A wide blue-gray river flowing into the horizon, bright green mangroves, and bamboo rafts turning almost golden in the sunlight greeted me and my travel companions as we crossed the bamboo bridge to Palina Greenbelt Ecopark in Roxas, Capiz. And save for a gentle breeze, all was quiet. In fact, we were the only people…
I read somewhere that once in your life, if you are lucky, you will meet that person who will forever divide your life into the time before you met him or her, and the time after. Such is the impact of that person in changing your life. This 2012, it was not a person for…
How do you end a 7-week backpacking adventure that has changed you, humbled you, and left you in mute awe far too many times than you thought you deserve? I had no ready answer to that question. Just a little over 24 hours before my flight from Roxas, Capiz, back to Manila, I felt I had nothing…
I’ll be honest – Boracay was not part of my “must-go-to” list. I had always thought of Boracay as a party place, and partying, while appreciated, is not exactly my top priority when traveling. When it comes to beaches, I usually prefer unspoiled, sometimes even isolated ones – the likes of Danjugan Island, one of…
It was quiet, very quiet. All around me dark mahogany trees rose to the sky. I basked in the silence as I walked around and admired thick trunks and roots flowing like tiny rivers. The occasional patches of sunlight breaking through the canopy made the silent forest all the more magical. It was so beautiful…
Hot springs are love and therapy for the body, but aesthetically, sometimes they look all the same to me, especially when they are enclosed in swimming pools. Which is why I was in for a pleasant surprise when I made my way up Siraan Hot Spring in Anini-y, Antique. Siraan Hot Spring is on top…
Iloilo is a heritage haven of churches, with the Miag-ao Church rightfully recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it is Iloilo’s oysters that I will always remember, and which I actually came back for on my second visit, during my 7-week Visayas backpacking trip. As soon as I sank my teeth into the…
It was my first official day of traveling solo in my 7-week backpacking adventure. Feeling excited and just a little scared, I bade goodbye to my friends bound for Manila while I headed to the port in Ubay, Bohol, with boat trips to Hilongos, Leyte. From Hilongos I would be taking a van to Tacloban…
Danjugan Island is the perfect playground for kids and kids at heart. With its beaches, plentiful and colorful marine life, mangroves, caves, sea eagles and other birds, what more could a kid ask for? A few months ago, on one of Danjugan’s marine and wildlife camps, I was lucky to see kids smile and laugh…
For travelers who want an experience of paradise while supporting a worthy cause, Danjugan Island is my top recommendation. Danjugan is not just a wild, unspoiled paradise – it is a paradise consciously and painstakingly maintained by a group of committed environmentalists, the Philippine Reef and Rainforest Conservation Foundation, Inc. (PRRCFI), and volunteers. During my…
Traveling Light 