Is it just me or is my helmet always crooked?
Last weekend we did a 24-hour vacation/road trip to a little place called Moalboal. On motorcycle. If you really want to get to know your spouse, ride on a small motorcycle in the blazing hot sun with two fat backpacks for a few hours together.
Ok, I joke. I loved it.
For the record, this spontaneous thing is not my typical kind of vacation. Trip Advisor and travel research of any kind takes over my life at least 1 year prior to our actual travel dates. But the Philippines is teaching me how to be more fun.
Obviously, We Stopped For Food
We stopped along the way and bought hot bibingka from this sweet lady. It’s like a sticky, gummy kind of rice cake made with pounded sticky rice and coconut milk, wrapped up in a banana leaf. It’s cooked over a smoking pile/fire/oven that’s actually just dried coconut shells, burning. So it’s kind of normal and awesome if you get little pieces of burnt coconut shell sticking to your bibingka.
The further we got outside the city, the more we started to realize that this whole thing WAS AMAZING.
It was a refreshing, breathtaking, once in a lifetime drive. Except that we’ll probably try to go back, so maybe twice in a lifetime.
Then came the part where we had to actually find our little two-star resort. Safe to say it was a bit off the beaten path. There was one hand-painted sign with the name of our resort pointing us down this little road. Hmm. Do cars even drive back here?
This is also about the time I vowed I would never sit on a motorcycle again.
Off the beaten path got really awesome when we saw this peeking out through the curtains of our room. Wowsers.
And I don’t even know how I can explain anything more intensely, but the sunset? The one sunset that we saw in our 24 hours? OH.MY. Just absolutely no words.
- I love this place.
- Motorcycle. Period.
- I am ready to move out of the city forever.
- Spontaneous vacations aren’t all bad. But I still love Trip Advisor research.
- It’s the weekend! Have fun.
Beautiful islands! Lived and partied there till the moved to America in 2014. Your blog and story inspires. Getting more serious in my food blogging myself. Peace peace
Beautiful islands! Lived and partied there till the moved to America in 2014. Your blog and story inspires. Getting more serious in my food blogging myself. Peace peace
Hi Lindsay,
I’ve been following your blog for a while and just realized you lived in the Philippines! Awesome! I was like wait what?! Are there any Filipino-inspired dishes in your blog?
There sure are, Kristine! Here are a few:
https://pinchofyum.com/stir-fried-noodles-with-shrimp-and-vegetables
https://pinchofyum.com/banana-lumpia-turon-with-caramel-sauce
https://pinchofyum.com/monggo-beans-mung-bean-soup
https://pinchofyum.com/filipino-pancit
https://pinchofyum.com/filipino-spaghetti
I’d love to go see Moalboal. But when we were in Cebu we just stayed in the city and then travelled to Malapascua. We plan on going back to Cebu soon as there’s plenty more we want to see and experience there.
I am also a huge vacation planner by the hour kind of thing… but I would take an improvised vacation like this any day!
Wow, sooo much different than the life that we are living up here in Minneapolis. As you can imagine, there is snow everywhere and we are all clinging to our North Face Jackets. Are you two going to move back up here again sometime or just stay in paradise?
We’ll be coming back to MN in June!
Looks like a beautiful place. We are headed on a one-way ticket to Thailand on Monday. We’ll be spending a few months living in Chiang Mai and then we plan on wandering around Southeast Asia a little bit. We’re hoping to visit the Philippines during our travels. Who knows, maybe we’ll cross paths somewhere along the way.
Awesome! Shoot me an email if you get anything set up to visit the Philippines!
Will do. Keep up the good work!
I loved Moalboal! Such a nice laid back place. My husband and I did some diving there and really enjoyed it.
Cool! Small world, right? 🙂
Looks like so much fun. Your post reminded hubby and I that we need to get out of the city too soon, even if just for 24 hours.
We’ve done the extended motorbike rides too…oh my. Still feel sorry for my bum. Enjoy your remaining time to the fullest!
Hi, I’m glad to see you and your husband enjoy my country. =D I’m a Filipino by the way and let me tell you the pictures look really wonderful . In Fact, I’m a follower of your blog because i am a food fanatic myself. Hope you could visit Mindanao, particularly Davao City (Represent! =D 😀 ) .
You make me laugh. I love living vicariously through you! The pictures, posts and your fun-filled spirit are refreshing… keep it up, pretty please!
Going on a mission trip this summer to… North Carolina. I kinda can’t wait!!
Wow that looks amazing! I can’t imagine going a trip like that.
THAT looks like a fun, and beautiful 24 hour trip! I love that you and your husband get out and do adventurous things together. It reminds me of life PRE-kiddos when my husband and I did those things. I’m sure I”m not the only one to tell you to “enjoy it now because….” Haha, :), I won’t say it.
Just enjoy.
God bless, and Aloha
Ha! We will. 😉
“Trip Advisor and travel research of any kind takes over my life at least 1 year prior to our actual travel dates. ”
hahaha, me too!! Along with doing an actual Ctrl+F and searching the word “bugs” to make sure there were no reviewers that encountered tons of bugs in the hotel. 🙂
Now I want bibingka. Never tried it, but just from your description and the picture I want it.
I saw your recipe on Pinterest and then saw your about me blurb on the right side of the page, so cool that you are living in the Philippines.
We went island hopping in the Philippines for 2 weeks for our honeymoon and we loved vacationing there. Lots of natural beauty and also very cheap.
We have bibingka during a family parties, but they don’t taste as authentic as the ones I’ve tasted from the Philippines.
Enjoy your time there.
Thanks Lea! Which islands did you visit then you were here?
Good for you, Lindsay! You (probably) only live in the Philippines once, so you have to do those spontaneous adventures when you can! 🙂
Wow! I am with Eric on this one, happy for you guys but jealous too because that looks like an awesome 24 hour vacay!
Oh your post takes me back to when we lived in Bermuda and rode our scooters everywhere. At first I was too nervous to ride my own so I’d ride along with my husband–two of us on one bike with two sets of golf clubs as well. What a sight!
Whoa!! You’re a pro.
Oh! I loved your pictures! Makes me miss the PI. 🙂
Wow–great fun. We were on the island directly west of you…Negros, and mostly on the other side last October, as well as spending time in Manila for a couple of weeks.
We hit a resort while out there, as well, our first weekend, though ours was up in the mountains right in the middle of the island. Quiet, clean, new. I must recommend a trip to Boracay Island, if you have the chance and time. Just north of Panay, a beautiful spot with all the touristy things you might like, white sand beaches, boat rides, batcaves to visit, and Puka Beach. We stayed at Baling Hai Resort–totally fun.
Thanks for the recommendation, Chris!
Those pictures are amazing beautiful! And the sticky rice coconut thingys sound great. I am the same way as you having to research and plan everything to the T. But it sounds like spontaneity paid off this time. 🙂
Absolutely loved looking at all of these photos. Gives me hope that the sun is shining somewhere!!!