Our trip to the Philippines. Part 2 - Tagaytay

From Manila we drove about 1.5hrs south to Tagaytay. We stopped at Nuvali on the way to stretch our legs and feed the koi fish in Nuvali's lake.

When we reached the farm in Tagaytay we took a walk around the 5 acre property and had a nap in a couple of hammocks amongst the trees.

The coconut water or "buko juice" made from coconuts grown on the farm was so fresh. Yum!

And there was always a good supply of fresh fruit.

Tagaytay was the perfect place to get away from the hustle and bustle from the city of Manila.

We spent our first day on the farm just relaxing and enjoying each others company.

On our second day in Tagaytay we took a boat ride across the Taal Lake to climb the Taal Volcano.

This was one of my favourite parts of the trip. I don't know if it was just the thought of climbing a volcano or seeing smoke come out of the ground but it felt at least 5 degrees hotter than Tagaytay.

We visited the Ilog Maria Honeybee Farm.
Our friends wanted to visit the farm to stock up on the Propolis Ointment, they swear it is a miracle cream for insect bites and other skin irritations.
It started absolutely pouring with rain as we arrived at the honeybee farm so instead of exploring the grounds we stayed undercover with the little guy in the picture below and browsed in the shop.

On our way back to the farm we stopped in at a little store to buy a bag of Alamid Coffee, the world's most expensive and rarest brew. If you can put the fact that it passes through a Civet Cat out of your mind it makes an alright cuppa.

I had to take a picture of the vegetarian food sign at the store as it was so rare to find vegetarian food in the Philippines. They love their meat. And I just had to point out the line on the sign that reads "Consumption of animals decreases a man's lifespan and intelligence" to all of the meat eaters I was with!

On our last day in Tagaytay we were treated to a Filipino tradition. A kamayan meal.

Lunch was served on the banana leaf covered tables and we all ate with our hands.

Also see:

Our trip to the Philippines. Part 1 - Manila

Our trip to the Philippines. Part 2 - Balesin Island