Goodbye 2010, Hello 2011

One last post before the new year comes.

A lot of things happened to me this 2010 and for that I must be thankful. Simple little things but with colossal impact to me as a person. Here's the recap of my 2010 blessings, experiences and achievements:

My Travel History: 1992 - High School

As far as my brain cells could dig up my childhood memory, Lakbayan showed this result (the map on the left), the blue shaded part of the map are the places I've been already from 1992 until I graduated high school in 2008.

I could still remember my trip with my family to Baguio City and Laoag City in 1996. I was only four back then but images from this childhood travel are still clear. My mother told me though that this was not our first long road trip. It was Daet, Camarines Norte in 1993 when my great grandmother died, I was only 1. From 1992 to 2003, we regularly visit my father's relatives at Rosario, Batangas every Holy Week.

In 2004, I together with my family went to Bicol (CamNor, CamSur, Albay) for business purposes. Of course, we grabbed this opportunity to tour around the Bicolandia.

I had field trips, outreach programs and retreats in my grade school and high school years (1998-2008) at nearby provinces of Metro Manila. Cavite, Laguna, Bulacan, and Rizal provinces were our grade school retreat and field trip destinations, while Batangas, Pampanga, Bataan, and Baguio City were the sites of our high school trips, outreach programs, and retreats.

So far so good, perhaps I will be having that map in full blue in 20 to 30 years from now. My next update will be on 2012 after college.


Thanks to Eugene Villar’s Lakbayan for the map.

Next update: Travel History 2008-2012

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Rizal @ 150 | Mi Ultimo Adios

I just got home from a cultural/historical solo trip at Real Fuersa de Santiago aka Fort Santiago.

Alay Ko Kay Gat. Jose Rizal

Hindi ko mawari ngunit kusang sumusulat ang mga munti kong daliri. Hindi gamit ang isang plumahe o anu pa mang panulat na ginamit mong panlaban sa mga manlulupig. Sa isipan ko'y patuloy na umaagos, mga salitang naglalaro sa aking utak. Marahil isa itong pagpugay sa isang dakilang tao na pinaslang ilang taon na din ang nakaraan.

Isinilang ako siyamnapu't anim na taon matapos mong ialay ang iyong buhay para sa bayan. Kamatayan na naging dahilan ng kalayaang ngayon ay aking tinatamasa. Utang ko ito sa iyo, salamat sa iyo. Kahanga-hanga kang tunay. Bayaning sumisimbolo sa malayang Pilipino.  

Mangilang beses ko nang nadaanan, mga lugar na minsan mo nang nilakaran. Mula sa bahay mo doon sa Calamba hanggang sa Bagumbayan kung saan ka nagbuwis ng buhay. Ilang beses ko na rin nabasa, mga likha mong sadyang nakapag-bubukas ng isipan. Mga tula, sulat at maikling kwento, maging ang dalawang nobela mong nagpatumba sa makapangyarihan at maimpluwensya. Ikaw ay isang dakila. Kahit saan ay naroon ka, sa salapi, mga kalye, probinsya at parke. Bayaning gumuhit ng ating kasaysayan.

At ngayong darating na ika-tatlumpu ng Disyembre, muling gugunitain ang kabayanihang iyong ginawa. Pagpupugay ng kasalukuyang generasyon, mga kabataang pag-asa ng bayan. Nais ko lamang iparating ang walang hanggan kong pasasalamat. Salamat Gat. Jose Rizal, tunay na dakila, tunay na bayani, isang Pilipinong kagaya ko.

-Ivan Cultura y Briñas

Ilang oras mula ngayon, dadalo ako sa isang pagtatanghal ng buhay ni Dr. Jose Rizal sa Real Fuersa de Santiago(Fort Santiago). Isang lakwatsa na ang mithiin ay gunitain ang kabayanihan ni Gat. Rizal.

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EK All the Way

Isang pahabol na lakwatsa bago sumapit ang pasko 2010.

Sabi nila walang trip na natutuloy kung pinagplanuhan, kaya naman biglaan kaming nagkayayaan ng aking mga kaibigan papuntang Enchanted Kingdom.

December 23, 2010, pumunta ako sa EK kasama ang aking mga kaibigan. Sa halagang 1 libo, buhay ka na, ma-eenjoy mo na ang extreme rides and some lousy shows.

New Generation Trips

Last Thursday, December 16, 2010, the New Generation Series was launched at Malacañang. I was at home watching the event at NBN.

Around 4:30 PM, the new designs were revealed. It felt so great as I took a glance at each bill.

20 Peso - The face of a much younger Manuel L. Quezon, Malacañang Palace

The Last Time I Cried

"Patay na si Cory!" yan ang unang balita na bumungad sa akin pagkagising ko noong umaga ng Agosto a uno.

Hindi ako nagsalita, wala akong imik, wala akong reaksyon, agad kong binuksan ang TV at nilipat sa ABS-CBN. "Paalam Tita Cory" nabasa ko agad, merong special coverage ang ABS-CBN. Nakita ko si Julius Babao nag-babalita tungkol sa kabataan ng minamahal kong pangulo. Saka ko pa lng na realize, patay na pala si President Cory.

A Walk to Remember

The year was 2009, I forgot the exact date but it was October.

It was a very sunny day at kuhaan ng classcards yun (PLM is a State University so we still use the primitive style of grades distribution). From 8 AM 'til afternoon, we waited for the fruits of our labor. Among these grades, Physics 1 was the most awaited since we were handled by a "terror professor". A terror professor for me is classified into three:
     
class 1: Friendly, funny but will give you the "worstest" exams you'll ever imagine.
class 2: Smiling is not in his/her vocabulary and will stare you to death if she/he sighted a miniscule smile from you.
class 3: The ultimate terror, a combination of the first and second class.  

I classify my professor in physics to the first class. (no more talk)