Honeymoon, at last....

Yep, you heard it right. It's been almost 14 months since our wedding and we just had our honeymoon. Aldrin and I are very busy people. At the time of our wedding in 2009, I already  have my schedule of trips for 2010. I cannot personally squeeze in such honey-mooney dates and trips. Then last September, we finally made an itinerary for our Malaysia-Singapore backpacking trip for 5 days. But for some reason, Bellarocca came in to our minds and we just simply booked it. Although the price of Bellarocca equates to the price of our week long Asian travel, we are sure we couldn't pass on this even if we just opted for a 3 days/ 2 nights relaxation and detox vacation. Pre-wedding days, I have been staring at Bellarocca's website because I know it's a lovely place. But at that time, I know we couldn't afford it yet because we have to pay other wedding expenses. And who would have thought that we would eventually have our honeymoon here? It really pays to wait.

February 4, 8am
The downside of this trip is my fear of riding planes. Especially if it's a 60-seater prop plane. Ugh! Good thing the trip is just 30 minutes long and I thank God for a safe and smooth flight including take off and landing.

not liking this prop plane

At Marinduque airport, the staff greeted us. They gave us cold towels and Wilkins water. They took care of our luggage, by the way, which was really a great help. We hopped in to a van and drove 45 minutes to get to the foot of Mt. Malindig.

the driver and a staff, Wella.

gotta put the life vest on

From the beach, we rode Bellarocca's speedboat for 5 minutes. Again, I was just holding my hand bag.

The managers (I think they are also the stockholders) greeted us at their port area. Another group of staff were singing and dancing a local song with matching throwing of flower petals all over. Guess what, we have lei's too! We rode their golf cart going up to their reception area and to our rooms.

the sing and dance crew

golf cart ride going up

this is their lobby mirror

When we checked out our rooms, whoah!!! It was very pretty... and spacious!!!!! I instantly fell in love with it. We checked out our balcony and we have a breathtaking view of Mt. Malindig.

the welcome chocolates

our bed

the bathroom

our balcony

the welcome letter

I, then, took a shower for our lunch and for our private tour on the island. All I can say is, thank you L'occitane! : )

l'occitane products

 our favorite spot

 my brunch

 his brunch... first plate

Mt. Malindig as backdrop

It took us about an hour for the island tour. We visited the tea house, the meditation area, the other villas and guest houses (including the villa that Derek Ramsay and his family stayed in). 

 the lap pool

 the pavilion

 the dock

 the meditation area

 Villa: Zeus, where Derek's family stayed

 guard house

 pavilion viewing deck

 the beehive couch

After the island tour, we went to the game room. We borrowed some DVD's and played billiards too!  Aldrin also found a friend.

 billiards time

fussball with a friend

Too bad, I was exhausted on that day that I dozed off and left Aldrin hungry the entire night. He didn't want to have dinner all by himself so he decided to stay with me in the room while I was sleeping. And knowing my husband, he's a picky eater so he didn't like the chips, the cup noodles, cookies and other food from the bar. He wanted the real food but sucks for him, I chose sleeping over eating.

February 5, 6:30am
Happy Birthday, dearest hubby! But the birthday boy is still sleeping. So I put my running shoes on and jogged through the entire island. The staff and other managers were surprised to see me running their vicinity so early. I saw Bellarocca at work; staff arriving in the island (yes, they do not stay in the resort. They commute everyday), food, vegetables and other supplies being delivered, managers talking to street sweepers, and guards on formation.

 the viewing deck. 400 steps

 the guest house. with 5 bedrooms

 the tea house

 the meditation room

 helipad

 running down the steep hill at 45 degrees angle

 sunrise at the pavilion

 the majestic volcano

 delivering goods in the morning

 the pavilion from the docking area

 the scenery is sooo calming

 i couldn't get enough of the view

 the jacuzzi area

feeling the sunrise

I had the healthiest jogs ever. For one, I got to breathe fresh air. Second, while jogging, I took the opportunity to take pictures of the island. Third, I saw some majestic scenes: sunrise on the east and clouds eating up the crater of Mt. Malindig. And oh, I heard birds singing too! And I saw a lot more surprises... I'll tell more about it later.