weekend fun in laiya san juan batangas

laiya san juan batangas

We have been planning an outing since Von arrived for a vacation from his work abroad. As most of the group is under a school boy budget, schedule and location are the major considerations. I got excited and volunteered myself to plan and arrange everything. They thought of an out of town trip specifically a beach where we could enjoy for an overnight stay, budget friendly and a place where I have never been to (oportunista hehe). Laiya San Juan Batangas was the first place that came to my mind. And it normally takes 3-4 hours to reach Batangas.

paquita jekers

Unfortunately it has been cancelled several times. One of the challenges in planning a trip with a big group was the availability of each and everyone. Budget was also a problem but I guarantee them it will be an advantage rather than a challenge for a big group like us.

With an itchy feet and thirsty for lack of out of town adventure, I started a text brigade and facebook thread that we will leave tomorrow or never. One by one they replied asking where to meet, ETD, budget, etc. Before mid-night 9 confirmed and 2 are not yet sure. I counted them in because I know that when they contemplate on the fun and the “what ifs” I’m sure they will be at the meeting place tomorrow.

At 7:00AM the following day only 5 of us showed up. Jayjay told me that the 2 who’s not sure the night before were already on their way to Batangas and we’ll just meet them up there. The other 5 will be leaving Manila at 1:00PM as they still have school and errands to do. I was a little worried as I want all of them to enjoy and have fun on this trip and it will be a different fun when the group is complete.

The 5 of us left Ceres Bus Station in Pasay at 8:15AM. I contacted Casa Remo Apartelle while we were on our way to Lipa City. I was a little worried I was not able to make reservations earlier and it was a long weekend vacation for call center agents. Fortunately Ate Beth told me that they can accommodate us and guided us thru text messages throughout the commute.

casa remo apartelle

We arrived at Lipa City bus stop (in front of Shakey’s ata un at BDO) at 10:30AM. We crossed the highway and went towards the street beside the bus station bound for Manila. We decided to take the van going to San Juan it fills up faster than the jeepneys (which are located in the parking lot of Robinsons Mall). The van left Lipa City at 10:45AM and arrived at San Juan public market at 11:30AM. We took our lunch at one of the eateries beside the market and also bought food, water and booze that we need for our overnight stay. Ate Beth told me that they have cook wares and utensils that we can use.

We took another jeepney beside the market going to Brgy. Laiya and left at 1:05PM. I told the driver to drop us off at Casa Remo. 30 minutes after the driver pointed us to an alley on the other side of the road going to Casa Remo. 

The commute was tiring but when I saw the sign directing us to Casa Remo I got really excited and was energized. I saw the others looking at each other and smiling like kids. We were welcomed by the caretaker Ate Melanie and showed us the room. I was surprised that we were the only guests in the resort. There were no reservations until tomorrow and the place was all ours.

There was a videoke machine that you can either rent per hour or drop P5 for every song. Von and Kim sang and belted out like it was their first time to sing. They sang for 2 hours straight while Reyjan recuperates from lack of sleep. 2 hours later Toto and Joyce arrived. It was starting to get dark but the other 5 were still on the road. They said that they might arrive late at night coz they left Manila past 2PM. I was happy and relieved when Rob, Mark, Chris and Nonoy showed up at around 6PM. After having dinner Von and Kim resumed with their concert while others played cards.

One thing that will surely happen with this group wherever or under whatever circumstances is the drinking session. I think we spend more on booze than on food! We started the drinking session once everyone felt that they have already digested their food. There could be several priceless fun activities that you can do that does not need to spend money but you will surely enjoy (especially for people na mababaw ang kaligayahan tulad namin). While drinking we played pinoy henyo and they cannot stop laughing when I prepared the things that we need for pinoy henyo (hindi naman daw ako handa ng lagay na un).

When we run out of words to guess we decided to transfer to the beach and finish off the booze. Just like in any other drinking sessions we had, it boils down to funny memory lane, future travel plans for the group and talking (and gossiping) about the person who’s absent (kaya mahirap mag-absent sa inuman ginagawang pulutan). After finishing the booze they decided to play, they run, crawl and swim over and over. They got tired not because of the game but because of laughing so hard. No one recalls what time we spelt but I think it was around 4 AM.

I woke them up at 8:00AM to have our breakfast. Toto and Joyce left after having breakfast due to work. We then went to the beach to enjoy the sun, sand and sea. 

happy to be here :)

We went back to the resort at around 11:00AM and had our lunch then fixed our stuff. We left Casa Remo at 2:00PM and arrived in Manila at 5:15PM. It was a fun trip and all of us enjoyed it. All of us can’t wait to have our next trip.

Special thanks to paquita jekers and to Von for the accommodation! (Next year ulit paguwi mo ha!)

EXPENSES: P840 each

Transportation: (per pax)

Ceres Bus from Pasay - P160

Van to San Juan – P70

Jeepney to Brgy. Laiya – P40

TOTAL:  P270 x 2way = P540

Food & Drinks:

P150 per pax

Accomodation: P4800/11 = P437 per pax

*Von shouldered P3000 of the accommodation and we only pay $150 each

HOW TO GET THERE:

kindly refer to the previous post on how to get there