Thailand | Where to Stay in Pattaya: Sea Two Pool Villa

Marky Ramone Go January 31, 2018

“I am not leaving this room” I told myself the moment I stepped inside my accommodation at Sea Two Pool Villa in Pattaya, Thailand. Fortunately, our first day itinerary was just easy-breezy, thus giving me the rest of the afternoon to just chill around. We came from an event in Bangkok hosted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand where they flew lucky fans to meet Thai actor Mario Maurer.

thailand Read more

Answering the Call of Adventure on Tarak Ridge

Marky Ramone Go January 22, 2018

Ever since I left my college mountaineering club in the University of Santo Tomas, I have trekked to the mountains few and far between. It felt like a romantic separation that left me searching for ways to reconnect with. I would plan hiking trips here and there, only to shelve it in favor of a trip to the beach. Despite my deep interest in hiking taking a backseat, the call of the great outdoors remained loud and I know that it was just only a matter of time before I stepped on the jagged Philippine mountains again.

Standing near the peak of Tarak Ridge

wilderness Read more

12 Must-Try Flavorful Regional Dishes in the Philippines

Marky Ramone Go January 20, 2018

Describing Filipino food is similar to discussing the film Inception – because of the varying layers that comprises it. When you think you figured out the overall character of Filipino cuisine, venturing into another province will once again introduce you to another strata of taste, texture and smell – essential food traits that exist distinctly in each regions of the Philippines. To give you an idea of the diversity of Filipino cuisine, here are some appetizing provincial gastronomies being prepared and served all over the country – to which I and these foodies whom I asked for recommendation, echoes a must-try endorsement.

Where to Eat Read more

Bataan | Trail to Ambon-Ambon Falls

Marky Ramone Go January 19, 2018

It was almost an hour into our hike when we reached the edge of a boulder ravine dropping to more than a hundred feet. I saw our guide took out his rope and instantly proceeded behind the trees. “Wait for us, we’re just going to fix the rope” he told us in Tagalog. I took a peek and figured it would have been a very hurtful fall - with major broken bone ramifications, if one slid down to the bottom. This was just one of the many obstacle course-like trail characteristics of the path leading to Ambon-Ambon falls. It looks moderate when you consider the distance of two hour and a half away, but going through all presents a set of challenging yet fun adventure moments.

The refreshing cascade of Ambon ambon Falls

wilderness Read more

Keep Chasing Spectacular Wow Moments | A Birthday Essay

Marky Ramone Go January 15, 2018

It was a bipolar year once again. Just the way I like it. The Gods know me really well. Another set of 360 days and so, filled with sprinkled moments of ‘spectacular wow’, sandwiched with threadbare bouts of sadness, just passed by.

“There is something beautiful in reveling in sadness”, given happiness’ brilliance in showering positive energy to my life, I must pay homage to the role of the 'blues’ in shaping the way I look at the world. Without it, my pursuit of bliss will go down in an unremarkable manner.

birthday Read more

Fun, Cultural and Family-friendly Activities in Clark, Pampanga

Marky Ramone Go January 10, 2018

The former site of a United States Air Force Base and once was the most strategic military position of America in the Far East; Clark, Pampanga has morphed into a highly developed city within a city. Known today as the Clark Freeport Zone – it currently houses modern infrastructures serving as a major hub for tourism, business, aviation, education, manufacturing and other leading industries. The robust development which started in 1995 after years of neglect brought on by the departure of the US Military and the eruption of Mount Pinatubo, Clark Freeport Zone quickly became the leisure, entertainment and gaming center in Central Luzon.

Cultural performers in Nayong Pilipino in Clark

Travel Guide Read more

Country in Focus: Myanmar | Why You Should Visit it Now

Marky Ramone Go January 10, 2018

A little over a decade ago, many locals in Myanmar can swear about seeing a foreigner as rare as a super moon. Today, those rarity has become a commonplace occurrence – after Myanmar have opened its doors to tourism in the last several years. Travel to the country formerly known as Burma has become so easy, as long as travelers from other countries (except those from neighboring Southeast Asian nations), book their Myanmar visa here before they fly to either Yangon, Bagan or Mandalay.

South East Asia Read more

Traveloka | the Legit Go-to Travel App for Flights and Hotel Bookings

Marky Ramone Go January 05, 2018

As a travel writer I always find myself needing to book a flight or an accommodation almost spontaneously. Most of the time when I am on the tail-end of travel writing assignment, I extend my trip in order to cover more places. And in each time, I always score myself cheap flights and hotels via Traveloka – which I now consider as my go-to travel app. There has been a lot of apprehensions whenever a traveler books a flight through third-party app other than a website’s official app. I understand where the doubts are coming from, but I guarantee that I have never experienced even a slight problem with my numerous bookings made via Traveloka.

Travel Guide Read more

Agal-Agal Festival: A Vibrant Celebration of Tawi-Tawi’s Culture

Marky Ramone Go December 17, 2017

As I stood on the deck of BRP Capones—a spanking new Japanese-made Parola-class patrol vessel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)—where we hitched a ride going to Tawi-Tawi to cover the Agal-Agal Festival, I quickly surveyed my surroundings. I saw the sacred mountain of Bud Bongao lording it over a picturesque landscape and covered by the morning mist. Yet, I was able to spot the silhouette of the town’s Mosque and the outlines of a modest village with fishing boats and passenger ferries that are starting to stir the day’s activities. And then it dawned on me, I finally reached the southernmost province of the country. Tawi-Tawi, I have arrived!

a woman participates in the agal agal festival

Agal-Agal Festival also celebrates the seaweed cultivation practice in the region

Tawi-Tawi Read more

Discovering a Trove of Cultural and Historical Relics at Villa Escudero

Marky Ramone Go December 07, 2017

“There’s only one country I haven’t been to. Nepal. I don’t know why – I just haven’t had the chance” – Don Ado told us after he overheard me asking my friend Karla “Can you guess how many countries he had traveled to?.” It wasn’t a question concocted out of the blue. I wondered about it after surveying through the massive art, historic, religious and souvenir collection housed inside Don Ado’s private mansion.

Villa Escudero Read more

Photo-Shooting Pretties at the National Museum of Fine Arts

Marky Ramone Go December 02, 2017

Housing painting and sculpture masterpieces by world-renowned Filipino artists such as Juan Luna, Guillermo Tolentino and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo, the National Museum of Fine Arts dishes plenty of eye candy from its every square inch. Kept in this neoclassical building first built in 1921, are an abundance of historical artworks that rivals even some of the biggest museums and galleries around the world.