that summer in Samar

The other day, I was talking with my grandmother who's going back to the province on Monday. She was inviting us to come and visit her in Samar, but this time, during fiesta on the last week of September.

I'd love to visit Samar again. I've only been there once, and I loved it! My sisters and I spent about a week there 3 years ago, and it was one of the greatest trips I've ever had.

flashback mode...


Upon arrival in Calbayog, we dropped off our things at our grandmother's house in Gandara and went straight to the Blanca Aurora Falls.

Blanca Aurora Falls (left side)

Blanca Aurora Falls (right side)

The water seemed clean, so we felt safe swimming in it. You can also jump from the top of the falls.

a local kid jumping from the waterfalls

One downside of this place is its shabby bathroom. Although, we enjoyed the place too much to care or complain.


The next day, we went to San Antonio in Northen Samar. It was quite far from our grandmother's house; it took us a long jeepney ride, a pedicab ride, and a boat ride to get to the island, but it was all worth it. The beach was exquisite; it reminded me of Laiya and Anilao.

San Antonio

the beach reminded me of Laiya

the clear waters reminded me of Anilao

The place was not at all crowded, but there was a fair amount of people. The place isn't very commercialized, but the facilities aren't bad. We rented a cottage and spent the night at Haven of Fun Beach Resort. The cottage was fully airconditioned, the beds and pillows were comfy, and the bathroom was very decent.

That night, we had dinner by the beach, under the starry sky. And in the morning, we were greeted with a beach-front view of the sunrise.

sunrise on San Antonio

Upon leaving Northern Samar, we headed south towards Leyte to see San Juanico Bridge, the longest bridge in the country.

the bridge that connects Samar and Leyte

it spans over 2km

steel trusses

We arrived Tacloban City, Leyte at around night time, so we spent the night at another relative's house there. The next day, we took a tour of Tacloban City. Since this post is about Samar, I will not elaborate on our trip around Tacloban. But, if you're visiting Samar and are going to see San Juanico Bridge, I highly suggest taking a tour of Tacloban, as well.


After our tour of Tacloban, we went back to Gandara, Samar to take a break from our "busy schedule".
The rest of our trip was spent resting, hanging out with other relatives in the area, and visiting the farm.

We took a bangka ride along Gandara River to get to the farm. In the farm, we hung out at this hut where we had coconuts and played with the chicks. We also got acquainted with the carabao, whose name I have forgotten, and with the farmers who were talking to us in Waray like we can understand them (well, thanks to context clues, we sort of can).

Gandara River

the farm

Our last day in Samar was brief as it was our flight back home. On our plane ride back to Manila, the pilot announced that we were passing by Mt. Mayon in Albay.

Mayon Volcano, as seen from our plane

I felt the plane being tilted sideways for us to have a better view of the volcano. I also noticed how the plane circled the volcano a few times. That was pretty cool. Good job, Cebu Pacific!

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Apparently, there are more places to see in Samar. I can't wait to return; hopefully during fiesta! Hope you guys could also visit and enjoy Samar! :)