I got tired of watching TV, surfing the internet, and dawdling in Metro Manila the whole Christmas break. I did not want to waste my time-offs from the office so I convinced my family to have a road trip that is not too far from home. My goal was to get a non-expensive joy ride so we chose to bum around the Philippines’ largest lake, Laguna de Bay, and pass through the provinces of Rizal, Laguna, and Quezon.
We left our house at 1:30 in the afternoon and took the fastest route via C-6 road. In just 30 minutes, we were already in Rizal and gassed up in Binangonan. Rizal is a progressive province and you could sense a mixture of fresh and polluted air. While on the road, we saw a belfry of an old church that stood out amid the arrays of tall establishments. It’s Morong Church.
As we continue with our trip, trees get greener and mountains become more visible. The road becomes dynamic.
We stopped at a curve before reaching the town of Mabitac to see a spectacular view of the lake. Upon alighting, a bunch of young girls selling quail eggs confronted us. I told them that I’m still full and I’m not going to buy any. They were so persistent so I picked a 10-peso coin and bought one pack. One of the girls cried and uttered, “Kuya sabi mo ‘di ka bibili.” (You told us that you’re not supposed to buy). We bade goodbye and the same girl shouted funny words, “Ba-bye ba-bye, di naman kayo bumili!”.
It’s almost 5 PM when we arrived at Lake Caliraya. The wind was quite strong due to the upcoming rain that’s why we hurried up to Lucban, Quezon.
We took a short photo break on a bridge in the town of Cavinti and mind you, there was a great scenario beneath.
It was already dark in Lucban when we got there. The town is home to Lucban Logganisa and Pancit Lucban (Pancit Habhab). We ate at a panciteria to experience an authentic taste of the habhab delicacy. It’s really good especially with native vinegar poured on it.
Past 7 PM, we left Lucban and tried to figure out the shortcut to Manila. We followed the road to Majayjay, Liliw, and Nagcarlan and went ahead to Calauan. By 9 PM, we were already in South Luzon Expressway, on the other side of Laguna de Bay, and got home before 10 PM.
