A couple of months ago I saw a video of what they're claiming as "The Maldives of the Philippines" with a sandbar stretching as far as the eyes could see. It was a promotional video, others were posted by video bloggers with the caption "Choose Philippines" or something like "Breathtaking Areal View of the Philippines." The drone shots were stunning. I HAD to go there, and it didn't matter who I went with as long as I make it. From the initial idea of coming in with a bunch of friends, around 15...four of us pushed through, and that did not stop the experience of being there become less breathtakingly memorable. It. Was. Magnificent.
We didn't have a drone to hover and see what it looked like from above, but just from the focal point of where we were standing, glorious hues of varied blues reflected all over. It was enough to make us gawk on the pump boat. At one point I remember my brother declaring about not wanting to swim when we left the port, but when he saw how beautiful the water was, he was the first to jump in.
Here's a quick 360° view of what it was like to be on the water.
I went out for dinner with a friend last week, from a simple catch up we ended up drinking six glasses of beer. Why? Other than the fact that we've come into terms that [some] craft beers actually taste good and not just some seawater piss with a bitter aftertaste, we reached a point in our conversation that made us go─OMG WHAT'S HAPPENING TO MY LIFE!?!? We are past the mid-twenties age, practically about to depart for the thirties stage , yet there we were without a proper course and direction. And while we see our batchmates posting about getting engaged, tying the knot or starting a family; about half of them pursuing their dreams abroad, there we were, back in our hometown, panicking. In between our plans of partnering up for a future business venture, she told me that she was torn with the decision of either pushing through with the solo business she had been planning for some months now or wait for a call from a company that she had been wanting to try out for quite some time. It was when I was driving her home when she blurted, "I really don't know if this is a sign or a test. Just about every time I am set to make a life-changing decision some sort of distraction comes up, and it's been setting me back a couple of times. I can't decipher what the universe is trying to tell me." I couldn't agree more. It's happened to me more often than I want it to, and it seriously changes the game, from something simple and a supposed straightforward decision it suddenly becomes this confusing struggle of weighing certain events whether to take it as a sign or a test. The two are very different things that can cause serious delays if taken the wrong way. Years of your life could turn into empty yieldings if wrongly interpreted. It's a frustrating situation to be in, no joke. It made me think about what my brother mentioned several weeks earlier, firmness and discernment is key to overcoming indecision. Deep gut feeling and proper meditation plus research can give you plausible answers, sometimes; as people's opinions tend to add chaos to the confusion. We met again the other day. She was distraught at the curveball life threw at her. On the day that she made the decision that she was going to push through with the business, the company called...she got the job.
The Ruins, through the years, has been slowly developing from this old mansion born out of a man's love for his wife to this tourist destination/events place. The skeletal concrete rose out of the ashes of the mansion after being set on fire, for three consecutive days it burnt everything to the ground save for what is now being called as "The Taj Mahal of the Philippines." Through the years the management has been building structures around it, trees topping as high as the ruin, adding commercial value to the gem that once was, and ultimately diminishing its charm.
A before and after pic. Goes to show how bad my photography has gotten.
I came across this song about three years ago as a recommended video after going through the soundtrack of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty...either that, or it was a song under Spotify's Discover after listening to some Kodaline tracks. It took some repeats before I realized how heavy this song is. I initially thought the song is about us, the youth, millennials who pretty much got sick of life because one of the most prominent lines I could hear is: "And if you're still bleeding you're the lucky ones; cause most of our feelings, they are dead and they are gone." You know, when some of us have reached that feeling of emptiness due a quarter-life-crisis...a distraught existence, a hallowed out sense of self; it can really make you bleed out...yet your spirit feels numb at the inflicted wound because of you've been cut down countless of times. It can destroy so much life and emotions, regardless being wild and reckless because we are out chasing visions of our futures. We set fire on our insides for fun...only to blame ourselves in the end. Such is the roller coaster ride of it all. But then I read the lyrics and suddenly it just turned out to be this really bad breakup with some guy, and it shows how terrible it was with the song's turnout. The irony of the sort-of upbeat drumming is in how the dark the lyrics is. The rawness of her pain is quite there. Down to the very end, there is no redemption in this song, just a lot of angst. Yet I don't know why I like it so much. Here's the full song I got from azlyrics:
YOUTH
Shadows settle on the place, that you left. Our minds are troubled by the emptiness. Destroy the middle, it's a waste of time. From the perfect start to the finish line.
And if you're still breathing, you're the lucky ones. 'Cause most of us are heaving through corrupted lungs. Setting fire to our insides for fun Collecting names of the lovers that went wrong The lovers that went wrong.
We are the reckless, We are the wild youth Chasing visions of our futures One day we'll reveal the truth That one will die before he gets there.
And if you're still bleeding, you're the lucky ones. 'Cause most of our feelings, they are dead and they are gone. We're setting fire to our insides for fun. Collecting pictures from a flood that wrecked our home, It was a flood that wrecked this home.
And you caused it, And you caused it, And you caused it
Well I've lost it all, I'm just a silhouette, A lifeless face that you'll soon forget, My eyes are damp from the words you left, Ringing in my head, when you broke my chest. Ringing in my head, when you broke my chest.
And if you're in love, then you are the lucky one, 'Cause most of us are bitter over someone. Setting fire to our insides for fun, To distract our hearts from ever missing them. But I'm forever missing him.
And you caused it, And you caused it, And you caused it
