We were dead set on summiting Mount Daraitan on this beautiful sunny day. However, while fueling up with a hot bowl of lomi at Barangay Daraitan, a guide from the tourism office suggested Mt. Mamara. "The hike is easier, but the view is equally spectacular as in Daraitan," he told us in Tagalog. While I was silently considering his advice, I waited for my friends Christine and Ferdz's decision if we would take a vote on what mountain to day-hike. There was silence—except for the sound of our slurping—for a few seconds before Christine made a final decision for our group: "Mt. Mamara it is then."