A calm five-minute walk from my seedy neighborhood is the posh Cebu Business Park, where Ayala Cebu is located. Under the scorching heat of Cebu noon, I went out from my small place and I have noticed that skyrises gradually swallow the horizon before me, that they become higher, sturdy, disjointed walls of the city. I could see the elegant Calyx, beside it is the dominantly black-painted building, another condominium, I think. Chinabank building can be seen as well. And a skeleton of a building beside it. I know time will come that all spaces that I found dear will disappear. Cities re not here to please the people who love spaces—empty, green, and blue—the human who loves pretty walls.

Here are the walls I documented on IG. Walls that could speak volumes of who I am, of my taste on things. Or may not. These are the walls I have met along the way, and they are something dear. 

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Note to self: #Travel, not because it is trendy or cool, but because there is an ache to go somewhere, an ache you cannot cure by staying put. #ttot #travelblog #travelblogger

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Feb 20, 2016 at 9:18pm PST

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Coffee at 90. Light beer at 55. Fast Internet. Awesome interior. Food is not budget-friendly. Outlets are limited. #whenincebu #travel #digitalnomad

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Mar 20, 2016 at 6:25am PDT

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Yesterday, I slugged underwater. I could not even make it to the usual 4m. I surfaced, gasping, hungry for air. These past months, I have been the skeleton of the fit person that I used to be. I walked. But leisurely. I periodically rode Katorse to Carbon. My appetite for food is as big as my appetite for life and calculated risk. My weight, the testament. So today, to the mat once again. To relearn and unlearn the city streets from Katorse's point of view.

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Mar 17, 2016 at 8:50am PDT

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Must be the most celebrated and most photographed street art here in #Penang. #travelasia #travelgram #passionpassport #love #wanderlust #ig_travel #airasia #travelASEAN

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Dec 19, 2015 at 3:05am PST

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I do have a full-time job, and we just had our Christmas party here. It was fun! I laughed so hard. I bought 6 books for my manita. It only cost me P300.00! #travel #travelCebu #travelPH #bighotelcebu #bighotel #boutiquehotel

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Dec 10, 2015 at 10:38am PST

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Note to self: fall in love with the simplest of things: like soft light. Like the shadows. #travel #travelCebu #travelblogger #wanderlust

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Dec 8, 2015 at 12:26am PST

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Last July: Two of the many pleasures in #Bangkok: to walk and eat. #travelThailand #wanderwoman #wanderlust #sheisnotlost #travel #ASEAN #travellocal #travelblogger

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Dec 2, 2015 at 8:47pm PST

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With Karl Roque's "The Healing," one of the artworks in Sumad Kuwarenta, an art exhibit at UP Cebu that showcases four decades of art. Please do visit these beautifully curated artworks gracing the newly inaugurated Arts and Humanities' mini gallery at Undergraduate Building, 2nd floor. Photo by Hannah G. #cebu #art #creativecebu @happymanph

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Nov 12, 2015 at 2:55am PST

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Across from the railway station, where the neighborhood follows the slope of the hill, where fat cats laze around, where wildflowers droop on stonewalls, where figs and persimmon trees are heavy with fruits, where the passing trains hum for a moment, there are many abandoned old traditional houses. With the passion, principles, and philosophies of preserving the old Japan, Masako Toyoda led the way of rebuilding the abandoned houses. The once empty and forgotten spaces become Neko No Te Pan (Cat's Paw Bakery), become Air Cafe, ManaMana (Massage), become Kitamura Cafe, become Anagono Nedoko—a backpacker's guesthouse and restaurant filled with natural quaintness. Onomichi is a city that is afraid to forget its past. I, a Filipino, wish we were like that. #traveljapan #travel #wanderlust #onomichi #onomedia2015 #travelonomichi #ootd #love #nature

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Nov 4, 2015 at 9:46pm PST

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OUR SKIN DIARY: http://backpackingwithabook.com/becoming-invisible/ It happened many times. The moment you and your partner checked in a hotel, and the attending receptionist only looked at the white man beside you, as if he was alone, as if you did not exist. #race #taiping #interracial #wanderlust #ootd #malaysia #neocolonialism #asia #gridwashere

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Oct 22, 2015 at 5:02am PDT

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For someone who lives in an archipelagic nation, crossing three countries in less than 24 hours was surprising. Back in Khao San for a night. When asked if she loved Thailand, the Cambodian lady boy who served our breakfast said "sometimes." #travel #mobilephotography #wanderlust #bangkok #asia #travelasia

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Aug 6, 2015 at 6:22pm PDT

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Postcard Lately, I am capable only of small things. Is it enough to feel the heart swimming? Jim is fine. Our first garden is thick with spinach & white radish. Strangely, it is summer but also winter & fall. In response to your asking: I fill the hours then lick them shut. Today, not a single word, but the birds quietly nodding as if someone had suggested moving on. What is that perfect thing someone who once believed in god said? Please don’t misunderstand: We still suffer, but we are happy. #travel #wanderlust #summer #love #poetry #poetrymonth #gx7 #lumix #malapascua

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Apr 18, 2015 at 9:51pm PDT

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Trips sometimes bring me here. #bookworm #literature #love #ootd #cebu #books

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Jan 26, 2015 at 12:57am PST

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Now to check papers. From the arbitrary that is traveling to the comfortable that is my little place. #reader #bookworm #bibliophile #travel #wanderlust

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Oct 6, 2014 at 7:28am PDT

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Some ruins are unseen. They wear bright clothes. Chos! Drama!!! Seriously, on Capul Island and its language on my column Down South on interaksyon.com #travel #wanderlust #island #ph

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Sep 6, 2014 at 4:48am PDT

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Exploring the streets surrounding UP. #cebu #walk

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Aug 17, 2014 at 7:07pm PDT

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I visit this coffee shop for this. #coffee #books

A post shared by Jona of @backpackingwithabook (@backpackingwithabook) on Aug 17, 2013 at 4:23am PDT

Here is to more walls.

Jona of Backpacking with a Book

Hi there, I’m Jona! I’m in my early 30s and is currently based in Ha Noi, Vietnam.I primarily write poetry and short stories in Cebuano and lengthy travel essays in English. Blogging has become an outlet to think out loud. I live the life I set for myself. I try to live an unapologetic life. For collaborations, projects, and other things, please email me at backpackingwithabook@gmail.com. Find me somewhere else!

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