Tag Archives: camnorte

The lessons I learned from surfing

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I am no surfer. I fear the deep. I fear drowning. You see, fear limits oneself from accomplishing things. But what if, fear is taken out of the picture? What do you get? Adventure!

Here are the lessons that I learned from surfing:

1. Take out your prejudices. Take out your fear. Go and face the waves.

2. Be observant. At the start of the demo, take note of how things are being done. Watch other surfers do it.

Thanks to Kara Santos for this photo

3. Focus. Listen to what your instructor tells you.

4. Believe in yourself that you can do it and you will.

5. Persistence is key. When you fall off the board, try again. Practice makes perfect. Cliche it may sound but this is true especially if you’re just starting out.

6. Don’t forget to smile despite everything.

7. Never let failure stop you from going on. And you’ll be surprised that after the nth try, you have succeeded. You have conquered the waves!

Photos are taken in Bagasbas Beach, Camarines Norte.

You may want to read a related story that I wrote for Rappler.com: Bagasbas: A beginner’s surf spot. 

 

Quadricentennial church remains standing in Paracale

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The Spanish conquerors brought Catholicism to the Philippines in 1521. One of the proofs of this influence was the church.

Century-old churches hold so much mystery on how they were built and withstood the test of time. In my recent trip to Paracale, Camarines Norte, I came to see the 400 year-old Our Lady of Candelaria Parish Church. The church was one of the first three churches in Camarines Norte. Historians told that this church was built in 1611 under  Fray Jose de la Torre (source: daetdiocese.net).

The facade of the church gave me an impression on how it withstood calamities. The main door of the church was closed but I tried to enter through the back door.  It was a right choice to do so.

The ceiling may have been renovated but the walls were not. The stain glass perfectly matched the coral stone walls decorated by moss. It was a natural decoration. Camarines Norte Provincial Tourism head Atty. Debbee Francisco said that even if the parishioners tried cleaning the walls, they could not remove the mosses.

But it was perfect. The mosses added character to the quadricentennial-old church of Candelaria.

After your beach-bumming experience in Mahabang Buhangin in Calaguas, visit  this church as well and say a little prayer of thanks for a safe and memorable journey.