Manila Guide Online

One of my favorite places in Cebu is Boljoon. I’ve been there almost every summer, and it never forgets to surprise me with wonders. Last summer, my friend bought us to a haven I would never forget. It was called Granada Beach resort owned by a foreigner and a Filipina. The resort was very peaceful, inviting and relaxing. They also offer a spa massage with overlooking sceneries.

The resort lies on the south eastern coast of Cebu Island, a two hour coastal drive from Cebu’s Mactan International Airport. The drive takes in the local sites through the lush greenery of coconut and banana groves and the occasional flurry of color from the very popular bougainvillea trees of the coastal villages. Alternatively, you can take a four hour banca-boat cruise across coral reefs, passing small islands along the way. We generally make a stop to dive, snorkel or relax on one of the islands on route… a great way to start your vacation.

Air-conditioned rooms: We have eight bedrooms available, all with ocean views, their own private balcony and en-suite facilities. Five of the rooms are situated on the second floor and the remaining three are on the ground floor. All rooms also have fridges.

* Dining: The resort has it’s own open-air restaurant, complete with ocean views. Private in-room dining is also available. Alternatively, barbecues on the beach can also be arranged. The menu is a mix of Asian and Continental cuisine. The restaurant also includes a bar stocked with a range of spirits, wines and beers.

* Swimming pool: The private pool is situated in front of the hotel and overlooks the ocean. Sun lounges lie around the pool and the beach for your comfort. Cool beverages and light snacks are available pool-side at your request.

* Open Air Relaxation: The hotel has a large flat roof in the tree canopy for relaxing in the sun or romantic evenings under the stars. Light meals and beverages are available here at all times.

* Baluarte (stone watch tower): There is a stone watch tower set on the grounds of the resort (which dates back to the 1600’s) It has been restored in order to provide guests a place of sanctuary, with spectacular views from the top floor. A space where you can relax, enjoy the ambiance and even dabble in the arts.

Visit Cebu and learn how to see the beautiful places in our provinces.

My hometown offers numerous delicacies and powdery white sands. I grew up here and discovered that we are all blessed to have such beautiful sceneries. Cebu is rich in history, if you plan to go down our roots, people will discover that Cebu has yet one of the best places in town.

One of the places I’m going to visit in the future is Bantayan.. Although it might not be the best time to go there .because certain thunderstorms have been passing around the country. I made some research and learned a lot about how to have a beautiful vacation only in Cebu, Bantayan.

Bantayan is a 2nd class municipality on Bantayan Island in the province of Cebu, Philippines.

It is the island’s more populous town, with a population of 71,655 people according to the 2007 census. It is bordered at the north by Madridejos and at the southeast by Santa Fe.

Bantayan Islands is geographically in the center of the Philippines. It is located at the northwestern side of Cebu and northeastern of Negros Oriental. It is a town of Cebu and is about 80 miles from Cebu City. The main Bantayan Island is about 7 miles wide by 10 miles long. About 20 of its islets stretch for another 5 miles long with some being accessible by foot from the main island at low tide. Mostly all the ships or ferryboats coming from Mindanao or south of Cebu have to pass by Bantayan Islands on its way to Manila. The Bantayan dialect is a mixture of native Cebuano, Ilongo (Negros), Waray (Samar), Masbateño, and Boholano, but it has words it can call its own such as “kakyop, sara, kag buwas“ (yesterday, today, and tomorrow).

Bantayan Islands is considered as Cebu’s fishing ground where shiploads and boatloads of fish are transported daily to Cebu City and Negros. Tons of guinamos (salted fish) and buwad (dried fish) are delivered to Cebu City and Cadiz, Negros for further distribution to as far as Mindanao and Manila. Equally important is the thriving poultry industry with hundreds of thousands of chicken eggs produced daily.

There a lot of resorts in Bantayan where you can stay overnight for as low as P 1600. If your from Cebu all you need to do is ride a bus going to Hagnaya for about 2-3 hours. After reaching Hagnaya, there is fast craft going to Bantayan which will probably cost you around 150 pesos. Finding your resort would be your choice, but I’m pretty sure everything there is beautiful and captivating.

For people who are planning vacations or long trips, it would be best to make your bank withdrawals by Wednesday, April 8, 2009. Particularly for the ones holding accounts with Banco De Oro, be advised that their ATM operations will be offline starting Maundy Thursday up to Black Saturday at the latest.

The reason for the downtime is to update their current ATM machine software. It would be best to personally withdraw from your bank account at the branches since normally the maximum withdrawal per day is PHP 20,000.00 or a maximum of PHP 40,000.00 if you start making withdrawals today, April 7, 2009.

(Source) ABS CBN