Cavite & Tagaytay Trips
February 5, 2007 by totallykid
Hello Reader
So, I’ve finally put off my writing until this month, February. So you might be wondering why I’m writing this on a Monday (February 5, 2007), the reason is because of the celebration of the Foundation Day that was held last Friday, today is like a rest day for students and teachers and administrations. There’s a lot of things that happened last month and this month too. One of them is a class Field Trip and the other is the school Foundation Day. Firstly, I will write about the Field trip which happened January 25, 2007, just two weeks ago.
Last Thursday, January 25, 2007, I, in knowing that we will have our one and only Field Trip this year, woke up at around 5:50. So after waking up, I went to my usual weekday-schoolday morning routine: brush teeth, take a bath, get dressed for school and breakfast. Doing all those things in a rush only made me slower, so I got to leave at around 6:45. I can say that it is a safe time to leave because the busses will be leaving at 7:00 and we just live around three or four blocks away from school. When I went to school that Thursday, not many people were there. There are mostly around 20 people, who are in my class, there. Like everyone, I also brought a bagpack and some things to pass the time while on the bus. I brought one of my collections of Archie Comics and a pocketbook entitled To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee eventhough I never got a chance to read it on the trip, some snacks (Tini Winis) and some pocket money, P300 I think for souveneirs and such. And of course, my lunch, I wouldn’t want to be hungry for today. Oh yeah, O also brought my Mp3 Player to play music; honestly, this is the item that I used most of the time while on the bus. Anyway, later, more and more people came and pretty soon, everyone was there and was ready to leave the school. We formed a a straight line and went to the bus. Our bus number was five which meant we will be the last to leave the school. After everyone is settled in, one of our classmates led us in prayer for safety and thanks. The person I sat beside with is Joshua, one of my friends. Throughout the trip he texted and played with his cellphone, while I on the other hand, listened to my Mp3 player and looked outside, to the wonderful view and nature. The bus instructor was nice and entertained us throughout the trip. While passing through different locations, he told us many facts and trivias about that particular place. He also told many jokes and teasers. After what seemed like an hour or two, we were already in our first destination, the ever-famous Aguinaldo Shrine.
The Shrine used to be the house of Phillipine’s first president, Emilio Aguinaldo. Right outside, there is a pond that reflects the shrine. There were many artifacts and memorabilias inside, like old Spanish clothes, guns, photos, cannons and many more. Clay models are used to tell what happened during the Spaniards’ invasion era. Personally, this is my favorite part of my trip; I learned and appreciated more about my homeland and culture. We trailed from one room to another. We saw a big dining room with high ceilings and complex designs, rooms for Aguinaldo’s daughters and their own bathroom! Outside we saw what looked like Aguinaldo used to wash clothes back then. Well, that’s what the instructor suggested. It’s a big stone with a gigantic hole maybe used to put in clothing, and there’s another hole to put in wood and to start a fire. Also, we saw Aguinaldo’s car. It was quite old and we doubt that it’s still running. Oh yeah, there’s still a bowling alley there, in fact, it’s the first thing you see when you enter the establishment. It’s good to know that Spaniards used to bowl back then. After that is done, the bus instructor gave us five minutes to take a picture of us and the place, so everyone readied their camera and started taking pictures of the shrine, and themselves as well.
After five minutes it is time to leave the historical place. We went back to the bus and everyone thought it was already time to eat lunch, since that is the main plan. But the bus instructor apologized and stated that there will be a slight change of course; we will be going through all destinations first then eat lunch. So with that, we left for Tagaytay to go to the Mushroom Burger Factory and witness how they create the appetizing delicacy. On the way, we got hungry and passed chips, sweets and food around the bus. It was a long ride but after two and a half hours, from Cavite, we were already in the district of Tagaytay city. The temperature decreased dramatically.
In Tagaytay, we went to the said factory. When we proceeded inside, we saw the different mushrooms being preserved and put in case so that later on, it will get ready to be cooked. But that’s about what we did on the Mushroom Farm, other than that, almost all of the students went to buy themselves Mushroom Burgers, unaware of the fact that the school will provide them their very own for free. But maybe they just felt that two is indeed better than one. I myself did buy one and ate both on the bus. (One is which I bought while the other is free; the school paid for it. Each of the students had his/her own free burger) Outside there swings, see saws, slides and a wishing well. I tried all of them and had a link with my inner childhood. I threw three one peso coins for a hope that my wish will come true. I got on the see saw and my friend Thomas was on the other end. It was fun. Everone took this oppurtunity to use the bathroom. We left and waved the factory farewell and after that, everone was munching up their own Mushroom Burger. So no one was too hungry and was not eager to go to our next destination, which is lunch at the picnic groove in Tagaytay.
When we got there, the view was breathtaking. The view of Taal was so beautiful. We picked a table and ate happily. One of my firends who happened to be sitting on the same table as us, brought her i-pod with speaker and played music aloud. After eating, all of us went close and took pictures of the Taal volcano. Then the teachers who were also acting as guides, told us we can go further. We went down, there is a long path made of blocks of wood that leads you closer to Taal and Taal lake and along the way, you also see similar great views of plants and trees. Then further, there is a hanging bridge, some of my classmates jumped to make the other classmates scared. After crossing, more fantastic views and some more paths made of wood. At the end, there were a bunch of souveneir shops and shops that caught our sight. We sighed, thinking that it is a fantastic sight that awaited us, not this. So we went back the and walked a long walk back to the picnic area. And once again, we took pictures of where we have been. Oh, and we almost got lost coming back to the bus. What a laugh! In the bus, everyone was exhausted and was ready to go back home. But before that, we have one last location to go to: the souveneir shop.
It was around a ten minute ride to the souveneir shop. When we got there, they served several items: Buko Pie, Sodas, Fruits and several Tagaytay Specialty Delicacies. I bought a box of Buko Pie for 110 pesos because my parents loves the stuff. I also bought a can of softdrink for myself. Then we proceeded to the bus and finally, after a long day, went home. The bus instructor allowed himself to rest and put on a DVD of Eragon. But I doubt many people watched it because most of them were busy sleeping and dreaming. Not long enough, I joined them, with the Mp3 earphones on my ear. I woke up when we were blocks away from school. Moments later, the instructor was again on the mic and was telling everyone to wake up for we were nearing the school. Everone got up and packed their things. Ten minutes later, we were at the school and was getting off the bus. We thanked the instructor and he thanked us in return for a fun-filled day. Unfortunately, it was not yet four o’clock or in other words, dismissal, so we have to sit and wait for around fifteen minutes until our adviser finally released us. And that’s the end of our field trip.
Although not as much fun and late as last year, this year’s field trip was definitely worth going to. It was fun as it is educational. I learned many things in this exhausting trip. I’m glad that evertone came to this field trip!
Whew! Typing that is was incredibly tiring! I’ll just have to excuse myself and write the other half next time! Thank you for stopping by and please stay tuned for the part two of this blog: The Foundation Day!
Sincerely Yours,
- Daniel Ervin "T." Chua
