Greetings to you, Steemians!
First of all, I would like to thank everyone who greeted and welcomed me here in Steemit through my introduceyourself post a few days ago. It means a lot!
For this post, I will be launching my first blog section, which I decided to call The Travels of a Homebody. I planned to make this launching a grand one by doing some initial preparations (e.g. making a nice banner similar to The Confidence Project , do some picture editing, etc.) but I lack enough time to accomplish these tasks. I’ll just consider this as a soft opening.
As to how my mind wrapped around the idea of this blog series, the next paragraphs will do the explanation.
When staying at home for too long becomes a disadvantage
As what I have mentioned in my first post, I am one of the few people who loves to clean the house and make myself comfortable inside it for as long as I can. Yes, that’s right. I am a homebody. I prefer staying under the same roof every day, making sure that all the frequency of appointments that needed to be done outside are minimized. If only everything can be home-based, I would definitely be happy and just settle with that kind of setup without any trace of complaint.
Definition of homebody (Image Source)
I always enjoy the comfort provide by our living room. Unfortunately, it came to a point when I was so comfortable of the things around me that I was not in my motivated state anymore. (Image Source)
This unhealthy mindset became worse along with the traffic situation in Mactan and Cebu Island. I live in Mactan Island and my school activities, together with most of my other appointments, happen in the neighboring Cebu Island. Crossing the 2-kilometer bridge has been a part of my daily routine, which was never a problem until the traffic situation worsened. Given the daily traffic, I believe almost all would grab the choice of staying at home rather than compromise their inner peace just to go outside.
The traffic situation in Marcelo Fernan Bridge (one of the two bridges that connects Mactan and Cebu Island). In order to arrive to your destination, you have to be away from your house for at least two hours before the set time for you to not be late. A huge part of my time is just wasted because of this. (Image Source)
A day came when I realized I was not experiencing the kind of personal growth that I always wanted to have. As a youngster, it baffles me that I’m not as motivated as before to learn new things and accept new perspectives. My sleeping hours in the house are mostly in excess, yet my daily improvement at something has been revolving at a very tiny fragment of the vast opportunities offered to me from the beginning. I realized I need to change and expand my horizon.
It's all about growing up and not being stuck in your comfort zone. (Image Source)
“How about travelling?”, I told myself. The idea is indeed great! But the expenses? Nah.
Fortunately, last year was truly a blessing for me in terms of financial stability, as I was barely able to start providing my own needs. I believe part of growing up is investing on something that will make me learn new things and happy at the same time, so I saved a part of my income just to go to a new place, break my normal routine and have fun. With the unexpected plot twists, the goal came true and yes, it did wonders!
From that experience alone, I want to continue revamping the normal course of my life and to continue incorporating more experiences outside the four walls of my home. I am sure that my inner homebody spirit will always be here, but for this year I want to be more. I want to be a homebody and a traveler combined. This motivated me to start a subsection of my blog entitled The Travels of a Homebody.
What is the purpose of this blog series?
Aside from the main goal which is to connect people, I also want to make an influence to those homebodies like me; to explore what is in store for them outside their home, take risks, enjoy life and always be open to new perspectives and learning. The process can take some time, especially that as we grow up we are already comfortable with our own bubble. The blog series does not intend to influence other homebodies to lose their identity by exploring and traveling, but to integrate another aspect of life that would make them a better person. So yes, the whole point is to encourage you to be more than who you are today through traveling.
What does this subsection of my blog include?
I prefer to have a narrative approach in blogging my travels. Once I finish featuring the places that I have been to, I want to share my reflections obtained from my whole experience with the hopes of building connection to my readers. I believe that people are tied together through the same experiences that they encounter, as well as the same ideas that they believe in, that is why I always highlight the lessons I learned after the experience.
How far must we go away to consider an experience as traveling?
I believe that as long as an outdoor experience is something fresh to your eyes, provide you with another angle of life and will add up to your must-not-be-forgotten memory bank, that can already be coined as a travel. Even a one-hour bus ride to the nearest countryside can be considered as traveling! What is important is not the fanciness of the trip but the memories and realizations gained along the journey that are worth keeping.
So that’s it for my blog subsection’s preface. What are your thoughts about it? I will be so happy to see your comments, reactions and suggestions down below this post.
Without further ado, I will now start with my first post, which is about my experience in Boracay Island.
BORACAY ISLAND
About Boracay Island
When the hype of discovering white beaches here in the Philippines was at its peak, the Boracay Island was in the forefront. Together with Palawan Islands, it is one of the leading tourist destinations here in the country. The small island has a lot to offer to Filipino and foreign tourists: the beautiful resorts and beaches suited for a stressed worker’s much-needed vacation, various sea creatures that highlight the diversity of marine life of the Philippines, and the restaurants and bars that make the words party and hanging-out an understatement.
How a miscommunication turned out to be an experience worth keeping
It was never my intention to go to Boracay Island. I was not prepared, both physically (since I’m too preoccupied with school) and financially (I’m still starting to live as an adult, so spending my money immediately without enough savings is too risky) for the trip.
It was a day in August 2017 when a close friend of mine, Melanie, called me and asked if I would like to join her in her plans of going to Boracay together with Leo (her boyfriend), Danielle and Stafford. There was an airfare seat sale at that time, which included an accommodation in a hotel for three days on the island. I’m so not into the idea but I also do not want to say no. To be safe, I told her I’m not sure and added that she could reserve a slot for me in case I decide to join.
Little did I know that the reservation was an irrevocable one, and that she already shouldered the whole payment for my seat. I received a text message from her indicating the money I need to pay to her any time soon. Shocked, I called her to clarify things. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to meet halfway regarding the meaning of the reserve that we have in our heads. On her part, the reserve that I mentioned was a go signal for her to stamp in my name on the reservation slot. Without any choice, I paused for a while and just thought of further actions to cope up with the payments for this trip.
I had a feeling that this trip was not going to be good, since the plan just came out as a consequence of miscommunication. I thought to myself that maybe I’d just waste a month’s worth of savings for this. That would be a big loss on my part. Earning money these days has been hard for us, and I know everyone can relate to that.
To my surprise, I was wrong. Melanie’s mistake was indeed a blessing in disguise.
Are you ready to fly with me to Boracay Island?
I’m sorry guys! I hope the cliffhanger hasn’t made you feel agitated. Hahaha.
Are you excited for the next part? I really hope so.
See you soon for the second part of my travel blog series, The Travels of a Homebody.
Love lots,
@jsmalila
Waaahhh! Like @thegaillery's posts, I could hear your voice while reading this @jsmalila! Hahah excited to hear more of your travel!! 🙌🏻
Hahahahaha thank you @namranna! Hopefully I was able to give you a hype of my upcoming post! :)
Is it too late to write a comment? Hehe
The net's been pretty bad lately.
I've never been to Boracay but I'm pretty hyped to go there soon!
I love the idea of your series, hope to see more from "The Travels of a Homebody" soon! :)
Never too late, @brokemancode! Thank you for dropping by and supporting my blog series. I will be posting the sequel of my trip super soonest! <3
I like how you emphasized integration instead of a full-on change in a homebody's lifestyle, @jsmalila! I'm looking forward to your series, steem on!
Thank u very much @thegaillery!
I feel you, I'm a homebuddy too. I would rather stay at home than go out and socialize hahahaha
Hey this is an interesting series! I will be looking forward to more of your travel stories! I am also working on my travel fund at the moment to see the world outside my comfort zone.
Cheers to our travel journeys!