Southern Luzon - The Rough Guide to the Philippines - page 195

Quezon National Park
Quezon National Park , about 25km east of Lucena near the town of ATIMONAN , is off
the well-beaten trail, far from the picture-postcard beaches of the Visayas and too
distant from Manila to make it a viable weekend trip. Though relatively small at just
ten square kilometres, the park is so dense with flora and fauna that you have a good
chance of seeing anything and everything from giant monitor lizards to monkeys, deer
and wild pigs. This is also home to the kalaw , a species of hornbill.
It takes about an hour to walk along the paved trail to the highest point, 366m above
sea level, which has a viewing deck from where you can see both sides of the Bicol
peninsula. The summit is known as Pinagbanderahan , meaning “where the flag is
hoisted”, because both Japanese and American flags were flown there before the
Philippine flag was raised in 1946. There are also numerous caves in the park that can
be explored with guides, experience and the right equipment.

ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION QUEZON NATIONAL PARK

By bus The turning for the park is on the Maharlika Highway,
which runs from Lucena to Atimonan. The winding approach
road to the park, known locally as bituka ng manok (chicken's
intestine), is a challenge for buses: from Lucena's Grand
Central station, you can get any bus heading east through

Bicol (to Daet, for instance) or an Atimonan-bound bus, as all
these vehicles pass the park entrance (every 15min; 1hr).
Guides Enquire at the Atimonan Municipal Tourism
Council ( T 0908 888 7132, E [e-mail];
P300/day for a group of eight).

ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Doña Rosario Sea Breeze Resort Km176 Maharlika
Hwy, Brgy Angeles, Atimonan T 042 778 5373, W dona
rosarioresorts.com/seabreeze.html. This beachside resort
offers village-style cottages and recreational fishponds

where guests are encouraged to angle fish and crustaceans,
including tilapia and c rab. Fa cilities include a swimming
pool and bowling alley. P1800

4

Marinduque
With its numerous caves and pretty beaches, tiny MARINDUQUE (pronounced “mar-in-
DOO-kay”) island, where most of the 230,000 residents lead a life of subsistence coconut
farming and fishing, is a great place to get away from it all for a few days. Work your way
slowly around the coastal road south of Boac , then across the island to Torrijos and Poctoy
White Beach , where you can live cheaply in the shadow of majestic Mount Malinding .
There's some excellent island-hopping too, with spectacular beaches and coves to explore
around the Tres Reyes Islands off the southwest coast and the Santa Cruz Islands off the
northeast coast. The island is known for its Moriones festival , an animated Easter tradition
featuring masked men dressed like Roman soldiers (see box, p.201). If you plan to visit
during Holy Week then you should book ahead.
Marinduque has had its share of problems. When copper mining was begun here in
1969, many thought it was the dawn of a new era. Sadly, the dream ended in disaster
and recrimination as waste from disused pits flowed into the island's rivers on two
separate occasions, destroying agricultural land, the livelihood of the locals and marine
life - which is still trying to recover.

Boac
BOAC (“bow-ak”) is an orderly, compact town with neat streets and low-rise buildings
laid out around a central plaza. The area around the cathedral has numerous typical
Filipino bahay ng buto (wooden houses), the windows boasting carved wooden shutters
instead of glass and the balconies exploding with bougainvillea and frangipani. Many
of these houses were built in the nineteenth century and are now a photogenic, if
faded, reminder of a style of architecture that is rapidly disappearing.