Travel Syndrome strikes again!

I went over with the post I wrote a year ago - Travel Plans. It's basically a travel wishlist of the places I wanted to visit in 2010. Exactly a year and 27 days later, I re-read the post to see if I was able to realize them. So far, it's quite a feat since I was able to visit majority of the places I've mentioned except for the trip abroad which hopefully I'll do next year, plus I've visited two places which are not on the list, so that's already a bonus. Though my trip to Camiguin and Manila was kinda late from the supposed schedule, but nonetheless I moved mountains and crossed the sea just to get there anyway (exaggerating).

Now I'm making another list. This is how I motivate myself to get things moving. Planning isn't just talking, but doing the talk. Also, it adds pressure when I'm writing it down. So here's my travel plan for 2011 :

BATANES. I've been dreaming of visiting this remote island which is at the northern tip of the country. It is soooo far that it's almost near to Taiwan than it is to Manila (i'm not kidding!) They say that getting there is a big challenge as much as going out coz most of the time tourists are standed because the plane can't land due to bad weather. That is why despite it's outstanding beauty, it has not become a tourist destination due to its inaccessibility. And because of its remoteness and inaccessibility that I'm more drawn to visit it. I guess I'm crazy like that.

Anyhoo, got these pics from the web. This is why I wanted to set foot in this island. There's so much beauty in there.

Can't wait for the day to come when it is my turn to see these pictures transform into reality right before my naked eyes.

But there's one big problem : None of my friends would want to come with me. For them no amount of persuasion and encouragement would compensate the Php 13,000 roundtrip ticket (wahahaha!) That expensive! I could have reached Hongkong or Singapore with that amount. So, I'm open for a travel buddy. Anyone interested???☺

Next, I want to spend a day or two in El Nido and Coron in Palawan. I fell so in love with Palawan that I wanted to visit it AGAIN, only that this time it will be El Nido and Coron.

Now who doesn't want to chill in that place, hmm?!

One thing I've learned about traveling is that nature is so generous to us. We should know how to take care of them. And I'm glad I'm born in this country (coz sometimes I'd think that if I can have it any other way, I wouldn't live here. that's another story), coz I get to enjoy these things without traveling halfway around the globe and at a minimum price.

Man's bestest friend

The moment I saw this headline on Yahoo News, I knew I shouldn't watch this coz it will break my heart. But then curiosity and love for dogs got the better of me.

Here's the video, courtesy of youtube and yahoo news, I'm talking about.



"It's a universal truth that dogs are man's best friend, but they're pretty darn loyal to their own as well. Case in point: this tear-inducing video, via the website Jezebel, showing a dog, shivering and disoriented, remaining loyally by the side of a stricken fellow canine amid the devastation of the Japanese tsunami. "

-Source : Yahoo News


I fought back the tears.

This is one of the reasons why I love dogs and I have so much sympathy for them. They're loyal and they're capable of standing beside you when you're in trouble. They give lasting friendship and sacrifices. That. Is. Beyond. Me.

In this time of fear

Political uprising, earthquakes, tsunamis, radiation. These make the frontpage of every newspaper, CNN and BBC news to name a few. The sight of Japan's aftermath is an utter devastation. I could not envisage the pain, the shock, the fear, the grief-stricken victims and families searching for their missing loved ones. And as they continue to pick up the debris of their once integral existence, there's another debacle that looms around the corner waiting to happen. Every day becomes dreadful. We dread the fear. The fear of uncertainty. The uncertainty of what will happen next. What happens tomorrow. Or a few seconds from now. It seems to me that our days are being numbered. I, personally, don't believe in that 2012 prophecy. In my humble opinion, no one knows exactly when. It could be today, tomorrow - nobody knows. But one thing is certain... it is near. And it is imminent.

Maybe I'm just too arrogant to acknowledge there is such thing as an end, an apocalypse. Maybe I'm so engrossed with the things our world has to offer that I refused to see the signs of time. When I wake up in the morning I'd ask myself if today is going to be better. Are we going to be safe? Can we live peacefully? Will the people in Japan start to live back a normal life? Even google and wikipedia don't have answers to these questions.

As much as I try to ignore the paranoid in me, I can't shove the fear inside. The possible radiation leak is the most talked about topic today. In fact, a text has been circulating that the Philippines may be hit by the radiation at 4PM today. Like I said, I'm not a believer. I dwell on facts not on hearsay. But who knows if this isn't a hoax. If this isn't a stupid text joke. The possibilities are endless.

To add to my already paranoid, crazy Monday, a colleague got a text from her aunt saying CNN confirmed a massive earthquake will jolt the Philippines tonight at 10:09PM. Hearing this I was like, "Okay, they can predict exactly when earthquakes occur?" I could be arrogant in saying that I don't think someone can ever predict an earthquake's exact time. Someone is playing God and I hate that. But then again, if this is true, we need your prayers. And I mean it. If Japan, despite its technological advances in preparing for earthquakes wasn't able to control the effects, how much more we are?

Prayers can move mountains. And we need those mountains to be moved now. Not just for Japan, New Zealand, Libya - but for the rest of the world.

Let's all pray for our safety.

Prayer is our only refuge in this time of fear and uncertainty.

If I could

If one morning I'd wake up and I could decide what I want
I'd want to have super powers
That kind of power where I can do whatever I want at the snap of my fingers
And then I'd travel through time
Maybe I'll go back to the past or go and see the future
I want to go back to the time I was a child
Carefree, full of dreams, the whole world in her eyes
I want to go back to those times spent with my father
I would savor each moment coz I know later it won't last
I would play for as long as I can with my playmates
Coz they will become grown ups before I notice it and it will be their kids they're gonna play with
I want to go back to school
To kindergarten, grade school and high school where I met my "bestest" friends
I'd speak with each of my classmates, know them better
I wanna go back to college too
I'd probably enroll in my dream university and take up a different course
And before I knew it, I'm starting to live the world I used to see in my eyes
I'd become a part of it
Every turn of every minute, every night and day
The world revolves and I revolve with it
I watch every day unfolds just like yesterday
I'll live my dreams, trying to make it happen
Challenged, at times confused but struggled to make it through
I'll keep the faith, that fire burning
For I know someday everything will make sense
If I had that super power, I'd fly to the future
Fast forward through time
And see if everything I did now is all worth the fuzz.