#seaofclouds

I was just scrolling through my gallery today and biglang lumabas 'tong mga 'to. Fresh na fresh pa rin sa memory ko yung lamig kahit 2026 na! Mt. Pulag you were a literal fever dream.

Bago kami sumabak sa trail, we gathered around the table at the base. Siyempre, may naglabas ng pampainit... alcohol daw to condition the body sa sobrang lamig. I don’t really drink and di ko na maalala if I actually took a shot (baka kape?!) but the warmth definitely came from the conversation. Strangers kami nung una but we became teammates after those late-night talks.

Syempre, hindi mawawala yung mandatory Eagle and Eye hand signs sa Ambangeg office. Requested ng guide namin na sobrang bait! Fresh pa kaming lahat dito. Di pa namin alam na yung pagpapakulo ng tubig sa malaking kaldero (yung pang-carenderia!) ay aabutin ng siyam-siyam bago uminit. The cold was burn-your-skin levels na talaga!

Eto yung plot twist.... I ended up trekking with a policewoman (yung naka-red bonnet). Jusko, akala ko chill hike lang! Niyaya ba naman akong mag-advance at tumakbo ahead of the others. Iba yung training niya, pang-Marawi! 😂 Dahil sa bilis namin, we reached the base camp way faster than expected.

Pero nung narating ko na yung summit ng 6:00 AM, literal na gumagapang na ako sa pagod. And there it was... the sound of betrayal! Napunit yung pants ko sa gitna!

Standing at the highest point in Luzon with a giant hole in my pants? Iconic.

The Squad & My Hair Strategy

Si Engineer na relaxed lang in red. Si Teacher naman our Selfie/Groupie Queen na hindi titigil hangga't walang wacky shot. And Me... standing there with my lumalaban hair. Dahil sa gel, hairspray and hair cream mula Pasay, wind-proof na yung buhok ko. Di ako nakapag-shampoo kasi feeling ko magyeyelo ako sa banyo!

Our guide in blue... conqueror pala siya ng highest peaks even outside the Philippines! I remember him constantly calling me nung nasa van pa lang kami and even pagkarating. Sabi niya, may sasabihin daw siyang seryoso but he never got to say it because biglang may lumapit sa amin. Hanggang ngayon, mystery pa rin sa akin kung ano dapat 'yun.

Akala namin tapos na nung nakababa kami. Pero sa Pangasinan, malapit sa CityMall, nasiraan pa kami ng gulong! 2 hours kaming nakatambay sa labas, just scrolling through these very photos habang inaayos yung van.

February 2020