My mornings in Siargao consisted of rising from bed while it was still dark, sauntering down the beach-side trail to Cloud 9 that was lined with coconut trees and modest bungalows, admiring the sunrise as it wrestled with the clouds and slowly bathed the island with its glorious rays, heading back to Ocean 101 for a light continental breakfast, and winding down in Cafe Loka for a proper cup of coffee.
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
Cafe Loka opened at 8:00 AM, and I would be hanging around the porch a few minutes before then while watching the staff arrange tables & chairs and prep for official opening. Different island characters would be walking by this time of day, spotters checking out the waves, surfers with their boards heading out, local vendors peddling suman rice cakes, kids in uniform preparing for class, and a lot more. One morning a little girl in a neat dress - I guess she was about 5 - ambled down the path lugging a cash box and handed it to the staff. With her task completed, she then demanded a cookie from the guy, the little hoodlum with hungry smiling eyes. I would later see she was the daughter of the cafe's proprietor.
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
I relished my quiet meditative mornings at Cafe Loka. By my table, coffee cup an arm's reach away, I barely had to look up for this splendid view to mesmerize me. When immersed in nature, in all its expanse and majesty - the sea, mountains, waves, winding rivers, clouds, blue skies and starry nights - they all have the same fundamental effect on me. It clears my mind and my point of view, strips away all the man-made constraints clouding my head. It reminds me of how small a speck I am in this world, more so my problems - hence it shouldn't stop me from doing what I must do. I feel enabled, capable, inspired, powerful, driven.
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
An excerpt from my journal entry dated November 10, 2014:
"Walked to Cloud 9 and found Cafe Loka. Must say it's quite sensational to have a good cup of coffee early morning in a windy beach. The cool wind brushing my legs and sending a tingling chill to my spine, hot cup of coffee in my hands, the strong bitter aroma, the forceful pounding of waves in the distance, the incessant woosh of the moving current - keeps you in a trance. Until the electric hummmm of the coffee grinder wakes you up."
Here are a few more photos of Cafe Loka at dusk, taken from the beach and the boardwalk. It is quite the glowing invitation to come over and have a cup of coffee (or a shake, or a sandwich, or a salad, or a slice of home-baked cake...) and just watch the world keep turning.
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
 |
| Cafe Loka, Siargao Cloud 9 |
No comments:
Post a Comment