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| 7 years of chronicles, 7 years of ref magnets, 7 years of travelblogging |
I vividly remember the night I first saw a blog. It was January 20, 2004. I was doing overtime work and getting bored fast. I wasn't even quite sure what a 'blog' was but I thought isn't it cool to be able to keep an online journal? Hmmm, I was always keeping handwritten journals which I thought was an anomaly in the digital age. Back then, it was rare to find somebody else who'd want to keep a journal for all the world to see.
Fastforward to 2011 and it seems everyone with decent internet connection is a blogger, the more enterprising ones with two, three (I've heard of hits-minded individuals who have up to 20) or more blogs. There are blog events (and people who create blogs to get invited to these), even professional bloggers. Heck, bloggers are considered as the "new media" -- a welcome development for those intent in disseminating the truth while circumventing the limits of traditional media; an unwelcome venue for those passing off half-truths and paid reviews as legitimate news. I digress.
Indeed, a lot has happened in 7 years. Interesting travels. Career changes. Meeting complete strangers and making new friends. Unearthing old stories and sharing new ones. Along the way, lagalog.com has been a constant companion. While it didn't start out as a travel blog (there was no such thing back then), fate and circumstances shaped it to be one. My favorite travel writer, Paul Theroux, said "that if you're not suffering, you're just having a vacation" and while I believe him, I happily evolved into a hybrid traveler/tourist depending on my state of mind, my disposition, and of course, my cash position.
Inspite of life's many twists and turns, I have a lot to be thankful for. So after 1,297 posts, here's a thousand thank-yous to God, to good friends, to readers old and new, to visitors far and wide. I sure hope and pray that turning 7 will be a lucky turning point for Lagalog.
