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)
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Travel Quotent = B (2010) |
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We spent our second evening yet again at the Merlion Park. I earlier hoped to experience the Singapore Flyer or get a breathtaking view of the Singapore Skyline at night from the SkyPark of the Marina Bay Sands. Unfortunately, both were closed down for private functions because of the F1 night race.
As an alternative, we did a long walkathon from One Esplanade all the way to Marina Bay Sand and the Double Helix Bridge. It was very tiring to say the least but we were able to see a lot of interesting views along the way.
Fullerton Hotel
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I was excited to spend the day at Universal Studios Singapore. … so weird for me to look forward to visiting a theme park.
We took the MRT to the Harbourfront Station and walked to the ticket counters at the 3rd level of VivoCity Mall. Paid the admission fees of Sentosa Island, which included round trip tickets on the Sentosa Express monorail and transportation within the island itself.
Universal Studios Singapore located in Sentosa Island sits within the huge property of ResortsWorld Sentosa. I liked Universal Studios because it caters to a more matured market (unlike Disneyland). Pretty cool to have a theme park based on famous movies.
View of VivoCity from the Sentosa Monorial ride
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We left the hostel at a quarter before 6PM. I wanted to spend the sunset / dusk at Singapore’s most iconic landmark, the statue of the Merlion found at the mouth of the Singapore River.
Got off at the Raffles Place MRT Station and started walking towards the River. The first recognizable landmark we passed by was the historic Fullerton Hotel. There were a lot of luxury cars parked at the front. It was the F1 season (Fomula 1 Night Race) in Singapore.
Car junkies around the world flock to Singapore at this time. I’ve spent hours playing NFS and I admit it was kinda cool to have the game realized in a real megacity like Singapore. The streets around Marina Bay were blocked off because it was used as a race track for the night race. I can only imagine the thrill of speeding through skyscrapers and thousands of spectators.
Fullerton Hotel Singapore
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For our 5-day Singapore and Malaysia trip, we booked an outgoing flight from Clark instead of NAIA (Manila) International Airport.
Aside from the cheaper airfare, I was also interested to visit the Clark International Airport for the first time. The Clark Airport is the closest thing the Philippines has to a low cost carrier terminal, particularly because the it operates as the international hub of some budget airlines.
If the airfare was the same, flying out of Clark would definitely be more of an inconvenience taking into account the 3-hour drive from Manila and the negligible difference in airport fees.
Still, it was a great experience to transit through the Clark Airport. It was a glimpse into the future since the Clark Airport is being planned as the long term replacement of NAIA.
First view of the Clark International Airport
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It was finally the end of my 11-day Northern Luzon trip. The only remaining item in my itinerary was to take the bus from Baguio back to Manila.
I already had an idea of how to commute from Manila to Baguio. Somehow, I wasn’t able to find sufficient details online about the bus if coming from Baguio. I only found a lot of outdated web pages.
When I was finally in Baguio, I realized why there weren’t a lot of “Baguio to Manila” bus guides. There was no need for it. Commuting between Baguio and Manila was very convenient thanks to the excellent service of Victory Liner Bus company.
Victory Liner Bus Terminal in Baguio. Entrance at Utility Road.
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This is the do-it-yourself (DIY) itinerary I took during a 3-day trip to Baguio City and La Trinidad, Benguet.
The bus ride from Vigan to Baguio consumed most of the first day. Slept for two nights in a hostel dorm room in Baguio.
Spent the second day touring around Baguio’s popular tourists spots. Wanted to cover the basics since it was my first time to re-visit Baguio.
On my third day, I reserved the afternoon for a short side trip to the Starberry Fields of La Trinidad, Benguet. Upon returning to Baguio, I took a late afternoon bus back to Manila.
Baguio and La Trinidad Itinerary (3 days)
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It was the last day of not only my trip to Baguio but the whole 11-day Northern Luzon circuit tour.
After a short side trip to the Lion’s Head at Kennon Road, I wanted to visit the strawberry fields of La Trinidad along with a few must-visits along the way.
I was back in Baguio at around 1:20pm and was already very hungry. I read raves about the Bulalo at Balajadia Restaurant near the Slaughterhouse.
Decided to “beef up” before heading to La Trinidad, Benguet.
Steaming Bulalo at Balajadia Restaurant
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The gigantic Lion’s Head along Kennon Road is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Baguio.
It’s located at the outskirts of the city and is a popular stopover for quick photo souvenirs before entering the city proper area.
Getting to Lion’s Head would be easy for people traveling in private cars. Unfortunately for commuters, like me, it was a bit harder to do since the buses running between Baguio and Manila does not pass though Kennon Road. The buses use the Marcos Highway instead.
Lion’s Head situated along the famous winding curves of Kennon Road
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I was a happy shutter bug at Camp John Hay and could have spent the entire afternoon there if I hadn’t checked the time. It was already 3:40pm and I still had a few places in Baguio that I wanted to visit.
It had been a long time since my first trip in Baguio (eight years ago). It happened during an education tour when I was still in high school. We visited the attractions of Baguio and the nearby Balatoc Gold Mine.
Of course, an initiation to Baguio wouldn’t be complete without going to the touristy spots like Wright Park, The Mansion, and Mines View Park. I wanted to revisit these places to take new photos and know what had changed all these years.
Welcome to Baguio City Wright Park
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I love traveling because it affords me the opportunity to be transported to unfamiliar environments. Being in a different natural or urban setting becomes an opportunity to realize conceptual photos.
My biggest goal in Baguio was to have my photo taken among towering pine trees. Yeah … pretty vain, I know.
I was looking for a good spot where I could pretend to be in the temperate zone of the world. It’s my dream to visit the pine forests of Alaska, New Zealand, the French Alps (or any alps for that matter), or Forks (Twilight fan here!). The pine forests of Baguio are as close as I can get since I don’t have enough money to travel to these places.
After a walking tour of downtown Baguio, I took a cab to the Mile Hi Center (P50+ metered taxi fare). I was hoping to find a good pine covered spot in this upscale part of Baguio.
Cozy interiors of Little John’s located at Mile Hi Center, Camp John Hay in Baguio
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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.
