Quick Ride with Sir Emil

Isang Martes ng hapon, nagkayayaan kami ni Sir Emil of UBP/MCP na mag quick ride (actually, ako ang nag-aya, LOL). With a quick plan, napag-usapan namin na magkita sa Tiwi around 1pm the next day. Itinerary: Tiwi-Joroan-Sagnay and Mayon Rest House.

So on Wednesday, konting linis at paghahanda ng aking motor, and after a quick lunch ay tuloy na ako to meet up with sir Emil. Unfortunately, pag dating ko ng Sto. Domingo ay napansin kong nag-squeak ang aking gulong when I apply the brakes. Di ko pinansin nung una, pero thinking na mahaba pa ang aking magiging ride, bumalik ako saglit sa Legazpi para ipa-check ito

Turns out, the bearings were busted, pinapalitan ko siya then balik na ako papuntang Tiwi, sir Emil must be waiting already. Around quarter to 2pm na ko nakarating, I was 45minutes late sa usapang oras namin (sensya na sir).

So di na kami nag atubili pa at tumuloy na papuntang Joroan. Nakarating na ako dito dati from my previous ride, but the experience and the thrill that the twisties bring never gets old.

Quick rest lang and tuloy na ang ride. Next stop, yung arko ng boundary ng Albay at CamSur. It didn't take long, mabilis ang pacing ni sir Emil and I was inclined to follow suit.

Close-up kung close-up. Haha.

Nung pagpunta ko dito last time, hindi ako nakapag picture kasi may mga nagbabasketball dyan sa likod oh, kita mo yung homemade ring? Dyahe, baka isipin tagabundok ako. Haha. Tuloy ang paglalakbay hanggang makarating sa Patitinan Rest Area.

Some of the amenities here. Potable na, drinking pa. Hehe. Nakita ko ulit yung island that took my interest during my first ride. Sir Emil told me you can get there through motorized banca. Pero wala sa plano na pumunta kami dun, maybe next time. The ride continues.

Next landmark, Partido Riviera. Dami na ring riders ang nakapa-kodak sa lokasyong ito. Pero masarap pa rin tumambay dito.

The ride was going along well, that was until the rain clouds came. Kitang kita namin ni sir ang ulan sa medyo unahang part ng daan, at kitang kita na papunta saamin yung ulan. So we had to fall back. 

RAIN AHEAD!

Inabutan kami pero mukhang we outran the rain clouds kasi pagdating namin ulit ng Tiwi eh maganda pa ang panahon. Haha. Plan B of the itenerary was to visit the Tiwi Geothermal Plant. I think sir Emil works here as an engineer. Gusto sana naming pumasok pero hindi kami pinayagan ni manong guard, kaya sa gate na lang kami nag pictorial.

Then we went on to one of the actual plants, pero sa labas lang syempre. The road leading here was chock full of pipes to and from the plant.

Our next stop was the so-called pride of Tiwi, DJC Halo Halo. Hindi kumpleto ang visit mo sa Tiwi kung hindi ka nakatikim neto. Sponsored by sir Emil. Hehehe. Itadakimasu!

Over the course of the meal, nag share kami ng kanya-kanyang experience as a rider. I have learned a lot from sir Emil through his adventures as a looper, and he has inspired me even more to be a looper one day. But not for now, I'll make loops when I get a bigger, better bike. For now, solo rider lang muna. Within the region lang din muna. One step at a time. Explore your own before you go to other places. Hehe.

After our hearty meal, we gassed up full tank, the next and final stop was Mayon Rest House. The landmark to look for was "Daragang Magayon". Dito ka liliko paakyat ng Mayon Rest House.

I passed by here before nung nag mini loop ako ng Legazpi-Tabaco-Ligao-Legazpi, pero hindi ko to napansin noon. The last time I've been up to Mayon Rest House was during one of our elementary school field trips. So passing through the twisties leading up to the rest house was a bit nostalgic. Finally, narating din namin. Decrepit na ang building ng Rest House, and the only functional building here was the newer Mayon Planetarium, but this place was still referred to as the Rest House.

I remember falling from that swing during that field trip, because I was about to do a swing jump but there was a strong breeze when I was in midair. I fell, got up quickly, and as usual, was grinning at my teacher who was about to scold me. Haha.

Just enjoying the view. You can see Legazpi City and Tabaco City from here.

Mahangin pa rin dito nung pagpunta namin, too strong a wind in fact that it toppled sir Emil's bike. Another injury added to his already scar-laden Kaze. Pero ok pa naman bike nya, bukod sa dagdag na gasgas at sirang side mirror, wala namang ibang damage. Tuloy pa rin ang kodakan, and we went inside the Planetarium.

Finally, after some time of rest, and after sir Emil had a temporary fix for his side mirror, it was time to go back (sadly so, kelangan nang bumalik as I was just beginning to enjoy the place). Kung napaaga lang sana ako, mas mahaba pa sana yung tambay namin dito. But, oh well.

Dun na ulit kami nag hiwalay sa Daragang Magayon statue, si sir Emil pabalik na ng Tiwi at ako naman eh tatahakin ang ruta pa-Ligao then back to Legazpi. Around 5pm nung bumaba kami, and around 6.45pm nung nag touchdown ako sa bahay. Another ride successfully completed. Exhausting but worth it. Until next time.

Keep riding.