As usual, I am late again with my entry. And by this time, you would have already read multiple accounts of what transpired during last weekend's 10-miler at Corregidor. So obviously, we won't do that.Instead, I'll share with you five things that stood out during the trip and made the entire experience worth remembering.
1. The Views.
I mean, need I say more? The island features some of the finest and most historical sights the country has to offer. The incredible visuals... . speak for themselves.
*Shamelessly stolen from Argo's visually enthralling blog... just because I can :D
2. The Fun Tour Guides
What's a visit to the island without a tour? And more often than not, the enjoyability level of your overall experience is predicated on how engaging your guide is. Luckily for us, we had top-notch ones who really seemed to be enjoying their job.
Now, on December 7, 1941... ...
Priceless Sound Bites from our Fun Guide :
1. "Right there in the Hospital is where the Jabidah Massacre happened. Not the Ampatuan Massacre of Maguindanao, but the Jabidah Massacre. J-A-B-I-D-A-H. . look it up at www.jabidah.com to know the story"
*further persual showed URL to be non-existent. Smirk.
2."The Hospital Wing is where the lady doctors and nurses stay, and the door was always locked after 9 pm. But legend has it that at 12 midnight, the door suddenly swings open... ... . And that is the real reason that Macarthur said "I shall return... ."
Macarthur likey em' Nurses...
3."When coming inside the tunnel laterals in single file, I only have one rule - no one is allowed to fart.
Not Allowed.
3. Gangbanged Hecklers
During our night tour of the island, our faithful guide asked us to turn out all of the lights, thus we were engulfed in total darkness. This was part of his "ghost hunting" shtick in which he relates that during the Japanese bombings all the lights were out, and that thousands had died at the spot where we were standing. Amidst the silence, a blatantly impatient lady suddenly blurted out "OO NA!". This was immediately met by a chorus of "!@#$% BASTOS KA MANAHIMIK KA!", "SSHHHHHHHH", "!@##$ mO" and "!@#$%^ KA. Now if only the lights were on so we could have seen her face. Good times.
Hecklers, what will we ever do without em.
4. The Hills
No, I'm not referring to
Pwede.
Rather, the highly touted killer inclines of the island. With the exception of perhaps Baguio, in my opinion you would be hard pressed to mind more continuous slopes with that gradient anywhere else. A lot of people were coming in to conquer it... . but most came home conquered by it. In fact, the incline was so steep that if you just stood still... .you would fall backwards. A deathly, sadistic challenge indeed.
Some fight through the pain...
As others refuse to lose... ..
Because the moment you let your guard down... .
It will rear its ugly head on you... ..
5. THE Tito Caloy
No out-of-towner is complete without internet legend Tito CaloyRegistrationFee - P1000
Hotel - P1500
Pocket Money - P2000
The satisfaction of seeing Tito Caloy chug down beer after beer on the ferry GOING there... ...
PRICELESS.
That's it everyone! Hope you enjoyed the experience as much as I did. I'm planning to make this race a staple on my annual racing calendar. Till next year!
Postscript(Overheard at the registration/check-in table)
Girl #1 : Uy, na check mo ba ung race packet natin?
Girl #2 : Bakit, ano meron?
Girl #1: Eh, di ko sure ung distance eh. Nacheckan mo ba ung box kung 5k or 10k tayo?
Girl #2 : Aah.. nakita ko. Parang 10k tayo eh... ...
:)