• Oslob paragliding
    Travel

    Oslob Paragliding: Why You’ll Absolutely Love Taking The Jump

    Google Maps says the drive from my front door to the Oslob paragliding site takes three hours and thirty minutes. It has taken me seven years. Most of that time, I told myself the same lie everyone tells themselves: that there would be time for it later. What finally moved me wasn’t courage. It was the news. Every time I opened social media, it was the same thing. Politics, cruelty, and someone’s certainty that the world was ending. I don’t believe the world is ending.  I believe my time on it is short, and I was spending too much of it doom-scrolling my way through other people’s certainty. So, after…

  • Batad Rice Terraces: A Dream 10 Years In The Making
    Travel

    Batad Rice Terraces: A Dream 10 Years In The Making

    You probably think you know how this ends, but I promise you haven’t guessed the half of it. Yes, the Batad Rice Terraces photos you’re seeing are stunning and dreamy. But this wasn’t exactly a picture-perfect trip as you may have imagined. On the contrary, it almost didn’t happen. To make matters more interesting, the rain poured relentlessly the weekend I explored Batad and the rest of Ifugao with a group of complete strangers. So, was Batad worth the long wait and the heavy journey from Cebu? Was it as beautiful as the postcards and textbooks promised? And did I find myself on this solo journey in the Cordilleras? My…

  • Mt Tenglawan And The The People Who Have To Die On The Climb
    Travel

    Mt Tenglawan And The People Who Have To Die On The Climb

    Someone dies every time I climb a mountain. I’m responsible for every one of them. And I’m also one of them. I have climbed so many mountains across the Philippines, and I have never come down as the same person who went up. On my climb to Mt Tenglawan, I saw all those ghosts. They were the versions of me who no longer exist.  And here’s what nobody tells you about hiking.  You don’t just climb a mountain. You also leave someone at the bottom, or somewhere along the trail, or at the summit, staring at a view he thought would fix something.  Have you ever come back from a…

  • Mt. Makiling
    Travel

    Mt. Makiling And The Rare Rafflesias Most People Will Never See

    The graveyard of dreams isn’t filled with people who failed. It’s filled with people who didn’t show up. They are the people who waited for the right time, the right energy, and the right mood. I almost joined them on a Sunday when my body was wrecked from a book signing and an unexpected pitch meeting. Netflix was loaded and the cozy hotel bed was ready. But I dragged myself to Mt. Makiling anyway.  So, I hiked for over 20 kilometers on dead legs, running on sleepless nights after a 40-hour work week. And guess what? I saw rafflesias, one of the rarest flowers on earth, blooming for the stubborn…