Philippine Travel Notes

Just about noontime kanina, I was not really in a good mood as I arrived at my Tacloban abode - on a weekend, due to some #$%$^ exigencies. Then I heard some singing that brightened my eyes and flapped my ears. Whoa, I literally dropped my bag at the gate and ran towards a neighbor's house where the singing seemed to be coming from. Note: I do not know this neighbor (yet) but I entered their gate anyway (yan ang totoong gate-crash hehe) to shoot this video hahaha! And, just as I thought... carolers, in the waray-waray old style way! So here it is: Akala nyo tapos na?! Nope! I followed them, thinking they would sing at another house hehe. But, argh, they sang at the little corner store where there were a lot of pedicab drivers etc hanging out in the area, and they even crowded around the singers. So, I waited, thinking I could follow them to another house. But they sat down just outside the store, to eat bread and drink sodas - yun kasi ang ibinigay sa kanila after singing. Har...

Hey folksie-folks, I was back at this Korean Restaurant called Han Gang in Pusok, Lapulapu. Not that I crave for anything in this place, but, by virtue of proximity, this has been (and still is) is my go-to (best choice) in Pusok area! I went there tonight! This time I had beef soup and a cup of rice. Like their other authentic Korean dishes I have tried before, this one tasted oh so good. This is also NOT spicy, thus, I liked it. And, 'wheresoever' they get that from, the beef is of really good kind. For you my readers who are (like me), not (yet) too familiar with K-restaurants, if you are also wondering what those 'little dishes' are for, I only call them "the trimmings"! They're are the usual side-dishes this 레스토랑 serve together with whatever kind of main dish you order. Most of them I never dare touch. Why? Ayoko ng mahanghang! That cute bastardized word 'mahanghang' comes from my nephew, at ginaya ko na! Oi, there weren'...

So, ganoon na nga... I was inside the Mabuhay Lounge, their TV was playing the live broadcast of Miss Universe. Oks lang naman - but I heard some commotion outside. It was an excited roar with clapping and cheering. Hmm, very easy for me to discern what it was! This country always does that on Beauty Pageants or Pacquiao Fights! I knew it! Most everyone, passengers, crew and employees were fixated on the TVs! Oh the final three was just announced! This is that rare moment where e very mouth in this country is zipped to deafening silence - only the TVs would blare any sound ! Ah, seryosong bagay yan. Open your mouth and you'll get those murderous glances ! People intently listen to what each final candidate has to say in that "final question"! I almost laughed out loud when: while Catriona was saying "I work a lot in the slums of Tondo Manila..." a 'usual' airport announcement was coming in, but someone who knows how-to, pressed the local g...

Going home time. Let's Go sago! Oh, I did not forget " let's start from the very beginning ". My departure from Iloilo! I took a cab from Seda Atria to the airport, and here I was on the diversion road... No traffic yet at 8:48AM on a Monday. Yeah! I think this was because the malls were not yet open, and most vehicles were heading 'downtown' on the opposite direction. At left is the Plazuela De Iloilo - my favorite strolling, window-shopping, dining place in Iloilo. It's a mall yes, but it has a different kind of vibe. It is 'sprawling', not vertical. Onwards, next to that, is SM City Iloilo . Ah, who does not know SM, right? That building at right is SM Strata , supposedly the tallest in Iloilo, until the Terranza Residences materializes. I heard SM Strata is not actually done yet. It's supposed to have 2 or 3 towers (daw, yun ang marites na nasagap ko)! Offices & BPOs daw yan. Further, is Injap Tower - you can see a litt...

Arriving at Seda Atria, I saw this thing and thought it was an obelisk or church ruins (such as a bell tower), that was "enshrined" to become a monument. I was curious. Soon as I tossed my bags at my room overlooking it, I went down to see it up close. Not an easy place to get to. Maybe monuments like these are just meant to be seen from afar! It's a rotund, so no stop-lights nor zebra-walks. Thus, all vehicles run fast. Well and aherm, where there's a will, there's a way . I still managed to get to it. Ako pa! This is the Donato Militante Pison, Sr. Monument located on an avenue bearing the same name, at an intersection with Pasencia Tijam Pison Avenue ! O ano, laban ka? While skirting around, looking at various details, I added two and two together, and I realized, I was at this thing many people online refer to as The Chimney Monument ! Haruy, ito na pala yun! Not an obelisk, not a bell tower, but the pausukan of a pugon ! Both the circular bas...

I arrived in Iloilo via an air-conditioned bus from San Jose De Buenavista in Antique, hailed a GrabCar and voila, I was in my overnight accommodation, SEDA Atria Iloilo . Taken from the middle of a roundabout (Pison Monument) I loved this morning shot of the hotel. I'd want to call it my version of the two-point-perspective drawing effect! Did I like this hotel? Oh yes, I did. Was this planned? No! Aw ah, as I always say in my stories, let's start from the very beginning ... I was in San Jose . The plan was to stay overnight there, then take the early morning bus to Iloilo, in time to catch my 1120H flight to Cebu, so I could transit to Tacloban. As advised by my contacts in San Jose, I should choose a hotel online then just ask them for comments - turo ko sa kanila yan in the first place - locals do not stay at their local hotels since they have their own homes, thus they don't know much about rooms! I had a choice, it was approved by my contacts, so I cal...