Monday, May 03, 2004
ISLAND IN THE SKY
Our classroom tropa's outing to a resthouse in Calamba
It wasn't exactly an island in the sky. But it was almost.
Last Saturday, the swimming trip planned by Jezire (and Apple) aka the San Pedro-ians turned out to be one heck of a success. Well at the start of things it didn't feel like it with a crowded L300 (poor Kuya Allan, Apple's older brother). But once you entered this resthouse resting on the side of a mountain in Calamba, Laguna... you would feel like were melting in a summer paradise.
Jerson came over to my house and we left Tanza at the time we were supposed to meet Upper's transport at Toyoto Cars Alabang. We were late again! Kuya Jhong brought us to the meeting place and moments later Upper's SUV with Kate and her brother Mark where on. Afterwards we sped down Alabang and into SLEX to meet the rest of the calvary at Jezire's house in San Pedro.
We got there at the same time Apple's L300 (the driver was her married brother) arrived. After a few times going around San Pedro fetching forgotten items, we were off! Wait...
The official cast was: Katz, Kay, Upper, Kate and her brother Mark, Jerson, Apple and her boyfriend Richard, Kuya Allan and his wife and two kids, Jezire's mom and younger sister Krizia, Jezire's mom's best friend and myself.
Add all the food contributions, a regular sized cooler, a bunch of bags, and stuff all of that into an L300. Woah. We were stuffed!
Upper and I tried to persuade Jezire's mom to let us return to Apple's house nearby (where we left Upper's SUV) and retrieve the SUV so we could have two cars. Jezire's mom argued we could fit inside the L300 by all means.
And by playing a little bit of Tetris, we did it. Although it was uncomfortable inside the L300 with so many people and things... I respected Jezire's mom's sense of Ohana... (from Lilo and Stitch) ...which means "family". And who could argue with one of the greatest cooks/chefs I've ever come to meet. Hehe. Jezire's mom can cook the most delicious, sumptious, mouth watering food out there.
We experienced heavy traffic on the way to Calamba. A whole bunch of similarly crowded vehicles were spotted on the high way. It was a holiday (Labor Day) and people were heading for the city of hotsprings. I haven't been set foot on Calamba since I was in 2nd or 3rd Year HS.
Finally we arrived. After a four hour journey if you included the time we left my house and met with Upper in Alabang. The resthouse was definitely designed by an architect- and a damn good architect I might add! It was like one of those houses you'd feature on MTV Cribs!
My jaw dropped as I walked up the steps of this multi-level house that seems to carve it's way up the side of the mountain. It was what I proudly call my dream house. Tall ceilings... imaginative style... gardens... lots of unique staircases... rooms underneath the swimming pool... large bathrooms... and a breathtaking view of the city of Calamba.
We explored every corner (well, almost... I'm sure we missed a few spots) and just drooled. The resthouse was owned by the late founder and owner of Kameraworld. What a coincidence... Kameraworld is my favorite place to get Studio pictures with friends. His name was George too. Cool. According to Jezire's mom, he also owns a giant resthouse in Baguio... ooooh!
The swimming pool wasn't olympic-sized (who would want one anyways in a house as simply handsome such as this?). The pool was just the right size. The resthouse has normal guests reserving the place. Jezire's Aunt used to be a private nurse of the family that owns Kameraworld and after getting promoted in that company, she also was entitled to make use of the resthouses. Wow.
We went swimming and I wanted to take advantage of the mountainside sunshine and decided to get a tan. Get a tan on the side of a mountain? Hahaha. I'm not joking! I applied some SPF 45 Sun tan lotion and just let the sun hit my face and the rest of my half naked skinny body. I wasn't really ashamed to show off my "Before" picture... haha. I say "Let 'em see it now..." so in a year or two I can flaunt off an "After" picture. Hahaha.
We enjoyed a wonderful lunch prepared by Jezire's mom and by my classmates. I promised to bring chicken but the four hour trip to Calamba from Tanza was enough fatigue to keep you in the vehicle wishing you were at your destination already... (In short, I had no chance to buy Andoks chicken.)
Buttered vegatables (mmmm...), Crunchy lumpias (mmmmmm....), well-seasoned chicken adobo (mmmmm...), and tasty pansit (mmmm...) made up a great lunch in that dream house. You could catch me murmuring "This is a life... This is heaven..." if you got anywhere next to me.
There wasn't any running water in the house, which was the only downside among the zillions of good sides experienced at that resthouse. On the 2nd floor... forget that... let's say TOP FLOOR because there are so many different floors (different shapes and sizes I might like to mention)... we rested on these comfy beds. Elegant mosquito nets (you know what I mean) hung from the ceiling and Kay was caught sleeping inside one of them and all to herself. She looked like a goddess.
After resting... the sun didn't show up that much again and it was only clouds on the mountainside. I was disappointed I couldn't continue in trying to get a sun tan. Instead, I got in the pool again and we ended up playing swimming games. There's this one caterpillar game and Upper being the mama was just memorable. Then the shark game where everyone went to the deep end and Jezire (the shark) couldn't get to us. Hahaha. Of course Katz and Upper couldn't stop playing the find the coin game.
Mark, on the other hand, was swimming on his own all the time and calling "Ate Kate..." several times. Jerson with a total duration in the pool of 10 minutes (hehehe) was always on the side of the pool or on the edges. On the shallow end he'd suddenly do this jump as if he's going to dive but then jump up and out again like he thought he was drowning or something!
Apple, Kate, and Kay seemed to be more of the serious swimmers. I guess you can add me there too.
Around merienda time I went downstairs (the entrance area) to check out Kate and them playing Badminton. Eventually I decided to tag along with Apple, Richard, Kate, and Kuya Allan in buying merienda in downtown Calamba.
On the way to downtown Calamba we experienced heavy traffic. So we made a U-Turn and headed for Los Ba?os and after a 30 minute drive, we arrived at the McDo outside the UPLB gate. I was wearing a slightly wet black shirt and my swimming trunks when we ordered. I was getting conscious but then I remembered I wasn't at Ateneo or La Salle Manila... UP peeps don't give a damn or that much about what someone is wearing. Hehe.
While we were there ordering and walking around, I was worried someone from UPLB Streetjazz will come out of no where pointing a finger at us and yelling "THEY'RE FROM DLSU-D... GET 'EM!!". Hahaha. Nah... just joking... but of course if you came from a school that competed with them on national television you'd come up with the strangest scenarios in your head.
We drove back and got stuck in that same traffic in Calamba which was now reaching the edges of Los Ba?os. The ride to buy merienda for everybody lasted basically more than three whole hours. Well, on the bright side, at least I got to feel the summer wind on my face and the summer heat during the traffic. Kate, Apple, and Richard went to buy food for dinner while we were in traffic. They eventually decided to walk back to the resthouse which was 3-4 kilometers away on my estimate.
Jezire's mom said it was optional if we wanted to stay overnight since the resthouse wasn't expecting any guests till later on Sunday. But the group decided to go home still, even if we would leave at 8 or 9 in the evening to cancel out the terrible traffic in Calamba.
While we waited, we chatted away up on the top floor. Jezire and them played a few rounds of Truth and Consequence the coin toss. Most of us got to have around 30 minutes of sleep before we left around 9:30 in the evening.
I was sentimental because I fell in love with that place. The architectural beauty of it was so attracting. I said to myself, this was the kind of house I would want to live in. A house with a design that puts the elements of nature into it. The nice view out the many windows... to the different locations of the rooms in the resthouse... and from the street how the house looks typical but from the inside the house is more than typical...
The traffic in Calamba delayed us by an hour... but only by an hour. We sped up SLEX towards Bi?an and San Pedro and dropped off people one by one. Jerson, Kate and her brother Mark, and I were with Upper as we took the SLEX again and went to Alabang and Las Pi?as. I decided to go home since it was still midnight and not madaling araw.
Upper dropped Jerson and Me at Zapote and she went to drop Kate and Mark at their house in Las Pi?as. Jerson and I rode a Binakayan-bound jeepnee and from Binakayan we waited for 20 minutes for any Naic or Tanza-bound baby bus or mini bus that was taking Bacao-Centennial. This guy who looked like our age and was wearing a school uniform who was waiting with us also noticed how long it took to get a ride at that time (read: 12:45mn).
Encounter with a baliw
When we got on a mini-bus, we had to stand up which was ok. When finally there was a seat available, our commuting friend helped me get to the seat and after five minutes of normal commuting... the lady next to me screams in some native tongue with familiar words like "puta... papatayin... tenga... pera...". I thought she was talking to someone on a cellphone or someone near me. But when I looked at her she was looking straight at me. The people around us reacted by turning their heads too. I was freakin' out... what's this lady's problem.
It turns out I sat next to a crazy woman or a baliw. I'd like to thank God for that person we met in Binakayan... that man just about our age who was in a school uniform. During the time the crazy woman was threating to kill me (yes... she was... she was holding her hand high in the air but she was also trying to stop herself... I was on evasive manuever with my right arm ready to defend myself (it was on stand-by on my lap)... the guy tapped me on the shoulder and said "Pare, wag mo pansinin..." and he gave me this symphatizing look.
At the Tejero stop where a lot of people got off, I wanted to move to a different seat but not make it obvious I was getting away from this crazy woman. She had stopped making remarks already once I ignored her completely. Before the guy we met in Binakayan got off at Tejero, he tapped me again and pointed at a seat near the front. He suggested kindly, "Lipat ka doon..." and I moved discreetly. While I left, it so happens the 3rd person (my other seatmate on the other side of the crazy woman also moved to a different seat opposite my new one. She looked bad trip and a bit stirred and terrified. I became bad trip and bit stirred and terrified as well. Then the conductor starts talking to the driver as he was counting the money... he said "May baliw na babae... naka-red... sa Naic pa siya... nakakainis... hindi pa siya nag-bayad..." and then the woman that was with the baliw one remarked that the crazy woman payed with a garment of hers.
Jerson was in the backseat during the whole thing so we couldn't speak until we got off at Daang-Amaya. We quickly made our way to a tricycle and got home. Jerson stayed over night.
It was a great outing. I loved the resthouse, the company, the food, and the experiences (even the crazy woman who really freaked me out). I thank God for giving me the experience and for guiding me home past midnight.
About the title: At night, the scenic and warm lighting kept the resthouse looking very homey. The gardens looked exotic and the swimming pool looked seducing (ooooh). Then, at the end of the garden you could get a night time view of the City of Calamba over the edge. The city lights and Laguna de Bay seen under the midnight horizon was just a sight. It felt like you were on this island in the sky.
Our classroom tropa's outing to a resthouse in Calamba
It wasn't exactly an island in the sky. But it was almost.
Last Saturday, the swimming trip planned by Jezire (and Apple) aka the San Pedro-ians turned out to be one heck of a success. Well at the start of things it didn't feel like it with a crowded L300 (poor Kuya Allan, Apple's older brother). But once you entered this resthouse resting on the side of a mountain in Calamba, Laguna... you would feel like were melting in a summer paradise.
Jerson came over to my house and we left Tanza at the time we were supposed to meet Upper's transport at Toyoto Cars Alabang. We were late again! Kuya Jhong brought us to the meeting place and moments later Upper's SUV with Kate and her brother Mark where on. Afterwards we sped down Alabang and into SLEX to meet the rest of the calvary at Jezire's house in San Pedro.
We got there at the same time Apple's L300 (the driver was her married brother) arrived. After a few times going around San Pedro fetching forgotten items, we were off! Wait...
The official cast was: Katz, Kay, Upper, Kate and her brother Mark, Jerson, Apple and her boyfriend Richard, Kuya Allan and his wife and two kids, Jezire's mom and younger sister Krizia, Jezire's mom's best friend and myself.
Add all the food contributions, a regular sized cooler, a bunch of bags, and stuff all of that into an L300. Woah. We were stuffed!
Upper and I tried to persuade Jezire's mom to let us return to Apple's house nearby (where we left Upper's SUV) and retrieve the SUV so we could have two cars. Jezire's mom argued we could fit inside the L300 by all means.
And by playing a little bit of Tetris, we did it. Although it was uncomfortable inside the L300 with so many people and things... I respected Jezire's mom's sense of Ohana... (from Lilo and Stitch) ...which means "family". And who could argue with one of the greatest cooks/chefs I've ever come to meet. Hehe. Jezire's mom can cook the most delicious, sumptious, mouth watering food out there.
We experienced heavy traffic on the way to Calamba. A whole bunch of similarly crowded vehicles were spotted on the high way. It was a holiday (Labor Day) and people were heading for the city of hotsprings. I haven't been set foot on Calamba since I was in 2nd or 3rd Year HS.
Finally we arrived. After a four hour journey if you included the time we left my house and met with Upper in Alabang. The resthouse was definitely designed by an architect- and a damn good architect I might add! It was like one of those houses you'd feature on MTV Cribs!
My jaw dropped as I walked up the steps of this multi-level house that seems to carve it's way up the side of the mountain. It was what I proudly call my dream house. Tall ceilings... imaginative style... gardens... lots of unique staircases... rooms underneath the swimming pool... large bathrooms... and a breathtaking view of the city of Calamba.
We explored every corner (well, almost... I'm sure we missed a few spots) and just drooled. The resthouse was owned by the late founder and owner of Kameraworld. What a coincidence... Kameraworld is my favorite place to get Studio pictures with friends. His name was George too. Cool. According to Jezire's mom, he also owns a giant resthouse in Baguio... ooooh!
The swimming pool wasn't olympic-sized (who would want one anyways in a house as simply handsome such as this?). The pool was just the right size. The resthouse has normal guests reserving the place. Jezire's Aunt used to be a private nurse of the family that owns Kameraworld and after getting promoted in that company, she also was entitled to make use of the resthouses. Wow.
We went swimming and I wanted to take advantage of the mountainside sunshine and decided to get a tan. Get a tan on the side of a mountain? Hahaha. I'm not joking! I applied some SPF 45 Sun tan lotion and just let the sun hit my face and the rest of my half naked skinny body. I wasn't really ashamed to show off my "Before" picture... haha. I say "Let 'em see it now..." so in a year or two I can flaunt off an "After" picture. Hahaha.
We enjoyed a wonderful lunch prepared by Jezire's mom and by my classmates. I promised to bring chicken but the four hour trip to Calamba from Tanza was enough fatigue to keep you in the vehicle wishing you were at your destination already... (In short, I had no chance to buy Andoks chicken.)
Buttered vegatables (mmmm...), Crunchy lumpias (mmmmmm....), well-seasoned chicken adobo (mmmmm...), and tasty pansit (mmmm...) made up a great lunch in that dream house. You could catch me murmuring "This is a life... This is heaven..." if you got anywhere next to me.
There wasn't any running water in the house, which was the only downside among the zillions of good sides experienced at that resthouse. On the 2nd floor... forget that... let's say TOP FLOOR because there are so many different floors (different shapes and sizes I might like to mention)... we rested on these comfy beds. Elegant mosquito nets (you know what I mean) hung from the ceiling and Kay was caught sleeping inside one of them and all to herself. She looked like a goddess.
After resting... the sun didn't show up that much again and it was only clouds on the mountainside. I was disappointed I couldn't continue in trying to get a sun tan. Instead, I got in the pool again and we ended up playing swimming games. There's this one caterpillar game and Upper being the mama was just memorable. Then the shark game where everyone went to the deep end and Jezire (the shark) couldn't get to us. Hahaha. Of course Katz and Upper couldn't stop playing the find the coin game.
Mark, on the other hand, was swimming on his own all the time and calling "Ate Kate..." several times. Jerson with a total duration in the pool of 10 minutes (hehehe) was always on the side of the pool or on the edges. On the shallow end he'd suddenly do this jump as if he's going to dive but then jump up and out again like he thought he was drowning or something!
Apple, Kate, and Kay seemed to be more of the serious swimmers. I guess you can add me there too.
Around merienda time I went downstairs (the entrance area) to check out Kate and them playing Badminton. Eventually I decided to tag along with Apple, Richard, Kate, and Kuya Allan in buying merienda in downtown Calamba.
On the way to downtown Calamba we experienced heavy traffic. So we made a U-Turn and headed for Los Ba?os and after a 30 minute drive, we arrived at the McDo outside the UPLB gate. I was wearing a slightly wet black shirt and my swimming trunks when we ordered. I was getting conscious but then I remembered I wasn't at Ateneo or La Salle Manila... UP peeps don't give a damn or that much about what someone is wearing. Hehe.
While we were there ordering and walking around, I was worried someone from UPLB Streetjazz will come out of no where pointing a finger at us and yelling "THEY'RE FROM DLSU-D... GET 'EM!!". Hahaha. Nah... just joking... but of course if you came from a school that competed with them on national television you'd come up with the strangest scenarios in your head.
We drove back and got stuck in that same traffic in Calamba which was now reaching the edges of Los Ba?os. The ride to buy merienda for everybody lasted basically more than three whole hours. Well, on the bright side, at least I got to feel the summer wind on my face and the summer heat during the traffic. Kate, Apple, and Richard went to buy food for dinner while we were in traffic. They eventually decided to walk back to the resthouse which was 3-4 kilometers away on my estimate.
Jezire's mom said it was optional if we wanted to stay overnight since the resthouse wasn't expecting any guests till later on Sunday. But the group decided to go home still, even if we would leave at 8 or 9 in the evening to cancel out the terrible traffic in Calamba.
While we waited, we chatted away up on the top floor. Jezire and them played a few rounds of Truth and Consequence the coin toss. Most of us got to have around 30 minutes of sleep before we left around 9:30 in the evening.
I was sentimental because I fell in love with that place. The architectural beauty of it was so attracting. I said to myself, this was the kind of house I would want to live in. A house with a design that puts the elements of nature into it. The nice view out the many windows... to the different locations of the rooms in the resthouse... and from the street how the house looks typical but from the inside the house is more than typical...
The traffic in Calamba delayed us by an hour... but only by an hour. We sped up SLEX towards Bi?an and San Pedro and dropped off people one by one. Jerson, Kate and her brother Mark, and I were with Upper as we took the SLEX again and went to Alabang and Las Pi?as. I decided to go home since it was still midnight and not madaling araw.
Upper dropped Jerson and Me at Zapote and she went to drop Kate and Mark at their house in Las Pi?as. Jerson and I rode a Binakayan-bound jeepnee and from Binakayan we waited for 20 minutes for any Naic or Tanza-bound baby bus or mini bus that was taking Bacao-Centennial. This guy who looked like our age and was wearing a school uniform who was waiting with us also noticed how long it took to get a ride at that time (read: 12:45mn).
Encounter with a baliw
When we got on a mini-bus, we had to stand up which was ok. When finally there was a seat available, our commuting friend helped me get to the seat and after five minutes of normal commuting... the lady next to me screams in some native tongue with familiar words like "puta... papatayin... tenga... pera...". I thought she was talking to someone on a cellphone or someone near me. But when I looked at her she was looking straight at me. The people around us reacted by turning their heads too. I was freakin' out... what's this lady's problem.
It turns out I sat next to a crazy woman or a baliw. I'd like to thank God for that person we met in Binakayan... that man just about our age who was in a school uniform. During the time the crazy woman was threating to kill me (yes... she was... she was holding her hand high in the air but she was also trying to stop herself... I was on evasive manuever with my right arm ready to defend myself (it was on stand-by on my lap)... the guy tapped me on the shoulder and said "Pare, wag mo pansinin..." and he gave me this symphatizing look.
At the Tejero stop where a lot of people got off, I wanted to move to a different seat but not make it obvious I was getting away from this crazy woman. She had stopped making remarks already once I ignored her completely. Before the guy we met in Binakayan got off at Tejero, he tapped me again and pointed at a seat near the front. He suggested kindly, "Lipat ka doon..." and I moved discreetly. While I left, it so happens the 3rd person (my other seatmate on the other side of the crazy woman also moved to a different seat opposite my new one. She looked bad trip and a bit stirred and terrified. I became bad trip and bit stirred and terrified as well. Then the conductor starts talking to the driver as he was counting the money... he said "May baliw na babae... naka-red... sa Naic pa siya... nakakainis... hindi pa siya nag-bayad..." and then the woman that was with the baliw one remarked that the crazy woman payed with a garment of hers.
Jerson was in the backseat during the whole thing so we couldn't speak until we got off at Daang-Amaya. We quickly made our way to a tricycle and got home. Jerson stayed over night.
It was a great outing. I loved the resthouse, the company, the food, and the experiences (even the crazy woman who really freaked me out). I thank God for giving me the experience and for guiding me home past midnight.
About the title: At night, the scenic and warm lighting kept the resthouse looking very homey. The gardens looked exotic and the swimming pool looked seducing (ooooh). Then, at the end of the garden you could get a night time view of the City of Calamba over the edge. The city lights and Laguna de Bay seen under the midnight horizon was just a sight. It felt like you were on this island in the sky.
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