OUR SHARE OF TRAVEL PITS

Before 2013 ended, my status goes: “Lord we know you have reasons and better plans, looking forward to it” and “Truly, no matter how much we’ve prepared, we can never know what will happen, we can only speculate and hope for the best… Life is full of surprises, just sail the tides and enjoy moment”…

Travel is not as always a perfect pixie tale or how we fantasized it to be.  We had our share of unwanted, sort-of-intolerable moments but at the end of it, we’ve realized its purpose or found a better route.  It also uncovered a part of us as we sailed the tides of what we call life :)  For us, travel inches us closer to our comfort zone.

I had my dose of visa-whammies and it always caught me off-foot; some held me back while some kept me moving.  My first try of China-land should have been a Hongkong-Shenzhen-Macau trip but the Shenzhen route was a fiasco I failed to reckon.   Another was a delayed visa for a supposed Kuala Lumpur-South Korea-Kuala Lumpur trip.  This flop was harder to bear as the kiddos were on and their ogle look tore me apart.  Much worst, it happened on Christmas holidays where the merry-ish air was roofed by why-ish thoughts that filled the universe with unending whys.  The latest of which was our Sydney trip… We handed our papers with full confidence that we’ll get the pass but ended shorthanded on the purpose-probe.  I felt wretched for awhile thinking it was a failed birthday trip but like the earlier South Korea trip, we resubmitted with a prayer, and everything happenned according to His will.

We’re no storm chasers nor are we storm-prone but we had several accounts of hikes and travels with thunders and lightning’s mare.  Our Mt. Kanlaon climb was cussed with unending downpour while typhoon Gorio hounded our Malipunyo-Manabu traverse.  Our Mt. Gulugod Baboy Caban Cove sidetrip race to shore that was replayed in our Hinatuan-Bislig-Samal Island trip as we ushered Agaton storm to land.  Thankfully typhoon Odette had an early withdraw on our Bacolod-Guimaras-Iloilo-Roxas trip and managed to escape typhoon Pablo's might on our Butuan-Bislig-Davao trip.

at Mt. Kanlaon crater

Even our Blue Mountains hike was plugged with torrent of some kind.

Blue Mountains, New South Wales

But what can be more awful than a sad news from home.  During our Butuan-Bislig-Davao trip, a phone call broke our last night’s snooze; of dear father’s loss, no hint, so sudden, so prompt. An excerpt from my blog goes:

That day seemed to be the longest waiting day of my life.  

Sleep had left me and tremor was all I felt.  

Hubby has tried his best to lessen the grief 

but the more I struggle, the more it abscond me.

Up until today whenever I’m off home, a ring tone is a terror I combat with fright.  Lord I always pray and I depend on thee, the health and safety of my beloved especially when I'm away ...

This is my entry to the Pinoy Travel Bloggers' Blog Carnival

for the month of October entitled “The Worst Travel Moments”,

hosted by Jona Branzuela Bering of Backpacking with a Book.

For previous monthly blog carnival topics, click Estan Cabigas' Langyaw.