Archive for January, 2009
Secret Garden (Novaliches, Quezon City)
Posted by Fred in Places to Go, Where to Stay on January 28, 2009
A secret garden lies somewhere least expected. We’ve read about that in books and watched it in movies. In terms of Philippine travel, one may think about another secret garden near Tagaytay City — the former Sonya’s Secret Garden. But that’s not what we’re talking about here. Recently, we discovered a Secret Garden at the most unexpected time and in an unexpected place — Novaliches, Quezon City. Read the rest of this entry »
Camayan Beach Resort (Subic Bay)
Posted by Fred in Places to Go, Where to Stay on January 24, 2009
Fine sand pressing against feet seemingly in a million points. Sleepy sun slowly pushing gray clouds, revealing itself to an early jogger along the seashore. And, no, this is not Boracay. Read the rest of this entry »
Corregidor Island: History in the Ruins
Posted by Fred in Places to Go, To See on January 19, 2009
Corregidor Island is where the Filipino and American forces made a last stand against the invading Japanese forces in World War II, our school textbooks would tell us. The books bear photos of the guns and the ruins. Seeing the real thing, however, must be a totally experience, I thought when I was younger. So, today, after more than 30 years of delay, I finally crossed Manila Bay to invade what the forces during WW2 fondly call “The Rock”. Read the rest of this entry »
Corregidor Island: Araw ng Kagitingan
Posted by Fred in Holidays, Places to Go, Tips and Reminders, To See on January 19, 2009
Every April 9, the Philippines commemorates the Araw ng Kagitingan, also known as the Bataan and Corregidor Day. The last two strongholds of the United States Armed Forces, Far East (USAFFE), which include the Philippine Army and the US Regular forces, was Bataan and Corregidor. Read the rest of this entry »
Map and Directions: Corregidor Island, Philippines
How to get there? Map and directions for Corregidor Island. Related posts here and here. How to use map, click here. Please wait while the map loads. . . Read the rest of this entry »
Travel Wish List: Philippine Fiesta Celebrations to See in 2009
Posted by Fred in Places to Go, Things To Do, To See on January 15, 2009
It’s said that travel expense, which isn’t a necessity anyway, is the first to get thrown out the window in times of financial crunch. But while the world is no doubt in a financial storm today, it’s not an excuse not to plan the places to see in the Philippines for 2009, especially now that the 2009 long weekends have been declared. Here’s where (or what?) I want to see in 2009, under the fiesta/mardi gras category: Read the rest of this entry »
Bulalo at Leslie’s Restaurant (Tagaytay)
The main attraction of Tagaytay is the view of Taal Volcano, which could be seen along the edge of the outer crater. I’m not sure if “outer crater” is the appropriate term, but I have to hazard a guess considering that Taal Volcano is known as the “volcano within a volcano” or, its related phrase, “the lake within a lake”. Read the rest of this entry »
Sonya’s Garden Restaurant & Country Bed and Breakfast
Posted by Fred in Food, Places to Go, To See on January 12, 2009
Sonya’s Garden is not easy to find (in my previous experience, at least). This is probably the reason why it was previously called, if I’m not mistaken, as Sonya’s Secret Garden. The second time we were there, we told the staff if they could probably add more directions along the main road to make it easier to find the place, but then it wouldn’t be a secret, we were told. So we swallowed the explanation together with the fresh, green salad served for lunch. That was years ago. Read the rest of this entry »
Eastwood City (Bagumbayan, Quezon City)
Posted by Fred in Places to Go on January 10, 2009
No, Eastwood City isn’t a real city, as compared to, say, Quezon City where it’s found. It’s a name just like Star City, but Eastwood City is a place that combines fun, entertainment, business and residential space. Read the rest of this entry »
Baguio City New Year 2009: Fireworks Display
The main post on the Baguio City 2008 trip is here, but we have to separately post this video to avoid too much clutter in one article. There were many big fireworks displays in Baguio City to welcome the new year 2009. I heard there was one in Camp John Hay and another at the City Hall. We were about to proceed to John Hay right after the mass at the Baguio Cathedral, but whatdoyouknow, we were pleasantly surprised to learn that there’s also a fireworks display at the venue. Here’s part of what we saw. Nice. Read the rest of this entry »
Time to Travel: Long Vacations and Holidays for 2009
Posted by Fred in Holidays, Tips and Reminders on January 8, 2009
Expenses for travel, leisure, vacations and whatever you want to call it are not necessities, so these expenses get crossed out in the family budget’s list in times of recession or financial crunch. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to know the declared long weekends for 2009. By way of summarizing the official list of 2009 regular and special non-working national holidays (through Proclamation 1699), the following are the list of the ten (10) long weekends (weekends tacked to the official national holidays): Read the rest of this entry »
Best Local Government Websites 2007
Let’s start the year with something worthwhile. Among the many ways to encourage travel and tourism in the Philippines is providing information, principally on where to go, what to see and how to get there. Travel blogs, such as this visitpinas.com, could only do so much. The entity best equipped to let the world know about travel gems, hidden and not so hidden, is the local government itself. And the better way, if not the best way, of doing that is through a website. Read the rest of this entry »
La Mesa Dam and Ecopark (Quezon City)
Posted by Fred in Places to Go on January 4, 2009
With the increased popularity of ecotourism these days, going to the La Mesa Dam and EcoPark is an expected choice. Yet it’s ironic that we haven’t visited the place even if we work and live near it. So, during the 3 Kings celebration, we decided to have a picnic-lunch at La Mesa. Read the rest of this entry »
Typhoon Watch 2009
Posted by Fred in Tips and Reminders on January 3, 2009
Some say that doing things during the start of the new year dictates the tempo for the rest of the year. If that’s true, then it’s not good that the first typhoon for 2009 has entered the Philippine area of responsibility just two days into the new year. It’s not surprising, though, as 20 typhoons on average hit the Philippines every year, as noted in our previous article which also included reminders on typhoons. To track how many typhoons pass through Philippine jurisdiction this year, let’s list down each one as it hits the Philippines. Read the rest of this entry »
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