Bangkok Tourist Destinations – Temple of the Reclining Buddha

Posted on August 21, 2011 by leawalkerblog
Another temple we visited while we were in Bangkok is the famous Reclining Buddha. It is locally known as Wat Pho. It is a sacred Buddhist temple near the Grand Palace. It was built as a restoration of an earlier temple on the same site.
Wat Pho is the birthplace of traditional Thai massage. Even prior to the temple’s founding, the site was a center of education for traditional Thai medicine, and statues were created showing yoga positions.

The Reclining Buddha – His body is gold plated and is decorated with mother-of-pearl inlay on his eyes and the soles of his feet. The bottoms of the Buddha’s feet are intricately decorated with 108 auspicious scenes in Chinese and Indian styles.

These are the pagodas in the same complex where the reclining buddha is. I love the intricate details of each building. Their architecture and designs are just amazing!

As we go back to where our rented car was parked, John and I stopped to see the other buddha and statues in the complex.
Posted in bangkok, My Travels, temple of the reclining buddha, thailand, wat pho | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Bangkok Tourist Destinations – Temple of the Emerald Buddha

Posted on August 14, 2011 by leawalkerblog
Wat Phra Kaew  – commonly known as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, is considered to be the holiest temple in Thailand.  Before entering the temple, the guards will ask you to remove your shoes and leave it outside. Taking photos inside is not allowed. So I just paid my respects.  The small buddha is made of jade, thus its name, Emerald Buddha. I realized that its name is not based on the stone itself but its color, emerald green. It nestled on top of the temple, inside a glass encasement and is surrounded by several gold plated buddhas.
I love the architecture and the colorful buildings inside the whole complex so I took a lot of photos for souvenir. 🙂 It’s difficult to get a clearer shot though because the temple is surrounded by hundreds of visitors from around the world.
The Temple of the Emerald  Buddha
One of the murals in the hallway.
In the same compound where the Temple of the Emerald Buddha can be found, is the GRAND PALACE. Other than its rich history, there isn’t much there except a museum of their olden weapons and some government offices. Like the other buildings, the palace has a grand facade as well.
When we were there, a portion was closed to the public because of a Royal Ceremony being held inside.
The Grand Palace
My suggestion – never leave Bangkok without visiting these two places.  The visit alone to the Emerald Buddha’s temple is worth it, inspite the scorching heat of the sun and it, being overly crowded. 🙂
Happy travels my friends! 🙂
 Lea C. Walker
Posted in bangkok, grand palace, jade, My Travels, temple of the emerald buddha, thailand, wat phra kaew | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Tourist Destinations in Bangkok – Floating Market

Posted on August 13, 2011 by leawalkerblog

We started around 9:30 a.m. the next day for our Bangkok tour. We had to stop at the Vietnam Embassy first though to pick up John’s visa. After which, off we went to the floating market. The ride was about an hour or so from downtown Bangkok at 110km per hour. Yes, it’s far. But it’s ok. We hired a taxi for the day so we had all the time in the world to enjoy the tour at our own pace. The fee was Thb2,500.00 . It would have been cheaper if we joined the bus tour but the Vietnam Visa had to be done first. So the bus tour was just not possible at all.

Upon reaching the floating market pier, the organizer told us to pay Thb1,500.00 for the boat ride. Of course, I learned to haggle the other night at the market, so I negotiated on the price. 🙂 Finally he agreed to lower down the price to Thb1,000.00 . I don’t know if it was cheap or not but I felt better that I saved Thb500.00 . haha…

They gave us a complimentary coconut juice. But John and I both declined.  I think we were both concerned with the boat going down the dirty river. he he.. Honestly, I was worried of anacondas or crocodiles. Our boat driver explained that there are no crocs in the area. So somehow that helped. 🙂 I am sure there are snakes there and he never said no when I mentioned it.

A few more minutes, our driver stopped at the
Coconut Sugar Farm. They sold candies, etc.
made of coconut. But I politely said no. I was
thinking, we have a coconut farm in Samal
Island so I know how to make sweets out of a
young coconut. 🙂  We chose to buy instead a
little boat, with a vendor and the fruits she’s
selling, as our souvenir of the floating market.

A few minutes later, we reached the busy part of the Floating Market. I was so amazed with what I saw. It must have been difficult living and doing business in the water. But they made it look so easy!

It’s a village on the water. Amazing right?!
My floating market experience was something I will never forget.  Indeed, anything is possible if you put your mind to it. My admiration goes to all the vendors and the people living in the area. 🙂
John and I agreed that we’re happy, we did not miss the ride. That was one learning experience for both of us.
When we got back to the pier, the organizer showed us a souvenir made of glass. It’s our picture on the boat which they took right before we left.  They sold it to us for Thb200.00 . If I wasn’t so excited about the whole trip, I probably would have negotiated again on the price. But well, that was a cheap price to pay for a good souvenir of one beautiful ride….
Thank you Manong! Our boat driver. 🙂
Posted in bangkok, floating market, grand palace, My Travels, reclining buddha, thailand | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Bangkok – Day 1 and 2

Posted on August 13, 2011 by leawalkerblog

Early this month, John and I did our first Southeast Asian Trip. First stop was Bangkok, Thailand. I have so much to share I don’t know where to start. 🙂

We arrived at  Suvarnabhumi International Airport around midnight. I researched about the train ride because it’s supposedly near our hotel. But we opted to take the taxi instead since we’re not familiar with the place. The driver, luckily was familiar with Baiyoke (pronounced by the locals as Bai-yok) Hotel. So after 15-20 mins ride,  we got there, safe and sound. 🙂 The fare = Thb 450, which is equivalent to Php675.00 or $16.00 . Not bad right?

The check in wasn’t difficult. In fact, the staff was very helpful. At first, he put us in a smoking room which we declined because of the stinky smell. We were then given an upgraded room, with no additional cost 🙂 … The unit was very big. It has its own kitchen, living room and one bedroom. I like the space but I thought that it needed some renovation.

Baiyoke Suite Hotel offers an extensive buffet breakfast. Food served were pancakes, fresh bread, french toast, fried or steamed rice, seafood , chicken and pork sausages, bacon, ham, salad, omelette, boiled eggs, fruits, milk, coffee, tea or juice.   If your booking comes with free breakfast, then you’re in for a treat. If not, you just have to pay Thb350.00 . After breakfast, John and I went to the lobby to check about their tours. That’s  when we met  Mike from the travel agency. We decided to rent a taxi for the tour. Mike offered to take us to  Vietnam Embassy for free to get John’s Visa. Since I am a Filipino, I do not need one for either Cambodia or Vietnam.  The processing takes time so we told Mike that we will just go back to the hotel on our own. And that we will just meet him at the lobby the next day for the tour.  I brought 2 passport size ID pictures of John so that wasn’t a problem for us. What got us delayed was the fact that they do not accept US dollar at the embassy. So we had to walk about 3 mins, went to the bank and got additional bahts. We
paid THB2,700.00 for the visa, which we were supposed to pick up around 4:00pm the same day. But
John said that we will just come back the next day instead. It was easier for us that way because we had our own ride then.
Platinum Fashion Mall on the right.

With the visa out of the way, we then proceeded to Platinum Mall. While we were having breakfast, we could see the mall from the hotel restaurant. So we thought we’d go there since it’s obviously very near. Going back to the hotel wouldn’t be a problem.  For those who love shopping, the place is heavenly. 🙂  It was packed with people pulling their travelling bags, trying to fill them with clothes, bags and what have you… I realized that this is probably where the boutique owners go to buy the stuff they sell in the Philippines.

I checked their products from ground floor to the sixth floor. haha… But had to stop to look for lunch. I found the food court on the 6th floor.  I saw one stall selling the hainanese rice and boiled chicken. I loved that when we went to Singapore, so I ordered it. Then I paid with cash. Everyone around me laughed and explained that I had to go the booth (which they kindly pointed to me) and exchange my money with a card. And that’s what I’m supposed to use in buying food. Duh… we don’t have that in Davao you see. hahaha…  I was laughing as I brought my food to the table. John missed that because you know where he was right? He was at Pantip Plaza , checking the computer gadgets. lol
We did the same in Singapore. I went to Bugis Market, while he had fun at Sim Lim Square. We’re an odd couple, we know,  but works for us. LOL
After lunch, we both decided to go back to the hotel. I think we both got suffocated with the crowd and the heat. For the first time in so many months, we slept the whole afternoon! Thank God for vacations. 🙂 Couldn’t do that in Davao because we’re working 7 days a week.
When we woke up, it was almost dark. So we thought we’d check the night market before going to dinner. Before I forget, the night market is just outside the hotel! So if you’re going to Thailand for shopping, this is where you should stay. I think that’s why Baiyoke Suite Hotel is getting away without the much needed remodelling. They’re always full since the shoppers opt to stay there, for the convenience it offers.
Night Market Stalls, outside Baiyoke Suite Hotel.
After checking the stalls and trying to decide what or which to buy, we headed back to the hotel for dinner.  Here are some photos of the food offered during dinner.
Did I mention that the view was fantastic?! 🙂
Salmon Steak, Pork Sirloin, Chicken Steak & Tenderloin Steak

The choices kept on and on. Needless to say, I had a feast. Specially with the prawns. hehehe… With Thb350.00 , it was more than worth it….
Posted in bangkok, My Travels, night market, platinum mall, pratunam market, thailand, vietnam embassy | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tourist Attractions in Bohol, Philippines

Posted on August 12, 2011 by leawalkerblog

I promised to blog about Bohol’s Tourist Attractions. It took me sometime to write this because my husband and I have been travelling. I will share about that on my next episode. 🙂 For now, here are the things that can be done while in Bohol.

Tip: if you’re travelling as a group, I suggest that you just rent a van for Php3,500.00 . That’s what we did. So you can decide where you want to go. You don’t have to follow the itinerary of the tour if you don’t want to. Plus you have an option to stay longer or leave anytime you want.

Chocolate Hills

No, there are no chocolates in these hills. 🙂 Its color turns to brown (thus the word chocololate) during summer.

Man Made Forest

This was the project of Former First Lady, Imelda Marcos located in Bilar, Bohol. The place is beautiful and has a cooler temperature.

Tarsier Sanctuary

My nephews had fun with the Tarsiers. It was our first time to see the smallest monkey in the world. 🙂 We were told not to use the camera flash in taking pictures so they won’t get stressed. Please try to follow that also because Tarsiers are endangered species, so we should all help, in protecting them.

Smallest Monkey in the world, Tarsier..

Baclayon Church and Museum

This church is at least 200 years old. I had goosebumps when I entered the chapel. For those who want to pray and connect with God, this is such a holy place to visit. The museum is on the 2nd floor. Taking pictures are not allowed because of the expensive antiques inside. Entrance fee: Php25.00/ pax.

Across the street, you’ll find Baclayon park. It’s beside the beach so it has a beautiful view. I loved feeling the fresh air there!

Loboc River Tour

This beautiful tour starts at the Loboc Pier and ends near the waterfalls. It includes buffet lunch that consists mostly of seafoods and other local dishes. The fee is Php450.00 / per person.

Zipline

For those who love adventure, you’ll like  their zipline there. I admire those who can do it.  I know I can’t do that so I just contented myself with taking photos of our friends, Rudolf and Grace. 🙂

Blood Compact Site:

This is where the First Treaty of Friendship happened. Miguel Lopez de Legazpi of Spain and Rajah Sikatuna of Bohol had a blood compact to seal the friendship of two races.

Hinagdanan Cave

Boholano legend says that in the olden times, the inhabitants in the area were able to borrow kitchen utensils, plates, etc . from the “caretakers” of the cave. But it stopped when one of the borrowers vomitted in one plate. When the said plate was returned, it was not accepted. Since then, the villagers couldn’t borrow anymore. The “caretakers” are supposedly people from the another world. 🙂

My sister and I at Hinagdanan Cave. Beside us is the lake inside the cave.
Alona Beach, Panglao

For those who love the beach, Alona has a long stretch of white sand beach. There are bars and restaurants all over the place so food is not a problem. Since we were travelling with the whole  family, we opted to rent an apartment at Sun Apartelle, where we can change and cook our own food.  Please note that there is no public restroom or changing area at Alona Beach.

Our Bohol trip was a tiring experience. But it was fun. And I am glad that I was able to bond with my family , specially with my nephews, who are so makulit! 🙂

Posted in alona beach resort, baclayon church and museum, bilar, blood compact site, bohol, chocolate hills, hinagdanan cave, man made forest, My Travels, panglao bohol, philippines, tarsier, zipline in bohol | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Bohol Tour – Part 2

Posted on August 2, 2011 by leawalkerblog

Olman’s View Resort

First,  let me thank the driver and staffs of  Olman’s View Resort. They made our stay in Bohol wonderful and memorable. Also, my heartfelt gratitude to the owner who kept on texting me to find out where we were already. That was just so nice. Salamat po!

************************

The resort is less than 10mins away from Tagbilaran. When their driver , Fred picked us up, there were 2 people sitting in the front seat of the van. We were told that they were also clients of the hotel which he picked up earlier. We didn’t mind that. And requested him to take us to a nearby restaurant for dinner. He brought us to a seafood / grill place and made him sit with us for dinner. (he said no at first, hehe..) The food was good but since we were tired already, no one thought of taking pictures already. lol

Upon reaching the hotel, we all felt so at peace. It’s like being in a farm. It was so quiet and relaxing.

Daisy chose their Deluxe room. It has two queensize beds and can accomodate 4 people. Which is perfect for families,  travelling together.  The room was very spacious and the bathroom has a bathtub. For Php3k per night, the price is just right.

My nephews, while watching cartoon network.

Plus it included breakfast for two people per room. They served us fried rice, omelette and corned beef on our first day there. And on the 2nd day, there were chorizo and meat loaf. Plus hot coffee of course , garlic rice and friend egg. It’s  a typical filipino breakfast, so it was ok with us. 🙂

Trying to capture the moment… 🙂 My sister and her husband.

I love their restaurant. It nestled on top of a ridge. So while having breakfast, you’ll have a beautiful view of the beach, fishermen busy with their morning catch and of course, the sunrise. I love photography so I look forward to taking pictures of a beautiful sunrise. The scenery was just perfect…

Had to ask my sister to take a photo of me. I love the view!
I bought these when the fisherman docked at a nearby resort.
We loved the hammock!
My next post will be on Bohol’s tourist attractions! See you next time. Hope my blog was able to help those who are trying to get details about Bohol. 🙂
Posted in balingoan, bohol, butuan, davao city, My Travels, ocean jet, olman's view resort | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Bohol Trip – Part 1

Posted on August 2, 2011 by leawalkerblog
July 13, 2011 – My sister and my nephew went back to the Philippines. Since she will only be here  for a few days, we planned online (to save time, right? lol)about going to Bohol. All of us have never been there. She has always dreamt of seeing a tarsier. While I’ve always wanted to see Chocolate Hills. 🙂
Our family loves to travel together. And by together, I mean including the helper, driver , etc. Walang iwanan remember? 🙂

 The Hurdle:

We planned on leaving at 3:00am using our Nissan Urvan. But John and I overslept. 😦 So we left about 4:30am. already. Our route was Buda-Cagayan-Balingoan (where the boat is going to Bohol).

Foggy road in Buda, Philippines. I loved it!

On our way to Buda, we wondered why the road was so quiet. We have not seen buses, trucks and private vehicles going to Davao. But of course, we were so excited about the trip and enjoyed Buda’s cool climate that we didn’t worry about it.

Then, after an hour or so of travelling, we saw a very long line of vehicles. We found out the answer to our earlier question. There has been 7 landslides the past night and it covered the road. That means, it is impassable…

Here comes the dilemma… Do we stay and wait?
We wondered, how long are we going to wait. It

might take them forever to fix the road right? So John said, let’s go back. Mama suggested that we should eat first before heading back to Davao. We’ve done road trips several times already. So we’re always prepared. 🙂 Dan and Gerry, brought out the food – our usual “baon” during road trips: rice, bread, buttered chicken and beef steak. (We used to bring plates, glasses, etc. But we learned that it’s easier to buy plastic and disposable ones. We were not that bright then. LOL Thanks to John for being so practical!)

We headed back to Davao after breakfast.

Our second dilemma, do we proceed to Bohol as planned or not? Daisy, my sister, said that the hotels/resorts were paid already. The boat tickets have already been paid also. So it was a no brainer.

We had to go.

The problem was it is such a long travel from Davao-Butuan-Balingoan. That’s 10 hrs total. So John said he’ll stay at the house instead. Of course, we were all disappointed because that’s one family member left behind. 😦 But I understood. If we had known it was going to be like that, we would have just travelled by plane. That takes the fun out of it but all of us would have been together.

We decided to stay overnight in Butuan. Surprisingly, Butuan hotels are cheap. So we got 3 rooms. We paid about P1,000.00 per room. It did not include breakfast, but it’s ok. What’s important is that we had somewhere to sleep on that night.

The Port of Balingoan

We left Butuan around 7am and we arrived in Balingoan, 3 hours later. We were running slowly because mama does not like it when the driver drives too fast.

The scheduled trip from Balingoan-Camiguin- Bohol is at 1pm. So after showing our tickets at Oceanjet counter, we decided to eat. Again, food in this area is cheap. But then again, it was just so-so. What’s important is that our stomachs are filled up because we will be arriving in Bohol late afternoon already.

Oceanjet

The fare per person is Php640.00 from Balingoan to Bohol. But if you buy a round trip ticket, the discounted price is Php900.00/person only. That’s what we bought because it’s the fastest way to go back to Mindanao. My other sister, Pearlie, does not like sea travel at all. So the faster we’re done with it, the better. 🙂

The inner part of Oceanjet is nice. It’s like being in an aircraft. And since it’s airconditioned, it’s very comfortable. What I like the most is that it’s clean.

The trip was supposedly for 2 hours only. But since we had a bit of a bumpy ride, it took us 3 hours instead.
Around 4pm, we arrived in Bohol, finally! 🙂  Thank you Lord for having brought us there safely.
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Davao Flashflood

Posted on July 4, 2011 by leawalkerblog



Heavy rains on Good Friday in Mangagoy, Surigao.
For months, Mindanao has been experiencing heavy rains. My friends and I were talking about how different the weather is right now, compared to how it was before. For instance, during holy week, it’s normally super hot all over the Philippines. It tells us that summer is just around the corner. But this year, we were in Surigao. And it rained on and off on Good Friday! That’s just not normal. Not at all…

We don’t have typhoons in Davao. The downtown areas get flooded though during heavy rains because of poor drainage system.

But flashflood, that’s just impossible. That’s why when it happened, everybody was surprised. Of course, it happened so fast, that the victims were not prepared. Hence, the death toll rose to 25 people and 15 people were missing. I was told that some bodies were found in Samal island.

Horror stories were shared to us by some victims. One of those deeply troubled me. She said that when the flood happened, the lights went off.  It was so dark , they couldnt see anything. All they can hear of was the raging sound of the water. She also told us that her neighbor’s son fell in the water. The father of course swam in the river to try to save his son. But both of them died. Hearing that from somebody who encountered such a tragedy was like being stabbed in the heart. I simply cannot imagine what I would do, faced with the same situation. I realized how lucky I am that I live on a higher ground…

Yesterday, we went to visit Matina Pangi. The people here suffered worst than most. I was so sad with what I saw. 😦  I have no words for it. So I’ll share with you the photos I took…

          
A multicab and a pick up, under the house.
Another car , on the road…

This house came from somewhere else.

Talomo River, after the flashflood.  It looks so small now, but it was so deep it overflowed in the bridge.

Relief goods from Red Cross
As I write this, it’s raining again. As I said, this has been going on and off for 6 months now. This is probably the effect of the global warming. Filipinos call this phenomenon, El Nina. And since most of our mountains have been “harvested” by the loggers, nothing can stop the water anymore.
A few people got rich, and a lot of people has to suffer for their irresponsible action.
So in the meantime, those who live in the lowlands will just have to deal with the consequences of someone else’s actions…
Mayor Sara, helping the constituents…

I looked at our window, the wind is blowing and it’s still raining hard. I can hear our roof pounding… But this is nature, there’s nothing you and I can do. Except,  pray that God will spare us from more flashfloods.

Davao River is bigger than Talomo river. When I passed by there this morning, the water was higher than normal. I guess, it’s raining in the mountains too. Again.

I am thinking, where will the water go? Davao River is a continuation of Agusan River. Can you imagine if that will overflow? There’s a 2000 hectare of marshland in Agusan. Where will all those water go?

It’s time to pray.  That’s the most important thing that we , Davaoenos, can do… For God to spare us from more tragedies.

It’s time to clean up the garbages. The ones in the rivers and the ones that clog the drainage system.

It’s time to fix and upgrade our drainage systems.  This has been an old issue , so I am hoping that whatever plan the LGU has will be implemented soon.

And it’s time to plant more trees..

(Sidenote:   For those who want to help the victims, you may bring rice, old clothes, canned goods, shoes, bags for the school kids, whatever have you, in our office. It’s Allea Real Estate. Door B Tropicana Bldg., Km. 7 Lanang, Davao City, Philippines. Telephone No. 082-3051651.)

Lea C. Walker
www.davaoproperties.com
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Davao East Coast

Posted on June 27, 2011 by leawalkerblog
Lola with a hat, she found the aircon cold. hehe

My lola has been staying at mama’s house since February. But sometime in April, she said that shewanted to go home to Davao Oriental. We told her that she should just be “vacationing” at her age. But I guess, she misses it there. So off we went to Davao Oriental, since we still had 3 days left before the holy week is over.

That’s when the thought of travelling the East Coast started. John found going back to Davao the same way is boring. 🙂 With my wandering soul, I agreed. Of course, there’s fear of the unknown. The farthest I went to is Banganga, Davao Oriental. And that was like a million years ago, when the roads are impassable every time it rains.

The road is a lot better now.. 🙂

It’s a good thing that internet is already available these days. Getting facts are no longer impossible, or so I thought.. After hours of searching, I found out that the roads have been concreted, mostly. But there were limited information on hotels and restaurants, after Mati.
So I contacted Ma’am cynthia, the Tourism head of Davao Oriental, through her facebook page. 🙂 Bless her kind heart, she accomodated all my questions. And she even gave me the numbers of who to contact for when I reach there. That’s really nice right? You know, that really touched me. Thank you very much, Ma’am Cynths.

Around 6am, we headed towards Sumlog, where my lola lives.

I grew up in Davao Oriental. So I have wonderful memories of the place. Ibing, my best friend , ourother neighbors and I used to wash our clothes in Sumlog river. 🙂 Water was difficult back then. We had to get it from a “poso”. For a child, the big wooden handle is very heavy. But for onlookers, I think they would find it funny because as we push up the handle, it takes us on top. It felt like being in a seesaw. haha..
After taking lola home, we then proceeded to Mati.

We stopped in Badas for a few minutes and took pictures of the “Sleeping Dinosaur”. John said the mountain looked like a crocodile to him. hehe..

The Sleeping Dinosaur

As we continued our road trip, we passed by several beautiful sceneries.

The east coast of DavOr is full of surpises. What we’ve seen are just the ones beside the road. The view of the ocean is spectacular. Now I understand, why surfers go to Banganga. The waves are huge! I was also impressed with the white sand beaches in Manay. I am hoping that someday, investors would build resorts there so tourists can stay and relax for a few days.

Perfect for relaxation… Just take a hammock, sunscreen, food and drinks! 🙂

I know I would love to go boating. I’m sure others would, too.. Divers will also have a blast checking the underwater garden filled with colorful fishes and corals. I’ve read online that the east coast is also the home of the gentle seacows.
I know we missed a lot of tourist spots during that trip, but I don’t mind. It just gave us a reason to go back one day. 🙂
I’d like to visit the waterfalls someday. I know the road to the pygmy forest is still difficult. But I would like to visit it. Someday… I just hope that our local government will continue to protect the said forest because it houses thousands of pygmy trees which are probably a century old.
As we reached Cateel, we had a flat tire. 😦 John and Dan-dan checked and replaced it. So most of us sat beside the road as we waited for them to finish it. It made me realize that the place is safe for travellers. The people greeted us with a smile as they passed by.

We left Cateel around 5pm. By the time time we reached Boston, it was already pitch dark. Since there were no restaurants around, we stopped beside the road again. Got our “baon” (rice, beefsteak and friend chicken) and ate our sumptous dinner. Thanks to my sister Pearlie for being a good cook! 🙂
I noticed that people were not afraid to walk in the dark. Our van was the only vehicle on the road. We’ve seen some motorcycles but no private or public vehicles for hours. We wondered why, when the roads are wide and concrete! It made us wonder if it’s dangerous in the area. But there we were, eating beside the road and no one bothered us. We said “good evening” to everyone who passed by and they just left us alone.
Then it started raining. We couldn’t see the road because of the thick fog. So John just drove slowly. Until we reached Lingig, Surigao. We were so happy to see another busy town. I loved their Sto. Nino church there.
We reached Mangagoy around 9 in the evening. Since we planned on sleeping in Cateel (John did not like the hotel I booked.. lol), we had no prior bookings in Mangagoy. Remember it was holy week. So the place was packed with vacationeers. I’ve seen friends from Davao when we finally found a place to sleep on.
After breakfast the next day, we then proceeded to Tinuy-an Falls. There’s no sense in not checking the place out while we were there right? The problem was the rain never let on. So I lost a lot of picture-taking opportunities. haha..
Tinuy-an Falls is about 10kms away from Mangagoy City. The road is well-maintained. So even if it’s not concrete, it’s not difficult going there. When we reached the place, cars from all over Mindanao lined up at the entrance. We paid an entrance fee of P20.00 per person.

Finally the rain stopped. It gave us a few minutes to enjoy the place. We took pictures for souvenirs, of course!


 

So there I was, standing infront of this majestic waterfalls, staring at it with awe in my heart. I felt very small, realizing how magnificent the creation of God is… I stood there in the rain, trying to get a good shot. The rainshower added to the coldness of the place, so fogs started to come out.
It felt so peaceful listening to the roaring sound of the waterfalls, amidst the noise of the crowd. I have no words for it. I’m just happy that I was given the chance to be there. 🙂
This is only a small portion of the Philippines, a small part where tourists can enjoy its beauty. I am praying that our government will continue to develop the wonders we have in our country. So the Filipinos and the rest of the world will enjoy them, one by one…

                                                                    Lea C. Walker
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Real Estate Laws in the Philippines

Posted on June 25, 2011 by leawalkerblog

I’m often asked if foreigners are allowed to buy land in the Philippines. I always tell them, no. Except  if  a) he/she has a business in the Philippines and he/she will form a corporation which is 60% owned by Filipino citizen/s and 40% owned by foreigners;  or b) if he/she is married to a Filipino citizen.

Otherwise, please do not believe what others will tell you. Unless of course, if you do not mind losing your hard earned money. 😦

Foreigners can buy condominium units without a problem.

Below is an excerpt of Philippine Real Estate Laws. And I hope that this will help those who are not  Filipino citizens who want to purchase land in our country.

WHO CAN OWN LANDS IN THE PHILIPPINES:

Only Philippine Nationals can own land in the Philippines.

WHO ARE CONSIDERED PHILIPPINE NATIONALS: (R.A. 8197)

1.Filipino citizens.

2.Corporation organized under Philippine laws, 60% of the capital stock outstanding and entitled to vote is owned and held by Philippine citizens.

3.Corporation organized abroad and registered as doing business in the Philippines under the Corporation Code, 100% of the capital stock outstanding and entitled to vote is wholly owned by Philippine   citizens.

4.Domestic Partnership wholly owned by Philippine citizens.

WHO ARE CONSIDERED FILIPINO CITIZENS: (Art. IV., Sec. 1 – 1987 Constitution)

  * Those who are citizens of the Philippines at the time of the adoption of the 1987 Constitution.

  * Those whose fathers or mothers are the citizens.

  * Those born before January 17, 1973 , of Filipino mothers, who elect Philippine citizenship upon   reaching the age of majority; and

  * Those who are naturalized in accordance with Law.

  * Those born in the Philippines of foreign parents who before the adoption of said constitution had been elected to public office in the Philippines.

EXCEPTION TO THE RULE THAT ALIENS CANNOT OWN LAND IN THE PHILIPPINES:

Aliens may own lands in the Philippines only under the following circumstances:

1)Former Natural born Filipino citizens.

      * Limitations to ownership as provided by B.P. Blg. 185

      a) The land shall be used by him/her as residence; and

      b) The area shall not exceed 1000 square meters if an urban land or  1 hectare if a rural land.

      c) If the former natural born Filipino citizens already owns urban or rural land for residential purpose , he / she may still be entitled to be a transferee of additional urban or rural lands, provided that the total land area owned by him/her will not exceed the allowed maximum limit.

      d) In case of married couples, one of them may avail of the  privilege herein granted provided, that if both shall avail of the same, the total area acquired shall not exceed the maximum area fixed herein;

      e) He/she cannot acquire more than 2 lots;

      f) If he/she acquires 2 lots, the same must be situated in different  municipalities or cities;

      g) If he/she already acquired urban land, he/she shall be  disqualified from acquiring rural land and vice versa.

       * Limitations to Ownership as provided by R.A. No. 8179:

        Land acquired under Act shall be primarily, directly and actually used by the transferee in the performance or conduct of his business or commercial activities in the broad area of agriculture, industry, and services, including the Lease of land, but excluding the buying and selling thereof.

(Section 5, Rule XII , IRR of RA 7042, as amended by 8179)

         The area shall not exceed 5,000 square meters if an urban land or 3 hectares if a rural land. In case he/she already owns urban or rural lands for business or other purposes, he/she shall still be entitled to be a transferee of additional urban or rural land for business or other purposes which when added to those already owned by him shall not exceed the maximum areas allowed.

         He / she cannot acquire more than 2 lots.

         In case of married couples, one of them may avail of the privilege herein granted provided, that if both shall avail of the same, the total area acquired shall not exceed the maximum area fixed herein.

         A transferee who has already acquired urban land shall be disqualified from acquiring rural lands and vice versa. However, if   the transferee has disposed of his urban land, he may still acquire rural land and vice versa, provided that this will be used for business or other purposes.

2) If the foreigner acquired the same through succession as of the

legal heirs of the deceased.

3) Dual Citizenship under the Dual Citizenship Law (RA 9225 effective on September 17, 2003.)

     Filipinos who had lost their Philippine citizenship by  acquisition of citizenship of another country may reacquire their citizenship under this law without renouncing their foreign citizenship. This reacquisition of Filipino citizenship shall grant full civil and political rights to the Filipino dual citizen,
including the right to own private lands and properties in the Philippines, without limitation other than those normally imposed on Filipino citizens.

4) Foreigners can acquire condominiums but up to a certain extent only;

5) Lands acquired by Americans prior to July 4, 1946 (vested rights).

6) Lands acquired by Americans before July 3, 1974 provided the following requisites are present:

       6.1.They are formerly Filipino citizens OR who on May 27, 1976 had continously resided in the Philippines for at least 20 years OR who have become permanents residents of the Philippines;AND

       6.2.Had acquired private residential lands not exceeding 5,000 square meters for a family dwelling. (P.D. No. 173)

MEANING OF NATURAL BORN CITIZENS OF THE PHILIPPINES:

Natural born citizens are those who are citizens of the Philippines from birth without having to perform an act to acquire or perfect their citizenship. Those who elect Philippine citizenship shall be deemed natural born-citizens. (Sec. 2, 1987 Constitution)

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