Hanoi and Ha Long Bay, Vietnam (2016)

This little side trip to Hanoi and Ha Long Bay from our Bangkok adventure back in 2016 turned things around for me. We came with zero expectations, having only booked that flight because it was on sale, Frances wanted to make the most of her Asian vacation, and personally I had some extra savings (heard it wasn't too expensive in Vietnam) and terminal leaves. Without any detailed itinerary, the morning of our arrival we Googled then listed whatever we could feast our eyes and bellies on, opportunities to take in the history and culture of the towns we were visiting. And so, we explored for three full days...

Chicago, Illinois: 3 Arts Club and RH

Couldn't have asked for a better way to spend the last day of my best year ever!

Took the early morning train to meet up with my good friend Tin for brunch in the city, which eventually lasted for the good chunk of our December 31st...the entire beautiful, sunny day, actually! All thanks to six long yet ever so faithful years' worth of life stories to catch up on since our last Bible study together! It was an amazing chance to look back on all the blessings God has showered us with, not just in 2016, but on all the time we were apart, dedicating ourselves with school and work while trusting in Him.

Mukilteo, Everett, and Lake Stevens in Washington

Right off the bat, if someone asks if I'd move to the Pacific Northwest, I'd say yes in a heartbeat. And I've only been here for seven hours...?! Man, what a record!

Chicago, Illinois: Bucktown and Wicker Park

Brief but blissful

I can't recall much about my second visit to Bohol two years ago, it felt as quick and productive as the first time I've been. But what I do remember, I will never forget:

Enchanted farm girl for days

Over the course of my three-year stint of being brought around (and even out of) the country while doing service work, it was a no-brainer that a couple of scenes would charm me here and there. As for the case of the Gawad Kalinga Enchanted Farm in Angat, Bulacan, it seems that on every visit and in every corner I turn, there lies something so mesmerizing to see and heartwarming to experience. It's a delight to have this haven that's full of life and promise just an hour or so away from the bustling city, the perfect respite despite almost-always being there for work. Today, I look back on the special memories spent there, which never fail to put a smile on my face and I know will be treasured for a long time.

Something to remember you by

Nope. I'm not even gonna try to apologize for being missing-in-action for what feels like forever. First thing's first: I'm very much alive and well. Let's just say I've been busy–while enjoying–"living offline" and leave it at that. Lame but partly true. Only partly correct because while I was quite busy, I was also unforgivably lazy. In the meantime, allow me to make up for my absence and play a memory game with you. I'll try to resume this huge gap in the storyline with life updates that will give Timehop a run for their money, beginning with two Augusts and Septembers ago.

The re·write

But where do I begin?

Tick tock goes my trusty ol' wristwatch every second, the same rhythm tapping at my keyboard makes that I wish I hear but don't. But haven't, for quite some time. I have only the faintest memory of it. That sound is but a ghost that haunts me in my sleep and wake. I miss writing. I do. I wish I'd write again and more often.

Friends would hear me go on and on about getting back to it, back to when it was as easy as breathing and simply living, me writing for myself. But when I'm faced with that blank white screen, I freeze. It's both exciting and terrifying. Exciting, because after a year and a half or so of being gone on this li'l space o' mine, there are just so many amazing stories to tell—so much backlogs to catch up on and so much other new experiences to share, too! It's overwhelming. And terrifying, because after being gone for so long,...uhm, how do you do this again? Again, it's overwhelming.

But here I am, trying. Hitting one letter after another, hoping it would string into words, into sentences, into paragraphs, with the right thoughts and feelings behind them still intact...hoping it would make sense. Hoping I could still, I would still make sense.

2016 is going to be my year, I claimed it as tiring yet fulfilling 2015 came to a close. From then on, I continued to dream, even bigger than ever. As luck may have had it, we're halfway through and I find myself being distracted, losing focus on what I planned to achieve, filled with self-doubt and an unfortunate oversupply of laziness. I need to snap out of it. I am snapping out of it.

This is my one shot, my one chance. I have to make the most of it. There's no turning back. It's time to keep writing and keep getting better. There is a lot of change, sure, but it's nothing I can't adapt to. I'm caught at a transition period, and here, at this point, hopefully, I re-write my life.

Luck with long-lost relatives

I admit, it all seemed too good to be true. I mean, to find long lost "relatives" through Facebook and get to know them online is one thing. But to actually meet in person for the first time and spend the weekend at their home in the faraway town of Limay, Bataan? That's a completely different story. Well of course we had our reservations. Save for our shared last name, they're practically strangers whom I know nothing about. But our grandaunt insisted that we tag along, convincing that the more we were, the safer we'd be. And who knows what fun we'd have for the next two and a half days with a bunch of potential criminals...?

Sugar, smiles, and everything nice

Without fail, my trips to Bacolod and its neighboring towns in Negros Occidental bring nothing but the sweetest of memories.

I fondly remember that it was the first stop of our "most epic sembreak trip ever" with our dormmates back in October 2010. Although we came a little late for the Masskara celebration, we had an amazing party of our own in just one day—taking a nature trek to this secluded waterfalls we had all to ourselves plus stuffing ourselves silly with chicken inasals.

There was also the summer after college graduation (2012) where my favorite girls and I happily returned to Bacolod for yet another overnight stay, all before we faced "the real world." We finally experienced The Ruins after much talk and anticipation as well as sampled possibly all the cakes from Calea. I shuttled back and forth a couple more times that month to accompany my cousin Lissie for her doctor's appointment, and do some extra exploring like getting a taste of Bob's on the side.

Fast forward to my week at home in August last year, those talks about revisiting the City of Smiles for a weekend had finally seen the light of day. Mom, Raf, and I took an early morning hour and a half ferry ride one Saturday and I got pretty excited to be bonding in a new environment with my mother and brother, both of whom I barely get to see and spend time with since they live thousands of miles away from us sisters in Manila.

Hometown glory

Once every few months I hop on a plane home for a short break to recharge my well-worn mind, body, and soul as well as rediscover and reacquaint myself with the City of Love that I love. Not only do family and friends never run out of interesting stories to tell over sumptuous Ilonggo dishes and other flavors of home, several new and noteworthy restaurants have popped up since my last visit and I was excited to check each and every one. Besides, with all the outpouring of blessings in terms of progress in my city, things are definitely looking up on our side of the archipelago.

Slow and steady

Halfway through the year and I believe I'm mastering the art of this millennial, yuppie weekend warrior life thing. Well, not in the grandest sense: no long weekend road trips and holiday vacations left and right, if that's what you're thinking. Instead, armed with a sweet and cheerful disposition, I have something simple but a guaranteed success in mind when we speak of ways to de-stress.

If you've been following this trusty ol' blog o' mine for quite some time now, you would instantly know that my formula for a perfect holiday would be pretty, picturesque places plus delectable, photogenic meals and multiply that by the beautiful and amazing people I get to share those special moments with.

July was a mix of both old favorites and new additions to that list: either restaurants frequented as much as possible or recently-opened/heard about places which proved to be worth a shot; and with either my usual companions in the form of my sisters (my twin, especially) and relatives or people I finally got to catch up and hang out with after what felt like ages.

Long gone summer

The typhoon season is back and now it's full of wrath more than ever! Mario has been showing off since last night with non-stop heavy rains, strong winds, loud thunders and flashy lightnings. Dreadfully scary stuff going on right outside my bedroom window. I was up at 4:30 this morning and haven't gotten back to sleep since, thanks to all the noises. Clearly, classes were suspended early on and the no-work announcement came a bit later.

I'm basically done with all my deliverables so I'm planning on staying in bed the entire day, marathoning some cool shows and movies, eating the meals prepared by my sweet ol' landlady (she offered to feed me for the whole day since we're practically stuck here anyway) when I get the chance, and hopefully catching up on some blogging. So far, it seems like I'm doing a pretty good job at it, eh?

Ways to go

Possibly the only downside to how swiftly time seems to pass lately is not being able to fully savor the moment as it happens and as much as we want and mean to. Sure this is best when work or school is turning out to be a complete bore and before you know it, it's already Friday and your weekend plans are already filing through. But how about when you're still reeling in on "the best vacation ever" when suddenly you realize it had already been two summers since! Time is sneaky like that and I am yet to find a way to counter its tricks.

In my case, I have folders-full of memories waiting to be relived and shared, yet I never get to. So now, while time and how fast it goes is public enemy number one, my lazy self is running close on the list of reasons why I am where I am now, drowning in a pool of left-behind memoirs. In truth, May and June feels like a lifetime ago... But rest assured, it was filled with the best combination, as usual: good food and great friends.

Grace, and nothing else

In a matter of a week back in June, I've seen two amazing, life-changing concerts and you can only imagine how full my heart and soul were after everything! Music continues to play a key role in my life and has been truly instrumental in bringing forth who I am today, so being able to attend both shows is definitely a blessing!

A look behind the Legacy

As interesting as the interviews and narratives we gather for our halfway-done year-long project of a mini-documentary series are the silly tales I collect behind the scenes. I, for one, am a sucker for good back stories, especially those that are picturesque as well as will potentially give me a nice laugh even in years to come. It's these moments that are worth remembering, worth sharing, and assures me that what I'm doing is worth the while.

Simple as this

Lianne's trip home is always very special to our group of friends so we make it a point to spend some quality time with her whenever we could. Apart from the usual dinner dates and coffee catch-ups, she sweetly arranged a day at the beach for just us girls back in May and it was probably the perfect weekend getaway, the breath of fresh air we all needed.

I have returned

A couple of months after my first visit, the team and I trooped back to Tacloban early on Labor Day to witness what has progressed since. All throughout that weekend, I've seen the people in the city and its neighboring towns smile better as thousands of volunteers from across the country and around the globe came to help rebuild their homes and their lives.

Summertime gladness

Unlike elsewhere, summers in the metropolitan areas of our side of the globe means staying indoors as much as possible due to the unbearable heat outside. And true enough, I spent most of April under the shade and away from the sun, with the office or restaurant a/c as my instant best friend. While part of me wished I made the most of the no-school traffic these dog days bring (e.g. taking my heart of adventure on a road trip and ending up someplace I haven't been before), the idea of meeting with friends and family in the city and enjoying their company over our favorite meals and much-awaited catch-up conversations seemed to me like a more feasible and comfortable option.

La dolce vita

I got to hand it to March, it had the makings of an ideal month. Although work has had me on my toes from Mondays to Fridays, my weekends were the ultimate pick-me-upper: fully booked with unforgettable dates with family and friends, where love and light were unfailingly served at the table. Our hearts and stomachs were stuffed with so much joy, I could not help but wish for life to forever be this deliciously sweet.