The Awesome Adventures of the Siege Survivors part 4

And so, on to the last chapter.After a wild day and night in Bacolod we finally reached the final stop to the Tower of Doom Siege Tour in the visayas,Iloilo.But not without mentioning some interesting stuff that happened in between the two cities (literally).Remember when Marts and Corpz had that interesting powow at the docks?And how Marts finally got some sleep to reboot his body and, more importantly, his brain?Well he was actually lucky he did.Because what happened to Corpz was just as crazy as what happened to Marts,just not as scandalous.Well as we were all too distracted with Marts and his more than peculiar behaviour,we didn't pay much attention to Corpz on the roro.I was actually sitting next to him as he sat there asleep even leaning against my shoulder a couple of times which made me have to nudge him every now and then so he would sit up.Then Niche saved me by actually letting Corpz rest his head on his shoulder (thanks Niche).Then I actually fell asleep as well and so did most of the guys.When we woke up we were already at the Iloilo docks and we slowly walked off the roro.Then we all went on the bus quietly as we were all still groggy from the trip.We were fully awake when Marts made his presence known again though.But yeah,we went on our way to our next hotel.And we were all still distracted by Marts on the whole trip.I noticed that Corpz wasn't in his seat but I just assumed he took a seat in the back well away from Marts and just tried to relax myself.It was when we got to the hotel that we all heard the news.It turns out Corpz did get off the roro with us but didn't get on the bus.He was still too wasted and sleepy that he thought we were still at the Bacolod docks!So he actually went back on the roro we were on and went to sleep.He called up one of the Perlas Brothers to tell them that he was back in Bacolod.It was just friggin funny!!!(well at the time) Well fortunately,he did get back with us after taking another boat ride to Iloilo.I bet he didn't sleep all the way to the hotel that time hehe.He even delivered our lunches to our room.He didn't oblige answering any questions though so we cut him some slack.But he's just got to accept that what happened to him will be burned in our minds forever =P

Ok now that was over we finally got back on track,we had lots of time to spare when we woke up so I decided to go out to see what was there to see in Iloilo,or at least what was near our hotel.Aj,Earl and Jem went to get massages at the hotel spa.I decided to spend my money on souvenirs.I passed Garon (of Cog and OBS) in the lobby and asked if he wanted to come.So he agreed and we went out to find pasalubongs at the shops nearby.We bought some native handicraft items at a shop right in front of the hotel then Garon decided to buy a security guard's hat at a uniform shop nearby.That hat was a great idea because we all had a great time with it later at the gig.

And so,after walking for almost half an hour we decided to head back to the hotel.I went with Garon to their room to see how the OBS guys were doing.Thats when we saw Rogel,we told him about the stuff we bought and then he decided he wanted to go out too.And he wanted me to come with him.So I did,and we went around again. We even bumped into some of the Bloodshedd boys.Then after almost half an hour again we decided to head back.I finally get back to our room and find Adi,a camera crew and a couple of the AMS boys toying with the still dumbfounded Marts.Then AJ and the others come in a few minutes later and they decided that they wanted to explore the surroundings too.So I go out with them,again.We went to the public market and bought some local delicacies and we got to eat some good Bachoy!It was cheap and tasty!

And after filling ourselves up and giving our wallets a good workout we finally went back to the hotel to prepare for the gig.

A couple hours later we board the bus again and we head to our venue.A quaint little bar which was hot as hell!Then as we settled in the band area it started to rain.We were all thinking one thing,this must be that typhoon we were trying to avoid.We thought the night was ruined,but a few minutes later the rain stopped.Maybe it was just a way of getting the kids loitering outside to finally come into the place.And they did,and they just kept on coming.I don't know how many kids there were but I know there was way more than a hundred!And that was the best sign we could ever ask for.It was just what we needed to get pumped up to play.And we didn't fail those kids.Every single TOD band played their hearts out!And those kids had the time of their lives!It was the perfect end to a perfect tour!But it wasn't over yet...

After the sets,after the partying and after a lot of pictures and autographs we went back on the bus and headed for the hotel.We were all still catching our breathes when Carlo got on the mic and made his announcements. He congratulated us for our great sets and for being the TRUE Siege Tour Survivors!Then he began to tell us about some good and bad news even asking us what we wanted to hear first.We asked for the bad of course,he told us that the boat ride home to Manila would take almost 22 hours and that we would have to leave very early.Then we asked for the good news.He tells us that we weren't going to take the boat anyway!We just got so wild that we started a mosh pit right in the middle of that tight bus!Some of my bandmates,AMS boys and OBS boys just piled up on top of each other in the aisle!I could hear Earl blissfully screaming in pain at the bottom of the heap.It was hilarious!!!Then Carlo got us to relax again as he wasn't finished giving out news.He then goes on to tell us that we all still had to wake up early,some moans went out at some corners of the bus.Then he continues to tell us that it was because we were going to the white sand beaches of Gimaras to celebrate!That just ignited another body pile!Everyone just went crazy!Then we finally got off the bus and back to our rooms.Some of the guys and I decided to grab some late night snacks at Ted's.What a great idea,the food was awesome!P80 for a bowl of their famous Batchoy with a side of rice and sisig and a drink!Sulit!We went back to the hotel very happy indeed!

After getting some much-needed sleep,we got up and got ready to leave for Gimaras.We rushed to get into the bus with the excitement of getting to the beaches.We really didn't know what to expect.We got to the docks almost around noon and we boarded these big bangkas.Because we all couldn't fit in one we had to split up into two boats.Then we were off.The scenery was just beautiful,we took lots of pics of course.And our boat even had a radio so we had music on board.We got to our beach after almost two hours and we could almost taste the sand when we bumped into some trouble.It turned out we got there during low tide and we couldn't get the boats all the way to the shore.Our boat even got stuck on the rocks.So the locals got some smaller bangkas to pick us up and get us to the beach three people at a time.We all got to the beach safely.There we got to swim and party the whole afternoon and enjoyed a feast of lechon and pancit.Then it was time to head back to catch our flight to Manila.We went back to the big boats the same way we got off them.The smaller boats brought us onboard the bigger ones.Everyone on our boat got on pretty smoothly inspite of Tatel (of VOC) almost losing his head on the side of our boat.It was the other boat who had the unlucky customers.When Garon,Gil & Rommel(of SIN) and a couple of the bouncers were trying to get on their big boat they accidently tipped over their small boat and they all fell in the water along with their bags (which contained some PSP's and Cellphones).But they managed to hang on to the side of their big boat so none of them got seriously hurt.Rommel got a small injury though,I think he hurt his shoulder when he fell and he had trouble getting on the boat.But after that the rest got on safely and we were on our way back to the docks again.

Our boat went ahead and we decided to pass shots of rhum around.Before we knew it we were dancing to the new wave and dance tunes that were playing on the radio.Everyone on our boat was dancing!Even Cha (of SIN) danced for the cameras!Then the boat operators decided to give us some more room to dance so they took out the wooden seats in the middle of the boat.We just danced that whole trip away.I think Macoy (of SIN) wasn't enjoying it as much as we were though in fear that we might tip our boat over as well.He even wore a lifejacket!But I can't blame him.I can't swim either,but I was so intoxicated I didn't care if I did fall in the sea!When the other boat caught up with us we just couldn't help but notice their grimm ambiance.Well some of their occupants did have an accident but that didn't stop us from giving them a hard time =P We were all intoxicated by this time so we started to yell at them that they had a boring boat!We didn't think they'd yell back but they did.Heckling us that we had bakla on board.We just yelled back "bakla kami!" then after a couple more yells and dances we reached the docks.And we were late for our flight!We hurried to the bus as quickly as we could and the driver just drove us to the airport as fast as he could.We did get to the airport and we did fly back to Manila.And there we parted ways.And there the Siege Tour became another wonderful memory for all of us.One that we will pass on to our sons and daughters and grandsons and granddaughters.The greatest adventure of our lives!...




so far.



CHEERS!

-Darwin

The Awesome Adventures of the Siege Survivors part 3

Daybreak at Dumaguete's Forest Camp was actually very pleasant.The fresh air did wonders for our restless bodies.It took a while till everyone actually got out of bed because we became rather cozy in the cabins.It would've been perfect if they provided massages hehe.

And so we finally got up to get some breakfast,nothin special really,a buffet of rice,eggs and hotdogs but it was good and it hit the spot.Then we went to get ready for our next journey.But as soon as some of the guys and I were packed,we took the spare time to really explore the camp.We got to take some nice pics of the natural beauty of the place.The hanging bridge was kinda scary to walk on coz it got wobbly but It was a great place to take pictures of the surroundings especially the waterfalls and the stream.And after a lot of pics we finally got on the bus again and went off to our next destination,Bacolod!

We were pretty excited to reach Bacolod,well we were pretty excited to be anywhere I guess.Dumaguete was just too relaxing a place for us and It was kinda good to know that Bacolod would at least be a more active place.And we were very right!

When we got to our hotel in Bacolod we were several hours behind schedule and we had a very limited time to spend in our rooms.And the Perlas Brothers gave us some bad news.Apparently there was a typhoon coming in the next day and it would likely affect the roro activities which was our means of getting to our next destination,Iloilo.And we needed to wait for news from the coast guard if they would even allow the roro's to operate.But we still had to leave for the docks very early.We did get to eat though,it was some tasty stuff,I just wish I knew what it was hehe.But it was still good =P especially the side of chopsuey!haha!long live chopsuey!Although our time there was limited,it was the night that would transform some of the guys.It was the night of the party people!

We went to the venue after dinner and what a venue it was.It was a huge club and we were seated on the second floor which overlooked the stage and the floor downstairs.A great view for taking pictures,especially when the show starts.Bacolod people are impressive,and very talented.The local bands who opened that night were some of the best we've had on the tour.We even gave them a well-earned standing ovation.They were that good!I apologize for not remembering their names though,sorry I was kinda distracted by the music to notice them introduce themselves.

We were the first TOD band to play and I felt kinda intimidated by the openers,especially coming from a couple previous lemon performances.But thank goodness we played a great set and we got the kids all warmed up.A little too warm actually.They didn't stop moshing till all the bands were done.The most memorable set would be VOC's but not because they did something radical but because someone from the audience did.I guess the mosh pit got too hot for one of the kids because he decided to take his clothes off.It was as if moses parted the red sea when the others tried to avoid that one kid's flying wingwang!Not even the bouncers knew what to do at first.Everyone was just surprised at the sight of him and his minime!But they eventually got him under control and into clothes and Rogel got his composure back and actually continued to sing again.

After the gig we had the chance to mingle with the Bacolod people and let me tell you,they are some of the nicest people we've met on the tour.They were just really friendly.We got to make lotsa new friends that night and got a lot of pics taken.Betong and Earl even lost their shirts.But alas the time came to get back to the hotel and soon be on our way to the uncertain fate of our iloilo stop.

At the hotel,we didn't get a chance to sleep.So some of the guys decided to drink their time away.And one special dude actually drank more than enough.Marts from OBS just got so wasted!He was running all over the place,coming into the rooms and jumping on the beds.He even went in our room several times where I was lying on the bed watching tv and jumped on me.And that guy is friggin heavy too!After the second time he jumped me I just decided to hang outside and avoid certain injury.Then it was time to go to the roro docks where we had to wait a couple more hours.But we sure didn't get bored there,thanks to Marts again.

Im not sure who's idea it was to pit two already piss-drunk guys into a drinking bet.Basically it was Marts of OBS versus Corps (Corpuz as Marts called him) of the TOD crew and the bet was who would last longer on the roro after drinking several more shots of rhum before the trip.Everything started really fun.The two were trashtalking each other and both took some shots of rhum.It wasn't until Corps lost his temper due to Mart's extreme trashtalking that things almost got ugly.We eventually subdued them both before anything physical happened but Marts was on fire.He didn't stop trashtalking (or talking in general) for the whole damn trip to iloilo!Yes we did get to iloilo fortunately but with the expense of having a drunken retard with us all the way.(Sorry Marts,you were a drunken retard eh =P) When we finally got to our hotel in iloilo we rushed to our rooms to get some much needed sleep.We had bunk beds and I got to sleep on the top one right next to the aircon,what a healthy choice of sleeping area.Then as we were about to get some rest in comes Marts looking like a TRex dinosaur with a blank stare in his eyes.Aj points him to the bed right below mine and he just crashed into it and thank God Almighty,he was out!And we all got some nice relaxing sleep,FINALLY!

We woke up late afternoon and were still lying in our beds when Marts suddenly sat up and asked us "Asan tayo?" He had no idea where he was or how he got there and what the hell he did!It was hilarious telling him the whole story!And he didn't believe some of the stuff we told him but when he got the story from the others he was just dumbfounded.Let's just say we he won't be getting wasted anytime soon.
Bacolod was a great and memorable stop,and we really hope we can go back there again soon!Thank you Bacolod kids!

Tune in for the last chapter next post!Cheers!

-Darwin

The Awesome Adventures of the Siege Tour Survivors part 2

Ok so after a very forgettable performance we went back to the hotel to gather our thoughts and reflect on what happened,which didn't take long because we all got hungry!So we decided to take a walk to Larsians, its like a hotspot for people who have a hunger for awesome grilled food. Again we ate a lot,whats new right?hehe. Then we rested up. We got about 2 or 3 hours of sleep before we were awakened by Scott who brought in our breakfast.Then after eating we gathered our gear and got on the trusty bus again.Then we went on our way to the roro docks to Dumaguete which took so friggin long!I didn't really count the hours, all I know is that I could not sleep on the way there.We did several pit stops before we reached the docks.Then we all went down to stretch.We spotted a small carinderia and before we knew it,we were lining up to get some lunch!The food wasnt much but it hit the spot.We needed it for the roro ride.

And so after filling up our tummies, we went to fill the roro.We all got on before our bus and took our places at the passenger area.Then they loaded our bus on board which took half the space of the roro.When the roro went off everyone was psyched,but when the waves started pounding that was when people felt the ride.Some guys got motion sickness and just decided to sit down quietly and tried to hold their lunches in.Which was pretty hard because the roro was swaying all over.There was nowhere to feel stable or steady.After hour or more we reached the dumaguete port and everyone rushed to get down.especially the affected guys.I guess the bonamin took too long to kick in =P

Then after everyone got their composure (and balance) back we went in the bus again and went off to find our next hotel.Which turned out to be another long ride.But at last we reached a restaurant which was owned by our street team organizer.They had a buffet ready for us.And just in time too, coz I think we digested everything we ate on the trip there.Then after another food frenzy we finally went to our hotel,or should I say the jungle.Because thats kind of where we went.It was a place called Forest Camp,(yes,we joked around the forrest gump thing)It was a beautiful place.lush greenery all around.The cottages we stayed in were nice too.Complete with a terrace where we could see more trees and parts of what looked like a pool.And you can hear the rushing flow of waterfalls in the distance.We rested up a little then we went to explore,some of the guys went to go swimming in the pools.The water came from the nearby river.I took the camera so I could take some shots of the guys wearing a shirt and my boxers.When I got there they were all having fun.The bouncers throwing some of them into the pools.Andrew looked like simba when the bouncer raised him up.Then I saw Odin taking pics as well,he was in full gear too.shirt,jeans and shoes.Then he asked me if I was gonna take a dip,but I was in my boxers.He said so was he then I said Id swim if he did.Long story short,we dove in in our boxers hehe.And damn that water was cold!really cold.You'd think your body would get used to the temperature in a few minutes but It never did.But we didnt care,we stayed in that water till nightfall.Had some fun in the falls.Aaron and Andrew kept getting swept away by the tide.Then we all went back to our cabins.Where we all started to sneeze and cough a lot.We all got sick haha!

After drying ourselves up we got ready for the gig.We were all excited to give an awesome show for everyone and to make up for what I did in Cebu.Then we got to the venue.I forgot what it was called but it was basically an open area with a bar and grill I guess.And some pool tables which we played on after our performances.Everything was alright until we saw the turn out.It wasn't much.I dont think there was even 60 or 70 people present.We were kind of dissapointed.But we still played like it was the biggest rock show ever!The kids weren't very active either.But i guess thats how they are there.So we just wrapped up the night and got back on the bus.Then just as we were about to leave,some crazy-ass guy gets on the bus and starts screaming "God Bless you Siege Tour!" again and again.Then we just humoured him and said thanks.Then he introduced himself as the "SUICIDE BOMBER".Thats when we wish he would just get off right away haha.He did get off eventually,and he didn't blow up.

So the show went well even without the expected turnout.We went back to the camp and got some well-needed sleep.And the next day will be on the next post.Cheers!

-Darwin

The Awesome Adventures of the Siege Survivors part 1

Well the visayas leg of the Tower of Doom Siege Tour has officially been concluded, and let me tell you, it has got to be one of the greatest rock tours ever in Philippine History!Ok maybe at least for all of us who were in it...This leg of the tour brought many first for a lot of us.From first plane rides to first swedish massages or just coming to the places we went to for the first time.But let me start from the beginning.

We all met up at the airport at 4am last wednesday. And after a lot of hi's and hi-fives we went to check in for our flight which actually took longer than expected because we were all just goofing around the ticketing area taking pictures and joking about how the airline staff would react to seeing such a diverse crowd of passengers.imagine the horror of two nuns getting their tickets and then seeing big guys with long hair,beards,tattoos and dressed in metal shirts like slayer,kreator and cradle of filth and thinking they would have to share the plane with them.well unfortunately they were on a different flight. So after all the necessary procedures we finally got on the plane. I guess the two flight attendants didn't expect anything like us on the flight because we got so rawdy that the other passengers started to complain,too bad we outnumbered them so we just got our way.It was the first plane ride for some of the guys so a lot of pictures were taken even during take off when it was supposedly not allowed to have electronic equipment on but like I said,we outnumbered them.Oh,and we had bouncers!(Even Rex,the bouncer who looked like he-man couldve beaten everyone on the plane up on his own!)

And so after a quick but memorable flight we arrived in mactan airport where our surprisingly small bus picked us up.After cramming everyone and everything on the bus (there was about 38 or more of us and our gear double that) we went off to our hotel where we just unpacked and rested a little then we went out to see what was there to see. Earl,Bets,Jem and I went to Tabo-an where they sold Cebuano dried goods to buy pasalubong for our families.Then after a lot of dried mangoes and otap we went to get some grub. We spotted some people eating on the sidewalk near our hotel so we checked it out. It was basically just a man with a couple tupperware containers which contained some puso(rice wrapped in banana leaf) and some fried breaded varieties of meat. We tried it out and it was a great idea,we quenched our hunger for under P30!Believe me we ate a lot!

So after a taste of the local food we went back to the hotel to rest up for the gig.And around 8pm we went to the venue which was NUVO bar.By the time the first front act took the stage the place was packed!I got to chat with one of the locals and she told me that it was actually always like this when there was a rock show which made it extra cool!We kinda had nothing to worry about.So there we were waiting for our set to come,the bands that came before us gave kickass performances!The kids were slammin the mosh pit and just made us more excited to play.And then we were up.We set up our gear, did our intro/soundcheck and prepared to play our first song,"the test",everyone in the bar focused on us.Then Jem counted down on the hi-hats,1-2-3-4 and then...DISASTER!!!!I friggin played the wrong part!And I did a whole friggin bar too!then I noticed the guys lookin at me like they smelled shit.That was when I realized I messed up!I just froze!then I finally caught up to what they were playing!It was probably the worst thing that couldve happened that night.Something I didn't even expect.I didn't know what I was thinking,I felt like a total moron!So after that we basically just tried to wrap up our set as fast and as unhumiliating as we can but I guess God wanted to punish me more,again I fudged up on our last song,it was our staple song too!"Thea"!And at the beginning again!This time I wasn't playing in sync with the tempo of the drums.I stank up that set and single-handedly ruined our first ever gig in Cebu!I guess we can kiss any chance of us getting invited there again goodbye.But hey,we move on.And moved on we did.And thats gonna come up on my next entry.until then,CHEERS!

-Darwin

Kaguluhan Festival!

Ok hands down,I declare that the kaguluhan festival has got to be the rawdiest show we've ever been privileged enough to play!Cavite kids are damn crazy!!!It was like a metal show in the states!they were moshing and dancing and shouting and stage diving all night!Even when we played our slower songs they still didn't stop moshing!And there were a LOT of them too!I got word that almost a thousand kids showed up all ready to riot!The good thing was that even though they were crazy they were still respectful to us, although I heard some people lost some belongings (Rommel of Sin lost his pedal power supply,you turn your back not even a few seconds and you can lose a lot!darn!)But Im glad I didn't lose anything this time!And Im more glad that we all got home safe!Thanks to that damn saulog bus and it's damn friggin roadhungry driver hahaha!Next stop,CEBU!See yah soon!

-Darwin

Ready for the next attack!!!

Wooh just a few more days and we're off to the visayas leg of the 2008 Siege Tour! Each passing day just makes me so excited! I can't wait to play for all the fans down south, but for the meantime INK and VOC will warm up for the tour tomorrow in Cavite for the Kaguluhan Festival! The title says it all, it will be a wild one! I just hope it will be safe as well. Y'all wish us the best ok!We'll see you in the mosh pit!!!

-Darwin

Siege TRIP!!!

We just got back from the Tower of Doom Siege Tour Northern LegTRIP, all who didn't come you missed half your lives!!! or maybe just a few hoursTRIP =P Sobrang nagpakasirauloTRIP kami dito hehe. I borrowed my gf's camTRIP so I got to take a load of picsTRIP! The pictures speak for themselves but they will never capture the true essenceTRIP and funTRIP of the TourTRIP! You really had to be there. From the boxing matchTRIP between Charles and Conrad, to the invention of a trend of adding the word TRIP to everything you do. Like im doing right now, BLOGTRIP!!! Kaya dapat pag may nabilataan na SIEGE TOUR pumunta kayoTRIP!!! Ayus TRIP! =P TRIP!


-Darwin Trip