Just for fun, I decided to make an attempt to translate the Eraserheads song "Alapaap" to English, here's the original Tagalog lyrics:

May isang umaga na tayo'y magsasama
Haya at halina sa alapaap
O anong sarap

Hanggang sa dulo ng mundo
Hanggang maubos ang ubo
Hanggang gumulong ang luha
Hanggang mahulog ang tala
Masdan mo ang aking mata
Di mo ba nakikita
Ako ngayo'y lumilipad at nasa langit na
Gusto mo ba'ng sumama?

Hindi mo na kailangan ang magtago't mahiya
Hindi mo na kailangan ang humanap ng iba
Kalimutan na muna
Ang lahat ng problema
Huminga ka ng malalim at tayo'y lalarga na
Handa na ba'ng gumala?

Ang daming bawal sa mundo
Sinasakal nila tayo
Buksan ang puso at isipan
Paliparin ang kamalayan

Masdan mo ang aking mata
Di mo ba nakikita
Ako ngayo'y lumilipad at nasa alapaap na
Gusto mo ba'ng sumama?

Now here's the English translation I did (I try to keep it in sync with the music as possible though I had trouble translating some lines to give it more sense):

There was a day when we were together
Come along, come with me to the clouds
O how good it is

Until the edge of the earth
Until the very last cough
Until the last tears roll
Until the shooting stars fall
Look very closely at my eyes
Can't you see something?
I'm flying through the very high skies right now
Would you like... to join me?

You don't need to hide or to be shy
You don't need to find somebody else
You can forget first
All of your problems
I want you to breathe deeply as we go up and away
Are you ready... to wander?

There are many things forbidden in this world
They strangle us constantly
Open your heart and your mind
Let your consciousness soar

Look very closely at my eyes
Can't you see something?
I'm flying through the very high clouds right now
Would you like... to join me?

What do you think? If all goes well, I might try translating "Ang Huling El Bimbo" next.

It's been a long time since I last posted (heck, there are even some posts that I have yet to finish writing), but in case you're wondering how I'm doing, I snapped this recent photo of myself on my webcam (which I haven't even used for a while).


As you can see, my acne-covered face constitutes a mixture of ongoing raging adolescence and the ravages of insomnia (which is not necessarily a good or a bad thing). I wonder if the current cold climate may also have something to do with it.