racing against sunbeams

Thanks to Paul, I got wind of this website that will allow you to keep track of the places in the Philippines that you’ve visited.

My grade? D for Disgusting.

My Lakbayan grade is D!

How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan! Created by Eugene Villar.

Man, I need to travel more. I’ve never been to any place in Visayas and Mindanao. Ugh.

I only got to go outside Luzon in grade school and high school, when my family and I spent about three summers in Malaysia where my dad used to work, and a few days in Singapore.

What I got out of those travels except for hundreds of pictures that show me as a fat and grumpy teenager:

- I learned a little Bahasa (Malaysian languange) from hotels and airports. Like, “pintu” is “door,” and “gula” is “sugar.” “Selamat” means “welcome.” I think.
- I fell in love with F.R.I.E.N.D.S., the TV show. To this day, I watch at least five episodes every weekend on DVD.
- I wrote (childish) fiction. But I have no idea where the notebooks I wrote them in are now.

Looking back, I wish I had been more open-minded and adventurous. I mean, I didn’t even go into the snake house at one of the zoos we visited, I preferred to stay inside malls and hotels, and I hardly looked out the window while riding the cable car to Sentosa in Singapore because I was too busy eating pizza. No wonder I got so fat.