06.24.2012 Carlos Celdran's Walking Tour of Intramuros

 our awesome tour guide, Carlos Celdran

 Fort Santiago

 For his tour, Carlos gives away local chocolates! om nom nom :) 

kids who were with us on the tour, they seemed very interested.

 did you know that ceiling is painted? it was done because WWII brought so much damage to Intramuros that it also destroyed the original ceiling of this church

 having a refreshing cup of halo-halo after the tour

 this cute little boy was giving out souvenirs after the tour. 

Manila Cathedral

Ever since we were 14, my bestfriend Sam and I have always wanted to go on a tour of Intramuros. Yes, we've been here a couple of times, but we've heard that Carlos Celdran does a good job of explaining things around here. Also, we've been a little busy with a lot of what's going on in our lives right now which is why we didn't have the time to actually plan it out and sign up for his tour. Well, we finally have and it was definitely worth it! First we went to Fort Santiago, where he explained a lot about the Spanish colonization in our country and had a bit of introduction on the American colonization period. Then we went to the original location of Ateneo de Manila, where Jose Rizal studied. We were able to arrive at our destination riding a kalesa. There he explained about the American colonization in our country. Our final stop was at the San Agustin Church. After the tour, he treat all of us to some refreshing halo-halo, which he explained to be a metaphorical representation of Filipinos because of the bountiful mix in our culture. 

His tour was unlike most tours wherein the tour guide points at something and explains it. His had more depth. He would gather everyone around in one place and that's where he would start talking about the history. He had a portfolio of pictures that guided him as he spoke. We could tell that he is really into his job and that it's not just for compulsory and it seemed like he was really passionate about changing how we should view Manila. 

What I especially liked about this tour is that when we would walk to or next destination, Carlos would hold a casette player that had background music from the old times. It really took out the stress in walking under the heat of the sun. 

Next stop: The Imelda Tour! 

inspirational quote he said after the tour: "If you want to see Manila change the way it looks, you should change the way you look at Manila"-Carlos Celdran 

BAGUIOOOO

Okay, i know it may look a bit disgusting from the photo, but this TAHO tastes really good. For those who don't know what taho is, it's this sweet tofu snack/dessert/drink thing that has a mix of small tapioca pearls and sweet brown syrup. In this case, instead of the syrup that is usually found in taho, the taho man mixed in strawberry jam/syrup. At first I was hesitant to taste it because it seemed out of the ordinary (for me) to try them together, but it seemed like a good try. It was indeed different and delicious at the same time. Something that refreshed you pallet and it's not something that you find very often. 

Yes yes, very amateur =)), but the flowers looked really pretty and I couldn't help myself to take a picture. 

A Baguio experience is always a good one. The province where my parents came from was very close, so we decided to take a little road trip to this wonderful city. What I really like about Baguio is that it has been "city-fied" so to speak, but it hasn't totally lost its culture. I really like this place mainly because of the weather. Baguio is a plateau which means the weather here is much much different than the one I'm used to in Manila, IN A GOOD WAY. haha. Not only that, it doesn't feel as congested as Manila because there are trees all over the place and you have that feeling of fresh air around you. If my school was here and a house i could live in, I would definitely prefer to stay and live in Baguio. 

As for my outfit, I went for comfort over style this time because it's sort of a long drive getting there and I knew that there would be times that I'd feel dizzy, so I prepared myself by wearing something that was comfortable (easy to move in). This is recommendable for all kinds of travelling if you're sure you're gonna be in a transportation vehicle for more than 2 hours. Style is part of your personality so you can twinge comfort a bit and add something that you think would be stylish but is not a hassle to wear. 

Sunset at The Bay

so for the holidays, my family and I went to the province to celebrate with my grandparents and other relatives. this province was where my parents were originally from, and it they showed us to the beach \:D/ i just couldn't resist to take pictures. the waves were just the right size and the water wasn't so cold. have you guys noticed that i have this fascination with sunsets by the beach.? hahaha  

Subic Safari

I wish I was at that dock to enjoy that ray of light :) 

You can't have a perfect beach picture without a jump shot ;)

So as promised, I will be posting more often now :) 

During the recent long weekend, my family and I went to Subiiiiic. First on our list was to go swimming in the beach, and so we did. The water was calm and clean(well, cleaner than the water in Manila Bay :P), and since we went there not during the summer, there weren't so many people crowding the shores. As soon as i got dressed clean after swimming, I just had to take a picture of the beautiful scenery that was facing us. You can see the light beam on a certain spot, and you can also see the different color contrasts of the mountains because of different distances. It was so beautiful and peaceful to look at. 

The next day, we went to this "Zoobic Safari". It consisted a tour that was about two hours long. We were able to see a lot of animals and basically learn more about nature. It's always fun and refreshing to go away from the city once in a while and appreciate the natural environment. :D