The Raging Bus And The Ten-Peso Pancit

by Gay Mitra - February 17, 2011August 13, 201422

By this time, we’d probably be checking in for our flight to Tiruchirappalli at Kuala Lumpur’s Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) already. For sure it will take some time before I get to write about my “Incredible India” experience, so for the moment, here’s something from the Voyaging Visayas series which I assume has a…

Siquijor: Cambugahay Falls and The Old Enchanted Balete Tree

by Gay Mitra - January 26, 2011August 13, 201421

I have seen some of the most spectacular waterfalls in the country, but it was my first time to see the bluest of blue basins. Cambugahay Falls may not have a stunning cascade, but its clear pool can easily tempt any visitor for a dip. Shervin and I just came from Lazi Convent and Church,…

Siquijor: Lazi Convent and Church

by Gay Mitra - January 20, 2011August 13, 201410

The road was deserted. Our tricycle came to a halt right in front of Lazi Convent’s entrance. I stepped out of the vehicle and shifted my gaze from the convent to San Isidro Labrador Church (or simply Lazi Church). Lazi Convent, humbly grand.There’s something about the rawness and unpolished-ness of the two that make them…

Siquijor: Kagusuan Beach

by Gay Mitra - January 17, 2011August 13, 201415

Our driver arrived on the dot. He waved when he saw me through Hotel Agripino’s restaurant window. 7:30 AM was what we agreed on. Shervin and I had just finished our brekkie then. A long stretch of powdery white sand.We walked out of the hotel and towards the tricycle. The driver approached us, took our…

Siquijor: Salagdoong Beach

by Gay Mitra - January 10, 2011August 13, 201428

The sun’s rays kissing the white sands of Salagdoong Beach in the late morn was blinding my sleepy eyes. I just stepped out of Hotel Agripino. I yawned and stretched (and heard my idle bones crack) and trudged to the shore. Blinding white.Shervin, equally sleep deprived but already donning his board shorts, walked beside me….

Siquijor: Surrendering to Serenity

by Gay Mitra - January 2, 2011August 13, 201418

I sat to compose myself. The sweltering midday heat was infuriating my hormones. Twelve weeks into the pregnancy and there I was in Dumaguete Port battling morning sickness yet brushing off the idea of slowing down. We were waiting for our ferry to Siquijor. A calming welcome. View of Siquijor’s shore upon docking. Shervin and…

10 Things I Like About 2010

by Gay Mitra - December 26, 2010August 13, 201444

2010 ain’t as grand as 2009. Last year I worked overseas, backpacked in 9 countries (did my first long term travel too), got hitched, and honeymooned during winter. This year isn’t so bad as well. I may have only traveled a few times, but these trips were done either while I was pregnant or with…

Video: Casaroro Falls

by Gay Mitra - December 7, 2010August 13, 20140

An insane habal-habal ride is definitely worth this!One fine early afternoon in Valencia, Negros Oriental. Great picnic company consisted of local folks snacking on chips and intercontinental acquaintances gobbling dried mangoes. TweetShare This page was viewed times.

Casaroro Falls

by Gay Mitra - December 1, 2010August 13, 201415

I swallowed hard. It’s going to be one tough ride. Amidst the pandemonium of habal-habal drivers offering tours in our faces, I was fidgety and dazed. I was never comfortable journeying aboard motorcycles, let alone riding it with another passenger aside from the driver on an unpaved road and two months pregnant. Nevertheless I was…

Cebu-Dumaguete: Company of “Joes”

by Gay Mitra - November 25, 2010August 13, 20148

I traumatically underwent an onslaught of interviews by random Pinays as we roadtripped and roro cruised our way from Cebu to Dumaguete. Our entourage composed of two Pinoys (me and my friend Xhy) and three Aussies: Brothers Ari and Benn, plus my hubby Shervin. Backpacking around the Philippines with foreign travelers (or “Joes” as we…