OctoBohol - A Travelogue

Nothing could have been more refreshing to start the month off than having a good way trip to one of the most beautiful islands in the Philippines - Bohol.

Oct 1 - Almost missing our ferry, me and dhad dashed off to Pier 1 (Cebu) to meet all the rest of the gang. We planned to meet up at 5:30AM, but for the first time, neither my alarm clock nor body clock worked for me. The trip from Cebu to Tagbilaran, Bohol was not heaven either because we were seated on the ferry's viewing deck for booking late, but again, it was our fault. So a tip for all you guys planning for a trip, book early. The viewing deck was supposed to provide a good, nice view of the great, wide ocean. Well, it did but the waves were too big that day due to a storm closing in, that soon enough, some of our friends were already wet from the water splash.

Though it started a little rough, the trip slowly became smooth and rewarding once we started touring the island.

Our first stop? The Blood Compact site. This is also known as "sandugo" in native language to mean "one blood". It's where Philippine Datu Sikatuna and Spanish explorer Miguel Lopez de Legaspi compacted a friendship treaty. The next stop was the Baclayon Church, an old church built by the Jesuits in 1602. We had our quiet moment inside the bid dome, as if we were travelled back in time. Its museum was complete with pricess pieces when it was still operational.

The next stops were all on Bohol's pristine forests and mountains. The third stop was to the largest python in captivity. Prony, as the snake is called taken from his captor's name Sopronio, was sleeping when we visited. The tour guide, a fun-almost-too-hard-not-to-notice gay told the history of how the snake became this large. I was not too attentive though so I can't quite recount his words. I was more amazed by how such an animal could grow even bigger. There were other beautiful animals at the site, too. We saw a pair of lemurs and another pair of the endangered and mightly Phillipine eagle. There was an owl, too, a pair of Chinese chicken, a pair of crow and another long-beaked bird.

It was almost noon when we felt our stomachs churn. We were just right on schedule so we decided to try the famous floating resto. The boats are anchored over Loboc river shores until they are full. A musician usually plays a song in all of the boats, and on-board our boat was a guitar man with a local hat, and since we were the majority of the passengers, we did not feel too shy to sing along. It was fun especially when the boat started moving, touring us along the river. At the end of the tour was a small water fall. In sum, it was a great experience.

After lunch, our van driver knew where to drop us next - the Tarsier Sanctuary. Tarsiers are the smallest species of the monkey family. They grow from thumb-size to a maximum size of a big man's fist. They have extremely large and round eyes, because they don't have lids. These amazing animals are nocturnal, and so they are mostly active at night. When we arrived, the owner was feeding one of them with a cricket. He says, one tarsier eats an avarage of twenty crickets a day!

The next stop was a local hanging bridge built from woven bamboo. It looked pretty scary, but when you see all those men crossing through will all their heavy bags, you will feel more relaxed. The walk across was fast and easy, but fun. At the other side was a free show of the famous "Buko King - Bohol version". A buko king is a man capable of peeling of a coconut using only his teeth. There was various local products there too for souvenirs. In fact, anywhere you go, you see these small souvenir shops, but here, they were a bit cheaper.

We were getting excited towards the end of the day because we were about to see the world-famous Chocolate Hills. On our way there, we passed through the Man-Made Forest and it was so beautiful, and I mean really beautiful. The trees go a long way up and they form archways at the top, creating a natural shade of the road.

Finally, we reached the last destination for the day - the chocolate-looking hills. We had to climb a long stairs up another hill to have to a better view of the scene. It was almost rainy when we arrived but nothing stopped us. The climb was worth it because seeing the marvel of the mountains was almost panoramic. It's really a wonder how the hills became how they are now. There were almost 50 of them visible from where we stood, but record says there are over a thousand of them in the area. Such a breathtaking view!

The long day ended with us checking-in in a resort at Panglao, Bohol. We ate a sumptuous grilled or sugba chicken and pork and ate with our hands while looking at the waves just a few feet away.

Oct 2 - Beach Time! We woke up early to watch the sun rise while taking a sip of coffee and strolling the white beaches of Panglao Beach Resort, though some of the guys preferred to over sleep a bit. When the sun was up, we took the dive and enjoyed the beach. It was great because there were still a few other visitors swimming that early, so we almost had that part of the beach for ourselves. The white sand was fine, white and unviolated.

Right after lunch, when our stomachs were unquestionably full again, we finally headed to the port, and via the same ferry, back to Cebu.

Quest for Truth

The road to the truth has been blocked by walls of lies. They say these lies are not bad for they protect a bigger and more important thing – the truth. What is truth then if it takes so many lies to keep it?

I read a story today about a man who’s been hunted down by the police for he has robbed many a bank for many years. That man, called the “Boogey” went home to his town and was known by almost everyone.

Meanwhile, rangers were deployed to track him down and bring him down if he were to escape. One of the rangers found his hometown. He went over the place and saw a bar. There were two men inside, one was thin, playing cards, and the other slouched as if asleep with a hot over his face. The ranger approached the thin man and whispered, “Do you know where Boogey is at this moment? He’s wanted for almost 50 counts of robbery.” The thin man slowly turns his head towards the other fat man who was inside the bar. “That,” he said, “is Boogey”. The ranger immediately but cautiously moved towards the man they call Boogey.

He shouted, “Freeze, you are under arrest for robbery. I can kill you right now but if you tell me where you hid all the money you took, I will spare your life.” Boogey though did not speak English and asked the thin man to translate the message to him. Then he replied, “Go out of this bar, turn right. At the end of the road, turn right again and look for the well. Inside the bar near that well is everything that I have taken.” The ranger could not make of any of the words and asked the thin man what Boogey said. The thin man would have spoken immediately but paused and said, “He said, go ahead and kill me.”

Alas, the greed of man. There is no question anymore. Truth has lost its meaning, its value. It has lost its sparkle to inspire most men.

Alas, the weakness of man. Why would I protect you if I can protect myself by not protecting you?

The greatest mistake of man is to see only the empirical. They have lost the hopes and zeal of a child. The quest for truth should never be a step to hide another truth. The truth should be too valuable to spend your whole life finding it.

Leftover of a Democracy

I never thought that I'd come to this point of totally wanting an IMMEDIATE overall change in this forsaken Country for I am a reformist.

A lot of people have become victims of "stealth assassins", while many others not seeing them become blind of the real situation. What is sad about all these is that some - understatement, many - do see but choose to be complacent and apathetic about it as long as some groups continually see and suffer fighting for it while they watch some good movie a day in HBO and eat good food, not realizing the long-run effect of the situation.

It should not be as bad if not many a good men died to fight for our democracy. It should not be as sad if we did not start at a better state during the early years. It should totally not matter if we were all blind and could not see for we'd have enough reason of not "looking".

These who continually fight for what's left of this Democracy are embodied in the more courageous men we call "militants". They may be proposing a system totally not democractic, still they are the ones who see what we have left and we're ought to fight for.

Balancing Act

When does one know when she is doing a right or wrong thing when the world has turned upside down. Priorities has changed from "what is" to "what ought". Who dictates which is right and wrong? Life indeed is complicated.

In the book I am currently reading it tells about love in its purest form. A person loved is never possessed as the person loving that person must not. Love is when you feel happy and free without the physical body. For one loves the soul and not the body. It is only with that depth that you can truly say that you are loving one person.

Can love this pure be the basis of deciding for what's right? If your love is less pure but is love anyway, does it make it wrong altogether? Then comes your mind, your ever-dictating mind, telling you the pros and cons. Does love and mind then have to meet to find the best decision? If somebody has the answer, send me a comment now.

I have had my adventures in life and have learned lessons more than my experience. For I have been talking with older people and they say that it saves time and pain when you get to learn lessons which they discovered when they were young. It saves you 1 year, 2 years, or more for you won't have to spend the time they spent, you can simply decide because you already know what happens when you do one or another thing.

But life's lessons never end. And at this dead-end, I look back to find answers but none seems fitting. I look now and certainly nothing comes out but confusion. Never mind about future because that's exactly why I am at a loosing end now, to decide on that future.

Pain(ful)

"Why would God let pain take over us if He loves us?", you ask.

Pain makes one think of nothing else but for it to go away. He thinks of all the things he or she would give up just for it to go away. And when that moment comes, when the pain subsides, he/she feels so grateful - but just for a while. In that moment, his/her mind would have an entirely new mode, it's as if the pain was never there, and he/she gets on with his/her life.

It's funny how every moment of pain makes one an entirely different person, loss of all his/her defenses, becomes one of humility and one of little pride that he/she finally seeks God for help. Is it not wonderful how one becomes one with God in these situations? Now, what is it again that you were asking?