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June, my birth month is almost near. I know what I want. Of course, Pearls. I can never have enough. The pearl is the queen of gems and the gem of queens. Well, I might not be a queen but I am definitely the queen in the eyes of my husband.
Years before I got engaged to my boyfriend (who is now my adorable husband of 25 years), he planted a kiss on my hands as he slipped a pearl ring with two little diamonds in it. He can be romantic like that. I think it was our “steady ring” to show how serious he was with his love. He was just a law student then and I bet he must have crossed oceans to get one for me. I loved it so much that I wore that pearl ring everyday until he replaced it with a diamond engagement ring. Of course along the years, I have collected a few pearl accessories.
“These gems will eventually be handed down to our two daughters”, I told my husband , trying to justify the investment of the Golden pearls.
After my visit to the colorful world of the Pearl Farm in Palawan, I understood the value of this Ultimate Orient- the Philippine Golden Pearl.
Let me take you to a tour to the creation of this golden pearl.
This golden south sea pearl represents the triumph of collaboration between man and his environment. A pearl farm must , by necessity of its goal, remain a pristine environment. Oysters must live and thrive in clean, moving water, with constant tidal patterns and temperatures.
Read More »The beauty of the Philippine Golden South Sea Pearl
““The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart.” I agree with Helen Keller.
Nothing prepared me for the the beauty of Palawan seascapes, its breathtaking sunsets, the beautiful people and the miracle of the Golden South Sea Pearl. The beauty captivated me so much I felt dazed. Now that I look back at it, I wished time slowed down for me to take it all in.
Photo by Jayvee Fernandez
This amazing adventure started with an invitation from Jewelmer through Yehey, their digital marketing. As I leafed through the invite I noted the ““passion for life” at the top and to join them in becoming a catalyst of change. That sounds like me. I am passionate about meaningful things in life. The invite to visit Palawan is heaven-sent. I have always wanted to visit the Philippines last frontier. The stories of travel bloggers inspired me to make Palawan a must-experience travel destination . I wanted to witness how the lustrous golden Philippine South Sea Pearl is cultivated. Lastly, I wanted to observe the livelihood projects of the ““Save Palawan Seas Foundation”, that are both sustainable as well as environmentally sound. I was terribly excited. Jayvee, Anna and I are the first set of bloggers to join this Pearl Farm tour, a first for bloggers in the history of Jewelmer.
There is so much to write about this trip that it needs to be shown in three parts: the travelogue, the beauty of the golden South Sea Pearl and the people of Palawan and the livelihood projects of their foundation.
Read More »Captivated by the beauty of Palawan (Travelogue) Part 1 of 3 parts
As my boyfriend placed the engagement ring on my finger, my eyes just sparkled with excitement. Nothing could stop us from getting married. We were madly, deeply and truly in love for seven years. What did I know about marriage? I saw my own parents fight, laugh, tease and get back together. It’ll be a breeze for us, I thought.
Looking back at our 25 years of marriage and 7 years of steady relationship, I never imagined the challenges, the tears, the drama that befell us. The children just kept us together. On one of those dreary days, I thought , “how can we grow old together?” Would we become one of those old grumpy couples that don’t speak to each other in restaurants or one of those adorable elderly couples that everyone aspires to be?
Sappy as it sounds, it must have been love that pulled us back again or was it our little angel watching over us? With the kids at college and more time for ourselves to bicker or romance (take your pick), the quality of time spent made us rediscover ourselves as a couple and as an individual. For me, that meant, slimming down, trying to be fashionably smart, embarking on new ventures and becoming a healthy person inside and out. Having dramatic changes might have moved my husband to do the same.
This will also be our first sibling reunion. I am just waiting for my brother in Missouri, my younger sister from Denver and another sister from Chicago. By October 25, all four sisters will be together.
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Carlos Celdran is flamboyant to the extreme, a one man show of history, criticism, and trivia, the most entertaining ticket in town. ~ Lonely Planet ~
IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK!
Indeed, I never knew these walls could talk so much by the way Carlos Celdran brought these walls to life in his most popular tour, “If these walls could talk”. I was never that interested in History but today changed all that. It is my daughter’s 23rd birthday today and she wanted to celebrate it by learning more of Old Manila by way of a walking tour. I sent an SMS to Carlos that M will be joining this tour and he told me to join. I have joined one of his walking tours in Escolta, Quiapo and just Old Manila and enjoyed his unique historical perspective. I was not prepared for this tour though because we were having a lunch celebration nearby and I was dressed in sun dress with heels. Good thing I always bring my hat.
I thought the walking tour might be a good time to revisit Old Manila and its past glory and reflect upon its state. This is not your ordinary walking tour, mind you. Carlos makes you crave for more stories as he delivers a hilarious, irreverent educational historical walking tour of the walled city of Intramuros. My ex-boyfriend (now husband) and I were fascinated with Manila that we often dated here back in the early 80’s and admire the Renaissance-inspired architecture.
