A Little Sun Escaped

“It was still raining when we decided to come back down. After a while, a little sun escaped and peered through the clouds.
Slowly, the sun stretches its rays and the sky is flooded with light.”

Aside from the sun blazing, the fires of March licking my skin, the summer forecast includes my whining on why all that summer holds is --- work. I ask myself why I have to be slumped and enclosed in my skyscraper cave while the sun burns furiously, making us burst with a maddening, searing lust for life. The night is speckled with stars. Everywhere you hear the sea waves summoning you, chanting with full strength the blissful sonic trips from Chicane, Café del Mar, and the MOS chillout annual.
And so I went away instead of whining. Three provinces in two days is a full itinerary, but I even had time to read at the back of the car.
Straight out of work on Saturday morning, we visited the church in Calaruega. We took pictures and walked along the trails with all that wonderful scenery. During our retreats here when I was a 15 year old Catholic high school student, I confessed my agnosticism, or even refused to label it as that. I had my last confession here seven years ago, and this will probably be the last place on earth where I will tell a priest to forgive me, Father, for I have sinned.
We went to Sonia’s Garden in Tagaytay for lunch. This turned out to be one of the most tastefully unique, all-too-fantastic lunches I’ve ever had. I raved about it for days as my tongue dripped with its honey. They didn’t even serve any meat. At first, I almost found the prospect of paying a 550 peso lunch for leaves and grass rather repulsive. All the hype, the dough you’re shedding, and the long trip you made just pays off by the time you fork the salad to your mouth. It’s the first time I had a salad with fruits like jackfruit, mangoes, peaches, even corn, etc. The salad had nuts and probably six varieties of edible leaves/vegetables, or even flowers grown in this garden. The salad bowl was like a fucking forest. It came with two choices of equally delectable dressings. All servings were unlimited, including the usual shredded eggs, parmesan cheese, etc. The second set in the meal was bread with a choice of anchovies, basil and tomato pâté or white cheese. The main course was pasta. You still get to pick the quantity of pasta ingredients: the pasta sauce from sun dried tomatoes, shitake mushrooms, capers, chicken cream and yes – all the shrimps you want in your pasta. For drinks, there was a bottomless helping of dalandan juice with mint leaves. Everything we ate was nearly cholesterol-free. If health buffs always had this much fun eating, I’d be a vegetarian. We also just hung around the relaxing places in the garden itself that combined hippie features, new age inspirations, and in all probability: exclusively-yuppie prices. There were a lot of candles, incense, white linen and curtains, wide, wooden chairs and a variety of lamps.
For coffee, we headed to Antonio’s in the main highway. The cool Tagaytay afternoon wind blew gently on us, the volcano sleeping in the lake below. This huge cup of coffee made me want to take a crap. Tagaytay restaurants have an open-aired, wide window in their bathrooms. I had an extraordinary dumping experience, of shitting while having a live view of the sides of Taal Volcano. The world becomes a beautiful place while you drop your bombs and sink your submarines into the latrine.
The sun was setting while we were on the road, and I had my own rest. For about an hour, I dozed off on the way to Laguna.
After hours of driving or sitting in the car, nothing tasted better than cold beer that makes love with your throat. We had the beer in Pagsangjan Rapids where we checked in. We figured it would be too hot in the house, if were not also a little frightened by sleeping there with only the three of us. A cousin showed us this party scene in Pagsangjan and there was beer, music and a young crowd.
The next morning I had the unforgettable binagoongan wrapped in banana leaves, or binalot, and we went up to Caliraya for coffee. It rained like mad and the winds in the mountains knocked off the golf balls, driving the golfers to postpone their game. But then, you’d still gasp at this excellent scenery, and get to enjoy the freshness of the whipping cold wind.
It was still raining when we decided to come back down. A little sun escaped and peered through the clouds. Slowly, the sun stretches its rays and the sky is flooded with light. Like a scene from the Care fucking Bears.
Driving along on this mountain’s empty road, and reading my book on the backseat, I turned my head. My mouth encircled slowly like a bubble gaining circumference, and let out a “hu-wow….”
At close range, we saw the beginning of the rainbow, its edge emanating from Caliraya’s man-made lake. Cars stopped in the middle of the road. I wish I had this view every time I’m taking a crap.
This dispels the legend of the pot of gold found at the end of the rainbow. This did not, however, prevent me from having pot when we arrived that night. So how else could I sleep but high and blissful? I wish for more blissful, steady, sleeps and trips.