Manila rain

There I was. Sitting alone at Café Havana while the rain outside seemed like not letting up. My sis and a friend had excused themselves earlier to freshen up. I took a sip of my chilled mangojito which is concoction of rhum, mango juice and crushed mint leaves. It is the Manila version of the classic mojito cocktail.

Viajamos a La Ciudad de México

Here I am again, back in Mexico, and my fourth time to be exact. This time we went to the mother of all Mexican cities instead of the coasts. I realized it is the most times I've visited a country other than the States and the Islands so when Mexicans in la ciudad ask for my ethnicity (probably because of the way I speak Spanish and with a thick foreign drawl), I jokingly tell them Soy un Filipino Mexicanizado. I get a smile back 99% of the time.

Island Tour Bohol

The original plan was to go to Palawan although we weren't exactly sure where to - Puerto Princesa, Coron, or El Nido. The Salvadoran also wanted to stay one more day wherever we were headed. So that would make the package a 4 days / three nights. I started making arrangements with the travel agent in Manila a little too late because the Salvadoran didn't arrive from Vietnam until 12/19. I learned that there are only a few chartered flights from Manila to Palawan so 4 days in the island would already include Christmas eve and we didn't like that. My mom and siblings wouldn't appreciate that either. I had to make another plan. Bohol and Panglao Island sounded right.

Konnichi wa from Tokyo, Japan

That and four other phrases sum up my Japanese language skills. This is probably why Tokyo, or Japan for that matter, was not in my list of places to visit. Not even after seeing the movie 'Lost in Translation'. Other than my brother and my sister-in-law, I don't know anyone else making a big deal about Japan.

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

We had just returned from the beach and then took a quick shower to freshen up. The cumulus clouds that brought a brief rainfall earlier painted a red orange sky. The sun has not completely set at 7 o’clock in the evening. The Salvadoran asked me if I want to walk on the Malecon on our way to the Zona Romantica in search of a good sit down dinner. I said why not, especially on a beautiful evening like this.

Balitang NYC

I thought Las Vegas is the only city outside California that I will visit more than once. I have added DC and New York in that list. We don't even remember why we chose NYC as our destination because I thought we've been wanting a beach vacation. I guess we just wanted to get away anywhere after a grueling week of signing papers and the long wait for the escrow to close.

Balitang Roma (March 2006)

I wanted to spend the entire trip solely in Paris. Mijo was itching to go to Rome since neither one of us has been there. He argued we didn't even need to add a single cent if we include Rome to the itinerary, the hotel and flights to-from Paris. It is just I hate the packing-traveling-unpacking that is involved in a hectic travel schedule.

Balitang Paris (March 2006)

I have never been to Paris on a cold winter month. It was on a summer when I visited the City of Lights for the first time and I remember it was hot, muggy, bustling and chaotic. The scene is the exact opposite this time of the year, tranquil, which makes the sirens from the city streets seem irritatingly loud. The trees are bare, the air frosty and everyone dressed in layers and mostly in black. The temperature is nearing 0 degree celsius which probably matches the Parisians' attitude toward outsiders in general (of course I'm only joking!).