The afternoon was uneventful when I arrived via a jeepney at Red Beach, the historic site where Gen. Douglas McArthur and his party landed in… Read More »Skim boarders during a lazy afternoon at Red Beach
There were no more tears, only remnants of the destruction. There were no more dead around, they were now buried but not forgotten. But that… Read More »Remembering Tacloban, 1 year after Yolanda
It’s already March and one thing is for sure: SUMMER IS HERE! It surely is a hot time and other than indulging oneself with cold halo halo or hitting the malls for the nth time, what better way to make these awaited vacation months worthwhile than a list of top 10 things to do during this time of the year.
This is Part 1.
He was… waiting. Feeling the wind, the water and his heartbeat. Blame it on ennui and the rustle and bustle of polluted Metro Manila that my feet is itching for that ride to nowhere again or just a sojourn to some place else. I was browsing through my files and saw this photo of a skimboarder off Palo in Leyte just near the famous Red Beach where MacArthur and company have been immortalized. He was surveying, looking for that perfect wave to ride. Waiting. Feeling the wind, the water and his heartbeat.
Early morning at Ormoc, the jeep terminal is already alive with commuters.
This is the 8th installment of the Luzon – Visayas – Luzon Loop series. Click the image on the right to check out the rest of the posts.
Ormoc at last! Despite not having made it to the midnight boat for Cebu, I was just glad that I finally reached this city at around 0400H from Tacloban. Its been a year since I’ve last visited this place while I was in transit to Guiuan in Eastern Samar to shoot the church there for the book. But back when I was still based in Cebu, Eastern Visayas was part of my area of responsibility and have constantly been here for work as well as leisure.
Its a small city and the domain of a few rich families who dominate local politics as well as businesses that were offshoots of the sugar industry. It was also here a little more than two decades ago when the tragic Ormoc flood happened and wiped out thousands of its inhabitants. But now, walking through the quiet streets, its a distant memory and no trace can be found of the event unless one visits the memorial near the city center.
A crowded van (or vhire) from Allen in Northern Samar to Tacloban City in Leyte.
This is the 7th installment of the Luzon – Visayas – Luzon Loop series. Click the image on the right to check out the rest of the posts.
See the photo above? That’s me at the extreme left with only my left ear visible still taking this shot. If you noticed, thank you, the row I’m at is already full while I was given the kiddie seat just beside the sliding door of the van. It was small for my 5’10” frame. Really. To give me a semblance of comfort and spare me less of a sore butt, they had these wooden stool, around 4 inches in width propped up beside the kiddie seat that is removed whenever the door is opened as it might fall. I was seated there and used my 5 year old North Face jacket as a cushion. For 8 hours.
Now just think of how the Samar road network looks like. From San Isidro near Allen in Northern Samar to Calbiga in Western Samar, around 5 – 6 hours of countless potholes and craters, probably the worst national road system in the country. It might even be called as the National Sunka* Highway. With apologies to this once popular game.
That’s what you get when you don’t buy your tickets earlier than the usual. When you get to decide, come hell or high waters, you need to be in Ormoc City in time for the last boat bound for Cebu at 0000H that night.