One of the few things that I was looking forward this summer was our team outing and finally it happened last weekend at the beautiful Island Garden Resort in Pangubatan in Samal. Ever had the feeling of expecting so much out of something and suddenly it disappoint you? Fortunately for me even though I was so looking forward to it and expecting so much about it, the event itself did not disappoint at all. It was a blast to say the least.
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| Lifted from their FB page |
We didn’t go through our original plan of riding a bus to Kaputian as it will take time if we keep on waiting for the bus to arrive. So we decided to just take a jeep to the port and riding a barge instead. When we set foot on Samal
, we hired a habal habal to get us to Kaputian but eventually we ended up riding it up to the resort itself. The road was not smooth but it was one adventurous thing to do that somehow we welcomed to enjoy and experience. Thankfully it was windy and cloudy so the ride was not that hot and stressful.
, we hired a habal habal to get us to Kaputian but eventually we ended up riding it up to the resort itself. The road was not smooth but it was one adventurous thing to do that somehow we welcomed to enjoy and experience. Thankfully it was windy and cloudy so the ride was not that hot and stressful.
Tree house/cottage
Open cottages
The feeling of relief and giddiness filled us as we arrived at the resort. It was what I expected it to be. The resort has complete amenities and services to offer its customers. Our dormitory room was air conditioned and the beddings were clean and folded neatly. The beach, okay I was kind of disappointed because it was low tide and I cant bear to go far as their were a lot of stones and living things underneath. I don’t like stepping into sea cucumber or some slimy something under so I refrained from going far. So I ended up waiting the tide to rise so I can enjoy the part where there were no stones and slimy something. Hahaha We had our lunch at their native restaurant then played a lot of parlor games, pinoy games and took a lot of pictures. Some of the game’s consequences was to drink a shot of tequila. Oh no, I am not really fond of drinking but I had no choice but to oblige. Rawrr haha It was fun especially when we played bulan-bulan (a pinoy game similar to playing tag, only the players had to be in a circle which is divided by two and then the “it” (taya) must have both feet on the line all the time and will try to catch the players who’s inside the circle.) Okay I know it’s a mouthful but here is the video. 🙂
Bulan-bulan
For our dinner we ordered bulalo and tuna panga. Their food was good and it satisfied our hungry stomachs. After dinner, we took a bath and changed clothes and we had our bonfire and played games, again. 😀 Of course one of the consequences was again to take a shot of Bacardi. Fortunately, I never had to take one. Haha Okay, I was a bit off when we played singing, that game where we had to sing using the last word of the song. They kind if insist to drink a shot but I was not totally into it plus the mechanics were not clear. Sorry for that guys, especially to Matt. Hahaha And the game that I was excited for was the one two three four pass. That game nailed the night. We changed consequences from time to time depending on the winner. There’s one that we had to take a shot, to dance, to lap dance, to sexy dance on top of the table (to which I did, I lost just once okay?) haha to sexy dance with same and opposite sex and a lot more ridiculous consequences. It was definitely a night to remember as I can feel the laughter and enjoyment from each one of us.
The Resort
The resort was not the best as I know there are a lot of resorts in Samal that also has that amenities and services. What stand out for me was their welcoming and homey vibe. Welcoming and homey in terms of the staff, the place and the owners. We even got to talk to one of them and our boss even got a free pass for the corkage fee. It just that we had kind of plenty of food that they eventually charged us 150 for everything. But that’s really generous considering the original fee for corkage was 100 per head. We were ten, so you can imagine the amount we saved. There was also some sort of misunderstanding regarding the bonfire thing. I was the one who booked the place and I was in constant contact with their staff. As what I remembered there was no fee for the bonfire but when we asked one of the staff there, he said an amount of 250 will be paid. So we decided not to go through with it, we started our games without it but only to be surprised because they waived it for us, and so we did have our bonfire. Weeeh!
Overall our stay was one helluva experience. From the habal habal to the parlor games and to the moments we shared and enjoyed. We are also very thankful to the staff and the owners who gave us a lot of discount and freebies. Thank you!
Getting there: We rode a habal habal from Babak to Island Resort in Pangubatan in Kaputian for 150php per head. Or you can ride a lantsa to Kaputian and ride with the resort’s service vehicle for Php500 (one way good for 6-8 people)
Dormitory fee: 350 per bed
Dormitory fee: 350 per bed
Or you can just visit their Facebook site: https://www.facebook.com/islandgardenresortinpangubatan
So how about you? Have you been to the beach this summer? Tell me your stories! 🙂
