Paradise Island Beach Resort, Samal Island

And so I was in Davao City again for three days.  

I just realized that I have  been to Davao three times this year --- friend's wedding on January; planned vacation in July which ended on taking care of Mark at a hospital;  this October, Mark's post-birthday treat for me. Davao has been my favorite place to stay, mainly because of the people, climate, food, places to roam around, good and systematic way of governance and of course, wonderful beaches. Mark decided that the family must go to Samal Island that day. 

We came here on a very, very hot day. But who cares? We are bound to have fun here. 

Boats were already stationed at Sasa Wharf which will take you to the resort in roughly 10 to 15 minutes 

One fine day for plane-spotting

I have always been fascinated by airplanes. When I was young, living in a middle-class barrio, "micro plane-spotting" is one of my past times while lying on my back, taking breaks on  green  fields of Sikatuna. Of course, on my then point-of-view, aircrafts are just a super fine speck on a fine, blue sky, some where even hidden in clouds and I all I could hear is the loud, thunder-like  sound it gives; and my daydreaming would begin... 

So when I got older, I love taking snapshots of huge aircrafts on airports when I get opportunities to travel. Some pictures were hidden somewhere on my computer before, forgotten and some were lost. Just then I realized that my fascination with airplanes is actually a hobby --- who would have thought?! 

And so since I just discovered this as a hobby, I'm going to share some of the planes I've spotted. 

Cathay Pacific Airbus Airbus A330-342 B-HLH at RPVM

Let's get this party started!

I was a weekend drinker. There were  times  my body longs for cold beers and hard-partying. I admit I drink, before,  to get over a break-up, in confusion, getting over a huge fight, into deep thinking about life, angry over someone at work, party with friends, or simply supporting a friend in confusion , celebrating something or simply hanging out friends.

I think the saying, "Tell me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are" is kinda true. But in my case, being judgmental on something you don't have any idea of is a different thing. I belong to a middle-class family, where some little celebrations are celebrated with adults on a drinking-spree. I came from a little town where people hang-out in groups,  always with alcohol bottles in their hand.

Beach Life - Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort and Spa

Life is a beach --- or so I've heard.  People from a tropical  country loves the beach, who doesn't? Those  ocean-filled air sweeping your hair, having sunkissed skin  from those sun-bathing hours, those beach water  hugging  your body,  those white sands dancing under your  feet --- yes, the beach!

Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort and Spa

I am  lucky enough to have situated in a beautiful island in the Philippines. I spent my childhood in a small island called Bohol in the center of the country. Beaches there are superb.  Currently, my work requires me to  stay in Cebu, the nearby island of Bohol, particularly in Mactan Island. The island  has a lot of  beaches, I mean world-class resorts. I  have  been to some of those  but this particular  resort  is so far my favorite. Because of my work, I am privileged to have an annual vacation here, shall I say one of the perks of working in a Japanese manufacturing firm for almost six years. 

5:30pm habit

It's 5:30PM and I am at my usual spot. It's been a long day; the sun has mightily letting out his power for the last couple of hours and like a worn-out baby, it's time to call it a day --- and I am watching HIM slowly disappearing among the clouds. 

I am a sky-watcher. When I was younger, I remember I love staring at clouds. I used to run freely, enjoying the heat, the wind and of course the company of my little friends. I remember having this memory of lying on my back, with both hands at the back of my head, staring at a sunless sky with my brothers on an open field (I think we were on a break from gathering young corns from my grandfather's cornfield).  It was a happy feeling, so vivid that when I close my eyes right now I can still feel it --- that freedom from anything, that unexplained happiness. 

And here I am, standing at my usual spot at our facility, observing  my 5:30PM habit of watching a sunset  in progress.  When we moved-in on our new facility, I have all my time watching the sun sets, the sky without too much trees and buildings covering it. I enjoy my morning walks, my sunset habit and my usual sky-watching. 

 

During the construction of our new facility, as one of the personnel spearheading the transfer, we are  required to visit this every week to check the updates. And this, my friends is what I usually see

Exploring Olango Island

And so, my VIP-ness was activated last weekend, again, at Olango Island. 

I am Sky, a Libran, an air-element. I love the outdoors, I love flying, zip-lining, water, beach, anything windy and yes, island-hopping. I have been to Olango Island and it's always an exciting experience, to be one with nature. 

Olango Island Group is located near Mactan Island and Cordova. It has six islets which scattered along the these municipalities. These are famous for dive sites, seafood trips and  other water-related activities.  For now, I will be writing about my seafood trip experience.  

This is actually my second time visiting the island. You can rent a boat ranging from P3500 to P5000 depending on the boat capacity. Either you can start your way in Olango Wharf at Mactan or at Portofino Beach Resort. From the port, the boat will be traveling about 30 to 45 minutes to the known stilt restaurants.

A few minutes after leaving the island, the first time you will notice, of course, is how the water looks like : deep, blue-green and patches of whites indicating a clear white sand beneath as you go farther. The scent of the sea that reaches your lungs makes the whole experience fun and exciting. 

book-hunting anyone?

Trip to malls isn't complete without being able to visit a bookstore. Oh, I can't help it, really. It's like, it has has some kind of an imaginary power or magnet that made me drawn to it.  It's like it has this certain powerful aura that every time I pass into it, I blinked, I paused and would check the bookshelves out.  And last weekend, on my usual  grocery schedule, I picked two. 

 

My mother used to tell me that when I was about two years old, I would love to play with any reading materials at home, which I usually ended up tearing them all apart (maybe I was fascinated with the properties of paper which gives out a sound when torn -- or maybe I was enjoying the little power I had "destroying" a thing at my age). And so, my mother, a school teacher, bought me hard-bound children's books for me to delight myself into. At school, not to brag, but I was one of the "elite" children who's one of the teacher's assistants to teach my classmates who had a hard time recognizing letters and how to pronounce it. My addiction to read followed me throughout school days. I would love to camp in libraries and oh, I love the smell of old books! It's like a drug. So addicting. Time also pushed me to write; from essay contests to publishing and contributing poems and articles to school papers.