Ritz Azul Bares Amidst The Lush Beauty Of Misibis Bay Island Resort

WE JUST returned from a weekend trip to Misibis Bay in Cagraray Island, about 45 minutes away via beautiful concrete roads from Legazpi City, Albay. The sky was clear the whole time we were there so we got to see the majestic Mayon Volcano as we travel to the island. This is what other resorts can’t offer: the awesome sight of the magnificent volcano and its perfect cone looming in the sky.

The resort also offers a city tour of Legazpi, taking us to the Cagsawa Ruins, the ancient Daraga Church and other places of interest. The best for us is Lignon Hills, on top of which you get a breathtaking 360-degree view of the entire city down below. It has a zipline, a challenging hanging bridge (which we tried), a great view of Mayon, plus souvenir shops.

TV5 is taping its new mini-series, aptly titled “Misibis Bay”, in the world class island resort with its beautiful white sand beach, three huge pools with an infinity pool and magnificent scenery of mountains and deep blue sea all around. They offer buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner (by the beach) and they really have a good chef as all their dishes are just sumptuous.

We got to interview all the stars: Ritz Azul (who’s being launched here), Christopher de Leon as the owner of the resort who falls in love with Ritz, Vivian Velez as Boyet’s scheming sister who wants to steal ownership of the resort from him, Andrea del Rosario as Vivian’s partner in crime, hunks Daniel Matsunaga, Victor Silayan and Vin Abrenica as Boyet’s sons with three different moms who all fall for Ritz, Megan Young as Daniel’s fiancée, Luke Jickain as the lifeguard who’s Vivian’s secret lover, plus newcomers Lucky Mercado and Malak So Shdifat. Absent in the island is Boots Anson Roa as Ritz’ grandma.

Ritz says she couldn’t believe it when told she’d topbill “Misibis Bay”. “May hesitation ako with Mr. Christopher de Leon kasi I know he’s a great actor,” she says. “Sobrang nahihiya ako sa kanya. But he said no, huwag kang mahihiya. Sobrang bait niya. Ang first scene namin was me doing a lap dance on him kasi dancer ako rito. May dancer sa set to teach me how to do it. Once nag-take na, my role as Maita took over at nawala si Ritz. I like my role here kasi ibang-iba sa mga nagawa ko na in ‘Nagbabagang Bulaklak’, ‘Glamorosa’ and ‘Kidlat’. Squatter ako dito, I take care of my lola, palaban sa buhay. May twists sa story. May revenge plan pala ako. It’s a very challenging role and I want to thank TV5 for trusting me na makakaya kong gawin ito. Actually, lahat ng characters dito, may secrets and hidden agenda.”

How daring will she be? “Sa pictorial pa lang with Wyg Tysman, puro two piece na ko. Talo pa yung ginawa ko sa FHM. May love scene daw kami ni Mr. Christopher pero di pa nakukunan. Siempre, may limitation naman kasi for TV ito. I trust our directors, Monti Parungao and Jon Red. I know hindi naman ako mababastos dito.”

Did she ask permission from her parents? “Siempre naman. 19 lang ako and I’m still living with them. They told me it’s up to me to make the decision, they’ll just be here to support me. First time ko nga to travel alone. Wala akong kasama kahit alalay rito sa Misibis Bay. So lang talaga and we’ll be taping here for two weeks.”

With Daniel, Victor and Vin also competing with her, will she eventually have love scenes and make “tuhog” to all of them? “I don’t know yet kung tutuhugin ko nga sila. Basta alam ko, mai-in love sila sa’kin, but I don’t know kung makaka-love scene ko silang lahat.”

So who’d she prefer to do first? “Ay, bahala na sina Direk. Ang importante, comfortable naman ako sa kanilang tatlo. We all attended a workshop before we started taping at friends ko na silang lahat.”

“Misibis Bay” starts airing on primetime on June 10, after “Cassandra: Warrior Princess”.