Quezon Province

Part 1 of a series.

DAY 1.

We left our house in Sta. Rosa, Laguna at 7:15am so that we’d arrive in Legazpi, Albay late in the afternoon or early in the evening (based on my research, a roadtrip to Bicol takes 9-10 hours on average). Before we left, we ate a satisfying breakfast at home and brought with us some chips and other things to eat and drink while on the road in order to avoid premature stopovers as much as possible.

At 8:24am, we were already in Sariaya in Quezon Province where we were able to get a nice view of Mount Banahaw, which is also called as “The Holy Mountain of the Philippines”.

Mount Banahaw (alternatively Banáhao) is a dormant volcanic complex located on the boundary of Majayjay, Laguna and Lucban, Quezon in Luzon, Philippines. It is considered to be sacred by the local residents because of its “holy water”and “puwestos”, or holy sites. These are composed of natural features with shrines located in or on them, revealed to a man by the “Santo Boses” or Holy Voice. It has another of this mountain and it was named as Mount Banahaw de Lucban.

Mount Banahaw as viewed from Sariaya, Quezon

8:31am. We passed by the church in Sariaya, Quezon.

St. Francis of Assisi Church. The first church dates from 1599. The second church, built in 1605, was replaced by a third in 1641. In 1703, the town was transferred to Lumangbayan, but the earthquakes and floods of 1743 destroyed the church and the town and caused the people to transfer to the present site. The present church was built in 1748.

9:23am. We were already in the Pagbilao, Quezon of the Maharlika Highway. We bypassed the EME road in Pagbilao, where the Quezon National Park is located, because of its notorious sharp hairpin curves and zigzag roads (even sharper than those in Baguio’s Kennon Road!).

View from Maharlika Highway in Pagbilao, Quezon

9:50am. We already reached the coastal portion of the Maharlika Highway in Atimonan, Quezon.

Rain is about to pour in Atimonan, Quezon

10:14am. We passed by the Public Market in Gumaca, Quezon.

11:07am. Quezon is such a huge province! It took us almost another hour to reach Calauag, Quezon.

It was raining cats and dogs when we passed by Calauag, Quezon

11:38am. To bypass Camarines Norte, which was not part of our itinerary, we took the Rolando Andaya Highway which starts in Tagkawayan, Quezon.

12:28pm. We saw this Petron Station in the middle of the Rolando Andaya Highway so we had our gas tank refilled. There were also food outlets in the area, so we had lunch there.

(…to be continued)