Beautiful in Bicol

It’s a BEAUTIFUL day here in Libmanan, Bicol. I was joking before I left that 2006 would be the year I get two summers. Today, that comment becomes reality. It’s got to be about mid-80’s today with plenty of sunshine and blue skies.
Before I go on I need to emphasize that the Philippines’ baseline desciptor [...]

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One week down. Nine more to go.

It took me about seven days to get over my jet lag. I’ve seen something amazing here everyday since I got here. We went to go to Corregidor. That was my first daytrip. Too much war talk. They pretty much kept you on the prescribed tour. You couldn’t really wander around on your own unless [...]

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Santos comes… I go.

Santos (Jun) got home this morning from his week in Las Vegas / California. While it’s habit to always think of his welfare (especially now that I’m going for such a long time) I’m not as worried about leaving him as I would be if I did this say several years ago. Maybe it’s because [...]

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Three hours from boarding.

I just checked in my luggage. Before that I went to the gym. (It’s amazing how many pounds you can put on over the holidays.) While waiting in the line to check-in luggage I heard some of the older folks speaking Tagalog. I’ve found in my adult years that hearing Tagalog makes me smile. Not [...]

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Less than a day now.

This is an incredibly odd feeling. I’ve got nothing to compare this to. I’m leaving the country to do something I’ve always wished for. Now that I’m on the cusp of this trip I find that I’m experiencing a combination of emotions that I’ve never felt. I’m almost speechless.

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Not much time left…

Went to the ‘Hawks game tonight with Bill, Mike, Wendy, & friends. It was hard to watch the game with so much to do so I left after the first period. Many loose ends to take care of over the next two days.
I got a couple of emails from people wishing me [...]

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Three days before I leave

Had my going away party last night. It was nice to see everyone one last time. I’ve come to realize that 10 weeks will go by very quickly.
As it turns out yesterday was my last day at work because I decided to call in today. On the one hand it would’ve been nice to come [...]

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Five Days Left

Time to focus. The priority for this trip is to be able to navigate independently (i.e., on my own) around Libmanan and Naga in Bicol. To that end I decided it would behoove me to purchase a scooter. The Honda Wave 125 looks to suit my needs quite nicely. It should run me about $575.
I’d [...]

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Six days to go.

Six days left before I leave. Two more working days. Send-off party day after tomorrow. I’m hoping to see a lot of people there.
I can’t believe I’m actually doing this. Got cold feet about the trip over the weekend but a good friend “talked me off the ledge.” Thanks Marji.
I haven’t really started packing [...]

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