Monday, January 30, 2023

SINULOG sa CEBU



Cebu's Sinulog is 50 years old!!!

I was not able to celebrate Sinulog for its 50th year last 3rd week of January 2023, but I was able to celebrate again the festival in 2019 before the pandemic with my friends from Palawan. 

*Our flight date back to Palawan was also the arrival date of the first two Chinese who were COVID positive. So, my friends and I were pretty anxious if we accidentally met them that day at the airport. hahaha Na praning na eh!



For those who have not experienced Sinulog, let me share with you some tips and ideas during the festival:

1. Wear comfortable footwear. 
    Many streets are close during Sinulog, so expect a very long walk. 

2. Bring a water tumbler, extra hanky and extra clothes. 
    Since you have to walk a lot, you really need more water to drink and you'll get sweaty.

3. Bring some sun protection.
    Especially if you are not staying in one place with roofing,  then a cap, a visor or an umbrella shall be     useful as well as a sun cream.

4. If you feel like peeing or something even if it's not yet urgent, find a comfort room right away. 
    The queue is always very long. 

5. You may choose to stay at the area where the grand showdown is held or along the street to             witness the street dancing.
    I prefer along the street. It is more fun for me. :)

6. Buying and eating something along the streets is fun, too.


AND 

7. Watching and listening to music bands at night while waiting for firework displays is pretty cool. fireworks




Pit Senior!  


For your reference:















Friday, January 13, 2023

Ayutthaya

 


Ayutthaya is my most  favorite place I have been to because I love ruins very much. Its history is just amazing. The temple ruins gave me a lot of joy and happiness. The vibe of the city is perfect for me that I do not mind visiting there many times. hehe

There are 41 temples in Ayutthaya, and I haven't seen all of them although I have visited there twice. I don't even remember the names of the other temples I visited. hahaha

So, these temples shown below are the ones I remember: 😅

Wat Chaiwatthanaram



Love at first sight.  hehe This is the first temple I saw in Ayutthaya and I fell in love with it. Its features can strike you at first sight since it is constituted by 8 stupas surrounding the high prang (a common shrine element of Hindu and Buddhist architecture during Khmer Empire). 
 

Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon - by far, this is the temple with most people during our visit. 



This wat/temple is still active where monks reside. Its very large bell-shaped chedi strikes you the most, and if you look around the temple, you can see more elements such as the reclining Budhha and dozens of stone Buddha images.


Wat Lokayasutharam - where  a huge reclining Buddha, measuring 37m in length and 8m in height is found. It is the only thing left together with a stupa after the temple complex was destroyed by the Burmese. 



Wat Ratchaburana 

What makes this temple striking is its main gate. That's why we had our groufie there.hehe This is just north of Wat Mahathat, approximately 3-5-min walk.




Wat Phu Khao Thong - the most unforgettable temple I visited. I climbed up on the stairs so fast, and stepped down so slow. 😂  The stairs are pretty steep and high, but you'll get to see the view of the city on top.

very wide :) no mountains in sight

Just tried if I fit

Wat Phra Si Sanphet - during the Thailand's ancient capital of Ayutthaya,  this wat was the holiest, grandest and the most beautiful temple on the site of the Old Royal Palace until it was totally ruined by the Burmese. This is also a very popular temple since it was one of the shooting locations of the movie, Mortal Kombat in 1995.   


The Sandstone Buddha Image at Wat Mahathat 

Wat Mahathat used to be the royal temple of the Ayutthaya Kingdom and the seat of the Supreme Patriarch of Buddhism in the Kingdom of Ayutthaya.


What to wear?

Most temples in Thailand require your knees and shoulders to be covered, but you can still wear shorts in Ayutthaya. You may only need to bring a long scarf to wrap around your waist when needed.

Entrance Fees

Ranges from 20- 50 Baht 

*Other temples do not have entrance fees

How to get there from Bangkok:

By train: From Hualamphong Station (approximately 4 hours depending on the train) - Cost, from 15 Baht (3rd class, ordinary train) to 345 Baht (2nd class Fast train)

By bus: From Mo Chit Bus Terminal- Takes more or less 2 hrs.- Cost, more or less 60 Baht

By van: From Mo Chit Bus Terminal- Takes more or less 2 hrs.- Cost,  150 Baht or more





Tuesday, January 10, 2023

I DO



Tying the knot may not be an easy decision as what others told me, but saying YES to the man you had not been even dreaming of of having  makes the decision easier. 

There are so many things in marriage that scare the h*ll out of me, because, gee, I grew up in a not so perfect home just like you, and the moment I step out from the house I can see that the road of marriage life is not all paved :

    - Pregnancy
    - Raising a child
    - Financial crisis
    - Sickness
    - Infidelity 
    and the list goes on....

However, I also believe that all those doubts and anxieties would not help me at all. So, if I would  just live the present more, be prayerful and be committed to work things out when life hits hard, then I am good to go. 😃

Good thing, my brother gave me these two (2) books. I think these would be perfect. :) 


I have started reading the first book. Yes, it's me who reads and my hubby just listens since he's not into reading.hahaha I love it, so far! 


I would love to share with you later some contents of the books,  my understandings and thoughts about them. 

Waaahhh... I am now indeed, married! hahaha  








Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Traveling to Palawan



It is no wonder, traveling costs a lot of money. And based on my experience, traveling to Palawan costs more compared to traveling to some other islands in the Philippines, most probably because of the "distance." It is pretty far from the metropolis and the distances of its tourist destinations are not close to each other. Hence, here are some tips for travelers who want to explore the beautiful island in the world:

1. Book a flight in advance. It is cheaper when you book a flight early. (as you may know :)

2. Be specific of your destinations. As I have mentioned above, tourist sites in the province are not close to each other. 

3. If you want to explore more places in the island, stay longer like a week or more.

4. To maximize your visit, travel at night, so you can enjoy the place during the day.

5. DIY travel is much cheaper than booking in a travel and tour agency. 


TOP 5 TOURIST DESTINATIONS IN PALAWAN for the year 2022 (based on Tourism Live Inventory of Statistics and Arrivals or TourLISTA) 

1. Puerto Princesa City

2. El Nido

3. Coron

4. San Vicente

5. Brookes' Point


IMPORTANT REMINDERS:

* Puerto Princesa to El Nido: 5-6 hrs. by van (via San Jose terminal) - PHP600.00

* Puerto Princesa to Sabang, Puerto Princesa: more or less 1 1/2 hrs. by van (via San Jose terminal)

    - If you book a tour in a travel agency, pick-up at hotel is included.

* Puerto Princesa to Poblacion, San Vicente: 3-4 hrs. by van (via San Jose terminal) -  PHP400.00

* Puerto Princesa to Port Barton, San Vicente: more or less 3 hrs. by van (via San Jose terminal) -  PHP350.00

* El Nido to Poblacion, San Vicente: approximately 2 1/2 hrs. by hired van (via El Nido terminal) 

* El Nido to Port Barton, San Vicente: approximately 3hrs. by van (via El Nido terminal) -  PHP600.00

* E Nido to Coron: 3-4 hrs. by ferry depending on weather conditions (via El Nido port)-  more or less PHP1,800.00

    - Accessible by slow  boat? Yes, but it takes more or less 9 hours depending on weather                                 conditions. 

* Puerto Princesa to Brookes' Point: approximately 5 hrs. by van (via San Jose terminal) - more or less PHP400.00

Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Manuscript Found in Accra by Paulo Coelho

For those who have many questions in life, this book may help you find the answers. 

1. What is knowledge?
- It isn't the absolute truth about life and death, but the things that helps us to live and confront the challenges of day-to-day life. It isn't what we learn from books, which serves only to fuel futile arguments about what happened or will happen; it is the knowledge that lives in the hearts of men and women of good will.

2. None of us can know what tomorrow will hold, because each day has its good and bad moments.

3.Our task is not to leave a record of what happened on this date for those who will inherit the Earth; history will take care of that.

4. Does a young man, rejected by his first love, declare that love does not exist? The young man says to himself: "I'll find someone better able to understand what I feel. And then I will be happy for the rest of my days."

5.In the cycle of nature there is no such thing as victory or defeat ; there is only movement. Within that cycle, there are neither winners nor losers; there are only stages that must be gone through. When the human heart understands this, it is free and able to accept difficult times without being deceived by moments of glory.

6. What is true in love is also true in war. 

7.Only those who fail to recognize that inner strength will say, "I lost, " and be sad. 

8.Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is victorious. 

9. Three important things :
☑ Wait patiently for the right moment to act. 
 ☑ Do not let the next opportunity slip by you. 
☑ Take pride in your scars. 

8. There are people who have never been defeated. They are the ones who never fought. 

9.Woe to those who were never beaten! They will never be winners in this life. 

10. Solitude is not the absence of love, but its complement. 

11. If you do not know yourself, you will begin to fear the void. But  the void does not exist. A vast world lies hidden in our soul, waiting to be discovered. 

12. Just as love is the divine condition, so solitude is the human condition. 

13. Listen to your elders and then you'll have a better idea of what to do. 

14. They don't understand that religion was created in order to share the mystery and to worship, not to oppress or convert others. 

15. Don't try to be useful. Try to be yourself; that is enough, and that makes all the difference. 

16. Walk neither faster nor slower than your own soul, because it is your soul that will teach you the usefulness of each step you take. 

17. The people who who really help others are not trying to be useful, but are simply leading a useful life. They rarely give advice, but serve as an example. 

18. Live the life you always wanted to live. Avoid criticizing others and concentrate on fulfilling your dreams. 

19. Small things are responsible for great changes. 

20. Difficulty is the name of an ancient tool that was created purely to help us define who we are. 

21. Faith shows us that we are never alone. Transformation helps us to love the mystery. 

22.To those who believe that adventures are dangerous, I say, try routine ; that kills you far more quickly. 

23. If the person looking into someone's eyes has a dark soul he will see only his own ugliness. 

24. We deny our own beauty because others can't or won't recognize it. Instead of accepting ourselves as we are, we try to imitate what we see around us. 

25. We forget that the world is what we imagine it to be. 

26. Beauty is present in all creation, but the dangerous fact is that, because we human beings are often cut off from the Divine Energy, we allow ourselves to be influenced by what other people think. 

27. Beauty exists not in sameness but in difference. 

28. They were trying to reflect what came from outside, forgetting that the brightest light comes from within. 

29. Enthusiasm is the Sacred Fire. 

29.... ever since your goal found out that you were traveling toward it, it has been running to meet you. 

31. Only the person who accepts God's plan with humility and courage knows that he is on the right road. 

To be continued.... 

Sunday, November 13, 2022

The Fifth Mountain by Paulo Coelho

My favorite lines from this book are the ff:

¬ Fear reaches only to the point where the unavoidable begins; from there on, it loses its meaning. 

¬The meaning of Life is whatever we want it to be.

¬ It is not difficult to rebuild a life. It is enough to be aware that we go on with the same strength that we had before, and to use that in our favor. 

¬ If you have a past that dissatisfies you, forget it now. Concentrate only on those moments in which you achieved what you desired, and this strength will help you to accomplish what you want. 

¬ God's motives are always beyond our understanding. 

¬ Remember the good things you have done. They'll give you courage. 

¬ The pain we feel will never go away, but work will help us to bear it. Suffering has no strength to wound a weary body. 

¬ A child can always teach an adult three things : to be happy for no reason, to always be busy with something, and to know how to demand with all his might that which he desires. 

¬ The brave are always stubborn. 

¬ Only those men and women with the sacred flame in their hearts had the courage to confront him. And they alone knew the path back to His love, for they understood that tragedy was not punishment but challenge. 

¬ The destruction of the city and the death of the woman he loved had been necessary for Elijah to understand that he too must have a name. And at that momenthe named his life LIBERATION. 

¬ He enemy is only a pretext to test our strength. 

¬ "Can a man cast from his heart the pain of a loss?" 
"No. But he can find joy in something won. "

¬ A warrior is always aware of what is worth fighting for. 


Short Reflection:

As we continue to grow physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, there are parts in our lives where we struggle on our choices. We don't know where to go, where to begin, what to do, how to do the things expected from us and even who to trust. Seems like we're trapped in a tunnel, where looking back is scary but looking ahead is scarier, and there's no way end.

These things we undergo are not easy to heed, but fret not, and stay calm. His reasons may be beyond our grasp, but all will be well in His own time. Let's not give in to our doubts, anxiety and confusions that can hamper our goals and can ruin our relationships with anyone.

STAY STRONG and KEEP THE FAITH! 🙏 ❤️ 


Friday, November 11, 2022

Harper Lee - To Kill A Mockingbird

One of the best books I have ever read! And the lines from the book that totally caught me were:


1. "Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."

2. "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It is whom you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway, and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do."

3. ".... a gang of wild animals can be stopped, simply because they're still human."

4. "In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but these are the facts of life." 

5. "Persecution comes from people who are prejudiced."

6. "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”

7. “People in their right minds never take pride in their talents.”

8. “The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.”

9. “Before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself.”

10. “How could they do it, how could they?” “I don’t know, but they did it. They’ve done it before and they did it tonight and they’ll do it again and when they do it—seems that only children weep.”

11. Atticus says you can choose your friends but you sho’ can’t choose your family, an’ they’re still kin to you no matter whether you acknowledge ‘em or not, and it makes you look right silly when you don’t.

12. “Atticus had said it was the polite thing to talk to people about what they were interested in, not about what you were interested in.”

13. "As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't you forget it- whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is a trash.''

14. "... she just fell down in the dirt. Just fell down in the dirt like a giant with a big foot just came along and stepped on her. Just.... like you'd step on an ant."

15. "Democracy... Equal rights for all, special privileges for none! "

16. "... the Jews have been persecuted since the beginning of history, even driven out of their country. It's one of the most terrible stories in history."

17. "It's not okay to hate anybody."

18. 'How can you hate Hitler so bad an' then turn around and be ugly about folks right at home?'

19. “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”

20. "....he was really nice....' 

        "Most people are Scout, when you finally see them."



Short Reflection: 

Sometimes, we judge people merely by appearance, status and background. We are so blinded by our own views, curiosity and standards without considering others. We forgot, they are also human; they have hearts and mind, too. 

Fairness may be lack in many places in so many ways, but may justice always prevail in every country for there are many of us who are hungry for it.