Why Tuguegarao? They said.
Why not? I answered.
You see, we always go to the places that we are familiar with. But in my case, I’d like to go to the road less travelled. Our country is full of amazing destinations! Some we are familiar, some we are not. And that’s the beauty of not knowing what attraction a certain place has– it’s for you to find out.
My mom and I spent 4 days and 3 nights at Tuguegarao/Cagayan. Let me show you our itinerary to Tuguegarao and how amazing this place is. I will write a separate blog for Palaui Island because this will be so long if I include it here as well haha!
First stop, go to church. Not just a simple church BUT the oldest church. St. Peter and Paul Metropolitan Church is a 250-year-old red church. Yup. You heard it right.
Just ride a tricy (tricycle) for just P12. If other tricys try to ask for more, do not give them. Tuguegarao is very strict with their tricy fare. It is really P12 only. And yup! They call it tricy (traysi).
After visiting the church, walk and ask people around where is Tuguegarao’s best pancit batil patong. They will tell you to go to Jomar’s Panciteria. Very near the church.
Our trip wouldn’t be complete with out eating Tuguegarao’s specialty: Pancit Batil Patong. They told us that one plate is good for one person but guys!! It’s a trap. HAHA. Serving is really good that it is not for one person only. For P75, you may now enjoy your special pancit batil patong.
Callao Cave is also a tourist spot! From tuguegarao, ride a tricy and ask the driver to drop you at Callao terminal. We paid P40 because it is out of the Tuguegarao City proper. Then from there, ride another tricy for P45 pesos each person. One tricy can accommodate 7 people. If you don’t want to wait and you have extra budget, you can charter your own tricy for P350 back and forth. Then they will drop you to a riverside then Ride a bangka for only 20 pesos for just 5 mins boat ride. You just have to cross the river. Then there you go, you are now in Callao Caves.
As you enter the place, kids are waiting there. Hire one of them to become your tour guide. Pay them the amount that you want. It’s up to you. They were trained by the Department of Tourism and they speak English because a lot of foreigners are also visiting the site.
To reach Callao, you have to climb a 184-steps-stair. Looks easy but very tiring so make sure to have water with you.
It was very dark inside but don’t worry because your tour guide has a flash light. We are both ready and I did my research that’s why I also have my own flash light with me.
They said Bea Alonzo shot a segment/part of their movie “The Mistress” here. During the said shoot, the caves were closed for 2 days.
Also, every first sunday of the month, they hold a mass here.
It’s just so amazing to see different rock formations inside. There are 7 chambers and we didn’t go to the last part because it was kind of flooded due to raining the prior night.
After your tour here, there’s a lot of stores in the registration area. You can eat their famous Avocado yema Halo-halo.
Don’t forget to buy a ref magnet, too!
Don’t forget to visit Iguig Church, too! It’s also a very old church and you can see Cagayan River at the back. This place used to be a passage for the people to transfer goods from the Galleon trade.
We stayed in Taj Hotel. P800/night with free breakfast. We loved the room and super near with other tourist spots.
Before we left Tuguegarao, we went out the night before to eat at their foodpark with live band.
Overall, Tuguegarao is a very nice place. Also very hot. Haha. Make sure to review your history before going here so you won’t find it boring to go to historical places because that is what Tuguegarao is! (Aside from their Pancit Batil Patong)
There are a lot of destinations to visit but we haven’t visited anymore because it’s quite far from our next destination and lack of time as well. Don’t forget to research before travelling so you won’t find yourself lost when travelling to an unfamiliar place.
Speaking of next destination, will blog about our Palaui Island Tour separately. For the mean time, enjoy reading!
For pasalubong, there’s only one place to go: Tuguegarao Cooperative Lighthouse. Everything is there from hopiang ybanag, chicharon carabao, candy carabao and a lot more!
No comments:
Post a Comment