Caylabne Resort

Another favorite get-away destination only 2 hours from home is Caylabne Resort in Cavite. Driving down Governor's Drive from the Pala Pala intersection in Dasmarinas along the Emilio Aguinaldo Highway (going to Tagaytay), past the town of Ternate and the shuttered Puerto Azul, up the mountains and through winding roads hemmed on both sides by thick forests, you break out into a spectacular vista of the Manila Bay on the opposite side of Cavite City. You make your way down a road past the rugged cliffs to a quiet and quaint resort tucked away in a cove that seems like it materialized out of nowhere. I am surprised that more people do not know about this place being so close to Manila but that is probably for the best so it does not get spoiled too fast. Note that the resort, formely private and very exclusive, is now open to the public but prior reservations must be made. An interesting site is Fraile Island which the US Army fashioned into a battleship during World War II and renamed Fort Drum. On the way home I was blessed by some eagles soaring in the mountain tops.