I was able to finally go to Anawangin thanks to Dawnie who organized a CS trip to the mystical beach. Woohoo! Thanks Dawnie.
Coming from a colleague's birthday dinner and without any sleep at all, I was at the Victory Liner terminal in Caloocan at exactly 3AM to meet the 9 other people who were looking for a weekend adventure. Haha! We took the 515 bus to Iba, Zambales. After almost four hours on the road, we got off at the town of San Antonio in Zambales. We then took a tricycle to Pundaquit to meet our boatman, Mang Jimmy.
We tried to go to Capones Island to visit the lighthouse, but we were unable to do so because of the strong waves near the shoreline. That's the thing about this area. The waves are a bit unpredictable and you just have to put your faith in the boatman that he will get you safely to shore.
After almost thirty or forty minutes on the banca, we finally saw the shoreline of Anawangin. Woooohooo! It was gorgeous. Couldn't wait to get out of the banca. When we got there, several campers had already pitched tents. The good thing though is that we were able to reserve a place near the beach, thanks to Dawnie's contact.
Before you even get out of the banca, you are already treated to a fantastic, fantastic panorama. It is a visual delight to the urban person whose daily view are towering skyscrapers and a polluted skyline. Hahaha! Anawangin gives two fantastic sceneries - that of Baguio because of all the pine trees and the cool air and that of a pristine beach yet to be discovered. It was fantastic!!! I thought I've seen the country, but seriously, it still holds several more surprises.
The whole trip was memorable because it was my first time to go camping ever. (I don't think you can count a Boy Scout camping in 2nd grade as the real thing.) It was my first time to pitch a tent. It was my first time to sleep in a tent.
In the afternoon, we went swimming. We were all very careful though because the terrain of the beach is quite tricky. There have been a couple of drowning incidents already. It's the first time I've seen cross currents. One strong wave comes in, and then another one hits you from the side. And the wave pulls you back to the ocean, so utmost safety is needed. But that didn't mean we didn't have a good time at the beach.
We did, and it was really fun especially in the evening where some of the gang did some night swimming, while others just sat on the beach with several bottles of beer, exchanging stories under the light of the moon and the stars. Oh man, I can't remember the last time I've seen that many stars in the sky.
The following day, we headed back to Manila by lunch time. We were all a bit tired from the trip but that didn't stop us from still heading to a nearby Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf to have coffee and dessert before parting ways.
Thank you to the CS gang and new friends Lex, Mommy Yen, Yeng and Mau for the fun weekend!
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