Initially appeared on vox.com on 5/20/2009.
Last year's vacation was so loaded with gimiks with people we hadn't seen in five years that our families unfortunately took a back seat, so this year we made a conscious decision to limit our outings with friends. Each side of the family was given roughly half the vacation to do with as they pleased; the only thing sacrosanct thing was the wedding i had come to attend.
The Baguio trip was with the Guzman side. We went up for three days and two nights, stayed at Camp John Hay, took my son horseback riding, and otherwise just enjoyed the (somewhat, at least in the evenings) cool air and each other's company.
Surprisingly, while checking in at the hotel lobby, Gianina ran into an old friend who i hadn't seen in ages - Rey.
We first met in sixth grade - the same year i met Gianina. At the time we were arch-enemies, hurling insults (although never fists) at each other with incredible gusto and abandon, like gladiators clashing in a coliseum wherein our classmates were the audience. "Chong, mukhang tae!" (Chong, you look like shit!) he would shout from twenty feet away. "Rey, amoy tae!" (Rey, you smell like shit!) i would instantly retort. And so it went. Crude, i agree - but what else do you expect from sixth graders?
We crossed paths again in junior high school, when he and i vied for the same girl's affections. This rivalry was a lot more heated and personal than before, but at some point we sat down, compared notes, and resolved our differences (the woman in question - as am i - is now happily married with a child). Somehow from this pivotal moment we became good friends through the next year and beyond, although the last time i saw him was five years ago. We haven't really kept in touch except for the odd email here and there, so imagine my shock at bumping into him unexpectedly in Baguio.
Anyway - Rey is now a successful lawyer specializing in litigation. For as long as i've known him, the guy is a genius, and i would not mind having him in my corner in court. More interestingly however, he has taken on a "second job" as a stand-up comedian. I've seen a video of his bit and it's pretty funny stuff, although (unfortunately for me, as i haven't really been plugged in) one does have to take most of his jokes in the context of the Filipino zeitgeist. I would write some of his jokes here for reading pleasure, but i do not want to take any of the zing from his punchlines.
I met up with a few other friends during this trip, but not nearly with everyone i wanted to see. Nothing would have pleased me more than getting together with everyone and spending some quality time catching up and gaining a few pounds on pulutan and beer, but it was physically impossible.
Francis (whose wedding i was supposed to be the best man at but failed to attend) is now running a successful baking enterprise. Jerome (whose wedding i was also supposed to be the best man at but also failed to attend) is a budding internet entrepreneur. Karl is now finishing up his Radiology residency. Tima, aside from building her Pulmonary practice, is now a certified scuba diver. Dex and Rita are now expecting their first child. And of course, Marwin is now happily married. There were a few other people i rubbed elbows with at the wedding, but little five-minute-snippets of conversation does not qualify as "catching up."
Just a fraction of the list of people i wanted to go and see. And even the time spent with them was too, too little. I don't regret the time spent with family at all (even that was too little), but perhaps next year i will get to see more, hear more, and talk more.
Unfortunately that's also what i said last year. But i can still try.
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