Finding Nemo

Where I grew up, the beach was only 15 minutes away. As there were no malls to go to, my family ended up on a beach almost every weekend (or so it seemed). After a while, it was like, "Isn't there someplace else we can go?" As a sign of protest, I never learned how to swim. Ok, maybe it was because I almost drowned while I was playing along the shore....but that's another story.

I only realized how much I loved being near the ocean when I started studying here in Manila...eons ago, it seems. Much as I loved Manila's malls, airconditioned moviehouses, fastfood takeout and delivery, groceries with many counters and wide streets, I realized that here, it's a 3 hour drive (or a plane ride) to the nearest beach, unless Manila Bay counts.

As a consequence, I appreciate the ocean more. Learning to swim has been added to my "Things to Do Before I Die" list. In the past few years, I've gone to Boracay, Bohol, Puerto Galera and Palawan. I have kayak-ed like mad. I have also taken quite a liking to snorkeling, which is some kinda achievement if you can't swim and are a wee bit afraid of the ocean, as I am.

As a reward for my er..courage, I had the privilege of seeing a clownfish (better known as Nemo, as in Pixar's Finding Nemo) recently. Several of them actually. As in the movie, they were swimming near a sea anemone. What an amazing sight!

On to the next long weekend!