BOOTCAMP!

Last weekend, me and my friends went on a camping trip in Anawangin Cove, Zambales to "get away from it all" trip. It was going to be the first time for us camping.  The trip was supposed to be a 2-3hrd drive from Manila(according to google map, 2hrs. 15+min I think from Eastwood to Pundaquit) but since we didn't know the place, we asked around and had a lot of stop overs along the way so it took us roughly 4 hrs. to get there from Mindanao Avenue in Q.C. to Pundaquit.

We arrived at Pundaquit around 4+ in the afternoon, we still had to take a boat ride to Anawangin Cove with less than 30min boat ride. We left our car at our tourguide Jay-Ar's home. It was a big parking space, and quite safe.

On our way to Anawangin Cove from Pundaquit. Seems only a few people were camping, BUT this is just the outside

inside the campsite, just a few feet from the shore

When we got to Anawangin Cove, we were surprised to see quite a few people along the shore...and when we entered the camp site, just a few feet from the shore, we were more surprised..according to my friend, "may community ba?" yes, it was kinda like a community of campers. How many you ask, imagine this, according to my friend, while reviewing the pictures she took with her camera, there wasn't one picture that didn't include either a person or a tent in the background while we were there...it was that many people camping.

We had a hard time making a bonfire, we were blessed to have someone with us who knew a few about camping. A bundle of firewood costs 150 there. There was only 2 sari-sari store competing against each other.

150 Pesos a bundle, good for 1hr. 30min -2hrs.

 It was really great that we have a barkada who knows quite a few things about camping, he even bought some stuffs that we didn't know we had to bring..!

After dinner, we had a few drinks, we got drunk. Some rolled on the beach, some "walked on ember," some tried to climb trees, some rolled some paper, and some just enjoyed what we were doing and took pictures.

Some of the highlights:

- "1 am na nageenglish pa din?!"

- nadapa right in front of another camping group and just looked at the person who fell because they were just as surprised as the one who fell down

- "bakit hindi ako lumalapit kay sam?" turns out, he was too tired and drunk to walk and just rolled towards our friend but rolled the other way

- getting lost more than often from the comfort room back to our camp site and we just called the names of our friends who didn't go with us to the bathroom

- Walking on fire when we were drunk

- woke up around 430 in the morning because I think I heard someone doing "it" and so much more

It was a very..."memorable" trip for us, as this was the first time we went camping with my friends except for one.

 The sunset was great too...! :)

sunset

 *Photos were taken by my friends and not me

We spent roughly:
- 3, 100 for our tour guide + tip
- 1, 500 on gas
- 805 on toll(round trip)
- 1, 830 on food
- 450 extra

*everything divided by 5

Who Am I?

Yep, taken from the that song title by Casting Crowns "Who Am I." This isn't my first blog but would be my first post for my official "relaunched" blog entitled, "Juan dela Chua".

Juan dela Chua is a mix of the traditional Filipino "Juan dela Cruz" - Juan dela Cruz is the national personification used in the Philippines to represent the "Filipino". The name, Spanish for "John of the Cross", is roughly the equivalent of the American Uncle Sam and John Doe. - according to Wikipedia, and Chua coming from my surname, a Chinese derived surname.

I'm a Filipino - Chinese, that's what they call us here in the Philippines. Some other labels include, Chinoy, Fil-Chi, Chekwa/Chequa(I suggest NOT calling any of your Fil-Chi friends here in the Phil. this nickname when in public or when we don't even know each other! This is like calling a Filipino "Indio" or an African-American the N word) , Intsik, etc.

I am 25% Filipino and 75% Chinese(if we're doing technicalities, 25/75) by BLOOD, but traditionally, I'm pure Chinese. Let me explain how. My dad was adopted by a pure Chinese couple when he was still little, like probably toddler little. My mom said that my dad's real parents were half as well. My biological "angkong"(grandfather, fatherside) was Macau and my biological "ama"(grandmother, fatherside) was Filipina. My biological grandfather went back to Macau and had no idea what happened afterwards, this was all just a "theory" of my family tree on my fatherside.

Now my adopted grandfather adopted my dad because they were having a hard time conceiving a child of their own. My "aco" (my dad's only sister) was adopted by my grandfather as well, my dad and his sister are NOT blood related.(can you still catch up?) They're both orphaned but my aco/aunt was pure Chinese(she now found her family).

Traditionally 100% Chinese because, I practice almost EVERY Chinese tradition the stereotype Chinese family has to offer/practices. I.e., We go to temple for worship especially my parents, we wear red when there's a birthday celebration, we avoid wearing white or black because of superstitions. Our unlucky numbers are 4 and or 9, we are asked by our parents as well to marry a Chinese as well, when my parents are around, we speak quite fluent Fukien/Hokien among us siblings or my parents would get mad at us, we studied at a private Chinese school who thought us Mandarin, etc. These are just some of the few things I will be writing about in the following months ahead.

But don't be deceived by all of this, I'm actually NOT the stereotypical Fil-Chi you would encounter everyday. I have a Filipino friend who actually said that I'm one of the few Fil-Chi who isn't Fil-Chi at all, and he only knows two Fil-Chi who aren't your stereotype Fil-Chi.

Anyway, in the following months I will write more about myself, the Chinese community, whatever just for my pleasure and not for yours ;)

Funny how this blog turns out to be in English. LOL.

Anyway, hanggang dito na lang muna, paalam!