The Summer that Was, Part 1

Okay, so the “will post again in a few days” turned out to be a few months, and this entry is so unbelievably overdue that I slightly doubt the accuracy of the stuff I’m about to write. But I do have faith in the power of the human mind – so here goes the story of The Summer that Was, as best as I can remember it.

This quote is taken from Che Guevara’s The Motorcycle Diaries, which I read during the summer:

“For me, the sea has always been a confidant, a friend absorbing all it is told and never revealing those secrets; always giving the best advice – its meaningful noises can be interpreted any way you choose.”

The Motorcycle Diaries was an interesting read; mostly I feel that it tells the story of a great man’s coming-of-age. Coincidentally, this summer I too found myself at an interesting place in my so-called life. Junior year at University was a stressful, difficult year, for a number of reasons that until now I’m not entirely clear on. My theory is that I perhaps suffered a sort of pre-adulthood existential crisis. Basically (as I am in no mood to delve into the details at the moment), I felt that I didn’t turn out to be the 19 year-old self that my younger, 13 year-old version imagined years ago. Mabelle and I have talked about this. You know how in the movies, all sorts of things happen to the characters in their late teens? They meet strangers and fall in love, go on impulse road trips, solve a murder mystery, all sorts of crazy, exciting things. Well, I always thought things would be much more interesting at this stage in my life too, just like in the movies. Turns out, not much has changed – it’s the same life I’m living, only more hectic and probably with more expenses. In any case, what happened was, at 19 years old, facing the throes of adulthood, I was there, but I wasn’t quite there. I thought I’d have already “made it” by the time I prepared to say goodbye to teenhood, but as it turned out, there was still a long way to go.

Coming from the hiatus that was my junior year, obviously I was a terrible mess getting into summer. I knew I needed a well-deserved break. Thankfully, I got it, thanks to Che Guevara’s confidant whom, as I learned through the summer, turned out to be my own as well.


Puerto Galera
April 10 – 12, 2005

A few days after the school year ended Carmeli, Maze, Mabelle, Carlo and I were off to Puerto Galera on our first out-of-town together. A lot of planning (mostly by Carmz) had gone into the trip, plus we were all dying to get a break, so we had high hopes for our little vacation. Fortunately, we were not disappointed. The Galera experience was nothing but fun, fun, fun.


The most memorable parts of the trip for me include:

1. My very own “The Beach” experience. Ever since I saw the movie I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of a beautiful secret beach. On our second day at Galera we went on a “nature trip” and hired a boat to take us to different beaches for the rest of the day. At around noon we stayed on this small empty stretch of sand. A kind of cliff formation separated our stretch of sand from a smaller one, but it was only a really short swim away. So I swam the short distance and found myself alone in an empty stretch of beach. It was perhaps the most peaceful and tranquil experience I have ever had in my entire life, sitting alone on that beach, watching the sea, and silence – no other sounds but the chirping of birds and the ebb and flow of the waves. I didn’t stay long and had to swim back after a while (I didn’t want to worry the others) but that experience was really special – I felt as if I had a corner of the world all to myself, even for just a moment. These days, when I’m as busy and stressed with school as ever, that empty stretch of sand has served as my Happy Place. It cheers me up just thinking about it.

[More Puerto Galera memories to come: Family Life with Friends, Pencil in a Bun Inflatable Ride]