Friday, January 09, 2015

100 days to Ivan About Town's 10th anniversary! #IAT10

In 100 days, Ivan About Town will turn ten! Sometimes, I can't believe I was able to last this long given that the blog is something I work on during my spare time. The past few months have been extra busy, with quite a number of new responsibilities on top of the old ones, which meant a scarcity of posts as you all may have noticed. But we're still here and celebrating this milestone!

In 2005, I was among those who took advantage of the entry of low cost carriers in the Philippines. Seat sales and piso fares were unheard of before these airlines entered the Philippine market. I booked a "free seat" plane ticket to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia and what happened next is history. It was during this trip to Kota Kinabalu and Brunei in April 2005 that I wrote his my blog entries.

Direct flights from the Philippines to many popular destinations today were non-existent at that time. And getting around took a little more effort via transit cities. It was my first backpack trip. And I thought, instead of having to repeat my stories to my friends when I got back, I'd just update them through a blog. The blog title, something I simply came up with off the top of my head, in the few minutes I had on the rented computer at Trekkers Lodge on April 19, 2005, was inspired by the thought that I could be a "man about town" for travel. And so Ivan About Town became the silly title of my new blog. Read more on the blog.

Two more milestones I'm celebrating this year are the 30th anniversaries of my first international trip on April 15, 1985 and my first travel journal which I completed in October 1985 at the age of six. Time flies indeed!

Thursday, January 08, 2015

Top 30 cities in Southeast Asia you should see in your lifetime

Southeast Asia is a culturally-diverse region with many fantastic destinations. From architecture to cultural landscapes, sumptuous cuisine, natural heritage and so much more, Southeast Asia has so much to offer. Here are 30 cities in Southeast Asia that you should see in your lifetime. There are definitely more to experience. But let's start with this list of thirty very interesting cities which I arranged by country. How many have you visited?

Tuesday, January 06, 2015

What to see in Culion, Palawan heritage town

Culion, Palawan is a destination waiting to be discovered. It's not as popular an attraction to those who visit Coron. Most stays in Coron are only a few days, so one would rather spend time and resources exploring Coron Island, Malcapuya Island further south, or attractions near Coron town. But there's something about Culion that makes it an interesting find.

Thursday, January 01, 2015

Looking back at 2014 with 70 travel photos

2014 was another fantastic year! Although I've been unable to explore as much as before due to many commitments at home, I was still lucky to see and experience quite a number of destinations this year. Here are seventy travel photos I took last year.

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Five Filipino core values: Mapagpasalamat, Matatag, Masigasig, Mapagmalasakit and Magalang

Happy New Year to everyone! Filipinos always see the entry of another year as a time for change. We all have our own resolutions and promises to improve ourselves. But definitely, we all want to change for the better.

Alaska’s Krem-Top coffee creamer recently launched the Change for the Better campaign to remind Filipinos that we always need to improve ourselves to make us better persons and a better country. To me, resolutions are not only for the New Year. It's a good excuse for everyone to make New Year's resolutions. But if you are really determined, you don't need New Year to change for the better. We have to do it the whole year.

During the launch, Dr. Mina Ramirez, President of Asian Social Institute, shared with us five core values that Filipinos have which we can utilize to make us change for the better. These are Mapagpasalamat, Matatag, Masigasig, Mapagmalasakit and Magalang.

It's quite difficult to translate these terms into English since the Filipino meaning often loses it's essence when translated. But let's try to describe each value.

Mapagpasalamat means Filipinos always know how to show gratitude. That's why we have utang na loob as a Filipino trait. We always know how to return a favor. Matatag is evident in the world renowned resiliency of the Filipino spirit. We know how to survive any challenge that we face. We know how to stand up every time we fall.

We have so many hardworking Filipinos here and abroad. Which is why Masigasig is obviously a core value of Filipinos. At the same time, Filipinos know how to show compassion. We are always there to help others. Filipinos are definitely Mapagmalasakit.

Finally, a true Filipino know how to show respect and courtesy. The use of po, opo, and pagmamano are Filipino ways of showing respect to elders. We are no doubt, Magalang.

Do you agree with these core values?
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