Puerto Galera

the island becomes smaller and smaller as our boat gets farther from it. it's a sunny sunday afternoon. we're going back to manila....

i looked at my watch to check the date. i was surprised to see that it was 11th of september. not a very likeable date but i am decided i should take a break. away from my work, away from manila. destination? puerto galera in mindoro.

we reached the pier half an hour past 7 in the morning. there were only a few people. i got us tickets and i suddenly realized i needed to double check what type of boat or ferry we're gonna ride in. to confirm my fears, the lady guard that i talked to told me the the m/b brian was a small boat - a 60-seater. i didn't intend to take this ride. but the next scheduled trip for a fastcraft and the ever-slow barge would be a long wait. so we decided to go ahead and take our chance.

it turned out this is a very adventurous and exciting ride. we were met with big waves but after a while we all got used to it. the passengers seemed to be waiting for more big waves as if riding in an amusement park. if it's any consolation, the boat dropped us directly to white beach.

white beach is practically the same as i last saw it a couple of years back, except for new structures built. we got the cottage ontop of the hill on the rightmost side of the beach (when you're facing it). it's really a cool house because it gives you a view of the whole stretch of the beach 20 meters above the ground.

khalvin was so excited that he went straight to swimming after changing clothes. i opened my laptop (and what's my laptop doing here?) to install the kodak software so i can transfer the contents of my digicam to the laptop. i was really shocked and disappointed to learn that i brought with me the wrong installer! so i decided to just delete some of the pics so i can squeeze in some more pics. actually my limit would be around 50 shots for that particular resolution. talking about no-so-good luck. :P to add to my not-so- good luck, i realized my wallet was in my backpocket long after i've gone swimming. and my cellphone too was in my left pocket!! fu#@!

we spent the day frolicking at the beach and getting ourselves friend under the scorching sun. late in the afternoon i got to meet two guys, ferdie and jon. they turned out to be friendly and wonderful persons. that night we had a couple of beers while mia (the gay) entertains us by his (her?) non-stop dancing. of course he got tired...

ferdie invited us to another bar, where we were introduced to "mindoro sling". a mixture of rhum and vodka coupled with sliced tropical fruits. isagani, the talented guy that ferdie earlier met was introduced to the group. he had with him his guitar and obliged to play as we requested as we drink beside the beach. hmm, it was really an experience drinking on the shoreline.

we got up early the next day. breakfast was of tilapia, porksilog and burgers courtesy of manang rose. actually, this is also what i eat for breakfast in manila (when will i ever learn to eat?). by afternoon we hired someone to take us to the mountains to see tamaraw falls. after an hour of combination of smooth and bumpy ride we finally reached our destination - tamaraw falls. it was breath-taking ( well it's easy to please me because i haven't been that close to a falls before). the driver went down for a while to have his tires vulcanized. naahhhh!! imagine we had a busted tire all along!!!?? we're lucky to have reached the site in one piece : )

we just stayed there for about an hour to swim and take pictures. when we went up the driver had just arrived, in time for us to leave and head back to our point of origin. on our way back the driver was showing me vacant lots and telling me how cheap they were. indeed they were cheap - 500/sqm. hey i can buy a lot here! but putting up a house is another story.

it's sunday and we only got a couple of hours left to enjoy. as early as 8 in the morning we were swimming already. we crossed over to tamaraw and aninuan beach where the ayalas maintain a resthouse. it was a very peaceful and calm place. there were no visitors there except for the locals and those who are just paying a visit (coming from white beach). this beach stretches longer than white beach tho the sand isn't as pure.

11 pm. time to pack-up and be ready to leave. we already got our ticked booked for the 12 noon departure which turned out to be 12:45. m/b brian was fully-packed this time. as we sail back to batangas almost everyone was sleeping. i was awake looking at the island until it disappears from my sight. i can still smell the food being served by manang rose, still can taste the "mindoro sling" , and still can hear isagani play his original composition - bilog na naman ang buwan!

i will surely miss puerto galera. my refuge..

i was roused from sleep by loud honking of horns. it was already dark and i realized we were back in manila, lawton to be exact. we're now back to reality. back to the traffic-stricken and undiscplined manila.