It was the grandest view I've ever seen on my life. Over-looking the lakes and terrains, I climbed the summit of Mount Batulao ahead of my friends and companions. I was loosing breath yes, but it was all worth it...
The day before 14th of November, everything was normal. Saturday was fully booked. First schedule was Mark's bday in Cubao, but prior to that was the purchase of LCD TV. In the evening, went straight to Megamall with Sarah and Joan, bought Tribu Sandals, ate at Mann Hann and checked on various stores. It was indeed a packed saturday evening, like there was no mountain climb the following morning.
By five o'clock in the morning, I started fixing my things, and shortly after 30 minutes, already on my way to McDo Taft MRT Station, our meet up point, meeting an old friend Diana and Dennis, her partner; and Sarah, who unfortunately went to another McDonalds.
We dine-out the breakfast meal in the bus, and after several chats, dozed off.
After about an hour, we arrived in Batangas. The climate was so cool, giving you the Christmas Spirit. Few minutes later, we were being transferred by a tricycle to our trail's starting point.
What welcomed us was the picturesque view of Mount Batulao. I began visualizing the journey, and what awaits us there on the top. The trek was my very first, same for Sarah, so we were obviously filled with over-flowing excitement.
The journey was all walk in first one and a half hour, it was nothing challenging nor exciting, haha.
However, we felt or so they felt body aches on the old trail. We were climbing up and down the hills. At one point, you are facing down rocks and mud, holding on to anything, even the grass roots to hold your body safely.
Along the way, you learned to greet strangers, and wish them safety on their way back, and they reply the same too.
Funny isn't it, chatting with people you met first time in your life but I think that serves the purpose of one journey like this mountain climbing, you have to associate with many people, they will be your guide and contact sooner or later.
After passing several camp sites, the summit was already inviting us.
Thrilled by this momentous event, I did not notice I was like racing against the time, running instead of climbing. Carrying one bag on my back and Sarah's bag on my chest, I was embracing every rock and soil of the mountain to the summit. I was looking on my sides, I had no support from any, and I was already on a high elevation, any mistake and I might find myself on the bottom and possibly, San Pedro! hahaha.
For the first time in my life, I felt so energized, and very powerful. Why? It is because I didn't had a sleep that night, and I never had a single experience on mountain climbing, not even on wall climbing.
I was giggling inside while stretching my leg to climb up, every step counts. Sometimes, you have to grab on the tiniest rock just to keep on balance, and if lucky, you get to see a rope.
And there I was, loosing breath but still thankful, shouting on top of the mountain and fell in love with God's gift of nature to all of us.
When I got there, I remembered the movie ALIVE which I just saw recently. It was a story of courage and undying hope and will to survive. Crashing to Mount Andes with no chance of getting tracked from the outside, the survivors endured the freezing death of the icy mountains and the raging storms. No water, no food, who would have thought that these people can live for the next 70 days there?
What inspired me most from this movie is that in spite of tragedy and despair, no one can challenge a man's faith to live. The survivors were forced to eat the flesh of their dead friends, one of the highlights of the film- you don't eat, you die...
If I was climbing only Mount Batulao on a fine sunny day, the Andes Survivors were climbing mountains and mountains covered in ice, and life-threatening cliffs, and to top that, no maps or compass to guide them where to climb next in order to get to the borders of Chile.
My Batulao experience and this story of Andes Survivors should be a reflection for everyone, that no matter how hard things become for us, there will always be hope, just have faith. One of the most touching and awakening scenes from the movie is when the two climbers were atop the mountain, the other has surrendered all his might and hopes, but the second man was thanking God for such beauty he was seeing from the top, the scenery he might not even experience or see in his life if not for that tragic plane crash.
There will always be a ray of light even on the darkest times of our lives...
The day before 14th of November, everything was normal. Saturday was fully booked. First schedule was Mark's bday in Cubao, but prior to that was the purchase of LCD TV. In the evening, went straight to Megamall with Sarah and Joan, bought Tribu Sandals, ate at Mann Hann and checked on various stores. It was indeed a packed saturday evening, like there was no mountain climb the following morning.
By five o'clock in the morning, I started fixing my things, and shortly after 30 minutes, already on my way to McDo Taft MRT Station, our meet up point, meeting an old friend Diana and Dennis, her partner; and Sarah, who unfortunately went to another McDonalds.
We dine-out the breakfast meal in the bus, and after several chats, dozed off.
After about an hour, we arrived in Batangas. The climate was so cool, giving you the Christmas Spirit. Few minutes later, we were being transferred by a tricycle to our trail's starting point.
What welcomed us was the picturesque view of Mount Batulao. I began visualizing the journey, and what awaits us there on the top. The trek was my very first, same for Sarah, so we were obviously filled with over-flowing excitement.
The journey was all walk in first one and a half hour, it was nothing challenging nor exciting, haha.
However, we felt or so they felt body aches on the old trail. We were climbing up and down the hills. At one point, you are facing down rocks and mud, holding on to anything, even the grass roots to hold your body safely.
Along the way, you learned to greet strangers, and wish them safety on their way back, and they reply the same too.
Funny isn't it, chatting with people you met first time in your life but I think that serves the purpose of one journey like this mountain climbing, you have to associate with many people, they will be your guide and contact sooner or later.
After passing several camp sites, the summit was already inviting us.
Thrilled by this momentous event, I did not notice I was like racing against the time, running instead of climbing. Carrying one bag on my back and Sarah's bag on my chest, I was embracing every rock and soil of the mountain to the summit. I was looking on my sides, I had no support from any, and I was already on a high elevation, any mistake and I might find myself on the bottom and possibly, San Pedro! hahaha.
For the first time in my life, I felt so energized, and very powerful. Why? It is because I didn't had a sleep that night, and I never had a single experience on mountain climbing, not even on wall climbing.
I was giggling inside while stretching my leg to climb up, every step counts. Sometimes, you have to grab on the tiniest rock just to keep on balance, and if lucky, you get to see a rope.
And there I was, loosing breath but still thankful, shouting on top of the mountain and fell in love with God's gift of nature to all of us.
When I got there, I remembered the movie ALIVE which I just saw recently. It was a story of courage and undying hope and will to survive. Crashing to Mount Andes with no chance of getting tracked from the outside, the survivors endured the freezing death of the icy mountains and the raging storms. No water, no food, who would have thought that these people can live for the next 70 days there?
What inspired me most from this movie is that in spite of tragedy and despair, no one can challenge a man's faith to live. The survivors were forced to eat the flesh of their dead friends, one of the highlights of the film- you don't eat, you die...
If I was climbing only Mount Batulao on a fine sunny day, the Andes Survivors were climbing mountains and mountains covered in ice, and life-threatening cliffs, and to top that, no maps or compass to guide them where to climb next in order to get to the borders of Chile.
My Batulao experience and this story of Andes Survivors should be a reflection for everyone, that no matter how hard things become for us, there will always be hope, just have faith. One of the most touching and awakening scenes from the movie is when the two climbers were atop the mountain, the other has surrendered all his might and hopes, but the second man was thanking God for such beauty he was seeing from the top, the scenery he might not even experience or see in his life if not for that tragic plane crash.
There will always be a ray of light even on the darkest times of our lives...
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