marecollantes-blog

[marecollantes-blog]

Sunset // Twilight

Back in November, I desperately needed to be pulled out of a rut.

Usually going outdoors helps me out in that. So when we were in Hong Kong for 8 days, I decided to push for the climb I had been wishing to do since February. Thanks to Kristine's willingness to go with my crazy plan and the Pandas' support (in spirit), everything was immediately put into action. I narrowed it down to Sunset Peak in Lantau.

I wasn't really confident - to be honest. I didn't know if there was going to be telco signal (what if I didn't have Google to consult and we got lost?) or if there were going to be people I could follow (what if we couldn’t find th ?) or if I really had my bearings enough to get back in one piece (what if I lost Kristine?!).

Although things started quite roughly (we couldn't find the bus, I ran out of data allowance, and no one understood our questions about directions at first), we finally got to the right stop. It was my first cold hike, and it was really, really, really - for the lack of a better word - fun.

Just like it said on the blogs, the bus brought us to Pak Kung Au and it clearly pointed us to where we needed to go. We alighted right by the highway. Just a few steps up, this was already the view that greeted us.

The trail was mainly made up of steps, so it wasn't very hard to climb. The wind was really cold though, and it was my first time to do a cold hike!

It was also at this point that I realized that there would be no sunset for us that day - the day was just too hazy for it. Not really disappointed though, the blueness and calmness of everything was a welcome change from my past climbs back at home.

According to a road sign, it would take the same amount of time to take the remaining trail to Nam Shan and to go back the way we came. We decided on going back because it was getting dark - it was better to go with the more familiar trail.

There was an otherworldy feeling that came with seeing the mountains blanketed in fog. I could feel the dew in my hair and my jacket. I could hear nothing but silence. It was a comforting strangeness.

And it was exactly what I needed.

NOTES ABOUT THIS TRIP!

The bus to the jump off is not exactly at the Tung Chung bus station area. You have to go out of the bus parking lot, and there's another bus station across the street.

I misunderstood all the blogs. I thought Pak Kung Au was the starting point of the trail while Nam Shan was the middle section going to Ngong Ping. Apparently, you could go from Pak Kung Au to Ngong Pin - which is the real trail that I wanted to do. Next time.

The trail is like climbing a never ending set of stairs. The recorded difficulty level is low, but I think it will really depend on how much leg power you have. They said that it takes a little less than 2hrs to midpoint, but it took us around 3 hrs - accounting for photo and rest stops. 

All photos of me in this set were taken by Kristine!

[marecollantes-blog]

I’ll be honest - I’ve been quite scared lately.

I’m scared that one day, I’ll wake up and there’s no more freedom to fight for. I’m scared that one day, I’ll wake up and regret that I never tried to fight for our history to make sure that it will never repeat itself. I’m scared that one day, I’ll fall out of love for this beautiful country of ours that I call home because it’s going to be so bitter, so fearful, so out of life. I’m scared because I love the Philippines so much, it hurts. 

Everyday, I try to conquer that fear. Earlier this week, I heard one thing that still reverberates in my soul: Mercy comes hand in hand with justice. Forgiveness doesn’t mean that we take have to swallow the crap hurled at us, it also comes with a responsibility of making sure that injustice doesn’t happen again. I quote one of the signs that were held up last November 30: “I’m doing this for the children I haven’t had.”

The change starts with you and me. Kung hindi tayo ang maninindigan, sino pa?

[marecollantes-blog]

Taipei, Taiwan December 2014

This was one of the unexpected trips of that year. I went with a friend’s (big) family and flew out between Christmas and the New Year, and it was a very interesting experience - to say the least. It was cold and rainy, and very sweater weather-y. We spent most of our time riding in a tour bus, jumping from place to place. But one of my favorite moments was when we took a stroll around the heart of the city on our last evening. I remember how the the moon shone above Taipei 101, the goosebumps we felt as the cold seeped through our jackets, and that bittersweet feeling of leaving another year behind. 

[marecollantes-blog]

Anawangin Cove San Antonio, Zambales July 2016

Seeing Anawangin without any campers was quite strange. The silence was a little disconcerting at first, but I easily got mesmerized by how beautiful the cove looked veiled in mist. 

[marecollantes-blog]

Lantau in rose-tinted glasses.

The first time I went was during the summer, and everything was bright, sunny, and hot. This time though, it was about 13 degrees out and the skies threatened of rain. It was a quiet afternoon, and we arrived just about when people were starting to go home - which is apparently the perfect time to wander about.