Rolly's Amazing Optical Illusions and Other Bicol Experiences (Donsol Part 1)

Last year, my sisters and I made a pact that each year, we would visit a place we have never been to before: one locally, one internationally. For this year's local trip, the destination was Donsol, located in the province of Sorsogon, in the Bicol region. After much planning, the day of departure finally came.

My Companions:

Ria – My older sister; somewhat whiny, not a fan of adrenaline-pumping activities, doggie-paddler.

Maita- My younger sister; zodiac sign: Pisces, enjoys the beach, wildlife activist, food enthusiast.

Lala- My cousin; Fashionista, shoe-a-holic, cosmetics hoarder, adrenaline lover.

And then there's me: dot, dot, dot...

17 April 2009

It all started in the plane. I took my preferred spot beside the window and before I could doze off, the pilot announced that we were landing. I looked out the window and saw Legaspi's top view. It was a very vibrant shade of green. It felt like the time I got my new PC and played a movie in my brand-new Samsung LCD monitor: Ridiculously Clear! Had-to-be-Photoshopped Real! It didn't have the gray mistiness of the Manila view.

We arrived in Legaspi City a little before 7 AM. The plane landed around 10 minutes ahead of schedule. We were not due in the resort until 1 PM. It was clearly too early. We asked some of the parked tricycles for suggestions on places we can visit in Legaspi. We ended up in the Cagsawa Ruins, an old Church that was destroyed by the Mt. Mayon eruption. Out came the cameras. Photo time! I rolled my eyes and half-heartedly ran over to join my companios. While I enjoyed posing for photos (why bother denying it?), I found it quite pointless to take a 20-minute tricycle ride just so we could take snapshots. I ran up to the tower shouting for my sister to take a photo of me and the entire tower.

I suppose the fact that our shots were so... amateur... did not go unnoticed. A young man approached us and offered to take our photo. He later introduced himself as Rolly. He walked about the ruins with us, all the while relating the history of the place to us, telling us what used to be the convent, where the altar used to be. Then, he directed us to a spot, told us to sit on the steps and took a beautiful shot with the tower ruins in the background. Pretty soon, he began taking the role of director, telling us where to stand and how to pose. Many of his photo concepts involved optical illusions, making us look like giants and superheroes.

It was loads of fun! Too bad Mayon Volcano was obscured by a bunch of clouds. Rolly certainly made me, the Mass Comm graduate with 2 photography subjects, look like a total noob. A big blow to my ego but it felt strangely good. Despite giving Rolly a generous tip, I felt bad about not giving more. I had an idea on how much photographers and creative directors made and I knew that with proper training and skill-polishing, Rolly could click it with the best of them. Hm... only a few hours after landing and I was already having a blast.

We took the public van to Amor Beach Resort in Donsol. We arrived at our destination at around 10:30.

We made our way to the Tourism office where we signed up for the Butanding Interaction and the Firefly Cruise.

We were picked up in the beach front of our resort at exactly 6 PM for the Firefly Cruise. We cruised the mangroves slowly in the dark. I enjoyed the darkness. Then, our guide pointed us to a tree filled with fireflies. Wow! It was like a Christmas tree except the lights are much tinier and they move around a lot. It was romantic! It would have been nice to watch the fireflies with a significant other. Being a sucker for romance stories, I made a silent prayer asking to find “The One.” We stayed there longer, watching the fireflies dance as our guide told us of firefly mating habits. It is the females who shine brighter and blink more frequently since they are the ones who set off and seduce the males. After mating, the male firefly eventually dies. Poor things. At least they died happy.

We also go the guide to talk about local folklore. She told us about Santilmos and children buried beneath the resort we stayed in. Soon, we headed back to the resort for dinner.

Not bad for our first day.