Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

Fun and relaxation always go hand in hand when Team Gidlay go out, whether just within the city limits or broaching the seas to get to nearby islands. In this particular case, flying the skies to reach the cool-weathered nature-loving island of Palawan.

By the constant help of our colleague Joyce Ann Ruma, our short but amazing trip was formed, from the airfare bookings to the hotel accommodations to the 3-day itinerary. With that taken care of, all we needed to do was to show up and enjoy every event arranged.

Nine Gidlays, three days, one destination.

With the new trends of famous cheap promo airfares, we got our airline tickets booked with Air Philippines. One hour and twenty minutes of flying through the Philippine skies and we successfully landed in the glorious city of Puerto Princesa, Palawan. A luxurious van courtesy of our resident hotel Lola Itang, picked us up and gave us a short but picturesque city tour.

Upon arriving at Lola Itang's, we were greeted by very hospitable personnel at the reception/restaurant counter. We were checked-in and were put into one of their family rooms.

We found Lola Itang's place as very quaint and homey, and we comfortably fit in there. It reminded me of my grandmother's house in Toledo City when I was still a kid, like I am off to see my cousins and play with them. They also had sungkas (they were my favorite when I was a kid) which added more to the Filipino touch and feel of the hotel.

Island-hopping was one of the activities listed on our itinerary for our second-day stay in Puerto Princesa. Frustration was felt though when we got out of the hotel and found out that it was raining. Nevertheless, we pushed through with the plans allotted for the day and ended up still having fun. We had three stops: the Luli Island, Pambato Coral Reef Sanctuary and the Cowrie Island.

The Underground River was our next stop, and on our way there we got to witness the beauty of the nature of Palawan. It was my first time in seeing really high mountain rocks that can only be seen in the movies. Indeed, as one of my companions said, Palawan is Nature's Last Frontier. Words cannot even fit to describe the beauty of the Underground River. As we wove through the low-leveled water inside the river, amazement and awe masked our silence as we listened to our tour guide.

Our last day comprised of touring the Crocodile Farm, Baker's Hill and Mitras Ranch, which both have breathtaking views and interesting photo-worthy areas.

All in all, Team Gidlay had another successful out-of-town experience in Puerto Princesa.