Batangas | When It Rains It Pours @ Sonata Lake Resort

One week before our Taal Volcano hike, I called up a number of resorts for a one night stay. As mentioned in my Taal Volcano climb post, I was with my mom and nephews, one of whom is only 4 years old. So even though hiking Taal Volcano can be done as a day tour, I opted to stay in a resort. I texted/called up several numbers then, one of which I got from a blogsite. I confirmed it to him that we're coming and so I thought we have a place to stay. He didn't mention he's not the resort owner so I thought he is. And when I asked about the down payment, he said no need so again, I thought we're settled. I even texted him the night before we arrived, even during the trip on our way there, to confirm that we're coming. But when we got there, nah. Nothing! We have no place to stay!

Instead, he brought us to another resort, more expensive than the one we agreed upon. I was so pissed I wanted to yell at him but of course, I didn't (though my expression says otherwise). I told him as calmly as I could muster that I thought we have an agreement. He tried explaining things but I didn't listen to him anymore. To avoid saying nasty things to the guide, I tried calling again one of the resorts I contacted before but they were not answering. Seeing me having problems contacting other resorts, the kind owners of the resort we were in offered us a lower deal, P3,500.00 (supposed to be P4,700 inclusive of breakfast) for a family room accommodation, exclusive of breakfast. Instead of calling and taking chances with other resorts, I decided to take the deal. And instead of continuing the boat deal with the first tour guide (whom I thought was the resort owner), I cancelled it. I ask the resort we are staying if they have Taal tour and they said yes, so I book with them instead. It's of the same price anyway. And besides, I don't want to take chances again with the that tour guide I first talked to.

Here's the resort we stayed overnight before our Taal volcano climb, the Sonata Lake Resort.

The resort looks new. And actually it is. The resort owner said it was opened just less than a month when we were there. It has this small two-storey building with several room accommodations, two swimming pools (for kids and for adults), nipa huts, restaurant and videoke bar. They also offer boat rental and tour services to Taal volcano.

The room we got is an air-conditioned family room at the ground level, with two double beds, a cable TV and a private bathroom/CR (no toiletries provided, by the way, and NO mirror, not even a small one anywhere in the room). The room is spacious enough for a family of four. The beds are comfy, the quilts and bed sheets are obviously new. In short, I was satisfied with our accommodation (without considering the price, that is). And so I thought we would have a comfortable and relaxing stay overnight.

But as the saying goes, when it rains it pours. Notice the overcast sky in my photos? Yes, it rained that night, a heavy pouring rain that caused flooding in the Metro. In the resort? It's raining cats and dogs outside... and inside our room. I called the attention of the resort owner and they were so sorry for the inconvenience it brought us. She offered to bring us to their family's house which is near the resort but I declined. I just requested for another room, which I thought is dry. Unfortunately, it wasn't. Only not as flooded as the first room we had.

I asked the owner what happened and she mentioned about some issues with their contractor. They say that's the reason why the resort was just recently opened. Apparently, they were aware of the situation and were pursuing the contractor who magically disappeared/became out of reach. Anyway, since the owner is very apologetic and acknowledges the problem, I didn't make a big fuss out of it. And besides, we were offered an alternative, we just declined it. Finally, after more than an hour, the rain stopped. At last, we were able to sleep, peacefully. :)

We were the only guests at that time so we have the resort all for ourselves. Had it not rained that night, our stay there would have been great.

Foods at Sonata Lake Resort are quite expensive. See that rice plates in the photo (upper left, lower right) above? That costs us P80 per plate, for a small serving of pork tapa and two small longganisa (for breakfast). For lunch/dinner, they only have package meals - choice of pork, beef or chicken dish or fish/veggie combo plus four cups of rice at P450. I find it quite expensive particularly the fish/veggie combo because it only includes 3 pieces of fried or grilled tilapia and a veggie of your choice (see menu below). We ordered chopsuey; it's  of large serving though, more than enough to serve four people but it's a bit salty, maybe that's why we have some leftovers. ;)

~ oo00oo ~