“Best place with best people equals awesome experience.”

This quote sums up my whole experience during our summer getaway at North Sky Beach Resort.
As one of the lucky scholars of a French organization during college, I and my co-scholars were molded and sculpted under three core values, namely Solidarity, Trust and Responsibility. During that chapter of our journey, our lives solely revolved on these values. We have that “all for one, one for all” kind of spirit in our veins, a solid trademark that mostly every one of us possesses. I’m so happy to say that until now we are still firm. Even if couple of years have already passed since our graduation, we remain one big happy alumni family up to this moment. Our core values are still present. In fact, our solidarity value has been properly observed during this year’s summer outing and I’m so glad about it.

It is our tradition to celebrate summer as one alumni family. This is a perfect time to catch up with everyone’s life updates, career chikkas, future plans, life detours, lovelife and many more. We celebrate our alumni summer outing at North Sky Beach Resort in Sogod. This is located at the Northern part of Cebu and is really beautiful, you will surely love.

Before that magical day, the alumni officers had been planning rigorously for a complete itinerary as well as task list so that everything would be smooth and calm. I’m glad that others cooperated and took charge of particular responsibilities.

Why do we choose this resort?

North Sky Beach Resort is wide, green and lovely as it is. Just impeccably perfect for team bonding activities. When I set foot at the entrance gate, I know right there at that moment that this place suits best to our getaway. Entrance Fee is very affordable at 90 pesos for day use per person. Compared to other resorts that require you to pay thousands of pesos, this one is different. Though if you stay here overnight, there’ll be an additional fee but it is not that as big as compared to others. Maybe because this place is kind of away from the city or maybe because the owner is just that generous? Either way, that’s a good news and definitely likable! There’s no corkage as well if you’ll bring food from outside, that’s very customer friendly, you see!

By the way, just be patient about the transportation going to this place because it will take you around 2-3 hours to get there if you are in Cebu City. It is better to leave early so that there’ll be no heavy traffic along the way. In our case, we meet at North Bus Terminal at 7AM then ride a bus going to the resort for a fare of less than a hundred pesos. We arrive at around 9:30AM to our destination.

The resort has:

1) Beach Gazebo
This is a great and convenient place to stay in for a day to enjoy with your family or friends. It is equipped with comfortable seating and a center table for food and drinks.

2) Grill House
A grill with running water is free of charge. It is a great place to barbecue meats, seafood or other food that needs grilling.

3) Pool
For those who prefer to enjoy the beach environment without dipping into the sea, a slide and swimming pools for kids and adults are available.

What are the activities we do?

1) Team building games – As an in-charge of this, I make sure to choose those games that will surely tighten our bond even more. Especially that there are new alumni joining, games that incorporate interaction to the group, strategy and enjoyment must come along. Human Binggo, Group Cheer, Nips Transfer and Lemonsito Transmission are the chosen games and they are very fun! Seems all of us are near to dying the moment of our participation of these. Laughter here, laughter there, laughters everywhere! Kabuang here, kabuang there, kabuang everywhere! Hahaha.

Nips candy transfer. Make sure not to drop them eh!

2) Photobooth and Photoshoot – Shout out of many “Thank you’s” to Claire Ann for making a photobooth during this event. She’s the artist of our batch and she makes a good job when it comes to executing fancy stuff like this. By the way, the tarpaulin is made by yours truly (charr!). Printing it is a struggle on my part because I'm late. There are10 tarpaulains on queue to be printed before mine. I panick gosh, because I need it to be printed right away. Luckily, my charisma has been used against the printer operator and he prioritizes my request. Hahaha aja! Just have to be super feeling close at needy times like this, throw jokes he can relate, talk about stuff he knows and then puff I get what I come for, the printed tarpaulin! Hahaha, thank you bongga!

Thank you as well to our official photographer Kevin Olores for my fun photoshoot on this day. I love it and will surely create a separate blog post about that!

Brothers and sister for better or worst. Yay!

3) Lots and lots of eating – By this, I mean eating with no limit! Cheat day for those on diet! Fruits, meat, dessert, snacks, chips and many more you may put that on your plate. There’s no corkage in the resort so we bring foods that we love, lol.

The fruit ninjas!

4) Swimming – Clear and cold water in the swimming pool. Who can say no to that on a sunny, hot day?! Everybody is enjoying plus playing ball game on the water is a hundred times entertaining and drolling. Our kid spirit has also been channeled through the pool’s water slide.

Our wacky divers, hahaha!

Thank you to all the people who participate and make this summer getaway a memorable and happy one. Another entry to our happy thoughts! Here is a video compilation in the pool area. See you on our next gathering!

Thanks to North Sky Beach Resort for offering us the picture-perfect venue for this summer getaway.

Activities and adventures I take:

Yehey!

Summer is very near, yes it is! If you plan a vacation with friends or family, you might as well consider this magical place in the Philippines as one of your destinations  - the Siquijor Island.

Siquijor is one of the places I've always wanted to visit. Afterall, I got curious about it due to the great stories and beautiful  tourist attractions I've heard from friends and the internet.
Thankfully, my friends invited me to join them conquer this wonderful place.

Before the invitation, it was few months already since I last had our getaway. Everybody was caught up busy with work schedules and personal activities. I missed them and the experiences we shared together. So, during that one night, right after I saw the invitation message in my Messenger app, I immediately answered YES, I would join! I was thankful that they never forgotten me.

We planned our itinerary and expenses days before our trip. It really helped us a lot. We were 7 individuals during this adventure. This experience with them is one of my favorites.

AK, Ems, Sipin, ate Nova, April, Minang, kuya Ricky

1. Booked a resort at Siquijor.  
This was done online then followed up with phone calls/text messages. We chose Diamond de Siquijor resort. I liked the place and accommodation (not to mention the name itself was quite similar to my middle name, haha). Definitely recommended to anyone who wanted to check in.
Contact number: +639975831152
Price: Php 2,380.00 for the seven of us. Php 1380.00 per room good for 2 people (with free breakfast). Php 200 per excess person.

Diamond de Siquijor

2. Booked a tour guide with a jeepney vehicle.  
We choose jeepney because we wanna feel Siquijor's fresh air and the summer breeze of the place. Plus, it's way cheaper than VHires.
Contact number: +639361107863
Price: Php 1,800.00


How did we get there and what were our activities?

A) 3:00 AM (dawn)
- Meetup at Cebu City's South Bus Terminal.
- Rode non-aircon Ceres bus going to Liloan Port of Santander, Cebu City (Php 162.00 per person)


B) 6:00 AM (morning)
- Rode pumb boat from Liloan port going to Sibulan Port of Dumaguete City (Php 62.00 per person)
- Breakfast at Sibulan port. I loved fish tinola! (Php 60.00 - 100.00 per person)
- Rented tricycle going to Dumaguete port. This was the starting point of the fastcraft that we needed to ride going to Siquijor port. (Php 25.00 per person)

My many loves!

C) 7:00 AM (morning)
- Bought ticket at Dumaguete port for our trip to Siquijor. When we arrived here, the first trip was already full so we got to wait for the next trip which was 12:30 in the afternoon. Since it was 5 1/2 hours away still, we had sufficient amount of time for a stroll at the place. (Php 224.00 per person for OceanJet fastcrat including port entrance fee)
- Bought foods in one of Dumaguete's convenience stores; good for 2 days consumption. The reason was we just wanted to make sure not to consume potioned foods in Siquijor. Sounded silly, yes, but we just wanted to make sure hehe!

Wait, the plastic full of our snacks is a bit of a loner! Haha

D) 12:30 PM (afternoon)
- Rode fast craft going to our destination. At last!

E) 2:00 PM (afternoon)
- Welcome to Siquijor!
- Checked in at Diamond de Siquijor resort. Left our baggages and got ready for the tour!
- Our rented jeepney fetched us and the tour began!


F) 10:00 PM (evening)
- Back at the resort . Ate dinner in the resort's restaurant. (Php 100.00 - 135. 00 per person)
- Freshened up ourselves.
- Story telling and lots of chika-chika with my friends. We also played cards.
- Slept. Good night. :*

Sikit-sikiti ug sibug-sibugi :D

G) 6:00 AM (morning)
- The ladies woke up early to watch the sunrise. It was so wonderful!
- Walked and pictorials by the lowtide beach. Everything was perfect and fantastic!

I heart you!

H) 8:00 AM (morning)
- Breakfast, yehey! It's not obvious that we were hungry, lol. (Php 100.00 - 135. 00 per person)
- Lots of story telling with my squad.
- Tour and fun around the beach.
- Had our lunch. (Php 100.00 - 135. 00 per person)


I) 12:00 Noon
- Time to leave.
- Room checkout.
- Left the resort and went straight to Siquijor port.
- Bought ticket for Dumaguete trip. Since the boat would left at 1:30 PM, we still had time to enjoy and relax the cheap but beautiful beach resort nearby. (Php 15.00 entrance fee per person)
- Played voleyball.
- Fantastic and epic pictorials combined.


J) 1:30 PM (afternoon)
- Goodbye Siquijor. Thank you for letting us experience the beautiful you. Though we only stayed for a very short time, we enjoyed so much and it's definitely worth it!


K) 3:30 PM (afternoon) onwards
- Arrived at Dumaguete port.
- Relaxed and bought pasalubong at Sans Rival
- Travelled back to Sibulan port, then Liloan port, then back to Cebu City. (Php 200.00 per person)

1. Toured at Siliman University.
2. Tried the famous fried and fresh fruit ice cream at Panda Fresh Fruit Ice Cream store. (Php 65.00 100. 00 per person)
3. Relaxed in one of the cafeterias present in the place and played cards. Some of my friends recharged their phone and camera batteries (because pictures yes!). We had our lunch as well.(Php 65.00 - 100. 00 per person)

1. Capilay's Spring Park 
A natural, spring-fed swimming pool situated at the heart of the town plaza where people converge leisurely for a swim in the cool waters or simply sit under the shade of the trees.


2. Enchanted Century Balete Tree and Fish Spa
Because of its eerie outline created by hundred of roots and vines hanging down, this century old tree was believed to be enchanted. This enchanting tree was not only a site to behold but also provides water to its residents. The fish spa in the balete tree was also a must-try as the fishes nibble the dead skin and cleanse the visitor's feet. I realized my feet was not that delicious because there were no fishes, even a single one, that ate its dead skin, lol!


3. San Isidro Labrador Church
This is one of the most outstanding churches in the Philippines. This was constructed by the Spaniards in 1884, using indigenous coral stones and local hardwood. The church has preserved its original wooden flooring.


4. San Isidro Labrador Convent
This was reputed to be the biggest among the oldest convents in the Philippines. It is believed to have been the vacation house for the Diocese's priests during the time of Spaniards.


5. Cambugahay Falls 
You may choose either a river or a forest trek to get to the waterfalls. We chose the latter. I loved diving here. Plus, the cold water was so relaxing! I wouldn't want to leave.

Hail the queen! Bwahahaha!

6. Salagdoong Beach 
The water in this beach was literally crystal clear! Fine white sand covered the shoreline, too. There was also a little cliff that you can jump into the ocean.  It was terrifying and fantastic! I could die out of happiness if I jumped. Unfortunately, I was tired diving at Cambugahay falls and I ran out of energy so I was not able to jump here. I just took pictures, sat in the seashore while enjoying this beautiful beach. We took lots of pictures too.


7. Man-made forest

The trees were not that good in this picture because the focus was on our very funny faces. :D

8. Kagusuan Beach 
Noted for its picturesque seascape and rock formation, it was situated below a cliff and accessible by a concrete staircase. We were not able to swam here because it was nighttime already when we arrived here.

9. Centennial House 
This is a century old house made of bamboo, nipa and molave hardwood.

Photo from Google.

10. St. Francis of Assisi Church 
Made up of stone and cruciform.

11. Pasalubong Center 
Variety of souvenirs ranges from hats, keychains, fashion jewelries, t-shirts to semi-possesed dolls and different kind of potions, including love potion. I don't know if this is working though.





1. Wear light clothes. Sleeveless tank paired with shorts are preferable especially during summer :D
2. Put on thick sunblock. You don't want to burn your burnt skin, do you? :D :P
3. Bring cash during your tour. There's little amount of entrance fees in some of the tourist spots. There's also cheap but nice souvenirs you will surely want to buy . You may also donate any amount you want.
4. Bring foods/snacks during the tour.
5. The locals especially the tour guides are very friendly. So, you got to be friendly, too. Plus, they are willing to take countless of pictures of you and your squad - may it be dramatic, jumpshots or videos. Just approach in a polite way. :)


Located in the Central Visayas region, Siquijor is the third smallest province in the Philippines and a small midway between Visayas and Mindanao islands. Legend tells of a "King Kihod" as the source of the island's name. Old residents also called the island "Katugasan" from the Molave ("tugas") trees that cover the hill.
During Spanish expedition, Siquijor was known as Isla de Fuego  or the "Island of Fire" because it was literally lit by fireflies at night swarming the branches of its molave trees.
Since the olden times, people believe the island to be mysterious because of the presence of folk healers and their practices of spiritualism and up to these days people still come to witness the preparation of the brews and really try the medicinal powers of herbs, from health problems to the potions for love and favor.
Above all, it's the local's welcoming smile and warmth that make every visitor's stay delightful and unforgettable.

1. Siquijor island is mostly made up of limestone rock material and fringed by mangroves, white sandy beaches and coral reefs.
2. Majority speaks the native dialect which is Cebuano. Tagalog and English are widely spoken and understood.
3. In most parts of the province, it is dry from January to May and wet for the rest of the year. The southern part is dry from November to April and wet for the rest of the year.
4. The most common means of transportation are jeepneys and tricycles. Tricycles are available for hire to desired destinations, while jeepneys travel on franchised routes between municipalities.