My Share for #BeautifulSunday initiated by @ace108

Welcome to the second part of our travel in Lian, Batangas Philippines. Join me again to see what transpired throughout the day during our stay in this beach. A time when you could just forget everything that troubles you. Just enjoying every moment with the sun, sand, ocean and the family. Stay with me for awhile and let's have a quiet stroll along the beach or join us for lunch.

If you missed the first part. Feel free to visit and see how we got to this place.

First Long Drive to Serenity

 

Drowning All Troubles Away

Last time our exploration was cut short as my wife was calling me and I needed to get back. They were preparing for lunch and the kids were free to do anything they want to. When my son and his cousins gets together they never run out of things to do.

That look on my son's face means that they are up to something. I am not sure what it is yet but nothing really to worry about. I asked them if they wanted to go fishing and they didn't seem to be interested. Two years I bought a fishing pole which I never really go to use. I was very excited that I could finally test it out. I went inside for a moment to prepare the fishing pole.

When I went back outside this is what appeared before me. The youngest of the cousins buried in the sand by my son and his older brother. I knew they were up to something.

He didn't seem to mind but was enjoying buried in the sand. Still I asked them to dig him out and just play something else.

Here I am with the fishing pole and hoping to catch some fish. I am not an expert angler and I only fish for fun. Also as I recall when I was young we used fish, clams and worms as lure. The fishing pole that I bought included some artificial lures. I am not sure if I could catch anything with it, but it's worth the try.

After more than an hour, I felt I caught something. I kept on reeling in for a couple of minutes, but I could not pull it in. I got excited and I thought it was a big fish that took the bait. After a couple of minutes I realized that the hook just caught on a rock and the waves made it look like that the line was moving. It was a disappointment for me and what's worse I even broke my reel. I went back on shore upset and figured that I should just stick to taking photos instead.

Here is my father in law who fell fast asleep due to the calming cool breeze of the ocean. I myself wouldn't want to doze off as I would be missing out on all the fun stuff that I could do here.

Here my wife is cooking our lunch and she was expecting that I would be doing the roasting. I explained that I was fishing for lunch. No more further explanation was required and I just needed to start roasting, she said.

One of the all time favorites to eat on the beach is roasted pork belly. Perfect with rice with some vinegar dipping sauce. Our recipe just drench the pork belly with some oyster sauce and roast it over the coals. Nothing else to add just the oyster sauce, it is one of the best pork belly recipe that you would ever taste. Simple but the flavor is unforgettable.

Now here are fishes that I caught earlier.........that's a lie. My wife and mother in law bought it earlier from one of the fishing boats, straight from the ocean. It could not get any fresher than that. These fish are called Tulingan in our country which is also know as Mackerel.

Just sprinkle with salt and throw them over the coals. I am not really a fan of roasted fish, but I did not realize that I would be in for a surprise.

Fish aren't suppose to be over cooked as it would dry up and make the meat dry and bland. If ever you get a chance to visit some of the beaches here in our country, look out for the local fishermen who sells their daily catch really cheap. Some would sell you a bucket of assorted fishes for around 500 -600 pesos which is almost $10.00- $12.00 which is a bargain.

Time to eat and here is my lunch and feel free to grab yourself a plate. On top of the rice, we have the roasted pork belly on the left. On the top, we have the roasted Tulingan and to complete the meal we need some vegetables. At the bottom is a vegetable dish called "Laing", it is made from dried taro leaves and cooked in coconut milk. Laing is dish from the Bicol which is the southern part of the island of Luzon in the Philippines. They are well know for spicy and dishes with coconut milk. This dish is authentic as it was prepared by my mother in law who happens to come from that region.

Grab a seat and pour some wine to enjoy this humble lunch by the beach.

To fully enjoy the Philippine experience, you need to eat with your hands. You just need to use the tip of your fingers, get some portions of rice, meat and vegetables. Squeeze them together firmly and gently place in your mouth. The experience would be complete if just had banana leaves as plates.

After that hearty meal, which was absolutely delicious. The fresh fish especially was extra ordinary, simply cooked but was very tasty. I think the freshness enhanced its flavor. It was a first time for me to taste this fish as I never really paid attention to it at our market place. I'm sure we will again have roasted Tulingan at home.

We took a little rest and waited a couple of hours until the sun was a little bit low, before we went out again. There are not a lot of people around except for the locals which is another thing that I love in this place. No crowd, no noisy karaoke on the beach and no rowdy groups around.

It was calm, peaceful and something I could get used to everyday. Taking a walk in the afternoon and enjoying the fresh air with your dog.

Here is my brother in law with his girlfriend and their dog Sparky.

Time for me to take a walk and explore in this beautiful afternoon.

The shore was clean and gentle sounds of the waves was like music to my ears. There are times at home I just play sounds of waves to put me to sleep. It is very relaxing and I keep of dreaming when will I ever have my own slice of heaven by the sea. Near the ocean is where I want to grow old in, live a simple, quiet and happy life.

As I walked further fishing boats, with different colors are parked by the shore. They go out into the ocean during early mornings maybe around 3 am. Which made me think that I should take some photos as they sail into the sea. Now the only problem is if I could wake up around that time.

Although some go out in the afternoon, early mornings is the time when they catch a lot of fish.

Let's take a closer look at some of the fishing boats. Fishing is a major livelihood for communities living in coastal areas. Prices of these boats ranges from 35,000 pesos up to more than 100,000 pesos. This is equivalent to around $670 up to almost $2,000 estimate. This would also depend on the size and the price is only based on second hand boats. Brand new boats would cost much more.

There are boats made from fiber glass and wood. These are attached with two bamboo poles on both sides to balance the boat.

These small fishing boats has motors attached at the back and a rudder controlled manually by a bamboo pole. It might be fun to drive one of these and see how fast it could go. How would you like to ride one of our local fishing boats?

This dog on the beach looks sleepy, but doesn't seem to mind his photo taken. A bit of caution when exploring some dogs can be territorial if you approach certain properties in the area. If you hear them barking it is best to stay away from the property and just walk along the shore.

Let's take out my Olympus 40 - 150 mm zoom lens which is equivalent to 80 - 300 mm in full frame. I use the micro four thirds format as it it lighter and easy to carry around. The shot below is a place called Fortune Island, an island with white sand and famous due to Greek columns on the island which reminds us of Mt. Olympus. There is also known for sunken shipwrecks. One of the most popular finds is the Spanish galleon San Diego sunk by the Dutch during the 1600s.

On the right side looks like a developed subdivision with a couple of houses already. If you could zoom in closer on the photo, the house in the middle has the best spot near the shore. You would notice that it has three floors and I cannot imagine how much it would cost.

On the left side is a mountain cliff and I kept of wondering where was the trail to get up here. From here, I could only imagine how magnificent the the view could be overlooking the island.

As the sun starts to set, the warm glow of the sun and made me forget all my worries. I enjoyed taking photos and just staring into the ocean makes me feel so calm inside.

I headed back to our camp and the boys were preparing to get a bon fire going. I wanted to sit back relax and enjoy the golden hour that I have been waiting for.

First I need to find the best seat in the house, get some music ready and a bottle of wine.

I found this driftwood nearby and figured it was the best seat in the house. Now for the music and I love bossa nova. I connected my phone to a blue too speaker and started my bossa nova playlist. It was perfect with the wind, the sound of the waves and the golden hour.

If you are curious what was playing it was covers from the great Antonio Carlos Jobim. From a band called Nova first song on the list is my favorite titled "Wave".

The rest of the songs follows

Berimbau

Dindi

Meditacao

Garota de Ipanema

Agua De Beber

So Danco Samba

Mai Que Nada

Feel free to check them out on Spotify.

My daughter stayed with me to enjoy the bossa nova and and watch as the sun goes down. We talked about how she would like to live in a place like this. Well she told me that as long as it has internet she would be fine.

Here I am with that bottle of wine and enjoying the show. At this time there is no tv show in the world that can replace what I am watching right now.

I wish I could freeze the moment for a bit longer and not just capture it with a photo. Well everything has an end which reminds me how this vacation will also end. It is hard to imagine going back again to your normal life and struggling again thru what we think is life.

But right now at this moment I do not need to worry about anything. I have a bottle of wine in my hand and didn't even bother to bring a wine glass. Forget everything and just enjoy the moment. Drowning all worries and troubles along with the drowning sun over the horizon.

I walked along the shore and felt the cool breeze brush on my face. Took a gulp of wine and walked a little more.

I felt a little bit cold but the wine made me feel a little bit warm. I headed back when the sun was almost gone and the bossa nova playlist was finished. It was time to call it a day and head back to our camp. As I went back, I realized that troubles would not go away and the only way to face it is head on. Still we all need a time off to think and breathe.

Thanks for joining me today and I hope you enjoyed spending some time with me on the beach. Hope you join me again next time for more exploration and the final part of our trip.

Until then keep on dreaming and Steem on.

 

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All photos are original and taken with

Lumix GX85 with Sigma 50mm and Olympus 40-150mm

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Posted from my blog with SteemPress : http://watersnake101.vornix.blog/2019/02/03/drowning-all-troubles-away-beautiful-sunday/

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