Frannywanny

Back in 1990, I had my first trip to Singapore. I guess you can call it love at first step when I immediately fell truly madly in-love with this fellow ASEAN country near the equator. It could probably be because of its clean and green-friendly environment (no trash, no vendors!) , the honesty of the people (this was back in 1990s..have to update this info soon) and the food. It was the best 2 week vacation then as we went around the different tourist sites, shopped till we dropped (the exchange rate was still low back then) , met up with old family friends and lastly tried out the different possible combinations among the following: roast chicken/duck/pork + rice/hofan/noodles. Every meal is truly exciting as we happily mixed and matched our meat with its perfect carbo pair. Since then, I knew that Singapore is the place I want to be in forever . It has been a while since I've been to Singapore. Times have changed and there were quite a number of new attractions available like th

On Saturday, our household will be supporting the Earth Hour by switching off ALL of our lights from 8-9PM. Hope yours will too Ü Reference: http://www.earthhour.org/cities/manila/

"It would take years to build a relationship and seconds to destroy it..." This famous marketing mantra has proven itself true last weekend when Paul and I ate at Som's Noodle House in Tomas Morato. After hearing all the raves and being able to dine in their former branch in Reposo myself, I was dead set on bringing Paul along on my next visit to allow him to enjoy the authentic yet very affordable Thai dishes that this restaurant was known for. It wasn't difficult to secure a table because this branch was spacious enough with 10 rectangular-sized tables that's good for 5-6 guests each. After handing us our menu, the waitress informed us that they have ran out of noodles and shrimp. HUWAT?! "So no more Phad Thai for tonight... well, it was almost past 8 and business must have been really good that day," I thought. To make the most of our visit, we settled for Catfish Salad, Green Curry Chicken, Spring roll and Tofu Togue. The salad was very small consi

Today's itinerary was pretty light. Beach bumming for the entire morning and a side trip to another historical landmark before heading home. HOME. Suddenly, I realized that today was our last day. Can't believe it has been three days since we all first met at Mcdonald's Quezon Ave., exchanged shy but friendly smiles and tried so hard to get accustomed to sleeping in the bus. It has been three days since we toured around this picture pretty province at the northern part of the Philippines and fell in-love with the beautiful moments that we were able to capture. As we laid our keys down at the counter of Polaris, we said thank you to the graceful owner who welcomed us all into her cozy resort. We ate our last lunch and once again boarded the bus for our final stop. Cape Bojeador sits on top of a hill overlooking the South China Sea. It has one of the highest lighthouses that guides ships heading towards the ports of Salomanque and Curmimao. I'm not sure though if the li

My phone's alarm clock began to ring loudly, fighting the urge to press the snooze button, I slowly sat up and did some stretching. It's 4:30AM and in thirty minutes I have to get dressed, prepare my day bag and meet the group downstairs. Today, we start early. Our goal is to catch the sunrise at the Bagui Windmills . I admit I was very excited for Day Two. Despite the early schedule, I can't wait to finally see a windmill up close! At exactly 5AM, we boarded the bus that will bring us to Bagui. I can't remember how the drive went as I fell asleep the moment I sat down. It wasn't until I felt Paul tapping my arm that I woke up and saw shadows of giant electric fans outside the window of the bus. I quickly got my camera, tightened my cap, zipped up my jacket, made sure I had my Globo Surf hiking sunglasses and followed Paul and the group as we got off the bus. It was still dark and the wind was very strong. Just imagine having fifteen 70 meter high electric fans

The saying "time flies when you're having fun" turned out to be the biggest understatement during my recent weekend getaway at Ilocos. After 8 hours of restless sleep in the freezing bus, we finally arrived at our first destination. "Welcome to Bantay, Ilocos Sur", the church keeper greeted us. He was a jovial looking man who took the effort to wake up at 5AM to meet us at the church grounds exactly thirty minutes after. Speaking in fluent english, he narrated the story behind the St. Augustine Church and the Bantay Bell Tower that were both standing so high and mighty ready for us, travellers, to explore and appreciate. Here at the Bantay Tower was where the movie Ang Panday was shot starring no less than the late Fernando Poe Jr.. The Bantay Bell Tower was truly a sight to behold, its red brick colored facade shines as the early sunlight strikes it. Needless to say, Paul and I didn't waste any precious time was we allowed ourselves to go trigger happy