In Cebu

| philippines

I'm in love.

I'm in love with the play of light upon the mountains and the glitter
on the sea. I'm in love with the long-lost constellations in the night
sky mirrored but not drowned out by the city. I'm in love with the
golden sunlight filtering through the flowers and trees that line the
road.

Cancel my return flight, Mom. I'll just stay here!

I know there's more to Cebu than what I've seen. I've spent just half
a day here, and I know first impressions aren't infallible. I want to
stay here until I'm sick of Cebu, until I miss Manila terribly. Manila
has my family and my friends, but here there are nearby parks that
aren't choked by malls and restaurants, here there are skies that are
not yet flooded by light…

If I don't get accepted into UToronto and Cebu Institute of Technology
is as interesting as Cherry Sta. Romana and Jigger Escario are, I'll
look into studying there. Will I be too out of touch if I do that?
PLUG activity is Manila-centric; most groups are. Will I be able to
spark activity around me? I should find out how the local tech scene
is. Chances are, they're doing really cool things without telling the
rest of the Philippines.

Perhaps tomorrow I'll see the bigger picture and decide Manila is much
nicer, but tonight I will go to sleep in love with a city. It might
just be a passing thing. It might not be.

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