Pinay Travel Junkie

Beijing-Xi'an: Into The Falling Snow

2010-02-24T19:08:00.016+08:00

Shervin and I celebrated our last hurrah in Beijing at Xiabu Xiabu. Earlier that day we finally visited the Great Wall of China but did not move on to the Ming Tombs because we needed to get ready for our 12-hour train ride to Xi'an.Drop it like it's hot into the shabu-shabu pot!Xiabu Xiabu (shabu-shabu) is a popular bar-style hotpot place located at Henderson Centre, across our accommodation,

Great Wall of China Group Tour: To book or not to book?

2010-02-22T07:56:00.011+08:00

It was no ordinary Monday, for that day we fulfilled one of our travel dreams - to tread on the Great Wall of China. Now let me tell you how that day turned out to be a disappointment.Approaching the most photographed of all walls, Badaling.Shervin and I almost always steer away from group tours. Why? Simply because they cost more than DIY exploring. More so, we don't have to deal with tourmates

Beijing's National Stadium and National Aquatics Center

2010-02-20T07:18:00.020+08:00

Beijing boasts not only of old majestic buildings reflecting glorious ancient Chinese culture, but also of modern spanking megastructures that depict China's booming economy. And among these new architecture marvels are Beijing National Stadium and Beijing National Aquatics Center. Both are situated within the Olympic Green, an Olympic Park set up for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Beijing National

Yonghe Temple

2010-02-11T00:05:00.018+08:00

Yonghe Temple, also known as "Lama Temple" and "Palace of Peace and Harmony", is probably the most renowned Tibetan Buddhist temple/monastery outside Tibet. It was converted into a lamasery in 1744 after it served as the official residence of Emperor Yongzheng.An uncrowded part of Yonghegong Dajie, the road where Yonghe Temple sits.It is located in Beijing's Dongcheng District. From our

Tian'anmen and Forbidden City

2010-02-08T20:01:00.012+08:00

I prepared instant noodles for breakfast while Shervin pored over our Lonely Planet guide. It was already 8:30AM and the mighty sun wasn't out yet. Before slumbering the previous night, we agreed to take a train to Xi'an and spend a couple of nights there before heading to Guangzhou, where our Manila-bound flight departs. To make this happen, we got to buy tickets in advance.We quickly slurped

Braving The Beijing Cold

2010-02-06T20:03:00.016+08:00

The T98 (Hong Kong - Beijing) 24-hour train arrived at Beijing West Train Station 15 minutes past its ETA. The wall thermometer read 12°C. Tolerable, but it only indicates the temperature inside the cabin. Shervin and I gathered our stuff. I donned four layers of clothing, yet I was still terrified with the cold.Arrival in Beijing. Just 10 seconds after this shot was taken, my smile faded as my

My First Hard Sleeper: Hong Kong-Beijing

2010-02-03T19:38:00.023+08:00

It was time to say farewell to our gracious Hong Kong hosts Will and Melody, after staying in their pad for three days. They have been more than kind, and treated us (my husband Sherv and I) like family. On our departure day, early morning, the four of us took a cab to Burd St. to have breakfast at Sang Kee Congee & Noodle. It's a local favorite, reason why it has been around for about 40 years.

Backpacking HK and China: The Lowdown

2010-02-01T17:08:00.011+08:00

Without further ado, I hereby unveil the total cost of our Hong Kong and China backpacking trip... drumroll please... P32,665 (per head) for twelve bitter cold Winter days! Honestly, not as cheap as we wanted it to be. But hey, we're talking about the ever pricey Hong Kong, and China whose inexpensive days are long gone - especially in booming cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.Our

Voluntourism

2010-01-30T15:06:00.008+08:00

Travel to the fullest! And by that, I don't mean party like there's no tomorrow. Make your trip more meaningful by getting involved in 'voluntourism', or volunteerism while on vacation.Just last January 28, we finally had the time to attend Hands On Manila's volunteer orientation at Powerbook's Greenbelt. That's where we got introduced to Hand On Volunteer Vacations (HOVV). Hands On Manila

How To Apply For A Chinese Tourist Visa

2010-01-26T16:00:00.014+08:00

Great Wall of China, here I come! Okay, not so fast. Why? Because the Chinese Embassy says so. But the ugly reality of visa hassles cannot kill the travel bug. A little patience will get you far, literally.All visitors to China require a visa except for citizens from Brunei, Japan and Singapore. A Chinese visa covers almost the entire country. Almost because in some restricted areas like Tibet,

A Hike Up Victoria Peak

2010-01-22T16:35:00.018+08:00

We didn't make any plans for our third day in Hong Kong but to buy train tickets to Beijing, so we slept until 10:00 AM. I was awoken by my sister's text message that said she's home safe. Actually earlier that morning, around 5-ish, we got up briefly to hail a cab that will take my sister to Central Station. And from there, she'll transfer to the Airport Express Line. She was in deep melancholy

Ocean Park, Hong Kong

2010-01-19T16:32:00.023+08:00

We (my husband Shervin, my sister Gabe and I) did a mad dash through Hong Kong's MTR stations, from the Tung Chung Line to the Island Line. It was already 2:30 PM and we were still at Central Station, waiting for the train to Admiralty. Earlier that day we went to Lantau Island to see the Giant Buddha. It was a very brief visit, we didn't even have time to stop for lunch.So there I was on the

Tian Tan Buddha

2010-01-17T13:47:00.016+08:00

Tian Tan Buddha looming in the fog.When in Hong Kong, do not squeeze Tian Tan Buddha and Ocean Park in one day. First, transportation will take too much time because they're on different islands (and not entirely reachable by MTR). Second, half a day is just not enough for both.I speak of this with such authority because we did so, and the result was ugly. However, if you only got three days to

Hong Kong and All Its Jazz

2010-01-14T16:05:00.015+08:00

We awoke at 6:00 PM from a three-hour nap. Though we were able to recuperate from lack of sleep, we felt bad for sleeping in because we could have used the three hours on a walking tour.Will our host, assured us that no time was wasted for it rained the whole afternoon. We didn't have any plans that evening so he said he'll show us around Kowloon after he feeds the cats.And he did take us to the

A Tea House With No Name

2010-01-12T16:11:00.014+08:00

The primary reason for booking our Hong Kong flight is that it was our cheapest option to enter China. We were able to score tickets with a 30% discount (fare was brought down to P1,995 MNL-HK) from their August 2009 sale. From Hong Kong, we will be taking the 24-hour train to Beijing.We aren't big city fans, but we allocated three days for Hong Kong. Its dropping December temperature will

Transport Options from HK International Airport

2010-01-11T17:16:00.013+08:00

Our Cebu Pacific flight bound for Hong Kong touched down at its expected time of 7:40 AM. Because of its popularity among Filipino vacationers, I thought getting past immigration would be swift. But heck no - or perhaps it was just that particular official, whom I want to proclaim "The Most Meticulous Immigration Officer of 2009". After examining my passport and encoding it in his computer for

Travel Romance: Temporary Residence Visa for Foreigners with Filipino Spouses

2010-01-09T19:51:00.016+08:00

"This is a story of boy meets girl. But you should know upfront, this is not a love story..." - or something like that. A quote from 500 Days of Summer. Just thought of throwing that in.For the love of travelling, you end up in far-flung places to maybe party, soul-search, sight-see, and even work for perpetual travellers. And somewhere along the way you find another 'love', and this time it's a

Visa Extension for Foreigners in the Philippines

2010-01-06T22:28:00.009+08:00

So let's say you've fallen in love with the Philippines and you've decided to stay longer than 21 days (that's never enough for a country with 7,000+ islands!) and your visa's about to expire, how do you go about the extension? Since we don't have any land borders shared with other countries, you can fly out and in again for a visa run. But hey, you wouldn't really want to do that since the cost

9 Countries for 2009: 'Best Of' Snippets Part II

2010-01-04T23:43:00.009+08:00

If you can't play the video, it may have been removed because of its soundtrack. You can view it here instead.Here you go, Part II of Pinay Travel Junkie's 'Best Of' video. Rush (and amateur) editing quite obvious, but I'm mighty proud. I forced myself to finish the second part just because I mentioned 'to be continued' on the first one. Trip stats for 2009 here.Disclaimer: Again, the songs

9 Countries for 2009: 'Best Of' Snippets

2010-01-03T22:18:00.023+08:00

If you can't play the video, it may have been removed because of its soundtrack. You can view it here instead.Part 1 of Pinay Travel Junkie's Best Of 2009 video. 'Best Of' may not pertain to the best choices in town, but they're the most unforgettable for me. Places I have been to and experiences which I found life changing (though my life didn't really change much).Trip stats for 2009

Forget Climate Change

2010-01-02T14:14:00.011+08:00

Smoke gobbling Manila. View of Malate, Paco and Sampaloc from Burgundy Westbay Tower's Roofdeck.Streets of Manila turn into war zones every New Year's Eve. And the annual theme: Forget poverty, forget climate change. Considered as one of the happiest people on the planet, the Filipinos greeted 2010 with a bang. Literally. Despite catastrophic Typhoon Ondoy's visit in 2009 (PLUS a few Christmas

9 Countries for 2009: A Roundup

2010-01-01T14:45:00.012+08:00

A lot of firsts in 2009. I finally saw snow (which I'm not a fan of), and a giant panda!Supreme exultation! It dawned on me how grand the past year was as I run a flashback. Nine countries were ticked off Pinay Travel Junkie's 2009 travel list. 1. U.A.E.2. Malaysia3. Brunei4. Indonesia5. Singapore6. Thailand7. Myanmar (though it was only for a visa run)8. Hong Kong9. ChinaApplaud, applaud. Now

Terracotta Warriors Invade America

2009-12-28T17:16:00.008+08:00

Pinay Travel Junkie's visit at the Museum of Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.Longing to see the Terracotta Army of Qin Shi Huang in China, but currently in the U.S.? You need not spend on that expensive plane ticket and travel thousands of miles. A few of the Terracotta Army's warriors are in town, and their two-year U.S. tour's final stop is at the National

Airasia Free Seats

2009-11-14T10:56:00.005+08:00

"The most awaited offer of the year is back!" Visit AirAsia's site quick! Offer good until tomorrow November 15th, but a lot of seats have already been taken. Sigh.Travel Period: May 1, 2010 - Oct 30, 2010

Singapore Airlines and NatGeo's 'Nat Geo Challenge'

2009-11-13T19:32:00.007+08:00

Try your luck! Visit Singapore Air's website today. This link shall direct you to the Nat Geo Challenge page. You will be providing your name, email addy and country of origin first before taking a short quiz that will test your knowledge on different travel destinations.You gotta answer quick for the quiz is timed. Once completed, you'll be given your score and you'll be asked to write about