Skip to content

April 2008

Cooling the heat with streetside halo-halo


    Tiwi’s famous halo-halo topped with grated cheese.

    “Go to any place in the country and one is sure to find cheap streetside halo-halo.”It’s summer and the weather’s just too hot and humid. What better way than to cool the heat off with halo-halo? Go to any place within the country and one is sure to find streetside halo-halo in various forms with various ingredients. And these are very cheap compared with those found in malls and restaurants. Prices can range between P10 to just as high as P40 ($0.20 – $1) and one can already have a filling and enjoyable fare.

    Tiwi in Albay is famous for its unique take on this native fare. Other than the usual ingredients of candied and sweetened fruits and preserves and an almost liquid leche flan, it is topped with grated cheese. Just imagine the opposing taste of sweet/salty and you have a one-of-a-kind halo-halo. When in town, just ask for directions to the street where a series of shops selling this fare can be found. It is just near the church.

    Read More »Cooling the heat with streetside halo-halo

    Busuanga aerials

      langyaw_busuangaaerial_01.jpg
      A riverine estuary meandering its way to the sea.

      map_busuanga.gif Busuanga Is. in the Calamianes group in northern Palawan is an adventurers’ and divers’ paradise because of its natural wonders, world class dive sites, beaches and (stunted) African wildlife in Calauit. But coming in from Puerto Princesa via a plane is another traveler’s treat: the wild and domesticated environment as viewed from the aircraft’s window.

      Verdant forests as well as estaurine tributaries with its pockets of mangroves. Low hills with patches of cultivated areas but most of the times denuded. And of course, man made its mark as a rough road cuts through the green.

      Read More »Busuanga aerials

      I’m raring to go on the road again!

        He was… waiting. Feeling the wind, the water and his heartbeat. Blame it on ennui and the rustle and bustle of polluted Metro Manila that my feet is itching for that ride to nowhere again or just a sojourn to some place else. I was browsing through my files and saw this photo of a skimboarder off Palo in Leyte just near the famous Red Beach where MacArthur and company have been immortalized. He was surveying, looking for that perfect wave to ride. Waiting. Feeling the wind, the water and his heartbeat.

        End of the Luzon-Visayas-Luzon loop


          My gear during the entire trip while aboard the roro from Calapan.

          theLOOP mindoro route This is the 16th and last installment of the Luzon – Visayas – Luzon Loop series. Click the image on the right to check out the rest of the posts.

          It’s the end of the road for my first Luzon – Visayas – Luzon roadtrip or what I fondly call, theLOOP. Its been really an arduous but enjoyable adventure across many provinces, thousands of kilometers and new discoveries. The total cost might be more than taking a plane Manila-Cebu-Manila but the experiences I gained, PRICELESS!

          Will I do this again? SURE! And I will not only repeat it if time and budget allows but I’m looking at longer routes ahead!

          Read More »End of the Luzon-Visayas-Luzon loop

          Boracay is no paradise

            It’s too crowded. It’s overhyped. It’s too commercialized. It’s just one huge tourist trap.

            An accidental foray in Boracay


              Its a lovely confluence of sun, sand and sea.

              theLOOP Boracay This is the 14th installment of the Luzon – Visayas – Luzon Loop series. Click the image on the right to check out the rest of the posts.

              “I was speechless… I was struck with awe! What fine white sands. What emerald waters…”With the 1000H roro that I was to take from Caticlan to Roxas in Mindoro having engine trouble and the schedule postponed, I found myself paying the EXORBITANT environmental and terminal fees imposed on travelers in order to have a glimpse of the supposed charms of paradise that is Boracay. With just less than a few hours for the 1400H roro, I made a lightning sidetrip to this fabled island.

              The first time I gazed upon the western shoreline of Boracay and I was just speechless! What fine white sands. What emerald waters. I was struck with awe. No wonder that sunworshipers of all stripes and colors whether foreign or domestic have been raving, singing high praises and coming back again and again to this island.

              Its a confluence of sun, sand and sea coupled with the many conveniences found here that has become the siren song for many visitors.

              Read More »An accidental foray in Boracay

              Impressive: Cabatuan and Sta. Barbara churches


                The impressive Cabatuan Church

                theLOOP north negros route This is the 13th installment of the Luzon – Visayas – Luzon Loop series. Click the image on the right to check out the rest of the posts.

                In the Visayas, Iloilo is one of the provinces with many colonial era churches. What better way to spend a few hours before my trip to Kalibo that afternoon than with visiting two of these?

                The first time I saw a photo of the church of Cabatuan and I was immediately drawn to it. Its impressive and imposing. An architectural achievement. Its squat but massive twin belfries flanks a simple facade built along neo-classic lines. Finished in 1866, it is one of the biggest churches in Panay.

                Read More »Impressive: Cabatuan and Sta. Barbara churches