Air Summit Gourmet

Air Summit Gourmet opened last February 2016 and is located in the old Kamayan sa Palaisdaan in Tayabas, Quezon.  It is an interesting resto which offers fine dining and unique experience. The whole restaurant is housed in an old scrap plane that was bought in 2014 and modified to function as a restaurant.

It was themed as an Airplane/Airport with the receiving area which serves as the "Immigration" where visitors have to wait before they can enter the plane and get the order. The waiters also wore complete flight attendant uniform to replicate the "airport to airplane experience". The plane has only 14 set of tables thus, it really takes a  while to onboard the plane - I guess that's the real scenario in the Philippine airport system.

The food is too expensive considering that they serve just plain meal. They only have one common restroom for men and women, they should have taught about that since they are expecting an influx of potential customers. 

Rating:
6 out of 10 

The Old Spaghetti House

The Old Spaghetti House or TOSH for short is an Italian inspired restaurant serving affordable dishes. TOSH has a promo for the whole month of September 2016 where you can order 5 different pastas (Vietnamese Garlic, Pesto, Pomodoro, Bacon Alfredo, Aglio Olio) for only 149 pesos and just add 50 pesos for an unlimited slice of pizza, it was a good deal to try so I dined last week and availed their promo.

They only used one kind of pasta (spaghetti) in all five dishes and no other ingredients, just plain old pasta.  But it was still good and satisfying because of the unlimited serving of pizza and pasta to fill your hungry tummy.

Rating:
6 out of 10

Pico de Loro (Mt. Palay-Palay)

"Pico de Loro" also known as "Parrot's beak is located in the mountain ranges of Mt. Palay-Palay in Ternate, Maragondon (Cavite) and Nasugbu (Batangas). It is the highest elevation in the whole province of Cavite with an altitude of 2,178 ft. above sea level.

Pico de Loro was first named by Spanish sea-farers which means "Parrot's Beak" as its pointed summit (monolith) resembles the shape of a parrot's beak from afar and  is commonly used as a signal by sea-farers to turn east to get to Manila Bay.

The jump off point starts from the DENR registration office in Ternate which passes a forested area and river crossing that resembles Mt. Makiling (UPLB trail). The first part of the hike is a gradual ascent until a rope segment, it only becomes steep after the tower deck towards the camp site. Once on the campsite a steep ascent of 200 feet will lead you through a rock portion before the summit that gives a 360 degrees view on a clear day which includes: the Monolith, Ternate Beach, the province Cavite and the town of Nasugbu.

Since it was raining hard we when we hiked, the Monolith was just a glorious shadow of what I expect it to be, it was almost zero visibility making it like a silhouette from afar. My plans of a picturesque view did not come into fruition because of the annoying Monsoon Rain, and I was so disappointed.

** PS** Contrary to popular belief, only the Monolith is closed due to the cracks, thus hikers are not allowed to scale it upward.  The whole Pico de Loro park is open to the public.

Guides are optional and you can do the whole trail in 2 hours (depends on the pacing.).

How to Get There:

1. From Coastal Mall, you can ride a bus bound to Ternate.

2. Once in Ternate you can hire a trike, tell the driver to drop you off in DENR. (250 to 300 for one way).
3. I Joined an event organized by the Salvation Mountaineers 

Real Beach: Surfer's Paradise near the Metro

The coastline of Real beach does not have white sand but rather it is composed of grayish sand, rock formations and pebbled stones that can be seen along the shoreline. What makes it special are the waves that are ideal for surfers making it the nearest surfing destination from Metro Manila which is only 2 to 3 hours of travel. The waves are ideal for beginners and all surfer levels which are usually 2 to 4 feet and not  far from the shoreline making it a nice place to learn surfing.

It was mid day when we arrived at a certain resort in Real, Quezon. The water was almost calm and no waves or splurges of water making it not ideal for surfing, thus no surfers was in sight during that time. Local says that early morning or late afternoon is the most ideal time to surf.

Several resorts and recreation centers offers surfing board for rent and tutorial.

How to Get There:
1. If you are planning to go to Real, you can ride buses bound to Infanta, Quezon. Then alight at Real.

Roadtrip to Real, Quezon

Real, Quezon is located in the Sierra Madre ranges of Eastern Luzon which is the shortest route from the Metro to reach the Pacific. Driving requires through a winding road of rolling terrains which passes hills, forest and greenery that leads to a coastal area which directly faces the Pacific Ocean.

The picturesque countryside beauty of Real's coastline was on full display as we drove to Balagbag Falls. The stunning views of the rugged rock formation similar to that of San Juan beach in La Union and the pebbled stoned beach which is similar to that of Lobo Beach in Batangas made us stop at various points along the coastline of Real-Mauban Road to take some pictures.

It may not have white sand beaches but it offers a whole lot of other attractions which includes: white water rafting, falls, surfing and of course the affordable seafood which are readily available along the highway "Talipapa" (wet market). Some stores offers "Paluto" (they will cook your fish/seafood) to any dish of your choice.

Real Quezon: Facing the Pacific Ocean

The Food: 

Grilled Bagis

Fried Samaral

Sinigang na Samaral

Palos

How to Get There:

1. If you are planning to go to Real, you can ride buses bound to Infanta, Quezon. Then alight at Real.

The Picturesque Batanes Island

My sister who had a vacation tour in Batanes shared her own experience with regards to the paradise like setting of the place, culture and people. Thus, it was based on her pictures that this writeup was made.

Batanes is an archipelago province located in the northernmost part of the Philippines. It is also the smallest, both in population and land area. The capital is Basco located in the island of Batan and the native inhabitants are the tourist-friendly Ivatan people.

According to her, the whole place is composed of lush and green vegetation composed of rolling hills and terrains that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. The shoreline is composed of long stretch of fine grain white sand beach along the coastline with rock formations and lighthouse that creates a picturesque view, it is truly a sight to behold. "Stone houses" are also a common sight- built to withstand storms and typhoons most especially that the island lies in the typhoon prone location.

Some of the must see places in Batanes are: Marlboro Hills, Spanish Lagoon, Chamantad-Tinyan View Point, Beaterio House in Sabtang Island,Mahatao View Deck, Mahayaw Arch, Morong Beach, and Valugan Boulder Beach.

How to Get There:

1. Travel promos are available in Metro Deal

Mt. Pingas

Located in the town of Pakil, the eastern portion of Laguna lies Mt. Pingas which is situated in the ranges of Sierra Madre mountain. The peak is about 1650 ft. above sea level with an ascent of about 1100 ft. from the jump off point with several 45 degrees slope that passes through a cemented road and shady path. After a 900 ft. ascent through a pavement road, one will reach the arc that leads to the site of Mt. Pingas' Holy Cross which consists of 250 steps. 

Upon reaching the viewing deck,  one will be rewarded with clear view of Mt Tagapo, Jala Jala Penisunsla, Mt Sembrano, Laguna de Bay, the sprawling rural community of Pakil and the broad rice fields. The landscape is fascinating, indeed a panoramic beauty and grandeur.

To explain the history more, they have placed plaques made of marble, with the story engraved on it. I've rephrase what the inscription states:

"During the Spanish period around 1671, a Franciscan priest took a vow as a penitent to climb a mountain carrying a wooden cross. Upon his death, the people of Pakil, out of greath respect, put up a wooden cross in this mountain. In the belief that it cures ailments especially asthma, townsfolks cut out (Pingas) small portions of the cross to use as medicine, thus the place then came to be known as Mt Pingas."

How to Get There:
1. Ride a bus bound for Sta. Cruz (Laguna), alight at Pagsawitan.
2. Then ride a jeepney bound for Siniloan, tell the driver to drop you off at Mt. Pingas' jump off which is in the town of Pakil.