Monday, May 31, 2010

Finding Bonbon

I have been a frequent visitor to Samboan - a town 140 km away from Cebu City and in the southernmost tip of the island of Cebu. The town is usually a stopover in the many bus tours that I do to liven up dreary weekends.

Samboan has a pristine coastline though I find it inferior to the coastlines of the neighboring towns of Alegria and Moalboal. The town is very laid back, quaint and peaceful. In my last visit, I decided to explore one of its many waterfalls - the Bonbon Falls, also known as Triple Drop Falls.

After asking for directions, I was led to a small path beside the highway...



The path led through a coconut plantation...



More coconuts still....



And then there were still coconuts...



After exiting the coconut roof, the path cut through bushes...



It was a long walk with the bushes...



Then, there was a clearing with an abandoned hut...



And it was back to the bushes, with a cow blocking the path...



It allowed me to pass under one condition - a single pose... :)



The path opened to a small clearing, but it seemed to led into a forest...



I crossed a small stream. After this stream, the path actually divided. And I made a wrong turn. It was spooky when I noticed that the path actually led to a house with many dogs. I was again forced to ask for directions.



I now made the right turn...



Another stream-crossing...



Getting deeper into the forest...



Again, I had to "wade" through this small stream...



And back to following the well-worn path...



And back to wading...



And a small waterfall revealed itself... I thought this was it, but the stairs on the right implied more...



Climbing through...



A small pool and more stairs...



The water was very cool and inviting...



And the bigger pool...



And finally, the Bonbon Falls... I now understood why they also called it Triple Drop Falls.



I stayed for an hour in the place and just enjoyed the sound of falling water and its cool rush in my feet. I also had my lunch - water and cold burger...

It was an eerie walk, being alone under the trees and the coconuts, to and fro... But the hour I spent in the waterfall was well worth it...

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

Views from Mountain View

Our SFC chapter held an activity last weekend in Mountain View Resort. It is located in a mountain barangay and provides scenic views of the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-lapu.

As Lady Luck would have it, I had a minor accident as soon as I arrived in the venue. I had some wounds close to my left eye. I use my left eye in peering through my view finder. Nevertheless, I was able to take a considerable number of pictures. And since I did not sleep, I was also able to monitor the progression of the early morning light... (Heavens also sent doctors. They rushed to my side a few minutes after the accident and provided first aid... Unfortunately, I was not able to get their names. To them, I am grateful...)

So here are the views...

An afternoon view of downtown Cebu, with the port and the island of Mactan...



Southeastern part of Cebu, with the tail-end of Mactan Island...



The sun was starting to go down... Mandaue and Lapu-lapu views, with the Hilton building in the distance...



The night has fallen, and the city lights had become alive... Mandaue and Lapu-lapu, with the Old Bridge...



Another look at the Cebu Port...



The moon has risen... This is the last picture I took before my friends brought me to the hospital to have my wounds further assessed.



When I came back from the hospital, I did not feel sleepy and decided to wait for the sunrise... An early morning shot, just when the sky was starting to show some orange tints...



I tinkered with my camera's white balance and did some spot metering on the orange tints. And here are the results...

This is mainly Mandaue...



Still Mandaue and Lapu-lapu views, with the Hilton building in the distance...



A vertical shot of the same scene above...



So that's it... I hope you enjoyed the pics... :)