It's not your ordinary rainy day.
The entire Visayas is under the spell of the Southwest monsoon, just right after the tropical storm intimately called "Ferdie" exits the Philippines.
What you may not know about the Filipino grit is that we're pretty used to typhoons. The rains come, the wind howls, and you just know the roof might fly off any second.
Streets turn into rivers faster than you can say "stay dry." 😅
But we prep like it's no big deal—canned goods, flashlights, maybe some instant noodles. We joke about it while shopping for candles, laughing through the panic. It's routine at this point. Typhoons come, things get wrecked, we rebuild. It's not dramatic; it's just another day in the life.
Today felt like a bed weather. But at the same time, there was nothing to do at home. We can't do the laundry (can't hang them dry on a rainy day) and we were full of energy.
It didn't rain yet, so we decided to give some mountain riding a try.
We have a local native chicken soup place near the market, just 4 blocks from home. "Tinola" is a comfort food, our take on the chicken soup.
My toxic trait is I forget to take foodie photos of my food when I'm hungry-- and regret it once the plate's all clean.
We drove to Cuanos first. What I love about this route is the foliage here is much thicker, so it's colder, feels (and smells) more rainforest-like. If you're a local and you'd like to engage your senses in the musky smell of damp soil, or what I call the "tree breath" that gives a hint of marshmallows in the air and the visual candy of lush greens, then this is a great trail for you.
It's not very far from the town where I grew up, and I sometimes yearn to travel familiar roads.
After our drive to Cuanos, we went to a few places I haven't snapped a photo of. It started to drizzle and I had to keep our gadgets inside the bag.
We then went to our usual spot: Gullas Heights (or Tunghaan Heights). This is a route we frequent to every night, also the most accessible route from Cuanos to our home.
Like I said, it's bed weather. We found a few dogs chilling at our favorite chill spot.
...and so we didn't miss the chance the hang around the area as well. Of course, I had to pay the Selfie Tax.
My son took the moment to explore and found a tiny snail. For a moment there he seemed to have found a friend in nature. I sometimes wish I still have that same awe and wonder for the very little things. Enjoy it, kiddo!
Before heading home, we paused to take in the views one last time before coasting downhill. An old man parking his motorcycle walked toward us and pointed to the South, telling us that we have to hurry because the rain is coming.
And the rain did come. We hung around the waiting shed waiting for the rain to settle and went home. There were adventures after that, of course. We went to the beach (on a rainy day? yes!) and left our gadgets at home.
On rainy days, most of us retreat to the comfort of home. Joyriding doesn't usually cross the mind when the sky turns gray—let alone heading to the beach! 😝
Filipinos on Rainy Days
We stepped outside and saw people embracing the chaos. They faced the violent waves during low tide, played basketball in the drizzle, and some even sang their hearts out on a karaoke, as if daring the storm to arrive faster.
One story that sticks with me about Filipino grit is when the Americans came to rescue people during Typhoon Ondoy. I was in Manila then, and when the power finally came back, I watched the news.
People were stranded on rooftops, kids grinning ear to ear, waving and shouting "Hey, Joe!" as American soldiers floated by in rescue boats. One soldier, in an interview, said, "I've never seen people so happy in the middle of a disaster this big. It's amazing how resilient these people are."
Resilience? Maybe.
What I know for sure is we don't do things for the sake of being resilient or strong. It's just that we see storms as an essential part of nature, a normal occurrence that happens year after year. When people say "a storm is coming," we wouldn't know what's going to happen but we brace ourselves for it anyway... as gracefully and as happily as we can.
The thought is stoic, to be honest. The obstacle is the way.
My reflections aside, I hope you enjoyed our trip to the mountains on the rainy day. It's our little adventure and fun on a cloudy day, all while crossing our fingers that the rain won't come!
