A Surreal Weekend with a Stranger

Their story goes along the line “A boy with a broken soul meets a girl with a broken heart.”  A kitsch and sentimental theme torn straight from the script of a local teleserye.

But it happened for real. To her, to him. In the mystical island of Siquijor.

And here’s their story:

Breaking a nine-year relationship with her ex was far from difficult... it was devastating, and to cope with the occasional bites of sadness, she had to do what she loves doing most -- traveling. As one of her post break-up trips, she planned a weekend trip to Siquijor and Dumaguete City. 

She was prepared to pushing through with the trip alone until she got a message from this person saying that he's impressed with her blog, and that he’s interested tagging along to some of her future trips. Casually, she told him about her upcoming Visayas getaway. And much to her surprise, he did book a round trip ticket to Dumaguete -- with the dates same as hers. 

“Where would he sleep?”, “What are we going to talk about?” were the first two questions that popped the minute she learned about him joining the trip. Yes, she knows him by name, but technically, he’s a stranger.

Then after giving it some thought, she realized that she needed a travel buddy to share financial damages with, and someone to break bread in the breakfast table with.

They had a couple of pre-trip meet-ups to discuss the "itinerary." She learned that he's the kind who likes to stick with outlined itineraries, while she’s the type who enjoys a good dose of spontaneity. 

She learned that he is also going through a difficult Saturn Return akin to hers. The past months were beating down on him, having to face huge endings and limping through small beginnings. And just like her, he is also working his way to recovery one day at a time. 

Despite the odds, they both felt that they needed this getaway. They needed a short break from their spiraling downhill lives. So they looked forward to the trip with so much gusto. 

My 2012 Playlist

This year became a pendulum of blissful highs and extreme lows in my life. For the most part, it was shaped by fortuitous events and irrevocable choices. And the one thing that had kept me company through the difficult times is music.

Music is a beautiful art that heals. Its dynamics - the beats, harmony, the lyrics, and melody -became my daily source of happiness. Music wakes me up in the morning, teaches me to push forward, allows me to let go, makes me appreciate the tiny beautiful things around, and more than anything, it allows me to breathe through life's challenges and promises.  It urges me to just live, and to live no matter how life sucks sometimes.

Music is everywhere -- inside my room, in my workplace, while waiting in the airport, while aboard a fast craft in the middle of a wild sea, in a bus while on long night trip, and while catching a magnificent sunset beside a beach. Music needs no space and time. It travels with me. 

I know it's a little too early to list my 2012 favorites but this one can't wait.  Here are some of my personal picks straight from my own playlist. Enjoy!

1. M. Ward - Here Comes The Sun Again

"The leaves on the trees they all call out your name,
Chrome on the freight line shines the same
And the stars in their cars roll their tops down for you singing,
Here comes the sun again."

2. Jason Mraz - Living in the Moment

"Living in the moment

Living my life

Easy and breezy

With peace in my mind

I got peace in my heart

Got peace in my soul

Wherever I'm going, I'm already home

I'm living in the moment."

Braving Basilan

Hello from Basilan!

My mother didn't know that I went to Basilan. In fact, she wasn't aware that her two curious daughters went to this island which is widely known for its volatile security situation. She would have definitely opposed the idea that we would step in this island that has been so notoriously portrayed in the local and international media.  And to spare her unnecessary headaches, we deliberately chose not to let her know about our trip.

But we did survive Basilan. Well, at least Isabela City, its capital.

Basilan, which is a part of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), is a 4^th class province in terms of gross provincial income. It is home to three ethnic groups – the Yakans and Tausugs who are predominantly Muslims and the Zamboanguenos who are mostly Christians.  

The daring trio -- Ja, Che and Cha

Along with our friend Janet, Cha and I did a quick side trip to Basilan during our recent backpacking Mindanao adventure. For security reasons, we sought the help of Kuya Daniel, an ex- military man who accompanied us while roaming the streets of Isabela.

Chasing Waterfalls

I'm the type who'd go around chasing waterfalls. Quite literally, though. 

I think there's nothing more exciting than hiking down a ravine, hearing the wild surging water descending from an upstream river, and seeing for the first time a rough flow  of water plunging straight down a deep catch basin. There's always that moment of awe knowing that that beautiful scene is tucked and hidden in the middle of a thick green forest, and there's always that invitation to jump right into the turquoise-colored water.

I have seen some of the most vibrant cascades here in the Philippines. Most of these waterfalls share the same character as the others. Just like   the graceful flow of Kabigan, Batlag, Daranak and katibawasan Falls; or the rogue vertical drop of Tapiyah and Bomod-ok Falls; or the tiered and delicate cascade of Merloquet Falls; or the gentle and segmented flow of Cambugahay Falls. 

I know there are still a lot around that I have yet seen. And I'm so looking forward to updating the list I have below as soon as I get to explore the others. But for now, bask in the beauty of these waterfalls. :)

Note: The next time you visit a waterfall, please make sure not to leave any trash within the area. Bring your own trash bag, and if possible bring home your spoils. Please keep it clean. Thank you. 

Merloquet Falls
 Sitio Merloquet, Zamboanga City

Katibawasan Falls
 Camiguin

Freedom to Blog

photo credit: aselpunzalan.wordpress.com

Children on the Road

I've met quite a bunch of interesting people while going around the Philippines  –  people I've become friends with, people I've learned lessons from, people who had left an impact in my life. But my favorite will always be my encounters with children while on the road. The fleeting moment when I see them in their most natural demeanor,  the time I start engaging then on a small talk, the time they start romancing my camera,  and finally the sad and quick goodbyes. From these short meet ups, they would usually leave behind profound and very heart-warming photos – the kind of travel photos that never fail to make me smile whenever I do a trip down memory lane.  

Here are some of my personal favorite raw and unedited photos. Go on, look,  read, and smile (or weep) with me. 

Palumbanes Island, Catanduanes, 2010. This photo was taken while I was doing a volunteer work in  Palumbanes Island, a small island  located in the northernmost part of Catanduanes. We were distributing school supplies and seedlings for the children at the school when I noticed these bunch of beautiful kids pensively looking on at the goods we were giving away. I later on learned that they were not in school yet so they could not have what we were distributing that day. But their hearts could not be easily downed. They still showed me the most gracious smiles I have ever seen.

Masbate City, 2012. Saw these school children practicing what appeared to me as a dance prod. They reminded me so much of my grade school days -- the easy-breezy-eight-to-five  life.

August Deluge Thoughts

I've been thinking of a kick-ass post for my return to blogging, but for the past weeks, I've been getting nothing more than a blank stare from my computer screen. 

Then it rained. It rained relentlessly and I realized that I will not wait for that kick-ass moment to come. I must go back to blogging.

Pouring, drenching, hammering, and pounding deluge hit Manila and its neighboring provinces for the past two weeks. As a result, images of flooded roads started figuring in the internet. Soon after, stories about heroic rescues made it to prime time news cast, and celebrities and celebrity-wanna-be politicians started making cameo roles in the relief operations. 

For three days now, many areas in Manila became a waterworld. 

The Filipino Spirit is Waterproof
Photo courtesy :design by Katria Alampay and tagline by Ayala Museum  

In the middle of all this, memes and some netizens started blaming the "abusive, irresponsible and undisiplined Filipinos" for how much they have contributed to this disaster. Why have we not learned from the past, they asked.