Circumstance can be compared to the Devil. At first, it takes you to an all time high and when you feel like a million bucks, a crack on the Earth suddenly appears and it swallows you all the way to hell. I have experienced it while I was applying for the NLE and it reminded me of a time in my life that I'll never ever forget. In short, I still have PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) about it. And here's the story...

My friends invited me to go to Silay, Negros to have fun at Patag again, maybe for the last time because it was just a month after our graduation and we feared that it was going to be our last time together on an adventure. Since I was nostalgic about my deleted shots about Patag, I went for it. Happily arriving at Bacolod, I said to myself "I'll try to take some of my old shots" with a smirk on my face.

The next day, we went to Patag riding in our friend's van. The driver was driving like he had a bad case of diarrhea. My shots on the way were limited. I had to put my not so small body through the window just to take some shots. It was very difficult since the road was rough at certain points.

portal to Patag

as I've said, the road weren't that nice, lots of big trucks carrying
sugar cane chug on the dirt roads

this shot was taken at about 60 kmh on the dirt road

a lonely tree stands in the sea of sugar canes

We joked around with our friend when he asked where we were, we said "near the sugar canes!" and its full of sugar canes all the way to Patag. ^^

I still remember the first time I smelled the air on the way to Patag, and I thought to myself, its like love, its sweeter the second time around.

The moment we arrived in Patag, I quickly took some of my cliché shots and here they are:

it was very cloudy that day and it rained on some parts of the mountain range

you can still see Panay island on the other side

we took a short hike to a cold spring pool and took a dip at their ice cold waters

One of the best things about Patag is that there are lots of small critters to photograph...

these three were all unwilling subjects, but with some persuasion,
they stood still for about 2 sec. for this exposure

UBFC(Ultimate Bug Fighting Championship): Let's get it on!

The path to one of them was very difficult. We had to literally hang on the branches just to avoid getting our stuff soaked. At this time, I still had no phobia about water and electronics.^^

who said that there were no Yin and Yang Buddhas..

another thing about Patag is that lots of really big ferns can be seen around

our giude told us that this falls was still virgin. According to him, its too dangerous to go there, even for a seasoned veteran like him.

I was in awe the first time I went here, and I felt the same when I came back. I still remember finding a Pokemon gameboy cartrige here.

the Guardian

He was one of the two dogs that accompanied us in our journey. The first dog failed to return to camp. He was stuck because he cannot jump down a small cliff. This other dog followed us on the way to the second trip to the other falls.

this was my last shot for the day

After this shot, we went to another pool. It was nice there but we were unable to take a bath because they emptied the pool for cleaning and they were just starting to fill it up again. I saw this in-land crab, and tried to photograph it. But it retaliated to the pool. I followed it down. I told myself "I cant jump this with my camera", so I let my friend hold it because he was in the pool. When I jumped, I accidentally bumped into him and he accidentally dropped my cam on the water!!!!
Things slowed down a bit, I was on denial! I was so f*ckd-up. I was cured of my depression, and "here we go again!". I went from the top of the world to the pits of hell! We hiked through most of the mountain range, there were plenty of potential shots, but my mind was set to go back to Bacolod right away. In my rage, I never felt tired even though we walked several kilometers up-hill. When we arrived to camp, the fog rolled in, just to add ambience to my misery.
Several hours later we were in Bacolod finding a repair shop, but to no avail. I just distracted myself by going to the Panaad Festival. The next day, we again went to other shops in Downtown Bacolod. Again, to no avail.

On our last day in Silay, I tried to turn my cam on, and this was its first shot since it got soaked:

my friend Pogz is no longer innocent after our trip

this is the shot at the camera shop

Humans have sarcasm built within their system. When a long lost friend asks "How's life?" usually we reply "Its GREAT!!!". But we must admit that sometimes life can also be a B*TCH. We may not know it yet but our lives can be compared to the BMW M5. Its a very nice car at first glance, it gives you the executive type impression. But underneath it is another story. Press the M button (M*therf*ker button as a motoring journalist would refer) on the console and behold, it becomes Mr. Hyde. It transforms into this loud-mouthed, ill-temped tempered monster. Just like at certain moments in our lives, when cranky bosses, mind-bending deadlines, a computer that crashes when you need it the most and the unrelenting gas prices cause us to just loose it because everything is sooo fast and we dont have any degree of control on ourselves anymore. This creates an itch deep inside the annals of our minds that we need to slllooowww ttthhhiiinnngggsss dddooowwwnnn with meditation, yoga, guided imagery and what-not. But how?? Its impossible to do at the office, you aint got no money to spare for another session. Ah, you might think "My HOUSE!"... GREAT, but hold that thought.

Lets do some guided imagery first. Imagine yourself thinking of a place inside your fortress where you can be alone, no distractions and the place is completely silent. Lets start with the bedroom. Nope, the husband's there watching again and again, a replay of the UAAP championship game. Ok, to the living room then! Uh-oh. The mother-in-law is there watching her favorite soap opera and glued to the tube with her are the pesky yayas(maids). Ah, the attic seems perfect. You close your eyes, select your favorite position and breathe... and then "You! are! just! a! TOY!" Woody's voice suddenly rings through your head because the kids are watching their favorite movie on the new flat screen LCD TV complete with surround sound you won for being employee of the month for a record of 10 years! Arrrgghhh, there's the M button again. You hate life and you turn into Mr. Hyde.

But AHA! There's a secret formula. Its located on Tangalan, Aklan. Its a unique environmental phenomenon produced by wave action on a rocky shore. It is a detrital type of sedimentary rock stratified in the colors yellow, gray, black, and reddish-brown. It goes by the name of Afga Point and Afga Wave Rock Formations.

Why go to Afga you say? Because it can offer certain things like...

nice views of the surroundings...

an assortment of flora and fauna...

and the thing that you'll really love it its state of nothingness... There are no sirens wailing, alarm clocks ringing, beepers beeping, phones ringing or mother-in-laws that never stop yapping.
Its where you can endlessly listen to nature communicating to you with the smashing of the waves on the rocks, or the melodies sung by our colorful feathered friends.

Best of all, you can set your mind free, explore your inner thoughts or do somthing quite poetic.So when I feel my life's a drag, I see myself doing some wishful thinking on the Afga Wave Rock Formations. And I think you should too.

How to get there

Afga is located before Jawili. So just read my instruction on how to get to Jawili Falls on another post. And if you see this sign:

Just turn right and follow the road. Some parts are paved but most parts are not. But when you want to go to the light house, its better if you just hike up the hill because its a no-car-zone. To get to the rocks, go downhill again and look fo a standpost (hand operated water pump) along the road. Then turn right and just follow the road. It will lead you to the rock formations below. Enjoy!^^