• 31Oct

    That was last year’s Halloween theme at Chessington World of Adventures and surprisingly, this year’s also. Hmm. Have they been recycling witches?

    Last year, my nieces and I were at their theme park branch in Surrey a week before Halloween. It was a nice treat from cousin and her husband. We were up earlier than usual, drove to the place not exceeding the 30 mile blinking speed meter and got off the car to embrace the cold wind of autumn. I thought my ears would explode.

    I was asked to write down a spell and threw it in the "boiling" pot.

    I was asked to write down a spell the Charmed way and threw it into the "boiling pot".

    Our tickets had been paid for online at roughly 20GBP per head. There was a lane for those who printed their confirmed passes from the website. Inside, we took turns in touring the girls around and passed by those trees where “witches” pitched their tents and posed for photographs in their spooky wardrobe on top of white long-sleeved shirts with silk ties. I envied those talents wearing mascots. It was warm inside.

    Posing with the bat in shades

    Posing with the bat in shades

    Chessington World of Adventures is a spacious theme park, probably double the size of the local Enchanted Kingdom. There were all sorts of rides, a zoo, theatres, game centers and fast food outlets visitors could choose from. My fear of heights was challenged when we took the Dragon Falls at the Mystic East that sent me screaming during the deep plunge while my niece simply looked cool. Other death-defying rides, like the Rameses Revenge, could probably send me early to the grave. I’m happy and content in those carousel rides.

    Rameses Revenge and the waterspouts

    Rameses Revenge and the waterspouts

    KFC and Pizza Hut swarmed with people during lunch time. No one dared to eat out in the cold unless left with no choice but have a picnic on those cold benches. Inside those heated restos were people sharing seats and floor spaces, too.

    Lunch at KFC and Pizza Hut

    Lunch at KFC and Pizza Hut

    Probably it was my lack of sense of adventure that made theme parks land at the bottom of my must-see list. It’s nice to go to these places from time to time but I would rather embark on a trip where I would learn something really interesting other than send my vision on a swirl.

  • 28Oct
    Shiny, shimmering, splendid

    Shiny, shimmery, splendid

    Cebu has changed so much over the years that it is no longer the butt of those old school Magellan-Lapu-Lapu-kusinero jokes that circulated during the Yoyoy Villame era. The Visayan capital has followed the footsteps of Manila in so many ways that differences are now hard to tell. Supermalls define the city’s landscape and dictate lifestyle patterns. Five-star hotels house casinos and restaurants offering variety of flavors. Business processing offices opening in the area have rendered this old Spanish settlement absolutely sleepless and probably restless hundreds of years after.

    Manang Linda shows us the painful details of the craft

    Manang Linda shows us the painful details of the craft

    While the IT and retail industries flourish, Cebu has also made a mark in the fashion scene. Local fashion accessories industry starts to bloom and exports have been aggressive so far. Bijoux Cebu was the ultimate proof that they too have stepped into the challenge of becoming world-class.

    During the exhibit, we’ve met Manang Linda who graciously demonstrated to us how those accessories you see today were processed from scratch. In fact, every design component has its own humble story to tell from just being a piece of an abandoned shell to something that accents beauty. Every piece was painstakingly made by people who devoted their resources, time, passion and strength. So remember those things next time you purchase one.

    It is a thriving million dollar industry that generates more jobs, opens up small business opportunities and inspires creativity not only among women but even men who have an eye for design and symmetry.

  • 27Oct

    Last book of HP series being sold at Dubai Airport

    I have just finished watching Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in HBO. It wasn’t really the story that kept me glued to the TV set for more than two hours. A lot of those locations in the movie reminded me so much of last year’s trip to England.

    There are probably a hundred different things about the place I missed so much. The erratic weather, yellow and brown hues of autumn, colorful blooms in summer, age-old castles and buildings, the deafening silence of the suburbs and the consistently cold climate. Waking up at four in the morning to find a 7am sun already up in the horizon was another mind-blowing experience I had during summer.

    Life there was as easy as getting auto insurance quotes, buying an Oyster card or getting kids their trust funds. It was the kind of life I dreamed for myself before. So I set out to taste the English life, find Nottinghill, Hogwarts and Pivet Drive and go home with an autograph from Radcliffe, if not the Queen. However, it turned out that the life of an outsider was not actually easy. Plans were always bound to change like those keys I left stuck at the door and required changing the entire complicated unit. I found myself poring over every thick literature I could find in the house, boarding the train from Chessington South instead from Platform 9 3/4, clipping want ads, planning trips that never materialized, attempting to run away and constantly shutting those voices that always called me home.

    In those seemingly frustrating moments, I found grace and discovered what it is exactly about life that I really wanted. It was freedom and nothing else.

  • 23Oct
    This Irish landscape may not be really different from what we've got in Batanes. Except for that cold weather and bag-pipes of course.

    This Irish landscape may not be really different from what we've got here in Batanes. Except for the cold climate, an Irish accent and bagpipers of course.

    The idea surfaced last night when my superior and I spoke about our travels in the past. She has traveled so much while I am just beginning to really enjoy it after seeing England, lived there for quite some time and proved to myself that the earth is indeed round. She is excited to see London and do backpacking trips all across the United Kingdom and Europe. I am not really sure how I would fare as backpacker in Europe but I think I have better chances of surviving there than in China where the locales do not speak English or other places where terrorists thrive and rule.

    I haven’t really tried backpacking. I got used to being treated like a queen on several trips I made. Airconditioned rooms with comfortable beds, hot and cold shower, itinerary for the day, and delicious meals were taken care of by someone else. I just have to bring my luggage and get on the bus. It’s zero inconvenience. Purely leisure but less adventure.

    Backpacking is something out-of-the-box fear factor type of adventure that may not really sound so enticing at first. It is more than just budgeting and planning but getting myself prepared to face the unknown. But I am excited at the prospect of walking on those less-traveled roads, seeing more places and learning more about the people and their cultures and tell you all about it while I still can. A European backpack tour may sound complicated for now due extensive Shengen visa requirements for a member of the Third World - bank account that would sustain you during the entire trip, certificate of employment, invitation letter, etc. So I guess I’ve got to start somewhere here right at my own turf and go back to London few years from now. After all, I still have Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to cover.

  • 19Oct
    Cebu guitars

    Cebu guitars

    We spotted a souvenir shop and a guitar store near Mactan Shrine after a heavy sutukil lunch. The souvenir shops in the area do not offer that much except for cute wooden key chains I bought at P15 each and Cebu shirts at P70. Locals peddled their dried mangoes and otap to tourists. But these varieties can also be found at any SM Mall or fast food joint where some kids approach dining customers with a letter from vague organizations and sell dried mangoes at absurd prices.

    Somehow these pasalubong top guns have lost their magic leaving the Cebu guitar the sole pride of the island.

    Tuning up a mahogany guitar

    Tuning up a mahogany guitar

    We passed by a guitar store and the colorful displays attracted us inside. Manong, the storekeeper who has been in the industry long before the invasion of remote control helicopters, played a couple of tunes on at least three units. His highly recommended piece was the mahogany guitar. To demonstrate the strength of mahogany guitars, he hit the cemented floor with one. Crazy, ‘no? But that demo certainly proved the point. The strength of Cebu guitars lies in quality materials and workmanship. Mayan finally decided to buy herself a small but nice mahogany guitar for only P1,000. Someday it might just come in handy.