Why I Enjoyed this Particular Trip and Hike to Cavite

Image from www.panoramio.com

One cold day of January of 1993 my friend Eddie, a mechanical engineer, asked me to go with him to their ancestral land in Indang, Cavite. We had a sari-sari store then, and while tending to it one cold dusk, he came with his old, red Volkswagen and discussed the prospects of a short vacation in Indang.

It sounded adventurous, so I said yes. How could Juan Hiker reject the offer?

The following day, at 6 in the morning we headed south for Cavite. I thought it was going to take only 2 to 3 hours, but I discovered that Indang was farther. We stopped by Kawit and Trese for some documents and then proceeded. Later, the cityscape faded and we saw more ricefields and forests. We had to cross several hilly places and rivers before we finally reached it. 

As we neared the town, I noted that we were often alone in the long stretch of the highway. Indang was romantically rustic and vegetated with pineapples that periodically released their sweet scent in the air.

It was about lunch time when we got to their ancestral house, and the caretaker there, an attractive lady of about 28 years or so, cooked a thick and huge, juicy pork chop for each of us. It was a swell lunch, obviously, and we had some talk after. 

By the way, our mission was to measure their ancestral coconut plantation, get its bearing and dimensions using the makeshift surveying instruments Eddie himself had made, and then subdivide the property. 

Well, the makeshift instruments weren't with us yet--it was yet on the drawing table, as it were. That added to the adventure and excitement of it all. Would the instrument work in the field?

Next day, I found out that surveying work would have to be done at a later date. For now, we were there to take a look at the property and plan our second trip. So, we didn't have anything much to do except roam around the place, see old, antiquated houses built during the American occupation, visit pineapple plantations, and watch pretty girls in the village. Lots of pretty girls there, and Eddie was trying to set me up for a blind date or something. 

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