Travel and Tourism Industry [Archive] - Page 23

hakz2007

March 19th, 2010, 04:45 AM

Caramoan continues to attract “Survivor” crew
http://www.bicolmail.com/issue/2010/mar18/pictures/cara3.gif
Survivor Israel. Eran Michaelson, camp manager, Bicol Mail reporter Juan Escandor Jr, Michael Soun, production crew, and Jimmy Binyamini, camp manager pose for posterity after an interview.

CARAMOAN, Camarines Sur --- For the second time around, Survivor Israel will pay to rent the whole of the Gota Villge Resort, a local-government owned and operated tourist destination in Ilawod, Caramoan, Camarines Sur, to film two editions of “Hisardot (Survivor).”

Hisardot’s non-celebrity shoot would last 40 days while the celebrity edition for 30 days, excluding the pre-production of one-month and a half wherein the equipment, props and sites are prepared for the show.

“Best place, good people and unique sites,” quipped Jimmy Binyamini, production manager, when asked Monday what made them comeback and film in the same place three times in a row.

They were here last year in the same month to shoot one edition of Hisardot which broadcast ended last month via Israeli national television Channel 10. At this time they would again start shooting on Feb. 28 and end filming sometime in late May or early June.

Binyamini said that aside from promoting the adventure appeal of Caramoan islands which will be shown throughout Israel, the Hisardot would also employ some 200 local crews to assist their 120-crew production.

Great adventure site

“Caramoan is a great adventure site ideal to our show that’s why we are here again,” he said.

He explained the Hisardot has two parts, the “reality” part and the game part where the participants’ wits and survivor instincts are tested.

Eran Michaelson, camp manager, said the participants had undergone rigorous physical and psychological evaluation and that they are very strict with it in which even a slight indication of mental imbalance would automatically disqualify the participant.

Like castaways in an island, the participants of Survivor are exposed to very primitive conditions for 40 straight days followed by ubiquitous camera 24/7.

They have to build their own shelter and hunt and gather their own food while they are rewarded in games which ease some cravings and vote out each other up to the last participant standing.

Hisardot is actually the second media outfit of Survivor that filmed their editions in small islands strewn in the northeast of Caramoan facing the island-province of Catanduanes.

The French Survivor, Koh-Lanta Caramoan, was the first media outfit that filmed Survivor here starting 2008 then followed by production of media outfits from Israel, Bulgaria and Serbia in 2009. It was shown in Europe with an estimated 12 million viewers.

In Koh-Lanta Caramoan, the participants of mixed interests were dropped off by helicopters in the bay near a cove where the camp site was located, then hovered above towering limestone islands and exotic places comparable to computer-generated images.

A top executive of the Camarines Sur provincial government, who asked not to be named because the negotiation is still on-going, revealed that Survivor U.S.A. is also set to film here to commence next year until 2012.

The Survivor U.S.A. production is expected to bring in additional site improvements here which will be provided by the media outfit. The improvements would be left to the care of the provincial government after the filming to include swimming pool and asphalted road.

He said the production crew of Survivor U.S.A. has searched many areas in the Philippines and found Caramoan the most ideal place for their filming because of the unique geographical features of the place and the available facilities that meet the production standards.

What makes Caramoan a favorite place for Survivor shoot was its variety of sceneries and unique sites which cater to adventurous spirit, according to Jovi Villareal, recreational officer of Gota Village Resort.

Ning Villanueva, provincial tourism officer, said the Survivor hosting of Camarines Sur’s provincial government had significantly brought in foreign tourists which made the province the most visited destination last year.

Citing records from the regional office of the Department of Tourism, Camarines Sur had been the top tourist destination in the Philippines in the first nine months with 1,022,092 of which 206,937 were foreign tourists.

Of the foreign tourists that visited Bicol, Israel figured out as the second highest number of nationalities visiting the province after U.S. citizens who topped the tourist arrivals. Other nationalities with significant number of tourist arrivals were from United Kingdom, Australia and Japan.

The regional revenue generated from tourism reached more than P1B of which P0.7B had been contributed by Camarines Sur.

Protected area

Villareal said the local-government owned facility is within the 4,000-hectare national park which the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) agreed to place under the provincial government of Camarines Sur its management responsibility for eco-tourism development covering some 2,000 hectares of protected area.

He bared there are still many unexplored sites like tiny lakes, subterranean passages and underwater caves in the small limestone islands here which can cater to more daring skilled adventurous tourists.

Within the eco-tourism area, small islands are scattered sporadically with dramatic vegetation of plants and weed trees festooned-like in the cracks of limestone rock. At the base of these small islands are a number of narrow beaches and coves accessible by boat or kayak.

On the fringes of the land within the Gota Village Resort towering vertical limestone walls suitable to rock climbing abound while a newly discovered subterranean river awaits exploration by adventurous guests.

Just within the one-kilometer radius from the built-up area of Gota Village Resort where the resort administration building and facilities are located, Villareal and Zulueta recently stumbled upon an entrance of the subterranean river.

Zulueta said the old folks here knew about the entrance of the subterranean river several meters away from the underground passage of Manapot River that cut across underneath a limestone hill hallowed by high-domed cave accessible only through a steep trek halfway.

“But nobody would explore it because it’s too dark. They call this place Kadiklom (literally means very dark),” he revealed.

140M years geological processes

The primary attraction of the Gota Village Resort’s tourist area is the scenic view defined by its unique geologic configuration in the middle of a wide coastal marine environment.

According to a 1981 study of the Bureau of Mines and Geosciences, Caramoan exhibits the so-called Karst topography or landscape defined by varied formation of limestone masses which were subjected to geologic processes that created vertical cliffs marked by almost vertical fractures, solution cavities (sink holes) and jagged surfaces.

“These now correspond to the different islands in the northern coast of Caramoan. It evolved from the geological and geomorphological processes which commenced about 140 million years and continue up to the present,” the geological study said.

Euphi Peñano, resort manager, admitted that the geologic features of the place undoubtedly serve as the backbone and highlight of the area’s natural tourism assets.

Peñano said the experience of the natural and unique sceneries of Caramaon is a hit to visitors which can be enjoyed through several tour packages from island hopping, trekking, spelunking, cliff diving, kayaking by the river or sea, bicycle riding, bird and firefly watching, snorkeling to rock climbing.

“And for the Survivor production coming back, they must be profiting from the sceneries here that draw television viewers to their show,” Peñano concluded.

http://www.bicolmail.com/issue/2010/mar18/pictures/cara2.gif
SUBTERRANEAN. Newly discovered subterranean river of Mandiklom awaits exploration by tourist. A bat in flight on the upper left was captured bt the camera.

http://www.bicolmail.com/issue/2010/mar18/pictures/cara1.gif
Rock Climbing. A tourist tries the vertical limestone wall in Caramoan, Camarines Sur which according to the Bureau of Mines and Geosciences its formation started 140 million years ago and continuing up to the present.
http://www.bicolmail.com/issue/2010/mar18/caramoan.html

hakz2007

March 19th, 2010, 06:20 AM

Visa-free entry for Taiwanese tourists sought
Administrator Armand C. Arreza of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is urging the adoption of non-trade measures to make the Subic-Kaohsiung-Clark economic corridor work.

Arreza said while the issue of preferential treatment for Taiwanese investments is still being tackled, the Philippines can turn to tourism to open the corridor.

To realize this, Arreza said the privilege of visa-free entry should be expanded to include tourists. The privilege is currently reserved for Taiwanese manufacturing investors.

"We need to be more aggressive in offering incentives to Taiwanese," said Arreza.

The Philippines and Taiwan have yet to agree on the rules of origin, which define the local content requirement of goods made by Taiwanese locators in Subic and Clark.

Taiwan wants a lower 25 percent local content while the Philippines is asking for 40 percent. The current formula also limits sales to the local market to 30 percent of the entire production. Products beyond the hurdle are slapped with the the regular tariffs.

"While that is still an issue, we can pursue non-trade as an income source," Arreza sid.

Taiwan, he said, has about a million tourists but the Philippines is attracting onoy 100,000.
http://www.malaya.com.ph/03192010/busi9.html

xxxriainxxx

March 19th, 2010, 06:26 AM

i totally agree with dot secretary that its a big challenge to market the whole country as a major tourist destination due to its share of negative publicity. whether it is good or bad idea to feature a few places like cebu or camsur to sell the philippines to the world in this day and age, but this bbc feature is better than nothing at all! its free advertising.:cheers::cheers::cheers:

True. IMHO, I think we really should push for the DOT to be relocated to Cebu as well as develop our infrastructure as well. Cebu, I think has one of the most successful PR programs for its own tourist industry which would be good if it can be replicated in the other parts of the country.. CamSur likewise (although what lacks in CamSur is the infrastructure that will accommodate the surge of tourists). For one, we should really build better roads, better airports and international gateways to these destinations, better looking hotels, and a greener approach to tourism. Easily we have way better tourist destinations than our kapitbahays.

hakz2007

March 19th, 2010, 06:33 AM

True. IMHO, I think we really should push for the DOT to be relocated to Cebu as well as develop our infrastructure as well. Cebu, I think has one of the most successful PR programs for its own tourist industry which would be good if it can be replicated in the other parts of the country.. CamSur likewise (although what lacks in CamSur is the infrastructure that will accommodate the surge of tourists). For one, we should really build better roads, better airports and international gateways to these destinations, better looking hotels, and a greener approach to tourism. Easily we have way better tourist destinations than our kapitbahays.

In Davao, our governor have said (in a conference), "what you want, we will build it in CamSur".

RonnieR

March 19th, 2010, 10:07 AM

In Davao, our governor have said (in a conference), "what you want, we will build it in CamSur".

That is good. I hope that taxi cabs (commercial metered taxis) will be available soon in Naga City.

RonnieR

March 19th, 2010, 10:07 AM

Air China Launches its First Non-Stop Flight from Beijing to Manila:cheers:

PhoenixMiles members will be able to buy round-trip tickets for only RMB 1,666
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/air-china-launches-its-first-non-stop-flight-from-beijing-to-manila-88524347.html

BEIJING, March 19 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- On March 29th 2010, Air China will launch its first non-stop flight between Beijing and Manila. Round-trip tickets will be available to PhoenixMiles members for only RMB 1,666. In addition, from March 16th to May 31st PhoenixMiles members paying for round-trip tickets with PhoenixMiles will only have to pay half the normal mileage.

Flights to Manila will depart from Beijing Capital Airport at 8:00 PM on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday and arrive at 00:55 AM the next day. Flights to Beijing from Manila will depart at 06:30 AM local time on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday and arrive at Beijing at 11:10 AM. A Boeing 738 will be deployed for all flights on the Beijing-Manila route.

This new route will greatly increase the number of Filipino tourists visiting China. The Philippine Tourism Authority already has a Beijing office, and they believe that there is great potential for more Filipinos to visit China. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are currently the most popular destinations for Filipino tourists, who are interested in Chinese history and culture, as well as Chinese cuisine.

Air China passengers flying from the Americas and Europe can use Beijing as a hub for their flights on to the Philippines.

For more information, please contacts:

Chris French
Ogilvy PR Worldwide
Tel: +86-10-8520-6578
Email: chris.french@ogilvy.com

SOURCE Air China

RonnieR

March 19th, 2010, 10:12 AM

BBC Feature
BCC fast:track visits the Philippines

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/8569932.stm

it features cebu more than anything else!

RonnieR

March 19th, 2010, 10:15 AM

SBMA pushes special tourism visa arrangements for Taiwanese
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/248504/sbma-pushes-special-tourism-visa-arrangements-taiwanese

By BERNIE CAHILES-MAGKILAT
March 19, 2010, 3:23pm

As negotiations on the requirements for the manufacturing component of the Kaoshiung-Subic-Clark Economic Corridor bogged down with no clear direction, the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is pushing instead for immediate special tourism visa arrangements to tap the huge Taiwanese tourist potentials.

SBMA Administrator Armand C. Arreza told reporters during a recent interview that the guidelines governing the treatment of manufacturing investments by Taiwanese investors in Subic and Clark have not been completed as negotiations on the local content treatment bogged down.

Since there is no clear indication as to when the issue be resolved, Arreza has proposed that the Philippines should better go ahead with the forging of special visa arrangement for Taiwanese tourists to facilitate their entry into Subic and Clark.

“If we cannot yet benefit from the manufacturing component of the economic corridor agreement, then we might as well take advantage of the huge Taiwanese tourists by facilitating their entry into Subic and Clark freeports,” Arreza said.

The Taiwanese have been pressing for a much lower local content requirement than the ASEAN local content in their manufacturing their products in Subic and Clark

At present, the Philippines could only offer the same ASEAN national treatment policy to Taiwanese investors of 40 percent local content and sell up to 30 percent of their production to the local market.

On the other hand, the Taiwanese are still insisting on a 25 percent local content requirement.

Meeting the local content requirement of 40 percent is required to enable a manufacturer in an ASEAN member country to be able to export its product to avail of the national treatment, which would enable the company to enjoy the preferential tariff under the ASEAN Common Effective Preferential Tariff scheme.

The Philippines, a member of the ASEAN Free Trade Area, cannot also go lower than what has been implemented in ASEAN.

The Memorandum of Understanding for the RP-Taiwan Economic Corridor linking Subic/Clark and Kaoshiung was signed in December 2005, but has not been implemented.

Some of the offers perks being offered under the RP-Taiwan Economic Corridor Agreement include free-rent for 25 years in Clark to Taiwanese investors on condition they are going to develop the raw land, a move that is expected to make the country's incentive package more attractive to investors.

The Manila Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei had been stressing for the need for government to come up with competitive incentive package because Vietnam is attracting more investments.

"We're looking at parcels of raw land in Clark and get big Taiwanese companies to develop the land as part of the rental fee for the next 25 years. We can deduct the development cost for the lease payments," said MECO commercial affairs director Dita Angara-Mathay said.

Angara-Mathay said they have initially identified 1,000 hectares of idle raw land suitable for high-end manufacturing in Clark .

"This is one of our creative solutions," she said.

Clark is a good site because it is a component Kaoshiung-Subic-Clark Economic Corridor.

"This incentive would be exclusive for Taiwanese investors as part of the economic corridor incentive package," she said.

xxxriainxxx

March 19th, 2010, 10:27 AM

In Davao, our governor have said (in a conference), "what you want, we will build it in CamSur".

That is good. I hope that taxi cabs (commercial metered taxis) will be available soon in Naga City.

I agree. My unsolicited advice for CamSur - Build the infrastructure to match the tourism hype, otherwise people will be disappointed.:)
Looking forward for the international direct flights to Bicol. That will surely help boost the region.

kevinb

March 19th, 2010, 11:43 AM

That is good. I hope that taxi cabs (commercial metered taxis) will be available soon in Naga City.

Meron na. 40 units and will jump to 60 by end of year.:)

RonnieR

March 19th, 2010, 11:48 AM

Meron na. 40 units and will jump to 60 by end of year.:)

Wow, that's good news. I need to go back to Naga. Mabalos.
I'm not fun of water sports so I prefer the cityscapes. :)

kevinb

March 19th, 2010, 11:58 AM

^^ You're welcome.:D

xxxriainxxx

March 19th, 2010, 11:59 AM

Website offering Mindoro hunting tours taken down (http://www.thepoc.net/breaking-news/environment/4443-website-offering-mindoro-hunting-tours-taken-down.html)
Saturday, 27 February 2010 02:24 PM Laurice Claire Penamante

A U.S.-based group website offering wildlife hunting “adventure tour[s]” in Mindoro that caused a stir on Philippine blogs and prompted an inquiry from government officials has been taken down, allheadlinenews.com reports.

Hunting wildlife, as well as cruelty to animals, is illegal in the country by virtue of R.A. 9147, the Wildlife Resources Protection Act.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) announced Friday that they were investigating reports of wildlife hunting advertised on the internet.

The DENR referred to an advertisement on now-defunct Montana-based www.adventure411.com that offered to take foreign nationals on a two-week hunting expedition in Mindoro for a fee of $13,800 (P772,800). Game included bearded water buffaloes, black Philippine jungle cats, and other endemic species.

The DENR will not allow hunting in “Mindoro or anywhere [else] in the country” said DENR Secretary Horacio Ramos to inquirer.net.

The Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB) has also warned foreign nationals that violators caught hunting wildlife in the country will face arrest, reports The Mindoro Post.

"Any person who will be found hunting in any part of the Philippines will be dealt with the full force of Republic Act 9147 and other pertinent laws," warned Antonio Manila, PAWB assistant director in a statement.

R.A. 9147 prohibits “killing and destroying wildlife species” except when done as part of a religious ritual of indigenous communities, when done in self-defense, when the animal is inflicted with incurable communicable disease or otherwise afflicted, or when done during scientific research.

Violaters of the law face between six and 12 years in prison and/or fined P100,000 to P1 million (US $2,000 to $21,500).

Ramos appealed to the public to contact the DENR via phone (405-0323, 09173029257) or through email ( pawd_4b@yahoo.com.ph) if they have any information on illegal hunting activities in the country.

hakz2007

March 20th, 2010, 02:53 AM

RP DOT Beijing gets "Best Destination Promotions" Awards
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MANILA, March 19 (PNA)-- The Department of Tourism office in Beijing, China (DOT Beijing) has won the ‘Best Destination Promotions' Award from the China Travel Agent Magazine for its tourism promotional and marketing activities.

This is the fourth year that DOT Beijing won the award for the Philippines.

Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano on Friday lauded the DOT Beijing team for their excellent work in finding opportunities to promote the country as a premiere travel destination to the Chinese market.

“DOT Beijing efforts to reach out to the Chinese tourists through promotional materials as well as by disseminating good news about the tourism developments in the country have given us more reasons to hope for a more robust tourist arrivals from China this year and in upcoming years," said Durano.

The annual Destination Promotions award is being judged by CTA Magazine’s editorial board based on the quantity, quality and effectiveness of tourism promotional activities undertaken during the year by the national tourism organizations (NTOs).

The finalists are screened by selected airlines and major tour wholesalers with whom the NTOs have worked with or who have benefited from said tourism activities.

Other countries awarded the 2009 Destination Promotions award included Canada, Malaysia, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, Holland, Australia and Egypt.

Undersecretary for Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque Jr. said: “We commend the outstanding efforts of our tourism office and marketing team to promote the Philippines to the Chinese tourists.

"They have not only bridged the gap in geographical distance but also the difference in language and culture to promote the Philippines as a choice destination to the huge China market," said Jarque.

The CTA Magazine enjoys an esteemed readership base which includes 175,000 tour operators, airlines, NTOs and other trade members.

An online version of the magazine has a loyal readership of about 50,000.

Aside from the Best Destination Promotions Award for NTOs, CTA also confers awards on airlines and tour wholesalers. (PNA)
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=6&sid=&nid=6&rid=265417

Miguel

March 20th, 2010, 04:08 AM

It wonders me that I started a tourism thread for Negros Oriental yet I have never posted on this thread even once, to think that this is already on its 8th Thread. I'll just post here in batches so as not to flood this with my posts. Just want to share the natural beauty of my province.;)

Miguel

March 20th, 2010, 04:09 AM

LAKE
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

TWIN LAKES
Lake Danao and Lake Balinsasayaw
Sibulan, Negros Oriental

An amazing work of nature’s art are these two inland bodies of water amid lush tropical forests, with dense canopies, cool and refreshing air, crystal clear mineral waters with brushes and grasses in all hues of green is located in the interiors of Sibulan Negros Oriental. The Twin Lakes are composed of Lake Balinsasayaw and Lake Danao which is situated at 1,500 meters above sea level and are located 20 kilometers west of the municipality of Sibulan. Spend the rest of the day kayaking, boating, swimming or just taking in the natural beauty of the Twin Lakes which is by the way located on a protected Natural Park.

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pics taken from various sources in flickr

Miguel

March 20th, 2010, 04:11 AM

LAKE
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

Kayaking at Lake Balinsasayaw
Sibulan, Negros Oriental

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Welcome to Oriental Negros Philippines! (http://www.touroriental.com)

xxxriainxxx

March 20th, 2010, 04:12 AM

Miguel

March 20th, 2010, 04:14 AM

SANDBAR
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

SANDBAR
Manjuyod, Negros Oriental

Manjuyod Sandbar is a 7 kilometer stretch of pristine shoreline. Gleaming like a mirage in a desert, Sandbar is an unbroken stretch of white sand in the middle of the sea that appears only during low tide. But there’s nothing illusory about this piece of land. Once the boat docks, tourists disembark and frolic under the sun. Cottages on stilts provide temporary refuge for fatigued sun-worshippers and beachcombers.

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Miguel

March 20th, 2010, 04:15 AM

DOLPHINS
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

Dolphin Watching
Bais City, Negros Oriental

The dolphin watching and occasional appearance of whales during certain times of the year in Bais Bay is the first of its kind of ecotourism in the country. When these intelligent mammals were left in the wild and just to be admired from a close distance without imprisoning them and let them perform some circus tricks.

For almost close to two decades now, the local government of Bais saw the potential of tourism for dolphin and whale watching. It was a double edge sword as it earns money through tourism while at the same time educating the locals on protecting the marine resources. The ones who gained the most were the dolphins as no one was harmed in the process while being on the spotlight at the same time. Soon after other places follow suit, like Palawan and Bohol which are also now into dolphin watching.

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One can have a scenic cruise through these pumpboats while watching these frolicking mammals

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Not too far away is the Manjuyod Sandbar, the boat tour package includes these two attractions

Dolphins now taking over the show.

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photos by lil_mamba and julesnene

Miguel

March 20th, 2010, 04:16 AM

Lovely Negros Oriental!!

Thanks raian. That's it for now, I'll post the others in later time.

xxxriainxxx

March 20th, 2010, 04:29 AM

Thanks raian. That's it for now, I'll post the others in later time.

would love to come and visit... :)

sandwindstars

March 20th, 2010, 04:42 AM

I agree. My unsolicited advice for CamSur - Build the infrastructure to match the tourism hype, otherwise people will be disappointed.:)
Looking forward for the international direct flights to Bicol. That will surely help boost the region.

Tourism is an integrated industry with several sectors. That's what the master plan should cover. As for intl direct flights, not sure if that's necessary, just proper efficient air/land connection will do wonders.

wino

March 20th, 2010, 04:56 AM

dolphin watching?! heck, that is soo cooool!!
i would love to go there! :D

xxxriainxxx

March 20th, 2010, 06:44 AM

Tourism is an integrated industry with several sectors. That's what the master plan should cover. As for intl direct flights, not sure if that's necessary, just proper efficient air/land connection will do wonders.

True, although I really want to see in the future that the Manila airport terminals be decongested however...

xxxriainxxx

March 20th, 2010, 06:45 AM

dolphin watching?! heck, that is soo cooool!!
i would love to go there! :D

There's dolphin watching in a lot of places in the country - Bohol, Negros Oriental, Puerto Princesa, we even saw spinner dolphins swimming by our boat when we made the crossing from Camiguin to Misamis Oriental last September, too bad I wasn't able to take a photo. :(

Dreamtofly

March 20th, 2010, 06:48 PM

Why the Philippines cannot capitalize the tourism industry? Here is some of my analysis.
1. Philippines should have lot of boutique, low cost, and bed and breakfast hotels. My point is that most of the traveler is not a business traveler most of them is a back packer people who love to see more of nature than paying 5 start interior hotels.
2. Improve transportation facility. Philippines are consisting of 7,100; to reach this entire islet it need to have an efficient transport system. I do love to do island hoping as long as that there is always reliable and safety transportation. Low cost airlines should start offer good connection to that beautiful resort in the country or hotel owners should start negotiating with Airlines Company to promote their resort. Ferry companies should also venture and offer new routes from places to places. Not concentrating on main hub. It took a lot of sacrifice and money at the start but at the end all will benefit. Want I can see to those transformation companies in Philippines is a profit hungry company.
3. Start to promote the Philippines internationally and make a positive image. The Government and business man should coordinate and make a temping offer just to promote the country. Government should start talking to those business owners to offer low packages for few years until our market is have been saturated. Government should offer intensive to the business owners like a tax free for few years. Any way all tourists will spend their money and all of these will go eventually to government (Indirect taxes just like the VAT).
4. The last thing Pilipino should have initiative to promote the country and improve the hospitability. We should include in our education curriculum taking care of nature and preserving for their own benefit and for the country benefit.

kiretoce

March 20th, 2010, 08:38 PM

Imminent death of offline airlines (http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=23124:imminent-death-of-offline-airlines&catid=28:opinion&Itemid=64)

Imagine that you are going to the Maldives to enjoy the summer heat. How are you going to get there? There is no airline that flies directly from the Philippines to that island paradise. But you can buy your tickets, from airlines that fly to the Maldives via Singapore, through travel agents who sell tickets here in the Philippines. Your travel agent will issue two tickets, i.e., Philippines to Singapore, then Singapore to the Maldives. Having the two plane tickets that you need at hand, you are ready for your sweet escape.

But what if there are no travel agents who sell tickets for flights not originating in the Philippines? For example, what if there are no travel agents in the Philippines who would sell the ticket for your travel from Singapore to the Maldives? What if from the Maldives you plan to go to New York for a business trip then to Los Angeles to visit your relatives, but the travel agents in the Philippines would not sell you these tickets? This scenario is imminent with the recent ruling of the Supreme Court (SC) in South African Airways v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, GR No. 180356, dated February 16, 2010.

The SC said the Tax Code of 1997 does not, in any categorical term, exempt all international air carriers from the coverage of Section 28(A)(1) of the Tax Code of 1997 which imposes tax of 32 percent (now 30 percent) on all income from sources within the Philippines of resident foreign corporations. It ruled that had the Legislature’s intentions been to completely exclude all international air carriers from the application of the general rule under Section 28(A)(1), it would have used the appropriate language to do so; but the Legislature did not. Thus, a resident foreign corporation, whether an international air carrier or not, would be liable for the tax under Section 28(A)(1).

The SC opined that the general rule is that resident foreign corporations shall be liable for a 32-percent (now 30-percent) income tax on their income from within the Philippines, except for resident foreign corporations that are international carriers that derive income “from carriage of persons, excess baggage, cargo and mail originating from the Philippines” which shall be taxed at 2.5 percent of their gross Philippine billings. Offline airlines, being international carriers with no flights originating from the Philippines, do not fall under the exception. As such, offline airlines must fall under the general rule.

Simply put, the SC is saying that the correct interpretation of the law is that, if an international air carrier maintains flights to and from the Philippines, it shall be taxed at the rate of only 2.5 percent of its gross Philippine billings, while international air carriers that do not have flights to and from the Philippines but nonetheless earn income from other activities in the country will be taxed at the staggering rate of 32 percent (now 30 percent) of such income.

The effect of this decision may be absurd, but the SC is tied by what the law says. This decision is virtually a death sentence to offline air carriers that are selling tickets in the Philippines. Business-wise, it may not be practical anymore for these airlines to sell tickets here in the Philippines. Unlike an online international airline which will only be taxed at 2.5 percent even though it sells online and offline tickets, an offline international air carrier which only sells offline tickets (flights that do not land or originate in the Philippines) will be slapped with the full tax of 30 percent.

This could have serious implications not only to people who plan to travel to the Maldives or who want a connecting flight from New York to Los Angeles. The Philippines could earn the ire of offline airlines and put itself in a compromising situation where Filipinos can only buy plane tickets from international carriers that maintain online operations in the country. As far as I know, they are very few and they have very limited offline flights.

There might come a time where offline airlines and their accredited travel agents will stop selling tickets in the Philippines. It means that if you are going to the Maldives, your travel agent will only sell the ticket for your flight from the Philippines to Singapore, but not for your connecting flight from Singapore to the Maldives. You will have to deal with the inconvenience of buying your ticket for your flight to the Maldives only upon arriving in Singapore. If this happens, your escape will never be as sweet.

ruralvillage

March 20th, 2010, 11:52 PM

Let's visit Bicolandia this summer! :banana: :banana:

Highway rush: A trailblazing experience in Bicolandia (http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/248707/highway-rush)
By JULIUS P. VICENTE
March 20, 2010, 6:56pm
Manila Bulletin (http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/248707/highway-rush)

There are a thousand and one reasons why Bicolandia should be on top of your list of must-see places this summer. A visit to this region will bring you through the scenic countryside and a gustatory delight that’s sure to whet your appetite.

Say Bicol and the majestic Mount Mayon comes to mind. Aside from this, the Bicol region also has the most beautiful beaches, various underwater adventures, cave explorations, mountain and volcano sightings, waterfalls, lush vegetation, and different types of Baroque architecture.

Bicolanos are also reputed to be fond of chili-based dishes and you will see in every house a backyard chili pepper plantation. Rumor has it that to humor their neighboring regions, Bicolanos would talk about saving first the siling labuyo plant before anything else in the face of a disaster.

Moreover, it is in Bicol that the most number of entrants to the seminary for Catholic priesthood or nunnery was recorded due mainly to the strong Spanish influence.

Isuzu Philippines Corporation, in partnership with Chevron Philippines recently hosted a trailblazing experience of Bicolandia using the 2010 Alterra SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle) model for the long drive.

The trip, which kicked off in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, was less than 500-kilometers of the South Luzon route. We motored through Lucena and Calauag in Quezon and all the way to Sipokot in Camarines Sur before reaching Legazpi City.

The long drive afforded us a view of small mountain ranges and coastal areas along Maharlika Highway, an experience that was truly relaxing and made us commune with nature. Thus, it was a fortification of our decision to visit Bicol region via what others called an “unconventional land trip.” However, using the new navigation system of Alterra, the trailing was much better.

With more or less 12 hours on the road, our pleasure peaked when we reached our final destination which was Misibis Bay Raintree in Cagraray Island, reputed to be the latest tropical hideaway this side of the Philippines.

Cagraray Island is part of the municipality of Bacacay which is known for its beautiful peninsulas, caves and beaches. Cagraray is located at a 481-kilometer island off the western coasts of Albay and is made up of one big island, one satellite island called Namanday with 11 islets.

At sunrise, visitors to Cagraray will get the chance to view the Pacific Ocean, the tip of Mt. Mayon on the western part, the mountain ranges of Sorsogon in the south, and the shoreline in the north.

A gust of invigorating wind, the saltiness of the ocean, the green fields and majestic peaks – these are just some of the thousand and one reasons why you should visit Bicol. The rest, you’ll have to find out for yourself.

“Mare na sa Bicol!”

naughtycalboy

March 21st, 2010, 01:54 AM

BBC Fast Track

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/8569932.stm

RonnieR

March 21st, 2010, 04:49 AM

Thanks raian. That's it for now, I'll post the others in later time.

Negros Oriental has lots of potentials. Need to visit the place. :cheers:

RonnieR

March 21st, 2010, 04:52 AM

Jeepney Tours Brings the Best of Manila to Travelers
http://www.prweb.com/releases/jeepney-tours/best-of-manila/prweb3752394.htm

http://ww1.prweb.com/prfiles/2010/03/19/126606/gI_jeepneylogosmall.JPG.jpg
The Jeepney Tours, brings 5 different thematic tours, offering a unique chance for travelers to explore and discover the best of Manila.

Manila, The Philippines (PRWEB) March 20, 2010 -- The Jeepney Tours, brings 5 different thematic tours, offering a unique chance for travelers to explore and discover the best of Manila.

Liza Mangune, Project Head of Jeepney Tours Manila says, "You can't say that you've been to Manila if you don’t ride the cultural icon of the Philippines, the Jeepney".

The Jeepney is a unique transportation that can only be found in the Philippines. It was originally made from the US military jeeps that were left to the Filipinos after World War II, giving it the powerful engine of an army jeep. With great Filipino ingenuity, the body was remodeled by adding some metal roofs and decorating it with vibrant colors. It has rapidly emerged as a creative and popular means of public transportation. Tagged as the "King of the Road," it has become an enduring symbol of Philippine pop culture.

The concept of "Jeepney Tours" is a breakthrough in Philippine tourism that offers a convenient and daily sightseeing tour to travelers staying in five star hotels who wish to explore the best of Manila. Its main objective is to leave a positive image of the Philippines with every single ride.

Jeepney Tours takes travelers on a fascinating tour of the historical and vibrant city of Manila and its environs such as Tagaytay and Pampanga onboard a custom-built air-conditioned jumbo jeepney which can easily seat 20 people. A tour facilitator joins the passengers for the whole duration of the tour to point out interesting landmarks and give brief backgrounds on the places that will be visited.

Stuck in Manila traffic? Fret not. There is a videoke system onboard to keep the guests entertained along the way. The jeepney has a cooler for storing cold bottled drinks to keep the guests refreshed and hydrated at all times, especially after a Lahar Safari and Ultralight Flying Adventure.

"The Jeepney Tours is a tourism breakthrough that we are extremely proud of. Despite all the challenges, our profound commitment to the tourism industry fueled us to develop a major tourism infrastructure that transports the tourists to a day filled with fascinating experiences, a day packed with cultural learning and beautiful memories that will make them remember the Philippines at its best," says Clang Garcia, Managing Director of Jeepney Tours.

The Jeepney Tours has different Thematic Tours to choose from.

Intramuros: A Cultural Heritage Tour
Intramuros or the "walled city" is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in the world. It is the best place to view Spanish colonial architecture that was built in 1571, including the San Agustin Church, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Travelers can also shop for masterfully crafted native products and enjoy lunch in an old Spanish house where they can savor Filipino and Spanish cuisine as they listen to a live string ensemble playing Spanish and Kundiman songs.

Intramuros Tour with Sunset Dinner Cruise
After an interesting Intramuros Heritage Tour, Jeepney Tours guests may unwind as they witness the captivating Manila Bay sunset, an extraordinary sight to behold because of the different play of colors decorating the sky. Watching the Manila Bay sunset through a Sunset Dinner Cruise is a truly pleasurable experience in the city. Seize the moment while riding on to the sunset with a romantic dinner cruise and enjoy a full course meal and live entertainment that showcases true Filipino talent onboard the yacht.

Cultural Dinner Tour
After an interesting Intramuros Heritage Tour, a cultural dinner at Barbara’s restaurant, a 19th century establishment that specializes in Spanish and native dishes may be enjoyed. Talented Filipino dancers will introduce guests to the many colorful and creative Filipino dances that originated from the barrios and other parts of the Philippines. The old world charm of Barbara’s adds a nice touch to the whole cultural experience.

Golf Package Tour
One thing that makes Philippine golfing unique from the standard experiences abroad is that all the courses have caddies. The caddies pull the clubs, they help with club selection as they eventually figure out how long a hitter a player is, and best of all give, they give advice on the play.

Jeepney Tours treats guests to a rolling tour of some of Manila or Makati's best attractions before proceeding to Club Intramuros, the oldest golf course in the Philippines built in 1907 located within the historical Walled City of Intramuros; or the Philippine Army Golf Course, located inside the military base of Fort Bonifacio, which will provide you with a fairly challenging round of golf with its rolling terrain. A half day of leisurely golf will be spent in any of these courses.

Corregidor Tour
Discover Corregidor, one of the most historical destinations in the Philippines. Start the tour with a ride on the jumbo jeepney which will take to around the different sights and sounds of the city of Manila before dropping you off at Corregidor port. During World War II, countless Americans and Filipinos fought bravely for the freedom of the Philippines. Corregidor became their official headquarters filled with old barracks, battery areas and camping grounds. In the past, it held instruments of war; today, it stands as an evidence of the old times, a remnant of the past and a tribute to the people who fought gallantly for the nation's freedom.

Jeepney Tours may be booked at major five star hotels in Metro Manila.

About Jeepney Tours
The Jeepney Tours is an essential introduction to Manila in a fun and informative way and it links the travelers to the main attractions of the city. It is a perfect gift that can be offered to visiting friends and colleagues to experience all the magical sights and sounds of Manila in an entertaining, comfortable and secure environment onboard a custom-built 20-seater jumbo jeepney.

# # #

xxxriainxxx

March 21st, 2010, 06:05 AM

RonnieR

March 21st, 2010, 06:41 AM

^^ This is a different company from the Hop On Hop Off offering the same service right?

I think it's different.

xxxriainxxx

March 22nd, 2010, 03:39 PM

I think it's different.

That's pretty cool. A new way to appreciate Metro Manila. :)

RonnieR

March 23rd, 2010, 06:55 AM

BOHOL

Synergy in Loboc

By Raul J. Palabrica
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 20:50:00 03/18/2010

UNTIL I EXPERIenced it, I thought glowing newspaper accounts about the Loboc river cruise in Loboc, Bohol, were all hype.

Last week, I was in Bohol to attend a corporate planning session at a beach resort. The place was packed with Europeans who were escaping the cold winter in their countries.

Ahead of the conference, the participants agreed that a Loboc river cruise will be a welcome break from two days of brainstorming and strategic discussions.

With the hot El Niño sun beating down the island, a noontime cruise was out of the question. An early evening cruise was the hands down choice.

The first thing that caught my attention when our group arrived at the Loboc pier was the orderly arrangement of the parking area.

There were attendants who guided the motor vehicles to their assigned slots. Clear directional signs were conspicuously posted.

Surprise, surprise! There were no street children or panhandlers who begged for alms, or persistent ambulant vendors who offered their wares to the visitors.

And unlike many local tourist spots whose restrooms are often the subject of complaints, the pier’s toilet facilities are well maintained. Although not stylish, they are hygienic enough to give their users a feeling of cleanliness.

Fresh air

The boat we rode was open on all sides. A gentle wind blew as it leisurely wended its way through the river.

The waterway was clean. Although there were some houses on the river bank, no debris or garbage floated around.

The refreshing smell of the water and the trees that lined the river was a welcome relief from the polluted urban air. Deep breathing was never that easy.

There were colorful lights along the river bank. A small waterfall at the river bend, which was bathed in spotlight, provided a dramatic backdrop to the surroundings.

The experience confirmed what a foreigner earlier told me that the Loboc river trip is comparable to the Rhine river cruise in Paris or the Amsterdam canals tour, minus garish neon lights and tall buildings.

The piece de resistance of the cruise was the “choir on the raft” where 20 young boys and girls on board a separate raft rendered several songs to the accompaniment of guitars.

Afterward, the children danced the “tinikling” (obviously a concession to foreign tourists) and did some dance steps to the tune of the latest hit songs.

So amid the darkness, two brightly lit river crafts floated in the middle of the river breaking the stillness of the night with songs, dances and laughter.

Musical scores

Capping that evening’s event was the performance at the pier’s adjoining Children’s Palace by a 40-person ensemble of girls and boys (whose ages ranged from eight to 20) who played various musical instruments.

The Loboc Youth Ambassadors, as the group calls itself, played non-stop for one hour without any notes.

Playing brass band style and with vibrant showmanship, their repertoire included scores by famous songwriters, both local and foreign.

A girl who seemed to be barely out of her teens rendered a song with high notes that reminded me of singer Charice Pempengco. After hearing the song, I understood why the Loboc Children’s Choir won major awards at the 2003 International Choir Festival in Spain.

The performers did their spiel with youthful ease and enthusiasm that it looked like they were just having fun.

I learned later that the orchestra performs only on weekends because its members attend regular classes. A portion of the proceeds from their performances is set aside to pay for their school fees and charges.

Synergy

The Loboc river cruise program has proven to be a goldmine for the municipality. Out of the fees charged for the ride, P50 per passenger goes to the local coffers.

With an average daily passenger load of 1,000, the town’s share adds up to a tidy sum. And this does not include the fees paid for the food, souvenir items and other services sold at the premises.

From the look of things, the town officials, residents and business people work closely together to ensure the continued viability and profitability of the river activity.

Cut-throat competition, which often leads to bad business practices, is avoided through the town’s policy of limiting to 15 the number of authorized boat operators.

There are clear rules about the allowable passenger load, safety procedures, schedule of river runs and other matters that would make the cruise enjoyable, which the operators scrupulously observe.

It is apparent from the cleanliness of the surroundings that the residents have taken it upon themselves to keep the river garbage-free and the lighting fixtures along the river bank in good operating condition.

In my conversation with the people in the pier, I sensed a “feeling of pride” that motivates them to consciously protect and preserve the beauty of the river.

A similar attitude is evident from Loboc’s musically talented children.

With their splendid performances, they add value to the river adventure.

Summing up, if you plan to visit only one place this summer, Bohol is the place to go. You can look forward to an experience of a lifetime.

(For feedback, please write to rpalabrica@inquirer.com.ph)

kevinb

March 23rd, 2010, 06:57 AM

CamSur

Performed by: Karylle

Composed by: Ogie Alcasid

Hi9yoUXihwg&NR=1

hakz2007

March 23rd, 2010, 04:38 PM

RP bags notable tourism awards in 2010 first quarter
MANILA, March 22 (PNA) -- Philippine tourism has a good start in the first quarter of 2010 as the country continues to reap recognition for sustained marketing activities throughout its key segments in China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Russia and North America.

“Giving honor to our country should be the duty of every Filipino. These achievements at the onset of the year usher in more positive news in Philippine tourism, as we keep on with our efforts to reach important market segments,” said Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Joseph Ace Durano.

The Philippines has been included in the Top 10 Best Destinations for elite travelers in China; awarded Best in Destination Promotions in Beijing; Best Travel Website representation in Russia; and from America, the top spots in Scuba Diving Magazine’s Reader’s Choice Awards.

The country’s renowned ecotourism site, Palawan, has been included in the Top 10 Best Destinations for elite travelers in China.

Initiated by ctrip.com, China’s trusted online travel website and Elite Traveller, their leading high-end travel glossy, the poll gathered a total of 4,340,122 valid votes through the crip.com website, emails, fax, and snail mail.

Dynamic and innovative programs and efficient publicity gave DOT-Beijing the Best Destination Promotions award, recently given by China Travel Agents (CTA) Magazine, in recognition of tourism promotional and marketing activities undertaken by the Philippines in China in 2009.

This is the fourth year that DOT-Beijing has won the award for the country.

The CTA Magazine’s editorial board judged the nominees based on the quantity, quality and effectiveness of tourism promotional activities undertaken during the year by the national tourism organizations (NTOs).

The finalists are screened by selected airlines and major tour wholesalers with whom the NTOs have worked with or who have benefited from said tourism activities.

“We acknowledge the hard work of all our overseas offices, the Department’s marketing teams, continued support of the media, and all Filipinos who are themselves ambassadors of Philippine tourism, for helping bring in positive feedback about the country,” Durano further said.

Complementing on-site promotional efforts are online campaigns. Such is implemented in DOT’s official Russian language website, www.mabuhay.ru, which won Best Internet Site of a National Tourist Office.

Awarded by www.travel.ru, the premier Russian travel portal, mabuhay.ru garnered the most number of positive reviews from actual consumers who have visited the site.

Total voting was held from May to December 2009, which received more than 10,000 votes from individual internet users (registered unique ISPs), proving the highest voter participation for the duration of the campaign.

The awarding ceremonies will be held in the upcoming Moscow International Travel and Tourism (MITT) Exhibition this month, a sought-after spring international travel show in Russia.

The Philippines’ breathtaking dive sites continue to captivate divers all over the world, landing the top spots in the Reader’s Choice Awards from the latest issue of Scuba Diving Magazine.

The country was cited under various categories for wreck diving, macro life, value-for-money diving, preferred site for underwater photography and overall destination rating.

“The country continues to capture a wide market because of our diverse attractions, and these recognitions affirm that we are on the right track.

"We continue to work hand in hand with tourism offices abroad keeping ourselves abreast on the latest developments and demand from various markets, to promote our country better," shared Undersecretary for Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque Jr.

Taking off from being named Asia’s Most Popular Destination at the 2009 World Travel Fair in China, the Philippines was also included in the Top 5 Best Diving Areas and Top 10 Most Desirable Destinations in Japan; cited first place in the Top 10 Emerging Food Destinations for ‘travellers seeking not only a new and fascinating experience but also an exotic culinary sensation,’ by Australia’s most trusted travel website, the www.expedia.com.au.

National Geographic’s Adventure Travel Issue cited the country in its 25 Best New Trips for 2010, with a special highlight on the mountains of Cordillera and beaches of Bohol.

The Cordillera Rice Terraces was also cited in NatGeo’s 50 Places of a Lifetime, a list of treasured destinations one ought to see in this lifetime.

This year, the Philippines received a prestigious nomination for Asia’s Leading Tourist Board from the World Travel Awards (WTA), considered the ‘Oscars of the travel industry.’

The WTA is the culmination of a year-long search for the very best travel brands in the world, covering seven continents and featuring over 3,600 nominees. (PNA) http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=6&sid=&nid=6&rid=265723

-SNPKLSDMBLDR-

March 23rd, 2010, 05:08 PM

tanong lang...

sino ang may rendering man lang ng philippine pavillion sa shanghai world expo this year? wala man lang update kung ano na ang nangyari doon, are we even participating in the expo? :lol: kahit sa world expo thread wala akong makitang philippine pavillion. :D

wino

March 24th, 2010, 12:09 AM

There's dolphin watching in a lot of places in the country - Bohol, Negros Oriental, Puerto Princesa, we even saw spinner dolphins swimming by our boat when we made the crossing from Camiguin to Misamis Oriental last September, too bad I wasn't able to take a photo. :(

true true.. i saw some dolphins at the Batangas port too.. :D

but these places are not promoted as a dolphin watching sites.

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 12:30 AM

true true.. i saw some dolphins at the Batangas port too.. :D

but these places are not promoted as a dolphin watching sites.

Yeah, I agree... a few weeks ago, a pregnant whale shark was found dead near the waters of Batangas. The whale shark's body bore bullet marks. :(

kevinb

March 24th, 2010, 03:59 AM

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 06:52 AM

Hainaku. Ilang weeks na ako naghahanap kahit rendering man lang. Wala ako mahanap. As in wala!:cry:

Try nyo sumulat sa Konsulado natin sa Shanghai, baka meron sila.

hakz2007

March 24th, 2010, 07:33 AM

Try nyo sumulat sa Konsulado natin sa Shanghai, baka meron sila.

Wala ring picture ng Philippine Pavilion dun sa website ng Shanghai consulate natin.

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 07:38 AM

Wala ring picture ng Philippine Pavilion dun sa website ng Shanghai consulate natin.

hmmm... siguro mas maganda kung sumulat tayo dun.

hakz2007

March 24th, 2010, 11:25 AM

Philippines plans 'fabulous' Expo display
http://shanghai.cultural-china.com/uploads/allimg/081216/1434030.jpg

http://shanghai.cultural-china.com/uploads/allimg/081216/1434031.jpg

http://shanghai.cultural-china.com/uploads/allimg/081216/1434031.jpg

Alberto G. Romulo, foreign secretary of the Philippines, said the nation will make an all-out effort for a fabulous display at World Expo 2010 Shanghai.

Romulo made the comments in a meeting Friday with Zhou Hanmin, deputy director general of the Expo Bureau. He briefed Romulo on Expo preparations, said the Organizer would provide excellent services for participants and predicted the Philippines Pavilion would be one of the most splendid.

The Philippines will lease a pavilion for the six-month event titled "Better City, Better Life." Romulo said the Expo would help urban planners across the world.http://shanghai.cultural-china.com/html/Latest-news-on-World-Expo/World-Expo-News/paticipation/200812/16-2522.html

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 11:27 AM

Philippines plans 'fabulous' Expo display
http://shanghai.cultural-china.com/html/Latest-news-on-World-Expo/World-Expo-News/paticipation/200812/16-2522.html

so we are going to lease pala not build one.. hmmm... actually good idea. mas makamura.

hakz2007

March 24th, 2010, 11:28 AM

http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs012.snc1/2912_1145345877142_1332371148_1558736_2261975_n.jpg
Source (http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1558736&op=4&o=global&view=global&subj=41581802607&id=1332371148)

Ano kaya ang design ng Philippine Pavilion? Hanapin nyo na lang bandila ng ating bansa kung saan ang location ng ating Pavilion.

Kintoy

March 24th, 2010, 11:30 AM

hopefully I will see it in August. :)

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 11:31 AM

shet, sakit sa mata. hindi ko mahanap...

hakz2007

March 24th, 2010, 11:34 AM

^^malapit dun sa bridge:D

Kintoy

March 24th, 2010, 11:36 AM

malapit sa bridge.

i think I read somewhere na katabi nya yung sa China

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 11:36 AM

^^malapit dun sa bridge:D

Kita ko na... tabi ng Brunei yata yun ah...

mAiNsTrEaMhunter

March 24th, 2010, 01:14 PM

Kita ko na... tabi ng Brunei yata yun ah...

parang hindi brunei... parang caribbean country ang katabi at tapos parang finland (blue cross).

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 01:42 PM

parang hindi brunei... parang caribbean country ang katabi at tapos parang finland (blue cross).

hunting ito. hehehehe

xxxriainxxx

March 24th, 2010, 01:45 PM

malapit sa bridge.

i think I read somewhere na katabi nya yung sa China

Dont forget to try the xiao long bao at Din tai Fung at XTD when you go to Shanghai. Panalo yan. If you are lucky they have the hairy crab na puno ng alige. We found some Southern Chinese Cuisine Resto sa may Huai Hai Lu but we forget to take note of the name. Kaya lang mukhang kasagsagan ng summer ang punta mo sa Shanghai- sobrang init and humid dyan. Ako naman I went there during Autumn.

jaygold06

March 24th, 2010, 01:49 PM

kita ko na din malapit nga siya sa bridge swak yung lugar pagbaba mo ng bridge kita agad ng mga guest yung sa Pilipinas..

bledzoe

March 24th, 2010, 02:24 PM

Travel Diaries: Romancing the gentle giants (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/lifestyle/03/23/10/travel-diaries-romancing-gentle-giants)

By Korina Iledan, ABS-CBNNews | 03/24/2010 12:47 AM

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Small raindrops pelted the roof of our van. Every now and then, it would stop drizzling and the sun would peek through the clouds. We’d perk up, but after a while, the pitter-patter on the roof would resume.

Please, please, please stop raining, I thought as our van hit another waterhole and sprayed mud everywhere. We’ve been planning this trip for more than a month and for it to be ruined by the weather would be a tragedy.

“Sino ba kasi ang may balat sa inyo? (So who among you is the bearer of bad luck?)” our driver asked and laughed.

We were in Legazpi City in Albay province and he was driving us to Donsol, Sorsogon, also known as the Whale Shark Capital of the World. Whale sharks or butanding, as locally known, are best spotted during the months of February to May when there is an abundance of sea planktons—their favorite meal (aside from krill, of course).

But rain meant zero visibility. And zero visibility, in turn, could mean no whale shark interaction for us. “’Wag kayo mag-alala (Don’t worry),” he reassured us. “Magagaling ang mga tour guide doon. Makakahanap at makakahanap sila ng butanding para sa inyo! (Donsol tour guides are experts at spotting whale sharks. They will surel spot some for you!)”

And with that, our hopes were raised and we settled comfortably in our seats as our van navigated through the muddy roads leading to Donsol.

The whale shark capital

Donsol is roughly 51 kilometers from the Legazpi City Airport. At first I had fun gazing out the window as rice fields, poultries, coconut trees, and nipa huts whizzed by. But after on and a half hous of being cooped up inside the van, I felt neck and every other imaginable muscle in body go stiff. So when we finally reached Donsol, I hopped out, stretched, and inhaled the tangy saltwater breeze.

I looked at the numerous boats lined up at the shore. I wonder which one is ours, I thought excitedly. Compared to all the other beaches in the Philippines, the beach in Donsol, wasn’t outstanding. But what lay beneath its waters was what got us jumping up and down.

And the best part is—it had stopped raining.

Unable to contain our excitement, we settled into our rooms, changed into our swimwear, slathered on some sunblock, grabbed our snorkeling gear, and dashed outside.

The Gentle Giants

“Miss, miss, teka lang po! (Miss, miss, wait!)” someone called out as I was about to climb aboard our boat. I turned around and saw Kuya Ronnie, our guide, beckoning me from the resort center. “Kailangan po muna ninyo mapanood ‘iyong video! (You should watch the video first!)” Video? Baffled, I approached Kuya Ronnie. “Ano pong video? (What video?)” I asked.

“’Yong tungkol po sa mga butanding (The one about the whale shark),” he answered.

“Ah okay (Oh okay),” I said. I followed Kuya Ronnie inside a room filled with about twenty more people. Just like me, they were all in their swimwear and cover-ups with snorkeling gear in tow. And from the impatient looks on their face, I could tell they were also dying to begin their whale shark interaction already.

A man in yellow shirt appeared in front of us and flicked on the television. And for ten minutes, we watched a short narrative about how whale sharks were first discovered in the Philippines and how from an obscure species, the now-famous gentle giants made Donsol a flagship ecotourism destination in the Philippines.

According to the documentary also, the whale sharks are a very elusive species. People tend to be afraid of them because of their gigantic size. But, in reality, these animals shy away from people and boats. And there has never been a reported whale shark attack on people. Hence, the nickname gentle giants.

Veterans vs. First-Timers

After the short documentary, Kuya Ronnie finally herded us out to our boats. Our group was divided into two which we nicknamed the Butanding Veterans and the Butanding First-Timers, which, of course, included me. And for fun, we came up with a little contest—the group who spots the most number of whale sharks wins. After that, we split up, boarded our boats and finally headed out into the open sea.

Last-minute instructions
GOING THERE:

VIA PLANE

Different airlines offer daily 45-minute flights from Manila to Legazpi City, Albay. From Legazpi City, you can rent a van going to Donsol, Sorsogon which is approximately one and a half hours away. Van rates going to Donsol start at Php1,500.00. This is recommended for those who are travelling in big groups.

Another option is to board a tricycle from the airport. Ask the driver to bring you to the transport terminal terminal. Tricycle fare is Php50.00. When you reach the terminal, take the Donsol-bound bus. Bus fare is at Php60.00. This is recommended for those who are travelling in pairs or small groups.

VIA LAND
There are several bus companies in Cubao or Pasay that offer trips to Legaspi and Sorsogon. Travel time is approximately 10 hours and bus fares start at Php650.00, one-way.

Before donning on our snorkeling gears, Kuya Ronnie prepped us up with a few instructions. “Mahiyain ‘yang mga butanding na ‘yan (Those whale sharks are very shy animals),” he started off. “Kaya ganito ang gagawin natin--maghahanap tayo ng mga butanding. Dapat kayo, nakapwesto na sa gilid ng bangka. At oras na sabihin kong talon, talon kayo agad! Ok ba? (So here’s what we’ll do—while we look for whale sharks, you should be positioned on the boat already. And when I say jump, jump immediately! Okay?)”

A chorus of enthusiastic “okay’s” resounded and, finally, we strapped on our snorkel, masks, and fins.

Spotted

I was one of the first to go. I, along with two of my companions, sat by the side of boat with our fin-clad feet dangling by the waters. Our boat scoured the sea and saltwater sprayed onto my face, but I didn’t care. I was about to have my very first close encounter with a whale shark! I was itching to jump of the boat already and kept asking Kuya Ronnie if they spotted any whale shark yet.
WHERE TO STAY:

There are several resorts in Donsol you can choose from:

• Amor Farm Beach Resort (0910.476217) –located within walking distance from the Butanding Visitor's Center
• Donsol Bay Resort (0935.9657840)
• Giddy's Place Dive Resort (0917.8132494) –provides modern amenities and up-to-date facilities. This is the only resort that’s open all-year round (others are closed from June to November). Offers free WiFi.
• Vitton Beach Resort (0927.9126313; 0921.6904399; 0921.9293811) –located next to the Butanding Visitos's Center. This is the resort nearest to the jump-off point for the whale shark interaction.

*Room and cottage rates range from Php1,000.00 to Php3,000.00 per night depending on the size and the amenities you wish to avail.

Twenty minutes into the boat ride, the answer was still no. I was getting restless. What if we don’t spot any whale shark today? The thought made me momentarily sad when one of our boat men suddenly shouted, “AYUN!” He was pointing to a spot a few feet from us where there was a different kind of ripple breaking through the surface of the water. I tried to make out any form of shadow but I couldn’t see any.

“Okay guys, eto na. Ready na kayo (Okay guys, this is it. Get ready),” prompted Kuya Ronnie. Our boat picked up speed and was now heading towards the direction of the spot our boat man pointed. I felt the anticipation coursing through my veins. Inside my fins, my feet were tingling with excitement. This is it. What we’ve all been waiting for. And as the boat inched closer to the spot, Kuya Ronnie raised his hand as if to say “Teka lang (Wait a minute)”. I held my breath. Closer and closer, the boat inched. And finally, after an agonizing wait, Kuya Ronnie finally brought his hand down and screamed, “TALON! (JUMP!)”

And one by one, we jumped into the dark waters.
OTHER EXPENSES:

Boat rental - Php2,500.00 / boat (*Each boat has a capacity of 6pax)
Rentals (snorkel, mask, fin) - Php300.00 / head
Registration Fee - Php100.00 / head

Amazing butanding

It was like being in a movie.

At first it was dark. We kept swimming and swimming forward but we couldn’t see anything but water.

And then an amazing thing happened. Out of nowhere, a huge gaping mouth appeared. And before I knew it, I was in front of the mammoth-sized creature.
WHAT TO BRING:

• Swimwear
• Rash guard (if you have one)
• Snorkel, mask, fins (if you have your won)
• Aqua pack (where you can store your important belongings such as cellphones to prevent them from getting wet while in the boat)
• Sunblock
• Sunglasses

If I wasn’t breathing through a snorkel, my mouth would’ve probably hung open. I was in awe.

Anything huge used to intimidate me. But at that very moment, what overwhelmed me was pleasure that can only come from the experience of meeting a rare creature and being in a different world—a surrounding so tranquil, there was no room for fear. And In that moment of bliss, I felt an intense feeling that sent warmth to my hear while I was in the cold water.

Before jumping into the water, I had a strategy in mind—dive and swim side by side with the whale shark. But I never got around to doing that. I was so amazed by the huge creature that I didn’t realize I had stopped swimming. I was just staring at it as it swam beneath me. I only snapped back into my senses when Kuya Joel finally beckoned us to follow.

After a few seconds, the whale shark disappeared and we finally surfaced from the water. We were all panting but you could see beneath the snorkels and the masks that we were all grinning. We climbed back into the boat and let the next batch take their turn. I’ll do better in the next round, I promised myself. And with that, we set off to look for more whale sharks.

Take two

After reenergizing for a few minutes, it was our turn again. This time, I vowed, I would swim side by side with the whale shark. With Kuya Ronnie’s cue, I positioned myself by the side of the boat again.

It didn’t take long before our boat man spotted another group of our whale sharks. And as if getting ready for battle, I steeled myself and waited for the signal. And when Kuya Ronnie screamed, “Talon! (Jump!)” I jumped and willed my muscles to propel me forward for my second encounter with the gentle giant.

Thus, the start of my underwater affair.

Romancing the giant

If it was a different whale shark from the one I saw before, I couldn’t tell. But this time, I felt as if this one was playing with me. I swam towards the creature. And just as we were just inches from each other, the gentle giant dove under as if teasing me to chase after him. Quickly, I made an underwater U-turn, dove under, and swam as fast my arms and legs would take me.

Then suddenly, we were smoothly gliding side by side. It was like the current was circling around us bringing us closer together. It was sheer happiness.

It didn’t take long, though, before the creature left me trailing behind. I tried to catch up but water was already entering my snorkel preventing me from breathing properly. I lost my coordination and finally decided to concede. I swam up and broke through the water panting and smiling at the same time, remembering my brief moment with the gentle giant.

An affair to remember

It was almost afternoon when the two groups—the Butanding Veterans and the Butanding First-Timers—converged again. Everybody had their own unique whale shark stories to tell. We tried to outdo each other by tallying the number of whale sharks we spotted but after the seventh, we all lost count. It didn’t matter who saw the most whale sharks and who got to swim with them the longest. For us who came from the concrete city jungle, a moment with the extraordinary creatures was more than enough. And we plan to revisit those moments when we come back to Donsol and continue our love affair with the gentle giants.

Miguel

March 25th, 2010, 02:12 AM

would love to come and visit... :)

Please do and welcome aboard. :D

dolphin watching?! heck, that is soo cooool!!
i would love to go there! :D

There are also other dolphin watching sites in the country but Bais City was the first to recognize its potential for ecotourism 2 decades ago while at the same time protecting these mammals. Though its effort is not much publicized compared to its counterparts.

Negros Oriental has lots of potentials. Need to visit the place. :cheers:

There are lots of interesting places you might want to explore. You can drop by and check out at the Negros Oriental Travel and Tourism Thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=980898). Just follow the link. :okay:

Miguel

March 25th, 2010, 02:31 AM

UNDERWATER
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

APO ISLAND
Dauin, Negros Oriental

One of the Top 10 Diving Sites in the World

Apo Island is a small volcanic island, 7km off the southeastern tip of Negros Island in the Philippines. It is under the jurisdiction of the municipality of Dauin, Negros Oriental. It is considered as one of the Top 10 Best Diving Sites of the World. There is so much abundance of marine life that it has flourish significantly. This island whose beauty has captivated divers from foreign lands and lure them travel far distance just to see and experience its beauty first hand. Apo Island is also the first successful community managed protective area of which the island was ravaged before by illegal fishing methods but under the auspices of Silliman University, starting in 1982 it has transformed to which the island is now known today. This success has been replicated in other parts of the county and abroad.

PARADISE OF THE DEEP

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photos by: dachalan (http://www.flickr.com/photos/54945394@N00/sets/72157604630169323/?page=2)

Miguel

March 25th, 2010, 02:32 AM

HILLS
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

BOHOL...?

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

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...NOT!

HINAKPAN HILLS
Brgy. Hinakpan, Guihulngan, Negros Oriental

Hinakpan Hills are situated in the peak of Guihulngan so one can feel the extreme coolness of the air while viewing its beauty as well as that of the other places such as the Canlaon Volcano. Unlike the Chocolate Hills of Bohol, no two hills are alike in Hinakpan. Geologic forces cast all 237 limestone peaks in unique shapes and sizes. The picturesque barangay of Hinakpan was named after the abundant hardwood takpan trees in the area.

taken from the blog: CONFESSIONS OF A FARM BOY (http://www.emmanlabirua.blogspot.com/)

Miguel

March 25th, 2010, 02:35 AM

CAVES
Visit And Captivate At The Idyllic Oriental Negros

MABINAY CAVES
Mabinay, Negros Oriental

Mabinay is an upland town located in the interior part of the province of Negros Oriental. With its prevalence of limestone rock and extensive karst phenomena, Mabinay is also known as “Cave Town of Negros Oriental,” referring to more than a hundred caves beneath the town. Locals report over 100 caves in the area.

So far, 45 caves have been explored and documented. From 1989 to 1990, a group of Belgian and Dutch researchers and adventurers came to explore and document the caves of Mabinay. The venture was called the Belgian Dutch Philippine Caving Expedition. If spelunking is your type of adventure then this must be a heaven for you.

Odloman Cave
Mabinay is where you can find the second longest cave in the country, the Odloman Cave System. It is also the sixth deepest cave. The Odloman Cave System has a length of 8870 meters and vertical range of 82 meters. Five entrances have been connected and the system consists of a mix of large and small galleries with some active stream ways. Exploration of this cave, however, is still incomplete.

Mambajo Cave
This cave has two entrance, one through the sunroof (Rappelling is the only way though this entrance) or through the underground river that flows inside the cave.

Pandalihan Cave
One of the hundred listed caves in Mabinay, it has huge caverns, where stalactites and stalagmites abound. The cave is accessible on foot and has an open ceiling at the opposite end.

Cayaso Cave
Features an underground river located just 1 km from the Poblacion Municipal Hall. The cave which is 3 kms. long and 6 feet wide, goes 20 feet down a winding stone pathway leading to an underground river of potable drinking water but without a visible outlet. Stalactites and stalagmites abound in different chambers. Shimmering spectacle of stalactites and stalagmites looking like little glacial turrets and pillars of salt. And they riddle the place. It ranks as the 9th longest cave in the Philippines.

Panligawan Cave
The most accessible of Mabinay’s caves, Panligawan is said to be where local swains of old would woo their sweethearts, it's name derived from the word ligaw which means "courtship."After that, we visited a nearby cave called

Pandalian Cave
Pandalian is at Agta word means “marriage.” The Agtas, an ethnic group belonging to larger group of people we commonly refer to as Negritos or Aeta, are the first inhabitants of Mabinay and other parts of Negros. It is said that Agta men brought women in Panligawan to court them and then to Pandalian to propose marriage. The Agta people, which is only found in this town, only numbered nine or more families, and that was according to a 1973 study. Their Western Malayo-Polynesian language is near extinction.

Crystal Cave
Aside from the stalactites and stalagmites, the Crystal Caves had columns, a formation where a stalactite and a stalagmite meet making a pillar. It also had draperies, which looked like wavy curtain hanging from the ceiling, and flowstones, which looked like draperies but were thicker and adhered to the wall of floor. It has a length of 209 meters and depth of 5 meters.

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Aerin

March 25th, 2010, 02:53 AM

the glimpser

March 25th, 2010, 06:59 AM

A secluded surf haven
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes
Inquirer Southern Luzon
First Posted 20:10:00 03/24/2010

BARAS, ONE OF THE POOR municipalities of the island-province of Catanduanes, is hoping that its new-found fame as a surfing destination will help in uplifting its farming economy.

It has Puraran Bay, which boasts of white-sand beach and high waves that attract professional and upstart surfers.

“Puraran is unlike the other surfing sites in the Philippines, which are commercialized and very crowded. I came here because the place is secluded and still unspoiled,” said Dante Blutmann, 46, a London-based Argentine surfer, who was among at least 15 Canadian and British tourists who visited the beach on March 9.

Surfers from around the world came to know about the bay through the Internet. “Without us even knowing, our town has been on the world map of tourists, especially surfing enthusiasts, because the word has been spread in the Internet,” said Rogelio Tendencia, municipal planning and development officer.

Tendencia said the surge of visitors had prompted the fifth-class municipality (annual income: P10 million-P20 million) to adopt a plan on how to take advantage of its tourism potential. The plan, implemented through an executive order of the mayor, calls for the creation of a tourism council that will take charge of tourism programs and development.

Through such body, Baras expects everyone involved in the local tourism industry to “work for unity and cooperation … in striving for the common interest,” Tendencia said.

Lack of funds

He, however, lamented the “lack of funds to sustain our tourism programs.”

This has forced the town to tie up with the Department of Tourism, the Philippine Tourism Authority and other concerned agencies, he said. “What we always do is to draft a simple plan and it is for the two agencies to decide how they can help.”

He said the municipality was banking more on longer-staying tourists rather than on more tourist arrivals. “A longer tourist stay has the same effect on the economy as increased tourist arrival without causing much human damage to natural attractions.”

But, Tendencia said the problem was that the residents, especially those living in Barangay Puraran, were still wary about the idea of fully opening their village to tourists.

“In fact, we have asked them to undergo training for home-stay accommodation of tourists, but only few have expressed interest despite telling them that it would add to their income,” he said.

Despite the difficulties, the local government is bent on promoting the Puraran Bay as an alternative surfing destination, its entry on the list of the “One Town One Product” program of the Department of Trade and Industry.

“We have started constructing simple facilities. We will also conduct surfing lessons by inviting professional surfers who can teach those willing to learn. Hopefully, we can start sooner,” Tendencia said.

After the May elections, the municipal government plans to launch full-blast its tourism programs.

But some officials are cautious at what could be the price of development. To allay such fear, the tourism development plan underscores the need for the “preservation of natural environment.”

manila_eye

March 25th, 2010, 10:30 AM

^^ I hope they would succeed.

I learned about this place through the internet. The community really don't want their place to be commercialized. Even surfing enthusiasts don't want the place to get crowded.

xxxriainxxx

March 25th, 2010, 10:42 AM

DENR opens Davao trail to Mt. Apo climbers (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100325-260755/DENR-opens-Davao-trail-to-Mt-Apo-climbers)
By Orlando Dinoy
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 16:28:00 03/25/2010

Filed Under: Climbing, Fire
KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines—Mount Apo climbers found relief in the latest order of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to open the Davao trail to mountain climbers during Lent in the wake of the closure of the North Cotabato trail due to the El Niño phenomenon.

On Thursday, DENR Southern Mindanao chief Jim Sampulna said the Davao trail will remain open but climbers should be careful and refrain from activities that could start forest fires.

Last week, the regional office of the DENR said the Protected Areas Management Bureau had decided to close the North Cotabato trail—including the Magpet, Makilala and Kidapawan trails—to climbers because of the high risk of forest fires.

“All mountain climbers can use the trail in Region 11 but they should not exit in any parts of Region 12,” Sampulna said.

Nino Banzon, President of the Digos Active Mountaineers Club in Davao del Sur, said they were elated by the decision.

Banzon also pledged that his group will abide by the rules set for the safety of those joining the climb.

the glimpser

March 25th, 2010, 11:27 AM

25M air passenger bags lost in 2009—industry

Agence France-Presse
First Posted 08:41:00 03/25/2010

GENEVA, Switzerland—Some 25 million bags went missing in the world's airports in 2009, costing the airline industry some $2.5 billion, data released Thursday by air transport electronics group Sita.

Just over half of these bags, 52 percent, were misplaced during aircraft transfers, while another 16 percent did not arrive at the destination on time as they were not loaded on planes, luggage tracking data showed.

Other problems included ticketing errors, mishandling at the arrival point, and tagging problems, said Sita.

It was citing data from the World Tracer luggage tracking database, which is co-sponsored by the company and airline industry group IATA.

The vast majority of the missing luggage was traced and returned within 48 hours.
But 3.4 percent of the total—850,000 items—either remained unclaimed or were stolen, added Sita, which makes luggage handling systems.

But despite the millions of bags that went missing last year, Sita said the figures were an improvement of 23.8 percent on the previous year, when 32.8 million bags failed to arrive on time.

"Some of the decline can be attributed to fewer passengers traveling last year, but the 2.9-percent decline in passenger numbers is still far smaller than the 23.8 percent decline in mishandled baggage," it said.

Improvements in baggage handling systems and passengers checking in fewer bags to avoid extra fees had also helped improve the figures, it added.

PrettyUgly

March 25th, 2010, 09:38 PM

The Philippines is hailed as the cultural gateway to the ASEAN
(The Philippine Star) Updated March 15, 2010 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Declared as the “cultural capital” for years 2010 and 2011 by the 10 member-countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Philippines will be hosting the 4th Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers Responsible for Culture and Arts (AMCA) and the 6th Senior Officials Meeting for Culture and Arts (SOMCA) from March 22 to 26 in Clark, Angeles City, Pampanga. This was according to presidential assistant on culture and National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) executive director Cecile Guidote-Alvarez.

Along with the said meetings, the Philippines will also host the 4th ASEAN Festival of Arts (AFA), which is aimed at promoting the ASEAN’s common identity and cultural diversity, enhancing cultural heritage and tourism, and strengthening ties among members of the ASEAN. The successful projection of the ASEAN in the global culturescape through the Philippine Collective showcases the Philippines ’ rich tradition and talents.

With “The Best of the ASEAN: From Ancestral Roots to New Artistic Routes of Expression Mobilizing Cultural Diversity for the UN-MDGs” as its theme, the 4th AFA will highlight the creativity and foster the exchange of ideas among the best artists from ASEAN countries. Each ASEAN member-country will showcase one of its finest works in its chosen field of art (theatre, music, literature, film or dance).

Performances for the AFA will be held at the Centennial Amphitheater of the Nayong Pilipino sa Clark Expo (NPCE). Film showings, workshops, poetry readings, and book launchings will be conducted at NPCE’s dormitory, arcadia and library.

As one of its contributions to the said Festival, the Philippines will be restaging Baler sa Puso Ko, an original zarzuela, with libretto by Dr. Isagani Cruz and music by Lutgardo Labad that reflects the wealth of heritage and the 400-year history of the town of Baler in Quezon province.

For the Festival’s opening ceremony, it expects over 200 participants, including students from nearby schools and universities, choral groups, dance troupes, rondalla orchestras, drum and bugle corps, Aeta police scholars, lantern bearers, kite-flyers, athletes, Kaddang (walking on wooden sticks) tumblers, Angono papier-mache giants, and hot balloons.

Source Philippine Star http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=558066&publicationSubCategoryId=79
:banana::banana::banana:

hakz2007

March 26th, 2010, 05:16 AM

PTAA warns public of the proliferation of fly-by-night travel agencies
MANILA, March 25 (PNA) -– Local travel agencies have warned the public against fly-by-night travel agencies that have again proliferated due to the high demand for travel during the first two months of the year.

Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) president Maria Paz Alberto said they have received multiple reports that at least three travel agencies over the last two weeks have misrepresented clients on trips that were booked with them.

“The PTAA has confirmed from several sources that close to 200 people were mislead by travel agencies on their trips. These so-called travel agencies are not members of the PTAA and there is a very big possibility that they also do not have the proper licenses and documentations to operate,” Alberto said.

There were two separate Filipino groups of 50 people that booked and fully paid for a Hong Kong vacation only to find out upon their arrival in the Chinese colony that they do not have any reservations at the hotel they were supposed to stay, Alberto said.

Alberto also noted that another group of close to 100 individuals from a religious organization in the country booked and fully paid for a trip to Palawan only to find out at the airport that their airfare tickets were cancelled.

“We do not know yet the full extent of this scam. The PTAA has reasons to believe that this are not isolated incidents. We want the public to closely check the credibility of a travel agency before doing any business with them,” Alberto said.

Alberto said they will coordinate with the Department of Trade and Industry, Securities and Exchange Commission, and concerned local government units to trace suspicious travel agencies and have their operations stopped.

“We are taking a pro-active stance on this because they are hurting the reputation and business operations of legitimate travel agencies,” Alberto said.

The PTAA has more than 300 travel agency members in key cities across the country while at the same time having partnerships with leading travel groups in Regions III, VII, and IX.(PNA) http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=6&sid=&nid=6&rid=266423

thescene

March 26th, 2010, 06:08 PM

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/travel/holiday-ideas/sibuyan-sea-is-the-philippines-hot-new-destination/story-e6frezm9-1225842825337

Is Marinduque Island the next travel hotspot?

* Christina Pfeiffer
* From: escape
* March 19, 2010 12:59PM

There are no sleek nightclubs, bars or tacky souvenir shops.

The few cars on the roads are vastly outnumbered by jeepneys (extended jeeps with two long seats behind the driver) and tricycles (three-wheeled motorcycles with passenger carriages).

All eyes are on our group of five as we walk through the streets of Boac, the capital. Western visitors in Marinduque are rare. Tricycle drivers stop by the side of the road to gawk, jeepney passengers crane their necks for a better look and shopkeepers run out to the street to stare. Shy children scuttle away when we try to take their photo.

Surrounded by Tayabas Bay, Mompoy Bay, Tayabas Strait and the Sibuyan Sea, Marinduque Island is only 170km south of Manila yet it's a world away from the traffic, skyscrapers and frenetic pace of the big city. The 959sq km volcanic island is a pristine natural treasure trove of sandy beaches, diving sites, caves, hot springs and waterfalls. The few local resorts on the island are simple and inexpensive. But this may not be the case for much longer because the local government has its sights on becoming the Philippines' next big vacation hot spot.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.

End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.

Change is coming
The ball is already rolling with new low-cost flights from Manila on Zest Air and SEAIR. A new luxury resort on a small private island nearby, Bellarocca Island Resort and Spa, has given the province a boost by building roads and employing local workers.

Most islanders are farmers or fishermen. But many are excited about the opportunities that a tourism boom could offer. Some have borrowed from money lenders to buy a jeepney (about $5000) or a tricycle ($1500). In a year or two, the more enterprising will catch on to the potential of operating souvenir stalls and cafes. The towns have Spanish names like Santa Cruz and Torrijos. And, with family names like Fernandez, Reyes and Gonzales, you could almost be convinced you're in South America, not Asia.

Our guide, Marie Diaz, grew up in Mogpog which was occupied by Japanese troops during World War II. On our tour, we pass bullocks working in rice fields and barangays (villages) where herds of goats and scrawny dogs roam the streets. Marinduque may be one of the poorer provinces in the Philippines but the people look happy. The streets are clean, homes are neat and children play with carefree abandon.

The town of Buenavista, Spanish for good view, lives up to its name with stunning ocean views, sandy beaches and swaying palms. Nearby Gasan is more prosperous, with bigger homes and concrete buildings. The shops are eclectic. The sign outside the local supermarket says "Glory to God, Sioland Supermarket, Gasan Branch". Next to the supermarket, in a space beneath a stairwell, is a fruit stall and a display of Western-style bridal gowns.

Island highlights
The island's attractions include the WHS Butterfly Farm, near Gasan, where we chase a kaleidoscope of delicate butterflies fluttering among the flowers. The farm is a family enterprise that ships pupae as well as framed, dried and live butterflies around the world.

The Marinduque Museum in Boac is a good place to brush up on local culture and history. Exhibits include 16th-century porcelain recovered from the bottom of the ocean. Catholic culture on Marinduque has evolved in a unique way. Boac's main drawcard is the Gothic Boac Cathedral, which was built in 1666 to honour the Virgin Mary, introduced to the island by Jesuit missionaries. The Virgin Mary is known as Ang Mahal na Birhen ng Biglang-Awa or Blessed Virgin of Biglang-Awa Immediate Succor.

Back in 1807 the parish priest of Mogpog, Padre Dionisio Santiago, started a festival based on the story of Longinus, the one-eyed Roman centurion who pierced Jesus Christ while he was on the cross. Today people from all over the Philippines flock here at Easter time to watch the singing, chanting and street theatre. The main event is a parade that includes the Via Crucis, or way of the cross, in which "Jesus Christ" carrying a wooden cross is trailed by a group of barefoot devotees who whip themselves as penance for their sins. It ends with the beheading of Longinus.

Outside the Boac Cathedral we buy banana que (deep-fried bananas dipped in caramelised sugar), turon (banana jackfruit) and carioca (doughnuts) from a local woman. The snacks cost seven pesos each (18c).

It's a warm day so Diaz takes us on a short hike through the rainforest to Paadyao Cascades where we plunge into a cool pool beneath the waterfall. I spend the rest of the afternoon at my cliff-top villa at Bellarocca Resort sipping champagne in my private plunge pool while gazing at tranquil views of Sibuyan Sea.

Bellarocca's setting is stunningly Mediterranean. White-washed buildings are a stark contrast to green Mt Malindig and the turquoise ocean. Facilities include a nine-hole golf course, cigar room, gym and fitness centre, swimming pools and a spa. Rooms are luxurious and furnished with amenities such as L'Occitane and Aveda cosmetics, plasma television sets and iPod docks.

FAST FACTS

Getting there: Philippine Airlines flies from Sydney to Manila from $901. Zest Air and SEAIR fly from Manila to Marinduque; flights are about $70 return.

Getting around: Buenavista to the airport in a jeepney costs 20 pesos (50c); Gasan to Buenavista in a tricycle costs 120 pesos ($3).

Staying there: Bellarocca Island Resort and Spa's Dolce Vita package (valid until May 31) includes two nights' accommodation, brunch, afternoon tea and other extras from $350 a person.

When to go: Mariones Festival week runs from March 29 to April 4.

More: www.philippinetourism.com.au or call (02) 9279 3380

Bricken Ridge

March 27th, 2010, 05:59 AM

Is Marinduque Island the next travel hotspot?

* Christina Pfeiffer
* From: escape
* March 19, 2010 12:59PM

There are no sleek nightclubs, bars or tacky souvenir shops.

The few cars on the roads are vastly outnumbered by jeepneys (extended jeeps with two long seats behind the driver) and tricycles (three-wheeled motorcycles with passenger carriages).

All eyes are on our group of five as we walk through the streets of Boac, the capital. Western visitors in Marinduque are rare. Tricycle drivers stop by the side of the road to gawk, jeepney passengers crane their necks for a better look and shopkeepers run out to the street to stare. Shy children scuttle away when we try to take their photo.

Surrounded by Tayabas Bay, Mompoy Bay, Tayabas Strait and the Sibuyan Sea, Marinduque Island is only 170km south of Manila yet it's a world away from the traffic, skyscrapers and frenetic pace of the big city. The 959sq km volcanic island is a pristine natural treasure trove of sandy beaches, diving sites, caves, hot springs and waterfalls. The few local resorts on the island are simple and inexpensive. But this may not be the case for much longer because the local government has its sights on becoming the Philippines' next big vacation hot spot.

Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar.

End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.

Change is coming
The ball is already rolling with new low-cost flights from Manila on Zest Air and SEAIR. A new luxury resort on a small private island nearby, Bellarocca Island Resort and Spa, has given the province a boost by building roads and employing local workers.

Most islanders are farmers or fishermen. But many are excited about the opportunities that a tourism boom could offer. Some have borrowed from money lenders to buy a jeepney (about $5000) or a tricycle ($1500). In a year or two, the more enterprising will catch on to the potential of operating souvenir stalls and cafes. The towns have Spanish names like Santa Cruz and Torrijos. And, with family names like Fernandez, Reyes and Gonzales, you could almost be convinced you're in South America, not Asia.

Our guide, Marie Diaz, grew up in Mogpog which was occupied by Japanese troops during World War II. On our tour, we pass bullocks working in rice fields and barangays (villages) where herds of goats and scrawny dogs roam the streets. Marinduque may be one of the poorer provinces in the Philippines but the people look happy. The streets are clean, homes are neat and children play with carefree abandon.

The town of Buenavista, Spanish for good view, lives up to its name with stunning ocean views, sandy beaches and swaying palms. Nearby Gasan is more prosperous, with bigger homes and concrete buildings. The shops are eclectic. The sign outside the local supermarket says "Glory to God, Sioland Supermarket, Gasan Branch". Next to the supermarket, in a space beneath a stairwell, is a fruit stall and a display of Western-style bridal gowns.

Island highlights
The island's attractions include the WHS Butterfly Farm, near Gasan, where we chase a kaleidoscope of delicate butterflies fluttering among the flowers. The farm is a family enterprise that ships pupae as well as framed, dried and live butterflies around the world.

The Marinduque Museum in Boac is a good place to brush up on local culture and history. Exhibits include 16th-century porcelain recovered from the bottom of the ocean. Catholic culture on Marinduque has evolved in a unique way. Boac's main drawcard is the Gothic Boac Cathedral, which was built in 1666 to honour the Virgin Mary, introduced to the island by Jesuit missionaries. The Virgin Mary is known as Ang Mahal na Birhen ng Biglang-Awa or Blessed Virgin of Biglang-Awa Immediate Succor.

Back in 1807 the parish priest of Mogpog, Padre Dionisio Santiago, started a festival based on the story of Longinus, the one-eyed Roman centurion who pierced Jesus Christ while he was on the cross. Today people from all over the Philippines flock here at Easter time to watch the singing, chanting and street theatre. The main event is a parade that includes the Via Crucis, or way of the cross, in which "Jesus Christ" carrying a wooden cross is trailed by a group of barefoot devotees who whip themselves as penance for their sins. It ends with the beheading of Longinus.

Outside the Boac Cathedral we buy banana que (deep-fried bananas dipped in caramelised sugar), turon (banana jackfruit) and carioca (doughnuts) from a local woman. The snacks cost seven pesos each (18c).

It's a warm day so Diaz takes us on a short hike through the rainforest to Paadyao Cascades where we plunge into a cool pool beneath the waterfall. I spend the rest of the afternoon at my cliff-top villa at Bellarocca Resort sipping champagne in my private plunge pool while gazing at tranquil views of Sibuyan Sea.

Bellarocca's setting is stunningly Mediterranean. White-washed buildings are a stark contrast to green Mt Malindig and the turquoise ocean. Facilities include a nine-hole golf course, cigar room, gym and fitness centre, swimming pools and a spa. Rooms are luxurious and furnished with amenities such as L'Occitane and Aveda cosmetics, plasma television sets and iPod docks.

Haven't heard lately about the Moriones Festival- is this still celebrated annually? Nice, another decent resort. We're becoming the next Carribean-way to go.

xxxriainxxx

March 27th, 2010, 07:39 AM

Pagcor’s entertainment city
to start Phase 2 development (http://www.malaya.com.ph/03252010/busi2.html)
BY GENIVI FACTAO

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.’s (Pagcor)’s Entertainment City will soon shift to the second phase of development as foreign investors are about to start construction work.

The gaming and entertainment complex will be built on 120 hectares of prime land at the Manila Bay reclamation at a cost of $15 billion.

Pagcor spokesman Dodie King said Entertainment City, also known as the Bagong Nayong Pilipino, will be completed in 10 years in three phases.

Phase 1 involves land development and fusing of plans of proponents. Construction by local mall giant SM Group has already started.

"Under Phase 2, two proponents -- Genting Berhad Group of Malaysia and Bloombury Investments Ltd. – will start construction anytime while SM continues its development," he said.

"Genting will put up a theme park the like of Universal Studio. There will be a sports stadium, theaters," he said. ---- :cheers::cheers:

Genting is the proponent of the Sentosa island development in Singapore.

He said another project in the pipeline is a monorail that will link Entertainment City, the airport and Newport City.:cheers:

"The monorail system is included in the plan. We are still looking for a proponent and it may be started in the second or third phase of the development," King said.

The Entertainment City is aimed at increasing tourist arrival and make the country compete with Macau in gaming.

"We can offer not only gaming, but also entertainment plus other destinations like Boracay," he said.

King said the country’s main challenge is competition from other countries that are also developing their entertainment and gaming industry.

He named Vietnam and Cambodia. Taiwan is also mulling on putting up gaming and entertainment centers.

Macau and Singapore, the regional gaming leaders, are also expanding.

Business Insight Business

filcan

March 27th, 2010, 03:47 PM

Other SEA countries may have their own versions of Entertainment City but what will really win tourists over to our development is our world renowned hospitality :cheers:

bledzoe

March 28th, 2010, 01:54 AM

^^ yeah but hospitality alone is not enough...

bledzoe

March 28th, 2010, 02:49 AM

Philippine tourism wins major awards from China to Russia (http://goodnewspilipinas.com/?p=10878)
Posted on March 26th, 2010 under Beauty of the Philippines

http://goodnewspilipinas.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/tourists2.jpg

Philippine tourism has a good start in the first quarter of 2010 as the country continues to reap recognition for sustained marketing activities throughout its key segments in China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Russia and North America.

“Giving honor to our country should be the duty of every Filipino. These achievements at the onset of the year usher in more positive news in Philippine tourism, as we keep on with our efforts to reach important market segments,” said Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Joseph Ace Durano.

The Philippines has been included in the Top 10 Best Destinations for elite travelers in China; awarded Best in Destination Promotions in Beijing; Best Travel Website representation in Russia; and from America, the top spots in Scuba Diving Magazine’s Reader’s Choice Awards.

The country’s renowned ecotourism site, Palawan, has been included in the Top 10 Best Destinations for elite travelers in China.

Initiated by ctrip.com, China’s trusted online travel website and Elite Traveller, their leading high-end travel glossy, the poll gathered a total of 4,340,122 valid votes through the crip.com website, emails, fax, and snail mail.

Dynamic and innovative programs and efficient publicity gave DOT-Beijing the Best Destination Promotions award, recently given by China Travel Agents (CTA) Magazine, in recognition of tourism promotional and marketing activities undertaken by the Philippines in China in 2009.

This is the fourth year that DOT-Beijing has won the award for the country.

The CTA Magazine’s editorial board judged the nominees based on the quantity, quality and effectiveness of tourism promotional activities undertaken during the year by the national tourism organizations (NTOs).

The finalists are screened by selected airlines and major tour wholesalers with whom the NTOs have worked with or who have benefited from said tourism activities.

“We acknowledge the hard work of all our overseas offices, the Department’s marketing teams, continued support of the media, and all Filipinos who are themselves ambassadors of Philippine tourism, for helping bring in positive feedback about the country,” Durano further said.

Complementing on-site promotional efforts are online campaigns. Such is implemented in DOT’s official Russian language website, www.mabuhay.ru, which won Best Internet Site of a National Tourist Office.

Awarded by www.travel.ru, the premier Russian travel portal, mabuhay.ru garnered the most number of positive reviews from actual consumers who have visited the site.

Total voting was held from May to December 2009, which received more than 10,000 votes from individual internet users (registered unique ISPs), proving the highest voter participation for the duration of the campaign.

The awarding ceremonies will be held in the upcoming Moscow International Travel and Tourism (MITT) Exhibition this month, a sought-after spring international travel show in Russia.

The Philippines’ breathtaking dive sites continue to captivate divers all over the world, landing the top spots in the Reader’s Choice Awards from the latest issue of Scuba Diving Magazine.

The country was cited under various categories for wreck diving, macro life, value-for-money diving, preferred site for underwater photography and overall destination rating.

“The country continues to capture a wide market because of our diverse attractions, and these recognitions affirm that we are on the right track.

“We continue to work hand in hand with tourism offices abroad keeping ourselves abreast on the latest developments and demand from various markets, to promote our country better,” shared Undersecretary for Planning and Promotions Eduardo Jarque Jr.

Taking off from being named Asia’s Most Popular Destination at the 2009 World Travel Fair in China, the Philippines was also included in the Top 5 Best Diving Areas and Top 10 Most Desirable Destinations in Japan; cited first place in the Top 10 Emerging Food Destinations for ‘travellers seeking not only a new and fascinating experience but also an exotic culinary sensation,’ by Australia’s most trusted travel website, the www.expedia.com.au.

National Geographic’s Adventure Travel Issue cited the country in its 25 Best New Trips for 2010, with a special highlight on the mountains of Cordillera and beaches of Bohol.

The Cordillera Rice Terraces was also cited in NatGeo’s 50 Places of a Lifetime, a list of treasured destinations one ought to see in this lifetime.

This year, the Philippines received a prestigious nomination for Asia’s Leading Tourist Board from the World Travel Awards (WTA), considered the ‘Oscars of the travel industry.’

The WTA is the culmination of a year-long search for the very best travel brands in the world, covering seven continents and featuring over 3,600 nominees.

bledzoe

March 28th, 2010, 02:53 AM

Taiwanese celebrity chooses Bora for Wedding celebration (http://goodnewspilipinas.com/?p=10859)
Posted on March 25th, 2010 under Beauty of the Philippines

http://goodnewspilipinas.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Fish-Leong-and-Tony-Chao.jpg

Asia’s popular celebrity singer, Fish Leong, and businessman Tony Chao recently tied the knot in Boracay Island in Malay, Aklan.

A result of the aggressive and extensive promotional efforts by the Department of Tourism (DOT), highlighting country’s pristine beaches as premier wedding destinations, DOT’s Romantic Philippines campaign has lured couples to put the country in their wedding wish lists.

Tourism Secretary Ace Durano says, “We continue to highlight the country’s position as a desired location for weddings, and this helps boost our specialized segments, also benefiting local businesses, generating income from a constantly flourishing market.”

He adds, “People will not hesitate to invest their resources in the one of the most important events of their lives, also expecting nothing less but the most romantic, most memorable, top-notch location. The Philippines offers that and more.”

Some 50 Taiwanese tourists including the family and relatives of Fish and Tony flew all the way from Canada and Taipei to Boracay to witness the wedding rites in Discovery Shores. The event was also attended by some Taiwanese media from leading newspapers in Taiwan including the Singapore-based Vogue Magazine.
Fish Leong, also known as Leong Chui Pen, is a sought-after music artist in Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, with all her albums landing the bestseller list in the East Asia region.

“For about a year Tony and I have been traveling from one country to another and have seen a lot of amazing places, breathtaking views and serene beaches, met a lot of people and covered a lot of destination weddings, but it is the beach that is the closest to our hearts,” she said.

She shared when asked about their choice for a wedding destination, “We didn’t have a hard time choosing. Both of us agreed, ‘Where else but in the beautiful island of Boracay, Philippines’? It is indeed the most perfect place to tie the knot. There is something about the island that makes everyone feel at home.”

The solemn wedding rites facing the beautiful sunset of Boracay was proceeded by an intimate reception at a wedding tent in front of Discovery Shores, especially customized for the affair.

Tourism Undersecretary Eduardo Jarque Jr., who heads DOT Planning and Promotions, said, “Our facilities, venues, event planners and organizers, are all ready to welcome those who will celebrate this momentous occasion. We aim to further tap this niche market through offering more programs and packages through our partners.”

World-class entertainment for the guests at the reception was given by Iloilo’s pride, the Gerry Gray Jazz Band, which played the couple’s favorite romantic songs. The simple yet elegant wedding rite has attracted several onlookers and foreign tourists to the resorts to feel the romantic ambience in the beach front.

According to Amanda Tirol, an expert in planning beach destination weddings, the average number (of beach weddings) in Boracay is 200 per year, which includes small to big weddings. Majority of the foreign clients come from Australia, the US, Singapore and Hong Kong and also quite a number from Europe.

She said, “The best time for a beach wedding in Boracay is from January up to the middle of May because of the cool northeast wind or the so-called amihan season,” characterized by moderate temperatures with little or no rainfall and a prevailing wind from the east.

Boracay has become a popular beach wedding destination for both local and foreign couples because of its accessibility and value-for-money packages. Direct flights from Taipei to Kalibo by Philippine Airlines and China Airlines continue to boost tourist activity in the island, as well as Manila-Caticlan flights via SEAIR, Asian Spirit and Cebu Pacific.

Numerous activity choices in Boracay like water sports, snorkeling, shopping, spa and wellness retreats, and beach parties, also include the list of top draw cards to the area.

xxxriainxxx

March 28th, 2010, 08:15 AM

^^ yeah but hospitality alone is not enough...

but it is an edge.

xavierdude

March 28th, 2010, 06:14 PM

-SNPKLSDMBLDR-

March 28th, 2010, 08:56 PM

are those "banig/abaniko" patterns? :D

yung totoo, SM ba ang nagdesign nyan at boxy? :nuts::lol:

xxxriainxxx

March 29th, 2010, 01:04 AM

are those "banig/abaniko" patterns? :D

yung totoo, SM ba ang nagdesign nyan at boxy? :nuts::lol:

^^:lol::lol:

jpdm

March 29th, 2010, 02:27 AM

xxxriainxxx

March 29th, 2010, 02:44 AM

I have Taiwanese friends and they love going to our country because of geographical proximity and close racial affinity.

They just hope that the government will be serious enough in improving the peace and order situation in the country, bring down power rates and improve infrastructure and the Philippines is a perfect place for foreign investors and tourists..:cheers::cheers::cheers:

may point ka jan. ^^

michael_ray

March 29th, 2010, 05:14 AM

This summer...
Experience the thrill, the fun, and the excitement in...
Cagayan de Oro....

First stop: White water rafting

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3190/2894340859_31c4f3da77.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3634/3614840415_ed5e79cdd7.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2405/2086222848_9926c0ba5b.jpg

Second Stop: Kayaking

http://ourparadisephilippines.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Kayak-Sec-Durano.jpg
Tourism Secretary Ace Durano

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3572/3490486534_399bfed683.jpg

Third stop: Asia's Longest Dual Zip Line... Dahilayan Zip Zone

http://damarre.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/pic-10260424150108.jpg

Fourth Stop: Mapawa Adventure Park

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_QwAzvbZWHGc/Rtz9ZqVOlOI/AAAAAAAAArA/z6gP4_ia2Ew/Mapawa+(01).jpg

Cagayan de Oro is also the gateway of the following destinations:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2288/2344154271_24e78376bb.jpg
Duka Bay, Medina, Misamis Oriental

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2251/2272809277_36a4dd8358.jpg
Camiguin

http://images.kristiene.multiply.com/image/4/photos/45/500x500/12/IMGP4395.JPG?et=DSpePmikp5oOI0XjU4b1pw&nmid=115420871
Divine Mercy Shrine, El Salvador City

naughtycalboy

March 29th, 2010, 12:54 PM

http://i281.photobucket.com/albums/kk203/jenifer_semilla/15309_376344298649_546893649_372832.jpg

reminds me of the ilocano dessert, "patupat"!

xxxriainxxx

March 29th, 2010, 01:05 PM

Third stop: Asia's Longest Dual Zip Line... Dahilayan Zip Zone

http://damarre.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/pic-10260424150108.jpg

Hindi po ito sa Cagayan de Oro. Sa Bukidnon po ito.

william :D

March 29th, 2010, 03:03 PM

Hindi po ito sa Cagayan de Oro. Sa Bukidnon po ito.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! gusto ko din nian!!!! :banana::banana::banana:

william :D

March 29th, 2010, 03:09 PM

xxxriainxxx

March 29th, 2010, 03:23 PM

Acquatica Show at the Manila Ocean Park

e0G6_jT2lbw

boju2

March 29th, 2010, 03:32 PM

Hindi po ito sa Cagayan de Oro. Sa Bukidnon po ito.

Yes, pero pinakamalapit sa CDO at ang office nila nasa CDO rin...

william :D

March 29th, 2010, 03:51 PM

Yes, pero pinakamalapit sa CDO at ang office nila nasa CDO rin...

kung ndi lang naapektuhan ng terrorism ang mindanao, sigurado po ako napakalaking tulong nian sa tourism ng bansa.napakarami pang undiscovered wonders ang nandyan.hehe, :D :banana::banana::banana::banana:
***PEACE ON EARTH, ESPECIALLY ON OUR NATION***

xxxriainxxx

March 29th, 2010, 04:21 PM

kung ndi lang naapektuhan ng terrorism ang mindanao, sigurado po ako napakalaking tulong nian sa tourism ng bansa.napakarami pang undiscovered wonders ang nandyan.hehe, :D :banana::banana::banana::banana:
***PEACE ON EARTH, ESPECIALLY ON OUR NATION***

Yung mga terrorists na yan, isolated areas lang yan ng Mindanao.

hakz2007

March 30th, 2010, 03:03 AM

From Wonders of the Philippines Thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=878700&page=4)

Why can't Philippines be the 'next Thailand'? It has everything that Thailand has to offer and then some. Not to mention the fact that Philippino people are known for being very warm and friendly.

I was thinking along that line too.
One observation and I know is a fact is that
hotel rates in Thailand is way cheaper than in the Philippines.
Most of the people I talk to with regard to this is that they find
Thailand much cheaper in almost everything than in the Philippines.

xxxriainxxx

March 30th, 2010, 05:08 AM

From Wonders of the Philippines Thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=878700&page=4)

hehe, hindi ko na papatulan yan hakz, I think I already answered that question here in the previous threads.

Iba lang talaga ang market ng Thailand. The fact that Bangkok is a major airline hub also helps their tourism much. I agree though, pagdating sa hotel rates dito, jhindi pa rin talaga marunong magpresyo ang mga hotels.

NOVO ECIJANO

March 30th, 2010, 05:42 AM

hehe, hindi ko na papatulan yan hakz, I think I already answered that question here in the previous threads.

Iba lang talaga ang market ng Thailand. The fact that Bangkok is a major airline hub also helps their tourism much. I agree though, pagdating sa hotel rates dito, jhindi pa rin talaga marunong magpresyo ang mga hotels.

EVEN

NOVO ECIJANO

March 30th, 2010, 05:43 AM

fengrun

March 30th, 2010, 05:53 AM

xxxriainxxx

March 30th, 2010, 05:55 AM

Even the people are cheap?:)

Uy, I dint say anything like that ha. hehe.

pau_p1

March 30th, 2010, 11:58 AM

Acquatica Show at the Manila Ocean Park

e0G6_jT2lbw

aba.. parang Songs of the Sea ng Sentosa... nice!

ZIG

March 30th, 2010, 01:06 PM

I'm in AWE! Seeing the pictures here of the Philippines gives me goosebumps. Iba talaga ang ganda ng Pilipinas. When I was living in the Philippines, I never really took notice of how beautiful our country is, never got to visit all the amazing places kasi nasa isip ko noon "nandyan lang naman yan, I can go there later". Pero now that I am living abroad, I regret not going to these places. Yeah, maganda dito and all, pero iba pa din talaga sa Pilipinas.

I am especially amazed at how Bicol Region has become the newest tourism hotspot in the country. Five years ago if you asked me what I can see in Bicol I can only reply Mayon. Pero ngayon, ang daming magagandang lugar na pwedeng puntahan sa Bicolandia.

Ano kayang lugar ang susunod na magiging hotpsot? Im thinking of the Northern Philippines (Cagayan, Isabela, Aurora).

xxxriainxxx

March 30th, 2010, 01:42 PM

aba.. parang Songs of the Sea ng Sentosa... nice!

Oo nga! That's what I thought so too...Galing ano... meron na din tayo..

I'm in AWE! Seeing the pictures here of the Philippines gives me goosebumps. Iba talaga ang ganda ng Pilipinas. When I was living in the Philippines, I never really took notice of how beautiful our country is, never got to visit all the amazing places kasi nasa isip ko noon "nandyan lang naman yan, I can go there later". Pero now that I am living abroad, I regret not going to these places. Yeah, maganda dito and all, pero iba pa din talaga sa Pilipinas.

I am especially amazed at how Bicol Region has become the newest tourism hotspot in the country. Five years ago if you asked me what I can see in Bicol I can only reply Mayon. Pero ngayon, ang daming magagandang lugar na pwedeng puntahan sa Bicolandia.

Ano kayang lugar ang susunod na magiging hotpsot? Im thinking of the Northern Philippines (Cagayan, Isabela, Aurora).

Nakakataba naman ng puso ng sinabi nyo. Check nyo po ang Facebook account namin. Daming nakapost din dun na photos from the different parts of the country... Those places you mentioned (Cagayan, Isabela, Aurora) - hindi kalaunan, susunod na din yan. They are all equally stunning places.

NOVO ECIJANO

March 30th, 2010, 11:01 PM

Uy, I dint say anything like that ha. hehe.

sorry,nagpapasaya lang ako dito dahil nag iinit ang ulo ko sa Halalan thread,I am against incompetent candidates.Baka maudlot na naman momentum sa pagsulong ng economy natin.

xxxriainxxx

March 31st, 2010, 12:40 AM

sorry,nagpapasaya lang ako dito dahil nag iinit ang ulo ko sa Halalan thread,I am against incompetent candidates.Baka maudlot na naman momentum sa pagsulong ng economy natin.

Kaya hindi na nga ako masyado nakikialam dun eh, daming nega. :D Anyway,

Bad news for the day however, EU delisted the country's airlines from flying into EU. I don't think it is gonna affect the airlines per se because airlines from the Philippines stopped flying into Europe since 1999. The implication however is that tourism reputation in the country would suffer. AFAIK, air travel in the country is as safe as it is - IMO, the delisting of Philippines is also protectionist move by the EU and divert the attention to its failing airline industries. Hindi ba Air France yung bumagsak sa Atlantic? (last year or 2 years ago?) British Airways and Lufthansa is also being dogged by strikes.

I don't know what the CAAP is doing but since that downgrading from the US FAA back in 2009, they clearly did not do much to correct that. Napakainutil lang talaga ng mga tao dyan sa CAAP.

higen

March 31st, 2010, 06:34 AM

the philippines is meant for the much more well-off market. Its not for the filthy and smelly backpacker. So please don't compare it with thailand.

I have even read an australian news before about this high roller gambler who was toured to the Philippines by the casino management, to encourage him to keep in gambling in a melbourne casino.

^^So I'm assuming that when you travel abroad, your one of them "tourist type" who checks in to a 3 to 5 star hotel, right? You'd be surprised to know how un-filty, un-smelly and well to do a lot of them backpackers are...backpackers are travelers NOT tourists like you...They travel on foot to see and appreciate the country they visit. Unlike a "tourist", who will squander all the money he has budgeted to see only Phuket or Bangkok Hat Yai at a time when he goes to Thailand, backpackers travel to see several destinations in the country, hence the need to put everything they need in ONE bag They backpack to travel the unbeaten path because they want to see the country as it is. When was the last time you traveled or "toured" abroad, traveling from Malaysia and crossing over to Hat Yai in Thailand to Bangkok to Ayuthaya to Chang Mai and crossing over to Cambodia to visit the Angkor Wat and all the while carrying your "tourist baggage train" behind you? Was it very convenient for you? If it was, please teach me your technique.

And I don't understand what you meant about the high roller gambler from Australia. Can you rephrase what you said about the Australian gambler so I can better address it? Your deduction that the Philippines is for the upper class tourist compared to Thailand does not only make me suspect that you've never traveled to see Thailand. It also makes me suspect that you've not been to many islands in your own country...I suggest you do some backpacking in Luzon first so you can understand why people do this...

Sometimes my lurking is interrupted by reading these kinds of comments....:wallbash:

xxxriainxxx

March 31st, 2010, 07:17 AM

^^So I'm assuming that when you travel abroad, your one of them "tourist type" who checks in to a 3 to 5 star hotel, right? You'd be surprised to know how un-filty, un-smelly and well to do a lot of them backpackers are...backpackers are travelers NOT tourists like you...They travel on foot to see and appreciate the country they visit. Unlike a "tourist", who will squander all the money he has budgeted to see only Phuket or Bangkok Hat Yai at a time when he goes to Thailand, backpackers travel to see several destinations in the country, hence the need to put everything they need in ONE bag They backpack to travel the unbeaten path because they want to see the country as it is. When was the last time you traveled or "toured" your own country, going from manila to the Babuyan Islands to Romblon to Cagayan De Oro or have you ever tried traveling from Malaysia and crossing over to Hat Yai in Thailand to Bangkok to Ayuthaya to Chang Mai and crossing over to Cambodia and all the while carrying your "tourist baggage train" behind you? Was it very convenient for you? If it was, please teach me your technique.

And I don't even understand what you meant about the high roller gambler from Australia. Can you rephrase what you said about the Australian gambler so I can better address it? Your deduction that the Philippines is for the upper class tourist compared to Thailand does not only make me suspect that you've never travelled to see Thailand, it also makes me suspect that you've not been to many islands in your own country...I suggest you do some backpacking in your own country first so you can understand why people do this...

Sometimes my lurking is interrupted by reading these kinds of comments....:wallbash:

Not all backpackers are travelers. A lot of these backpackers (especially the ones in mainland Southeast Asia) stay filthy, do drugs, get stupid drunk, have sex in every freaking hostel and overstay their visas. Many of these backpackers end up smoking joints, getting stoned and drunk while tubing in Laos or in full moon parties in Koh Phangan. (Btw, with the blown heads of buddhas in Ayuthaya - not really impressive anyway). Seriously, not all of these kind of backpackers really understand the culture anyway ( I think this is what fengrun refers to as those kind of backpackers that the Philippines must avoid at all cost). Before you react, remember that I said "a lot". "most" meaning not all - I dint generalize.

Mainland Southeast Asia as an unbeaten path? Come on, you must be joking right? A million books and blogs and tv shows have been written, presented about that region, save for Myanmar - the rest of Southeast Asian mainland is as McDonald's as it can get when it comes to traveling - so sorry, that does not qualify as a street cred. IMO, real frontiers of travel in Asia remains to be currently the Philippines, Indonesia (outside of Bali), Myanmar, Bhutan, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and Tibet.

One can stay at 3 star to 5 star resorts and hotels but still be able to get an authentic experience provided you go out of your way to experience it. I've stayed in both classy and dirt cheap hotels and it dint diminish my experiences of the particular destinations. When I travel I either use my backpacks or my luggage. Sometimes I don't use backpacks because of my scoliosis but anyway beside the point.

NOVO ECIJANO

March 31st, 2010, 07:23 AM

no other places can equal the beauty of the philippines,salamat sa internet so many potential places like(move over Boracay)Caramoan.

xxxriainxxx

March 31st, 2010, 07:38 AM

no other places can equal the beauty of the philippines,salamat sa internet so many potential places like(move over Boracay)Caramoan.

Actually, Caramoan should not be compared with Boracay kasi magkaiba ang topography nila. Caramoan's appeal is that it has many islands with nice limestone cliffs, but the infrastructure to get to those islands is very poor. The beaches are shorter compared to Boracay and since it faces the Pacific, it does not enjoy great all-year round beach weather and calm waters like Boracay. Boracay's strengths lie in the fact that it is very convenient to get to and it has wide and long, children-friendly beaches with shallow and warm waters with great swimming all year. The sand is the finest that I have seen and still is unmatched by any beach that I have ever been to. Boracay's weakness is overcrowding and the rampant and unhampered construction and development on the island. Caramoan meanwhile is showing some strain itself. Sometimes, you'd find 50 people in a small strip of sand in islands like Lajos and Matukad. I liked Matukad but the limestone cliffs bore a lot of graffiti. Islands like Sabitang Laya and Hunungan had broken glass and styro trash.

Like I said in previous pages, I really hope that they do something about these potentially threatening problems in Caramoan. If you really must compare Caramoan, compare it to Coron - both destinations have some similarities.

If I have to choose the best destination for me between the three: Coron, Caramoan or Boracay - I'd choose Coron. :)

Manila-X

March 31st, 2010, 07:56 AM

Alot of the backpackers from US or Europe coming to The Philippines are Filipinos themselves especially those who would want to explore the country of their (or their parents') roots.

fengrun

March 31st, 2010, 08:27 AM

higen

March 31st, 2010, 10:10 AM

backpackers are budget travellers. These people would scrimp as much as possible with money.

They stay in dilapidated hostels or sleep in a tent.

You speaking from experience here? Well I guess I should shut up then since you obviously know what your talking about...:doh:

Your right about the budget traveler and to some degree you are right that some of them are filthy and sticky, but that's just because of all the walking. And yes some of them do stay in hostels that even a Pinoy like me who grew up in a squatters area will never stay in but a lot of them stay in decent hotels. I think what your missing is that most, if not all middle class travelers, ARE budget travelers. In the sense that they have a certain budget allotted for every trip they make. But that does not make these people poor as you paint them ALL to be. I am absolutely sure that you will be surprised at what some of these people do for a living or how much they make in a year. Most middle Japanese and European travelers are backpackers. Have you ever seen the series the "Globe Trekker" in the travel and living channel? That series IS catered for the backpacking traveler. Try and watch it to get an idea of why people do backpacking instead of spending 3-5 days in one place. Backpackers travel to SEE the world and not to get pampered like what you perceive traveling should be. Now, from what you said on the previous post that Phils is catered to the "higher up" tourist compared to Thailand which is a haven for them filthy backpackers. Do you mind educating me who these high rollers that Phils tourism is catered to??? Your declaration that the Phils is catered to Higher ups as opposed to Thailand is just screaming of (chosing not to be blunt) "lack of proper perspective"...Is it really that difficult not to post these kind of unfounded comments??? :ohno:

Expressing ones opinion is well and good, but when these opinion are spawned out of bias and an obvious limited perspective, then they will warrant responses from people in the know...Follow my advice and start with Luzon. Try to backpack so you can understand why most traveler do this.

higen

March 31st, 2010, 05:05 PM

Not all backpackers are travelers. A lot of these backpackers (especially the ones in mainland Southeast Asia) stay filthy, do drugs, get stupid drunk, have sex in every freaking hostel and overstay their visas. Many of these backpackers end up smoking joints, getting stoned and drunk while tubing in Laos or in full moon parties in Koh Phangan. (Btw, with the blown heads of buddhas in Ayuthaya - not really impressive anyway). Seriously, not all of these kind of backpackers really understand the culture anyway ( I think this is what fengrun refers to as those kind of backpackers that the Philippines must avoid at all cost). Before you react, remember that I said "a lot". "most" meaning not all - I dint generalize.

Mainland Southeast Asia as an unbeaten path? Come on, you must be joking right? A million books and blogs and tv shows have been written, presented about that region, save for Myanmar - the rest of Southeast Asian mainland is as McDonald's as it can get when it comes to traveling - so sorry, that does not qualify as a street cred. IMO, real frontiers of travel in Asia remains to be currently the Philippines, Indonesia (outside of Bali), Myanmar, Bhutan, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and Tibet.

One can stay at 3 star to 5 star resorts and hotels but still be able to get an authentic experience provided you go out of your way to experience it. I've stayed in both classy and dirt cheap hotels and it dint diminish my experiences of the particular destinations. When I travel I either use my backpacks or my luggage. Sometimes I don't use backpacks because of my scoliosis but anyway beside the point.

:doh: Im the one generalizing??? Too bad I didn't read this reply earlier...haayyy! Mainland SEA a "beaten path"??? Jeezzz...You see that's where you and I are not in the same page..I can give you a dozen places in Thailand that I'm sure you've never been to nor have never even heard of, the so-called "unbeaten path" I was referring to...In all your traveling where in SEA have you been? Bangkok? Sure it "a beaten path". Ayuthaya? Same. But have you been to Hat Yai? How about the Elephant sanctuary in Malaysia? Or have you walked around the town of Solo in Indonesia and bought fish in the local market which you asked the hotel chef to prepare for you, fish curry style? I'm sure I can name hundreds of towns, places, parks in other SEA countries that you nor most travelers have never gone to nor heard about, towns and hidden places which I hope to see in the future...see where I'm going here when I said the "unbeaten path"?

And the filthy, drug doer and getting stupid drunk backpackers, a...come on, you serious? Is this image influenced from a 70s hippie migration to India documentary? My friend Globe Trekker series is worth watching if your not too keen in researching the web for some of those "usual/not in the beaten path" places...Ian Wright is hilarious and Megan McCormick is quite petite...perhaps they can shift your perspective of what backpackers are all about. I was very fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to travel to some of them "hidden" places in SEA region, among other places, and have stayed in backpacking hotels and Inns and have had been lucky enough to mingle with backpackers from Europe, Australia, Japan, America and other nations from the other side of the globe. Some are Doctors, Retirees, Engineers, Teachers, Software Engineers, Bank execs, Nurses and many more titles and profession you can think of...Perhaps some of them smoked weed on their younger days and I've been offered to smoke different kinds of cigarettes but never a joint. Sorry my friend, but I think your image of backpacking is inspired by some 70s hippie wonderland...My wife had been backpacking all her independent life. So does 2 of her sisters and both my retired parent-in-laws do the same. They are all professionals...My wife and her family is from one of them countries that work their people to death. Most of the solo and couple travelers from her country travel backpack style even some retirees from her country travel backpacker style, a backpacking nation if you will. When she was still living in her country she worked on average 11-12 hrs a day. She has all this money saved up to spend in Phuket or Bangkok and spend the rest of her 10 day vacation in those 2 places but she will chose not to. Because she would rather spend the 10 days , backpacking across the country taking the public transpo, plane, ship or on foot so she can see as much of the country as she can. She will even try fit 2-3 countries in a 15 day vacation and see more of these countries than see the same thing over and over again getting stuck in one place.

Its obvious that both of us have done some traveling. But for someone who I am guessing works for the tourism department I am simply distressed at your impression of what a backpacker is and what backpacking is all about...Makes me wonder actually...

fengrun

March 31st, 2010, 05:19 PM

You speaking from experience here? Well I guess I should shut up then since you obviously know what your talking about...:doh:

Your right about the budget traveler and to some degree you are right that some of them are filthy and sticky, but that's just because of all the walking. And yes some of them do stay in hostels that even a Pinoy like me who grew up in a squatters area will never stay in but a lot of them stay in decent hotels. I think what your missing is that most, if not all middle class travelers, ARE budget travelers. In the sense that they have a certain budget allotted for every trip they make. But that does not make these people poor as you paint them ALL to be. I am absolutely sure that you will be surprised at what some of these people do for a living or how much they make in a year. Most middle Japanese and European travelers are backpackers. Have you ever seen the series the "Globe Trekker" in the travel and living channel? That series IS catered for the backpacking traveler. Try and watch it to get an idea of why people do backpacking instead of spending 3-5 days in one place. Backpackers travel to SEE the world and not to get pampered like what you perceive traveling should be. Now, from what you said on the previous post that Phils is catered to the "higher up" tourist compared to Thailand which is a haven for them filthy backpackers. Do you mind educating me who these high rollers that Phils tourism is catered to??? Your declaration that the Phils is catered to Higher ups as opposed to Thailand is just screaming of (chosing not to be blunt) "lack of proper perspective"...Is it really that difficult not to post these kind of unfounded comments??? :ohno:

Expressing ones opinion is well and good, but when these opinion are spawned out of bias and an obvious limited perspective, then they will warrant responses from people in the know...Follow my advice and start with Luzon. Try to backpack so you can understand why most traveler do this.

i'm a backpacker too. but i'm not too smelly and filthy. But as a backpacker I don't stay in expensive hotel, but live in tents and cheap hotels,and cook my own food from the camping stove.

If all tourists are like me, the government will not have much revenue from 4-5 star hotel rents, restaurants, and casinos.

higen

March 31st, 2010, 05:36 PM

^^Then you are a destitute backpacker...I'm sorry to hear that. Not all backpackers are like what you claim to be. In fact a whole lot of them have very decent earnings and would even be considered filthy, but the filthy rich kind, if he/she was earning as much and living in the Phils...

See there lies a mystery to me. As a backpacker yourself, why would you even call others like you as filthy and smelly? Yours and riain's image of backpacking and backpackers is really....uhmmm...interesting (for lack of adjective)...

The sleeping in a tent and cooking your own food bit sounds more like what an explorer or explorers (say, Louis and Clark) would do rather than a backpacker. If you would have added that you also catch and kill your food before you cook it, I might have very well made the mistake...:tongue3: just teasin :)

Tornado

March 31st, 2010, 06:21 PM

I agreed with higen.. many points
1. Thailand starts its tourism boom from backpack ( budget traveler ) budget traveler usually look for cheaper option such as local hotel run by local people , local restaurant runs by local family.. backpacker seems to benefits local more than other type of tourists ? ...could be ... years later the local businesses grow to be a better , larger business and who benefits.. of course the country that's why many countries support Small and medium business.

2. I am one of the budget traveler too. I work as a manager at one of the tour operator to many beautiful islands around Phuket. My monthly salary is good enough for me to go Europe 2-3 times a year .. it is quite good for Thailand standard.. I am also a budget traveler who wants to see more and get as much as possible out of my money... that's why I spend less to travel more , to see more , to enjoy more cuz I am still young only 20s and I managed to see more than 25 countries already. it's good thing of being a budget traveler

3.off the beaten path.... if you ever been to Thailand there is so many less traveled destination to visit eg. northeastern region where only about 5 percent of total Thailand tourist come to that area. (and that area is largest region of the country)

will you believe there is some islands so close to PHuket that has not many tourists.. off the beaten track just like this island I posted..

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4006/4376845330_9b554cd95b.jpg
almost untouched by tourism ... untouched from crowd.. photos taken in Feb 2010
amazing island only 1 hour away from PHuket

4. backpacker , budget traveler doesn't mean they dirty and they have less money and we shouldn't welcome them to the country. I believe most of people coming to Thailand , they not only expect to buy sex service.. there is only little percentage .. doesn't matter even its large number because I am not of the kind and make sure we and whoever .. not going to support sex tour industry if we say we against it.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4053/4375495587_4c038c00a3.jpg
first time budget traveler to Thailand.. they are honeymooners :) they enjoy the country because they said.. its value for money and I got a chance to join the trip with them.

5. I hope SEA can work together to develop infra, tourism standard and so on.. so we can draw more traveler to the region.

higen

March 31st, 2010, 07:25 PM

will you believe there is some islands so close to PHuket that has not many tourists.. off the beaten track just like this island I posted..

almost untouched by tourism ... untouched from crowd.. photos taken in Feb 2010
amazing island only 1 hour away from PHuket

I've never been to Phuket, I'm not one for the usual places. But these Islands sound interesting. Thanks for sharing.

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 01:21 AM

:doh: Im the one generalizing??? Too bad I didn't read this reply earlier...haayyy! Mainland SEA a "beaten path"??? Jeezzz...You see that's where you and I are not in the same page..I can give you a dozen places in Thailand that I'm sure you've never been to nor have never even heard of, the so-called "unbeaten path" I was referring to...In all your traveling where in SEA have you been? Bangkok? Sure it "a beaten path". Ayuthaya? Same. But have you been to Hat Yai? How about the Elephant sanctuary in Malaysia? Or have you walked around the town of Solo in Indonesia and bought fish in the local market which you asked the hotel chef to prepare for you, fish curry style? I'm sure I can name hundreds of towns, places, parks in other SEA countries that you nor most travelers have never gone to nor heard about, towns and hidden places which I hope to see in the future...see where I'm going here when I said the "unbeaten path"?

And the filthy, drug doer and getting stupid drunk backpackers, a...come on, you serious? Is this image influenced from a 70s hippie migration to India documentary? My friend Globe Trekker series is worth watching if your not too keen in researching the web for some of those "usual/not in the beaten path" places...Ian Wright is hilarious and Megan McCormick is quite petite...perhaps they can shift your perspective of what backpackers are all about. I was very fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to travel to some of them "hidden" places in SEA region, among other places, and have stayed in backpacking hotels and Inns and have had been lucky enough to mingle with backpackers from Europe, Australia, Japan, America and other nations from the other side of the globe. Some are Doctors, Retirees, Engineers, Teachers, Software Engineers, Bank execs, Nurses and many more titles and profession you can think of...Perhaps some of them smoked weed on their younger days and I've been offered to smoke different kinds of cigarettes but never a joint. Sorry my friend, but I think your image of backpacking is inspired by some 70s hippie wonderland...My wife had been backpacking all her independent life. So does 2 of her sisters and both my retired parent-in-laws do the same. They are all professionals...My wife and her family is from one of them countries that work their people to death. Most of the solo and couple travelers from her country travel backpack style even some retirees from her country travel backpacker style, a backpacking nation if you will. When she was still living in her country she worked on average 11-12 hrs a day. She has all this money saved up to spend in Phuket or Bangkok and spend the rest of her 10 day vacation in those 2 places but she will chose not to. Because she would rather spend the 10 days , backpacking across the country taking the public transpo, plane, ship or on foot so she can see as much of the country as she can. She will even try fit 2-3 countries in a 15 day vacation and see more of these countries than see the same thing over and over again getting stuck in one place.

Its obvious that both of us have done some traveling. But for someone who I am guessing works for the tourism department I am simply distressed at your impression of what a backpacker is and what backpacking is all about...Makes me wonder actually...

:doh: Im the one generalizing??? Too bad I didn't read this reply earlier...haayyy! Mainland SEA a "beaten path"??? Jeezzz...You see that's where you and I are not in the same page..I can give you a dozen places in Thailand that I'm sure you've never been to nor have never even heard of, the so-called "unbeaten path" I was referring to...In all your traveling where in SEA have you been? Bangkok? Sure it "a beaten path". Ayuthaya? Same.

1. Chill out, masyado kang high-blood, I DID NOT SAY THAT YOU ARE GENERALIZING- I AM JUST SAYING THAT REGARDLESS OF WHAT I SAID, I DID NOT MAKE ANY BLANKET STATEMENT. Be smart enough to read what I just wrote.

Yes, Mainland SEA is a beaten path, we can argue with this to infinity but we are not going to agree, but the fact that every year the Mainland SEA countries get tens of millions of visitors for the past 10-20 years, it is not hard to understand why it is the beaten path. Do the math. The fact that you can name heaps of this so called unbeaten path doesn't bode well at all. When was the last time you were in an island with no name?

If you are a real traveler, you know for one that Alex Gardner's The Beach was based on the author's travels in El Nido and Boracay back in the days when no one has even heard of these places. It was set in Thailand because exactly Thailand attracts that kind of travelers (Author's words, NOT MINE.)

Indonesia, I would understand, no one can comprehensively cover the so many islands of that country like the Philippines. Solo? Come on man. You can do better than that! Solo, Flores, Sumbawa has been on the tourist radar for years!!! Actually, I was meant to do an island hop in Mindanao going to Manado in Indonesia from Glan, Sarangani through the Sangihe Islands this May with other campers, I just decided not to because I don't have the time.

And the filthy, drug doer and getting stupid drunk backpackers, a...come on, you serious? Is this image influenced from a 70s hippie migration to India documentary? My friend Globe Trekker series is worth watching if your not too keen in researching the web for some of those "usual/not in the beaten path" places...Ian Wright is hilarious and Megan McCormick is quite petite...perhaps they can shift your perspective of what backpackers are all about.

8huB-21TB3U

2. Yes. I can give you a million examples of the extent of narco tourism in mainland SEA esp. the backpacking trails coming out of Khao San Rd. Certainly you have heard about the opium dens in Laos? Check out this news article about the backpacking idiots in Van Vieng - Laos threatened by sex and drugs (http://www.news.com.au/travel/world/idyllic-laos-threatened-by-sex-drugs-and-debaucherous-behaviour/story-e6frfqai-1225841761972) and Narco-Tourism in Laos. (http://www.maketravelfair.co.uk/2008/08/03/narco-tourism-in-laos/)

Care to deny this? While Thailand is relatively stricter in drug use compared to Laos, that can't be said in the many areas of Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. I am not saying the Philippines is any better. We do have massive drug problem of our own in a lot of our cities. But it is the narco-tourism that I would like to point out that mainly exists in Mainland SEA.

Btw, the hippie migration to India in the '70s is too passe. Laos is the new Goa. And Dude, you must be joking about the Globe Trekker right? I know Ian Wright's shows way back to when it was still called the Lonely Planet. Lonely Planet isn't exactly the best standard when measuring your traveling. It's Philippine guides are junk. For one of the biggest provinces in the Philippines - Quezon, they only covered one town - Lucban. On their latest guide to the Philippines, they erroneously said that you can fly from Batan Island to Itbayat Island in Batanes - You can't. The Itbayat Airport is under construction.I should know, I was there a few months ago. A TV Show changing anyone's perspective - Dude, please, stop the jokes. You are contradicting yourself royally. You were just talking about the "unbeaten paths" (your words) and your advice to me is to watch a TV show?

I was very fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to travel to some of them "hidden" places in SEA region, among other places, and have stayed in backpacking hotels and Inns and have had been lucky enough to mingle with backpackers from Europe, Australia, Japan, America and other nations from the other side of the globe. Some are Doctors, Retirees, Engineers, Teachers, Software Engineers, Bank execs, Nurses and many more titles and profession you can think of...Perhaps some of them smoked weed on their younger days and I've been offered to smoke different kinds of cigarettes but never a joint

3. Good for you then that you were still able to find these places. It's very hard to do that when you are in Mainland SEA. Oh, I think you misunderstood our statements. Being a doctor, nurse, retirees, engineers etc doesn't mean that you can be a lazy, dirty and cheap druggie backpacker. I am not saying everyone of them does, I have met some of sane ones even whilst traveling and actually exchanged good tips and stories. On the contrary, most of these otherwise "sane" people back in their home countries, tend to lose all their inhibitions while they are abroad. LOL.

But for someone who I am guessing works for the tourism department

4. I would have to correct you on that. I am an independent writer and the site that I am writing for is in no way connected nor receive funds from the Philippine Government. We support the tourism and environmental initiatives however. I write pro-bono. But if you ask me, I don't want the deluge of the dirty bogans coming to the Philippines - we have seen how these kinds of tourism including mass tourism did to the culture and the environment to the otherwise beautiful Mainland SEA. I don't want that to happen in the Philippines. I am partly glad, that airlines and the general costs of travel is more expensive here otherwise places wont be as pristine and remote.

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 01:54 AM

Heto na ang resulta ng katangahan ng CAAP:

UK travelers advised: Shun RP air carriers, inter-island seacrafts
04/01/2010 | 07:24 AM

Following an operating ban on Philippine air carriers by the European Union, the United Kingdom has advised its nationals to avoid flying on Philippine carriers in visiting the Philippines.

Moreover, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has maintained its warning against taking small inter-island sea vessels, noting that maritime rescue services in the Philippines may not be comprehensive.

“It is recommended that you avoid flying with Philippine certified carriers subject to the EU operating ban. If you already have a flight booked with an airline from the Philippines and it is part of a journey that commenced in the EU, you should consult your travel agency. You should also consult your travel insurance provider," the FCO said in its advisory Thursday.

Earlier, the European Union announced an operating ban on all air carriers certified in the Philippines, to take effect on April 1.

The UK noted the ban stemmed from an audit of Philippines carriers done by the International Civil Aviation Organization in October 2009, after Philippine regulatory authorities had failed to verify that local airlines comply with international safety standards.

Also, the UK advised its government employees to use carriers that are not subject to an operating ban or restrictions with the EU “unless this is unavoidable."

Citing Philippine tourism data, the UK FCO noted some 70,000 British tourists visit the Philippines every year.

Small sea vessels

The UK FCO has maintained its warning against inter-island travel by small boats, noting significant accidents in late 2008 alone.

It also noted of a high incidence of piracy and armed robbery against ships in and around Philippine waters.

“You should be aware that maritime rescue services in the Philippines might not be as comprehensive as they might be in the UK," it added.

Avoid political rallies

The UK FCO likewise reiterated its warning against demonstrations and large gatherings, especially political events.

“You should avoid demonstrations and large gatherings of people. There is often a rise in tensions and political unrest around Public Holidays, political events and important anniversaries," it said.

Meanwhile, the UK maintained as well its advice against all travel to southwest Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago because of ongoing terrorist and insurgent activity.

There are also ongoing clashes between the military and insurgent groups in Sulu including Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and Jolo, it added.

“We advise against all but essential travel to the remainder of Mindanao. There have been terrorist attacks against civilian targets in Mindanao: in the past two years these have included roads, buses and shopping malls," it said. - LBG, GMANews.TV

higen

April 1st, 2010, 04:18 AM

1. Chill out, masyado kang high-blood, I DID NOT SAY THAT YOU ARE GENERALIZING- I AM JUST SAYING THAT REGARDLESS OF WHAT I SAID, I DID NOT MAKE ANY BLANKET STATEMENT. Be smart enough to read what I just wrote.

Yes, Mainland SEA is a beaten path, we can argue with this to infinity but we are not going to agree, but the fact that every year the Mainland SEA countries get tens of millions of visitors for the past 10-20 years, it is not hard to understand why it is the beaten path. Do the math. The fact that you can name heaps of this so called unbeaten path doesn't bode well at all. When was the last time you were in an island with no name?

If you are a real traveler, you know for one that Alex Gardner's The Beach was based on the author's travels in El Nido and Boracay back in the days when no one has even heard of these places. It was set in Thailand because exactly Thailand attracts that kind of travelers (Author's words, NOT MINE.)

Indonesia, I would understand, no one can comprehensively cover the so many islands of that country like the Philippines. Solo? Come on man. You can do better than that! Solo, Flores, Sumbawa has been on the tourist radar for years!!! Actually, I was meant to do an island hop in Mindanao going to Manado in Indonesia from Glan, Sarangani through the Sangihe Islands this May with other campers, I just decided not to because I don't have the time.

[B]And the filthy, drug doer and getting stupid drunk backpackers, a...come on, you serious? Is this image influenced from a 70s hippie migration to India documentary? My friend Globe Trekker series is worth watching if your not too keen in researching the web for some of those "usual/not in the beaten path" places...Ian Wright is hilarious and Megan McCormick is quite petite...perhaps they can shift your perspective of what backpackers are all about.

2. Yes. I can give you a million examples of the extent of narco tourism in mainland SEA esp. the backpacking trails coming out of Khao San Rd. Certainly you have heard about the opium dens in Laos? Check out this news article about the backpacking idiots in Van Vieng - Laos threatened by sex and drugs (http://www.news.com.au/travel/world/idyllic-laos-threatened-by-sex-drugs-and-debaucherous-behaviour/story-e6frfqai-1225841761972) and Narco-Tourism in Laos. (http://www.maketravelfair.co.uk/2008/08/03/narco-tourism-in-laos/)

Care to deny this? While Thailand is relatively stricter in drug use compared to Laos, that can't be said in the many areas of Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. I am not saying the Philippines is any better. We do have massive drug problem of our own in a lot of our cities. But it is the narco-tourism that I would like to point out that mainly exists in Mainland SEA.

Btw, the hippie migration to India in the '70s is too passe. Laos is the new Goa. And Dude, you must be joking about the Globe Trekker right? I know Ian Wright's shows way back to when it was still called the Lonely Planet. Lonely Planet isn't exactly the best standard when measuring your traveling. It's Philippine guides are junk. For one of the biggest provinces in the Philippines - Quezon, they only covered one town - Lucban. On their latest guide to the Philippines, they erroneously said that you can fly from Batan Island to Itbayat Island in Batanes - You can't. The Itbayat Airport is under construction.I should know, I was there a few months ago. A TV Show changing anyone's perspective - Dude, please, stop the jokes. You are contradicting yourself royally. You were just talking about the "unbeaten paths" (your words) and your advice to me is to watch a TV show?

I was very fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to travel to some of them "hidden" places in SEA region, among other places, and have stayed in backpacking hotels and Inns and have had been lucky enough to mingle with backpackers from Europe, Australia, Japan, America and other nations from the other side of the globe. Some are Doctors, Retirees, Engineers, Teachers, Software Engineers, Bank execs, Nurses and many more titles and profession you can think of...Perhaps some of them smoked weed on their younger days and I've been offered to smoke different kinds of cigarettes but never a joint

3. Good for you then that you were still able to find these places. It's very hard to do that when you are in Mainland SEA. Oh, I think you misunderstood our statements. Being a doctor, nurse, retirees, engineers etc doesn't mean that you can be a lazy, dirty and cheap druggie backpacker. I am not saying everyone of them does, I have met some of sane ones even whilst traveling and actually exchanged good tips and stories. On the contrary, most of these otherwise "sane" people back in their home countries, tend to lose all their inhibitions while they are abroad. LOL.

But for someone who I am guessing works for the tourism department

4. I would have to correct you on that. I am an independent writer and the site that I am writing for is in no way connected nor receive funds from the Philippine Government. We support the tourism and environmental initiatives however. I write pro-bono. But if you ask me, I don't want the deluge of the dirty bogans coming to the Philippines - we have seen how these kinds of tourism including mass tourism did to the culture and the environment to the otherwise beautiful Mainland SEA. I don't want that to happen in the Philippines. I am partly glad, that airlines and the general costs of travel is more expensive here otherwise places wont be as pristine and remote.

:bash::bash::bash:....:doh::doh::doh::ohno::ohno::ohno:...And me "High Blood"??? :nuts::nuts::nuts: LOL!!!!...Yup, you obviously know what your talking about since you've posted the video on Youtube...damn it! We've been had...Yup, you caught them backpackers red handed alright...nothing but drug addict and stupid drunk people these backpackers are:doh::doh::doh:...Yup I guess I'd better shut since you obviously know what your talking about:doh:...Good advice about the "be smart enough to read..." though...Perhaps one should reflect on what one advices the other and try to follow ones own advice next time...

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 04:28 AM

^^ We are not going to agree on a lot of points, so let's just leave it at that. No point getting all worked up. You have said your piece and I have said mine, let's agree that we disagree.

higen

April 1st, 2010, 04:33 AM

^^True...Get yourself a long vacation and start is Singapore and work your way up through Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia. Take the land route as much as possible and chat with the other filthy and smelly backpackers you run across in one of them filthy Inns. Try backpacking that's all I can say...Lonely Planet, Globe trekker...sure I remember...

...moving along moving along...

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 04:35 AM

^^True....moving along moving along....

Now that you have brought up remote places earlier. I am curious what you think of doing an island hop around Tawi-tawi, Cagayan de Sulu, and Sangihe? I've been wanting to explore that bit as well as the southern parts of Palawan (all the way to Bugsuk and Balabac).

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 04:38 AM

^^True...try backpacking that's all I can say to you...moving along moving along.

^^ I've done backpacking a lot around the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. Would be doing backpacking in Mongolia, Bhutan and Burma around next year.

higen

April 1st, 2010, 04:48 AM

Now that you have brought up remote places earlier. I am curious what you think of doing an island hop around Tawi-tawi, Cagayan de Sulu, and Sangihe? I've been wanting to explore that bit as well as the southern parts of Palawan (all the way to Bugsuk and Balabac).

You mean the "unbeaten path"...LOL!!! I've never been too much down south. In fact I have'nt done much traveling in Phils lately because of certain overseas commitments...But I'll share my views if I have the chance.

^^ I've done backpacking a lot around the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. Would be doing backpacking in Mongolia, Bhutan and Burma around next year.

There you go...That wasnt so hard now was it? Your a backpacker too. I would never have guessed...I'm glad to hear that...;)

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 04:59 AM

You mean the "unbeaten path"...LOL!!! I've never been too much down south. In fact I have'nt done much traveling in Phils lately because of certain overseas commitments...But I'll share my views if I have the chance.

There you go...That wasnt so hard now was it? Your a backpacker too. I would never have guessed...I'm glad to hear that...;)

Oo, I backpack, but not as much and as much as possible I stay away din sa other people especially those filthy ones from the Mainland SEA. Takaw gulo sila and I don't want to be identified with those kinds of people. Kaya nga sinabi ko sa mga earlier posts ko na hindi ko nilalahat ng mga backpackers. I simply cant backpack all the time, my back is sore all the time, so health reasons yan. Sabi ko sa earlier posts ko, my scoliosis prevents me to carry a heavy load. Although in fact I am backpacking again next week, this time Batad and Banawe and then possibly Baler and then back to Camarines Norte. I have to backpack, otherwise, there is no way for me to carry 5 different cameras and a tripod.

I'd like to travel with a luggage, kaya lang nasira ang luggage ko (twice) - Once was in Malaysia and then another time was when I was on my way to Northern Mindanao (where I ended up carrying 8 kilos of clothes around 4 provinces in 3 days) and in some cases where I have a short stay in a particular place, I need to have an easy way to pack and go. Mahirap magluggage pag nakikiangkas ka lang sa isang van ng strangers.

leechtat

April 1st, 2010, 07:08 AM

^^ very interesting exchanges here... some bit of fact from my experience.. after college, my friends and i went traveling SEA countries.. one time, when we went to KL, we decided to stay at a back-packers hostel so we can experience what its like.. we then met a lot of very nice educated people from europe and other asian countries, and surprisingly most of them are retirees or young enterprenuers with a lot to spend.. (segue, in our discourse, they view the philippines though as a war-torn country.. we corrected them of course...) now, when we went to bangkok, we also met a lot of backpackers in our hotel.. so its just a matter of preference,.. some backpackers like to be thrifty, some would like to spend on five star hotels.. if i can get another chance to have a month long vacation, i would certainly try to backpack the authentic style.. to meet people and share experiences with them.. just sharing..

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 10:09 AM

fengrun

April 1st, 2010, 10:40 AM

Not educated nor well-traveled enough to know more about the country. Yung mga ganyang namemeet ko, tinatabla ko din ng baho ng sarili nilang bansa (syempre yung tipong pa-innocent effect din) . HEHEHE. But good on ya for correcting those people. ;)

well you can't blame them, there are the

1) foreign media who stereotype the Philippines that way, as a poor country, with slums, and starving kids.
2) the OFW's who tells all bad stories of lack of jobs and opportunities in the Philippines.

It is very true though in the Philippines that the poor gets poorer and the rich gets richer. Big businesses in the Philippines would opt to pay a meager salary knowing that a lot of Filipinos are desperate for work. The poor gets exploited no end. :ohno:

I met some people from other countries who thought the Philippines doesn't have a central bank, and thought that women here are not allowed to drive cars. I think the image that they see of the Philippines is something like that of the level of Zimbabwe or Somalia. :lol:

Thanks to the OFW's and the foreign media.

Sleepwalker

April 1st, 2010, 10:48 AM

^^It seems, it is really too easy for you to generalize. Why are you pointing fingers to the OFW's?

Sometimes, it's good to let your brain do the thinking, and your hands do the typing... :cheers:

fengrun

April 1st, 2010, 10:53 AM

^^It seems, it is really too easy for you to generalize. Why are you pointing fingers to the OFW's?

Sometimes, it's good to let the brain do the typing... :cheers:

a lot of negative comments about the Philippines comes from the OFW's and migrant filipinos. They would oftentimes speak of hardships, hunger, starvation, corruption, war, crimes in the Philippines just to justify why they left.

Also when you see Filipinos desperately doing odd jobs abroad, and breaking immigration law by overstaying their visa, it already gives a bad impression of the Philippines.

Undeniably, you won't see much Thais or Vietnamese doing those things. :ohno:

Sleepwalker

April 1st, 2010, 11:02 AM

fengrun

April 1st, 2010, 11:11 AM

^^Not all OFW's do the negative image painting about Philippines. :okay:

Filipinos going abroad taking odd jobs and sometimes overstaying is just a fragment of a bitter reality. And there is no way to deny it. There is no way, my friend... :)

yes of course not ALL. But a lot of negative comments comes from OFW's.

It is funny though when there are even foreigners who work in the Philippines and happy with a much smaller salary for the convenience, good weather, low cost of living. I know some Canadians before who would work as hard in the Philippine just to keep their jobs and lengthen their stay here as the weather in Canada is just unforgiving.

I guess OFW's can be classified as one of the most discontented people on earth. But then, hats off to them for the dollar that they bring. :cheers:

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 11:13 AM

^^Not all OFW's do the negative image painting about Philippines. :okay:

Filipinos going abroad taking odd jobs and sometimes overstaying is just a fragment of a bitter reality. And there is no way to deny it. There is no way, my friend... :)

Viets? I wonder if it is easy for them to go out from their country. About Thais? Siguro mas angkop lang sa mga Pinoy ang mga availble na mga opportunites outside the country... ;)

Actually there is a grain of truth sa sinabi ni fengrun, kadalasan mga migrant Pinoys ang unang mahilig mamintas ng Pilipinas sa ibang tao. It is far too common to hear comments from migrant Pinoys, who after being away from their country, and then seeing nice places of the Philippines on the internet the major comment was usually - "Maganda pala ang Pilipinas. Hindi ko akalain." At the same level, ganun din ang international media.

The issue is not whether kulang ang trabaho sa Pilipinas, or mahirap kumita ng pera dito. Alam naman natin lahat kung ano ang totoo, but yung mahilig pumula sa Pilipinas ay ang mga Pilipino mismo. Sana matuto tayong mag-appreciate ng bayan natin.

Sleepwalker

April 1st, 2010, 11:23 AM

yes of course not ALL. But a lot of negative comments comes from OFW's.

It is funny though when there are even foreigners who work in the Philippines and happy with a much smaller salary for the convenience, good weather, low cost of living. I know some Canadians before who would work as hard in the Philippine just to keep their jobs and lengthen their stay here as the weather in Canada is just unforgiving.

I guess OFW's can be classified as one of the most discontented people on earth. But then, hats off to them for the dollar that they bring. :cheers:

I know also of foriegners who likes to stay in Philippines. I even heard of a British guy who drives his own V-Hire.

Good thing with this people is that they are already financially stable. For most of Pinoy, how can you build a decent house with a very small salary? How can you send your brothers or sisters to school? Where will they get fees for hospital in case of emergencies?

Discontented ba ika mo? Hirap talaga sa kalagayan nang mga OFW. Discriminated pa sa ibang bansa, minsan namamaltrato pa sa POEA tapos bini-blame dahil nag-spread nang totoong buhay sa Pinas at ngayon discontented na naman... :ohno:

Actually there is a grain of truth sa sinabi ni fengrun, kadalasan mga migrant Pinoys ang unang mahilig mamintas ng Pilipinas sa ibang tao. It is far too common to hear comments from migrant Pinoys, who after being away from their country, and then seeing nice places of the Philippines on the internet the major comment was usually - "Maganda pala ang Pilipinas. Hindi ko akalain." At the same level, ganun din ang international media.

The issue is not whether kulang ang trabaho sa Pilipinas, or mahirap kumita ng pera dito. Alam naman natin lahat kung ano ang totoo, but yung mahilig pumula sa Pilipinas ay ang mga Pilipino mismo. Sana matuto tayong mag-appreciate ng bayan natin.

Siyempre, noong nasa Pinas pa yong OFW, walang oras para mag-check kung anong maganda sa PInas at walang pera para makapag liwaliw.

dessertfox

April 1st, 2010, 11:46 AM

well you can't blame them, there are the

1) foreign media who stereotype the Philippines that way, as a poor country, with slums, and starving kids.
2) the OFW's who tells all bad stories of lack of jobs and opportunities in the Philippines.

It is very true though in the Philippines that the poor gets poorer and the rich gets richer. Big businesses in the Philippines would opt to pay a meager salary knowing that a lot of Filipinos are desperate for work. The poor gets exploited no end. :ohno:

I met some people from other countries who thought the Philippines doesn't have a central bank, and thought that women here are not allowed to drive cars. I think the image that they see of the Philippines is something like that of the level of Zimbabwe or Somalia. :lol:

Thanks to the OFW's and the foreign media.

I thought you should be careful in putting blame to specific group of Filipinos. like as you accused OFW, Immigrants and as you claim foreign media also in general! Coz there’s no perfect race, country nor individual. You may never know that the most who dreams for a better Philippines are those living outside. They are one mostly at forefront of Gawad Kalinga, medical mission and now even in patriotic investing. Even the most negativist among them keeps sending money for their relatives.

We may don’t have perfect government, religion, beliefs, politics but it is insane to put your own country down as it is insane to throw mud at your own house!

You mentioned Vietnam or Thailand, remember that they were the one of the biggest refugees, and even we were hospitable enough to house them during the war. The Thais also do their share working overseas and thanks that we are perceived better in dealing with the people of the world. The Chinese was hundreds of years ahead of us being around the globe so with India and almost all countries send expatriates. Better ask economist on where the future belongs and they will say that it is in Asia including the Philippines lies the Future. Statistics shows migrants workers who keeps on helping almost on everything in their homeland is helping a lot. That’s why they are called modern day heroes.

As the saying goes, "there is no place like home", what more with the Philippines a country so beautiful in almost every aspect.

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 11:55 AM

Siyempre, noong nasa Pinas pa yong OFW, walang oras para mag-check kung anong maganda sa PInas at walang pera para makapag liwaliw.

I don't disagree with what you said, but political and economic realities doesn't an entire country make. The thing is we should be proud of our country no matter what. It is our responsibility to get to know it.

Totoo yang mga sinabi mo - lack of better paying jobs, corrupt government - isa sa mga nagtutulak sa mga Pinoy mangibang-bayan at hindi mo rin masisisi ang kanilang desisyon. Ang hindi lang tama, ay pagiging makitid ng utak ng ilan nating mga kabababayan (hindi lang yung nasa abroad, maski mismo sa Pilipinas). If there is one thing, we should really be proud of our country, it is our home. marami din akong nakikilalang Pinoy na grabe manlait sa Pilipinas. And I pity them, because they don't know what they are missing.

Dreamtofly

April 1st, 2010, 01:09 PM

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 01:41 PM

delete

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 01:48 PM

For me, i will blame in general the Filipinos.
It is the sad truth. bakit ba kasi marami dito ang magaling mag tago ng fact, marami dito ang laging pinag tutulakan na maganda at pang sosyal ang pinas. Sosyal ni hindi nyo nga matapatan ang thailand tapos sasabihin nyo na sosyal. Kasi nawala na sa pinoy ang pag usisa sa sarili or pag tuwid sa mali. Malaki ang potenial ng pinas, tama kayo dyan pero mali kayo sa paghuhusga. Alam nyo mali rin yung lagi na alng kayong nag compare sa sarili nyo lang na basihan. Meron mga experto at ano ang sabi ng mga experto sa travell industry? pero lahat ng mga ito ay inyong pinag bubulagan.

Kung ako sa inyo simulan nyo na ang manghikayat ng mga backpackers. kasi ang mga ito kaoag nag travel ay in group. tapos ang word of mouth ng mga ito ay isang napaka bisa na advertisment. I am one of those who were impluence by these people. when i plan my trip i always check comment of my friends or some online friend whom i meet during my backpack journey.

Mali kasi ang prospective ng pinas when it come to marketing ang travelling.

Sa tourism hindi sa hotel kumikita ang isang bansa, kundi sa pag spend nito sa mga inomin, sigarilyo at sa travel tax. magkanu lang ba tax sa hotel maliit lang. pero sa mga alak malaki.

Alam nyo pinoy may kasabihan na hindi nakakataba kung lunokin mo ang iyong pride. Dapat mgaing postive thinker kayo. hindi puro pang lalait at saka depend to the max kayo pa englis englis pa kayo. ni hindi nyo mga ma describe kung ano ang pilipinas.

Wag nyo na asahan yung mga OFW. kasi busy na yung mga yun mag pakain ng 100 members ng clan nila. Actualy hindi mahirap mag hanap ng trabaho sa pinas. Maarte at tamad ang pinoy. kapag may masasabitan or maaasahan kakapit nalang yan na parang tuko.

Have you ever traveled the country? Kung hindi pa, tumahimik ka. Wag kang Utak talangka. Kung sukang suka ka sa Pilipinas,wag kang mapadpad dito. Kung may gusto kang ituwid, ayusin mo ang pananalita mo.

Bella Roca, Marinduque

http://www.travelsmart.net/ph/resorts/Marinduque/Bellarocca_Island_Resort_and_Spa/images/Resort_BellaRocaIslandResortAndSpa_Pic1.jpg

Amanpulo, Palawan

http://www.go-package.com/palawan/images/amanpulo_marinelife.jpg

Fundacion Pacita, Batanes

http://tourism-philippines.com/images/batanes12.jpg

Misibis, Albay

http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/5279/515585571cmtsmm.jpg

Mandala Spa, Boracay

http://z.about.com/d/goseasia/1/0/U/E/-/-/resort_villa.jpg

El Nido Resorts, Palawan

http://www.triplestartours.com/system/datas/35/original/cottages1.jpg

The Farm at San Benito, Batangas

http://edongskey.com/photos/ipap-photos/9%20kubo%20girl.JPG

Ilan lang yan sa mga high end resorts at lugar sa Pilipinas, kaya kung wala kang masabing maganda, pakiusap, wag ka na lang magsalita.

Dreamtofly

April 1st, 2010, 01:53 PM

xxxxrainxxxx

magand yung site mo sa facebook, twit. i will try to pass the link to my friend over here.
lagay ka pa ng marami pics. lagay ka rin ng tips ng mga local tradition culture ng mga ibat ibang region ng pinas.

Wag karin mag lagay ng mga negative comment like this;

"Quote from the boracay page"
If you have seen Boracay from posters and postcards, it probably has an image of an island paradise to you. However, Boracay has became way too commercialized in recent years due to its popularity, and moved down my “must-go” destinations. Imagine wanting a quiet romantic time, yet from the time you set foot on this island, you will be bugged by thousands of vendors who will pester you non stop to make a purchase, especially so, if you are a foreigner. Gone too are the idyllic beach hotels, and are promptly replaced by international hotel resorts franchises.
:cheers::cheers:

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 01:57 PM

xxxxrainxxxx

magand yung site mo sa facebook, twit. i will try to pass the link to my friend over here.
lagay ka pa ng marami pics. lagay ka rin ng tips ng mga local tradition culture ng mga ibat ibang region ng pinas.

:cheers::cheers:

Pasensya ka na sa sinabi ko kanina, masakit lang loon ko sa mga sinabi mo. I am trying to change the image of our country. And I am doing it without any remuneration. The only thing that I can hope for is to change people like you and other people and how they perceive the country with all its flaws and all - there is still a lot of great things to be proud of.

higen

April 1st, 2010, 02:03 PM

Oo, I backpack, but not as much and as much as possible I stay away din sa other people especially those filthy ones from the Mainland SEA. Takaw gulo sila and I don't want to be identified with those kinds of people. Kaya nga sinabi ko sa mga earlier posts ko na hindi ko nilalahat ng mga backpackers. I simply cant backpack all the time, my back is sore all the time, so health reasons yan. Sabi ko sa earlier posts ko, my scoliosis prevents me to carry a heavy load. Although in fact I am backpacking again next week, this time Batad and Banawe and then possibly Baler and then back to Camarines Norte. I have to backpack, otherwise, there is no way for me to carry 5 different cameras and a tripod.

I'd like to travel with a luggage, kaya lang nasira ang luggage ko (twice) - Once was in Malaysia and then another time was when I was on my way to Northern Mindanao (where I ended up carrying 8 kilos of clothes around 4 provinces in 3 days) and in some cases where I have a short stay in a particular place, I need to have an easy way to pack and go. Mahirap magluggage pag nakikiangkas ka lang sa isang van ng strangers.

^^I beg to disagree with the stereotype cited in bold...That's where you and I will never see eye to eye...I have been backpacking with my wife for a few years now and my wife had been backpacking since she was 16 years old. And the "mainland SEA backpackers", who are they? I'm really curious to get to meet one of them "trouble making, stinky" backpackers from mainland SEA. I've met backpackers from Thailand in Taiwan once but they are very nice people. The drunk backpackers you are judging as bad apples are no more than kids having fun. They are just being themselves, kids. I'm sure you've done some crazy things in your youth too but that does not make you or them trouble maker...They drink, they smoke joint (legal in some countries), but I've never seen one na basagulero or takaw gulo. Or someone who is really looking to get into trouble. A traveler/backpacker in a foreign land in his or her right mind will never proactively look for trouble or even try to be a trouble magnet. I really don't know where you get your impressions from...seriously!...I remember 3 years ago we stayed in a backpacker Inn in Jalan Jaksa in Jakarta. Very cheap, the toilet sucks and the bed smells but we stayed for 1 night since mahirap maghanap ng room sa Jalan Jaksa. The couple in the next room are from Australia and it was their 2nd time in Indonesia. They are own a vineyard. Those are the real backpackers you should be hanging out with. Makes me wonder actually which backpacking hotels on Inns in which country you have stayed in in the past...very curios indeed.

Seems to me your physical condition is the real reason why you cannot backpack as much as you want. Just some things I'd like to point out to you my friend. If your going to back don't carry 8 kilos of clothes, 4 pairs of clothes is enough. If your going to travel with equipment, always travel with someone. And the "nakikiangas sa van", if there is a backpacking school out there I'm sure that's one of the things that that school will teach you NEVER EVER TO DO...I think I know what I need to know so I will sign off for now...

Dreamtofly

April 1st, 2010, 02:07 PM

Ang pag tangap sa sariling kamalian ay hindi pag suka sa isangbansa. Ang ibig sabihin nito ay taong edukado at nangagrap na ituwid ang mali at tama.

Kung ay isang bulag na mamayan hindi ka kailangn ng siang lipunan dahil wala kang silbi.

Maganda na maging adhikain ang mag silbihan ang mayayaman pero tere are only 10% of world population. marami ang high end na mga places.

To the point isa ka sa mga isususuka ko.

Wag mong ipagpilitan ang iyong idea dahil ang totoo ay nakakasuka.

I am a business man and i know what is the basis of having a succesfull business.

Isaksak mo sa lalamunan mo yang first class mong resort at ask them if they are earning enough money even to give salary to the employee.

I justwant to teach pilipinos a values and learn how to accept fact and truth.

I love my country in fact i do have business in the country to contribute.

Who will not love thier birth place? but this type of comment needs to be heard as a guidlines.

To be proud as pinoy you don't need to install to the mentally of the person. let it come from thier mouth.

I am so sorry but this thing need to change. I always promote Philippines but i cannot change the way people think about my country.

When i promote the country, i just accept the negative thing then continue to tell them how beautiful the country.

kasi laway lang ang nasayang sa akin not even my dignity and my belief as pilipino.

Pls. accept my apology as well

Peace

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 02:10 PM

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 02:14 PM

^^I beg to disagree with the stereotype cited in bold...That's where you and I will never see eye to eye...I have been backpacking with my wife for a few years now and my wife had been backpacking since she was 16 years old. And the "mainland SEA backpackers", who are they? I'm really curious to get to meet one of them "trouble making, stinky" backpackers from mainland SEA. I've met backpackers from Thailand in Taiwan once but they are very nice people. The drunk backpackers you are judging as bad apples are no more than kids having fun. They are just being themselves, kids. I'm sure you've done some crazy things in your youth too but that does not make you or them trouble maker...They drink, they smoke joint (legal in some countries), but I've never seen one na basagulero or takaw gulo. Or atlest someone who is really looking to get into trouble. A travel/backpacker in a foreign land in his or her right mind will never proactively look for trouble or even try to be trouble magnets. I really don't know where you get impressions from...seriously!...I remember 3 years ago we stayed in a backpacker in in Jalan Jaksa in Jakarta. Very cheap, the toilet sucks and the bed smells but we stayed for 1 night since mahirap maghanap ng room sa Jalan Jaksa. The couple in the next room are from Australia and it's was their 2nd time in Indonesia. They are own a vineyard. Those are the real backpackers you should be hanging out with. Makes me wonder actually which backpacking hotels on Inns in which country you have stayed in in the past...very curios indeed.

Seems to me your physical condition is the real reason why you cannot backpack as much as you want. Just some things I'd like to point out to you my friend. If your going to back don't carry 8 kilos of clothes, 4 pairs of clothes is enough. If your going to travel with equipment, always travel with someone. And the "nakikiangas sa van", if there is a backpacking school out there I'm sure that's one of the things that school will teach you NEVER EVER TO DO...I think I know what I need to know so I will sign off for now...

As for the places where I stayed before, I think you wouldn't wanna know - it's best that I forget those places. But yeah agree to disagree remember. ;)

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 02:16 PM

Dreamtofly

April 1st, 2010, 02:25 PM

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 02:37 PM

If i apologies it does not mean na accepted ko na idea mo.

I just say sorry for the sake that we are human being that having a feelings.

I like your site. It is good.

Payo ko lang sayo wag kang maki pag away wala kang mapapala. It does not take overnight to change one person.

If you will look at the philosopy of life. Lahat ay dumadaan sa pagiging baby tapos nag aaral. hindi agad yung jump tayo doon sa malaki. Alam mo sabi ng ibang SEA nations hindi pa daw tayo namumulat na nalagpasan na nila tayo.

Ang pag laiit ay hindi laharang hindi mo nagugustohan ang isang bansa. Ito ay paraan ng pag husga para makita ang kamalian. You should not negative always.

MAHAL KO PO ANG PINAS............ Pero may mga mali na dapat itama para lalo po tayo na umunlad.

Dyan po tayo magkakasundo. :cheers:

As for ideas - everyone has them but we dont necessarily have to agree on everything. Maraming daan papuntang Quiapo, iba lang ang ating pamamaraan para makarating dun. I've seen other ASEAN countries downplay all their major flaws tayo we seem to dwell on these flaws. You are right we need to address the problems but we don't need to air our dirty laundry in public all the time instead we strive to correct them.

As for the site, I don't even own it. It is owned by a Malaysian guy. I manage the Facebook and the Twitter sites however. Hopefully I will have my own Philippine travel site soon offering free travel information to the Philippines. I am glad that there are more and more Filipinos rediscovering our country and blog about it.

I can see that you have roots in Romblon. Romblon plays host to the extemely biodiverse Mt. Guiting-Guiting on Sibuyan. It is a such a diverse area that it has been likened to as the Galapagos of Asia. Aside from that, Romblon has a lot of character, charm and beautiful beaches. The problem is accessibility and places to stay. There is a flight going to Tablas via SEAIR if I am not mistaken and I think that is about it. Travel to other islands is by a boat and the waters can be really rough. One guy from Romblon wrote about Banton Island on our website - Banton Island (http://tourism-philippines.com/banton-island/) . I was meant to visit Romblon last January but I dint have time, so that trip has to wait for next time.

Dreamtofly

April 1st, 2010, 02:43 PM

Yes my root are from romblon.

You are correct Romblon is a untouched paradise. Less exposure as it was one of the 10 poor province 5 years ago.

The island province start recognition from the travellers. The caraboa island is one of the main attraction of the island as the boracay 2. Ill check my archive of picture to contribute to your site.

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 02:45 PM

fengrun

April 1st, 2010, 03:34 PM

I know also of foriegners who likes to stay in Philippines. I even heard of a British guy who drives his own V-Hire.

Good thing with this people is that they are already financially stable. For most of Pinoy, how can you build a decent house with a very small saonlary?

Do you actually know how much is a house is on high income developed countries? the cheapest you can get for 12 million pesos.

Even people there have to scrimp and work like a dog to pay the mortgage for 30 years. That's 30 years. :nuts:

You have a wrong perception of life in another country, as if its paradise. :ohno:

I feel sorry for you, your may have been brainwashed by your parents or some relatives abroad.

higen

April 1st, 2010, 03:43 PM

dessertfox

April 1st, 2010, 05:04 PM

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 05:09 PM

Hi xxxriainxxx@ IMO we should not be picky with groupings of travelers, tourist, expats or even foreign workers since most countries open their door for us. Filipinos are known to easily adjust with other cultures what more with our known hospitality accepting visitors.

Of course it is much better to have quality tourist but we should readily accept the low ender types as well. Let’s accept that we don’t have yet the required infrastructure to offer our country to a high value tourism and it is quite impossible to achieve it in short time. Just like Thailand who started their tourism boom with the low-ender type of tourist we could do the same, now they are aiming high for Medical Tourism which we are better equiped with so many excess in health workers.

As for the low end tourism I am confident that we may end up better than the Thai case since Philippines is archipelagic not like the Thais and neighboring countries that could be travelled by land.

Just some wild thinking that if we could offer in the countryside say a Bahay-Kubo Bed and Breakfast on say ricefield setting and a budget below a million pesos which most of OFW and middle class can afford then this could help a lot in tourism and who will be the customers of these B & B it is those individual Backpackers, low-end foreign tourist and domestic travelers. In the end this will benefit more the far flung communities since this are types of people who don’t care much of securities, value service that we cannot afford now.

^^ Hey, I think your idea of the Bahay Kubo is good for middle-class travelers. :) I should write a longer email to you next time. I was just finishing important certifications.:)

Sleepwalker

April 1st, 2010, 05:13 PM

Do you actually know how much is a house is on high income developed countries? the cheapest you can get for 12 million pesos.

Even people there have to scrimp and work like a dog to pay the mortgage for 30 years. That's 30 years. :nuts:

You have a wrong perception of life in another country, as if its paradise. :ohno:

I feel sorry for you, your may have been brainwashed by your parents or some relatives abroad.

Why are you involving my parents on this discussion? Is this your way to compensate your prejudice?

Don't go too personal, you don't know me... :okay:

Firstly, I don't need any brainwashing from my parents. From the way you talk, I guess, I have better parents than you have.. :)

Secondly, I am not buying any property from where i am now. I put all my money in Cebu, buying some piece of farmlands, investing in pension plan, renovate our old house and later, buy my own house in Cebu.

Thirdly, I never thought of leaving Cebu. My life in Cebu is more comfortable than my life anywhere else.

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 05:20 PM

Thirdly, I never thought of leaving Cebu. My life in Cebu is more comfortable than my life anywhere else.

Sarap ba naman ng Lechon Cebu. Hehehe hindi mo maiiwan yan. ;) Btw, I am entertaining thoughts of going to Cebu then from there take the ferry to Dumaguete up to Bais and then back to Dumaguete and then on to Siquijor this May. There is a super cat from Cebu to Dumaguete diba? Would you know kung ilang oras?

Libre mo ako ng Lechon Cebu pag pumunta ako dyan. :D

Sleepwalker

April 1st, 2010, 05:24 PM

Sarap ba naman ng Lechon Cebu. Hehehe hindi mo maiiwan yan. ;) Btw, I am entertaining thoughts of going to Cebu then from there take the ferry to Dumaguete up to Bais and then back to Dumaguete and then on to Siquijor.

Libre mo ako ng Lechon Cebu pag pumunta ako dyan. :D

Sure! Sure!.. :)

Maganda yang plano mong road trip. Siguradong mag-eenjoy ka nyan.

If you happen to drop by Cebu City, and in need of some company, SSC-Cebu will be most willing to entertain you...Hehehhe

xxxriainxxx

April 1st, 2010, 05:31 PM

Sure! Sure!.. :)

Maganda yang plano mong road trip. Siguradong mag-eenjoy ka nyan.

If you happen to drop by Cebu City, and in need of some company, SSC-Cebu will be most willing to entertain you...Hehehhe

The plan is around end of next month, fly into Cebu, fly out of Dumaguete. Balitaan kita... sana matuloy... I haven't back to Cebu for the longest time! Request naman, can you check kung may biyahe ang Super Cat from Cebu to Dumaguete or Siquijor and how much and the skeds? Daghang Salamat in advance... :)

Ah yeah...some SSC Cebu guys told me to try ngohiong... so YES I want to try that when I come back. ;)

Dreamtofly

April 1st, 2010, 06:35 PM

I like the way you think...sa Pilipino, Gusto ko ang takbo ng isip mo...

Thanks. (maraming Salamat)

OT lang po.

Pinoy are so sensitive. Cause my mom is so emotionally. Kasi marami kasing stupid drama sa pinas.

bakit mas marami na tourist spot sa central at saka south part. Ano na nangyari sa north? parang napag iwanan.

Kug marami lang ako pera mag tayo ako ng airline company na mag serve sa 7.107 island ng pinas.

kasi naman yung mga negosyante masyadong suwapang sa pera gusto agad mabawi ang puhunan kaya doon lang sila concentrated sa area na maganda ang kita.

Speaking of lechon mahirap ba eh luto yan? kasi nag babalak ako mag tayo ng pinoy restaurant dito sa EU?

kevinb

April 2nd, 2010, 06:55 AM

Le Tour de Filipinas (http://www.padyakpinoy.com.ph/content/home)

1ST TOUR OF THE PHILIPPINES
17 to 20 April 2010, Category 2.2
THE Le Tour de Filipinas (Tour of the Philippines) is a four-stage road race (Category 2.2 that is on the Asia Tour calendar of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) for the first time on 17 to 20 April 2010. The race is organized by the Dynamic Outsource Solutions, Inc. (Dos-1), which has been organizing road stage races in the Philippines for several years now.

The LTDF 2010 marks the first time since 1998 when a Philippine multi-stage road race will again be included on the UCI calendar. For three years from 1996 to 1998, the Philippines was on the world cycling map.

Stage races has become a summer tradition in the Philippines that its following in the hot months of April and May (summertime in the tropical country) has short of reached a cult-like following. The first multi-stage race in the country was conducted in 1954. It went on every summer from then on—except on eight summers when sponsorship reached rocked bottom.

The last lull started in 1999 but three years later in 2002, Mr. Bert Lina, a businessman/sportsman par excellence, helped revived the Philippine Tour in 2002.

The 2002 race was sort of a revival event that consisted of only four massed-start stages. The race, then known as Tour Pilipinas, grew to 15 stages in 2003 and then to 18 stages in 2004. Close to a hundred elite men riders participated in each of the races.

In 2005, Mr. Lina, who eventually served as national cycling federation president (PhilCycling), opted to conform with UCI regulations and decided to cut the Tour to eight stages in 2005, then dubbed the Golden Tour because it marked the 50th year of the annual staging of the local multi-stage race.

Years 2006 and 2007 saw the Tour—which was then called Padyak Pinoy (padyak for pedal and Pinoy for Filipino)—saw 10-stage editions. The Padyak Pinoy took a year’s off in 2008 before it hit the Philippine roads anew in the summer of 2009 through another 10-stage event.

Because of an invigorated passion and interest to put the Philippines back on the world cycling map—and more importantly to help develop the sport on Philippine soil and in the Asian region—the organizers have decided to enroll for inclusion on the UCI calendar beginning in 2010.

Again, more than a hundred grizzled and battle-ready Filipino cyclists with legs of steel and hearts of champions would be battling for supremacy in what is to become a race of ALL GUTS! ALL GLORY!

And the rest, as they say, will be history.

Welcome everyone to the inaugural Le Tour de Filipinas!

Race Schedule and Race Distances

http://www.padyakpinoy.com.ph/sites/default/files/1%20stage.jpg

http://www.padyakpinoy.com.ph/sites/default/files/2%20stage.jpg

http://www.padyakpinoy.com.ph/sites/default/files/3%20stage.jpg

http://www.padyakpinoy.com.ph/sites/default/files/4%20stage.jpg

xxxriainxxx

April 2nd, 2010, 07:30 AM

Thanks. (maraming Salamat)

OT lang po.

Pinoy are so sensitive. Cause my mom is so emotionally. Kasi marami kasing stupid drama sa pinas.

bakit mas marami na tourist spot sa central at saka south part. Ano na nangyari sa north? parang napag iwanan.

Kug marami lang ako pera mag tayo ako ng airline company na mag serve sa 7.107 island ng pinas.

kasi naman yung mga negosyante masyadong suwapang sa pera gusto agad mabawi ang puhunan kaya doon lang sila concentrated sa area na maganda ang kita.

Speaking of lechon mahirap ba eh luto yan? kasi nag babalak ako mag tayo ng pinoy restaurant dito sa EU?

Actually, lumalago din ang turismo ngayon sa Ilocos at sa parts ng Cordillera. I've been noticing that alot of people are visiting the Ilocos region pati yung Sagada, Banawe and pati sa Baguio bumabalik na ng paunti unti. Cagayan Province and Batanes tourism are slowly inching up as well.

Regarding lechon, I am sure maraming matutuwang Pilipino dyan sa EU pag nagtayo ka. Basta ibrand mo na Philippine Roast Pig or Philippines Lechon. Let us start branding our products with Philippines in it. Para maidentify sa atin. Baka kasi manakaw na naman yan ng mga kapitbahay. :D

xxxriainxxx

April 2nd, 2010, 02:53 PM

Last Good Friday (2009) I took this video of the Penitential Rites in San Fernando, Pampanga. My video was eventually shown on CNN and its US affiliate HL_N

WmlsLgEsb_c

Dustin

April 2nd, 2010, 03:04 PM

Last Good Friday (2009) I took this video of the Penitential Rites in San Fernando, Pampanga. My video was eventually shown on CNN and its US affiliate HL_N

WmlsLgEsb_c

Were you compensated for that?

xxxriainxxx

April 2nd, 2010, 03:05 PM

Were you compensated for that?

Nopes. ;) iReport daw eh. ;)

Dustin

April 2nd, 2010, 03:24 PM

I don't disagree with what you said, but political and economic realities doesn't an entire country make. The thing is we should be proud of our country no matter what. It is our responsibility to get to know it.

Totoo yang mga sinabi mo - lack of better paying jobs, corrupt government - isa sa mga nagtutulak sa mga Pinoy mangibang-bayan at hindi mo rin masisisi ang kanilang desisyon. Ang hindi lang tama, ay pagiging makitid ng utak ng ilan nating mga kabababayan (hindi lang yung nasa abroad, maski mismo sa Pilipinas). If there is one thing, we should really be proud of our country, it is our home. marami din akong nakikilalang Pinoy na grabe manlait sa Pilipinas. And I pity them, because they don't know what they are missing.

Ako naman may mga kakilala ako na hindi nanonood ng pelikulang Pilipino. Mga Pinoy na social climber nga ang tawag ko sa kanila.

xxxriainxxx

April 3rd, 2010, 03:25 AM

Ako naman may mga kakilala ako na hindi nanonood ng pelikulang Pilipino. Mga Pinoy na social climber nga ang tawag ko sa kanila.

^^ Sinabi mo pa. Pasosyal, ala namang breeding at pinag-aralan. :lol:

Dustin

April 3rd, 2010, 05:49 AM

^^ Sinabi mo pa. Pasosyal, ala namang breeding at pinag-aralan. :lol:

Dumating nga pala ako kaninang madaling araw via DMIA. Then mamaya pila ako sa "Babe I love you" ni Anne Curtis at "Clash of the Titans". Samantalahin ko na habang wala pang trabaho. :banana:

Pero kahapon nasa church ako from 12 noon till 6 pm. Ang ganda ng church service kahapon ang galing ng mga kumakanta at ang ganda ng interior ng Cathedral. Ang dami ngang kumukuha ng pic kaso yung cam ko naiwan ko sa tinutuluyan namin.

xxxriainxxx

April 3rd, 2010, 12:57 PM

Dumating nga pala ako kaninang madaling araw via DMIA. Then mamaya pila ako sa "Babe I love you" ni Anne Curtis at "Clash of the Titans". Samantalahin ko na habang wala pang trabaho. :banana:

Pero kahapon nasa church ako from 12 noon till 6 pm. Ang ganda ng church service kahapon ang galing ng mga kumakanta at ang ganda ng interior ng Cathedral. Ang dami ngang kumukuha ng pic kaso yung cam ko naiwan ko sa tinutuluyan namin.

Anggaling... Andami kong favorite Pinoy films... Actually, jologs na kung jologs pero, I was really surprised how funny some Jolina and Ai-Ai movies. Sa Pinoy Indie... andaming gandang movies. Such wealth of creativity and storytelling.... :)

Sige enjoy... Happy Easter! I just got back from going around the Chinese Cemetery, San Sebastian Church and (finally) - UST. :) Bukas American Cemetery naman. Will post my photos on the Facebook Page. :)

pulsephaze22

April 3rd, 2010, 03:56 PM

^^ uh, anung meron sa mga sementeryo? hehe

xxxriainxxx

April 3rd, 2010, 04:20 PM

^^ uh, anung meron sa mga sementeryo? hehe

The Manila Chinese Cemetery (華僑義山) is one of the most historical cemeteries in the Philippines. It was witness to many executions during World War II including Girl Scouts founder Josefa Llanes Escoda, and many Chinoys who took stand against the Japanese during the last World War.

The Manila Chinese Cemetery (華僑義山) is also a curious study of amalgamation of Taoist, Buddhist and Catholicism in the Philippines plus it was a treat checking out those mausoleums.

Check my photo of this mausoleum which looks inspired by the Sydney Opera House:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs416.snc3/25106_412039741281_530586281_5596241_8178922_n.jpg

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 09:53 AM

"For the 35th year of the Bamboo Organ Festival a large number of musicians from the Philippines and around the world came to perform alongside this amazing instrument from February 18-24, 2010. I had the pleasure of seeing the organ played by internationally acclaimed Swiss organist, Guy Bovet. He started the concert by explaining that since the organ was built by a Spaniard but came from the Philippines, it has a character and a sound which reflects both cultures and proceeded to play both Spanish and Filipino compositions. Bovet’s knowledge of the Bamboo Organ was reflected in his playing as he created moving and astonishing music while demonstrating the range of the organ. During Bovet’s version of Pakitong Kitong we were able to hear one of the things that makes the Bamboo Organ even more unique as it can make a sound like chirping birds."

Excerpt from "Las Piñas Bamboo Organ Festival" by Scott Allford - http://tourism-philippines.com/las-pinas-bamboo-organ-festival/

4CZKxuDYSCI

Photos from Las Piñas Bamboo Organ Festival- http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=147136&id=86996579063

Hope you enjoyed our video and photos!

Dustin

April 4th, 2010, 02:22 PM

Anggaling... Andami kong favorite Pinoy films... Actually, jologs na kung jologs pero, I was really surprised how funny some Jolina and Ai-Ai movies. Sa Pinoy Indie... andaming gandang movies. Such wealth of creativity and storytelling.... :)

Sige enjoy... Happy Easter! I just got back from going around the Chinese Cemetery, San Sebastian Church and (finally) - UST. :) Bukas American Cemetery naman. Will post my photos on the Facebook Page. :)

Yung steel church ba yung San Sebastian? Tell me naman where it is exactly located...

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 02:53 PM

Yung steel church ba yung San Sebastian? Tell me naman where it is exactly located...

Yup it is. It is located on R. Hidalgo in Quiapo, Manila. Walking distance from the Legarda Stn of the LRT Purple Line.

My capture of San Sebastian Church

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs436.snc3/25106_412041661281_530586281_5596318_4937681_n.jpg

kevinb

April 4th, 2010, 03:00 PM

^^ Is it the church of San Sebastian College Recoletos?

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 03:03 PM

^^ Is it the church of San Sebastian College Recoletos?

I reckon it is -

"San Sebastián Church is under the care of The Order of the Augustinian Recollects"

kevinb

April 4th, 2010, 03:06 PM

"It was named after the saint martyr of Rome, to whom a church (Basilica Minore de San Sebastian) at Legarda Street corner Bilibid Viejo Streets, is dedicated."

- Wikipedia

I guess it indeed is.:D

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 03:14 PM

A quiet residential neighborhood? No. This is the literal city of the dead in Manila.

My capture of a street at the Manila Chinese Cemetery:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs416.snc3/25106_412039906281_530586281_5596271_1870599_n.jpg

kevinb

April 4th, 2010, 03:20 PM

^^ Wow. It does look like a quiet town, and a quaint one at that.

william :D

April 4th, 2010, 03:37 PM

Yung mga terrorists na yan, isolated areas lang yan ng Mindanao.

ahh..pero cguro atleast,mentally ndi maalis sa isip ng mga tourists ung kaguluhan.maybe it is somewhat affects the tourism on the island of mindanao.
*ngaun lang pu ulit ako nakabalik d2 :D
peace on earth!:banana::banana::banana::banana:

fengrun

April 4th, 2010, 03:55 PM

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 04:21 PM

ahh..pero cguro atleast,mentally ndi maalis sa isip ng mga tourists ung kaguluhan.maybe it is somewhat affects the tourism on the island of mindanao.
*ngaun lang pu ulit ako nakabalik d2 :D
peace on earth!:banana::banana::banana::banana:

Sa media lang yan. Most of Mindanao's safe.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs436.snc3/25106_412034451281_530586281_5596128_5833164_n.jpg

Spain? Europe?

Hinde.

University of Santo Tomas yan.

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 04:22 PM

^^ Wow. It does look like a quiet town, and a quaint one at that.

Galing ano?

william :D

April 4th, 2010, 04:33 PM

Sa media lang yan. Most of Mindanao's safe.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs436.snc3/25106_412034451281_530586281_5596128_5833164_n.jpg

Spain? Europe?

Hinde.

University of Santo Tomas yan.

HUWAW!!!!!WOW!WOW!WOW! GANDA naman nian, haha.mla-europa ang dating.hehe,

william :D

April 4th, 2010, 04:36 PM

if not for the terrorists, and insurgents like the NPA's, and Abu Sayyafs, i am pretty sure the Philippines would have run over Thailand in tourism years ago.

For one almost all Filipinos can speak English quite well, and the Philippines has got more islands and beaches.

u said it ryt.philippines is such a beautiful country,kung hindi lang sa mga buwaya sa gobyerno at terorismo naniniwala ako,isa ang pilipinas ang pinakamaunlad sa SEA,hindi lang sa turismo.naniniwala ako na kapag naayos ang gulo sa isolated areas sa mindanao at napagtuunan ito ng pansin ng gobyerno, tyak isa ito sa magaahon ng ekonomiya ng bansa.napakalaki ng potensyal nito.

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 04:39 PM

HUWAW!!!!!WOW!WOW!WOW! GANDA naman nian, haha.mla-europa ang dating.hehe,

Salamat. Kuha ko yan kahapon.

Taiwan?

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs416.snc3/25106_412039716281_530586281_5596236_5549935_n.jpg

China?

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs416.snc3/25106_412039776281_530586281_5596247_350018_n.jpg

Hinde. Chinese Cemetery sa Manila.

william :D

April 4th, 2010, 04:44 PM

Salamat. Kuha ko yan kahapon.

Taiwan?

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs416.snc3/25106_412039716281_530586281_5596236_5549935_n.jpg

China?

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs416.snc3/25106_412039776281_530586281_5596247_350018_n.jpg

Hinde. Chinese Cemetery sa Manila.
alang anuman po.iba talaga ang ganda ng pilipinas.akala ko kung saan un.d pa kc ako nkakarating ng ust kya nadaya ako.ahahaha, dadating ang araw mauungusan din natin ang thailand sa tourism.BTW, thailand ba ngaun ang pinaka-dinadayo sa SEA?:D

xxxriainxxx

April 4th, 2010, 04:55 PM

alang anuman po.iba talaga ang ganda ng pilipinas.akala ko kung saan un.d pa kc ako nkakarating ng ust kya nadaya ako.ahahaha, dadating ang araw mauungusan din natin ang thailand sa tourism.BTW, thailand ba ngaun ang pinaka-dinadayo sa SEA?:D

I think so, or at least Thailand, Malaysia..

First time ko din kahapon sa UST.

Oh well, Good night!

kalbongdad

April 4th, 2010, 05:39 PM

well sa dami ng development sa infra ni pgma at tourism projects hindi malayo mararating din natin yan....turd wurld ngayon next gen....dapat furst wurld na...

william :D

April 4th, 2010, 05:49 PM

I think so, or at least Thailand, Malaysia..

First time ko din kahapon sa UST.

Oh well, Good night!

maganda nga ang thailand.pano ntutukan cia masyado ng gobyerno..hehe, tayo man natututukan pero kulang pa. :D
*gudnyt din pu.

william :D

April 4th, 2010, 05:55 PM

well sa dami ng development sa infra ni pgma at tourism projects hindi malayo mararating din natin yan....turd wurld ngayon next gen....dapat furst wurld na...

oo nga.madaming programs c pgma satin.pero in terms of her cabinets and people that surrounds her,plagay me underground transactions cla na nde dapat.pero hanga ako sa pamamalakad nia, tlagang npataas nia ang economy ng bansa, :D

kevinb

April 4th, 2010, 06:15 PM

Galing ano?

Oo, ang galing. Never pa ako nakapunta sa Chinese Cemetery. Gusto ko pala puntahan ung sementeryo na pinupuntahan ni Celdran. Ang ganda kasi ng mga mausoleum tsaka landmarks sa loob.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs436.snc3/25106_412034451281_530586281_5596128_5833164_n.jpg

Spain? Europe?

Hinde.

University of Santo Tomas yan.

Kinuhanan mo din sana ung Beato tsaka ung church. Maganda din sila, although simple lang ung church.

***

Nice angles, BTW. Medyo dark nga lang sya masyado.:D

fengrun

April 4th, 2010, 06:28 PM

well sa dami ng development sa infra ni pgma at tourism projects hindi malayo mararating din natin yan....turd wurld ngayon next gen....dapat furst wurld na...

may parang documentary kanina sa channel 4 about dun sa mga infrastructure projects sa pinas.

Ang unang inabutan ko mga bridges. Andami palang naitayong bridges, from cebu, tapos meron pa yung philippines tallest bridge. Habang ini interview yung mga nasa lugar na yun kung pano guminhawa buhay nila pati na ang pagdami ng tourist.

Tapos sumunod na pinakita highways naman. Andami din. Tapos nautical highway, 3 pala yan, meron sa west, tapos central,tapos sa east side dun sa bandang bicol.

Then yun namang farm to market roads. Pinakita dito yung halsema highway sa mountain province. Tapos mga irrigation projects. Habang ini interview ang mga magsasaka na naligtas ng mga irrigation projects ang pananim nila ngayong tagtuyot.

Tapos sumunod yung balak na dam sa gagawin sa marikina para di na maulit ang ondoy.

Nilipat ko na after that, pero hindi pa tapos e. Bravo little evil madam! Salamat po.

:banana:

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 12:31 AM

Oo, ang galing. Never pa ako nakapunta sa Chinese Cemetery. Gusto ko pala puntahan ung sementeryo na pinupuntahan ni Celdran. Ang ganda kasi ng mga mausoleum tsaka landmarks sa loob.

Kinuhanan mo din sana ung Beato tsaka ung church. Maganda din sila, although simple lang ung church.

***

Nice angles, BTW. Medyo dark nga lang sya masyado.:D

Nagmamadali din kasi kami kasi ang init sobra.. Regarding Carlos' tours - well he used to have tours to La Loma and North. Next in line yan next weekend. This weekend I am going up Banawe and Batad in Ifugao. :lol:

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 12:52 AM

Futuristic underwater resort to be built off Palawan (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100405-262424/Futuristic-underwater-resort-to-be-built-off-Palawan)
By Daxim Lucas
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:25:00 04/05/2010

http://images.inquirer.net/media/newsinfo/inquirerheadlines/nation/images/pic-04050426540816.jpg

MANILA, Philippines—Imagine an underwater hotel room with a panoramic view of tropical fish swimming over large coral reefs, manta rays gliding in the water and turtles chasing after tiny squids.

Science fiction? Not if businessman Paul Moñozca can help it.

Moñozca, a Singapore-based financier who heads a group of international investors, plans to start a futuristic underwater resort off the island of Palawan as part of an aggressive venture into the ecotourism business.

The project, dubbed “Last Frontier Resort,” is expected to bring in a total of $1 billion in investments spread over a 10-year period—an average of $100 million a year which, its proponents hope, will help create thousands of direct and indirect jobs in the Palawan.

Moñozca—known for his advocacies of helping improve the overseas remittance business, acquiring stakes in the US professional basketball league and junior circuit stock car racing teams—is the main driver of the project.

His Monaco-based philanthropic fund, dubbed “Spirit,” plays a lead role in the development of marine habitats and ocean protection initiatives.

The Last Frontier Resort will be built with submarine technology. When completed, the proposed underwater habitat will be the biggest in the world.

The project has been in the planning stage since last year, and its proponents have identified a group of islands in the Calamianes cluster as the site for development.

The site is owned by businessman and resort developer Steve Tajanlangit. It is made up of a group of seven islands in close proximity to each other, and another group of seven islands outside the main cluster.

The resulting 14-island project will be the largest of its kind in the world.

Sea spiders

The first phase calls for semi-submersible units called “Sea Spiders,” which will be built by a US firm that specializes on submarines, to serve as observation decks. Each sea spider can accommodate 30 tourists.

To rival similar projects such as the underwater resorts of Dubai, Fiji and the Caribbean, the second phase calls for a 100-room underwater hotel in partnership with a high-end boutique hotel brand spread over the cluster of seven islands.

Suite-size rooms will have a 270-degree view of the ocean underwater with 20-to 40-meter visibility. These rooms will be connected by underwater corridors. A further 85 rooms will be built on another cluster of seven islands.

Quake-free zone

Project proponents chose the pristine islands of Palawan because of its recent standing as a quake-free zone and its clear and cove-protected waters.

One of the site’s islands sits adjacent to the Calauit Nature Reserve. The islands nearby are ideal jump-off points for scuba diving.

“The blue print encompasses a strict adherence to protect the environment and the biodiversity of Palawan,” the group said in a statement.

“Groups of scientists from the Philippines and around the globe are part of the project’s protective strategy especially focused on its long stretches of coral reefs which have previously encountered illegal dynamite and cyanide fishing,” it added.

PricewaterhouseCoopers Philippines serves as financial adviser to the project, which developers expect to be completed by 2013.

Dustin

April 5th, 2010, 02:34 AM

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 02:49 AM

Marami talagang mas magagandang lugar dito sa Pilipinas kumpara sa ibang bansa.

for instance... try comparing the St. Paul Ruins in Macau to that of Cagsawa Ruins in Albay. O diba mas maganda ng di hamak ang Cagsawa Ruins. ang difference lang is developed lang yung sa Macau and mas malinis at organized.

Yung St. Paul Ruin's sa Macau walang wala naman talaga yan eh. - Isang building lang yan sa Intramuros ang katapat. LOL.

Pero you are right. Cagsawa Ruins was dirty when we visited it last month. Daming basura. Antamad maglinis ng mga caretakers dun at wala pang masyadong garbage bins.

Dustin

April 5th, 2010, 03:03 AM

Yung St. Paul Ruin's sa Macau walang wala naman talaga yan eh. - Isang building lang yan sa Intramuros ang katapat. LOL.

Pero you are right. Cagsawa Ruins was dirty when we visited it last month. Daming basura. Antamad maglinis ng mga caretakers dun at wala pang masyadong garbage bins.

Yung cathedral lang sa amin taob na yung St. Paul pero ang daming tao noh. Kahit yung sa senado nila masa maganda pa yung post office bldg dito sa atin.

Pansin ko din...gusto ko sanang ipost yung nakita ko sa Cagsawa sa Legaspi thread kaya lang baka magalit sila. Pero marumi talaga...sayang ang view ng Mayon. Ang ganda pa naman.

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 03:19 AM

Yung cathedral lang sa amin taob na yung St. Paul pero ang daming tao noh. Kahit yung sa senado nila masa maganda pa yung post office bldg dito sa atin.

Pansin ko din...gusto ko sanang ipost yung nakita ko sa Cagsawa sa Legaspi thread kaya lang baka magalit sila. Pero marumi talaga...sayang ang view ng Mayon. Ang ganda pa naman.

Iemail mo yung photos here:

Office for Special Concerns
Director Shalimar H. Tamano
shtamano@tourism.gov.ph

Bureau of Domestic Tourism Promotions
Director Cynthia C. Lazo
cclazo@tourism.gov.ph

Media & Press Relation Division
Mr. Tomasito G. Umali
tgumali@tourism.gov.ph

Office of Tourism Standards
Director Ma. Victoria Jasmin
mvjasmin@tourism.gov.ph

Local Community Coordination Div.
Ms. Renee Marie Reyes
lccd@tourism.gov.ph

REGIONAL OFFICE V
MS. MARIA ONG-RAVANILLA, Regional Director
Regional Center Site, Rawis, Legazpi City 4500
Tel.: (6352) 482 0712 / 482 0813 / 482 0811
Fax: (6352) 820 5066
Cell. Phone: (0918) 2120 788
E-Mail: dotr5@globalink.net.ph
Websites: http://wowbicol.com

Also you may email that photo on the email portion of the website - http://wowbicol.com/

Dustin

April 5th, 2010, 03:24 AM

ok I will.

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 03:35 AM

ok I will.

Thanks if you want, I can also pm you my personal email. I have also seen that trash in cagsawa and almost the entire stretch of National Highway on its roadsides all the way to Sorsogon last month. I was actually shocked to see people throwing their trash right out of jeepneys, chucking their garbage right into the highway. :ohno::ohno:

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 03:53 AM

‘Boracay, not Bora, Please!’ campaign continues (http://www.aklanon.net/feature/%E2%80%98boracay-not-bora-please%E2%80%99-campaign-continues.html)
Posted by Jun Ariolo Aguirre on March 25th, 2010 No Comments Printer-Friendly
Author: Jun Ariolo Aguirre (319 Articles)

BORACAY – Stakeholders here called on the public, tourists especially, to stop calling this resort island as “Bora.”

“Boracay, not Bora, Please!” campaign focal person Nenette Aguirre-Graf said cutting short the island’s name to “Bora” is a sign of disrespect.

“We cannot just change the name ‘Boracay’ to a nickname of ‘Bora’ as we do to people’s names,” she said.

Graf said she noticed Boracay being called “Bora” in 2000.

“Some tourists from Metro Manila started (using the name Bora). At that time, Boracay was just becoming a party place, and big party events are being held here,” she related.

Then even in national television, events and publicity materials, Boracay is called “Bora,” she added.

Graf explained that calling Boracay “Bora” may affect the tourism marketing of the island.

She said foreigners may confuse it for the Pacific island Bora Bora.

Since the campaign started, it has received support from various organizations.

Last year, the Malay local council passed a resolution that denies the giving of permits to events using the “Bora” name.

The campaign is also being supported by the Malay League of Barangay Captains, Boracay Foundation Incorporated, Boracay yuppies, and the media.

Currently, the campaign has garnered 4,000 members in its Facebook account.

Among the activities that the advocates have done for the campaign were joining the Goma Cup (Richard Gomez) Beach Clean Up last year during which they posted large “Boracay, not Bora, Please!” campaign streamers, guestings in several television shows and publishing the cause in blogs.

The advocates are also campaigning against the use of “Bora” by several resorts and establishments such as “Carne Bora,” “Bora Sky,” “Bora Dise,” and “Bora Transport.”

“We are still lobbying to the Malay council that they issue a resolution asking the Department of Trade and Industry to issue a notice upon the expiration of the contracts of establishments using the name ‘Bora’,” Graf said.

Askal82

April 5th, 2010, 05:55 AM

kevinb

April 5th, 2010, 06:10 AM

^^ Why do some local officials or our national legislators, to some extent, have to pass these kinds of ordinances/bills? Can't we think of any other better things to prioritize?:weird:

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 06:15 AM

^^ Why do some local officials or our national legislators, to some extent, have to pass these kinds of ordinances/bills? Can't we think of any other better things to prioritize?:weird:

I think it is alright naman. It's one way of protecting the island. Dami kasing illiterate na pasosyal tapos hindi marunong magbasa kaya hayan imbes Boracay naging Bora.

Lahat din naman tayo nagkamali at least once, pero wag na sanang maulit. Ang pinakaimportante ngayon talaga ay kung pano maalagaan ang isla mismo,

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 07:03 AM

Teka ano pala nangyari sa Aseana Neo-Chinatown? Nilalangaw daw eh!

Manila-X

April 5th, 2010, 08:10 AM

Teka ano pala nangyari sa Aseana Neo-Chinatown? Nilalangaw daw eh!

That mall is already doomed from the start. One major disadvantage of it is the accessibility. Just like South China Mall in Donguan, you can only reach the place by car.

People are better off shopping in 168 than Neo Chinatown.

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 08:35 AM

That mall is already doomed from the start. One major disadvantage of it is the accessibility. Just like South China Mall in Donguan, you can only reach the place by car.

People are better off shopping in 168 than Neo Chinatown.

I think the only way that they can revive it is when the entire E-City is in full swing and operating.

RonnieR

April 5th, 2010, 09:03 AM

Belle to open all-suite hotel-casino at P14-billion complex in June
By JAMES A. LOYOLA
April 4, 2010, 11:29am

Belle Corporation is expected to open its all-suites hotel and casino to be operated by Harrah’s Entertainment around June next year as the first phase of its P14-billion casino complex to be built on a 6.2-hectare property in Parañaque.

Sources said that the casino will initially operate with around 50 to 54 suites for high rollers while a high rise hotel of 150 to 300 rooms will eventually be opened in the complex to complement the casino operations.

Harrah’s President Michael Chen, who was recently in Manila to attend the Gaming and Entertainment Expo, said casino firms must integrate gaming with other entertainment offerings in order to compete.

“It’s all about competition. You have countries like the Philippines and areas like Macau and China that are opening gaming and entertainment attractions. There are more choices, so the challenge is how to attract people to your business. And one of the ways is creating an integrated experience for the customer that goes beyond the casino floor," said Chen.

Chen said earlier that the development of the local gaming industry satisfied most of the points Harrah’s considers when weighing developments worldwide.

While the project will be undertaken with Harrah’s, as the world’s largest casino operator, plans are for Leisure & Resorts World Corporation to help run the casino as the holder of the management contract for the gaming component of the project.

LRWC has extensive experience in the gaming business with its technology-aided online gaming operations in the Cagayan Special Economic Zone as well as several bingo parlor operations in malls.

The P14 billion is part of the total P46-billion investment commitment given by Belle and the SM group to state-led Philippine Amusement Gaming Corporation (Pagcor), which is pushing for the development of a huge entertainment and leisure project at the Manila Bay reclamation area.

"It is the general overhaul of the casino industry in the country that we are preparing for. You have to remember that the casino has been run by the government for almost three decades and now they woke up ... they will just give licenses so that the casino will be owned and operated by private firms which will allow more advanced games,” Belle vice chairman Willy Ocier said earlier.

Pagcor has given licenses to Aruze of Japan, a consortium led by Megaworld Corporation of Andrew L. Tan, and Premium Leisure and Amusement, Inc.

Belle recently bought Premium Leisure and Amusement from the Henry Sy-led SM group, with the SM group getting more shares in Belle in return. The Sy family now holds a 50% stake in Belle.

Ocier said the remaining P32 billion, which will be used for the non-gaming developments like hotels, would be shouldered by the SM group.

The location of the proposed casino, will allow it to serve as the "gateway" to Pagcor’s ambitious Bagong Nayong Pilipino Manila Bay Entertainment City project.

Belle also plans to create a special purpose vehicle to accommodate the entry of foreign investors who will bring in funds and the expertise to manage the casino. This will give Belle the flexibility to open more casinos in the future, he said.
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/250975/belle-open-allsuite-hotelcasino-p14billion-complex-june

Manila-X

April 5th, 2010, 09:21 AM

I think the only way that they can revive it is when the entire E-City is in full swing and operating.

But thats going to take a long time! But ironically, Blue Wave is also in a similar position of Neo Chinatown when it comes to accessibility of public transportation and they are still doing well. But they have well to do establishments like Starbucks, Pizza Hut, etc.

If Neo Chinatown was built right beside MOA, it could have attract more customers.

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 09:33 AM

But thats going to take a long time! But ironically, Blue Wave is also in a similar position of Neo Chinatown when it comes to accessibility of public transportation and they are still doing well. But they have well to do establishments like Starbucks, Pizza Hut, etc.

If Neo Chinatown was built right beside MOA, it could have attract more customers.

True. Id like to see Din Tai Fung open a franchise in Manila, maybe Neo Chinatown would be the best place to do it.. The problem with din Tai Fung, is that the franchise is very expensive pati the menu - but their xiao long bao is to die for.

Manila-X

April 5th, 2010, 09:38 AM

True. Id like to see Din Tai Fung open a franchise in Manila, maybe Neo Chinatown would be the best place to do it.. The problem with din Tai Fung, is that the franchise is very expensive pati the menu - but their xiao long bao is to die for.

The question is if it would click. Most likely with Chinese Filipinos but what of other Filipino ethnic groups?

Note that Neo Chinatown is mostly a tiangge place. But there are similar places around Metro Manila that are easier to reach plus the number of customers.

xxxriainxxx

April 5th, 2010, 09:58 AM

The question is if it would click. Most likely with Chinese Filipinos but what of other Filipino ethnic groups?

Note that Neo Chinatown is mostly a tiangge place. But there are similar places around Metro Manila that are easier to reach plus the number of customers.

I think it depends, Chinese cuisine has a high degree of integration and acceptability with the Filipino palate. We have many international cuisines in Metro Manila but they are doing respectably well. If it is good, you cant really keep it away from the public-Pinoys doesn't just love to eat - we make excuses to eat! As for tyangge place.. I guess they should have done Neo Chinatown something similar to XTD. Hindi talaga sila dadayuhin kung tyangge lang sila. dapat they should have had built a niche.

pulsephaze22

April 5th, 2010, 03:00 PM

Kintoy

April 5th, 2010, 04:43 PM

manila_eye

April 5th, 2010, 06:11 PM

^^ kasi may bora-bora na eh. and it is more popular than boracay.

Kintoy

April 5th, 2010, 09:22 PM

bora = 2 syllables

bora-bora = 4 syllables

would people really think that you were talking about Bora-bora when you utter Bora?

and Bora-bora is nowhere nearly as popular as Boracay

in 2008, the whole of French Polynesia got 196,000 tourists (http://www.spc.int/PRISM/Tourism/Visitorarrivals.html). Boracay got 600,000+ (http://jslatoza.wordpress.com/2010/03/22/domestic-tourists-in-boracay/) tourists in 2009

manila_eye

April 5th, 2010, 09:42 PM

^^ well, in hollywood bora-bora is bora-bora. dyan madalas mag-shoot ang sports illustrated for their bikini special.

yung data ba na yan ng boracay eh puro mga foreign tourists?

Kintoy

April 5th, 2010, 10:00 PM

would it really matter if they are all foreign or not?

besides nobody's calling boracay as Bora-bora, but rather using the first 2 syllables as sort of a nickname for the place. like Gale for Puerto Gallera.

Kintoy

April 5th, 2010, 10:09 PM

Boracay nets 649,559 foreign, domestic arrivals in 2009
by Venus G. Villanueva (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p100125.htm&no=48)

Kalibo, Aklan (25 January) -- Boracay's total number of visitor arrivals last year registered 649,559, based on data released by the Provincial Tourism Office here.

The visitor arrivals - composed of 192,873 foreign tourists, 432,271 domestic and 24,415 Overseas Filipinos generated a total of P11,941,102,920.60 tourism receipts.

Foreign visitors' arrival in the island was biggest in the month of January with 23,161. They also came in big numbers in August with 21,428 and in December last year with 18,987. They were smallest in number June of 2009 with 10,415.

On the other hand, domestic tourists were biggest in number in April with 75,161; May with 68,837 and March, with 41,007. They were smallest in number in August with 22,445.

January was the preferred month of Overseas Filipinos to go to the island, with 4,283 arrivals; February, 2,735 and March, 2,263. They were scarce however, in the month of September, with 579 only who visited the island.
In 2008, visitor arrivals reached 634,263, which generated P11,659,910,434.20 in tourism receipts.

The tourist arrivals in Boracay Island in 2009, which breached the half-million mark, contributed a big portion to the country's tourist arrivals.
Based on records, tourist arrivals in the country from January to September last year is at 5.2 million. The same period in 2000 had 1.99 million tourist arrivals.

The big number of tourist arrivals in 2009 made businesses thrive, created more jobs and livelihood opportunities for Filipinos, and generated more investments.

Tourism investments also reached P555 billion from 2004-2009, which drove the growth of the country's tourism sector and created more jobs, enabling Filipinos to live better lives. (PIA) [top]

Kintoy

April 5th, 2010, 10:12 PM

"Visitors to French Polynesia remain concentrated around a relatively limited number of islands, primarily located in close proximity to Papeete and its international airport. Following Tahiti, Moorea is the second most visited island, primarily due to its close association with Tahiti and the excellent transportation system (either by boat or plane) that exists between the two islands. Bora Bora appeals to receive over half of all visitors, while Rangiroa in the Tuamotu attracts the most visitations of the outer islands (10%)"

so 50% of 196,000 is 98,000

source (http://www.4hoteliers.com/4hots_fshw.php?mwi=1759)

xxxriainxxx

April 6th, 2010, 12:39 AM

if we're allowed to call the Philippines "Pinas" why not a truncated form of Boracay?

maybe you people should put your anal-rententiveness to good use and campaign for useful things instead, like promoting world peace or saving the ozone.

I think the issue is branding the destination as well respect for the place. The locals prefer it to be called Boracay and not the other four-letter word and we should respect it. Siguro naman marunong ang mga tao magbasa - that's just an extra syllable.

If one can't even read and say the name right which is probably the simplest thing in the world, how do you expect people to even promote world peace or save the ozone? :ohno::ohno:

filcan

April 6th, 2010, 12:51 AM

If people want a shorter nickname for Boracay what about just calling it "Cay" instead? Kinda has a nice ring to it...

xxxriainxxx

April 6th, 2010, 12:58 AM

If people want a shorter nickname for Boracay what about just calling it "Cay" instead? Kinda has a nice ring to it...

ehh,,, just Boracay is good enough. I dont think Manila would sound nicer if we call it Mani,

amigo32

April 6th, 2010, 01:09 AM

ehh,,, just Boracay is good enough. I dont think Manila would sound nicer if we call it Mani,

:lol:

xxxriainxxx

April 6th, 2010, 02:48 AM

Marvellous mayhem to be found in Manila (http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100403/TRAVEL/704029924/1087/LIFE)
Piers Kelly
Last Updated: April 01. 2010 7:29PM UAE / April 1. 2010 3:29PM GMT

Why Manila?

Ever since Southeast Asia made it onto the tourist map, travellers have been drawn to such cities as Singapore, Hanoi and Bangkok. The fact that Manila is only just beginning to register on the hip list is something of a mystery. After all, the flamboyant metropolis has just about everything you could dream of. Luxury hotels of international repute, groovy nightlife, top restaurants and sprawling markets showcase the cultural diversity of the Philippines’ 7,000-odd islands.

But it’s the city’s thrilling Bladerunner atmosphere that has lured me back again and again for the better part of a decade. Where else can you loiter beneath a skyscraper bristling with neon and purchase magic charms from street-side vendors? What kind of city combines public transport with street art and 1980s disco? This is a national capital that jolts even the most jaded of travellers out of their expectations.

A comfortable bed

Far and away the favourite for its understated style and sheer luxury is the Shangri-La (www.shangri-la.com; 0063 2 813 8888) in Manila’s classy Makati district. All the rooms (from US$194, Dh711) are beautifully appointed and boast stunning cityscape views. An added bonus is that it is easy walking distance from the major shopping precinct. Also in Makati is the Mandarin Oriental Manila (www.mandarinoriental.com; 0063 2 750 8888), famed for its superior service and top-notch health spa (rooms cost from $166, Dh608). Traditionalists will prefer the Manila Hotel (www.manila-hotel.com.ph; 0063 2 527 0011), an elegant grande dame of a building on the edge of the old town (rooms cost from $124, Dh456). The faded beauty has looked after all kinds of luminaries, from the General MacArthur to the Beatles. If those walls could talk

Find your feet

The quickest way to get a feel for Manila is to head to the historic walled city of Intramuros, positioned over the bay. It was here that the Spanish built their founding settlement after the conquistador Miguel de Legazpi took Manila by force in 1571.

Wander around by yourself, take a cheesy ride in a kalesa (horse-drawn carriage), or book a tour with the irrepressible Carlos Celdran (www.carlosceldran.com; 0063 2 484 4945). Do not expect the usual tourist patter: Carlos’s unique excursions are so quirky and enlightening that even the locals take them. For something a little different, sign up for his hilarious tour of Marcos-dictatorship architecture (all tours cost $21, Dh76). For a quintessentially Filipino experience, take a ride in a jeepney (Dh1.50). These are the ubiquitous jeep-shaped buses, brightly painted and seemingly powered by their own stereo systems. Catch any jeepney heading to the busy districts of Malate, Quiapo, Ermita or Cubao and enjoy the spectacle from the permanently open windows. This is an activity best appreciated at night when the city truly comes alive.

Meet the locals

I never leave town without at least one visit to the Museum Cafe (0063 2 757 3000), a hangout for sophisticated creative types whose demand for good food and coffee keeps the standard high within its spacious interior. The cafe is on the ground floor of the Ayala Museum on the corner of Gil Puyat and Osmeña in Makati. It is a prime position for spotting the whiz kids and wannabes of Manila’s contemporary art crowd. The honey duck rolls ($7, Dh26) are a personal favourite at all hours of the day. For dinner, try the sea bass ($13, Dh49), cooked to tender perfection. Nearby, Makati’s famous Greenbelt is brimming with cafes and restaurants, including a number of cheap halal places.

Book a table

I've found it in my heart to forgive the owners of Sala (www.salarestaurant.com: 0063 2 750 1555) for swallowing its legendary competitor, Lumière, if only because the dining experience is the best I’ve ever had in the Philippines. The ever-changing menu is as long as a Russian novel but the team of chefs are up to the task. The style is best described as continental European with an Asian aftertaste. Red meat dishes are particularly good (from $20, Dh74) but vegetarians have plenty to choose from, too. Stand-outs include the twice-baked soufflé ($9, Dh32) and the grilled Angus beef tenderloin ($33, Dh120).

Shoppers’ paradise

Ever wonder how the notorious Imelda Marcos collected so many shoes? You won’t after you’ve spent a few dizzy hours in one of Manila’s famous SM Megamalls. Technically, “SM” stands for “shoe mart” but since Imelda’s retirement they’ve begun housing everything from the latest European fashions to spas, restaurants, gyms and dentists. The SM in Ortigas is a monument to consumerism of epic proportions, while SM Ayala in Makati is more varied and easier to access.

Adventurous shoppers make for the street stalls surrounding Quiapo church to replenish supplies of snake oil, anting-anting (talismans), herbal potions and other dubious wares. Quality traditional handicrafts from all over the Philippines can be found at the Silahis Arts & Artifacts Center (0063 2 527 2111) on General Luna St, Intramuros.

What to avoid

For a city of its size, Manila is remarkably safe. Filipinos love to be out and about, and the sheer numbers of people walking the streets at all hours adds to the sense of security.

The biggest hassle is getting around. Traffic is often so dense that it can take several hours to traverse the city by taxi. Don’t attempt to fit too much into one day, and try to pick a hotel close to the attractions that interest you. It’s normal for taxi drivers to ask for a surcharge. Bargain it down a little but make sure the meter is running before you close the door.

Don’t miss

Manila’s western orientation on a bay means that it’s easy to get a full view of the spectacular sunsets. All those noxious jeepney fumes refract the rays right across sky, making for an evening masterpiece. You can jostle for a position along the ramparts of Intramuros, or simply take a stroll down Roxas Boulevard in Malate, where Manila’s young lovers are drawn to the romantic light show.

Piers Kelly is a travel writer for Lonely Planet. In between journeys he is a research scholar at the Australian National University, where he is studying a minority language of the central Philippines.

Kintoy

April 6th, 2010, 08:49 AM

when I talk to people and I mention "Bora" they most likely would know that I am talking about the island near Caticlan and not the island in French Polynesia

if I hear somebody talk about "Mani" i'd think of peanuts and/or a female sexual organ :lol:

RonnieR

April 6th, 2010, 08:57 AM

ehh,,, just Boracay is good enough. I dont think Manila would sound nicer if we call it Mani,

:lol:

RonnieR

April 6th, 2010, 09:08 AM

RonnieR

April 6th, 2010, 09:14 AM

Manila is featured in Business Traveller Asia Pacific edition, March 2010.:cheers:
I got a copy of the magazine. It's good it's in the web, too. :)

Manila

Published: 26/02/2010 - Filed under: Archive » 2010 » March 2010 » Destinations » Features » City Guides » City Guides » Asia Pacific » Features » Destinations » Asia Pacific » Features » Destinations »

Gigi Onag takes in the historic heart of the Philippine capital before hitting a local seafood market
http://www.businesstraveller.com/city-guides/asia-pacific/manila

Manila

1. Pasig River cruise

The 25km Pasig River cuts through Metro Manila and was once a major waterway for transporting people and goods during the Spanish Era, from the 15th to the 18th century. Urbanisation has wreaked havoc on the once pristine river but it has undergone a major rehabilitation in the past few years.

To see the metropolis from a different vantage point, take one of the passenger ferries that were reintroduced in 2007. (Depending on the distance of travel, tickets are priced from a bargain Php25/33p to Php45/60p.)

There are 17 stations in the ferry network – it’s best to get on at Guadalupe station in Makati City and get off at Plaza Mexico in Intramuros. Along the way, watch out for landmarks such as the Santa Ana Race Track, the high-end Rockwell Centre, which used to be the site of an old power plant, Malacanang Palace – the official residence of the President of the Philippines – and the old walled city of Manila in Intramuros.

2. National Museum of the Philippines

From Plaza Mexico, take a quick taxi ride to the National Museum of the Philippines on P Burgos Street in Rizal Park (also known as Luneta Park). Formerly the Old Congress Building, the museum contains paintings and sculptures by Filipino artists. On the ground floor, look out for Juan Luna’s Spolarium, which won the gold medal at the 1884 Exposicion Nacional de Bellas Artes in Spain. Measuring 28 sqm, the canvas shows dead gladiators being dragged from a Roman amphitheatre. Entry is Php 70 (£1). Open Wed-Sun 10am-4.30pm. Visit nationalmuseum.gov.ph

While you’re in the area, check out Rizal Park itself – one of the largest parks in South East Asia, it’s home to sculptures, monuments and gardens.

3. Intramuros

From Rizal Park, it’s a five-minute ride in a calesa (horse-drawn carriage) to Fort Santiago. Built in 1571, this is one of the oldest Spanish fortifications in Manila and is located inside the walls of Intramuros.

The fort was the port of origin for the famous Manila galleon trade to Acapulco in Mexico, as well as the last place of confinement for Filipino nationalist Jose Rizal, who was executed by the Spanish Army in December 1896 – his death was seen as a catalyst for the two-year Philippine Revolution that followed.

The fort contains the Rizal Shrine, a museum of his personal effects and the room where he spent his last night. You can also follow his final footsteps, cast in bronze, from where he was imprisoned to the place where he met his death in Rizal Park.

Elsewhere in Intramuros, there is much to explore. A must-see is San Agustin Church, one of the oldest surviving churches in the Philippines and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Magnificent trompe l’oeil murals cover the walls and ceiling, while the remains of Spanish conquistadors, such as Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, are buried inside. In the courtyard, the monastery, which used to be the Augustinians’ living quarters, has been converted into a museum housing Filipino, Spanish, Chinese and Mexican art treasures.

Across the street from San Agustin is Casa Manila, a grand 1850s Hispanic building. It contains a museum showcasing artefacts from a typical well-to-do household of that time. Casa Manila is also part of a complex that houses speciality and gift shops.

4. Manila Ocean Park

From Intramuros, it’s a ten-minute taxi ride to the recently opened Manila Ocean Park at the back of the Quirino Grandstand in Rizal Park, where the late Pope John Paul II held an outdoor mass in 1995 for an estimated crowd of up to five million people.

The first oceanarium in the Philippines, it is the centrepiece of a new lifestyle complex that includes a marine-themed mall, Hotel H20 and the Sunset Quay, a floating shopping and dining arcade. Walk through the 25-metre-long underwater tunnel and you’ll see sharks, fish and invertebrates indigenous to the Philippines and other parts of South East Asia. Entry is Php 400 (£5).

After touring the park, you could also try a glass-bottom boat ride (Php 150/£2) or dip your feet into the spa’s water for fish to nibble away dead skin (Php 120/£1.55). Visit manilaoceanpark.com

5. San Miguel by the Bay

By now you should have worked up an appetite so head to San Miguel by the Bay, a popular dining strip along the redefined shoreline of Manila Bay. It is located behind the SM Mall of Asia (smmallofasia.com), and is a 15- to 20-minute taxi ride from Ocean Park along Roxas Boulevard towards Baclaran.

San Miguel by the Bay has a fresh seafood market, locally known as Dampa, and if you buy your ingredients here you can take them to any of the restaurants lining the strip to be cooked how you want (there is a service fee for cooking each dish). Most restaurants offer a choice of either al fresco or indoor dining.

6. Greenbelt FIVE

Your last stop is Makati City’s Greenbelt Five – while it’s a half-hour drive from here, traffic permitting, it’s a must if you can fit it in as it offers a different insight into the city.

Located in the upscale part of town, Greenbelt Five is part of a five-section complex of dining, entertainment and commercial venues, and is the place where tech-savvy young professionals like to congregate.

What sets it apart is an area called the Filipino Zone, where you can find the finest in local fashion and lifestyle products. On level two is Travel Café Philippines (travelcafephilippines.com), a destination-themed venue run by the Department of Tourism. Here you can try Alamid coffee – one of the most expensive types in the world, it’s made from beans retrieved from civet droppings. If you have time, a short walk from here is the privately run Ayala Museum (ayalamuseum.org), which houses a collection of works by contemporary Filipino artists. Entry is Php 350 (£4.50).

Visit wowphilippines.com.ph for more information about Manila.

Dustin

April 6th, 2010, 04:40 PM

yung US radio commentator nagsorry na ... napanood ko sa Umagang kay ganda kanina

thescene

April 7th, 2010, 01:49 AM

The Cebu dancing inmates are going to be featured in the BBC World program Fast Track this weekend. I guess they were filmed when the host visited Cebu a few weeks ago.

Program Schedule:

April 10 - 06:30AM , 03:30 PM, 08:30 PM

April 11 - 3:30 AM, 2:30 PM

kevinb

April 7th, 2010, 06:18 AM

xxxriainxxx

April 7th, 2010, 06:21 AM

hakz2007

April 7th, 2010, 06:24 AM

Where is Plaza Mexico?:dunno:

I think its in Intramuros. Near the Immigration Bureau. :D

RonnieR

April 7th, 2010, 06:25 AM

Where is Plaza Mexico?:dunno:

It's in Escolta. :)

hakz2007: Intramuros? Is there a ferry station in Intramuros?

hakz2007

April 7th, 2010, 06:26 AM

^^Escolta na ba yun? :D

RonnieR

April 7th, 2010, 06:40 AM

^^ Yes, you're right. Plaza Mexico station is in Intramuros. I used the ferry once and I rode at Escolta station, Binondo, Manila. :)

Fraulein

April 7th, 2010, 08:47 AM

Hahaha! Search ka kasi muna:)

xxxriainxxx

April 7th, 2010, 08:56 AM

7,104 Philippine islands to go (http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091212/TRAVEL/912109991/1087/LIFE)
Last Updated: December 11. 2009 9:14PM UAE / December 11. 2009 5:14PM GMT

Concerns about safety and the Philippines’ geographical isolation means the country is frequently overlooked by travellers. Rosemary Behan explores Manila, Cebu and Boracay, three of the archipelago’s principal destinations

It’s Wednesday night in Cebu and the Basilica Santo Niño is packed. From every corner worshippers come, filling aisles and doorways, corridors and courtyards, straining to catch a glimpse of the hymns flashing on an electronic board like karaoke lyrics in a nightclub. There are no prayer books here and it’s standing room only.

If the dress is casual – men and women in T-shirts, shorts and jeans, children held aloft on shoulders – the mood is soft and serious but tinged with electricity. It’s warmer than Ireland, less sombre than Rome. In a chapel to the left of the altar is the subject of all the excitement: a small statue of the Infant Jesus, given to the queen of the Visayas after the islands’ so-called baptism in the 1500s.

The church is beautiful, despite being destroyed three times by fire – and the outdoor candle section, with its cobblestone floor and balustrading, as evocative as any in Europe.

Still, this midweek mass is apparently tame compared to other occasions. “Fridays are the most crowded,” says my guide, Val Lorenzo. Then, thousands fill both the basilica and the small replica of St Peter’s Square beside it. The Feast of Santo Niño, celebrated every third Sunday in January, ensures that by the end of October, “most hotels are fully booked.”

As we wander around the compact centre of the Philippines’ second city, the street names – Del Rosario, Asuncion, Gonzales – and the local dialect of Cebuano, with its many borrowed Spanish and occasional Arabic words – leave no doubt as to the depth of foreign influence. Although Arab traders and missionaries brought Islam to the southern parts of the Philippines from the 13th to the 15th century, it’s Catholicism which dominates most of the Philippines’ urban areas, so entrenched, long-lived and brutal was the process of Spanish colonisation. Cebu, the country’s oldest city, was its gateway, although, on a tour of its museum, Val tells me that initially their arrival was a mistake. “The Spanish were looking for the Spice Islands (Meluccas) but they decided to stop here to get supplies. They were befriended by the king of Cebu.” The friendliness did not last long. “The priests were more powerful than the officials. They recruited Spanish and Mexican teachers and their families to come and spread their message.” Those who rebelled were imprisoned or shot – and the viciousness of the Church stoked a revolutionary independence movement symbolised by the writer Jose Rizal, now a national hero.

So it is that on nearby Mactan Island, today a dreary adjunct to Cebu Island that houses hotels, factories and the city’s international airport and is linked to Cebu by a bridge, the site of the defeat of the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan is now a low-key shrine. It was here that in 1521, in a valiant but short-lived rebuff to western colonialism, Magellan was defeated by chief Lapu-Lapu (confusingly, the same name is given to a tasty grouper fish served all over the country). In a small park backed by souvenir stalls, a stone plinth marks the place Magellan met his fate and a triumphant metal statue of the chieftan is proudly displayed. Behind the statue is a tranquil muddy riverbank where, Val tells me, a re-enactment of the battle is held every year.

“Magellan had already made friends with the King of Cebu but he did not realise that there were eight tribes on the island waiting for him. Lapu-Lapu and almost 1,000 warriors repulsed the invaders and he became the first Filipino to have repelled European aggression.” The victory was brief – Spain then sent four expeditions and the commander of the last, Lopez de Villalobos, named the islands after Philip, the heir to the Spanish throne.

After leaving the shrine, we pass several guitar factories – yet another, less violent remnant of Iberian culture. “The Mactan guitar industry started when priests taught the locals how to repair their instruments,” says Val, before treating us to a rendition of The Beatles’ You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away.

Modern Cebu, which now has a population of four million, also bears the marks of an even older association – between the Philippines and the Chinese, who have traded peacefully with the islands (there are a staggering 7,107 in total) for almost 2,000 years. The richest man in the country is the Jinjiang-born Henry Sy, who owns the China Banking Corporation and SM Holdings, the largest retail and shopping mall operator in the Philippines, and operates the BDO bank – we pass multiple examples of both outlets on the way to and from the airport. Behind the exclusive Beverly Hills mansions there’s a large Taoist temple, but the most surprising addition to the religious landscape was a giant, brand-new and sinister-looking Church of the Latter-day Saints.

if you go
The flight
Return flights to Manila from Abu Dhabi with Etihad (www.etihadairways.com) cost from $646 (Dh2,375) return, including taxes.

Driving away from the colonial centre, we pass families sitting outside homes of wood, breeze blocks and corrugated iron, washing hanging from windows, and the smell of street food wafting in the air. In Labangon’s busy market area, lechon manok, or roast chicken, was on sale at virtually every restaurant – variations included barbecued chicken heads (helmet) and deep-fried intestines (isaw) and feet (adidas). Puso, boiled rice wrapped in small, picnic-sized coconut leaf pouches, hung in bunches and baluk, embryonic duck eggs, were advertised for 15 pesos (Dh1.20) apiece. A local delicacy, Val tells me they’re an aphrodisiac and that Cebu baluk are bigger and better than those found in Manila. “To eat them, you make a hole, drink the soup, then open the egg and eat it with salt. The first time you do it, eat it in the dark. You won’t see the feathers.” I declined, preferring the fare at at a smoke-filled, indoor street food market.

From Cebu it’s less than an hour’s flight over steep mountains and scattered atolls to Kalibo on Panay Island. Kalibo, with its coloured buildings around a central square and relaxed ambience, has a Latin American feel to it. Its museum showcases the annual Ati-Atihan festival, the work of local artists and details and photos of the curiously-named local boy Cardinal Jaime Sin, a former leader of Roman Catholics in the country.

The 90-minute drive to Caticlan took us on rural roads, past green rice paddies and villages where rice was being dried on sheets and piles of coconuts waited for buyers. At the coast the road cut a line between endless empty beaches and rugged mountains draped in thick clouds and jungle. From Caticlan we took a 10-minute ferry crossing to Boracay. The sky had cleared when we arrived on the island, the country’s most popular beach destination. Just, 9km long and 1km wide, Boracay does a good job of hiding its 300-plus hotels behind a canopy of coconut trees – from its stunning and aptly-named White Beach you can’t see much of the back-to-back hotel development behind the 4km shoreline; turn the other way and all you can see is turquoise water, a sea of boats and the dramatic mountains of Panay. The beach was busy (mainly, it seemed, with South Korean honeymooners in matching cotton shorts) but the strict control of litter and low-rise nature of construction has so far maintained the island’s good looks.

We stayed at Discovery Shores, a designer retreat at the northern end of White Beach which was a haven of minimalist luxury – other new five-star properties include the Shangri La and Asya hotels. In the middle of the strip are fast food restaurants, bars, small shopping malls and even a Starbucks. We escaped the crowds by taking a boat on a snorkelling trip; when this was curtailed by bad weather, we landed on a beach the other side of the island and whiled away the afternoon at a seafood barbecue.

From Kalibo we flew north to Manila, a capital so sprawling and its sites so spread out you could spend at least a week touring it. The Spanish sold the Philippines to the Americans for $20m after the Spanish-American war in 1898; they stayed until the country was finally granted independence in 1946. In that time English became widely used, public schools and democratic elections were introduced, along with shopping malls and a taste for fast food. Due to its strategic position, it was also, according to our guide, Tom, the third most bombed city in the Second World War. After the 23-year reign of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos from 1965, which brought widespread poverty, corruption and extra-judicial killings, as well as allowing the Americans use of Philippine bases during the Vietnam War, the maximum length for a presidential term was cut to six years. “It’s still too long for a bad one,” Tom tells us wistfully, “and too short for a good one.”

In Manila both death and religion are omnipresent. First stop on our tour of the city was the American Memorial Cemetery. A gated, finely-manicured expanse of rolling lawns and white marble crosses amid acacia and mahogany trees marks the graves of over 17,000 US Army troops, most of whom died in operations in the Philippines or New Guinea; a further 36,000 whose bodies were never found are commemorated. Right outside the 60-hectare site is a modern residential district, a slum and a building site.

The US is no longer allowed to use its bases in the Philippines; in its stead expensive new apartments, DHL and the call centre industry prop up the local economy. Jollibee, a Filipino-owned chain, has overtaken McDonald’s as the number one fast food outlet, and just down the road from the cemetery, on the site of a former US base, is The Fort, a smart, low-rise area home to Encore, formerly the Embassy club. On a refreshingly unstuffy hip-hop night there, we saw local professionals rubbing shoulders with models, TV celebrities and music personalities including apl.de.ap from The Black Eyed Peas. Similarly, Greenbelt 3, a sleek shopping complex in Makati, the central business district, is a maze of escalators, designer outlets and bars. At the Travel Cafe, where we had dinner, a cup of Alamid coffee – the coffee beans have famously passed through the digestive system of the Philippine civet – costs 240 pesos or US$5.20 – some two-thirds of the average daily wage. A 210g bag of the delicious (smooth, no bitter aftertaste) coffee costs $200 (Dh735).

In the other, grittier parts of the capital, jeepneys – originally stripped-down US Army jeeps but now giant, creaking, hybrid hulks, rule the roads. As well as cheap transport – trips are around seven pesos ($0.15; 50 fils), the jeepneys bring a swirl of colour and religion to the streets, being elaborately painted and named (think “God’s Gift” or “The Lord is my Shepherd”). There are also “tricycles”, or motorbikes with sidecars attached, for short trips; again, there always seemed to be a crucifix attached to the rear view mirror.

From Makati, we boarded the crowded but fast, efficient and air-conditioned rail system, the LRT and MRT (both of which, handily, have separate compartments for women) north to Abad Santos. There we found the Chinese Cemetery, a small city of tombs built for Manila’s richest residents. Along with streets, temples and tombs the size of small houses, the dead’s journey to the afterlife is made more comfortable by the provision in some of the buildings of running water, chandeliers, air-conditioning and even kitchens. Much of the site, however, has fallen into disrepair and some families, fallen on hard times, have moved into their family tombs permanently.

A different sort of shrine is on show in Fort Santiago, the historic heart of Intramuros, Manila’s old walled city. The building houses the cell where the Filipino nationalist Jose Rizal was incarcerated before his execution by firing squad in 1896: moving tributes to his fearless death are on show in both the cell and accompanying exhibition. From Intramuros I walked north through the districts of Chinatown, Binondo and Quiapo, revelling in the older, wooden buildings, some inlaid with mother-of-pearl, which escaped bomb damage. Quiapo, a rough-and-tumble neighbourhood on normal days, was packed on Friday evening due to its market and mass at Quiapo’s baptist church, where worshippers crowded to be blessed by holy water scattered by priests at the entrance. Designated “Priest’s Parking” – in an area crammed with cars – was carefully roped off.

From Quiapo it was a short trip to Pacquita Street in Sampaloc, the home of the gym Manny Pacquiao first used in Manila and which he now owns. We knew we were close because the area was decked with flags and banners; children playing in the street and on parked jeepneys stopped and posed for pictures. Formerly the L&M Gym, the new Manny Pacquiao Tower is a six-storey, double-glazed, air-conditioned yellow and orange building which will accommodate some 120 poor girls who want to continue school free of charge; they will live in relative luxury in dormitories above the boxing ring. The manager, Jojo Delacruz, welcomes us inside. “Manny started training here in 1995,” he tells me. “Actually, he used to live here. It was a former boarding house but he used to sleep here in the ring. There were only four of them, so there was plenty of room.” Upstairs, Jojo offers us pancid noodles and soft drinks and shows us around. “Manny bought this place last year and renovated it,” he said. “He’s coming here tomorrow, will you come and meet him?” Sadly we are flying home, but Jojo and his assistant Lorie are undeterred, plying us with Manny-branded water coolers, T-shirts and clocks. He takes us into Manny’s office, then upstairs and out onto the spacious roof terrace, which now houses a comfortable games room and bar. From the top you can look down at the slum but also across at the new skyline miles away in the distance. While most hail the latter, all the colour – in the jeepneys and the scrambled heaps of corrugated iron strewn with washing, and the painted wooden houses, the shop signs obscured by huge nests of wiring and the children at open windows – is in the foreground. The further you look, the greyer things become – and I know which view I preferred.

rbehan@thenational.ae