Back to the Future: Recreate your Childhood Memories

I've come across this video when I browsed my favorite writer's (Charlene Sawit) Facebook page. this is so cool. i'm thinking of doing it with my siblings :))

Leave Nothing But Footprints

There is nothing more I love in this world than the beach. The warm rays of the sun on your face, the feel of sand in your bare feet and the cool refreshing feeling of the waters can make my day. And so, I would do anything to preserve its beauty. Just lately I’ve come across a site about a project made by young people to help preserve our beaches. It is called The Footprints Project. You can click the underline word  to know more about it. They have this some sort of campaign which is also a contest about how can you, in your own little way, help save our beaches. So here is my entry.

1. Research your destination

                Always know where you will go. Knowing the place of your destination will give you less time in wondering around the place and more time for you to enjoy what the place has to offer. Also, by researching about your destination you will get to know about the rules and regulations about the place and what and what not to bring. Thus, you will end up as the light yet prepared traveller.

2. Recognize rules

                As simple as following the sign “Don’t throw your garbage here”, you can do a lot for our beaches. There is a reason why people post various signs, rules and regulations. Being Pinoys, the more restricted it is the more we get curios in doing such things. Please, just this once. Don’t let your curiosity get the best of you.

3. Reduce waste

                To make our beaches more inviting to plunge into we must not make it dirty with our own garbage. If you’re a tourist, bring back with you everything you have brought during your stay including your waste and go dump them into proper dumping areas. If you’re a resident, help reduce waste by engaging in local waste reduction activities. Or you can just simply pick whatever trash you see and put them into proper disposal areas.

4. Respect wildlife

                What can be more beautiful than a beach/ocean/sea full of beautiful corals housed by different kinds and colors of fishes? Really, one cannot just simply let it pass it by. Take time to go snorkelling and see the corals but leave them as you have first seen them. Respect every little living thing on the beach, may be it a colourful fish or a cute little crab. Whatever you find cute, don’t ever think of bringing them to your own home. That place is their home and if you were in their place you also wouldn’t want to be forced to leave your home and be taken by a stranger. If you ever do get permission from the local government to take home sea animals, be sure you know how to take care of them as you take care of a friend or family. Because sometimes, it’s only during the first few days you get excited of a new pet and later on you get bored and forget about them. So it is best to just leave them wherever you found them.

5. Report illegal activity

                The problem with some Filipinos is that they themselves are contributing to the destruction of our own beaches/ocean/seas. If you see anything suspicious report it right away. However, there are some officials that don’t act that easily (and sometimes they are even ones doing it). So it isn’t enough that you tell, make sure that they really acted.

6. Repost/retweet

                The Internet, particularly social media (because apparently everyone has a Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr account these days), can do a lot to help save our beaches. I myself have found out about this project through Twitter. It doesn’t hurt or take too much time to click the repost/retweet button below. One tweet can surely go a long long way. 

LayawTV Episode 4: Kalanggaman Island

Tanduay Rock Royalty

If you don’t know the Tanduay First 5 concert series, you have probably been living under the rock for four years now. The concert series is an event organized by Tanduay which is performed by five of the coolest, awesome and rockin’ bands in the Philippines. The concert is held in different places in the country for a year. Each place has a schedule of its own.

I have always been present every Tanduay First Five Concert which I think started in 2009. It was in December 16, 2009 that the concert series came to Tacloban and its performers were Bamboo, Kamikazee, Sandwhich, Chicosci and 6 Cycle Mind. The 2010 concert was held sometime in February or March I think. I vaguely remember it because I wasn’t planning to go that year because it was on time with the UP Hell Week. It was in this year (or in 2011) that Bamboo disbanded so they have to get a new band. Last year’s concert was on my birthday. Yeyy! What awesome way to celebrate! It was my best concert so far. I still can remember when Chito Miranda came up on stage to sing with Jay Contreras. It was awesome! The next song was even more awesome because Raymund Marasigan also came up the stage! They had a rocking performance and I can’t help myself to jump, dance and sing to the songs. The three were crazy up on the stage and it was not only me that was letting loose. Everyone was! And that’s what I love about concerts! The new member of the concert series that year was Wolfgang.

For 2012, the concert happened last May 5 at EVSU. I learned sometime in March that a band graduates from the tour after three years. And it was Sandwhich’s and Chicosci’s third year last year and so they had new artists lined up. In addition to the concert series was Urbandub and Rico Blanco. It was renamed Tanduay Rock Royalty.

I seriously need to cut my hair already

The Tanduay concert had something new this year. Before the bands start to play and while setting up, VTRs were shown on the big screen about the band, how they started, their journey, the experience and etc. I love VTRs! Especially if they show old pictures and videos and some of the most funniest moments over the years. I think the best VTR was that of Parokya ni Edgar. It was a laughtrip! Haha. The first band to perform was Wolfgang but we weren’t able to see them perform because we still at the entrance lining up. Next was Urbandud. I don’t know much about Urbandub and I barely know their songs but they have gone a long way from being an indie band to one of the most popular bands in the industry. Then it was Kamikazee’s turn and I was jumping up and down even if their VTR was still playing. Haha. Kamikazee is one of my favourite bands simply because Jay is crazy and the band surely knows how to rock an event with their songs. I was sweating all over by the time of their second song.

Jay of Kamikazee

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The next to perform was Rico Blanco and he was awesome! He sang some songs from his solo album and some of Rivermaya’s. I consider Rico Blanco to be one of the legends already in Philippine music industry along side with Francis M., Eraserheads and a lot more. 

The last was Parokya ni Edgar which was I think the most awaited. Unfortunately, we had to leave after three songs because we were near the stage and it would difficult for us to go out once the concert finishes. So we just listened from a far.

Jen and her friends

The night was fun even though we didn’t get to finish the concert. I had the best time!


Photo credits to Jen Dacalos and to Ken Alminar for taking the shots.

Kalanggaman Island

I’ve heard so much about Kalanggaman over my college years but i have never thought that i was to fall in love with it the very first time I set my foot over its white sand.

Kalanggaman (also spelled as Calanggaman) is an island in the municipality of Palompon. A 3 hour ride from Tacloban City. Me and my officemates arrived in Palompon at around 10 in the evening last April 30.

After dinner, we immediately slept because we were to leave the resort at three in the morning to buy our food for the island and our boat reservation was at 5 o’clock. And since there are still no motorcycles and pedicabs at that time, we had to walk from the resort to the proper town of Palompon. The more we need to wake up early. I can’t believe I walked almost two kilometres! Haha. The walk was fun though.

We left for the island around six because we had to settle some problems before leaving. So there we were on our boat and bound to one of the most beautiful island I have set foot on. My officemate’s friend said that if we were lucky, we might get to see dolphins. But we didn’t. That’s ok because I have already seen one when we went to Cuatro Islas. After 45 mins the island came into view. The first thing that I noticed was the long stretch of sandbar at the right. It’s my first time to actually see a sandbar that extends itself from an island. Hehe. Later on, I found out that there was another sandbar at the left of the island. So that makes one on each side.

After eating breakfast, Ate Kaye and I took pictures (vain pictures mostly) at the sandbar. The rest of my officemates followed. Excuse our vanity J

After that we played with the Frisbee I brought, volleyball (only them actually) and card games and had our usual office chismisan. Haha. A little later, there was this boat that was carrying kayaks of different colors. Later, we learned that they were for rent at P150.00 an hour and that that day was the first time the kayaks were bought to the island and were for rent. So needless to say, we were the first ones to get a hold of those kayaks. Haha. The rowing was very tiresome but I really enjoyed it. I love being out in the sea. There was this one point (far from the shore already) where we got tired of rowing and we just stayed still and let the current take us wherever while admiring the beauty of the island. It’s just one of those moments where everything just feels right.

WINNER!!

I AM AMAZONA!! HAHA

After kayaking, we went to play Frisbee (I am not calling it Ultimate because it wasn’t a game. Just us fetching and catching the disc). One tourist joined us after a while and he was good. He didn’t play with us for a long time though because we were lousy players. Haha. I haven’t played in over a year. L an hour later we saw two big boats with a lot foreigners in it. Later, we found out that they were a group of divers from Malapascua, Cebu and just came by to do some sunbathing. I found out that Malapascua was just near and one can actually see the outline of Cebu from a far! I mean, seriously, is Cebu just that near? I have to google that later.

After that we went around the island. The other side of the island was rocky and our tour guide said that we should be careful because those rocks are actually sea-snake crates. Good thing it was low tide and the water barely reached the rocks so we didn’t encounter any sea-snakes. 

We went to the less visited sandbar which was just equally beautiful as the popular one. We saw that at the end of the sandbar was a weird and scary looking islet. We circled the island in more or less 30mins I think and then went back to our cottage.

A little over past noon I went to sleep because the heat was becoming intense. Then I woke up when the sun settled. The sun actually settled at 1:30pm! Haha. Went swimming and snorkelling afterwards. But I haven’t snorkelled that long because I didn’t know how to use the snorkel! Haha. Or whatever that thing was called. I can’t believe I did so many things in just eight hours! It was tiring but fun. I think I’ll go back there again before this year ends and this time, overnight. J

P.S. Langgam in Palompon means bird and Kalanggaman is called as such because the island looks like a bird. The two sandbars look like wings. You can google an aerial view of Kalanggaman.

PHOTO CREDITS TO VICTORINO ABRUGAR AND NATTHA GAYTOS

LayawTV Episode 3: Sulangan, Guiuan, Eastern Samar Part 2

so this is part 2 of our Sulangan adventure. Enjoy!!

tune in for LayawTV's next episode at the beautiful island of Kalanggaman, Palompon, Leyte.

LayawTV Episode 2: Sulangan, Guiuan Eastern Samar Part 1

episode 2! yeyy! enjoy watching because we enjoyed whatever we were doing in that video. haha. Part 2 is coming soon! by the way, click here if you want to read about my earlier post about this vid.