It's More Fun in The PHILIPPINES.

Got inspired by the new slogan of the Department of Tourism to boost the tourism industry in The Philippines. Did some typo in some pictures I took through my travels in The Philippines. Check out: Anton Diaz's compilation in Pinterest.

Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez defended the slogan by tweeting, “The line isn’t a manufactured slogan. It’s simply the truth about our country. Don’t be swayed by people who are trying to punch holes in it.” (Inquirer.net) Also, in Lonely Planet's description "The second-largest archipelago in the world, with over 7000 tropical islands, the Philippines is one of the great treasures of Southeast Asia."

Truly, It's more fun in the PHILIPPINES. Visit The Philippines.

Back rides in tricycle in the Philippines is fun. Go north. Yes, North Luzon. Visit  Vigan, Ilocos Sur. More fun in Vigan.

Wanna go caving and boating at the same time? Wanna see one of the New7Wonders of Nature? Trust me. This place is one of the best in The Philippines. Visit Puerto Princesa Underground River in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

Hiking and seeing the magnificent crater of Taal Volcano in Taal, Batangas. It's more fun to see the volcano's mouth in The Philippines. See my related post: HERE. 

Astounding view at the 2000 year old Banaue Rice Terraces. It has also been recognized as one of 8th wonder of the world. Carved on the mountain side by hand, an engineering marvel and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (PhilippineCountry).  Visit Banaue. See my related post: HERE.

Wanna try the "Wheele of fate"? Amusement park in The Philippines? Visit Enchanted Kingdom in Laguna, Philippines.

Also, please include the hashtag's #ItsMoreFunInThePhilippines and #1ForFun on Twitter. You can also visit DOT's itsmorefuninthephilippines website. Thanks!

Check out this video:

The kid who always having more fun in The Philippines,
Aaron.

Beautiful City of Kota Kinabalu (Sabah, Malaysia)

So, this was a post from my Facebook. I just posted it here in my blog, anyway, it's a travel blog. Everything's in detail and brief. Forgive my poor writing skills.

This is near their City hall. I think this is located at the center. Left side is the Kota Kinabalu City Hall.

This is the guard's quarter in the hotel.

Had a great time with Grandma (I call her Mama) at Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia (East) last March 23-25, 2011. We booked online 2 months earlier because of the airline promo. Got to book a good hotel also for not-so-expensive-price, my Lola's right knee is not in good condition that time when we traveled, we even asked for special assistance (wheelchair) for her to become much more comfortable during our travel. Fortunately, we haven't had a hard time passing through immigrations and all. I enjoyed the whole time I spent with her, even if she just stayed in the hotel for like two days and went out on the last day.

Inside our room. It's a two single beds. Please visit: Hotel Eden54. For more information. 

I checked this hotel through Tripadvisor, it was Best Hotel in Kota Kinabalu. We had a pleasant stay at the hotel. 

Day 1: We arrived at the city at around 8:00PM, went to the taxi booth, paid MYR30 to take us to the Hotel Eden 54. Went to the supermarket beside the hotel. Chat with my Dad and Alessia. Slept at around 12MN.

The Mango shake I bought on streets.

The Suria Sabah mall is located near our hotel. It's across the street.

Day 2: Went to the Suria Sabah mall. It's just a 5minutes walk from the hotel. Bought some KFC foods for our Brunch. Took pictures of the cool graffiti art. Went to Wisma Merdeka to change our Peso to Ringgit. Walked through the Gaya Street, took some pictures of the Kota Kinabalu City Hall, City Bus, Ect. Bought a Mango shake. Unfortunately, our own (Mango Farm or Fruitas) shake version is way better. Tried the Hailam Chicken at The Chicken Rice Shop and the huge donuts at Big Apple Donuts & Coffee, also bought a massage oil (cheap MYR 5) at Guardian. I went to the Night market at around 9PM while my Gran's having a cool talk with Ted (Born-again Malay staff) we've met at the hotel. Saw the Atkinson's Tower that was existed during the WWII, got to see also the City park and the Filipino Market (where I bought some pasalubong). I also even tried the Satay and Hot chicken wings, masarap! Malay food's good. I just don't like that distinct-ginger-taste in their rice, it's better to order "white rice" instead of that "chicken rice" (for me). Went to a supermarket beside the hotel, grabbed a canned milo and a strawberry yogurt. Slept at 11PM.

Monetary in Malaysia is called Ringgit or Malaysian Ringgit (MYR). 1 MYR = PHP 13.76 

Had sumptuous breakfast at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Wisma Merdeka alongside with Suria Sabah.

Went to the port at the back of Wisma Merdeka mall, the port is facing Sout China Sea.

My favorite 3 layer tea at The Chicken Rice Shop in Suria Sabah Mall. Here's how to make the 3 layer tea.

City bus. Transportation information in Kota Kinabalu.

Somewhere at the center of the city. 

Day 3: This is our last day in Kota Kinabalu, woke up at 9AM. Went straight to a nearby coffee house without taking a bath first (LOL.), has some scones witth strawberry jam and a large hot dark chocolate. Went to the seaside - Near Jesselton port. At 11AM, my Lola and I decided to have an early lunch because we need to check-out at 1PM, we roam around the Suria Sabah mall. Had lunch at the Chicken Rice Shop, met some locals. Bought some sabah teas and some consumables as pasalubongs. Went back to the hotel, at the reception area, they have this cool area wherein you can actually swap or exchange your book, there is a pile of good book selection (you can choose from). I exchanged mine with an intersting book about 'Rabbit Stew and a Penny or Two'. After that, we waited 'til 3:30PM, called a taxi, pay MYR 30 then, went straight to the airport, checked-in (ang sungit nung malay lady sa check-in), asked for a special assistance for my Lola, and she was like "We can let you borrow a wheelchair, but, you'll be the one who will take your Gran to the gate." and, I was like "Yea, I know right. Easy!" (In a good manner), As expected, our flight was delayed. Thanks, Cebu Pacific for an hour and a half delayed. My kwento was Detailed. All in all, I enjoyed this trip. Definitely, going back and explore more about the city and their good aqua sports and activities there. Thank You, God for this opportunity to travel.

On our way to Manila. It's always nice to see the sea of clouds above the skies.

The kid who have always been in love with the sea of clouds above the skies,

Aaron.

Reaching The Taal's Crater (Luzon, Philippines)

The itinerary of this trip was originally staying in Tagaytay only. We rented a 15 seater van for the day, while we're waiting for our friends who tried the zip lining at Picnic Groove in Tagytay we were approached by Manong who offered us a day trip to see the peak of Taal Volcano. We were somewhat hesitant at first because it was almost past 12 in the afternoon and our stomachs are empty. Manong said that we can have lunch at the resort. My college friends are adventurous so we gave it a try. Apparently, we're not prepared to do some hiking and stuff.  Actually, we weren't able to bring anything for hiking, take note: What we're wearing for a day tour in Tagaytay is all we have and an extra shirt. So here it goes:

This how we looked like inside the van, I'm at the last seat.

Some of us were sleeping because we departed in Manila at around 7am in the morning.

While waiting for the van, we paid some entrance fees and other fees.

Some of my adventurous classmates tried the Tagaytay Ridge Zipline. 

Saw this little insect at the railings of the stairs. "Life's hard, y'know.?"

Creepy abandoned old structure.

On our way to Batangas. We're getting ready to conquer Taal's trek.

We rented two Bancas. Yes, we're getting close to the volcano. 

We always thought that this is the Taal Volcano. The Taal Volcano is actually the Volcano beside that. That is active.

Yeah! Almost there.

And yeah. We finally reached the start of the saddle.

Let the trekking begins. Notice our outfits: slippers, shorts, ect.

The trek would normally consume 40mins. to 1 1/2 hour. Depending on how fast you are. I was dead tired at the first half. Thanks to the people who sells bottled water at the start of the saddle. Note: Don't rent hats. It's sometimes useless. The stick or tungkod is better.

We reached the mouth. We were on the peak of Taal Volcano. Magnificent!

Our good friend, Mik. Took us some group pictures.

The actual peak/mouth of the Taal Volcano. It's actually look like a big lake surrounded by islets.

My good friends, Vanessa and Sexy (Rose Anne). On our way down, we rented the horses for 100 pesos /per one way. Horseback riding, baby!

The kid who have been astounded by the magnificent Taal's peak,
Aaron.