A taste of irony

When I got back to work from our vacation in Thailand, I, of course, had a bunch of emails waiting for me to read. Still reeling from the euphoria of a wonderful trip in the beautiful beaches of Thailand, I was gob-smacked to read one email from a friend, reminding me how beautiful my country Philippines is. It’s a link to a video made to boost the Philippine tourism; a collaboration of twenty-one Filipino artists singing about our great country and inviting us to travel.

Tell me if that video did not tug your hearts; it did to mine. Yes, I do want to learn more of my country, visit the nether places, see the beauty of a fishing village, thread the green rice-fields, swim its rivers and lakes, bask in its white, sandy beaches, dive into its deepest seas, hop on its many neighboring tiny islands, enjoy the different dishes each place could offer, and get to know more of our countrymen.

Oh, yes I have been to the best beaches in our country known the world over. I’ve enjoyed Boracay twice. First, back when it wasn’t a very famous destination of Manilaneos escaping the humid air of the metropolis – only filled with white people enjoying the laid back provincial life. Second, when it became a famous jaunt to Filipino yuppies. My family and I traveled up and down the length of Palawan during our three-year stay in that lovely province. Even though I did not get to join them when they went to El Nido, I’m happy to say that I went inside the underground river twice. Any beach in that place is great! Oh, how I miss the Honda Bay!

When I was eight, my Mom and I went to a Luzon trip with friends. We went to Baguio, viewed the Banawe Rice Terraces in the early morn with all the fog, hopped around the Hundred Islands, see the imperfect yet active Taal and watched the raging rapids of Pagsanjan. I envied my Dad when he told us about the wonderful places called Zamboanga and Davao, and wished to go with him when he had a trip to Naga and Legaspi just to get a glimpse of the majestic Mayon volcano. I was even pissed off when he and my brother had a stop-over at Cebu City. I often looked at my Mom’s picture with the chocolate hills behind her.

There are so many places I want to visit in our country like Vigan, Batanes, and Negros. Someday, maybe with my Mom and the whole family, and at the same time introduce this beautiful country, which had nurtured me with all its natural resources, to my son.

I was even amazed when my husband commented during our beach hopping in Phi Phi island that he had never seen such clear waters and such beautiful beaches. What did I say to him? The sands of Boracay and Palawan are even whiter and that there are even better or far greater places that these in our country.

So before thinking of going to visit the castles of Europe, the safari of Africa, snow caps at Antarctica, Grand Canyon of the States, visit this small country with filled with heritage, wildlife, panoramic mountains, deep blue seas, and happy, hospitable people.