It's been a year, one year and one week to be exact since my first visit in Baler. And I'm back to this town! Admittedly, I can't help it. When I left Baler last year, all I was thinking is when will I go back. The sun, the sea and sound of waves are calling me back to this town. I can't decribe how I feel when I'm in this town. What is weird is that I don't surf so there's really no reason for me to visit this place. I'm also not a good swimmer so the beach isn't also a big factor. But there is something in Baler that me make always go back.
My trip this year was different from last year because now its all about work. I was tasked to organize an out-of-town photowalk for our photography club in the office. So the logical thing for me to do is think of a place that I have been to where there can be a lot of elements for photography. Baler is the first place that comes out of my mind.
Baler is a perfect place for photowalk. There's a lot of things to see and do in Baler. Just staying in Sabang beach for a few minutes will keep you busy in capturing moments of everything around you.
Since I've been to Baler, I also know what is the best time to do the photowalk. Well, most of the surfers get into the sea early in the morning or late in the afternoon which is also the best time for photography because it is the golden hour.
We left Manila at around 3AM and reached Baler at 11:30AM. It was a long drive but worth it because we were able to see some of the beautiful sights on the way to Baler.
We were already hungry when we reached Baler so we decided to have lunch first before we settle in our room. We had our lunch at Surfer's Grill which my officemates became interested to when they learn that part of the grilling will be done in the old Volkswagen car. Aside from the ambiance of the place, the food is Instagram worthy.
After having our lunch, we first took a short nap. We woke up at 4PM just in time to take some photos in the beach. We walked along the boardwalk and took some photo. At around 5PM we rented a tricycle to bring us to Diguisit beach to do some photography in the rock formations.
Taking photos of the rock formations is a bit challenging because first there is no flat area where you can put your tripod, second there's wind and waves that makes your tripod shaky. It was already dark when we left Diguisit rock formation and headed back to out Inn.
We rested for a few minutes in our room before checking out the best place to go for our dinner. Near El Teodoro's Inn, the place where we are staying, is a restaurant where beautiful lights are hanging in their tree. Honestly, we agreed to have our dinner at the restaurants because we were very much attracted to the lights in the trees. The name of the restaurant is Khubli.
I can compare Khubli to the restaurants we usually have in Manila. The difference that Khubli have with the restaurants in Manila is that though it looks posh, you will still feel the ambiance of Baler. Also, the food pricing is decent enough unlike other resorts or restaurants that is pricey just because they have a view of the sea. A must try in Khubli is their paella and pizza. They also have a wide variety of beer and other booze which is not also that expensive.
The next day, we woke up just in time for the sunrise. Yep, it's an early photowalk for us. We walked at the stretch of the Sabang boardwalk for like two hours getting busy with our camera and just engulfing a beautiful morning in Baler.
Our tummy started to ramble an during our photowalk we saw the buffet breakfast offered by Bayler View. Their buffet breakfast costs only Php 200.00 per head and you can avail it even if you are not a guest in their hotel.
My companions decided to take some swim in the beach before packing up to go back to Manila. I can say that our trip to Baler is an incredible photowalk experience.
