Life is a constant
search for happiness. It is a constant journey to life with fulfillment and contentment.
As I experience my first ever trip as a traveler, it exposes me more to an
awesome life of wandering and purpose searching.
 |
| Life wanderer... |
Some people travel
to unwind, leaving the busy streets of the city to relax and be with their inner
self. Others do it for work. Going out of the field to attend some meetings or be
present in a convention. Some people travel because they wanted to, without any
itineraries or plan at all; they just go there, get lost and find out things on
their own.
 |
| Chill by the beach... |
My purpose in
traveling does not limit to visiting historical landmarks, eating local
delicacies and taking a lot of pictures for documentation. I travel because I
want to know local culture and meet people from different walks of life. Last
year, I’ve been part of an online community of travelers who explore different
places through couch surfing. Couch surfing is a practice of moving from one
locale's house to another, sleeping in whatever spare space is available, floor
or couch, generally staying a few days before moving on to the next destination.
The site has been founded with trust as travelers are strangers and they did not
have any previous encounters. The hunger for culture exchange and learning from
each ones experience pushes a surfer or a host to give that trust to travelers
they’ll be accommodating.
 |
| Non stop partying and culture exchange... |
I have a once in a
lifetime experience as a traveler last October 2013. It was actually my
birthday month and I wanted to have something different for my birthday. I planned
to go to a place, far away, and discover things on my own. No particular
itinerary or spots to go to. What I only prepared were the dates of the trip and
secure a round trip ticket for my chosen destination. October was a busy month
for Bacolod, Negros Occidental as it marks its annual Masskara festival. 2013
is Bacolod’s 75th Diamond Jubilee that’s why it has been a grand celebration
for the entire city. Perfect for my first travel destination!
 |
| You will get dirty sometimes but you'll have fun! |
I am a fan of
festivities and celebrations. I love seeing colorful costumes and designs, hearing
the beat of musical instruments, people dancing on the streets and witnessing
everyone unwind and merry making. Bacolod’s Masskara Festival has been tagged
as A Thousand Smiles Per Minute as the city was popularly known being City of
Smiles. Each mask has been a reflection of locale’s smiling faces. Not just
people from Bacolod smile a lot but as Filipinos as a nation.
 |
| It's always like a United Nations session. :) |
With the help of couch
surfing, I got a chance to meet an awesome set of people from different walks
of life. They are travellers across the region and some from different parts of
the globe. From a student who just passed the board exam, embalmer in a prestige
hospital, real-state and call center agents to hospital nurse, social media
addict, free lance photographers and writers, I learned a lot from their
experiences since I consider myself as new born traveller.
 |
| Treating each one as real brothers and sisters... |
I consider this
trip as a life changing experience because it opens a lot of doors for me. It
widens my perspective not only about travelling but to life itself. Hearing
their adventures excite the hell out of me and want to jump start my travel
escapades with them or try it solo. I don’t know each and everyone deeply but
what I know is we have the common denominator here, and that is the passion to
explore the world and the possibilities of finding what really makes one happy.
After an awesome trip, we parted ways half-hearted. In a short span of three (3)
days and two (2) nights, we’ve been treated each other like a family. Family which
is rooted in one motive and that is motivation to cultivate culture through
travelling. From strangers, we become real good friends.
 |
| Masskara Festival 2013 - Bacolod, Negros Occidental |
I want to end up this blog post with a
quote from an article entitled The Truth About Travelers:
“And so here’s the truth. We travel not
just to travel and marvel at people, places, things. That’s not just it. That
was never just it for us. We travel to learn, to experience, and to feel all
the spectrums of being human in this world.”
DISCLAIMER: All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The pictures or videos posted here doesn't necessarily mean that it's the owner's property. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.
great ! very life changing story, Go for the Gold Idol, this is a post with a substance , sana ikaw manalo, follow po kita,
ReplyDeleteThank you Jonathan. Hope you can share my WeGo post in your social network sites and encourage your friends too to like and comment on my post. Will truly appreciate it. :)
DeleteHello Amazing Post
ReplyDeleteCouch surfing? havent experienced it. Obviously couch surfing is not a concept that is going to tickle every single traveler pink. It isn’t something for everyone, but there are a number of excellent advantages of signing up for a program like this, and obviously the biggest one is the chance to save money, but there are so many more to take into account.
I want to experience Meeting new and interesting people
Keep on posting inspiring stories... I will follow you and add you in my roll Hope to meet you someday and travel simultaneously. I love meeting people with same interest