“The wonders of a journey consist far more of such intangible experiences and unexpected situations than of factual things and events of material reality.”

~ Lama Anagarika Govinda – The Way of the White Clouds ~

I have been traveling for about 7 months now and with this short period of time, I have already learned a lot from the trips I had. Experiences that literally pushed me to the limits. Memorable moments that made me laugh later of the trips and the things that made me dumb. My Top 5 funniest, silliest, and dumbest experiences so far:

5. NOT ENOUGH MONEY. I went to Matnog, Sorsogon from Legaspi City having only 1000 pesos in my pocket. Less the transport and expenses in Irosin, it went down to 700. I didn’t  withdraw some cash since I’m expecting that my money was enough for the visit. Not knowing that the attractions in Matnog can be accessed via renting a boat for Php1,500 whole day, my money wasn’t enough and the nearest ATM station can be found in the nearby municipality which is an hour away and it was already noon that time. The result, didn’t push with the visit to Juag Lagoon, Tikling Island, and Subic Beach.

4. THE BUS EXPERIENCES. Bus, especially ordinary ones, play an important role for budget travelers. Silly, funny and dumb bus experiences include my ride from Bangui to Burgos. I saw the sign going to Kapurpurawan Rock Formation and I shouted that I will be going down the bus yet the driver accelerated more. I shouted again, no reaction from the driver and his assistant, for my third call, everyone in the bus shouts with me, I felt so important. That’s the funny one. Silly was when I spent almost 2 hours waiting for a Partas Bus in their Vigan terminal going to Batac. The result was riding in a mini-bus. Dumbest would be my experience in Sorsogon. I availed a ticket going to Bulan, Sorsogon but my destination was Irosin. That’s just 2/3 of the way, I gave away 50 pesos for free!

3. NO REACTION. After my late lunch in Johnny Moon’s Cafe in Laoag, I approached some members of the crew on the counter and said praises to the food I tried. I kept on talking explaining my food experience blah blah blah and what I got from them were blank facial reactions. It led me to just thank them and leave the place. I felt so stupid that time.

2. RAIN, RAIN GO AWAY. Weather is either a friend or a foe for a traveler. When I visited Bangui Windmills and during my Pinatubo Trek, rain befriended me. I am not bringing umbrella nor raincoat on my trips and these trips resulted in a drenched walk.

1. LAY ON THE ROAD. One of the highlights of my first solo trip to Ilocos was when I lay down on Patapat Viaduct, which connects Region 1 and Region 2. Different vehicles from private cars to buses pass this bridge any time of the day and it was not a hindrance to fulfill one of my goals. With the help of my companions on the tour spotting for vehicles approaching the area, I lay down on the hot surface of Patapat Viaduct with our tour guide getting my first silliest travel picture.

We travel not only for the sake of enjoyment and discovering new things, but we travel for experiences. Experiences to be treasured for a lifetime.

This is my entry to Pinoy Travel Bloggers’ Blog Carnival for April 2013, with the theme: “Funniest, Silliest and Dumbest Travel Moments” Hosted by Lakbay Diva.