Rockies at Norzagaray, Bulacan

A week after my ten-day Mindoro trip, my first trip by plane this year, I joined the climb to the Rockies in Norzagaray. The two rock formations in the shape of a lioness and of a rhinoceros are becoming more and more popular these days thanks to the social media. I stumbled upon a post by an old climbing buddy late last year and saw that he climbed the Rockies without inviting me. (#bitter though I wouldn't have joined even if he sent me an invitation because I already planned to go to Bicol with a travel buddy, only to end up in Pangasinan and Ilocos.)

before the rock assaults: I chose to be sweeper just to take a photo of this!

awesome view of rocks

Because I got to the meeting place right on time at 4AM, I sorely lacked sleep and was sleeping every time we were in transit. I was frustrated to find that there still are irresponsible and inconsiderate people who join events like this and yet fail to show up on time. We left our meeting place at 5AM and we missed the sunrise because of those annoying people. Probably newbies who do not care nor know the ethics to mountain climbing. Were I the organizer, I would have gone on without them.

the lioness overlooking Norzagaray

small but smelly flower with unpleasant smell

One can finish the climb in less than an hour, but due to the time spent in taking photo after photo, we got down at past 12PM, had lunch and then napped until 1:30PM. The challenging part in climbing the lioness and the rhino is that one really has to be a good rock climber. In fact, being a hiker is of not much use. Every step of the way, I was wondering if I could make it alive. Being acrophobic was no help at all.

the rhino

Abrus precatorius: bead-like seeds which are actually toxic...

buwis-buhay moment as we climbed down the rhino

for ID, anyone?

Part 2 of the trip was spent in Pinagrealan Cave, a historic site for being the encampment site of the revolutionaries led by Sinfrosio dela Cruz against the Spaniards toward the end of the 19th century. Emilio Aguinaldo and Pio del Pilar also lived here. Now more than ever, I want to visit Mt. Manalmon, see Biak-na-Bato, and go caving there. Such trips kill two birds with one stone since I travel for history and also for nature.

our tour guide in Pinagrealan Cave

At some parts of the cave, one has to go through knee-deep and neck-deep waters. The first foray into the waters was not pleasant given the smell and water's dark color. The second was refreshingly cool and clear, perfect for a bath but then one passes by the smelly waters again on the way back. My legs got itchy soon afterwards so I had to take a quick bath lest I develop more skin problems.

co-participant removes his shoes before wading into the waters

Before I went home, I stopped by Fshermall and looked for a place to eat. Dimsum Place has just opened and was offering discounts for their dimsum so I grabbed the chance to have a taste of their xiaolongbao. As in other restos, they have carrot slices at the bottom to support the bun. There's soup in it alright but it's not as tasty as I hoped them to be. I so miss Shi Lin's xiaolongbao at this point. Another thing, I find it weird whenever I dine in Chinese restos without free hot tea. It just disappoints.

xiaolongbao at Dimsum Place, Fishermall (P90)