Selfie Sunday Says Thank You!

Year 2014 Contributors

In this last Sunday of 2014, let me thanks all of you travel bloggers who shared your Selfie Pic and the story behind it. I truly enjoyed this series and was proud that I was able to sustain it for the entire 2014. 

Merry Christmas!

Foodstagram Friday : Cotabato City's Beef Sinina

Cotabato City's Tasty Specialty

I asked a friend from Cotabato City what are must-try local native dishes or delicacies in Cotabato City and he said "Beef Sinina" matched with "Don't ever leave Cotabato without tasting it!"

Hibernate?

Selfie Sunday : Mc Pol of Weekend Side Trip

Mc Pol in Seoul

Students need to travel too, that is according to Mc Pol of The Weekened Sidetrip. This school boy finds no reason why everyone should not start traveling young, to seized the day and to live without regrets. As students, Mc Pol believes that they still have years to explore the world, experience other culture, share knowledge and learn things from other places. The school is just a small piece of the biggest university which is the world.

Saigon : City on the Move

Colonial Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City is a metropolis on the move and I am not just talking about the City's plentiful motorbikes. Historically known as Saigon, it is Vietnam's most dizzying, high-octane city of commerce and culture that has driven the whole forward with its limitless energy and booming economy.

Zambales : Weekend at Isla Magalawa

Island Life

Early inhabitants of the place refer to this place as “MAG-LUWA” that means “about two places”. It was siad that in the early century, MAGALAWA was a part of sitio Luan, Barangay Lipay. The said sitio was bi-sected by a small body of water crossable by people wherein the current flows southeast during high tide and northward during low tide.

Selfie Sunday : Karl of Turista Trails

Karl in location at Villa Tortuga, Taal Batangas

Warning! Don't head to his travel blog, Turista Trails on an empty stomach for you will surely drool. What makes Karl's blog different from other travel blogs is that he tries to mix in with his travels the local delicacies of a particular place or the specialties of a restaurant he personally tried or in an event he is invited.

Selfie Sunday : Zigfred of The Back Pack Polymath

Zigfred at the Mekong River

This Sunday's Selfie feature is an enviable dude. On weekends, he is a hardcore travelholic, certified wanderlust and an adventure seeker having traveled to more than 12 countries and in most parts of the Philippines. He shares his travel adventures and misadventures in this blog, the backpack polymath.

Baguio City : Cemetery of Negativism

Baguio City's Famed Grave

A cemetery is a place where you bury the dead. However, there is this unique cemetery in Baguio City where visitors could bury all their negative thoughts. Known as the Lost Cemetery or Cemetery of Negatism, this so-called cemetery contains mock gravestones with tongue-in-cheek humor on them that make visitors think about themselves and their attitudes. With engraved words such as "Kantdu Nuthin Wright", "Doanna Set A Precedent" and "A. Truely Miserableday" one can't help dig deep into their own lives and relate what these words mean to them and letting go of those negativism by burying them here.

Selfie Sunday : Ayan of That-Son-Of-The-Beach

Ayan at the Holi Festival

Independent. Free-spirit. Passionate. Self-Centered. Perpetually hard-headed. These words amply describe Ayan Villafuerte of that naughty-titled blog "That-Son-Of-The-Beach" where he shares his photos and narrates his back-packing stories from day-sleeping to day-tripping in the beaches of the Philippines and in the world.

Throwback Trip Thursday : Cagbalete Island 2009

Enchanting Cagbalete Island

It's summer once again and the word "hot" is an understatement. One island that is on the bucket list of summer folks is the Cagbalete Island in the province of Quezon. I, together with Dong Ho and a couple of friends have visited the island in 2009 and here is my recollection of the place thru photos and stories. 

Foodstagram Friday : Must Try Gyoza @ Osaka Ohsho

House Specialty

Craving for dumpling, I searched the net to find a restaurant that serves delectable dumplings near my place in Ortigas. My search lead me to Osaka Ohsho which has good reviews of gyoza and advertises itself as the Number One Gyoza restaurant in Japan. There are over 300 outlets in Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Korea, Singapore and now in Manila and it is located in SM Megamall. Being a dumpling-lover as I am, I just have to try this place. 

Selfie Sunday : Marky of Nomadic Experiences

This Sunday's featured blogger is among the country's most popular travel bloggers and needs no further introduction. His blog, Nomadic Experiences - Narratives and Images of Being on the Road, has constantly been nominated and won in several award giving bodies such as Globe Tatt Awards, Bloscars Skyscanner Travel Awards, Philippine Blog Awards and The Travel Bloggy Awards to name a few.

Zambales : Morning at Isla Magalawa

Magalawa Morning Silhoutte

William Blake's four-line metaphysical poem read "He who binds to himself a joy, Does the winged life destroy; But he who kisses the joy as it flies, Lives in Eternity's sunrise." This reminds me that I must not attempt to cling to a sublime experience, but rather to allow it to come and go with grace.

Selfie Sunday : Doc Gelo of Beyond Toxicity

Doc Gelo in Nepal

Anyone who said you cannot mix travel and work and excel in both has not met Doc Gelo. Doc Gelo works overseas but and at the same time authors the blog "Beyond Toxicity" - a travel and food blog that is the recipient of Best Expat Blog Awards for two consecutive years, 2012-13 from Ministry of Tourism Malaysia. He now works in Dubai but the travel and food stories still continues.

Foodstagram Friday : Batanes' Steamed Tatus in Coconut Sauce

Batanes' Specialty - Coconut Crab

Undoubtedly, the star of Batanes cuisine is this fierce-looking arthropod locally known as Tatus. It is a crab but it looks more like a spider with its longer limbs and a sac at the rear end housing its aligue. It is usually cooked steamed or sauteed in sauce such as sweet chili or butter and garlic. However, the best was of cooking it according to my newly-found Ivatan friends is to cook it with fresh coconut juice. 

Siem Reap : The Microcosm Angkor Thom

One of Angkor Thom's Many Faces

I was just intent on seeing how the trees recaptured a place that was once occupied by mankind but hardcore traveler Ron of Flip N' Travels gave me a list of things to see in Angkor. Among these are the Stegosaurus Relief dated hundred of years before mankind discovered dinosaurs, the first ever engraved record of obstetrics in Asian civilization, Angelina Jolie's Tree, Mahab Rahata, engraved story of Rama and Sita and the Oldest Sanskrit text outside of India.

Selfie Sunday : Mark of Kurtzky

As the popular song goes "The snow glows white on the mountain tonight, not a footprint to be seen.A kingdom of isolation and it looks like I'm the queen." Err, make it a "king", for whenever he travels, Mark Rodel dela Rosa, or simply Mark, feels like he is king of the world.

Foodstagram Friday : Bacolod's Chicken Inasal

Philippine's Best Grilled Chicken

Chicken inasal is probably the most popular dish from the City of Smiles, Bacolod. Unlike the common barbecue or grilled chicken that uses soy sauce (toyo), this specialty uses different ingredients for its marinade and basting sauce that create that sought-after unique flavor. The smoked flavor added by cooking the chicken on a hot charcoal grill imbibes the marinade and makes the dish tastier. Chicken Inasal is also distinct for its yellowish color brought about by the application of achuete or annatto oil. Served with steamed rice and a dipping sauce made up of vinegar, calamansi, sot sauce and siling labuyo, aaah this dish is heaven.

Selfie Sunday : Arnie of The Kid Wanderer

Arnie at the Summit of Mount Maculot

Arnie aka The Kid Wanderer started documenting his travels in August 2012 after getting lots of inspirations from other travel bloggers. He went to several places in the Philippines and started climbing mountains around Luzon. And for him, the best way to share all the experience is through blogging like what other bloggers do. Although most of the places he has visited has been already "blogged", it is his personal experiences that make his posts different from others.

Foodstagram Friday : Bitter

What does bitter taste like? Nothing definitive but it leaves a sharp, pungent taste in your tongue. Of course, if you imagine taking that bitter taste on your tongue and turning it into an emotion, you've got another meaning of bitter: a resentful, angry feeling. And defined colloquially, a bitter person is one who is envious of the success of others that even though he says good things to that person, his body language dictates otherwise.

Siem Reap : Floating Villages in Tonle Sap Lake

Mecca of Travelers

Wandering in a place not too familiar is always a fascination, so when someone asked me to go with them in a village within a lake, I unhesitantly said yes. It was a good fifty minute bus ride from the Town Proper of Siem Reap to a mini terminal where boats leading to Tonle Sap Lake are docked.

Selfie Sunday : Allan of Lantaw, Philippine Outdoor and Travel Photos

He is no Pacquiao but he can land the Big Punch

I was staring at his landscape shot of Mount Pulag framed on the wall of my room while I am thinking of the best possible way to introduce this popular travel-photo blogger but I can't seem to find the appropriate adjectives to start.

To the rescue is one of the best lines that stuck to me the night before when my group of travel-blogging friends (him included) watched Martin Sheen's The Way. On the way to the airport, there was an argument between the character played by Martin Sheen and his son wherein Martin told his son of the life he chose to live. Disagreeing about his father's choice, the son said "You don't choose a life... You live one!"
 

Foodstagram Friday : Mila's Tokwa't Baboy

Angeles City's Best Kept Secret is Out

Tokwa't Baboy might be their standard bearer but their Sisig is one of the city's best. Add-in their very own paco salad and tocino barbeque and you have one of the best gastronomical smorgasbord Angeles City has to offer.

Siem Reap : The Intricate Carvings of Banteay Srei

Awesome Bas Relief of Banteay Srei

"Bantãy Srĕi" means Citadel of Women or Citadel of Beauty. It is the modern name of a 10th-century Khmer temple originally called "Tribhuvanamaheśvara" or Great Lord of the Threefold World, an appellation of the god Siva. Banteay Srei is known for the intricacy of its bas relief carvings that historians says could only be done by gentlest of woman's touch.

Selfie Sunday : Abby of Tara Gumala

Abby in Winter Wonderland - Genting Highlands

All the world is a stage and it's becoming to be a playground for wanderlusts old and new. And a new kid on Travel Blogging Block is slowly making her presence felt in the travel blogosphere. Meet Abby, a registered social worker by weekdays and an insatiable traveler by weekends.

Foodstagram Friday : Dagupeña

Dagupan's Pride

Their Bangus Steak and Binagoongan Crispty Pata are the talk-of-the-town and considered by many as "must-try" so that it what we ordered together with one of my favorite dish - Pinakbet. I know, it's too much food for two but we couldn't pass the idea of having a meat-vegetable-fish combo, and it's already past noon because of the extended trip due to road repairs, so what a better time to indulge. 

Selfie Sunday : Lyndsay, the Discount Travel Blogger

Lyndsay in Brunei Darussalam

Lyndsay Cabildo started as a fashion and lifestyle writer whom because of her love for traveling on a budget and telling stories created The Discount Travel blog. She believes however that her discount traveling need not compromise her looks, comfort, and style. 

Siem Reap : The Ruins of Angkor Wat

Blocked Causeway leading to the Temples

This will be a long post about the Temples of Angkor Wat so I advise that you take a look at the photos first and if you still have time to spend, please feel free to read my story about the most photographed Khmer monument in Cambodia.

Throwback Trip Thursday : One Night in Bangkok 2008

"One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster; The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free; You'll find a God in every golden cloister; And if you're lucky then the God's a she; I can feel an angel sliding up to me!" Six years ago, I walked the streets of Bangkok and these set of photos pretty much sum-up my stories.

Selfie Sunday : Berniemack of Habagat Central

Berniemack in Calle Real, Iloilo City

Bernardo "Bernienack" Arellano III, known in the blogosphere as Habagat Central is one of the most popular travel blogger in the country. He has extensively traveled the Philippines where he narrates his experiences and trips in his blog Habagat Central. His mission is to help tourists, students, yuppies, burgis, alipin, liping manggagawa, akademisyan, urbanite, conyo, promdi, pulitiko, negosyante, foreigners and many more in their travels and at the same time, guide commuters who need some references on how to survive and enjoy the 7107 islands of the Philippines without the expense of renting a car. 

Camarines Norte : Revisiting Isla Calaguas

Footprints in the Sand

Four years ago, a group of friends ventured into a little-known island off the coast of Paracale. Only few outsiders know the place so it was sort of a hidden gem by that time. I remember to have reached its Mahabang Buhangin Beach and fell in love with it instantly. After all, save from another group of beach combers, we have the entire stretch of beach all to ourselves.

Foodstagram Friday : Food Pampering Calaguas Adventure

No beach get-away is perfect without replenishing yourself with gastronomic treats. Most of times, you bring your own processed or canned goods and cook it either in your camping set or make-shift stove. A better alternative would be to buy freshly-caught sea foods from the local fisherman and grill it or cook in a way you want with whatever ingredients available. 

But in this Calaguas Trip, we were lucky to be hosted by Vinzon's Tourism officer, so that basically means, do your thing on the beach and let them prepare your food. Well, who am I to complain? Let's eat!

Crunchy Breakfast

Crunchy dried espada, itlog na maalat, local sausage, fried rice and hot chocolate drink greeted us for breakfast.

Selfie Sunday : Ferdz, the Ironwulf of En Route

Top-loading in Bukidnon

This Sunday's feature is easy for me to write because I personally know this awesome travel blogger. I have tagged along in some of his trips and consider myself lucky to be in the circle of his travel blogging friends. Ferdinand Decena or Ferdz is one of the pioneers of travel blogging in the Philippines and his blog, Enroute, serves as a barometer to what is great in travel-photo blogosphere.

Camarines Norte : Sunset at Isla Calaguas

Second Time Around

“Soon it got dusk, a grapy dusk, a purple dusk over tangerine groves and long melon fields; the sun the color of pressed grapes, slashed with burgandy red, the fields the color of love and Spanish mysteries.”... that's Jack Kerouac on the road describing a perfect sunset. Sunset is one of my favorite time of the day because during this time, the sky becomes canvass and the fading sun provides all the colors you could possibly see. Each scene is like a painting and that no painting is ever the same.

Selfie Sunday : Billy of Galaero Escape Travels

Billy at the Summit of Pico De Loro

Billy Palatino aka "Galaero" is a licensed architect who considers mountains as his resting refuge. He grew up in rural setting mingling with nature in his home town in Marinduque where he climbed and played on mountains and hills together with his childhood friends. His innate passion for the mountains was instilled in him until today where he keep exploring and climbing mountains whenever his time permits.

Negros Occidental : One Morning in Bacolod City

Water Fountain Fronting San Sebastian Cathedral

Followers of Philippine festivals know this place for Masskara Festival. Yes, that festival that boasts highly energetic dance movement on the street with performers wearing that all-too-smiling colorful masks aka "masskara". Come October, Bacolod City hogs the spotlight and every nook and cranny of Bacolod is adorned with colorful masks with lanterns and just about any ornaments you can think of to boot.

Selfie Sunday : Anna Varona (dot) Com

Anna entertaining the hilltribe kids of Mindoro

Anna Varona is passionate in everything she does. She gave me five photos to choose from and each of those photos show her love for travel and photography. And if ever I will feature a travel blogger for the month, her given photos will aptly fit the bill. 

Negros Occidental : Smiles at the Ruins

Say Chess!

Touchdown Bacolod. It's two hours after noon and after a quick check-in at a local lodge with late lunch of Chicken Inasal in a famous Manukan Country, I headed to Talisay City's popular tourist destination - the Ruined Mansion aka The Ruins.

Selfie Sunday : Nomadic Matt

Nomadic Matt in Prague

One of the world's most popular travel blogger is also one of the best travel adviser. Nomadic Matt is a living proof that you can travel the world without losing fortunes.

Photo Featured : Cruising's Written World

Cruising

Please check-out the May 2014 issue of Cruising #Going Places Magazine where I have contributed my photo of Balaan Bukid in Guimaras. It is a full-packed summer issue featuring some of the great island destinations in the Philippines. Cruising is available at all leading bookstores nationwide at an affordable price of Php 120.00. 

Selfie Sunday : Ayn of My Travel Remedy

Ayn in Koh Nang Yuan Island

Who is Ayn? A Registered Nurse. Traveler. Basketball Player. Sporty. Backpacker. Beach Bum. Adventurer. Free Spirit. Soul Searcher. Health Buff. Food Lover. Loner. Spontaneous. Fickle. Adrenaline Junkie. Crazy. Reckless. Adaptive. Happy-Go-Lucky. Contented. 

Foodstagram Friday : Project Pie

Make Your Own Pizza

Concept diners are dime-a-dozen in the Metro and each of them will try to outdo each other in terms of gimmicks and something new to offer. Project Pie has brands itself as "an everyday artisan pizza custom built by you". As their story goes, one man got sick of eating bad pizza and thought the good stuff cost too much. So he set out to createa fast, casual, custom pizza restaurant, and ended up pioneering the category. After opening Mod Pizza in Seattle and Pie-Ology in California, both to popular acclaim, he decided to move the idea forward. Thus, Project Pie was born and dubbed as the next generation of pizza pie.

Selfie Sunday : Dong Ho of Eskapo

Dong Ho at Hungshan Mountains in China

A traveler extraordinaire is also one of the Philippines' most popular travel blogger. Papa Dom, Dominic or Dong is everyone's friendly travel buddy. He is a great source of information on places off-the-beaten paths and has a ready tip for those who want to visit a new place he has previously explored.

Foodstagram Friday : Bon Banhmi Vietnamese Sandwich

My Grilled Beef Banhmi

This is a schedules post for I will be away in place where Leah Salonga sang Sun and Moon... in a place where it is all same same but different... in a place where Banh Mi is the king of all sandwiches. But before I could feature the place in this blog, let me first share you the closest the Philippines could offer... the Bon Banhmi Vietnamese Sandwich Place in Makati.

Batanes : Rolling Hills

Look-Up : Rolling Hills of Basco

I picture myself running playfully after my lady love in the rolling hills of Batanes. "Habulin mo ko, habulin mo ko" she quips as she sway past the wooden posts that serve as markers and sashays in the a field full of flowers. Floating like an angel in her flowing white dress, I tried to catch her not knowing that we have been running the entire length of about three kilometers on the way up. And when I am about to reach her at the top, she tripped on a protruding bark and slowly rolled-down continuously to the bottom of the hill. Then I said... "Naknampucha, kaya pala Rolling Hills!"

Selfie Sunday : Kirk Acebron of Kirk Anatomy

Kirk is an anatomy explorer, but he prefers discovering the anatomy of the world rather than the human anatomy. He is a registered nurse but rather than nursing patients, he opted to first nurse culture, tourism and traveling. When asked to join Selfie Sunday, Kirk cannot decide on a particular photo so he decided to share three.

Lent 2014

Wherever you will be this Lenten Season... 

Sto. Nino in Zamboanga City

... giving praise to the holy one...

Selfie Sunday : Ivan of Batang Lakwatsero

Ivan in the Summit of Mount Kitanglad

Ivan Cultura aka Batang Lakwatsero believes that we live in a big strange land, so we must go forth, explore, discover. And discover he did for this young traveler has been climbing mountains after mountains. Name a mountain and he has probably climbed it... from Apo to Pulag, from Kanlaon to D2K and many, many more.