Going Provincial - Balamban & Asturias Part 2

And just when you thought going provincial would simply mean endless view of the trees, hills, rice fields and more rice fields. But the little town of Asturias and Balamban proved me wrong. Their town has grown over the past years making different means and ways to generate income in the same way that would also attract local and (crossing-fingers) international tourist alike.


In Cebu, the city is situated right at the heart of this oddly elongated island, if you are looking for activities that will free you from stress and steer you away from the hussle and bustle of the city, just choose north or south? The towns along the way will amuse you with food, scenery and experience. Part 1 of this blog had already featured the scrumptious foodies we had the entire trip, so this entry will feature the amenities that kept us entertained. 


First, no Filipino household is complete without a karaoke and what good way to start this than to feature just that (tee hee). I don't know 'bout your household but if you say home karaoke system it would just consist of a dvd-like player, mic and a tv but this one didn't come close to that! This is the mother of all household karaoke systems, wouldn't you think? It comes complete with that booming speaker system and is jam-packed with thousands of songs LOL. 

Karaoke

One mean karaoke machine. Too bad this facility is invitation only. LOL

 Our next stop was IPI prawn farm in Balamban, a town beside Asturias(5 minute ride). This is very easy to spot since this is just along the road . A very huge property that has a lot of activities to offer. Here's a list of the things you can do there. What better way to describe than by pictures. =)

Fishing 

the fishing pond where you can fish for red & black tilapia and bangus. 

Ava waiting for her catch

seriously fishing + caught fish = one happy kid =) 

And it looks like it was a good day to catch fish, everybody whose anybody caught more than 1 fish. Hats off to these smiling fishermen hahaha.

We caught a total of 5 kilos of red tilapia. We had the option to have these cooked but since we are pressed for time, we all decided to buy and take them all home.

They have their restaurant where you can buy beverages and seafood for dining in or when you decide to give up on fishing and instead buy their fresh catch instead. Tiger prawns (fresh from the prawn farm) priced at Php 370/ kilo and the red tilapia at Php 150/kilo.

Horseback riding

rates: 10mins - P50; 15mins - P75; 20mins - P100; 30mins - P150; 1hr - P300

Okay! So let me tell you how special this trip is to my daughter. Me and my office mates have been planning this trip for weeks but I kept this from my daughter 'til we arrived at destination. Several days back, she was asking me that we go fishing and on another occasion she said that she wanted to go horseback riding. This trip was heaven sent! Well, let me say that she was surprised and beyond happy that she got her two wishes on the same day. Very happy that she kept on talking about her experience when we got home.

=)

Other activities include: 

Donkey Cart Riding rates 

(10mins - P50; 15mins - P75; 20mins - P100; 30mins - P150; 1hr - P300)

Car/Motorcycle Racing rates

(Car rentals: 1lap - P300; 3laps - P750; 5laps - P1,000; 10laps - P1,500)

(With own car: half day - P500; whole day - P1,000)

(With own motorcycle: 1hr - P100; half day - P300; whole day - P500)

At the end of the day, here we are; the happy campers =)

A special thank you to Lyris and her fiance Paul,to Nean and Mark for making this possible.
  
A huge thank you. =)

Bloggers featured here http://mommynean.blogspot.com
http://iamdanny-girl.blogspot.com/
http://jasmarcos.blogspot.com/

Going Provincial - Balamban & Asturias Part 1

It has been quite sometime since I've had the chance to smell fresh provincial air and see a different scenery. I live in Cebu and we are quite known for our pristine beaches but you're in for a treat because we didn't go sun-bathing this time. By treat I meant food heaven, this is a food blog after all. I'll also be featuring some of the activities you can do when you visit Balamban, Cebu City Philippines. 

A big hefty thank you to Ms. Lyris Aventuna and her fiancé from planning the itenerary, for the warm welcome, food & logistics. They were very gracious enough to let us experience close to everything that their town has to offer. It was a fun-filled trip cramped in 7 hours; short but sweet \';'/

Johnna's Liempo Haus
For inquiries please call formerly Kristian Liempo is situated in front of the Balamban Church.   

that's pure juicy goodness ahhrrrggg!

Balamban is home of the famous LIEMPO. There are a lot of grill haus in Cebu City serving liempo, they're sprouting like mushrooms; you can associate it when lechon manok was in hype. Cebu City has Mr. Liempo, Kusina ni Nasing and one of them is even named Balamban Liempo (name derived from where liempo could've possibly originated). All of them has their distinct taste but I could say that Johnna's Liempo Haus deserves to have the name of "the original". The meat is so tender and soft that it would literally melt in your mouth, ohhhh and the taste is terrific rhymes with perfect! But like what I said liempo is common in the city but prawns (tiger prawns) are usually served on special occasions only because crustaceans are quite pricey. Balamban has their own prawn farm, they also grow red & black tilapia & bangus. The dish below were cooked in garlic and butter and I must say that the shrimps tasted very sweet and succulent. My daughter love love loves shrimps that she asked me to buy some fresh prawns to take home back to the city. 

garlic buttered prawns ala Aventuna

our feast! =) too bad you can only feast with your eyes... tee heee

It is my pleasure to introduce you to --- our food \';'/  Clockwise from 12 o'clock : Spicy chicken wings, Pork Caldereta, Pancit Canton Guisado, Garlic Buttered Prawns & Liempo ala Balamban

Isa's Bingkahan Moron
For inquiries please call 09066027535
you can fin this right along the road of  Owak,Asturias

What sets this stall apart from the rest that is lined up along the road is that his bibingka recipe has egg and milk which has made it so mouthwatering and soft. Each pack is carefully  wrapped in banana leaf and each pack cotains 3 bibingka's for the price of  Php 20??? Yeah you read it right! 20 freakin' pesos only. I seriously want more where that came from!  It seems like everything is priced less here, the prawns were priced at Php 370/ kilo and the red tilapia is at Php 150/kilo.

Life is good , less expensive and much less complicated ;-)

Watch out for my next post on the exciting activities we had on this trip =)