3 Waterfalls, 2 Churches, 1 Day: Church of Tanay, Daranak and Batlag Falls

Tanay's Daranak and Batlag Falls
by: anakngkidlat

 It was 4:00 am. On a usual Saturday morning, I would have been sleeping soundly.But this was different. The Tropa had been concocting this trip for days and almost everyone confirmed that they're good to go. Most of the group met at Shaw since a ride going to Tanay is just near.

On our way to Tanay

A few hours later, we arrived at Tanay specifically the Church of Tanay.Just to give a few facts, Tanay is one of the municipalities of the province of Rizal situated 57 kilometers east of Manila. The Church which is also known as San Ildefonso Parish Church is one of the oldest churches in the Philippines (405 years to be exact) which was founded by the Franciscans.

The Church of Tanay

The Landmark

The thing I truly love about old churches is its architecture and the historic feel. I feel lucky that these structures have withstood the test of time for generations to see and admire.

One of the Station of the Cross images

From in and out of the church

After a few photo opportunities and a little break to buy water and necessities, We immediately went to our next spot: Daranak and Batlag Falls.

Group picture!

More group pics!

Guess who am I taking a pic?

It's the Lakwatserong Tatay!

1st up was Daranak Falls. The name came from the phrase " dadanak ang dugo" (spilling of blood). It seems surreal that these clean waters are just a few hours away from Manila!

While admiring the beauty of Daranak, I saw a puppy that was nearby tempting me to take photos. Well let's say there is a willing model and I gladly obliged to shoot. :)

The dog strikes a pose!

Daranak Falls' beauty

After a few shots, We had to take a break as one of the group was dizzy and almost fainted. A few sweets, some food, an energy drink and some sleeping time managed to get her back to health. (some of us did slept too but not me and Bri).

While the others are soundly resting, Brian and I went further to the next stop: Batlag Falls. Based from the guide that led us to the falls said that Batlag is privately owned and have separate fees from Daranak (20 php for Daranak and 50 php for Batlag)

Entrance to Batlag Falls

Taking shots while exploring

Whether you need a relaxing escape from the metro or a memorable excursion for the family, Tanay's natural attactions will not cease to astound young and old alike. The next part was something I haven't expected. Thank you Bri for the extra pics for making the blog possible! :)

Feeling Explorer? hehehe

EPILOGUE

How the heck did it start anyway?

Just by typing this entry, I've began to wonder when I got interested in travelling, photography and everything else in between. As I have mentioned with my profile, the influence came from the one and only Lakwatserong Tatay™ (Kasalanan mo 'to Bri!! hehe) He told tons of stories from his "tipid" travels and document them on his blog. I asked myself "How come he can do it? we're both Tatays naman although he had more children than me". Actually the answer was just simple: If you really REALLY want it, you can do it. So... okay motivation is key but of course there are other things to consider. At that time I had no good quality camera to begin with (the only camera I had then was an Olympus FILM camera and it doesn't even work). I also limit my time away from home during weekends to spend time with my family and surf the net all day long. Luckily, a friend of his told him there was a bargain of some second hand Digital Cameras somewhere in Makati Cinema Square (the name of the store was Igaya) His friend bought a Panasonic Lumix FZ5 (as far as I can remember) They also had other models of the FZ Family and got interested with the Lumix FZ20 due to good reviews from the net (thanks dpreview!). Brian told me since I'm near the place, why shouldn't I investigate and verify if it is true. (By the way at this point we already went to Caleruega and the shots can be found in Lakwatserong Tatay's site) So there I went with my wife and true enough the cameras were there except from the FZ20. Sayang! I was really interested in checking it but the store had no stock of the cam. It took me at least 2 months, 5,500 Php and my wife's permission (para walang away) to get my first Digital Camera. And since then, I have been taking pictures and studying what can my Camera make. The travelling part was just recent and the latest was the 3 Waterfalls, 2 Churches in 1 day which I will be posting soon.