Last weekend (February 23-24) was my second time to go to Baguio for the Panagbenga Festival. And also my second time not going to Baguio for Panagbenga! Just like five years ago, even though we were just in the vicinity, we avoided the Panagbenga festivities because we didn’t want to stress ourselves with large rowdy crowd and crazy-heavy traffic. We drove to Baguio with our couple friends, Noy & Mave, and stayed at the place of our other close couple friends, Jeff & Van, like we usually do twice or thrice a year. Yep, it was a triple date, why not?! :)

Aside from briefly looking at the stationary Panagbenga floats in the afternoon of Feb 24, we avoided places where most people were, so we dined in not-so-popular and a bit upscale restaurants and coffee shops. But mostly what we did in Baguio last weekend was to relax in Jeff and Van’s sofa watching movies and series on their ginormous TV! Lazing the weekend away, doing nothing in cool weather? Now that’s my ideal R&R!

Another major thing we did last weekend was EAT, EAT, EAT like it’s our last day on earth. I cut myself some slack from my no-rice & everything-else-in-moderation diet and ate anything I want, which I regretted immediately after, hehehe. I wasn’t able to take pics of our lunch at PNKY Cafe but the food was really good, too. Below are Instagrams I took of our very short trip.

We were told by Jeff & Van (the “locals”) that the usual Baguio tourist attire is shorts + jacket.
We can’t help it, these are the only clothes we brought! And we really are tourists! Lol.

An almost 3-hour body scrub + sauna + heavenly massage with the girls at North Haven Spa. When we asked the guys what they did while we were away, they answered, “Pillow fighting and polishing their nails.” I knew it!

We had lunch at this really nice restaurant called Forest House. I fell in love with the place because it looks like a quaint country cottage inside, complete with a fireplace and an awesome mountaintop view!

I had the Forest House Salmon for lunch. For some reason, I always order salmon when I see it on any menu.

A fridge magnet giveaway at Forest House for the Panagbenga Festival.

After our heavy lunch meal, to sweat it off a bit, we drove to Camp John Hay and
spent more or less 20 minutes traversing the Eco Trail. Parang nasa Forks lang!

Thanks to Jeff & Van, we will, for as long as they haven’t left the place, have an open invitation to visit their home in Baguio. Para na rin kaming may rest house, hehehe. See you again soon, City of Pines!

Right now, I know of at least 8 people who (are in/going to) Seoul this month. And what do I feel about it? Totally envious!! Haha.

It seems that November is our (Filipinos) favorite month to visit the beautiful South Korea since airfare is cheap during this time. And for good reason because, as we speak, it’s freezing cold over there. But who cares about a little cold when you get to strut your style and flaunt your winter boots? LOL.

But I actually do mind the cold, I’m not a huge fan of it. Brrrrr.

Since I’ve been reading blog posts, tweets, Facebook posts about Korea lately, I went back to our own pictures taken in Korea a year ago. I didn’t get to blog about the details of that trip, but it must be said: I really fell in love with Seoul.♥

Biwon (Secret) Garden

Looking through our photos got me thinking about what I liked about Seoul. And here’s what I remember from last year’s trip:

1) Transportation, accommodation, food, and other commodities are affordable!

At first I thought prices in Seoul are comparable to Singapore, Hong Kong or even Japan (i.e. really expensive you want to cry!) so I was surprised to find out that it’s just a little higher than our prices here in the Philippines. It’s only the airfare going there that’s going to hurt the pocket a bit (plus, the travel tax and terminal fee at NAIA), but once there, you’re all good!

2) They have convenient and efficient transportation systems!

As long as you have access to a subway station, you’re less likely to get lost in Seoul. And wherever you’re going, expect that there’s an easy way for you to get there, even with several train transfers.

The first time I went to Singapore and Hong Kong I was blown away by their well-structured, tourist-friendly railway systems (pfft, typical third-world reaction). But when I saw Seoul’s extensive subway map, I knew it was the WINNER. Haha!

3) There are lots of tourist spots you’ll be confused which ones to include/exclude in your IT!

We were in Seoul for 6 days, and that’s normally enough time to explore the major tourist destinations of a small Asian country. But in the itinerary that my friend Van prepared, we had to give up some items because our schedule was already packed! And every new place we went to was always better than the last. Below were my favorites:

Everland Resort/Theme Park

Seoul Lantern Festival

Nami Island

Shot from the Seoul N Tower

4) Internet is extremely fast! And free!

I remember our first day when we were in the bus traveling from the airport to the dorm, I switched on my phone’s wifi to see if I can connect to the Internet, lo and behold, there was a loooong list of available wireless networks! I connected to an unsecured one and omg everything loaded really fast! Okay, that’s not so surprising because South Korea is said to have the world’s fastest Internet. Iniisip mo pa lang, nagload na ang website or app. Haha!

5) Authentic Korean food is to die for!

Lunch somewhere in Bukchon Hanok Village

Prior to our Korea trip, I had little to no clue what Korean food is (except for Kimchi), and I really didn’t care about it (I was more a fan of Japanese and Chinese food). But while we were in Seoul, our Korean friend brought us to places where we could try different kinds of Korean food, and maaan, ang sarap naman pala! Due to my regular cravings since November of 2011, I’ve been a frequent visitor of the Korean restaurant chain in Don Pedro St., Poblacion, Makati City. :D

The only thing I probably disliked about Seoul is that only a few people there know how to speak English!! It was kind of frustrating. And the locals there weren’t exactly the rude kind, but they also weren’t very friendly either (kasi nga they can’t speak English). So before your trip to Seoul, make sure you’ve done your homework and prepared everything you need — itinerary, primer, map, basic Korean language phone app — so you don’t have to ask for directions all the time!

To friends who (are in/going to) Seoul soon, enjoy your own version of Seoul-searching! Hope I can also go back someday. :)

Annyeong!

To you, you, and you… the three people who are still reading my blog and who are aware how it’s such a huge effort for me to finish this #TheBigNZAdventure series, thank you for not giving up on me! :P

Continuing my what-seems-to-be-an-unending series, this is the post about our adventure in Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, also called “the windy city.” Back in the South Island, we thought Queenstown was already the coldest place in NZ since it was the southernmost place we visited and that it would get warmer as we head up north… but we were gravely mistaken. Gravely talaga! Throughout our trip, I believe it was the coldest in Wellington due to the freezing wind that was following us everywhere we go. It even rained hail on our first day there!

Manong Mitch and Manang Jessa (our former youth leaders at our church in Bacolod! ♥) took a day off from work to bring us around the city. They treated us to a buffet breakfast and prepared Filipino food (rice + chicken bbq) for dinner that day. It was the best considering we haven’t had a decent rice meal for days! I haven’t seen these mentors of mine (and their two sons) in a long while so it was really an awesome time of catching up and sharing stories.

Our first stop is Mount Victoria, a prominent hill overlooking the whole city of Wellington. It was bright and sunny when we got to the peak that day, but the cold winds made it very chilly.

Weta Cave is the mini museum of Weta Digital, The Lord Of The Ring’s director Peter Jackson’s visual effects company. There you will see mostly LOTR sculptures and watch a short behind-the-scenes look at Weta. Being a semi LOTR fan (semi because it was my dad who was the big LOTR fan, I can’t count the times he has watched the trilogy when he was still alive), it was a great experience to be in the same location where the movies were made.

The reason why my friend Van and I insisted we go to at least one zoo in NZ was because we wanted to see an actual Kiwi bird. At the Wellington Zoo, we did not only get to see a Kiwi, but one that only has one leg! Funny incident that took place during this “tour” was while the lady zookeeper was telling a story about the “Pukeko” bird, four Filipinos at the far side of room were snickering like schoolkids who were up to no good. HAHA.

After the zoo, we made quick stops to the “Beehive” (Parliament building), the Botanic Garden where we took the cable car, and Te Papa, New Zealand’s national museum with six floors of exhibits, cafes, and gift shops dedicated to NZ’s history and culture.

Tired from all the walking, the hearty dinner served at the De Asis Residence was simply the perfect ending to a perfect day. :)

Next stop: Auckland