Postcards from the Edge: Anilao, again

It's an easy drive (2&1/2 hours from Manila). Doable day trip. It's dagat.

So Anilao will always be a default destination whenever the noise, the smog and ugliness of the city close in and I need to get away. I think I come here 3 to 4 times a year and have brought foreign guests to enjoy snorkeling.

This is not the best beach (there is no beach actually- it's rocky, more coral rocks) and not the best waters the Philippines has to offer but it has great sunsets, good diving and snorkeling spots. Once I brought my American-Mexican colleague and he said "you have such high standards for beaches/oceans/islands but for us, this place is perfect!". I guess he is right. Anilao has its charms and I will keep coming back.

(The picture was taken at Dive and Trek Resort)

(This is trip no. 7 of the 37 for 37 challenge)

Like an unexpected song

A day or two after the New Year I went on a road trip with a few good friends. We woke up to very heavy rain, almost stormy, even. But of course that did not deter us. We started to drive to the southern part of Leyte and our planned final destination was Kuting Reef Resort.

It was raining heavily the whole time we were on the road but I kept telling my companions that we needed to be at our destination in time for the sunset. “Sunset? In this weather?” But when we were about 10 km from our destination, the rain became a drizzle. At 5km, it stopped. And the sky began to clear. By the time we got there, this sunset was waiting for us. And I felt that this was heaven’s show for us, specially for us. Right after the sunset, it started raining again.



I was overwhelmed, overjoyed, over loved. So I said a silent prayer-- Here’s to another year of spectacular sunsets and unbelievable moments that come to us like an unexpected song (ang daming song references sa line na ito, anovah!).

(This is Trip no. 2 of 37 for 37 challenge)

A river runs through it (Torpedo Boat Adventure)

We now open the New Year with an adventure. This has become a tradition ever since we went for an unplanned drive to Silago, Southern Leyte and a trek to Tres Marias falls one stormy day a couple of days after the new year. That was in 2011. And then again, to Lake Mahagnao in 2012. And for 2013, we decided to do the Torpedo Boat Adventure in Paranas, Western Samar.

This was the German’s idea, again. The German is a pseudo-local of Leyte. He moved to Tacloban with his partner a couple of years back and since then has been exploring the province and beyond looking for rare orchids, documenting them for a scientific journal. This is our hometown, but this German knows its nooks and crannies better than any local. So, funny as it may sound to the others, the German is our dependable guide in our own backyard.

The drive to Paranas, Samar from Tacloban took 2 and a half hours. Upon reaching the town, we headed towards the headquarters of Samar Island National Park (SINP). It isanother 16 kilometers along the Wright-Taft road past the junction (ay, we kept asking the annoyed German, are we there yet?) and up a hill. You register, pay the fee, choose a guide and get a briefing before going to the jump-off point. I think the package for 5 persons is PHP 1800 and it includes the helmet, the boat, and the fee for the guide. (The package rate is based on boat capacity- maximum of 5 pax, so if there are six of you, you need to get another boat for 1800. So it’s better to go there in multiples of 5).



The boat ride along 10.5 kilometers (one way) of the Ulot river (total length is 520 km) was scenic, with a lot of wildlife sightings along the way (it’s a bird watchers’ heaven). We saw a couple of waterfalls by the river banks. And there are a few rapids and drops that will satisfy the adrenalin junky. The ride downstream was exhilarating but the ride upstream was even more so since we were going against the current.



The ride culminates at Deny’s point, the designated picnic area where visitors could swim then have lunch by the big stones and boulders lining up the riverbank. Oh, and we dared each other to jump into the raging waters and let the current just take you downstream where the guides wait to pull you back to the riverbank.

It was a good day trip, the perfect start to the year and this 37 for 37 challenge.

(all photos by Mandy Aumento)

(This is trip. no. 1 of the 37 for 37 challenge "

The 37 for 37 Challenge

I, with two of my closest friends, decided to make the year leading up to our 37th Birthday (38th for P) more interesting. We got this idea from a friend who challenged herself to go on 35 trips before her 35th birthday. We met her on the eve of her birthday and she was going on the 35th trip (to Davao) the next day. So we said, why not try it..we are always looking for places to go anyway, always hoping for time (and money!)so we could go on our next adventure. We are perpetually planning...even if half of those plans do not work out.

So we decided to call it 37 trips/new places for 37 years (or 38 for P)- the 37 for 37 Challenge. It is a challenge because: (1) there are only 52 weeks in a year, meaning, 52 weekends in a year. And our work is such that we have to work even on weekends so there is no guarantee we can free up those weekends to go on these trips; (2) That means 3 trips every month. And right now, we barely have time meet up for dinner once a month or so. So yes, it is going to be a challenge. But bring it on!

We drafted these rules so we know what's and what's out...

General Rules

1. Primary purpose of the trip: vacation, leisure (* see exceptions to this rule)
2. It has to be a place that you have never been to before ( ** see exceptions to this rule)
3. At least 90 kilometers away from base city (reference point Kilometer Zero in Rizal Park, Philippines and Kilometer Zero in Tacloban City)
4. A city or town counts as one point even if there are numerous tourist attractions in that town or city
5. One could earn several “points’ in one trip for as long as rules 1-4 are met
6. Coverage: for Me and D: January to December 2013. for P: March 2013- March 2014.


* For work related trips to be included, there should at least be one full day “extension” devoted to sightseeing/vacation for the trip to count ; the site/attraction/place should be a place that one has never been to before

** A trip to a place that you have been to before can count as a point for as long as Rules 1 and 3 are met; You stay in that place for more than 8 hours.


So there. I have decided to document where the '37 for 37' will take us in this blog.

A walk along Nanjing Road

I spent a week in Shanghai last March but as usual, I barely had time to explore the city, even after work. There was one night though that I put on my coat and braved the chilly weather to explore the famous pedestrian street Nanjing Road.

I remember taking another walk along other popular pedestrian streets in Barcelona- the Portal de l’Angel and La Rambla. There were a number of street performers and musicians along the stretch of these streets. In one alley, there was an opera singer taking advantage of the good acoustics of that specific spot. Further down, there was a guy playing the Spanish Guitar. A flamenco dancer. A clown. Bubblemakers.

But I was told that these performers had to audition to get a permit to show their art on the streets of Barcelona. The idea is, if you have no talent, or if your act is not original or interesting at best, you get no permit.

It was obvious that this was not the case in Nanjing Road. I got the feeling that anyone who wanted an audience can set up in one corner and do whatever they want, regardless of talent or lack thereof.

I started my walk in Nanjing Road East and just a few meters down, I saw a crowd and I checked out what caught their attention. It turned out there was a pair demonstrating some ballroom dance but the moves were almost unrecognizable. A little bit of Swing, a little bit of Cha-Cha, and a little bit of Boogie. But they had avid fans, gathered around in a small circle like it was the cast of So You Think You Can Dance.



On the other side of the road, you see China’s version of the Line Dance. And there was another group a block farther down. I saw a lady in corporate attire briskly walking who surprisingly veered from her direction and joined the group like it was an afterthought. It very well could be that all participants intended to be there at precisely 7 in the evening so they can dance. But it equally seemed so random too- people who are just walking by and compelled to join in a little bit of community activity, maybe, to make them less alienated from the rest of the world. And what better way to do this than join a group of strangers and dance.



But my favorite was the group of older folks, singing traditional Chinese song and revolutionary songs. There is one guy who sets up a flipchart showing handwritten lyrics of the songs, a speaker and a microphone. To me, this was throwback karaoke. And any one feeling a little bit nostalgic can join in the group singing. There is even a guy with a saxophone and a conductor-wanna-be. Oh, how fervent their singing was. That’s the best I can say.



And it was like this, different performances all the way down Nanjing Road. Performers would bring their portable audio sets, their thermoses with hot tea, their disposable cups and then they would set up along the street and perform all night long. I took a walk on one cold night in March 2013 but the minute I set foot on that road, I was thrown back to another era, another time, and I don’t even know what era it was.