This week is our week as husband and wife. Initially planned to be celebrated as a road trip going farther north of the country but due to unforeseen factors from work and the weather, I welcomed the cancellation. So goodbye SCTEX drive-by. Goodbye Cagayan. Goodbye Ilocos. Goodbye Pagudpud.
The series of events at work added to the fact that majority of us are trying to make every bit of last celebration worthwhile made me finally give in to my wife’s request to allow her to have her production area’s summer outing fall on the exact date of our wedding anniversary. And so instead of driving hundreds of kilometers north I found myself driving just around ten kilometers from our home to the resort of their choice.
Around eight in the morning of June 26, we were already at Qubo Qabana resort. We scouted this place just a couple of days prior and it was a bit of surprise finding it better than expected. The area has good facilities. There’s a pool for both kids and adult. There’s an activity area readily available for large group of people and event. More importantly, the rate is affordable. It’s no wonder that it immediately got everyone’s approval just by looking at the pictures I took. Besides, it is just halfway along the way to work and settled strategically near Magdaragat (seafoods restaurants) and Quinta Court motel. It’s so easy to spot that one don’t need Google Earth to find it.
Most of the group arrived late but by then those who came earlier were already very busy preparing the food which overwhelmed those assigned in the grilling area. Being a bad cook, I helped in keeping the charcoal aglow that got me occupied for hours. There were enormous squids, tahong (sea shells), fishes, chickens and hot dogs on queue.
Thankfully by noon most of wifey’s team have arrived and all menus have been prepared. Other than the grilled meats, there were also a variety of potluck which made lunch time a feast. The table had chicken curry, shanghai rolls, salads and one of my favorites–bicol express. Too bad the alcoholic drinks came later in the afternoon.
The pool’s design is good though at first glance the flooring appears to be a disappointment because it is made only of white concrete. Surprisingly, upon closer inspection it is not mossy, it is not slippery, and it is clean. An improvement on safety may be needed though by posting a depth guide as it has a deep part at the center that could catch novice swimmers unguarded.
Obviously, we ended the day neither in a resort in Ilocos nor in a nice beach somewhere in Pagudgud yet we both enjoyed our ninth anniversary somewhere near together with friends and colleagues who seemed to have enjoyed our last outing together as employees of Intel.
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Mood: 5/10 (Read this again on March 22, 2011.)
Marcus Can Blog 