The mystique Lamanoc

Christmas Greetings...

To everyone and every being,

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Who stands to gain in Pandanon?

Waking up at 5.00 AM is no mean feat for a Saturday morning. The thought of setting foot in another isle out there in the northern part of Bohol was my caffeine...


We left Tagbilaran at 6.30 cramped in a VHire (van for hire). Including our brief stopover at the Banacon mangrove forest, it took us 4 hours to reach our destination.

Pandanon is an islet off the coast of an inhabited island. From afar, the place is densely populated. However, the tiny islet is spared of inhabitants as it was privately owned by the Ouanos.

The landing fee per person is :P150.00 and the cottages cost 250.00. We were just thankful to our hunch to buy food from the mainland. Or else, we'll surely die of hypoglycemia out there.

Most of the guests were Koreans based in Cebu. Most of the boat operators and hotel operators are from Cebu. It sounds that Pandanon is part of their island hopping itineraries.

If you want a lazy day spent with tolerable noise of glee and fun from your neighbors and an occasional splash of water, Pandanon is for you.

The islets all around Pandanon reassures you that Philippines is indeed an archipelago. That indeed, Cebu is just so near Bohol after all.

When the waves lick the shore

The shore:

I am always wet
lambasted by the waves unceasingly
I get caressed by waters of long time ago
reunited by all those waters intertwined by ages
Boredom sets me to a kill
But freedom -that of embracing the journey done
Just of being there, a solid wall at the corner

The water:
Of different forms, tempers and sight, I move on
I voice out all my angst
The waves and tides do it all
Unceasingly I drift
The destination is so uncertain...
The destination I might not appreciate.
I'll simply be there...

Awes and wanders: On punishing the girl-child

Awes and wanders: On punishing the girl-child

On punishing the girl-child

The biases of long time ago evolves in time and the context where we are ... The frustrations and disappointments of yesterday may not hold the same impact always...

Browsing through the papers of today, I came across a controversial 'request' by the Catholic schools of the country. I read some friction in here... a 'moral' segregation somewhere.

My reaction: how do we realize in its fullness, the 'best interest of the child' principle? Are we back to the time of scarlet letters?

Punta Cruz

All for nationalism

I planned to write about a line that I read somewhere in reaction to a friend's graduation picture-- "and now, service to the country?" Reading that comment froze my state of being for a day. Yes, I forgot when I've uttered that line last but for the young people commenting on a simple graduation picture, it was very natural for them to claim service to the motherland.

I long for the time when in my country, we would also be able to do the same... people of all 'kinds' would ask these without fail and in utter sincerity.

This led me to ask... have I served enough?

Food Trip

I survive therefore I eat... (the top three are mogwai prepared foodies while the last one is a glimpse of appetizers I prepared at avocado)

Tagbilaran Morn

What is good in the morning? Having a feel of roaming around while mostly are still asleep. It is just as if you roam freely without much spectators. Yes, it is just like in the night... tranquil and quiet but with the presence of the sun.

I equate it to power: getting ahead of those who chose to embrace their pillows and chose to prolong the pseudo-darkness in them.

But who owns the morning? The ones who can’t choose to sleep--- these are the early morning workers whose jobs require them to leave the comfort of their beds. . The health buffs are in the other category. We have those who are so conscious of their health that they lord over the streets and the parks for the cause called fitness. There are those who are under threat from debilitating illnesses or who chose to be cowered by their doctors and the blood pressure apparatuses. We have the students whose fear of being late and get demerit or fines from their respective school.

In the earlier part of the morning, one can also have the glimpse of grandeur when it is safe to sway your hips in the middle of the streets since transport is still very scarce.

I like the morning coolness and the clarity of the streets. The streets won’t lie.

Just

Blazing through am compelled to do
to just feel the wind kissing through
caressing the skin that shivers
the slice of the cold wind may seem to cut me into pieces
but the roaring of the waves leave me more cold
colder still when the rain will pour in fury

There is no stopping
for i know that strength is best seen in resilience

Revisiting my blog

(or perhaps, this is the reason why i didn't blog?---too much outings :-)


My not writing was at first a case of respite.

And then it became a nuissance to write. I can't blog from my blogspot due to some technicalities.

For 6 months, the issue on freedom of speech and expression played in my mind. But then in truth, I didn't have the chance to write. I rested easy on the fact that my spot was 'blocked'...

But truly, it might just be a convenient excuse of disappearing in virtuality.