I was staring blankly on the screen as I was composing the opening words to this article. “Every traveler needs a bag,” I thought, but I realized, that would’ve been one of the stupidest things ever written. But see, while it goes without saying that we travelers need a bag, we can’t own just any—it has to be roomy and sturdy, whilst being attractive. Crumpler Philippines sent me The Proud Stash, and I’ve been summer traveling with it. Read more…

A lot of us just remember sunscreen when we hit the beach—we almost always assume that sun protection isn’t needed for any other outdoor activity. But once we are outside, no matter how the strong the sun is shining, we already are at risk of skin damage because of harmful UVA and UVB rays. Our friends from Banana Boat Philippines believe that having great fun outdoors is safer with their line of products that they sent me to try. Read more…

A lot of times when I’m traveling, I usually go for affordable accommodations—the reason being I’ll be out a lot. I’m good with a standard room, long as the location is good. Locally, I already stayed twice at a place called Gran Prix Hotel Manila in Ermita. Read more…

When it comes to luxury shopping in Asia, we Filipinos, I’ve observed, have Singapore and Hong Kong as our top destinations. But as I found out, we shouldn’t limit ourselves to Orchard and Nathan Roads, for in one of Kuala Lumpur’s prime shopping districts Bukit Bintang, there’s another contender we visited: Starhill Gallery. Read more…

Manila Bay provides one of the best vantages of the sunset without a doubt. While what we call Baywalk already affords a nice perspective, perhaps the best way to see the dramatic sunset is on a cruise, aboard a yacht. Our friends from Legworks Events recently invited me to a Manila Bay Sunset Cruise aboard the M/Y Yrang of Realship Yachts. Read more…

Photo credit: WeHeartIt.com

Whenever I travel, I want to make the most of my time to cover more ground, see more sights. I go out immediately after sunrise, continue the entire day, then even party at night. It’s always the case, especially for places I’ve never been to before, as I believe it’s more fulfilling that way, never mind tiring. The want to blog about things figures in too, of course.

Anyway, I was just thinking about my last trip to Kuala Lumpur last March. In hindsight, I wasn’t able to see much as I normally would. I mean, instead of exploring more on our last day, I decided that we just go lazing around Serdang and Kuala Lumpur—with no plans at all but to buy doughnuts. I was thinking we were tired from our trip from Johor, or I’ve seen much of the Kuala Lumpur already—it was my sixth trip to the Malaysian capital, after all.

But my strong will to discover places should’ve overcome that “laziness.” My 18-hour travel days have sometimes waned to half a day; I noticed this in my recent trips to Siargao, Cebu, and Puerto Princesa. In Puerto Princesa, for instance, instead of going outside the city, I spent half a day in my resort room and just went for a short trip to a natural pool in Iwahig.

Am I losing my usual travel pace? If I am, I hope to regain it eventually because that’s how I absolutely want to travel. But for now, I guess I have to try to take in places slowly and savor the moment. Better yet, maybe I should learn and appreciate the art of doing nothing to contrast my super busy life here in the city.

P.S. My friend Eileen Campos started a blog called The Super Tourists. Her new blog’s equally light, witty, and entertaining as her old one. Be sure to read www.thesupertourists.com after!

Last year, we stayed at GoHotels Puerto Princesa, and I’ve already written a review about it. But this year, we went back to Puerto Princesa to check out Robinsons Place Palawan, and with the hotel being close to the mall and everywhere else, it was the obvious choice. Note that its prime location isn’t the only reason to like the hotel, however. Read more…