La Union-Baguio DIY Tour :)

Back-Packer Couple ♥
Travel date: April 26-27,2015

This was our first travel (Me and my boyfriend Jes :D) where we didn’t go with friends. 
It was kind of exciting and also scary since we only have each other to depend to. 
 (Actually it’s all in me since niyaya.. okay.. pinilit ko lang naman sya and ako lahat ang nag-research and plan nito. Hahaha)

Okay.. so much for intros..

First, how to get to San Juan La Union

From Cubao:

• You have 2 bus line options: Dominion or Partas. Dominion has a terminal in Cubao (EDSA), while Partas has a bus terminal in both Cubao and Pasay.

In our case, we rode a Partas Bus in Aurora Cubao. You can ride a bus bound to Vigan or Laoag. (Note:  The guard will give you a number stub at the entrance, but really, that number doesn’t matter. Hahaha. You can ride the bus ahead of the others and pick your preferred seat.  The driver/conductor will not call your numbers chronologically.)

• Tell the driver you will be getting off at Urbiztondo, La Union, near the surf spots.  One way bus fare is around Php 400-450. Travel time: 5 – 6 hrs . (Tip: Better take a night trip to arrive early.)
• In Urbiztondo, you can ride a tricycle to your hotel. (fare is Php 10.00 per person) 

Where to stay:
We stayed at Monaliza Surf Resort. I have contacted Ate Mona  weeks before our travel. We booked their fan room good for 2 pax for only Php 800 per night. Their fan room is really basic-  old electric fan, bed, CR, table , cabinet and that’s it. The resort is beach front, but was a bit on the far end of Urbiztondo beach. They also offer Surfing Lesson and Surf Board rentals.

We arrived at Urbiztondo at 5am in the morning. Check in wasn't until 12nn and it is so kind of Manang (I forgot the name of Ate Mona's mother hehehe) to let us in early since our room was available at that time.

We woke up at 9 am in the morning. We just ate our baon (sandwich) and asked Manang for some hot water for our coffee. We offered to pay for the water but they were so kind that they refused and even lend us some mugs. 

We strolled by the beach , photo-ops and watched some people surfing.  Since surfing schools abound the shore, we asked around their rates and picked the cheapest for our surfing later.

We rested for a while and decided to have our late lunch/early meryenda at the famous Halo-halo de Iloko Balay. We headed to the main highway and asked the tricycle driver how much is the fare to Halo-halo de Iloko. One way fare is Php 100.00. (which is a bit pricey since it's only the two of us to divide the expense. Php 50 each. -mahal na po samin 'to. Hahaha. ) So we decided to take Plan B. hehehe.

The other way you can get to Halo-Halo de Iloko is:

Ride a jeepney with signage SAN FERNANDO. One way fare is Php 8.00. Tell the driver you will be getting off the market. (I'm not sure if this was their last stop- kami na lang kasi natira sa jeep. :p) From there, ride any tricycle (don't worry, there's a lot around the vicinity) to Halo-Halo de Iloko. Fare is around Php 20-30 for two persons. ( Ohh diba? Mas tipid. Haha. A total of Php 18-23 each from San Juan. But if you're in a group, say 4 persons or more, Php 100 per way for a special trip is more convenient)

From the outside, the place looks like a two-storey residential place turned into a restaurant. The first time I stepped in, I was amazed by the very homy and relaxed setting. Though, it’s a little bit humid inside, especially during summer season. 

Halo Halo de Iloko Balay serves authentic Ilocano cuisines. And of course, their Halo Halo specialties that you won’t find anywhere else in the country. Theirs is made from Carabao’s milk, mixed with a bit of corn flakes, nata de coco, cheese slices, sago, sweetened coconut, candy gelatin, ice cream then topped with ube halaya. But it is the yema pandan that makes it different from the others and will leave you wanting more.. (I'm craving while writing this :( awww.. )

We ordered:
Pork binagoongan with carabao mango slices 
Cheezy Fries (hindi mawawala nag favorite ko :p )
and Buko Halo-halo

Their house blend tea tastes good also and served in a mason jar :) Cute ^^


Going back to San Juan from Halo-Halo de Iloko Balay, ride a tricyle to San Juan Market, tell to drop you off the jeepney terminal near Mercury Drugstore and ride a jeepney with signage San Juan. (though, I don't have a picture of it, nakakatuwa yung terminal dun kasi may malaking electric fan sa tapat ng sakayan ng jeep. Hahaha. Sa sobrang init at para hindi mainip yung mga pasahero since nagpupuno sila bago umalis :p)

After our sumptuous lunch-slash-meryenda, we're ready for our next activity: SURFING!!!

We have tried surfing a year ago in Baler. We had an instructor back then so we tried to rent a Surf board only this time (w/o instructor.. spell mayabang? Hahaha). Cost: Php 200.00 per hour. You can choose to rent a Hard Board or a Soft Board. What's the difference? Hard Boards are for Pro-Surfers while Soft Board are for Non-Pro and first timers. We chose the latter :p (no more yabang this time hahaha!)

After several attempts to ride on with the waves , we failed :(( We did try all the basics we've learned in Baler but we didn't even manage to stand. (ginawa na lang namin bangka yung surf board hahaha.  Suko na!!) 

We washed and waited for the sunset.. 

Dinner:
There are cheap local eateries along the highway where budget meals cost Php 50.00- Php 100.00 which comes with a viand and rice.

Lights off...


The next day, I tried surfing again (this time with an instructor na hahah :p kasi hindi ako makakatulog ng maayos kung hindi ako makakapag SURF! Hehe )

Surfing lesson with an assistance of an instructor costs Php 400.00 per hour.

Yes.. that's me. Finally!! hahaha

As planned, we headed to Baguio after lunch. We checked-out and bid goodbyes to San Juan and rode a jeepney to Partas Terminal in San Fernando. One way fare to Baguio costs Php 100.00. Travel time is 1-2 hrs depending on the traffic.

We really wanted to tour around our favorite places (Mines View Park-50's Diner-SM Baguio) by the kuripot way of riding a jeepney only. :D Through some locals, we've learned that there are jeepneys with Mines View signs that will take you directly to this place and their terminal is located at Lower Mabini Street fronting Danes Bakeshop. Fare is around Php12.00 and travel time is 5 to 10 minutes. 

To get to 50's Diner, we rode a jeep from Good Shepherd. Fare is Php 8.00 and alight at 50's Diner after passing by Botanical Garden.

Early dinner:

Again, rode a jeep to SM Baguio. Fare is Php 8.00

Since we're already exhausted and didn't have any plans of staying in Baguio for the night. We rode a taxi and headed to Genesis Terminal.  Only to found out that it was just a walking distance from SM Baguio (hahaha! Wala na kaming magawa. Pagod na din naman kami :p )
Baguio to Manila took us 5 hrs of travel time. Fare is Php 450-500.


All in all, it was indeed a great experience! Till next time La Union :D


Breakdown of Expenses:


Bus to La Union – 450
Accommodation- 400
Surfing- 400 (with instructor)
Bus to Baguio – 100
Bus from Baguio to Manila – 500
Food Allowance – 500
Other Transpo Allowance- 100

Estimated Budget Total Php 2,450



Blogger's Note:

This is my very first published post! Weee!! :D
Sorry if there's grammatical error/s :p This was written during office hours. Bwahaha.
Happy Reading :D