I and my travel bud Liezl have long time ago spoken about driving the whole country on a motorbike.
This night, I was going to ask Liezl to join me for a hike in the North, but she told me she bought her bike already and will be taking the trip on the Saturday morning.
I got so thrilled, and asked her that we’d do her trip instead, and right at that friday night;
We left at around 9pm of Friday. I kind of worried a bit when I saw the motorcycle. I could just imagine the durability in there although she said she had done some repairs already.
An uneasy and frightful ride to get out of metro manila. I wasn’t able to relax until we got to San Pedro.
By late past midnight, we were in Calamba; We decided to stop by to rest at a mini stop for coffee.
I saw something gone wrong with the exhaust valve. We decided to dock and look for somewhere to call the night.
Sunrise came, and drove again. Our first intended stop was Laiya beach in San Juan. We’re staying in Laiya beach for the night.
After Laiya, the plan was to have lunch at Silangang Nayon, and then visit Kwebang Lampas, Borawan, and Dampalitan if possible.
We noticed that the tire is flat. Fortunately, there was a vulcanizing shop just 20m ahead. After an hour, it seems everything’s fixed up.
When we left, we noticed the wheel is misaligned. The tire faces 30 degrees to the right and it seems something has been accidentally rotated. We had to wait until the tech comes back.
At around 1:30 we hit the road again. Asking from the people there, there is some 25 kilometers more to get to Silangang Nayon. Upon arrival, I was rushing to see that aircraft that delivers food from the dining areas in the stilts. I felt so fulfilled at getting into some destination I had looked forward to for 3 years now.
After our meal, It was too late to find a boat to the islands. So, We went back the following morning. We drove all the way to the Brgy Bantigue proper where a lot of fishing boats are docked. From that standpoint, I could see another sandbar on my right. We scouted for a boat that will get us to both.
After a visit to these islands, we decided to drive further. Along the way back to the national highway, we've encountered these makeshift rail transport sytem i've seen in the tv. We thought about parking and trying the ride.
Afterwards, we drove further to Atimonan town proper. From here, it was time for me to go back to Manila while Liezl drove it away to Mindanao…herself
