It all started with my father's wandering feet
My father has instilled in me his passion for traveling, as he loved exploring on his own. He has been to different places, and has always felt contentment from every travel.
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| Beach Bum! :) |
I was only able to fully grasp his concept of 'wandering-off' only at age 7. He really liked the feeling of going out-of-town, as I could always see it from his cheerful aura. And even as a single father, he would bring me and my brother to far away provinces (the farthest would be in Baguio). From then on, my love for these enriching escapades made me more drawn to the adventure that traveling provided us as a whole.
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| My brother and my dad at Burnham Park, Baguio. :) |
I started missing the thrill from our adventures right after he passed away in 1995. I was only 11 then. My hopes of seeing the rest of the world with him dwindled when he never woke up from his coma. He died from a brain aneurysm.
Through the years, I was still able to travel with my family and friends. I've also been to different parts of the Philippines years after. Yet it felt like there was still something missing. It just wasn't the same, knowing that my father wasn't around to enjoy these new sights that I was seeing up-close.
But my love for traveling was ignited, right after graduating from college in 2007. My cousin, who I call 'Kuya", gave me my very first plane ticket -- a plane ticket that was printed with the words: Destination - Hong Kong.
This was Kuya's graduation gift to me. And from this experience, I was able to get on my first plane ride, first Asian destination, first international travel with my Kuya, and my first trip out-of-the-country without my father. I felt some form of sadness when I should've felt utterly ecstatic.
I whispered the words "I miss you, dad. Wish you were here!" right when we set foot on this foreign country. But I was grateful for Kuya's sweet gesture. He knows my father would have done the same for me.
Right there and then, my dad made his presence felt. I suddenly felt happy knowing that he wanted me to see this new place with Kuya this time. From then on, I knew that he would always be with me, wherever I went or whoever I was with. And to every destination that I have successfully crossed out off my list, I felt my dad's wandering feet, guiding me and exploring with me.
My father has helped embrace the wanderluster in me. But it is my Kuya, who continued to nurture my love for wayfaring -- helping me feed that passion again by supporting my every endeavor to travel. He helped hone the BUDGET BIYAHERA that I am now (he even helped with the name study for my blog!). He taught me how to save, how to budget things, how to keep things organized and how to stay alert when traveling. Best of all, he continually reminds me to never forget to enjoy every journey made.
You know.. I'll always owe my wanderlusting feet to these two great men. Their love, encouragement and their support would have to be my inspiration. The thought of them encourages me to see the world forever on end. :)
Explore & Be Free!
Mai
This post is my entry to the Pinoy Travel Bloggers' Blog Carnival for July 2012 with the theme "The Journey That Made Us a Travel Blogger". Edmar Gu-Quibb of Edmaration Etc #TownExplorer hosts this edition of the blog carnival. You can visit Estan Cabigas' Langyaw to see the archive of Pinoy Travel Bloggers' Blog Carnival! :)
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