Its been more than 5 years since I set foot again in Caylabne. During those previous visits, its exclusive for members only, and it was also managed by an international hotel chain. This time as its now open to the public, I noticed a drop in quality of dining equipment used as well as in maintenance of facilities. But at Php 900/person for use of facilities plus buffet lunch and 2 snacks, I think our company paid reasonable fee for our teambuilding last weekend.
Leaving Makati at 7 am thru Coastal Road route then traversing the Maragondon mountains, we reached Caylabne's gate on a hill after 2 hours. The resort's security guard checked our group's name against his arrival list, noted our bus' plate number, number of guests, as well as the food and drinks we are bringing in. Prior to reaching the resort, we also passed the magnetic road portion, as our bus crept thru a semi-level straight road. The bus was using its 3rd gear, but we experienced a crawling speed like we are just a notch above first gear.
After checking-in at the front desk, we proceeded to our designated area at the beach. Morning snack of pasta, buttered toast, and drink were served under a tent with monobloc chairs and tables as soon as we got settled. After 3 group games, we transferred to the beach volleyball area where an obstacle course was also nearby the edge of a river. Our last team competition prior to lunch meal was the tug-of-war, which gave us awful body aches lasting in 3 days after the activity. Pushing my vocal chords to the limit of shouting "PULL" many times, I lost my voice until the next day.
During our free time after a 6-course lunch buffet, I took a dip at the sea and at their 2 swimming pools, while enjoying the drinking session in between. The sand is light brown, not as fine or as cool as Boracay's sand. The seawater is not clear, and I have not seen a fish except for a few dead jellyfish, so snorkeling here is not an option. Some members of our group used the waterbike and kayaks for an hourly rental fee, and the resort's staff are quite lenient to extend their usage for a few minutes. Frustrated singer-colleagues belted their favorite songs on the complimentary videoke setup for our group.
At 3:30 pm, afternoon snack was served prior to getting a shower and pack-up for the trip back to Manila. I'm happy to say that my Green Team was awarded the overall champion of the games, a better finish than our second place last year.
Thanks to my officemates Lance and Vheng for providing the photos as I left my digicam at home.
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