A travel & adventure blog by Kara Santos
Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), commonly known as Saigon is one of the most vibrant and largest cities in Vietnam. Known for its complex history dating back to the Vietnam War, its French colonial landmarks, and delicious healthy cuisine, Saigon is a good base for backpackers and budget travelers to start their exploration of Southeast Asia.
The mountain town of Sagada nestled in a valley in the Mountain Province is one of the most ideal places in the Philippines to enjoy the outdoors. This scenic town in the Cordillera region offers the most spectacular view of mountains, cooler climate due to its high elevation and well-preserved culture.
Because Metro Manila and many surrounding towns are highly urbanized and congested, a lot of us are always looking for easy escapes for day trips and weekend getaways. Just a couple of hours from the metro, the nearby provinces of Laguna and Quezon are good choices for those who want to experience the “simple country life.” You can spend the day in a farm or natural resorts, stay in cozy bed & breakfasts, dine in artistic and homey restaurants, and visit artist’s studios.
For those who like nature-tripping, art, culture and food, here are just some of the places you can drive to for an easy countryside getaway relatively near Manila (excluding Nuvali and Tagaytay).
Continue reading “Road Trip Guide: Laguna & Quezon”Over the years, I’ve gone back and forth from Manila to my hometown Naga City in Camarines Sur in the Bicol Region. I’ve also gone on road trips with the family to nearby provinces of mainland Bicol: Camarines Norte, Albay and Sorsogon. The Manila to Bicol route passing the Asian Highway 26 (AH26), also known as the Pan-Philippine Highway or Maharlika Highway, is a major road trip route on the island of Luzon in the Philippines.
I’ve been getting inquiries from people planning to drive this route whether by car or motorcycle (and even a few long-distance bikepackers), so I’ve decided to compile a suggested itinerary covering the essentials and some travel tips.
Continue reading “Road Trip Guide: Bicol Highlights”Everything looks better when the sun is out. The same roads and structures which I found scary the previous night look perfectly ordinary in the daylight. It’s like watching a horror movie with a particularly tense nail-biting scene set at night. Then the scene shifts to a sunny day and you breathe a sigh of relief because you feel the worst is over.
Desolate. The empty highway seems to stretch on for miles. Except for the occasional habal-habal or van going in the opposite direction, most of the main road in Northern Samar just feels so empty. There are hardly any establishments or houses on either side of the road. Just mountains on the horizon, coconut trees and fields.
While driving from Lavezares to Laoang Island, the only fairly large town I pass that has an actual mall and big gas stations is Catarman. After that, I only encounter small villages with their poblacions made up of a few streets punctuated by a handful of sari-sari stores selling gas in litro bottles. Then it’s back to deserted roads after driving for five minutes.
Continue reading “Endless Samar Part 2: Laoang Island & Mapanas”Ang laki pala ng Samar, I thought to myself as I drove along the highway on my way from Catbalogan City to Lavezares in Northern Samar. When I ride a van or a bus, I usually just sleep and wake up near my destination, so I don’t really feel how far I’ve gone. I get an inkling of distances when I plan my route on Googlemaps, but the kilometers on Samar island just felt longer than usual.
After my Basic Off-Road 101 Training Session in MX Messiah Fairgrounds in Rizal, Coach Mel of Mel Aquino’s Yamaha Off-Road Training Camp (MAYOTC) offered to show the students that day the KRB Off-Road Track in Antipolo City. The 36-hectare natural park offers a more technical course and controlled environment for training. It’s usually reserved for advanced classes where students have to ride through rolling terrain, do jumps, clear logs and rocks.
Atburan Rockies is a very raw and unknown site with caverns and towering limestone rock formations hidden in the mountainous region of General Nakar, Quezon. Aside from locals who call it “Kulungang Bato,” the site has only been explored by a handful of outdoor enthusiasts and mountaineers from the UP Outdoor Recreation Group (ORG). In fact, when I was researching about the place, I couldn’t find any existing write-up or background information about the area.
Continue reading “Hike to Atburan Rockies in Gen. Nakar, Quezon”
Host and star Ride N’ Seek Jaime Dempsey was in the Philippines during the History Convention 2017 to promote “Journey to the North,” the fifth season of her hit motorcycle travel show. Jaime’s no stranger to the Philippines, as this is the third time she’s filmed the show in the Philippines. In 2016, Jaime got to explore Mayon’s lava trails in Albay and got inked by legendary tattoo artist Fang Od in the mountains of Buscalan, Kalinga.
Continue reading “What Jaime Dempsey loves about the Philippines”
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