MDP Travelogue III: Punta Fuego Day 1

To cap off the grueling management training we had for 6 months, all 39 of us were treated to a 3days/2nights stay at Club Punta Fuego with a side trip at Terrazas Punta Fuego. Our journey started two Saturdays ago, Sept. 22, 2007. Our class gathered in the office as early as 6:30 am. And in an hour, the gang was already on its way to Nasugbu, Batangas. Everyone was excited as we anticipated what was in store for us. We heard that this trip had a P400k ++ budget and of course, we couldn’t be any happier. Since many of us just finished submitting our business cases the day before, the long drive down south was a perfect escape from all the sleepless nights we’ve had during the last few days of the training program. 

 ”Sakay na!”

In two hours or so, we thought we’ve already arrived at our destination when we were awaken by the stopping of the bus. Lo and behold, we stopped over at Taal Vista, which is also an affiliate of Punta Fuego. I’ve been there before but thiswas the first time I saw this place covered with fog. It was soooo cold! You’d think we were in Baguio! Of course, we all went down to take a look around and enjoy the place in the company of newfound friends. 

Just before lunch, we arrived at the function hall of Club Punta Fuego where we took our lunch. The view of the rocky shore down below and the outline of mountains from afar were breathtaking! Although it wasn’t quite the picture I had in mind,  it was spectacular nonetheless.

We then had our bags taken by the concierge to our respective rooms (which we didn’t see until later that evening, after dinner) and then lunch was served…

Dishes were standard hotel food. They’re not that spectacular… just the usual salad, soup, fish, pork, rice and dessert.  But since we were all hungry, pwede ne rin. Teehee.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in this one unique activity where we all had to pretend that a dinosaur was after us (for motivation purposes) and the only way for each of us to escape death was to cross this hole without touching its edges, one by one, lest we become fried dinner for the huge reptile due to electrocution. It seemed quite impossible at first, but with Dojie’s leadership, Jason’s assistance, Reji’s, Cecil’s, Lai’s and Alma’s flexibility,  the brilliant minds of Belen, Maricel & Ireen and the strength of Chubby, Michelle, Lloyd, Cas, Jason, Edwin, Dexter, Gene, Deity and the rest of the boys, and without the cooperation of everyone, we wouldn’t have passed this complicated physical and mental test (after 4 hours or so). Whew!!! So imagine how ecstatic we were when the last person got in the hole successfully! To think that we could’ve stayed there forever until we figure out the whole thing. 

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Busy, Busy, Busy

MDP (Management Development Program) is finally over. After 6 long  grueling months (March 19 - Sept. 26, 2007) of leadership training, we'll be graduating (on October 12 tentatively). Anyway, I've been busy  with a special project at work since I got back from Punta Fuego (which I'll be blogging about real soon, I promise… Punta Fuego, I mean… not work, yuck!). Aside from work, my new car, our future travel plans and gimmicks with friends,  I've been so excited about our lanai. It's now finished although there are still some finishing touches I'd like to do. Actually, as I am typing this, Michelle and I are waiting for Vina and Francis to drop by and spend some time with us hanging out at our new house bar. Hehehe. Here's its current look:

 
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Happy Weekend Everyone!

In an hour, I'll be preparing to leave for Punta Fuego. Peter won't be coming with me and I'll miss him so. We haven't really spent a lot of time the last few days since he's always coming home late from work. Anyway, later in the morning, he'll be going to Toyota Alabang to get Zach (my Yaris) and test drive it as I spend a long weekend with my MDP (Management Development Program) classmates, consultants and administrators. Hopefully, I get to drive it too as soon as I finish a driving course with A-1. This would mean more money to be spent therefore, lesser money allotted for gimmicks (which is fine by me). We've already actually practiced doing a "home gimmick" where Peter prepares his gourmet food ala carte and toast to Infinite (a new drink ala Vodka Cruiser by San Miguel). It's a cheap date, yes. But the food's scrumptious, the venue (our home) is cozy and we can do whatever we want before, during and after. Hehehe. No more traffic, no more difficulty finding parking, no more extra expenses. So, cheers to a good life and happy weekend ahead!

MDP Team Travelogue II: Naga, Camarines Sur

The Human Walrus & The Sexy Nomad are back!!! It’s been a long while since they last traveled together…

When we did our Bicol Tour, I told myself that never again shall I travel the same road unless we take the plane going to Donsol to go swimming with the butandings. It’s just that the roads were so circuitous and Peter really made Rave (our Revo) fly that my heart went out the window and I had instant heart attacks every few kilometers!  But as the cliche goes… "Never say never".

 After 6 long hours on the road, we finally made it to Michelle’s house…

And a huge table of breakfast was waiting for us! Yipee!
 

Last weekend, September 15-16, 2007, Michelle invited our MDP (Management Development program) team to come to their hometown in Naga and witness the devotees’ celebration of the Feast of Nuestra Señora de Peñafrancia as they celebrate its 297th year. Despite the rainy weather and the fact that we still haven’t submitted our final thesis for MDP, we decided to go (Jason, Belen, Michelle and her cousin Gener, myself and sore eyed Peter). Reji didn’t go with us for fear that he might not have enough time to finish his paper (nerd!). Peter had reservations since we’d be stuck inside the Hi-Ace for a couple of hours and we might get sore eyes too. But Michelle didn’t want to hear any of it. She’s such a Momma and she wants all her kids to go! Period. And so we did (This is also the reason why we missed seeing Avenue Q, that day, huhuhu. We hope to get tickets for another Saturday though.), with Peter donning his shades the whole time. Oh,  all expenses are already paid by the way. Thanks to Momma Mich.

A little videoke time before heading to the procession by the river…
 

 The extrovert in Peter took over…He easily made friends with Michelle’s relatives despite his sore eyes… 
 

As I was saying, despite the bad weather,  hundreds, or maybe even thousands of devotees flocked to the religious image of Our Lady of Peñafrancia during the annual procession from the Peñafrancia Basilica to the Naga Cathedral in Naga City on Sept. 15, 2007, signaling the start of nine days of prayers. This is not your usual Quiapo type of procession where people risk their lives being squashed amidst the multitude of devotees… they risk their lives getting drowned along the river where a lot of bangkas filled with people, line up , one after another , pulling each other forward until  they get to deliver the so-called rebulto in its proper destination and in one piece.   The massive procession which dates back to 1885 is a way of thanksgiving for what the devotees believed to be the miraculous power of Our Lady of Peñafrancia which traces its roots to the town of Peñafrancia in Spain.
 

We hung out in Dak’s (Michelle’s friend from Ateneo batch 2000) ancestral house as we were waiting for the fluvial parade which can be seen from their backyard…

I want me some of these native ornaments too!

More food was served as we wait for the procession…

~~~oOo~~~ 

Footage of the actual fluvial parade

This is the view from Dak’s backyard. Nice huh?

~~~oOo~~~

Speaking of miracles, Michelle’s elder sister told us a story quite the contrary. Years ago, a day before Martial Law was declared during the time of Ferdinand Marcos, the old bridge where the procession was held, collapsed, as well as its cable wires, drowning and electrocuting a thousand devotees. They believed that  it could have been a foreshadowing of what was about to come. True enough, the very next day, Martial  Law was declared and our country was never the same again. Freaky huh? I wonder if that happened on a Friday the 13th? Hehehe.

L-R: Jason, Belen, Me, Michelle, Daks
 

Moreover, a couple of years back, as they were celebrating this annual festival, the statue of Our Lady of Peñafrancia got stripped off of its clothes due to the rowdy crowd of devotees gathered around it. It took several priests, each taking his turn, to cover the image of the Lady until they reached Naga Cathedral. Two months afterwards, the very same spot of the procession got flooded and a lot of people died, lost their livestock and source of living. They believed that this was the Lady’s way of punishing them for such a failed feast. Whatever it was, Our Lady of Peñafrancia does have its mysterious quirks. We’re just happy to have arrived home safely and in one piece considering that our driver for that trip drove pretty fast.

The NAGA CATHEDRAL 

 
Anyway, after the procession, we all headed to Naga Cathedral on foot since it was so traffic and it was so difficult to hail a tricycle. The walk took around 5-10 minutes I think, after which, we still managed to take pictures of the majestic church as my group mates heard mass (Peter and I are agnostic that way). Then after an hour, we all headed to our inn, took a shower and changed clothes before heading back to Michelle’s house  for dinner. Everyone feasted on stuffed crabs. I told them to take it easy but they were so stubborn. So you know what happened next? Peter had indigestion, Jason’s cholesterol rose, Belen couldn’t breathe due to her allergic reaction to crabs so I made her eat tons of chocolates, and Michelle was…actually, she was pretty ok. Hehehe. We were supposed to watch old Murphy Brown DVDs all evening. But after we had a few rounds of beer and and wine, we called it a night.

 
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Oh My Yaris

Last Thursday, September 13, 2007, I paid the down payment of my Yaris which amounted to around P170,000 inclusive of LTO registration and insurance. It's so surreal for me. I didn't feel any excitement or anything beyond neutral for that matter. It was just like any ordinary thing like eating and sleeping. Weird… When I processed it, I guess I was just protecting myself from being too attached to it this early. After all, it's on loan and God only knows if we can really complete the purchase of my new baby in five years. I hope so. I think we can manage.

So anyway, we opted to have it parked in Toyota Alabang first until we can get its new plate number on Sept. 29. Besides, I figured I'd be very busy with my final thesis paper (which I just printed by the way), house renovations, and some weekend travels  I needed to make.   

Here's some pictures we took with my Yaris. Peter said that perhaps, this is still not so real to me since it's not yet parked at home, I still haven't driven it, and most importantly, I still haven't taken so many pictures of it. So maybe, these couple of shots will help me feel more excited about it.

She's sooooo cute!!! Now, I really need to learn how to drive again. It's been five years since I last drove one! Aaaaaarrrrggghhhh! I'm sooo scared!!!