what a find!

what a find! just 1 1/2 hours from baguio is bauang, la union. a super-laidback, quiet beach whose sand may not be white, but it's fine (as in pino) and compact. the water is clear, and there are no yikes! corals or rocks under the sea...
i had been looking forward to the trip in the days leading to it. i would get to see LL and hang out at a beach again and write an article about surfing. yehey! i certainly miss being part of a shoot.
so, bright and early on sunday morning, i went off to the bus station and boarded the bus to san fernando city. we passed through naguilian road and i alighted just across the nalinac resort. of course, i headed straight to the lanai area to look for LL and company. i was so happy to see koko, mel, luz, ringgay, ray, and shiloah, and meet jake, jas, ian, and cathy. shortly after, the shoot for the fashion ed started. i hung out catching up with koko. it's really fun hanging out with these former officemates.
then, we proceeded to san juan, la union, where the waves are bigger and there were a number of surfers there. i didn't dare get on a surfboard--the sun was scorching at high noon! after the shoot and the interviews, we had a quick lunch, chatting away, then koko and company had to go back to manila (yes, in their world, monday is a workday!).
back at the resort, LL and i both decided to curl up with a book. she's still trying to finish "kafka on the shore", and she brought this for me to read:

we were so engrossed in our reading that we didn't even notice that jake, our photog, had taken this picture:

i wasn't able to finish the book, but the chapters that i read are fantastic! good chick lit is always the best to read at the beach!
when it was getting dark, LL and i decided to have a heart-to-heart talk on the sand, to catch up. we hadn't talked to each other in a considerable amount of time. it was a wonderful talk, made even more dramatic by the sunset.

after dinner, we hung out again, basking in the quiet setting: only the sound of the waves could be heard, and the horizon was dark. there was a full moon out though, hanging low. as sleep comes over me pretty early now, i took my leave while LL joined the others for some airtime on the magicsing.
in the morning, i woke up early enough to see the day break. no one else was awake yet, so i got up and walked along the shore, marvelling at the wonderful piece of God's creation.

around 8 am, i decided to go in--couldn't let the day pass without having a swim! and the water was amazing! just the right temperature, and not too deep, despite the fact that i was already a long way from the shore. the waves were minimal, and so i got to leisurely float on my back looking up at the blue sky. i stayed just long enough til the skin on my fingers wrinkled, just in time to join LL for coffee (well, i had just water).
a little after 12 noon, we had to go, so i hitched with them til a fork on naguilian. said my "see you soon"s, then got on the bus back to baguio. i arrived back by 2pm.
we're definitely going back, because boracay has nothing on la union's peace and quiet!