Enchanted Date at Casa San Pablo

Friends and relatives of my wife were waiting for a grand celebration of our 25th wedding anniversary yet we both disappeared on that date.

In the last few months, my friends were talking about Viaje Del Sol, shinning spots of Calabazon now being promoting for the local tourism. Most of the destinations shown on the map of Viaje Del Sol are located in San Pablo City, about half an hour driving from my place.

I was looking for a place where my wife and I could celebrate our silver wedding anniversary. We didn’t intend to invite any guest, so we could celebrate privately this remarkable date of our marriage. One month ago, I called Mr. Boots Alcantara, the owner of Casa San Pablo for details. Before I could make up my mind, he replied welcoming me to visit the place. Without any question, I paid the full amount for reservation, confirming we would celebrate our anniversary at this cozy country inn.

Weeks passed and I have almost forgotten this important date, until my wife told me to prepare my clothes for the next day. Rain was pouring in the evening and I was praying for a blessed sunny day on the next morning.

After I parked my car, a security guard guided us to the reception. Although we have come earlier than the check-in time, the receptionist told us the room was already prepared. The waiter, assigned to serve us during our stay, led us to a bungalow beside a sandy path and unlocked the sliding glass door for us.



Our bungalow was called “The Paintings Room”. An impressive oil painting of an old winkle-faced mountain tribesman attracted my sight. Stepping closer, I could touch his folded tough skin in this realistic painting. Below the oil painting was a queen size bed. I was worrying whether the large frame was securely fastened, otherwise I might not be able to sleep well underneath. Beside the bed were sliding glass doors opened for the garden, a tiny round table was at the corner with a glass vase full of big white flowers that looked like roses – sweet and fragrant.



Through the clear glasses, we could see lounging chairs all over the sprawling lawn, and the clusters of flowers planted along the path. Looking farther, there was the large mansion of the owner of the resort. Bathroom and toilet were neat; furthermore water heater was available, the most important thing for my wife.



The resort’s restaurant was not far from a rivulet. Walked over a bridge to the other side, there was a swimming pool filled with spring water, surrounded by hundred years old trees. The singing cicadas seemed telling people that it was a hot summer day. Although we were the only guests on that date, buffet was still being served with three different dishes and a large bowl of rice. The waiter was standing behind the table, waiting to be called. We felt that we were being treated like VIPs who had booked the whole restaurant.

It was still raining after we had our lunch. The waiter lent us an umbrella and we decided to wander around the whole resort. Rain drops had refreshed and brightened the color of the lawn with fallen red petals decorating over the whole garden. The pine grove behind the mansion scented the air reminding me of Baguio City. Beneath the trees, we stood for minutes hoping to see a squirrel as there was none.




After our candle light dinner in the evening, a bottle of white wine in an ice bucket was waiting for us. “A compliment of the owner” announced the greeting card placed beside the wine. Lighted candles further added to the romantic ambience for our special day.

Rain shower earlier in the evening spoiled our plan to lie on the lawn waiting a meteor to make a wish. My wife was not able to sleep for she was accustomed to fall asleep with a TV switched on but there wasn’t any. Night in the garden was not silent as cicadas were still singing out loud and soft alternatively. After turning off the light, I was imagining that we were lying on lawn, serenaded by the orchestra of croaking frogs and humming insects. What an enchanted evening.

A Letter of Easter Holiday

Dear Uncle,
How are you and your family during Easter holiday? We have been to Infanta in Quezon province, one of the places that had been hit by typhoons from November to December in the year of 2004. Sixteen months have past already yet many places along the route towards Real, Quezon province remain damaged. People were surprised to see a brand new car appeared in their place, they might think only a stupid driver would drive his new car on such a bad conditioned rough road. I would definitely not choose Infanta as the place to spend our holiday if I had given the right information.


My kumpare told me that the road was good. However, I had forgotten that he had only a poor old jeep, which was used to run almost on any tough rocky track in the place that he lived. In fact, he considered any road which his jeep could drive on was in good condition. Bridges along the route were destroyed in the disaster. Months have gone, yet no sign was showed that damaged bridges would be repaired or reconstructed soon in the future, even they were the links between rivers. However, there were simple structures made of steel and wood between two banks. For safety reason, only a single direction of traffic at a time was allowed.



The weather was fine in the last few days, sunny with moderately cloudy. The view was still beautiful in Infanta with comfortable green water under the deep blue horizon of Pacific Ocean. The beach was changed a lot by the disaster since we were there five years ago. Huge logs, few of them over a meter in diameter were stranded there. As they were too big to be removed, people just have them sawed right on the spot when they needed materials. What a waste of wood when I saw some local tourists burnt a big log just for barbecue purpose.
Something is interesting. I wanted to write something about woods that I had seen on the beach of Infanta, while I was opening the e-book of poems that you’ve sent me. The first sentence of the poem of "Be the Best of Whatever You Are" was written,
If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill
Be a scrub in the valley…
Regards to your family.
Norton

Misleading

There was no reason for me to dine in a Japanese buffet restaurant any more after I had found how they had treated their customers. (Please refer to my older blog)

My staffs reminded me for I didn’t invite them to celebrate my birthday, which is also the anniversary of our shop. They had also hinted that they would like to dine in the Japanese buffet restaurant again for the unlimited foods and drinks. As their wish, I gave them the delayed invitation.

I was coming from Manila with my wife while they were traveling from our place to Alabang by the van that I had rent for them. They were leaded by my son who knew where the restaurant is located.

We were late because of the traffic congestion; when we have joined them, I saw the long table which they had occupied was decorated with colorful stuff toys; it reminded me immediately about the incident in last year. I then asked my son if he knew anything about the stuff toys. He told me that he did ask if the toys would be charged but the waiter replied to him that all toys came together with the drinks. Obviously, they were misleading the customers to thinking that all toys were free of change.

The manager and the waiter were called to clarify about the situation of the toys in front of me for I would be the one who pay the bill. They were saying the same story that the toys were came with the drinks, insisted that more drinks would get more toys. I was told since we had ordered bottomless ice-tea, then we could get one toy per drink only, unlike the other table beside us (the manger pointed at the table for me), they had ordered different drinks, and so they kept getting toys again. The manager and waiter were seems challenging me to order more drinks. However, they didn’t know they were making a big mistake for I was going to uncover their tracks.

I stood up to give attention to the customers next to our table, asking the manager for the price of the bottomless ice-tea. The answer was 145 pesos each; his voice was loud enough to reach the other table. His voice was suddenly got stuck when he realized that I was waiting for his answer about the price of the ice-tea alone without any stuff toys. I challenged him to tell the truth as the other table might get interested to know about the answer.

All the guests were surprised with the price when they knew the answer was 70 only, meant that the toys were charged 75 each without telling the customers anything about the details. In fact, this was an old story that I had approached in last year but I didn’t tell the staffs of the restaurant and the customers beside us. I let the manager took the toys away. Likewise, the other table also returned all the toys, but they had to return more as they had ordered more drinks.

The host of the next table toasted to me before they had left. It was lucky for the restaurant for they let us be seated in the room which was separated from the main hall, otherwise, the quantity of the returning stuff toys might be disastrous.

Website of psychopaths

This was what I had seen in the first picture while the second one was downloading: A woman was holding a kitten in her hands tenderly, seems to show how she cares about this little lovely animal.

I was browsing on a Chinese news website yesterday. A terribly and disgusting news topic had caught my eyes, which indicated a young beautiful woman had killed a kitten with her “high heeled shoes”. I then clicked the link to see more details. Surprisingly, thousands of messages had already been posted there to denounce against the evil woman who did the bloody crime.

My heart was beating faster and I could feel my blood flow was giving more pressure to its vessels while I was waiting the second picture to be downloaded. The poor little kitten was put under a pairs of high heeled shoes in the second picture, showing that the kitten was yelling for help. One of a spike heel was already stabbed into one eye of a dead kitten with its fur blooded in the third picture. And there was the fourth picture that I don’t want to describe anymore. Obviously, all pictures were surely taken by a cold blooded psycho.

Messages of the news forum were posted asking all the browsers should post messages to flood the psychopathic site, making the server overloaded until it closes down; one of the browsers even give a reward for 10,000 RMB regarding his/her anger to hunt the woman who killed the kitten.

What's wrong with the people nowadays, killing innocents just for fun? When I recall the pictures in my mind, my stomach is still going twisted.

Chinese Herbs

Chinese Herbs

A stranger called on me for I am a Chinese. With his charming smile, he asked me if I want to buy a fresh "gall bladder".

"What should I use a gall bladder for?" I was wondering about his offer.

"It is a very good material to use as Chinese medicine.” He said.

"No, I am sorry, I am a Chinese businessman but not a Chinese traditional herbalist," I said.

He insisted I have to take a look for it was "real good for health". I reminded him for most Chinese medicines were dried materials, even the gall bladder should not be used a fresh one. Sometimes people may swallow a fresh gall bladder of a snake with Chinese rice wine but to use a big gall bladder from cattle was incredible. Although I was not interested, he still took out a fresh gall bladder from an ice-box, I saw the open of the gall bladder was fastened by a nylon string.

"Can you tell me how to use it?"

"Well,,,just cook the whole set of gall bladder!"

"What? Just cook it! As you have said it is good for health, how about I cook it and you drink it? If it is good for Chinese, so it does the same for Pinoy." My temper was getting hot.

"......" he was quiet.

"Do you know the bile of it is toxic?" (Actually, I don't know about the toxic exactly.) But in fact, he was selling something that he knew nothing about.
When I found my speaking was too strict to listen, I than calmed down and lower my tone to avoid scaring the man,” I don't want it; but can you tell me what kind of gall bladder is it?" I asked.

"Horse." he said.

"I have never heard about using a gall bladder of horse as Chinese medicine. Actually, Chinese use dried bile of bear's gall bladder and gallstone from ox to be medicine, but just a very little quantity per dose"

"So....." he was disappointed.

"I mean it is worthlessness!"

His smile was gone; but in seconds, his eyes were filled with hope again. "Oh, one more thing, I have brought you a Korean ginseng for your health." he opened his bag and pulled out a bottle, in which a Chinese white ginseng was soaked with liquid. Hundreds of different usages of ginseng were told by him easily and he emphasized that I should have already learned about the mystical power of ginseng, which is the most marvelous Chinese herb.

"Let me tell you something. Dried ginsengs are used as medicine, while fresh ginsengs are only used to cook Chinese soup, they were sold in most supermarkets in Hong Kong for about 35 HK dollars, they are just cheap and common, just like the one you are holding now."

This poor man was fooled by someone who sold him a cheap Chinese white ginseng as a Korean ginseng; furthermore, I am sorry for I have broken his dream twice.

My Grandson

My Grandson

There is “Like father like son”, and so there is “like grandfather like grandson” too.

Last Sunday, I met my grandson after he has his hair cut in a barber shop; he pointed at me and put his little hand on his shaven head, means we both look alike. Couldn’t explain to him that his grandfather is going bald but he was just has his hair shaved. He is just fourteen months old.

From the time he was born, my wife and I would go to visit him on every Sunday. Sometimes my wife even asked me to spend the weekend with our first grandson till Monday morning. I met with him weekly and never expected he would treat me as a stranger when he was about four months old, the period of all babies started recognizing who is familiar and who is a stranger.

As usual, we visit our grandson on a Sunday morning; he started to cry when he saw me, and refused me to carry him. I was unhappy the whole day for I didn’t have a chance to step close to the baby. He cried every time when I try to approach him.

The other weekend when I saw him, surprisingly, this wonderful baby had had a deep inhale and held his breath for seconds, seems he was petrified by something horrible. When he came back to himself; he started to have a strong endless cry. Immediately, I realized that could be I am so ugly to shock him and so I make myself disappeared. Day after day, I was already accustomed staying away from my grandson, in fact, I needed to hide from his sight to avoid making him cry.

For me, that was a special Sunday. When my daughter opened the door for me, she was carrying her baby. My grandson had seen me; amazingly he didn’t hold his breath but smile to me this time. Thus I was too happy and could not hold my tears running from my eyes. My daughter told me that she showed her son with my picture everyday and kept saying to him, “this is kung kung (grandfather).” I was so glad that her method was succeeded and it fastens the relationship between her son and me.

Incidentally, there was a big dancing competition held by a TV station when I was in China last October. There were some children participants showing their talents of dancing. One of my relatives was so exciting to watch them dance. For his curious, he asked me if children in the Philippines could dance as good as them. He was disappointed when I told him that children in the Philippines could dance much better for they could perform their body language much naturally. He doubt for he didn’t believe Pinoy children could dance much better than the Chinese. I told him, my grandson who was just able to stand by himself; however, he already knew how to swing his hip when he heard music plays. Exaggeratedly I stressed, my grandson is not a particular one but all babies being born in the Philippine are dancing genius to be.

Soon after the baby smiled to me, we are friends. Although I have to drive far from our place to Manila; for him, hours of traffic are worth to spend for and visiting him would be a joyful trip to me. I love him and he shows how he loves me by he knew how to say his first word, not “papa” or “mama” but “KUNG KUNG (grandfather)”.

Bird

We can fly.
We can float in air.
We are free.

Down the mountain to the shore of sea,
From the rural to city,
By the ponds, lakes and rivers,
Stay on the trees, posts and under eaves.
You can see us everywhere.

We can fly.
We can float in air.
We are free.

The sky will become boring without our flying,
The world will become lonely without our singing,
Locust will vast swarm and strip the area of vegetation and
Insects will destroy the fields without our guarding.

We are free and peace,
God created the world that we love,
HE also created human and us.

We can fly.
We can float in air.
We are free.

Bang!
I fell on the ground,
Can you see I am bleeding?
My eyes are blurring for I am dying,
God, I am going,
However, before I go,
Can YOU tell me what mistake that I have done?

They said that shooting was for sport
They said that shooting was for fun,
They said for I am nothing and
They shot for I am just a bird.

I could fly,
I could float in air,
I was free.