While the rest of the Catholics in the Philippines were in Church listening to the priest explain what family’s all about, I was out and about with my family early in the morning, experiencing what family’s all about.

Yes I did make a jab at the Church, so I might go to hell tomorrow. Anyway, before I do, let me tell you what I did that Sunday with my family, and hopefully give you an idea at what you might want to do in Tanauan Batangas.

1. Mabini Shrine – Here lies the brains of the Katipunan. If you do not know him, kindly refresh your memory. The Mabini Shrine in Tanauan Batangas (after star toll way exit, turn to the right towards Talisay-Tagaytay route. Go straight ahead until you see the sign pointing towards Mabini Shrine) houses some of the late Apolinario Mabini’s belongings – including his tomb transferred from the Mausoleo de los Veterenos de la Revolucion in Manila. You can check out more information here.

It was actually a bit creepy; most antique items give me goosebumps. You’ll also see a replica of his house (where he was born) outside of the museum. I’m not a Shrine expert, but I have to say this is one of the better ones here in the Philippines. Make your visit count by making a donation

2. Rambutan - tis the season for Rambutan. At P40 per kilo on the highway of Tanauan, you cannot say NO to the power of the sweet fruit. It’s hard to miss, and you’ll see the Rambutan trees line up the road.  “Kuya wala nang tawad!!! Kuya wala nang tawad!!!”. I think the manong wanted to hit a crate over our heads. Rambutan in Indonesian, Filipino and Malay literally means hairy caused by the ‘hair’ that covers this fruit – c/o wiki. Interesting, I know a few people I’d like to call rambutan.

3. Tanaun Church - aha, you say to yourself, you pretend to be this non-church going biatch but you just visited a church! And perhaps participated in Visita Iglesia last holy week! You are somewhat correct; I like going to Churches because I happen to like looking at Churches. It’s the feeling-architect in me.

Tanauan Church is located at the city proper. The church was constructed in 1881(wow a whole century before I was born), with a typical early European architectural style. It has an extraordinary wide-open middle nave and rounded niches. To get there, from Star toll way(assuming you came from Sto. Tomas Batangas), take Tanauan Exit, and turn left to City Proper. Just follow the road till you hit the dead end – which is the church and a few schools surrounding it. We were also supposed to visit the Jose Laurel Memorial Library but it was closed.

4. Since you’re in the city proper already, make a quick stop at Panideria Pantoja. They make really good bread, better than most I’ve tasted.

5. Since bread and rambutan can’t fill a tummy craving for lunch, we made our way back to the talisay-tagaytay route and had our lunch at Taal View Heights. My dad bought clubshares a few years back, and now we’re taking full advantage of it. It was only that Sunday when I realized there were so many activities at the clubhouse… aside from your usual swimming hehe. You can play basketball, tennis table,volleyball, badminton and they rent out bikes so you can try out your biking legs on the hilly streets of Taal View Heights. Wow, I sound like a bad sales man… Food was good and affordable! And there were a few patrons so around 1pm, we had the pool to ourselves.

After lunch, we rested a bit and went on our way to Tagaytay. If you plan to take the Talisay-Tagaytay route, your car had better be ready for those steep inclines, but my, what fabulous views.

You know, Tagaytay always manages to surprise me with something new every time I visit. Be it a new restaurant, or a new plant  from the market. We just had coffee at the cliff house, and made our merry way home.

This wasn’t the first time we missed mass to spend meaningful, quality time together . I am not a fan of hour-long sermons and then leaving empty. I’d rather we spend Sundays on the road, discovering something new in the world. After all, my parents won’t be here for long, and my siblings will probably have their own families in a few years in a decade. I like that we weren’t in a hurry to go grocery shopping, or rush home to clean the car or whatever chore there is to finish.

I like that we’re relaxed, talking, laughing, bonding, eating – what family should be doing on Sundays.

I am not trying to argue with people who attend Sunday mass. It’s your choice, and it works for you; it just hasn’t worked for me yet. As Drei would put it, “we choose our own way to believe”. Maybe I haven’t found the right church, or maybe I’ve been listening to the wrong sermons. Who knows when I’ll find the right place for me? But for now, spending time with my family won’t hurt my chances of heaven right?

This is one of those Sundays I will NEVER get tired of having.

Briefly, how to get to Tanauan.

From slex, take batangas exit. Move your way straight up to star toll way (you should be turning right), and take Tanauan City Exit. If you turn left you’ll be heading towards tanauan city proper (where you can find panideria pantoja and tanauan church), while turning right will bring you to the street vendors selling rambutan, a close up view of  taal lakeshore (the municipalities of talisay and laurel are on the way, and an alternate route to tagaytay), and buena vista club (taal view heights).

my Green baby was picked up earlier today by a Errol, a sweet boy, who’s giving his girlfriend with the gift of puppy. He seems like a good kid and I’m praying Green will give his new owners as much joy and love as he has given us (and they better take care of my Green!).

I admit I cried, and it was a bit funny because Errol was apologizing to me! (baligtad  mundo). They also reserved Pinkie and will pick her up on the 20th. That leaves me with 3 puppies who are looking for loving, gentle & responsible pet- owners (or parents, as I often refer to them as my babies).

sigh. i do miss him. he was the first pup who bit me!

Born: May 20, 2010, for release on July 20. 3 females, 2 males. message me if you’re interested to buy!

@fiama, missing MAITA of course.

Ours is a complete group: we have a licensed killer, a few money launderers, a drug dealer, a pimp, a slave driver for the foreign peeps and someone who makes the internet work…hihihi shit, nobody knows how to cook! hahahaha!

Back at my lola’s house in Tondo. We got Tondo Blood running in our veins! (me 3rd from the right)

Tagaytay!! Wearing my favorite … HAT! *sigh* I miss my lola

birthday party of my cousin in Muntinlupa. the girl in yellow with curly hair was my cousin who died at age 11 due to heart ailments (i think.. i was around 9 or 10, couldn’t remember. I miss her)

(diego-&-tata attempting to do EASY in Guitar Hero)

Zzzomg. My nephew is a giant in the making. He eats so much he puts my record of 3 pcs of siomai and 4 cups of rice to shame. And he just turned 9. Which effectively makes me lola. I wish I could spend more time with my nephews and nieces. good times ♥