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Dasmarinas hidden gems? I need your recs
if you have a car and dont mind a bit of a drive, check out the old dbb (Don Bosco) road area near the boundary with Silang. there's a small waterfall called Malipunyo Falls, nothing grand but locals swim there and it's free. just park by the bridge and walk 10 mins through the bamboo grove. bring mosquito repellant, the bugs are aggressive in the afternoon.
also totally random but the best lugaw Ive had is at a cart on Emilio Aguinaldo Highway near the SM Hypermarket intersection, around 6pm onwards. no name just a guy with a red umbrella. his version has century egg and chicharon bits for 45 pesos.
There's a small art space tucked behind the old municipal building on Aguinaldo called Silangan Studio. It's run by a retired professor who lets people wander through his collection of pre-war photographs and local paintings, no entrance fee just a donation box. He'll probably offer you salabat and talk your ear off about the town's sugar plantation history, which is honestly more interesting than it sounds.
For a proper meal, try the batchoyan along Camella Road near the church. It's a carinderia setup with mismatched chairs but their beef batchoy is rich and they give you unlimited fried garlic on the side. Most people drive past it for the Jollibee a block away.
honestly skip the mall crawls and head to the old church area near Pala-Pala if you want history. St. Mary's Church is fine but the real charm is the little plaza behind it where locals sell kakanin and there's a weirdly good coffee stand run by an old guy who roasts his own beans.
for nature try the Imus River parkway trail on a weekday morning, it's not exactly a hidden gem but it's quiet and you can see herons if you're lucky. the view of the water isn't instagrammable but it's peaceful.
there's this tiny cafe called Kape't Alpas behind the public market, no signage just a green door. they do a mean barako brew and the owner tells stories about the city's old hacienda days. get there before 10am or they run out of tablea.