— witsandnuts

Seemed too comforted by hotsprings and resorts in our baluarte, we went a little far by 2 to 3-hour drive to the shores of Laiya in San Juan, Batangas. The recall about Laiya became stronger when Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo held their private wedding reception in one of the resorts there. Among the almost equally beautiful choices, we opted to stay in Sabangan Beach Resort after the gathered comments and checking of online reviews. And it turned out that the choice was so worth it, in terms of getting a reasonable package and the food that I consumed, errr, the experience we savoured.

Filipino style cottages. We were a big group, hence, we booked three months before our intended stay. We rented one of the loft cottages which has three double sized beds both at the ground and second floors and a two-bedroom beachfront bungalow. While some resorts offer a Balinese style of rooms, most of the time I prefer to stay in well-maintained pawid (nipa hut) styled accommodations because I rarely experience that.

(From the balcony)

Beachfront joys. I really enjoyed being strategically housed in the area where I did not miss the big actions going. Just a peek from the balcony gave us the breeze, the sunrise, sunset, and all the other activities which can be summed up as people watching (others call it boy or girl watching; remember that old joke of being a boyscout or girlscout?). At night, I especially enjoyed recalling my younger years as I eavesdropped, errr, overheard the chit chats of my younger companions about life and all its intricacies, curiousities, fascination while some of them were taking turns in playing the guitar. They were up past midnight at the parasols steps away from the balcony of the bungalow we stayed in.  And I must mention that the starry, starry nights still appear in the province.

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