One Night of Solitude

Every now then, we get to the point in our lives when we just have to stop, shut out the world and be only with ourselves; be it inside our own bedroom listening to music, or just having a random stroll wherever our feet take us.

These times of being alone make us think and even talk to ourselves, to listen to what our minds are trying to say; like a reality check. We might even start to laugh or possibly cry, or both. During these times, we're free; free from everything and free to do anything. Sometimes, we choose to be alone. While other times, being alone chooses us.

There are people who experience moments of "emptiness"; like there's a hole inside you or that feeling that you're hollow and that you just can't seem to be filled by anything at that very moment. You may find yourself wandering around, not knowing where your feet might take you. But just walking and not thinking about anything in particular, just some random thoughts; like constantly switching channels of a television.

Sometimes, we're able to figure out the reason why 'alone' chose us or why we chose to be alone. And sadly, sometimes we don't; we just snap out of this reverie and keep moving forward.

Solitude; a state or situation of being alone. A night of one can put you at ease or at times, make you even more anxious. Life has always been so complicated, but there are just times when everything seems too complex and we're left standing at crossroads, not knowing which path to choose and what action to do.

When we think about it, being alone doesn't necessarily mean that we're lonely. I believe that being alone is more of a choice of state or situation while being lonely is more of a feeling or emotion. Sometimes, it even takes more courage to be alone than to be with others. Unless of course, those others are trying to kill you.

Some people take this time of solitude to be able to step back and look at the bigger picture. Life is happening at all the corners of this circle world, and only a few people would stop brisk walking or running to cut lines in MRT in a hurry to go home, go out with friends, or go to school/work. For the few people who would actually slow down and try to take in details from their surroundings, the buildings, the people passing by, the trees, the sky... Sometimes, these are the people who are able to take pleasure in even the simplest, minutest details. At times, they can even be surprised; like seeing things for the very first time even though they've been passing that same street or corner for a very long time. This could be because they're the ones who would take time to appreciate these details' worth. For others who are always hurrying up to get to the next destination, they might find time to be exactly speeding up, matching their pace.

Every once in a while, we tend to have these nights of solitude. But instead of speeding up, take advantage of these moments and try slowing down. Maybe we'll see life around us, and it'll feel like everything else is also slowing down. After all, this is our one life, and it is ending one minute at a time.

By hurrying in life, not only do we fail to see the beautiful sceneries around us, but we also tend to lose sense of where we are going and the reason why.

Surviving the Howling Winds of Habagat

To say that 'the Hagupit (wrath) of Habagat was extreme' is an understatement. First of all, it's not even a storm to begin with. It refers to the southwest monsoon, a weather pattern that usually happens in the Philippines during the months of May to October. During this period, tropical storms usually lambast the country, which can result in up to heavy flooding in large areas of the Metro and small towns or cities in the provinces.

This year, the winds of Habagat got tangled up with the rains of a passing storm, Gener. The storm kind of enhanced the winds of Habagat through an upgrade, i.e. torrential rains. This resulted to a week's worth of classes gone, thousands of Filipinos evacuated from their homes, and a 3-day flooding of huge areas of Southern Luzon.

On the midday of the 6th of August, Monday, 2012, I received an infoblast from the CSC of UST saying that classes have been suspended effective by 12 NN. I was actually overjoyed, since I was really feeling lazy that time. But I totally didn't expect it as well to happen. I mean, never in my wildest dreams did I ever actually think that I'd get to experience such a number of suspension of duty hours during my internship year. It was crazy to begin with.

Nonetheless, instead of going back to UST, I headed straight home so that I can rest since I was feeling a little tired that day. During my jeepney ride enroute to Lacson, I suddenly felt the urge to go back to Tayuman and do some groceries. But since I was really feeling too lazy, I decided against it; a mistake which I just came to realize after the flood was about 4 inches from reaching our dorm's 1st floor.

Picture a chilly night when you're warmly tucked in your bed, with the electricity still on, meaning there's still internet, and everything was just perfect, except for the fact that your tummy aches because it's got nothing to eat since lunch time.

Being a person with a really big appetite, I was craving for food the moment I knew that it was the only necessity which was running out quicker than the downpour of the rain. The only stocks of food left on my drawer were noodles that needed cooking. Unfortunately, our gas run out the afternoon before the flooding began. Luckily, I had my dorm buddies with me during the storm. What we did was, we pooled all our resources together and we ate to our heart's content during the 1st night; a mistake that we only came to realize the day after when the rain would not stop pouring and the flood levels are still rising in most parts of the Metro.

It actually came to a point in time when we were all so hungry that we were trying to call McDonald's delivery and beg for them to deliver food to us. But we were turned down every single time.

We then decided to eat small portions of what was left of our resources during the 2nd day so that in case the rain would not stop until the middle of the week, we would still have some food to eat until it stops. However, during the third day, we were all so very hungry that we had to have my brother go out and brave the flooded streets of Espanya to buy food for us in the Trabajo market near our dorm.

This time around, we decided to pool a different kind of resource, money. We realized that we had plenty of them but that realization has also made us come to understand the saying:

After the last tree is cut, the last river is poisoned, and the last fish is caught, only then will man be able to realize that he cannot eat his money.

It was actually very fitting to this 3-day flooding experience. If I have experienced such during the lambast of Ondoy, I would not have had such very favorable conditions. Comparing my experience during the Ondoy onslaught, we had no food with us, no electricity, no water, no bathroom, we've nothing. I then realized how lucky I really was that my Habagat experience was not interchanged with that of Ondoy's. I was also very lucky to have my dorm buddies with me during this time because they were really resourceful; who would have known that 5 eggs, an onion, and 2 potatoes can actually fill 5 stomachs? It was amazing how man can problem solve at times when there seems to be no other choice but to do such.

I realized how this flooding was not very far to the storms that we experience within ourselves. I mean, we could have all of the characteristics/strengths/traits (the food me and my dorm buddies had), but if we fail to use these efficiently, we won't be able to outlast the storm, and we would die. If we had not these companions (my dorm buddies) to help us get through these storms, we may not last even for a single night. If we had not these blessings, then who are we?

It's just really a simple change in perspectives to see things in our lives differently... and maybe things would not seem too complicated as they seem. Life after all is already too complicated, why make it even more complicated? :)

Untill the next post!

- Keso

Universal Delights

Being somewhere for the first time could lead to some unexpected disappointments or even pleasant surprises. Expectation, after all, is the root of all disappointments. But the beauty of going to a place for the first time is that you have no other experience to compare it with. Meaning to say, anything great that would happen there would be the greatest yet and anything unpleasant will be the worst.

Day 3 at Singapore was a day of firsts. It was my first time to go to Universal Studios, let alone, go to such places with my friends rather than with my family. It's really great to go places and discover the world. And day three was all about just that. It was dedicated to Universal Studios at Sentosa, SG. We originally planned to go to Little India and China Town and continue our touring and shopping along that MRT line. But our group has been persuaded by other people to at least visit Sentosa now that we are at SG. So off we went to Sentosa.

I never really understood that Sentosa was actually Resorts World, which we also have here in the Philippines, up until my friends explained it to me. So anyway, we rode 2 MRTs to get to the Harbour Front station where the cable car to Sentosa was situated. There are numerous ways to get to Sentosa. For more details of directions to Sentosa, check out Get to Sentosa. We bought two-way tickets and rode a cable car to Sentosa.

View from the Cable Car to Sentosa

Resorts World Sentosa

It was my first time riding a cable car so I was really giddy with excitement when we began our short sky-high journey to Sentosa. What's even more exciting about the cable car was that it has transparent flooring so that you can get to enjoy the spectacular view a full 360 degrees vertically and horizontally. You can get to appreciate the SG's early morning horizon and the view of the Bay. It was amazing.

Once the cable car approaches the island, numerous hotels and private resorts will come into view. And these sights are gonna make you want to don a pair of swimsuits and jump in on those perfectly created blue pools. A little before the end of the cable car's track, you'll get to see the Hard Rock Cafe when you look to your left. Upon arrival, you'll first get to enter Sentosa's souvenir shop with lots of cool but quite expensive stuff.

What me and my friends first did was to look for the small maps of the island and get copies of each attraction's pamphlets.

Pamphlet hoarders

Then off we went to Universal Studios! We first had to pass a number of escalators and take photos with the Merlion, SENTOSA letters, and the Lake of Dreams.

Just past the Lake of Dreams and a little to the right is already the ticket booths of US. When we arrived, it was already jam-packed with a lot of people even though the stalls open at 10am and at that time it was only around 9:30am. The admission fees differ for each age group, and for peak and non-peak seasons. We paid $68 each since we're already within 13-64 years old, and it was a 1-day non-peak pass. That was roughly Php 2300. Check out Universal Studios Admission Fee for complete information.

Although US Sentosa's size is nothing compared to others abroad, it was still relatively large and had too many attractions for one day. So, since some of my friends already went to other US branches abroad, we get to plan out which attractions we were going to visit and the order of such visit. For a more detailed information on how US Sentosa looks like, check out Resorts World's interactive map at US Sentosa Map. 

First off, we went to try out the newest attraction, Transformers - The Ride at Sci-Fi City. It was a 3D ride. First of all, I didn't know that there was going to be a really really long line before you can actually get to ride the ride. Once inside, the really long lines actually made me think that what we were seeing was already the 'ride' because while waiting in line, you can get to hear Transformers characters conversing with each other, the walls are filled with LCD screens featuring different techy stuff, and at some parts of the line, there were articles or gadgets that you can take a photo with. It was fun once you get to ride the ride, although the pair of 3D glasses that I took was actually a little bit too loose for me that I needed to constantly reposition it and would have to secure it during the ride. But still, since it was my first ever ride, I'm gonna have to say that it was amazing. I never really outgrew that part of me who loves these kinds of things... rides, amusement parks, etc, I think no one really ever does.

Battlestar Galactica: Human (red) vs Cylon (blue)

Because we were all already too pumped with adrenaline, we decided to take on the Battlestar Galactica: HUMAN vs CYLON. But we had to take a detour and deposit our things to the paid lockers  to the left of the attraction since you're not allowed to have your bags, loose footwear, or accessories with you during the ride for safety purposes. We all rode the HUMAN ride and it was so much fun. Zooming at speeds of 82.8 km/h, the HUMAN Viper Mark II is a seated roller coaster that propels you 14 storeys into the air. But we couldn't get enough of the adrenaline rush, so 4 of us decided to take on the CYLON ride, which was insane! It was so much better than the HUMAN ride, being a suspended roller coaster that will turn your world upside down as it runs through a vertical loop, corkscrew and cobra roll. It was like one of the best 2 minutes of my life.

At around lunch time, we went to have our tummies full at Loui's NY Pizza Parlor, which is actually a well-known pizza parlor in the US. The pizza was heavenly, I can attest to that.

Lunch at Loui's NY Pizza Parlor

Photo looks familiar? :) Check out High Spirits - Yum.

After a hearty lunch, we went to check the Madagascar ride. It was a ride suitable for those in their early to middle childhood, but definitely not for someone like me. It was, how do I say this, okay. Nothing adrenaline-pumping about it, though it's as one of my friends said, "Pam-balance lang (something to balance things)."

 

After the Madagascar ride, we continued on to Far Far Away where we rode a mini-roller coaster all for the sake of one of my friend's idea of 'adrenaline rush'. In all fairness, the roller coaster was not disappointing at all. It actually turned out to be fun. Then we went inside the magnificent castle for a 3D show of Shrek.

The 3D show was more fun than the Madagascar, but maybe because I love Shrek more than those zoo animals, no offense meant though.

After the Shrek show, we hurried our asses off to Waterworld, where we were supposed to watch a play. But, since we got too engrossed with taking photos earlier, we were late and we had to wait for the next show, which was around 5pm I think. So we decided to just roam around and so we proceeded to the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure in the Lost World. It was so much fun! We were really scared at first and we were actually betting who would be the luckiest of us who will get really wet by the water after the ride. Fortunately for me, I was at the opposite part of the circular raft when it hit the water so very minimal damage was done to my clothes.

What's really cool after the ride is that there were drying cubicles, which you can pay to dry yourself off. But since we were on a tight budget, we decided against it, and just rode the Canopy Flyer, which actually played the same role as our "tipid (thrift)" dryer.

We continued on to Ancient Egypt where we decided to ride the Revenge of the Mummy. I'd have to say, it was pretty impressive and fun as well, even though it's an indoor ride. It's a testimony of how the dark can actually make your adrenaline go wild and pumping.

After the Mummy ride, we were all so sweaty and hot because it was a hot summer afternoon. So we decided to head to the loo in front of the Mummy ride and cool our faces with water. While waiting for the others, we took photos in front of a really huge electric fan and ate some snacks.

Team Shorts at Universal Studios SG

Freshening Up

We also went to buy souvenirs. I got two Universal Studios magnets for my parents' fridge. Then we went in line to have our photos taken with Po. When it was already time for the show in Waterworld, we hurried back to the Lost World.

It was actually a live sheltered action stunt spectacular, which was based on the film Waterworld. You'll witness a tidal wave of death-defying stunts, along with thrills and spills from real explosions of fire and water. It was a sensational live water show in which the seats are so arranged that those in front volunteer to get themselves wet with water by the actors themselves as part of their opening act before the start of the show. The opening act was actually very funny. I didn't know that watching other people get soaked with water could be this entertaining. Anyway, the actors themselves were superb and were very comedic, so thumbs up.

Inside Waterworld

Since it was already getting dark out, we decided to head back to MRT and straight to Clarke Quay, where we plan to eat dinner and maybe experience the night life of SG or perhaps a glimpse of it.

Leaving US SG

So we took a few last photos of Universal Studios' sights at night and had to be disappointed that we wouldn't be able to see the fireworks that night. Before we left, two of my friends each bought a drumstick of turkey, which were really delicious.

We also passed by Candyland just in front of the entrance of US to buy some stuff. The branches of the trees in front of the shop were full of candies that were too realistic for decorations and would make your mouth water. I bought candies for my cousins and chocolates for my parents and siblings. We also stopped by the Reese's shop just to take a look. We regretted such a decision since seeing the shop makes you want to buy the whole lot. If only I was rich. Need I say more about that?

Candyland facade

Reese's

On board the cable car again for the second and last time, we marveled at the beautiful sights of Sentosa at night.

Resorts World Sentosa at Night

We boarded MRT and headed to Clarke Quay. When we arrived, I was fascinated as to the night life of SG. It was a whole block of just pure party and booze. But we first headed towards the G-Max since my friends wanted to experience it.

G-Max Reverse Bungy

Up into the skyyyyy!

The G-Max Reverse Bungy is actually a 15-second ride in which you get to sit in a 3-person seater capsule and attached to both of its sides are two very strong cables. These cables are then stretched high up until they reach the top of the towers while the capsule is secured in the ground. The stretching of the cables build up potential energy, which would then be converted into kinetic energy as the capsule is detached from the ground. Imagine a huge slingshot and you're going to be the stone. But instead of being thrown out into doom, you're strapped tight and safe to a steel-reinforced capsule and hurled up to 60 meters upwards between two 36-meter towers at speeds reaching up to 200 km/h. WHEW. I could only imagine how much concentration of adrenaline would have been produced in a person's system during this 15-second ride.

Anyway, they say it was well-worth it. Although it was really short an experience to be bought for a relatively expensive price of 1500 (if you convert it into Philippine currency).

When the rush has subsided to the G-max'ers, we looked for a place to eat. But during that time, there was an event in Clarke Quay, the German Spring Festival, so that all of the bars and restaurants were teeming with beautifully-clothed people. It was booze night. So we didn't exactly have a choice but to eat at Subway. It was actually quite depressing since we thought we're gonna have a taste of SG night life and all. But no, there we were, good girls eating good ol' Subway meals. Good thing the servers were Filipinos, so they were kind enough to give us generous amount of servings for our meals.

Anyway, although we still didn't want to go home, since we were all too tired because of a whole-day's worth of walking, riding, taking photos, and pumping adrenaline all under the scorching heat of the sun, we decided that we should start making our way back to our hotel to rest. It was a good idea since we all had to pack our things and wake up early the next day because it was our last day in SG. It was one of those depressing moments when you get to feel the flutter of those butterflies in your stomach. And yet you dread that feeling because you know in your heart that you're never quite sure when you'll be back again. I hated those moments. But still, those were the inevitable; there was really nothing that we could ever do but to keep moving forward. I'll just have to keep these memories in my parietal lobes and keep them close to my heart. Maybe even dream of coming back. But of course, still tend to my affairs as a human being living in a world of change with people bound by time.

After all, it's just as Dumbledore once said to Harry in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone:

It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.

So, 'til my last post on Le Awesome Singapura - SG Day 4 Tell All. xo

- Keso

Relatively Short

Day 2 at Singapore couldn't have been any shorter. We spent the whole day having a taste of the fast-paced life at SG; touring around 3 institutions that provide OT services, commuting like a sir, and being fascinated at how OT ala Singapura is.

To save money, me and my friends ate breakfast at our room.

Breakfast (but not in bed) at V Hotel

Tipid Bfast at V Hotel

We first headed to the Institute of Mental Health, then proceeded to the KK Hospital and later to Nanyang Polytechnic. Read more about our journeys there at my post --- Occupational Therapy Ala Singapura.

What's cool about SG's MRT is that they have this 'reserved seating', which is really strictly implemented.

Reserved Seating

Checking out the photos

After the OT tour, we decided to head straight to the shopping capital of SG, Bugis Street. We first headed to Sim Lim Square where our friends bought 2 brand new iPads. The place was like the 'Greenhills' of SG; full of gadgets and other techy stuff for cheaper prices.

Then our group divided into pairs at Bugis where clothes and shoes abound. It's actually like the 'Divi' of SG. To much of my amazement, the clothes and shoes sold there are almost the same as those sold at Divisoria.

After around 2 hours of window shopping, our group met up at Bugis junction and took shots at the Bugis Square with our trophies, i.e. shopping bags.

Mela's Shopping Trophies

AC at Bugis Sq sign post

If you look closely enough at AC's pic, you'll see that a little to her left is a fastfood chain that I know everyone knows by heart, McDonald's.

Le Me and Mela

After taking some shots at the place, we all decided to feed our stomach and headed towards the food lane I think near Raffles Place.

Walking the streets of SG

There were so many choices. What's more is that the restaurants all have fun names.

Fat Bird SG

Porn's SG 1

Porn's SG 1

In these two pictures, we were actually making fun of AC since she deliberately pointed out how 'cute' was the name of the establishment behind her.

Street (full of) Food at SG

Unfortunately, we all decided that we don't want to spend 500 hundred pesos (if you convert from SG dollar) on a single meal. So we went back to the Bugis Square and settled to eat at Mos Burger.

Le Me and AC at Raffles

We were all new to the fastfood chain, so we trusted their menu and ordered their house specialty, which was a Yakimiku rice burger. We thought that it was a burger with rice. But when the order came, we were surprised with what we saw. It was really a burger made of rice. I mean, instead of having buns/bread, two cohesive buns of rice held a piece of lettuce and teriyaki beef in place.

Mos Burger

Yakimiku Rice Burger

A taste of Yakimiku Rice Burger

Since we were all persons-with-big-appetites, we initially thought that we will be disappointed because  the burger won't be able to satisfy our hunger. It didn't, but in all honesty, it tasted awesome. It just so happened that we wanted more because we were too hungry from all of the walking and commuting that we've been doing all day. Some of my friends even ordered a separate set of rice to compensate. But really though, it did taste great. After we've had dinner, we went back to V hotel to rest.

For me, our second day was actually relatively short-lived. I mean, we spent most of the day hurrying around from one institution to the next and at the end of the day, we were all so very tired. Everything felt like a blur since our style today was just 'come and go', literally. What it made me realize was how I didn't want my life to be just like that; just coming and going; just passing by. I want to have many of those moments in my life in which I get to stop and listen to the wind's whisper, appreciate the view, and take a really good look at it, smell the fresh air, and feel the cool breeze and warm sun on my skin. I don't want to live by my life so fast that in the end, I'll just feel tired and have a feeling of uncertainty; that feeling of whether or not I have lived at all.

"One does not simply live life in fast-forward. We have to live in the here and now, and not in the then and the will."

So, enough said about such sentiments, looking forward to SG day 3 tell-all!

Til then.

- Keso