My Travels
Being a blogger for Explore Iloilo, I have visited my home province and nearby places in Wesern Visayas extensively. Starting in 2010, I’ve kicked off my dream of traveling to more places in the Philippines. My aim is to visit as many travel destinations scattered throughout the Country’s 7,107 islands. Join me on my trips to see the beauty of the Philippines by regularly visiting this blog and experience the places that I’ve seen and people I’ve encountered. I’ve also planned a few backpacking trips in South East Asia and will be posting my adventures and misadventures in other lands as well.
Travel Quotient = C- (2009)
| Travel Quotent = B (2010) |
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It was the start of summer and I was dying to set forth on another ultimate adventure, just as I did last year when I visited Caluya Islands in Antique. While I was on my usual rounds of the city, my friend Tara (an excellent photographer I look up to) texted me and invited me to go on a 3 day trip to Isla Gigantes Sur (South Gigantes Island) in Carles, a coastal town in the northern tip of Iloilo. My fingers then took control of my phone and tada! I was booked on yet another summer escapade. The timing was a bit horrible. The day before the trip, My oathtaking (for new nurses) was scheduled in the afternoon and I had made plans of shooting for a client later that night. I didn’t sleep the whole night for the exhausting photoshoot and editing of photos to be submitted ASAP. It was 4am when I finished the job and rushed to our meeting place in Tagbak Terminal in Jaro. Read the rest of this entry »
I’ve been blogging about the annual Aliwan Fiesta for two years already but I’ve never got to see it personally because of schedule conflicts when I was still in school. Now that I’m free, I’m finally going to Manila this last week of April to watch the spectacle from the streets of Manila. Thanks to Zest Air for offering a Manila to Ilolo flight for only P488 (see Zest Air Promo page). I’ll be arriving in Manila on the 23rd and leaving on the 27th. I’ve read from reviews that Zest Air flights are very comfortable since they are using a brand new custom made A320 and they have unlimited Zest-O products on board, sweet! Hopefully I’ll be able to meet my friends from college and skyscrapercity during the trip. I’m also looking forward to revisit old manila and visit more its newer places.
Last week a friend invited me to go for a trip to the holy grail of island destinations in Iloilo, Carles, this weekend. We will be staying at Isla de Gigantes Sur for three days and two nights. I’m hoping we can visit most of the tourist spots in the area including the Sicogon Island, the famed Boracay of the 80′s. I’ve been dying to go here since highschool and now that I’ve finally got the chance to visit it, I’m so ecstatic! I can now cross out one item in my list of ultimate adventures in Iloilo. YES! Pictures and a travelogue will definitely be posted here but it might take a while since I’ve got other trips planned for the next two weeks.
Me and three of my friends took advantage of the Zero Fare Christmas promo of Cebu Pacific (see the latest Cebu Pacific Promo Fare 2010). We had only planned for a 2 day trip, which we later regret, to save on costs and possible schedule conflicts. I have always wanted to visit Cebu again, I’ve been there a few times during my childhood and I’ve always wanted to see what Cebu has transformed into. Indeed Cebu has changed dramatically and is worthy of the title of being the largest urban center in the Southern Philippines. Read the rest of this entry »
I was in Manila for 4 days in January 2009 with Vince, who was also planning to buy his first SLR. During the first day, we headed straight to Quiapo for our primary agenda. And then we set out to tour the walled city of Manila, our tour guides were Eric, Bernie, and Igan, who are friends I met over at Skyscrapercity.
The 400 year old San Agustin Church in Intramuros
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When I was still planning for the trip to Manila, I made it a point to try the Pasig River Cruise after learning about it from Bernie’s blog. The Pasig River was the lifeblood of the city during its prehistory until the Spanish occupation. Unfortunately, during the last decades of the 20th century, it has become Manila’s dumping site for trash and raw sewage. If you ask a Filipino their impression of Pasig, they would tell you that it is “mabaho” (foul smelling) and “puno ng basura” (full of trash). I was surprised to find out how the Pasig River has changed these past few years. Although still relatively dirty, it did not give off foul odors as I have expected.
Catamaran Ferry of the Pasig River Cruise
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Fireworks at the Iloilo Capitol
Save for the fun meet ups with friends, my Christmas has been sucky mostly because of a big family problem. That aside, the “Christmas air” is just not as festive as before and I so hate the cold air during the evenings of late. Good thing Cebu Pacific made an announcement during Christmas day that they were giving out ZERO fares. Being slightly down, I needed a quick fix to make me excited. I quickly contacted my friends and we made the online booking the next day. Read the rest of this entry »
A week after the board exam, I was on the road again. This time, I was with Vince, one of my close friends and blogger of Explore Aklan. I tagged along with Vince when he returned home to Kalibo, Aklan. He had already planned on going to Libacao and Pandan, Antique and invited me to come along with him. So I did, since I don’t usually pass off the opportunity to travel and I’ve always wanted to go to these particular places.
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The first time I’ve been to Boracay was during the summer of 1993 when I was 6 years old and year after year, my family would never fail to go to the island. I’ve had many fond memories of Boracay and I was able to witness how the island started to fill up with tourists and hotels. There was a time in highschool when I got tired of going to Boracay and opted to spend my time with my classmates instead.
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It was the middle of summer and it had been raining for a week already. I was spending most my time inside my room, staring at the computer all day because the weather outside wasn’t the most inviting. I was feeling bored all week … itching to go out of the house and do something more exciting. My phone’s ringing woke me up one morning and my friend (on the other line) mentioned that he was going to Caluya on that very day for a photoshoot/news coverage. I quickly screamed my excitement and jealousy at him and, consequently, he “invited” me. Well sort of … I dropped a lot of hints that I wanted to join him so he asked me to go with him as a polite gesture. I took his offer seriously … it’s not everyday that I get the opportunity to go to Caluya, one of the places I’ve been dying to visit.
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In the Philippine Ilonggo dialect, ambot ah literally means "I don't know." After graduating in college, I decided to hold off pursuing my profession and embarked on a free spirited journey of adventure and self-discovery. My travels have led me to many places across the Philippine Islands and South East Asia. I don't know where this path will take me but I'm certain I'll get a lifetime of stories out of it.
