Last summer, the three of us embarked on a once again impromptu rendezvous with adventure.  Our main purpose was to attend a cousin’s wedding in Cagayan de Oro then make a quick side trip to Bukidnon.

CEBU – CAGAYAN

We boarded the Trans- Asia Shipping to Cagayan de Oro that travels daily from Cebu to Cagayan daily, arriving on the next day. Rates range from 800- 1000 on economy, tourist  and business class.

GETTING AROUND CAGAYAN

Cagayan is the hustle and bustle of Northern Mindanao since all modes of transport are found in the city. Jeepneys, taxis (40php flag downrate) and tricycles are found everywhere. The city is comparable to Cebu City but much smaller and a little crowded. As I have mentioned aboved, we were there on a wedding invite since we did not get the chance to commute and explore the city, only once, after docking and we were looking for a McDonald’s for breakfast and the taxi driver took us to McDonald’s Divisoria.

After breakfast, we went strolling around Divisoria. It was early hence the streets were not crowded. And let me warn you, one cannot just jaywalk. As we were about to cross the street while the traffic light was still a go, a traffic enforcer called us and sort of reprimanded us for jaywalking, haha. We discovered that they strictly impose a fine of 500php for jaywalkers!

The Divisoria boasts of a night market every Friday and Saturday where merchants and buyers flock for very low- priced retail goods.

Pardon me for not taking photos 😦

Our first day in Cagayan was more of a mini- reunion from my hubby’s side of the family, we kept on hopping from one house to another until we reached the venue of the wedding.

THE WEDDING

The wedding took place on a beach resort roughly 20 minutes away from the city center. The venue was at Sonrisa Resort and we were supposed to stay overnight there.

 

After the wedding, the family decided to head back to the city for a quick stroll. We went to Ayala, had some window shopping and realized we needed dessert.hehe. We ended up at Shakey’s near Limketkai.

BUKIDNON

The next day, not until I was asking on how to commute to Bukidnon that the family decided to go there. My plan was just to visit those mouthwatering pineapples in  Camp Philips, yet luck being on our side, the group decide to visit Dahilayan too.

I was full of excitement as the car drove its way to the winding and steep road to Bukidnon. This is what everyone was telling about Bukidnon, you have to go up a mountain.

After about an hour, we finally reached the vast pineapple plantation in Camp Philips, Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon. It was awesome! Seeing those pineapples along the road would make you want to get out of the car and pick them. It was another dream- come- true moment for me. No kidding! haha

So may wows and ahhs have been said and the pineapples are still in sight! How on earth is this big?

 

After about 30 minutes of seeing pineapples and dirt road, the terrain started to change. Vegetation became a common site, trees grew bigger and the temperature started decreasing. It felt like we were way way up. We were approaching Brgy. Dahilayan where the Dahilayan Forest Park is located.

The view around us was just breathtakingly beautiful!

 

 

DAHILAYAN FOREST PARK

Being famous for having the longest dual zipline in Asia, this park is located at the base of Mt. Kitanglad- an inactive volcano known as the 4th highest mountain in the country. With all the beauty I was seeing at that moment, I wondered if they have cut trees in order to make way for the forest park. I just hope they did not.

Entrance fee is – for adults and – for children, Please refer to the photo below for the rates (as of April 2015).

We dismissed the rides since were were on limited schedule and immersed ourselves on sight seeing.

Nature in all its beauty.

When it was time for us to go, I can’t help but feel envious to the people living there. I promised myself to be back when the time comes that our little one can enjoy those rides.