There’s a reason why the province is called Pangasinan. Derived from the word asin, Pangasinan literally means land of salt.

Traveling to the extreme west of Pangasinan, to the distant town of Dasol, we soon discovered fields upon fields of salt. Kuya Kolet, our magical driver, was resourceful enough to bring us to a local community who live off the salt of the earth.

Salt water from the South China Sea is pumped into these salt fields which are made to be as shallow as possible to facilitate drying. Salt crystals or chunks are then collected.

Most of the salt fields we saw had a brick bedding. Don’t ask me why. I just saw.

The collected salt chunks are then processed and purified by boiling in water. Here, Rex is sifting out the salt from the boiling water. The wet salt is then transferred back to the basket where it is left to dry. The excess salt water drips back into the hot pool below.

Here are two baskets full of Pangasinan salt ready for trade!

The two baskets in front contain yellowish or discolored salt since these came from the last batches which most likely are burnt

Tutong kumbaga.

If you’re visiting prepare your senses as the place is mighty hot and the salty steam wafting all around is hard on the eyes and nose. Other than that, you’re set to go!

The salt-making community we visited was located just along the National Highway in Dasol, Pangasinan. There are also similar communities in the neighboring towns.

When in Bolinao…

• Swim – take the pool or head to the beach. Just make sure you enjoy the water.
• Swim again, in the caves – for something unique, head over to enchanted cave or cindy’s cave, take a dip in the natural swimming pool inside the cave. Don’t expect shangri-la out here. Bring out the jologs in you and enjoy the unique adventure with your friends. Don’t mind the “scent”, just swim.




• Lighten up – visit the Light house at Cape Bolinao. It’s not everyday we see a lighthouse
• Watch the sunset – good view of the sunset at Cape Bolinao Beach, Patar. Nice white beach, picnic kubos and wonderful waves.
• See giant clams – head over the the Marine Science Institute, 3 kms from the town center. The institute is a host to giant clams being nurtured in a protected environment and being returned to sea when they’re … uh … big enough



• Mamalengke – visit the local market on market day, have some of their local fruits and veggies, and some of the carinderia food for those who’ve got strong stomachs

Here’s a list of some places to stay while in Bolinao …

ka edong

I Google searched for a place to spend a long weekend at Bolinao. Punta Riviera caught my attention with its professionally made website and pretty good photos. The rates sheet on the website was a bit confusing, though, but I was determined to book a room and made sure to secure my reservation via bank deposit.

After an adventurous bus ride, we reached the resort and I was pleased with what I saw. I can tell that the resort is rather new (found out later: it opened to the public in 2005), had a well manicured lawn and very pleasant staff. The room was elegant with a queensize bed, a satellite TV and DVD player (I never figured out how to work the TV, though – I don’t mind because I don’t watch much TV), and a shower that looked like one from a Jimmy Neutron or Jetson’s episode. There are some family rooms and dorm-type rooms too.

The resort has a bar and restaurant. There’s a nice 2-level pergola for a nice dinner by candlelight . Here’s a tip: to avoid inconvenience, order your meals well in advance and tell the staff what time you want your meal to be served.

The infinity pool is pretty, host for a pleasant dip for kids and adults alike. At an angle, the pool looks as if it extends all the way to the sea and the horizon. The resort is right smack at the point where a river (Ilog Malino) meets the sea.

When you venture right outside the resort, you’ll find a nice white-sand beach. The resort has a couple of kayaks for anybody wanting to take a rowing adventure upstream Ilog Malino.

Within 20 minutes from the Resort are some Bolinao tourist spots like underground caves (bring your bathing suits for a nice swim in the natural pool inside the cave), the Cape Bolinao Light house at Patar, and the Cape Bolinao Beach which some have started to refer to as the “Boracay of the North”. Back in the town center, it’s just a few kilometers to reach the UP Marine Science Institute where you’ll see some giant clams!

When in Bolinao, Punta Riviera is a great place to relax and unwind. Look for manager Gener and proprietor Ian Smith, do mention that you found their place via ka edong’s article on PinoyTravelBlog .

ka edong

Summer is here and with the weather heating up, it would be perfect cooling down with some fun in the water.

Up north at Bonuan, Pangasinan we’ll find the Leisure Coast Resort which is perfect place to cool down for summer. Leisure Coast has three slides (all three-storey high), a wave pool, nice water-playground for kids.

Expect lots of people this summer. Avoid the weekends when there’ll be more people sharing the pool and making longer queues at the slides. Book in advance if you want to stay overnight in their cozy cabanas (keep the doors closed, keep the insects out).

Have fun, stay kewl!

Visit the Leisure Coast Resort website.

ka edong

My brother had his long weekend vacation there. According to him, it is a 5-to-6-hour drive going there. But before you’ll get to paradise, you’ll have to encounter first a rough road that is really worth around an hour of your time.

A not-so-white sand

They stayed at Treasures of Bolinao which is the nearest resort to White Beach. Well, the sands of White Beach are not fine compared to Boracay. It’s the one actually used in aquariums. Going farther from the shoreline, there are rocks underwater which makes it not suitable for swimming. The beach is good for sun basking. Just lie down on the shoreline with your shades on. Aside from that you can also enjoy watching the beautiful school of fish as they swim from different directions just near the shoreline. And if you want to be a little serious with that, do not forget to bring your goggles and snorkling gear.

Natural Aquarium

But for those who wanted to enjoy real swimming, there’s a swimming pool at the Treasures of Bolinao that you can enjoy.

Swimming Pool at Treasures of Bolinao

Credits to my brother for the pictures

“On this Site in 1897, Nothing Happened!”

This is just one of the wackiest signs that you may encounter during your road trip at Pangasinan. Thanks to my brother who shared me this picture.