posted by: gypsygal Prime
 
I'm stranded here in Baguio and loving it.
 
Lisa, the innkeeper, can't believe that there's someone like me who is brave (or stupid) enough to go to Baguio in the middle of typhoon Parma. How can one enjoy Baguio's cool weather, galleries and nature parks amid the heavy rains, floods and landslides? Aside from the two Korean students who've been in Baguio for months to study english, I'm the only guest in Atenara, this cozy b and b (I know that sounds trite, but how else can I describe an ancestral house-turned-inn which Lisa filled up with her own collection of handcrafted furniture?) located just a few blocks away from the Baguio Botanical garden.
 
I never expected that this will happen. I left Manila Thursday morning, a week after typhoon Ketsana wreaked havoc in the country's capital. My friend Avie told me that her Baguio-based aunt texted her to say that it was raining in Baguio and some roads were unpassable. But after checking with the bus company that all trips to Baguio will proceed as major thoroughfares are still open, I decided to pack my bags and hie off to a place where I can have some peace and quiet, a space to write for myself and do some projects that I always wanted to do but never had the time to finish. Far from the many distractions of Manila.
I arrived in Baguio Thursday night, hungry and wet as Parma was then starting to unleash one of the worst floods that Baguio (and nearby provinces of Pangasinan and Nueva Ecija) will experience in recent years.
 
***
 
Friday was really a bad, bad day for me.
 
I can't stop worrying – what if I get stranded here for weeks? I don't have enough money to tide me over. I hardly know anyone here. There's no way I can work from here (sure I can report about the tragedy, but how can I file a story when the internet was down?). Besides, I just went to SM and oh, god, in Watson's (where I bought heaps of toiletries, fruit cups and medicine because as usual, I was overreacting – so afraid that I wil end up sick and hungry if the heavy rains continue thus forcing the only shopping mall in Baguio to shut down) – they were not accepting credit card payments at the moment because Parma caused some comnection problems. Without a credit card, Parma practically took away my security blanket, making me panicky and more prone to another round of my drama-rama.
It didn't help that I was stuck in my room, watching cable tv all the time, seeing footages of flooding and landslides and evacuees crying for help. At night, I can't sleep, it was freezing cold (Nico, Lisa's cousin and Atenara's innkeeper told me later that the temperature dropped to 12 degrees Friday), that my blankets, socks, jackets anf mittens were not enough to keep me warm.
 
****
 
I only slept for about three hours, but it was  when I woke up Saturday morning that I learned to calm down. I hardly reacted even after Lisa told me that Baguio city was now isolated – bus companies cancelled as their trips to and from Manila – owing to floods and landslides.
I don't know what happened – but that was the time that I find myself suddenly remembering all those stuff that I read in my books on Buddhism and yoga and other new age stuff: I let go of my inner control-freak and go with the flow.
 
So instead of worrying about things I can't control, I decided to shut off the tv. I stopped trying to connect to the internet. I stopped trying to control something which I've known all along na hindi na talaga kaya ng powers ko (translation: that this is beyond my control) .
 
So I prayed and quietly typed in my netbook. Here are some things that I learned because I got stranded in Baguio:
 
1. Quiet time = focus = productvity: with no internet connection, I stopped checking my e-mail evety hour; avoided Facebook, Twitter and Multiply; and refrained from reading the many blogs and newsites that I subscribe to. With nothing to distract me, I finished one analytical piece that I've been trying to write for the past few days. Now I'm stearting to write another feature (notbto mention thjis blog ;post)
 
2. Business lessons in a nutshell: I spent a lot of time chatting with Lisa – a typical connector who practically knows anyone ("That's why I don't have a Facebook account, I have too many friends.")
Lisa is not only an innkeeper but manages a number of small businesses. She buys and sells vintage car, breeds dogs, supplies vegetables grown in La Trinidad to Manila, an idependent management consultant and webmistress of several income generating websites.
For this serial entrepreneur, business is not just about making loads of money but having enough resources to sustain her lifestyle. Having multiple streams of incolme allowed Lisa to live in the city that she loves without having to give up her comfortable lifestyle.
 
3. There are small miracles everywhere: I was so absorbed with my masteral studies and journalism career,that I often forget the many small blessings that I should be thankful for. After Parma battered Northen Luzon Friday – killed hundreds of people and destroyed homes and farms – I woke up Saturday morning soo happy to see the sun and clear skies and feel the warm weather. I went for a stroll at the Baguio Botanical Garden – nature tripping, taking photos of pine trees and flowers.
(I can't post them now, as I forgot that thingy which I use for uploading pics)
I am thankful for the hot mug of brewed coffee, a time and space to write.
I am just thankful to be alive, having another day to fulfill whatever is my life's mission.