Travel Bug Me

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” – Mark Twain


Saigon, Vietnam

My colleagues in the office have noticed that for the last two months I had been away from work from Tuesday-Thursday ....an excuse to be away from work? No its an excuse for me to travel.
Siem Reap, Cambodia

I discovered that its cheaper to get tickets for a Tuesday-Thursday flight. Not everyone knows that but try searching for tickets and you would end up getting the cheapest tickets on these days.
Perth,Australia

So why aren't you travelling? With tickets nowadays selling quite dirt cheap( we sometimes even pay higher for our taxi fare from our house to Changi Airport), theres really no excuse not to travel.

When will be the best time to see the world?

During our travels I have met a lot of retirees who are just now seeing the world. Despite their age,they are climbing the temples in Southeast Asia and enjoying the beaches of Phuket and Bali. In Siem Reap we even met a Dutch couple who were travelling for a month with their two small children all over Asia.

Whenever we travel as a family, we teach our kids the differences we see in other cultures.It becomes an eye opener for our kids.Like when we went to Cebu, my two kids who were 9 and 10 years old at that time had an instant lesson in Philippine history. They remembered up to now Magellan ,Lapu Lapu and the cross and Simbang Gabi.

I would always tell them to remember distinctly certain places because we might not be able to go back there again and sometimes we do (just like when we travelled back again to Macau and we had an instant Deja vu when we were walking in the cobbled streets of Senado Square). Even in Perth, when we were already aboard the plane, it was my eldest son Nygels turn to give an advice about travelling to his brother...he told his brother to remember that particular point in time twenty years from that day.I have emphasized to my two boys that travel is one of the finest methods of self-education, that travel pursued properly expands ones horizons.

I realized that what I treasured most about travel was not that it gave me a chance to see new things. Travel gave me a chance to look with new eyes on familiar and not so familiar things.It has broadened our perspective as a family of our understanding of cultures and religions.

Theres no age limit in travel, you can travel while in your teens or when you have already retired.

If you think you have the itch to travel, dont ask questions just book the ticket and I guarantee you wont regret it...just have an open mind about travelling.

The best reason to travel is not only to discover new places; it is to discover what you would become after being affected by the places that you have visited.

Congrats Nygel

Yesterday was a happy day for us. We went to Nygel's School to attend the parent teacher conference which is customary in all schools in Singapore. I am now used to sitting down with my sons teachers to discuss the progress of their education because this is exactly what they do here in Singapore.

On the other hand, its hubbys first time to attend such a session.

We were greeted by his classmates when we entered his classroom.It seems that my son has annnounced to everyone that we were coming.

My sons teacher greeted us with a handshake and told us that they(both him and the assistant teacher) were very glad about Nygels achievements in school.They told us that during the first term Nygel was sleeping in class and was not very attentive but towards the second half of the term he suddenly emerged as a leader and an achiever in school. So because of this they decided to give him a special award in school.

Nygel is the third in class standing and the 6th overall among all secondary one classes. His teacher was even saying that if he passed his chinese (which he didnt) he could have been given a better over all standing.

His teacher informed us that they will nominate Nygel to be a student councilor next year. Congrats son.....this is all through your efforts.

The Siem Reap Work Out

Are your Ready for the Challenge of your Lifetime?

My husband said that I subjected him to a "Death March". Imagine walking for 10 hours with only 15 minutes break for breakfast and 30 minutes for lunch under the heat of the sun and drizzling rain.....thats how we did visiting the Angkor Wat Archeological Park in Siem Reap Cambodia.

Just to show you whats in store in case you go to Angkor Wat...Here are the various temples and the ups and downs of climbing and crawling through narrow steps and alleys.

See those steps below, we had to go down there


Just one of the several steep climbs we have to pass to go from one part of Angkor Wat to the other

The long hallways surrounding the temple

At Bayon Temple, to reach the best part you have to climb to the third story again using steep stairs. Most people crawl their way up.


Tony made his way up using a short cut, he didnt want to climb the steeper stairs

The other tourists waiting for their friends who are still climbing


One of the steep stairways


This is the 3rd storey level


Bring a flash light,most areas are darkly lit.

Tips:
1) Wear Rubber shoes (the older the better), Sandals would be fine if you dont mind having mud on your feet after skipping through rain puddles.
2) Bring flashlights and raincoat or umbrellas
3) Bring a jug of water in your back pack
4) Bring wet towels since the heat can really be unbearable
5) Bring some candies or snacks in case you dont have time to eat and look for restaurants
6) Bring a fan(abaniko) or handkerchief to wipe perspiration
7) never bring kids below age 12 , i dont think they will appreciate moving from one temple to the other.(this is not a place for young children)
8) Of course bring your handphones,cameras and video cam but make sure they are fully charged since you have plenty of photos to take
9) wear your entry pass on your neck using an ID tag because you have to show it to the guards everytime you visit each of the temples.
10) Bring a lot of US$1 bills, not $5 nor $10 since most items are sold in US$1-4
11) Donot bargain with the locals, let them bargain with you, the more you show you are not interested to buy they lower their prices.

Nice Gift items from Angkor

I just have to buy something from Siem REap and on our first day, our first order of the day was to go to the Old Market, a 10 minute stroll from our hotel.

and these are my loot from the market:

Krama: is a sturdy traditional Cambodian garment with many uses, including as a scarf, bandanna, to carry children, to cover the face, and for decorative purposes. It is worn by men, women and children, and can be fairly ornate, though most typical kramas contain a gingham pattern of some sort, and traditionally come in either red or blue.

On our second day at the temple I wore a krama and I used it to wipe my perspiration and as protection from the rain .


Embroidered and sequenced bags




You can find a lot more of these items from here.

AWESOME ANGKOR

This is the first time I am using this word"Awesome" but it is the best adjective that I could give to the treasures of Angkor Wat.The Angkor Wat Archeological Park has numerous temples and shrines that you would be left thinking how such structures were built by the Cambodians.


The structures are marvels of civilization. I have never seen such structures quite like these temples.


ALmost all hotels in Siem Reap would have tours arranged to all the temples. Today we paid $19 for the tour by tuk tuk.

We even went up to the highest temple which overlooks the Angkor Wat which would require 15 minutes of trekking .But despite our tiredness , todays tour was well worth it.

Happy Deepavali!

Tomorrow is Deepavali(Festival of Lights). Its a holiday that falls on a Saturday, a normal non working day.

To all my Hindu friends and clients...Happy Deepavali!!!

Beach Clean Up Day

The first impression that tourists and foreigners have of Singapore is that it is antiseptically clean.But not everyone knows that without foreign labor (from India and Bangladesh) Singapore wont be as clean as it is.



The Singapore government spends a lot of money on cleaning and green conservation efforts.It is targetted at all sectors of the society but most Singaporeans rely on cleaners of estates (housing estates) to maintain the current level of cleanliness.

Schools also teach students on how to help in the upkeep of Singapore's environment.

Yesterday Nygel's school,Assumption English School,went for their BEACH CLEANING DAY.

Considering that Singapore is a clean country, you would be surprised that they still found thrash on the beach.

Visiting Europe for the First Time For Free

It is exactly 23 years ago today when I first visited Europe. It was a trip that was unexpected. I wrote some research papers for the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) which my boss submitted to the International Labor Organization (ILO). He was also the one who happily informed me that I was given a fellowship by the ILO to attend the 7th World Congress of the International Industrial Relations Association in Hamburg,West Germany. That was in October 1986.

How lucky can I get? My boss was even the one who got the trip for me. A lot of my colleagues at that time were telling me how lucky I was to be given that fellowship. Since they were happy I thought maybe I should also rejoice.They were telling me not to go back anymore and marry a European.They gave me names and addresses of their friends and relatives who I can call if Im lost. Thanks to them I felt relieved going to Europe on my own.

My close friends in DAP were so excited for me that they mapped out my itinerary and told me where to go.Some of them even gave me tourist books to read and bring so that I can go around Europe after the Congress.

When I received by travel documents and welcome kit from Geneva I even became more excited when I found out about my huge stipend. At that time there was no need for Pinoys to have visas in Germany.

What followed was a string of adventures and mis adventures starting from my luggage being left somewhere in Bangkok. I was able to claim some money for my clothes. At my rescue was the Consul of the Philippine Embassy in Hamburg who lent me her wifes clothes(imagine that) since my luggage(with the handle torn) was delivered only a week after my arrival.

I stayed in the homes of the generous UP friends of my sister Maricel. Her friends Nygel Armada (now you know where I got my eldest sons name) and his best friend Jingle were both studying their doctorate in Hamburg and I stayed with them for a month.I think Nygel is now the Chancellor of UP Visayas and Jingle is also with UP Visayas.

AMSTERDAM

Anyway, staying in Europe for the first time was exciting. Every week end I get to travel by bus to Amsterdam where I was approached several times by men selling Huskies(I think its similar to marijuana). I didnt know marijuana was legally and openly sold in Amsterdam and visiting the place where Vilma Santos filmed Miss X was really thrilling and also a bit scary for me since I was travelling alone.

PARIS
I was also able to visit Paris with another Filipina friend of my hosts. Since both of us were new in the City of Lights we wandered around the Eiffel Tower,Arc De Triomphe , Notre Dame Cathedral and Opera only. One thing I can tell you is never go to Paris alone or with someone you dont know...Paris is to be enjoyed with someone you love.

EAST AND WEST BERLIN

I was lucky really lucky to still have visited when East and West Berlin was still there. We took a bus (this time I was with my host Jingle who was visiting a friend in Berlin) to West Berlin. Going to West Berlin you have to pass by Checkpint Charlie and East Berlin. We took photos of the famous Berlin Wall.

You could see the stark difference in the living conditions in East and West Germany when you enter East Berlin. When our bus entered young soldiers checked our passports (they were mere teenagers) and along the way you can see people in drab winter clothes digging ditches I dont really know for what.

Entering West Berlin was like you entered heaven coming from hell. West Berlin was spankingly opulent and extravagant. The roads were full of beautiful and new cars.

HAMBURG, NEUSCHWANSTEIN Castle, Nurnberg and Oberamergau.

These places are indeed beautiful just like I have walked through a fairy tale book.

My UP classmate Alice (who married a German) picked me up from the Nurnberg train station and brought me around Munich, neuschwanstein, Oberammergau and even up to the border of Austria and Germany. Lucky I have her since I wouldnt be able to see all these places.

I remember visiting the Neuschwanstein and the other castle of King Ludwig by horse drawn carriage on the way up the mountain.
She brought me to Munich to witness the Oktoberfest. We went to the place where the Nazis of Hitler congregate and drink beer . She was my tour guide for 2 days.

Reminiscing about these experience I am happy just reliving the memory of this one month sojourn that was absolutely free. A free vacation from my boss.I now believe Im really lucky to have been there.