a day at the cove

I used to be a regular at Island cove.  Back in 2005, I lost major poundage playing tennis there. But I had to stop. Mainly because it was financial suicide if I continue. I was not playing competitively, I played with a trainer. So I had to pay for court usage charges, pay for the trainer fees and pay for the ball boy. Back then, what I was shelling out for my twice-weekly game was equivalent to a quarter of my monthly salary. 

My officemate recently spent a day with her family at Island cove and told me that her kids had loads of fun with what the place had to offer. I heard her say that they swam and biked around.  So in my endless quest to keep fit, I asked my nephew to go with me for an early morning bike.

Much has changed since the last time I was there. Very noticeable was the new CAVITEX. The new road that connects Kawit to Coastal road. So for those who will be coming from Manila, you can now be spared of the gruesome traffic along E. Aguinaldo Highway. Me, my nephew Jermaine and cousin Lara walked to the entrance.  Way back in 2005, I used to just enter freely and announce that I would be playing tennis, thereby exempting me from resort entrance charges. But when we got there, we were asked to pay 100 pesos each in exchange for IC (Island Cove... I guess) money that we could use for purchases inside the resort.Fair enough since I heard we are to pay 100 pesos for an hour of bike rental. This is a mandatory charge for everybody. Since I have also tried running inside the resort before. I can not help but ask if I will be charged should I not use any of the resort's facilities and just run around. Yup! I still need to pay entrance fees! I guess nothing really is free. But they offered me membership to their runner's club. For 300 pesos, I will be given an ID to grant me free access to the resort to run. This card is valid for a year. No thank you.

I was not aware that the bike rentals will not be available until 8:00 am ( We went there on a Friday, we were told that on weekends, they operate an hour earlier) We were there as early as 7:00 am. We walked around, visited the fishing village and spent a few moments by the poolside. Since I noticed that my nephew was losing his enthusiasm and was starting to feel bored. I challenged him to a game of chess. Here's a few shots courtesy of my cousin Lara:

 

Here is Maine with his Queen!

After our game.. actually once we saw the bike rental counter was already opened. We rearranged the chess pieces and chose our bikes. Lara and Jermaine picked mountain bikes, old fashioned me, I picked a BMX. After an hour of butt-punishing-leg-torturing biking, we decided to call it a day, or half a day and went home to a hearty breakfast. 

Find out more about ISLAND COVE.For a quick getaway from the summer heat!