But now the time is right to finally strap on my harness and surf away. I did quite a bit of research into where to go, and came up with a spot in a country of which I have never inhaled the air yet.
The place is Bagasbas, a tiny fisherman’s village in the Philippines. It is a kite spot in development, and is not known by the big kite-surf masses yet. It is somewhat difficult to reach, as from Manila I need a domestic flight to Naga, from where it is a 2 hour drive to Daet and Bagasbas.
CEBU Philippine’s budget airlines… Ah well, after NZ fear is not present in my dictionary
Mike from Mikes-kites.com picks me up from the airport to introduce me to my 3 weeks of action. It feels fantastic not to go anywhere, just to dump my stuff in a room, my new home, and stay there for weeks. Enough of this travel nonsense, enough!
To be honest there is F.A. to blog about during my time here. All I do is kite-surf, be bored, socialize and drink beer.
And boy is there wind! I do so much kiting that some days I hope there is no wind just to give me an excuse to rest my aching body. Two days there was even too much wind to kite (40+kn, around 8-9 Beaufort). I never had that before. Although a few are going out (on a 3 meter kite!), there is no way I am going into the swirling ocean during some sort of hurricane.Poor palms enduring 35 knot winds
But most of the time the wind is fine for me to fly my kite
I must admit that to surf straight into the shorebreak is a new experience for me and I spend a lot of time gasping for air when Poseidon is tossing me around. But the cool thing about this location is that there are several lagoons with flat water nearby, and I definitely am progressing by the day.
...but luckily also in clear blue skies
A fisherman is selling his proud catch Sashimi for 5 Euros (the whole fish that is). We ate the sushi building material at Mike’s house.
In the many hours of spare time I sit in the bar and chat with my new friends to pass time.
More new friends: Mat and GF
And let’s not forget perfect-picture-Nicole
And then…. After a few weeks of action and boredom in a country I will visit again, the big moment has come. The moment of truth, the inevitable moment of catching the bus back home.
Can I come to any wise conclusions at the end?
Around 13 years ago was the last time I traveled for a longer period. I then wanted it to last forever and concluded that traveling, being introduced to new cultures and new people was probably the best and the highest thing available that life has to offer.
This time round, however, I can’t wait to go home and see Immy, friends, family and go to sleep in a home that stays where it is, with me in it. Don’t get me wrong, last few months were fantastic and will be nostalgically remembered for many years to come. But it is a very different euphoria this time. It was not a wonderful escape away from cold boring home; it was a wonderful holiday away from cold but precious home. I guess I’ve grown older and that feels damned good!
Anyhow, not sure if any of that made sense. Here is some other news for whoever didn’t know yet:
I have decided that upon my return I am moving back to Amsterdam.
And to answer an immediate question: Immy will join me in due course, her Dutch is… well, let’s say improving.
Coming period will be all about returning to the real world: moving back into my Amsterdam flat, re-immigration bureaucracy, and most important: finding a job!
But as the ancient Chinese saying goes:
‘He who conquers the tiger, will conquer the world’ (it might be so ancient you won’t be able to trace it back).
Ready to conquer the world!
