I tried something new today. Yes, that's trail running in Timberland, San Mateo! I have Marco to thank for along with Mj, Zae, and Ave! :) Thanks to Marco who excitedly pioneered this for us. He was shooting us glimpses of the Timberland Trail and a list things to wear/bring to ensure we are equipped. The weather as of yesterday was no good. Heavy rains until early morning. There was even a mention of potential storm coming up. I reached home around 11PM after my 4 hour date with Ces. At that time, no one was home yet not even King since he has school overnight. I decided to sleep around 12:30AM. Mom flew back around 3AM which woke me up... then she wanted to chat a bit with me since she was out the entire week. Even though part of me wanted to sleep so I could wake up at 6AM, we chatted with my eyes closed. Haha. I covered quite a lot actually. By the time it was 5:55AM, my alarm rang and take note, it was still raining. The thought whether our Team Run was pushing through or not came to my mind. I reached out for my phone and saw a message from MJ saying that he and Zae are already on their way to Marco's. As much as I wanted to still sleep it out, I pushed myself to get up and get ready. We fetched Ave from RGPI and then we were all set. On our way to Timberland Trails, the rain was still intense coupled with a few flooded areas. But at the end of the day, we wanted to really hit off our running plans for the morning. We searched for "signs" whether we should just have breakfast together. Apart from the rains, there were no other signs of not pushing through. Guards per checkpoint let us through. In the end, we decided that the rain will not stop us. We did our trail running with Marco as our leader. He taught as Running 101 basic tips. We would pause for logical breaks to rehydrate or munch on energy food. I can't believe I survived a 7.5K Run-Walk-Walk-Walk-Run! Whew! The feeling was refreshing both during and after. My fellow runners were experts I'd say. We also got to witness views of mountains and trees along the trail plus a handful of folks biking. It was real muddy alright. We got real soaked but it was fun. Team was unanimous afterwards in conducting another future run when Mj's back from Bacolod. More than the run it was the good company which I appreciate. Imagine, an early Saturday morning when I'm normally in full sleeping mode turned productive! That was 2 hours. Around 500 calories burned. Woot. Watch out for our upcoming Ace Water Spa adventure! :) We obviously got a lot of stuff ahead of us.
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Checking out Mind Museum was my brother's idea. Imagine, he was willing to go there for the second time. :) It was just nice to know we have something like this in the Philippines today. Some would argue it's small and incomplete but let's give it some time since it's still at its first phase for now. More or less the tour can be done in 3 hours or less. There are some interesting segments but there's still a lot of opportunities for it. Check out the photos I took and my video compilation! =) GIA went on a date with nature at the La Mesa Eco Park. For a change, we decided to do an activity in relation to sustainability. The friendly staff gave us environmental awareness talks to kick off our tree planting session. A total of 50 trees was the target for the day. We had black plastic bags to fill soil with and then we had to pinch the edges to give the soil pack foundation. We then inserted the green plant into the soil making sure it was well compressed to allow the plant to stand straight up. We took a tour around the park exploring different tree types - famous one was the Balete! We ate a real treat at Shakey's from 3 variants of spaghetti, chicken, mojos, pizza, and some ice cream temptation! We felt real sleepy by the time we were full! hahaha! We headed back for a more action packed afternoon... also to burn what we had feasted on! Extreme wall climbing to strategic paintball blasting in the greens! We got to keep our adoption certificate plus our Starbucks GC as token. We headed home exhausted but happy at the same time given the great company and being able to take the R! Thanks Org Culture! Great Work! :) Thanks King for our group shots! :)
There goes my last offsite with the wonderful folks of AIA! We left early Wednesday on Feb 8, 2012 to head for our respective airport assignments. Despite the inevitable flight delay, that definitely didn't stop the fun from heading our way. When we touched down Palawan, we finally got reunited with the rest of the GIA-ers who took other flights. It was a 30 minute bus ride to the pier for us. This was followed by an intense 1 hour boat ride! I am grateful for good weather. Thanks to Serc, I survived! After glimpses of the countries virgin islands and the great vastness which surrounded us, we finally spotted our destination - Dos Palmas Island Resort. We were greeted with the friendly folks riding their kayaks. They were throwing pink orchid petals towards our direction. The background was filled with sounds and beats coming from the tribal gongs and other island instruments. We had a scrumptious seafood buffet waiting for us every meal which everyone enjoyed. We first nailed the learning pieces in the conference room. Then the intense competitive spirit already sparked among the 3 tribes even with just the indoor activities. It was a challenge between Team Samburu, Team Boganda, and of course Team Waka-Waka! We had to prepare for our performances for the Socials Night. We were greatly entertained by Chams & Ayo, our hosts. We ended the night lighting up and releasing 12 chinese lanterns up to the sky which contained our commitments, celebrations, and sentiments of gratitude. Some of which got stuck but hey it's the thought that matters! A night of drinks and fun awaited us until past midnight! Happy we got to celebrate Willah's Birthday!!! :)
Day 2 was loaded with a very pack agenda! The tribes raced around the island to deliver one challenge after another. From physical to mental. Lifting coconuts, kayak challenges, and even testing how well we mastered our brands and variants! Teams did the craziest things given their passion for winning. Hahaha! Extra proud to be part of the winning team -- Waka-Waka! Great teamwork and strategizing guys! After all the fun and games, AIA headed for island hopping to Puting Buhangin for an awesome lunch picnic. The view was simply scenic. The team even headed for the beach to splash around and get wet. The rest of the time was devoted for specific AO-Agendas. It was always good learning for us. By late afternoon we took a break and rode the speed boat towards a floating hut for some snorkeling fun! Buffet dinner awaited us. The word sleep was forgotten since folks went for night swimming, karaoke, drinks, billiards, table tennis, and bonding. Before I end, I have to shout out! Thanks AIA for the superb company! Props to Org Culture for all the hard work & preparation which exceeded expectations! Special thanks too for the accommodating Dos Palmas staff for making it an enjoyable 2 day getaway for AIA! :D After sketching up this place recommended by Saez for already 3 months back, I finally got to visit and feast on good sashimi thanks to Irvin's drive one random Tuesday! :) We had parking and arrived at 11:30 AM! We got our room reserved thanks to Joyce! :) We had to take off our shoes for an authentic Japanese feel. It was good bonding time. Check out our P350 bento boxes which got me full. :) We promised ourselves to go back. I'm going for the Sukiyaki Bento since the boys seemed to have loved their orders! :)
My cousin and brother thought of taking me to witness Anvaya Cove as a birthday present. Guess what, they really gave me that roadtrip one Sunday which was indeed such a great sight to see! Thanks guys! You rock! :)
Just a year ago, my family headed for the North to check out the Bangui Windmills which really rocked! Those white windmills served as source of electricity for Ilocos. Beaches were beautiful as well!
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Welcome!All about the traveling Queen who wanted to share with the world the little and great discoveries that have brought her joy.
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