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Lakbay Norte Day 4: Benguet and Pangasinan
My alarm woke me up from a deep slumber at our room at The Manor. Tonight’s accommodation is somewhere in Alaminos, Pangasinan. Today started out relatively late at 7:30am. We were actually supposed to be waiting at the lobby already, but everybody seemed to have enjoyed their sleep last night, so by 7:30, we were…
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Lakbay Norte Day 3: Ilocos Norte, La Union and Baguio
Today, I woke for early check out from our hotel in Laoag, and now I’m writing this from my bed at The Manor in Baguio. It was a very active Day 3: sand boarding on the dunes of Ilocos Norte, followed by surfing at La Union. The 4×4 and sandboarding adventure was supposed to be…
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Lakbay Norte Day 2: Cagayan and Ilocos Norte
Today, I woke up in Tuguegarao again. Tonight though, I’ll be sleeping in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. Our call time this morning was at 5:30am and everybody in the group made sure (or at least tried their hardest) to get some much needed sleep. We started the day with a hearty Cagayan breakfast at Director Bless…
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Lakbay Norte Day 1: Tugegarao
Today, I woke up in Tuguegarao. Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat It was Day 1 of Lakbay Norte, a Northern Philippines familiarization tour spearheaded by the Northern Philippines Visitors Bureau in cooperation with the visitors bureau of the provinces and cities we are visiting. Together with writers and photographers from major dailies, inflight…
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Binondo Food Wok Map
Finally, a comprehensive map of Manila’s Chinatown! I remember my first trip to Binondo (the one that I can remember anyway). It was late at night and we were driving around this strange new place, guided by friend’s boyfriend who live in the neighborhood. I have absolutely no idea where we are, except that we…
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Bangkok Guesthouse Review: HI-Sukhumvit
Hostelling International Sukhumvit is one of the hostels in Bangkok getting high ratings from travelers who have stayed there. I’ve stayed there twice in 2009, and it’s getting high rating from me as well. Watch out for this sign on Soi 38 The Sukhumvit area is called the embassy row — almost all of the…
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Siem Reap Guesthouse Review: Mandalay Inn
There are several factors that I consider when picking a hostel to stay in: location, price, Hostel World rating, and whether they have wi-fi. That’s how I ended up booking a room at Mandalay Inn when I went to Siem Reap. Mandalay Inn Location and price are the two most important factor for me. I…
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Statue Spotting in Marikina
Despite the fact that Marikina City is literally just behind my college, I’ve never really explored the city. I can count the number of times I went there, and often it’s to work on some class projects at my classmate’s house or to go to the bazaar by the riverbanks (after graduation). Last Sunday, I…
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