Pawikan (Sea Turtle) Sanctuary is located at Brgy. Nagbalayong, Morong, Bataan. We went here last February 2011 because of the fiesta and it is also the hometown of my mother. This sanctuary is a community-based sea turtle conservation program that aims to protect and to propagate the endangered sea turtles. The persons behind this program are former hunters and poachers of sea turtles. In this sanctuary, they secure the eggs laid by the sea turtles in the shores at night and then put them to a hatchery until they are hatched. Then they will take care of the baby turtles until they are ready to be released back in their original habitat. In the hatchery, the eggs are separated depending on how old they are.

The cave is west of the Pintal River directly across from the barangay’s irrigation intake structure. You can either do the short swim across or go downstream and wade across the shallower portion of the river. Continuing another 30 meters west over the rubble along the river bank, you’ll reach the Front Lagoon * that is 20 meters wide by 50 meters long depending on the rains. The Front Lagoon is actually a sump with no visible connection with the river but we believe it does underground. You’ll have to swim about 36 meters to get to the entrance of the cave, which is at the eastern bank of the lagoon. This bank is actually large breakdowns across the entrance and you can see the turbulence generated as water flow under them.

Bantayan Island is in the Visayan Sea, Philippines, located just west off the northern tip of Cebu Island. The island, politically a part of the Province of Cebu, is about 7 miles (11 km) wide by 10 miles (16 km) long. It is also the main and largest island of the Bantayan Island Group that is roughly the geographical center of the Philippines. Bantayan Islands are considered as Cebu’s fishing ground from where boatloads of fish are transported daily to Cebu City and Negros. Bantayan island has been dubbed as the quiet version of tourist favorite Boracay, which is considered by many as one of the best beach destinations in the world.

Binagol, moron, sagmani…

Binagol (sweetened taro pudding with nuts) is a popular delicacy produced by the municipality of Dagami, Leyte. It is made from talyan - a root crop species like gabi that grows and is imported from Palapag, Northern Samar. Mixed with eggs, coconut milk, sugar, butter, nuts and chocolate, it is packaged and steamed using banana leaves and polished coconut shells called “bagol,” hence the name “binagol.”

my longtime FB friend Jun, who I just met for the first time a few days ago when I went to Surigao City, told me when I asked him what are the delicacies in the city. The name, in itself, is already intriguing but for Surigaonons, refers to cone or tapered shape.

Whenever I do travel, checking the local delicacies is one of the must things to do. It is one way of getting to know more of the place and for Surigao City, the sayongsong, is said to be only found in the province, especially in Barangay Ipil near the famous and unusual pebble beach.