Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Reflection: Archipelagic Melancholy

I was supposed to go to the Capital soon. A bit frustrated but stuff has to be done at the home island.

Why yes, that was both a Hunger Games and Game of Thrones reference. LOL.


Hundred Islands, Pangasinan. So Archipelago. Many water. Wow.
My nation is a nation of islands. 7,107 islands. Well, that's the clean and neat figure they put in the text books but it's a good number, I guess. Whatever the real count is, we're a bunch of fragmented pieces (of land) bound by a national government and shared history under the domination of the Spanish, then the Americans. Then we gained "independence". Cool, but I digress. 

What if the Germans came in? What if the British stayed? Oh right, I forgot about the Japanese occupation. Again, I digress.

The main problem I have with this island life is that it just places people and places apart.

When we talk of seas separating us, in most cases it's not just a metaphor. Literally, seas separate us. When we get to the level of metaphors, the seas just bloat into oceans.

Anyway, I'm drifting and I haven't written anything on my blog for sometime so here we go.

I was suppose to go to the Capital on business and on the sideline, bonding with friends made in the Capital. I've lived in the Capital for some time and I'm not that anti-social so I made friends. Hurrah! The thought of disappointed plus my tendency to insomnia has gotten me to write. Again, hurrah!

I also have family in the Capital and surrounding areas. I am ethnically Tagalog too so that makes sense. I was born in the Capital City of the Republic and naturally I had a proclivity for the language and the tongue. Even in my home in the south of the Queen City of the South, that northern tongue prevails. My pure Cebuano brother put an end to that tyranny. God bless that boy. Haha. I was hoping to devour some Wicked Oreos in one of my favorite college-accessible restaurants.



Wicked Oreos. Hmm. Watermark says Gaby Jimenez, so thank you whoever you are for this picture I got from Google.
Oreos stuffed in fried batter and served with vanilla ice cream. Good gracious goodness, I'll have them sweeties soon enough. Again, I digress.

I wish it was easier to get to the Capital and to the different corners of the Republic. If only it was a long bus trip away, without crossing water, or a train away. Train? Now that would make things amazing.

I reflect in speed the political, social, economic and other factors that come in to play with the Republic's archipelagic nature. I don't want to write a paper on it though. I just want my Oreos stuffed into fried batter and served to me with vanilla ice cream. Hmm. Food.

I miss my friends and family in Luzon, I crave for Wicked Oreos (but I heard they're served in the Queen City now), and somewhat, I just want to go there. But definitely, I wouldn't want to live there for too long again.

Oh islands, can we ever unite into one (land) mass? Can we? Could we? I hope so.

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