Women’s Day and My Sister’s Birthday

Today, as we celebrate Women’s Day, I give thanks to all the women who contributed to the story of my life. My Nanay. My lolas. My sister. My cousins. My friends. My teachers. My blogger friends. You have touched my life and inspired me with your generous hearts. You have made deep impressions, so deep that you opened my eyes to a whole new way of looking at the world.

One of these women is celebrating her birthday today.

The person in the picture is someone who has taught Miss N a lot about life and friendship. I will always be grateful that sometime in the late 90’s, our paths have crossed. Siya ang inuutangan ko noong mga panahong nagpapaaral pa ako ng mga kapatid at kahit pamasahe ay talagang wala ako hehehe. She’s a great friend, a very loving daughter, a sweet wife, and an amazing mother.

Happy birthday, Ate O! We may not have been nurtured in the same womb, but there is a tie that will bind forever us as sisters.

Maligayang Araw ng mga Kababaihan sa lahat ng mga Pinay! Stand tall, stand proud!

Our Summers

One look at this picture and I see my self walking down familiar footpaths on summer days— that footpath going to a nearby hill where I used to listen to the grass on early mornings or that footpath going to the nearest seashore where I used to sink my feet into the wet sands and watch the playful waves wash them away.

Ahhh….summertime!

I smell pinipig in the air and hear the merriment of the whole neighborhood celebrating a fruitful harvest…

I smell barbecue in humble beach huts…

I smell good food from overfilled pots…

I hear children laughing, playing bahay-bahayan….

I hear chaotic households, reverberating with pulsating laughter of family members celebrating reunions…

I hear chants, cheers, and drumbeats in basketball courts…

I see children taking naps in front porches…

I see children gleefully enjoying hammocks under the trees….

I see families picnicking and laying in the grass…

I see grandparents lazying around on lawn chairs…

I feel warmth from hugs of visiting cousins, uncles, aunts, friends…

These and many more are my summers and your summers, too. And within them we find solace…and comfort…and love.

(Feel free to add some more.)

Byahe Tayo! Manila-Boracay-Iloilo via RoRo!

Ooookay…..I think I deserve a much needed break from work :D. And if you are in for an extreme summer adventure, join me as I take you to one of my most memorable trips—Manila to Boracay to Iloilo via the “roll-on, roll-off” (RoRo) system. It’s the road less traveled by, literally, but I assure you the trip itself is an adventure. Just make sure you allot more time because the trip took me 17.5 hours to get to Boracay.

DAY 1

At 12:30 noon, the Alps bus started it’s way to Edsa. By 4:30pm, we reached the port in Batangas and immediately boarded a small ferry going to Calapan, Mindoro.

I was standing the entire three-hour trip to Calapan because the ferry was crowded with people and with……bags. Mga bags ang nasa ibang upuan at hindi mga tao. Inconsiderate lang talaga minsan ang ibang tao. Ayaw magpaupo

The ferry reached Calapan at 7:00pm and I boarded the same Alps bus for an hour ride to Pinamalayan, still in Mindoro.

The bus made it at 8:00pm to Sta. Rita in Pinamalayan where the passengers had dinner. At 9:00pm, the Alps bus was again on the road going to the port of Roxas, Mindoro. We made it there at 10:30pm and waited until midnight before boarding a bigger ferry, one from Montenegro Lines, going to Caticlan, in Aklan province.

DAY 2

It was 4:30 in the morning when the ferry arrived in Caticlan. But we had to wait for an hour and a half before we could disembark. Siksikan ang boats sa pier ng Caticlan so we had to wait for one or two ferries to leave before we could properly dock. Maliwanag na nang makababa sa ferry ang mga pasahero.

After a 15-minute ride on a boat from Caticlan and another 10 minutes tricycle ride, the splendid sun, sea, and sand of Boracay welcomed a new batch of visitors.

I spent the day enjoying the waters of Boracay. I stayed here.

DAY 3

By lunch time, I was already preparing for the trip back to Caticlan. The bus going to Iloilo left at 1:20, shortly after I arrived. The trip to Iloilo was a smooth one. I immediately fell asleep and was roused after a few hours by the noise from some people in the terminal. I glanced at my watch. 6:30pm.

I stayed here for the night.

Day 4

Early morning the next day, I prepared for a few hours city tour in Iloilo.

After Iloilo City, it was time to explore the island of Guimaras. Maraming mango doon. Kaya lang, di po ako kumakain ng mangga eh heheh.

The trip was tiring. But it was fun and worth it. I’m giving the government a lot of “pogi” points for constructing the Strong Republic Nautical Highway. Maganda ang daan at smooth ang byahe….pwedeng tayong diretsong Mindanao So what are you waiting for? Tara, na! Byahe na!

Puzzled

This blog has been gathering dust. Time to clean up heheh. Kumusta? I hope you are all doing great. My heartfelt thanks to those who kept checking out this blog while I was away.

Been really busy. I have a lot of things to share with you but will do that in the coming days. For today, here’s my story:

Once, I decided to see online how much of my province has been photographed. So I started a Google search (images) of its capital, Catarman. I went over the thumbnails in the result pages and I saw a familiar picture. I followed the link and found this at Skyscrapercity, a forum site:

The picture in this news is the same picture I included at this blog post. I politely asked the forum member where he got the article. He pointed me to this news posted at a blog:

Looking at the dateline, it’s obvious that the news was written in my province. I’m puzzled. I have no idea how my picture ended up in that news article.

Sadder Than Sad

I usually greet each day with a smile. But today is different. It’s as if the sun shone entirely in someplace else. I awoke with swollen eyes and, upon remembering you, my eyes once again filled to the brim with tears. My heart is heavy, but I find solace in the thought that you are already in a place where the skies may be bluer and the grass may be greener.

Goodbye, Auntie P. Thank you for loving us like we were your own.