CamSur
Another world-class tourist destination in the Philippines that’s gaining worldwide popularity.
Another world-class tourist destination in the Philippines that’s gaining worldwide popularity.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Byahero & Byahera from Germany
Hector & Tim, with their two daughters, Lanie & Isa, were recently in town for a 3-week vacation from Germany. From day one, it was party time! Then more parties here, there and every where. It’s just been FUN, FUN & FUN. Like everything else, the FUN had to come to a conclusion. That took place yesterday, July 10, 2008, where the entire family headed back to Germany. I was told the good-bye scene at the airport was a tearjerker.
Hector & Tim, with their two daughters, Lanie & Isa, were recently in town for a 3-week vacation from Germany. From day one, it was party time! Then more parties here, there and every where. It’s just been FUN, FUN & FUN. Like everything else, the FUN had to come to a conclusion. That took place yesterday, July 10, 2008, where the entire family headed back to Germany. I was told the good-bye scene at the airport was a tearjerker.Cathay Pacific - the latest weight watcher
My wife & I got our reservation confirmed from Cathay Pacific a week ago & at the very bottom of the page of the confirmation reads, CX CHECKED BAGGAGE ALLOWANCE NOW 50 LBS EACH. Well, airliners these days are putting a whole new meaning to ” travel light “.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Byahe Tayo Music Video
Home is where my heart is. Home is Philippines. Byahe Tayo!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Not all “Kabalens” are created equal
Every year right around this time, I start to make a “to-do-list”, “things-to-bring list”, “places-to-go-to list”, & a few other lists that may be a bit embarrassing to mention here. All these lists are often checked, re-checked & cross-checked for any thing that we may possibly miss. It may sound a bit crazy but doing this ritual gives me some thrills - not the ritual itself maybe - but the thought of knowing that in just a few more months it’s vacation time once again. It’s like a foreplay that excites you slowly & excites you more as vacation time draws closer & closer. The climax can be very exhausting. That would be after we’ve gone through the check-in process at the airport. Right around that time, I would be more relaxed knowing we’ve gone through the tight spots, and from there on it would pretty nice & easy. You know that “places-to-go-to list”? It’s the list that ends up being carried out the least. If we have listed down some 15 places to go to, we may be lucky to be able to go to at least 5 of those places. I don’t know why but I just can’t help feeling so rotten about the traffic situation there in Manila. I like to travel around but if you’re stuck in that traffic mess for hours, it’s just so frustrating. It tires me up just sitting in the car. Anyway, since eating good food is one of my passions too, we never miss going to some of my fave restaurants. Kabalen is one particular restaurant that I enjoy going to that serves tasty, delish “kapampangan” food. However, not all Kabalens are created equal. There’s Kabalen at Glorietta, Kabalen at Mega Mall, Kabalen at Timog, and Kabalen at Marikina. I’ve been to all these Kabalens & my personal pick would be Kabalen at Glorietta. They are consistent with the quality of their food, the taste, the menu and the service. Here’s how I would rate the other Kabalens. Kabalen, Timog
Upside: Food is also great, very delish.
Downside: Not enough parking spaces. Kabalen, Mega Mall
Upside: I can’t think of one. Oh, parking area is HUGE!
Downside: If you get there past lunch time, like around 12:45PM to 1:00PM, the selection of food begins to dwindle. Refills are slow to arrive. Service needs improvement. Food doesn’t taste as good as the ones in Glorietta & Timog. Kabalen, Marikina
Upside: Since they relocated, they now have a better ambiance.
Downside: Food, not as good as in Glorietta & Timog.
Every year right around this time, I start to make a “to-do-list”, “things-to-bring list”, “places-to-go-to list”, & a few other lists that may be a bit embarrassing to mention here. All these lists are often checked, re-checked & cross-checked for any thing that we may possibly miss. It may sound a bit crazy but doing this ritual gives me some thrills - not the ritual itself maybe - but the thought of knowing that in just a few more months it’s vacation time once again. It’s like a foreplay that excites you slowly & excites you more as vacation time draws closer & closer. The climax can be very exhausting. That would be after we’ve gone through the check-in process at the airport. Right around that time, I would be more relaxed knowing we’ve gone through the tight spots, and from there on it would pretty nice & easy. You know that “places-to-go-to list”? It’s the list that ends up being carried out the least. If we have listed down some 15 places to go to, we may be lucky to be able to go to at least 5 of those places. I don’t know why but I just can’t help feeling so rotten about the traffic situation there in Manila. I like to travel around but if you’re stuck in that traffic mess for hours, it’s just so frustrating. It tires me up just sitting in the car. Anyway, since eating good food is one of my passions too, we never miss going to some of my fave restaurants. Kabalen is one particular restaurant that I enjoy going to that serves tasty, delish “kapampangan” food. However, not all Kabalens are created equal. There’s Kabalen at Glorietta, Kabalen at Mega Mall, Kabalen at Timog, and Kabalen at Marikina. I’ve been to all these Kabalens & my personal pick would be Kabalen at Glorietta. They are consistent with the quality of their food, the taste, the menu and the service. Here’s how I would rate the other Kabalens. Kabalen, Timog
Upside: Food is also great, very delish.
Downside: Not enough parking spaces. Kabalen, Mega Mall
Upside: I can’t think of one. Oh, parking area is HUGE!
Downside: If you get there past lunch time, like around 12:45PM to 1:00PM, the selection of food begins to dwindle. Refills are slow to arrive. Service needs improvement. Food doesn’t taste as good as the ones in Glorietta & Timog. Kabalen, Marikina
Upside: Since they relocated, they now have a better ambiance.
Downside: Food, not as good as in Glorietta & Timog.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Guest Post: Australia, submitted by Nadia
From the very first time I saw Sydney - the Harbor View has become my favorite site. For many times my friends & I would walk the entire bridge from one end to the other - coz on the other side were the best restaurants in the city - specifically the Rocks which was an old warehouse or docking place for boats.
Australia may not be as clean as Singapore - co’z people don’t get “fined” for throwing stuff on the road. But even without the fine - people usually pick up their mess especially at national parks where they love to have a barbie - that’s the Australian slang for barbeque.
Speaking of Ozzie slang madami yan - like a pressy is a gift, to bring your sunnies means to bring your shades/sunglasses, and to feel crook means to feel sick .. at madami pang iba and they actually call each other mate. There is whole dictionary of just Aussie slang. At minsan ang bibilis nila magsalita kailangan habulin mo at maintindihan mo.
Unang dating ko pa lang dito parang ang dami daming puno of different shapes and sizes… at ang daming open space or parks where you can just go and do your thing - walk, read, jog, celebrate with a Barbie. Some people who don’t like to go to the beach would just put a mat on the grass, wear their bikinis or trunks and get a tan … I even saw some girls taking their top gear off while at the Governors park overlooking the harbor bridge.
The beaches here are all white sand - mapa Sydney, Perth or Gold Coast wala pa akong nakitang hindi white sand. The best properties and most expensive ones are those near the water - people like Nicole Kidman and Russel Crow’s houses are in the Suburb, the millionaires row.
Every religion, denomination, etc is welcome. The people are also quick to donate for a good cause. Like their English counter parts they like to be cordial - so they always say good morning. Unfortunately, I also noticed that when they say how are you - parang in passing lang, then they don’t even wait for your response and just walk on … samantalang tayo sa pinas di ka nga nag gu-good morning pero pag nag good morning naman e talagang nag chi-chikahan ika nga.
And since they pride themselves of being multi cultural - dito sa Sydney talaga pag sakay mo ng train me Asian, Ozzie, French, German, African etc.
If you decide to drive from one state to the other - you will definitely pass by many parks or other places of interest. Their national parks are large and well taken care of. If you go to the Gold Coast all their theme parks are there - Movieworld (parang Disneyland), Waterworld, etc.
Ang gusto ko rin dito walang snow - after I have experienced my first snow in Beijing, China - I knew mahihirapan ako to stay in a country where it snows. And most of the year it is sunny but not humid.
Ang daming pwedeng puntahan - if you want snow you can drive about 3 hours to Snowy Mountain. If you want to go hiking or walking may mga walking track. If you want caves and mountains you drive 3 hours the other way and you have the Jenolan Caves and Blue Mountains. That’s why they say most Australians have never been out of their own country - because even if they stay here and drive cross country they have enough of everything. There are acres and acres of “Wine country” where wine tasting is free. Acres and acres of agricultural land too. But unlike New Zealand e mas marami pa ring tao kaysa sa sheep.
Buildings here are a mix of old and new - the old buildings look like you are in London - the New once para sigurong little new York - pero dito both can co-exist in one street as they really make it a point to save or renovate the old buildings.
And if you want a taste of opera or watch plays - you can get it here. Most international artists bring their world tours here - the venue can be the opera house or if it is a big concert they go to the park where you can picnic and drink wine while listening to music - I actually did that in Perth one evening with a friend of mine - we went to see the concert of STING while munching on biscuits and cheese and sipping red wine….. This is the place where I watched the stage production of Miss Saigon and Beauty and the Beast … I plan to watch Phantom of the Opera soon.
They say people here are laid back - not really, as they take their work seriously - employers are just more understanding of the fact that your family life always comes first - so they do not force people to work late or work on Saturdays unless it is really, really important.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
PAL sheds extra weight
We knew it was forthcoming. Philippine Airlines finally made an announcement concerning their decision to limit the check-in baggage to a mere 50 pounds per bag. Once again let me make it clear, passengers are still entitled to two bags, each to weigh only 50 pounds.
This new weight limit, however, will not take effect until July 1, 2008.
According to my source at LAX, passengers who have already been booked prior to July 1, 2008 will continue to enjoy the privilege of carrying the extra weight of 20 pounds per bag.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Cutting down the weight for international travelers
There is good news and bad news about the new international airlines policy regarding check-in baggage weight limit. First, the good news, not all international airlines have adopted this policy. Passengers are still entitled to two check-in baggage. Meanwhile, Korea Air has a has a special arrangement of allowing 70 lbs. for travelers whose final destination is in the Philippines.
Now the bad news, some airlines have strictly enforced the new weight limit of 50 pounds (22.73 Kgs.) on all check-in baggage. According to my source at the Los Angeles International airport, EVA Air & China Airlines are now implementing this new weight limit. My source also informed me that all the other international airlines will most likely follow suit. So before packing up your bags, it is highly recommended that you contact your airline to make sure that you are in compliance with their baggage weight requirement. Hope for the best that the airline of your choice won’t let you cut down on weight!
If you are looking for real time flight schedule on arrivals & departures for the major international airlines at LAX (Tom Bradley International Terminal only) just click on this link -> http://www.edlagman.com/mikeside/lax-tbit.htm
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Our Goal
The “Byahe Tayo” blog was conceived primarily to promote the Philippines, which I have already been advocating for the past years through my web broadcast - The Sounds of Manila (www.edlagman.com/mikeside.htm). This blog also aims to encourage our readers to share their travel experiences by submitting to us personal accounts of their pleasure or business trips to the Philippines. By doing so, others may learn or pick up some important travel tips about the many tourist destinations in the Philippines. Perhaps it may even be very helpful if others can send us some kind of a list of “Do’s & Don’ts” for places they’ve been to.
The “Byahe Tayo” blog was conceived primarily to promote the Philippines, which I have already been advocating for the past years through my web broadcast - The Sounds of Manila (www.edlagman.com/mikeside.htm). This blog also aims to encourage our readers to share their travel experiences by submitting to us personal accounts of their pleasure or business trips to the Philippines. By doing so, others may learn or pick up some important travel tips about the many tourist destinations in the Philippines. Perhaps it may even be very helpful if others can send us some kind of a list of “Do’s & Don’ts” for places they’ve been to.
We all have our own share of memorable, funny or even perhaps some weird travel experiences in our lifetime. Why not relate to us about the delicious food delicacies you discovered from the most unexpected places you’ve been to? Or express to us how much joy & positive impact it brought to your life upon meeting your Filipina biological mother for the first time.
Your travel story, travel tips, list of “do’s & don’ts”, and recommendations will be most welcome. Please send them to -> ByaheTayo@gmail.com
Salamat at mabuhay po kayo!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Byahe or Biyahe?
Is it Byahe tayo or Biyahe tayo? The literal translation of both is “let’s travel”. Why the difference in spelling? Here are a couple of theories as to why. The word “byahe” was most probably coined as an offshoot of the text lingo of Filipino texters. You know how infamous texters are – they abbreviate every word in the dictionary. They scrimp on the use of vowels because that means less key strokes and more words to squeeze in to their text message. Secondly, byahe which consists of only two syllables (bya-he) seems much easier to verbalize than the three syllable word “bi-ha-ye”. Even the popular song “Byahe Tayo” is spelled as such.
And by the way, did you know that the word traveler could also be spelled as t-r-a-v-e-l-l-e-r ?
Is it Byahe tayo or Biyahe tayo? The literal translation of both is “let’s travel”. Why the difference in spelling? Here are a couple of theories as to why. The word “byahe” was most probably coined as an offshoot of the text lingo of Filipino texters. You know how infamous texters are – they abbreviate every word in the dictionary. They scrimp on the use of vowels because that means less key strokes and more words to squeeze in to their text message. Secondly, byahe which consists of only two syllables (bya-he) seems much easier to verbalize than the three syllable word “bi-ha-ye”. Even the popular song “Byahe Tayo” is spelled as such.
Now, how would you translate the word traveler into tagalog or pilipino? Would that be “byahero” for male traveler & “byahera” for female traveler?
And by the way, did you know that the word traveler could also be spelled as t-r-a-v-e-l-l-e-r ?
