We’re at a crossroads with our eldest son Pablo’s education. On one hand, we had acknowledged his learning style and educated him using unconventional methods; on another, we live in the Philippines where accreditation hover ever so heavily above you. To give you a brief recap on our homeschooling, we had been on an independent, interest-led homeschooling journey for many years, so when we decided to go back into the system, our children were only allowed to enrol at the grade level next to their last DepEd-accredited levels This poses a great challenge for our family, especially if we want […]
The 4×4 Ride and Sand Boarding Experience at the Paoay Sand Dunes
Paoay Sand Dunes was one of the first sites our tour guide took us to the morning we arrived in Ilocos. It’s one of the most popular sites in Paoay, Ilocos and an experience not to be missed, he reiterated. It’s also the most pricey experience we had that part of the world, haha! We had to pay PHP 2,500 for the 4×4 ride that would bring us on a rollercoaster-like ride on the huge, sandy hills. All the screaming and crushed ribs The usual maximum number of people was 5, but since we were a family of three kids, […]
Cape Bojeador Lighthouse and the Bangui Windmills of Ilocos
I was so excited to see the Bangui Wind Farm and the Cape Bojeador lighthouse when I saw them in the list of sites we were visiting in our tour with Byaheros PH. I’ve been wanting to see a lighthouse up close because of the romantic side of me that longs to see a glimpse of what it was like for Wuthering Height’s Heathcliff; and the Bangui windmills seemed so fascinating to see. We both dropped by these two sites on our way back from Maira Ira beach in Pagudpud, which was such a good time to do at that […]
Calle Crisologo at Daytime
Among all the places we went to in Ilocos, the one Jay and I most looked forward to showing our children was Calle Crisologo in Vigan. We’ve been to Vigan together twice in our youth, and in both times, we performed with our band at the city square, front lining for the then popular band True Faith at the annual San Miguel Oktoberfest. Playing in Vigan with our band was one of our fondest memories — getting on the rented van right after our gig at Strumm’s in Makati, and heading towards north with our bags and instruments; just a […]
Maira Ira Beach (The Blue Lagoon) of Ilocos
Maira Ira beach is part of the famous blue lagoon of Pagudpud in Ilocos Norte. According to our tour guide, it used to be owned by the same people that run Hannah’s Beach, which by the way, still exists. Entrance to the beach was PHP 300. Our tour fee with Byaheros PH already included the hut rental fees, so I don’t really know how much it cost. But they were spacious enough to have lunch at and stay at. There weren’t too many people when we were there, in fact, our tour group was the only ones there, perhaps because […]