CDO-Camiguin-Bukidnon here we come!

Canopy walk at Macahambus Adventure Park in CDO.

Time flies so fast huh!? It’s already the start of the “ber” months. For Filipinos, its the start of the long Christmas season. Well, it also means that the semester break is only a month away (October). Finally, we will have the chance to ease the itch of our feet! Btw, we’re in trio for this trip! Yes, another soul with itchy feet joined us he he he..

Recently, we booked flights online at Cebu Pacific, going to the city of the “golden friendship”, Cagayan de Oro! Roundtrip is 3,998 Php/person (about 90 USD).  Our trip is scheduled from October 30-Novemember 2, so we really have to maximized those four days to the fullest!

Whenever we have a trip, I usually volunteer to plan it. I’m in-charge of reserving a room in a hotel/resort, contacting a person for the day tour/activities, researching how much are the fees (entrance fees, transpo fees etc.) and other interesting places that we must visit. Well, I really take this “trip planning” task seriously he he he. Btw, the best way to find tips is at  the website Virtual Tourist. Just google or yahoo search it, for example, for Camiguin tips, just type “virtual tourist camiguin”. Real travelers share their experiences, from accomodations, things to do, tourist traps etc. With help from the other travelers, I was able to come up with our itinerary. It is as follows:

Day 1– Arrival in CDO at 5:50AM

Before exploring CDO, we will first drop by the island of seven volcanoes, Camiguin! From the airport, we will go directly to Balingoan port to catch an early ferry going to this island. Eversince, it is my dream to see this island paradise. Being a sun worshipper, I will really enjoy its fine white sand beach! This island also offers a lot of places to see like the famous White Island, Ardent hot spring, Katibawasan Falls, Sunken cemetery and many more! Since the island is small, you can actually see all of it in just a day. I already made an arrangement for the day tour of the island as well as our cottage. We’ll just stay here for a night, then back to CDO the next day. I will just tell the details on Camiguin after our trip.

Day 2- Back in CDO

From Camiguin we will return to CDO first thing in the morning. CDO is the capital of Misamis Oriental province, located in northern Mindanao. Here will test our limits by ziplining and rapelling at the Macahambus Adventure Park. Then after, we will battle the raging rapids of the Cagayan de Oro river by white water rafting. Isn’t that exciting!?

Day 3- Side Trip to Bukidnon

Since Bukidnon is just 2 hours from CDO, we decided to squeeze it into our itinerary. We want to see its capital city, Malaybalay. The must see places here are: Kaamulan Park, Monastery of Transfiguration and the Del Monte pineapple plantation. We will also try to see the Lake Apo, located in Valencia, a town near Malaybalay. From what read in the net, Bukidnon is beatiful city, just like Baguio, with pinetrees and cold weather. But we have to decide yet if we will spend a night here or come back to CDO the same day. So I say, we’ll just cross the bridge when we get there 🙂

Day 4- Home Bound

Since our flight is schedule at 4PM, so we still have time to see other attractions of CDO as well as to buy “pasalubongs” for family and friends

When I told my mother about this trip, she was kinda worry. If you watched the news recently, the situation in Mindanao is volatile. The conflict between the army and rebels is still ongoing. But CDO, Camiguin and Bukidnon are located in Northern Mindano, which is far from where the conflict is: in Southern Mindanao. So I told my mama, there’s no need to worry 🙂

A few months ago, I bought a new camera, Canon S5-IS Powershot. I would like to take photos seriously he he he. This trip will be my camera’s chance to prove its worth (and cost?) ha ha ha! I also bought a new backpack from the North Face to replace my worn-out Fila. See, I’m not that excited at all huh?!

After our trip, you expect to see three blog entries from me he he he. I can’t wait to go! Wooohooo 🙂

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Photo: Flickr