For the super long weekend that ends today, we went to Dumaguete City for a brief visit to Daddy's work site. Dumaguete is a province also in the Visayas. It was such a welcome breather for us and the kids. It's a far cry from the highly commercialized tourist sites or the chaotic more urbanized areas. We stayed at Sta. Monica Beach Club though still under renovation. This trip was really more of hanging out at the work site since we were rushing to finish the place up. I actually wanted to stay a few more days to explore.
We were able to sneak in a trip to Bais. On the map, it seemed far but it's actually only 42km away from the city. We enjoyed the drive as it was coastal on very good roads. We even stopped roadside to take a picture with an old train relic. We also were amazed at the number of grand old houses on the roadside punctuated by sugarcane fields. We had lunch at La Planta in Bais. That lunch was great! We had lechon, 3 different kinds of shells cooked 3 different ways, and crispy shrimp. La Planta is cool because it was the old power station and it still has that very old world feel to it. We're already planning our trip to the sandbar which can be accessed from Bais.
I also had my first taste of budbud from Tanjay. It was yummy especially with the thick hot chocolate.
Closer to Sta. Monica Beach Club, we frequented Robinson's Mall to eat in Sans Rival - no trip to Dumaguete is complete without this for me. The meals are very affordable and taste home made. I liked their lasagna which reminded me of lasagna that was taught to us in Home Economics in high school.
We also discovered Kalikaf which is a health/organic restaurant in Robinson's too. It's short for Kalikasan Cafe. We'll definitely be including this in our Dumaguete regulars list.
Of course we hit the wet market for our dinners. We were able to buy super fresh and yummy tuna panga. Chef Syl of Sta. Monica grilled it to juicy and moist perfection. The kids ate so much! We matched this with some sugba sauce, hot rice and super sweet mangoes on the side. The next night, we experimented with our own version of hot pot served poolside while we listened to the waves crashing. I like the wet market in Dumaguete because it's clean, organized and it always has lots of fresh seafood and vegetables for sale.
We were so spoiled on fresh sea food! In the morning, I was surprised to find yaya rushing to the room to get money. Apparently, she was able to catch the fishermen just coming in and was able to buy super fresh fish right at our Sta. Monica doorstep! We had fish tinola for breakfast. I know, a bit unconventional, but cooked with just tomatoes, ginger, salt and a few leeks, it tasted so clean and good.
How can I forget our Lab-as dinner? We had sashimi, baked oysters, pancit, steamed vegetables with guinamos, grilled whole fish, and shell soup. The pancit was a winner for me. The sashimi was disappointing because it was obviously still frozen in some areas. But I'd still go back on our next visit.
On this trip, the kids were a bit disappointed because the pool wasn't filled with water yet. The beach is right at our doorstep but it's not really a swimming beach. It's more for divers.
I can't wait for our next visit to Dumaguete! I'm dreaming of the sandbar in Bais and finally catching the Malatapay Market. My husband is particularly excited to swim with the whalesharks in Oslob which is only 30 minutes by boat from our doorstep. If we're lucky, we may even be able to squeeze in a long drive (and the ensuing food trip) to Bacolod. Ahhh, dreaming of a month long stay in Dumaguete! No wonder so many people come to Dumaguete and never leave!
See you soon Dumaguete! Can't wait to get to know you more!
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