Lessons

When life gives you an almost knockout  punch, you get up and fight again. And learn a lesson or two from that incident lest you get punched again with the same sneaky jab.

I had a major setback one month after my backpacking trip. My house was burglarized. And in that incident I lost my Nikon D90, my Macbook Pro and two of my hard drives. I am ok to lose my Mac and my Cam. It's something that I could replace some day. What pisses me off is that the files I've had since 2006 not to mention the high resolution photos from my European escapade are forever lost.
I curse the person who did this. I sincerely hope he gets his karma. Man, I'd love to see this guy get bulldozed or decapitated or have any of the graphic deaths featured in Saw and Final Destination. Screw him.

Anyway I could not  find an appropriate expression in English. In Kiniray-a we call it "wara man lang hingan". It's like all your efforts are all for naught. I bought 2 sets of hard drives thinking that with 3 sets of copies (the memory in Mac Book Pro counted) I have backup in case one set of files got lost or erased. Well a stinging lesson here... If you have back ups, make f^&**^^%cking sure they are not located in the same place.

It was also through this incident that I learned about iCloud. F^%#$##ck how could I miss this.

Anyway as I went through the stages of my fury and helplessness I could not help but recall some Finnish friends I met from the boat trip from Finland to Sweden. We discussed over beer the concept of God.

They insisted that it's normal for them that their default is not to believe in a Supreme Being because there is no proof otherwise.

I actually felt depressed because I could not offer a plausible explanation. We had our photo taken. Whenever I would look at that photo, it reminded me of our conversation. I would always consider it an anchor to my past.  Sadly the only copy of that photo was in the hard drive stolen and will forever be gone.

And in the burglary instance I thought about my Finnish friends.

Who is better off? Them who never had a Supreme being to believe in. Or me who claimed to be a believer of the Almighty but cursing Him for the tragedy that has befallen me.

Backpacking Tip No. 3 - Know thyself

To fully enjoy your backpacking adventure, you must know yourself. That might sound rather simple and yet it can save you a lot of frustrations and make your journey more memorable.

I'm talking about your travel preference. Do you prefer traveling solo or are you the type who can't live without a companion? Can you handle minor changes in your plans or do you fret over disruptions in your well-crafted schedule? Are you more into quantity over quality? This would determine whether your 3-day detour in Rome would be a journey to heaven or a descent to hell.

The best personality test I could think of is the Myers Briggs type indicator (MBTI) . While typically used for career profiling, an overall general description can give you insights on what delights you and what pisses you off.

As an example I am an ENFP. I thrive upon social setting, the possibilities, the big picture, values and flexibility. The E (extrovert) in me makes enjoy meeting new strangers be it inside the train or the hostel. The P (perceiving) in me makes me enjoy freedom and flexibility. I would prefer to take my time in a city and am quite flexible in changing my schedule. It is perhaps this reason why I would want to travel solo. I'd like to have a full command of my itinerary.

I would probably clash with a travel buddy that's ISTJ or ESTJ. This would typically be the folks who would like to have their itinerary covered down to the minutest detail.

There's no such thing as the best personality for traveling but knowing your preferences can at least help you plan your trip better.

You can take a free MBTI test here...
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp

Backpacking Tip No. 2 - Make the System Work for you

Ok. Let's face it. The world is not fair.

If you happen to be born in the Philippines with no tinge of foreign blood then chances are you would have to pass through the eye of a needle to backpack across Europe. Really, the major obstacle is not in saving up the money for the trip. The challenge is really to get the visa and convincing the embassy that  you are only planning to visit Europe and not run away.

Whether you like it or not, that snotty bastard behind the visa processing window decides whether you get a Visa or not. I always suspect that these bastards have huge insecurities; they somehow enjoy their power over the hapless applicants.

Knowing which embassy to apply and knowing tricks of the trade can increase your chances of getting that Schengen Visa.

I won't list those strategies here for obvious reasons. But if you want to know how to increase your chances send me a note. If I am convinced that you're only in it to visit I shall give you the tips. Cheers.

Europe Dreaming

I got back in my country around 13 days ago. I am settling in although every night I dream about Europe. Things will never be the same. It's a bit weird because I do my usual routine here but at the back of my mind there is a place that I hunger to go back to. Is it just the thrill of the exotic that makes me yearn to get back there?

I don't know. I wish I have the answers but my game plan in life has definitely changed. I will go back. And maybe this time for good.

60 in 60

Earlier today I received a note from my potential new boss. He was asking when I will be back in the Philippines so he could discuss the next step in my job application. Suddenly from the stratospheric heights of my euphoria I was plunged to the grounds of reality.

Oh yes. I am just living this 40-day dream. But after this once-in-a-lifetime journey I would be facing reality. I would be nearly broke and I need to have a job soon.

So with that grim reminder of inevitability I brought to mind my attempt to achieve 60 things to be done in 60 days. The 60 days of gap between my jobs. I have not actually completed the list and it's actually a work in progress but anyways here's the list so far...

60 in 60

1.     Plant a Rose

2.     Learn how to cook a native dish - DONE (Adobo!!!)

3.     Learn how to solve 3^rd layer of Rubik’s Cube.. DONE (Missing step was Ri F Ri B B R Fi Ri B B R R Ui)

4.     Perform HDR photography

5.     Take photo of the Milky Way

6.     Have a reunion with former officemates

7.     Watch a play - DONE

8.     Send a postcard - DONE

9.     Observe the transit of Venus - DONE

10. Visit a new city - DONE  (Tallinn, Oslo, Budapest, Prague, Riga...need I say more ?)

11. Go to the gym - In progress

12. Update a blog - In progress

13. Road trip - DONE 

14. Send home Spark, my dog  - DONE

15. Generate 1000 profile views in CS - In progress

16. Get hosted - DONE ( Got hosted in Salzburg, Vienna, Berlin, Tallinn)

17. Bury the hatchet - DONE (made amends with a good old friend)

18. Reconnect with an old friend

19. Update wardrobe

20. Spend a day without PC and CP  - DONE

21. Spend a day doing nothing

22. Post 20 blog entries

23. Back up files

24. Activate Six Sigma blog

25. Get a compilation of Photo templates

26. Host a free hugs event - DONE ( Hosted a free hugs event in Tallinn Estonia)

27. Join a pub crawl - DONE
28. Experience God
29. Skinny dip in a lake, river or sea - DONE (swam in my birthday suit in Danube River)
30. Read a novel (any of the following would count - Perks of a Wallflower, To Kill a Mockingbird, Fountainhead, On the Road)
31. Watch a season of "Breaking Bad"

Still thinking of 29 other items...

Carpe Diem

I am a terrible blogger. I tend to procrastinate a lot. I am now in my 30th day of my journey and I have barely updated this blogspot. In my defense it is quite an arduous task to tour a new city, covering every possible site within the limited time, take pictures, edit, upload, make new friends, look for hosts, book tickets for next destination etc...

However in the remaining quarter of my 40-day journey I promise to unload my thoughts here while they are still fresh.

Everything had been a blast so far.

I wish it could go on like this but as in everything, all good things must come to an end. I guess this journey is in every bit like life. We enjoy, we party around, relish new friends and connections, revel in new discoveries but sooner or later it will end. I guess in a way I am sad.

But no matter what I always make it a point to remind myself to live in the present.

Carpe Diem !

Day 21 - Prague

I had a great time on my second day in Prague. I went to the weekly CS gathering where they have Karaoke. Even thoughI don't have a good voice, after downing a few beers I gathered to courage to sing onstage and belt "It's My Life" by Bon Jovi.

"It's my life ! It's now or never. I ain't gonna live forever. I just wanna live while I'm alive"

I think it's an apt song for my journey.