#vmanalacs in Subic

for this year's anniversary outing, the family headed up north for a field trip in Subic. aside from the beach, we planned to take Bonchie to Ocean Adventure as we've noticed his growing interest to all things animals. we also wanted to go to Zoobic Safari however we only had a couple of days stay there and just planned to save the trip for next time. plus the weather was inconsistent and we knew that the safari trip did not guarantee any cover for unexpected rain. so off we go.

we started our trip on a Thursday to make sure we weren't caught by the traffic that could possibly be brought about by the long weekend because of the Friday holiday on the 21st. I came from shift the night before so I stole naps in between the trip as much as I could. We checked in to By The Sea Resort (BTS) when we got to Subic in the afternoon and surprise surprise the rain was still unstoppable. BTS looked picturesque in their website but in person it looked old and rustic, looked the same way it does in the pics but without the "makeup". The beach was also ugly and scary - not swimmable through the weather. Overall, we prefer All Hands Beach Resort's shores and facilities way more than BTS.

Since it had been raining non-stop (there was a huge storm farther north), we basically spent the whole day indoors. I was able to catch more zzzs while my boys checked the resort out.

checking the scary beach out

the indoors cant stop this boy from goofing around

 the next day, we were re-energized. it was still raining, was raining hard throughout the night and we can hear angry waves from our bedroom window. however, we can't afford to lose another day so despite the inconsistent showers we went out and enjoyed the pool.

rainy morning swim

we were lucky to have a strong and healthy boy that despite swimming in the rain he was strong enough to resist any kind of sickness the weird weather could cause.

after our swim we headed down to Ocean Adventure (OA) still despite of the inconsistent showers. it was windy when we got there, we decided to have lunch first at Camayan beach resort which was just right beside Ocean Adventure. we had to pay a whopping 400php/adult for entrance and was consumable in the resto. they served Filipino food which was good but just ordinary.

by 1pm we were in OA, i bought our tickets online at a discounted price for 487php/adult instead of the regular 600php. Bonchie was still free of charge (FOC) as he was still within the FOC height limit.

we started with the sea lion show - it was amazing. i was amazed by how huge the sea lions were and i was amazed by how amazed Bonchie was. at his young age he was very hooked to the show as if he already understands.

Ocean Adventure's humongous sea lions
 

amazed and could not be disturbed

the show was held in an open area with a makeshift tent. towards the end of the show, the rain decided to pour - hard! we were in the top row, near the open part and since the rain was pouring everyone started to move out of the rain's way. i started to get worried as people are starting to crowd in the middle finding a spot where they wouldn't get wet. it was hopeless for us to get cover without fighting our way through the middle. we did not have an umbrella with us so Von and I instinctively took Bonchie in between us and shielded him from the rain. I didn't think Bonchie had any idea how worried sick we were at that time as he continued to watch and enjoy the show. the rain pretty much ended the sea lion's performance. i was very thankful that despite the huge number of people in the area nobody panicked that could've caused a commotion. the back part of Von and my clothes was dripping wet but thankfully Bonchie was all dry and happy. I did not worry that much for my clothes I was just thankful Bonchie was ok.

next show was A walk in the Wild where we were introduced to different animals in the wild. bear cats, owls, bats, snakes, etc. It started to pour in the middle of the show again but thankfully it was just for a short while. Bonchie again had a blast seeing the animals of the wild.

with the bat and little batman

the last but not the least finale show was of course the dolphins. pre show we've been watching the dolphins swim freely in OA's secured part of the ocean. they seem to be showing off even before the show started. this time we had first dibs on the dome and we decided to sit somewhere we knew the rain wouldn't hit us. as expected, towards the start of the show the rain again decided to pour. i wasn't as worried anymore knowing we were safe from the rain. Bonchie again enjoyed every part of the show. He danced along with the dolphins and clapped with the rest of the audience.

#vmanalacs in Ocean Adventure

after the dolphin show, we headed back to the hotel, grabbed dinner and capped the day off. it was a fun and worth it outing. OA is definitely a place we'd gladly take Bonchie again when he gets older.

we headed back down to Manila the Saturday after.