Out in the Sun

Summer is here and nothing beats the clear, pristine beaches, the touch of sand on your feet, those tan lines you'll get and last but not the least, a well-toned body due to non-stop swimming and moving about. I'm talking about beach adventure: being out in the sun, carefree and almost game for everything. So even though I can't spend my yearly summer months out of the country, (or even out of my home city), I'm glad that summer adventures in the Philippines are within reach. My country's not that bad I guess :D

So aside from simply swimming, I could resort to some of these super basic water sport activities:

SNORKELING

Snorkeling lets you enjoy the underwater beauty without the hassle of taking up expensive sessions nor bringing complicated and heavy equipments like you do in scuba diving. All you have to do is just breathe through the tube and swim as you please. Though in my case, since I was a beginner I wore a life vest and thus it prevented me from diving into the water to explore or touch the corals. I'm just stuck in the surface. Maybe if I'm experienced and confident enough will I try snorkeling without a life vest (though I'm really scared of drowning O_O). My first snorkeling experience was in Duka Bay Beach Resort in Medina, Misamis Oriental, Philippines, just near my home city, Cagayan de Oro City. It was awesome! Though I was scared at first when I realized that we were already far from the shore since I was too busy to look back :D I got to remove my life vest for a while so I can dive with my instructor to touch the soft corals. and yeah, I spotted Nemo! a clownfish :D I also spotted lots of blue starfish (pretty). And yeah, we fed a school of fish with bread! :))

WHITEWATER RAFTING

YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY TRY THIS :D You'll have no regrets. If you are the type who's into thrilling and exciting water activities, then you won't go wrong with whitewater rafting. Those rapids will really try to knock you down off the raft and so you and your team must work together to survive through the rapids. Last year, a day after my 18th birthday, my friends and I tried this out and yeah it was really coool :)). Our guide made us do different stunts each rapid course, like standing on the sides of the raft, holding hands with your team or not paddling at all! He even gave us a dare on one level which was to float through the rapids!! And I thought I was gonna die since the wild water kept splashing onto my face and I found a hard time breathing. And I made sure that I won't hit any rocks or else it would be really painful. Fortunately, I survived and the thrill and adrenaline rush was worth it :) Usually the course ends with the whole team jumping off a high rock or a cliff which serves as our graduation. Of course you have to pay for the guide and equipment although whitewater rafting's not as expensive as jetskiing, etc. Btw, the goal of river rafting is to survive through different levels of rapids without falling off the rafts . However, do get to experience being thrown out of the raft. It's fun :D

BANANA BOAT RIDE

One word: YEY! :D Well, riders of the banana boat aim to stay in the boat despite being dragged on and on in different directions by a speedboat, but hello, nothing beats the fun of being thrown out off the boat and into the water :)) I could remember myself screaming at the top of my lungs to calm my nerves as I was dragged everywhere in the beach. Floating in the water, waiting to climb back into the boat, I can't help but look down into the water though all I see is just deep blue water. and I can't see the bottom of it --so logic dictates that it's indeed deeeeep. Sharks? none but we never know. Let's just have faith in the waters :)) My first banana boat ride was in Grande Island, Subic, Philippines :)

I'm looking forward to doing more water sports activities, like skimboarding, wakeboarding or even scuba diving! If time and budget allows :)) Nonetheless, NEVER ever forget swimming or going to the beach with your family and friends in your to-do list for summer :)

btw, THE BEACH IS BETTER THAN THE POOL :D

Pasalubong Cravings

Ever since I left for Manila to study college, I always made sure that I go back to CDO 3x a year -one before summer semester (late March), one before 1st semester (late May) and one during semestral break (late October).

And my flight home is NEVER complete without these sweet cravings exclusively found in Manila :) .Since even when it comes to buying some food, I'm still a bit of a crammer and there I go shopping for sweet stuffs a day before my flight and sometimes, even hours :D And here are the top three things that enter my mind during my last-minute pasalubong-buying because 1.)they tend to be accessible from the dorm and 2.) i just simply love them.

They call it pasalubong, but I call it "taking-advantage-of-the-pasalubong-custom-to-satisfy-my-sweet-cravings" :))

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts <3

and here is something new which is one of my favorite flavors :)) Snickers + Krispy Kreme = <3>

I say the minis are Krispy Kreme's version of Dunkin Donut's munchkins or Mister Donut's smidgets. But who would have thought that two of my guiltiest pleasures -Snickers bar and Krispy Kreme doughnut -will be merged into one? Every bite of the doughnut is also synonymous with biting a small chunk from Snickers. My, I wonder how many calories are loaded in there. It sure will scare the appetite out of my health-conscious friends :)). So much for my beach body figure goal this summer. this thing is too hard for me to resist :D

aside from doughnuts, I also love buying these sweet stuffs for my flight home:

Brownies Unlimited

Banapple's Cakes especially
Banoffee Pie <3

who knows what my waistline would be if I would eat these yummy things on a regular basis O__O. that's why I'm treating them as food rewards or pasalubong, not ordinary foods always present in my fridge, ready to answer my most random cravings especially when I'm studying, watching TV series or worse, bored :))


I still have my whole college year to explore for more yummy and accessible pasalubong. if I can't think of something else, these 3 will spare me. so much for wanting to look good this summer, I still can't say no to good, sweet, tempting food :)


btw, HELLO SUMMMER!!