The shadows of leaves-
shake under the laughing moon
-on this road, tonight
Sep 22, 2010
Aug 29, 2010
Haiku: Connecting Heaven and Earth ©
Leaves flutter acrossas I drive my sword into
the cold ground and pray
Aug 27, 2010
Jul 31, 2010
Haibun: Retreat ©
On the 29th of July, the seniors went on a spiritual retreat for a day and a half at Angels' Hills, Tagaytay. I was so excited the day before because I know I'd be going to my second home (I have Tagaytay blood) and it was a really awesome place. What made me more excited is the fact that we have to be in school at 5:30 AM and I just love to wake up really early.
When I got to school, I was surprised to see that I was one of the earliest people to arrive (I was usually a bit late) and the school looked kind of creepy before dawn. After waiting for a few minutes for everyone to arrive and for the preparations to be done, we hopped in the bus and headed for Tagaytay. In the bus, we were (forced into) watching "(Helen of) Troy" and no, it's not the 2004 version but the 1956 version. Yup, you guessed it. It's the type of movie that has that cheesy suspense music, people who talk in funny voices, and of course, the obviously fake special effects. I dunno about others but I watched only up to the part where...I dunno. We also watched Twitches 2, a pretty interesting sequel on Twitches. But of course, I didn't watch all of it for I was chatting with Seigneur Paolo and Lord Joshua. I'm pretty sure we had some stops somewhere in the trip but I forgot what part it was so...yeah. When we got to Tagaytay, some people were "bewildered" (<--new word for some of you people who haven't heard it yet) by the wondrous scenes in the glorious Kingdom of Tagaytay. There was more stuff that happened in the bus, pretty sure there was. Oh, oh! We also stopped to buy and taste some delicacies from the EPIC Kingdom of Tagaytay. We were offered to order some of these delicacies during our retreat in the monastery/convent/whatever. Some people were so excited that they DID order. HAHA! The ones, including me, who decided to buy outside of the monastery/convent/whatever got them for only HA/LF price so...FAIL.
On a long journey
As the sun travels with us,
trees, watching us pass
I'm pretty sure we all enjoyed what happened during the retreat. Our speaker was soo hilarious, especially with his abuse (jk) of the word "hello". A lot of interesting things happened in the conference room which was was called SM2 if my memory serves me right. We had done a lot of stuff that made us cry but also brought us closer together as friends. We got to know each other better and our broken relationships were mended. I thank God for such a great experience. My favourite part was the "Palanca" letter reading time. This was the time for us to read encouragement letters from our loved ones. The letter from my mom made me cry soo hard and I am glad to have such a wonderful mom. While my mom's letter made me cry, the one from my dad had strengthened me. I would like to thank God once more for them.
Away from my home
Opening my mom's letter
tears on my desk
Though we were about to leave Angels' Hills, there was still one thing I haven't done. I still haven't read the letter from someone very special to me (due to the fact that there were certian situations which kept on delaying it, perchance God wants me to read it later). I decided to read it on the bus. As I opened the letter, I was surprised to see it so decorated with a lot of really cute designs. It contained a lot of touching things which had really touched me inside. The letter was heartwarming and comfourting. I would like to thank my very special friend for it. She really made my retreat and my life worthwhile. Thank you very much!
Headed towards home
As I opened her letter,
my heart has been touched
Of course, there were still a lot of stuff that went on within the bus. That includes people (including me) being forced to sing or else be left on the road (jk) and the calling of "jejemon" at random people on the road. A lot more phenomena had occured within the wagon of eternal laughter but they are too......many to list here. Of course, we got home....safe, so...yeah....my blog ends.
Jul 23, 2010
Jul 3, 2010
Jun 25, 2010
Jun 23, 2010
Jun 7, 2010
May 28, 2010
May 15, 2010
May 10, 2010
Haibun: Kyoto (day 7 of 7) ©
It's my last day in Kyoto. I spent it by going to random places and taking random pictures. After that, I said goodbye to Miyako and Fumio. I wish to come back to visit this place again.
Last day in Kyoto,
wishing to forever walk
under its heavens
Last day in Kyoto,
wishing to forever walk
under its heavens
Apr 23, 2010
Haibun: Kyoto (day 6 of 7) ©
It's my sixth day in Kyoto and destinations were Lake Biwa and Ishiyamadera. We left off pretty late this time at 2:00 PM. The rest of the day, I stayed in my room surfing the net. I thought to myself maybe it's a nighttime tour. Miyako advised me to sleep during travel, because it will be a long drive to Lake Biwa. I did.
Ofcourse, when arriving at a body of water, you just have to ride a boat in it for fun, which is exactly what we did. Watching the sunset from a water vehicle can't get any better. It just makes you feel all "Jack Sparrow" and shit. After that long epic moment at Lake Biwa, we headed for Ishiyamadera where we saw some epic momiji . I'll tell you, they ARE epic.
On a sailing ship,
the sunset at Lake Biwa,
-that pirate feeling
After such a day, we obviously headed back to our hotel.
Apr 20, 2010
Haibun: Kyoto (day 5 of 7) ©
It's my fifth day in Kyoto and destinations were Sennyu-ji, Imakumano-Kannon-ji, Chishaku-in, and Kyoto Museum. We left off at 7:30 AM.
When we arrived at Sennyu-ji, I was once again amazed by the momiji of its garden. Imakumano-Kannon-ji is just beside Sennyu-ji so we just walked our way to it. To my surpirse, there was this tree that had the deepest red leaves. I went under it and stared into the sky. O_O was my expression for its beauty. I was driven back to my childhood and for some reason, I can hear a shamisen playing in my head.
Under the red tree
Under the clear, cloudless sky
-sound of shamisen
After such a religious experience, we went to Chishaku-in where I saw a kamon (don't know which family). Chishaku-in has a pretty cool interior and exterior. Even so, I still want to see this place in the night. Next, we went to the Kyoto Museum, which is just a walking distance from Chishaku-in. Believe it or not, it's like I walked from Japan to the Europe. Everything just changed, even the trees. It was cool to be able to learn about the history of Kyoto. I'm glad the capital was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo because I just don't want t see it get so urbanized. It's so much cooler this way.
After such a day, we went back to the New Miyako Hotel, as always.
Apr 13, 2010
Haibun: Kyoto (day 4 of 7) ©
We left of pretty early today at 3:00 am from the New Miyako Hotel and destinations were Nijo Castle, Enryaku-ji, and Takao. When we were heading for Nijo Castle, Miyako explained to me why we left off at 3 am. It is because the momiji, or autumn foliage, are best viewed when it is dark and not much people are around. I asked her if we are allowed to enter at this time. She said that we have a special pass, which made me realise why this tour is so expensive.
When we arrived at Nijo Castle, we saw the large moat that surrounded it. As we entered the main gate, I felt really excited when I saw the crimson trees. We entered the Ninomaru Palace through the karamon. I felt so amazed by the crimson foliage in it's garden. I thought the Ninomaru Palace was already the main castle, but Miyako showed me the way to the actual main castle. This place is not like how I pictured it before for it was way huge. I felt like going samurai again because of the falling leaves and all the wonderful shit that's in here. We stayed there until sunrise but I was never bored. The next stop was Enryaku-ji. It lies on high ground on Mt. Hiei. The autumn air was really fresh and I just felt like going Shugendo. The trees looked like they were bleeding and the mist just makes it all look unbelievable. We were really hungry so we ate at this place beside the temple. I wasn't able to understand what the name said but I was able to read "soba" in the name. I guess that explains why we were served soba. After Enryaku-ji, we headed towards Takao, which is a thinly populated, mountainous region of Kyoto that lies to the north of the Arashiyama district. Takao offers visitors scenic natural landscapes, and is known throughout Japan as a site for viewing the autumn leaves. In my opinion, this is the best place to shoot the Japanese version of Twilight. We started in Kouzan-ji, where you can see Japan's first tea plantation and FIRST MANGA. Walking around Kouzan-ji, I enjoyed the wonderful colours of the trees. We then bought some ice cream and headed for Saimyo-ji. When we got there, I just felt like flipping out and killing people (in a good way). I was mad-driven by the trees. Autumn is just my favourite season. This place is just like Tagaytay with autumn trees.
All along this road,
the first leaf has fallen since
the Bloom of Crimson
After such a great time momiji viewing, we headed back to the New Miyako Hotel.
Apr 8, 2010
Haibun: Kyoto (day 3 of 7) ©
Third day in Kyoto and destinations were Ryoan-ji, Ninna-ji, Uzumasa Studio and Kaikono Yashiro shrine. Ryoan-ji and Ninna-ji are Zen Buddhist temples, Uzumasa Studio is famous for making samurai movies, and Kaikono Yashiro is a Shinto shrine. We left off from the New Miyako Hotel at 7:45 am and headed for Ryoan-ji, which I have read a little bit about on the net.
Whilst heading towards Ryoan-ji, I can't help but to notice that the places we were passing were quite familiar. Then, it struck me. We were in Myoshin-ji again. Miyako told me that we had to pass here to reach Ryoan-ji and I laughed at the thought of it. When we reached Ryoan-ji, I was dazzled by the morning mist on the autumn trees in the entrance gate. It's a perfect place to shoot romantic dramae. We stayed there for about 3 hours because it was HUGE. We then ate at 竹林の里店 where we were served katsudon or fried pork chops. We then headed for Ninna-ji which was only a long walking distance from Ryoan-ji. It was a pleasure spending noontime here for the trees and pagodas shaded us from heat. I sat under the autumn tree by the five-storey pagoda where I reminisced my last summer days. After Ninna-ji, we went to Uzumasa studio. We saw where they shoot movies about traditional Japanese life such as samurai and ninja movies. The machiya and lanterns were awesome and so are the ninja actors and the moving tree. In Kaikono Yashiro, we passed under a torii and saw a kamidana and some other Shinto figures.
Third day in Kyoto,
walking in between the four
sides of Earth and Sky
After sightseeing, Miyako told me that now is my free time. I don't like shopping much so I just went with them back to the New Miyako Hotel where I took pictures of myself for the rest of the day.
Mar 28, 2010
Haibun: Kyoto (day 2 of 7) ©
Today, I left off from the New Miyako Hotel at 8:30 am. Miyako told me that we will be visiting Kyomizu-dera, Myoshin-ji, and Shisendo. I was really excited for I can relate to these places, especially Myoshin-ji for some secret reasons. Whilst I was in the car, I listened to my iPod and fantasized about many things like I did in South Korea last year.
Scent of the morning
of the Ancient Capital
What awaits me soon?
When we arrived at Kyomizu-dera, there were a lot of people at the temple's road. I was delighted to see a monk whom I had a photo with just like the monk in Seoul, South Korea. Miyako then took me to the entrance where I saw the pagoda. I thought to myself, "Holy sh*t this place is insanely amazing." We also saw some Maiko (apprentice Geisha) and they were purty. As we drew close to the core, I can't help but to realise that this temple is what always appears in Kyoto postcards. It's the pagoda that's always lit up at night and stuff. When we walked around it, I just felt like going samurai. Miyako and I then went to the Kyomizu-dera stage where we saw some pretty autumn trees. After Kyomizu-dera, we headed for Shisen-do. Whilst we were in the car, Miyako was laughing at me for music tripping to Ren Zhe by Jay Chou. When we arrived at Shisen-do, I was dazzled by the tall bamboos that was laying before me at the entrance. I thought to myself, "I wonder how this place looks like by night." The entrance has many steps with bamboos lined at both sides. We saw the interior of Shisen-do and I asked Miyako if this is one of those Zen gardens that I see on the net. She said the garden was only part of the temple. Amidst the autumn trees, we saw this sozu, or deer scarer which had a cute black lizard in it (shouldn't it be scared away by the sozu?). When we finished seeing Shisen-do, we ate at a place called 豆花 (mamebana is how I read it). The food was pretty good, especially the tofu. After eating, we headed for Myoshin-ji, which unlike Kyomizu-dera, only had a few people in it that day. We enjoyed it's great zen gardens and pretty cherry blossoms. I was so surprised to see how big Myoshin-ji is. It covers so much land that I was never disappointed with what I saw.
Spring trees, summer suns,
autumn leaves and winter snow
walk upon Kyoto
After a long day visiting temples, we headed back to New Miyako Hotel where I spent the rest of my day lazying around my bed. It sure was nice to see more of Kyoto and then just kick back after a tiring but exciting day.
Mar 25, 2010
Mar 22, 2010
Haibun: Virtual Vacation in Kyoto (day 1 of 7) ©
Today was my first day in my virtual vacation in Kyoto. I stayed at the New Miyako Hotel where I will be staying for seven days. I left off today at 8 AM via shuttle bus. The tour guide's name was Miyako (coincidence) and the driver's was Fumio. Miyako told me that we will be seeing Tofuku-ji, Yasaka Shrine, and Mibu-dera today. The rest of the day, she said, will be my free time.
As we were heading towards Tofuku-ji, I couldn't fall asleep because I was so excited. When we got there, Miyako took me to see the front gate of Tofuku-ji which was the Myoan-ji gate. Then she took me to the Gyoun bridge where I saw some amazingly colourful autumn trees. She then brought me to some steps where I saw more autumn trees. Finally, we saw Tofuku-ji itself and we were the only ones allowed to enter cuz we were so cool. After Tofuku-ji, we headed for Yasaka Shrine. When we arrived, Miyako and I went under a torii, or spirtual gate. It was a great feeling to pass under one. We enjoyed the colourful autumn trees and the beautiful sights of Yasaka Shrine. Then we headed to Mibu-dera where we saw some beautiful machiya, or traditional Japanese houses. The interior of Mibu-dera is very beautiful and has a warm atmosphere. There, we watched the sunset from the Mibu-dera gate.
After all that, we returned to New Miyako Hotel where we ate our dinner. We returned to our rooms after eating and taking pictures of the hotel at night. I immediately opened my laptop to make a blog about this and then went to bed after.
First day in Kyoto-
Tomorrow, I shall see more
of its great beauty
Mar 18, 2010
Dementia ©
Things have lost their meaning,
As the sun slowly dies
I feel my mind ripping,
Nearing to my demise
I have no plans for tomorrow,
I have no plans for the next week
My heart seems to be so hollow,
And my soul refuses to speak
As the sun slowly dies
I feel my mind ripping,
Nearing to my demise
I have no plans for tomorrow,
I have no plans for the next week
My heart seems to be so hollow,
And my soul refuses to speak
Mar 15, 2010
Mar 5, 2010
Feb 27, 2010
Poem: Autumn Is Here
As each day passes,
Things seem to look old
For trees and grasses,
It's crimson or gold
The moon has bloated,
Faeries make their call
The night's been coated,
By the dust of fall
Things seem to look old
For trees and grasses,
It's crimson or gold
The moon has bloated,
Faeries make their call
The night's been coated,
By the dust of fall
Love Poem: Haunting My Soul
The winter wind whispers your name,
In every leaf of every pine
In every song, it's all the same,
In every road, I see your sign
As the light of the winter moon,
Gives life to January's dream
Your smile gives warmth like shades at noon,
And haunts my soul until I scream
In every leaf of every pine
In every song, it's all the same,
In every road, I see your sign
As the light of the winter moon,
Gives life to January's dream
Your smile gives warmth like shades at noon,
And haunts my soul until I scream
Feb 20, 2010
Feb 15, 2010
Haibun: My Narrow Road To The Deep North
Some of us here may have heard of or even read Matsuo Basho's The Narrow Road To The Deep North, which is about Basho himself, as a wanderer who traveled almost endlessly until the day of his death. One of his very famous quotes is "A wanderer, let that be my name." Yeah, I do have to be honest...I HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK...yet. I could ask it for my birthday haha...
In the Philippines, there is a fairly cold place in the slightly northern part of the country. This place is Baguio City, the Philippines' "summer capital." It is so high on tourism that you can't easily tell who's native and who's not. It lies on very high ground with land spangled with pine trees. This place is also home of the eerie spirits which haunt the souls of every living....soul. I won't be getting into that anymore, sorry.
I've been to Baguio City for over a hundred times now. You may say I'm bragging but dear, who says I'm not? All my past visits have been the same, plain and short on excitement. However, a month before the summer of 2010, my family (except my brother) had to visit again for my father's rotary meeting there. This visit sure was a whole lot different and more exciting! The 12th of February was my Narrow Road To The Deep North.
In each road and street
In every mountain, plain, hill
-a wandering soul
Feb 10, 2010
Haibun: Formal Dinner
Tonight was the Highschool Formal Dinner which was themed 'Golden Wedding Anniversary', celebrating the fifty years of our dear...people. It started from six in the evening to nine. Thanks to the host and hostess who hosted, the ushers and usherettes who ushered, the cooks who cooked, the waiters who waited, the runners who runned, the managers who managed, the bartenders who bartended, the housekeepers who housekeeped, the physical arrangement committee who physically arranged, and the rest who made this event successful, this event was made successful.
I remember my formal dinner. I was the one who got spilled iced tea on. Garn! It sure made me miss a lot, it did. I had to wait in the bloody office for half an hour half-naked! However, this formal dinner was the best, even if my feet are about to be crushed beneath me. I had a really great time cooking that day for I hung out with Geno, Nicole and Jessica whilst in the food processing area (lulz). I especially loved the part where we removed soup scums or 'scummies', according to Jessica. From time to time, my best friend Joshua came to see us. How he says "Bababski" really made us chuckle.
Though a serious task,
fooling and lying around
adds spice to it all
During the night, when all the guests were seated and settled, we served them the food (what else should we serve) and I'm not surprised to see everyone doing very well. It is as if I was working in a real restaurant (gives me a little chill down my aching spine). Whilst I was working, I smiled and waved at my crush. I was so delighted to see her smile back and wave too! That was enough to keep me going through the night, although my feet were about to collapse.
After the guests finished their dinner, some very important people (who I will not be naming) evaluated the dinner. I was very glad to hear a very unbiased evaluation from these very important people. These very important people really know how to give very unbiased evaluations. After this, the 3rd Year students and Highschool Teachers were presented in front. And....we all gorged down the leftover food.
At the end of all the hustle and bustle, rustle and muscle, singing and drinking, toasting and boasting, jaunting and flaunting, and whatever the bloody rhyming words you can think of, people obviously headed home. After I called home to be picked up, sat down near the front office, beside the clinic, where the teachers usually enter and exit, Mr. Alegrid saw me and asked, "Not used to this much work, Vinz?" (first time he called me by my first name in a question) I plinely...*PLAINLY replied "No." He said "Welcome to the real world..." and from there, I started to follow him to the gate, telling him how much experience I have. After that, I went home so very exhausted.
Feeling so thankful,
realizing how it feels
within the real world
Haibun: Prom Night
Under the chandeliers of EDSA Shangri-la Ballroom was the JS Prom of OBMCI. It went on like a typical prom night. There was dancing, singing, eating, and coronation. At the end of it all was the free dance. Everyone had a great time.
But before all that, was me, in a car. I had a really bad feeling about the prom night, maybe because there were a couple of car accidents that I've seen that day. I was so verily disappointed for I was not able to pull off the vampire look and swagger. This is because the school cut my hair short, which made my face look like Calle Ocho. To add insult to injury, my prom date and I barely talked. Atleast the prom princess was really nice to me, so was the prom prince. What should I do? Do I say sorry way too much? Am I so old fashioned? Do I just plainly suck? Should I just give up? Maybe, maybe not, maybe.
It's true, what I've heard
Throwing fake smiles, here and there
A grand night ruined
But before all that, was me, in a car. I had a really bad feeling about the prom night, maybe because there were a couple of car accidents that I've seen that day. I was so verily disappointed for I was not able to pull off the vampire look and swagger. This is because the school cut my hair short, which made my face look like Calle Ocho. To add insult to injury, my prom date and I barely talked. Atleast the prom princess was really nice to me, so was the prom prince. What should I do? Do I say sorry way too much? Am I so old fashioned? Do I just plainly suck? Should I just give up? Maybe, maybe not, maybe.
It's true, what I've heard
Throwing fake smiles, here and there
A grand night ruined
Jan 30, 2010
Jan 29, 2010
Jan 26, 2010
Jan 22, 2010
Jan 18, 2010
Jan 8, 2010
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