i had to travel again this week with the bf. it was supposed to be one of our usual trips and we expected to be home in two days' time. the night before we left, i knew there was a storm coming and the weather reporter said it was passing through mindanao and was leaving the country on friday. it was raining intermittently in the metropolis but it was not that hard. we left thursday morning and by nighttime, we were heading home. we have to take three boat rides starting from batangas to mindoro and finally to iloilo to get home and that meant about 24 hours of travel by sea and land.
the batangas trip was uneventful. we got to mindoro in good time and headed out to the next port. we missed the 2am trip and apparently the 4am was full so we were scheduled to take the next one. unfortunately, the 4am trip couldn't leave because the coast guard wouldn't allow it. the bf kept on grumbling because there were no heavy rains or strong winds. but still no boat left the port until 1am the next day. we were able to leave mindoro 7am on saturday. we were stranded for about 28 hours. it wasn't really much trouble since we stayed in a lodging house and had decent food. but the bf had business to attend to and i had to go somewhere as well. of course, we really didn't have much choice in the matter. we got to panay island at 11am and travelled off to iloilo. i had a friend who usually booked for us on the last boat trip. she said no boats left since 8am since the coast guard didn't allow any trips. i asked her to please just have our numbers listed. when we got there at about 3pm, the port was full-really full. there were a lot of 6 and 10-wheeler trucks, private vehicles, motorcycles, people and even animals. i thought we were going to be stranded yet again! the trips resumed at about 6pm and luckily, i saw a coast guard officer who knew me. we were given a spot on the boat that left at 8pm. the bf and i knew that we had to act if we wanted to get home. if we waited for our turn, we probably wouldn't be home up to now.
my mom texted saturday morning that our city was flooded and the houses of my sister and uncles were flooded as well. a lot of people died including children, houses were destroyed, boats almost capsized and it was a total disaster. our place is usually spared by calamities but apparently, the rains were just terrible in the mountains and since the were no trees to hold the water, it just came thundering down to the city. my mom even asked us not to travel at night because she feared for our safety. we were also going to pass by a town with a collapsed bridge and she thought there was no way out. we managed because kind souls showed us the detour and we got home at 3am on sunday. the bf and i saw a bit of the effects and he said it was one hell of a storm. in one town, buses and hauling trucks were stranded since they couldn't cross the bridge.
i saw a lot of the pictures posted on facebook and yes, it was devastating. a lot of families lost a great deal. their property can still be replaced but lives lost can never be brought back. it's a sad state of affairs and i hope that the victims will be able to get through this tragedy. the bf and i went to the downtown area this morning but things have gone to normal. luckily, the sun is out. some places have yet to have their power restored. other than that, it's business as usual.
No comments:
Post a Comment