I celebrated my Birthday in style, on the 9th April 2023, it so happened to fall on Easter Sunday. This date is also “Araw ng Kagitingan” (Day of Valor, commemorating the fall of Bataan to the Japanese during World War 2). Here in the Philippines, Calbayog specifically, it is about spending time with your loved ones whilst celebrating the Roman Catholic Traditions and appreciating our Cultural Heritage.
Just past midnight, getting off a call with some of the TeamPH Community, my partner decided to greet me Happy Birthday and revealed some much thought about Gifts.
After receiving these, my initial thought process was to share my blessings by having these made for some of the Key Members within our Community. It was great to know that I could have these done here in Calbayog.
Something extremely close to my heart, is to witness the growth, through hard work, of our TeamPH Community through platforms such as
@Splinterlands and
@Splinterlands within the Hive Blockchain. These customized gifts were perfect, they symbolize the passion and drive behind ensuring our journey stays true. She mentioned “You see I am Supportive” she definitely got a few Brownie Points in my book. I slept well after receiving these.
We left the Mango Lounge & Estates at 07:30am towards Malajog Beach in hopes to get there before everyone else, it is one of the most renowned and elegant beaches without having to endure a lengthy travel, not to mention, my aunt has a beautiful Beach House there, which she graciously allowed me to use during my Special Day. Even “Fatty” and “Tiger” (The Real Dogs of War) Got to come with us. “Fatty” Still likes holding my hand while I am driving as seen in the picture above.
It is one of the Beaches known for hosting VIPs and Movie stars from all around the Philippines, it is not for the white sand and clear blue waters, but more for the tranquility that it possesses, some even consider this particular beach to be enchanted.
It is also the home of the Calbayog Zip Line (Which also reopened on the 9th April 2023). It is the first Zipline within Region 8, In Samar. I have not yet experienced this, however I do know that it takes you from Malajog (From the Top of a Hill), to Daraja Island almost 60 meters above Sea Level and you will travel at some speed, 750 meters in distance.
So we began to prepare the food in time for lunch. We had the Grill going and Pork BBQ Skewers and Pork Chops were on today's menu.
We were approached by some local Fisherman, who had Bangus (Milk Fish), of course we purchased them. after cleaning, straight on the grill, what a tasty addition.
To my surprise, there was a large stage set up on the beach in preparation for the festivities, music was blaring and what's even better we had the best view from the second floor Terrace of my Aunt's House. There was a fantastic line up of bands, some of them I had managed previously or had played at Mango Lounge prior to the Pandemic, they gave me a shoutout on stage and played some of my favorites from the Red Hot Chili Peppers which was surprise.
This is the view overlooking the Island called Daraja (The end destination of the Zipline). We are literally 10 meters away from the water, and it was a nice sunny day.
This was my Simple Spread for lunch, besides the items on the grill we had Chicken Adobo, Salted Egg Salad, Steamed Bananas and Bangus Paksiw (A vinegar Milk Fish Stew) and of course my Ube Birthday Cake (My Favorite).
And of course after all that swimming and eating, comes the sleeping, me and the Dogs of War decided to take our opportunity to catch some flies.
We ended up heading back to Mango at around 4pm, it was one of the best Birthdays celebrated since I had migrated back to the Philippines. It is not due to the preparation, it was more spontaneous than anything, but it was the company that celebrated the day with me. I even got home and had some time to play Splinterlands before an early sleep.
In summary, Come to the Philippines, specifically Calbayog as we have a lot of places for you to visit. The simplicity. tranquility and spontaneity, is what keeps this place interesting. If you ever decide to come over, give me a message, I would love to show you the sights.
But until then. thank you for reading my post, this is MangoMayhem signing out, Ciao for now, and I most definitely look forward to seeing you on the battlefield.
"Together we Thrive Kapamilya"
(Some Pictures Taken from Google Explorer - Malajog Beach)
