On the road with ‘Biyahe ni Drew’: Misadventures in Baler

Shooting a travel show is an adventure in itself. Cristina Tantengco, multimedia producer for “Biyahe ni Drew,” writes this behind-the-scenes story of how the crew celebrated host Drew Arellano’s birthday in the field — and in the local hospital.

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How did we end up in the emergency room again?

It’s 11:00 PM and Bea, one of “Biyahe ni Drew” researchers, is curled up on a hospital bed — the only patient in this small hospital’s emergency room. I’m there too, holding a bag of ice against my legs. Our local guide is with us, chatting with the attending physician who happens to be an old friend.

This isn’t how we expected to spend our second day in the picturesque municipality of Baler, the coastal capital of Aurora province known for its stunning beaches and surf-friendly waves— and to think today is Drew’s birthday.

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Day one: January 15
Excluding Drew, the crew of “Biyahe ni Drew” arrived in Aurora at 7:00 AM. We had left Manila at 1:00 AM and slept through most of the drive. First order of business: shooting the Millenium Tree in Maria Aurora, Aurora. Breakfast: soggy burgers from a drive-through three hours before.

The first few hours after arriving in a destination always feel fuzzy. Everyone’s half-awake, backs aching from the long drive. But in the face of the 600-year old Millenium Tree, it was easy to wake up. At over 200 feet tall, it took the entire crew and 40 bystanders holding hands to make a ring around the tree. They were game enough to help out: “Sayang hindi ako nag-make up,” joked an old lady, one of tupig vendors we roped in.

Baler itself is home to many natural wonders, though the sandy coast with massive waves is the biggest draw. We arrived at Aliya Surf Camp, an affordable yet well-appointed hotel owned by surfer Roy Angara, who says “I studied in Manila but I came back to Baler, fell in love with the waves. And I knew I didn’t want to be a lawyer [like the rest of my family].”

We spent the rest of the day shooting general footage: a seafood grill, two local eateries, horseback riding, and a bicycle tour. [Check our full itinerary of what “Biyahe ni Drew” did, saw, and ate in Baler.]

All in all, it was a good day.

Day two: January 16 (Drew’s birthday!)
Drew would be arriving before noon, and we all planned to surprise him: nobody would greet him a happy birthday, and we would simply film his review of a local pancit shop. In the middle of taping, we’d bring out a cake!

Before all this, we had breakfast at random roadside carinderia that wasn’t part of our planned itinerary – that’s where the trouble started.

Some advice in retrospect: The moment you smell cockroaches near the food area, leave and never look back. Bea would later say she ate her tocino despite it smelling like cockroaches because she thought “baka imagination ko lang o maarte lang ako.”


An hour later, Bea was holed up in our hotel room, rushing to the bathroom every ten minutes and spending the time in between clutching her stomach in pain. Meanwhile, half of the team went to Dimatubo Falls (also known as Mother Falls), one of the most beautiful spots in the province. The jade-colored pool was just absolute, unspoiled beauty -- well worth an hour of trekking.

Another piece of advice: Invest in the best trekking footwear you can afford. Drew mentioned the importance of footwear in another “Biyahe ni Drew” episode, saying “[Bumili] ka ng may magandang grips. Huwag yung flip-flops lang, kasi maiiwan ‘yan sa putik.” During this particular trek, our assistant camera Mong slipped in a stream and cut his foot, while I pulled my quads and was limping back to the van.

This is when we began to really feel the kindness of the locals. Our guides from the local tourism office took care of us: asking how we were, cheering us up with videos of their favorite tourist spots, and offering the team some buko juice.

Drew’s surprise celebration took place without a hitch, and he seemed pleased enough despite spending his special day in the field. Here’s the behind-the-scenes video that didn’t make it to the episode:


Later, we were spoiled with handmade kakanin by local legend Nanay Pacing. After that, we planned to have dinner at Costa Pacifica, a high-end resort in Baler, but we had no idea that they’d plan such a special meal for Drew’s birthday! Our team and our guides enjoyed a personalized menu: pizzas topped with Baler’s famous seafood and sausages, pako fern salad, chicken binakol and more.


By the end of this smorgasbord, though, Bea had not been able to keep any of the food in. We decided to take her to the hospital, and while the original plan was for just our team to take Bea there, our local guide joined us to make sure we don’t get lost and to talk to the doctors.

In the emergency room, close to midnight and after the doctors and nurses had given her medicine, Bea fell asleep and rested for the first time all day. She would make a full recovery, after all. Meanwhile, Roy of Aliya Surf Camp had given me a bag of ice to calm my aching muscles. While waiting, we chatted with the doctors of the ER.

It turns out none of them were actually from Baler, but were from Manila. They accepted the invitation to work at a small hospital in a small province, and, for one reason or another, fell in love with the place.

As we sat there, waiting for Bea to wake up, I realized what made our Baler trip so special. It wasn’t the rolling waves, the blue waterfalls, the delicious food. It was the care we felt from the Baler locals — our tour guides, Roy, the ER doctors, the suman vendor who let us into her home — that makes Baler a laidback municipality loved by so many. –PF/GMA News