A day trip to Burot Beach

Our trip today started from an impromptu planning to visit the beach by my neighbor friends in Cavite. Less than 12 hours before the scheduled departure, it has been decided to have an overnight camping trip in Burot Beach and everyone hastingly prepared for the logistics the for our trip with last minute shopping at the mall.

 

As we came from Cavite, we traversed the route passing through Governor's Drive to roads leading to Tagaytay City (vs. the usual via SLEX or Aguinaldo Highway route). We left past 5AM and in less than an hour and with a convoy of four vehicles, we stopped over in Tagaytay for fuel before continuing our journey for another to Calatagan, Batangas. We have with us a family who have been visiting this place a number of times since earlier this year so they already know the way.

 

In Calatagan Town Proper, we stopped by the small market behind the Municipal Hall to buy some picnic items and seafood before finally heading over to Burot Beach, passing by a couple cemeteries (Calatagan Municipal Cemetery and Eternal Garden Cemetery) before finally reaching the gate. We stopped at the gate where the security guard recorded our arrival then proceeded to pass by the dirt road of around a kilometer before finally reaching another gate.

At the second gate, another security guard stopped us to collect entrance fees. For day trips, each person is charged PHP60 while for overnight campers, PHP130. The rest of the group planned for overnight camping trip while we opted for a day trip so we paid accordingly.

It was around 8AM when we arrived and there were not a lot of visitors at that time. Trust me, the people on the pictures are not that much compared to later that day, specially right before lunch time when more groups started to arrive. The place was pretty serene and the water was very calm when we arrived.

 

Our group settled on a shade under the tree by the beach and rented a couple of big tables and chairs (PHP200 per set) where we started to prepare the food and have breakfast soon after.

 

And just after having breakfast, the kids (and kids at heart) in our group started to go swimming while others are busy preparing food for mid-morning snacks and lunch later that day. It is common for a lot of visitors to prepare food in the vicinity (while others bring in cooked food). We have a portable stove and grill at hand so everything was a breeze. Other guys in the group started the drinking session early on.

 

grilling fish and eggplants

 

other huts and tables for rent

 

There is a small store selling food and items but is a bit expensive. I see a lot of visitors buying from this store though as there are no other options and it's quite far to go out just to buy some necessities.

By lunch time, more people are in and some groups have started setting up their respective tents. The crowd has grown to perhaps a triple or more times from when we came in but a lot are either busy preparing for lunch or eating at this time.

 

At this point, my son Ethan has taken a break from swimming and started playing with the sand under the scorching heat of the sun.

our group's area with tents already settled and fixed up

For others visiting Burot Beach, the issue with the place is the lack of facilities. Although I expected it to be like it as it is an undeveloped place. The lack of ample comfort rooms, as well as their sanitation has been a problem that day and a lot of visitors are lining up on the few comfort rooms provided. They aren't comfortable at all but good thing is that there is enough water supply.

There are also jellyfishes on the beach. Although it is expected, it may be a turnoff for a few others. Honestly, they aren't that big deal and I don't think there has been serious incidents that day. In fact, the kids happily got one and have put it on a pail for their liking before freeing it back to the sea.

 

There were also a lot of starfishes and I hate it when a people take the out from the water for a long time. Other groups even had piled up quite a few and effectively killing them. I still believe one must respect the nature and should clean up their own rubbish and take nothing from the natural resources.

By mid-afternoon, the crowd number has started to shrink as a lot of daytrippers started to pack up and leave.

 

me, Roshie and Ethan

Ethan stayed for around a couple of hours sitting on the tree trunk which he found amusing and refused to come down for quite some time.

By late afternoon however, the water has come down so gradually (low tide) that one has to walk a couple or so hundred meters to reach waist-level water.

 

I left with my family around 6PM while leaving others behind who are in for camping. I forgot to note that the road leading to the beach is quite scary and seems to be landfilled. Actually it is enough for one medium size vehicle and that when there's another one approaching your way (like a tricycle or worse, another car), it would be hard to get into the side of the road as there are areas where both sides are surrounded by water.

What I don't like about driving to the place is the quality of the road. There were sharp stones all throughout and I felt like it may be capable of puncturing the tires.

At last, I arrived at the gate, about to leave the premises. The guard was very friendly and heartwarmingly bade goodbye after thanking us for coming. By the way, I didn't mention that the guard has an SM logo on his shirt. A few searches over the internet says that the place is owned by the SM group and may be up for development like Pico de Loro in the future. Glad to be able to visit the place before that happens!

Overall, I still find the place nice, despite lacking facilities (specially CR). The sand is soft and is golden white (not as white as Boracay) and the water were very calm. Very family-friendly! Perhaps I would come back when the government does something to the roads leading to the vicinity and that the SM group does something as well on its road inside its property.

Good Friday Moriones Parade and Via Crusis

The Holy Week-long Moriones Fetival continues up to this day. As day broke and after having our breakfast, we headed to the streets and saw that moriones are starting to parade group by group to the delight of the tourist. We wasted no time and witnessed this spectacular event. Here are some of the moriones that caught my attention.

a group of moriones lined up

side by side picture

another view of the moriones lined up

 

a morion costume made of shells

another view

man holding a morion head mask

looks like a group of angry moriones

another pack

another morion

moriones on top of the hill

a morion about to draw his sword

photo opportunity with a group of moriones on the streets

a closer look (tongue-in-cheek)

Another event as it is Good Friday is the "Via Crusis" (Way of the Cross), a re-enactment of Jesus' way of the cross. The guy below portrays as Jesus Christ. 

For local and Roman Catholics, the re-enactment allows the devotees to re-live the day when Jesus was crucified and time to reflect on his sacrifice for mankind.

As the name implies, it includes carrying of the cross, done by the man below, who is portraying Jesus Christ. The man supposedly who is doing this act is also doing an act of repentance via a sacrifice of heat under the sun and carrying the heavy cross.

Some other re-enactments are more realistic. However this one is more "staged". As you can see here, this is where the "crew" is adding blood to the face of the actor.

.. and then he drinks water

.. and then you can see he smiles :). This guy has a lot of supporters around by the way. In provinces like this, some take it as a "prestige" to be part of the parade and sometimes a family has to give everything and campaign to get this slot.

 

.. and then he brushes off himself

.. and the journey continues. Along the way as he is carrying the cross there is supposedly some flogging being done on his body, but not so much on this guy.

Queer but there were superhero ladies on the parade too!

Then there was this huge crowd and I can't seem to breeze myself through to see what's going on.

Another cross-carrier guy, supposedly one of the thieves crucified with Jesus. There is a bit of drama here as this guy tries to run away from the floggers.

.. but of course, there was a rope to control him and he is then also captured and then flogged

.. and then he tries to run away again from the soldiers flogging him

.. away he goes but in the end the soldiers will still win,

At the end of the Via Crusis is supposedly the crucifixion over the hill but I didn't bother to wait for it as it was too hot (and I really didn't like that part).

Later that afternoon we continue driving around the province and following the signs, we arrived at the view point in Balanacan. The road leading to the view point, which is uphill, is already covered with thick layer of dirt and leaves.

The structure is already old and its glorious days must have been years ago.

Walking towards the place, I think it would have been a nice venue for events (such as parties). However, the place is already old and unkept and would definitely need repair in some aspect.

Moreso, the view is already partially obstructed by the stems and leaves of trees that grow nearby.

Finding the right viewing angle and point, one can still be mesmerized and amazed of the view waiting for the spectator.

view with Balanacan port

view with outlying islands

From the view point, we can see this statue and decided to go towards it. We came to know later that it is a statue of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage, still in Balanacan, Mogpog.

a closer look

ships docked at the port of Balanacan

We also inquired with the office of the shipping vessels at the port area of the schedule of ships that would bring us back to Lucena port in Quezon as we plan to leave the province the next day. As we leave the port, this mural caught our attention.

Next things were uneventful as we just spent the rest of the afternoon resting at the lodge. Then we had dinner at Kusina sa Plaza, just beside Cafe where we had dinner the previous night.

food lined up for ordering

fried fish with rice

salted egg and tomatoes

dining area

As we leave the restaurant, we were stopped by a procession. Devotees hold up a lighted candle, praying, and images were on parade.

We slept early that night as we plan to leave early morning the next day. It was still dark when we arrived early morning at the Port of Balanacan and we intended to do this just to make sure they have space for our car to be loaded in the ship. It was peak season and a lot of other travelers were also there already when we arrived.

our ship, while waiting to be loaded

It was a very packed and meaningful trip for both Jojo and I, hitting two birds with one stone. While we reflect and do our duties as a Roman Catholic, we were also blessed to have time to witness some of the events that happened that we will never forget.