Impressions

Tokyo

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not, and oftentimes we call a man cold when he is really only sad.

In Tokyo, I met a French girl who kept on bumping at doors and walls, and tripping on stairs and chairs. I thought what a stupid, clumsy woman. I learned later that she was extremely nearsighted and that she can’t tell depth. From that time, I vowed never to be judgmental again, and to always be kind to people. I figured, everybody is fighting a hard battle that we know nothing of.

Eastwood City

Libis, QC

At the heart of Eastwood City is a piazza with gentle jet streams jumping out of a pool. We were sitting by the edge of the pool when suddenly music blurted out of loudspeakers making the fountains come alive. I was pleasantly surprised seeing the music-synchronized ballet of jet streams reminiscent of Bellagio at The Strip in Vegas. Though tiny compared to the mammoth Bellagio fountains, still, you can’t help but smile and shake a little bit to the beat of the shakable -Jai Ho!

Wax Museum

Las Vegas

I dunked passed Shaquille O’neill and played pool with Ben Affleck. I had a photo op with Her Grace Princess Diana, and kissed pretty woman on the cheek. Relax…. This was Madam Taussaud’s Wax Museum. If not for the indoor lighting that gives off an unsightly sheen on skin, you would take them for real. I met Abe Lincoln, Michael Jordan, Britney Spears, and Michael Shumacher; Martin Luther King Jr., Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie; Michael Jackson, Bruce Springstein, Bono and Don King. In the entrance was Whoopee Goldberg welcoming all guests who wanted to gawk in including me.

Sharks

Malapascua

We were a motley group of divers from the Philippines, Spain, Netherlands, and the United Kingdom for a two-month long reef check, a technical activity for gathering data to determine the health of coral reefs. In the middle of the program, we headed north for shark action - in Malapascua! 

Malapascua is a small island situated northeast of Cebu. It has pristine white sandy beaches and world-class diving sites. Two of the best being Gato, home of the White Tips and Monad Shoal, a sunken island known for its famous resident – the Thresher shark! 

Fishing & Surfing

La Union & Half Moon Bay

Fishing and surfing in La Union happens in exactly the same spot –The Point. It’s the place where surfers catch waves when swells come. When the sea is calm, outriggers troop there to fish. It’s the same as Mavericks at Half Moon Bay, which is not only popular among big wave surfers but also to over-fished rockfish making it a good candidate for a marine protected area. The diehard-Mavs-loving surfers heard of the buzz, and by the looks of it, they will mount a protest and raise a cry as has never been raised before, if conservation pushes through.

Hoover Dam

Arizona, Nevada

This leviathan dam does not only control the flow of the great Colorado River, but also created the mammoth reservoir Lake Mead. Experts say that since 1936 after completion of construction, until now, the concrete is still setting. A helicopter tour would have been ideal to get a bird’s eye view of this monumental project, but the unbearable 115 degree heat took away our initial enthusiasm. The hydroelectric power generated serviced the states of California, Nevada and Arizona.

Goin Bananas

Molave

It happened many years ago, when I went bananas. I have eaten three sipi (bunch) of this small and sweet smelling variety before I felt sick. My stomach heaved uncontrollably, and the bananas rose up, choking me. It was painful. I was in agony. I have to cough it out, until not a morsel of banana remained in my stomach. After that I collapsed to my bed. I slept.

For a while, I refused to even look at bananas.

Mudskipper

Sea Trail To Pangan-an Island

At present, people make daily treks in this waterworld, through the mangrove forest. Along the watery path, square-head mudskippers (isdang tambasakan) hop and crawl to little pools. Their pectoral fins prop themselves erect on the sand while staring with their bulging eyes, before quickly swimming and disappearing beneath rocks.

Learning To Surf

Doot Poktoy

I was using an antiquated surfboard with an abaca rope leash. What a shame! But nothing else was available and I wanted to learn -to body-board at least. After hours of practice, the waves shot me shoreward until the single fin cut through fine sand. I felt the adrenaline rush and the fulfilled feeling of having caught the waves. In no time I was back there again. I only stopped when I felt the tingling raw wound as the rope leash cut through skin.    

R E V O L U T I O N

Las Vegas

The shiny-bikini-clad dancers in stilettos were swaying to the beat of house music inside huge R-E-V-O-L-U-T-I-O-N letters. A kid stood in front giggling. He covered his mouth in awe. I jokingly commented to his Dad, “Better start ‘em young huh?” He chuckled then drew a long puff from his cancer stick.