A travel & adventure blog by Kara Santos
I’m kind of a sucker for any establishment that uses retro motorcycles and bicycles as its theme. There are a few biker bars in Metro Manila, including The Roadhouse along Mall of Asia, Vintage Cafe Muvela in Marikina and Handlebar & Grill, to name a few. I heard that there was a similar bar in Legazpi City in Bicol, so during a family road trip there, I made it a point to check it out.
Continue reading “Vintage Garage Bar & Diner in Legazpi City”
Did you know that the best way to dry wet gadgets is to dunk them in a bag of uncooked rice? I learned this the hard way a couple of years ago, when my SLR camera and mobile phones fell in a river (along with me) on the way to visit a waterfall. While my ancient Nokia survived, my other smartphone’s touchscreen was irreparable, and I had to pay a visit to Hidalgo in Quiapo to get my SLR and lens serviced.
Nowadays, I usually have a couple of garbage bags in my all-around convertible belt bag during weekend trips in case it rains. But it really makes sense to have a dedicated waterproof bag since a lot of the activities I like to do – like island hopping, snorkeling, kayaking, chasing waterfalls and canyoning – involve bodies of water. Continue reading “Gear Review: Hull & Stern Dry Bag”
The maze of narrow corridors with pipes snaking through the ceilings, hulking machinery and elaborate control panels looked like something out of a classic Science Fiction or horror flick. I couldn’t help imagine being chased by zombies as we walked along the dark hallways and climbed the industrial stairways of the building that has been sitting idle for three decades.
I’ve been wanting to take my 6-year old nephew Eli to KidZania Manila ever since I heard it opened in Park Triangle Mall in Bonifacio Global City this year. We’ve done the rounds of the kid-friendly establishments in the metro – The Mind Museum, Art in Island, The Manila Oceanarium, Ark Avilon, Fun Ranch, etc., and KidZania Manila sounds like the ultimate kiddie theme park. This unique indoor kid-sized play city currently has 20 locations in 17 countries and is now in the Philippines!
Imagine a huge interactive indoor play city full of kiddie-sized stores, vehicles, shops and dining destinations. KidZania Manila was built to scale for children using recognizable brands to make up a city. It provides a unique and realistic educational environment, where kids between the ages of four and 14 can get hands-on experience on their dream jobs. KidZania aims to spark kids’ imaginations, ignite their minds, nurture creativity, and inspire real-world exploration. It’s the ultimate role-playing environment for kids! Continue reading “10 Things Kids Can Do at KidZania Manila”
If the UNESCO World Heritage site Shirakawa-go is the starting village or hero’s hometown in a classic video role-playing game, Takayama is the peaceful yet bustling trading town you go to when you want to upgrade your gear and buy all the rare items.
Takayama is a city in the mountainous region of the Gifu Prefecture, about 2 hours away from Nagoya, Japan. It is home to a beautifully preserved Old Town with buildings and whole streets of houses that date back to the Edo Period (1600-1868), when the city still thrived as a wealthy town of merchants.
Continue reading “JAPAN: Old Town & Autumn Takayama Festival”
There are certain destinations in the Philippines that make you feel like you’ve traveled back in time. Places like Vigan in Ilocos Sur, Corregidor in Cavite and Intramuros in Manila offer that old-world charm that makes you appreciate history more. Our adventure trip in Bataan had us not just visiting destinations, but jumping from different time periods. From the cobbled streets and Spanish Colonial Houses of 18th Century Philippines to the elaborate control room of a nuclear power plant built in the 1980s, we literally went back (packing) in time.
Continue reading “Backpacking in Time: Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar”
One of the things that I look out for when I travel around the Philippines are items made from native weaves or indigenous textiles. Underneath the motifs and patterns are beautiful stories of culture and heritage from different tribes and the skillful artists who weave them.
The streets were buzzing with the chatter of locals and tourists alike admiring the ceremonial yatai – ornate wooden structures that display traditional Japanese craftsmanship. It was hard not to get overwhelmed as we walked along the streets of Takayama, a city in the mountainous Hida region, roughly two hours away from Nagoya, Japan. Our visit coincided with the Takayama Autumn Festival, so the streets were extra lively.
The crisp morning air, the aroma of fresh meat and seafood sizzling on hibachi grills and the naturally beautiful backdrop of the old town’s streets put everyone in a festive mood. Continue reading “JAPAN: Savoring the Flavors of Takayama”
On our first day of biking around Siem Reap, we rented a couple of mountain bikes to explore Angkor’s ancient temples. On our second and third day, we decided to take it slow and just rent city bikes instead. As hardcore as the mountain bikes look, we found out that most of the terrain was pretty flat. We also found ourselves spending more time on foot, channeling our favorite archaeologist-adventurers as we ventured into ancient temples and ruins. Who knows what hidden treasure we might stumble upon?
Many role-playing video games start out in a remote place hidden deep in the mountains. The hero’s home town is often depicted as a rustic village full of wooden houses with thatched roofs. Outside each house, you pass rice fields surrounded by rivers, perfectly landscaped gardens and trees with fruits ripe for the picking. Okami, which is one of my favorite video games of all time, has all these elements of the classical Japanese countryside.
Walking through the streets of Shirakawa-go felt like I was transported into a fantasy world right out of a video game.
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