Lapaz, Zamboanga City

Lapaz is one of the 98 Baranggays in Zamboanga City, Philippines. It is located along the east coast of the city. This place is also know as the "Baguiao of Zamboanga" beacause the weather is colder due to its high elevation.

I've been to Lapaz recently and it is so much different now since the last time I visited. The road is paved and the many house are built. Thankfully, the trees were still alive and the fog is still within reach. However, the thought of building the paved road in this baranggay, one can conclude that it cost the lives of many trees. :( 

While we where leaving the place with a motorbike, I hastily took my smartphone when the heavens fell. I filmed the surreal atmosphere with my phone while the motorbike was speeding along the paved road. It was cold and I loved it. Too bad I left my Samsung NX200 at home. If I only had my NX200 with me, I could have taken a better quality video than the one showed below. Still, I manged to make it loo a little appealing by editing the video in Adobe Premiere Pro. I changed the color a bit, applied a colder tone. I slowed down the video for a relaxng ride. Added a surreal music to reflect the feeling I had while shooting this. (though I'm aware that music mood can be subjective)

So if you happen to visit Zamboanga City, and offered an opportunity to visit this place, please do not hesitate to say "yes". It is all worth it!

Shot with my smartphone, Cloudfone Excite Prime.

video was edited in Adobe Premiere Pro

Bunguiao, Zamboanga City Philippines

Bunguiao is one of the 98 baranggay in Zamboanga City Philippine. It is located on the east coast of Zamboanga. People here speak pure Chavacano (Philippines' Broken Spanish dialect) Bunguiao is a love place. It is a place that teaches you that a simple life would more likely bring you to happines.

I fell in love with this place. My job sent me here and this place has become my second home. This is a small 'barrio' is surrounded by forest. The air always feel fresh. The water is always cold, straight from springs and it is always free! Electric wires and posts are built but the electric company has not provided the electricity yet. So there are no TVs, internet, or any electronic entertainment. There isn't and mobile phone signal either. But people still find ways to have fun by playing cards and drinking alcohol, which is not-so-cool. 

I met many beautiful people and made friends. Life in this place is a bit harder than in the "pueblo" or downtown. Farming is the main source of money nd that is quite difficult. I hope to leave my imprint into the people in this place before I leave. 

Here are some videos I shot in this place :)

Enjoy! 

Mi Goreng Street Food in Zamboanga City Philippines

Travelling isn't only about going and exploring new places. It is also about savoring the best food that a new place has to offer. 

In Zamboanga city, one of the important things that a traveler or a city visitor should do is to indulge one's self in food. Zamboanga has so many food that can not be found anywhere else, at least in the Philippines. We have Satti, Pianggang, Daral, Pastil, Curacha and more. Most of these food are influenced by the Spaniards when we were once a colony of Spain. The Indian and Malaysian influence are also evident in these food where curry is common in some of these 'Zamboagna only' food. The indigenous Muslim Filipino tribes, (Yakan, Samal, Tausug, Maranao and more) also has their own unique taste in desserts which was further enhanced when their food where introduced in Zambonga City.  

One of the food that I really like is the Mi Goreng. I didn't know what the name meant until I googled it. It means "Fried Noodles". A simple and sensible name. The noodles is being fried in oil and mixed with their 'magic' soy sauce and served with fried egg topping.

Mi Goreng just sprouted in the streets of Zamboanga City recently. I don't remember seeing this food in the streets of my hometown few years ago. Now I'm wondering how it flourished here. Hmmm That would be interesting. 

Drool over this video and enjoy watching :) 

Shot with my Smartphone: Cloudfone Excite Prime 

Bahay Kubo Filipino Song (English Lyrics)

My brother is an amazing guitarist. He is one of the well-known guitarist in Zamboanga City. He plays guitar in bars, restaurants, weddings, birthdays, and all other special occasions where live music is needed. He has a band called the New Soul band. Music is his full time career now. 

One of Thea's favorite song is Bahay Kubo, a Filipino traditional folk song. The song talks about a small hut  (meaning of the title) surrounded with many kinds of vegetables. The song names different kinds of vegetable in Tagalog. The composer must be a vegetable farmer. 

 Here the English version of the lyrics grabbed from https://rverzola.wordpress.com

My humble hut

may look tiny,

but the veggies around

it, sure are many.

Yam beans and eggplants,

wing’d beans and peanuts,

string, hyacinth and lima beans.

Winter melon and loofah,

bottl’ gourd, squash, et cetera.

There is more, amiga,

radish, mustard, yeah!

Onions, tomatoes

garlic and ginger.

If you look all around,

sesame seeds abound!

Because Thea wouldn's stop from playing, Monray played the song Bahay Kubo ith his guitar while I sing it for Thea. 

Family Day out at CityMall Tetuan Zamboanga

It is a rare accasion that all of us, family members, are at home. It was a sunday. In most sundays, my Dad is at church, my mom is resting from work, my brother is on his gig, and my sister is at the hospital at work, and I hand out with my friends at the mall. But not today, we're all at home. My dad has no church appointments, my sister is on her rest day, my brother has no gig, and I am too lazy to go out my my friends. 

We decided to go out and visit a new mall that has recently opened, CityMall Tetuan, Zamboanga City. It is a small shopping center with fast food restaurants, shopping store, and an indoor playground for kids. It was 3 kilometers from home. It was easy for us to get there. My mom doesn't really like going out but to my surprise, she was fine with going out with the whole family.  

This Sunday was a family day out. We went to CityMall. Had dinner in Jollibee and strolled around. It was a small mall so we toured every corner in minutes. 

When Thea passed by the playground, her eyes was mesmerized by the colors of the slides. She was excited to see those children having fun with the slides. Thea, hurriedly ran towards the slides and attempted to try it. I assisted her getting up. She was scared when she got on the ramp but she was brave enough to give in to the gravity and slide her was down. We were happy to see Thea having fun. It was Thea's night out.     

Venice Piazza Mall, McKinley Hill Philippines

It has always been my dream to be in Europe. Who wouldn't want to go there? It is such an amazing place. Although I haven't been there, I know it is an amazing place. I have watched it on TV and internet. It is truly mesmerizing. The mixture of the old buildings and modern lifestyle fascinates me a lot. Everytime I see Europe, I always wonder and ask myself, "Is there a chance for me to get there?"

Getting to Europe is very expensive especially for a Filipino like me. I only earn 12,000 PHP pesos per month and getting there might require me to gather at least 400,000 pesos. That's like years of work! So, I ask myself, "What are the chances for me to get there?" Still, I cant find an answer. Or shall I say, it is impossible for me to get there, yet.

Few days after I decided to leave Manila, the Venice Piazza Mall in Taguig Manila just opened. Although the whole construction isn't 100% completed, they allowed visitors and shopper to get into this Venice-like place in the Philippines. Just like most malls in the Philippines, it has the same stalls as you would see in SM and Ayala Malls, especially the expensive stalls that only upper class Filipinos can afford. Thankfully, getting in the canal area is free!

I came here with my girlfriend. It was around noon time when we got here. It was scorching, just usual tropical summer noon time, hot and humid. there were few people around. We walked and took pictures. I was impressed by the details of the walls and the corners. A lot of effort was put in trying to replicate Venice. However, it is nothing like the Europe that I see in TV and internet. There was no rustic feels and no vintage aroma. Since this place was fairly new, I could smell the fresh paint from the wall and hear the construction ongoing. As if they were rushing to meet the deadline of the completion of the mall's construction. 

With all this, still I'm planing to get back to this place. Maybe at night time so I could also experience the beautiful night light that it has to offer. Still, I'm grateful I have stepped on a Venice replica. A part of a dream has been "fulfilled" already. 

Mt. Maynoba and Mt. Cayabu Tanay Rizal Travel Video HD

This is probably the best climbed I have experienced. Wait, let me change my mind: This is the best climb that I have experienced. 

Few days after moving to Zamboanga for a new job, I was terribly missing Manila. I missed my friends, my girlfriend, the busy streets, the modern and independent lifestyle, the food, and many more. But most of all, I missed the accessibility of going to new places. In Zamboanga, there are only 4 flights available: Manila, Cebu, Davao, and Tawi-Tawi. Ive, been there already. There are also bus trips from Zamboanga to different provinces but they don't excite me anymore because I've been there too. Manila is a perfect sanctuary for travelers. You can easily go to everywhere in the Philippines and abroad, if you have the the money. 

I decided to go to Manila for a vacation. I booked a ticket months before the flight to get the cheap ticket. I saved money to to make my vacation worthwhile. I told my girlfriend that I'll be seeing her. She was so excited knowing that we'll be seeing each other. I was excited, too. She even made my itinerary for my Manila vacation. I had no idea of her plans. I didn't ask her any further. I wanted to be surprised. 

When I arrived in Manila, I met my girlfriend and she told me that we are going for a climb in Mt. Maynoba, Tanay Rizal. She told me that we are going to see a sea of clouds. I was skeptic because I didn't know any place that in the Philippines that has Sea of Clouds except in Baguio or Sagada or other high altitude places. But still I was excited.

We left Manila around 10pm in the evening. She said that we have to go to the summit before sunrise so we can witness the presence of the sea of cloud. That means that we are going to climb during the dawn. To me it was strange. Climbing a mountain on a dark dawn was pretty scary. 

We arrived at the mountain foot at 3 am in the morning. It was a 2-ride trip for about 4-5 hours: a jeepney from Manila to Tanay, then a tricycle from Tanay to the Mountain foot of Maynoba. It was dark, really dark that you can't climb without bringing a torch or a flashlight. We didn't bring flashlights but the people were kind enough to lend us. We started out ascend minutes after arriving. We had to catch the sunrise to see the perfect view. Getting to the summit also takes 3 hours, so we might miss the sunrise if we go slow. 

The climb was exhausting yet we felt full-filled. We reached the summit before sunrise. YEY! We were on time! Sunlight was already leaking from the mountain so the view of the clouds is visible. I couldn't contain my happiness when I saw it. It was so beautiful. It was like a dream. I was like in a psychedelic drug. Double the ecstasy when the sun peeped from the mountain. It was the perfect golden hour. The view was so beautiful that I hugged my girlfriend with gratitude that she brought me in that place. 

It was in deed the best climb that I have. Definitely an adventure to remember. :)

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Here's a cute baby that i am taking care of every time I'm at home. I made this video for her and I hope she'll love this when she'll grow up and watch this.