On our brief stay in Cebu, Edwin, Albie and I met with our Cebu-based friends and we strolled around the city. We also dined at three restaurants that were both old and new to me. They were Casa Verde (they serve great-tasting baby back ribs!), Port Seafood Restaurant (they have very affordable, yummy and extensive lunch and dinner buffets!) and Sunburst (they serve fried chickens that are nothing special…oooopps!).

The Bohol part of my vacation, which was eight days in total, had many highlights but the most memorable of which were these three: the San Isidro, Bohol Town Fiesta, a tour of Bohol (they call it “Round Bohol” there, this tour was my second time) and an overnight stay at Whites and Greens Beach Resort in Panglao, Island.

During the town fiesta (feast day of St. Isidore the Farmer), we woke up early and attended the morning mass. After that, we hopped from one house to another to do the traditional pamimiyesta. It was so fun, I tell you. All the houses that we visited were relatives of the Techos. These people were very accommodating. They fed us like there’s no tomorrow. I just concentrated on desserts as I was already having goosebumps at the sight of lechons. Every house we went to had lechon on the table. Even at the Techo ancestral house, we had been eating pork almost everyday since the Day 1 of our vacation. I thought I had to take some control.

My moments with my mother and my younger sister were priceless. We spent each night we were together chatting, giggling and hugging. We caught up on each other’s life, updates on school, work, crushes, beauty regimens and other shallow matters were brought up candidly. I cherish those times and I’m thankful God gave me the chance to be with them, even just for a while. And I can’t wait for next year to come because it’ll be the time when we will all be together as family, here in Manila.

The tour of Bohol that we did on the eight day of my vacation was actually my second time. The places we visited are listed as follows:

1. Sagbayan Peak.Aside from the good view of Chocolate Hills that it offers, Sagbayan Peak is both a themed park and a rented venue for various functions.

2. Man-made Forest.In Bohol, there’s this what they call a man-made forest. It is actually a joint environmental project of a local government unit and a school. When you pass through this side of the road going to Carmen, Bohol, take a halt, breath deep and appreciate the beauty of nature.

3. Chocolate Hills Park. Here, you get a commanding view of the famous hills. To get to the top where the view becomes breathtakingly awesome, you need to ascend through a more than 200-step staircase. Patience is a virtue.

4. A Tarsier Stop. This was where we saw several Philippine tarsiers in captivity. These cute creatures were very kind and quiet. Anyway, there’s no fee to get into the place. It must be because it’s mainly a pasalubong store and the tarsiers found here are designed only to attract a crowd. I can say it’s effective.

5. Loboc River.Still magnificent with its greenish waters, this river continues to attract both domestic and foreign tourists to this day. It seems to me that the Loboc River Cruise is making the government huge money as evident with its new terminal and improved facilities. Each floating restaurant charges P300 per head for a lunch or dinner buffet with free 1-hour cruise of the river.

6. Baclayon Church.Authentic and charming, the walls of Baclayon church never fails to remind me of Bohol’s historic past.

Our overnight stay at Whites and Greens Beach Resort was fun and relaxing. We swam from 4:00 p.m. until dusk. The next day, we took tons of photos around the resort and by the beach.

Edwin and I even had a side trip one sunny day using an ever-dependable motorcycle. We visited Antequera Church and Mag-aso Falls, both are located in Antequera, Bohol, a few kilometers away from where we stayed.

So, there goes my summer adventure in Bohol and Cebu. Happy summer again!