memoirs of greece: july 2011

my fascination with greece was a manifestation of my sister's interest in greek mythology. she was in high school when she bought that book, she loved those stories about the greek gods and their powers.


one fine day in singapore i came across a book sale and there was a travel book on greece being sold at five bucks. i bought it, and made a bet with someone whereby my reward for winning was a trip to greece. i won the bet three years later. but the reward didn't come by.


luckily, a good friend wanted to go for his birthday and there was no way i was gonna miss that! and so, we have conceptualized a 2-week adventure in athens, santorini and mykonos. this itinerary is very common to first timers as it truly showcases the country: the ancient greece, the romantic greece and the party-rocking greece.


athens was a morph of the ancient and the modern, a bittersweet contrast, really. all the ancient structures that the government is trying hard to preserve remain very beautiful and magnificent, and yet the city was almost in ruins due to riots and chaotic protests. 

a few years later, me and my book made it to greece!

                                          

at the acropolis with the birthday boy

the greeks were actually very friendly (and the policemen? hot. :P). some of them were chitchatting about why people were out on the streets. despite the chaos in the city we were able to walk around safely, and just avoided a few streets as advised by the folks. on our way back to the hotel in the late afternoon we noticed that some street ads and store glasses were broken and there are some burning debris all over. we also had our share of tears due to the teargas attacks.

graffiti all over the city

museum was closed due to the protest

near our hotel

protest assembly

aside from the usual city tour in athens we did a side trip to the outskirts. in sounio we had some lovely greek snacks (feta and wine) while overlooking the temple of poseidon and watched the sun set along with other romantics.

sunset at temple of poseidon

in corinth we passed by the corinth canal. spiros, our tour guide and chauffeur, said that sometimes they hold bungee jumping sessions in that bridge. too bad we didn't catch it that day.

corinth canal

we were supposed to leave athens after three days but due to the scale of the protests even the shipping lines were affected. we had to wait a day to get to santorini. we spent the extra day shopping, eating, and people watching (and trust me, you won't get tired of it!).

when we reached santorini it was very early in the morning. it was very foggy too so we didn't really get to see much.. but then when it cleared, we literally opened our mouths in awe. it was the most beautiful thing i've ever seen.

first glimpse of firestofani

we did a bit of beach hopping, we've seen black, red, and white beaches.

black beaches of perissa

the out of this world looking red beach in akrotiri

i arranged for a wine tour in santorini on my friend's birthday and told vaios (connoisseur and tour owner) to help prepare a surprise cake and some drinks and i will pay extra for it. he asked the restaurant owner to especially bake a chocolate cake for him, and we had shots and shots of ouzo and rakki and he didn't get us to pay anything more. in case you plan on having a wine tour in santorini, make sure to contact this guy and he'll take care of you. 

vaios explaining the basics about winemaking

Vaios Panagiotoulas
www.santoriniwinetour.com

our tour group on emil's birthday night

the party didn't end there though. solemn as santorini seems to be during the day, it shines even more at night! and there are parties everywhere too, but one needs to be careful walking back to the hotel because one wrong step and you might be on the edge :)

santorini shines at night

pre club crawl

leaving santorini was really hard, but our journey was meant to end with us partying hard. and we were headed just to the right place. mykonos.

at tropicana club, where the party starts at 4

..and we came back for more the next day

mykonos is known for the exciting parties but there is a part of the town that's also interesting and pretty. we took a stroll and snagged some lovely snaps.

cute windmills

little venice

this summer trip was easily the best vacation i've ever had and i wish i could visit other parts of greece in the future. here's hoping! :)

beach bum

i love the beach. 
most people do, i know, but my love is for real. haha

                                                         jimbaran beach, bali

hitting the beach during summer or for just any weekend getaway is on top of everyone's list of things to do as it is such an awesome way to relax and have fun with friends or family or whomever. simply lying by the beach reading a book, having a fruit shake, listening to music, or doing nothing at all - is divine. 

                                                            la luz, batangas


but to me, there is something more than relaxation when i go to the beach. whenever i see the sun rise or set, and the waters glisten in yellow radiance as it does, and i look at that long stretch of water that seems to never end, and that sound of the waves crashing against rocks or the shore.. it makes me at awe. with our world. with our god.

                                                       sunset at venice beach


this spiritual feeling is always present every single time. no matter if it's at phuket or bali where the tourists never stop arriving and leaving. or if it's at the beaches in california where the kids spend the afternoon playing frisbee or volleyball. even in pagudpud where after sunrise there is nothing but the sea and the fishermen getting ready to do their business. there is a sense of peace in just standing there and watching lives, everything go together.


i wish that i can save enough money so that someday i can fulfill my dream of buying a beach house and spend every single day seeing something beautiful. something that truly only god could have created.

my dad

after an epic weekend with friends in bohol and cebu i decided to fly to manila for my mom's birthday. i think i really made her happy by doing this, and we spent her day having lunch at dampa sa libis and then did a bit of shopping afterwards.


but the highlight of this trip was not really mom's birthday. it was spending time with my dad. great time with my dad.


see, my dad and i were never really close and i know that he doesn't know me in the same way i don't know much about him - aside from the favorite stories that he must have told us a thousand times. dad just always seemed to be a figure in the house. the one who always wakes up and sleeps early. the one who always puts breakfast in front of you and would nag you to eat something before you go. the one who, no matter how much money he has left, would always come back home with ponkan or jelly ace for the youngest daughter (yes, me).


many years ago he decided to stop having rice for dinner and replace that with beer. it seemed to have done well for his health - and i guess for one, when you are able to do what you want to do despite people telling you not to do it, then you truly feel healthy - and he spent most of the nights sitting in the front yard having beer and snacks and chatting with neighbors, or even just sitting still with our dog next to him. from time to time, we'll join in and have a chat with him or simply just have a taste of the appetizers he made (the vinegar cucumber salad and pig ears tapas are awesome!) and walk away as soon as he starts his trip down memory lane. 


if you must know, all four of us siblings were not raised to show too much compassion - we were taught to be strong and driven. it wasn't easy growing up with too much expected of you and with no one really to depend on. mom and dad were too busy figuring out how to find the money to feed us and send us to schools that obviously were beyond what they could afford. somehow, things all worked out for us. except, that we grew up too independent of our parents that we barely know them.


and so now that we almost have our own lives sorted out, is the only time that we can actually look back and realize that what our parents did were pretty heroic - and understand why they did all that before. and with this acceptance, it is easier now to get to know them, and it was such a wonderful thing to do. during these past few days that i spent with dad drinking beer and having lechon or balut or whatever, i got to know a lot about him. 


then it struck me - i am so much like my dad! he was a wandering soul too - very adventurous, sometimes just doing things without thinking of the consequences too much. he said that when you think too much about things and not do them, then you do not truly live. which is something i believe too. i want to experience the world, both its paradise and evil, or i wouldn't feel complete. like me, he couldn't stay still in a single place for a very long time - he had to move around and about. we both do not run out of money, and yet we do not believe in saving everything for the rainy days: life is about doing what you want to do and money is an enabler. why save up for a future that you do not know about and might not be able to control? instead, live for today, and see the world, and fill your heart with amazement and friendship and love - and if it all fails in the end, no one will be able to take away that which you have experienced.


he told me that i am a wanderer - like him - and must continue to be one. and that, alcoholism is better than gambling. now isn't my dad awesome? :)