Previously in Rinavia Prime
Masasabi ko na sa nakaraang higit kalahating taon ay nalagay ako sa katahimikan. Ito ang isa sa mga dahilan kung bakit pansamantala akong lumiban sa pagsusulat. It was November of last year when I published an entry on my blog. That doesn't include the months of intermittent postings because of my work commitments. When not hitting my quota for the writing job, the days were spent seeing places and experiencing new things with the person I choose to love. To help you put everything in perspective, the exclusive dating setup I had with the Weatherman did bear fruit. Armed with patience and a firm resolve to hold on to the notion that there is no one I'd like to see the world except him, the two of us ended up getting closer. Parang Aldub lang. It was fun and exciting. Ganoon pala ang feeling kapag yung taong kasama mo ay kapareho mo ng hilig. One thing leads to another and the next thing I knew, one year had passed since he came back into my life. While we seldom talk about our beginnings, I can say that our lives are more intertwined now than in any other time in our history. We still have more journeys to come and milestones to cherish - but for now - let me share what we have accomplished so far.
1. Taal Heritage Tour
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| At the belfry of the Basilica of Saint Martin de Tours. |
The town of Taal boasts grand ancestral houses and a century-old Basilica built in 1856. Only a three-hour drive from Manila, a visitor can see the places around the poblacion on foot.
The heritage tour was my surprise birthday gift to the Weatherman. And it was probably the best I ever gave to someone.
2. Cloud Nine Chill
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| The Weatherman doing a time-lapse video |
The Cloud Nine Hotel and Resort, with its cliffside view of the metropolis has always been a secret hideaway. I fell in love with the place when my schoolmates decided to watch the sunrise there after spending the night partying in Timog. To this day, more than a decade later, I can still count with my fingers the number of times I came back -
half of them with people very dear to me.
So I returned for the nth time with the Weatherman in tow. While inside the UV express going to the highlands, he told me that his fondest memory of Antipolo was seeing the city in the distance. He had no idea that the place we are going is known for its viewing deck. So yun, imagine his eyes glow when he saw the unobstructed view of the skyline for the first time. He took pictures, climbed the hanging bridge leading to the hotel's rooftop, and watched the sunset while attempting to create a time-lapse video on his phone. As if nature wanted us to stay longer that evening, we chanced upon low-lying clouds passing through, shrouding the hotel and its surroundings in a think blanket of haze.
The weatherman's grin was priceless.
Wawa Dam Adventure
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| Mt. Binakayan in the Distance |
I came across a travel blog about Montalban a long time ago. Written on the essay were some interesting points about the town's famed mountains, whose peaks were a favorite haunt of rock climbers trying to test their skills. Back then, I have no intention of checking the place out, not even when Bentusi, my editor, lives in town. But when her father died and I went to the wake at 6 in the morning, I thought of exploring Rodriguez on foot before returning home to get some sleep.
Curiosity prevailed, and the next thing I knew, I was on a jeep heading to Barangay Wawa to see the mighty dam up close. Taking some pictures for posterity, I vowed to bring the Weatherman there, and one fine afternoon I finally did. The kid, who is a confessed nature lover could not believe what his eyes could see: rock boulders as big as houses, the crystal clear waters of a dead river downstream, the twin peaks of Mt. Pamitinan and Mt Binakayan bisected by the Marikina River. the everyday rustic lifestyle locals seem to enjoy. It so happened that we went there on a Monday so we had the place to ourselves.
It felt like a spiritual journey.
We went home exhausted after shooting pictures of nature and looking at the sky to catch a glimpse of the mountains while riding at the back of a tricycle, a rainbow appeared on the horizon.
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We had other adventures, including the ones he surprised me with. These and our other stories, I will write in the next part of this blog entry.
-tobecontinued-
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