Our first night in Legazpi was relatively uneventful...well,
technically. We checked in at
Vista Al Mayon without any hassle, as the hotel
has been waiting for us since 2pm. Our rooms were clean and ready, and within 10
minutes since we parked, we were settled at the cafe waiting for our dinner.
Famished, we were not in the mood for local food yet, and ordered what
looked like safe, regular dishes: fish steak for Fides, bistek tagalog for Julian,
fried chicken for Marthe, shrimp sinigang for Mama, buttered chicken for me and
lechon kawali for Mel. All sets came with cream of crab soup, plain rice and really
delicious bananas – something that ripened naturally on the tree.
Everything was a blur after dinner. My husband Mel and I went back to
our room and watched TV while the kids surfed and played in their room. We had
our usual glass of wine (no corkage fee here if you take your alcohol in the
room, but if you bring it to the poolside, corkage is P100 per bottle). Mel was
telling a story, but I had difficulty keeping my eyes open, and was making all
the wrong replies. Time for bed.
I was awakened with a start by a sound I could not place. I thought I
was dreaming, but then realized my eyes were open and the room was pitch black.
Then I heard a shout outside our window and some commotion. And then the loud
sound of some machine began and the room lit up. I looked around, trying to
understand what was happening. Mel raised his head and said, “That’s the
generator. Brown out.” Oh!
I was relieved. I looked at my mobile clock. Almost 3am, the witching
hour. Were we bewitched? I don’t care. I immediately went back to sleep, and
was up at about 7am to look at Mayon up close. Surprisingly, the kids were
already awake, even after our long ang tiring trip.
Mt Mayon was even more majestic from this standpoint, like a queen
standing in the center of her kingdom, looking over her subjects and
properties. At 7am, the crater is very visible and only some clouds hovered
near the top. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take our breakfast by the poolside to
have an endless view of the volcano because the hotel is being used as a venue
for swimming lessons for kids during the day. So there were many parents
sitting in the poolside tables watching their kids learn to swim.
We took our breakfast inside the cafe. Our bill reached P600+. That’s
about P100+ per person. Not bad, considering that the servings were big enough
for a regular eater.
Cagsawa Church ruins
After breakfast, our first agenda was of course, the
Cagsawa Church Ruins. Mel has visited the place in the 90s and he was surprised to see that it
is now surrounded with souvenir shops, eateries and restrooms. Back then, he
said the place was totally bare. Now, there’s already an entrance gate that collects
P10 per person.
As we all know by now, the Cagsawa Church was buried in the Mayon
volcano eruption of 1814, where more than 1,000 residents of Cagsawa town were
killed. The whole town itself was buried in ash and lahar, and the people who
took refuge inside the church died as well. After the eruption, a great part of
the belfry and church facade were still visible. But today, only the roof of
the nearby convent and the top arcs of the church can be seen, in addition to
the belfry. Some say that they slowly crumbled during earthquakes in the 50s.
Some unthinking businessman built a resort just beside the ruins,
unmindful of the sacredness of the place. The resort had no periphery walls or
fences such that the swimming pool can be accessed and seen directly from the
pathways of the ruins. Naturally, no one would be seen swimming in that pool
with all those tourists looking at you. As a result, the pool was left to “rot”,
now green with moss and algae. Another (stupid) investment down the drain.
The souvenir shops were filled with personal and home items made of
local materials such as abaca. We bought a clothes hamper for the bathroom, a
corner decor that can be fitted with a lamp, a pink and gray laptop bag, a katya and rope bag, three pili
keychains, and two cutie hats for the girls. All these for only P1,210.
I hesitated on the pili desserts as the woman who sold us the souvenirs
said the pili products are really expensive these days. The harvest has not
been that good so instead of being able to offer one pack of pili for P65, the
vendors now sell them for P100 or more.
Just as we were leaving, however, this man begged us to buy his packs
of pili tarts. I declined but Mel, out of pity, bought 3 packs at P100 each.
It was almost lunch time, and there was nothing appetizing in sight, so
we decided to make a final visit to the CR before we go. That’s P2 “donation” per
visit. For maintenance purposes? I didn’t see any signs of maintenance
activities in the rest room outside of the main ruins viewing area. The CR was
dirty, there was water on the floor, and no water for flushing. We got a tip
from one of the vendors that the restrooms inside the main viewing area are
cleaner.
Next time.
As we left Cagsawa Ruins, we sampled the pili tarts. Not a single taste of pili! All flour, I knew it. We really should find an authentic pili store.
Now, we’re off to Lignon Hill Nature Park.
