From Kilimanjaro to Pulag

I love it how plans work out, or in this case, don't work out. Early 2011 a friend of mine posted in Africa invited me to come over to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in the 1st quarter of 2012. Like all long term plans, this didn't pan out. Climbing partners lost interest and our host in Africa was moving onto another area, in short it fell through.

Luckily, a fellow photographer friend invited me to join her in a climb to Mt. Pulag. Okay, so it's about 2,973 meters shorted than Kili (wow, that's about only half the height) but it was still a mountain and Luzon's highest peak.

More importantly, I heard that road conditions had made it easier to climb and porters were available.

Yes, yes, I struggled long and hard (or at least my ego did) about deciding to use a porter but I had additional camera gear now and yes my knees creak a little bit more now. In any case, I decided to go for it.

3 Months? Really?

I'd like to say I was on a trip to Antarctica where I had limited wifi access or maybe I was trekking the Sahara but the reality is, I let this blog sleep. Not intentionally mind you, I just hadn't been on any exciting trips and really there wasn't anything photographically interesting to post.

So to remedy that I've decided that at least once a month I'd go out and do something interesting for a change, there are way too many pics of my daughter's school events on this blog already.

I'm off to a good start, I had a 3 month pipeline with one checked off already. Jan - Mt. Pulag, Feb - Dive Anilao and Mar - Philippine Hobbie Challenge around Palawan.

Mt Pulag post coming right up.

Hong Kong . . . . again

But I really don't mind. I've been there a lot, back when I was still working for the bank. I had my set of regular haunts that I would go to but this time, going with my family, I kind of hung back and let the wife and kid decide where they wanted to go. One thing I have to say though, photography (for work, articles, etc) and family vacations don't mix. Apart from being tired out by the end of the day, making waking up for sunrise pictures impossible, extricating myself from the family for a decent sunset photo was equally impossible.

The goods thing is Hong Kong is so brightly lit up at night you can still go out and take great pictures.

Reinventing the TV

I remember growing up, every Christmas my dad used to dust off the slide projector, the 8mm projector and pull out the big white screen and for the next hour or so (although for a 6 year old it felt like forever) we'd go through the past year's holiday slides and film clips. It was quite a production number.

Fast forward to the present day, we bought a new TV. We decided to reclaim some real estate in our living room by retiring our huge 34" CRT and replacing it with a 40" flat screen LED TV. At the time I bought it I didn't realize just how much this TV would become more than a TV. I was aware of the different functions but really, when you buy a TV all you think about is how clear and how big it is.

So it came as a big surprise to me when I plugged a hard drive into it and it would display all of my photos in glorious 40" splendor. Nothing to set-up, no white screen to put up, just plug and play.

All of a sudden my wife and I would sit down with my daughter and we'd show the pictures of the places we'd been to before she came along (at her age she's actually still interested). We'd put on some music and rummage through travel pics we took way back in 1998 and even go through some of the scanned pictures from my dad's library way back from the 1950's.

An added feature, since both my TV and my phone are made by Samsung, I can play back all the photos and videos and even music on my phone through the TV wirelessly through the All Share function.

So if you've been wanting to upgrade your TV or are looking at an excuse to upgrade look at the other connectivity functions, it's a great way to share all those terabytes of images from your hard drive before you lose them because of HD failure . . . .but that's a topic for another day.

Venitian Princess

Cleaning up my hard drive and ran across this picture I took while I was in Venice back in 2004. This really highlights the problem with digital photography, stuff resides in your hard drive sometimes never to be seen again. Luckily technology comes to the rescue once again. Bought something that has me sharing photos, watch this space.

Tilt shift galore

Okay, so I got a new smartphone with an 8 megapixel camera on it. Not the greatest but you know the old saying "the best camera is the one you have with you" and since I have my phone with me 24 x 7 I guess this is the best camera in my stable right now.

What it looses in quality and ease of use it makes up for in . . . . gimicks. There are so many camera apps you can download into the phone that it actually lets you experiment with stuff.

Wont ever be able to use it for work but for fun it isn't too bad. Here's a shot of Ion Mall in Singapore.

Universal Studios Singapore

I really like this place. It's a bit more balanced than Disney World in Hongkong which caters more for kids. Battlestar Galactica and the Mummy ride . . . . that's all I have to say on the subject.

Oh and one more thing, get the express pass. Worth the extra money, unless you want to line up for a long time with an impatient kid.

Singapore . . . . again?

I thought I'd tire of Singapore, I remember the last couple of times I was there I felt like I had been everywhere and done everything already. But when it came time for another family vacation with my now 3 year old daughter, Singapore was still on top of the list.

For kids there's so much to do and see and we made sure this time that we wouldn't rush around like mad men trying to fit everything in. Our main objectives were the Singapore Zoo, Universal Studios, the Singapore Flyer and eating at a hawkers center. We actually took it so slow that we weren't able to get to the last two destinations, the Flyer and the hawker center.

Still, it felt like a real vacation this time. No rushing around, no stressing out. It was a good vacation.

Oh another thing, this is the first time I experienced this. We took Jetstar, the budget airline to Singapore for obvious reasons, it wasn't our first time to do so. But this time when we checked in on the outward flight to Singapore we almost got bumped off because the flight was full and had been overbooked. Yes, we did check in a bit late but this had never happened to us before. On the way back we checked in earlier but we ended up being seated separately from each other, my wife and daughter together back in row 29 and me in seat 1A (which wasn't too bad really). In any case, no more late check-ins for us and to make doubly sure we'll reserve seats online in advance.

6.5 - 7 fps skimboard

Reviewing my library . . .

I thought I'd review my library . . . . since I haven't been on any epic trips lately and re-issue some of the best photos I've taken on my trips. So apologies in advance if I'll be recycling a few pics but to make it a bit more interesting I'll tell you the story behind the picture. Stay tuned.

Summer Rain

The end . . . of the Hobie Challenge that is.

There's not much to say really about the last destination. Although Boracay is still very beautiful and staying at the Shang wasn't too shabby I enjoyed the other legs of the trip more. Our first night out camping for instance was amazing and the interaction with the kids on Sibuyan was great. This trip really was more about the journey rather than the destination. I met a lot of great people and got to actually spend some serious time on a boat. Hope I get invited back next year.

Drama on the high seas

Actually 'drama' maybe too strong a word. On the way from Sibuyan Island to our last stop, Boracay, our small speedboat was hit with several big waves. The first two waves hit me by surprise while I was not looking and nearly knocked me off my feet. The skipper told us not to worry saying that even if the boat filled up with water to our knees the motor wouldn't die. . . . . . and you can guess what happened next.

The third wave wasn't so much of a splash, the front of the boat dug into the wave and flooded our boat up to our knees and yes the motor did stop. I couldn't make eye contact with the skipper as he started repairs because 1) I'm not about to kick a guy when he's down and more importantly 2) he's the skipper and I wanted to stay on his boat rather than in the ocean.

We got in touch with the Freewheeler, one of the rally boats that we overtook and eventually with the Novena who eventually chugged along and picked us up.

In defense of the skipper, the engine never did get flooded but I think the controls got wet. In any case, he got the boat up and running but we decided to evacuate to the Novena just in case.

And they're off. . . . not quite.

Just a quick break from the Philippine Hobie Challenge which I'll be finishing off soon. Thought I'd share a few pictures of the next job on my list, covering the Animo Race Stakes IV at the Manila Jockey Club's premier track in the San Lazaro Leisure and Business Park in Carmona. The event is this Saturday, 26 March 2011 and entrance is free so feel free to drop by.

I've been there before but was never really satisfied with my pictures so I thought I'd go out and look the place over to see where I can get the best shots. We'll see if my trip was worth it after Saturday.

In the meantime I got a few shots of some of the horses practicing with the starting gate.

Sibuyan's Mountain

I used to hear about Mount Guiting-Guiting when I was still climbing (don't ask how far back that was) so I was happy to finally see it in person. Don't know if I'll ever climb it since . . . . . how did they put it "the older I get the better I was" . . . in this case, in climbing mountains. They also said that this is probably the only mountain in the country that is technically challenging and some years back a few UP Mountaineers lost their lives on its slopes.

Okay, enough negativity, taking off from Sibuyan, the mountain made for a perfect backdrop to the race.

Kids on Sibuyan

The winds for the Romblon - Sibuyan leg were so favorable that despite a forecasted landing of 2:00pm, practically everyone was on the beach by 11:00am. Shortly after that, while everyone was enjoying a beer or two, recounting the day's sailing, the beach filled up with school children. Apparently, the beach was a major route for the kids to go to and from school and soon the hobies and the sailors themselves were mobbed by curious kids.

I think it's safe to say the colorful sails as well as the foreigners drew the kids in. The kids were also drawn to "ate" Bianca who ironically was the youngest sailor in the group (she was sailing with her dad). They kind of crowded around her, asked her questions and even sang to her. They even tried to persuade her to sing and soon the whole beach was resounding with the kids shouting "sample! sample! sample!". Too bad they weren't successful.

Bye Romblon, Hello Sibuyan

Leaving Romblon was tough, literally. The committee boat which usually makes straight for the finish line had to shadow the hobie fleet this time round. The RIB was off on a medical mission on one of the islands.

We followed the boats out of the channel and watched the fleet go out into the open seas where we waited. The pitching and rolling of the boat didn't help but we were able to get some great pics of the hobies against some of the cliffs that surrounded the island. After a few minutes we took off for the finish line at full speed.

Arriving at Sibuyan island was a bit dodgy too, rough surf made a beach landing impossible so the local bangkas had to pick us up and drop us off. A good two hours after making it to solid ground I could still feel myself swaying to and fro as if I was still on the sea.

Sharing Blogs: Same Challenge, Different View

One of the participants, David Azanza, who was also a sponsor (Para'Kito) of the Hobie Challenge also has a blog that I'd like to share. This one might appeal more to the sailors since it's from their point of view. Click here for the blog.

Boat coming in as wind dies down

Shooting in the Ocean

Okay, thought I'd put in some photography related items in this blog, it is after all supposed to be a Travel AND Photography blog.

During the event people asked me how I protected my camera while taking pictures in a heaving ocean with saltwater spray everywhere. Someone even asked me if my DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera was waterproof and the short answer to that is a big NO. To waterproof it you'll need to shell out for a casing which just about costs as much as your camera and I don't think they make a waterproof case for my 100-300mm lens.

A cheaper way to protect your camera would be to buy a nice cheap rain sleeve. The brand I got was Optech since it's the only one available locally. If you want to cheap out even more I suppose you could make your own out of some plastic bags (I'm cheap but I'm not that cheap).

This was enough to keep my camera and lens safe for most situations, possibly even getting soaked with a big wave since the 7D is supposed to be weatherproof. Capsizing into the drink though is a different matter and possibly saving my gear would take second priority to saving myself.

The only caveat to the above rain sleeve is it's used for cameras with long lenses attached to it. Putting it on a camera with a smaller lens won't make any sense since the excess plastic will get
in the way. For my 30D with the 17 - 70 lens attached to it I basically shot with it and then put it in a dry bag for safe keeping. One of the sponsors of the challenge, Blood Red, makes excellent dry bags with straps attached to them which may sound basic but mine didn't have straps, so apart from holding my 7D with the long lens attached to it, I had to hold my dry bag in the other hand. Tricky when you're jumping from one boat to another or when you're getting out of the boat onto the beach in surf.

Another issue was all the bumps we went through when the speedboat was flooring it to get to the finish line. Holding the camera in my hand was impossible since I needed both to keep myself steady so I had to put it on the dashboard of the boat. I did notice that it was moving about quite a bit and the vibrations couldn't have been good for the camera internals. This product immediately popped into mind but the geek factor just wasn't worth it. A damp t-shirt under the camera put an end to my problems . . . . . keeping it simple.

Medical Emergencies atbp.

Thought I'd do another entry about our EMT team, Anne and Yzah pictured above. In Romblon we actually had our first medical emergency. One of the sailors was holding one of the ropes (so sorry to all the sailors reading this for not using the correct terminology) with his teeth when it was yanked out, along with one tooth. It also loosened two other teeth.

We raced over to the beach where our nurses were frolicking in the sun and surf and picked one up to administer first aid which turned out to be a shot of a strong painkiller in the arm. It was happy sailing for him after that . . . . pun intended.

Less urgent cases included treating people coming down with the flu on the Novena and an inflamed eye. Of course, I relied on them for sea sickness pills that helped me get through some rough patches.

On a medically unrelated topic, they managed to teach our Austrian passenger on the Novena important Filipino words like "Churva", "Tsugi" and "Bongga". By the end of the trip a normal conversation would go like this;

Me: Gerhard, how are you my friend?

Gerhard: Not too Bongga, I still have a cough.

Another Day in the Office

Wish it was this way everyday. Thanks to Roman Azanza for this picture.

Finally . . . . Hobies.

Romblon, the next stop of the Challenge was really the place to take pictures of the Hobies because of the one day of inshore races that was going to be held there. Taking pictures out in the open seas is a bit dicey because of the obvious reasons - a rolling and pitching boat, saltwater spray, sea sickness, no discernible landmarks.

In Romblon however, we had a relatively sheltered bay to hold the races and with me on Johannes' RIB we could position ourselves anywhere we wanted.

In the background

I decided to take it easy from Bellarocca to Romblon and rejoined the mothership - Novena. Running an event like the Challenge takes a lot of stuff happening in the background that the participants don't see, like loading the luggage and supplies back on to the ship for the next destination, the EMT team has their stuff to ensure they're prepared when they shadow the hobie fleet and most importantly, refueling the smaller committee boat with the requisite Rum Coke supply before it races off to the finish line.

Here are some pics of all that stuff.


















Still, there was some time to relax . . .

Beautiful Rock

Photograph: Stitched together with Canon's own stitching software which isn't perfect, hence the slight anomaly RIGHT SMACK DOWN THE MIDDLE OF THE PICTURE.

I have to say, nothing will quite compare with the cloudless sky and millions of stars that greeted me when I stepped out of my tent in the early morning of our Marinduque stay but the view from Bellarocca wasn't too shabby either.

And after a day of camping, no hot water, no shower, no proper toilet . . . . . need I say more.

Bellarocca

To tell you the truth, camping out on the beach was not an unpleasant experience. After the sumptuous dinner we discovered the drink of choice of the sailors, rum coke. I can't help but think that this can probably be traced back (at least the rum part) all the way to the times of Blackbeard, Calico Jack and Anne Bonny. Needless to say, as part of our research we needed to experience this and ended up having enough of the stuff to allow me a restful sleep. So all in all it was a great night.
Photo: Bellarocca taken from the committee boat. f5.6 200mm 1/1000
Coming up on the horizon however was our lodging for the next night, Bellarocca. The unmistakeably white buildings jutted out of the solitary island as the committee boat raced towards it to set up the finish line. I was having a hard time reconciling the move from camping to luxury accommodations . . . . but I wasn't about to complain.

Reaching Out Part 1

Photo: Suiee Suarez of Shell talking to kids about the 3 point plan
Marinduque was the first of 3 places where the Hobie Cat Challenge conducted an outreach program to local schools. It is a new component to the Challenge, one they hope to make bigger each year. The participation of Shell this year particularly good though as one of their Corporate Social Responsibility officers was on hand to talk to the kids. It was a simple speech but had good advise for kids. The gist was, to have a meaningful and productive life you must follow these three rules - 1) Study hard 2) Stay healthy and lead productive lives by finding good jobs. Mr. Suarez also thanked the teachers for doing their part in what was obviously an important component of the 3 point plan.

The second point was also important as we found out when the medical team gave the kids a quick look. Rural areas like these ones where medical resources are scarce can make even the smallest cuts and scrapes into bigger problems. Most of the kids were treated for these small wounds .

Having the Lifeline team look these kids over may have seemed like a small exercise but I realized right then that it doesn't take a lot to make a difference in these cases.
Photo: Anne Brenner of Lifeline cleans up the small nicks and cuts of the kids.

Roughing it?

I suppose if anyone were to guess what challenge (apart from the sailing) they refer to when one hears "Philippine Hobie Challenge" then it's the one leg that required us to camp. This happened on the first night on Aloa (yes, minus the 'h') beach in Marinduque. I have to say though, although we slept in tents, lining up to a buffet served in chafing dishes did not seem like any of us were roughing it. As I was lining up in the semi darkness, I couldn't quite make out what exactly they were serving us. Even after they said "Roast Beef in mushroom sauce" it didn't quite register in my mind for a couple of seconds.

Maybe that was the challenge, figuring out how the heck they got such great food to such a remote location.

Picture: Canon 7D 10-20mm (12mm) AV priority set to 8 sec. ISO 800. Balanced on a Pelican Case for stability.

No wind

I mentioned earlier that the first leg of the challenge from Sariaya to Marinduque suffered from a 5 hour lull when the find practically died down, a case of dead calm, glassy or even oily (as it is known in Austria thanks to Gerhart my new found Austrian friend on the Novena) conditions.

Some of the competitors were in for a treat though as a pod of dolphins passed through, some investigating the hobies from as close as 10 feet away. Others saw what were either false killer whales or pilot whales, a debate that would go on to the evening when everyone was in.

As for us on the Novena, which was ahead of the hobies, a decision was made to stop and wait just in case we had to go back and tow the hobies in for the day. So what else could we do in the middle of a flat sea, hot sun cooking us on deck with not a even whisper of a breeze present . . . .

And they're off . . . .

The next day, Jerry Rollin the race director held the first of many briefings for the sailors. Basically he describes the route in general and more importantly the finish line which the hobies had to cross. Wind conditions seemed less than perfect and despite having picked up since breakfast still seemed pretty dismal.

In any case, the committee boat was the Novena for this leg of the race so we got a unique vantage point of the start.

Almost immediately, I the non-sailor, realized there was more to sailing in a race than normal races. Instead of just flooring it and using brute (wind) power to get to the finish line in the straightest course possible, one had to almost have ESP like powers to predict which way the wind would come from, distance it seems almost takes second place to finding where the wind blows hardest. While most hobies went one direction, Bruce Tardrew/Eric Tomacruz's Hobie veered away from the fleet at almost 90 degrees. That particular gamble didn't pay off but somehow they still managed to come in first. Couple this with almost no wind from 10am-3pm and one wonders how that happened.

Still, this was only my second close encounter with Hobie Cats and sailing in general so I still had a lot to learn about sailing. Good thing this was just leg one of five.