The Penafrancia Basilica Minore

My Bicol trip this 2011 was scheduled on the last day of July to early part of August had to be cancelled cos of the two typhoons (Juaning & Kabayan) , that came consecutively. One of the most injured parts of our country was the Bicol Region where my itchy feet were supposed to land on the exact dates the typhoons were on the rage.
Today it's all sunny here in Manila, but at this age of climate change/global warming , no one can really predict an exact weather status.

My last visit to Bicol was 7 months ago. It was a high school reunion trip to CamSur. Part of the trip was a small pilgrimage to some churches in this province.The first church we visited was Immaculate Concepcion Parish, it has an awesome ceiling _a dome of Christ's 12 apostles.

I thought  I would bring you to the second church we visited, so we all can pray together for the Bicolanos who are badly affected by those typhoons, may their sufferings cut short and a steadfast recovery for everyone.

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The Penafrancia Basilica Minore in Camsur is quite modern in architecture. I gathered that the construction was finalized on 1981. Very new compared to the old/antique churches we have all over the country.

The main door was closed when we touched the ground of the massive premises of the church. We had to enter through the side door . .

. . cos there was a beautiful wedding going on inside.

the side door led to the back of the main altar. .

Beautiful stained glass windows of the church.

this part was elevated and from here we could see the rest of the church.
very modern interior with lots of colors. .








Also here at the back of the altar is a staircase going to the altar where devotees have closer encounter with the statue of the Virgin Penafrancia..

Quite popular as a miraculous patroness of the province, Virgin Penafrancia's feast day is being celebrated grandly in the month of September particularly in Naga City.

If weather permitted, I wish I could revisit to observe the Feast of Penafrancia next month.

Wakeboarding @ Camsur

Camsur now a days is synonymous with wake boarding.
It's garnering a fast growing popularity in global sports , is putting CWC in the globe as a competitive contender for one of the best playgrounds for the said sport. Evident by the mixture of foreign tourists flocked on that dark cloudy day , I know CWC is making it waves over continents.

I don't know a bit about this sport but was able to watch some when I attended a class reunion held at Camsur Water Sports Complex ( CWC )  in Camarines Sur, Bicol.

To some, who are like me before that day, who don't have any inclination what wakeboarding is_ let me try to illustrate it to you through the following photos :

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Wakeboarding seemed to be originated from combination of snow boarding ,water skiing and surfing. I'm not sure, it was just the way I saw it.

 Instead of boat/ jet ski pulling the rider, a motor cable does that.

It was awesome to watch the riders did their stunts. . .

. . . but many first timers failed, slapped their bodies against the water surface and had to repeatedly suffer the long queue of wakeboarders to get their chances to beat the challenges of the game.

Wakeboarding gears.

I guess, one of the charms of CWC is that wakeboarding here is affordable. With minimal fees for the use of the facilities and rental of the gears, my cheapskate adventurous self was tempted to almost try it.The only single activity I had done in the past that I could relate to it was a little wind surfing I tried decade ago. I always trust my balance prowess thu', but doubted the strength of my arms these days as I rarely lift weights. 

But husband's , as always, over-protectiveness to me and to our girls got in the way. He didn't like the idea. So I didn't. If you were following this blog, those of me doing a bit edgy activities, were definitely done without the presence of this husband. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had tried them all. Better luck next time_ when he's not with me , hihihi!

Camsur Water Sports Complex (CWC)

When in my hometown in Quezon, Camsur would usually come first to mind as our side trip destination. However relatively near it is, for the longest time, we seemed to have a hard time squeezing it in to our precious tri-annual visits to the province.

A rare event ( a class/batch reunion ), a day before 2011 ushered in, had pushed us thu', into finally making it to Camsur. It was the chosen place of the batch to hold the gathering.



A cabled sky greeted us in Camsur Watersports Complex (CWC).

My family and bffs' ( from the batch ) families arrived first to the place. While waiting for others, we joined the bystanders ( I bet - also were all new comers like us ) watched the activity happening on the man made pond. December weather hit the day with now-it-rains-now-it stops, so so unsuitable for outdoor activity. Thus explains the following color mode confusion of my photos.




Wakeboarding is the star in this water sports complex. It has placed Camsur as one of the hottest destination in the Philippines today.




Most of our teens wanted to try wakeboarding. But the protective parents didn't allow them. Sooo...our teens started to get bored!!!







The only little consolation they found_ was the pool.

And where  the overprotective dads were ???




Gotcha!!!! Husband said it was one of the best massages in the country. Believe him when he said so. He rarely left a place without experiencing its massage. So let me say he knows what he's saying ; )

And plezz, let us not forget why we were there_ in the first place. . .

To get reunited/reconnected with the classmates and mentors I haven't seen for decades.

It was fun!!! I hope to have a repeat of both_ the reunion and another Camsur visit. By that time, I promise you a personal account of the wakeboarding as I'm sure as hella to try the ride myself . P- r- o- m- i s- e !!!!!

The Avenue Plaza Hotel, Naga City

Still tipsy from the holidays, I couldn't find energy to post my Camsur (CWC) blog. Not yet today. It was such a rushing trip, not at all relaxing, as it was hours before New Year was ushered in. Glancing over the photos tired me already. So I would put CWC aside for the mean time. Instead, I'd like to share you a place to stay in Naga City when you come to visit Camsur and decided not to stay inside the CWC, the way we did.

The Avenue Plaza Hotel was located at  Magsaysay Street in Naga City. CWC (Camsur) was 15 to 20 minutes drive away.












The hotel was hidden at the back of a mini commercial plaza and was quite deceiving when you sized it up by its facade and its tiny lobby. I thought it was small, only to realize how big it was when I got the chance to check the whole place the following morning. We had checked-in so late on the previous night and so tired we slept the moment we entered the room

The pool was a sweet surprise but ofcourse useless during an overnight stay.

Our room was pleasant and was never short of pleasing amenities. I have to special mention thu_ free wi-fi service was excellent even inside the room.

Food was good based on the complimentary b-fast buffet ( see here ) included in our accommodation.The hotel allowed even encouraged fast food chains' delivery by providing service nos. of these establishments, mostly located within the hotel area.




The hotel was awesome as expectations were met not only by the facilities but also through the sophistication of the service. I almost forgot that I was in a province. It was like a Manila 5 star hotel.