Nanay’s birthday

Each year for our grandmother’s birthday celebration on 19 January, the uncles and aunts always try to come up with something unique or memorable. This year, Nanay’s 84th, it was a beach overnight at a newly-opened resort on Samal Island. What made this year even more special was that many relatives living abroad or in Manila — especially my cousin Paolo, whom we hadn’t seen in years — came home to celebrate with Nanay.

Too bad, though, that my own family wasn’t in attendance. The folks went to Manila to see mom’s sister, my dearest Tita Baby, who’s been living in California for many, many years now. Jake, my younger brother, had to go on a business trip to Zamboanga. And our youngest, Julienne, has been in Quezon City with her own family since forever. It could’ve been really great if my nephews could’ve been at the beach party with our cousins’ kids…. Still, the important thing was that Nanay was happy with the turnout.

For me, it was exhilarating to see so many of the 4th generation Robillos in one place. They are the future of the clan. I hope that they will continue to strive for the unity and closeness of our family when they’re older. And I do hope that we have more of these family get-togethers in the near future — beyond Christmas or New Year’s, we hadn’t been in one place for such a long time before now.

Click here to view photos!

That island getaway, Bali Bali Beach Resort, is a cozy little place tucked in a hidden corner of Samal Island. Its best feature is its location: since it’s far from the city, and because it looks well-laid-out, it is indeed a tranquil, serene and private vacation spot. It’s not as expensive as high-class resorts, but it sure looks like one! The furnishings are very tasteful, and the presentation is quite elegant. The food’s not bad at all and the servings were very generous. Also, I was really impressed with their customer service. It wasn’t only that they were always prepared, but also that the staff were genuinely friendly and helpful (the opposite of which is something that I’ve always felt badly about Davao’s customer service… but that’s for another blog post). The beach itself leaves a lot to be desired, I’m afraid — the beachfront is mostly covered in dead coral, and so it’s rather difficult to swim within the inner waters. However, the resort has a beautiful infinity pool that’s perfect for relaxing or for taking in a few laps. And there’s a separate swimming area for kids, plus a jacuzzi!

Unfortunately, they don’t have a website yet, but they do get e-mail. (Their phone numbers are +63(82)234-3377, 234-3068.) I’m not sure if the place can be reached via banca, because the jetty didn’t appear to be serviceable. All of us went by car. So that meant taking the ferry boat from Sasa to Babac, and then driving more than 5km of rather rough roads to Baranggay Catagman, past a number of other resorts. Rather inconvenient… but, once you get there, simply Wow! definitely well worth the effort. It’s pretty obvious that the owners of Bali Bali took care to develop this resort. It’s a place that Davaoeños and Samaleños can be quite proud of.

And so the Robillo clan’s adventures continue…

[Update]
They do have a website now! Please click here to go there.