By this Author: ellabernardo

Every country's identity is determined by its past. And I believe it is our, as citizens, privilege to understand the events interwoven in our nation's history. Only through this will we truly embrace every part of our heritage with pride and honor.

Corregidor Island, which is a fast craft away from Manila, is a place every Filipino must visit. Foreign tourists are welcome, too. :-)

Corregidor Island (shaped like a tadpole) also called as "The Rock" was first named Isla del Corregidor during the Spanish era. It comes from the Spanish word "corregir" which means correct and was used as a penal colony of the Spaniards.

And during the American Regime, the island played a significant role for the American defense specifically during The Battle of Bataan under the command of General Douglas MacArthur. It was seized by the Japanese after the bombing of Pearl Harbor but was later recaptured on January 22, 1945.

To experience the richness of the island's history, avail of Sun Cruises day tour through this link: www.corregidorphilippines.com
Buffet food provided!

Here are some pictures I took during our visit. :-)

Until our next walk down memory lane! See ya!:-)

As promised, here's part 2 of our trip to Bohol Island.

Bohol Island is known for its cute little dwellers- The Philippine Tarsier. They're tiny nocturnal primates who live in trees and are smaller than rats. I got to see these wonderful creatures for the first time during my trip.

But before that, let me show some of the beautiful places you need to visit when you're in the island.

Some of the picturesque views around the island.

Peacock Garden arranges a private day tour for its guests. A little bit pricey but it's worth every penny. Your own private van, with a driver and a professional tour guide, and 8 stops along the way!

Some of the sideline stops we did on our way to our first major itinerary. The plant above is apparently where we get the crunchy "Kaong" (Sugar Palm)

Here's our beautiful little tarsiers!

And the most beautiful tarsier of all, our guide Kuya Junny. :-)

Next stop: Chocolate Hills. According to our tour guide, the Americans who first came to Bohol named it so because they change to color brown when it's summer. But then again, other ancient stories were spoken of a giant who lived in the island who defecated drops, or hills of chocolate. :-)

Butterfly Farm. Not so impressive. I've seen a larger farm in Penang, Malaysia. Nonetheless, the butterflies are marvelous!

Loboc River Cruise.

The cruise comes with a lunch buffet and an on board singer!

Before the cruise is over, you will be serenaded by a group of villagers young and old alike. This I believe is the highlight of the whole experience. :-)

After the river cruise, we stopped by a house a century old- Bohol's former city mayor.

The inside of the ancestral house. The mayor's great granddaughter is still alive and lives in one of the rooms of the house.

Of course, my mom test drives the antique piano and checks if it still sounds good. It does!

Baclayon Church, the island's oldest church built by Spanish priests. It was a sight to see!

Standard Procedure inside the church: no short shorts! :-)

The church's bell tower.

On our way out of the church, our tour guide brought our attention to one particular outer pillar of the church which was said to hold a mystery of some sort. Look carefully below. Tell me what you see. No, tell whoever is beside you. :-)

Padre Pio, the Italian Saint. Can you see him? if you don't, then wait no longer and fly to Bohol Island and see it for yourself!

I hope you now understand why this place is my little paradise. See you on my next post!:-)

Again, sorry for the angle of some of the pictures. Can you teach me how to fix this?^^

This is the Philippine Tourism logo for 2012 which came out early January. My post is a living testament to this bold claim.

Bohol! Who doesn't dream of visiting this island of hills likened to chocolate drops, primates smaller than rats, churches dating back to the 17th century and resort hotels that pamper and treat you like real royalty?

God's Little Paradise, one writer puts it. My Little Paradise, i put it. :-)

So let me tour you around in a two-part post hoping that through my lenses you would see that it truly is more fun in the Philippines!

This is Peacock Garden Luxury Hotel and Spa, a German-inspired sanctuary owned by a German entrepreneur named Hans and a Boholana.
The view from their premier infinity room is heavenly! Check out their website. www.thepeacockgarden.com

The room's balcony.

Peacock Garden prides itself as the only 5-star luxury resort in Bohol (outside of Panglao Island).

The name of the hotel's main restaurant. Very German! :-)

This may look like a small chunk but boy, it's heavy in the stomach!

a pocket-size map of an 8-hectare wonderland.

Hence the name.

I say this with all honesty, Peacock Garden's staff- crew, waiters, drivers, janitors, are the most caring, courteous, friendly, excellent staff I've ever met!

One of the best things to do in your own balcony, sip your first morning coffee.

Buffet breakfast every single morning of our four day stay. And even though most of the menu don't change, they're still a wonderful and worthwhile treat.

One awesome freebie you shouldn't miss in Peacock Garden is their free jacuzzi plunge and their steambath. Their spa treatments come with a price, though, a quite overwhelming price but it was worth trying. (Thank God for my mom's magic card a.k.a senior citizen card. hehe)

Wine Cellar- Hans's own collection of the finest wine kept in three cellars! Since we couldn't afford the best wine they have, we settled for their house wine- Chardonnay, priced for Php 680 a bottle. It tasted good, too. :-)

Our cheap wine tasted priceless with my Mom's superb piano playing. :-)

Cigar Lounge- another storage room of the owner's priced cigars. And again, we went for the cheapest cigar in the list- Pleiades Paris Cigar from Dominican Republic at Php 500 per stick.

Note: My Dad doesn't smoke. But he's happy with his cigar. :-)

In fact, he packed it and brought it home! :-)

Among all the perks Peacock Garden throws in for its guests, my most favorite is three packs of this delight on my bed every single day of our stay! And they really really taste good! :-)

P.S. I can't seem to rotate the horizontal pictures in a vertical angle. Bummer. So bear with them, viewers. Anyways, Part 2 coming up soon. Cheers!

This post ends the 3 part series of me and my friend's small Southeast Asian tour. Bangkok, Thailand- the land of smiles, of elephants, of kings and queens, of mouth-watering dishes, of cheap commodities, of pink cabs, of a language stranger than the most unknown tongue. But every one of these things beautifully make a tapestry of experiences authentically Thai.

I shall leave this journey for you to taste and feel through these photographs hoping to inspire you to one day visit Southeast Asia and indulge yourself in an odyssey just like mine or even better.

Below are the stories captured..and immortalized.

apartment view

their PUV roaming the streets of Bangkok

where every shopaholic should pay a visit to

foooooooooood!

the infamous Thai salad

heart attack that's waiting to happen!

Thais love hammocks!

Here is where I say hello to a new adventure coming up in two weeks. I shall be here again- uploading, writing, remembering, sharing. Until then! :-)

I will let the photography of this post speak for itself. Hope you enjoy Penang in these frames as much as we did in reality!

Mengkuang Dam, Bukit Mertajam..the biggest dam in Penang.

Batu Ferringhi...

...Penang, I will be back.:-)