i miss the philippines.  i miss you all.  so begins the two months after.

banaue & sagada: part II

any thought that the trip had entered the falling action phase of a story was quickly dispelled the next day. a three hour winding drive north found us in beautifully untouched sagada, home to the “hanging coffins” and cave exploration.

“hanging coffins” you say? well, first off, they aren’t hanging. rather, the natives, as part of their beliefs, place coffins high up on cave walls or mountains. the “hanging coffins” term only came into use once tourists began to frequent the sites. in one cave, perry, our local guide, explained some of his peoples’ customs and beliefs. old people are placed in coffins in a fetal position, thus accounting for their coffins’ greatly reduced size. it is as though the departed is being reintroduced to the womb. these coffins are placed in relatively plain site as example of a good way to die. those who have died young or by disease are placed in a different location. the natives believe that it is a bad example of dying and therefore must be hidden.

the real adventure began afterwards.

seeing the “hanging coffins” and learning about the culture was certainly interesting, but it simply didn’t compare to the two hour cave exploration that followed. again, breathtaking. yes, there were stalactites and stalagmites. yes, there were thousands of bats on high, and cool running water. yes, there were amazing mineral formations. however, i can’t quite capture the entire experience which was infinitely more amazing. shoes gave way to bare feet, naturally exfoliated along the way. clothes succumbed to the dampness of the cave, and eventually found itself lying on the floor so we could jump into a freezing pool of water over and over again. i have to cop out; you simply have to see it, be in the cave. to feel that sense of adventure, to feel as though in a nether world.

basically, you need to experience the wonders of nature. if you aren’t already, you’ll be put in your place, and you’ll be better for it.

again, i leave having wanted to say more, but failing to find the words that linger at the tip of my tongue. i wish i could give you my eyes, so you can see all that i’ve seen. anyway, belated merry christmas. and, cheers. here’s to a new year. let’s make it worthwhile.

banaue & sagada: part I

i had a rough draft written out on paper for my trip to banaue and sagada. but, in a rush to pack, i left it behind in mich and pao’s place. by the way, i’m back, sitting in my cold, cold living room. it’s nearly half past one in the morning and i’m tired as i should be, but i want to write and recall the trip while it’s relatively fresh in my mind. oddly enough, this is around the time my banaue story begins.
it’s the 22nd and i’ve had maybe a half hour’s worth of sleep before michelle wakes me up. a van has just arrived to take us to banaue. i fall out of bed, slowly assemble myself and what little effort i can muster, and manage, by no small degree of luck, to get to the vehicle. it doesn’t help at all that i had been drinking at a christmas party just a few hours earlier. in any case, i am greeted by the strange cool stillness of a usually hot and bustling manila. i barely exchange proper greetings with our driver, jerry, and guide, boyet, before i climb into the van, nestle into a seat like a cat onto a person’s lap, and immediately drift off into whatever dream i haunted just moments before.

as you can imagine, ten hours of driving with a few scattered stops in search of sustenance for man and machine alike would leave any person’s spirits down. it turns out, one sight of the rice terraces is one uplifting remedy. i might have blinded a few people from the shine of my teeth. covering over four thousand miles, the over two thousand year old rice terraces are certainly deserving of the title, eighth wonder of the world.

over our three hour hike, we encountered: igarots dressed in traditional garb; people with teeth stained red not by blood but rather by a commonly chewed herb called moma; scared furry mountain dogs and brave, waddling ducks; a curious little girl named shane; narrow pathways sometimes no wider than the width of your foot; possible death and dismemberment just a wrong step away; and of course, the breathtaking rice terraces under a setting sun.

see it for yourself. it’s good for the heart.

books i’ve read this year

*edited 30 Dec

the following is a list of comic books, short stories, novels (finished & yet to finish) that i remmeber reading this year. i like to discuss books. let me know if you’ve read any of these.

fixer chao han ong

dust and conscience truong tran - great book of poetry given to me by jeremy. i’m much obliged.

the last question isaac asimov - read it. its really short and worth the five minutes. if you peruse bearsuits’ blog, you’ll find a link to this story there.

one hundred years of solitude gabriel garcia marquez - right now, i’m trying to read, love in the time of cholera

kafka on the shore haruki murakami – my new favorite author. thanks thomas.

the unbearable lightness of being mila kundera

pulp charles bukowski

nausea jean paul sartre

invisibile monsters chuck palahniuk

on the road jack kerouac

ender’s game orson scott card

harry potter & the deathly hallows j.k. rowlings - he should have died.

ishmael daniel quinn - please read it.

the sirens of titan kurt vonnegut

we3 grant morrison; artist: frank quitely

the best american non-required reading of 2006 - this is a collection of american literature. the unequivocal highlight of this collection is conan o’brien’s high school graduation speech. such true words. such an odd and funny man.

* the brotherhood of the rose david morrell- edge-of-your-seat thriller. gripping.

do androids dream of electric sheep? philip k. dick

watchmen alan moore, illustrated by dave gibbons   

the illustrated man

blue like jazz: non-religious thoughts on christian spirituality donald miller - technically, i didn’t finish this book. but, i’m certain the rest of it was good.

crime & punishment fyodor dostoevsky - i like this book. so far. really, i do. but for some reason i can’t finish it. i just don’t know why. i swear i’ll finish it.

wizard of the crow Ngugi Wa’Thiong’O - good so far.

noli me tangere jose rizal - this is what i’m currently reading.

playlist phun: end of year edition

my goodness.  less than a week until the snow hits the fan.  that is, if you’re fortunate enough to live in a winter wonderland.  in a year i’ve been happy to have lived, here’s my soundtrack to 2007.  look sharp kid, you’re (still) looking good.  i’ll miss you.

in no particular order:

Rubies Destroyer – the lyrics, “now come on honey let’s go outside/ you disrupt the world’s disorder/ just by virtue of your grace / you know, i didn’t want to go / but leave i must, as gratifying as this dust was” summarizes my love for this song

Painter In Your Pocket Destroyer -  yes, Destroyer again.  i really enjoy the guitar part in this song.

Like A Rolling Stone Bob Dylan -  i think this is self explanatory

Adventure Be Your Own Pet – likewise

At Least That’s What You Said Wilco – the version of this song from their live album, Kicking Television, is sublime.  that guitar solo sends chills up and down my spine.

How To Fight Loneliness Wilco – “just smile all the time”

Me and Mia Ted Leo + the Pharmacists – just a great song

The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song The Flaming Lips - admittedly, i didn’t initially like this song. obviously, that changed.

The Universe! Do Make Say Think

23 Blonde Redhead

You! Me! Dancing! Los Campesinos

Shine A Light; I’ll Believe In Anything Wolf Parade -  so good. 

Kid A Radiohead

The Build-Up Kings of Convenience - i like leslie feist’s singing bit at the end

Black Cadillacs Modest Mouse – i don’t know exactly why i like this song

Now, Now; Marry Me St. Vincent – sigh.  annie clark.  need i say more?  but i will.  i posted shortly after watching a live performance of now, now on youtube.  it was then i fell in love with annie clark.  then i listened to marry me.  can you say “smitten”?

The Days Were As Long As We Thought Them Right Nessy - yeah, i know.  vain.  but i love this song with my every being.  how thomas and i wrote it on a whim.  how we recorded it.  if every song we wrote and recorded together was like this, i wouldn’t ask for anything more. 

bohol

yesterday i returned from a trip to bohol, the 10th largest island in the philippines. it is home to over 800,000 people and sports world-class scuba diving.

we arrived on sunday, welcomed by mich’s friend, may ann. she served as our guide on our first day there. once settled into our hotel and somewhat refreshed by a few hours of sleep, we went on a cruise on the loboc river. afterwards, we bothered some tarsiers, climbed 100 steps to get a good view of the chocolate hills, and topped the day off with a great dinner at bohol bee farm.

chocolate hills, you say? well, they are named so, all 1,200+ of them, because of the brownish color the hills become during summer. there isn’t any cocoa to be found on any of the hills which was a bit of a downer.

the next day i went diving near balicasag island. my dive instructor was a belgian woman named natalie who a few years ago decided to sell her house, car, clothes, etc. in belgium in exchange for a life spent traveling and teaching diving to first timers. i thought that was pretty cool.

after teaching me the basic techniques, i strapped on the gear and went diving. what i saw underneath the ocean’s surface was nothing short of amazing. schools of fish of every color imaginable, blue starfish dotting the landscape, coral walls that disappear into the depths of the ocean .. . it was a bustling city teeming with curious fish and other sealife. however, the highlight was seeing a sea turtle swimming to the surface to breathe. according to natalie, most divers go on at least several dives before they see a turtle. just call me lucky. or spoiled. either way, good times.

drink in the worm, just don’t chew it

i just remembered one last thing i wanted to post about. while in palawan, we were recommended to try a local delicacy. again, i forget what it’s called, but basically, the dish is a worm found in a particular type of bamboo. here it is in pictures.

sizing it up

the tasting

the verdict

to be honest, it wasn’t that bad. the taste and texture of it was similar to an oyster. its just that psychological factor. it’s a freggin worm.

here’s one more story in pictures. this time, i’m trying balut for the first time, having mustered the courage after 12 years since first being introduced to it. it’s not from the same night. yes, i am wearing the same shirt.

uncertain

i peel, paolo poses

unshelled

sarap!

didn’t taste half bad, although the balut juice was a bit funky.

that’ll be the last post for now! check back in awhile for posts about my family. and just note, that subic/cubi story is false. just a tour guide’s funny story. subic actually came about from the mispronunciation of a spanish word. so much more boring than the story. anyway, stay classy.

palawan

ok, last post for tonight. so tired.

today, mich pao, and i returned to manila after four days in palawan, an island south east of the visayas (where manila is) out in the south china sea. we stayed in palawan’s capital, puerto princesa, the cleanest city of the philippine islands. a 3rd offense for littering lands you a 1,000 piso fine and 2 months in prison. pretty stiff.

it was a great trip. the first day was an easy going tour of sites around palawan. one memorable place was the iwahig prison penal farm, home to some of the worst criminals in the philippines. to top it off, its the only bar-less prison in the philippines. craaazy. of all the things to do while there, we shopped in the souvenir store where they sold the inmates’ uniforms which shirts. there are three colors, each denoting the type of offender. michelle purchased a blue, medium level shirt, clothing of the robbers and murderers of the island nation. for obvious reasons, you aren’t allowed to wear the uniform anywhere on the island.

the second day involved a 4 hour drive, to and from our destination, on the crappiest road on earth. our awesome tour guide, ian who i’ll talk more of later, called the last portion of the ride abortion road. it’s that bad. the aches were well worth the trouble once we reached our destination, sabang river. the special thing about this river is that it’s subterranean and the longest known one. dark and cool, exploration of the cave yielded discovery of thousands of roosting bats and some strange rock formations. the largest cave was around 67 meters in height and was called “the cathedral.” our tour guide warned us not to look up at the ceiling with out mouths open; we needn’t worry about the cold drops of water as much as the warm drops of bat urine. if i got lost in there i would freak out. it was a relatively short visit. therefore, good times.

the next day we went to honda bay, renamed so during the japanese occupation. once there we took a boat and went island hopping, first to snake island, named so because the island’s shape. once there we snorkeled, got attacked by some crazy brown fish probably protecting its nest, and roasted underneath the blazing sun. we would have gone to starfish island next, but for the sake of really enjoying our time, we skipped the starfish island (so named for its numerous starfish surrounding the island). instead we went to an island (its name escapes me) with a diving board and kite boarding. we didn’t get to do the kite boarding but i did attempt a head first dive which turned out to be a belly flop. i won’t forget that soon enough.

ok i’m getting sleepy so i’ll tell you quickly about ian. ian is a tour guide. he is 33. two years ago he finally graduated from college, after eleven years, 6 colleges, and countless class withdrawals. his mother attended his graduation, much to her disbelief. he has 5 kids by three different mothers. there’s more stuff but i don’t care so much right now.

this trip was much fun. i’m as dark as when i came back from hawaii. i’m plan on doing posts about my family. stay tuned. there will be many of them. let’s see if you can keep up with all the relations.

goodnight.

i have to shower. crap.

the philippines is. . .

. . . . jollibee and its chickenjoy. 

. . . . enormous billboards that rival the likes of Times Square. 

. . . . jeepneys and tricycles.  they own the road.

. . . . smog and general pollution.  it’s pretty stiffling in manila.

. . . . automotive chaos.  don’ t let the dotted lines fool you.  there is only one lane.  for both sides of traffic.

. . . . four+ storied malls.  there are too many.  floors and malls.

. . . . balut(hard boiled duck embryo) & dinaguang (pig’s blood), crispy pata and sisig. 

. . . . food.  good food. amazing food. i’m hungry.

. . . . red horse and cerveze negra.  beware. many people will say san miguel light.  they are wrong.

. . . . family.  i love them all.

. . . . the best beaches in the world. 

. . . . great, friendly people.

. . . . corrupt government officials and coup d’etats. 

. . . . people power revolutions.

. . . . jose rizal, national hero of the philippines.

. . . . manny pacquiao, the other national hero of the philippines.  when he boxes, all crime goes down.

. . . . christianity and islam.

. . . . street children and shabby huts down by oft-flooded polluted rivers.  michelle has some favorites among the street children.  she’s seen many of them grow up. 

. . . . beautiful and heartbreaking.  i could go on, but like most things, you need to see it for yourself. 

last will and testament

not to be morbid or anything but i wrote my last will and testament about a month ago.  not just on any type of paper, mind you, but on 8.5 x 13 white hewlett packard office paper.  classy.  i thought, “hey this is my last will and testament. the regular 8.5 x 11 just won’t cut it.”  it would have sufficed though. 

in all seriousness now, i felt compelled to make my own after learning michelle, at the ripe old age of 31, had already made her own.  again, not to be morbid, and God forbid that it should happen, but we could go at any time.  but perhaps more importantly, you explore who and what is important to you.  you also realize what you consider to be yours, which after some thought at the time, i remembered to be interesting. i forget what those thoughts were.  i realized how few things were near and dear to me, which made me kind of happy.  some of those things included my guitars, my music collection, my royally screwed up pair of black high-top chucks and my 7th-circle-of-hell-condemned brown vans slip-ons, and my book collection.  it’s easy to think of whom to bequeth those things to (i have an interested party in those shoes, believe it or not).  then there’s the other things, like letters and cards accumulated from grade school days, journals and various notepads-who would i give those to?  who would want them?

anyway, some of my benefactors include gabby, who as of right now stands to inherit my iPod.  she would have gotten all my cash, paltry in size it stands to be, until i remembered that i have a godson to spoil.  i can imagine kai now, quiet and wondrous, then saying, “gee, thanks uncle allen. 200 bucks.  now i can buy that pinto i’ve always dreamed of driving in public.  what?! a pinto costs 300?  curse you!”

anyway, i recommend you write your will today.  it’s an eye-opening exercise.  good luck!  make sure you include me in your will.  you just might be in mine.

 dtuh dtuh dtuh!