On My Own

One of the things I wanted to do this year is to travel on my own and I was able to do just that. Some things I realized while traveling alone:

1. People gravitate to people who are on their own


2. Not all smiling people deserve your trust


3. There will be always a good soul in any corner of the world


4. There are a lot of Ilonggos scattered all over


5. Traveling alone is exciting and not as dangerous as I initially thought it would be (unless of course I went to “hot zones”)

kids I met in Sabtang Island

simple joys

I found a P20 bill in one of my bag's pockets, oh what joy! So, I decided to enumerate some simple joys in life.

1. Finding money in one of your pockets
2. Using the last P1.00 on your metro card for a bonus ride
3. Seeing a smile on a stranger's face (directed at you)
4. A free dessert
5. A call from an old friend
6. Seeing a children play and laugh like there's no tomorrow
7. Sitting on a park bench eating ice cream

I know there's a lot more but for now, I can only think of these.

Seat 28F

When I went home last January, I took the plane to Bacolod, since air fare to Iloilo was a bit steep because of the Dinagyang festival. Then I just took a ferry from Bacolod to Iloilo and I got a seat right in front of the monitor.

Fast forward holy week…April, I went to Bacolod again. And guess what? I got the same seat! The same seat number 28F! So I computed the probability of this happening. That is .002 or 0.20 %. (Oh yes, I counted the number of seats in the ferry.) Strange.

On my trip back to Iloilo, I tried to get the same seat. Lo and behold. It was a different boat this time. So my seat is not available.

Now, the chance of me getting the same seat was smaller than 0.20% since the company has several boats plying the Iloilo-Bacolod route. Since I don’t know that number, let’s not compute that very small chance.

Moral of the story, let’s just say that however small the chance of anything happening, if there is a chance, we have to cling on to that minutest of probabilities.

Top Mushiest Songs I Love

Back in high school, I'd jump from the upper bunk of my double-decker bed whenever I hear these songs playing on the radio.

1. Got To Believe in Magic
2. King and Queen of Hearts
3. Ocean Deep
4. Farewell
5. Will of the Wind

And now listening to them now makes me smile cause through 'em I remember the world I once knew.

So Close...Yet So Far

I am from Western Visayas but I haven't been to the nearby region, Central Visayas except Cebu. It was about time that I finally visited two beautiful provinces which are so near to home....but seems so far.

nice cloud formations we saw on our way to Apo Island

nakatambay na mga bangka at yate sa Isla Apo

waves that made snorkeling a bit of a a challenge

the shoreline of San Juan, Siquijor

beautiful Apo Island as seen from the View Deck (almost)

beautiful falls with colors that reminded me of the Pinatubo crater

the view from the view deck

the falls with a name that escapes me

the cleanest pier I've seen

Salagdoong Beach

accenting blue in the Marine Sanctuary

Food Fix

My friend Chigofea (aka childofgaea) and I only know of two places to eat every time we meet, and the two countries of origin of these dishes don’t even share a border. Som's (Thailand) and New Bombay (India).

Since I have tons of things to do and I have a wonderful sense of prioritization, I decided to research on crossing from Thailand to India over land. From Bangkok, you can go to Laos first, then China, then through Tibet and Nepal to India.

So, I was thinking, since I can’t go to these countries anytime soon. I’ll just try their food. Chinese food is easy to find in this part of the world. But I think I may have a problem looking for Laotian food or Tibetan food in Manila. Unless I cook....this a disagreeing subject predicate.

Anyway, I heard from a couchsurfing guest that they ate Yak while in Nepal. Now, to find a Yak in this side of the world is a challenge. Or yaks, then again, maybe not.

So for now, Chigofea and I might have to stick with these yummy food from Som’s and New Bombay (and of course I love Thai Tea and Sweet Lassi). And considering the proximity of these places, somewhere along the way, the food in this piece of Earth, is probably a fusion of its neighbors' tira-tira. But then again, considering the altitude of Tibet, fission rather fusion may have occurred (whatever that means).

Palak Paneer (cottage cheese with spinach)

some lamb dish that I forgot the name

Pad Thai

Tom Yam

The Dash

While I was waiting for a jeepney last night, I saw a girl who almost got hit by a motorcycle (which was on the wrong lane). I was reminded again how easily life can be snuffed out in a second. And on your epitaph, in between your date of birth and death, your entire Earthly life is reduced to a dash.

And how sad, that I fail to maximize that dash. Someone smiled at me while I was walking and I failed to return the smile because I wasn’t in the mood. I saw someone who seemed needing some cheering up, I let the opportunity pass because I felt I needed more pep talk at that moment. And in this life, there are no rewinds. Sigh. From now on, I’ll try to live these lines I loved.

I expect to pass through this world but once;

Any good thing therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show, let me do it now; let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.