Last Saturday, March 3rd, me together with my dad and his two other brothers and their wives went on a 16hr journey from the North side of Luzon to the South and back again to celebrate my cousin's wedding.

Passing through NLEX as we head to SLEX

The long drive begun at 9am from our local town of Angat in the province of Bulacan and concluded on the chilly mountains of Batulao, Nasugbu, Batangas in the South at exactly 4pm in the afternoon.

Usually, it just takes 3-4hrs to get to Batangas, but due to heavy traffic that day, it took us 3hrs longer than usual. What a pain in the ass sitting on the car for 7hrs.

Took a quick break to eat lunch at KFC, it was around 2pm when we had our late lunch. We were in a hurry because the wedding starts at 4pm and its already past 2:00 and we still need to drive 80 kilometers more to get to our destination.

To get to Nasugbu, Batangas from SLEX (South Luzon Expressway) we needed to go through 2 provinces; exit at Sta. Rosa, Laguna; then pass though Silang, Cavite and Tagaytay City.

The travel wasn't that new to me as I have been to Tagaytay countless of times before. And it was such a nostalgia seeing some familiar landmarks from our previous trips to the wintry City.

The large cans of Coca-Cola products that you will soonly see after exiting at Sta. Rosa

A Wedding on Top of the Hill

We arrived at the wedding venue just in time. The Chapel on the Hill where the wedding was going to be held is run by Don Bosco priests and is about 30 minutes drive from Tagaytay. To get there, we took the road going to Nasugbu, Batangas. Turn left at the Evercrest Hotel and Resort. Go straight ahead and there we found the chapel on the left. It was hard to notice at first glance but you may ask assistance from the guards at the gate to help you find it.

Look for this sign on the left

The chapel was small but it was aesthetically pleasing. It was kinda rustic and circular designed. And as its name suggest, it is situated on a hill surrounded by the mountains of Batangas. (Sorry, I couldn't take photos of it from the outside as it was hard for me to do so.)

Took this shot of the beautiful flower arrangement lined along the path to the altar

Koy & Rai, Tadhana (Destiny)

I don't know much about their story, but Rai or Raizza as I call my cousin has been living in the States for over 3 years now. It was then when she moved there that she met Jekoy or Jericho and it was history as we know it. They say that it was destiny that brought them together. Jericho is a Filipino that is enlisted for the US Navy and because he was going to be deployed soon without the knowledge of where or when he is coming back again, the two then decided to get married.

Saw an opportunity to take photos of these sacred relics,lol

My cousin's parents aka my Ninong & Ninang (also Tito & Tita) and everyone else waiting for the beautiful bride to arrive

Animated GIF of my cousin walking the aisle

There is always that magical sensation whenever a bride walks the aisle. Like everything just stops even the time. Raizza was the prettiest that day.

Here they are saying their vows to each other, this was such a tearjerker moment

Mr. & Mrs. Javier

After the wedding, we went to the reception nearby at Chateau Royale but didn't stay long because we needed to depart once again and head home. The place was extravagant, the reception was outdoor themed, it was pretty chilly that night. I couldn't take photos of the reception but here is a video of the wedding of my cousin.

Credits to Jekoy for the video upload
Photos were all taken by me with my Olympus OM-D EM10 II (45mm f1.8 & 12-42mm f3.5-5.6)



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