Tagaytay: October 2025 - Day one

October 2 was sister dearest's 50 something birthday so we decided to spend 3D2N in Tagaytay for some well deserved sister bonding moments. But first we dropped by the parents' final resting place in Loyola Memorial Park in Paranaque.

An hour and 30 minutes road trip through Skyway, SLEX then CALAX just in time for our standard Tagaytay lunch fare of bulalo, crispy tawilis, and pancit - full tummies before checking into our hotel. We rested for a few minutes then when we were about to go out again to hear mass at 5:30 PM at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, we couldn't open the front door. LOL Unbeknownst to us, it was double locked accidently by the hotel staff who accompanied us to our room. After several calls to the front desk, they sent a maintenance person to climb through the balcony (luckily we were just at the ground floor) to unlock the door for us. 

Lunch at Leslie's

We stayed at the Lake Hotel which is conveniently located on the main ridge.

Our Lady of Lourdes Parish Church

By half past 6 PM, Tagaytay was wrapped with a slight mist and only the headlights of the cars brightened the dark roads. So we decided to have an early dinner at the place near our hotel.  If you are familiar with Bag of Beans, a known cafe that is all over Tagaytay City. They also serve delicious hot cooked like meals in their Bag of Beans Charito branches.

4 cheese pizza, Batangas beef tapa with rice and slice of cheese cake

Back at the hotel to call it the day. A blessed day celebrating sister's dearest birthday with good food, heard Holy Mass and a lovely hotel in cool and windy Tagaytay City.

Update

As I write this post at 4:45 PM of Monday, the 10th of November, super typhoon Uwan is somewhere in the northern tip of the country. It caused massive devastation across Mindanao, the Visayas region and as well as in Central Luzon.  

In Metro Manila, the rains was heavy to torrential and the winds were howling. 

Let's all keep praying for the Philippines that it would recover from all these natural (earthquake, volcanic eruptions, strong typhoons) and man made calamities (corruption scandals).

On the personal front, almost two months of not blogging because life happens. =)

I turned 57 last October 19, 2025.  

Simply grateful to always be showered with God's abundant mercy and his constant blessings.

Short trip to Tagaytay with sister dearest who was in town for 5 weeks.

Foreign film festivals season so I've been busy watching and immersing in culture.

Of course, still trying my best and putting all my effort into repairing/fixing/redeeming my marriage.

Heartbreak and betryal trauma is real!

Constant praying and hearing Mass, helps.

But it isn't easy, to say the least.

Will update soonest.

Keep safe and God bless us all.

Northeast Coast Taiwan Tour

Early morning of January 14, 2025, a Tuesday we were at the meet up point somewhere in the Ximending area of Taipei for the northeastern coast of Taiwan tour from Klook. 

It was a chilly day, perfect weather for two fifty year olds to hike, climb and walk miles without breaking into balls of sweat. :D

First stop was the Yehliu Geopark. Situated in the Wanli district, the park consists of a narrow cape, 1,700 meters long and 250 meters wide that projects in the sea in the northeastern Yehliu village. Its geology consists of the Daliao formation which took shape 10 million to 25 million years ago. The formation is primarily sandstone, which is rich in calcium. 

Each layer is different in composition of its sandstone and it was through the interaction of erosion by strong northeast monsoons and waves + the weathering of sun, wind and rain that brought about the diversified landscape. 

The most popular is the "Queen's head" and its smaller successor the "Cute Princess". There are also other formations which look like a dragon's head, a pineapple bun, fairy's shoe, heart shaped rock, ice cream rock, gorilla rock and a maling bird rock, among others.

Mushroom rocks

Gorilla Rock

The Queen's head, and the heart shaped rock

Cute Princess

Next stop is the Shifen old street where lanterns with wishes are released into the sky along the Pingxi railway line. It is a bit of a walk to reach the rail tracks, you pass through a street with traditional shops. Shifen was a former coal mining town with trains transporting coal from the mines in the region. This tradition of releasing lanterns into the sky started when miners working in the area sent messages to their families signifying they were safe. Mining in the area halted in the 1970s, but the tradition of sending wishes and dreams into the sky through colorful lanterns continued and is now a major tourist attraction in the area. By the way, the sky lanterns are eco friendly! Yes, trains still pass by even though when we were there, it was all quiet with nary a train in sight.

After releasing the lanterns, it is a 30 minute walk to get to the Shifen waterfalls. You walk through the Jingan suspension bridge (built in 1947 to originally transport coal) which was quite shaky, pass through stalls selling food and drinks (there are benches for dining) to set your eyes on the amazing waterfalls, known as the "Little Niagara of Taiwan". The area is quite clean with trash bins and restroom located in convenient spots.

Jingan suspension bridge

40 minutes away passing through zigzaging road up the mountains, the last stop of the tour is Juifen. Nestled in the lush mountains of northeastern Taiwan, this former gold mining town's main attractions are the narrow (and steep) winding alley ways, cobblestone streets lined with lanterns and flanked with traditional old tea houses. Most famous is the A Mei tea house which was made famous by the Japanese animated movie "Spirited Away".  There are also bustling stalls selling tea, biscuits and souvenir items. It tends to draw crowds so always be careful with your belongings. 

the famous A Mei teahouse

We had a great time, enjoying the scenic sights, the lovely mountain air even though it entailed walking, climbing up and down stairs, rushing through the attractions due to limited time. Truly recommend taking this tour!

Nan Lian Garden, Diamond Hill Kowloon HK

A short walk away from the Chi Lin Nunnery is a greenery gem in the midst of Hong Kong's urban hustle and bustle known as the Nan Lian garden. It covers an area of 35,000 sqm, commissioned in July 2003 and formally opened to the public in November 2006.

The design of the Nan Lian Garden was based on the Jiangshouju Garden in the Shanxi province of China during the Tang dynasty. The garden follows the rules of a traditional Chinese landscape gardening techniques. 

The Garden is in a half moon shape and situated south of the Lotus Pond of the Chi Lin Nunnery.

It is adorned with springs, hillocks, trees, flowers and plants, pavilions, winding paths and bridges.

The aim was to create in this limited space, a landscape garden with natural beautiful scenes in miniature.

There are more than 60 different species of plants in the garden, chosen under the principle of "suitable time and suitable place".

The Xiang Hai Xuan situated in the south of the Garden is a multi purpose exhibition venue. The corridors outside the hall form a typical Chinese rectangular courtyard.

During our visit, there was an exhibit of bonsai like trees and rare rock formations.

The Garden features all kinds of classical timber structures, such as various types of pavilions, terrances and bridges, a study as well as a shadow wall and stone lamps.

The Pavilion of Absolute Perfection is situated in the center of the Lotus Pond

The vermillion colored Zi-Wu bridges are erected at its northern and southern sides

An octagonal shaped timber structure

There are eight old pine trees around the pavilion.

The Chinese Timber Architecture Gallery houses scaled models of existing Tang, Liao and Jin dynasties timber structures and scaled models of bracket of Tang, Sung, Ming and Qing dynasties.

Brackets used to construct the timber structures without the use

of any nails.

 Miniature of the Taihe Hall, Imperial Palace Beijing China

Pagoda of Sakyamuni Buddha, Shanxi Province China
Built during the Liao Dynasty (AD 1056)

Main hall of the Chi Lin Nunnery (1997)

Nan Lian Garden is designed and built in an ancient Tang style to faciliate a one-way circular walk through the garden. It is open daily from 07:00 AM to 09:00 PM. Free entrance.

A lovely way to spend a cold February (8, 2025) Saturday. Soaking in nature, enjoying the scenery and breathing in clean, fresh air. =)