Tag Archives: South East Asia

#100Days Photo 48: Winter Sunset in Chiang Mai

In search of family-friendly activities in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we proceeded to the Chiang Mai Zoo after our visit to the elephants at the Elefin Cafe. Our timing was just right as it was not so hot, and we also saw performances from both professional entertainers and the amazing animals! In between, I took a moment to reflect on life so far—while enjoying the Chiang Mai sunset before me.

Over the mountains, orange and red hues; reminders of life wrapping up everyday, as it should and would continue to do so. Exploring a new place is always special to me, but this winter sunset in Chiang Mai while on trip with family somehow hit differently—a sight to behold for a future that continues to unfold.

9 iconic travel locations to visit after the covid-19 pandemic

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 or COVID-19 pandemic has affected lives all over the globe, including ours and millions of people wishing to travel and visit iconic travel locations and wonderful destinations.

While the pandemic definitely had the most devastating impact on informal economies (particularly “no work, no pay” jobs and hand-to-mouth income brackets), the global aviation and tourism industry has also taken the economic brunt.

To get us through our collective travel deprivation despair, here’s some iconic travel locations (some quite obvious and some less known) you might want to add to your post-pandemic “revenge travel” bucket list (or even “religious places to visit”, as it turns out) once we take to the skies as borders reopen and the world is safe again.

The Eiffel Tower and the Notre Dame Cathedral are both found in Paris, France. The French capital is also referred to as the City of Love, undoubtedly due to the romantic feeling one can experience while walking along the River Seine and looking at all the gorgeous architecture.
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#100Days Photo 39: Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

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A three-hour drive from Hanoi, Vietnam’s capital city, will bring you to the calm and charming Ha Long Bay. Located in the Gulf of Tonkin in northeast Vietnam, Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that has withstood the test of time, and yes, naval battles and legends. Literally translated as “Bay of the Descending Dragon”, Ha Long Bay offers visitors a majestic view of naturally-formed limestone pillars and, if you have much time to spare, over 1,600 islands and islets. A popular way to enjoy the scenery is by taking one of the numerous Ha Long Bay cruises through glass-like waters (although it was a bit too green for me!) aboard these ships that looked like the ones used back in the 1900s era (my first thought was the Huckleberry Finn cartoons!), giving it an old world feel. We spent two days and a night aboard one (and I was happy to see two very able Filipina crew managers) and although we were actually working (yep, no kidding!), in that short time, I really got to appreciate the calmness (so unlike the 2Go weather fiasco!), majesty and beauty that Ha Long Bay offers to its visitors.

FotoFolio: Museums of Ho Chi Minh – a glimpse into Vietnam’s history

When I booked my Cebu Pacific piso fare from Ho Chi Minh to Manila way before deciding to actually do a Southeast Asia trip, the driving force was to eat the noodle soup pho and the fresh vermicelli spring rolls in Vietnam.

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Oh my PHO!

 

The ignorant that I am of Asian and world history, the only things I knew of Vietnam were the food I wanted to eat and the war with America.

Continue reading FotoFolio: Museums of Ho Chi Minh – a glimpse into Vietnam’s history

#100Days Photo 29: The Small Pond and the Batu Caves, Selangor, Malaysia

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During the first time I set foot in Malaysia back in 2010, we only had one day and between Melaka, Genting Highlands and the Batu Caves, we decided to play with the clouds. It was only during the month-long Southeast Asia backpacking trip that I made it to Melaka and to the Batu Caves, both thanks to my fried Rajie who took time off her busy schedule to tour me, Lalai and Tetet! 🙂 Anyway, Batu Caves, as the name suggests (in Tagalog, batu, well bato, means stone), is a series of caves and cave temples inside a limestone hill. Batu Caves is a popular tourist spot and Hindu temple site around 13kms north of Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia. The area is surrounded by birds feeding on corn kernels the visitors throw around and by a small pond of ducks and koi fish. You’d need to climb up about 8-10 floors worth of stairs, alongside monkeys that can be pretty violent when they see food, to get inside the caves and the temples. Rajie, at the time at least, was not a devout Hindu so we were not sure whether the stories of Kartikeya (the massive golden statue at the foot of the caves to which the cave temples are dedicated to), and his family (daddy = Shiva, mommy = Parvati, brother = Ganapathi) and the peacock he’s riding, were as accurate as the scripts or just made up bedtime stories! It was quite entertaining though. 🙂 After visiting the caves, you might want to relax your legs and knees a bit and stay a while by the small pond, watching the ducks and koi fish glide and swim. Or, you can also pay a visit to Lord Hanuman, the monkey god, farther on the left.