Republika ng Pilipinas - Pasaporte

I love traveling. I love backpacking. I love the seas and I love the mountains. I love seeing new places, meeting new people, sleeping in different hotels and pension houses. I traveled a lot, but only inside my beloved Philippines. Why? Well, I didn't have my passport.

I had my three years hiatus in Cebu. I worked as a Call Center Agent and as a Publishing Consultant. I had the capacity to travel that time. My wallet was thick enough to support my passion to see places but my Birth Certificate chained me and forced me to enjoy the locals instead. Most of my friends would schedule their vacations abroad and grabbed that Cebu Pacific discounted fares. I would simply wish that the local midwife in our place back in 1978 was kind enough to check if my record was really that of my parents'. Or better yet, my parents could have doubled-check it. But the truth remained, I was recorded not with the Maiden Name of my mother.

So there I was, stuck and could not file any passport. I didn't have the time to visit the NSO to make the necessary changes and applications. It did not stop me though from traveling. Up north in Luzon, I went to Baguio City, Tagaytay City, Lipa City, Manila and all other cities in between even farther down Marinduque. Down in Visayas, I traveled from Bohol, Cebu, Bacolod, Ilo-ilo, and the beautiful island of Boracay. Here in Mindanao, the only region I haven't been is the region comprising Basilan, Jolo, and Tawi-tawi. I was everywhere. Perhaps, God wants me to see and have a taste of the Philippine travels before embarking on a trip worldwide, nyaks...

And God answered my prayers. I just received today, after months of preparing for corrections and other stuff from my Birth Certificate, my PASAPORTE. It only means one thing... set back and join me... as I will have to bring you with me to my travels...

I know, it will not happen tomorrow or the next few days. But it will happen soon I tell you. And before that happens, I will content myself to revisiting the places I had been, to remember the people I met, relish the food I ate, relive the hotels I was into, the boats that took me farther from the shores, and the planes that brought to my heights.