A travel & adventure blog by Kara Santos
If you’re a fan of horror / zombie / survival video games like Silent Hill or Left4Dead, you know how immersive playing them can be. Sometimes, playing them makes you want to know what it feels to actually be inside those virtual worlds.
Visiting the 81 Provinces of the Philippines has been a major travel quest of mine for a while now. The idea of geographically exploring all parts of the country is sort of like a video game thing for me. For those who don’t know, before I started traveling, I was really into video games. Some of my fondest memories growing up involved inviting childhood friends over to play Family Computer and SEGA.
Most riders and cyclists I know have a thing for taking photos with reference points, road signs
It’s hard to believe that what is now a beautiful park used to be one of the most densely populated places on the planet. Despite having been demolished 20 years ago, the Kowloon Walled City continues to captivate people today. While at first glance, it may look just like a pleasant garden in the middle of the busy city of Hong Kong, it felt surreal and disconcerting to visit a place with so much history behind it. This was the most fascinating place I visited during my recent trip to Hong Kong.
Wondrous and stunning as the centuries-old temples of Angkor Archaeological Park in Cambodia may be, if you’ve just spent two days straight just looking at nothing but temples, it is possible to get “templed out.”
I like to do self-imposed quests and collect certain items when I travel. One of the personal challenges or sidequests I’ve been trying to complete is to visit all the destinations featured on the back of our Philippine currency. The current set of banknotes issued by the Central Bank of the Philippines features Philippine landmarks and tourist destinations, which are considered the most valuable treasures of our nation. As of November 2017, I’ve traveled to and taken photos of the landmarks in five out of the six locations around the country.
GOAL: Take photos of Philippine banknotes with the landmarks featured on the bill STATUS: 5/6 collected
NEXT MISSION: Dive with a 1000 bill at Tubbataha Reef
Continue reading “SIDEQUEST | Money Trail: Explore the iconic sites on Philippine Currency”Dubbed the “Adventure capital of the world,” Queenstown in New Zealand’s South Island blew us away with its breathtaking landscapes and extreme adventures. Everyone who heard I was going to New Zealand said I had to go to Queenstown. And while it was roughly more than 1,500 km away from our original entry point in Auckland in the North Island, the long journey going to the South Island was so worth it.
Motorcycles have distinct personalities. Stock underbones and scooters are your dependable workhorses, the best when it comes to the daily grind. Except for a few high-end brands, most are pretty average-looking. Everyone has them. They blend in with the crowd and they get the job done, especially when it comes to snaking through the city’s gridlock. Custom bikes have a bit more character.
But what owners of custom bikes will probably not tell you is that they can be very moody. After a month of using Fenrir, my Final Fantasy-inspired bike, I started to realize that about him. And I say him, because motorcycles seem to take on a life of their own. I usually think of the motorcycles I ride as either guys or girls depending on how they feel. Fenrir is definitely a guy. A very emo one at that.
Continue reading “The Character of Custom Bikes”I bought my scooter five and a half years ago, about the same time I started this blog. The red and white Yamaha Mio Fino you see on the blog header is Chocobo, named after the gigantic bird-like creatures in the Final Fantasy video game universe which protagonists use to explore the world. Chocobos provide a faster way of getting from Point A to Point B than going on foot. They give you access to hard to reach areas and open up new destinations to explore.
I’ve gone on a lot of adventures with Chocobo. He’s been my faithful companion for weekend rides and everyday chores. Despite getting him secondhand, he’s survived a long trip to Bicol. Earlier this year, I shipped him by ferry and rode around Cebu as one of the 10 finalists of Wrangler True Wanderer 2016, a competition where motorcycle riders explore key destinations in the Philippines.
Continue reading “Fenrir: A Final Fantasy Custom Bike”For movie and pop culture buffs, Universal Studios Theme Park is one of the top attractions where you can enjoy rides inspired by Hollywood blockbusters, TV shows, cartoons and video games produced by Universal Studios. This world-class theme park transports you right inside your all-time-favorite flicks like Jurassic Park, Waterworld and JAWS.
Jurassic Park’s The Flying Dinosaur. Photo courtesy of Universal Studios Japan
Continue reading “JAPAN | Universal Studios Japan Theme Park in Osaka”
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