Yearender: It Comes and She Goes

"Even though I took a step back from things that the metropolitan world would describe as success, I could say that it is one of the best years of my life. It is the year when I discovered my love for the mountains, my affection for the waters and most importantly, my passion for traveling." - Paulakwatsera in Baler, December 2013 

My first job (2009 - 2010) allowed me to become a Mabuhay Miles elite member and be up in the air almost every week but even though I constantly travel during that time, I had the littlest appreciation of the places that I'd been to. Going back home is the first thing that I have in mind the moment I set foot on a new place back then. 

But 2013 is the year when I have discovered a comfort in dislocation. This is the year when I started to enjoy traveling solo, the year when I conquered my first summit, the year when I fell in and out of love in a week, the year when I almost died doing the thing that I love, the year that I experienced my highest highs and my lowest lows, and the year when I developed my love for travel blogging. 

Baler: Coming of Age and Uncovering That Secret Spot

I had planned to be somewhere extra special in celebration of that day when my parents screwed up their lives. I was thinking Batanes or Bali in Indonesia just so I could have bragging rights of being somewhere significant on my day. But just like most of my travels, out of no cognitive reason I ended up in a place east of Nueva Ecija.

If you do not already know, Baler is best known for surfing. I am no surfer nor am I a swimmer, and my surfing stint in La Union was probably out of pure luck or weak waves so there is no real reason why I choose to be here for my birthday. But I guess it is the mindless decisions that always lead me to the most blissful moments.

My First Not-So-Couchsurfing Experience

Couchsurfing

A global community of 7 million people in more than 100,000 cities who share their life, their world, their journey. Couchsurfing connects travelers with a global network of people willing to share in profound and meaningful ways, making travel a truly social experience.
With Couchsurfing, you can stay with locals in every country on earth. Travel like a local, stay in someone’s home and experience the world in a way money can’t buy.

I first heard of this website while researching an itinerary for the South Korea trip. I came across the blog Chronicles of Marianne and I've read about the author's couchsurfing experience in Korea. I thought it was interesting to get free accommodation whilst getting to experience a place on a local's perspective, safely away from the tourist traps.

I immediately signed up and was surprised with how massive the Couchsurfing community is in the Philippines. It turned me off a bit though because most of the meet ups in Manila are in a bar on a Thursday. Being that geeky introverted person that I am, I knew for a fact that it is not my kind of crowd.

The Cordilleras: Seeking Serenity in the Clouds

All this time I thought I was traveling to find myself, I didn't realize that I am just using it as an excuse to escape who I really am.  
It is not always about meeting truckloads of new people and ticking off a new destination out of your list every week. Sometimes living life to the fullest means appreciating the relationships that you already have, bringing joy to whichever place you are always in and being thankful for that awesome person that you already are.

The Cordillera Series
The Cordilleras: Baguio - Sagada - Banaue - Batad Itinerary, Expenses and Travel Tips
The Cordilleras: Seeking Serenity in the Clouds

The Cordilleras: Baguio - Sagada - Banaue - Batad Itinerary, Expenses and Travel Tips

DAY 1 - 11/14	Time	Price (Php)
ETD Manila via Victory Liner Caloocan	9:00 AM	450
ETA Baguio, take a taxi to AJ's Pension House	3:30 PM	50
Check in at AJ's Pension House	4:00 PM	1100 / 3 pax
Walk around Baguio City	5:00 PM
Dinner at Ganza Restaurant in Burnham Park	7:00 PM	700 / 3 pax
Walk around Baguio City some more and appreciate the night lights	8:00 PM
Back to AJ's Pension House, Lights out	9:30 PM

AJ's Pension House

10 Things To Do in South Korea

If you think watching Korean dramas all day everyday is enough to get to know the land of fermented cabbage and epicanthal folds,  I must tell you that are wrong. There is more to South Korea than kimchi, BB creams, insanely unblemished pale people and KPOP.

Below are the list of the things I did to get to know South Korea and eventually fall in adoration with this amazing country.

1. Visit Jeju Island.
Jejudo a.k.a. Jeju is one of the most magical place I have ever been to. No trip to South Korea is complete without a stop at Jeju. If I am going to visit Korea again, I will skip Seoul and head straight to this breathtaking place. The following are the must visit places in Jeju. 

Jusangjeolli Cliff

Itinerary for Seven Days and Six Nights in South Korea

First things first, Filipinos need a visa to visit South Korea. Below are the requirements to get a tourist visa:

1. Application form
2. Passport (should be valid for not less than 6 months)
3. Photocopy of the 1st page of the passport
4. Passport size photo
5. Photocopy of ITR
6. Certificate of Employment
7. Bank Certificate (you should have at least Php 50,000 in your bank account)
 
Note: 
- Visa processing is free.
- Visa will be released 7 days after the requirements were completed and submitted.
- Make sure that the email address on your certificate of employment from the company you work for will not be changed soon because the Korean embassy will do a background check and will require them to reply. In my case, it took me almost a month to get my tourist visa because the HR personnel put in a soon to be phased out email address on my certificate of employment. PFT.
-South Koreans DON'T NEED a visa to visit the Philippines. UNFAIR!!

We booked our flight to Korea last June via Zest Air/Air Asia, fare is Php 5,000. As compared to the promo fares in Cebu Pacific, this is more expensive but at least I only have to wait 3 months and the best part is that there is free food during the flight. :)

My Favorite Place in South Korea

“Don't you think it's better to be extremely happy for a short while, even if you lose it, than to be just okay for your whole life?”

― Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler's Wife

Aside from Girls Generation, there was nothing about South Korea that I liked. I am not fond of watching Korean dramas and I think Koreans in the Philippines are rude, loud, and annoying. I actually can't remember the reason why I agreed to book a flight to Incheon last June, probably just out of pure fandom of Chyng Reyes. 

Then a month after, a fateful day came and I met the most amazing guy in El Nido who happened to be Korean. I fell in love with him but he eventually broke my heart so it just made things worst between me and the land of BB creams.

Mt. Cristobal: In Limbo at the Devil's Mountain

WARNING: This is a very Dashboard Confessional post. If you are looking for hike tips to Mt. Cristobal please stop reading and click HERE.

This is probably the first time I ever traveled without doing much research. I just followed the itinerary that Kirk of Kirk Anatomy laid out. Maybe it is the travel fatigue and therefore I thought a mountain, just like it always does, could change my current mindset. After all, Mt. Cristobal is also called the Devil's mountain being that it is beside the holy mountain, Mt. Banahaw, so I expected a faith-changing experience.
 
As compared to Mt. Maculot and Pico de Loro, this is the most exhausting. The ascent is a constant assault but even so, I tried to keep up with our veteran guide, Tatay Jaime (the uncle of the Mt. Cristobal guide kuya Lucio - 09993903350). I distanced myself from the other 3 people I am with and opted to stay closer to him and talk to him instead. Partly because I wanted to get to know a local and to challenge my endurance to keep up with his pace, and mostly because my antisocial juices are overflowing that day.

With Tatay Jaime

Urbiztondo: On Wiping Out, Riding In and Running Away

 

I want something else, something more. I want to go and never go back. Because bite size travels don't suffice my hunger anymore. Because I know I should be somewhere else but here.