Isang Sanaysay Tungkol sa Tsina

One thing I just realized -- tamad na ako mag-blog.

Tamad na naman, hehe. Pagalitan ako ni Bok nito eh. Tamad, tamad, puro na lang tamad. Tamad magluto, tamad maglaba, tamad lumabas, tamad mag shopping, tamad kumain. Hmmm, yung last one, di ata ako tinatamad gawin yun =)

So heto yung katamaran ko...magli-link na lang ako ng blog ng iba. Hehe.

Nag train kami ng mga kasama ko mula Hongkong hanggang Shanghai, Xitang, Xian at Beijing. Sira ulo ba kami, kamo? Hindi naman. Ayon sa kalkulasyon ng kasama kong si Lala, halos 79 na oras kami nasa loob ng tren. Tatlong araw at tatlong oras ng paglalakbay sa tren na malinis at efficient.

Nakakagulat nga, at medyo nakakalungkot din. Kasi heto na naman ako at ire-relate sa Pilipinas ang estado ng mga railway sa China. Kung yun lang ang basehan, naku, kaysaya maging komunista. Malinis at efficient ang railways nila, mula Hongkong hanggang Tibet hanggang Europa kayang ilakbay. Samantalang yung mula Maynila hanggang Bikol, di natin ma-maintain. Tsk tsk. Pati nga mga normal na bahay, yung hindi naman mukhang mayaman, ay may mga solar energy panels. Nakaka-impress!

Sige, ibalik na natin sa masasayang usapan.

So mula Hongkong, nag-tren kami patungong Shanghai. Overnight ang byahe sa tren, at masarap naman ang tulog ko dun. Pagdating sa Shanghai, malamig. Naglakad kami papuntang subway station, at nag subway patungo sa titirhan naming hostel. Naligaw pa kami, dahil malayo rin pala ang lalakarin mula subway hanggang hostel. Pero maganda yung hostel. May hot water. At may view sa roofdeck!

Susunod na kabanata...Xitang...

TODA and Manila Spirits

Some pics from Day 1 of the Manila Spirits 2006 Tournament.

This was a "how not to spend PHP 1500" lesson for me -- miss two games on the first day, and not attend the whole second day of the 2-day tournament. Grabe, nasulit ko talaga, haha. Anyway, during the last few minutes of our Day 1 games, when the team whipped out the offence and defense star lineup, I finally took out the camera and took some pics.

Jumping JC before a point

Jumping for the disc

And Jo gets the point!

Pics taken during the TODA vs. Monster game. For more info about the Manila Spirits Tournament 2006, click here. For more info about TODA, click here. More pics at Multiply.

Manila Spirits 2006

Some pictures from Manila Spirits 2006, held November 25-26, 2006 at the Alabang Country Club.

Syempre tamad akong mag picture, at nilabas ko lang yung camera nung last few minutes ng last game namin nung Saturday. And syempre din wala rin ako nung Sunday. Hay. O basta, ito mga pictures na nakuha ko. =)

The Great Wall Hike

A 4-hour hike from Jinshanling to the Simatai section of the Great Wall of China. This is a 12km hike along sections of the Great Wall.
** November 12, 2006
** the outskirts of Beijing, China

PYROS Medical Mission

Start:	Dec 16, '06 07:00a
End:	Dec 16, '06 12:00p
Location:	Manila Bay area, City of Manila

Philippine Youth Rowing Society

Medical and Dental Mission and gift giving

The Philippine Youth Rowing Society (PYROS) will be conducting a medical mission and gift giving activity on December 16, Saturday, at the Manila Bay area. Target recipients are poor families living in the area. Donations and other help will be greatly appreciated. Last year's medical mission pictures at the Team Pyros Multiply Site.

For donations or inquiries, you can contact any PYROS member, or drop me a note.

Merry Christmas!

Dried Fruits

Dried Fruit Vendor at Xian's Beiyuan Men Islamic Street (Xian, China)

In truth, I have never really seen this much dried fruit before. Dried apricots, dried cherry tomatoes, dried prunes, dried everything! They even had dried mangoes, which I didn't taste because I still believe Manila's mangoes are the best (home pride syempre!). The dried fruits I did taste were sweet. We even bought some dried cherry tomatoes to munch on. Yum!

Xitang - China's Water Town

Xitang is billed as China's version of Venice.

Similar to Suzhou, where waterways and canals are the distinguishing areas of interest, Xitang has waterways and canals that are very picture and painting-friendly. Consequently, a lot of artists thrive in the area. The narrow cobblestoned passageways are perfect for photo opportunities. When we were there, there were magazine photoshoots and even a newly wed couple having their picture taken on the bridge.

There are many local Chinese tourists here, and most of the houses on the canal-way have been converted into guesthouses, complete with the Chinese courtyard of course. The most famouse Western tourist is probably Tom Cruise -- he shot the finals scenes of MI3 in Xitang. There are framed pictures of him in the houses here.

One advice when going to Xitang -- make sure someone knows Chinese. Hardly anyone here speaks English.

Xitang is one hour away from Shanghai. From Shanghai, board a train going to Jiashan. At Jiashan, board a mini bus going to Xitang.

Which Way?

The journey started out with hope, and ended with the tale of the Harvard MBA and the fisherman. In our version, like the tale, the fisherman wins hands down. Why live to work when your end goal really is to sustain a relaxed life, taking siestas and enjoying drinks with friends?

So which way is the right way? Then again, the advantage of being older is realizing that there really is no right way, and it is up to your convictions to stand by your own decisions about your own life.

And the truth is, most of the time, I do enjoy what I'm doing.

It's just a struggle sometimes to fit that in with everyone's expectations, especially in a world that will judge you based on your so-called achievements. The joy of being proud of your work is tempered with the realization that sometimes those things do not matter, and oftentimes "talk" and "politics" will get you anywhere, faster. In my experience, nice guys finish last, but that doesn't mean you don't have to be nice. My end goal is not to finish first anyway. It's to finish with dignity. And to do it. My own way.

Shanghai in 2 days

A road trip to Shanghai and other parts of China
November 5 - 14, 2006
** lala, cath, jao, raycee, sym **

Akustrek 2006!

Tonight was UTREK's Akustrek Night -- a night when mountaineers and UTREK friends gather to drink beer and listen to acoustic (and non-acoustic) bands perform. And maybe even 'jam' themselves.

This year, Akustrek was held at One Sports Bar somewhere in Cubao -- #6 F. Castillo Street to be exact, near the Hi-Top Supermarket on Aurora Blvd. Bok and I arrived at a little past 9. By then, 2 bands had already performed their respective sets. There were some food and pica pica included with the ticket -- lumpiang shanghai, tasty fried chicken and pancit. 1 beer was included in the entrance ticket -- we eventually ordered some more. After a while, "Anonymous G" performed their set. The bassist of Anonymous G is one of the UTREK member's brothers. I liked their original songs (sort of punk rock), but Bok was bored. "Yun din kinanta nila last year eh," he said. Hehe, of course, di ko naaalala. There were also some games, hosted by the lovely Ms. Emily and Vangie. For more pictures, click here.

Discovery of the day: To be called a "sports bar", all you had to have were billiard tables. Wow.

Akustrek 2006

United Trekker's Club (UTREK)
November 4, 2006
One Sports Bar, F. Castillo Street near corner Aurora Blvd, Cubao

More pictures at Eric's site (http://ericdgrover.multiply.com/photos/album/43)

Another View

"Yet for me the first great joy of traveling is simply the luxury of leaving all my beliefs and certainties at home, and seeing everything I thought I knew in a different light, and from a crooked angle."

-- Pico Iyer, "Why We Travel"

Companion piece: Lala's Blog