Family Outing at Happy Ripples Beach Resort

Pangasinan province is a frequent destination for the family as it is the hometown (Mapandan) of my mother-in-law. An invitation for a relative’s 50^th birthday brought my father-in-law the idea to maximize the trip by going to the beach as well. 

Since after office hours on a Friday was our common schedule, we left Taguig at 2am on a Saturday. Thanks to the TPLEX (Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway), our travel time was shorter.

First stop was the Shrine of Our Lady of Manaoag to hear the holy mass. Even on a regular weekend, the church was filled with people. Next stop was the Happy Ripples Beach Resort in San Fabian to reserve a venue for a school reunion. Looking around and seeing that we were the only guests, we ended staying there though we were informed that a company outing is expected in the afternoon. 

Perhaps it was the salty air that triggered the excitement, we had a quick breakfast (bringing of food is allowed), changed to swimming clothes, and rushed to sea. However, a jellyfish bit hubby in the arm, so we resorted to the pool. A boatman offered us a trip to other beachfronts for a Php500.00 fee to which we said yes.  

It was a slow moving ride and with the sunny weather, I felt like a baby being swayed to sleep. The sound of a flock of birds hovering above the fishing nets woke me a bit. The ambiance shifted from serene to thrilling when midway back to Happy Ripples, we were given the option to swim with vests as floaters.     

Willingly, my companions jumped one by one in the cool water. At one point, they removed their floaters for a more challenging dip in the 30 feet deep. By the time we reached shore, it was past lunch and the ordered food had arrived. We rested at a relative’s house until it was time to go to the dinner party. By 2am on Sunday, we were back in Taguig. It was a fast, but much welcomed getaway. We hope to visit more beaches and even caves that also abound in Pangasinan.