Changes

Maybe it's the result of seeing one-too-many episodes of Travel Time and National Geographic. Maybe it's the changing of the tides or the waxing and waning of the moon. Or the alignment of the planets. All I know is come November and December, I would cease to be a stay-home, stay-in-town person. It isn't a late-minute turnabout because I've always loved the outdoors in my younger years, it's just that my pockets didn't allow me then to really go out there and explore. I'm very thankful to the heavens for some recent blessings that allowed me to complete my backpacking gear three months early -- my much-coveted MSR stove. It's an early Christmas gift to myself. So that means I can enjoy cooking my own stuff in the outdoors. Thank You Lord! 

this early, am planning my itineraries for november and december. i've been notorious for making solo trips especially when friends and hiking buddies are unavailable -- so it's off to mt. pulag in mt.province in early nov, back to sagada by end of nov, and back to batanes immediately after Christmas. i'm secretly wondering if i can squeeze in a trip to cagayan de oro before Christmas, to give in to my surrogate mom's invitation to spend the holidays there. and perhaps, make a sidetrip to nakahambus cave and do the canopy walk. maybe even go to bukidnon and survey nearby kitanglad and dulang-dulang.

the more places i visit, the more i'm amazed by our country. to confess: one of my not-so-secret dream is to visit even half of the 7,107 islands in this lifetime. maybe it's an ambitious dream but i'm willing to try.