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Anawangin

February 6 to 7, 2016

By Danica Eliana Ferino

February 11^th, 2016

”Danica, magpunta ka ng Anawangin, magsisisi ka.”

- Kayecee, 2013

I still remember what Kayecee said last time she went to Anawangin - Go to Anawangin; you’ll regret it. Like a forebearer of unfortunate events, things did get a little unlucky for us.

After a week of frenzy over the thrill of adventure, Saturday finally arrived. We were scheduled to take a trip for two days to the neighbouring tourist destinations of San Antonio, Zambales - Nagsasa and Anawangin Cove, and Capones Island. Until Friday night, I’ve been checking the weather forecast for Pundaquit, San Antonio and I knew we came at the wrong time. It was cloudy; there were some light showers throughout the day. When we arrived in San Antonio, our contact person informed us that the coast guard will not allow any boat to travel. At first we opted to stay in Pundaquit beach and wait for the waves to calm so we can take a boat to Nagsasa. But our guides fear that the weather would stay unfavorable until the next day. We were left with no choice but to take the 4-6 hour trek to Mt. Pundaquit just to reach Anawangin Cove. At 3:00 in the afternoon, we set our course.

I remember our guides telling us the trail is easy. For some of us, it was not. Sure, the view from the mountain is definitely beautiful. I have no photos to show that, but believe me, it was breathtaking - especially at the summit. For the most part of the climb, some of us were miserable (myself included, hence the absence of mountain photos. Sorry). It was already nighttime when we reached our camp at the beach.

There was not much activity that night. There is no electricity, no mobile signal at the cove. The restroom is too far away so we peed at the sand - it felt funny and liberating at the same time. The others brought some liquor while I slept at the tent with Jai and Jodee. I was running a slight fever and cold. Ang malas ko; ako yata yung may balat sa puwet. A few interesting things happened that night which I will not mention here.