From Sunset Glow to Nighttime Flow: Maravilla’s Lifetime Experience

For a moment, close your eyes, hivers. Imagine the sensation of sand between your toes, the salty air on your skin, and the sound of laughter from others nearby. Then, picture out the skies in a riot of color, fighting for preponderance color. You’re through? How relieving, huh?
Orange Minimalist Sunset Photo Collage_20240723_135909_0000.png

I would like to recount to you some of the events that occurred when my friends, I, and my neighbors made the decision to spend the night in Maravilla in order to unwind, have fun, and temporarily forget our problems in life.
From our house, Maravilla is quite a distance. To get there, our travel time was close to an hour. We went by motorcycle because we don’t own a car. As soon as we got there, we immediately went inside. There’s no entrance fee; however, there is a fee, of course, if you want a table or cottage. Around 5:30 p.m., the sky explodes in color, then bam! The whole scene reflects off the water like a magical mirror. Such a comforting view. A view that my soul always craves.

A photo was shared on Barangay Maravilla’s Facebook page.

They decided to have a cottage since we’re many. I think they paid 200 pesos for it. We put our things inside the cottage. Sarah and I strolled into the sand, and I asked her to snap a picture of me with the pretty sunset. Then, we sat in the sand and talked about life with this pretty display of colors.
Orange Minimalist Sunset Photo Collage_20240723_141419_0000.png
The sunset gradually faded and was replaced with darkness. It became a reason why we came back to our cottage, and then after a few minutes, my cousin arrived after buying raw foods, and we immediately helped them to cook. There’s a public cooking area where you can cook your raw foods on a grill; all you need to do is buy charcoal in order to cook.

Photo Credits: Rey Catarinen

We went to our cottage when we were done. We put our foods on the table, and we brought budbud too (rice inside of it, and it was so delicious). We make our sauce for our foods: chicken, hotdogs, fish, and squid. They bought 4 liters of soft drinks too—coca cola and Royal. We don’t have spoons to use, some of us used plastic to avoid being dirty.

Photo Credits: Rey Catarinen

The laughing part was that we are not fit enough for the cottage, so the others are eating outside, thankful that they brought two camping chairs. Even though it seems like our food is little for us, we are thankful it became enough for us. After the eating session, we cleaned and threw the garbage into the trashcan.

Photo Credits: Rey Catarinen

As I go out, the boys sitting in the sand feel the salty air on their skin. Then they started drinking GSM. I’m not joining them since my face will turn red; it seems like a red tomato when I’m drunk, even after just two shots. Afterwards, others are playing volleyball since there’s a net there, and you can just borrow a ball, but make sure you bring it back to the owner. Maybe you’re wondering what I’m doing while they’re busy playing and drinking. I’m just busy scrolling through my phone and watching TikTok videos on Fyp. Since I’m not into volleyball.

Photo Credits: Rey Catarinen

They decided to take photos for all of us; however, Marissa did not go outside to join. She’s just inside the cottage, and we respect her decision.

*Photo Credits: Rey Catarinen *

The cold water never became a hindrance for us to stop swimming. I was amazed by their swimming skills compared to mine. They know how to float, and some of them also swim as if they’re dolphins. While me? I’m just in the water while my hands are in the sand. What a pity person! They want to teach me how to float, but I’m scared that the water might get inside my ear and cause damage. At this age, I still might get drained.

Through the darkness, the water was still sparkling, along with the starry night that had been splendid. The breeze of air was pressing on my skin, and the waves were crashing against mine. There’s a lot of people here too, since this is well-known. Other group of people singing in karaoke, enjoying each other’s warmth. Few enjoyed their night swimming too, and so did I. After almost 30 minutes of swimming, we decided to stop when the cold ate our whole system. We came back to the cottage to get our clothes and get changed in the CR afterwards. Then, René told me to buy balut, and since I wanted to eat balut too, we went outside. However, there’s no balut, so we just bought penoy for only 25 pesos. I only bought one, and so did Rene.

We don’t have enough sleep; others slept in the sand. When morning came, we bought food for us to eat. Decided to go home afterwards. On the road, they saw one of the bloggers of the Maraat Vlog, Marjon. So we stopped, but some of our companions did not. We asked his permission to take a photo, and he agreed. After, we bid our thanks and goodbye to him. Hoping for them to become more known..

Photo Credits: Rey Catarinen

We came home around 7 a.m. in the morning, with a tired face due to not having enough sleep. Nevertheless, the experience and the memories are worth keeping. Our closeness became a reason for us to bond stronger, to have more unforgettable memories, and to enjoy each other’s company. It was a great experience that I want to regain.

Take you for taking time to read this, hivers. May all of you have a great day.🥰