Malatan-og Falls in Don Salvador Benedicto

Campuestohan: Road Pictures Included

One Stop Negros Oriental Tour

To Write is To Make it Right

There comes a time when we write because we want to. There also comes a time when we write because we need to. This is one piece of writing that comes so easily because I need to. Read on.

Good day. I can now afford to write that greeting because this was written few days after January 02. Otherwise, this should have immediately started below. 

This is to formally file a complaint against a Montenegro Shipping lady staff on duty in the morning of January 02, 2016 at the port of Siquijor for negligence of duty which borders to gross incompetence with regard to her supposed roles and responsibilities as a ticketing staff of the said shipping company. In as much as we wanted to keep our peace, we cannot stand to keep mum about what had happened, simply because it is so wrong and that we don't want this incident to happen to us again and to other people. 

We arrived at the port of Siquijor at around 8:45 in the morning of January 02, 2016. I was with my sister and brother-in-law. When we arrived, people already flocked outside of a certain fastfood house waiting for the ticketing table of Montenegro to start issuing tickets. We decided to have breakfast. At around 9am, a lady from Montenegro shipping arrived. My brother-in-law lined up. Suddenly a commotion erupted. One foreigner and a local quarreled as to which line was the legitimate one. A police officer in uniform instructed to only form two lines. However, the foreigner insisted that his queue was the only line allowed. The local did not agree. The lady staff of Montenegro kept silent, ignoring the loud exchange of arrogance from both men. Both of them wanted to be right. She issued a ticket to the foreigner. My brother-in-law was in the line where the foreigner lined up. But when she already issued the ticket to the foreigner she shouted that the only allowed line was the other line - the line not instructed by the police officer because according to her, that line was longer than the other. She made a point with conviction that she will only issue tickets from that line. That was when my sister approached her and told her that the police officer was the one who made the order of forming that line. And she heard it. She, in fact, issued a ticket to the foreigner coming from that line. She said no! That's when I stood up and told her she should have arrived earlier so as not to cause the rumble and chaos. But she retorted telling me she was in Larena issuing tickets and that she was just alone doing the job and that she was still making a report. Now her irrationality and incompetence filed up. Finally, she agreed to alternately issue tickets to both lines. What struck me the most was when she said, that was the last ticket to be issued, not minding the people at the back who patiently waited under the heat of the sun, hopeful to get their tickets. She should have told the people who lined up, "I can NOW only ACCOMMODATE until 5 or 10 people, WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE. Such gross incompetence! I felt small as a Filipino, she existed. Pardon.

I cannot understand and I believe I need an explanation on the following:

1. Why is it that Montenegro shipping only assigned one ticketing staff on a holiday and a New Year at that?

2. Why is it that that lonesome lady seemed so incompetent to carry out her job? She should have arrived earlier in the ticketing table. She should have informed that the shipping line can only accommodate this much. She should have requested the police officer to help her and do the counting for her. She should have stood up and spoken up to pacify the erring parties. She should have been so organized knowing she was only the one in the table. But she FAILED in all of these.

What made the matters worse were her remarks:

1. We should be submissive to foreigners at all times and at all cost because they are assets. (even if they are wrong?)

2. When the crowd dissipated with her announcement of no tickets available, she kept murmuring why my group got angry with her. Huh!? I told her, "shouldn't we speak up to point out your unfair treatment, jugdment, and incompetence?" 

I believe one should speak up and let this problem be known for immediate correction and corrective action. "Evil flourish only when good men do nothing." 

There is still hope in this country. I believe so. I would like to believe that there are still good men working to make this country a worthy place to live in.

Respectfully yours,

Jay Cris Famoso

Don’t Swim on Good Fridays

Julie! Julie! Help! I screamed like crazy.  I waved my hand up in the air as she didn’t seem to notice.

Jul! Jul! Come over here! I was slowly moving away from her and from the shore. She did not have the faintest idea I was calling for rescue. In fact, she just waved and smiled back. I was scanning the shoreline for JR but he was too far. He seemed to really not care about anything else except for what’s underwater.

Feeling helpless, I took in enough air, and shouted, “I am drowning!” I need help.

Julie is a fairly good swimmer.  She moved, really fast. Or perhaps she saw I was moving away faster.

Julie, JR, and I took our lunch in one of islands of Gigantes. That was Good Friday. After the seafood treat, we allowed our bodies to rest and spread carefree in the shoreline like we owned it. The sun was up showing its might so we chose to stay under the generous shade of palm trees. “It’s 3 o clock”, the boatman announced.  We rolled up our bodies soaked in white sand and ready for our last dip in that island. We readied our snorkel, which by the way, were all new. Haha. It got its first test of waters in Gigantes.

That day seemed ideal for swimming. We rushed to the sea before we rush to the next island. I floated like a log, face underwater, carefree, and directionless. I just let the water took me to the wonders underneath. “I was like saying, “Take me, I‘ll follow.” There were times that I get a glimpse of Julie and JR when I removed seawater from my snorkel. Didn’t I say, it was new? I was still getting the hang of it. It seemed like a fair day for the three of us.

Thirty minutes past three, I noticed I was already the farthest from the shore. Feeling uneasy about it, I made a U turn, and tried to swim like an authentic swimmer. I spread my arms and kicked my legs, spread them again and kicked, spread and kicked. But I noticed, it made no little difference. Donned with an orange life jacket, I calmed myself. I floated for a while. Gathered some strength. Then swam. And kicked. I moved not closer but father from the island. That was when I knew, I needed help.

So I looked around and saw Julie. JR maintained a closer distance to the shoreline. I shouted at Julie.

Julie! Julie! Help! I screamed like crazy.  I waved my hand up in the air as she didn’t seem to notice.

Jul! Jul! Come over here! I was slowly moving away from her and from the shore. She did not have the faintest idea I was looking for rescue. In fact, she just waved and smiled back. I was scanning the shoreline for JR but he was too far. He seemed to really not care about anything else except for  what’s underwater.

Feeling helpless, I took in enough air, and shouted, “I am drowning!” I need help.

Julie is a fairly good swimmer.  She moved, really fast. Or perhaps she saw I was moving away faster.

When Julie reached my side, she held me like a child with one arm, and swam like a fish. But we were not moving, at all. She made all mightiest attempts she learned in swimming but failed. The current was  too strong to counter. I was thinking of drowning and dying. “Julie, we will be headlines tomorrow!”, I said to her like I mean it. She did not mind me. She instead taught me how to swim on my own. And I obeyed. But I seemed to swim backwards. Being dramatic again, I said, “ Julie, we are going to die!” She answered back, “Shut up!” I can feel she’s mad. I don’t know if it’s me or the situation.  Maybe it was me. She made a tall order that we swim far from the island because that’s where there is less current.  As always, I obeyed the order and was very quiet this time. I let her be the captain - Captain Julie. But all our efforts went for naught. I gave up swimming. I just stayed in the waters. And yes we are still moving, moving away from the shoreline.

Julie and I decided to part ways. I told her, I go to the island, and move sideways, getting hold of the rock formations until I get to the other side of the island and call for rescue. She will remain in the seas on the lookout for boats that could possibly rescue us. As I parted from her, I can see Julie waving her hand to signal help from the passing boats. But the guests just waved back.

I reached the sidelines. I felt safer. Not until I saw the bigger waves hampering me. And the rocks were pointed in formation, it can lash out your palm anytime. Plus of course, I need to hold firmer on the rocks to keep  me steady. And there were crawling sea creatures, not so friendly-looking, which competes for the space in the rocks you’re holding on to. But I ignored them all. Steadily, I moved inch after inch. I can see I’m near. I felt my breath getting back to normal. I felt safer now. Until, I saw, from a distance, our boat with JR and Julie already in it, waving their hands at me. How should I feel? Relieved or embarrassed? I think both and in that order.

Don’t swim on Good Fridays!