Seaside Tour By Boat

The author with Silvia from Uruguay, during sea-side tour in Qingdao

We just had a sea-tour around Qingdao by boat (of course it's a boat,what do you expect, hehe). Riding in a boat brings back a lot of childhood memories I had with my father. When I was in elementary school, my Dad used to bring to this place they call "Break water" near the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC). There we would watch fishermen trying to catch as many fish as possible using their fishing poles. Also, we rode on a ferry boat, a small boat that could carry only about fifty people. We would go around Manila Bay for about 45 minutes then go back to the port. It was only, I believe, about 18 pesos per person.

Life was much simpler then. I also remember my parents telling me that they used to take us in the Manila Bay to bathe during early Sunday mornings (though I no longer remember most of it). The thoughts in my head was probably placed there because my mother talked about it often, that many people bathe there in the Manila Bay in the morning. The bay was very clean then, unlike now which is full of grease and oil from passing tankers and boats, including trash which the sewers throw at the sea.

I have always been a sentimental person. But the complexities of life has taken away my precious moments of being alone and just listening to the sound of the wind, the soft rustle of leaves in the trees during mornings, and the simple conversations during long walks in the beach. I have tried to relieve those moments in my mind and it I tell you that it is the most exciting part of my day.

Qingdao has made me hear once again that faint whisper inside me saying that life and time is so important that we should take every opportunity to make our world much better, ourselves more sensitive to the needs of our fellow man and make our relationship with God more meaningful.

My memories here will definitely last forever, and will be with me as I brave the storm once again that this life of ours has to offer.

Xie Xie Qingdao!

Conversations of the Heart

I have always believed that time is so precious that we should make every moment count and do everything like there was no tomorrow. Every day given to us by God is a gift, another chance for us to be a better person, to serve our fellow man as a fellow traveler in this journey through life.

The past weeks I spent here in Qingdao is a testament to that belief. I can say that I have done almost everything that I wanted to do here and things that I did not think I could do. When I think that every day given to me is my last, it takes away all my fears, all my ifs and buts, and I charge outside my door with renewed excitement and courage to face anything life throws at me.

I always imagine myself already in the plane that will take me home to Manila. Doing this makes me ask questions like "What would be my regrets? What are the things that I should have done? What are the places that I should have visited? What should I have said to that special friend who made my stay so memorable? Should I have said this or that? Why did I not take the initiative to say what was really on my mind? Why didn't I take a picture with hmmm, secret! Why didn't I take a swim in Qingdao's longest beach?" (Hey maybe I will swim tomorrow!)

If you think that you have lived life to the fullest, then you should have no regrets. Remember that it is better to have failed in trying what you really wanted to do, than to have succeeded in doing nothing at all and thinking what could have happened.

So keep in mind that today is the only day we've got for tomorrow may never come. If you have something to say or something to do, then remember the slogan of Nike and "Just do it!"

Cheers to a meaningful life and exciting life!