Surfing, is the sport of the secret egoist. Few people find long minutes spent attempting to clamber atop waves more likely to send you cartwheeling headlong into shore than not, using long surfboards that have as much chance of finding your head as finding waves to surf on, fun.

Only those slapped around enough times by large expanses of water hitting their faces at what seems like mach speed 3 to figure out the formula for staying afloat, or those inexperienced enough to believe that they can do better, would actually choose surfing as an out-of-town excursion of choice, in the belief that for a few brief seconds they can be, in fact, lighter than water. Apparently, I fall into the latter category.

This is it! Surf's up at the San Juan Surf Resort!

The San Juan Surf Resort is what its name implies - people don't come here necessarily for the swimming. The large sign by the beach, announcing the dangers of swimming too far out, is testament to that fact. Some of the non-surfers are content to lounge about, wading and building figures in the sand. Most are there though, to watch the veteran surfers in action. The surfing resort frequently hosts surfing tournaments, attracting enthusiasts nationwide - and even some from places from as far away as the USA or Germany. Les and I decided to try out the overnight package being offered by Travel Factor: a small van picked us up at the Podium at around midnight; after a few stops to eat (yes, in the middle of the night – for what can be considered, a midnight snack) and find public bathrooms, we reached La Union at around 7:30 am.

If you're not here to surf, or watch the surfers, then you're better off not coming here at all. You'll need better knowledge of the area to actually find stores and places to shop at, and all requires taking some measure of transportation. The San Juan resort is run by the Billabong company, and everything has been tailored to address the needs of the avid surfer, rather than the avid shopaholic, or even the avid swimmer.

Getting There

San Juan Surf Resort is located by MacArthur Highway, just north of the city of San Fernando, in the province of La Union, Philippines. There are two economical ways to get to San Juan Beach Resort if you don't have your own vehicle – by taking north-bound bus and by hiring vans. By bus, you'll need to take any that's bound for Abra, Ilocos Sur, Laoag, San Fernando, or Vigan. These are northern Luzon destinations and will travel via Dau. Buslines include Dominion Transit, Farinas, Maria De Leon, Partas, and Viron. The bus ride will take anywhere between 6 to 8 hours, and will stop by Sebay, neighboring San Juan Surf Resort.

For a more comfortable route and for larger groups – especially those with surf boards, do consider hiring a van. Major transit points in cities like Angeles will have these guys standing by. Again, do expect 6 to 8 hours of travel time. For the best experience, check the bus or van's seats and make sure that they're comfortable. The last thing you need are 1. an aching back, 2. losing the morning by needing to get catch some snooze at the resort, and 3. 6 to 8 hours of being caught between being half awake, and half asleep.

Accommodations

Nightly accommodation are also fairly affordable. If you're traveling with an Adventure group like Travel Factor, you do get the benefit of group rates, but since you'll be traveling with newly acquainted fellers, you may need to share accommodations. Travel Factor may be able to get you a room for yourself or you and your companion, however, may not apply all the time and may cost you a little extra.

This bungalow's front is well covered by foliage. Two chairs and a small bamboo coffee table are situated just at the porch for those contemplating between boredom inside, and a lack of waves at the beach front.

The first thing that will greet the guest is the powder-white bed. It's not the most comfortable one we've tried, but enough to get a nice rest from those aching muscles after a whole day struggling to one-up mother nature. Two towels are provided.

Just across the bed are the main furnishings and appliances of the room. There's a couple of surfaces where you can put your baggage and clothes on. A modestly sized wooden compartment, a TV (with cable), and a small but empty refrigerator are all ready to use.p

The bathroom is notably very small and can only accommodate up to two – one at the toilet area and one at the shower. It's not exactly the one that Mr. Clean recently maintained either (must be the somewhat aged look), but it was enough to get comfortable with. A toilet paper roll's already provided.

You're not expected to spend most of your time in your room except at night, so lodgings are generally spartan, but clean enough to suit your purpose, though the small available kitchen allows you to bring and cook your own food. Be prepared to bring a lot of insect repellents and bug lotion, and take up liberal spraying before bunking down for the night; otherwise, mosquitoes are going to be a decided annoyance.

Just on the other side of the wall by the bed is a mini kitchenette, complete with a small stove and basin. Again, not exactly the cleanest looking furnishings we've seen, but they're usable.

They have cable and refrigerator too.

Their published rates for Airconditioned bungalow rooms start from 1,200 pesos, which is good for 2 persons, and may go up to 1,600 for 4 persons. These rooms are the ones equipped with television (and cable), refrigerator, a mini kitchen. Standard airconditioned room start at 950 pesos, which is good for 2 persons, and goes up to 1,350 pesos, which is good for 4 persons.

A small wave model made of cement bakes under the searing sun. Great for shade, and for some inspirational practice.

Just by the beach is San Juan Surf Resort's small dining hall. Facing the sea, a sit-down here with a nice pinoy silog (fried rice and sunny side up egg with a small side dish) style breakfast or a cup of coffee is a great way to clear one's mind.

Of course, if you forgot you were going to a surfing resort, there's a shop here for all your surfing or wakeboarding needs.

For those on an budget, they can avail of rooms as low as 550 pesos, which is good for 2 persons, and this one only comes with a fan for cooling. Now for those on an absolutely limited budget, there's a dorm-type of room, which will cost visitors 250 pesos a night.

A little night swimming is possible here as the resort across this has flood lamps pointed at the direction to the sea.

There are also other types of accommodations, which include a condo unit good for 4 persons, which will cost you 2,500 pesos, and a penthouse unit on the condo, also good for 4 persons, which will cost you 3,600 pesos.

Don't forget to enjoy the sights as you enjoy the sport. This sunset was taken by the beach near the cement factory, about 20 minutes away from where San Juan Surf Resort is.

If the waves at the San Juan Surf Resort's too rough for novices, you might be taken to – as in the case of our Travel Factor-accompanied trip – the beach by the cement factory.

Long-term visitors can also avail of monthly rentals and discounts on the condo rates during low season. A regular condo unit will cost 15,000 pesos monthly, and a penthouse unit, 22,000 pesos monthly.

Low season is from May 1 to September 30. Rates may change according to the season.

Check-in time is 1:00pm, and check-out is at 11,30am, with an additional charge of 150 pesos per additional hour of overtime.

Surfing: Better Than The Gym

Depending on the waves, neophyte surfers will be spending some time learning either at the San Juan Beach Resort's coast; or instructions will have to be held on the other side near a cement factory (not to worry, it's just near, and there's no waste being spilled on the water). The San Juan Beach Resort coast is a tad rough, and is usually reserved for the seasoned surfer during peak months.

Renting a board costs roughly 200 pesos an hour; instructor training costs just as much. If you're new to surfing, you won't have much choice but to get an instructor regardless; newbies floundering among the waves, aside from being funny to look at, is severely discouraged. After a few minutes' pointers on how to position oneself on a surfboard while still on the beach, each person gets their own personal coach to help steady their boards against some of the larger waves; they also tell you when to begin, give your board a helpful shove when the wave finally arrives, and are patient enough to call out encouragements even after you've spent the past hour up to your eardrums in sand.

Mr. Macho here (seriously, we're not kidding!) from San Juan Surf Resort gives us a brief run down on what surfing is all about.

There will be other friendly surfer-guides who will be giving each neophyte surfer a 15 minute rundown on how to surf. These are hands-on by the beach by the way.

When everyone's ready for a wipe-out, it's time to head into the water and test out that newly acquired skill!

For my part, it was climbing up the surfboard while large waves were trying to bitchslap your face that was one of the main difficulties. Most of the instructors sported washboard abs, broad shoulders, and fairly small waists - years spent climbing up and down boards did that to your physique, but I only had about a day to get it right, so did my best. 80% of my attempted surfings ended in failure - I am probably the only short person I know of with no center of gravity whatsoever. Les was a little more successful at it than I was. An hour spent surfing (or rather, climbing up and down boards and attempting to surf) was almost tantamount to a grueling workout session at the gym.

If you're facing the beach front front San Juan Surf Resort, this area's on the left, and believe us, you don't want to careen near these while riding the waves.

We did get a kick out of watching how they stored their surfboards once we were done for the day, though.

The Other Great Travel Experience: Eating Out

There are some number of eating places along the beach, mostly by other resorts as well. One small open air restaurant right next to San Juan offered a large variety of Filipino foods, and was very affordable for the amount they served. Their kare-kare was chock full of meat and vegetables to satisfy, their kilawing tanigue was fresh and had the right sourness to it that I like. A sweet banana shake rounded up the lunch. All in all, the food cost a little under 450 pesos, including rice. The disadvantage of traveling without anyone else to split the tab with is that Les and I pay more for our food than we would have if this was a friends' outing, but our meal would probably satisfy 3 to 4 people all in all - as it was, we were fairly stuffed by the time we'd finished.

The kare-kare is served in a clay pot, just the way we like it! It's got a healthy mix of pork slices and the usual vegetables like eggplant, string beans, and banana heart. Add the bagoong or shrimp paste in and you're set to enjoy this pinoy dish.

To add a little spice to the kare-kare, we tried out their kilawin tanigue, or sliced raw tanigue meat on vinegar. Sibuyas Labuyo or small but very hot chilis, along with ginger and onion slices complete the mix.

For dinner, our Travel Factor guide took us away from the resort, and a little further into the city. The Midway Grill is easily one of the more popular places judging by the number of customers eating inside, and is very reminiscent of a 70s or 80s American diner. It's also one of the more affordable restaurants there, costing as low as 60 pesos for a rice meal, and less than 300 pesos for a large serving of good steak.

After a tiring but exciting surfing session, we headed over to the Midway Grill. It's a diner that's still stuck in the 70s or 80s, and serves a wide variety of international meals with friendly prices.

Surfing was fun - which was a surprise, because I wasn't expecting it. Don't expect the pampered five star treatment here - most come for the surfing and the competitions, not for any luxurious accommodations or high class meals - but it's an absolutely good vacation spot, if a good vacation for you involves the beach, an inclination to try out something new, and not much else.

Contact

For reservations and more information about San Juan Surf Resort, contact them at +63 72 720-0340, or e-mail them at landrigan@sflu.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Visit their website at www.sanjuansurfresort.com. For those who wish to visit at more or less the right time (as weather is really difficult to predict these days), San Juan Surf Resort also has a live net cam overlooking the beachfront for monitoring swells accessible from their site.

When the day's over, it's time to say goodbye to the surfer dudes and their surfboard-packed jeepney. We'll miss ya until our next visit!

If you would like to know more about the Travel Factor adventure group, do check them out at thetravelfactor.multiply.com. E-mail them at travel.factor@gmail.com. They can take you to places you'd normally not find yourself in, and their trips -charged per head, are pretty affordable, too.