The Backpack Adventures

Found off the coast of Anilao in Mabini, in the province of Batangas, Sombrero Island is a small island that is slowly making a name for itself.
The island got its name from the Filipino word sombrero which means hat. It is quite obvious that the island was named due to its unique shape, which according to locals, looks like a giant hat that sticks out from the sea. To reach Sombrero Island, it will take you 15 to 20 minutes by boat from the resorts in Anilao. (travel time varies depending on how rough the waves are) The boat rental usually costs around P2,500. I highly recommend that you bring in your friends when visiting Sombrero Island. A bigger group means a lesser amount of money that you would have to shell out. Aside from the boat rental fee, you also need to pay an entrance fee of P150 upon arrival to the island. In our case, we were 16 in the group so I only had to shell out P300 all in all. We originally planned to go to the island early in the morning to avoid the intense…

Our adventure today takes us to a mountain south of Metro Manila.Mt. Gulugod-Baboy is located in Anilao, Mabini in the province of Batangas. Gulugod-baboy is a Filipino phrase which means "pig's spine." The mountain got its name from the contours of the peaks which resembles a pig's back as seen from Janao Bay.  Mt. Gulugod-Baboy, despite being called a mountain, may also be referred to as a hill. This is because of the fact that the distinction between a hill and a mountain remains subjective and unclear. (As you may know, the maximum height of a hill is still being contested.)
So what's the big deal? Mt. Gulugod-Baboy stands 525 meters above sea level. Typically, landforms reaching 500 feet (152 meters) are called hills.  However, later ideas suggest that landforms reaching the height of 2000 feet (610 meters are regarded as mountains, hence those below it are referred to like hills. Whatever type of land formation Mt. Gulugod-Baboy might be, the real confusio…

To further add substance to my blogs, I decided to include ratings to each of my published articles. These ratings would serve as a quality guide to the destinations or food trips that I have blogged. It would also show my readers my unbiased opinions about the blogged places.

Here's a guide on how to understand my crowd/pilgrim ratings:


 - Place can get very crowded at times You could enjoy it or hate it depending on your disposition.


 - Crowd level is just normal.


- almost a desert! The place might be hidden or is not frequented by people.




Here's a guide on how to understand my taste ratings:


 - Tastes great for a normal person. A must try. The food is begging to be tasted.




 - Just good! Taste it and tell me what you think.





 - Tastes like it's bought from a fast food restaurant.





- What on earth is that! I hope I won't get sick after eating that!




Here's a guide on how to understand the cleanliness ratings: 

 - Great! The place is squeaky clean. It would pass for a quarantine…