journey to the womb of lahar

just to be different, i want to start this post with something historic and geographic. lol. Mt. Pinatubo is an active volcano which last erupted in 1991. four years after that, its crater was opened as a tourist destination with Capas, Tarlac as the main entry point. the Pinatubo crater is shared by three provinces, one is Tarlac and Pampanga and Zambales are the other two. 

"what a journey it has been," Riz describes our jaunt to the Mt. Pinatubo crater. indeed! God really made an effort to place the beautiful things He created somewhere where humans can't easily reach and destroy them. so before we got to the crater, we had to go through some tremendous amount of exhaustion and hunger (no breakfast and no baon to mumble). 

all four of us, Riz, Peter, Jon, and myself, met up at Capas and took a thirty-minute tricycle ride to Sta. Juliana. since ours was just a DIY trip, we were immediately accommodated and we took off on our 4x4 ride right away, unlike others who joined some promo tour packages and might have been waiting for some more people before they could leave. the one-hour 4x4 ride was really fun. we were amazed by the landscapes, thrilled by the bumpy roads and streams the truck traversed, and excited by what was then awaiting us. 

Riz and i in the middle of the lahar desert.

my first time to see Aetas-- ang orig na mga Pinoy.
photo by Jon Calumpit

there's our ride. ours is the worst-looking but  we have the most
madiskarteng driver and tour guide. so keri lang.

when we reached the starting point for the trekking, Riz and i were more in disgust than in awe because we were told that it's actually a two-hour hike. i, myself, am fond of walking but i only psyched myself for forty-five minutes, which what bloggers declare the trek is just going to take. but of course, no matter the distance and time, go go go pa rin!

picture muna before starting the trek

walking... walking...

Jon there in this great landscape

the power rangers minus one, naiwan dahil natutulog

sand splash
photo by Peter Canoy

and finally we were there...

when we finally reached the crater, it was such a relief. the color of the lake was just as perfect as what we expected it to be. after taking our lunch, we took some more pictures and went down to get to the lake. 

beautiful

the lake and i were one. good thing
i got the right color for my shirt.

talikod effect

just cam-whoring. hehe.

habang kami ay nasa damuhan,..

sila ay natutulog.

the trip was great-- the place, the lunch, the company, and even the struggle. the whole experience was very fulfilling. really there's nothing much that you can get if you just sit and stare at the world around you. it may be a long way, but you have to endure all the pain there is to get to where you want to be. and when things aren't that much at hand, that's when life gets more exciting. truly, this has been one of my most exciting escapades. 

final picture with the crater, with  <3