“Is that because of us?” was Nix’s question after telling her how I ended up not scratching anything off my bucket list when I visited Chiang Mai, Thailand. Nix Nicolas is a co-founder of Save Philippine Seas (SPS). “Yes,” I replied with an unblinking stare. The month before, I found myself reluctant to try some…
From Geekery
What I Think About When I Think About Blogging*
My scriptwriting professor failed to show up in class that Wednesday afternoon because of a schedule conflict and I was left in between two choices on how I would spend the rest of the day. The left side of my brain was trying to persuade me to go to the mall and watch a movie.…
Traveler vs Tourist: Traveling Without Labels
The traveler-vs-tourist debate has been around for ages. To some, a tourist is somebody who is more interested in the destination and not the journey, who usually avails of pre-arranged tours and sticks with the guidebooks, who books accommodations beforehand, and who only admires the place and not make attempts to connect with the locals…
The World According to Google Search Suggestions
“Filipinos are annoying. Malaysians are ugly. Indonesians are lazy. Singaporeans are rude. Americans are dumb.” That’s what Google suggested when I typed the nationality (+ are) into the search box the other night. I was doing an online research about Malaysia for my travel blog when I spotted a search suggestion that I thought was a…
The Lady with a Bag of Fruits
The sun was baking the town when I hopped out of the bus. I just arrived in Batangas from Manila and waited for my ride in front of a 7-Eleven store. From where I sat I could see a woman walking towards the convenience store — little by little, step by step. She was agonizingly…
On Being 26 and Lost: The Birthday Post
I was drinking the other night and in between gulps of beer and shots of tequila, I realized that I still had not blogged about my birthday. I turned 26 last Tuesday. I have been busy. Yes, I quit my full-time job two months ago. Yes, I stay at home, in front of my laptop…
The Paradox of the Freedom Islands
A month ago, if a foreign traveler asked me where the nearest mangrove forest lies, I’d probably tell him to take the bus to Quezon or fly to Palawan. If one asked me to take him to a place where he could go bird-watching aside from UP Diliman, I’d probably drive him out of the city to Pampanga. If he asked me to take him to a place where he could see dolphins, I’d tell him to head over to Batangas. I just didn’t know any place within Metro Manila where anyone could bond with nature. Recently, however, I learned…
Protected: The Giant Disco Ball
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.