Of Sexual Swimming Pools and Farmer Tans

Watch me casually pretend I did not leave my blog to fend for itself for over a month. Early on in October, right after I got back from Hong Kong, my friends and I went to Batangas for an overdue beach trip. 'Overdue' might be an understatement, as we've been intending to go since high school, yet the idea never pulled through because of bits and bobs here and there. While we finally managed to make it, it was practically just less than half of the group, as Billie had to back out last minute because of the storm and so and so. But fret not! One day we'll manage to bring more people, and it will be magical.

Also, a vlog. Filming the trip was kinda funny because there were three of us documenting separate vlogs, but it's also fun because it's like seeing snippets of one story through different perspectives.

While on the road, we somehow found ourselves in Silent Hill. Or rather, the Silent Hill of the Philippines a.k.a. OMG WTF IS THIS FOG TAGAYTAY. Our country was still recovering from a storm that weekend, and I suppose this was what caused all the fog. It was cool, and then creepy (because WOAH Silent Hill vibes much), and then it got a little scary because we could barely see anything on the road anymore.

This was the house we stayed in, courtesy of the glorious Lagunda family. Many things happened in that house. Pictures were taken. Food was not cooked. People slept in the living room and not the actual bedrooms. Food was cooked. And after lunch, before getting ready to leave, we indulged in one of my favorite discussions: old school anime.

Most of our time was spent in the pool and not the actual beach, and I'm pretty sure we weren't thinking straight during the two times we swam in this overnight stay. Our first swimming session was when we arrived; we got there at around 4-5ish, and by the time we swam it was freezing. (I woke up the next morning with an old man!voice box, but then again there was also a lot of yelling the night before.) The next day we swam after checking out the beach, and this was at around 11am. Without sunblock, and the sun was being very loud with its presence that day. As I mentioned before, we were still recovering from a storm, so none of us thought it'd be super sunny once we got to Batangas, and thus none of us thought of bringing sunblock. This resulted in sunburn (everyone but Beau), itching (me, but for all I know all the other sunburnt girls itched as well), peeling (Alex), and farmer's tan (Janelle.)

Hi Janelle and Alex!

And this is the beach. I don't think it's the kind that you can swim in though, but I heard Calatagan is also known for its... diving... things...? Anyway, it made me really happy to finally see this place for my own eyes, as I had only seen it through Janelle's photos back in high school. I remember she had really pretty sunset photos in this area, which then made me realize... why didn't we go here when we arrived, so that we'd catch it during sundown instead? Maybe then we would've been spared the sunburn, and we wouldn't have swam in the cold pool at night. (Then again, night swimming is fun.)

Spot the Roselyn!

Getting to this sandbar, while amusing, was also challenging. BECAUSE OUR FEET WOULD GET SUCKED BY THE SAND LOLOL at some point I think Alex sunk down to her knees! Some dude who came from the sandbar pointed to the path he took, which was much, much easier, though it still did take a while as our slippers would stick to the sand. Thanks, sandbar dude!

I think this is Beau's Korean name. I don't know how to read Hangul.

This picture is evidence that Billie was still with us during that trip. With her family, even.

While the trip was a bit short for my liking (ah, what can you do with schedule differences) and the group was small, I still had a blast. Not surprising, considering the people I was with. I grew up being a beach bum and water baby, so trips like this one make me really happy. Well, out-of-town trips with friends in general make me so happy, no matter how rare they may be.

Thank you friends for all the fun! And the biggest thanks to Janelle and her family, because without them... we would've probably gone through Silent Hill for nothing.