Photos by: me and Sittie Haynah Ibrahim

This has got to be the one of the amazing firsts I get to have in my life! Last January 28-30, I, together with the IIT delegation, went to Camiguin Island for the 20th Annual Regional Convention, an event attended by various Accountancy schools in Region X and CARAGA where they compete in different academic and non-academic events.

It was a long ride from Iligan to Camiguin Island. The assembly time at the IIT area was 3AM but I, along with the rest of the 3VOs, slept at Stefie’s house so we could go together safely.

We slept throughout the trip until we reached Balingoan Port and here we are waiting for several minutes for the barge.

Before the motors started running, these kids were really brave to risk their lives just to get the money thrown by the passengers in the barge. That kid in the roof would dive in the sea when a bigger amount of money was given and that kid hanging in the rope was very ambitious in getting to the barge across that rope.

We were blessed with a bright and sunny day but the waves were moderately strong and the barge was running at a very slow pace. All of us were starting to feel dizzy. To keep us distracted, we played the Dictionary Game, hosted by Burger.

After one and a half hours we finally reached Camiguin Island!

We were greeted by these lovely people from the host school, Fatima College of Camiguin.

Camiguin is literally full of green. Foliage everywhere! An island very full of simplicity yet it has such amazing natural wonders that makes tourists visit this place again and again. No malls, not even Jollibee. Everyone’s living the simple life here, which is just a breath of fresh air.

So if you’re planning to go to Camiguin Island, you must bring extra clothes, medicine and water because it’ll be very hard to find a convenience store near you.

Transportation was also very hard in the island. The jeepney’s route was only in the city area and everywhere else you get motorcycles. At night, there was barely light in the streets. The good thing is, there’s no traffic. The respective venues were far from each other so we really need to be on time always to get our transpo.

Even though we were itching to go to bed, we still managed to do our best in our respective events. I participated in Word Wizard: The Battle of the Lexicon Giants. Unfortunately, we got eliminated (but will definitely do better next year). On another area was the volleyball game and it was so good that they still got their game together even though they lack energy.

They always get our support even though some of us were already sleeping in the jeepney parked near the gym.

I’ll post the place where staying at in another entry. So let’s go to the first night of the convention!

Dress code for this night: Luau! I only get to wear my beach dress later because I still had to wear a black dress for the JPIA Got Talent. Yes, another contest we joined. It’s a talent contest for the JPIA officers per local chapter.

Quick photo before the performance!

A little fashion blogging, shall we? Haha!
Black lace dress, borrowed from a friend; Black pumps, thrifted; Cross necklace, Street Chic Shop

We were doing Glee’s Rumor Has It + Someone Like You Mashup and added We Found Love by Rihanna at the end of the performance. It’s been a long time dancing in the stage.

So far, so good with the first day’s program. The food was really delicious and the hosts were superb. It was a great first day for everyone!

Suddenly, my face while scrutinizing the movie posters for CineJPIA. Sorry for all the thick makeup. THEY did it. :3

Anyway, we can’t wait to go back to the hotel and get sleep!

Jeepney rides are always more fun when you’re with people you know and get a good laugh at. Transportation is always more fun in the Philippines!

If you’ve managed to get to this point, thank you for reading! More Camiguin and convention-related posts in the following days!