Konichiwa. So people, I've been gone a long time. Plenty have happened.

As most of you know, I was on my Choir trip to Japan from late night on the 11th 'till the 18th. How was the trip, you ask? Words wouldn't do justice to the whole experience. It was great. Such a wonderful blessing.

The highlight? Well, to me it wasn't the slew of events mapped out for us. 'Twasn't the food. Nor the blustery cold weather (though I did love it).

What was it then? The bonding. The ties that were forged and strengthened through the trip. Those late-night escapades we had. The jokes we shared. The running around room-hopping in the hotels. The prank calls. Chatting about anything 'till the wee hours of the morning. The card games. Singing on the streets. Singing in the Disneyland queues. Unpacking. Packing. Unpacking then packing again. Going crazy on the buses. BUS 1 ROCKS! Catching up on lost sleep on the bus or plane because of the late night we had playing. And all those other crazy antics we had.

Yes, I did get to know more people. Opened up more. As they say, living and staying together with someone brings out their true personality. I saw people at their best. I saw them at their worst. And vice-versa. I discovered. I unearthed. I observed.

To the Choir: hope you guys really did some SERIOUS reflecting. I did. And I pray this experience was more than a superficial joy ride.

Fast forward. For those of you who don't know. A little over 12 hours after the plane ride from Tokyo, I boarded another plane bound for the Philippines. So, here I am. Enjoying the once-familiar sights, sounds and smells. A lot's changed since last I was back in 2004. And a lot's remained the same.

What have I been doing? So far, I've visited friends and relatives. Gone shopping. Played games. Watched Maging Sino Ka Man. Eaten long-missed food. Ah, the food. Another great mystery of the Filipino culture.

Contact me through e-mail or SMS (though it's more expensive). My MSN here's down. And I have dial-up connection so it tends to be slow. Other than that, enjoy the remainder of your holidays people!

Those of you brandishing your demonstration signs ready to boycott this rather blase entry- sans the juicy details of the Japan trip- fret not. I did my share of chronicling on the buses and on the plane. My entries will be long, I must warn you. I'll be posting by day. Day 1, Day 2, etc. So watch this space for the whole story. Cheers!