Patrik Lord Travel Blog

Life begins where WIFI is weak
Published on

Good snorkeling near Dumaguete

Going there

Marine Sanctuary in Dauin, is about 15-30 minutes travel from Dumaguete City. For those taking the public transport, you can find jeepneys to Dauin at the bell tower in Dumaguete City or near the Robinson's Mall. Fare is PHP 13.00. Inform the driver you are getting off at the corner leading to the Marine Sanctuary. It’s a couple of blocks away or a good 4-5 minutes brisk walk. The entrance fee for the sanctuary is PHP 150 with a table included. Without table it will be less.

Many fish to see

The beach with its brown sand may not look like much but wait until you get in to the water. The Marine Sanctuary starts a few meters from the shore and remains fairly shallow for about 20-50 meters before it slopes down into the deep. It's best to start snorkeling in the mid-morning until lunch, as the water gets shallower towards the afternoon. It said you can expect to see parrot fish, clown fish, anemone fish, neon damsels, hump-head banner fish, some baby black tip sharks, boulder coral, giant lobe and whorl bowl corals at the center. I myself saw most of the fish mentioned and also spotted a muraena. I didn't see any black tip sharks though. 

Definitely worth a visit

The conclusion is that the Marine Sanctuary is definitely worth a visit either for snorkeling or just relaxation.
Published on

Going there

Casaroro Falls is located in Valencia roughly 10 km from Dumaguete. It’s considered to be the most photographed waterfall in the entire Negros province. To get there, take a jeepney from Dumaguete to Valencia Plaza, it takes 20-30 minutes depending on the traffic. The fare is 12 PHP per person. At Valencia Plaza take a Habal Habal up to Casaroro falls. Ask the driver to wait for you. The fare should be around 200 PHP per person and back and forth. Always try to negotiate. Travel time is around 20 minutes.

350 steps but worth the effort!

From the drop off point you need to hike. There will be steep stairs going down at first, it’s said to be 350 steps. I haven’t counted them but it might be true. Additional hike is required after the stairs. Be prepared for wet feet and to stumble around among slippery rocks. Depending on your fitness level the hiking time to the falls would be from 15 minutes and plus. The waterfall is mighty, beautiful and really worth the effort.
​Note! Click on images to see slideshow and captions! 
Hiking to the actual fall may take around 15 minutes The foliage is dense Sometimes there are many tourists here The water flows and drops at a height of 30 m Related links: Review of Fish 153 Korean Restaurant, Dumaguete Review of Mooon Café Robinsons Place, Dumaguete Review of Sta Teresa Restaurant, Dumaguete ​Review of San Rival Bistro, Dumaguete ​Review of Atong Kamalig Restaurant, Dumaguete ​​Review of Gabby's Bistro, Dumaguete ​Tierra Alta Residential Resort, Dumaguete​ ​Visit the Marine Sanctuary in Dauin ​​Hike the Puncak Tanawan, Negros Oriental ​Tempura, takoyaki and balut​
Published on

​Gangsters in Dumaguete

Café Mafioso has a central location downtown near the Rizal Boulevard. The overall theme of this place is inspired by the mafia. Like the interior of the place and how they named the menu "The hit list". And of course don't forget the outfits of the staff. They are all dressed in black complete with gangster hats like how you would imagine gangsters would look like.
I chose the "Bacon overkill panini"  from the "Hit and run snacks". The food and the cafe latte was good. Although I wished they had put some veggies together with my sandwich. Little bit of tomato, cucumber and lettuce hadn't hurt. Anyway the staff was service minded and the place had free WiFi.

Rating: 1-5 where 1 is terrible and 5 is excellent
4 Food 
5 Service
4 Value
5 Atmosphere
I was here in January 2017

Café Mafioso
Corner Sta. Catalina and Noblefrana street, 6200 Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental, Philippines
Phone: +63 915 263 5857
Note! Click on images to see slideshow and captions!

​Bacon overkill panini

The hit list I ordered a bacon overkill panini Clearly inspired by the mafia style View from my table (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Related links: Review of Fish 153 Korean Restaurant, Dumaguete Review of Mooon Café Robinsons Place, Dumaguete Review of Sta Teresa Restaurant, Dumaguete ​Review of San Rival Bistro, Dumaguete ​Review of Atong Kamalig Restaurant, Dumaguete ​​Review of Gabby's Bistro, Dumaguete ​Tierra Alta Residential Resort, Dumaguete​ Visit the Casaroro Falls, Valencia ​Visit the Marine Sanctuary in Dauin ​​Hike the Puncak Tanawan, Negros Oriental ​Tempura, takoyaki and balut​
Published on
Osmña Peak Cebu Island Philippines © Patrik Lord Travel Blog

​Osmeña Peak

The rooftop of Cebu Island. Osmeña Peak, rises 1,013 meters above sea level and is nestled between the southern towns of Dalaguete and Badian.
Casaroro Falls Negros Oriental Philippines © Patrik Lord Travel Blog
Casaroro Falls in Valencia, Dumaguete. 
Sibulan Negros Oriental Philippines © Patrik Lord Travel Blog

​Balinsasayao Twin Lakes

A nice little lake on the way the ​Balinsasayao Twin Lakes. Located in Sibulan, Negros Oriental.
Published on

​Always more fun in the Philippines!

I was sitting with my coffee at the Bean Connection in Dumaguete when suddenly...
Published on

​Fresh milk with added sugar

It's probably well known that Filipinos are crazy in love with sugar. For example, fresh milk marketed as healthy and nutritious, good for your kids, full of healthy additives like vitamins etc etc. But one of the additives is 44 gram pure sugar per one liter milk! Crazy! Sorry to say it's really hard to find foods here in the Philippines without added sugar. But today at Robinson I found a small tiny shelf with foods with low sugar.
Note! Click on images to see slideshow and captions! 
I was happy to find this small space with low sugar products. Here are two brands of fresh milk which is low in sugar. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); ​The white poison There are many reasons for why it's good for your body to avoid sugar. One is diabetes. ​According to the International Diabetes Federation Philippines is one of the world’s emerging diabetes hotspots. Ranked in the top 15 in the world for diabetes prevalence, Philippines is home to more than 4 million people diagnosed with the disease – and a worryingly large unknown number who are unaware they have diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends that people should avoid intake of sugar-sweetened beverages to help prevent diabetes typ 2.