The Astounding Things That Happened During the 6th Cebu Steemit Bloggers Meet-up

Hello Steemians!

I already made a draft for my next post; a good one and probably worthy of your upvotes, but I changed mind. I saved my draft for another day because this deserved to be posted A.S.A.P.

When I know that there will be another steemit bloggers' meet-up in Cebu, I never hesitated to set my mind in joining. I immediately invited @thegaillery to join with me there. As she has the same mindset with me in this, there was never a pause in saying yes. By the way, she has a wonderful project entitled The Confidence Project which was so engrossing that I would probably make a post about it in the coming days. If you haven't heard about it yet, please read the Manifesto for it will give you the background on what to expect this year with this project. She also posted the first takeaway and challenge, which you can read here. I urge everyone who can read this to join the challenge because it will be for your benefit in the end. Of course, there's a monetary aspect for the winners, but it's just secondary.

Back to the meet-up, we decided to take a taxi from J Centre Mall to Dolce Cafe, which was the venue of the event. We arrived earlier than usual so we were one of the early birds.

_{The early birds. Image courtesy of @bellatravelph.}
With all that segways, here are the amazing things that happened during the meet-up and definitely the best of my week:

The Place

_{Dolce Cafe. A fancy cafe that was invaded by Cebu's steemians.}
When we entered Dolce Cafe, the first thought that came to my mind is fancy. I thought the meet-up would grand because they were able to reserve the place. It's really fitting for an event like a meet-up here in Cebu. While the place was fancy and formal, the event was casual and welcoming. It's good because the newbies will really feel the gist of what the community has to offer.

_{I didn't imagine this number of steemians considering that the last meet-up's attendees. @jassennessaj was right that the growth in Cebu is exponential!
That fancy interior of the venue.}

The Food

_{Pecan Pie with Pineapple Juice and Blueberry Cheesecake with Mango Shake}
We chose to eat before the event started because we thought it will really take a big chunk of our energy. Guess what? We were right all along! It was an afternoon that is full of energy and enthusiasm. I had a hard time coping up! Especially when @purepinay came in; she has a room full of energy all for herself. I wish I had that energetic persona in me.

_{Dolce has a varied selection of sweets to choose from.}

The Chat with @thegaillery

_{This pretty woman here is the brain of the Confidence Project}
I really love sensible and productive conversations. The good thing is, I always have them more frequently these days. Maybe because of the mature roles that people choose to portray. Maybe because I now know how to tap the right people. I can't find a conclusive answer between the two, but one thing is for sure, steemit is a big factor in this.

_{That mandatory chill out selfie.}
As part of the chill out before the event proper, we had a short chat about the Confidence Project and how would it be packaged to reach a wide audience. I'm proud to say that I have contributed something that could add value to steem and that for me is my productivity and achievement.

The Moment the Place was Filled with Steemians

_{Steemians who are so into steemit. Image courtesy of @maimaimaichan.}
This is the real essence of the meet-up. This is to welcome the newbies into the community and to let the active steemians engage in each other through steemit, but outside steemit. Here, questions were answered, friendships forged, and supports are solidified. I would say, this is a way of growing together in the community.

_{These beautiful ladies are so eager to learn more about steemit.}
Having this kind of activity also enables new and starting Athenians to meet their inspirations in steemit. I hope to join more activities like this in the future.

The Exchange of Pleasantries

_{I was on fangirl mode when I met @tegoshei and @davids-tales.}
I was able to put a face to the name of a lot of amazing people whom I just interacted here on steemit. It's a way of gaining new friends. It's a way of letting people know you recognize their work and how they inspired you to be better in what you do. It's an assurance that you have someone who supports you all the way because you have the same vision and mindset.

_{A photo with the master @jassennessaj.}

The Moment I Met a Schoolmate From High School

_{This woman here was my school mate in high school. She's now a First Lady. Haha.}
I never thought that I would met someone familiar, someone who knows me. We have common friends before. She's now big time! This school mate was @bonjovey. We clicked immediately because we have the same background. We have interacted before here and I was now able to put a face to a name. First Lady, I will visit you again one time. Watch out! Haha.

The Moment I Met a Bestfriend I Just Met

_{This woman here is my long lost soul.}
Yes! You got it right! I found a bestfriend in someone I just met. She's so bubbly and funny that I had a difficulty in breathing when we were together. I was just laughing all the time. That woman is in the name of @honeyletsgo. She has a positive outlook in life. There was no dull moment with her. I can sense that she has undergone a lot of things in life and overcome countless of trials despite her age, and she chose to be happy. That's what I saw in her that we just clicked.

Thank you @honeyletsgo for finding me. Let's meet again in our free time.

The Afterparty at Jardin de Busay

_{The @bonjovey's mansion. Image courtesy of @honeyletsgo.}
Because of the generosity and welcoming spirit of our first lady @bonjovey, we were welcomed in her humble abode. No. It was not a humble abode, it was mansion on top of the hill. I was glad that she invited her former school mate in our beloved Alma mater, Cabancalan National High School. Girl, I will definitely visit you again even if I'm not welcome.

_{Thanks to @purepinay and @rcarter for the food! Thanks also to @bonjovey! I had my fill.}
Food and drinks were overflowing; courtesy of @purepinay. Thank you for your generosity. And thank you for inspiring a lot of steemians here in Cebu.

The Chance to Listen to @rcarter

_{@rcarter with @josejirafa, discussing steemit}
I didn't muster the courage to ask a single question because I was so occupied in listening to everything he says. Good thing @thegaillery and @josejirafa had a lot of questions about steemit. I just listened there and trying to process everything he said. The guy is so cool that he answered every query they had.

The irony is that I couldn't remember all the details at that time. The only piece I remembered is that he invested $25,000 USD to steemit and because of the rise in the value of steem, he now have above $250,000 USD. Take note that for him, it's just a baby investment. I realized that they believed so much on steemit. @purepinay once joked that she told @surpasinggoogle that if steemit disappears, she would just kill herself. Of course she's just kidding, but if you think about it, they have invested so much in this platform.

For me, it was a night of realizations. There I was enlightened that there are different kinds of witnesses. He gave examples like social and technical witnesses. Also, my old notion about how we earned value on steemit was wrong. He explained that because there are multi-billionares who initially invested in a decentralized platform, we were rewarded with a value based on our content. Forgive me if I could be wrong in my interpretations, but I'm slowly getting the idea on the nitty-gritty of steemit.

The Videoke Session

_{The set up was prepared even before we entered the mansion. First Lady gyud ang accommodation!}
It was a night full of laughter. I never knew there were multi-talented people I met. @honeyletsgo and @bonjovey were amazing songstresses. I had so much fun listening to their golden voice.

_{I didn't let the night pass without singing, even if my voice doesn't love me. 😁
A break from the singing session to take a picture with @xsasj and @marysent.}

Overall, it was a night of fun and pleasantries. But more the ecstatic feeling, I slowly grasp the idea that steemit is here to stay. I slowly understand that steemit is life!

A big shout out to @steemph.cebu's core leaders for a successful event!

Keep on meeting up and steeming!

Best Regards,
@ybanezkim26