One of the movies I’m looking forward to watching is “On the Road” which is based on a book with the same title. This was written by Jack Kerouac and despite being in the travelling scene for quite some time, I’ve only heard about Jack and his famous book recently.

I seldom get to watch movies but I fancy these road trip diary scenes as they had inspired me to do what I’m doing in the present. Here’s a trailer of the movie below.

The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow Roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars, and in the middle, you see the blue center-light pop, and everybody goes ahh... – On The Road, by Jack Kerouac

Click here to read the rest of this entry»

I didn’t realize it’s been a month since I took a flight from Manila to Vietnam to start my backpacking journey in Southeast Asia and become location-independent. I travelled to Ho Chi Minh City and Mui Ne in Vietnam, Siem Reap in Cambodia, and Bangkok in Thailand.

I didn’t maximize the number of days before my passport expired for each country as this month was more of a vacation than anything else. Despite the sudden change of locations, I came across a few realizations and learned some lessons along the way.

1. Stay healthy!

I overdosed on spicy food in Thailand but I still kept eating them. I also didn't watch what I ate that I ended up having diarrhea for a couple of days.

I can’t afford to get sick. Aside from the cost of medicines, I also wasted time trying to recover my health. I could’ve used the opportunity to work on other jobs that would allow me to generate more income. Or I could’ve used the time to explore other areas in Bangkok.

Thai Food - spicy!

Click here to read the rest of this entry»

So I’ve been late on the news and I found out that Filipinos have easier access to direct flights from Manila to Cambodia courtesy of Cebu Pacific Airlines. I’m currently based in Siem Reap and I was told that the airline seats are fully booked for April 2012 onwards!

Cebu Pacific Air is set to roll out these Manila to Siem Reap flights 3 times a week starting April 19. I know I’ve had my fair share of adventures during my trip last year and now because of this Cebu Pacific flight, the Philippines can fly directly to Cambodia.

Normally, travellers will have to go by land from Bangkok to Siem Reap or Ho Chi Minh City to Siem Reap and it would take at least 9 hours via bus from Bangkok and 14 hours from Ho Chi Minh. But with this recent news, this is a welcome treat for those who want to see the great Angkor Wat temple.

Click here to read the rest of this entry»

This is my 10th podcast episode and I’ve had the opportunity to talk to a travel blogger who works as a Virtual Assistant. This job allows her to have a bit of flexibility with her schedule as she can work from home or work anywhere so long as she’s connected to the internet.

Episode 10 of my Podcast Interview Series

Nina of JustWandering.org

A pioneer female travel blogger in the Philippines, Nina blogs at JustWandering.org. She and her website won the best Travel Blog in the 2010 Philippine Blog Awards, and also won the Best Travel Blog in the Nuffnang Asia Pacific Blog Awards 2011. It’s such a great feat knowing she competed against other top bloggers in other countries in the Asia Pacific.

She may look shy, but Nina has already bungy jumped from the Macau Tower and has travelled solo to so many countries already.

I was really nervous during this interview and it showed when I listened to the finished product. Nina also admitted that she was was also conscious on how she sounds but it’s something that we were both trying to overcome. That’s why I’m really glad that she said yes to this podcast. We were also joined by her friend, Hazel and James of JourneyingJames.com.

Interview Location: Va' Pensiero, Araneta Coliseum, Cubao
Photo Credits: Cla Ines of http://cgines.wordpress.com/

Click here to read the rest of this entry»

Formerly known as Hotel Vida, the Widus Resort and Casino hotel in Clark, Pampanga was the last place we checked in during our Lakbay Norte 3 trip. This was a nice and relaxing place to cap off our eight-day adventure to different parts of North Luzon.

Widus Resort and Casino Hotel in Clark, Pampanga
January 28, 2012

Hotel Widus, Clark, Pampanga

To be honest, I didn’t expect a lot from this hotel. I was just happy to rest after a long day of pampering. But when I saw our King Bed and Single bed room, I was amazed.

our room in Hotel Widus

Click here to read the rest of this entry»