Places to go in Twenty-Oh-Nine

1. Sagada, Mt. Province
2. San Juan, La Union – June
3. Samal Beach, Davao
4. Hong Kong and Macau – Aug. 7 to 10
5. Amsterdam, the Netherlands (to visit Sander and Belle) – September
6. Mt. Pulag, Cordilleras
7. Coron, Northern Palawan
8. Calauit, Northern Palawan
9. Malapascua Island, Cebu – October
10. Bantayan Island, Cebu – October
11. Calaguas Island, Camarines Norte
12. Bagasbas Beach, Camarines Norte
13. Caramoan Island, Camarines Sur
14. Virac, Catanduanes – Aug. 28 to 31
15. Kalinga-Apayao, Cagayan Valley
16. Siargao Island, Surigao del Norte
17. Baler, Aurora
18. Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia – Nov. 13 to 16
19. Apo Island, Dumaguete
20. Batan Island, Batanes

I learned recently that a cable park as big as the one at the Cam Sur Watersports Complex will open in Clark, Pampanga in September. Yippee! That’ll make wakeboarding more convenient for me. Clark is much more accessible than Bicol, though I wouldn’t mind going back to Cam Sur at all.

Cam Sur, here I come!

I’m both psyched and apprehensive about going to Camarines Sur. But I’m going. And I’m going alone! Ok, so maybe officially, I won’t be alone. I’m going with other wakeboarding enthusiasts. But they’re all strangers. I’m not going with anybody I know! There’s an organization here in the Philippines comprised of young professionals who organize adventurous treks, hikes, surfing events, and wakeboarding events all over the Philippines and in some other parts of Asia. Even though I knew my best friend and my wakeboarding recruit couldn’t make it to the wakeboarding event, I didn’t want to let the opportunity pass me by. So I went ahead and signed myself up for it. I have made the reservation, sent out the forms and everything. So I am definitely going. But I’m apprehensive because I won’t be with anybody I know!

Let me repeat that to myself: RA, you’re going alone. To tell you the truth, I’m really excited about traveling alone. It’s just that I’ve never done it before. I’m a social person; I’m used to being surrounded with friends and familiar faces. Hence, the apprehension about being with strangers in an unfamiliar place. A guy I’m dating might be available to join me, I think, but he’s already a wakeboarding/surfing expert. So I don’t want to invite him. I’ll wakeboard in front of him when I can already show off my moves. Haha.

Bottomline is: I’m going alone. Let me repeat that to myself, for the nth time: RA, you’re going alone. I’ll use the opportunity to improve my moves so I can maybe one day become a wakeboarding champ. Also, I’m thinking of it as a chance to meet other people with the same interests. I’ll probably make some new friends on the tour.

I am getting more and more excited the more I repeat the statement to myself!

Just a brief background on Camarines Sur: It’s one of the provinces in the Bicol Region. It’s near Camarines Norte and Albay. The wakeboarding capital of the country is in this province, the Camarines Sur Watersports Complex. That’s where I and the other wakeboarding enthusiasts will be staying.

Wish me luck!