Small Talk Cafe

Small Talk Cafe has been featured in a TV show  Top 10 pinaka must visit restaurant when in Legazpi City.

It is located about 11kms from Legazpi City center. It is a quaint and homey restaurant serving pizza and pasta with a local twist and other popular dishes. It has a Tripadvisor winner badge of excellence and  DOTC sticker for accreditation. It has a tranquil ambiance complete with memorabilia and pre-war photos on display.

The popular items on the menu are fusion of local and italian cuisine.

There's the Pasta Mayon

Pizza Bicolandia

Pili Pie @Php50

Bicol Express @Php50

Food is delicious and reasonably priced. We spent Php540 for 2. Service is fast and staff are friendly and courteous. We were satisfied during our visit and we highly recommend to visit this restaurant when in Legazpi City.

How to get there:
From Legazpi City Center, take a jeepney bound for Daraga. Fare is Php8.00. Get down after STI College but before Robinsons Supermarket. Cross the street and walk to Dona Aurora street which is beside an evangelical church painted in green.

Cagsawa Ruins

Located about 8 kms away from Legazpi City, Cagsawa ruins is a popular destination when in Albay.

When Mt. Mayon erupted in February 1, 1814, lahar and pyroclastic flows destroyed the Franciscan church , the Cagsawa church. Only the church belfry stands as a living testimony of the dangers of living near an active volcano.The ruins have become a national park and a museum was  established to house collection of photos of various volcanic eruptions, geological and archeological exhibits.

As you enter the park, you have to pay an entrance fee Php10. This is the view which you will immediately see.

You can also get an unobstructed view of Mt. Mayon with rice field on the foreground as you walk past the belfry.

Inside the park , one can also find various stores selling local products for souvenir. Products ranging from abaca wallet, bags, pili nuts, t-shirts, hanging decor can be bought.

 
These native items and local delicacies are reasonably priced. One must bring home pili cake which is made from pure pili nut. It cost 3 pcs for Php100.

When we visited back in 2012, there was no bridge yet. But now , a new bridge has been constructed. Also, ATV adventure is now existing.

Visitor can rent ATV and can drive underneath the bridge  and through shallow water paths and black soil.

Thanks to the effort of the local government, this place has been preserved, maintained and at the same time some developments have been made for a better experience.


How to get to Cagsawa Ruins:
From Legazpi City,  take a jeepney (preferably the ones going to the third district (Camalig, Guinobatan, Ligao, Libon, Polangui, Oas). Tell the driver to drop you off at the the road going to Cagsawa in Barangay Busay, Daraga. Look for the large Cagsawa signage at the right side of the road. Fare at the time of this post is Php8.00. One can either walk or ride a tricycle to get to the park. I suggest you get a tricycle going to the park and walk back to the main road to enjoy the scenery.

Black Sand Beach , Sto. Domingo, Albay

People long to see white sand beaches and when they see one, they are in awe. However, seeing black sandy beach is also fascinating. The beaches near Mt. Mayon have black sand. Some say that you need not go to Hawaii to walk on black sand beach. With this in mind, we went to see the nearest place with black sand beach which is in Sto. Domingo , Albay. It is about 12 kms from Legazpi City via public jeepney. We got into one heading for Sto. Domingo. Fare is Php19 per person.

Upon reaching the public market, we got into one of the tricycles parked beside the market and asked the driver to take us to a nice resort. Fare is Php50.

Driver took us to Sarung Banggi Resort and we requested him to come back for us after 2 hours.

At Sarung Banggi Resort, we paid Php50 entrance per head and Php300 for a beach front cottage.

Our cottage has a stair which lead right down to the waters. I went down and  stepped on the beach and felt the fine black sand. I am the only one on the beach and it was serene.

At waist deep, water was still clear that you can see your feet beneath the waters. There were few rocks but rocks that are rounded and smoother. It wont hurt your feet.  I saw a man with his bait trying to catch fish.

Several boats were ashore and unattended.

The shore line in Sto Domingo is quite short but seeing black sand beach is enough to make me happy.

The tricycle driver came back at 11am and he took us back to the public market. I gave the driver Php100 instead of Php50 to thank him for being kind to us.  Fortunately, there's already a jeepney waiting bound for Legazpi.

Busay Falls, Malilipot, Albay

For our 3rd day in Legazpi, we went to Busay Falls. We hailed a jeepney near Pacific Mall bound for Tabaco City. Luckily, the driver of the jeepney is from Malilipot and he is glad to know that we are going to to Busay Falls. Fare is Php20 per person. After about 30 minute travel, we arrived at the turnout for Busay Falls.

We rode a motorized tricycle that would take us to the falls. Unlike the unpaved, rugged road leading to Bolinao Falls in Pangasinan, the road to Busay Falls was fully cemented. We saw rice fields, lush greenery,coconut trees before reaching the main parking lot of the falls.

We paid the driver Php50 and asked if he can return to pick us up after 2 hours.The entrance fee is Php10 per person and if you like to have get a bamboo cottage, it cost Php100.

From the main entrance, a short hike will bring you to the first fall.

Water cascading at around 40 feet and falling below a pool. The water is clear and cool.

 Some rocks were arranged to form a path to the other side. I regret not bringing extra clothes for swimming. I settled for a dip in the cool water. I saw a washroom with toilet and for a small fee of Php5 ,you can use either to pee or change clothing. It is clean and with running water.

I got a male guide to take me to the 2nd and 3rd fall. It was an uphill climb and I found myself short of breath due to the ascent. The 2nd fall is small while the 3rd is a twin fall.

 Though there are 4 more falls, I didnt go further than the 3rd waterfall. I gave my guide Php200 though it can be Php100. I was thinking that this guy will not have income during rainy season.

 I am very glad that the local officials have seen the potential of this place and made efforts to have the roads paved and provide big parking space for visitors.  We had a wonderful time at Busay Falls. If you're in Bicol, do visit this natural wonder.