Trip to Calaruega

Going for a drive? Looking for a place to unwind? Well, I can suggest a place where you can relax yourself and not worry about the long drive. Tagaytay is a nice place. It’s only two hours from Manila. It’s cool and the wind breeze is really refreshing. It also got lots of sceneries waiting to be discovered.

Perhaps you have heard of Calaruega. It’s located in Brgy. Kaylaway, Batulao, Nasugbu Batangas. It’s just a little way past Tagaytay. It’s a really nice place; perfect for nature tripping! It’s open to the public with an entrance fee of just P60 per person (as of Sep2009). It’s really worth seeing!

When you meet the entrance, you’ll see a big church-like building with a few stairs heading up.
 
It’s leading to the rooms and dormitories available for retreatants. It

also got a souvenir shop inside. They’ve got religious and cute items for pasalubong.

Calaruega has a massive land area. It might not be visible as you enter but when you explore it, you’ll find out. Explore right up and you’ll find a long stairwell with a lot of detours leading to different places.
 
It leads to many rooms for those who wanted to spend a day or a night inside. Cottages are also available for those who are looking for a mini home inside the nature haven. They have a few eating venues. I think Plaza de Aza is one of them. The “tuktok” referred in the picture is the chapel. Just a small chapel but well constructed and maintained. In the outside it is a uniquely shaped brick entity; in the inside is an elegant stained glass altar with a picturesque wood complementing the interior.



















I think it’s perfect for weddings; making the stairwell the runway to the altar. Very romantic!

Other than that, if you explore further down, you’ll see a trail leading to a man-made mini falls with a pond of fishes. It’s a really nice place to hangout; delicately landscaped to create a peaceful feeling. It’s one of my favorite areas here.
 
You’ll also see an adjacent hanging bridge visible from this area.

It’s a few meters away from the pond. It leads to a small hill where you can see most of the places in Calaruega from the top. The way up the hill was really breath-taking as well as the scenic view when you reach the top.

You might find time giving a visit sometime. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!


** Images by Christian Sangoyo
check out his blog at http://www.lakad-pilipinas.blogspot.com/

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