Mini Santorini

We couldn't possibly fly to Greece over our anniversary weekend, so we settled for the next best thing...

These, my friends, were taken at Thunderbird Resort, La Union, about a five-hour drive up north from Manila. The structures (white with bits of blue, as in the dome over the lobby) stand on a cliff overlooking the sea--reminiscent of Santorini, one of the places on our must-visit list.

The room we were given had two queen-size beds, so it was big enough for a family of four.

But since we still didn't have little Hamils and Tishas with us, one of the beds remained unoccupied, except by this little fella...

My friends, after seeing this photo, debated over what animal this was supposed to be. Elephant, pig, dog were all mentioned. This remains to be one of life's great mysteries.

The room we booked had a jacuzzi but, alas, it wasn't working! Even if we had transferred to another room, the jacuzzi still wouldn't have worked; we were told that there was something wrong with the motor. At the whole resort! Boo. So much for jet streams of water pummeling my sore lower back. Luckily, we had a flat-screen TV, WiFi, our books, a pool, and each other to keep us occupied!

We had dinner at the in-house restaurant, Olives. The prices are typical of resorts (about P400, more or less, per dish), but the servings were hefty, and the food was yummers.

Fettuccine with prosciutto, mushrooms, and artichoke cream

Hamil's half (!) chicken was oh-so-flavorful and, he felt, so worth the price.

We visited the nearby casino after dinner, but the place kind of had a depressing vibe, so we just went back to our rooms to rest our expanded tummies. There really isn't a lot to do here, unless you play golf. (Hamil biked around for a bit; my protective husband refused to teach me how--I never learned how to ride a bike!--because I didn't have any kneepads!) There's a hint of a beach which I didn't get to check out, a basketball half court, a boardwalk. But I guess that's kind of the beauty of it: no crazy partying, no full day overloaded with activities. It was just pure relaxation.

Would I go back? Sure, but probably only if we had someone else to drive us. It's so unfair to Hamil that I get to sit back while he does all the driving. The ability to stay awake for over five hours straight in a comfortable car is just not in my skill set!