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Road Trip
Tintin's Day Out
Despite the hectic preparations for our third anniversary issue, we took time and the new Mazda 3 to give our stressed editorial assistant a romp in her natural habitat
Words by Dinzo Tabamo; Photography by Chino Acosta
Editorial Assistant Tintin Garcia is Top Gear's girl wonder. Every now and then, we just look at the girl and wonder. She arrived at our doorstep bubbly and full of energy, eager to join our world. A few months into the job, the energy is still there, but there have been times when we've caught her silently toiling on her Mac for hours without saying a word. And when Tintin doesn't say anything, it's the equivalent of a normal person not drawing in air. Or Vernon not looking at girls.
So we decided it was time to give her a break by doing a road trip to a setting she was most comfortable in. Prior to TG, Tin had worked in Boracay as interior designer for two years. We also hadn't done a road trip to the beaches in Batangas, so we made a few phone calls and found a resort that would gladly accommodate us: the Coco Grove Resort in Laiya.
For the trip, Mazda lent us the refreshed 3. The carmaker said over 100 enhancements had been made on the vehicle. Subtle ones, we think. The original Mazda 3, after all, was already a good automobile. With a sporty car, an overnight reservation to a beach resort and a full tank of gas, we felt preparations were already up to Tintin's exacting standards.
On the morning of the trip, I picked up Tintin and our longtime road-tripping photog Chino. From the onset, Tintin was giddy with excitement and Chino was his usual languorous self. One has to understand that Chino consi-ders himself an artist. Hence, when he isn't seeing art with his critical eye, he is bored. It pains his artistic sensibilities to be subjected to the crass commercialism of a magazine, but he retains enough sense to realize his pretty digital tools cost a lot of that paper stuff with dead presidents printed on them (he resents money because he believes he could have photographed the presidents better). While he lends his skills to consumerism, he retains the dignified air of an artiste, so we call him 'The Don'.
I had the singular honor of driving for Tintin and The Don. For our road-trip music, the Mazda 3 V had an in-dash six-disc CD changer that even played MP3 files. The sound system could be controlled via buttons on the steering wheel. This function quickly becomes second nature and lets you enjoy the drive by minimi-zing your distractions. Actually, the Mazda 3 has to be commended for having one of the best driver's cockpits in motoring. The cowling on the gauges, the thick steering wheel, and the steering column (that adjusts for reach and rake) are proof of that.
After three hours on the road (including a terrific blast down the STAR tollway), the directions we found on www.laiyacocogrove.com led us to the resort. We visited in the off-season after summer, so Coco Grove had a laid-back atmosphere and few guests. It was also a Monday, so the relative exclusivity was to be expected.
Upon alighting from the car and smelling the fresh sea breeze, Tintin and Chino wasted no time in lighting up cigarettes and blackening their lungs (Top Gear has a no-smoking policy inside test vehicles). Being off-season, Coco Grove had a smaller staff than usual. They were efficient and unobtrusive, letting us enjoy the scenery but always nearby when we needed anything. We met our point man, Yulo De Chavez, who led us to the dining area where we had a late lunch. The food in Coco Grove was good home-style cooking—tasty and filling.
After lunch, Yulo led us to our rooms—or, in this case, our tree. Among Coco Grove's draws are its tree houses, which are literally houses built around the trees by the beach. We climbed a flight of stairs to the house perched on the tree. Inside was a living area and two rooms with their own bathrooms, all refreshingly air-conditioned. At the center, a huge tree trunk greeted us, and in one of the bathrooms, we had to duck a little to avoid a big branch from hitting our heads.
There were also poolside cottages and a big dormitory-type house called, well, Bahay Kubo. But the tree houses were something else: Not only do you wake up to the sound of the ocean crashing a few feet away, you also have a good vantage point because of the elevation. Under the tree houses were some lounge chairs and a small table, perfect for watching sunsets.
We freshened up and checked out what Coco Grove had to offer. We got into the car with Yulo and he led us to another beach property of Coco Grove just a five-minute drive away. A sign that said “Camp Laiya” was visible at the end of the driveway. This was an area built for camping purposes. Within the camp, guests had access to showers and cooking facilities.
On the beach itself, several volleyball nets had been set up. There was also an open pavilion, a jungle trek and two long cables strung out from two tall trees. The latter was part of what they called the 'flying fox': The participant wears a harness attached to a device that rides on the cables. So from the top of the tree, the rider glides down the cable to the beach below. Just like in the movies.
Since Chino had to take photos and I was just the humble driver and chronicler of events (actually, I still had issues about going down cables from a previous road trip), Tintin gladly volunteered. She excitedly clambered up the tree to the flying fox's staging area where she was harnessed and readied. Looking like a real swinger, she glided down the cable twice.
We then proceeded to the short jungle trek, but one peek told Yulo the recent rains had made the path unpassable. We sat in the pavi-lion and chatted with our host about the resort and what it's like to work on the beach.
Yulo explained the facilites in Camp Laiya were also designed with corporate team-building sessions in mind. Hence, the pavilion and the group facilities. The flying fox, jungle trek, and some tires arranged in pairs on the beach can be combined to make up a relay race where teams compete for the fastest time.
We headed back to the main resort where we watched the sunset under our tree house, sipping brewed coffee from a coffee press. You wouldn't confuse Coco Grove with Amanpulo, but they had the right touches.
After more lying about (isn't that what you do on a beach?), it was time for dinner. We were served a hearty repast, after which we retired to our rooms. Even though Tintin did all the activities, we were all spent chronicling her enjoyment and giving her moral support.
The next day after breakfast, we explored the resort's other amenities. Yulo brought out one of their kayaks—a yellow one. As the strains of 'Yellow Submarine' started playing in my head, I politely asked to be exempted from the activity. Tintin gamely paddled around the beach, accompanied by our host. After Chino got the artsy sun-dappled shots he wanted but we never asked for, we herded Tintin to her next activity—the trampoline. She bounced around a bit and felt woozy after a few minutes.
There were other activities Coco Grove had to offer, like horseback riding and a golf driving range, but we decided to spend the remaining time doing the one activity beach resorts are really made for—swimming. I can't stress enough how relaxing it feels to live—even temporarily—beside the beach. We went to our rooms, changed into swim attire and went down to the water. Even Don Chino swam with us, despite the proletariat implications of swimming on a beach not located on a private island.
After frolicking in the ocean, we made our way to the swimming pool. We found a hose that was feeding fresh water to the pool and used it to cool our warm bodies. The cold water wonderfully contrasted with the lukewarm water in the pool. When we had our fill of swimming, we headed to the dining area for lunch.
After lunch, we readied our things and took some safety shots of the Mazda 3. We thanked our man Yulo, as well as the friendly staff who worked behind the scenes. We all piled into the car and headed back to civilization.
The car's stereo slowly lulled Tintin to sleep in the back of the car. We took her peaceful slumber as a sign of our mission having been accomplished.
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Top Gear Philippines - September 2007
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