Poem 14 - Be There For Me

Quote 39 - Fight

Something Wonderful 13 - Glide

Sometimes, we need to learn how to glide in the wind like a bird.

Life is full of uncertainties.  It is either we remain in our bastion like a king in command of his kingdom or like a gypsy roaming the face of the earth.  Either way, we know not what tomorrow may bring but there is always a promise of a great adventure.

They say that the moment we become lax and have no more drive to see the world, we are simply contented on what we have and we just let each day pass without even seeing it happens.   May be we had already our fill of excitements and not a thing matters anymore.  Or perhaps, we get too lazy to see the world that is constantly changing.

There are some of us who never get tired of exploring the world.   It is like each day has something new to offer that it excites them even more.  They see the world with endless possibilities and they explore the world to their heart’s content.

In life, we should not be too complacent of our existence.  The moment we get tired, we simply get old quickly and soon, we become irrelevant.  We need to keep up and learn how to adapt.  We should never stop learning lest we become obsolete.  We need to open our wings all the time and we don’t have to soar that high.  Just learning how to glide with the wind enough to keep us flying already makes a wonderful and meaningful experience.  

Quote 38 - Bounty

Food Trip 13 - French Fries

I am not fond of eating french fries.  But if I have my way, I will usually go for the fries of Wendy's and KFC.

For the fries of Jollibee and Mcdo, I found them to be dry and they need a good ketchup to make it more appealing to the taste.  Actually, it is the fries of Jollibee and Mcdo that I happened to eat with ketchup.  I don’t have any desire for ketchup over fried chicken or hotdog.  I just enjoyed the ketchup whenever a good serving of fries is around.  I would even ask for additional sachets of ketchup just to fully enjoy my fries.  And I found Heinz ketchup to be the best partner of fries.

Exploring Philippines 13 - Kanturayan Falls (Bugasong, Antique - Post 1)

My nephew, Ron, accompanied me to Kanturayan falls. Kanturayan is a sitio in barangay Yapo which is in the border of the town of Bugasong, Antique.  He had been there five years ago and for some time, I showed my interest to visit the falls.

There are motorcycles in the marketplace of the town of Bugasong and the fare per head is 25 pesos.  The travel time is under 30 minutes and the unloading area would be at barangay Yapo itself.  From there, you have to walk in order to reach the falls.  Anyway, since there was no motorcycle that time, we took a tricycle ride going to Tagudtod Norte which happens to be the final unloading area of the tricycle.  The cost of the ride per head is 20 pesos.  From there, a motorcycle ride to barangay Yapo would be 10 pesos.  But that time, there was no motorcycle either so we decided to walk.

As of this writing, the road from Tagudtod Norte to barangay Yapo is under construction. Along the way, there are some parts of the road that are already concrete and maybe by next year, the whole stretch of the road will be totally cemented.

We hardly noticed of the time since we stopped from time to time to take some pictures.  It took us under an hour to reach barangay Yapo.  Along the way, there are several sitios that we passed and people in those areas are generally friendly.  Visitors to this place will not get lost since there is only one major road to follow until reaching barangay Yapo which is the end of the road.

The moment we started our walk from Tagudtod Norte, the mountains immediately greeted us which is a total refreshing sight.  Several meters afterwards, the long stretch of the river approaching the dam can be seen from the road.  As we followed the road to barangay Yapo, the river becomes our guide.  At some point tough, we reached a part where the river is momentarily out of sight but the mountains oversee our journey.  As we come closer to our destination, the mountains likewise seem an arm stretch away.

After some time, the river comes into a full view again. That was the time when we were already at the foot of the mountain. The road had been widened where a large truck can pass along, a total relief to the commuters who used to fear more than a meter wide trail before. 

When we reached the end of the road at barangay Yapo, we took the concrete steps leading toward the river.  The river is several meters wide and at that particular time where it rained hard a couple of days before, the water was discolored.  As we walked beside the river, we can tell that there are some shallow and deep parts.  And it is hard to determine how really deep is the deepest part.

We stayed mostly on the trail beside the river.  My nephew has still a good recollection of the path and I just followed him, pausing from time to time to take some pictures.  It was already high noon and the view was perfect.  There were cloud formations, the mountains are pristine, there’s the presence of water, and all I need to do was to have a good composition. 

There were some parts of the trail that we had to crawl within the bushes and under a fallen tree.  I guess those paths are seldom used because they are hard to notice.  Since the water level was normal after the flood, we had the opportunity to walk on the shoreline.  The rest of the trail is right within the backyard of a particular family and I guess they are used to people passing along.  And after almost a 30-minute hike, we landed on the other part of the river where we had to find a way to cross the river.

Since we were new to the place and there is no hanging bridge nor a particular river crossing, we were trying to find out which part of the river is passable. There were no people passing that time and the only way to determine if it was passable was to cross it.

We readied our bags and walked barefoot on the river.  The sharp stones were agonizing experience for our feet and they slowed us down.  Ron walked ahead of me and testing the depth of the river.  Since the current was strong and the river was deep, the idea was to go upstream and slowly walked downstream until we cross the river.  As I followed him, I could feel that little by little as the water level rose, the current became stronger.  It was hard to set your foot firmly on the river bed because the stones are sharp and at the same time, the sand and the stones are washed away by the current.  There was a particular point when I got scared and almost carried by the strong current.  The water was already waist deep and as we stepped further, the level grew higher and the current grew stronger.  Since I don’t know how to swim and given the strong current, I told Ron to abandon the idea.  I felt relieved when we were already on the dry land. 

I thought it would be a good day to explore the countryside because the sun was shining brightly.  Though the storm had already passed and the weather was great, we never had a slightest idea that our trip almost turned into a disaster.  I already gave up the idea of going to the falls even though the falls is already visible to where we were standing that time.  I value our life more than anything else and even if it will be an epic fail in the making, I don’t mind at all. We can always return and the best time to be here will be during the summer season where the river is only knee deep.  But Ron did not gave up that easy.

Quote 37 - Horizon

Poem 13 - My Angel

Quote 36 - Find Time

Something Wonderful 12 - Friend

At the end of our lifetime, we should be thankful if we have a true friend that will remain by our side.

Money and fame is like a magnet.  When you have money and/or you are famous, you will certainly attract people.  It is not a surprise when people will stick by your side especially if they gain something from you.  These people will associate themselves as your friends.

But when life makes a turnaround and takes away all you’ve got, those friends that you’ve known will just make themselves invisible before your eyes.  A hard truth to accept but this is the very reality of the nature of some people who only wish for the good times and not for the bad times.  When you are down and in trouble, be thankful and feel blessed if there is one person that will stand by your side.  That person is your real friend.

At times, we need to experience the best and the worst of times.  Most probably, life teaches us some valuable lessons about dealing with people and about people whom we treat as friends.  And when life will allow you to find out your friend, you might say that your real and true friend will be there with you through good times and most especially during bad times.  By having a real and true friend, each moment with that friend will certainly be wonderful.

Quote 35 - Cherish

Food Trip 12 - Batchoy

When you visit Iloilo, there's this famous Ilongo food called La Paz batchoy.  La Paz is a town in Iloilo where the food originated first (if I am not mistaken).  Due to the popularity of La Paz batchoy, it has already spread to other areas with some variations.

The batchoy that I tried was somewhat a mixed of the traditional batchoy and chicken mami.  It has slices of boiled eggs, a couple of boiled chicken meat, lots of fried garlic, and fresh onion leaves.  According to the person who prepared the food, the secret of their batchoy comes from the broth of beef which is similar in preparing bulalo.  And it was superb.

Exploring Philippines 12 - Eastern Visayas (Pastrana, Palo, and Tacloban, Leyte - Post 7)

By May of 2013, I was invited for the second time to visit Leyte by the family of Ron.  It is really an honor to be considered as part of their family and I am humbled by their treatment.  I am extremely glad I found another family in this part of the country.

Anyway, I stayed again with them for a week.  That time, the whole family was busy in politics and in my own little way, I helped them in the process.  After that fruitful event and the day before we return to Manila, we spent almost a whole day in the beach of Baras in Palo, Leyte.

The moment we set foot on the resort, I started to walk and explore the place.  To my right, facing the beach, the whole stretch of the shoreline seems endless.  It could be several kilometers long but it is noticeable that there is only several meters of the beach that has been turned into a resort.  To my left, the shoreline ended with a concrete structure that acts as a sea wall.  The way I looked at the sea wall, it was somehow familiar.  So I decided to take a stride going towards that direction.

The sands in the entire stretch of the beach is powdery fine and black.  I've seen people along the shoreline who rub the sands in their body and the sands stick to their skin.  By the looks of it, the sands may come from a volcanic eruption because of its texture.

As I walked further, I passed by the Leyte Park Hotel.  The hotel is just a stone's throw away from the beach and its visitors were enjoying a mid-day swim in the swimming pool instead of the beach.  Some few steps after the hotel is a vacant space with lush green trees where some locals use this one as their picnic ground for free and they can enjoy the water of Palo beach for free.  And just what I've been thinking all along, after passing that ground and the coconut trees, the MacArthur Leyte Landing shrine came into view.

That particular time of day, there were no visitors in sight.  I had the whole place by myself except for a couple of local entrepreneurs who earn their living in the park by taking pictures.  After taking a couple of shots of the statues of the Leyte Landing,   I head straight to the food stalls along the highway facing the MacArthurs park.  Every item they sell is very expensive.  Wow!  Is this the price of turning the place into a tourist spot?  Imagine a bottled drink with a suggested retail price of 23-25 pesos.  The stalls are selling that one for 35 pesos.  I guess, with the stiff competition among them and the erratic influx of tourists, they're selling their items that high in order to cover their rent and earn a little bit.

After satisfying my thirst, I returned to the MacArthur's Shrine and eventually retrace my steps back to the resort.  The moment I approached the shrine, there was a group of kids who scanned the park and with their looks, they seem to come from the beach and they also explore the place like I did.  They happened to stepped into the area where the statue of MacArthur and his colleagues are erected.  Upon seeing them, the photographer warned them that stepping inside the area is prohibited.  What made me laugh was his remark that a pair of boots can be rented and have your picture taken together with the statue.  In short, it is prohibited to stepped inside the area of the statues unless you are wearing a pair of boots.  Haha. Anyway, upon my return to the cottage, lunch was being served.

We spent the whole afternoon in the beach and taking pictures.  I had my field day because of so many subjects to capture aside from my companions who willingly modeled for me.  Though I got wet in the process of taking pictures, I did not wallow in the water because of the jellyfish.  I have seen people scratching their body every now and then because of the sting of the jellyfish and I don't want to experience the same. 

around Pastrana

Baras, Palo

downtown Tacloban