A travel & adventure blog by Kara Santos
Here’s a cool restaurant for those looking for a different place to get inebriated. Brotzeit German Bier Bar & Restaurant in Shangri-La offers authentic Bavarian cuisine and excellent German beers on tap.
Continue reading “A Taste of Germany: Brotzeit German Bier Bar & Restaurant”
Uncharted is an action-adventure third-person shooter platform video game series developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment exclusively for PlayStation. The main series includes Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, followed by Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception.
September 22 marks the mutual birthdays of hobbits Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, two of the most loved characters in J.R.R. Tolkien’s books The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. The day is actually known as Hobbit Day! So, we thought it would be a fitting theme for my nephew Eli’s fourth birthday last Saturday. Here’s a quick look at our Middle-Earth celebration.
This week, I was supposed to head to Zamboanga for a work-related project. However, it was deemed unwise to push through with the event after fighting suddenly broke out there between rebels and soldiers. After several days of the worst fighting in years between the MNLF faction and government forces exchanging gunfire in coastal neighborhoods, thousands have been displaced, their homes in ruins, and lives lost.
Below are a few snapshots I took in the village of Barangay Mariki near Rio Hondo in Zamboanga City, communities which were deeply affected by the fighting. This is how I remember Zamboanga City the most: innocent children full of hope who find simple joys playing on their village on stilts. Now that life is starting to pick up again after the hostilities, my prayers go out for everyone’s swift recovery. Zamboanga will rise again.
One of the most important safety gear to have if you’re a motorcycle rider is a protective motorcycle helmet. Wearing a high-quality helmet can spell the difference between leveling up on your road trip and “game over.”
Because of the passage of the Motorcycle Helmet Act at the start of the year, all riders are now required to wear helmets that have passed the standards of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and have ICC stickers. There are a handful of brands that are certified, including Spyder, a major sporting brand in the
country that specializes in high-performance athletic gear. Spyder helmets bear the marks of excellence and safety, so they’re a very good investment.
They promise safety above all, but they don’t scrimp on convenience, functionality and style either.
Continue reading “Gear Review: Spyder Reboot Motorcycle Helmet”
The weather these days has been really unpredictable. It can be all great and sunny in the morning, prompting you to gear up and ride out of town to get a quick fix. But later, the sky darkens and unleashes a crazy downpour complete with thunder and lightning that will leave you soaked and cursing your decision to get out of bed. Rainy months like August and September are not really ideal for leisure riding, especially for those who like to travel around with an SLR camera or smartphone in tow wherever they go.
I have never liked using rolling bags or maletas when I travel. I always prefer using backpacks, since they are easier to carry around, easier to sift through when you need to get something and they render you more mobile on the road. I hardly ever check-in my bag at the airport to save on waiting time since I’m paranoid about losing things. I usually carry a small laptop and camera when I travel so it also makes sense not to check-in my bag. Since I don’t have a Givi box yet for my scooter, it also helps to bring a backpack for short day trips and rides out of town.
This year, I’ve been using the Targus Sport 26L Backpack, which I’ve found to be versatile enough for overnight to week-long trips. The laptop and accessory case company is known for crafting products that are functional and ideal for both work and travel. Here’s a quick review of the backpack’s main features. Continue reading “Gear Review: Targus Sports 26L Backpack”
The Oriental Hotel in Legazpi offers one of the best views of Mayon Volcano, the cityscape and the waters of Albay Gulf. This elegant and modern hotel located at the top of Taysan Hill, Sto. Niño, is not a place I would normally get to stay in if I was on my own for a budget backpacking trip. It’s the finest hotel in the Bicol region and the first all-season resort for leisure and business travelers, so I was very grateful for our luxurious two nights here for our Bicol tour. I mean, who wouldn’t want to wake up to this kind of view?
The hotel has its own dining area called Jasmine located at the ground floor lobby, which serves Bicol Cuisine with an Oriental twist, which I got a chance to try the during coverage of the Magayon Festival last year. We got our specially prepared Bigg’s breakfast of hashbrowns, bacon, juicy franks and eggs served in one of the private dining areas.
Continue reading “Around Bicol in 30 Plates – Day 3: Legazpi City”
Old military trucks and vehicles lined the path of the muddy trail under a canopy of trees, rusted beyond repair. Overgrown moss and cordyceps-like plants sprouted from the back of one vehicle covered in decaying leaves.
In an abandoned building, only the rafters from the roof remained, the rest of it crumbling into pieces on the floor. Rusty nails, gear and a machete just lay on the floor beside planks of wood and steel pipes.
This could easily be a glimpse into a post-apocalyptic world overrun by zombies. Continue reading “Scenes from a Zombie Bike Ride”
When we were kids, my sister and I always looked forward to visiting museums and science exhibits. I remember family outings to the old planetarium in Rizal Park, the Dinosaurs Exhibit and Ripley’s Believe It or Not in Shangri-la (anyone remember this?). I also got to visit the Science Center in Singapore during a trip there a few years ago. I’ve been wanting to check out The Mind Museum in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig, the first wold-class Science museum in the Philippines, ever since it opened to the public in March 2012. It’s only appropriate that the trip was a family affair, this time with the next generation.
A couple of weekends ago, I invited my sister Lorie and her son Eli (age, almost 4), cousin Roxy and daughter Annie (age 7) for a kid’s playdate. We’ve been looking for fun places to take the kids, especially during this rainy season when parks and outdoor areas are not ideal, so the visit to Mind Museum on a stormy Saturday afternoon was perfect. Continue reading “A Trip to The Mind Museum”
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