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On the road with ‘Biyahe ni Drew:’ Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro
A behind-the-scenes look at GMA News TV 11's budget travel show
It’s 2:30 AM and the crew of ‘Biyahe ni Drew,’ GMA News TV’s budget travel show, is trying to get some sleep in the parking lot of Batangas Pier.
We should have been aboard the RORO to Occidental Mindoro by now, but its departure was suddenly delayed to 6:00 AM. In the meantime, we’ve decided to rest in the van: Dea, the segment producer, is curled up in the front row. Paul, the researcher, is revising our itinerary. The cameramen are stretched out in the backseat. And then there’s me, the fresh grad on her first field assignment as the show’s multimedia producer.
This set the tone for our weekend in Sablayan: Plan as you might, a trip will always surprise you.
Mindoro beyond the usual
When most people talk about Mindoro, they mean Oriental Mindoro—the side with Puerto Galera, white sand beaches, and wildlife that made headlines in the news. Its quieter sibling, Occidental Mindoro, is only starting to become popular in the tourism world. [For more on Sablayan, check out our photo essay]
While this means it’s less developed, it also means a vacation in Occidental Mindoro is cheaper and less crowded. It’s a three-hour drive from the Abra de Ilog port to Sablayan. On the way, we drove over roads turned golden-orange by corn kernels and rice grains being sun-dried by residents.
Sablayan has a number of small inns and resorts where tourists can stay. If we’re talking about must-see beaches, the pride of Occidental Mindoro is Apo Reef, the second largest contiguous coral reef in the world. On our second day in Sablayan, we woke up early to catch the 4:30 AM bangka ride to Apo Reef.
We were all quiet except for Drew, who worked up enough energy to deliver spiels in his trademark hyperactive voice. We slept through most of the four-hour boat ride, waking up to eat our packed breakfast while staring out into the endless stretch of water.
“Look! Look!” Drew said while leaning out over the bangka. A dolphin was swimming alongside our boat.
At 8:00 AM, the dark blue waters lightened to a clear blue-green hue. As the island neared, we could already see the corals below. The route to the shore zigzags, our guide said, to avoid the corals in the shallows.
Once underwater, the corals became even more breathtaking. From the surface, they appear to be massive green rocks; underwater, they turn out to be shades of pink and orange, moving with the current and surrounded by schools of fish. No wonder Drew wanted to keep swimming!
The challenge of travel
Drew himself will admit that what he does is “the best job ever.” But as fun as travel shows are, you’d be wrong to think making them is a walk in the park.
Apart from our delayed RORO, we had to contend with occasional electrical brownouts in Sablayan; one of which happened at night, leaving us to take baths in pitch-black darkness. And unlike tourists who can travel at their own pace, dropping items off the itinerary if the need arises, a travel show like ‘Biyahe ni Drew’ must visit more places to give viewers options for their trip.
A 15-minute boat ride from Sablayan is Pandan Island. Getting there is fun in itself—we saw a pawikan through our glass-bottomed boat, and ‘Biyahe ni Drew’ cameraman Rey jumped into the water with an underwater camera to catch the action.
The most traveled members of a TV crew, Dei later told me, are the cameramen. While the four segment producers take turns going out in the field, the cameramen travel and shoot every single week. They even stay in a location longer than the host does, collecting extra footage for the show.
The production team of ‘Biyahe ni Drew’ has been together for years, having worked together for previous travel shows hosted by Drew like ‘Weekend Getaway’ and ‘Balikbayan.’
It’s a goofy bunch held together by a love for adventure. Here, street cred comes in the form of tanned skin. “Halatang baguhan ka. Maputi ka pa kasi eh,” they tease me. “Pero okay lang yan, makakahabol ka rin.”
One thing you need to know: despite the stress that comes with the job, the team knows how to have fun. Jeff, one of our cameramen, missed out on swimming in Apo Reef while he was shooting interviews; the next day, he went snorkeling in Pandan Island, and saw a pawikan up close.
Shooting and eating at three restaurants in one day? Challenge accepted. We must have eaten our weight in seafood while in Sablayan—a place, we learned, where chicken is more expensive than the freshest fish.
Over that weekend in Sablayan, we ate through platters of garlic crabs, adobong pugita (octopus) and fresh tuna sashimi, then washed it down with fresh melon juice.
There’s a Filipino superstition that says a person who continues eating while the dishes are being put away will never get married.
I guess I’m dead—that happened to me at every single meal. (Oops?)
Plans and spontaneity
Whether you’re a first-time backpacker, a budget traveler or a young journalist getting adjusted to life in the field, we could all learn something or two from the professional travelers of ‘Biyahe ni Drew.’
Travel, it seems, is as much about one’s attitude as it is about the environment. The recipe for fun isn’t a perfectly planned trip; it’s in the ability to roll with the punches when plans get derailed—to accept and appreciate the inevitable surprises of travel.
Have the maturity to make a plan, but have the spirit to break it, too. -PF/GMA News
More from 'Biyahe ni Drew'
Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro: A photo essay
It’s 2:30 AM and the crew of ‘Biyahe ni Drew,’ GMA News TV’s budget travel show, is trying to get some sleep in the parking lot of Batangas Pier.
We should have been aboard the RORO to Occidental Mindoro by now, but its departure was suddenly delayed to 6:00 AM. In the meantime, we’ve decided to rest in the van: Dea, the segment producer, is curled up in the front row. Paul, the researcher, is revising our itinerary. The cameramen are stretched out in the backseat. And then there’s me, the fresh grad on her first field assignment as the show’s multimedia producer.
This set the tone for our weekend in Sablayan: Plan as you might, a trip will always surprise you.
Mindoro beyond the usual
When most people talk about Mindoro, they mean Oriental Mindoro—the side with Puerto Galera, white sand beaches, and wildlife that made headlines in the news. Its quieter sibling, Occidental Mindoro, is only starting to become popular in the tourism world. [For more on Sablayan, check out our photo essay]
While this means it’s less developed, it also means a vacation in Occidental Mindoro is cheaper and less crowded. It’s a three-hour drive from the Abra de Ilog port to Sablayan. On the way, we drove over roads turned golden-orange by corn kernels and rice grains being sun-dried by residents.
The 'Biyahe ni Drew' team watches the sun rise from our bangka on the way to Apo Reef. We spent the three-hour, early morning trip sleeping, talking and eating breakfast out of plastic containers.
We were all quiet except for Drew, who worked up enough energy to deliver spiels in his trademark hyperactive voice. We slept through most of the four-hour boat ride, waking up to eat our packed breakfast while staring out into the endless stretch of water.
“Look! Look!” Drew said while leaning out over the bangka. A dolphin was swimming alongside our boat.
Touchdown Apo Reef! It was almost like looking at a postcard.
Once underwater, the corals became even more breathtaking. From the surface, they appear to be massive green rocks; underwater, they turn out to be shades of pink and orange, moving with the current and surrounded by schools of fish. No wonder Drew wanted to keep swimming!
The challenge of travel
Drew himself will admit that what he does is “the best job ever.” But as fun as travel shows are, you’d be wrong to think making them is a walk in the park.
Apart from our delayed RORO, we had to contend with occasional electrical brownouts in Sablayan; one of which happened at night, leaving us to take baths in pitch-black darkness. And unlike tourists who can travel at their own pace, dropping items off the itinerary if the need arises, a travel show like ‘Biyahe ni Drew’ must visit more places to give viewers options for their trip.
A 15-minute boat ride from Sablayan is Pandan Island. Getting there is fun in itself—we saw a pawikan through our glass-bottomed boat, and ‘Biyahe ni Drew’ cameraman Rey jumped into the water with an underwater camera to catch the action.
'Biyahe ni Drew' cameramen go out of their way for a good shot. Here's Rey riding a motorcycle backwards to get a shot of the road.
The production team of ‘Biyahe ni Drew’ has been together for years, having worked together for previous travel shows hosted by Drew like ‘Weekend Getaway’ and ‘Balikbayan.’
It’s a goofy bunch held together by a love for adventure. Here, street cred comes in the form of tanned skin. “Halatang baguhan ka. Maputi ka pa kasi eh,” they tease me. “Pero okay lang yan, makakahabol ka rin.”
One thing you need to know: despite the stress that comes with the job, the team knows how to have fun. Jeff, one of our cameramen, missed out on swimming in Apo Reef while he was shooting interviews; the next day, he went snorkeling in Pandan Island, and saw a pawikan up close.
Adobong pugita from Camalig Restaurant
Over that weekend in Sablayan, we ate through platters of garlic crabs, adobong pugita (octopus) and fresh tuna sashimi, then washed it down with fresh melon juice.
There’s a Filipino superstition that says a person who continues eating while the dishes are being put away will never get married.
I guess I’m dead—that happened to me at every single meal. (Oops?)
Plans and spontaneity
Whether you’re a first-time backpacker, a budget traveler or a young journalist getting adjusted to life in the field, we could all learn something or two from the professional travelers of ‘Biyahe ni Drew.’
Travel, it seems, is as much about one’s attitude as it is about the environment. The recipe for fun isn’t a perfectly planned trip; it’s in the ability to roll with the punches when plans get derailed—to accept and appreciate the inevitable surprises of travel.
Have the maturity to make a plan, but have the spirit to break it, too. -PF/GMA News
More from 'Biyahe ni Drew'
Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro: A photo essay
