Puerto Galera

I didn't want to end my summer without tasting the ocean. At the last week of May, I decided to go to White Beach, Puerto Galera in Mindoro Oriental with my friends to have my piece of the the summer heat. We scheduled the trip June 5, 2010 hoping that the rainy season has yet to arrive. After all, the news said that the hot season which the country was having would extend by July. We left Manila on a fair morning and arrived at Batangas Port by mid-day. The sun was shining high above. My friend Wawan said, "At least ok yung weather (at least the weather is fine)." I remembered a line from the movie Troy and said it to him. The line was from Prince Hector as they were sailing back to Troy and Paris said it was a good day to sail. Prince Hector's reply was "sometimes, the Gods bless you in the morning and curse you in the afternoon." We both laughed. We arrived at White Beach with the sun still high above the sky and no clouds to cover it. We checked in our things at the resort and went out to take our lunch.

My friends: Joy, Wawan, Amer

In just a span of an hour or so, the Gods did curse the afternoon. Gray clouds began to multiply and thunders were roaring. It rained and poured. So much for the summer heat and my plans for sunset shoots. Nevertheless, this is the beauty when we are in the company of our friends. You could be stuck in the most inconvenient situations and still manage to laugh and have fun. Although the "hot" summer trip didn't turn out as planned, we made each moment count. A chat by the beach with friends, drinking shakes or sodas - these are the important recipes for a relaxing weekend.

How to get there:
Manila-Batangas Port
Bus Ride (Buendia-Taft Station, P166.50)
Batangas Port - White Beach
Boat Ride (P250.00)

Albir and Fam's Wedding

Early this year, I received a text from my cousin that he was about to get married. Albir (my cousin) is one of the few people in my life whom I have shared different experiences with. When I say different, it means the good ones and bad ones. I prefer not to go into the details. What I just want to say is that, when he said that I should attend his wedding, there was no way that I could be stopped. I had to be there. The date was March 7 and the venue was in Davao City. It was the place where the couple met, hence, it is only right and fitting that it was there in Davao they should be wed. A lot of people might not know, but Albir's passion for love and romance is second to none. With the numbers of romantic movies (Filipino and English) he has seen, why wouldn't he? For so many years, the man was in a quest for true love and happiness. Who would have known that he would find it in Davao? It never came to my thought that one day, he would have to work in Davao and stay there. Life is beautiful. It may put a fork in your road one day and you wouldn't know that something special is there on the other end. With life's so many surprises, we mortals can only wonder and speculate. To Albir and Fam, best wishes.

Promise of love

Lake Lanao

Lake Lanao, or Ranaw as locals call it, is located in the province of Lanao del Sur. This is the second deepest lake in the Philippines and is also included in the 15 ancient lakes in the world. This lake is a source of livelihood to many Maranaws or Meranaos (people of the lake). It is in this lake where I first had my swimming lessons. My father used to tell me that if you do not know how to swim, then you are not a Meranao. I can still remember it was in the year of 1995 and we went to Marawi for a vacation. My cousins (who all grew up by the lake) and I made it a habit to swim every morning. Of course I, who didn't know how to swim, was just on shallow waters all alone. They would call me and tease me because I was nearing my teens and I still didn't know how to swim. You could say that I just took the risk. There was a platform where the water was deep enough for a dive. Without any second thoughts, I jumped. After hitting the water, I guess everything came natural. I started to thread and was doing it well even though I had never done it before. The next thing I knew, I was swimming. I'm pretty sure that there are a lot of other people who have their own stories of the lake. It is one of those things that would still make a trip to Marawi worthwhile. It is in this place where I have experienced one of the most beautiful sunrises. With the cool weather that Marawi has to offer, you could just sit down by the lake, take a sip of coffee, and breathe in life.

How to get there from Manila?

Plane: Manila - Cagayan de Oro
Airport: FX, Car - Cagayan de Oro - Marawi (around P200-P400 each)