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Jay Exiomo
Although he lived much of his toddler years abroad in the US and spent his early childhood roaming around the Philippines with his parents, Jay didn't really catch the travel bug until much later in 2006, when he was dragged to a microfinance conference in Thailand. He considers it his first true taste of travel, with his childhood already but a vague, distant memory. Something about being in a foreign place stirred his wanderlust, and his feet have constantly itched since. After graduating with a degree in Multimedia Arts, Jay worked briefly as a junior writer for a news company. He is juggling his time teaching high school students, being a shutterbug, and trying to get a master's degree in European Studies. His non-travel writings are in http://jayexiomo.blog.com.JayExiomo
(He's currently preparing and saving for a trip to another Southeast Asian country this year, and maybe to Brazil in time for the 2014 World Cup or the 2016 Olympics.)
Travel Blog Posts
May 15th 2013
Houses are adorned with multicolored leaf-shaped rice wafers and every conceivable vegetable found in the residents’ kitchens. At almost every door, vendors are selling habhab, stir-fried noodles served on banana leaves and supposed to be eaten without any utensils or hands. And at the town church where throngs of crowd flock for the day’s mass, Naomi emerges with her friend Mark to join me and CJ in exploring the streets. It’s the Pahiyas Festival at Lucban, and the sleepy town in Quezon about a five-hour drive south of Manila has turned raucously merry. “You don’t see this in Manila,” says Naomi, a former student of mine and a resident in a nearby town. One of the more popular festivals in the Philippines, the Pahiyas is held every 15th of May in honor of Saint Isidore the ... read more
April 23rd 2013
“I think it’s too cloudy so don’t get your hopes up,” the guide tells CJ and me, his head scanning the skies. He goes on about how the dry season affects the clouds, something about water cycle – but I lose track. As the sun rises, the morning light slowly transforms the silhouette of the structure into a more intricate shape, revealing its complexly interrelating parts and the depth of its geometry. "Let's sit there while we wait for the sunrise," the guide says. He nods to a couple of boulders at the edge of the pond, which is normally filled with water but is beginning to dry up as the dry season looms. He looks at the structure that stands a couple of hundred meters away from where we are. “During the summer solstice, the ... read more
April 21st 2013
I am eating fish cakes shaped like Angry Birds and deep-fried dumplings with my friend CJ at the night market in Phnom Penh. In an effort to get acquainted with the city, we’re trying to have dinner in a most Khmer way, sitting on a mat. Around us, families and young people are enjoying the evening straight out of work and school. A young woman sings on a stage nearby, her rendition of a Khmer pop song strikes with a sense of familiarity. I have heard this type of music over and over – on the hotel television, on the bus, in food stalls. I am still in Cambodia, I remind myself. Just a day before, I was in Battambang. I relished the serenity of the countryside, where I fell for the town’s colonial architecture, the ... read more
April 18th 2013
At the western end of Battambang, the old train station clock reads barely past eight. It has been that way for years – maybe decades, even – because, having lived out its purpose long ago, it stopped ticking. But the truth is, it’s already one in the afternoon, and the clock feels like it has stopped less because of technical malfunction than a result of a magical spell that froze time indefinitely. With skies overcast and streets eerily quiet – except for the occasional cars, motorbikes, bicycles and pedestrians – the whole place feels like a scene from a post-apocalyptic film. A couple of Western tourists ride their bikes before disappearing in a narrow alley. In another narrow street, virtually all houses and stores have their doors shut, except for one in which the doorway frames ... read more
March 29th 2013
It’s blistering near the hill in the clearing of the town. Even in the scorching heat of the sun, a macabre atmosphere seems to emanate from the sound of bamboo-laced whips hitting the wounded backs of penitents whose feet drag across the blood-splattered roads. Blood glistens on the backs of the supposed conscience-stricken men, as they continue to whip themselves, face hidden behind cloths tied on their heads, while people continue to look on. The town of Cutud in San Fernando, Pampanga usually doesn’t have enough attractions to draw tourists but today, just like any Good Friday, throngs of people are starting to trickle in. A staunch Catholic country, the Philippines features numerous re-enactments of the Passion of Christ in the form of plays. However, none are more so graphic than the senakulo held here. Every ... read more
March 24th 2013
There is a significant population of Indians in the Philippines, so it's quite surprising that aside from Indian restaurants that have sprouted all over Metro Manila, Indian culture has yet to gain the same following as, say, the Japanese. All that may be set to change with the first ever celebration of the Holi Festival, India's festival of colors, in the Philippines. The event, held on Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay, celebrates the arrival of spring. I went with a couple of friends back in college to the fair, which started at 11 in the morning, and after paying a hundred pesos for our tickets, our faces were smeared with colored powder. A couple of food stalls were on site to serve Indian foods, and I had chicken biryani and a vegetable ... read more
March 17th 2013
At Grassland Summit, close to 3,000 feet above the rugged terrains of Northern Luzon, the first positive development of the evening comes in a thick French accent. “Dinner is ready!” calls Mister Tee, our group’s organizer for this climb. Being called for dinner late in the evening – past seven, to be exact – would normally send me to my feet excitedly, but after six hours of riding a jeepney through ridiculously bumpy roads, four hours of walking in the rain and through muddy trails (even slipping once), and enduring an 8-degree Celsius evening in my shorts (my pants have been covered with mud), my enthusiasm instantly dissolves into a lethargic passivity. Inside my tent, I stare at the fog that has engulfed the campsite, shivering and cowering under my blanket every time the wind blows ... read more
February 23rd 2013
Morning is arriving, and large clouds – remnants of the previous day’s constant rains – are hovering above the Clark Freeport Zone, about an hour and a half north of Manila. Gradually, the clouds give way to sun rising from the horizon punctuated by Mount Arayat. Crowds who have sacrificed sleep to be at the grounds at the crack of dawn are greeted with the good news – weather reports have forecasted a nice, albeit cloudy, day. With good visibility, the weekend schedule for this year’s Hot Air Balloon Fiesta goes on as planned. Now on its 18th year, the festival – dotted with hot air balloons from participants all over the world, fairs from various aviation schools from the Philippines, and a host of other shows both related and not to flying – perhaps best ... read more
January 6th 2013
Cebu City has long been thought of nothing more than a Visayan gateway, a quick stopover for travelers on their way to something more interesting or languid. But this image is quickly becoming old-fashioned in a region that has seen record number of tourist arrivals in recent years. In 2011 nearly two million tourists arrived in the island, and the figures rose by around 11 percent in 2012. Property developers are seeing the potential of Cebu City and are planning to focus on tourism starting this year. Much of the sprucing up takes place in the uptown area, especially around the Cebu I.T. Park across the Waterfront Hotel. The park has several popular chain restaurants, which serve as the hangouts of yuppies who work in neighboring call centers. The Waterfront is an attraction in itself -- ... read more
October 29th 2012
I’m walking along a rocky shore with Sir Boyet, gazing at the boulders painted gold by the late afternoon sun. A pair of high school teens in festival costume pretend they don’t notice and try to pass us by on their way to the covered basketball court for their dress rehearsal. Sir Boyet asks them in Tagalog what time the festival starts the following day. As he talks, the teens exchange confused glances first with each other, before turning to Sir Boyet. Dili kami kabalo, they say. They don’t understand. They laugh as they walk away. We laugh, too. The happiness of Camiguinons is contagious. We’ve encountered it a lot of times since we’ve arrived this morning. Our host, Teddy, shrugs potential hiccups in schedule like they’re some sort of normal details in the trip. Our ... read more
JayExiomo
| Joined | December 31st 2008 | Trips | 9 |
| Last Login | June 17th 2013 | Followers | 24 |
| Status | BLOGGER | Follows | 34 |
| Blogs | 64 | Guestbook | 100 |
| Photos | 5,281 | Forum Posts | 19 |
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Footsteps
Map Legend: 9%, 24 of 263 Territories
Home 
Where I've been 
Trips
The Trip that Started It All (Thailand)
May 16th 2006 -» May 20th 2006
Journey to the Middle Kingdom (China)
August 9th 2007 -» August 14th 2007
HCMC and the Mekong Delta Region (Vietnam)
October 7th 2008 -» October 10th 2008
Cantonese Week (Hong Kong and Macau)
May 9th 2009 -» May 13th 2009
Sabah (Malaysia)
October 9th 2009 -» October 12th 2009
Across the Pacific, the Atlantic, and Beyond
April 30th 2010 -» June 28th 2010
Melaka Strait and the Andaman Coast
May 9th 2011 -» May 15th 2011
North America 2012
May 6th 2012 -» June 7th 2012
Cambodia 2013
April 16th 2013 -» April 23rd 2013
May 16th 2006 -» May 20th 2006
Journey to the Middle Kingdom (China)
August 9th 2007 -» August 14th 2007
HCMC and the Mekong Delta Region (Vietnam)
October 7th 2008 -» October 10th 2008
Cantonese Week (Hong Kong and Macau)
May 9th 2009 -» May 13th 2009
Sabah (Malaysia)
October 9th 2009 -» October 12th 2009
Across the Pacific, the Atlantic, and Beyond
April 30th 2010 -» June 28th 2010
Melaka Strait and the Andaman Coast
May 9th 2011 -» May 15th 2011
North America 2012
May 6th 2012 -» June 7th 2012
Cambodia 2013
April 16th 2013 -» April 23rd 2013
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