Three's A Party

The last two months have been a skyrocketing time of life.

Between works, friends and family, passion and interest,

All juggled in balance, and I'm starting to get a hang of it.

Sounds like something to celebrate eh?

Yeah, and for that, enter my third book.

Cheating Philippines in a form of "Let's Go to Philippines"

This one underwent a crazy long journey.

Finished right after I gave birth to my first book, only a couple of months after I arrived from Philippines. Sounds easy? No, because although I have the script done so quick, the search of the publisher wasn't of that easy. But yea, all the struggle was worth celebrating.

And the process wasn't so bad, though. The writing part relived my journey. Then after my first rejection, I found another publisher in which bringing me new air, new hope, and... New task, too! Why, they wanted me to make the script their way so, I had to revamp it all the way. But who cares, because this meant that I had to get in my Filipino Party once again! It eventually led to a second rejection, though, but hey, it was all fine. Until finally, after my second book was released, I found the one that I've been looking for: THE, publisher for this book.

Two total major revisions.

Two years of editing and waiting.

But again, all the struggle was worth celebrating.

Because all my sacrifices finally paid off. And rereading, retouching, also reworking my script made me not only once, twice, but four times doing my Philippines pistas over and over again.

Moreover, this book celebrates so many aspects in my life. About how productive I am—and my family couldn't be prouder to see me striking three books in three consecutive years -oh and yes, of course, I brought them to a surprise bookshelf visit thing, just what I did last year and two years ago. About how cool I am—and My friends applauded me for this superb achievement. And about how I am now more and more connected to the world of writing and publishing—the publisher, being so different and so supportive from the previous ones, kept in touch with me and my precious work through social media.

Can't say much about this.

I'm truly proud of myself. I so am.

Beyond grateful of what I've achieved, too.

Because I now have three (plus one) babies.

And I feel like there are more to come.

So yeah.

One's a company,

Two's a crowd and

Three's a hearty

Halfway Merman

This is gonna be the part where you're getting sick of my traveling posts, because it's talking about just the same thing, trip by trip. But I don't care, because that's my goal. To make all places in this world, as my home.

But for Philippines, I guess there'll be a slight difference.

Because the home I was visiting, were both land, and sea.

And by so, I began to realize I got something else in myself.

Enemy: Taxi

I didn't ride it in Kuala Lumpur and Penang, only once in Bangkok when I was in a terrible rush of catching my flight, not at all in Vietnam, Cambodia and Cebu, and only twice for getting out from and reaching the airport in Manila. After all, those are my homes too. Why would I ride a cab, when local transport can easily get me to my desired destinations?

Best friend: Map

Stupidly, I didn't plan a lot for this trip. But gratefully, with a pinch of local friends' recommendations, and the almighty power from the map, I got to visited all stuff I wanted to see. After all, those are my homes too. Why would I be doubt of getting lost, when everybody can easily be approached and showing me the way?

Lifetime goal: Local of the sea

One breathtaking session with the sharks. Two clear falls in two consecutive days. Three hours of snorkeling in the best surface I could ever ask. Four large groups of sardines swimming within the deep blue ocean and I didn't freak out at all. Well, I freaked out mediocre, but I'm okay -I guess. After all, those are my homes too. Why would I be afraid of exploring the depth, when deep inside I can feel the true beauty of the place I call home?

After Philippines, I realized I now have this huge interest of underwater wonder. I began planning to buy underwater apparels and gadgets, although I knew I wouldn't gonna use it pretty often. But at least I'm preparing myself to be ready.

If somehow, someday,

I did the same mistake again,

Arranging such trip full of levities,

Where locals thought I was one of them,

And where land meets water

Lavety #3: Swimming

The short-notice, unprepared out of nowhere trip,
Caused me in the lack of preparing to rove Philippines' true essence.

Yes, its nautical side.

Panagsama in Moalboal

I knew I was about to visit Cebu. And I knew that Cebu has lots of beautiful beaches and coastal sceneries. But what I didn't know was, that the genuine experience of Filipino seas, were actually lying 3 hours away off Cebu. Yes, they call it Oslob, Badian, and Moalboal.

Those three places, well I used this word so much along my trip, exposed it in every social media assets I have. Okay let's start over. Those three places, were sick! Sick in a positive way, that I ran out of any other proper words I ended up using word "sick".

I had the best waterfalls. Tumalog in Oslob, Kawasan in Badian. I knew I could actually find the same charming falls in Indonesia but well, I never seen or heard any of those local falls before so I'm sorry my nation, I got to see overseas falls first.

And here I gotta tell you. After visiting those falls, turquoise had officially became my favorite color. Wanna know why? Here's why.

Left is Tumalog, right is Kawasan

Sick eh? But not as sick as me snorkeling for three hours straight. In Moalboal. Shit man, I got to be honest here. Deep blue sea, is actually what scares the hell out of me the most. Like imagining swimming on the surface of a bottomless sea, with no life jackets, and fins, it's just depending on your goggles, lungs and your ability to swim, I EVEN GOT GOOSEBUMPS TYPING THESE RIGHT NOW.

But somehow I did it. For the sake of observing cute little beautiful fishes, and corals. And got to the deeper ocean just to do scavenger hunt of sea turtles. And got to the deepest one ever, the sea where I couldn't even see the bottom, only deep blue color gradation that I saw, just to enjoy a mob of sardines run. That was fvcking amazing. And foolish because I didn't get any underwater camera.

Boat on the way to Pescador Island

Sick. But no. Because the sickest one, happened in Oslob. Where I finally fulfilled my long lost dream. To swim with the whale sharks.

I been using this pic everywhere, but out of 5 pics I had with the sharks, this was the best

Not in the tank, not in an aquarium. It was seriously on the sea. Their origin. Their true habitat. I'm not really sure if they're actually tamed or not but THEY LIVE IN THEIR ORIGINAL ECOSYSTEM! Those people who claimed themselves as tamers were actually locals, not a real trainers with certificates or stuff. But then yea, I nailed it. Or should I say, I smacked it three times. Yes, the shark. It was unintentional for sure, who would've got the guts to even touch the beast anyway?!?!

And those local tamers, man, they laughed as I panicked. And I panicked almost all the time. Which means that they laughed all the time. Because the sharks were freakin' everywhere! They laughed as they kept speaking Filipino which I didn't know, but I'm pretty sure they were encouraging me to get closer to the sharks. Well in such time, I didn't have the chance to defend that I wasn't Filipino. My mouth was too busy cursing as I swam away from the sharks.

Sharks from above, and within the water

Damn man, can I say it again?
Yea it was sick. All of them. S. I. C. K.

I can't stop smiling when I recall those mistaken times.
Levity forced me to visit the open ocean, sunk me deep,
Made locals spoke Filipino to me

Levity #2: Exploring

The short-notice, unprepared out of nowhere trip,

Caused me in the lack of city-exploring preparation.

Did I told you I didn't bring any travel guide books for this trip? Damn come to think of it, this was really a mega giga disorganized trip I ever did. So I didn't know where to go, I only had this print-outs papers of Manila and Cebu I obtained from Wiki Travel and that was all.

But then again, it's me. Do you expect me to not going anywhere, stay at the dorm instead enjoying the wifi and posted dumb stuff on Path letting people know that I was in Makati or Pasay? Lol of course not.

I dragged my ass to where tourist spots were. I got lost several times, opening up again the offline map I downloaded at my phone on my last minute before leaving Indonesia and if I still couldn't make it, well, who else to ask but the locals?

So I came to them and ask for direction. They'd be like answering with big questions on their head why would this guy ask me in English? and they'd be like can't you speak Tagalog? This has been so cliche, for real. I always smiled and answered no, I'm Indonesian and their respond were always the same:

"You look like Filipino."

Then my re-respond will always be the same too:

Smile even bigger, faked a laugh and said,

"Hahaha people always said that"

Then we burst in laughter, I thanked them and left with a big smile. It's always been the same exact script from time to time, day to day, people to people. And it's always been the same exact reactions too once I reach the places I was looking for because, those are worth-getting-lost for.

Magellan's Cross, Cebu City

Lapu Lapu Beach, Mactan Shangri-La

Manila Cathedral

I can't stop smiling when I recall those mistaken times.

Levity forced me to visit random places, take me to the crowds,

Made locals spoke Filipino to me

Levity #1: Commuting

The short-notice, unprepared out of nowhere trip,

Caused me in the lack of transportation preparation.

Thank God in Philippines, transport system is not that different from Indonesia. I'm not talking about taxi, hmph, dude, trip won't be that fun and challenging with taxis intervention. I'm talking about the all-time-local public transportation. Ya I'm referring to bus, trains, habal-habal -or in here as we know as 'ojek'- and Pilipinas' signature ride,

The Jeepney

Yes I took it all. I had no idea which jeepney to take to which tourist spot, which bus to ride to which city, I. Just. Had. No. Idea.

All I ever did was to decide which place I wanted to visit, then asked local securities which means of transport to take, and there I went! Boldly -or should I say, recklessly?- stopped the jeepney, asked if that one headed to the place I'd be visiting, then hopped on the ride, mingling with locals who, starting from the very beginning of my trip up to the very end, would always thought that I was Filipino.

Yea and they'd be like staring at me, might thinking like why on earth is this guy speaking English? before they start to ask me stuff in Tagalog and I'll be like whoa dudes and dudettes, I ain't Filipino so speak English to me.

I can't stop smiling when I recall those mistaken times.

Levity forced me to ride local rides, take local routes and stuff,

Made locals spoke Filipino to me

Classic Me

Hi.

Understood the title already? Haha so I guess you had this script about how this post might end up yes? It'll be like oh shit, it's been a while, oh Lord I feel so bad abandoning this blog, oh sorry I been away traveling and in the end, I'll label myself

"Oh classic me."

So yes it's been a while and I feel so bad abandoning this blog, it's because I was traveling. Oh wow, traveling again??? You didn't even make an oath -or should I say, a bragging post noticing every single people on earth that in a month or two, you'll be traveling somewhere?- out of any trip like what you always been doing!? Where is it again now??

Chill out, dude, you asked me a lot.

I'm sorry, this was seriously out of nowhere. Unlike any other trip I did before, I prepared for everything like a year before I departed. This one, surprisingly, I bought the tickets like several weeks before the date. I even bought the departing flight from Jakarta four days before the date!

Yea doesn't sound like me. And to be honest, for sure, I'd never do this kind of trip again. The fare broke my wallet and hurt my heart so bad.

But I needed this trip. Because I got permission from my boss already, and I might not have this kind of chance, you know, leaving whenever I want to because starting from June, I'll be working like a regular employee.

Plus, it's summer.

Well, not in Indonesia of course.

But sunny, bright and summer, in Pilipinas

Pescador in Moalboal and Pasig in Manila

Yea I went there. The Philippines. 7 days. 4 cities. Manila, Cebu City, Oslob and Moalboal. And all of them was like, spontaneously. I never planned to visit that one(s). I didn't make a proper itinerary, I didn't even equip myself with some travel guide books.

But I live in spontaneity.

The sparks continuously surprise me.

But umm, I'm bored of using word "spontaneous"

So I'll try using something odd, and will start calling this trip

A Lavety

Overseas Submarine View

I have a Filipino friend.

On some aspects, we share lots of similarities. Love traveling, citizens of the capital cities, which automatically, make us similarly hate the metropolitan traffic jam, love cats, and The Hunger Games -this is the best part that I like from him! Once, we were subconsciously counting how many tributes died when from afar we heard fireworks cracked- and we both majoring communication science.

But there's one thing that differs us from each other.

That in traveling, he also visit places his country possesses.

And one big goal that he had in mind for his next trip, will be

Diving with whale sharks, in Donsol

Pictures of Donsol above and under water, obtained from here.

And he wanted me to join.

I swear, I was interested--no! I am, interested. See the vast sea of water and the rocks, those are the scenery I'd love to see in my next trip to Halong Bay (wrong, apparently I bought a ticket to HCMC instead...). And the idea of swimming with sharks... Well to be honest, I guess I have this phobia of beholding bottomless water.

Like on my last trip to Bali, I was snorkeling with two of my friends. It was fun until they returned back to our resting area, leaving only me and the ocean, then I did the snorkeling all alone. I kept swimming and swimming as long as I could see corals below me, but once they're gone, poof! I started to breathe hard.

Now diving in the deep sea. You see nothing around you but blue color, getting any darker and darker once you see your sublevel. And there'll be this gigantic fish near you. I can feel the panic attack already but... I'm curious! Underwater mystery makes me curious! Outer space makes me curious! Dinosaurs, time machine, Grecian myth, those make me turned-on-ish curious! I'm curious like that monkey George!

In summary, I'm thinking of visiting Philippines.

I know, Indonesia must've owned something like this.

But now the problem is... I don't know where it is!?

Well I'm sure if I really go there,
I have this thing that'll keep bugging me:

So he can make me want to visit his aquatic wonder.
Now how can I convince him visiting mine?