places to go… maybe hopefully when i’m not THAT old to enjoy the beach

I am such a big fan of blue green waters and white sand. And I like snorkeling even if I panic at the mere thought of fishes biting my fingers…

My first ever snorkeling trip was at Boracay around 4 years ago. Gung-ho me plunged into the waters to be greeted by a wide array of fish. I fell in love and since then I wanted to just keep on swimming (even if people insists that I am not meant for scuba diving, I will learn that “sport”, but maybe not pull a gutsy :P)

Anyway, for the past 2 decades of my life, I’ve been around a lot of beaches. White sand, brown sand, gray sand, blue waters, aqua waters, green waters, black waters, from the north (Pangasinan) to the South (Puerto Princesa) and in between (Batangas, Zambales, Subic, Cavite, Cebu, Boracay, Bohol, Bataan?, Mindoro) I would have to say the best sands that I laid upon was Boracay, and the best snorkel adventure was in Snake Island, Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

I cannot forget the knee length depth of a sea full of tropical wonders. I was feeding bread to a school of floaty black sea fishes (without panicking of the nibbles), a few meters from the shore is a drop off to a world that I have never seen before, and I really want to see again.

Here’s a list of beaches that I really want to go to…(and maybe some I have gone and want to go back again for a longer period of time….) It’s a simple yet expensive dream. But hey, whose counting…?

• Boracay (just for the beaches and maybe snorkeling one more time! :))
• El Nido, Coron, Busuanga, Palawan (Baby sharks, Dolphins, FIshes, Limestone mountains, gorgeous sunsets, what more can I ask for?)
• Siquijor (Achi’s pictures made it final. I will go to mamaw land :D)
• Hundred Islands (Touring the Northern beaches in XX year old eyes)
• Apo Island (in Dumaguete, maybe if I learned scuba diving…hmmm)
• Puerto Princesa again! (Snake Island and Pandan Island! w00h00!)
• Shangrila Mactan (For the lovely, PG, fishes the private beach and the king size bed (hehe))
• Bantayan Island, Moalboal, Sumilon Island in Cebu
• Bohol (Wanting to see the lumot-less beaches)
• Camiguin (and it’s famous white beach)
• Pearl Farm Davao (and the beaches in Samal :))
• Care to share your little beach trips to me? :D

:) Can’t wait to go to these places one by one (and maybe be a nognog for once :D)

racing the sun.

The land of down under and paradise come together in an inspirational movie full of hope and ideals.

10 years ago, I watched Race the Sun with a sense of raging burning passion after to actually do something spectacular, something worthy for the whole world to see, it has always been this secret, even veering towards silly dream.

I always thought I was a mediocre half-baked individual. I wasn’t really good at one single thing. Everything was just “ok”. I program “ok”. I take “ok” pictures. I sing “ok”. I dance “ok”. I do everything “ok”, except for that particular exam where I have to think of the 3 dimensional concepts of flat objects. I don’t even bother. I totally suck at that.

I’m glad when people can still prove other people wrong and live their dreams. Like those Kona kids did. A lot of people gave up as they grow up. Along the way, they leave the dream behind and just pursue what everybody pursues to get on with this life. A routine in life that you will live until you get old and die. And all your dreams die along with you, even when it’s not your time yet.

I want to tell myself that I haven’t become the person I hated most. The one that already gave up on her dreams.

But I really wonder sometimes…have I? Or have I not…

Or worse, what are my dreams anyway…?

Dreams.

I was looking through my livejournal and I saw something I wrote 2.something years ago, about my dreams of finishing thesis.

here’s an excerpt of what i wrote,

I would absolutely take a programming break, and a school break. I’m referring to a solid month (or 2) of just sitting and absolutely rotting myself of any information that has been making my brain a mine field of little explosions from time to time of all the non-stop pumping of unwanted and unecessary knowledge, mind you.

I’m taking about rolling along white sand beaches of Boracay, non-stop movies at Powerplant alongside tubs and tubs of butter popcorn and enormous cups of rootbeer, endless frapuccinos and coffee dates at Starbucks, bar-hopping and gorging in luscious Bailey’s Irish Cream, vodka cruisers, frozen margaritas and downing shot after shot of tequilla, experiencing wonderful cold weather at Tagaytay or in Baguio, going abroad for a few weeks, overnights on 5 star hotels, soaking hours in a bathtub complete with bubbles until I’m in a prune-like state, have a foodfest at home, bake all the oatmeal cookies I want, visit more worthwhile theme parks (Hong Kong Disneyland!!!), riding excessive roller-coasters until I puke, sitting on the grass, get lovable pets!, watching the sunset at baywalk, watching the sunset, watching the sunrise, organize a reunion for s19 people, engage back addiction to Ragnarok Online, play all the games I want, and work up in a sweating frenzy from Dance Dance Revolution just to name a few…

So far, I was able to stroll in white sand beaches of Bohol, Palawan and Shangrila Mactan, Cebu. spend time watching movies in Glorietta and Greenbelt with friends minus the butter popcorn since I feel that Powerplant’s buttered popcorn reigns supreme. No enormous cups of rootbeer since the counting calorie stint. Endless tall non-fat 2 equal lattes at Starbucks that has been my addiction since work and truckloads of visa receipts after the 5 planner craze. I have finally realized that clubs aren’t really my thing, but I still like getting the occasional drinks for the nice, little buzz. I have been to Tagaytay with family but never with friends, and experience the absolutely wonderful cold spring of 12-16 degrees in Shanghai of 2005 and the almost same temperature in Hong Kong just this year. So that includes going abroad. And going to the worthwhile theme parks (HK Disneyland). I haven’t been riding excessive roller coasters since the first try made me want to spew out nothing. I haven’t been sitting on the grass much. Nor did I had time to get wonderful pets. But I did see a little kitten that caught my eye and made me fall in love. Sunrise and Sunset was experience in Cebu and Manila at various times of overtime and not so overtime. Did some reunions with s19 and ST people throughout the 2 years and tried getting back to Deliverance-Online, went back to Dota and even won the NSP Sportsfest, owned a DS Lite, got my two babies schroeder and wilson, and worked up a sweat from dance maniax.

Now, dreams have been escalating into bigger proportions, recently booked a flight to Palawan
with friends, planning another Hong Kong trip with friends yet again (hopefully in the cold weather). Want to stroll in the sakura blossoms, and experience a white christmas. Go abroad to work, have enough money for a condo, buy lots of albums, watch my cousin’s band live in the US. Maybe study again. I don’t know…

I just know one thing is for sure…I just want to spend more of my time doing all these with the little boy…all over again, over and over again…

well-rounded siya…

This was one of the first few times I was assessed not in the spectrum of my own little world.

Frankly, it felt good.

The surprise, the interest, and the curious little cats that gave me a really good once over, took down notes, asked me questions, of the most technical and the most mundane (you drink?). and the questions that ripped and boggled my brain, lighting up in different areas at the same time in pure logical and creative joy.

I missed that. SO much.

Anyway, a thud to reality. I woke up. And I was back in my own cubicle. My d610 laptop, my flip-flapping plant, my books and brochures lined up, the piles of paper everywhere, my 2 mugs for pens and disposable utensils.

It was a pierce of the otherworld. It was fun, but it was nice to be back.