Exploring Philippines 63 - Clark, Pampanga (Post 2 - Hot Air Balloon Festival)

As Cha patiently queued for our hot air balloon ride, we roamed around. Elias, the son of Raul and Cha, strut around as we explore the open field. I knew I had to keep my eyes on him and let him do things his way for me to be able to capture him at his best moments. Eventually, my patience with him paid off.

Elias and me reached a restricted part of the field where non-paying visitors were not allowed to cross the improvised fence. Guards were posted in order to deter visitors to cross the fence and maintain order of the place as the festivities took place.  The guards were not really that strict because they allowed visitors to cross over the fence but only to a certain distance for their picture taking activities.

I instructed Elias to cross over the fence so that I can have his picture taken near the balloon.  He eagerly followed me and it looked like he was invisible to the eyes of the guard. I was about to follow him but the moment he gained distance from me, he ran back towards my direction. Haha. Epic fail plan.

Anyway, after some time, we came across a tent with resting group of professional air soft players together with their family. I began asking questions about the game, about their group, and about the different tournaments they had joined. I was glad that they were friendly also and they proudly shared their stories about the game.  We were allowed to try their gadgets but we were not allowed to fire any of their guns.

The youngest member of the group (maybe he was 5 or 6 years old then) proved to be hospitable also and he knew how to show around. The moment I asked him for a pose, he readily obliged much to my delight. The kid was amazing because he knew how to deliver a good pose. It seemed like he had already learned to embrace the art of air soft. It did not took us that long with their group because when they began to dress up and prepare for the tournament, it was our cue to leave them.

After our brief encounter with the air soft players, we went to Cha and fall in line likewise. We were excited because we were several heads away from experiencing our first ever hot air balloon ride. When we were nearing the entrance, exactly with three people before us, the person in charge of the gate announced that they could no longer accommodate those who were still in the line (including us) because the air soft tournament was about to begin. Ouch. That hurts. We were almost there. We simply laughed off the frustrating situation and went to visit the booths in the area instead.

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Poem 63 - Good Liar

What makes you a good liar
Is something I can't comprehend
You are so good at it
Making me believe until the end.

You would look into my eyes
Telling me the truth I need to know
It's hard to find the hidden lies
In your eyes, they will never show.

You would hold my hand
Assuring that everything is okay
Your touch makes me feel
To trust you, night and day.

What makes me believe you
Even the cheapest of your alibis
You totally got control over me
Making me believe all your truths and lies.

You would  smile at me
That softens my troubled spirit
Though my head tells otherwise
My heart rejoices to the fullest.

You would kiss me tenderly
Showing your love ever so sweet
Your kiss makes me forget things
Making me a fool which I hate.

You are such a good liar
And I am a fool that never learns
Despite all your troubles and lies
You are the only one that my heart yearns.

Quote 126 - Friendship

Moment 63 - Jhong

I was inside a grocery store last Monday when I received a text message. It was not a registered number in my phone and I simply opened it without much curiosity. The first two words of the message immediately caught my attention and my hunch was right. An old best friend and a family member is finally back after almost seven years of absence.

If my memory serves me right, it was in 1995 when we first met and just like my other close and trusted friends, we had no idea that our friendship will flourish and reach this far. We've been witnesses of each others life's ups and downs, we show and give support to the best way we can, we value the kind of relationship we have with much respect and admiration, and we treat each other as part of our own respective families. I can rightfully claim that the bond we had established years ago is purely based on trust and respect and we have been transparent in sharing our respective lives until the present day.

Since he worked abroad, we seldom had a communication over the net. I know that he was trying his best to reach to us, his family and friends, whenever he had the opportunity. I only happened to know today that he had been struggling on his own for quite some time and it was not an easy struggle since he had no one to turn to on a foreign land. But all those struggles and troubles were over now and he is now triumphant in his own little way.

When I finally saw my friend crossing the street, it was like seeing him several years ago. The last time I saw him was in 2004 when he bid goodbye because he will be working abroad. And now, after seven long years of separation, he seems not aging. He is still the same person I happened to know way back then - full of life, always smiling, has a good sense of humor, and a great companion. As we make up for the lost time, I noticed that he shares his thoughts with much depth and maturity. And up to now, his fear and love of the Lord is unwavering. 

Anyway, the three of us - my cousin, him, and me, went out for a get together dinner. Since he is already part of our family, our dinner date that night was just like those moments when we were sharing simple or extravagant meals when he was still here in the Philippines years ago. Although we seldom go out and dine outside during those times, we always had so much fun sharing a good home cooked meal. And just like the good old days, we were simply ourselves as we enjoyed a hearty dinner.

How time flies when you are actually having fun and trying to make up for the lost time. It was a grand day for the three of us and we know that we can't enjoy this one repeatedly just like the times when we used to because he will be leaving again soon. Though how short the moment was, it was good to know that our good friend and brother, Jhong, remember and treasure us like his real siblings.

And most probably, with heaven's blessings, we will be seeing each other again a year from now. Good luck, my friend, and be well always. Thank you for the time and rest assured that you'll always have a family to come home to.

Quote 125 - Precious Gift

Random Thought 63 - How Deep is Your Love?

If there's a flower hanging on the side of a high cliff, in what particular way you are going to measure the love of your partner?

If you're a girl, would you ask your lover to get it for you even if it could end the life of the only person you love? Would you dare him do it in order for him to prove to you how he truly loves you? And in doing so, will it ever satisfy your ultimate thirst in measuring how your partner really loves you?

If you're a man, would you risk your life just to prove that your love for her is beyond this world? Would you go that far because it's worth it? And in doing so, will you become the ultimate love of her life?

Most probably, we cannot determine, question, nor measure the kind of act a person may do for love. Some may offer their lives for it. Some may move heaven and earth in order to prove their worth. Some may even deliberately do it just to prove they are every inch worthy of their partner's love.

But what's the use of proving your unquestionable love when you'll only find your way six feet below the ground? What's the use of the glorified proof about your partner's love when you'll be mourning day and night over the loss of your loved one? Would you rather love someone who is willing to offer his/her life for you and leave you all alone in your misery, or would you settle for someone and accept him/her despite of his/her shortcomings towards love?

Food Trip 62 - Bamboo Shoot

Have you ever tasted a bamboo? What are you, a panda? Hehe

I grew up in a province and bamboos are plenty. During the season of bamboo shoots, almost every family within our vicinity practically looks forward to a bamboo shoot dish at least once a week. But during my younger years, I don't had any liking of this dish.

When I transferred to the city where food was somewhat different from where I came from, I practically developed this liking over red meat and some select vegetables, mostly legumes. But one particular experimental and eye-opening day, when my cousin prepared a bamboo shoot dish, I said to myself that I will give it a try. And I liked it! It was amazing.

For so many years, I've been ignoring the bamboo shoot dish with a mindset that I will never like its taste. But once I tasted it, I told myself that I've wasted several years of my life for not liking this food. For this reason, whenever I go home to the province, my vacation will never be complete without this dish.

The newly picked bamboo shoot is sliced into the thinnest possible pieces, washed for two occasions in order to get rid of its bitter taste, cooked in fresh coconut milk with abundant saluyot leaves and if possible, with crabs and shrimps or grilled fish meat. When serve hot, it feels like heaven especially when sweat starts to appear in my face.

Exploring Philippines 62 - Clark, Pampanga (Post 1 - Hot Air Balloon Festival)

I was so excited and ecstatic when our colleague, Cris Yalung, invited us to Pampanga for the annual hot air balloon festival. Based on the photos I've seen, this kind of event is grand and it attracts a huge volume of tourists. And when we were invited by Cris, I don't remember having a second thought.

We traveled from Manila to Pampanga the night before and we slept in the house of Cris. We were honored and thankful because of the warm welcome the family of Cris showed to us. And before daybreak the following day, we were on our way to Clark Freeport to attend the said event.


It was past six in the morning when we arrived at Clark field. We thought that six o'clock in the morning would be an ideal time to find a good spot in this event. To our surprise, the field was already crowded. Young and old alike were coming from different directions. At this particular time of the day, it was like a grand fiesta already.


We squeezed ourselves with the growing crowd and tried to find the end of the line to secure our tickets. It was a bit funny because when Raul and Cha finally found the end of the line, it was almost near the ticket both but the line had its twists and turns. As the couple patiently queued for our tickets, I had some time to wander around. Together with the waiting crowd, we were actually excited every time an air balloon starts to lift and made its way up to the sky. We hardly noticed that it took us more than an hour to secure our tickets because of the balloons that went up from time to time.


When we finally had our tickets, we were so eager to rush inside the venue.  The moment we entered the enclosed grounds, we were a bit puzzled about the crowd that was going against our way.We found out later on that all hot air balloons had already left the ground except for the remaining three hot air balloons that were tied by ropes to the ground.


We wandered around, trying to find out what we were suppose to do because there were no more hot air balloons taking off at this particular time.  After some time, we found out that the remaining three hot air balloons were accommodating visitors like us to experience a ride, at a minimal cost and only several meters above the ground. And so Cha fall in line in our behalf while we explore the place further.

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