Trek with us, won't you?

A few weekends ago, me and some friends went trekking in Balamban. At the time of the trek, this blog wasn't on my mind so I'm not able to give the full details of the property. You can check them out on their facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Canso.XHBC?fref=ts) you know, for the boring details.

We got our backpacks are ready to go exploring

I'm not the biggest fan of trekking and some of my friends know this. If given the choice between trekking in the mountains and spending the same time in the beach or island hopping, I'd choose the sea any day. But my friends had a different plan. They all wanted to try trekking and for most of them it was their first time to go trekking. A lot of them had just bought trekking shoes a few days prior our Canso X-perience.

We woke up really that day and just bought drive thru food for breakfast. Canso X reminded us that before the trek, we need to have a good night's rest and a good hearty breakfast. It takes about an hour from Cebu City to get to Canso X. It's around 42km from Cebu City and roads are pretty steep. You won't miss it though. Entrance is just along the main highway.

After a mini safety briefing, we were off. The weather was good to us though so the usual stuff I didn't like about trekking weren't present. It didn't rain the night before so the ground wasn't muddy but it was cloudy so the sun's heat didn't get to me. Perfect trekking weather!

River trekking

While I have to admit that I'm not a fan of trekking, I am a huge fan of nature. So the entire time, my eyes were looking at the mountains and the river that we crossed. I enjoyed the river the most since I could cool off at anytime. Just stop beside the river, cup some water in your hands and pour it over your head - Instant relief from the heat! Just being in nature is such a pleasure for me. Several times I would stop to enjoy the sights, sounds and even the smells of the trek. It was definitely a good retreat from the usual sights, sounds and smells of the city : Lush green mountains vs the tall concrete buildings, sounds of birds chirping and the water running compared to the honking of the horns during rush hour, and the fresh air mixed with the scents of leaves and flowers compared to the smoke you usually inhale in the city.

What I didn't expect from the trek was when we had to jump into the water... several times. We found ourselves on the edge of a small waterfall with no other option to move forward but to jump in. It happened probably three times during the entire trek and each time I enjoyed the jump. I do believe that in my past life I was a fish or a dolphin, at least coz I feel so comfortable and at home in water.

The trek was easy and the waterfalls jumping parts weren't at all scary so anyone really can do the trek. If you want to try this experience, expect to get wet because you WILL get wet. After this Canso X trek, I think I'll enjoy whatever trekking experience my friends come up with next. I'm actually looking forward to the next one and it's getting close.

Shut up and Take my Money

Shut up and take my money!

This is basically what my 3 year old nephew told my sister when she came back from Taiwan with some cool looking magnets. Little Mateo was so amazed by how the magnets moved as if by magic that he retreated to his room, went back to my sister's room, placed his piggy bank on her table and said, "Tita, please put magnets in my room!"

Mateo has never seen that meme nor will he understand even if he's seen it but the underlying principle of this meme is this: I see something I want and I'll do anything to get it. There was no fear in not knowing if his money wouldn't be enough. No fear that all the money he accumulated would be gone if my sister had accepted. No fear that he'd just be laughed at coz his gesture was just too cute. Mateo had no fear. He saw something he liked and he went for it the best way he knew how.

This really got me to think about how I usually treat things that I like in my own life. I'm not the go getter kind of guy. I rarely grab opportunities when they present themselves to me. Truth be told, this is the third blog I've started. First two were just forgotten. It was the fear in me that prevented me from posting whatever the hell I wanted to. "Maybe I won't get readers", "Maybe they'll judge me for saying this", "What if they disagree with me?". Fear is a powerful thing and overcoming it requires a lot of strength.

Last night, me and my best friend had dinner and one of things we talked about was seeing this really old lady - probably a mom or aunt - dancing on the elevated platform at Liv over the weekend. She got a lot of stares and even some of our friends made fun of her coz "she doesn't belong here." I admit that I did think that at first but when I looked at the scene again, she wasn't harming anyone, she was smiling. She had no care in the world. She was probably so overcome with happiness that that night she was able to go clubbing with her daughter and maybe even more happy that her daughter brought her clubbing. Again, no fear of being judged, of being ridiculed, or of looking out of place. She saw what she wanted and she went for it.

This is what my blog will be about. Just my personal journal and my outlet for writing - I haven't written in ages. No more fear of people judging what I write, or people judging how I write. I will not fear people pointing out typos in my entries - I'm pretty sure there will be a lot of those as I'm not a very good typist. I see something I want, which is to start a blog, and I'm going in. So just shut up and take my money.