[DUMAGUETE] Emo Tambay Mode at Rizal Boulevard

Dumaguete is the capital of Negros Oriental, a province in Central Visayas sharing the island of Negros with Negros Occidental, which belongs to Ilonggo-speaking Western Visayas. The dominant language here is Bisaya. Crossing over to Cebu or Siquijor can easily be done through ferry. The city is fondly called the City of Gentle People.

And Very Tasty Sans Rival, if I may add. I arrived here at five in the afternoon because of bad air traffic at NAIA. Seriously, that has always been a common dilemma for more than half the flights I have taken there. The airport badly needs expansion. The question is, do they still have enough space? Back to Dumaguete, my pictures were mostly taken at night. The city center is compact enough to be traversed through walking or jogging. The tricycle driver took me to Grand Pensionne. Good thing their leaflets include a map of the downtown area on the other side. I instantly had an idea as to how small it was.

After settling in, I decided to take a stroll. The roads are overrun by motors and tricycles. Be wary of them whenever you cross an intersection. I was able to locate the church after ten minutes or so. Their church is quite small while the belfry is not that tall. Still, the style of architecture makes it hard not to draw your attention to the said structures. In front of them is a large plaza, yet again dedicated to Jose Rizal. He is also the namesake of the boulevard by the bay. By the way, there are a number of old houses to be found in here, one of which is between the belfry and the church.

I stayed at the plaza after my short stay at the church. There were a lot of people just hanging around, lovebirds frolicking on the grass. Okay, maybe frolicking is exaggerated, most of them were seated there nestled in each other’s arms. Ouch. I think an ant bit me, too much sweetness in this plaza, my goodness. I went on with my business and took some pictures despite the darkness. It is only now that I am realizing how migraine-inducing choosing between night mode and ordinary mode could be when a place is well illuminated at night. I had to take photos more than twice just to see which would come out better.

The sweetness continued at the Sans Rival place. I am talking about indulging your sweet tooth this time. It was such a pity that they were only open until 7 PM. I went inside at 7:15 and ate a slice of lasagna, a slice of Sans Rival, and a piece of Silvana. All of them amounted to just around a hundred pesos, a glass of Coke already included. Cheap and very tasty. I wonder why no one has taken the franchise to Manila just yet or perhaps there already is one that I am just not aware of? I was the last customer to get out and the guard immediately locked the place up after I did.

From there, you just have to cross the street to get to Rizal Boulevard. You'll see a monument there, a tribute to the nuns of St. Paul or something. I took a photo anyway. The boulevard is lined with lamp posts effectively illuminating the area. A lot of people can be found there, some of them jogging, walking, seated by the seawall, playing badminton, chatting. And of course, the sweetness continues. Gosh, how I wanted to pelt them with ampalaya. I am not bitter. I am not bitter? I am not bitter! But there is nothing nasty going on around, nothing indecent, so no need to worry. These people are really just gentle like their city claims to be. Anyway, the boulevard stretches from the Silliman University campus area and ends at the road leading back to the plaza and the church.

I was able to see the boulevard the next morning and it was just as picturesque as it was the other night. If at night the streetlamps and the big trees give the place its character, in the morning the clouds and the blue sky along with the presence of various fishing vessels give it a different kind of vibe that is rather pleasing to the eyes.

I went to Bais via a one hour Ceres bus trip early the next day to go Dolphin Watching. I once again fell victim to my alone status because the boats were 3,500 pesos each. There were two groups who left, unfortunately I could not squeeze in because they were both able to maximize the seating capacity of the boats they were renting. I could have paid for a boat exclusive for myself but then I wondered: 3,500 for a bunch of jumping gay sharks? Well there is a bonus sand bar trip, but still. It was such a hard decision because the sun was really high up that morning. The weather had been very kind, absolutely no rain in my two-day stay there. But I had to make a decision and that decision was to head back to Dumaguete and hire the tricycle driver who took me to Grand Pensionne yesterday for an afternoon excursion to Valencia. Zip Line at Tierra Alta, check. Casaroro Falls, check. Well, not really.

I was caught unawares by a rather heavy bout of depression when I got back to the hotel. I decided to just take a nap and when I woke up it was already 6 PM. How so very nice. I'm sorry, Dumaguete, that you had to fall prey to my bad mood. You just have so much to offer and sad to say, I was not able to maximize my trip. I went out for a quick dinner at Chowking and returned to the boulevard by the bay to stare at the colorful reflection of lights on the water and listen to the eccentric yet calming chorus of waves splashing and tricycle noise.

I woke up early the next day to walk around the Silliman University campus and along Rizal Boulevard once again. It is pretty obvious that I really like this boulevard, huh? The sun was shining so brightly that it was hard to keep my gaze steady at sea. There, people were just jogging and walking. I went back to Grand Pensionne for a quick shower, got my stuff, and headed to the airport. I did not buy any souvenirs because it is clear that I have unfinished business here. I guess I'll  just have to add an extra day to my Siquijor trip, whenever that'll be.

[DUMAGUETE] Emo Tambay Mode at Rizal Boulevard 

[NEGROS ORIENTAL] Budget and Itinerary