Hippie super mom, hardcore backpacker and fellow Pinoy Travel Blogger, Gay Emami of Pinay Travel Junkie nominated me to take part in the My 7 Links Project. It is a stirring effort from the people from Tripbase and worldwide travel bloggers "in a joint endeavor to share lessons learned and create a bank of long but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again."
My travel blog is a little bit over three years old that started off slowly and then snowballed in the last couple of years as my passion for traveling grew and the intention to share it to others prevailed upon me. That said, this is a nice way of revisiting past travel experiences that were serenaded by reggae songs in the midst of varying cases of feeling the blues.
Most Beautiful Post
Bantayan Island: Stamping Passage into Each Other
My whole 5th grade class erupted in wild cheer as my then teacher while reshuffling the seating arrangement put us side by side together. Years went by and we both took different paths, until only to be reconnected one day through the internet. What I thought was destiny making an apparition, the trip that would have or should have stamped our existence into each other's lives turned bittersweet as a series of unfortunate events (AH1N1, she being quarantined in a Thailand hospital) I ended up taking the plane to Cebu on my own. Destiny it seems took a sudden detour as well.
Most Popular Post
The most searched keywords that people, who ends up on my blog, look up at Google are either "Calaguas" or "Calaguas Islands". It has become a must visit for every beach loving person - with its bare features with almost no man made structures (except for a few nipa huts) makes it a paradise-like place and its powdery white sands has people raving it to be "better than Boracay". I went here about 2 years ago and I hope that the place remain as it is in the coming years, a barenaked island under the sun.
Most Controversial Post
2 Days of Sand(y) at Malapascua
I don't think the word 'controversial' is the right word, It might be of a lesser degree than that. But this post kinda piqued the imaginations of some people particularly my friends and those who does not know me well. A spontaneous trip bristled with a promise of a whirlwind affair that lasted before it ever began. It was short and sweet - an awesome weekend indeed.
Most Helpful Post
The "Maps" Page
Forgive me if I'm not generous with travel tips on my blog entries. That's not the case, rather just the style of my blogging focuses more on narratives. But, I do made a separate page for such travel tips complete with simple maps and some how to's. It's still currently under construction as I plan to add more places in the near future.
A Post Whose Success Surprised Me
Hong Kong Walks of Life: The Arrival
A slight "hiccup" having to wait out a couple of hours inside the office of the HK immigration got me a blog-material narrative that attracted a lot of attention and in my own words "a career high 43 points" (43 comments in NBA lingo). Brought about by an almost similar (but worst) shabby treatment of two Pinay bloggers in Bali and other cases of racial profiling that has Filipino travelers being singled out as TNT wannabes has us going through almost a needle's eye just to pass immigration gates of other countries. Most unfortunate, Yes! but this will not deter me from trying to see more of the world in the future.
A Post you feel didn't get the attention it deserved:
Does Tourism Speed up the Tarsier's Extinction?
I wrote this one after my trip to Bohol in 2009. I remember being excited to see a Tarsier, however It wasn't the ideal scene I expected, as I saw how the Tarsiers are being kept in a roadside barn with very limited space to move and roam about. Worst, they have to stay wide-eyed awake during daytime just to accommodate picture crazy tourists when in reality, they are night creatures.
The Post you are most proud of
A Spontaneous Process Interrupted at the Underground River
I write my travel blog as fast as I could, I don't start writing and leaving it on draft mode for days. I write in a spontaneous manner which also proves to be a double edge sword. Good, because my thoughts flows freely without interruption. Bad, because I'm more prone to committing grammatical errors. But in this case, I've come up with a blog entry that aptly describes my personal feelings and the place at the same time. Traveling does really help balance that feeling of getting the blues and being fascinated with a new place. In this case, the underground river in Puerto Princesa, Palawan was able to channel all of my frustrations out of my mind and I still ended up with a wonderful yet bittersweet story (again, I know haha).
There she goes, my 7 links and all I needed to do is nominate 5 other travel bloggers:
1. Lauren Gaile of The Junk and Crunk
2. Renevic Amago of Mandaragat. Mamumundok. Lagalag
3. Ca Ramos of Adventurous Feet
4. Eileen Campos of Possibly Pinay
5. Claire Raborar of Lakwatsera de Primera
6. Cai Abbass of Pink Tsinelas
7. Tita Lili Ram of Life is a Celebration
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The time is now to plan a great Cyprus Holidays the season is perfect to enjoy a new traveling experience.
