Lessons on the Road | Bacolod - Iloilo - Guimaras

Not as grand compared to some holidays to benidorm, but I had a quick getaway to the city of smiles Bacolod, plus a side trip to neighboring provinces Iloilo and Guimaras.

Sharing some lessons and realizations thru these snapshots.

The Tale of Masskara

There was a time when Bacolod was badly hit by different crisis and economic problems. Everyone was feeling down. So to hide the despair, the people thought of wearing colorful and lively masks and costumes. They danced in the streets with happy smiles and high spirits. And so Masskara Festival is born.

Lord Byron's BBQ Ribs for only P150!

In Bacolod, we tried this excellent plus-sized meat slabs pork bbq ribs that is fall of the bones and super tender-tasty, for an unbelievable price of P150 only! This is the best ribs Ive tried for its price. Thanks Ayi and Melvin for recommending this to us.

Must-Buy-Umbrella

The sun is unforgiving in Bacolod. At 8am, it's already striking hot. Ansakit sa balat. But still, it's up to you if you can endure the sunburn. Obviously I cant. May tinatawag namang payong, P78 lang!

Masskara Street Dancing

Due to the irresistible food tripping in Bacolod, I arrived late in the plaza and missed the 1st day of street dancing competition. I cant go home to Manila without achieving my goal. So on the 2nd day, I arrived in the plaza 3 hours before the show and saved a 1st row seat. The striking sun and the rain didn't make anyone moved from their seats. The experience to witness the festival upclose, feel the vibes, and cheer with the crowd was all worth it.

Congressman without Bodyguards, with Peng, Jaz, and Verns

All of a sudden, two people asked our group if there's still a sitting space. We moved a little of course and made a seat for them. Few seconds later, I noticed everyone was smiling and handshaking the man. We found out in a little while that he is the congressman. Malay ko ba, sa Manila kasi ang congressman merong mga bodyguards na naka-barong! Hehe

Bacolod Inasal

The default way to eat Inasal is eating it with bare hands. Spoons and forks aren't served at all. Manokan Country is a strip in downtown Bacolod where every restaurant serves Inasal. Lance, Lex, Ram, Kat, and I feasted the authentic inasal. Deadma muna sa carcinogens!

Swish saves the day

The day was just very exhausting. And after everything that I ate, I badly needed to freshen up my mouth. It was really a life saver to see the Swish Booth in the streets. The promodizers invited us to use Swish mouthwash. It was sooo refreshing to gargle! Not only that, the promodizers gave us free Swish bottles each! Thank goodness, now we're ready to celebrate all day and all night.

Ambot sa "Kambing" na may bangs

All this time I thought I was hearing "Ambot sa "Kambing" na may bangs!" Haha Okaayy, so it's Kanding not Kambing. Can anyone translate this phrase please?

Sweetest Mangoes

..at P90/kilo! Prices become steep when this precious fruit of Guimaras is not in season. And by the way, it's prohibited to bring seeds or any part of a mango when entering Guimaras. This way, the locals can maintain the pure breed of their mangoes.

Half Day Tour in Guimaras

Lesson learned the hard way. For a change, I didn't read blogs or forums in preparation for this trip. I thought sometimes knowing-it-all spoils the excitement in a trip. Well, it could be true. But most of the time, it's best to know the directions and normal rates about a foreign place. It saves time and money, and headache in negotiating with the very few opportunist people.

La Paz Batchoy

Okaaay. So La Paz is a place in Iloilo pala. I thought it was a brand.

Coffee Break, anyone?

The Iloilo airport is one of the few decent ones in the Philippines. The design reminds me of NAIA Terminal2. I appreciate the efficiency of getting in and out of the airport. Vans are available to take you to the city or the port. Convenient and cheap. Talking about cheap, this Iloilo's signature Coffee Break sells their coffee for only P90!

Salonpas plasters, Katinko, and Omega pain killer

Aside from the umbrella, here are my new travel essentials. Cant handle a fully packed itinerary anymore as Im beginning to feel back and muscle pain. Welcome to old age it is! ^_^

Up next:

Masskara Festival Street Dance Competition