Philippine Travel Notes

The best places to see, are sometimes not even part of your itinerary! The previous beach story ( Jagnaya ) and this one below (Asgad) are very good examples... Brgy. Asgad is just beside, and next to Jagnaya on a northward run towards "wherever", but, and that, I am now discovering are unknown paradises just awaiting discovery by the commercial tourism world. Oops and OMG, what am I saying? Part of my mind is now protesting "huwag po"! Well, the world is getting smaller. We voraciously-active travelers (a.k.a. mga sabid) are scouring this planet extensively for every nook and cranny that may be worth a memorable (instagrammable) visit! Thus, if I may call it this way: it's time to shine for such remote places. [yet part of me is saying NO] Anyway, as said in the previous story , I did not come to this place searching for beach paradises hehe. I knew these places are on the pacific coast, but never have I imagined they have beautiful coastlines. So...

Here is another paradise that I did not know of, until I saw it and was in it! This thing called 'work' just incidentally or accidentally brought me to Jagnaya at a time I was far from dreaming of being in fantastic a white sandy beach! My 'travel' this time was only all about electricity! Anyway, for the first-timer, Brgy. Jagnaya is not easy to find. It sits by the Pacific Coast, probably more than 5kms from town center. Actually, it is just 3kms from the national highway where you turn left at Brgy. Bagtong - BUT, there are no big visible directional signage yet hehehe! Don't worry, coming soon! Once you "correctly" made that left turn, just follow the road until you reach this T-intersection... That arrow inside the waiting shed points and says "to Brgy Alog". You're not going there, so turn left! Do not rely on finding that arrow though. What if people were standing or sitting in that waiting shed? Well, no worries, and I even ho...

This topic started with this article Still before the saints, there is this name that of course refers to one of our Spanish Conquistadores. Despite the name’s popularity (e.g., Salcedo Village in Makati, Salcedo Place Condominium) there are only two towns in the country that bear the name. First is the town of Salcedo in Ilocos Sur. If you are not historically inclined, this is nothing but just another hinter town. But it played a critical role during the war era. If you don’t mind the hiking though, there are at least three waterfalls that will surely catch your interest. This town is far from the capital and is actually at the foot of the Cordilleras. The other town called Salcedo is far down in the province of Eastern Samar (Region 8, Eastern Visayas). This one is a big town in terms of land area and straddles in between the Pacific Ocean and the Leyte Gulf. So this is not just a sunrise town, it also has its sunset portion! This is a town of rivers and bays and islands and little ...