Wazzup Pilipinas!
The call time for members of the media was at 6 am of October 29, 2015 at the Department of Tourism (DOT) Makati office. Our destination was San Juan, La Union, known as the surfing capital of the North for being the preferred surfing spot for both beginners and professionals who want a laid-back surfing experience.
With only five hours away from Manila, the place is very accessible even through commute via bus lines that directly pass along the spot where many surfing enthusiasts gather almost every weekend and even during weekdays especially during the surfing seasons when the tides are at its best.
We travelled via van exclusive to a handful of media people invited by DOT to cover the annual event. Wazzup Pilipinas is proud to be a part of the group. It was a great day to travel since it was fairly sunny and without any sign of rain. We will surely be stoked this weekend!
What makes the place very special is the annual surfing break event that is always held at the same spot. The 10th La Union Surfing Break, held from October 30 to November 1 at Urbiztondo San Juan, La Union, is the climactic event when all surfers, wannabes, and other like-minded individuals, enjoy being together under the sun and amongst the sand and sea.
La Unison Surfing Break is the flagship event of La Union that has continued to draw in crowds for years, and considered as one of the best tourism events geared on sports and wellness. If the regular days already attracts crowds, what more during the surfing break events. You'll definitely see San Juan alive all throughout the day - from early morning up until 9 am when surfing is at its best, and the nightlife at bars and restaurants where you can chill with your friends or barkadas, or just about anybody you newly met while surfing.
The event boasts of a street dancing competition, a surfboard design contest, several surf clinics from different surf shops, a sandcastle building contest, a sundown fun run, a Trick or Treat costume contest to celebrate Halloween, a Henna Tattoo design contest, and a Face and Body painting contest.
We had surfing lessons 101 from Surf Star, owned by Felimon "Lemon" Dines, who was also one of the organizers of the event. His team taught us the basics of surfing in just a few minutes before going to the waters, and almost an hour doing the actual surfing through their guidance. Some of us managed to successfully stand on top of the surfboard since some already had previous experience on surfing while some of us still had to endure falling down into the waters at every attempt.
Also at the event were a Fun Art exhibit by the Arts Guild of La Union (AsLAUN), a photography contest, a few surfing competition, a Zumba session, a beach volleyball tournament, and a beach party in the evening filled with booze and food from participating stalls.
Thank you to the organizers of the 10th La Union Surfing Break headed by DOT Region 1 Director Martin Valencia, La Union Tourism Officer Adamor Dagang, surfer and surf school owner Felimon "Lemon" Dines.
See you again next year for the 11th La Union Surfing Break, of which the DOT has announced the transfer of obligation to the local government. By next year, the LGU will now be responsible in organizing the annual event. We hope that it will be equally as successful as when the DOT was leading it.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
