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This weekend, I had the chance to mingle with nature yet again. We had our annual summer-ender outing in St. Cecilia Choir and String Ensemble and even though my presence in the choir had been on and off lately, they still invited me over to come with them and I was still welcome to catch up with the rest of the new choir members and serve the Lord with them through the Holy Mass (which I will write in a separate blog).

And so, the venue of the outing is in a beach resort in Badian, Cebu and other plan is to have a sidetrip in Kawasan Falls which is just a few walks away from where we're staying. I had been to Badian countless of times. For a person who's been to the place a number of times, it would eventually become a bore. But since my companions this time are not the same from the last time I went to this place, I know it would still be a memorable experience. One other important factor though in order to make this trip differently would be to do the things you haven't done before. And so today I'd make a list of the things I did differently for this Badian trip which you might also find interesting.

1st. Go Camping

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I believe, the best way to experience nature is to be with her and sleep with her. What I meant about that is Camping. All my other choirmates slept in comfortable beds in an air-conditioned room but I chose to sleep in my tent instead (mine is the color blue tent). In places like this which is away from the city, I will always choose to sleep in the simplest way possible. It could either be on a tent or on a hammock. Because I can always sleep in my bed back in the city but I rarely get the chance to sleep in a tent or hammock not unless I'm outdoors.

The feeling of being inside a tent is so peaceful. You're alone with your thoughts. From my location, what you can hear are the sound of the crickets and the sound of the waves crashing which became my lullaby and rock me silently to sleep.

  2nd. Watch the Sun Rise

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That's why I also chose to stay in my tent it's because I'd like to witness the rising of the sun when I open my tent door in the morning. However that was a gloomy day so this is the only view I got. The opposite island is the land of Negros Oriental which I had been to once and I believe that highest mountain right there is the peak of Mt. Kanlaon. This is still a sight to behold. I also managed to record a timelapse video in from of my tent. With or without sunrise, that view was still breathtaking.

3rd. Stop by the Matutinao Bridge

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A few walks outside the beach resort where we're staying is this bridge with clear, greenish water called Matutinao Bridge, which is also the name of the Barangay where it belongs which is Brgy. Matutinao.

What's amazing about the river under the bridge is its crystal clear and clean water. If you follow the water from where it started, it would lead you straight to the Kawasan Falls and then it flows out into the sea which is just amazing. Also, all the rivers here in Badian are this clear and I have been wanting to stop by this bridge before heading out to the falls which thankfully I was able to do this time.

Some of my choirmates which are adrenaline junkies, actually jumped off from this bridge onto the water! I wish I'd have the courage to do that next time. That instantly became a part of my bucketlist.

  4th. Bring a first-time visitor 

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The one in the right side with the cap is my friend, Julia. It was actually her first time in Kawasan Falls and so, everything from her perspective is so new, refreshing, and amazing. On the way up, she was already so amazed by how clear the water is and how the flow never stops like there was an eternal spring somewhere that just never dries out. With all her amazement and reaction, I remember the first time I visited this place as well and we had the exact same awe and reaction.

Leizel, the one on the left side has been with me in enjoying this falls for a couple of times already and it was our third time here together. We explained to Julia how the Kawasan Falls have 3 levels. If it was only me and Leizel, we'd skip this first level which has the most crowd but since we had Julia, we accompanied her in jumping to this great, big, natural pool (with lifejacket on) and paddled all the way under where the water drops.

Now, Julia actually knows how to swim but it's still recommended that we all wear a lifejacket in this 1st level since this is the deepest level. I and Julia swam to be able to get right under the water. What happened was, Julia was exactly under the heavy water drops and I did not see her resurface again. It actually made me really nervous since I can't grab her hand due to the push of the current and I can't remove my lifejacket either. I was screaming for her name but luckily she was able to get out of the drops which is pushing her under and the lifejacket also helped her pop up on the surface again. Phew. That could have been a disaster but thankfully it was not. That was memorable though. So folks, never forget to wear a lifejacket.

  5th. Take scenic pictures

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For every time that I visit Kawasan, I already know which spots are breathtaking and amazing. But this time, since I already spent time in my previous visits before for those already established "photo" spots, I, Leizel and Julia were able to stop and find new spots and angles that looks so mystical and magical which we did not notice before. Here are some of those shots.

Would you like to jump in?

Do you see that Gatorade-blue water? The color of the water is insanely blue! No matter how many times I visit this area, I'm still in awe of how magical this place looks like and I can't really stop wondering as to why the color of the water is blue like that. I guess that will always remain as a mystery.

And lastly,

   6th. Enjoy! 

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I don't know why but no matter how many times I go back here, I still can't get enough of the water. Maybe because everytime I go back, I always do something fun and enjoyable. For this trip, we countlessly jumped from level to level, enjoyed our free fish-spa at the 2nd level, did the slide and swing in the 3rd level and sang songs while we're paddling all together. I was not able to take pictures of all those since we're enjoying too much to stop and take pictures but I can still remember everything we did in there. The key is to always be happy and thankful for every time you get to enjoy nature, regardless if how many times you've been there. It should still be fun and memorable.

So that was it Co-Steemians. Regardless if how many times I've been to Badian and to Kawasan, every trip is still memorable and unique as always. I hope you learned something and was enticed by the beauty of the Kawasan Falls. It was truly a gem and Cebu is very blessed to be its host. I hope you all had a great summer and Thank you all for dropping by ✨