MIDWEST HAVEN
Overseer Wilson Balmaceda shows tomatoes on the vine, part of the organic farm in the family-owned Monteray Resort (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)
With thoughts of retirement at the back of his mind, chemical engineer Ramon Pono decided to put up stakes in his hometown.
He decided to go back to his birthplace in Pinamungajan, midwest Cebu, where he could take it easy and maybe breed gamecocks.
In 2011, he acquired a five-hectare lot with a view of the mountains, and built a two-story vacation house, a place to visit on weekends and holidays.
“Ug naa ka sa bukid makawagtang gyud sa stress sa trabaho. Presko ang hangin. Rejuvenating kaayo kay green ang scenery,” said the engineer, who looks forward to retiring in a few years from his job in the San Miguel Corp. glass plant in Mandaue City.
(When you’re in the mountains, the stress from work disappears. The air is fresh. The green views are rejuvenating.)
Today, the place welcomes visitors as a family-friendly farm-resort with an organic garden, a zipline, and “happy pigs” that munch on madre de agua leaves.
Guests can dip in the pool, have picnics, pitch tents for overnight camping and enjoy fresh mountain air. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)
A swimming pool for kids and another for grownups. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)
The property also has a pool for kids and adults.
The name of Monteray farm was coined from the names of its owners Ramon and his wife Teresina “Teray.”
Guests get to choose whether to relax in bungalows or sleep outdoor in tents.
Cottages, a swimming pool and a camping ground occupy only a portion of the five-hectare resort in Pinamungajan town. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)
Son-in-law Wilson Balmaceda, who helps supervise farm operations, said the tents can be set up at an open area close to their mini-forest and zipline area.
Plans are afoot to offer “glamping” or glamorous camping to visitors who wish to experience outdoor living sans the discomfort of sleeping on hard soil.
The first glamping tent they plan to set up can accommodate five persons. It will have a real bed and electric fan for a comfortable overnight stay.
“It’s a different experience here. What we are offering is resort and farm-themed living to give guests a break from city life,” said 32-year-old Balmaceda, husband of Pono’s daughter Karyl.
Retirement Place
Monteray farm is located about two kilometers from the town hall in sitio Dakit, barangay Poblacion.
Pono decided to open their farm to travelers and pool-users to earn revenues that would help in its upkeep.
The property used to be a coconut plantation before the family developed it into a farm-resort.
Balmaceda said they replaced coconut trees with Agoho or native pine trees for better landscaping.
Country living
Guests can set up tents in the campsite, bring their own food and prepare meals.
The area has three restrooms made of bamboo near the woods.
Two bungalows built close to the swimming pool are available for overnight stays.
A family house near the main entrance and reception area can accommodate 12 persons.
READ: Pinamungajan town refreshes with sea, caves, falls and Cebu’s first wave pool
So far, people get to know about the farm by word of mouth since it started operations in the summer of 2014.
Most visitors come for the day to use the swimming pool. These are Pinamungajan residents and locals from the neighboring towns of Aloguinsan and Toledo City.
A function room can be rented for birthdays, weddings and other special occasions.
Balmaceda said call center companies have been sending their agents to the farm for team building activities and have fun with their 15-meter-long zipline.
Organic Farm
Healthy food offerings are possible because of an organic garden at one end of the farm where Balmaceda started growing vegetables and herbs in April last year.
He got tips from an organic farm owner in barangay Busay in Cebu City and did his own research.
A nurse by profession, Balmaceda took a culinary course at the Tesda and worked for six months in the kitchen of a Cebu City hotel. He also operated a school canteen before deciding to move to the Monteray farm last year.
The farm grows mint, green tea, lettuce, basil, yellow corn, lemon grass, spring onions and tomatoes in at least ten garden beds and a small nursery.
Vermi-composting is done in a nearby shed.
“I don’t use pesticides because I learned that aside from being harmful to human health, pesticides are harmful to the soil,” he said.
In another corner of the farm are cages of native fowl.
A pen holds pigs fed on a combination of pig feed and leaves of madre de agua (trichantera gigantea).
Wilson Balmaceda feeds his “happy pigs” fresh leaves of madre de agua, a shrub used as animal fodder in several countries. (CDN PHOTO/ TONEE DESPOJO)
Balmaceda refers to the swine as “happy pigs” because of their eagerness to munch on freshly-picked leave of madre de agua, a good alternative to commercial feeds. It also also reduces the pungency of the pigs’ urine and feces.
MonTeray is shaping up to be a win-win endeavor for a family in the city that has extended its vacation home in the province into a farm and resort.