Filipina on Flip Flops: The Best of 2008!

Jason Mraz once wrote, "My home isn't about being grounded in one corner of the planet. It's about being in love and being lost in the middle of an amazing adventure, witnessing sunbursts over horizons of every time zone". Truer words have never been spoken.

Here's to the memories of all the trips and travels of 2008!

click on image to enlarge

There's nothing like the joy you feel when on the road, heading off to a strange new place, either alone or with friends. I was very fortunate to have experienced that feeling so many times in 2008 - it was one of my goals of the year, and I think I really took it seriously and amazingly made it happen!

There's just something about traveling that's good for the soul - it reminds us of freedom, rekindles a wary spirit, brings imagination back to life. And being young and free and free-spirited and imaginative, I believe, is the best way to live. Which is why - you know what I'm going to say next, and however cheesy it's going to sound, I'm going to say it anyway - traveling equals living. Travel = Life. I'm not sure it's the same for everybody, but it sure is what it feels like for me, at this age, at this time in my life, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Another thing that's great about traveling: it makes us miss home and consequently, and quite ironically, keeps us grounded.

Onward to 2009 then, and to more traveling!

The Places I Visited in 2008:
Bohol
Nasugbu, Batangas
Laiya, San Juan, Batangas
Boracay
Camiguin-Bukidnon-Cagayan De Oro
Dive & Trek, Batangas
Dumaguete-Siquijor
Iloilo-Boracay-Guimaras
Pampanga
Puerto Galera, Mindoro
Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia

And while we're on the subject of 2009...

As you can probably tell, I have a lot of catching up to do with my blogging if I'm going to write about the trips I made last year (and a few in 2007). As a resolution of sorts to start this year of blogging and traveling, I'll be writing about these past trips, and hopefully I'll be done with the posts before the start of summer '09, when most of my trips take place. And to make this commitment official (and provide me with added motivation), I'm officially giving this project a name:

So check back often for updates! Happy new year everyone!

Blogging from Kota Kinabalu: Last Day!

(Note: this post was originally published on my personal blog)

We are flying back to Manila tonight! It's been a great trip. Yesterday was a blast - we went on a jungle trek and crazy things happened, the kind that only happen to stupid tourists like us...hahaha! We also went to the Poring Hot Spring. To cap off the night, we walked by the wharf where there is a strip of restaurants and pubs and we went and had drinks at the Shamrock Irish Pub. We drank pints of Irish beer and I also had a Shamrock Sunrise, which I guess was an Irish version of Tequila Sunrise, and all this while watching football on ESPN. Very Irish, yeah?

I'll post pictures another time, as we are headed out for a tour of the city, after which we'll be visiting the cultural village and possibly the wildlife zoo, and then we'll go straight to the airport.