The Solo Trip

I recently went on a solo trip up the north to seek new perspectives, try things I have never tried before and most importantly find healing, not really knowing what I was getting myself into, I just knew that I wanted to do this. I have been planning on going on a solo trip for a while now and I just didn’t know what was stopping me. So, while I was working my last weeks at my old company, I was looking at my motivation quotes displayed on my desk, like I always do when I get too stressed out, and my eyes chanced upon the quote “What’s stopping you?” followed by “There will never be a perfect time” then wham-bam-pajama-slaaaaaam! I decided I wouldn’t hold myself back from doing this any longer, yes, it’s scary but hey, if it scares you, it might be a good thing to try, if I tell my sister this, I better live up to it.

I went to 3 places for about 3 and half days, overnight in each of them. First, I went to La Union, this place is ultimately foreign to me, we pass it whenever we go to Baguio but we never really did stay or went to the beach there. Second place would be Baguio, I’m familiar with the place but not an expert on it and I wanted to try beers from Baguio Craft Brewery. Third place would be my birthplace, Manaoag, I wanted to go home and visit Our Lady of Manaoag, to seek guidance for the decisions that I was about to make and for the new journey that I’m about to take because I was clueless, I was lost, and I wanted direction.

Now, for the moment that everybody has been waiting for, finding answers to their questions! I mostly got what was my budget for a certain place, to address this, I will be sharing my budget with a sample of my itinerary for each place that I visited, so you can just pick which one you wanna read about.  Please do note that I really didn’t have an itinerary, I just knew what I wanted to try, where I wanted to eat, where I wanted to go and come what may, so these are my working itineraries and just made itself out along the way. Also, google map will be your best friend during your trip, so make sure you always have data or pocket wifi with you.

Travel dates: March 8 – 11, 2018 (Thursday to Sunday)

LA UNION

Where did I stay: Flotsam and Jetsam Hostel

Budget: 1080 per bed/per night for their 4 bed AC room with breakfast

Book here: https://apac.littlehotelier.com/properties/flotsamandjetsamhostel?locale=en

How to get there from Manila: Ride a Partas bus bound for Abra or Vigan tell the conductor that you are going to San Juan, La Union. Usually, if your hotel is along the highway they drop you off there, I got off across the highway of Flotsam and Jetsam. Travel time is around 4-7 hours, depending on what time you leave the Metro.

What did I do there?

I was being my mermaid self and was mostly out by the beach, taking in all the vitamin D that I can. The sound of the waves crashing to the shore calms my mind.

EXIF_HDL_ID_1

I went to El Union Café for brunch, I had their grilled cheese and The Dirty White coffee. I highly reco that you go and grab coffee there, it’s so chill and millennial and everything, I can’t even describe it. They have great food and great people who work there who provide good conversation. It was relatively chill the time that I went to La Union, it was a good decision that I went there on a Thursday because I enjoyed the peace and the calm, one of the guys there did mention that it gets really crazy on the weekends, that’s why I got to chill there for hours because it ain’t a friggin’ weekend. Plus, I got an Iced Mocha on the house, woohoo!

I read magazines and talked to the locals, it’s amazing what you can from them, you have to be friendly to the locals because they can help you out big time. What surprised me though was that, I felt an urge write, which I haven’t done in a long time. Writing has been my best defense mechanism to counter all the bullshit life throws at me, I’ve been so busy with life that I barely have the time to hold a pen and just write and I’m really so happy that I got to do it here.

Then I went to take nap on the hammock at Flotsam and Jetsam, while waiting for 2 PM, so I can check in. This is what it looks like:

Had a little siesta time and gone surfen’, I mean, that’s the whole point of La Union other than the beach, learn how to surf. Luckily, there is a stand that offers surfing lessons just next to FlotJet, so I signed up there with my roomie, Lau.

Surfing is fairly easy, I got the full swing by the third round and it was awesome, I mean being able to stand and conquer and maneuver through the waves. I highly enjoyed surfing and this was the highlight of my trip, no photo for proof though because we were all busy in the water.

After that me and Lau got dinner and a few drinks and we were joined by Enzo and things just got crazy and fun. That’s all, no need to elaborate, the party was good ❤ ❤ ❤

It’s so good waking up and being able to see the beach first thing in the morning. I got breakfast at FlotJet and try the Kamias Jelly guys, you will not regret it, I promise. They have a healthy continental selection, I wish breakfast in Manila could be this damn good.

Itinerary:

Day 1

11:30-12:00MN – Arrival at Partas Terminal Cubao

12:00MD-4:30AM – Enroute to San Juan, La Union

4:30–5:30AM – Chill at hostel front desk

5:30-6:30AM – Watch the sunrise and chill by the beach

6:30-8:30AM – Go back to hostel and charge phone

8:30-10:30AM – Sun bathing, stroll by the beach and photo op

10:30AM-1:30PM – Brunch and chill at El Union Café

1:30-2:00PM – Chill at Flotsam and Jetsam resto, while waiting for check in

2:00-5:00PM – Check in hostel, settle down and nap time

5:00-5:30PM – Prep for surfing lesson

5:30-6:30 – Gone Surfen’

6:30PM-3:00AM Dinner, drinks & just partying

And a half

6:00-8:30AM – Bath and packing up stuff

8:30-11:30AM – Breakfast and chill by the hostel resto

11:30-12:00NN – check out and bound to Partas Terminal, San Fernando

 

Budget:

Total: P 2,652

Uber to Partas Cubao – P 113

Ticket to La Union – P 479

Bus Stop Snacks: P 50

Accommodation: P 1080

Brunch: P 280

Dinner: FREE (Thank you, Lau <3)

Drinks: Mule is P 100 per bottle I got like 2 and 2 other for free (Thank you, Enzo!)

Jeep to San Fernando: P 11

Surfing Lesson: P 400 for 1 hours, inclusive of instructor and board

Additional P 50 for back and forth van transfer because the waves in front of FlotJet was not good for beginners, so we to go somewhere else.

BAGUIO

 

Where did I stay: Bed and Bath at Station 120

Budget: 660 room/per night, no breakfast, shared bathroom

Book here: https://www.agoda.com/bed-and-bath-at-station-120/

Second stop, somewhere cold, as you might have noticed, I barely ate at La Union, I made the wrong decision of not having lunch first before I went on my next journey because when I got there I was so famished, I could eat a cow.

How to go there from San Juan, La Union: Ride a jeep going to San Fernando and ask the driver to drop you off Partas terminal and ride a bus bound to Baguio.

Bed and Bath at Station 120 is so conveniently located at the heart of the city, lucky me for booking this place, it’s near Baguio Public Market, SM Baguio, Burnham Park, Baguio Cathedral, Session Road and many more. A lot of places is just walking distance; hence, I did a lot of walking, which felt like I was doing cardio since the road goes up and down. Although, there toilet room is really lacking on leg room, so para-paraan nalang guys.

But, what did I do in Baguio? I went on a gastronomic journey, I ate and ate and drank and ate some more. I had Korean late lunch at Geney’s near the bus terminal, really cheap but really good. I’m not a fan of rice and they’re all for the rice, so I only had a small meal since it was already 3:00 when I ate, I wouldn’t want to get an upset stomach.

Then I went to SM Baguio since it was relatively near Geney’s, and I really didn’t know what I was gonna do while waiting for night time, I saw they had a 3D art wall exhibit and decided to check it out and I was not disappointed.  Just look at those colorful and pretty creations! Sorry, they looked washed out by the light, the sun was blazing.

Then, I decided to check out the Baguio Museum, but unfortunately they were closed the time I went there, so I just opted to walk around the Sunshine Park and see beautiful flowers.

Then, I decided to eat at Tskolateria (only an hour after I ate at Geney’s haha), so I walked there, it was only 15 minutes away and Baguio’s temperature made walking bearable and enjoyable.

Tsokolateria’s menu is comprised of everything chocolate, which I was willing to try. Price is kind of expensive but, taste wise, it will not disappoint. I opted for the Chocolate Ah! with crispy lechon (what a combo diba?), it’s good for 2 people. I don’t eat lechon, FYI and boy, oh boy! Did Tsokolateria change my perspective on lechon, it’s so flavorful and perfectly crispy that I devoured the entire thing, bes as in, simot sarap, walang  tira. Their tablea is the best tablea I have ever tasted in my life, it’s like drinking champorado and heaven knows how much I love champorado.

The Igorot Stairs signage will be the first thing that you will seeing when you are looking for this place

Igorot Stairs:

Then, I headed back to the hostel to rest for a bit and freshen up before I set off to Baguio Craft Brewery. I was really tempted to just lay down and sleep the night away because the blanket was so soft and smelled so good, I loved being burrito-ed by it.

But, if I did that, it would defeat my purpose of going to Baguio, so I got my lazy ass up and set off to Baguio Craft Brewery, which is t=the highlight of this Baguio trip. Me and my dad has been eyeing for a couple of years now to try drinking there but we always didn’t have the time, so I did it by myself.

BCB is quite pricey but trust me, it’s worth every cent. Food is very good and the beer was awesome! They had about 20 different flavors and would reco what you should go for. Since I wasn’t a beer drinker and I’m only trying to incorporate beer back into my life, I stayed with the fruit flavored beers. You can ask to taste 3-4 samples before you decide on what you’re getting, btw.

I opted for a glass of KiWheat(Kiwi), Strawberry and Lychee(2 glasses of this actually). I also ordered fish and chips, they have a big serving for a relatively low price for this one and the fries are not your usually salt and pepper, they also have rosemary in them. They use cream for the sauce and not mayonnaise, so that’s good because I don’t do mayo.

I opted to stay at the Biergarden, where I met Vinz, a fellow solo traveler from Iloilo. It’s so chill and so pretty there, I wish they had a branch in the Metro.

The next morning, I woke up really early, so I opted to walk around and head to Baguio Public Market to go buy pasalubong for my family, and just stroll around Session Road and find a good place to get breakfast.

I ended eating at Vizco’s because, I am absolutely inlove with their Strawberry shortcake, well strawberry in general tbh, but yes, if I am in Baguio and I do not get to eat strawberries, I guarantee that I will throw a tantrum. Lol

And here are some shots I took while going on a stroll:

Went back to the hostel and prepared for my next stop, the Tam-Awan Village, I would like to thank Vinz for letting me know about this place, it showcases the Cordillera region, and is the home of the International Art Festival, your artsy heart will not be let down, I promise, I highly reco that you guys go here.

There are tour guides to explain each station and entry.

 

Itinerary:

Day 1

11:30-12:00NN – Enroute to Partas San Fernando

12:00NN-2:30PM – Enroute Baguio

2:30–3:00PM – Check in at hostel and settle down

3:00-3:30PM – Late lunch at Geney’s

3:30-4:00PM – Stroll at SM Baguio

4:00-4:30PM – Stroll at Sunshine Park

4:30AM-5:30PM – Merienda at Tsokolateria

5:30-7:00PM – Head back to hotel to rest and freshen

7:00-7:20PM – Enroute to Baguio Craft Brewery

7:20PM-1:30AM – Chill drinking

And a half

6:00-7:30AM – Baguio Public Market and stroll around

7:30-8:30AM – Breakfast at Vizco’s

8:30-10:00AM – Continue pasalubong shopping

10:00 AM – 11:30 AM – Prepare for check out

11:30 AM – 12:00 NN – Check out and eat ice cream crepe at Scoop at Station 120

12:00 – 12:20 – Enroute to Tam-Awan Village

12:20 – 1:30 – Tour Tam-Awan Village

1:30-1:50 – Enroute to Station 120

1:50 – 2:10 – Enroute to van station to Manaoag

Budget:

Total: P 2,730

Bus to Baguio – P 104

Geney’s Lunch – P 75

Tsokolateria – P 250

Scoop – 105

Taxi to Tam-Awan Village – 77

Taxi back to hostel from Tam-Awan – 150 (Grab Taxi, it was hard to hail a cab going back to city proper)

Taxi to Baguio Craft Brewery – 74

Taxi back to hostel from BCB – 74

Accommodation – P 660/per night

Tam-Awan Village entrance fee – P 50

Baguio Craft Brewery: P 600 from original 900 – food and 4 glasses off beer but since Grab has a promo of 100 pesos off fruit flavored beer for 100 points, minus 300 hehehe

299 for souveneir shirt (optional)

Van to Manaoag – 110

Taxi to van station – 102

 

Other questions:

What is your travel bucket list for this trip?

1. Learn something new
2. L I V E
3. Go to Baguio when the temperature drops real low and feel the cold wind
4. Drink at Baguio Craft Brewery
5. Have tablea at Tsokolateria
6. Drink coffee at El Union Café
7. Go somewhere I haven’t been to

I am glad to share that I have achieved all of them 😊

Should you have any more questions, fire away and I will answer them. I deliberately excluded my Manaoag trip in this article because that trip is a personal endeavor, but if you really want to know where I went, shoot me a message and I will share it with you.

This trip has been so liberating and I have never felt so free and alive. It’s very refreshing, despite only running on a 2-4 hour sleep each trip. I had all the energy to burn and I even made walwal for 3 consecutive nights. Are you planning a solo travel? GO FOR IT! Just remember “What’s stopping you?” because “There will never be a perfect time”

 

Lots of love,

Trish the Mermaid ❤

To The Millennial Who Thinks That They’re Burned Out

Maybe right now you’re questioning your capacity of striving for those dreams because you’re simply exhausted from running that race and would really need a break from the fast life, or maybe you just lost your first corporate job and questioning your competence, maybe even thinking of resigning from that toxic company because you just really can’t take it anymore.

When you feel like dragging your body in the morning and dreading the fact that you have to go to work again, when no amount of coffee can wake your soul in midday because your body is craving for the sleep work hinders you to consume, when the stress is too much to handle and you smoke a 2 packs a day now, that’s okay, we all have those moments, adulthood never came with a manual, we just merely dove into it without knowing how to swim in that ocean but I implore you to please not be consumed.

Please take a pause and re-evaluate yourself, are you still healthy? Are you eating right? Are you still happy? Can you still take it? You work your ass off and you need to reboot and recharge yourself, you get drained every work day and get burned right in the middle of the week and sometimes even need to work on the weekends. It’s not a sin to a few days off, it’s a rite because you are only human.

We have vacation leaves, please use them, you fucking deserve them! Take that trip, you’re worth it! Go be a couch potato for the day and binge watch Riverdale, The Originals and lose your chill over Wonder Woman, eat all that popcorn! Maybe Netflix and chill with your babe, if you have a babe. Go on that photo walk and feed your frustrated photographer self or go to church and talk to Him and lift all your burdens, I swear it will feel so good afterwards.

My fellow millennial, please remember to breathe and live the moment. I know that we’re not getting any younger but we are getting smarter and stronger with every single obstacle that we surpass.

Clean

Time is running out and the moment I’ve promised  myself is fast approaching. The end is near for you and me, the time has come to finally put a period on this chapter. The chapter that contains you because we have nowhere to go, we are consistent of endless pavements that leads to nowhere, a journey that has no destination, an equation that has no solution, a point that has no reason, has no meaning only questions with no answers because there’s no one to answer them.

The moment that I promised myself that I would let you go is the moment that everybody would celebrate, where everyone is provided a clean slate. The moment that I would finally follow the cliché “New year, new me” and I have every intention for it to be a new me, because I will leave the excess baggage that is you.

The one who has been holding me back to love somebody new because of the promise of coming home, of coming home to me. Baby, you did exactly what you said that you wouldn’t, you did the opposite of it and so much more. I’ve waited so long, I’ve waited too long and just reached the point of acceptance, accepting that there would never be any me and you, there would never be an us.

So now I only have six more days to finally say  goodbye to you, say the goodbye you’re never gonna hear like your silent goodbye that has been violently ringing in my ear. It’s time to finally stop re-reading old conversations and text messages, it’s time to finally tuck away the letter that you gave 5 years ago, to delete the pictures of you that I saved, to stop praying that I hear from you or to finally see  you, to stop asking God for signs on whether I should or shouldn’t keep you, on whether you’re okay or not, it’s time to finally stop myself from staying up all night worrying about you, time to finally stop myself from thinking, longing and wanting you . You’re a memory that I crave but I forbid myself to keep you as I move forward to the new year, it’s time to finally let you go and mean it. You’re the best part of my life so far and I wish to have spent every ups and downs that I went through with you. You set the standard for the guy that I want and I know no one can match you because you’re the only one in this world, but I hope and pray that someone would come above you, someone that I could completely call mine, the one who’ll watch me walk down the aisle.

So I accept the rain that will fall and I’m ready to put down my wall so all of you and the memory of you can flow away the tides so I can be clean and be ready for the next scene.

My Last Goodbye

This time last year my smile was blinding, my mood was unfathomably joyful, I felt like I could conquer the world… because I had you but now that’s not true.

I don’t know where you are, how you’re doing or even what you’re thinking

I haven’t heard from you for a very long time, so maybe you’re doing something crucial, or maybe you’re too busy to look back at me.

But whatever your reason, I hope this reaches you.

I hope you hear my last goodbye

Love, it’s not me to just give up and let you go, but we are an unfinished business that I know will have no end. We’ll never have our closure because you just disappeared out of thin air.

So many unanswered questions, so much longing, so much doubting, so much worries and so much hurt, it’s overwhelming.

You are what keeps me up at night, you are my morning thought, my 11:11 wish, and every time I see a plane passing by, I was wishing it has you in it coming home to me, but now that’s a petty daydream.

Love, I feel so numb and I’m sorry but I have to decide for my well-being. It was you that disappeared, it was you who I never heard a word from, I now consider your absence as you tendering your resignation as the love of my life.

I bid you my heartfelt good luck on your journey through life, I may not be included in it anymore but I know you will find someone for you, please be better with her.

I wish she is everything that you ever wanted and all you’ve ever needed

I wish she is the moon to your night as you were in mine

I hope she knows how to handle and push your buttons

I hope she argues with you the way I did, because your fetish is the craziest I’ve ever heard

I hope that when you see her, everything that’s wrong becomes alright

I hope she motivates you to do better and I hope her warmth can melt the cold winter nights

I hope she becomes your haven, and you become hers.

Create a love story more epic than ours, longer than ours and make her believe in forever as you did with me, but make sure your forever with her lasts a lifetime.

Love, I want you, I need you, I love you… But now, I bid my last goodbye.

Silver X Gold: How To Wear That Rectangle Shirt

Here is one way to wear that rectangle shirt, I know my title says it but let me share why it’s Silver X Gold, well because my skirt is actually black and gold but due to me needing to edit the lighting of the photo, I’m not sure if you can see it and then I paired that skirt with silver accessories. What an experiment right? Well, experimenting with fashion is good.

Here is my ensemble:

The Outfit

 

A white rectangular shirt with the front tucked in an accentuated skirt paired with out-of-the ordinary accessories with black booties. I love those boots, they’re one of my signature pieces. Pairing plains with outspoken pieces ever gets old, it’s like you’re a walking contradiction that compliments each other in a very eye-drawing way.

The Accessories

 
   

I am inlove with accessories, they make any outfit pop! the middies are my favorite ones, I’m into the weird -looking-but-can’t-keep-my-eyes-off-of-it-cause-its-pretty kind, just like what you can see here. The necklace is one of my product from my online shop, it’s my best-sellers and I actually made it and if you would want to order one, you can email me at theinvertedtrish@gmail.com and don’t forget to follow my shop The Millennial on Instagram!

xoxo,

Trish