Dumaguete- My First Visit.

in #travel7 years ago (edited)


Getting your passport renewed in the Philippines is not easy as 1-2-3. For the past three months, I have been trying to get an appointment with DFA but agencies like to take all the slots, and sell them for a premium service :(

I know it would be impossible for me to get a slot here I Cebu in a sufficient time, I tried other locations in the Philippines and was able to secure an appointment slot in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental.

Since the flights to Dumaguete weren't exactly reasonable to make a quick day trip, I booked a flight and hotel for one night as soon as I got my appointment confirmed. A few days later, I got a message from my good friend, @bonjovey saying that she wanted to join me on this trip (since she never got to see Dumaguete.) I was happy to know that I wouldn't be traveling alone- It's always more fun to travel with a friend!

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There are ony two flights daily from Cebu to Dumaguete on Cebu Pacific Air; So I was glad when @bonjovey was able to get the same flight as mine. The downside of the trip, was having to wake up at the buttcrack of dawn, since our flight waas scheduled to depart at 5:30 in the morning. I am not a morning person, (Especially when I can't get coffee within 30 minutes of waking up).

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We were only going to stay for two days, and one night, so I didn't bother bringing my whole wardrobe, only extra clothes to wear the next day. I actually regretted this, since the following day we wanted to go swimming in the hot springs, but I only had one set of dry clothes.

At 3:20am on the day of departure, I met @bonjovey in the lobby of my condo and we scheduled an Uber pickup to the airport. At this time in the morning, it would have been hard to catch a taxi. Unfortunately, the first two Uber drivers canceled my booking and I wasn't happy about it. I have missed my flight before, so this was a bit stressful for me. Granted; at 3am there isn't much traffic to the airport. This trip should only take about 30 minutes at this time, but trying to catch a flight at 9am, around noon, or after 5pm would take at least an hour and a half. So, I booked another one and I sent a message begging him not to cancel this trip or else we could possibly miss our flight (my fingers were crossed). It was nice that the driver read and responded to my message- And assured me that he was on his way, and we would get to Lapu Lapu on time.

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We got to the airport about an hour before our boarding time and everything went smoothly from checking in, to passing through security, phew! I always get nervous when I travel, because the Philippines security and customs seem to enjoy giving Filipinos going abroad a hard-time. So even when I fly domestic, I get a bit nervous. I think am starting to like the idea of traveling with less baggage, means less hassle ;)

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When we got to our gate, it wasn't long until they announced our flight would start boarding soon, and immediately everyone rushed to get in the queue. Me? I sat until almost everyone else got on the flight-They can't leave without us anyways :) We arrived in Dumaguete 30 mins ahead of schedule which is surprising because most flights with Cebu Pacific that I flew on for the past five years, were always delayed.

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Btw, @bonjovey and I didn't have any plan laid out for this trip so when we got out of the plane we looked at each other, confused and laughing wondering what to do next, lol! It was both our first time to visit this place and we have no idea where to go and what to do at 5:35 in the morning since our check-in time at the hotel is not until two in the afternoon.

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We decided to do the “bahala na system” which means “whatever”, so we'll just go wherever the road may lead us. Outside of the airport terminal, there were only two motorbikes and few tricycles ready to pick up some passengers, since this flight is usually not too full. We got both of the motorbikes and told the drivers to take us to wherever he would recommend at such an early time.

The first place we visited was Rizal boulevard where we took the photos below.

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It was a very nice day to just sit and watch the locals doing their own thing, and getting ready for the day. After taking a short walk down the boulevard, we decided to head to our hotel to see if we could possibly check in a bit early- So we can get some rest. Since it was much earlier than 2 pm, we had to pay an extra 650 pesos for the early check-in. I think it was worth paying for especially since neither of us got enough sleep the night before our flight.

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The reason I booked this hotel over one that was overlooking the ocean, was because my appointment with DFA was less than a minute walk from our hotel.

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Tips for those who have an appointment or who will schedule an appointment in Dumaguete:
You can arrive at DFA even 30 minutes before your appointment time so you can finish early. They prioritize applicants who scheduled an online appointment since they have all the documents already.

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For a simple renewal of your passport, you only need your electronic passport (passport starts with EB), one photocopy of your old passport and one photocopy of page 1 & 2 of your online application form which is sent your email address when you schedule your appointment online.

P.S. The DFA system can only send email notification to Gmail accounts.

The passport appointment took about 45 minutes, (which was awesome because @bonjovey recently got hers renewed in Cebu and it took a bit longer)- And they told me they would send my new passport to my condo via LBC within 10 business days.

Now its time for me and @bonjovey to go see the beach! ^_-

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It was a nice feeling walking on the beach with the smell of salt in the air and the sound of waves crashing upon the shore. There weren't many people at this time, so we decided to hang out a little bit longer. We pulled up a spot of sand, with a slab of driftwood, and took our time enjoying the scenery.

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About an hour later, we decided to get an early dinner at a resort called PuraVida, that we found while walking on the beach. It was a nice looking resort with a native yet modern design. If we planned on staying for few more nights, we would have definitely stayed at this place. The staffs were friendly and the chef stopped by to say hello to us, and to make sure everyone was enjoying their meals, as they had been ordered.

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Later that night we had an excellent opportunity to view the 'super-blue, blood moon'- While having our dinner on the beach. This was the highlight of my trip- An unforgettable experience to share with my dearest friend, @bonjovey. After a few hours, we left the resort full- with happy bellies. Then it was time to head back to our hotel and get some good night sleep. ^_-

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XOXO,

Gilaine

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Hey purepinay,

I have become kind of your regular reader. Let me tell you, you are not alone when it comes to renewing your passport or dealing with some government officers. We have kind of the same situation in Pakistan too.

Do you plan to make vlogs?

You look cheerful lady and so much positive in you @purepinay.
Thank you for this article.
I will follow you from now on.

it was a great time pretty, balik tayo bukas...hahahah I really really love Dumaguete pretty Sana makabalik tayo noh?? taz mag camping bah??
kahit mga first timer tayo feeling natin taga don na tayo...hahahah
masakit parin ang mga paa at tuhod ko hanggang ngayon:D nanginginig parin:D pero it doesn't matter kay ang worth it ng buong trip natin....hehehe

Ang saya saya mong kasama pretty:D
salamat :D

enjoy trip maam..godbless

Huhu inggit much oyy! Hindi ako nakasama😌
Sana next time makasama ko kayong dalawa ulit 😉 parang nong nag camping tayo dati! Hayyy kakamiss na yun😔

@purepinay buti naman naparenew mo na pasaporte mo at waiting ka nalang. Good for 10 years na ba yun? So pagmakuha mo na passport mo lalayas ka na ba ng Pinas? 😔 iiwan mo na kami...mi...mi...mi....

@emonemolover

ay bago ang profile pic! charot! haha

kaya nga, sana maulit muli, tumatanda na ko, huhu mabilis na ko mapagod ngayon, less ang energy buti nga kasama ko si jovey kung hindi tulog lang ako sa hotel lol

hindi pa agad agad, ang dami ko pang ngang aasikasohin na papers, kaka stress nga, haist! bakit kasi na uso pa visa, pahirap sa buhay grrrrrrrrrr. ang shakit sa bangs. masakit yung ulo ko mula pa kagabi, di makatulog ng maayos. huhu

Miss you!

@purepinay

Anong bagong profile pic? Haha with nemo? matagal na kaya yan niyan mo la gud napansin hehehe kinakalimutan mo na gud si nemo😂😂😂

Kaya nga yan ang mahirap dami pang kelangan na mga papers etc. Pero keribels mo lang yan ikaw pa!😉 oyyyy magpa burgers ka muna ha bago ka umalis hehe andito lang kami ni @bonjovey 😁

Miss you more!😘

grabee trending ang haba nde ko makita ang reply sakin ni Gil.
Ano daw? @purepinay, sis nde ko makita habaaaaaaaa nito parang quiapo sa haba ng pila, o baclaran:):)
Have a great time, update mo kami kung kelan ka punta sa S. America. miss you!!

xoxo

Lence, ma-miss nya kau pag umalis sya:(

gusto mo ulet mag punta dun sa mighty fall? hahaha! kulang pa ko sa tulog, sobrang pagod pari aketch!

thank you din sayo, it was really fun... still not done with my next blog, nosebleed na akis, hay buhay steemit haha!

Hello Gilaine! I so much LOVED your post! I appreciate your work and Love what you do! Soon as an unfamiliarly skinny squirrel told me to check out this sweet post by Gilaine, I tripped over shoes running to the computer. True story. Who else is going make such an exclusive post about traveling somewhere in The World that I haven't even heard of before? ;). You're one of the ones I Love to follow. Thanks so much!

Pardon my illegal manners @bonjovey, good to know you are travelling with purepinay, i can see you two already having fun, please take care of yourselfs and make sure you both have that swim. Mean while @purepinay love and have a taste for good food which am yet to see here, am looking out for the cuisine you will be eating at.

Have fun and great travel.
Xoxo
From your friend.

Yours truly loved
@iconnelly

Hi @iconnelly sorry for the late response been busy the whole week but anyway thank you for taking time to read our amazing journey in Dumaguete and hope you keep on supporting us. =)

Very amazing place... For a minute, i felt i was there already. I'm waking up and still in Nigeria. Great experience buddies

Thank you and yes it was an amazing experience and we had fun. =)

:))) Such a nice environment. Even though it's based on the harsh delays of bureaucracy that led you guys to this, it's these unavoidable paths that take us to the beauty of knowing more, of seeing the movements of the world around us at just the right time to see the exotic.

You reminded me of the times when I used to travel a lot, the haste of going to an office and finding out that there is a problem, or arriving late and finding out it's still ok to do the paperwork and then going out to dinner, seeing the people of this strange area walking by in their daily routine. Then you realize you're a foreigner in their lives, that this is their dull everyday while for you it's something exotic, unexplored, so interesting.

Thank you for this kind of posts, Gilaine. I don't mean this in the cliché unappreciation of a passer-by but in the sense that you keep awakening in me a strange passion that I can't begin to describe. It's something calling me to keep knowing, to keep exploring, telling me that the world hasn't ended yet: there's still so much to see.

I kinda missed you these days. Took you long enough to post a new one. :P

XOXO - See you around

Hello there, Sharon!

Thank you for this wonderful msg.

Yes, there's is so much to see, I hope you get to travel more this year!

Yes, it's been a while since I wrote a blog, I have been busy with the newbies and I didn't reliazed the days already gone fast ;)

I visited your blog and you are doing great! I am really proud of you.

I hope everything is well with you and thank you for always being here.

Love,
Gilaine

Yes! I'm doing much better than when I started. I think a lot of it is thanks to you. Your constant suggestions and support opened the way to knowing more about the way things worked here on Steemit. There is still a looong way to go, and a long list of things to do, but I'm confident that the future will bring a lot of excellent things for both of us.

I've also met friends who make my stay in Steemit wonderful. Like Dawnsheree, for example.

But time, there's too little time to do everything. You noticed that too. It's hard, but it's very satisfying in the long run.

Anyway, thank you for your kind words. I also hope everything goes well with your trip and all your plans. Thank you too for always being an inspiration.

<3

all your photos are beautiful as always miss @purepinay , the great thing about this poat ia again how you're able to make your readers feel that it's like we're also there, and everything was so real. it's really like a tour. aboutthe boarding time , when you said you waited everybody to board in then it's like you're the last one to go on plane haha, i remember evrytime i go home to oriental mindoro i do the same ,since we haveseat numbers i dont put myself in a hurry to go on ship. haha. and the special thing about your post is the time you've spent with your friend , really it's an unforgettable moment . And you never fail to give additional information on your post specifically on this post is about getting an appointment , you're always awesome miss @purepinay , love you!!! 👏👍❤️❤️❤️

Hello @purepinay, I'm glad you could renew your passport. Actually here in Venezuela, the office in charge of issuing passports (Administrative Service of Identification, Migration and Immigration) has also put more obstacles to the process.

With regard to the images taken, I find excellent photographs that show the coastal marine beauty of Dumaguete ...

Regards...

Hi @ulisesfl17 sorry been a crazy and busy week for me I just realized I wasn't able to reply to all of the comments here, but yes it was a great experience. =)

Nice travels!! I really don't get why people need to rush to board the plane. Like they have to be the first to get on. So they stand for long period of time in front of the queue. I don't get it. It's not like you will run out of baggage space? Hosts will make room for you anyway.

thank you @foovler!

natawa naman ako sayo hahaha! but so true!

Looking beautiful dear @purepinay i want to friendship with you ........

I just #upvote and #resteem your post

Haha @purepinay I love that you didn't have a plan for your trip! That's how I like to travel! One time, I went to the Dominican Republic. I didn't look up anything about it before going...I just got on the plane.

I speak Spanish, so luckily I sat next to a Dominican guy on the plane. I asked him where I should go there...and he told me about this cool place called Bayahibe.

No one ever talks about Bayahibe...they only talk about Santo Domingo and Punta Cana. After landing, I just found a bus to Bayahibe and walked around with my backpack looking for a place to stay.

Ended up making friends with some Dominicans who took me to a secret dance club!

I love traveling with no plans! You are awesome for being a similar kind of traveler!
Maraming salamat po for the post. Mabuhay!

Hahahahahaha, your route seems a bit scary. I would have been afraid of being taken to a dark place where someone would steal my kidneys.

You got recommended to go to a place no one knows, and then to a "secret dance club". I'm glad you came out alive. :P With a good story to tell.

haha when you put it that way...

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Hahahahahahahaha, that was exactly what I was thinking of. I love the Candy Mountain Cave song. <3 I could sing it all day long.

hahaha we should do a collab video of us singing it together...haha #untalented

dear @purepinay
I am with you on this point. Yeah, steemit is the only platform where are all looking so happy and relaxed. steemit absolutely a great place where we can earn money and also meet with beautiful peoples, learn great ideas and improve yourself very beautifulyl.
I also thankful to all my followers and the people like you for to make the reason of my happiness.
Stay blessed and be happy always.

last i #RESTEEM YOUR POST

thank you for taking the time to visit my page and for the support.

Happy Steeming!

I heard a lot of nice things about Dumaguete. Should visit when next time when I am back in the Philippines.

Yes, you should visit Dumaguete. =)

HI Gilaine!
I'm from Cebu and got to book an appointment sa DFA next week for my passport renewal. I just want to make sure that you only need your old passport to renew and I don't have to bring my NSO and other stuff? lol Sorry ikaw jud ako pangutana. Since you have firsthand experience I don't have to worry on getting back and forth and just go through the process without delays. ^^

I've been to Dumaguet years ago, the one that really stood out is their huge puso! You should visit the boulevard at night. :) But murag naa najed ka siguro sa Cebu!

I look forward on seeing your future travels, :)

Awww, @dawnsheree, you're from Cebu too! It feels like there's a lot of people from that city! But also some of the nicest I've met on Steemit. It's a bit strange, meeting so many people from one city, yet pleasant to know that your primary export is nice Steemians. 😂

I think that's one of the pleasures of this site: getting to interact with people from so many parts of the world. It feels like an inter-cultural party, an exchange of exoticisms. I hope you solve your passport thingy; travelling is the best thing that has happened to me. It has drastically changed my life, no exaggeration here.

I'm a pure Cebuana Sharon! lol. Yes, there are a lot of people here that are from my place but I only know those who are my friends in reality. While @purepinay is someone I just followed recently. Just proud how a fellow Cebuana has been doing great here. :)

Wow, maybe you could go to one of Gilaine's Cebu meetups. I don't know how social you are but I would certainly enjoy meeting all these friendly people and hanging out with them. Sometimes I feel a bit away from home while I'm on this site, a bit unfamiliar. That's why I was trying to set up a community for my country but people here are too filled up with crises and problems. It's not easy for Venezuelans to dedicate themselves to the Steemit community.

You, however, have this potential. Let me know if you guys ever hang out together :P Although since I follow both of your blogs I don't think it'll be that hard to find out!

I'm sorry to hear that about your country Sharon! They might just need a little bit more awareness and more proof. Maybe you can do that in the future! :)

I'm too shy to do that. She's too super! hahaha I'm not sure if I can describe it correctly. :) May be in the future! Aja!

Hahahahaha, yeah, I get it, I get it! But there's also a lot of people in these meetups, from what I have seen. Whenever I hang out with a group of people I tend to find at least a couple friendly ones with whom I talk a lot and they make my day so worth it! I'm not shy, though. I'm as eccentric as they come, even though my day-to-day is very solitary.

And you're right about the people in my country. A lot of people have already started online projects and this brings them a lot of safety since they don't have to leave their homes (crime!) and it also brings in much more money to their homes than they could make by working day-to-day jobs. I've talked to a lot of people and they think that the main problem for them is that they don't speak English. They think that every monetary opportunity on the Internet can only be attained if one speaks English.

While it's true that English speaking people have the best opportunities here on Steemit, I've seen that there are many blogs that earn in the hundreds and are in Spanish and other languages. Maybe the key to bringing them here would be to show them the opportunity and emphasize the possibility to be successful in their own language.

I think I'm not the best representative of that, since my "best" language for writing is English (I think better in English, and I'm more accustomed to writing literature in English than in Spanish), so maybe I can't be the one to bring them together to Steemit. I hope I can find a way to entice them without having to change my language.

It's not so obvious that you think better in English Sharon! I just left for a bit and you've written a diary. Not a bad note just find you so bubbly (that's a good thing).

Don't underestimate yourself, your talent can get you wonders, especially on your tinkery and your fiction write-ups. :)

We will never know. I do hope that everything would go well for all of us. ^^ Aja!

Not a bad note just find you so bubbly.

Hahaha, I looked that up! (bubbly) I wasn't sure about your intentions. :P I guess I am. I'm very outgoing and likeable. A bit of a drag sometimes because I talk too much and don't understand deadpan sarcasm.

I'll try not to underestimate myself :P Although many times I instead overestimate myself and end up accepting tasks that I can't really undertake.

I hope as well that everything goes super well for all of us :) This is such a dreamy place, so nice. I'm really looking forward to being able to call myself one of the successful early-comers to this land of opportunities.

It's pretty impressive that with all of Venezuela's problems...YOU'RE on steemit and able to dedicate time to it. Debes estar orgullosa de ti misma. I'm sad for all of the problems in your country...because otherwise, Venezuela would be such a great place.

I'm a really lucky one hahaha. I have my parents to feed me, my grandma to give me a roof, Steemit to give me money, friends to bring me out of my home every time I'm starting to feel a bit lonely.

I still feel sad for all the others who are not as lucky as me. Unfortunately my luck is not enough to have the resources to help others. I'm barely able (but able) to be here.

Proud? Of my luck? Perhaps. I have things to be proud of. I'm sure many do. You do, for example. :P I already left you another comment about that somewhere else.

And yeah! Venezuela was a great place before, and I'm sure it will be in the future after this "bad dream" is over.

No, proud for taking action. Not just luck. You are lucky you know Steemit exists, and you can share that knowledge with others. But you also took action to get on the platform...write...put yourself out there...interact with others. Give yourself credit!

I know what you mean...my biggest goal is just to help others. I don't really need a lot to be happy.

Just wandering out on the street and having an interesting conversation with someone is enough...or seeing something pretty in nature.

But having resources to help others would be the best. I have a non-profit in the Philippines (not just me by myself)...so far we just do fundraising to raise money. But it's never enough.

That's so cool that you have a little Steemit community right there in Cebu :) I wonder how the embassy's are over there. Maybe I shouldn't try to get a visa for another country while in the Philippines (I'm coming to visit soon)...hmm...I'll have to research that now

@nomadicsoul not active within the community. lol But I've seen there posts all around here on steemit.

hi ,there, @dawnsheree! thanks for dropping by. How are you doing?

Oh good for you... I had to check the online website every single day and it was really frustrating!

Yes, you only need your old passport and a photocopy of it and the print out of your appointment.

I understand it's really stressful when you don't get the right information, but so far that's all they asked if you only need to renew your passport same thing in Cebu.

I just got back last night, we didn't see the boulevard at night coz we went back to our hotel after going to the beach and we're dead tired :D

Oh yeah, "the city of gentle people" as they call it, I hope not to forget to mention on the next blog ;)

Thank you again for visiting my blog. I hope you'll have a wonderful weekend!

XOXO!

They had their slots open the first week of January so was able to insert for this month!

I forgot about that too! I'm glad you arrived safe and well.

Thanks for letting me know, hopefully, everything will go smoothly and no delays. Wish me luck! lol.

You have a great weekend as well! So happy to find a fellow Cebuana here. ^^