The moment I saw it, I fall in love.
Manolo Fortich, my hometown, never fails to surprise me all the time. With its hidden gems, I am left in awe. I can't help but feel so blessed to be born here and live in this wonderful place. A place full of wonders, and a place that will always make my heart melt with the beauty that it possesses.
Speaking of the beauty of my hometown, earlier, I witnessed another breathtaking view. A view I will never forget with the calming nature it holds. Something that has made my day so special.
Moreover, my friends and I had an unplanned trip to one of the most wonderful sceneries in my hometown and that would be the Lawis Grand Canyon found in Lunocan, Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon, Philippines.
It is called as Grand Canyon of the Philippines because of its steep ridges that resemble the Grand Canyon in the United States.
Honestly, in my 20+ years of living in my hometown, I never had a chance to visit that wondrous place. That's why I can't help but feel so excited the moment I knew that we will visit the magnificent place that my other friends talked about. I even saw a mural of Lawis in Riley's and I have this high hopes in my heart that I will be able to visit it one day, and that would be today.
This is the mural found at Riley's that I always love to stare at. Such a magnificent view on this mural alone, how much more if seen in person.
Talking about our journey before reaching the place, we first went to the Lunocan Barangay Hall to ask for a permit to visit the place. The place is for the public to see but still needs to ask permission from the Barangay officials for them to be guided. At 8 in the morning, we already got the permit and with that, we were so excited to travel to Lawis.
Looking back especially when I was still young and heard about Lawis, I thought that we still need to climb a high mountain to reach it. I thought that the path that we are going to take is full of challenges. I even thought that it was a place that only those who love adventure could take. But then, I was wrong.
When we started our trip, the view already looks amazing. I have witnessed different kinds of roads along the way. Not all are concrete, some of them are rocky, plain, and even muddy. Despite the differences, I enjoyed it a lot. Although the rocky path was not my favorite because it makes me feel dizzy.
Here are some of the roads we passed by earlier:
I could say that it was a hot trip earlier as we were only riding a motorbike. Good thing I wore a jacket so that I couldn't feel the scorching heat of the sun that much. I even sweat a lot, but it's fine since the cold breeze of the air was what touches my skin which I love.
Along the way, I have also witnessed the wonderful view of nature. It's such a calming feeling to be surrounded by so much greenery. I don't know why, but the surrounding that I have seen bloomed something in my heart, an indescribable wonderful feeling.
These are some of the views that warmed my heart:
As we continue traveling and noticed the bamboo trees around, that's when I realized that we are near the place as the wonderful view of the mountains started to show up. Like really, when I noticed those mountains, I can't help but appreciate their beauty of them. There are also a lot of trees as well, they all look healthy. I even thought that if the trees were humans, they may be the happiest since they are around a great place.
We traveled around 25 minutes from the highway. It was pretty tiring, but worth it after I have seen the breathtaking place. I can't help but feel so grateful that an unexpected plan like this happened earlier.
Aside from that, the trip that we had earlier with my friends was the first trip that we had this year. I guess the last trip that we had together was still last October. It's been a while if we try to count the months that have passed. That's why I am just so grateful for this moment. Adulting is indeed harsh sometimes. That moment when you want to travel, but you don't have the money since there are a lot of bills and lack of time as well because of the busy schedule at work.
Now, going back to our travel, we finally arrived at Lawis Grand Canyon. Such majestic scenery! I took pictures instantly.
Behold, Lawis Grand Canyon
After witnessing the place, I could say that it's a perfect place to unwind. If you want to unload the heaviness in your heart, this place will surely comfort you in some way. That's what I have experienced actually.
By the way, this is not the only attraction that you will get to witness, the overall surroundings in that place are truly wonderful. I also have a great time looking at the field and even the clouds in the sky. The weather was so good that I could say that we were blessed with our trip earlier.
My friends also brought a swing and a chair for us to chill. The bamboos around are so perfect for the swing and the background view is so wonderful.
I also took some photos of myself around the area as a souvenir that I have been in the place.
I could say that our visit to Lawis Grand Canyon was memorable. I was not only surrounded by wonderful scenery around, but I was also with my great friends. Soon, if there's an opportunity, I'll visit Lawis again for sure.
Disclaimer: All photos are my own.
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