miami_al

Came back recently from a 1-year tour of duty in Iraq. Beautiful Scenery and I’m sure it would make for a WONDERFUL destination if it weren’t so unsafe. Hopefully in the near future it will have stabilized…

Spain is an absolutely great place to visit. Myself and my 2 brothers started in Barcelona in a place called ‘Sitges’. Now, unbeknownst to us this turned out to be the gay capital of the world. We came to this place because we knew, through our travels, some people that lived here and they gracefully allowed us to stay at their home. We enjoyed the beautiful scenery, but the place was just too gay for us (we’re not homophobic, but when you’re straight you just don’t feel ‘at home’ in a place like that). So we rented a small minivan and headed north. We passed through Zaragoza, Logrono, San Sebastian, Bilbao, Santander and stopped at a small city by the name of Llanes… every city was magical to us considering that it was a whole new experience. We stayed a few days in Llanes, using it as a “base camp” to check-out the ‘Picos de Europa’. The first day, we tried to hike a trail, but were absolutely unprepared to make the trip so we decided to concentrate that day to exploring the ‘Picos’ and finding a good starting point for a nice, overnight climb. After asking the locals we were told that at the top of a certain peak, there was a refugio (a hostel) where we could spend the night and come back down the next day or continue on the trail and pop-up at the other side of the mountain range after a few days. Considering we didn’t have overnight gear, we decided for the overnight trip, but would’ve crossed the ‘Picos’, had we brought proper equipment. Due to the fact that this was just a spontaneous trip we didn’t know what to expect and prepare for beforehand therefore leaving us unprepared for a lot of adventures we craved to do (not to self: PREPARE FOR THE UNEXPECTED). We ended up en Oviedo where we were able to trace our ancestors’ to a mountain town called Tineo and actually saw the small church where my great, great, great, great, great, grandfather had been baptised and married. Afterwards we made our way back down to Barcelon, since our flight left from there. We went through Leon, and decided we’d stay at Madrid, however it was too crowded and buisy for our laid-back mood so we decided to go back to a city we’d passed on our way called ‘Avila’. Avila was an ancient city with friendly locals and a vibrant nightlife (keep in mind that Spanish locals don’t eat dinner until about 10 pm or later so night life for them starts a little later than Americans are used to). We used Avila as a ‘Base Camp’ for a couple days while we explored the historic city of ‘Toledo’. Toledo is actually a city WITHIN an enormouse castle. Just driving up to ‘Toledo’ was a very exciting experience in itself. It was pretty touristy (everything was basically shops selling swords (including the ‘Lord of the Rings collection and sword replicas of the one used in ‘Blade’), rugs, tapestries, and other souveneirs. This was probably the place where we saw the most INTERNATIONAL tourists, but just the scenerey itself was worth it. We continued on down past Madrid after our last day at Avila and made an important decision to not take the same road we’d taken on our trip North (which meant going back through Zaragoza and then Barcelona). Instead we decided to continue on the same road we’d been on and continue on the Valencia and then through Taragona and finally arriving at Barcelona. We drove all through the night, stopping in random mountain towns where surprisingly (and I say surprisingly because it must’ve been 4 or 5 in the morning) the whole town was partying almost like a festival (we’d found out eventually that everybody was celebrating ‘the day of the Virgin Mary’. The road was absolutely HAIR RAISING due to the fact that it was very narrow, about 400-500 meters high on the side of a mountain range, and there were an infinite amount of VERY sharp turns). After what seemed like a never-ending zigzag, we reached Barcelona and upon arriving at our friends’ house fell asleep for what seemed all eternity. I’d say one of the most amazing parts of road-tripping through Spain is how sudden the scenery changes. One minute you’re travelling on a road through luscious, green landscap, and all of a sudden it turns to desert, Arizona/Nevada-type landscap, and then you run into miles and miles of vineyards… TRULY amazing. I can’t wait to go back and explor more of the Southern part, which we didn’t have enough time to do.

I went to Africa in the summer of ‘99. It was my very first encounter with the continent and I must say, looking back, that it’s a place I hold VERY dear to my heart. South Africa was a most interesting country. A mix of Afrikaan and English, I ended up in Johannesburgh at an AWESOME hotel called the ‘Michaelangelo’. The hotel itself was amazing and was actually ‘linked’ to a whole shopping mall. The food was amazing, the people were kind and hospitable (contrary to what I had believed beforehand, due to the very high crime rate). As long as you use common sense when you’re travelling you’re MOST LIKELY to not have an unpleasant encounter with a local criminal. I then boarded a small plane from the Airport in Johannesburgh and flew to Kruger Nat’l Park. I had reserved a spot at a safari (Idube- afrikaan for ‘zebra) The trip to the Idube Private Game Reserve was absolutely textbook National Geographic. We passed small villages, local schools, etc. I spent a total of 5 days (if I remember correctly) at the game reserve (I visited Africa during the Norther Hemisphere Summer, which meant it was Winter in the Southern Hemisphere so the vegetation wasn’t so lush, which meant that ‘game spotting’ was MUCH easier). Probably THE MOST memorable trip of my life as of yet. There’s nothing like going to sleep to the powerful roar of Lions right outside your Chalet. I don’t want to scare people away from safaris, if you have a chance to go to one TAKE IT!!! It an absolutely eye-opening experience into the animal kingdom and you will defenitely leave with a new respect for the wild. At the same time it is absolutely safe and as long as you listen to the Park Rangers there is virtually no danger. Like I said, South Africa is one of my TOP destinations and I can’t wait to go back.

Corregidor Island is a wonderful tribute to American history during the 2nd World War, which took place in the Pacific. The Tunnel is a jaw-dropping replication of how America’s ‘Best Generation’ lived their lives during the war. Great monuments! A History Buff’s dream.

This city was growing at an amazing rate when I left. Very cool nightlife, awesome accomodations, etc. It IS a 3rd world country (sorry, but it is…); a lot of traffic and pollution. Other than that, as long as you behave, the locals are cool.

This location should defenitely be on your list! Not TOO far from the capital. I’ve only ‘stopped by’ this place, I didn’t stay the night so I can’t tell you much about accomedations and all. All I can say is that this place makes for great picture-taking. Great experience overall.

Awesome countryside! A defenite check on your ‘to do list. On the way up from Manila stop by the Banaue Rice Terraces. Sagada is filled with deep caves and high cliffs. There are lakes, rice paddies, tall hills/mountains maybe. This place is still somewhat a ‘secret’ so accomadations may not exactly be 5-star, but it’s defenitely worth the experience. Wonderful year-round weather, many activities. I visited this place during an outreach program with my school and it turned-out to be a VERY memorable trip.

I haven’t been here in a few years and I’ve heard that it’s been overexposed now, but when I used to vacation there it was a dream-come-true! PERFECT beaches, secluded, cheap, the list goes on… I’d defenitely go and check it out again, but I’m afraid that it won’t be the same. Instead of seeing open, white beaches I might see night clubs, drunkards, drugees… either way, it’ll be a cool place to visit. It might eventually be Asias Ibiza!

I Lived in the Philippines for several years. Although I was born in Miami, Florida, you could say that I was raised in the Philippines. Although the country’s 3rd world there are great aspects about it (or at least from when I used to live there (‘91-2000). As you probably know, the Philippines is located in SouthEast Asia, South of Japan. It’s an archapelago- made up of thousands of different Islands- and its capital is Manila. The fact that its an archapelago gives people EXCELLENT beach locations, which were only starting to be discovered by the time I was leaving. Boracay was an Island that I enjoyed visiting. Although small it was perfect for a getaway vacation. Only an 6 hour trip from where I lived in the capital (2 hours by plane, 3 hours by bus/van, and 1 hour by ‘banca’ boat). Of course, I’m sure that now it’s been exposed to the public due to its numerouse claims as one of the top beaches in the world. Many Europeans and Australians, some Americans. Unfortuantely I haven’t been to the island in a few years so I’m sure a lot has changed. As well as beaches, the Philippines also has beautiful countryside. Towards the North, you’ll run into one of the ‘8 Wonders of the World’; the Banaue Rice Terraces. They’re truly amazing and make for a breathtaking experience. Further North is Sagada (a place I visited while doing an outreach program with my school). High cliffs and deep caves make this place great fun! The weather is exceptionally pleasant- especially for Philippine standards (it gets hot, trust me…). The Filipino people are like most in 3rd world countries. In some places pleasant, others not so much. The main reason we moved from the area was due to the fact that we were being targeted for terrorist activities (malls were being bombed, our community guard gates were being blown-up, etc.). Actually while I was vacationing in Boracay Island one Easter- perhaps around the 1999 timeframe, can’t remember- we’d heard that a Muslim terrorist faction had taken a beach resort (not much unlike the one we were staying in) and were holding foreign hostages… this is when all the terrorist shit started happening. All-in-all the Philippines should be more than safe enough to travel in, keep your guard, however. The malls are HUGE, the nightlife can get crazy, and the vacationing is more than worth the travel. You can get pampered at the Penninsula, the Shangri-La, Intercontinental, etc. or island-hopping, camping on your very own private beach.