September 19, 2012

I think it was the goat that tipped the balance and made me realize that our fairly easy ride with Francis was just about over.  But the goat came much later in the day.

Even though families are only required to stay in the Philippines for five business days, we opted to stay for two weeks so we could see more of Francis’ homeland.  Legazpi is home to the beautiful Mayon volcano, and this provides many interesting things to see and do in the area near our hotel.

The hotel arranged a tour for us that took us to the Lignon Hill Nature Park, where we had a full, unobstructed view of the volcano as well as more of the countryside. 

Lignon Hill Nature Park with the Mayon volcano in the background

 From there, we went on to the Cagsaua Ruins, which was truly beautiful.  This site was the site of the Church of Cagsaua, which was buried in an eruption of the Mayon volcano on February 1, 1814.  There were also market stalls around the perimeter of the Ruins for souvenir shopping, and Gregg and I started picking up gifts to give Francis on all of our Family Day anniversaries through the years. 

Cagsaua Ruins

 After the Ruins, we visited the beautiful Daraga Church.  This is essentially where the community relocated after the destruction of the Cagsaua Church in 1814.  The façade is carved from volcanic stones and features Our Lady of the Gate, the coat of arms of the Franciscan order and the Franciscan saints.  

Daraga Church

We drove back to the hotel through the business district of Legazpi.

Gregg and my parents were all feeling the effects of the heat that afternoon and wanted to try to beat their headaches.  Francis, or “Mr. No Nap,” as he had been dubbed by that time, was obviously NOT going to have anything to do with resting.  I decided to take him outside for a walk.  He didn’t want to go.  He wanted Daddy.  He wanted anyone but me.  I started having the sinking feeling that I was screwed, but I was a mom now and I could handle it.  We walked.  We saw chickens.  We saw a goat.  I told him I wanted to take his picture with the goat in the background.  I got a sour face – and then I got a kid taking off after a goat.  I caught up with him, and to say the least, he wasn’t pleased with me.  We went back to the hotel room.  Gregg’s nap was over, and for the most part, so was the honeymoon period.

To Be Continued…