For our one year anniversary, we wanted to go on a special weekend getaway somewhere romantic to get out of the city and be able to relax. I was busy with school and Julian had work, so we did not want to go too far away but wanted to just be able to both enjoy nature and be near the beach. We finally settled on Cebu in the Philippines, where we spent one night at a mountain retreat and two nights at a resort right on the beach.
Our first stop was a relatively long distance from the airport, not to mention the fact that our cab driver got lost along the way and had to drive on dirt roads asking locals how to get to the mountain retreat. However, once we finally made it to Sun Xi Mountain Retreat after over 5 hours of driving, we realized that this was one of the best decisions we made. Tucked away high in the beautiful mountains of the Philippines, Sun Xi exuded peace and solitude. We were the only guests staying in the resort the night we arrived, so we had the whole resort to ourselves. It felt like we owned the place!
We had our own private villa with cobblestone steps leading up to the entrance and a porch attached. The views we had of the sunset that night from our porch took my breath away. Since the resort is isolated on its own, surrounded only by small local villages and farms, you can sit there and all you hear are the sounds of nature. The birds tweeting, and crickets chirping. It does not get much better than that. We even got the whole restaurant to ourselves for dinner, where we had traditional Filipino fare and cocktails.
The next morning we had more time to walk around and explore the resort grounds, and take a bunch of pictures of course, before our taxi driver came to get us. My favorite part was the Filipino breakfast, consisting of the freshest tasting ham and eggs I have ever had. Truly farm-to-table service in its purest sense. Then, we were beach bound! Another long 4.5 hour drive later, we pulled up to the Crimson Resort and Spa in Cebu and I could see the crystal clear water sparkling in the distance.
The true resort experience, we were served fresh fruit drinks on arrival and were escorted to our little villa where a towel in the shape of an elephant and chocolates were waiting for us on our bed. Desperate to get some sun, we headed straight to the pool to enjoy the sunny afternoon and had some snacks and a pitcher of strawberry daiquiri at the beachside bar. That night, we decided we would head into the city center and listen to some live music. Since we only had two nights here, we wanted to spend the whole second day at the resort. Julian explored the taste of local cuisine before heading back to the resort and grabbing some cocktails as a nightcap.
We spent the entire second day, the actual day of our one year anniversary, at the resort. We did not even have to step foot off the beach! We did every water sport imaginable- snorkeling with fish in the crystal clear water, sailing on an individual smaller sized sailboat, and jet-skiing. Side note about the sailing: Julian actually had to teach me how to sail since I have never been before, but by the end of our ride I was able to control it myself. Best adrenaline rush!
Our day consisted mostly of pina coladas, water sports, plenty of sunshine, poolside snacks, strawberry daiquiris, and coconuts. A truly tropical piece of paradise. We even ended up joining in on a resort-coordinated game of water polo (our team won!) and we kicked around a soccer ball for a while. After the whole day in the sun, we decided we would have a romantic, candlelit dinner with live acoustic music at the main resort restaurant. Side note: Filipinos are amazing musicians/singers. The resort saved us a table with an amazing view of the ocean, and even surprised us with a delicious chocolate anniversary cake. Exhausted from our fun and active day, we headed to bed early to get ready for our morning flight. Needless to say, we did not want to leave. I would go back to the Philippines in a heartbeat. It is a Southeast Asia destination not to be missed.