What we get.

I'm back! I totally post in spurts in this blog. Pardon me, for not being consistent. Schoolwork is definitely stopping me from updating this blog. But, I'm trying my best to manage my time well :) Bare with me, blog. (hahaha okay I'm talking to my blog.)

Just this week, the Philippines had an unwelcome guest who dropped by. Typhoon Egay. And because of this visitor, thousands of residents, in the country, now live in a world of mud. The rain brought about by the typhoon triggered floods in Manila reaching waist level. Quite shocking, Yes. But when interviewed by the media men, they verbalized that this happens occasionally and they should get used to it. This notoriously polluted capital is one that is most vulnerable to flooding. Manila, as they say, is bound to face this catastrophe with the blame on the city's geographical structure, bad sewage, and improper WASTE disposal.I mean, I can't imagine putting myself in such a complicated life.  The thing that I'm afraid of is that Cebu might be slowly following it's footsteps. 

Here are some pictures I took from my phone during the typhoon. 

( P.S. sorry for the bad quality. :D )

These pictures are from the Uptown of Cebu City,considered the second capital of the Philippines. Compared to Manila's flood, this is just nothing. However, I've noticed that the levels of flood water are slowly increasing through the years. To think that this specific typhoon didn't land in the city itself. Again, as observed, large parts of these floods would be the result of poor drainage and sanitation system. Who would again be blamed? The government? We all know that this was neglected or was never solved by the previous administrations. On the other hand, we should not just point our hands to the government, instead we should also point it to ourselves.  Sewers are clogged up by plastic bags and other wastes that refuse proper flow of water. Who else is responsible for these wastes than the ones who made it. If only there would be a lot of disciplined people here in our country then, severe floods might not happen.  

Well, We Filipinos are resilient people. We can manage and go through these circumstances with a smiling heart. Hopefully, we would still continue to pray and to share our blessings to the ones who need them the most.

Save the Philippine seas

Our beautiful and diverse marine resources and wealth need you attention and your help. They are under attack. 

Exploitative foreign films, in tandem with local partners and left unchecked by irresponsible governement officials areillegally harvesting and peddling our precious coral reefs. In one case, coral reefs twice the size of Manila was destroyed, and the plunder continues.

We cannot accept this. We must act now to save what's left of our coral reefs and to protect our seas so those beautiful and important natural resources are preserved for our and the next generation to enjoy. 

We call on all Filipino bloggers, Tumblr and Posterous users, Tweeps, Plurkers and all netizens to join the June 8 International Blog Action Day to save our seas and coral reefs. Your voices, our actions are that important.

What we will do:

• Tweet, Plurk, or post to spread the word about this event: Share or repost this announcement (and please link back to this post).
• Use the Twitter hashtag #reefwatchPH and/or #savePHseas.
• Spread the savephilippineseas.com URL.
• Display and share our official campaign badge (see below).
• Register your website/blog to let us know that you’re joining our effort to spread the word — you’ll find the registration form on the sidebar of this site. If you’re using more than one site (no Facebook or Twitter URLs, please), register each of them separately.
• Most importantly, on June 8, join the Blog Action Day from your favorite social media channels (blog, Tumblr, Posterous, Twitter, Plurk, Facebook, etc.)

NOW IS THE TIME TO ACT

We can do this. Let's make our social media work for something good. Let's make Philippine coral reefs, seas and the need to save them trend- to raise awareness, to inspire action, to grow our communities, and to compel government action. 

We wouldn't want to let this beauty die. 

Source:

savephilippineseas.com

-photos from a gallery curated by Jonas delos reyes

Papa Kit's Liloan, Cebu

Hello! :) Finally, I've got the free time to post pictures from my recent wandering. So, this time we went to Papa Kit's Marina and Fish Lagoon, located at Liloan, Cebu. Maybe 30 - 45 minutes from the heart of the city, Cebu. The main attraction of this place would be the 800 meter zipline that goes over water. This was different since most of the zipline offerings here in the region would be located in the mountainous places. Also, they humbled on offering horse rides and some glass boat rides. But the main reason why most people visit here would be just to fish and enjoy the vast scenery offered.

Apparently, we decided not to fish since our budgets were focused on the zipline adventure. Here are some pics of our short journey.

Posters at the entrance of the lagoon

My companions :D

"Jumping in pictures" is so our thing 

Yeah, We're crazy like that.

Jennifer Kaye and Me, on our way up.. To the 6th floor :D

It is quite a view up there!

The zipline was fun! It wasn't as fast as we expected it to be, but it was fun. We definitely wanted to try it again. I already posted a video of my ride in the previous post so you might wanna check it. Ziplines and more

Exhilirated faces after the ride. 

A horse deserves some respect. right? RIGHT?
 DO you have underpants for this size? :D

Again with the jumping thing? haha

While waiting for our next ride. HORSES.

SASKE

Meet SASKE, the flirt. Why? Well, this horse is always on the run for the female horses. The caretaker braces himself every time a horse is about to meet its way. Usually, Saske would run to these female horses, which makes him not a very good ride. But, I really enjoyed riding him since he follows orders and is quite patient for my mini pictorial. LOL. And i liked his guide since he was quite an entertainer and patiently accompanied us in our stroll. 

With my favorite horse guide. :D

Totally ecstatic about the whole journey. CIAO for now <3

Ziplines and more

I've always wanted to consider myself as the adventurous girl, though I'm not that confident that I am. :D Well, simply because even if I have the guts to get on the wild side, there is still a greater part of me that screams cowardness and pessimism.
On the greater side, My "laagan" roots was nagging me to try this one, so I knew I had too. The zipline over water, at Papa Kit's Liloan was something new for me somehow.
This was my second time to try riding a zipline and I already learned a lot from my past experience.
First. Thou shall not wear shorts!
-My advise would be to wear leggings or pants because shorts would just interfere with the harness. This would lead to WEDGIE shorts which we wouldn't want to happen. Plus, it hurts badly that you wont enjoy the ride well.
Second. Let GO
-You can never truly enjoy the indescribable thrill if fear is in your mind. Well, it is normal to be fearful at first but once you're harnessed and ready to go, release this negative energy and just enjoy the ride. Well, unless you acrophobic, you'd make an exemption. However, this is also a good test to fight the phobia off. Always remember that safety is already established that is why we should trust these authorities and luxuriate in what we have paid for.
Third. Bring your camera with you
- The video would be much more appealing if the camera is with the rider's hand. This was my biggest regret that time when I chose not to bring my cam with me due to the fear of it slipping from my hands. I really wanted to do it again though but.... (refer to Last advice)
Lastly. Prepare extra money for you will definitely want to ride it again and again
-Yeah. Another regret of mine was that I did not bring extra money for another ride. It was a good thing though that most of the ziplines I know offer a 50% discount on the second ride. Just so sad that I wasn't able to purchase another ride. So I'd remind myself and others that one ride is never enough.

Below is a picture and a video of me in the zipline. Full detail of the place would be on the next post.

You should be excited, not scared. :)

SCOTTY MCCREERY

Seems just like yesterday when I saw this country boy singing "Baby lock 'em doors" to the AI judges. From that moment, I knew that I would love him. I would never forget that charming smile and that super duper low and manly voice that I'm really looking for in a guy. He was the reason I managed to continue watching American Idol Season 10 amidst my tight schedule. And, he never disappointed his fans. He was the frontrunner of the show and never even landed in the bottom two, technically. At the age of 17, he became the youngest AI winner. who else? The man who's in-it-to-win-it, SCOTTY MCCREERY

Undeniably, Season 10 was the season of unique talents, personalities and shocking happenings. First. the new judges where introduced, where it was quite a shocker that the common player in the game was gone, Simon Cowell. Almost everybody thought that he was a great loss in the idol industry since he was the one that brought spice to the show. But, after his resignation the idol audience where in for a big surprise. They've introduced a very gutsy judge, Steve Tyler and well the most beautiful woman in the world, Jennifer Lopez. Of course, everybody still loves the idol veteran, Randy Jackson who was never afraid to criticize the contestants. Jimmy Lovine also proved that this season would be an exceptional one.

Then there's the contestants who we definitely love. Honestly, I loved Scotty Mccreery ever since he stepped onto that idol auditions. He was just a cute little thing, so adorable. :) Also, almost all in the Filipino community supported our fellow, Thia Megia who also didn't disappoint amidst her young age.  Top contenders where also Pia Toscano (awarded the Most shocking elimination award), Jacob Lusk (who walks and dances like he's a DIVA. jk :), James Durbin, (the guy diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome but defiinitely rocks the stage every time he's in it), Paul Mcdonald (whose floral outfits give him the slightest edge, definitely not for me though hahaha) and the love birds, Casey Abrams and Haley Reindhart who sang uniquely and so good together.

The top 2 finalists were young, and country performers. Hmmm. I think America rooted for Country this season. Or maybe, these two are just full of  charisma and talent. No one should doubt that.

Honestly, although I was rooting for Scotty at the beginning, I couldn't deny that I never expected him to win the title. All he had was his charm and the deep bass voice girls would definitely love. This put a meager advantage to those contestants who really wowed the audience for hitting high notes like Jacob Lusk, James Durbin and Pia Toscano. But, like what I've said, Scotty was a frontrunner and he improved week after week, listening to the advices of the judges as well as from Jimmy. He learned to step up and break his personal barriers. His stage presence was felt even more. And while he excelled in the country genre, he ventured out of his comfort zone and surprised every fan. The mark of a true artist as Steven Tyler would say. <3 And, who would have missed his homecoming, it was definitely the most sincere moments I've ever seen. Especially when he cried and thanked the Lord for all those people supporting him. He is such a good boy, even quoting bible verses at his Homecoming concert. Hopefully, this guy right here won't change and that he would still remain true to himself all throughout his career. 

An epitome of a real idol. :)
Here are my favorite performances of Scotty Mcreery:
Watch it on youtube:) Enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SV1do6TuMBw Your man (Audition)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsBLJXulgCk Can i trust you with my heart (Top 12)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zr-1MpUx3qg&feature=related That's alright (Top 9)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYN2nawAfjQ&feature=related I cross my heart (Top 8)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2Ds6TpIUJ4 You've got a friend (Top 6)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Glv4xrqqTsg Are you gonna kiss me or not (Top3)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiUay9ykGtM Gone (Top2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdBm0DvGHLc I love you this big (First single)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unlsrFkyAv8 Live like you were dying. (with Tim Mcgraw)

and the others, these are just my favorite. hahaha :D