Days Off Our Lives

Think Before You Click

2011-09-01T01:43:00.000+08:00

It's been a while...After some pondering and some internal evaluation I find it a little bit hard to write again. With my dad's passing a few months ago and with the lack of saddle time on my bike which is my only refuge from life's stress, left me asking time and again how to get back into the groove of writing.

Some questions keep ringing in my head. Did I lose interest in what I consider the man's greatest invention? My girlfriend recently urged me to write again. She noticed the long gap from the last time I entered something here. I told her I'm all stressed out, some personal problems, some internal conflict within my system. She then replied that these should not deter me from putting down my ideas on paper. Yesterday, as I dig into my materials, I came across my old and still unfinished dream of writing my very first novel. I thought I should start this project soon. Need to get back to my old artistic form. I need to get inspired again. Another piece of paper caught my attention so well was a note I copied from the Peace Corps website a few years ago, "Carry a notepad with you. If you are waiting for a meeting to begin, start writing. If you are on a plane, start writing. Whenever there's a second to write, do it. Once you have written it down, you own it." I must admit I felt guilty.

Is writing a hobby? Is it a profession? Or something in between? The answer can be all yes and maybe no. For some, writing process becomes a habit something they shouldn't miss doing everyday and for some it is a source of income. But there is more to that about this most important means of communication. For me it is beyond just scribbling whatever comes to mind but a transferring and sharing of thoughts from one human being to another. It should be of value to people receiving (reading) it. Therefore, it should be communicated in a manner understandable to them (your selected audience) since not everybody would appreciate or fully comprehend everything you write, and it should be in a responsible way. Responsible as it wont confuse the readers as to what you want to convey relative to their own worldview but will rather help them become open to other people's ideas and later on make an own synthesis of it. Responsible as it should be your own way of expressing your ideas regardless if it is inspired from another work or events. I remember a former office buddy who once asked me why I take so much time thinking what to write in my blog and why not just simply cut and paste from the millions of articles available on the internet. I just simply shrugged my head and wondered how he can claim to maintaining his own blog. Wow, he didn't know the word plagiarism (stealing one's written work). As they say, life is full of contradiction, of battles, of polarity, but I believe that there should always be a way to blend, to achieve harmony, peace, and oneness at some point. Sounds like a martial arts budo, right? Thesis (your own worldview) plus Antithesis (other worldview) equals Synthesis. Well, sometimes this shouldn't be the ever guiding formula. Sometimes you write just to simply express your thoughts, to amuse readers and yourself, and just to state your case without any intention of winning an argument.

So why did I put "Think Before You Click" as the title of this article? I keep seeing this ad on local t.v. reminding people to a more responsible and ethical way of writing or posting online. They claim that a lot of troubles and misunderstanding have been created by these not so very well thought of stuff. Hearsay, blind articles, explicit comments, unfounded opinions all worsen the already questionable liberty given to everybody to share what they want, be it words or pictures, in any networking sites. The most striking part of this ad is when one endorser say that whatever you put online will never be erased so think before you click. I find it really true and makes a lot of sense. Easy access to internet nowadays doesn't give us absolute freedom. We can not just say or write everything we want. It has to be guided by some responsibility and ethics. Try reading the comments section of any news article from your favorite search engine or after watching a clip from YouTube. Notice how lots of people curse and diss on each other and how sometimes close minded and nonsense their comments were,sometimes even going to the extent of being racist.

This is the danger today when anybody can easily create a blog, write a sentence or two on "What's in your mind" section of Facebook, comment on something or even putting up their own website. Think before you click, I'd say this should be a great reminder to all of us who see the necessity of networking in our everyday life. There are things in life that are best kept secret, compartmentalized and regulated. Freedom is not absolute so as writing. You don't want to put on your Facebook status that you hate your boyfriend so much for cheating and curse him and then change your profile picture the next day showing a picture of you and him together in a beach getaway you went a few months ago telling the whole world you are now back together again.That is just a boo boo.

Happy posting my friends.

(Note: The picture inserted above is owned and taken by the author)

Long Solo Ride

2010-04-05T02:04:00.001+08:00

I've been really wanting to do Laguna loop solo since last year. If not for typhoon Ondoy (Ketsana), I was on my peak after series of training to pedal up the towns around the biggest lake in the country. And now, after long hibernation since December, I was back in the saddle for a couple of weeks already and feel confident I can make this loop happen.

And what a good time to do it on a Holy Week means less vehicles on the road, everyone is out for the holidays, most bikers will be doing rides everywhere. But I suddenly thought Laguna loop is very ordinary. I knew some people who have done it just like any other ride. Sure it's a long route and not certainly a half-day affair which I prefer lately, not for the not so prepared legs. But I'm thinking something else, some spices to give it a twist, to make it special. I'm cooking up Pasig-Rizal-Laguna-Batangas-Cavite-Manila loop. Instead of just doing around the lake I'm going to cut the mountain between Laguna and Batangas (behind Mt. Makiling) then backdoor Tagaytay (Talisay-Tagaytay Zigzag) then go back home via interesting towns of Alfonso, Amadeo then exit to Dasmarinas via Paliparan, Daang Hari then Alabang. From Alabang it will be not so alien anymore since my place will be just 17km away via coast of Laguna de Bay. This is for sure a long way, a hard one, since it is also going to be my first time. Armed with just my biking passion, a review of google satellite images, a can of pork and beans, five packs of power bars, one pack of raisin, one energy drink, 2L of water, and two homemade sandwich, I set out my cleats for this ride. It was 6:40AM, Good Friday.

I decided to take Bugarin Pass in Rizal via Manila East Road going through the towns of Cainta, Taytay, Angono, Binangonan, Cardona, Morong, Baras, Taytay, Pililia. A good warm up before climbing 8kms up to Barangay Bugarin then another 8km of downhill to Mabitac, Laguna. I biked all the way to Sta.Cruz, Laguna, my birthplace. I reached this capital town of Laguna by 2PM since I was running on a "pasyal mode" (sightseeing). A mere 5 hours from my place in Pasig-Pateros-Makati border running at 18kph on a plain highway and 8kph on steep hills. It's always nice to stop and see places of interest in the countryside. Was able to see "senakulo" (reenactment of the life and death of Christ) along the streets of Binangonan, "penitensya" (public penance)in Binangonan, Morong and Pakil. Folks in Angono had a procession withouth any shoes or slippers at all. I went inside the town of Pakil diverting from the National Highway to see the church, more famous for its Turumba Festival honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary. Lots of people were there on that Good Friday as they take pilgrimage to this old town. Went straight to towns of Paete, known for its wood carvings and papermaches, a short uphill to Kalayaan where a big pipe for the Hydrothermal plant of National Power Corporation stands landmark from miles away. I stopped here to take some pictures but was told by the guard it was not allowed. A sweet downhill to Lumban then pedalled again to historic and beautiful old spanish houses in Pagsanjan, then straight to Santa Cruz. Checked my odometer it said 98km all the way from my house. Whew! This mileage should have brought me back home already, but no, I was just halfway my plan. Was tired already and since it's already quite late, two hours late of my target time, I decided not to push through Tagaytay to spend the night in Alfonso, in my Sensei's dojo. I think it's a wise decision too since I will be trekking an unfamiliar route, not fun to be caught by dark there. I chose to let the night pass here as this was my birthplace so I feel more secured. Catched some catholic procession at night in the town.

Next morning, 6:40, Black Saturday, I pedalled my way up north. First town to see was Pila, Laguna, a quaint town which was able to preserve old spanish houses despite modern times. You will see newly renovated houses dating back from Spanish Era or old houses serving as cafeteria, retail stores, or botique but not destryoing the original architecture of the building. Just the color. Interesting indeed like the ones in Intamuros. Just before reaching Los Banos, still part of Bay, I veered left inside a small concreted road of Barangay Puypuy leading up to a Geothermal Plant in Barangay Bitin. It's a long but gently sloping road of some 10km to the Plant then another 5 going down to Maharlika Highway in Sto. Tomas in Batangas. Midway to the ascent of Mount Bulalo (400m), I got some mechanical problems. My chainring would shift to granny gear on its own. I decided to adjust the cable wires and wipe some unnecessary dirt from it. As I was about to take the curve uphill I saw some bikers coming out of the forest. There were like 30 of them. I learned they were from Tanauan, Batangas and just tried to discover new trail around that mountain. They said they were inside tha trail for more than 2 hours. We made to introduce ourselves and told them from where I was. They were shocked. Specially to see my fulsus bike doing all these on a 2.1" Kenda Excavator front wheel and 2.1 Nevegal on the rear. Hahaha..That's life. That's what I got and I have to deal with it. We parted ways as I need to be in Tagaytay by 12 noon to be able to explore more and they need to go on their plans too. However, two bikers decided to go with me up to Tanauan, husband and wife Boy and Lalaine Mangia, locals of Tanauan as they need to do some other stuff back home. Good, as it would be a great help to get there since the last time I used this road was 10 years ago in a car. It would save some time finding the roads with them. We reached Tanauan by 11 AM. Took some photos first before Pres. Laurel's shrine and the church of Tanauan. After T.Y's to the couple I decide to have an early lunch in town and the sun was scorching hot already. Ended up in a lomi (noodle) house beside a hot pandesal bakery along Mabini Ave. in Sambat. A perfect match for carboloading plus a liter of Coke.

By sun-frying 11:30 I was back in the saddle heading to the Town of Talisay still some 15km away. From this point Tagaytay is 33km ahead. After some 15 minutes I reached the Shrine of Apolinario Mabini but it was closed for the holidays, obviously. From there it was mostly downhill to Talisay with the Tagaytay Ridge as the backdrop. I looked back and see Mt. Makiling gently fading away and ahead is the Mountain of Tagaytay looming. About a kilometer to the center of the town I got a flat tire. Must be the broken glass earlier. Could be a blessing in disguise as I can take a few minutes in the shade. A few bikers passed by, one rider with a security escort in a motorcycle patrol with "wang wang light" though I didn't hear the siren activated. Hahaha. I can see this town is booming with tourist trying to get into the volcano. Quite an interesting small town. I solicited information which road is easier from this town to go to Tagaytay. I was told that Sungay was shorter (9kms) but so much steeper. The other one was Leynes-Sampalok Road, longer but gentler. I decided to take the latter as it was my first and totally unfamiliar. Trailhead (start of ascent) takes cue from the Elementary School of Sampaloc, about 2kms away from the Municipal Building and 1km from the ascent to Sungay.

I checked my time and mileage just before the climb. My odometer said it's 1:05 and my kilometers was 163.5. Just a few hundred meters up along this winding half dusty, half dilapidated road, the first marker appeared, Tagaytay 10Km ahead. So I thought, what's the difference then with Sungay if they were just about the same length. I continued my ascent on a 8-kph speed (very slow) to preserve energy as I know I need to keep some to make it back to Manila. I would make some stops for water and pictures as the view of Taal Lake is spectacular. When I reached 7km to go marker I decided to stop for air. I can hear dogs barking from the house on the ledge below and their "go away" growling were getting louder. As I saw a head of a dog coming from the slope below, I slowly took the bike up and put my butt in the saddle. Suddenly the white dog run to me squeezing himself out of the wodden fence and trying to take a part of my left leg. I knew this for a trick. They would just bark and try to scare you. If you fight back by shooing them away or acting like you are going to kick their face, they will stand back. Hey, I was suprised she is not. Everytime I would kick her nose she would just dodge and go after my feet again with her fangs visible and eyes very mad with her growlings. I decided to gear heavily on the sprocket to make bigger strides going up the goddam zigzag..Haha. She chased me up to about 25meters. Boy, I was exhausted. After the next curve I decided to catch my breath. And there on the next gate of a nice house was another dog watching me, standing infont of it. I tried to play possum (patay-patayan but in this case deadma), didnt try to look at her as if she was not existing. It worked.

Here's the confusing part. After that milestone where I was chased by that ever loyal dog, the next marker that showed up was "Tagaytay 11km to go" which was supposed to be 6km based on the earlier milestones. Bad thing was I tried to forget about my own odometer reading since I was relying on the stones. Then after that 11 to go marker nothing else showed up along this zigzag. So if this was correct that would make this route around 16km from the base to Tagaytay Rotonda. However, my odometer recorded 20km but I'm not sure since I lost track of it when I saw the markers. On the last 4 or 5 kilometers of the climb when Tagaytay was almost visible, so near yet so far, I saw three bikers going down quite fast. One slowed down and asked me how long was this road.

"I said 20". He was shocked. "Yes 20 km all in all and be careful there as there were slippery portions". I can see the hesitation on his face whether to still go down to Talisay or make a U-turn but his buddies were already blitzing down ahead. They faded as I put my focus back on my bike not to lose momentum. Finally reached Rotonda at 3:30PM. Oh my, that was a long climb at 8kph on a mid-ring second to the biggest sprocket (cog). I hate using grannies. Never. It tires me more.

Took a meal in Jollibee and abandon my original plan of exploring Alfonso-Indang-Mendes-Amadeo areas. Used my wisdom to take Sta. Rosa as It would be dark soon. Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay Road isn't bad at all except for the many cars going back to Manila. It was pure downhill, almost no padyak at all for some 12kms from Rotonda down to Nuvali. Was able to reach Balibago before 5PM then Alabang by 7. Touched base a few minutes after 8, was so exhausted but happy. Checking the readings on my bike's mini-comp, it was a total of 246km (153miles). All in all, it was hard and long drive. I enjoyed it so much though. I wasn't able to see just one lake but two, Laguna and Taal Lakes and was able to see beautiful places in four provinces in 2 days. Great ride.

Birdwatching in Sabang

2010-01-17T03:08:00.000+08:00

The chirp of the birds and the ebb and flow of the ocean woke me up. I checked the time it said 6 AM. Jumped out of bed, did a quick morning ritual then grab my bins and guidebook. It was a cold and beautiful morning. The sun was not out yet but the horizon looked pretty okay. Must be a good day in the offing. I was heading to the secluded area at the end of the Sabang beach behind the rocks. This was the place I saw an eagle some five weeks ago hovering while I and a friend spent a day here bathing in the sun and enjoying the waters and where I saw three people came out of the woods near the jungle trailhead with bins around their necks. I was thinking this must be the place to see lots of birds.

As I trod on the sand, stamping my footprints mixing up with those of the dogs running around the beach I couldn't help but still amaze with the beauty of the place. Lost track of how many times Iv'e been here but never lost interest and appreciation. It gets better everytime and didn't seem to diminish even a bit. I wonder if it's still in the running for the New 7 Wonders of the World. The resort's dog that slept in my doorstep last night was now walking with me as if he knew me for a long time. No barks, no commands, hew was just cruising it with me along this beautiful cove of Sabang, gateway to the world famous Underground River.

I reached the end of the first beach and passing through the last of the cottages when I tried to direct my lens on top of a coconut tree. I've been hearing birds' calls but can't figure out how to spot them. I need more experience though. It was a zebra dove. Took me a few minutes before I was able to ID her. Lots of swallows were diving above me and two Cattle Egrets seemed having a great time with a water buffalo on a hole. As I got to the mouth of the mangrove river, the boundary between the main beach and the secluded one, I heared lots of noise coming from the trees on the other bank. Tried to get closer where I believed the sound were coming from. Took the small path leading to the main office of the Mangrove Paddleboat Tour trying to zero in the chirps, the songs of the cicadas,all different but sounded like orchestra to my newbie ear. This was really beautiful. Just the sound alone in this part of the National Park, at the edge, was fascinating enough. What more deep inside the wilderness of the Park itself. With this amazement I decided not to pursue the other beach. This was the best spot I thought.

The sound was getting louder and coming from different directions. Standing from the side of the river which was some 10 meters wide, I lift my bins, scanned through the leaves, tried to point to the direction of the moving brances and leaves on the other bank, and guess what I found? The noisemakers to my suprise were not winged-animals. They were monkeys..Hahaha. I just can laugh at my inexperience in determining sounds. It was a family of macaque, at least to me, feeding on the fruits of some trees I wasn't able to identify. I can hear my favorite to imitate plaintive cuckoo but didn't know how to find her. I can hear other chirps but didn't know where to spot them. Patience must be the key. As I pan my 8x42 Hahn scope one more time to get a glimpse of these elusive flying creatures, three bird went flapping above my head. Leaving the tall and old mangrove tree in my back crossing the river. Poor boy! They must have been there for a while right above me in that same tree I was taking refuge and I didn't even know. It's a shame. And as if they knew I was trying my luck to see some birds, two of them flew to the left and the right just after getting into the other bank and one landed on a branch of a mangrove tree. Adjusting the distance of my lens, I tried to take note of the size, color and distinguishing marks for better identification. She was much bigger than the usual Munias or Eurasian Tree Sparrows. She had a long tail, black head, blue wings and black underparts. She moved from side to side giving me a better view of her entirety. Hopped to another branch and there she went away. As I flipped through the pages of my guidebook, the closest bird to her colors and looks was the Asian Fairy Bluebird. I hope I did get it right. Too bad my point and shoot cam can't capture her image. Can't really recall if this bird is a rare one, a hard to find. If she is, then I must be lucky to have spotted her.

In any case, I was happy to be able to see at least one good bird, a lifer for me. Alice of Wildbird Club of the Philippines told me a lifer is your first bird. A bird you see the first time in your life is a lifer. Just as I was about to pack up, I tried to scan one last time. There you go. A yellow bird was suspending itself in the air like an F-16 fighter picking up on the fruits high above a tree. I believe it was a flowerpecker. Much to my delight, the dog was still there beside me, in the sand, watching me guarding me. He didn't leave even for a sec to do his thing. He stayed with me for the whoe hour. As I walk back to my cottage happy and smiling, the dog was leading my way by some 10 meters, would stop from time to time to check on me if I was still on the track. What a good day for me indeed.

On another note. Doctor Cathy took me and Whoops to birding and biking inside Iwahig a week ago. It was fun and learning experience too. Saw for the first time a White-crested Serpent Eagle.

Three Great Weeks

2009-12-22T00:05:00.000+08:00

I had another chance to see beautiful places in Palawan. It was five months ago when I last flew there. It was never tiring to witness time and again the grandeur of the country's Last Ecological Frontier. This time, I and OC, started the journey in Puerto Princesa, the capital city and went up North to Coron and Culion, skipping El Nido this time. Last June, we kicked off our vacation in Coron, to Culion, El Nido and Princesa and did it reverse on this ocassion.

Let me do a travel tip/review of places, hotels, and food this time. This will help you guys if planning to go there too.

First, airfare. Cebu Pacific ranges from Php 1,400 ($30) to Php 7,000 ($152) depending on the availability of seats, season, and the time you purchased the ticket. The plane is divided into price categories so basically all seats have different prices. You are lucky if you can avail the lowest rates since there are no difference in the accomodation once on board (e.g food, no free snacks by the way, tv, pillows, etc.) Flight takes approximately one hour.

Hotels. We first booked ourselves to Turissimo Garden Hotel formerly Airport Hotel. Not too bad for Php 1,300 ($28) with AC and tv and free breakfast but we decided to upgrade to a better room, Php 1,800 ($39) We love windows and porches by the way. And never ate any breakfast. No brewed coffee there. They have a small swimming pool but never got our interest. Must be the space factor, the pool is located on the way to the rooms in the back building in a so narrow walkway, not too much of a privacy. After two days we decided to check in at Microtel. Heared so much fuzz bout this new chain of hotels time to check it out. Located in a secluded beach in the outskirts of the city. They will pick you up either from the airport or any hotel once you make a reservation. Quite expensive though but it's worth it. For Php 4,200 ($92) you can get a room facing the sea, double bed, AC, flat screen TV, telephone, fridge, and free breakfast. WI-FI is only at the lobby though. Nice view and cool breeze specially at this time of the year when winds coming from Siberia and Northern China are blown to the country by Northeast Monsoon (amihan). The beach is fine but the waters isn't really for swimming. Tidal line is so far during lowtides exposing mangrove roots and lots of starfish. At night when the tide is high, enticing to swim then, the waves are kinda strong. We opt not to dip though for fear of scraping ourselves against the rocks and roots. Good alternative for swimming is the pool but the flooring is plain concrete and not tiles that makes it a little bit slippery and yucky underneath. Their Kilawin Tangigue (mackerel in vinegar) is great too. The place is quiet and idillyc for honeymooners. I give Microtel Palawan four stars out of five.

Next destination, Sabang/Underground River. This is one truly magnificent work of nature. I hope it could still make it to the New 7 Wonders of the World. We decided to stay on more modest cottages like Green Verde in the main beach as it is more affordable at Php800 ($17) compared to the lofty rates of Daluyon at Php4,450 ($96) per night. There is no power supply in the village until 530 in the afternoon when generators will start running up to 11 in the evening. However, Daluyon runs their generators 24 hours and WI-FI is available in their restaurant. As wise as we are, we checked in at Green Verde, had breakfast and dinner at Daluyon to check mails and send reports. Entrance to the Puerto Princesa River and Subterranean Park, formerly known at Saint Paul Underground River, is secured in their office in downtown Puerto Princesa. Php200 ($4) for foreigners and Php150 ($3) for locals. Bus or jeepney rides to Sabang is 200 pesos and would take some two hours. For a more convenient and faster ride specially for those with extra money you can rent airconditioned vans from Php3,500 ($76) to Php4,500 ($97).

After three days of sand, sun, and fun, we decided to head north to Coron via WGA Superferry. We took the Suite for only Php3,500 (two pax). Much better than getting a tourist accomodation for some Php1,500 per person and sharing spaces with another 100 passengers or so in that AC room with double deckers. Not a good idea if you are travelling with some gadgets like laptop and would always go out for a smoke. Just can't leave important things unattended. The voyage took some 15 hours. Was really bored throughout the whole trip but I was able to get lots of sleep though. As usual the food in the ship sucks big time. No choice but to force it inside. We arrived in Coron just after midnight and checked ourselves in everybody's favorite Seadive. We had a reservation for Deluxe for only Php1,800 ($39). The room was nice, clean, but no TV. I wonder why. Wi-fi is only from the restaurant. Not too bad as long as there's connection for emails.

We planned to spend seven days in Corn for relaxation and a day's visit to Culion once again. We made sure that the Museum will be open as we didn't see it last time. Hired a boat going there for P3,500 and stayed a night at Tabing Dagat Lodge. Room rates are between P500 and P700. We really love this island. It gives me a playful imagination that I am living in the 17th century. The town is rustic, quiet, and has a different appeal. People are shy and would never approach you and talk. I guess it's all about the stigma attached to this island once relegated as the island of despair. Hower, things changed when we started saying hi to people and smile. They smile back and nod. We felt sorry for all those who've been confined here. On the brighter side, I met one of the Tourism Information Officers, Pastor Hermz Villanueva and told him about my plans of coming back to do some trailriding and hopefuly bring other bikers with some assistance from the Local Government. Will tell you if this thing materializes.

Back in Coron, our fave hang out is Kawayanan Grill. We think that they have the best stuffed squid in town or maybe in the entire country. We just loved it so much. Their kinilaw (mackarel or tuna in vinegar) is also great. We don't get tired of eating the same food everyday with matching lato (seagrapes) and of course red wine. Just can't miss the red wine since OC is European by origin. She taught me how to drink red. Now, it's like coffee to me. A must before every meal.

Getting Back Into the Groove

2009-11-04T01:41:00.000+08:00

A few weeks even before the infamous typhoon Ondoy (Ketsena) which drowned most of Metro Manila and made lots mountain bikers itching to hit the trails, I was off the longer and more serious group rides I normaly join. I don't know why lately I prefer to do and seemed to enjoy solo short rides. Maybe it's because I can play my own clock. Maybe because I don't have to worry about someone else's time and tantrums. I can get up even late and still pedal somewhere without worrying some people were waiting for me. I can speed up at any point of the ride and stop for rests no matter how long and how many. These are the perks that are luring me do solo rides.

However, yesterday Monday Nov. 2nd, waking up late in a clear sunny day, I suddenly felt the urge to ride with a group. Tried to check the calendar and it was still a holiday following the All Saint's Day. I immediately cooked up a ride to Angono in Rizal and then up to Antipolo via backdoor. This is something I've been playing in my head for some time now. A route I stitched together from scanning google satellite images. Sure I've done Angono and nearby towns but the backdoor climb to Antipolo, not yet. This route was also confirmed to me by a former officemate who lives in Angono. So I texted up some people I know that might be interested in this route. But since it's already about 10 AM most of them were already somewhere in the trails doing their rides. I noticed that there was no any organized ride for that day and most rides were in smaller groups in different locations. Fortunately, there was one ride available to join me, Doc Harry who lives a couple of blocks away from me.

We started to pedal quarter to 3 in the afternoon. Took the Rainforest (Pasig) entry to Taytay-Manila East Road. Running at 18km/hr since Doc Harry seemed to enjoy it being first-timer there, we reached the town of Angono just before 4PM. Made a lazy tour around town proper then proceeded to Angono-Antipolo road which is of course uphill. A place is always beautiful on the first time, though there was a dumpsite on the way up. Generally, the route was OK and can be a good training or alternate route for those who might be sick and tired of the normal Antipolo approach which is Sumulong Highway. We reached downtown Antipolo by 5PM and took the Ortigas Extension on the way down. Stopped by Jolibee in Cainta to refuel when suddenly a big downpour started. Reached home around 6:30. My cyclocomp had it at 51kms. Not bad coming from a few weeks lay off. The most recent long I had solo was 40km. This was fun but still far from my usual rides not to mention the century ones. One thing for sure, I might do this again soon wether solo or with a group. Nice loop for a change.

First Time Official

2009-10-18T02:15:00.001+08:00

Not Too Late To Float

I had my first day of formal swimming lesson today at Saint Paul College in Pasig under Bert Lozada Swimming School. As the title goes, it's never too late to learn how to swim.

Living in archipellagic country gives an impression that people there are good swimmers. But not really. Lots of Filipinos aren't good swimmers. How many times I've heard foreigners say they were surprised to learn that many of us can't swim well. Aside from the dream of joining triathlon this also challenged me to enroll myself in a swimming class, a little bit late for my age though. I'm taking the Adult Novice Program for basic skills, basic paddling, kicking, breathing. This is a 10-hour course in a once a week session/1 hour or 1.5 hours per session. I'm doing the latter so I can gain some skills in time for my next Palawan adventure in December.

My problem in the water is that I never learned how to swim. I didn't grow up near any body of water. But I can do snorkelling pretty well without the vest. Just the mask and me there I go. The funny part is I can snorkel good enough if my head is under water that's why I need the mask. If I put my head above the water I go sink down the bottom. Haha. If you put me in a 5-foot deep pool there's no way I would float. But throw me in a 20-foot ocean then I go paddling like a dog back to the boat. I can even give you a good plunge head first like a real swimmer into the salty water. I do really need to correct it and start wit the basic. High school classmate Let Guieb and wife of fellow PMTBiker Eric told me about the swimming class as she herself went into their course. She told me she really learned how to swim after the course. After today's session, I wanted to believe I will be able to float well after completing the program. On my first day, I was able to do a 25-meter stretch freestyle with just two stops. My coach, Vivian told me I'm a fast learner except that my legs are kind of stiff. I guess it's the result of too much biking. Hahaha.

First Official Birdwatching

Last Sunday I was able to do my first official birdwatching with Alice Villa-Real, Vice President of Wild Bird Club of the Philippines (WBCP) and Dr. Rene Callado at University of the Philippines grounds. I biked my way to the campus which was 15km away from my pad so coming back and forth gave me a good 30km ride. Better than no miles at all. I was able to observe the White-collared Kingfisher, Brown Shrike, Pied Triller, Phil. Pygmy Woodpecker, Zebra Dove, White-breasted Wood swallow, Low-land White-eye and Yellow-vented Bulbul. Too much for a first timer to see eight "lifers". A lifer is what birdwatchers call for any bird you see first time in your life.

Photos courtesy of Starbird

More Century Rides

2009-09-25T14:38:00.000+08:00

Lately, my rides seemed to be longer and harder. I guess my overall biking is improving. Last Saturday I joined the Philippine Mountain Biking Forum (Philmofo) on a ride to Sta. Inez, in Tanay, Rizal. The route was Marcos Highway and down the trail of Barangay Cayumbay all the way to Sta. Inez. Trailhead was some 30 km from Jollibee in Marcos Highway, meet up area, and the trail itself is about 20km one way. Meet up area is already some 12km from my pad in Pasig-Makati-Pateros boundaries. The trailhead at Sitio Batangas was some 6km before you reach Sierra Madre Hotel which I still have to conquer soon. Every biker knows that this route to the hotel is the training grounds for most riders since it's a long and hard climb especially under the scorching heat. (Photo to the right courtesy of Mountguitars, Philmofo. All other pictures were taken from my Canon PowerShot A470)

Well, the ride was generally fun, though I can't understand why mofos seem to race against each other where this was supposed to be a fun ride. Where's the nature trip there? Anyway, there should be a total of eight river crossings. After the seventh crossing and more than an hour of pedalling in a valley with beautiful view of the Sierra Madre Range, I and another rider decided to backtrack. Locals told us that is still some 1 hour and a half to get to the falls. It was getting cloudy up there, I reckon. I dont want to get stuck in that place when the rains start to pour in the mountain which would flood the river as a result. Some crossings were already met with strong current and about thight deep. Can't imagine how bad it would be when it rains. Reached home about 8:00 in the evening. My cyclocomp registered 121km. Was dead tired.

A week ago, I was able to pedal another century via Bugarin in Pililia, Rizal. Ovbiously by now, Rizal Province is the nearest playground for most bikers in Metro Manila. It offers almost all kind of terrain for biking. I had 114km this time, matching the miles I made during the Licao Ride five months ago, my very first century ride. Bugarin, is the zigzag portion of the town of Pililia. It has the panoramic view of Laguna de Bay. This is a major route for buses and cars going to Laguna and Quezon Provinces.

Birdwatching

2009-09-05T18:39:00.000+08:00

I never thought watching birds up close was more fun than just listening to their chirp in the morning. Yesterday, I went to the still under construction C6 road to see the amazing birds on this northwestern shore of Laguna Lake. This road will connect the Alabang in the south to Taytay, Rizal to the north, an alternative route to decongest the heavy concentration of vehicles in Metro Manila.

Armed with a newly bought 8x40 Hahn binoculars I pedaled to the area which was a mere 3 miles (5km) from my place. Reaching the compacted road of gravel and sand just after the C6 Bridge, the last along the mighty Pasig River almost very close to the mouth, I don't need to go far to get a glimpse of the birds. Right on the table to be feasted on were a handful of Cattle Egrets right next to a group of carabaos in a small patch of land in the edge of the lake teeming with water lilies. They were about 20 meters away almost mixing up with the ubiquitous Eurasian Tree Sparrows hopping from grass to grass. I immediately took my binoculars off my backpack and started to zoom in. It was 7AM and there's an overcast. Almost no wind. On the horizon were a flock of black-feathered birds with white undersides and white beaks flanking to my direction. What a vantage point. At fist I thought they were the beautiful Philippine Falconets but after reviewing the Photographic Guide to Birds of the Philippines of Tim Fisher and Nigel Hicks, it told me they were the White-breasted Woodswallows. Falconets are normally spotted on edges of forests and come in pair, sometimes singularly. Though both birds have the same size between 16 and 19 cm, the book said the latter is more abundant in open grass, coastal areas and are seen in groups. C6 is nowhere near any forest. It is on the shore of Laguna de Bay with the Rizal Mountain Range in the horizon miles away to the northeast and the skycraper of Makati to the west under the billowing smog. And I was looking at a flock of birds.I was convinced they weren't the falconets. My rookie error as a birdwatcher.

Moving my lense panoramicaly I gazed upon birds hidden amongst the lilies. They would make short flights from one location to another as if they knew I wanted to have a better view so I can identify them. They were Great Herons according to my field guidebook and as was confirmed by my later reaseach online. Another cuties on that day were the Chestnut Munias with their noisy eek-eek chirp and an almost burst-stop-burst flying motion. Once considered the National Bird until deposed by the Philippine Eagle, Munias give me a hard time telling which is which against the Eurasian Tree Sparrows. I grew up just like any one of us seeing the Eurasian everywhere. That gave me the impression they were the Mayas until lately books say it was the Munias who are the real mayas.

It was fun for a first time. Well, I'd say it wasn't the first since I've done something like this with a group of Japanese students back in 1997 just outside the Sain Paul Park in Palawan. But I didn't have any gadget then and came there for a different agenda and not really for birdwatching.This time I was on my own with the intention of observing the birds and get to appreciate more these creatures. And I've got my binoculars this time. This is not going to be the last for sure. Unfortunately, my Canon digicam is not capable of shooting images or zoom in to small details like birds as far as 50 meters or so. Lol!

First Crash, Third Century

2009-08-24T23:28:00.000+08:00

Things have to be measured in numbers if to be remembered. Last Friday, I registered my third 100km and more mileage. I did 102.67 from my house to Calinawan Cave in Tanay, Rizal. I can still remember my first century ride last April during the Licao-Licao tour. It was memorable since it was a major ride where 85 riders participated and I was freaking dead tired when I reached home after 15 hours when I left home at 4:00 AM. My cyclo comp showed 110.78 km. They call it century ride once you hit at least 100km on the saddle . My second on the other hand happened last June with about 114km enroute to Tagaytay and back. Being "paydak-all-the-way" (pedal all throughout/no car) makes century rides achievable and more in the horizon. Only one denominator with these three was the seemed to be never-ending roads. It surely consumed my energy almost to the limit. Unfortunately, my ever growing century rides gave me another stat. This time my first crash on my mountain bike ever. Yeah, I had a couple of misjudgement over a rock, a stump, or rut but they were all minor. No wounds to worry, no cuts gained. This time I literaly banged myself to the ground hard.

It was hot and humid afternoon, must be nearing 3:00PM. Just passed by an overlooking view of the town of Tanay and was now about to go downhill on a fireroad approaching the first village in Pinugay. The gang was traversing the inner trails of Tanay-Sampaloc-Pinugay that would show us back to Marcos Higway. It was a sort of Rizal Loop but instead of doing an all road we did the inside trails going back to the jump off point after visiting Calinawan Cave. Oh boy, it was fun to hit above 50 kph on your cyclo comp. I was on the tail end of the group since I was having some problems with my chain which already sucked in between crankset and frame a couple of times. How can anyone explain the great feeling when the wind is blowing on your face, great scenery, the mood of the countryside. Still sipping the last seconds of the downhill rush the jeepney fully loaded with local people from Pinugay was also taking advantage of the downhill portion to gain some speed. She was some 25 meters ahead of me. The jeepney was occupying the road somewhat a little bit to the left of the center, taking half of the other lane which was supposed to be against the law. But if you were in places like this, who cares much about the law? Few vehicles and wide open countryside. So there was no way for me to overtake her from the left, the normal way. My momentum showed faster than what the jeepney was doing. She slowed down a bit. Now I was caught in the moment whether to pass to her right or not as she kept her pace while keeping her place to the left of the center of the road. Stupid of me I know it's not a good idea to pass any vehicle to the right side. I applied some breaks, a little to the rear and a little to the front. Suddely i felt my rear tire wobbling, she must be skidding. It's okay I told myself it happens when you are pressing breaks when going down the hill. I know it would hold since I was now using Crossmark 2.1 which is much better than SmallBlock 8 that came with the bike when I bought it. Crossmark had bigger threads for better traction. As they say, accidents happen very fast. After just one second that my wheel came wagging, I saw my handle bar making a swift circle to the left. I realized I was in deep shit. Next thing I knew my right shoulder banged against the compacted road, can't really remember if I spin but review of what happened and the prescence of bruises and small cuts in both of my shoulders and legs told me I did. Yeah, I remember my head slammed to the road, thanks to my Specialize helmet. I was also lucky that my cleats disengaged on it's own I don't know how. All of this happend very quickly. I would say in just about 3 seconds from the time my tired wiggled. I can still hear the voices of the shocked young girls who were straddling at the end of the jeepney..Haha, young girls on estribo, what a sight indeed. Plus, a stranger in a beautiful bike to their eyes crashing. Lol.

Instinct told me to get up and check my body for any injuries. My hands run through the side of my body, my arms, and my legs. Seemed perfectly ok. The last two fellas came and one asked what happend. It seemed he didn't see a thing and was wondering I was coming up the side of the road with my bike laying down. An indication that something bad happened since it wasn't a resting position or anything to that effect. And who the hell in the world would rest at the end of the downhill part. I told him my bike skid. The skidmark was still there some 5 meters from where the bike was but the mark was not that long, maybe just a meter and a half. That gave me a conclusion I did flip over, thrown away sideways from the bike after it skid. The bike might have fully stopped and I fell to the right like a log. The other biker told me he saw everything. Yes, my recollections were true. Fortunately I didnt have any visible injuries. Just the scratches, bruises, and small cuts. I was worried of the colar injury that any biker is prone when crashing. But since I was able to make some shoulder, head, and arm rotation, I guess I was Ok. My helmet held on and wasnt broken. they were amazed to see me get up as if nothing happend, my jersey was intact with no tear. We continued to bike.

The following morning I went to the doctor to have some xrays for some peace of mind. Luckily, all was well. Just two days of rest and I was back to what I love doing. Lessons learned. Much care to be taken next time.

Art of Peace

2009-08-01T23:35:00.000+08:00

After more than four months of hibernation, the Art of Peace has been calling me from deep within to get back into the groove or should I say back on the mats. Time to continue my Aikido. I've been running my fingers on my gi (uniform) for some days now wondering when I can wear them again. I called Hiroshi Sensei (Japanese term for Teacher) on the phone and asked when does he want to go to Tagaytay and train at Dennis Sensei's dojo (training hall). He said he's been out for three months and still busy with his job. Hiroshi is a senior Aikidoist in my school, Traditional Aikido in the Philippines, and Dennis Sensei is our Technical Adviser. Dennis moved to Tagaytay from California in 2006 and built his dojo there. From out of nowhere I got a text message from Sensei Aries, my Filipino Head Instructor, that Hitohiro Saito Sensei is in town and there will be Aikido seminar on Friday and Saturday. I've been out of practice for some four months and my school was also out for some three months. Everybody seemed to be busy lately.

It's the sixth time, if my memory was correct, that I am attending Saito Sensei's seminar in the Philippines. Saito has his own dojo in Iwama, Japan called Shin Shin Aikishurenkai. His father is Morihiro Saito Sensei who was the longest serving student of Aikido founder Morihei Ueshiba or whom we call O'Sensei. The old Saito stayed with O'Sensei for 23 years until the Founder's death in 1969. He was given the task to take care of the Iwama Dojo, thus the Iwama Style as well as the Shrine. Hitohiro on the other hand, started his training with O'Sensei at the age of seven. He was born in Iwama and continued training with his father until his own father's death in 2002. Now, we still continue that Iwama tradition under the guidance of Hitohiro, again as taught by O'Sensei to his father Morihiro and then to him.

I arrived at Ascott Hotel's Japan Room beside Glorietta in Makati around 4PM Friday, July 31 to find some 25 Aikidokas from different schools in Metro Manila. Some were familiar faces or repeat attendees and most were first timers. Others came as far as Cebu. I can see that almost half of the people were wearing hakama (skirt). I was thinking weather I would wear mine or not. I'm only at brown belt but my school would want brown belters to wear hakama. Normally, as in most aikido and other martial arts school, hakama is conferred only to black belters. This is not to say that a brown in Iwama is equivalent to blacks of other Aikido schools. This is still a debate. But we do things in our dojo the Iwama way, the way it was taught by O'Sensei to his students back then. No changes, no personal modification. It is said that we do it the hard way. Thus, I would say, the effective way. I practiced that day not wearing my hakama. One thing, to show some humility since I havent done anything for four months, and to also gauge how the black ones would fare that day.

My feet were really aching from the seiza position. Four months made my legs really sturdy. It's hard. I had to kneel from time to time to give my feet some break from the seiza. Just a little review of the techniques and I'm back on track, slowly but surely. Saito Sensei always tell not to fall if you are not falling. What he meant to say was uke (attacker) should not submit to falling from nage (thrower) if he or she is not losing balance. This is one critic that onlookers are tainting Aikido. They say it is fake and that we tend to fall to the ground as if everything is scripted and rehearsed. Some schools tend to become soft during practice that students seem to fall easily without much effort from the nage. Some, really fall in not so convincing way out of respect to his partner specially if it was a senior and it becomes a routine. We in Iwama are taught not to fall just to show the nage that uke is falling. That's why other schools do not want to pair with us during seminars since we hold very hard and we dont easily give way to the nage's attack. I mean we don't fall if we still have balance. One black belter partnered with me during one of the Ikyo Urawaza sessions. He needed to pin me down after executing a spiralling 180 degree turn while stretching my arms. Ikyo is the First Holding Technique in Aikido. Urawaza is the "back" style as there are front and back execution of every technique. This visiting black belter can't throw/pin me down just as he expected me to be on the ground. I told him I'm sorry but I still have my balance. With a look of some frustration and a little bit of anger, he told me to just manuever. Meaning, I should just fall. Haha..Not in Iwama. Not in our school. This is our seminar. Next technique, he left me and looked for a new partner. Too bad to see a hakama-wearing aikidoka doing that.
Second day, we did some more of holding and throwing technique in the morning and some suburi (sword-swinging) and tachidori (sword-taking). It was fun to do a review of them. It made me understand more the philosophy underlying each technique. I guess the four months of inactivity gave me a lot of time to reflect and meditate on my Aikido. During the seminar, I was surprised to suddenly came into almost full understanding on why hips should always be dropped, on why turning should always come from the hip, why one should always go back to hamni (stance) everytime. Before, I was having hard time figuring out why do I have to do this and that. Now, things seem to be easy and understandable. I could easily follow a technique with just one viewing. I guess I dig into the philosophy, that's why. I wore my hakama on the second day by the way. I felt more confident. Plus, I got Saito Sensei's name signed in my new aikido t-shirt.

Midweek Training Ride

2009-07-22T14:30:00.000+08:00

After conquering Shotgun last Saturday, June 18 for the second time, I decided to give it another try. Maybe on a regular basis. I'm making it a midweek training ride since weekend pedals seem to be dull and heavy if you didn't do some saddletime a day or two or in between major rides.

I posted on PMTB about this ride but it didn't get much response. I can understand that not too many are available on weekdays. This was a goal for me to test my own limits since riding with other people specially in big groups compromises one's ability to test his speed, endurance, and riding skills. You always have to go with the set pace and don't try to appear you are a better rider than anyone else. It is always time consuming riding in throng though always fun. So riding solo I can do my own pace, test my time and reach some personal goals.

Waking up at 4:30 AM has always been difficult. Given the reality that it was always an issue for me to get decent sleep the night before every ride. Ironically, it looks I was stronger with only some 2 or 3 hours of sleep before a ride than getting five or more. I planned to start pedalling at 5Am but was able to leave a few minutes past 5:30. Need to eat some Quaker Oats for some energy. I happened to pick up from the shelf not the instant pack. Stupid of me. I reached Aling Tina's at 6:40. It was closed. No breakfast this time. Pushed up the road trying to find some food. Saw one at Froi's motel but the mini canteen's manager seemed to be very busy counting hundreds and I didn't see anything ready within minutes. I decided to go ahead the trail hoping my banana and chocolate bar will hold.

It was 6:53. Weather seemed to be fine today. Sun was partially out , my head would look up to the sky from time time a bit anxious on the solar eclipse that should happen today. Oh boy, Shotgun is always a challenge to most riders. Steep gradient even from the start. But in my two previous climbs here I would say she is overrated. Riders seem to give her overwhelming reviews as to diffuculty of one's experience but good for anyone's training. I would say, with correct pacing shotgun is just as hard as any other trail. Decided to do a quick stop at the new sari-sari store just around the bend since a dump truck was pushing up the hill emitting black smoke. No soda so I decided to get iced-water (no bottled water too) and some crackers. Reached my first planned pitstop where there's a view of Lamesa Dam, Licao, and beyond after a few minutes in granny. Can't sustain my mid-ring plus second to the last sprocket combo. Some men were already at work, adding more concrete roads up the hill. I reached the recovery section some 50 minutes from the trailhead. Checked the tire pressure on the rear tire, I am dragging the whole world I guess. Just as I was putting the cap back to the tire's air nozzle(?) I notice the cream pick-up truck which passed me by midway uphill. She was now going down hell fast from the summit (assault). This is the place where all heavy equipment are parked, leading to the dumpsite itself. In no time the truck was flashing lights in front of me so I had to pull my bike to the side of the road. She must be in a hurry. She didnt need to flick the headlights if it wasn't anything important and rush. As the back of the truck appeared I saw two men and a bike. One man was doing chest pumps to someone lying in the back of the truck and the other one was holding the bike fro m falling off. I heard the man say "Kaya mo yan Boyet, hinga ka lang" while pounding the man's chest. I didn't see who was it. Everything happened so fast and the truck disapperead in the meandering hills of Shotgun. I continued pedalling thinking who that rider was and what happened. Reaching the summit, the guard immediately started a conversation, looking ready to share the news. No need to ask a question, he told me a young man around 26, a bit chubby suddenly fell from his bike just before he can reach the top of the hill. His companion, someone a lot older asked for some help to rush the man to the hospital. He had a locked jaw. I dont know if it's a seizure from epilepsy, heat stroke or heart attack. It was indeed very hot at some point of the ride and Shotgun dont offer any shade. Not even a tree. I took some picture's of the bike for reference. Maybe someone knows the guy. Let's hope nothing serious happened.

I go on with my bike up to Kubo. Reached Roxas crossing/trail and slide down Timberland/Wall to get back to Aling Tina's. This time the canteen was open. Had a breakfast there and some chat with another rider and the canteen's staff. I was right on sked. It was 8:40, just 10 minutes behind my target finish. Well, something happened along the way that took some of my minutes.

Heal The World

2009-07-11T19:48:00.000+08:00

As Jacko said, "Heal the world. Make it a better place." Today, we went to an orphanage in Antipolo to donate four bikes for the kids there. The kids' haven is called the Redeemer's Home Foundation. They got 15 angels and about half of them were big enough to put their fragile bodies on the saddle.

It's my first time here and this is the second time PMTB headed by Roche (Whoops) is visiting the Redeemer's. I could have joined the other ride in Norzagaray, Bulacan which offers some sightseeing for nature lovers like me but I decided to donate my sweat to these young fellows who need more attention and much care. About a dozen of us pedalled all the way to Antipolo via Sumulong Highway. We brought the bikes as gifts to these wonderful children who are mostly abandoned by their parents in the hospital after birth. I wonder if I can ever do that to my child. I felt really sorry for these angels but glad to see them beautiful and bouncing. Funny thing is they all look the same as if they are siblings. I guess everyone gets a fair treatment from the caretakers.

Happy to see them, the big ones with ages between 4 to 9, test their new bikes. I couldn't show them my tears. I went inside the house and found three little cuties in their cribs. I want to hug them and feel them. I don't have my own baby but I'd like to have one. I picked up Rica who is barely a year old. She is cute and round. She cried being held by a stranger for the first time. I tried to play with her. Still unsure who was this tall, sunburnt, sweaty guy carrying her, I decided to put her back to her crib. She tried to flip a couple of times with her clear and beautiful eyes fixed at me. I tried to give her some mumbles then she smiled. I poked my finger inside the crib, she reached for it. She held it like she knows me, I was glad. So i tried to pick her up again and gee there were no more tears. I guess no more fear of strangers. Gave me a big smile and held me tight...Bernard, the Home's manager told me one trick: When you cary a baby, put her next to your heart. That gives the connection... And I did.

2009-06-19T23:57:00.001+08:00

Coron and El Nido Rides

2009-06-02T19:18:00.000+08:00

It was some five or six year ago since I last saw Coron and El Nido. I was still working then for an Environmental NGO as an educator of laws that protects the interest of indigenous people of Palawan. I came back to these amazing places a day after my birthday for a 3-week journey of the province with an American-European client/friend as a tourist guide. Good thing was I was able to bring my Haro Sonix to test the tracks of Coron and El Nido with side trip to Culion sans my bike.

First destination, Coron, May 26. I was able to get a 2-way ticket on Cebu Pacific for just Php3,000 plus. Definitely a good deal. From Coron Airport I could tell it would be a great biking experience. I used to call this area as "New Zealand". Cows abound the grassfield bounded by low brushes and trees. The surrounding area is something like you see at the backdrop of Lord of the Rings Trilogy. After a 30-minute ride we reached SeaDive Resort which is oddly shaped like the bridge of a boat but definitely okay since it is nestled at the sea giving its guest a great view of the Coron Island and the Bay with its majestic karst. My room only cost Php800. It has AC, private bath and of course the view. Food is quite expensive ranging from Php220 to some P385 but the serving was big and the taste, wonderful.

Since I am showing my friend the beautiful Palawan I can only pedal my bike at my free time as the official tour guide cum interpreter. We were able to billet ourselves around 5PM so we decided to check out some of the nearby attractions. Maquinit Hotsprings is some 5km from the town and is a good 15minute ride by tric. Instead of riding the 3-wheeled vehicle I opt to take my 2-wheeled ful sus. It is only 5km from my hotel but it is uphill and the road is loose gravel. Definitely sweaty. The following morning, while my client was still snoring, I decided to follow my feet's itch. I went up North and checked the Mabintangen Dam. I got lost a bit and passed by Tapyas Hotel. This was the hotel shown in Alphabolt's first visit to Coron. After some friendly directions by the locals I was able to get back to the right track. What a beautiful road. Again it's offroad. What else can you expect from a far away country. But lo and behold! The road is lined up with Mangiums at both sides while the tip of Mt. Tapyas was showing up behind the thick bushes and trees from time to time. Mabintangen is also just some 5km away but since the view is diffrent from our usual Puting Bato/Licao/Maarat destination, plus being unfamiliar with the terrain, the short distance made the whole trip seemed so long. Along the way, I saw some single track trails, obviously made by years of footsteps and not by bikes. I came across a small ranch with some horses for hire. Some horsebackriding offer. I took some pictures and went back to the road. I reached the small dam which seemed like the source of Coron's water consumption. Not a good place for any visitors as it looked poorly maintained for any tourist to see. After a sip of water I retraced my route and decided to check out the feeder roads I saw earlier. Two-tired ruts were still fresh of marks. There were also puddles telling me it had rained midnight or early morning. After a couple of hundred meters the road ended in a makeshift wooden gate. I dare not trespass for fear of being shot by anyone inside or being chased by the dogs.I'd say respect to private property.Haha.

Second day, we went to the beautiful and quaint island of Culion. A former Leper Colony in the early 1900's until the latter part of 80's. This is one of my fave destinations in Calamianes Group of Islands. Everytime I sit and look at the horizon on top of the fort guarding the town, I can only imagine the Philippines in 1800's. The town has a colorful history. Was founded by Spanish Conquistadores (Agustinian Recollects) in 1622 but of course our own Filipino ancestors (Tagbanua) were already having their own system of life there. In 1740 the Fort was constructed to ward off what the Spanish called the "Moro Raiders", our beloved Muslim brothers from the South, too much of word branding from the invaders themselves, haha. After the Spanish-American war of 1898, which we all know in history that Philippines was ceded for only $20M, the Americans tried to cleanse Manila of it's filth. They found the city too dirty and many residents with leprosy. They looked around for a place to put (segregation) these unfortunate Filipinos and found this beautiful island (leper colony). The rest is history as I was telling you guys its history.Lol. Today, no more than a handful of patients reside in the now Culion Sanitarium and General Hospital which used to be dreaded by most people specially the uninformed when it was still just a Sanitarium. To put the fears to an end I could say, leprosy has already been cured and eradicated. People in this town are either 3rd or 4th generation of former patients and some are migrants themselves from other parts of the country.

My trip there didn't only bring back memories of my old visits, of people I knew, not only of the book I got in 2003 from the local school, Loyola College, entitled "Letters from the Lepers' Isle" by Fr. John Chambers S.J. but also of the chance to scout some good places to bike in the future if chances will allow. I didn't bring my bike to Culion as I dont want get the ire of my client. I came there primarily as a guide. We were told not to miss Pulang Lupa, some 8km on top of the hill overlooking the town. It suddenly rained so its roads became muddy and sticky. The town's van for ferrying tourists can't make it to the top so we were forced to take a walk. The place offered a great view of the town proper from some 500m above sea level, it was designed to look like a park-mini zoo with statues of different animals everywhere. Funny thing was statues of Disney characters were also put to scatter around the place. I would say a tour to this island will be a great challenge to any mountain bikers. Offroad, loose gravel, sticky and muddy fireroads, single tracks (foot trails), lots of uphills, and the best thing of all, locals said no bikers yet had set foot (tires) on their island. I was thinking of doing a proposal to local government to sponsor a number of riders in exchange to some exposure to blogs, threads, and fora online as part of their tourims promotion. Think, think, think.

Third Day. I took my bike around Mt. Tapyas. Tapyas is a very prominent mountain at the center of the town with the giant cross at its peak. It offers some 700+ steps to reach the cross plus a rewarding view of the sunset. Since I have conquered the steps a couple of times few years ago, knowing that it is not a good idea to bring the bike there, I decided to get around the mountain itself instead on going on top of it. My cyclocomp recorded only some 16km to get the route done but it's quite a challenge. I took the road going to Maquinit HotSprings, passs by Cubi Beach, the village of Balisongan, pedalled my way in between Tapyas and Mt. Tundalara, a sleeping volcano, and ended up in the receiving area for tourists at the foot of Mt. Tapyas. Again, different terrain, loose gravel on uphills, not properly maintained fireroads and some sidetrips to coves and beaches. As every bikers would want it, every ride is a unique ride. After the ride, can't get my feet to settle down. Went around the central town and found a car wash. While giving my bike the well deserved bath, the owner, Boyet Aborot started a conversation. I learned that there are no organized bike clubs in the area though some own mountain bikes. Boyet belongs to a motorbike club that go on trails as well. He was eager to show me a trail at the back of Mt. Tapyas that they regularly take by motorbikes. The trail leads to the top of Taypas, backdoor. I said to myself, this is great I'd better check it out. Whew! The trail looks difficult. I guess it was already some 40 degrees inclination at the trailhead all the way to the top. We need some experts here. I told Boyet not this time, besides it's already dusk, sometime around 6pm. Boyet also gave me a map of the different trails in Coron and Busuanga. I took it.

We flew back to Manila since there were no planes to El Nido. We dont want to take the risk of spending 8 hours on the boat to get there. Plane would only take an hour. At Terminal 3, I saw 2 bikes being unloaded from the belt. No bike box. I reckon that it would be more easy to bring the bike without the box on my next flight. And so I did.

Upon reaching Puerto Princesa we started contacting vans for hire to get us to El Nido. In no time, I found myself and my white Sonix inside the 4WD Mitsubishi Delica. It took us 9hours to get there. Heavy rains, bad roads half of the trip and some long stops for food. Hell drivers could make it to El Nido in only 6 hours in a good weather with no stops. The first half of the trip was fantastic as Palawan offers one of the best highways in the entire country. Perfect concrete road for the first 120km or so. Reached the beautiful El Nido around 7pm. Can't see much at night though the sillouette of the karst was still visible to my eyes. As if nothing had changed in the last six years. Took a good dinner at Squidos, my fave restaurant. Nice food. They still satisfy my taste. Food has an average price of Php180 per serving.

Next morning we decided to change hotels. We didn't like the first one. I'm not going to tell the name so as not to destroy their business. We went to El Nido Beach Hotel, owned and managed by some Koreans. I could say this could be the best or maybe on the Top 2 for the entire town. Nice bed, spacious room, has AC, cable tv though only 3 stations, and hot and cold shower. Breakfast suck though. Nice veranda by the way. Great view, that's what customers paid for in every hotel aside from the service and comfort. In 5 days of stay, I found my new fave place for breakfast. Balay Tubay owned by Bong Acosta. I like the ambiance, nice bread for your American or Continental breakfast. Great brewed coffee too. Cecile, the waitress was more than of a friendly service.

Restless feet needs to be cured. And the best medicine, what else, pedal all the way. I asked around for some trails but it was obvious there were no organized bikers there. There was one bike rental shop in town for only Php300. The bikes were just simple and ordinary ones. I started my journey to this fabled beach town at around 730AM just like what we normally do on a weekend in Manila. I hit the road from my hotel which was already uphill. Gee, no warmups, uphill at the start. Concrete road was only good up to the first 5km just as you reach the tiny airport. Then it's offroad all the way. I reached a beach resort on kilometer 9 marker and decided to check it out. After some photos, merged again to the main road. I came acros a sign showing the town's Sanitary Landfill. I took the feeder road and ended up in a gate without a guard. Better make a u-turn than to get in trouble. A few kilometers more I reached a fork. I told my self this was it and time to go back. I am not familiar with the area but my feet wanted more. I decided to follow my brochure/map saying there is a waterfall some 4kms ahead (14km from the town proper). I came across a sign offering some tour guiding services to the falls. I stopped for some photo shoot. A man in shabby shirt and torn sleepers came out from the house accross the street and asked me if I needed a guide. After some chat, I decided to get his service for Php100. It was almost 11AM and all I had was half filled bottle of water. I took some bread, water and biscuits from a local store a kilometer away and went back to the spot to get Manong Alex "Boy" Albag, the guide. Oh yeah. I also got my self a pair of slippers as Mang Boy told me it would be slippery up the trail since it had been raining lately.

He also told me there was no one ever made it to the falls with a bike. Foreign tourist would just leave their bikes in his house and would just trek. He added that motorbikes would not make it too since the rocks were too diffucult for them. We would be crossing rivers seven times. So it was not seven rivers. Despite his repeated mantra of "Aruy! Mahihirapan ka. Hindi kaya ng bike paakyat dun." (You're not gonna make it. It is a very diffucult trail, you can't do it with bike), I was resolved of doing it. What's the point of pedalling that far under the heat of the sun, under the pressure of navigating an unfamiliar track, alone, if I will not try to conquer the falls. The idea of being the first to make it all the way there by bike was enough energizer for me to do it, just like the Gu. Trailhead welcomed me with the first river crossing, just above anke-deep. Mang Boy's daughter was doing the laundry there. He introduced me to her as if she wanted the young lady to marry me. Haha.. First terrain of the trail was riverine with bamboos all over. After a few hundred meters it changed to open grassfield with coconut plantation. The track suddenly angled towards the slope on a single track with bushes and small tress at both sides. Muddy and sticky. As the trail goes deeper in the jungle it became more slippery with 2-inch thick leaf cover. Big ree stumps and roots added to the challenge. I can already imagine the thrill on the way back. Downhill, baby! After more or less 2km in the trail, I could hear the strong thumping of water. That must be the falls. The last leg (assault) would need me to dismount, take off my clipless, and go under or over the fallen log. This was a bit tricky. I need to carry my bike piggy style, duck under the log and keep my upper body above water.

I made it! I made a record! The first one to make it to the falls in a bike! I don't want to brag about it but my guide would attest to it. Mang Boy has been a tourist guide to this trail since 1997. The store owner where I bought the snack also told me the same thing that no one yet has been to the falls with a bike. I took some pictures, had a small merienda with my guide and back to trail again. Boy, I told you it was downhill galore! Except for the river crossing. I had to dismount and carry Sonix like child. After this ride, I thought my feet deserve a great massage. I walk inside Lucille's Massage and Spa to have my feet pampered. Not all that. I found myself relaxing to the rythym of reggae and Filipino Music jam at Balay Tubay for a reggae night.

Almost three weeks on the road was the best birthday treat for myself. Though I only managed to do 84km of leg power to these awe inspiring destinations, making history as the first to climb Nagkalit Falls on a mountain bike made it all wothwhile. I hope my creative thinking would work to get some attention to bring some riders to this place. Who knows, after falling in love all over again with these places I might be the newest resident in no time..Haha. Thank you OC.

Roots, Rock, Reggae

2009-05-21T16:23:00.000+08:00

In a couple of days I'll be travelling to Coron. The last time I saw this enchanting place was like six years ago.I suddenly felt the need to reflect and connect again to my old self. Back to my roots! Don't get me wrong I am not from this place or neither born in this place, BUT, considered myself someone that once belonged to this place. If given another chance I would always love to stay and make a life here.

(Picture Above: Me and Sinda, Y2007, a fellow student of life, nature and culture. Below: Sinda and two local Tagbanuas pounding pinipig before dawn, Y2003.)

With no so much activities lately I felt the urge to write or reminisce something from my Calamianes adventures years ago, when I was still a full-time servant of Mother Nature. By the way I joined the Critical Mass Ride by Firefly Brigade last Saturday 16May 2009 that took the route of Greehnhills to Binondo, a great urban ride, thanks to Calica for the invite, and a semi-urban night ride last Tuesday 19May to Monterey Viewdeck in Antipolo to AFP Housing in San Mateo, Rizal with PMTB peeps. The article below is culled from my older blog: www.freewebs.com/ayu_cicada . Somehow this would give you an idea why I use the name Cicada.

As the mild and cool breeze of habagat (southwest monsoon) sweeps one early harvest time of 2003, sending a chill in the air for the people in a half-open nipa hut perched on a ledge of a limestone karst, a name was given birth in an island which houses the most beautiful and cleanest inland body of water on this side of earth: Kayangan Lake. The name Ayu was bestowed to this writer by a group of indigenous people in this corner of the archipelagic province dubbed as the Philippines' Last Ecological Frontier, Palawan. They are the Tagbanua of Coron Island in the Calamianes Region. The area is a cluster of islands and islets on the northernmost part of the province. Their clan is one of the remaining indigenous people in the Philippines who are able to preserve and continue their way of life in commune and in almost traditonal way despite the major changes in our society and environment. Tagbanua means "people of the place."

Ayu in Calamian Tagbanua means tree. They came up with the name that would fit the value and demeanor they saw in me during my stay in their community as environmental educator, friend, brother, and son. I find it just perfect as tree in a simple sense connotes the environment, life, nature, air, the world, us. Nothing else can best represent these things than a tree and there's no other thing I can relate or symbolize myself than a tree. Just a perfect choice, a gift I should say.

In Malaysia, ayu means aura. In Japan and other parts of China and Korea it is a kind of fish. Again, no matter how big the distance between these places is, the word would often refer to nature or something pertaining to nature. I am just delighted.

The simple ritual came after countless of hours working with the different groups of indigenous people (including the Tagbanua of mainland, Palawán , and Batak) in this paradise on earth on the protection of their most treasured property, their Ancestral Domain; after long sessions studying their native tounge, and after years of trying to live and become one with these people, cuturally and spiritually atleast, believed to be descendants of the Tabon Man, the first Homo sapiens to roam the Philippines 40,000 years ago.

As for the last name I personally picked Cicada. which is the scientific name for crickets or "kuliglig". These creatures abound the upland and coastal forest of my adopted hometown and has really fascinated me with their harmonious sound. Presence of this musically genius insects, who play lullabye at night and "impetus blues" during daytime when you hike, translates the diversity and abundance of life in the area. Thus, equates to the good condition of its forest community.

Ayu Cicada would lead me in my search for cultural and musical identity at this age of globalization and disrespect. This process has been done by icons who chose the same path like the renowned artfilm director/writer Eric de Guia aka Kidlat Tahimik (Silent Lightning) and avant-garde musician Joey Ayala aka Batang Bakal (Mendicant Child-referring to one of those street childeren begging for money who would scrape the side of your car with a scrap metal if you didn't give any). They are amongst those who cast off their colonial names, in one way or another and pursue a more homegrown one in propagating their aspirations and endeavor. Ayu, the Tree, represents my indigenous name. The true Filipino name that would give back the pride lost when we were forcely given colonial names by the conquistadores. Cicada, the Cricket, would play the music brewed in my most beloved homeland and concocted by the sounds from our neighboring cultures.

The great Bob Marley dreamt of a society under "One Love, One Life" and I believe that before we can attain that state of mind, we must first establish, understand and recognize our own identity. And in this case we Filipinos should dig back our roots to be able to blend these unique qualities with our brothers and sisters in other lands for that mission.

Just Another Weekend On the Saddle

2009-05-10T22:59:00.000+08:00

I wonder why everytime I go to Puting Bato, translated by fellow rider Obijuan as "White Rock", the batteries of my Canon Powershot A470 would bust up. It's the second time I came to this newbie-friendly trail and it's the second time I didn't get much pictures. First time I was here (see blog Terry Larrazabal, dated 10April) I only managed to take four pictures before the cam went dead. This time I only got to take three. Yes! Only three pictures and they were not good shots as my focus was shifted from the viewfinder to the blinking battery icon.

I was supposed to be joining a group to Polilio Island in the Province of Quezon jutting out of the Pacific Ocean. But due to typhoon Emong which brought lots of rains for the past week and enough worries to most of us, the biking adventure there was called off at the last minute. I was actually eager to see the Butaan Lizard, a highly endangered species relative to Komodo Dragon which can only be found in this island. So the continget was then forced to find another ride which would not involved major water crossing. So here I was back in Puting Bato with some 30 plus riders, the place that gave me my first PMTB ride exactly a month ago.

Nothing really special from this ride but boy I love this route. The trailhead with it's 100-meter uphill assault gives a nice view of the karst. Its limestones sprawling on the trail like a dry river. You barely pedal from this part down to a few hundred meters as it was sloping gently. Some nice bumpy ride at this point. You will reach a paved road with houses of local villagers on both side leaving the white mountain behind. The beautiful scenery would be then, ironically, interrupted by the imposing silos of a cement plant..? I guess it is a cement plant. Wikimapia says it's Solid Cement Corporation. Taking a left turn to the fork would keep you on the right track. Otherwise, the trail leads to Batlag, harder trail up the hill. When I say trail this is not a single track inside the woods by the way. They are barrio offroads. Some are paved for the local tricycles. Going strait the trail would now give you a different terrain. This time you see the ricefields to the right with the green mountains as the backdrop and the back of the white rock to the left behind the meadows. Compass orientation now goes North. If you look at the map the trail is just making a big loop. The trailhead takes a right turn (southward) from Marcos Highway just before Boso-Boso and would end at the same highway some 5km from the trailhead. The rest of the ride went through barrios and as you near the end of the trail the more houses and people you see. Generally, it is indeed a newbie compatible route. No major climbs, just moderate rolling hills. A nice sip of bulalo at Mang Vic's along Marcos Highway welcomes the riders to a nice lunch. Much needed to get some energy for pedalling back home. It rained for a while so the group decided not to climb Giant, another favorite stop over mini-restaurant situated 398.6 meters up the hill in the myriad of so many trails inside this now bikers' playground Rizal mountains. The road there must be sticky and heavy.

So off we went back to Metro Manila. It was now downhill 3/4 of the way. I was enjoying the rush when I suddenly realized the asphalted National Highway was wet from the just concluded rain and my speedometer was registering 50. Whew! There's no vehicles around. I looked at the cyclocomp once again and it showed just some 40km from my house. I felt really dissatisfied. I was looking for atleast 70 per ride. I don't know maybe because I've hit more than 100 last time at Licao Licao and the rides I had after that did not go below 70km. Anyway, it registered 65 when I got home. Not too bad but my feet wanted more. Maybe because the trail wasn't that hard compared to the other ones I've tried. Now I know the route so I can always go back myself, with a friend or even a biking date. Haha. The trick? Always take the left on every turn. That's Puting Bato in the lower reaches of Antipolo.

Talim Island Adventure

2009-05-03T21:45:00.000+08:00

I'm glad I did some mountain climbing when I was still in College. Going up the mountain where it was no longer rideable by bike and making your way through slippery and sharp rocks to avoid getting soaked into a body of water came very handy. This was how I described my latest adventure with nature last Saturday, May 2.

A ride to Talim Island situated at the Northern portion of Laguna de Bay was organized by Obijuan of PMTB. Again, names here are all handles by people logging in to pmtb forum. The island's western part is within the jurisprudence of the Municipality of Binangonan and the eastern side is under the town of Carmona, both in the Province of Rizal. When I was growing up in Santa Cruz, Laguna, a capital town located southeast of the lake, I was always intrigued what lies within this island. Why is it called Talim?, I often asked. If it is situated at Laguna de Bay why is it under Rizal Province? Some questions that have puzzled me eversince.

The group composed of 19 eager to pedal individuals met up at Tiendesitas around 5:30 AM. We started to hit the road to Pritil Wharf in Binangonan at exactly 6. Binangonan is some 22 km away. Just an hour away if you are kicking it out with the "halimaws" (speed riders) at 30kph. Good thing, I already learned how to use my 1-week old Louis Garneau Terra Grip clipless shoes. It helped keeping pace with these fast and furious engineless riders. After arriving at the port, bikes were immediately loaded and packed to the boat. Other riders who came from nearby towns were already there waiting, plus those from Metro Manila coming in by cars. Had breakfast at the local market, waited a bit for some logistics and there we go to Navotas village. The barangay's wharf and the coast of mainland is like 300 meters separated by the lake's waters. We wonder why the Local Government can't build a bridge to ease travel time here since everybody needs to go all the way up to Pritil in Binangonan for a 30-minute boat ride to get food supplies and other stuff. Later, along conversations with the residents we found out that there was no road from Binangonan proper to these coastal barangays that might link up a bridge to the island. Everybody needs to take the ferry. The equation now gets complicated. I don't want to dwell more onto this.

Taking off from Barangay Navotas, northern tip of the island, we were like celebrities. People went out of their houses and watched 29 beautifully costumed (colorful dry-fit jerseys, sunglasses, warmers, nice shoes, and gorgeous bikes) individuals invading their quiet town like an army mounted on bikes. You can't blame people from the countryside who see the same faces everyday. This day was a feast for their eyes. We headed down south via the western front of the island. At the start, the roads were just wide enough to accomodate a tricycle or pedicab. But just after a few hundred meters the roads get slimmer, then almost single track, to no track at all. There were portions, I mean lots of portions where we have to carry our bikes. We had to make our way through sharp volcanic rocks at the coast balancing not to get dipped into the lake which would create waves and ripples everytime boats pass by, to get to the next trail. Water lilies helped some extra stepping pedestals. The trails included villages' cramped paved roads, rolling hills, lots of bamboo single-track trails, rocky downhills, waterline coastal carry-your-bike, and of course lots of hike-a-bike.

A much needed lunch break was held at the house of Empoy's (another rider) relatives. I forgot the name of the barangay though. Grilled tilapia and pork sinigang were served just in time when all of us were all needing extra energy. It is always nice to see a sari-sari (local retail store) along the way to get a quick drink or munch. After some good bonding we headed to the mountains again and entered the bamboo trail where lots of tires got punctured. Thanks to Whoops for the assist. I really need to learn how to change tires from now on. Luckily, I always bring spare tube in the trail. It helped when I needed it most.

We reached the village of Talim south of the island at around 4PM. We started hitting the trail head around 8:30 in the morning so it was like 7.5 hours inside the trail. This is not including the travel time on pedals from Tiendesitas to the Pritil Wharf and back, and from our respective houses to Tiendesitas. Cyclo comp recorded just below 20km inside the trail though. You can now imgagine how hard the terrains and trails were given the long hours in so short a distance. Great views by the way. You can see Mt. Makiling from the distance, the Alabang-Sucat,Taguig coastline and the Manila Skyline in the horizon.

We took the now chartered ferry which has enough room this time for all of us 29 riders and our bikes back to Pritil. This was the same boat we took to Navotas earlier but there were a couple of other passengers and some cargoes. There's no way anyone would dare backtrack the trail to the jump off point. Initially, it was planned to bike all the way to the eastern side of the island, the Carmona side, but time didn't permit us. Maybe a Part 2 is already in the works. I would love to join this one too. By 7PM, the "padyak-all-the-way" group started to hit the National High Way at almost full speed. I was kinda very cautious since my eyesight is not that good at night and my headlight is not that bright. Might need to get a better one. I reached home around 8 and my cyclo comp read 73km. Another great ride!

Licao Licao Ride and TOF

2009-04-27T08:05:00.000+08:00

My cyclo computer logged in 110.78km from my house and back last Saturday April 25, 2009. This was a ride at Licao Licao in the boundaries of San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan and Rodriguez, Rizal with Pinoy Moutain Bikers (PMTB) people organized for the veteran bikers Kuya Arci, PapaRock and company. I'm not sure if this was done as their comeback ride from long layoff or from coming back from abroad. Maybe both. Please note that all of the names used here are aliases or handles from people in the PMTB forum, http://www.pinoymtbiker.org/ . I joined this forum where all bicycle lovers especially mountain bikes meet and discuss stuff about bikes and rides outdoors. Oh God knows how I love outdoors and adventure.

It was 3:30 early Saturday morning. I started to pedal my way for a warm up 7-kilometer spin to Santa Ana, Manila to meet up with BilogGirl and Nards who were the closest from my crib (Pasig-Makati boundaries) and who I will ride with to University of Sto. Tomas in Espana to then join another group (Ryanusuke, Kirkmeynard, Shigatsu, Tantantini, 3739, and Charlie Barkin). They were all coming from the Southern part of the city, hence dubbed Manila Riders, since the trails for this particular ride were located North of Metro Manila. I had to meet them since I don't know for sure the main convergence in Fairview and don't want to risk a leg in the treacherous Commonwealth Avenue in that wee hour of the morning. I hit the road at 20kph. No traffic, very few vehicles. I was able to reach Santa Ana in 19 mins, still not fast enough for any experienced rider, waited for BilogGirl, had a quick breakfast at Jollibee, waited for Nards and ScalawagX then took off to meet the main group up North.

The entourge took a different route as I would have taken if I were to ride alone to the main meeting point at PapaRock's house somewhere in Fairview-Lagro Area. That was some 20km from my pad basing on google maps or wikimapia. We took the A. Bonifacio-Qurino Highway-Novaliches route and reached PapaRock's after an hour running on average of 20 kph. There we found more riders from different places getting ready for the climb or should I say ride. The now larger group of about 50 plus headed to the jump off point (Pangarap) which was some 15 mins away. I was even more surprised to find out some 30 more helmeted, dry-fitted, shoe-cleated-people waiting for us to join this now "epic ride". Headcount gave us 85. Wow! I suddenly remember my experience in TLBF last month. Wherever I glaze my eyes upon, I always see a bike or a biker. What a beautiful sight indeed.

We pushed toward the mountain in no time. Newbies, veterans, whover, hit the trail and do their own thing which was to ride the bike, conquer the trail, appreciate the view, and make new friends. The trails were really hard for any newbie, but these were the materials that would help a neophyte from joining the ranks of the veterans. More people meant more traffic jam along the trails. The area offered different terrains from rolling hills, to single track, to small meadows, to downhill rush. I definetely enjoyed this ride though I missed that there was a group who actually went inside the more diffucult trails. Nobody told me ahead or maybe I didn't hear any announcement since I was already battling with my own labor on the pedal. Haha.

The rain poured down mid-morning after the first major rest at the Village of Macabud, still inside the territory of Rodriguez, Rizal. It was a badly needed relief since that temp that day could be like 32 or 33 deg Celsius. Everybody seemed to be re-energized. The push uphill became easier, less laborious and less painful. Lunch break at the Terminal, aptly called for it is the jeepney station for residents going in and out of the area. This small community resides at the foot of the mountain which name I didn't get that shares the forest and mountain covers of the next province of Quezon. Interesting. I could always brag to my friends about how far places I reach with this bike without spending a heft of money on fuel and other travelling expenditures. The only thing you need to money out is for food. Only thing you need to get to this place is your bike. How about that..

We took the same route going back home. I guess I was the last to touch homebase from the Manila group. I reached my apartment a few minutes before seven in the evening. As I was checking on my cyclocomp indeed it was a "century ride". Had lots of fun over lots of pain.

The Week Before, Tour of the Fireflies

Last April 19, a lovely Sunday, one of biggest bicycling event in the Philippines took place. It is called Tour of the Fireflies. TOF aims to promote cycling as a sustainable means of transportation. I found the theme really a call of the times, "Bike to Work, Bike To School, Bike to Play". It was again my first time to join TOF as a newcomer to the world of biking, I mean technically. I used to bike a lot in Palawan but it was just a crude and simple mountain bike, no technical no how, not the Sonix I have right now, no groups to join on a weekend, but just pure solitary drive with nature.

This year's TOF which was the 11th took riders of all kinds to the major streets of Pasig, Mandaluyong, Makati, and Quezon City. We are talking of EDSA, the main thoroughfare of Metro Manila, Ortigas, Buendia, and Ayala Avenues. It targeted to cover 50km by my cyclocomp totaled only some 38km. Sorry, folks.

For one day, bike lovers ruled EDSA. I estimated between 2,500 and 3,000 riders on that eventful day but my numbers were too small compared to what the organizers gave later. They said it reached to about 7,000. Gee! I hope it happens everyday or even just every Sunday. Less air pollution, less traffic, less road accidents, less expenses on transpo. Cool idea, isn't it? I'm gona be a big supporter of TOF.

According to the leaflets TOF was being organized by Firefly Brigade which is a citizen's action group formed in 1999 to banner clean air and habitable, people-friendly environments in cities of the Philippines. It likens the urban people to those of the fireflies who have disappeared from the city due its polluted air. Same fate could happen to them if they don't start to help stop the dirtying of the city's air.

It was also simultaneosly held in other major cities in the Philippines including Puerto Princesa where I first got the taste of mountain biking.

Terry Larrazabal Bike Festival

2009-04-10T16:12:00.000+08:00

Last week I joined my very first Mountain Bike Cross Country race at the 7th Terry Larrazabal Bike Festival held at Subic. Biker No. 384 in a 6"x6" tarpauline was hanging in front of my Haro Sonix Full sus All-Mountain and in my 3-liter Mule Camelback. There were 60 riders in my heat and it was the second. I was racing in the Masters 1 category and hell no, I am not an expert. It was my very first race and my bike was barely two weeks old. Categories were based on age brackets and not by experience or skill level, otherwise I will be joining Beginners. So what the heck I was doing in that race given that very newbie premise? Well, I bought this size 18 Haro in Bike Town Cyclery in Makati on March 24. The good staff of the shop told me about the TLBF coming on March 30 to April 4. I asked Mang/Kuya Jun the ever helpful technician of Bike Town if I could go there and just watch. He said if I'm bringing my bike I’d better join one of the races. He said it is not the idea of winning but joining the event for the experience and to meet other bikers since I was literally new to the scene. Nice one. Yeah, why not? There I found myself filling out the registration form. Thanks to Elaine for the assist. Bike Town owner Atty. Goyo is also the chief organizer of the event and the son of the person to whom the festival is dedicated to.

TLBF is held every year by the Larrazabal Family of Ormoc, Leyte as a tribute to their father the late Teodoro Larrazabal, former OIC Mayor of Ormoc City after the Edsa Revolution of 1986. This weeklong bicycle indulgence that features races for road, mtb 4x, XC, trials, dirt jumping, downhill, BMX, and triathlon is held to cultivate in the youth an aptitude for physical power through a sport. Must be the biggest bike event in the Philippines and could be in Asia. Big names like Brian Lopes and Hans “No Way” Ray were just among the regulars here, mind you. I first came across the name Brian Lopes way back August 2002 edition of Mountain Biking magazine which featured the Chevy Trucks National Championship Series in Big Bear Lake. Article writer Scott Hart described Brian as will always be known as the sport’s king. That time Brian had already held four National titles and 19 individual wins. I’m pretty sure he didn’t stop from there, obviously as he remains one of the biggest attractions in TLBF. Now he's got 9 National Championship titles, 6 UCI World Cup Championships, and 4 World Championships and a Hall of Fame. He was running for GT then but unfortunately he lost the Pro Dual Slalom to Haro rider Keith Voreis though he was the favorite to take home the trophy. Funny, my bike is also a Haro. Wish I could do some downhill someday before Brian even thinks of hanging his Ibis for good. Haha! So when I heard that Brian is coming to the fest my interest grew.

As the gun was fired to mark the start of the race, bikers started to jockey for position. It was going to be a total of 7.5km of gruelling ride specially for first timers like me. The track was on the slopes of Hill 631 some 20km away from the Convention Center and was merely an hour if you "padyak all the way". Not a good warm up for any neophyte. I decided to find a good heart to hitchhike to preserve my energy. Luckily, I found three good samaritans. Thanks to Wennie and company who were also heading to the same direction to participate in the XC and in the 4X. I said to myself if I beat one person to the finish line I will be the happiest person on that day . The race should go first one loop on a 1.5km asphalt road. Race director said it was needed to avoid heavy congestion uphill specifically on the single track for the 60 adrenalized bodies. After one loop, bikers headed up to the mountain. Oh boy I was already tired. The slope was only a 30 degree inclination but it was a long climb. As the race director had anticipated, there was a long line in the single track. Nobody can really overtake somebody. It was only near halfway and I was already on the tail pack. I could see the "halimaws" or monster riders pulled away early on back in the first loop. As the few more than a dozen of us dismounted our horses to weave our way through the narrow single-track, going up and down the side of the hill, some of the guys already conceded as I heard the person two lengths ahead that we should take it easy since the lead pack was already far ahead and pushing our bikes on foot would really stall a lot of time. He meant there’s no way anyone from our pack would win it or even make it to the qualifying 25 for the final race. I also thought about it but I was focused on finishing the race and not on winning. Maybe next year my goal will go a notch or two higher, of course.

As I made my way out of the S-shaped single-track to proceed to the turning point up the hill, the lead pack was already coming down fast. Oh wow this is great. Push, push, push! I was running on the smallest ring and the biggest sprocket. I’d like to remember centering in breathing technique so I wouldn’t give out a lot of air from my lungs. I saw the marshall at the turning point taking down the riders’ numbers to show they passed the checkpoint another hope shone my way. I told my self now we go downhill all the way. This was the first time I would test my bike how far she can go and how tough she is. My Marzocchi 33 Bomber was doing well over the bumps, small rocks and roots. On the way down, I was going some 50 kph and enjoyed the vibration from the 4-inch travel fork. I felt I could do faster but I don’t want to risk more since it was my first time. Entering the asphalt loop for the final leg another rider passed to my left so he must be coming down like 55 or 60. There I could see the strengths and weaknesses of my bike. Off road it runs almost perfectly beautiful, but in paved it tends to be slower no matter how hard you pedal, maybe because of the shock. I got a 2.1 Rock Shox.Yes, I remember the reviews online that there was some bob from it on the level ground. But generally, this is a good bike. I like it very much. Not to mention it was Bike of the Year for 2008 by Mountain Biking Magazine.

Sadly as I was approaching the finish line, the next heat (Masters II) was already there assembling. I was among those automatically disqualified after 25 riders had crossed the finish line. I veered my bike to the side of the track as I won’t be able to pass. I thought I must be so much behind the time that the next heat was already about to start. I looked behind and saw some 12 or 13 bikers still struggling their way. That gave me the grin. I am proud to be able to beat that number of people as I only hope for just one but also a bit sad that I wasn’t able to cross the line of glory on my very first race.

Some important notes during my Sat and Sun stay in the Fest. I met a classmate in High School who I last saw on our white toga some 16 years ago. Let del Mundo, also an outdoor enthusiast came with her hubby Eric who is also a rider of PMTB and a regular of La Mesa Dam. They brought with them their 5 year-old twin daughters. Eric did not join any race though. It was really hard coming to big events like this without knowing anyone. Being a newbie is like first day in school. You look around and don’t seem to recognize anyone. Few basic rules apply. Smile, be friendly, and talk and talk and talk only about bikes. They will come to you.

I stayed in the Forest Complex in the Upper Cubi of Subic. It was some 5km away from the Central District where food chains were located. FSC don’t serve any food except for coffee and instant noodles. Not enough for any sweat-soaked rider. So the thing was you have to drive that far just to get to McDonalds or Chowking. So when I left the hotel in the morning under the scorching heat of the April sun and the humid breeze of the Bay to eat, I didn’t bother to pedal back which was mostly uphill until it’s time to sleep.

Post TLBF, Puting Bato-Maarat Trail

Over all my experience in TLBF is fun. I enjoyed it. Met people who also have high regard to biking. Just a few days after the fest, I received a couple of invitation to do some serious trail. Finding time for a tour of Puting Bato, Maarat Trail, and AFP Housing, I joined Wandie1024, Jeremy2K5, and Hector on a Black Saturday which covered some 75km from my house and back.

I also made some solo rides to McKinley in Fort Bonifacio for some trail practice on weekdays. Good thing is McKinley is just a stone's throw away from my pad. It's always nice when you have an accessible trail, though not as great as those in real outdoors, when your feet seems to be on the loose.

Back To Princess of Ports

2009-03-01T11:33:00.000+08:00

It was a few minutes past the hour of seven in the morning of 22 February. The taxi was taking the Villamor Air Base main road just passing the Nichol's Interchage on my way to Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3. I was bound to Puerto Princesa City to visit my parents for their 53rd birthday. I got two days leave of absence plus another two days off. I said to myself I'm gonna make it to the the new Terminal since there was no heavy traffic jam along the way. I need to check in at least two hours before the scheduled departure and my ticket says my flight is at 0945, got a 2-way ticket from Air Philippines for only P4,100 ($85). Not bad for the start of Summer when ticket prices were expected to be like gold. Terminal 3 was just recently opened for domestic flights. It had been the mother of all controversies way back in the 90's to then President Fidel Ramos and was just cleared for operation sometime last year.

Wow! This terminal was huge. I can say the Terminal 2 (Centennial) was big and nice but this was twice the size and beauty compared to Terminals 1 (Old Domestic) and 2. It was so big that you have to take the elevator and walk down the long hall way just to find your station which was normally an easy thing in other terminals. One noticeable thing was the unfinished portions of the building and still some unoccupied stalls/kiosks in the food alley. The "restaurant" section didn't even offer anything more than Jollibee. I can simply tell these were signs of a newly opened business. But overall I would rate the Terminal 3 very good. Checking in my luggage I was shocked to find out that my flight was delayed until 1 PM. I asked the desk why I wasn't informed ahead so I didn't need to rush from my office at 5 in the morning to pick up my stuff at my pad and to the airport. I could have taken a couple of hours sleep since I was coming from a night's shift. He said he wasn't sure why I didnt get a call so I pulled out my phone and checked my call registry and there I found one unanswered call from an unknown number sometime in the afternoon the day before, it could have been the airlines. How come i missed it. I must be sleeping at that time. Since the new terminal was not any closer to any malls or establishment and it was just 7:30 in the morning I didn't have any choice but to get in and find something to do. I ended up talking to another early bird, a businesswoman in Puerto, got some tips on the current business trend in palawan and the local situation. I also took pictures of the building's long hallways and big windows and later on playing games on my notebook since there was no Wi-fi yet in the vicinity.

The plane finally took off at around 2 PM, an hour late than the supposed 1PM schedule. Packed lunch was distributed anyway to all passengers at the terminal. The 50-minute flight to Puerto Princesa was generally smooth and fine. The sky was clear for a good view of the over crowded Metro Manila, the fish cages in Laguna de Bay, the long and winding roads of Batangas and Cavite and later on the mountain ranges of Palawan and its beautiful coastline. I was able to get out of Puerto Princesa Airport by 3:30PM and took a tricycle to my parents' home near the Pier, some 10 minutes from the airport. Tric rides were on a flat rate of 60 bucks and could carry some four persons. Nobody didn't know I was coming except for my youngest brother to make it a real suprise for my parents.

Four days weren't enough to see (again) the beautiful places in Puerto. But four days were good enough to have some fun and adventure. Instead of going to famous spots like Underground River or El Nido which would really consume a lot of hours away, i decided to keep my sightseeing close so I can spend more time with my family since I would only see them once every year. I suddenly thought of doing the thing I used to do when I was still living in this majestic city, mountain biking! I found one bike-for-rent shop in Baybay (Baywalk), a newly built boulevard which was just a stone's throw away from my parent's place. Seemed like the city's version of Manila's Baywalk at the back of Mall of Asia though a lot smaller. The shop's owner, Mang Mar Nicolas, had some 20 to 30 units of ordinary bikes and most are for children. Rental is Php25.00 per hour and could only be used within the baywalk's limits. I told him I want to go to White Beach which was located at the fringes of the city and I was willing to pay extra. He was charging me P500 for it but i said no way. That's too high. Due to some bargaining and I found out he knew my dad, this was a small town by the way, he let me have his best bicycle, this one has a suspension at the rear, for only P100 for two hours. Nice guy. He should have known I am a salesman in Manila.

I went by bike from Baywalk to the Cathedral near the City Port. Right across the Immaculate Church was the Plaza Cuartel where a lot of American POWs were burned to death by the Japanese Kempeitai in WWII. Then I rode down to Roxas Street passing the oil depots, the city's Old and New Cemeteries, until I reached the gate of Naval Forces West detachment in Parola (lighthouse). I wonder if I could come inside and take photos of the lighthouse and maybe climb up the staircase for a better view of Puerto Princesa Bay but the sentry looked tough and was busy texting. So I made a u-turn back to the cemetery, turned right to the road going to White Beach and wheeled almost a kilometer, passing the famous Badjao Seafront Restaurant, until I reached the big dilapidated marker to the city's most accessible beach. It was amazing to find out that after all these years, the wooded area leading to the beach is still home to some birds and maybe some animals. On the way it's downhill, winding, 200-meter stony road, I chanced upon an elusive bird the size of a chicken. It had brown feathers and was sporting a long thick tail. I immediately alighted from the two wheeler and grab my camera. Just like any wild birds it was so quick to fade inside the forest. I waited for her to make some scratch so I could locate her and tried to play some bird's chirp to see how she would react. She suddenly hopped from the grass to a shrub which I can't capture in my camera because the area was thick with grass, shrubs, and Acacia trees. I took pictures of the road and the big Acacia instead.

The entrance fee to the beach was a measly P20. Open cottages/picnic groves can be rented for P200. It was Monday afternoon and there were only four tourists who were already walking down the long wooden panel traversing the mangroves on the way out. It was low tide and the roots of the mangroves were visible. I took pictures of them and the stilts that used to hold the kubo (nipa hut) by the sea. There was one the last time I was here some 5 years ago. Surprisingly the beach we all used to know as White Beach is now divided into two sections marked by a fence in the middle. Stories say it is now subject of dispute of the family who owns it. One part calls it Nasin-Aw the other one calls it Pristine though they share the same waters. They have their separate entrances by the way. Family feud.

I pedaled my way up back to the main road and passed by the big white house surrounded by now tall mahagony trees. They were not this thick and tall 5 years ago. The house was visible from the Superferry when approaching and leaving the Bay. Half a kilometer away parallel to the coast, I drove straight to Aventura Beach which reminded me of the song "Ventura Highway" from the Eagles. I used to bike on this area while whistling to the tune. I even called this place "Ventura Highway" back then, yes just like the title of the song . This was a short 300-meter strectch of asphalt road, now really crooked, lined up with coconut trees to the right down the beach and by tall shrubs and low second growth trees to the left. Some trails were evident amidst the cogons and shrubs. I wonder it there were houses behind the grass or maybe I could go inside and try to discover some good bicycle trails. Wisdom told me not to dare tresspass on somebody's propery. Maybe next time. I pedaled on the asphalt and went back to the Bay. I reached Baywalk at around 6PM but it was still a little bit bright so I waited till it was dusk to take some pictures of the area. I bumped into an old friend, Gener, a trekking body in college and another Bob Marley "disciple" who now runs his sailing business in Puerto. He operates a customized out-rigger boat with sail for those who love sea adventures like island hopping, snorkeling, and even dolphin watching. You can view info at http://salatan7.multiply.com/ .

Third day, I took the whole family to Honda Bay. Locals now repute the name to be "Hunda Bay". Guides said that "hunda" refers to a deep and beautiful place under the sea. We were off to Snake Island, actually it was a sandbar shaped like a snake. It wasn't true that the name suggests it was home to numerous snakes. Snake island was so good to see lots of fish first hand. I mean lots of them. From the big ones (Sergeant fish) which was also was our "inihaw" (grilled fish) on the picnic table, to yellow fins, some long-snouted and intimidating swordfish-like fishes, to the colorful butterfly fish you will need an underwater fish guide or manual to name all of them. This is where you swim not just side by side but face to face with the fish. Coolest part was when some of them will go straight to your mask head on. A bit scary but fun. Out of nowhere someone will shout out of both fear and excitement as one fish would take a bite on your leg but of course withouth harm except for a small scratch. Everybody would chuckle knowing that that tiny naughty fish had just got somebody's leg. Feeding them with crackers which was allowed, woud add to the fun. You will definitely see them, school of fish, swirling around your legs. Since the sandbar is managed by the local Department of Environment and Natural Resources, no entrance fee was collected but donations were accepted. Expect hordes of foreign and domestic tourists dismebarking in every 30 minutes or so. People who were taking the island hopping package would drop by the Snake Island one way or another to snorkel. Boats were rented from P1300 for 6 pax and P2700 for bigger groups. If you forgot to bring your own mask and and snorkel you can rent from the Tourism Office at the wharf for only P100.

Coming in and out the bay, you can make arrangements with the boat crew which islands to see. There were a couple of nice islands to stop over and dip in like Pandan, Luli (lulubog-lilitaw) which would appear sunken during high tide and would re-emerge again at low tide which was also the docking station of Baywatch, the Pambato Reef for more snorkeling adventure where you get towed by the boat while watching the fish underneath, and Starfish Island for kayaking. Not to mention Dos Palmas for those who can afford it.

It was all fun and refreshing to come home from the stressful Manila life. Though it was short and I didn't get to see many places, it was enough to say that nature is calling me back once again, back to princess of ports. I am now considering of putting a small tourism biz in Puerto in light of the current job lose in call center industry. You might wonder why, this might not be a good time to get into business. I've talked to some tour operators in the city, and they revelead that despite the economy's hardships, more and more people are coming to Palawan. Thanks to Underground Rivers' number 1 running to the New Seven Wonders of the World. Could you imagine that tourist season in Palawan is 9 months in a year? Action starts in September and picks up in December until May. It would rest in the Months of June, July and August. This is a good business calendar, man. I might start my own small biz then..Market? Backpackers, bohemians, budget travellers and outdoor enthusiasts. Got any idea? Haha. See ya.

First Blog

2009-02-18T22:41:00.000+08:00

I’ve been itching to share my thoughts on my travels. Writing and travel is a good mix like that chicken and spaghetti or the beer and chicharon (cured pork skin) which I really love when doodling on my notepad. Writing and travel combo will be best complemented with good pictures but don’t expect much here though. This is not some super vacation journal or those once a year big budget trips on a 5-star remote island. This is something about my days off activities. I love to see places and learn more about their history, people, and their specialties but I want to keep it on a budget trip as much as possible. I don’t even consider them "real" travels since most of them will be just a short excursion to the section of Old Manila for a crash course on history, a pancit (noodles) treat to Chinatown, a gone for the weekend on a nearby province, or when I run along Pasig River for my cardio. Going to beautiful places couldn’t be that far and expensive at all.

I work for a Call Center just like maybe more than half of the younger people in the Metro. Outsource companies would make us work at night as they cater mostly to US clients. Philippines is a half day’s ahead of US clock. I’m with sales so that gives me lots of stress. Ways I cure the stress? Go on foot during my free days. Pack that mini knapsack with pen, notebook, and bottled water, a fully charged digicam, lace up my rubber shoes and there I go. Another way is run along Pasig River or trek the urban streets of my surrounding area early in the morning. I have the penchant for taking the “road less travelled”. I live in the “Tri-City” of Pasig, Makati and Pateros. A landlocked in the overlapping boundaries of these three unique sections of Metro Manila.

Pasig is one of oldest human habitation in the country. The early Filipinos settled along its banks even before the Spaniards came. The river connects Manila Bay and Laguna de Bay where according to history the flower Nilad (Scyphiphora hydrophyllacea) used to be abundant. This is where Manila got its name: "May nilad" or "There's a nilad". Checking on scientific data, nilad is a shrub and not a flower. It also didn't grow along the banks of the river since they thrive only on mangrove forests and sandy beaches. Obviously that would be the shores of Manila Bay because Laguna de Bay was a caldera of a sunken volcano. Since the flow of the river would shift between the two bays depending on the tide, Nilads could have been washed along the banks of the Pasig River. Now, the river is full of water lilies which is definitely not a good sign for any river. Pasig river opens up the setting for Jose Rizal’s second novel El Filibusterismo (The Reign of Greed). Today, Pasig is a contrast of an old town and bustling city.

Pateros used to be a barrio of Pasig during the Spanish times. Now it is the only remaining town in the whole of Metro and I would say Pateros gives you the atmosphere of the countryside in the city.My apartment is in the outskirts of Pateros. It's so quiet at night you wouldn't think I live in the city. But just a few hundred meters from the gate of my pad, is the noisy and crowded intersection of Makati and Pasig. The town is famous for balut (duck embryo) hence, considered the Balut Capital of the country. I jsut missed the Feast of St. Martha, the townfolks patroness a couple weeks ago. One lesson learned though always bring your camera anywhere you go. You’ll never know what would happen next, it wouldn’t hurt.

Makati is the business district of Metro Manila. It’s the Manhattan of NY. What can you expect in a place like this? Urban, hip, modern, fast and progressive and that’s the reason why I feel compelled to post anything about my place, my adventures, my walks. Three unique destinations, three different cultures, what more can you ask for. Not to mention, I am from Palawan, a place of totally different culture and environment. This makes everything interesting.

Good thing, I’ll be visiting my parents in Puerto Princesa for four days next week. So you might want to see some pictures of this fabled city. Till then.