Live An Adventure Podcast

Philippines: An Island for Every Taste In every family, there’s always an odd one out—and in the clan of Asia-Pacific nations, that member would be the Philippines. This nation of 7,107 islands (about 2,000 inhabited) began as a loose grouping of Indo-Malay tribes, which endured nearly 400 years of Spanish rule, then 48 years as a U.S. territory. Today the Philippines is a mix of tribal pride, Catholic fervor, American pop-culture savvy, and tropical affability. Most visitors don’t linger in the muggy, traffic-clogged capital, Manila, but you should explore at least one of the Spanish churches in the old, walled center of Intramuros and stroll around Manila Bay at sunset. Then head to some of the thousands of beaches, from the pink sands of Great Santa Cruz Island to the black sands of Albay. Divers off Palawan, Apo, and Siargao islands delight in hundreds of coral and fish species. On the southern isle of Mindanao, more than 1,300 land species—including the endang...

“I wish I could describe the feeling of being at sea, the anguish, frustration, and fear. The beauty that accompanies threatening spectacles. The spiritual communion with creatures in whose domain I sail. There is a magnificent intensity in life that comes when we are not in control but are only reacting, living, surviving. I am not a religious man per se. My own cosmology is convoluted and not in line with any particular church or philosphy. But for me, to go to sea is to glimpse the face of God. At sea I am reminded of my insignificance -- of all men's insignificance. It is a wonderful feeling to be so humbled.” Steve Callahan NOTE: I am a Christian. I share this quote as an interesting example of how even people whose belief system may not be clear, they s e e in nature the image of God. “Desearia poder describir lo que siento al estar en el mar, la angustia, la frustracion, y el temor. La belleza que acompana espectaculos amenazantes. La comunion espi...

El Mar Necesito del mar porque me enseña: no sé si aprendo música o conciencia: no sé si es ola sola o ser profundo o sólo ronca voz o deslumbrante suposición de peces y navios. El hecho es que hasta cuando estoy dormido de algún modo magnético circulo en la universidad del oleaje. No son sólo las conchas trituradas como si algún planeta tembloroso participara paulatina muerte, no, del fragmento reconstruyo el día, de una racha de sal la estalactita y de una cucharada el Dios inmenso. Lo que antes me enseñó lo guardo! Es aire, incesante viento, agua y arena. Parece poco para el hombre joven que aquí llegó a vivir con sus incendios, y sin embargo el pulso que subía y bajaba a su abismo, el frío del azul que crepitaba, el desmoronamiento de la estrella, el tierno desplegarse de la ola despilfarrando nieve con la espuma, el poder quieto, allí, determinado como un trono de piedra en lo profundo, s...

Ode to Hope Oceanic dawn, at the center of my life. Waves like grapes, the sky's solitude, you fill me and flood the complete sea, the undimished sky, tempo and space, seafoam's white battalions, the orange earth, the sun's fiery waist in agony, so many gifts and talents, birds soaring into their dreams, and the sea, the sea, suspended aroma, chorus of rich, resonant salt, and meanwhile, we men, touch the water, struggling and hoping, we touch the sea hoping. And the waves tell the firm coast: "Everything will be fulfilled " Oda a la Esperanza Crepusculo marino, en medio de mi vida, las olas como uvas, la soledad del cielo, me llenas y desbordas, todo el mar, todo el cielo, movimiento y espacio, los batallones blancos de la espuma, la tierra anaranjada, la cintura incendiada del sol en agonia, tantos dones y dones, aves que acude...