Mangenguey Island looks like the kind of place where you can wear your weird sunglasses. Here, native cottages painted green and red and baroque-themed surroundings give a refreshing look to the usual clean whites and safe blues of beach resorts. Mangenguey Island is located in the Philippines’ Calamianes islands in Palawan. Because owners Helena Carratala …
Read more »
NYX MARTINEZ rediscovers paradise in Palawan. DAY ONE: “If you love me, stop paddling!” I couldn’t see John behind me, but I knew he was working steady and fast. Ahead was the Coron Island crown-shaped rock-our destination. But directly between us and the island was a huge passenger ferry, and we were headed straight for …
Read more »
July 2011 On their first day in India, MICHAEL JO and his photographer friends had late dinner in Dilli Haat, New Delhi. They passed by an area where henna tattoos were made for women and children. Here, Michael asked permission from a girl to take her photo and with his Canon 5d Mark II, captured the …
Read more »
The University of the East, one of the country’s leading academic institutions, marked its yearlong 65th foundation anniversary last September. The commemoration’s theme is “Jose Rizal, Nasa Puso ng UE,” which echoes the 150th birth anniversary of the Filipinos’ national hero. It is also a celebration of the values, ideals and actions of Gat Rizal …
Read more »
M.G. REYES gives us a crash course on how to see the value in wooden artworks. An artifact has to be a hundred years old to qualify as an “antique.” That is what the law says-Republic Act 10066 to be exact. RA 10066, also known as The National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009 expands the …
Read more »
MARTIN LAZARO suggests an alternative mountain getaway to the Philippines’ Sagada Mountain Province. It seems as if time stands still in Barlig, a remote town in northern Philippines surrounded by lush mountains and forests. If you’re looking to take an off-the-beaten-path trip up north, this rugged destination is for you. The town hardly gets any …
Read more »
In this 1.6-billion-acre region, a jewel shines brighter among the rest. ELIZABETH COOK surveys the Philippine waters and finds out why it is called the “center of the center” of marine biodiversity. For many years, scientists have recognized that the Coral Triangle, which includes the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia, has the richest variety of marine …
Read more »
Long time ago, in a very remote place, there was a church which the people loved very much. They never failed to attend mass and all religious activities in that church. This church was known for its golden bell of which the people took utmost care. One day the people were shocked by the news …
Read more »
PHILIP TUBEZA spends a weekend in the Philippines’ greenest city to find a winged horse, the longest zipline in Asia, and hundreds of fireflies. “I hope those snakes don’t wake up,” I said to myself as the boatman sang his ditty about protecting the environment. We were cruising down a murky river when we saw …
Read more »
As a travel writer for 11 years, CHRISTINE S. DAYRIT finds her most death-defying yet astonishing trip in the capital of Tibet. Lhasa, soaring at 14,000 feet above sea level, is not for the faint-hearted. As the capital of Tibet, the air here is so thin; the oxygen supply being only 60 percent of what …
Read more »