spanish and American era architecture.  After our tiring but rewarding Pinatubo tour, it was back on the road on our special Victory Liner tour bus as we made our way to Angeles City, our first Pampanga destination, arriving at its two-storey Museo Ning Angeles (the former city hall built in 1922) as dinner guests of the Kuliat Foundation.  We were all welcomed by Ms. Herminia Pamintuan, wife of the City Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan; Ms. Joy Cruz and Ms. Prisca Cantor, Special Projects Head and Treasurer, respectively, of the Greater Clark Visitors Bureau (GCVB); and museum curator Ms. Jiji Paras.

This year marks the quadricentennial (1611-2011) of the University of Sto. Tomas, the oldest university in Asia and my daughter Cheska’s college but, in Camarines Norte, it marks a different milestone – the 400th year foundation anniversary of the three parishes of Daet, Paracale and Vinzons.  Although all these towns were founded by Franciscan missionaries in 1581, it was only in 1611 when permanent parish priests were assigned. I, together with events organizer Bernard Supetran, travel blogger Mark Vincent Nunez and mediamen Mr. Joselito “Lito” Cinco and Ms. Kara Santos, were invited to cover quadricentennial activities in these towns..

La Union is popularly known for its fine, gray-sand beaches and its moniker as the “Surfing Capital of the Ilocos.” However, it is fast becoming more than just these. One reason for this transformation is the fifth-class municipality (La Union’s smallest) of Pugo (named after the “quail” bird), the site of Pugad Pugo Adventure Park, a newly opened (it only had its soft opening on September 18 last year), 3-hectare adventure and recreation destination in the town. The five-day North Philippines Visitors Bureau and Manila North Tollways Corpoartion (MNTC)-sponsored “Lakbay Norte 2 Tour”, officially launched  from the Victory Liner Terminal near Kamias Street in Quezon City, with members of the media (including yours truly), travel bloggers and cameramen, included this destination in our itinerary.

People visit the much-loved, cloud-wreathed and pine-clad mountain retreat called Baguio City for its pleasantly cool and salubrious climate. The city is also a favorite honeymoon destination among Filipino newlyweds as well as stepping stone for those en route to the world-class tourist destinations of Kabayan (Benguet), Sagada (Mountain Province) and Banaue (Ifugao).  However, most just go here for some rest and recreation and their favorite venue for such is Camp John Hay.  T