BOHOL / MARCH 3-6,2009 =D

Over the past two years, I've been spending Hubby Sweet's birthday away from home. WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! Because of changes in Board Meeting schedules, the National Sales Conference--historically held on the last week of February--is now done on the 1st week of March. Naku! =( I would usually ask the Hubby to go with me na lang so we can treat it as an out-of-town adventure. But, tama din naman siya when he says "Tweet, ano naman ang gagawin ko dun habang nagta-trabaho ka?" Correct. Oo nga naman. *Sheepish grin...=D*

In any case, I suppose all these trips just gives me an opportunity to scout new places to visit for the family's annual summer trip. For the Nascon this year, we found ourselves @ the Bohol Beach Club. =)

I've been to Bohol once before, but only stayed overnight. (Come to think of it, that was also after a Nascon that was held in Cebu.) I digress. =)

This time, we got to stay a full 3-days so there was time enough to explore and experience the sand and the sea. I've heard praises about Panglao, but this is the first time I can convincingly say that the praises are well worth it. (The last time we went to Bohol, some of us got stung by sea urchins kase ang dami-dami.) Not this time. Then again, maybe it's because Bohol Beach Club is on the "good side" of the long stretch of sand. Haha. =)

Powdery white (though still not quite as white and fine as Boracay sand). Soft and cool to the feet--even under the extreme noonday heat. The water was clear and cool and still moss-free (an advantage it has over the Bora waters, especially these days). =) The way the sand slopes in water is also family-friendly. It slopes gradually; no table tops. When we were there, we got to quite a distance before the waters reached my shoulders (and I'm not even that tall, haha!). Then again, we went @ the peak of summer. The waves can get a bit rowdy late in the afternoon (but still manageable), but the waters are perfect for early morning swims. Rolling, gentle waves worthy of lazy, vacation mornings.

Part of the Nascon itinerary were the tours. All participants had a choice between going to the Chocolate Hills or taking the Loboc River Tour with a side-trip to see the Tarsiers. Even before I got to Bohol, I've decided to skip this part of the Nascon. I figured, if ever, I'd want to see these places for the first time with Hubby Sweet and the family. =D Buti na lang din, The MLT decided to use this "common time" to do the annual performance evaluations na lang for the entire Marketing group. Our hectic lives prevented us from finding a common meeting sched in Manila. Hay....=D

We decided to hold the meeting @ Bohol Bee Farm. We had to rent a van to take us there and back. Now, I've heard praises (loads!) about the place, so I was pretty excited about getting the chance to actually take a side trip.

Before proceeding to the restaurant area, we all decided to go to The Buzz Shop. Everyone else figured we can do advance reservations for the squash muffins that the Bohol Bee Farm is known for, and just pick it up on the way out--after our meeting and late lunch @ the restaurant. I tried the samples that they were giving out. They're good, but.....well, I did not think they were that good that I would find myself compelled to lug several boxes back to Manila. Parang kababayan lang--haha! =D

That said, for the record, I really fell in love with the store. It was quaint, stocked with interesting bottles and packets of home-made stuff. All were neatly laid out on simple wooden shelves with a trial pack available next to all the products that were being sold. I loved the idea of being given the chance to try before I buy. It doesn't happen very often these days. =)

On one side laid the shelf of different homemade spreads. Mango Spread. Honey Spread (of course! =)). Pesto Spread. Cilantro Spread. Malunggay Spread! I tried and tried and tried....and then I bought and bought and bought. Ngyah! =D

Right across the Spreads shelves, different local delicacies were displayed. Several permutations of peanut recipes, plus chips made of....uh....I-forget-now-what. Taro, I think, but I can't be sure now. I picked up a few more of the peanut-based delicacies, then proceeded to what I refer to as the "inner sanctum". =) When you enter, you would see the aparador loaded with the different types of muffins that they sell. I had to smile because I remember my lolas (from both sides) using old aparadors to hold what-have-you's in their kitchens. Throwback to my childhood. I loved the store even more. =)

Having decided that I was not going to bring back muffins back to Manila, I surveyed the rest of the room. To the right, I found several coffee pots. Kape Mais. What the heck is Kape Mais?! I tried. Smooth. Slightly bitter. Slightly sweetish. It had a distinct toasted note. I liked. I bought. Ngyah! =D Two packs. One for Father. One for me. =)


Fearing that the rest of the MLT were ready to proceed to the restaurant, I decided to head back to the main room, but saw the Honey Display by the door. Honey made from Mahogany Flowers. Honey made from Coconut Flowers. (I'm assuming they meant that they supplied the bees who made the honey with nectar from either mahogany or coconut. =) I personally liked the Mahogany variety better (it had a slightly citrus note), but got peer-pressured into buying the Coconut variety instead. Everyone else liked the Coconut better and I thought since I was buying the Honey for Mother, maybe I should just let majority win that time. =) And so it goes that the Honey made from Coconut Flowers also made its way into my basket.

It's a good thing that The Buzz Shop accepts credit cards because by the time they finished ringing all my purchases up, the total came up to almost a thousand worth of pasalubong! Ngweh. =D

As I walked away from the counter, taking note of the steady stream of tourists coming into the store, sampling the goods, then buying after milling about--also taking note that they all bought soooooo much more than I did--I remember thinking that the owner was darn lucky to be living a Bohol laid-back-kind-of-life while earning a more-than-decent-living that could probably afford her a comfortable lifestyle even in Manila. DANG! I found myself wishing to someday have that kind of luck. Haha! =D

After paying for our purchases, we proceeded to the restaurant. I won't do a full review anymore. Suffice it to say that it would be an extreme understatement if I say that I was disappointed with the food. How could anything that looked this good taste so...uh...sooooo....uh.....BLAH (translation: wala lang. =( ). I suppose because the food looked sooooooooooo good, I expected it to taste just as good. Apparently, it does not follow.

Come to think of it, when I got back to Manila, I excitedly laid out my purchases for Sister Pusjing and rest of the fam to sample. Quite curiously, none of them tasted as great as I remember them tasting when I first sampled them @ The Buzz Shop. Weird.

Maybe the entire Bohol Bee Farm is comparable to those stories in a child's fairytale book. The magic disappears once you wake up or step out the door. Wah. =(