Igorotang Explorer: A Glimpse of Mamburao (Occidental Mindoro)

When I was assigned for a business trip in Mamburao for July 21, 2012, I was a little disappointed with the difficulty in looking for a place to stay and things to do there. So I decided to make a blog about this travel first to help others venturing to that quiet town before I finish my blog on our Korea escapade.

Our trip to Mamburao started at 2:30 in the afternoon when we left our Makati office and headed to the Batangas port to catch the 6:30 Roll-on Roll-off (RORO) ship. We got at the port at 4:00PM and paid the terminal fee which cost Php 129.00 for the car and Php 30.00 for the passenger (it was free for the driver). We entered gate 2 and lined up for boarding since we will be taking the car with us.

Sign to the port and Port entrance where terminal fee is paid

Gate II for cars that will be loaded in the ship

While waiting, we ate some snacks knowing that there’s a big possibility that we’ll not be able to eat dinner. When we were signaled to bring the car at the boarding dock, I saw the ship that we’ll be riding. Our ship was Montenegro’s Maria Vanessa. It was a small ship but we had no choice but to ride it since there were only a few trips from Batangas to Abra de Ilog. We were instructed to load the car into the ship. There, they charged us Php 1872.00 fee for transporting the car (we were already free). After parking the car, we then went up to the passenger area in the second floor of the ship. But before going up, I stopped to see how they would secure the cars from moving while the ship is moving. Then I saw the guys put this thick bundle of rope at one of the tires. After taking a picture of the rope, I then went up to the passengers' area. Well, it was better than what I expected. Atleast I was able to sleep through the whole trip.

Super Shuttle Roro - this was so large (I was just amazed to see such RoRo)

The ship that took us to Abra de Ilog. Notice what was used to control the cars from moving.

It was my first time to ride a RORO and with a not so friendly weather, the experience still went well. The ship left the port around 6:30PM. We arrived safely at Abra de Ilog port around 8:45PM. We were one of the first cars to enter the ship and one of the ones to get out first. When we got out of the port and got to the intersection, we were not sure what way to go since there was no sign. We turned right and just followed the cars before us hoping that they were also headed to Abra de Ilog. While on the road, it started to rain harder which made me think that it was a good decision to bring a car for this trip. The road was also dark as there were no street lights along the road. The scene reminded me of our stay at Bukidnon where we had to pass by dark roads along the pineapple plantation.

When we reached another intersection, there was already a sign leading to Mamburao. Our destination for the night was La Gensol Hotel which was the only hotel I can think of since it was along the road. When we got at Mamburao, the driver slowed down to be sure that we’ll miss the hotel. True enough, the hotel was along the road and there sign helped us find them. We got at the hotel around 9:45PM.

When I checked in, I was given the single room with A/C. I'm not that picky on the rooms I stay in but this was a different story. This was the worst hotel experience I ever had. When I got to the room, I said to myself that for the price, it was okay. Then when I opened the door of the bathroom, this super big cockroach came out. And when I saw the bathroom itself, I was disappointed to see a run-down bathroom. I also noticed that the shower is the regular one with no hot water. It should have been okay but at the moment, it was raining hard so the water was cold. But I'm not the type who would go to the reception area and demand a better room for me so I just had to deal with it since it was only for a night. Until now, I'm not sure why this was the room given to me by the receptionist.

Before sleeping and to check if my driver also stayed in the same hotel, I looked out the window and noticed that my room was just beside a balcony. I got a little paranoid since the windows can easily be opened from the outside and one window grill is open. I had to look for a way to lock the grill and then forced myself to sleep and not think that someone might break in. Oh, and I also noticed that there was a space between the wall and the A/C that would allow people from the outside to peek in! They did provide the basics like linens, towel, soap, shampoo and toothpaste.

This was okay

This was so not okay!

Hotel's front view

The next day, we had breakfast at their restaurant. The food was okay but overpriced. Their breakfast meals like beef tapa with egg and rice cost Php90.00.

We left the hotel around 8AM for work. We were able to finish work just in time for lunch. We had lunch at our contact person’s house and when we had a little talk, they said that La Gensol was already the best hotel in Mamburao. Maybe I was just unlucky to be given that room.

Our “sponsors” then said that there was not much to see Mamburao except for the fields and some resorts. But since the weather was not cooperating, the beaches were not at their best when we saw them. But they still accompanied us to see what their place has to offer. It was really a shame that the weather was bad. The locals said that the water was blue if it was sunny.

The beautiful fields

Our first stop was the resorts in Tayamaan. On the way, I enjoyed the view of the road being covered by trees.

These were some of the photos I got when we reached Tayamaan. Unfortunately, we couldn't get to the beach area because of the water which made it hard to pass through and it also started to rain the moment we got out of the car.

Our next stop was Vista del Mare. Vista del Mare was located at the back of the Mamburao airport. We were informed that PAL planes used to land there. But when RORO was introduced, plane trips were stopped since planes were too pricey compared to taking the RORO. There were some planes at the airport but these were private planes.When we got at Vista del Mare, we asked permission from the owner to allow us to take pictures of their resort. The owner agreed. She was a kind old lady. Vista del Mare looked great for a place to stay during the summer. They had 4 pools and lots of cottages. These are the different views at Vista del Mare. It could have been great if the weather was good.

Before heading back to Manila, our contact person suggested that we take the Montenegro line instead of Baleno line for safety purposes as the ships of Baleno are already old. We also learned that the ship we saw the night before that looked like it has crashed at the port was a Baleno ship. So with that in mind, we headed to the Abra de Ilog port. We were supposed to buy some snacks along the way since the trip would take a long time. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a good place to stop over to buy some food. We reached the port without any luck. Since I didn’t have a choice, I just went to the Anjanna Restaurant just outside the port gate and bought some sandwiches for me and my driver. Their sandwiches cost Php90-130 each. Overpriced but I had no choice.

At the port, the same fees were charged to us. There, we got a better look at the ship that crashed. What bothered me was the sea’s current that can be seen when the water crashes with the ship.