Nothing much happening around, my health is deteriorating and I am struggling to be normal. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about it because it seems this blog is going to be a health blog soon.

My sister have been bugging me to see the sunflower farm at the nearby town, we have planned to see it for almost a month already but we keep postponing to see it so when we had a chance we finally did, we are not able to tagged along my father because he work even on Sundays just to get by, he is actually been complaining of being tired but what else he can do he have to feed me (lol).

The sunflower farm located in San Andres wasn’t that hard to find, the entrance fee cost P30.00 which is less than a dollar if you had it converted. My sister was all excited when I am a bit disappointed, it wasn’t that great as it was seems to be maybe because it was summer and the flowers wasn’t that huge or maybe because I have seen sunflower bigger and beautiful than from the farm or I guess nothing excites me anymore?

Anyway, my mother seems more excited seeing ripe papayas on sale for a cheaper price in the entrance of the Sunflower farm than wandering around the sunflower beds, she actually doesn’t want to look around if we didn’t told her that it was a waste not to consume her entrance fee. Well, she wandered a bit and then asked if she could sit and the next thing we knew she was already sitting near the booth where cheap papaya fruit were sold.

Traveling is part of me, visiting ancient places, meeting new people and experiencing their way of living.  As a traveler, I’ve visited many places and countries but around Tablas Island in Romblon is my favorite destination in the Philippines, the marble capital of the country and home to “Galapagos of Asia” (Sibuyan).

[Beautiful Sea View in Sta. Maria, Tablas Island]

The province of Romblon is located in the center of the Philippines and clustered on MIMAROPA Region IV-B, it is composed of three major islands, Romblon Town, Sibuyan Island and Tablas Island which is the biggest island among the three.

[Coastal view along the road in San Agustin, Tablas Island]

Around Tablas island is my favorite destination not only because it is my hometown but because of the many pristine beaches for swimming, scuba diving and snorkeling, clean rivers, waterfalls and lakes, marine sanctuaries, green mountains and well-preserved forest which are good for hiking and trekking. Unlike any other island too in the Philippines, Romblon isn’t that populated and it is peaceful where you can hear the birds and insects singing lullaby.

[ Mount Payaopao, the highest peak in Tablas Island]

Tablas island too has long coastline and what is fascinating you can encircle the island in less than a day, which is popularly called as round Tablas by locals, we spend six hours by motorcycle when we do the road tripping and visiting every municipality.

[Calatrava, Tablas Island]

Each town has their own unique vibe, you’ll able to met friendly and helpful locals, beautiful coastal view, hidden waterfalls, fresh seafoods, local kakanins and many more.

[Mablaran Falls in San Andres, Tablas Island]

Tablas Island is reachable through ferries from the port  of Batangas City and through commercial flight from Manila to Tugdan Airport in the municipality of Alcantara which is a few hours away to the capital town of Tablas, Odiongan.

[Poctoy Port in Odiongan, Tablas Island]

There are many things to do in Tablas Island, all you have to do is take your bag and head out to natures paradise.

[Scenic View at Sta. Fe, Tablas Island]

You can enjoy the sea view and coastal coast in Sta. Maria, dive in and be amazed with the blue hole in San Agustin, admire the lakes and beaches in Calatrava, swim until sundown in San Andres, have fun with the falls, resorts and the sunset in Odiongan, adore the beaches in Ferrol, see the old houses in Looc, enjoy the bashful mountains in Alcantara and love the scenic view of Sta. Fe.

[Old houses in Looc Town, Tablas Island]

Well, there are more many things to see and to experience around Tablas Island, there are still many hidden beauties awaiting for me to discover and what is amazing my next travel adventures around the island can go to the next level with the help of  OPPO F1s since it is sporting a 13 mega-pixels rear camera with an industry -leading imaging chip and 1/3.06-inch sensor that maximize light sensitivity, making a wonderful nighttime performance which is I think a perfect companion for fireflies watching in the island. The large pixels also work to bump up the dynamic range and give pictures a vivid dept and details for capturing exceptionally clear and detailed photos which is a dream of every travelers like me.

With the scorching heat of the sun, humidity,  limited supply of water and without rain for a longer period of time it is definitely summer time. Some of our relatives went home when my aunt dies and my older cousin’s and her kids stays for short vacation and last Saturday it was agreed by many to have a dip to ease the warm weather.

The clan decided to do family outing at SATO Beach Resort which is just in a neighboring barangay, initially I am not attending since my family doesn’t want to go because my father isn’t in a good mood and he is at work, my mother thought if we tagged along he will not like it. My family offered to drop me at the beach resort but I declined since it feel awkward to be alone without them but when an older cousin came to our house and asked if we are not tagging along, my family pushed me to go and since I would like to visit the place that I have been only hearing from other people I went with them.

SATO Beach Resort was located in Brgy. Batiano, the resort was just a few meters away from Odiongan port it is overlooking the port and a beach shore but the main attraction was the large pool and slides. There are plenty of people on their family outing and there was also a wedding reception taking place at the main hall.  SATO Beach Resort has a pool for adult and a pool for kids to enjoy, the large pool was huge, the water is salty and the chlorine is very strong to the extent that it smells like Zonrox bleach for clothes,  the moment that my cousins dip in the pool they complaint that they felt itchy and keep scratching their skin same with the kids with us, I didn’t feel itchiness so I have told them maybe skin is thick like carabao skin and wasn’t so sensitive like theirs. I didn’t dip longer in the pool and just dip when it is cloudy, I just dip three times in short period of time but turn very dark easily like everyone, wasn’t sure if it was because of the salty water, the sun or is it a chemical burn from strong smelly water?

Browsing online here’s what I found from ask.com – According to clorox.com, chlorine levels in the water should not exceed 3ppm (parts per million) as measured by a pool testing kit. To reach these levels, very little chlorine is needed. For example, if a circular pool has water 3 feet deep and is 15 feet in diameter, only 5 cups are needed to reach the appropriate chlorine levels. Although liquid bleach and chlorine tablets both contain the same chemical, it is extremely important to know what other chemicals are contained in both products. Do not ever put chemicals in the pool that are not recommended for use in pools, and do not substitute products such as cleaners with bleach for plain, liquid bleach. Know the type of filtration system in the pool, and be sure to avoid chemicals that can react with other cleaning chemicals and cleaning systems. Always test the pool water with a pool testing kit before entering, and do not enter the pool if chlorine levels are above 3ppm. Wait until the sunlight breaks the chlorine down, and test the water again.

My aunts rented two cottage but was given a free one for renting two, I have forgot to ask how much does it cost for each cottage but the entrance fee cost ₱50 per head (adult) and ₱30 per head (kids) and ₱40 for senior citizen. The cottage was good but since the resort doesn’t have too many trees and it is overlooking the beach it was very open and not shady like it should be.

Anyway, I didn’t take long and went home early with our grandmother leaving everyone to enjoy on their own. I have informed our distant cousin that everybody went to SATO beach resort and I have informed the salty and strong smelly water, he seconded about it and says it was the reason why they didn’t went in the outing because they had a batch reunion less than a month ago in the said resort so they knew how the pool was like.

SATO beach resort is very spacious, good location since it is overlooking the beach, the downside not enough shade to enjoy and the water has a strong smell of bleach not sure if it is because the pool is using salty water unlike other pool around.

SATO BEACH RESORT
Pier, Batiano, Odiongan, Romblon
Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/satobeachresort/
Mobile No. – (042) 567-6279 / 09473421701 / 09353574631

Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post. Above written post was my own personal experience and opinion and might be different from yours.