Travel Footprints

I’m writing this post for my sister. Because she is going to Thailand for the summer with friends, and i had to answer endless questions about their itinerary and details. And so, for my sister’s benefit, here is a snapshot of where i have stayed in Bangkok so far:

BACKPACKER’s PLACE: Suk 11 Hostel (http://www.suk11.com/) Price range: 10-20 USD

I love this hotel. The backpacker’s capital in Bangkok may be Khao San Road where you can get uber-cheap accommodations, but i like the urban serenity and unique character Suk 11 has to offer. The room rate is cheap too. The last time I was there we only had to pay for something like Php500/night (room with own T&B with free breakfast). Right outside the hostel is a local restaurant (must try!), two massage place (the luxurious version and your normal run-of-the-mill thai massage place), post office, a bar called cheap charlie, parlor etc. Basically, it’s a comfortable zone where you can interact with locals and foreigners alike. And it’s walking distance to the BTS (Nana Station) along Sukhumvit Road, the main thoroughfare in Bangkok.

AVERAGE: Asian Institute of Technology Hostel; Price Range : 20-40 USD

You read that right. i stayed here for about 3 weeks in 2007 and again in 2008 and this falls into my category of average accommodation. It IS a campus hostel anyway. It is clean and it is cheap. I love the fact that they offer free Internet though. Just ask for a LAN cable from the reception desk. Food is available in the restaurant too but there is a time limit for orders in the evenings. Oh, and it’s FAR from the Bangkok city center! Taxi from the airport cost about 700THB one-way. Definitely not ideal for a Bangkok holiday trip.

MODERATE: Ambassador Hotel; Price range: 40-60USD

This first hotel in Bangkok i’ve ever stayed in. It is old, nothing really fancy. A Thai-Canadian friend i met in this trip to Bangkok even shared that they used to go to this hotel when they were young to see the pet zoo they kept there. No zoo at present but it can be a jungle in there especially when you find yourself in a crowd during some trade fairs/exhibits. No regrets for me, though. It was during my stay in this hotel that i found Suk11 hostel. Yep, the Ambassador Hotel is located right across the Suk 11 hostel. I discovered it when i decided to try the local restaurant right outside the hostel. You just have to find your way inside the cul-de-sac behind the 7-eleven store.

MODERATE: S.D. Avenue Hotel (http://www.sdavenue.com/) Price range: 40-60USD

Located somewhere near the old Bangkok international airport, this hotel felt to me like it was in the middle of nowhere. Too many roads (and a flyover!) in the vicinity of the airport and not much to see. Since hotel internet is way too expensive, I found a cheap place for internet one block away from the hotel in what seems like a row apartment converted to stores. The owner do not speak English but we got by thru punching in number in the calculator when i asked for the rate per minute. The nearest mall is an obviously newly-built Tesco so at least there is a place to buy your usual Thailand souvenirs (tamarind, etc). The good thing about the hotel, though, is its proximity to Chao Phraya River where we were able to enjoy a sumptuous dinner crusing by. 

MODERATE: The Grand President Park Hotel (http://www.grandpresident.com/) Price range: 40-60USD

This is the third hotel i stayed in within Soi 11 (where Ambassador Hotel and Suk 11 Hostel) is located. You can say this is the little strip in Bangkok i am most comfortable with. Where your craving for mexican, thai, or italian food are satisfied with just a stone throw’s away. I even found a bridal store somewhere a bit far (but walking distance) during the time i was doing our wedding preparations. I swear i think i may have tried the 30-baht noodle meals for each trip in this area. The only con for this hotel was that i stayed in Tower 3 and you actually cross the busy street of Soi 11 before you can get to the restaurant to have your breakfast.

EXPENSIVE: Swissotel Nai Lert Park Bangkok; Price range: 60-100USD

This hotel is the place to be when you want to treat yourself to an ambience of relaxation and luxury. The pool is huge and enticing. There really is nothing much to see when you step outside so it is better to stay indoors and enjoy the hotel facilities. You have to take a long walk to reach the mall and the BTS (Chidlom and Ploenchit station) and the surrounding structures are mostly embassies.

EXPENSIVE: Imperial Queen’s Park; Price range: 60-100USD

You have to walk two blocks and cross through a public park to get to the BTS station. My stay in this hotel was memorable because it was the time of the Loi Krathong Festival in Thailand. We got to make an offering to the waters at the park, behind the hotel. Inside the room, the lighted candles in the park was visible from the window.  Pretty amazing. Oh and while lounging in the hotel bar in another night, a Filipino band started playing. We were the only ones inside so we had the dance floor to ourselves and we did rock the night away. We know the band is Filipino because they said they were from Sampaloc (in Manila). For a long time, my British friend was saying “ask them to play something Spanish.” Which was a little weird. When the singer started singing Bakit Ngayon Ka Lang? (a Tagalog song), my British friend was obviously puzzled. Turns out, he heard them say they came from Sao Paulo when they were introducing themselves as the band from ‘Sampaloc’ *lols*

I do hope you find this entry useful in planning for your summer vacation!

You know the feeling when you look at a certain picture of a place, say a crowded beach or a busy market, it looks so colorful and vivid that you can almost hear the buzz of the crowd and experience the hustle and bustle of activities? Well, that’s how I feel whenever I take a glimpse of our photos in the totally chaotic Floating Market of Thailand.

We’re lucky to have had pleasant and memorable experience of the place considering we only had the weekend to spare in this trip to Thailand. What better way to start off our weekend than to visit the scene where a classic James Bond chase was filmed 30 years ago. 

Totally chaotic and exciting floating market of Thailand

Mr. Rono and I trooped to the tourist attraction situated 110 kms west of Bangkok with some friends to the Damnoem Saduak, more popularly known as the Floating Market. A flurry of activities met us as soon as we got off our rented van. Clearly, it was going to be an exciting day at the market.

The scene surrounding us in the floating market was vibrant with colors, noisy with chatters of hawkers and bargaining customers, definitely touristy and great fun.

We hopped onto one of the flat boats by the short landing place next to the eateries. A young man skillfully navigated our way through the small ‘khlongs’ or canals of the market. Never mind that he can barely speak a word of English to us, we were able to communicate non-verbally through hand signals and facial expressions if we want to go check out some goodies in some of the shops by the side of the canal. 

Bargaining onboard our flat boat happens frequently as lots of goodies on display prove irresistable to tourists

It was very interesting to see a range of products being sold not just in the shops by the side but also of peddlers in boats. There are wide array of products sold – vegetables, fruits, souvenirs, household items – just like in any other market except you can get them ‘floating’ about the canals. In case you get hungry, you can even buy noodle soup while being navigated around as your boat and the vendor will skillfully match pace until you get to finish your hot bowl of soup.

Not just noodle soup, you can also get a refreshing cold drink from this lady on a boat here

Be mindful of how you look though because paparazzis, believe it or not, are everywhere. After going round the market, lo and behold, you would probably see your smiling face in a souvenir plate that says “Floating Market” (hence, the paparazzis). It was severely overpriced and they never gave in to my bargaining powers. no matter how hard. We finally bought one souvenir plate (out of the 3 available) for posterity.

Eventually, this souvenir plate was accidentally broken while on display at the house which gave away a trade secret: the photos were simply pasted on to the plate (very skillyfully I must say!) and not really lasered or something. Oh well. At least we get to keep the photo sans the display plate.

Discovering this restaurant along Kalayaan Avenue in Quezon City was pure coincidence. We saw the sign - ’Now Open To Serve You’ and above it Adarna Food and Culture. Sounds interesting enough, so we decided to have lunch there.

As we entered, it was a nice surprise to see the place so full of character. You enter the patio first and move in to the main dining. All around you are little trinkets and arts representative of the Philippine culture. In the main dining hall, what struck me most is how warm it felt to be there. Like visiting your grandmother in the province as she prepares lunch for the kin.

We like Adarna because of its home-like ambiance

And their menu does not disappoint as well. Everything looked interesting but we opted to get what sounded to us as ethnic dishes of the Philippines : Dinakdakan, Gising-Gising, Adobong Batangas ala Adarna, Ensaladang Bukid, Pancit 1913 and Gambas. We paired this with Batanes Yellow Rice and the lunch meal was almost complete. I ordered a cold chocolate drink made from tablea (cocoa). Now, it was the perfect Filipino meal! 

Our total bill was Php4,000++ for a party of 12 people. Not bad, really. All in all, it was a great Filipino dining experience. The restaurant was cozy and all the servers were very accommodating. We will definitely go back and experience the ‘magic’ of Adarna again.

We mentioned in our previous post that we recently got married. It’s kinda hard NOT to relive the joys of our wedding preparations so i hope you bear with us. The prenup photoshoot was something we didn’t really plan. As it turned out, it was one of the best decisions we’ve made in the wedding planning process. Especially when you have the fantastic view of North Luzon as a prenup backdrop.

Part of a very very hectic, albeit extremely exciting, trip around North Luzon with a group tour organized by PinoyNomads, I still could not believe we were able to squeeze in Callao Caves, Pinacanauan River and Calvary Hills in Cagayan; Pagudpud Beach, Cape Bojreador, Bangui Bay Windmills and Paoay Church in Ilocos. All in three days!

Chapel inside the Callao Cave of Cagayan

You see, every little effort from us and the photographers is just sooo worth it in the end! We were basking in the limelight as the subject of an on-site photography session by Michelle Morelos to a group of about 12 photographers. Piece of cake? NOT! Models and photographers everywhere earned a new kind of respect from Hubby and i after this North Luzon prenup weekend. Something totally new to us, we were stiff as hell at the start but eventually got the hang of the photoshoot. Take a peek at some sample photos taken by Michelle:

At the Bangui Windmills

The breath-taking scenery made up for a fantastic prenup photos  –

By the bay of Bangui, Ilocos Norte

Peeking by the steps of Cape Boreador in Burgos, Ilocos Norte

Age-old structure of the Cape Bojreador Lighthouse in Burgos, Ilocos Norte

Hubby and i with our wonderful photographer-friends!

This unique experience shall forever be part of the fond memories of our wedding preparations!

Here’s a travel tip I can share to single (and searching) guys out there. If you find yourself in Japan, head down to Kiyomizudera in Kyoto for a visit.

Back in May of 2003, I was a first-time visitor in Kyoto. I would say my love story with my Wifey started in a temple in Kyoto called the Kiyomizudera. During the tour in Kiyomizudera, we were told that drinking from all the fountains inside the temple would bring luck in love. Me and my good friend, Garando, drank in all the waterwells and fountains we could find inside the temple. Maybe even from the ones we were not supposed to drink from. The next day, I got sick. But, amazingly, a man in love within the next few months.

We are married now and so is Garando with his girlfriend he met after arriving from Kyoto. 

Welcome to our blog! We are a young (recently married) couple who loves to explore our awesome planet on weekends and holidays by traveling in different parts of the Philippines and the world. We are looking forward to share our travel adventures with you. Enjoy the ride!