Or, as I would like to bitterly refer to this article, “Why we would not be coming back to Tanay any time soon”.
For this specific day trip, we decided to follow a simple itinerary
from various blogs to one of the nearby tourist destinations that are easily
gaining popularity on the Internet and through the word of mouth: Tanay, Rizal.
Road to PARADISE (?)
Coming from Katipunan, we rode a jeep bound for Antipolo, and paid 27
pesos each. We got down at the intersection nearest Shopwise (in Teresa). On
the other side of the road were jeeps heading to Tanay. The fare was 35 pesos
each, and we asked to be dropped off at the Tanay public market.
Before you even reach the market, expect the several tricycle drivers
to huddle towards your jeepney, caling for passengers headed to different
tourist destinations in Tanay (Daraitan, Daranak Falls, Regine Rica, etc.). Do
not get swirled into the hype. Just wait until you get to the market. You will
meet more tricycle drivers there, and you will have a better chance to haggle
and to choose the best offer.
Parola (lighthouse)
As I have read in most blogs that I visited before our trip, they
visited the parola as their last destination and in the afternoon. Maybe for
the pictures, a sunset in the background is great, but it is also nice to visit
in the morning. We have the lighthouse to ourselves. The sky was clear. The sun
was out. The cool wind was brushing away our hair and gently blowing into our
faces. It is not a big lighthouse, and the structure was really simple, but
once up there, you are comforted by sceneries of rice fields and fishery, the
fresh air and the isolation.
There was no entrance fee, and we were just asked to log our info in a
visitors log book and to take a survey.
Grotto
Our second destination was the Grotto. We just wanted to tire ourselves
up the stairs and breathe of relief on the top. To give you a glimpse of what
we found, here you go.
Calinawan Cave
The Calinawan Cave was definitely the winning grace of the entire trip.
It was worth every cent that we paid for. 20 pesos for the entrance fee, and we
paid 100 pesos for the tour guide. Since there were only two of us, we
requested to be joined with another group. Much to our disadvantage, we were
paired with a group of college kids, who think yelling ‘Cool kids of Manila’
would make them any cooler than they already are not. This lousy bunch of kids
were so loud, even our tour guide got so distracted and almost gave up on
continuing the tour. #SMH They kept on making silly jokes about every single
thing mentioned by guide for the sake of saying something, like #WTF KIDS, SHUT
UP!
I have done caving inside the Husgado
cave in Mt. Banahaw. For me, it was easier to navigate inside Calinawan
Cave. So, it is definitely recommended for beginners. There were several parts
where you need to crawl, duck or twist our body, but for most parts of the
cave, you just have to walk and be mindful of the rocks that you step on.
They also have flashlights that you can borrow.
Our tour guide was really kind and knowledgeable about the history of
the cave. He was accommodating all throughout, and offers to take our pictures
in the best spots. Rock formations inside comes in different shapes and size –
be amazed with rocks resembling some of your favorite characters, ordinary
day-to-day things and more. Part of the tour is that they let you experience
the pitch black darkness and deafening silence of a cave. For around 10
seconds, the guide instructed us to turn off all our lights and keep our mouths
closed (took a while before our monkey friends got the instructions, but they
soon caught up and managed to restrain their non-sense for a couple of
seconds).
Daranak Falls
We chose to go to Daranak Falls last, as we wanted to spend more time
swimming. It was nothing like we expected.
The tricycle that we hired for the day dropped us off far from the
entrance, as we were stopped by the people in charge of the tricycle terminal
within the vicinity of Daranak Falls. They explained to us that they have a “pila” (line-up of tricycle drivers), and
that they do not allow outside tricycles within the area.
It was so unfair, because we came their thinking that for as long as we
hire a tricycle, all of our transport needs for day were already covered or
paid as a package – same as what we read in our prior research before going for
the trip.
Instead of paying 500 for tricycle that we hired, we deducted a hundred
and paid 400.
Before we entered the place, we could already gage that the place was
very congested. We paid 50 pesos for the entrance fee, and another 50 for the
locker (which was actually a cabinet without a lock). The locker is optional
and not mandatory.
The place was jam-packed. We ate our packed lunch on one of the open
benches, under the shade of trees. There were food stalls and souvenir shops in
the place – it was already developed to some extent.
The water was icy cold, which was very refreshing. It was hard to
navigate within the waters, because it was inevitable that you will collide with
other people bathing. There were also some concerns regarding safety. There was
a limited number of lifebuoy available, which was definitely not enough for the
number of people who visited that day. We saw one lifeguard station, but
really, we felt like no one was watching. There were instances when we almost
drowned- thank God for the other visitors who helped us.
To make the most out of the time that we spent there, we moved to the
springs within the area – less crowded and also, relaxing.
They operate seven days a week from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., which I think
explains why the place did not appear well-maintained. My best friend even
started picking up trash from the waters.
On our way back to Tanay’s public market, we learned that the standard
fare of the tricycle terminal was 200 pesos. All that we had left by then was a
hundred pesos. We were planning to withdraw money once we get to the market.
Since we did not have enough, we decided to wait for more passengers to split
the fare with.
After several minutes, we were paired with another group – two adults
and three children. We sat behind the driver. We were asked several times to go
down, because the tricycle could not carry the total weight of all the
passengers. It was tiring and embarrassing.
The tricycle driver started trash talking our previously hired ride. In
the guise of helping us out, he dropped us in front of a bank. When we held out
our 100 (since there were two groups and the total fare is 200), he asked us to
add some more. We kept explaining that we no longer have any cash, and he
forced us to withdraw money. “Add nalang po kayo ng 20 [pesos] , kailangan po
kasi…” he said. Even taxis in Manila, do not do that. He left us there and said
that he will come back for the additional money after dropping off the other
group. We made a quick withdrawal and sped off to jeepneys heading to Antipolo.
We made a run for it!
The Jeepney Incident
Scenario: One seat left inside the jeep before we take off, I was so
irritated that the barker (for
jeepneys) kept on screaming loudly outside, beating the side of the vehicle
with an empty water bottle (you can just imagine the noise) and even slipped
his hands through the window/side opening of the jeep to tap and push my
shoulder and the shoulder of the man on my right, to make some space for the
last passenger. I already warned him to
not touch me. Then, he repeated it again, pushing our shoulders and yelling at
the people to move their assess and sleep later.
Oh yes, it happened. I have little to no recollection at all of
everything that I just said. There was not a single second for me to even think
about how to react or what to say. I just EXPLODED! I yelled some really awful
stuff at the man and that left him speechless – well, also everybody inside the
vehicle.
Whew! What a way to end such a trip!
Overall expenses and breakdown:
Katipunan to Antipolo (roundtrip) – 27 + 27 = 54
Antipolo to Tanay (roundtrip) – 35 + 32 = 67
Food – 52 (103/2)
Hired tricycle – 200 (400/2)
Entrance fee at Calinawan Cave – 20
Caving tour guide – 50 (100/2)
Entrance fee at Daranak Falls – 50
Locker – 25 (50/2)
Tricycle back to public market – 50 (100/2)
Total: Php 568 per person
To end this post, I am giving a 6 out 10 rating to this trip. Mind that
I did not include a sample itinerary for this post, because… please… let nature
breathe as well! I am closing this review without any recommendation or
invitation for my readers to visit the place any time soon.
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