Mt. Lantawan
I spent my childhood in Bukidnon, a province which name roughly translates as "mountainous place." Bukidnon is a plateau surrounded by mountains and, unlike Cebu, there is no sea-meets-the-sky horizon: just the sky and the land boundaried by mountains.
As a child, I was not allowed to go up the mountains. I could only stare at them but never allowed to go. I was not looking for philosophic or literary insights, as those pretentious writers would write about to make themselves look smart. I stared at mountains simply with the wonder of what it would feel like to be in such a blue place. If trees there were really blue and would I look blue too if I go there.
Now 22, I can go to any mountain I want provided that I have the time, money, and fitness for it. (And calories, too. I am very thin because of mountain biking that the cold has always been a problem to me.)
I do not believe in "conquering" mountain. How could you conquer such innucous and stationary force of nature. You just climb or hike up a mountain. You do not conquer it. The people who use that term have not done anything in their lives so they use a phony term to give them some sense of fulfilment. No, a mountain is just a place you go to.
Every time you go up, there are always two forces that pull you in separate directions: gravity and the desire to reach the top. Neither can be seen but they are both as palpable as they could get. The only problem is that gravity is more constant. Always been, always will be. You just hope that the pull of gravity will never be as strong as the pull of the peak (until you get where you want to be).
The mountains offer a comforting solitude. I will keep going back to them.
**
There are many things I have not mentioned in my previous blog entry. I wrote it right after I arrived, in a trip that spanned 7 and a half hours. 1.5 hours of going to Carmen, one hour going back to Liloan from Danao, and a five-hour trip on the mountain route.
I have been to the first part of that route before, on my motorbike. I was jobless back then and I had nothing to do but wander aimlessly and blog. I aptly named the entry I was gonna be broke but then I got high.
I last Sunday's trip because I want to see Mt. Lantawan and Mt. Manghilaw. They could be accessed directly from Tabok, Danao (the same road that leads to Intosan Resort). But I wanted to start from Carmen to find out if the broken lines of road on Google Earth connect. I was confident that they do. After all, Cebu is the most populated province in the country. People in Cebu build roads everywhere.
The thing that captivates my mind until now is a thoroughbred I saw at the M Lhuiller ranch. I have always been fascinated by the physique of horses and the ability of their body to resist the impact of their wild galloping.
I would like to share a few more photos that I have not posted here. Hence, let us commence.
I spent my childhood in Bukidnon, a province which name roughly translates as "mountainous place." Bukidnon is a plateau surrounded by mountains and, unlike Cebu, there is no sea-meets-the-sky horizon: just the sky and the land boundaried by mountains.
As a child, I was not allowed to go up the mountains. I could only stare at them but never allowed to go. I was not looking for philosophic or literary insights, as those pretentious writers would write about to make themselves look smart. I stared at mountains simply with the wonder of what it would feel like to be in such a blue place. If trees there were really blue and would I look blue too if I go there.
Now 22, I can go to any mountain I want provided that I have the time, money, and fitness for it. (And calories, too. I am very thin because of mountain biking that the cold has always been a problem to me.)
I do not believe in "conquering" mountain. How could you conquer such innucous and stationary force of nature. You just climb or hike up a mountain. You do not conquer it. The people who use that term have not done anything in their lives so they use a phony term to give them some sense of fulfilment. No, a mountain is just a place you go to.
Every time you go up, there are always two forces that pull you in separate directions: gravity and the desire to reach the top. Neither can be seen but they are both as palpable as they could get. The only problem is that gravity is more constant. Always been, always will be. You just hope that the pull of gravity will never be as strong as the pull of the peak (until you get where you want to be).
The mountains offer a comforting solitude. I will keep going back to them.
**
There are many things I have not mentioned in my previous blog entry. I wrote it right after I arrived, in a trip that spanned 7 and a half hours. 1.5 hours of going to Carmen, one hour going back to Liloan from Danao, and a five-hour trip on the mountain route.
I have been to the first part of that route before, on my motorbike. I was jobless back then and I had nothing to do but wander aimlessly and blog. I aptly named the entry I was gonna be broke but then I got high.
I last Sunday's trip because I want to see Mt. Lantawan and Mt. Manghilaw. They could be accessed directly from Tabok, Danao (the same road that leads to Intosan Resort). But I wanted to start from Carmen to find out if the broken lines of road on Google Earth connect. I was confident that they do. After all, Cebu is the most populated province in the country. People in Cebu build roads everywhere.
The thing that captivates my mind until now is a thoroughbred I saw at the M Lhuiller ranch. I have always been fascinated by the physique of horses and the ability of their body to resist the impact of their wild galloping.
I would like to share a few more photos that I have not posted here. Hence, let us commence.
Around the mountains: the horse-shoe route of Carmen-Danao
View from Carmen. At the foot of those mountains is a road the leads to Danao.
You can only feel the immensity of the mountains when you bike alone.
Short single track that starts from another road at the top.
This couple can show you how to walk fast with a load.
Just a rock.
The road to Danasan Eco Park, along Saksak Hill.
4 comments:
kusgana gyud ani niya oi. dmd!
inspired lang.
am I your inspiration for this one gayBro???
you got moobs like jagger
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