Travel and Take Photos

My siblings and I treated our dad to a nice family get-away for his birthday last January. We bought coupons for an overnight stay in Grande Island Resort Subic with free dinner and breakfast and a banana boat ride. 

At first, my dad was so excited since he already went to that place back in the 1970s and he said it was really really beautiful. It was under the American management during that time. 

You have to ride a ferry from the mainland to go to the island. The travel time is around 30 minutes.

When we arrived at the island port, well it was not how we imagined it to be. The place is under construction.

The wave pool’s not functioning anymore and the hotel is not available for guests. The infinity pool is not working and they don’t offer massage services.

We stayed in the cabin overlooking the mainland. The cabin was nice, except there was a gecko haha! The architecture is really American with the high ceiling construction and the marble flooring and wall for the bathroom.

But, despite all of that we liked the place. We trekked from the main beach to the back beach where you can see the Chiquita Islet. We were treated with 2 rounds of banana boat ride, and a tour around the island too! We saw the canons used in WWII and also the Battery Flake Tower. Too bad we didn’t see the birds and the sea turtles.  

Afte the tour, I can imagine that the place used to be really really nice!  I’m hoping to come back after it gets renovated. The tour guide said it might be done around June.  I tried to get photos from the internet so I can have an idea how it looked before. Then I’ll post next the photos that I was able to take while trying my camera and lens.

It was my first time to attend a Chinese New Year in Binondo. Thanks to the Philam Life event I was able to experience one this year!

The dragon dance was really loud and festive so even if you don’t want to move, you’ll be enticed to do so! Then we ended the event by releasing balloons with our wishes!

But I’d like to focus more on the photos that I was able to get during the event. The bright red colors were really nice to capture.

I’ll post the details of each photo, let me know what you think. 

I want to start with Singapore.

It was the first time that I travelled without my family and it was pretty exciting. Singapore is such a wonderful place where everything seemed so clean and orderly. They got nice cars too!

I was inside Red Dot Design Museum, buying my own travel scrapbook when I decided I want to travel, I really do. To be able to see museums, big amusement parks, and bazaars I will go and travel. 

So first stop: Singapore.

You can choose to stay in a hotel like Pan Pacific Hotel (we did) or try the hospitable inns for backpackers. We tried the Rucksack Inn. It looks dubious at first but when you meet the people and get to stay there, it rocks! 

Explore the city and see the historic Parliament House, Supreme Court and City Hall, and Merlion Park. You can also visit museums, temples, Little India, and Chinatown. 

We also did the Sentosa Tour. You can try the Luge, a fun filled gravity ride. I even saw a huge iguana crossing the road and I had to scream and stop. Being a bad journalist, I wasn’t able to capture it. haha! Then you can enjoy a stunning view with the Sky Ride. If you’re in for some aquatic tour, you can get up-close and personal with the underwater creatures and pink dolphins too. To cap of the day, watch Song of the Sea - award winning waterworks show with theatrical Pyrotechnic effects. Make sure you keep the raincoat that they gave you at the start of the tour, you’re going to need it— big time!

For day 2, we went to Universal Studios! I was able to try all the rides except for the deadly rollercoaster because it was still under construction, too bad! Check out The mummy ride, it’s like a short rollercoaster  except inside a tomb. It was so dark and you don’t know what’s going to happen next. The Jurassic Park Ride was also fun and wet. Don’t forget to buy your magic potion drink near the Shrek zone. 

Go out and have some fun by checking out the Bugis Village to buy some cheap finds. Then have some drink at Clarke Quay and or Riverside Point!

If you’re going to Night Safari on a halloween break, prepare yourself cause you’ll be in for some scary ride. Mascots were everywhere, suddenly popping out of nowhere or running after you even during the ride. 

Personally, I had to try Ben& Jerry’s there and Carl’s Jr because it’s not available here in the Philippines (i think). Then before we left for the airport we tried the Singaporean breakfast at Ya Kun Kaya! :)

I’m going to stop blabbing now and let you see the photos!

Glossary:

Rucksack Inn - http://www.rucksackinn.com/