A Goat Feast - Luzon Leg Part 1

The plan was to leave at 5 in the morning but that was just a plan anyway :-). We wheeled off at 7 instead. Fortunately the weekend traffic was light and we were blessed with good weather. Breakfast at Tagaytay was scratched and we thought of having it at Villa Escudero instead. It was a non-eventful two hour drive going there.

My 3 passengers clearly were hungry when we alighted. Bad news, we were required to pay the full day resort fee even if all we wanted to have was breakfast. So Villa Escudero was scratched too. That was just a plan anyway :-). A few minutes drive though led us to Fiesta in Tiaong, Quezon Province.

The name did not disappoint we had a feast for breakfast. Goat feast that is. Kilawing Kambing ( Goat Ceviche ), Calderetang Kambing ( Goat Stewed in Tomatoes ), Papaitang Kambing and Sinigang na Hipon. Best part was it only cost us 500 Pesos (roughly 11US$) with drinks and bottled water for such an unusual breakfast feast.

Aside from Villa Escudero another popular spot near Tiaong would be the beaches of San Juan. I suggest when you take this road trip throw away a fixed schedule. It's fun to find out what is at the end of the intriguing fork in the road for those of you who are adventurous or at least search google maps with your handheld for those of you who are a bit more cautious. We opted to skip the beach because we are looking forward to a better one near the end of this journey, Gumasa Beach in Glan Saranggani Province.

Hometown Bound

I love long drives. Maybe because I got so used to commuting growing up. We never had a family car. Well at least since I was 4 years old ( My Dad died when he totaled our Beetle in 1978 ) until I got to buy my own when I was already 23. That's almost two decades of pedicab, bus, jeepney, taxi, and tricycle travel.

So when I got my own car I always had a reason or two to go out of town. Even when I'm abroad I would include scenic drives in my itinerary if possible. But no experience is comparable to driving in the Philippines. I vaguely remember an F1 driver visiting the Philippines make a comment about our crazy driving culture. Since I always see things half full my perspective is that learning to drive in the Philippines would pretty much prepare you for driving anywhere in the world be that the left or the right side of the road, since the line in the middle is just a suggestion anyway.

Anyway I am digressing. My long drives have taken me to the Northern most point of the Luzon Island and the Southern most tip of the Mindanao Island. I am eligible to carry a sticker in my car that says "From Polomolok to any point in the Philippines". Check the cargo trucks on the road and they always have that quoted in their bumper or sides.

Polomolok, South Cotabato is my hometown. That is where the Dole Pineapple Company has their plantation and cannery in the Philippines. I grew up there and left the place when I went to college. I have since been based in Manila but I would always let people know my roots whenever I have the chance. I would visit at least once a year.

This partly explains the main title of this blog site "Polomolok Flyer". And I found it fitting to base my first few articles on a purely spontaneous decision to drive starting tomorrow morning from Greenhills, Mandaluyong Metro Manila all the way to my hometown Polomolok, South Cotabato. I have done this 4 times before albeit in the pre-Facebook, pre-Blogging and pre-iPhone/iPad era.

So join me over the next few days as I document this trip with my daughter Bettina, Noel my Cousin and Roland our ever-reliable family driver ( I need someone to swap with when I get tired, or when I write and take photos :-) ).

Over time I would love to blog about short plane hops and itinerary for those who fly small planes like I do. In the meantime this will be about four wheel travel.