"baler" Province of Aurora by ayn_g

I first heard of this amazing town from a former co-worker. From the way he described it, I was pushed to look this town up on the Internet. I've learned from my online research (thanks to this site, www.aurora.ph) that Aurora is one of the surfing destinations in the Philippines. Wow, I thought surfing was only possible in Siargao in Mindanao. I had been looking forward to visit this place eversince... and I made it come true in the latter part of 2005.

With my youngest brother, I went on one of the best long bus trips in my life. We boarded the Genesis bus bound for Baler, the capital of Aurora, at about 4:30am. The first trip leaves the terminal, which is located behind the Sogo Hotel in Pasay Rotonda, at 5am. The fare costs PHP 340, one-way. The trip took about eight hours, including stops in Bulacan, Cabanatuan, and another Nueva Ecija town (i forgot to take note of the name).

For the rest of the trip, you'll see landscapes of rice granaries, mountains, and even a view of rivers. This is a welcome site for me who has to live with the bad Manila traffic every day. Alternately, i fall asleep, read a book, and listen to music to keep boredom away.

Over an hour away from Baler, we stopped over this small food establishment called Green Forest and my brother and I feasted on a local delicacy called Tupig. A bundle of five costs PHP 10.

Before finally getting to Baler, the bus drove through narrow, rough roads and crossed a bridge. Excitement came over me when we reach Maria Aurora. I keep telling myself, we are so near the beach now.

We arrived in Baler at about 1pm. From the bus terminal, we headed to Brgy. Sabang, where Sabang Beach is... We paid PHP 10 per head to the trike driver, who took us to Bay's Inn. Bay's Inn is a beachfront resort... from their resto, you could view the rolling waves and the beach. It has non-aircon and aircon rooms. We took a non-aircon room, for which we only paid PHP 350. The room is clean and has a working CR. The electric fan though was quite old. But there is no need for us to use the fan because it is already cold.

After lunch at the restaurant, we walked by the beach. My brother didnt really swim as the waves are big (remember its a surfing destination) and just collided with the waves, chased the surf. I, on the other hand, took pictures, which sadly did not turn out good. I was using a low-tech camera. Wah! Wah!

For an hour or so, we just communed with the waves, the sand, and the sea water. It was super relaxing. I fell in love with the place that instant.

The very best thing about visiting Baler, I caught a wonderful sunrise. I got up as early as 4am and just stood by the beach, looking up the stars slowly making way for the sun. It was breathtaking, stunning... I wish i could capture every detail of how beautiful sight is. While the sun is slowly emerging from the horizon, I could still see this foggy sight at my left. I spent the remaining hours, jogging by the beach along with the locals. People do get up early there to jog by the beach.

Before we finally bade goodbye to the beach, waves, water, and sand, we ate a filling breakfast. It was something to eat while seeing the sun from afar peeking behind clouds. I know I'll go back there someday... because the place is not only Sabang Beach... it offers more wonderful nature's gifts that I am raring to discover in my next visit.

My itinerary:
Tuesday, Dec. 6:

430am - ETD for Baler
10am - ETA Baler

(bus) Genesis (beside MRT-Taft Station, near Crow Bus station) - 551-0842

- lodging: either in Bay's Inn or Angara's Beach House (042) 209-422

Wednesday, Dec. 7:

6am - ETD for Manila
3pm - ETA Manila

(Bus) Genesis

• Pros:friendly people, beautiful sights, waves
• Cons:long travel
• In a nutshell:lovely sights and sounds