La Union 2018

I have been so giddy to visit the “Surfing Capital of the North”. I am not vocal about this but I do love the sea and the beach. It is known that San Juan, La Union is the best surfing spot in this province. A great escape from the hustle and bustle of the metro. So join me as I share to you my La Union grind and some crazy visuals

This trip is largely composed of the same people that I am with during my Zambales trip last year. Bianca and her boyfriend Mic. Eunice and Patrick, yeah a couple as well. Yeah, you got it right I am with the couples again but it was not me alone this time because Bianca tagged two of her classmates with us, Aldea and Sara. The two new girls were really fun. It was like we were friends for long already. I thought there were only 2 couples with us but then, mic brought his friend with us who brought his girlfriend with him HAHAHA we are over powered with couples lol.

Eunice told me to hit her place at 3am so we could leave early. We would be picked up by ever gracious babe Patrick. I was so confident that I would get up by 3am, but I was wrong. I hit the gym the night before and was so tired hahaha. I slept so soundly and the next thing I know was that Eunice was outside my house, 4am, calling my name HAHAHA. My bad. Good thing I already prepared my shit days before and took a bath before I slept. When I heard her and looked at my watch saying “4:05am” I quickly grabbed my stuff and hurried down the stairs. I just texted my mom that I already left because they were still sleeping that time.

We took the usual route coming up north. NLEX TPLEX and SCTEX. But Patrick took a different route, instead of taking Mc Arthur Highway, we used an alternative road. And to our surprise a long stretch of the road was crazy rough HAHAHA. There was even a point where Eunice and I got off the car and removed big rocks on the driveway so we could pass by without destroying the car. May workout pala dito, di ako nasabihan. I never knew that I could get some workout in the road. It was fun actually because we were really laughing the whole time as we pass this road. NEVER AGAIN. lol.

Petron TPLEX, yes they have bidet

We arrived in San Juan at around 10:45am giving us ample time to grab lunch and look around. Our accommodation was in P&M Final Option Resort. The place was nice. We have pool access and the amenities were good. It is also beach front which was so important for our group.

PASOK MOIRA!

Our first meal was in Mamba's kitchen. The food choices were good. We ordered bagnet. For 150 you would get a cup of rice 2 sunnyside up eggs and bagnet. The serving was big that made me bloated right away:(

We went back to our accommodation after lunch to unpack. At around 3pm we headed to San Juan surf which was the best surfing area. For 400 pesos you will be able to surf and have the instructor with you while surfing. Everyone was so excited but to our dismay we were not allowed because the waves were so big and it would be dangerous for first timers like us. So what we did was to do the most bakasyonista thing we could do, Photo taking HAHAHA. Most of the visuals that I’ll be sharing were taken that day.

Being there during the sunset made me realize how beautiful a day should end. Hearing the waves, feeling the breeze and watching the sunset. Because here in the metro, the day ends in so much chaos.

We went home at around 6:45pm. We explored the town further and looked for a place to eat. We were able to pass by a milktea shop. Sara and I were like kids when we saw it. HAHAHA. The others bought as well, mga gaya gaya lol.

We ate at Olas Banditos. A mexican cantina foodplace. The aesthetic of the place was great, but darling we were not there for the aesthetic. We were after the food. Sara, aldea and me ordered “Carne Asada” Quesadilla. My piece was fine, but the poor aldea got herself empty pieces of quesadilla. Some of the pieces doesn’t have any meat. Pure pita bread. But being the fun group that we were. We just laughed it off. I was telling them “ahh kaya carne asada yung flavor kasi aasa ka lang na may carne”. We went home after the dinner to change into something “party worthy” because it is Flotsam&Jetsam time!

We arrived there at around 10pm. Mic and Patrick were left in the accommodation because they started devouring the canned beers that they smuggled inside our house HAHAHA.

Flotsam was packed. Maybe because it was a Saturday night. We were just roaming around trying our luck if we would be able to get a place for our group. Gab Valenciano was there that night and jokingly I tried to sing “Hataw na” and “Shout for joy” because you know, Gary V. Flotsam was a chill place, there was a live band and I do want to get the microphone from the singer and share the spotlight HAHAHA. The aesthetic of the place was very hippy and young. Some were on the cabanas and some were on the beach, sitting on mats. After and hour or so we were not able to secure a place so we decided to just leave and spend the time together in our place.

Our place was filled with boisterous laughter because of our endless jokes. We were up until midnight but eventually decided to rest so we could get up early in the morning and finally be able to surf.

We were up by 6am. Sara, Bianca, Mic and me went back to the surf area to try our luck. I do not have any plans to surf to be honest. I don’t want to risk my knees anymore. Bianca and Sara were able to surf while I took photos and videos. But next time I’ll make sure that I’ll be able to surf and I also have abs HAHAHA

some guarding dude

surf up!

At 9am we went back to our place. We ate at the buffet offered by the resort. The best 250 pesos of our lives. Just look at the photos of our food. Heaven. We need to check out at 12:30pm so we enjoyed out last few hours. We used the pool and swam at the beach.

Last of our plans was to check our El Union and Makai bowls because we take instagram so damn serious. HAHAHA but also, so I could share some visuals with you.

I am happy that I am with a group who is so considerate and civilized. We made sure that our place was clean, the bedding were fixed and all the trash are in proper place before we left.

El Union and Makai Bowls were in the same compound so it was easy to check out both.

Makai bowls offers a wide variety of healthy snacks. You can check out the Menu below. The place is always packed because it is a great photo taking spot. I don’t eat fruits a lot but I did enjoy my Mango and Banana Chia bowl. Eunice ordered mango shake, which was legit mango. Sarah and Aldea got Surfers Bowl. I think Bianca ordered Surfers bowl as well.

One food place after the other,yeah, Gluttony. HAHAHA. We also tried El Union coffee place. The place gives you some island sophistication. Our favourite was their Smores. 160 for the small one 2-4 persons and 300 for the 6-8 persons variant. The best smores that I have tried.

We were full AF. FOOD FOOD FOOD. But thank you Lord.

Surfer Bowl and Creamy Chia Bowl

Surfer Bowl

just to help you out

Our last agenda was to buy vegetables, longganisa and daing. The market place here is more organized than in Manila. After getting all the market needs we hit the road again headed to Manila finally. We reached Manila at 9pm.

La Union made me see what I am missing for being so lazy to engage on trips like this. The simple provincial life made me realize that I am spending a lot of my time on useless activities. La Union is a beauty that needs to be seen by many. I do hope this place would not reach a point of abuse and exhaustion so that whenever we would like to rejuvenate, we could do so in just 4-5 hours drive.