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Taipei is what everyone calls “big things come in small packages”. Yes, it is among the smallest capital cities in the world. But their caboodles of attractions are larger than life, bigger than imagined & too many to fit in a short holiday spree. In 2015, Taipei ranked 11th...

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The recent culmination of Panagbenga Festival in Baguio City sees another blossoming success in Project Puraw. It is a community effort that springs hope to mitigate the impact of climate change through green urban renewals. Project Puraw or white in the local language, brings together the various sectors of...

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“I am just a farmer”, Jeffrey muses as he handed me a bouquet of freshly cut roses. At first glance, you couldn’t tell that this man in his muddy farm boots & buri hat is actually a multi-awarded landscape artist in the Panagbenga Festival. I adore flowers because of...

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As peculiar as its existence, a real princess chamber called the lamin still stands to this day. It hides in shambles in a small lakeside town of Binidayan in the province of Lanao del Sur. I always thought that those bedtime stories of princesses locked up in a tower...

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Imposing, bright & ornate. This is the Royal Ambarrukmo Hotel, the 21st century re-imagination of Yogyakarta’s timeless sultanate opulence & grace. Arriving on the eve of Hari Raya, the incantations of Islamic prayers enveloped the royal residence silhouetted in faint darkness. My heart was racing in excitement knowing that...

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If you like the verdant rolling hills & the quaint ambience of north Batan in my other post, you’ll fall in love with south Batan island even more! The southern tail of Batan, the capital island of Batanes basks on unapologetically excessive beauty. From emerald mountainscape & sparkling coasts to...

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For its seemingly surreal landscape, Batanes is any shutterbug’s paradise. In the island of Batan alone, everywhere you look around is a sight worth the click. And on north Batan Island lies some of the iconic landmarks that have won the hearts of all its visitors. Everyone gets through...

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“Terracotta army, terracotta army”, shouted the street hawkers in a maddening frenzy as passengers began to emerge from the train station in Xian, China. I was tugged, followed & swarmed by tour barkers, all speaking at the same time in incomprehensible Chinglish. Surely, they know what travelers come here...

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Paradise found is paradise lost. This saying is the reason why I parked my thoughts writing about Balbalasang National Park for a long time. I’ve been hesitating to tell my story about it fearing that I may be leading this new getaway into the claws of mass tourism. But...

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Kalinga tattoo was once feared to die in the hands of Apo Whang-od, its last grandmaster, who at 100 still inks with folk precision. Tossed by social media, her unprecedented fame created a newfound appreciation of a unique traditional art. It midwifed cultural tourism in Kalinga & bred pilgrims...

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In another story I wrote about how I easily ripped off my money to Bandung’s maddening world of shopping. And I have to add another confession because just minutes before we left the city, I carted out more—a pair of Hijack Sandals! I have to admit that I’ve already...

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