09/08/2025
Written by our guest - a balikbayan originally from Sipocot. She married a Dutch man who worked in Bulusan as part of Philvocs. They returned to the Philippines after a long time.
"Beautiful Sorsogon…..
Four days.
Just four breathtaking, soul-soothing, time-stopping days in this hidden gem called Beata Beach & Sanctuary, and yet, it feels as though we’ve lived an entire lifetime of peace, awe, and beauty.
We arrived last Monday, fleeing the chaos of Daraga’s penthouse like exiled royalty escaping a crumbling empire. The moment our feet touched the sand, the world shifted. Time slowed. The air softened. And for the first time in ages… we exhaled😮💨.
Here, the nights whisper instead of scream. The beach walks are like poetry beneath your soles. And in the quiet hours before dawn, when the sky blushes awake, the only sounds are the waves murmuring ancient lullabies and roosters 🐓 heralding the new day like feathered prophets.
Beata was not just a sanctuary, it was our launchpad to beauty. To Bulusan Lake’s mirror-like stillness. To the markets of Bulan, where chaos danced with color. To the steamy embrace of San Benon’s hot springs, the peaceful charm of Irosin, and the dramatic cascade of Nagsipit Falls, thundering like applause from the earth itself.
And in between all the marvels, the roads, the drives, the stolen glances at rice fields, carabaos, and kids waving at strangers like they were long-lost friends, we fell in love. Not just with the place. But with the rhythm of it all. The people, their warmth, the way they made us feel like we belonged to something greater than a vacation.
And now…
We leave.
Hearts 💕 heavier than our backpacks, eyes 👀 misty not from the sea breeze, but from the knowing the ache that this chapter must pause. But only pause. Because Santa Magdalena, this quiet miracle, has etched itself into our hearts.
And back in the Netherlands, as we share stories with laughter and longing, we’ll speak of this place not as a destination…
But as a home we found by beautiful accident.
Until next time."
Malou Prestado