Teas and Travels

It feels great to be on top of the world. You'll see ant-sized structures while getting caressed by a gush of cold wind. The People's Park in Tagaytay City is one such a place. The view is amazing as one can see a larger part of the provinces of Batangas and Cavite and the Taal Volcano. The park, known as the People's Park in the Sky is allegedly constructed during the Marcos period in preparation for the visit of then President Ronald Reagan and his wife. It was earlier named as the Palace in the Sky. The the trip of the then US First Couple was canceled and the palace was never finished. Remnants of the construction are still evident. Today the park is renamed as People's Park in the Sky and is one of the major attractions in Tagaytay City. The best time to visit the park is at daytime when there are no rain showers.

Manila Bay has woven not only history but also poetry. Its sunset has inspired a number of stories of love and war, of life and death, of hope and desperation. In some sense, Manila Bay is better than the Manila Ocean Park where the products of the mall and souvenir shops outnumber the marine species to see. The view of the bay is better when the day and the night are playing tug-of-war with each other. That is also the period when lights start to appear from the sea while the trashes thrown in the waters of the bay starts to vanish from the naked eye at least temporarily.

From beliefs to culture to everyday living, and from waking-up to sleeping and waking-up again, the influence of the Spaniards to the Filipinos cannot be denied. This includes the influence on religion. The influence is so strong that tourist destination has become synonymous to religious destination. To complete one's tour, he/she is obliged to visit a Catholic church building, or a religious relic, or a shrine. This makes the town of Lucban in Quezon no exception. The town boasts among its attractions the Roman Catholic church at the town center and the Ascending Christ popularly known as the "Kamay ni Hesus". While the Catholic Church is easily located a block away from the town plaza, the Ascending Christ is five minutes away from the municipal building. Because it is located at the top of a hill, one needs to climb 300 steps or more just to see clearly and feel the statue sculpted by Mr. Bernardo Caber. Because of the height of its location, those with weak hearts ...

A cold soda may quench the thirst of a traveler but a relaxing tea helps him appreciate the beauty and the taste of the world he was able to visit.