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My second visit to Palawan happened nearing the end of 2011. I had been thinking of revisiting El Nido since June, roughly one year since the first time I stepped foot in that beautiful paradise.
During those 12 months, I was occupied by my desire to backpack extensively around the Philippines. The plan was to see the beauty of our country first and then start visiting the rest of the world.
The experience of traveling to places I’ve always craved to visit in the Philippines (but didn’t have the freedom because I was either still in school or didn’t have enough money for it) was nothing short of amazing. It was personally fulfilling to live the life that I wanted at the time.
Before starting anew with the new year, my enthusiasm at moving on to “the next step” was dampened by, simply put, decisions. Living a free spirited life was something I dreamed about growing up. I’ve just arrived at mid-20s now and a lot of me (my perspective of things) feels different.
I wouldn’t change how I spent my life so far but I was feeling disconnected because I didn’t know if it (living a nomadic life) is still something I would find fulfillment exhausting my time and effort over the next few years.
I wanted to retrace my steps in Palawan … back to places I visited when I was just starting to travel/backpack. This time, I didn’t plan every moment of my itinerary. I just wanted to discover how I’d react to things that happen and make plans along the way.
Boarding an early morning flight from Iloilo to Manila
As mentioned earlier, I’ve been AFK (away from keyboard) for a while now. It’s still a busy month of traveling for me. Since I started blogging, it has always been my goal to live the lifestyle of other travel bloggers. To be able to travel extensively and frequently for longer periods of time. If feel really lucky that I’m already starting to live that kind of life and thankful to everyone who continues to visit my blogs and leave comments, which fuels my passion to continue blogging. Here’s a quick rundown of places I’ve traveled to since my last post.
Taken at Kuala Lumpur International Airport just before the return flight from our Singapore – Malaysia trip at the end of September. It took multiple shots … but I still couldn’t keep my eyes open for the shot since I was already so tired.
If you’re wondering where you can buy dSLR cameras and other photographic equipment in the Philippines for the cheapest/lowest prices, then it’s in Hidalgo, Quiapo. Another option is buying from reputable online camera stores.
I know Hidalgo and Quiapo, in general, is notorious as one of Manila’s shabby and crime infested areas (full of pirated CDs/DVDs, counterfeit electronics, snatchers, garbage).
I was surprised myself when I found out that it is highly recommended by other photographers in the Philippines as a place to find a wider range of photographic/videographic equipment at a cheaper price than in malls. I bought my first camera, a Canon Powershot A700, in Hidalgo Quiapo when I was in college and a Nikon D40 last year.
I have nothing to complain about the quality of my purchases there.
I’m still shaking my head on what I got myself into for my travel plans next month. I was originally planning on going to Manila during the third week of April and spending a couple of days to watch Aliwan Fiesta 2010, a showcase of festivals all over the Philippines on April 22-24 but then I extended it to a little more than one week after finding out about the 6th Philippine Blogging Summit to be held on April 16 – 17. So I booked my round trip flights online but after series of unexpected events, I ended up rebooking both flights and with two more “surprise” trips that I’m so excited about!
The Laoag City Float during the Aliwan Fiesta last year
This is what you get when you give a one week unlimited MRT/LRT flash pass in Manila to a camera wielding travel junkie:
Now that my October travelling spree is over, I’m finally back home … back to blogging. You’ll probably notice my online activity rising because I’ve cleared up my schedule for the next month so that I can do some major work on my blogs (actually, it’s more like I wont be going anywhere because I’ve got no more money left to spend). During the first week of October, I spent a week in Manila to take some pictures for a new blog I’m developing named “Pueblo Philippines (more about this later).” While I was there, I bought a one week MRT/LRT unlimited flash pass (for P250) and visited many spots in Metro Manila. Though, the highlight (and main agenda) of my trip was actually attending the 2009 Philippine Blog Awards, in which Explore Iloilo was nominated under the Best Travel Blog category.
I was excited to go to Fort Bonifacio Global City (FBGC) for the first time. It’s one the newest and most expensive bloc in Manila. I was so shocked to see the level of development there in just a short span of time. I liked Market! Market! because I really did feel like it was a market not just a rip-off name for just another mall. High Street is O-K, the place looks really beautiful but it feels very synthetic there, I prefer the organic urban feeling I get in Makati.
Back when I was in high school, I was a Sim City 4 addict. I used to spend my nights slaving over making the biggest city my measly computer can handle. There was of course the attempt of making a city that had a road layout of Iloilo City, at the time high quality road maps of Iloilo City was not available (Google Earth, I think wasn’t released yet or it didn’t have hi-res images of Iloilo City) so I started to look for road maps of other cities in the Philippines. One google search led to another and I ended up in Skyscrapercity.com. I visited the Philippine sub forum and searched through the threads.
Photo from Wikipedia (I have yet to take a nightshot of Makati)
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.
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.
