Underwater Cave Experience in Puerto Galera

I've been to Puerto Galera in Oriental Mindoro for a quite number of times, let's say, to a point that I got bored of the place. Visiting Puerto Galera's white beach once or twice a year for the past five years, every trip is not as exciting as the previous one. My recent trip, however, was unlikely similar to the past ones. I got a little surprised by our newly discovered attraction, the underwater cave, which we all experienced for the first time.

Beach cove near the underwater cave where boats dock

Caramoan Accommodation: Cheap Homestay at Paniman Beach

Our two days of island hopping adventure not only made us discover and enjoy the spectacular beauty of Caramoan but helped us get to know the people that made our experience memorable. I've mentioned Kuya Ramil, our tour guide and boat man, several times in my previous posts regarding our island hopping activities but didn't talk about the kind of person he is. I'm sure you're itching to know about the budget accommodation but let me share to you about Kuya Ramil first. He is the very reason why the place is worth recommending. :)

Paniman Beach in Caramoan

Travel Photo Friday: "Strawberry taho kayo dyan!"

The cold weather in the past few days made me think of Baguio and strawberries. Taho, or sweeten soybean curd, is one of my favorite comfort food. And strawberry is probably my most favorite among the varieties of taho. In this particular variety of taho, strawberry syrup is used instead of arnibal (brown sugar and vanilla syrup).

How to Travel Cheap in El Nido, Palawan

Have you ever dreamed of traveling to El Nido, Palawan? I know you do, and I certainly know the feeling. El Nido easily became one of my dream destinations the first time I heard about it from my college professor way back then, but the impression as an expensive destination had always scared me off. Anyway, I still placed it on top of my bucket list while wishing and hoping that I could set foot in this place someday.

Travel Photo Friday: Sunset at Mt. Tapyas, Coron

My Travel Photo Friday is back (which I really hope becomes a regular thing) and here I'm featuring the spectacular view of the sunset at Mt. Tapyas in Coron, Palawan. Mt. Tapyas is another popular spot in Coron where you need to climb more than 700 steps to reach the top. At the summit, one is treated to the stunning panoramic view of the nearby Calamianes islands and Coron bay. Aside from sunset, Mt. Tapyas is also the best spot to catch the sunrise.

Surprised by Alubihod Beach in Guimaras

The last time I've been to Alubihod Beach in Nueva Valencia, Guimaras was probably about ten years ago. I've been here for several times already so I wasn't really excited to see the beach after all those years. However, the memories of how it looks are still fresh in my mind -- the beach is short, just a bit better than the ones we have in Iloilo but not half as good as Boracay. Having been to the best beaches in the country such as El Nido and Caramoan, Alubihod Beach was nowhere in my list of top ten. Heck, there are even better beaches in Guimaras than Alubihod.

I am an Empowered Traveler!

On May 23, 2012, Meet Manila held its launch party entitled "Tertulia Night for #ThoughtfulTourism" which is an advocacy to promote thoughtful tourism and to take Philippine tourism to the next level. Being an ordinary person who just love to travel, it was truly an honor to be chosen as one of the Empowered Travelers during the event.

Puerto Princesa City Tour

Our 5-day trip in Palawan was capped off by Puerto Princesa City tour. When we arrived on our first day, we immediately headed to El Nido and never had a chance to explore Palawan's capital city. So the morning before our flight back to Manila on our last day we had a few hours to visit the famous tourist spots Puerto Princesa City is known for.

Puerto Princesa City downtown

Panglao Island Tour

Apart from the famous Chocolate Hills and tarsiers, Bohol is also popular for its white sandy beaches, caves, waterfalls and bee farm - most of which can be found in the island of Panglao. Panglao Island is one of the islands in the province of Bohol that offers various amazing attractions for different types of tourists and travelers. Recently, Panglao Island made it to the international scene after being recognized as one of the "15 Best Secret Beaches on Earth" by the New York City-based travel magazine Travel+Leisure.
 

Save the Pawikan at Arena Island in Palawan with your "Likes"

April 2012 - Palawan’s best-kept secret, Arena Island in the town of Narra invites everyone to help spread awareness on its conservation efforts for the endangered pawikan or native sea turtles by joining its 'Click to Save’ Facebook contest. Participants in turn get the chance to have a free vacation to the island.

Baguio City Accommodation: Safari Lodge Restaurant, Bar and Museum

Where to stay in Baguio City? Having been to Baguio City myself numerous times, let me share one of the accommodations I've stayed at. Safari Lodge is one of the affordable lodging houses in Baguio City and its close proximity to most tourist attractions makes it a perfect place to stay.

Entrance to the main house and the Hunter's Bar

Caramoan Island Hopping: The Long Trip

Our second day in Caramoan was intended for another island hopping adventure to more distant islands, which is why it is called the long trip. If you read what happened on our first day, we did the short trip which took us only a half day to explore the islands closer from Paniman. The experience that we had on our first day was more than enough to say that the 12-hour road and boat trips to Caramoan were all worth it. Caramoan Peninsula is, indeed, paradise.

Beautiful countryside view along the road

Travel Photo Friday: Sunset at Puerto Galera

Guisi Beach: Guimaras' Well-Kept Secret

The sight of the awe-inspiring coastline of Guisi beach in Guimaras was a wonderful reward for my toilsome journey upon my arrival to this secluded part of the island. While on the way to the entrance of Guisi lighthouse and ruins, I was already seeing a scenic view of white strip of sand and crystal clear, emerald green water below the hill from the road while on-board the tricycle. It's like there was an enchanting voice seducing me to come down and take a closer look at the beach. I thought I would only be watching it from afar since our destination was only the lighthouse.

3rd Philippine International PyroMusical Competition: UK & Spain

It was a night of visual spectacle as the fireworks from two competing countries lit up and painted the sky with varying and amazing colors. I was able to witness the fireworks showdown of United Kingdom and Spain during the second week of 3rd Philippine International PyroMusical Competition held in Mall of Asia on February 18.

Guisi Lighthouse: Historical and Sightseeing Spot in Guimaras

Guisi Lighthouse was the first destination in my solo day trip in Guimaras. According to my driver, it is the farthest spot in my itinerary so we decided to visit it first while the rest of the places to be visited on the way back. The first half of the drive to Guisi was smooth while offering some nice countryside view of Guimaras. The second half was bumpy and sloppy due to bad road conditions. This gave me an impression that Guisi Lighthouse is still off the radar of most tourists.

View of Guisi Beach at the top of the old lighthouse

My Solo Day Trip in Guimaras

In order to maximize my stay in Iloilo City, I decided to go for a solo day trip to Guimaras Island two days before the Ati Tribe Competition which was the highlight of Dinagyang Festival. I've been to Guimaras Island numerous times since my high school years but never did I hear about Guisi Lighthouse until about recently. Also, another discovery that led me to embark on this trip alone was the island hopping activity, which I'd never heard of before too. The only thing that I knew Guimaras was famous for were the sweet mangoes. :-)

Guisi Lighthouse

Dinagyang Festival: A Showcase of Ilonggo Talent and Creativity

I did not have any plans of attending the Dinagyang Festival this year but I was bound for Iloilo City the same week the celebration was happening. I had to attend my cousin's wedding but since the highlight of Dinagyang was only a few days away, I decided to extend my vacation in Iloilo a bit longer. It's been several years since I last joined in the event so I was interested to see some changes and improvements over the years.

Travel Photo Friday: St. Anne Parish Church in Molo, Iloilo City

This is the first entry in my Travel Photo Friday series for this year. I just came back from Iloilo City for the Dinagyang Festival and thought of featuring the church of St. Anne Parish found in Molo, Iloilo City where I was born and raised.

Looking Back at 2011

Wow, time flies so fast! So fast that 2011 ended even before I could finish writing about all the travels I did in that year!

It had been a wonderful year for me. A year ago, I remember how I planned to travel every two months as part of my New Year's resolutions. But soon after my first travel escapade in January, I found the urge to travel more too strong to resist. I was bitten by travel bug, they say. And that travel bug brought my feet to different Philippine destinations almost every month.

It was only in September that I realized to put up my own travel blog. Yes, it took me some 9 months to realize that I should not keep the experiences only to myself. I've learned a lot and discovered so many things about traveling that sharing is the least thing I could do to inspire others to travel as well. Also, it's because of these experiences that I learned to appreciate the beauty of the Philippines. This blog is my little contribution in helping promote the local tourism industry.

I wrote a blog post last September on where I have been so far, but this year-end post completes the rest of the destinations I've been the whole year.