Libtong, A Place For Tranquility

While scrolling through my phone's gallery the other day, a set of photos caught my attention—photos where a body of water and luscious greeneries can be seen. The photos that I am talking about are from the ones I took when my cousins and I went to go to a popular river here in my hometown, it is called Libtong.

Libtong is a river situated between mountains where its water source is from the mountains and from the nearby reservoirs. It is a popular destination because of its rocky landscape and the refreshing water it has.

This trip happened two years ago during the pandemic. At that time the restrictions were getting less strict and people could already go outside. The following photos I will include will tell the story of how this trip was a blast.

The place where we are going is located just three barangays away from where we live. It is easily accessible to any vehicle. It is also near the road, just a few steps.

There are lots of coconut and banana trees and different sorts of greeneries along the road going there. It is just relaxing to see while traversing. One just needs alert eyes and ears because there are a few dogs and farm animals in the area.

In this photo, we needed to cross the river carrying our bikes because we were going to a particular location where the water level was just the right depth and where we could swim uninterruptedly.

We needed to take a short rest because carrying our bikes was a workout at that time. We sat under a tree for shade and I drank my drink which was lemon water with chia seeds.

We were only the people that were at the river at that time which was a delightful experience. We get to enjoy ourselves without worrying that other people are looking at us. We were also able to take photos confidently.

This was not the first time I went here, in fact, my first time going here was a couple of years ago with my friends. We even discovered a small waterfall hiding from the trees. I have also conversed with some locals here before and they told us not to go here during heavy rains because the water level can get so high sometimes that they can't even cross the river.

What I like most about this place is that it is a place where one can relax and do their own thing while not being minded by other people. This place is a quick escape from the busy life, away from the hustle and bustle. As they say, go back to the place where you feel tranquil and it will be a free therapy for you.

Now, what I just don't like about this place are the other people visiting it. They do not respect it and don't know how to practice "CLAYGO" or Clean as you go. Since the place gained popularity a lot more people have been visiting it. It is just so sad that these goers can't be monitored and oftentimes, some of them just leave their trash along the river.

If only people going here could practice CLAYGO then we could maintain it as clean as possible. This is not only for the people but this is a home for different kinds of animals that rely on the river. If the river's cleanliness could be maintained then future generations could still be able to see how beautiful it is just the way it was.

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