Last April, after five long years worth of struggling, sleepless nights, stress, confusion and procrastination, I was finally able to get a bachelor's degree from the premier university of the Philippines, University of the Philippines-Diliman. Climbing the stage with my father and hearing Professor Naval calling out my name and the honors I received (I'm Cum Laude, baby!),I was really in cloud nine...but that is for another entry so I'll leave it at that. :)
I was planning my long-awaited vacation back to my hometown since the last quarter of 2010. It is like a reward for me for finishing the degree and proving to my dad that I can hand him my diploma as I promised. That is why, I booked a round trip ticket for two as early as February of this year in order to avail the cheapest price offered by a domestic airline in the Philippines (which name I would not post because they are not paying me for an advertisement)
I would have gone back to my hometown earlier but unfortunately, the Philippine Elections was scheduled on the 10th of May so I had to stay here in Manila coz I am a registered voter here. (This also includes a LOOOOONG story so I will not mention it here, I'll just make another article for it)
Come May 12, I woke up very early (I actually was not able to sleep the night before because of pure excitement) and prepared for our departure. We left our house at around 4:45am because our flight was scheduled at 6:50am. I was quite surprised because it was my first time to go to the NAIA Terminal 3 and can I just say that the facility was really impressive, except perhaps for the efficiency of the staff in the airline's check-in counter there who, not once but twice, allowed people behind me to get in front of the line. It actually pissed me off because I had to stand in line for almost an hour before finally being able to check in.The security was thorough and although it was really much of a hassle, it was quite commendable because the personnel are trying to do their best to stop threats to security in the airport. We arrived at the gate just in time for boarding. The plane left as soon as everybody were seated. It was, I think, the fastest boarding I have ever experienced in my entire life and that is something I am quite happy about the new airport. The flight took one hour and twenty minutes at most. (It actually arrived ahead of schedule.)
While the aircraft was flying, I was able to take pictures of the islands below, thanks to the awesome lens of my newly bought Nokia5630 :).
Here are some of the pictures I took while we were on the plane.
Here are some of the pictures I took while we were on the plane.
This was taken twenty minutes after we took off so I assume it is somewhere in Mindoro or Panay or something like that, I am really bad at geography.
I took this picture after the captain announced that we are approaching the Sibulan Airport. Probably this is somewhere in Occidental Negros or Cebu. Can I just say that that river or lake is quite beautiful? :))
Somewhere in Cebu.
Flying over the beautiful island of Negros.
I have no idea where this is but it sure is beautiful.
Ten minutes before touch down. The clouds look like cotton candies (di ba?)
When the captain announced that we are arriving ahead of schedule, my heart was jumping up and down. I was so excited because I wanted to go to Negros so badly for the past couple of years. I have not seen my brother for two years and I was wondering how he looked like already, now that he's grown up and all. That is not all. I have a lot of reasons why I love going back to Dumaguete. The so-called City of the Gentle People is the only place I feel like home. Dumaguetenos exude the warmth that no one else in the Philippines can give off, well at least, in my opinion. Problems fade when I am in Negros. I only get to spend my time laughing with the people I love the most, sharing adventures with them as well as interesting stories about simple living, love and friendship.
When the plane touched down at the Sibulan Airport, it took all the strength in me to restrain myself from jumping out of the airplane because the excitement in my heart was really overflowing. The moment that I finally breathe the fresh Negrense air, my heart gave me a tiny jolt and right there and then, I felt that I was finally home.
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I will post a series of my adventures in Oriental Negros for the next couple of days. I am not really good in writing so forgive my blog. T_T
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