One Sunny Afternoon

Fresh air and health-friendly environment are things we considered in moving to my father’s hometown. Our house was built in Dauis near at my grandparents’ home where my father grew up. Fortunately, we belong to coastal municipality where we could go to beach anytime we wish. Family outing had become our habit the day after important events like fiesta, my grandparents’ birthday, Christmas, New Year and other special celebrations. We usually spent half of the day at Libaong public beach, a nearby barrio. It is an ordinary thing for me to take on foot along the seashore after a long hour of enjoying the clear water. Beautiful sceneries hearten me and it will never bore me on exploring the place.

The photo was taken during our Tagbilaran post-fiesta celebration at Libaong beach. Good thing my brother brought his camera that day and let me borrowed it for my stroll. I appreciate arts and photography but I am not really into it. But hey! Who could resist taking some shots in a place like this? With its charm, I feel like I am one of those real photographers looking for a right angle to shoot. I stopped in front of Amarela beach resort and took a picture of a net hammock with this green plant on its side. Small waves that wash the white sands put on attraction to the colors of sea water and the blue sky. The white boat parked far from the seashore adds view to the background.

Nothing really special with the shot, but this one sunny afternoon scene awakes my interest to a picture-taking habit. I start to like photography more.

See more photos and stories regarding Bohol experiences at Boholweb.com

Sources of Living

Barrio people used to dig soil. They plant vegetables, fruit bearing trees, and medicinal plants for food resources and health concerns. The common source of living here is farming and fishing. They usually plant root crops like ube, apali, gabi and kamote then bring some of it to the market in exchange of money at the same time store the remaining goods for their food supply. Having corns, bananas and coconut trees in the backyard is an advantage. Grind corns are used as alternative for rice grains while serving boiled bananas for lunch gives strength and prevents hunger. People used to earn money from selling copras to market. The open sea offers its coastal resources. Fishes, sea urchins and different kinds of sea foods are gift of nature which provides foods and earnings to the barrio people. Farming is also a source of income. They raise animals like cows, pigs and chickens to produce cash by trading it. However, this way of living requires enough time to harvest the prize. This is why some people find another way to earn money.

Individuals of accurate ages help their parents or support their families by seeking jobs in Tagbilaran City where numbers of business firms and progressive companies have been developed. Reading materials like tabloids and news papers informed people by posting ads.Bohol Classified Ads in World Wide Web made it easier for job seekers find possible work positions and hiring companies with its updated contents. Yet, not all people prefer to work in the city. Some choose to stay in town and work as laborer in building houses, road constructions and maintenance for hotels and resorts.

Occupation of whatever kind is essential to ones life. Be it in a simple and natural habits or working with employers, earning money is one source of supporting basic needs. Hard works, perseverance and dedication towards work are positive characters one should posses. Advantages from natural resources must not be taken for granted. Still, mother nature has a big part of providing us the sources for a living.

Transportation Routines in Rural

One thing I observed about rural places is the difficulties in terms of transportation. Like here in our place, trips are scheduled to pick up passengers from the barrio to the city after every sixty minutes and vise versa. No heavy traffics to deal with, still, expect to be late when you don’t reach the main road ahead of time and missed the jeepney for that particular trip. After that is spending your time waiting another one hour for the next trip to come. Last trip will leave Tagbilaran back to the town at seven O’clock in the evening. You have to rush to the terminal before the time limit or else you’d be left behind and look for a special ride then pay two to four times higher than the regular fare. These are only some of the common situations concerning routines of transportation in rural area.
No wonder, barrio people consider cars or any types of vehicle not as wants but as a necessity. For some people, buying cars and motorcycles is their way of spending money for luxury. But for those who live in rural places, having one is an advantage considering its availability. A lot of working people nowadays are looking forward of having their own vehicles for service purposes. Some saves money for brand new cars while other prefers the used one. Luckily, it is now easier to find on sale second hand vehicles here in Bohol through reading advertisements in newspapers or visiting websites like Boholclassifiedads.com . While brand new cars which are also included in the vehicles section are being promoted by well companies through big banners and posters. Actually, whatever it is, either brand new or second hand, what really counts is that you have a service which you can use anytime particularly in times of emergencies.
Transportation routines in rural area are very specific with time. Exercising punctuality and having a lot of patience is needed to easily adapt the system. Patience by means of waiting and punctuality in the sense of being aware of what time you should be at the waiting area.

Dealing With Changes

Two years ago, my family and I moved here in Bohol for good. At first, we found things difficult as our adaptability and flexibility was being tested. We have been through a lot of adjustments regarding lifestyle, dialect, people, environment and transportation routine, everything about the place. Living in a place where all things are new is an adventure, added the fact that we used to reside in a city where in the way of living is far different from it. There are lots of hardships, discoveries and excitements that came across the way. Old habits are hard to die. But changes are constant. And we have to get along with these changes as well as adjusting these old habits to cope with the new routines. Things like using woods for cooking instead of gas stove, stores are far, passenger vehicles comes every one hour, feeding animals like cows and pigs, and most of all, dealing with unfamiliar tongue are some of the things we have to learn in order for us to fit in the new environment.
There is no way to handle adjustments but to study carefully and learn things willingly. Dealing with changes is not easy but we have to move on, gain knowledge from new experiences and look forward to brighter days as we continue the journey of our lives in our new home.