My kind of blues.
Sometimes, we all need a little bit of solitude. Whenever I look for it, I always find myself slouching in the volcanic sandy beaches of Zambales, in this superb little place called Liw-Liwa – my happy pill next to home.
Happiness because everything about this photo speaks of solitude…
Pseudo Pines.
I’ve frequented the place on solo trips and sometimes with friends who wanted to try out surfing for the first time. A lot has changed since my first visit 2 years and 3 months ago. And though it may not be as “quiet” as before, I am happy that my ultimate go-to destination is finally getting the recognition that it truly deserves; I am even happier because this would mean a bigger source of income for the locals of the place.
Over the weekend, I invited a few friends to see the place I always come to when I am (1) happy, (2) very happy, (3) depressed, (4) looking for peace and quiet, (5) itching to surf and (6) when I am being spontaneous, weird and random at the same time.
Everything was awesome – is awesome. Great is even an understatement of how we felt when we went for a night swim and saw countless of bio-luminescent phytoplankton glowing in the waters with every stroke of our hands and feet. Even when our bodies were trembling from the cold in the darkness of the night, we managed to witness how the waters became a vast sea of stars.
Regrettably, we didn’t carry a camera that night, so as a rough representation of how the water looked like when it was disturbed by our swimming maneuver, here is an image from imgarcade.com.
Special thanks to Board Culture Liw-Liwa (BCL) for making our stay really fun as we opted to rent tents and go camping within the vicinity so we could have an “outdoorsy vibe” for the weekend, as one of my friends stated.
Sharing with you random photos of the place so you can have a taste of Liwa (also, for your future reference).
To all the alcohol lovers out there, rejoice! It’s not everyday that people get to drink a shot of Bacardi 151 for 60 pesos or a shot of Absinthe for the same price!
side by side: absinthe and bacardi 151 (DISCLAIMER: not my drink)
DISCLAIMER: not my drink
If happiness is one tangible thing, this is what it looks like.
Surf boards! — you surf when bored.
BCL overloaded with “gypsy feels” night lights.
Gypsy night lights. © A. Gajigan
serenity
© A. Gajigan
Need I say more?
Everything I love on a single wall! Ride a board when bored.
Life on Board hanging on the wall.
Meanwhile at the beach…
Brushing elbows with the legendary Manoy Bazar in the shores of Liwa! We come from the same town in Samar and it is always a privilege to be able to see him rocking the waves!
Manoy Bazar!
No surfable waves? No problem. SKIM!
© A. Gajigan
waiting.
And because there were no surfable waves… VANITY!
For the first time in more than 2 years, I didn’t surf Liwa.
© A. Gajigan
This is my good friend, Queen! Her first time in Liwa was one heck of an adventure!
Since it’s summer and Liwa seldom gets challenging waves at this time of the year, people can try out other sports. Skaters and longboarders out there can try out Liwa’s skating ramp (although you probably know that already) (not in photo).
And here is a shout-out to our newfound friends! For the short duration of that getaway, we met these awesome people as we “gate crashed” their karaoke night!
just because.
And…
Commencing a well-spent weekend getaway with this photo of the uncrowded beach.
Solitude.
That’s all folks!
*If you wish to contact Board Culture Liw-Liwa, you can reach them at +639065161263.
Board Culture Liw-Liwa rent out tents that come with pillows and cushioned pads (for only 200 Php and it fits 2 people!). If you haven’t pitched a tent in your entire life, don’t fret because they will do it for you!
Happy beachin!
PepperMench. 