Mt. Pulag

this is it pansit!

the climb that i've been waiting for the last three months, the highest peak in luzon and the third highest in the philippines.

Mt. Pulag as describe by waypoints.ph:

...is considered the 2nd highest mountain in the Philippines, next to Mt. Apo of Mindanao with only a few meters difference. It is considered as one of the most beautiful National Parks in the Cordillera Area. Mt. Pulag is typically different from the rainforest mountains in the Philippines because of its open area (no trees mountain). It also has its distinct characteristics of changing color on different occasions and season. During the dry season, Mt. Pulag is brown similar to the chocolate Hills of Bohol. During the Rainy Monsoon season, it will vary from light green to rich dark green rolling plains, almost similar to a well maintained golf course. Local People believed that is was, and is a play ground of the gods.

well, officially, pulag is the 3rd highest with an elevation of 9,610 ft, next to Mt. Apo (9,689 ft) and Mt. Dulang-Dulang (9,637 ft). whether its the 2nd or the 3rd, not really my concern this time, basta, aakyatin namin sya. :)

we'll be leaving tomorrow night for Baguio, then to Kabayan, Benguet, to Ambuklao dam, to DENR and then to Akiki jump off point. we will be traversing the Akiki-Ambangeg trails (the killer trail, so they say, so help us God). hopefully we will be on the saddle November 3 at around 3 pm where we are going to set our camp and enjoy the frost! we'll go down the next day, november 4, so good luck to us. :)

(photo borrowed from yapak mountaineers)

hah! i am excited and nervous, also a bit worried about the freezing temperature up there (will four pairs of camera batteries be enough to last the entire climb?) and hopefully there wouldn't be any rain.

heard from abaniko that about a hundred more will be joining a fun climb organized by the kabayan tourism office and aside from the other mountaineering groups who'll be doing their own climb, fiesta ito!!! so this weekend, Mt. Pulag is the place to be!

*excited!!!*

masungit

saturday, some fastfood.

me: (smiling, o-ha) uhm, 2 chicken with rice, breast part please.

countergirl: (punching the machine, looks at the stainless something behind the counter) chicken legs lang sir.

me: uhm, wala nang breast part?
cg: (pumunta sa likod, nagbilang yata) chicken legs lang sir
me: you mean, wala nang available na breast part?
cg: (lumingon ulit) puro legs na lang sir
me: (makulit ako) pero meron pang ilulutong breast part?
cg: (nakukulitan siguro) puro legs lang iseserve namin sir!
me: (all of a sudden a mutant chicken with six legs comes to mind) ha?
cg: (says nothing and just looked at the machine)
me: uhm, sure kang puro legs lang iseserve nyo? para kasing imposible yun...
cg: (pumunta ulit sa likod, me sinabi sa kitchen that sounds like something)
me: well?
cg: maghintay kayo ng 15 minutes!
me: (nagulat, looked at her but i cannot find her eyes) cancel mo na lang!

(then i walked away, i overheard her saying "ano ba yan!" and then she called her supervisor: "pa-void nga!")

had she said it in a nice, swettie-sweetie way, "sir, kung okey lang pong maghintay kayo ng 15 minutes (then flashed a smile worthy of a toothpaste commercial with eyes blinking ten times per second)..." or words to that effect then maybe i'll wait, maybe she's just tired or just pressured, but she can still be nice to customers right, or better yet, she should be nice to customers, di ba?

o makulit/masungit din ako? lyn said: "masungit ka rin kasi."

and all of a sudden, it's my fault. hay.

an invitation

want to try rappelling but afraid of heights? do you want to experience the adrenaline rush of white water tubing? how about free falling into a 25-ft deep water?

crazy? we call this adventure!

conquer your fear, be one with nature and feel the excitement and satisfaction of finally doing things you thought you cannot do.

Y.A.P.A.K. Mountaineers, Inc. invites all outdoor enthusiasts to its Invitational Adventure Tour to Coto Mines on November 30-December 2, 2007 and experience an all new outdoor adventure in one great venue.

Coto Mines is located east of Masinloc in Zambales. It is known to be the biggest depository of refractory ore in the world, having been operated by Benguet Corporation since 1934 up to the end of June 2007 from where Consolidated Mining, Inc. took over.

Travel time from Manila to Masinloc is approximately five hours or about 239 kilometers more or less. From Masinloc, Coto Mines is another 27 kilometers or approximately one hour of unpaved road passing thru 18 wooden bridges and winding mountainside till you reach the campsite.

The campsite (known as Kidz pool) offers you its crytal clear mountain fresh waterfalls and white water rapids amids the backdrop of virgin forest and rockies.

Experience white water tubing, rappelling 75 feet down from a man-made 150 feet long hanging bridge, mines tour, mountain trekking to the majestic blue lagoon. 100% FUN and inexpensive relaxation awaits everyone.

Registration fee is only P2,200.00 and this already includes Round trip bus fare, T-shirt, ID, equipments and Certificate. Cottages are available but on a first come, first serve basis.

Registration will take place on the following dates at McDonalds, Edsa Central:

November 10, 7 PM

November 17, 7 PM

November 24, 7 PM

Please be advised that the deadline for submission of registration forms and payment of fees is on November 24, 2007.

For more information, please contact:

Arch. Mario Arceño - 09178510336

Rex Alfafara - 09204651626

Amy Patindol - 09196992291

John Karingal - 09164091812

Jovi Balinoyos - 09283082112

Kent Bryan Blanche - 09178070553

Kristoffer Mendoza - 09212334642

Rochelle Rafols - 09164478063

For copies of flyers and registration forms, email yapakmountaineers@yahoo.com.

GUSTO MO TO?

GUSTO COTO! tara! sa Nov 30-Dec 2 na to!

(photos taken during our Coto trip last September)

kwento

i got this from an email forwarded to me, thought of sharing it with you.

A man came to visit his lolo and lola. He noticed his lolo sitting on the porch, in the rocking chair, wearing only a shirt with nothing on from the waist down.

"Lolo, what are you doing? You're naked down there and out in the wind for everyone to see!" he exclaimed. The old man looked off in the distance without answering.

"Lolo, what are you doing sitting out here with nothing on below the waist?" he asked again.

The old man slowly looked at him and said, "Well...last week, I sat out here with no shirts on, and I got a stiff neck. This is your lola's idea."

Questions (and they're 38).

1. Name one person who made you laugh last night? Lyn, we were talking thru video call/phone (sosyal no? hehe) when something fell behind her, nagulat sya, napasigaw, akala nya ipis. wala lang natawa lang ako sa reaksyon nya. :)

2. What were you doing at 0800? checking my inbox

3. What were you doing 30 minutes ago? checking my inbox

4. What happened to you in 2006? my first time in pagudpud and boracay

5. What was the last thing you said out loud? "NO WAY" when a co-mountaineer asked me to just throw my camera so she can take my picture.

6. How many beverages did you have today? so far, a mug of coffee, three glasses of water...

7. What color is your hairbrush? no hairbrush just a comb and it's black.

8. What was the last thing you paid for? P7.00 jeepney fare going to the office

9. Where were you last night? in my bed

10. What color is your front door? dark brown :)

11. Where do you keep your change? in my pocket, and then all the P5 & P10 will go to my alkansya (my target is to have P6,000.00 from all the 5's & the 10's by the end of the year, and so far so good)

12. What’s the weather like today? cloudy, no, it is now sunny

13. What’s the best ice-cream flavor? cheese, ube-macapuno

14. What excites you? weekends

15. Do you want to cut your hair? right now, yes.

16. Are you over the age of 25? (eyes rolling) yes.

17. Do you talk a lot? no, tahimik talaga akong tao that's why im mistaken as suplado pero hindi naman, tahimik lang talaga ako, i am a man of few words, i am not the type who can talk non-stop, me bilang ang pagsasalita ko at pag lumampas na ako sa quota ko for the day, tatahimik na ako, ibig sabihin, morning pa lang, tahimik na ako, kaya di talaga ako masalitang tao, tahimik lang talaga ako, nagkukuwento rin naman ako pero di masyadong mahaba kasi nga tahimik ako at di masyadong masalita, sabi nga silent water runs deep, ayun, silent talaga ako pero yung "deep" part parang wala yatang ganun hahaha. ano ba ito, no lang naman ang sagot di ba? :)

18. Do you watch the O.C.? O.C, what O.C? obsessive compulsive? ah orange county. NO.

19. Do you know anyone named Steven? wait, does steven spielberg counts?

20. Do you make up your own words? i sometimes talk gibberish but i do not know how to make my own words

21. Are you a jealous person? sometimes

22. Name a friend whose name starts with the letter ‘A’. (looks at phone book) Acor.

23. Name a friend whose name starts with the letter ‘K’. (looks at phone book) Kit.

24. Who’s the first person on your received call list? (looks at phone book) number lang kasi mali yung natawagan nya (sayang P7.00 nya hehehe)

25. What does the last text message you received say? "Gud am, natatakot. she wil undrgo all lab procedures 2day as op prep. Bro kailangan namin at least 10pipol 2 donate Type AB blood" from a friend who's mother will be undergoing an ovarian operation soon. please pray for her.

26. Do you chew on your straw? no, but it can be a good substitute for toothpick in the absence of one. hehehe

27. Do you have curly hair? no, well... (wag na lang hehehe)

28. Where’s the next place you’re going to? Shangri-la mall (Cine Europa na!!!)

29. Who’s the rudest person in your life? smokers in a PUV who doesn't give a damn to other passengers.

30. What was the last thing you ate? hotsilog for breakfast

31. Will you get married in the future? of course, *wink wink*

32. What’s the best movie you’ve seen in the past 2 weeks? i just saw Memoirs of a Geisha in dvd.

33. Is there anyone you like right now? ah marami :)

34. When was the last time you did the dishes? this morning

35. Are you currently depressed? no.

36. Did you cry today? no.

37. Why did you answer and post this? i was tagged by Jho and this week my blog is now ONE YEAR OLD!!!!

38. I'm tagging Verns (uy, first time kitang i-tag ha), Single (ikaw din first time), Hazel (so you will be forced to post something hehehe), Belle (just returning a favor hehe) and Manny (para me intermission sa mga movie review).

(wag na magtanong kung para saan ang picture, gusto ko lang me picture, ano ba?! hehehe)

Happy weekend everyone and Happy birthday to my blog. KANPAI!!!!

Tree planting in Mt. Terranos

mountaineering is not just about climbing mountains, or just reaching the summit, or just a bragging right, it also entails responsibility, discipline and promoting awareness about the environment and being the guardian of it.

the first tree planting activity sponsored by the Y.A.P.A.K Mountaineers, Inc. gathered more than 150 mountaineers from different organizations to the slope of Mt. Terranos in Dinalupihan, Bataan. the turnout was overwhelming as we're expecting only about 80-100 participants. but despite the huge, huge turnout, it was a success.

it was also my first time to be in the company of mountaineers other than my group, and let's just say, it was really an experience, a learning experience, an eye opener, i was shocked, i was awed, i laughed hard, there was even a minor culture shock on my part. ganito pala.

in a community, not everyone is a saint and the mountaineering community is not spared from this, i mean, marami ring pasaway na mountaineers.

since this is an invitational, i asked lyn to come and she did and despite walking from the jump off to the mountain for almost three hours, sweating and with some steep climb along the way, she didn't complain and she did enjoyed the tree planting. yun nga lang, pagkarating namin ng manila, tama na raw yung isang akyat sa isang taon hehehe.

i wasn't part of those who plant trees because i was required to join the other group who will be trekking towards the summit. and trek we did. kahit walang trail, gumawa ng daan ang guide namin, nagbutas kami and it was not easy. nasa itaas kami ng bundok pero ang dinadaanan namin buhangin! galing daw ang mga ito sa pinatubo.

we reached the summit after two hours and i was a bit dissapointed with the view as it was mostly covered by clouds and the clearing is not that big. pero okey lang, me nasilip pa rin kaming magandang view kahit papano.

for now, i'll share with you some of the pictures i've taken as my observation of the activity (like how behave, how wild, how this and that) deserves another lengthy post.

pagod?

mahilig

i am supposed to post eight random things about me, as i was tagged by toe, but i want to put a refreshing twist into a meme that has been done by everyone except me. hehehe.

since i am already randomly posting things about me from time to time, why not write something about things that i like? hence, the title.

mahilig ako sa videoke. who's not, anyway? but it doesn't mean that i am good at it. but, i can carry a tune, a little tune that is, and most of the time you have to look for what remains of that little tune as listening to me can only be good and/or tolerable for the first four-five stanzas of the song, after that you can go back to what you are doing, you can even sleep or just leave me. hehehe. i can "belt" a raymond lauchengco, some classic apo hiking songs (even a VST), i can do a little matchbox 20, some fra lippo lippi and then, middle of the session you'll hand me a knife and beg me to just kill you. :)

mahilig ako sa ampalaya. but i am not bitter (corny!). i eat all kinds of veggies, actually and ampalaya, patola't kalabasa at saka me okra are on the top of my list. i don't understand why some people don't like their greens, di ba sabi nga ni spiderman, you should eat your greens... (kaya siguro nanalo ang la salle kasi green... corny pa rin hehehe).

mahilig ako sa brown. my pants, save for my maong and office uniforms, are mostly khakis, shades of brown, pinoy na pinoy. i also used to have polos, shirts, shorts even socks in brown. my bag is also brown, the color of my watch is gold (well, malapit sya sa brown) and even the floor/tiles of my house is brown, the rattan sofa is brown, the table is dark brown and then the curtains are yellow. weee.

mahilig ako sa tubig. i am not sure how many liters of water i can consume everyday but i can say na marami. for someone who sweat a lot, that's good. and i also prefer water over softdrinks, ibang usapan na nga lang kapag kape. :)

mahilig ako sa jelly ace. well, napahilig is the more appropriate term. before, i am not aware that in the absence of water, it can temporarily rehydrate our body pala because it's mostly liquid. dati, ang alam ko lang sa jelly ace ay isa itong gulaman na naka-pack sa lalagyan na mahirap buksan, me iba pa palang benefits ito pero yun lang, mahirap pa rin syang buksan.

mahilig ako sa sports. basketball, tennis, badminton, soccer, volleyball, track and field, etc. i tried all of them and i excel only in track and field. i was the long jump champion, second placer in high-jump and a member of the champion team in 4x100 meter relay. i wanted to excel in basketball but there are a lot of better and taller players than i am. oh, i also tried bowling but the canal is where i belong so stop na lang lipat na lang sa badminton. hehe.

mahilig ako magpicture. (eyes rolling) obvious ba? :)

at, mahilig ako sa maraming pang bagay, mahilig akong mag-swimming, umakyat ng bundok, manuod ng sine, dedmahin ang saleslady na kanina pa sunod ng sunod, mahilig din akong kumain ng kikiam, mahilig din ako sa music, magbasa ng tabloid, manuod ng tv, mahilig din akong ilagay sa snooze ang alarm clock tapos matulog ulit, mahilig din akong ngumiti bago sumagot sa telepono...

i think it should not only be eight but eight thousand hehehe.

if you're one of the very few bloggers who's yet to do this meme, consider yourself tagged.

La Luz

wala pang walong oras mula nang umakyat at bumaba kami ng batulao, kasama na dito ang halos limang oras lang na tulog, lalarga na naman ako na parang di napapagod. superhero? hehe.

naunahan kong gumising ang mga pusang mahilig maglampungan sa bubungan ng bahay ko, di pa man tumitilaok ang mga manok ay hinarap ko na ang lamig ng tubig, naligo, nagbihis, at di na nagkape. mamaya na lang.

mas matagal pa yata yung paghihintay ko ng tricycle at bus kesa sa aktwal kong byahe, o disoriented lang ako dahil parang pumikit lang ako sandali nasa edsa na ako. oo nga pala, linggo ngayon, walang traffic, nagpapahinga ang mga tao maliban sa akin at sa mga kasama ko hehehe.

sampung minuto bago mag-alas sais, nasa mrt ayala na ko, habang bumababa ako ng hagdan, nakita ko na ang mga kasama ko: tumatawa nang malakas si mau habang me kinukwento si mark at nakikinig naman sina yuyu at neris, at sa may bandang sm makati, me nakita akong nagpa-flying kiss na, si lyn! kasabay na naglalakad ni julie.

beso. beso. beso. dumating na rin si pam, (na groge pa rin sa pagiging sweeper ng batulao hehe) at ilang sandali nandyan na rin ang mag-asawang beng at kit. kwentuhan na akala mo ay may hinihintay pa gayung kumpleto na ang cast. nagrerequest na ng kape ang sikmura ko pero wala pang bukas na kainan, buti na lang nasa tabi si manong at pinagtyagaan ko ang taho.

byahe na kami. at dahil sa arnibal ng taho medyo tumaas ang energy ko pero kape pa rin ang parang itina-chant ng tiyan ko, kaya kelangang dumaan muna ng gasoline station sa slex para sa kape, tinapay at kape.

sa la luz resort pala ang punta namin, tatlong oras na byahe lang yun dyan sa laiya, sa san juan, batangas.

habang kinukwento namin ni pam (sya lang ang kasama ko sa batulao) ang mga pinagdaanan namin sa batulao, panay iling at "ano???" ang karaniwang reaksyon at may sundot pa na "mga pasaway kasi!!". hehehe. thank you for the compliment. :)

ilang sandali pa, samahan pa ng konting pagkaligaw at konting tanungan ("ala ey, kaliwa kayo tapos kanan pagdating dyaan sa susunod na kanto"), dirt road na ang dinadaanan namin at ang signboard ng la luz, ayun nakikita na!

mga unggoy ang una naming napagtripan pagkababa ng van, nagparegister at tiningnan ang reservation namin ("maaga po kayo masyado, pero pwede po kayong mag-stay sa mga cavana"), bumaba kami ng konti at eto na ang bumulaga sa amin:

medyo matagal din kaming nakahilata, pinag-usapan ang tungkol sa trabaho, ang buhay-buhay, ang pulitika, showbiz, ang walang katapusang "grilling" tungkol sa "future"...

umiikot-ikot din ako para makaiwas sa mga tanong kung kelan na ba (hehehe) at para na rin makapag-picture...

at kung sino pa yung limang oras lang ang tulog sa loob ng 48 hours ay sya pang naunang magbabad sa dagat na medyo may taglay na malalaking alon at may kalamigang tubig! pero di rin naman ako nagtagal dahil sisimulan na ang kainan!!!

oo nga pala, nagbayad kami ng tig-P900 para sa buffet lunch, buffet meryenda, buffet dinner, buffet breakfast na sa sobrang dami ng pagkain pati mga isda ay inambunan namin ng makakain, at di naman nila kami binigo dahil nag-imbita rin sila ng napakarami pang mga isda para maki-fiesta at magpa-cute sa mga nagi-snorkle.

at ganito na ang naging kwento namin sa loob ng dalawang araw sa la luz: kain, swimming, kain, picture, kain, swimming, kain, picture, kain, inom, kain, inom, picture, kain, kain, inom, picture, tulog, kain, tulog, kain... at di pa kasama dyan ang mga baon naming chichirya...

kain, tulog, kain, picture... para tuloy kaming mga patabaing baboy...

kain, picture, kain, swimming... parang ang major activity dito ay kumain, secondary lang ang swimming LOL.

ansarap na ipamper mo minsan ang sarili mo, ansarap dito lalo pa't galing sa puyat at nakakapagod na trek, ansarap dito lalo pa't kasama ang taong malapit sa yo na mga wala ring patumangga sa pagkain hehehe (sayang, walang videoke dito...)

understatement ang sabihing very relaxing ang lugar na to, basta masarap dito... kung mag-isa o dalawa lang kayong pupunta dito, medyo mahal ang lugar. pero kung grupo kayong magti-trip dito, ayun, mahal pa rin sya hahaha, biro lang, mas makakatipid kapag malaking grupo.

marami pa akong picture, pwede nyong pasyalan dito.