Trip to Simunul We also went to Simunul island last May 29, 2013 with my officemate Jayson and PNP students at PPSC off-campus at Bongao. We use a PNP Maritime speedboat headed to the island so fast that we reach it almost just half an hour. We visit the Sheik Makhdum Mosque and his grave behind the mosque. People are friendly and Sheik Makhdum descendant are there taking care of their beloved forebears.
Minsk was my last Soviet Republic too... I was there back in August 2012. But out of all the former Soviet republics, my favourite was Turkmenistan. So different...
Congratulations on your milestone. A wonderful accomplishment to have visited all the ex soviet republics. Maybe you can do a contrast blog summarizing the similarities and differences of each. Spring is not in the air. Sounds like you are meeting some interesting people.
It is good to see you blogging again Looks like November is a good time to visit. The colors are lovely. Sounds like you were busy making friends. It was nice of her to give you a heated seat. Looking forward to reading more.
The beauty of Simunul I didn't know that Simunul is a beautiful island.I want to visit the place someday Inshaallah .And i'd like to see the masjed of shiekh makdum and his tomb.i'm happy to see some of the view of simunul.Thanks for posting some of your shots.
Awesome! Finally inspired my kid to travel! Thank you so much for this blog. Ive been trying to get my late teens to travel for ever but they just like hanging in Aus. Was reading your blog and mr almost 17 walked past and saw the pic of tatouine and went...I Want to go there!.......finally! Thanks.
It is horrible to have a fish bone stuck in your throat for days. My friend had a similar experience, the doctor could not remove it and he just said to live with it because it was not going to kill him anyway and it will eventually go away. What a crappy thing to say!
People who think that everywhere is everything the same are not right. The best thing is to get a local guide, especially if you just want to get to know the city. If you don´t have that opportunity, well, can be different. You can never know what is good to do and what is not in another country. You know your place but not everythere is the same as at home.
I am originally from Kazan and I know what kind of city it is. There are both good and bad people, as everywhere. But to distinguise that you have to know the place and people there. You will never see the differences if you don´t know them.
Often it is also luck, some people have luck.. some not. I think for you.. you just didn´t have it.
There are a lot of nice people here and I know people from different countries of the world who remember time in Kazan with a good feeling. Some of them even turn back again.
Good luck you next time, wherever you go and wherever you are!
PMR I was 2 times in PMR I am from Bucharest , everythyng is ok, in this Republic people are frendly and everythyng is fine is more beautifull then in west ...
Where can we stay: we are looking for the convenient place to stay nearest to the place where the crocodile lolong is.....me and my boyfriend is looking for a lodging house. Can you please give us the information as soon as possible.....thank you:)
Awesome blog!!! Had the same experience with the trike incident by the way. Sadly, the Pasonanca Mountain Park is not as famous as it used to be.
There are new places that i have personally visited and saw on the local tv in Zamboanga City.
* Paseo Del Mar is now a hub for foodies and alike. Best time to be there is still sunset. With a bottle of beer and a platter of mixed seafoods, you can enjoy seeing the majestic sun slowly eaten away by the sea.
If you miss the old Baywalk in Manila, then this is the place for you. They even copied the lighting. Remember the ball-shaped colored street lights? Best part is, there is secure parking because the City developed it to be tourist friendly. A dancing fountain was also added to the attraction a couple of months ago.
* Waterfalls are a new attraction. I heard there are several but the one I saw on tv is the Kambal Falls. The name speaks for its self. Two waterfalls having the same stream of water. The other one is situated at a higher level and flows through the second one going down.
* For those who are less adventurous, two newer malls were built less than a couple of years ago. Gateway and Southway. Not associated with the Mall Giants in Manila though. If you are looking for familiar places where you can eat, there\'s Jolibee, Mcdonalds, KFC, Greenwich, Chowking, Goldilocks, Red Ribbon, and even Gerry\'s Grill and Max\'s Restaurant.
* Lucky for me I have relatives in Zamboanga so I didn\'t find a hard time looking for a place to crash.
* If you have extra cash to spare and into a more luxurious setting, the recently expanded
Garden Orchid Hotel offers the best fill. It is also just across the airport so for business travelers and alike, this is the place for you. There is also a good restaurant beside the hotel called the Village. They have the best Chicken Barbeque that i have ever tasted in my whole life! Other food items are also above average and is surprisingly affordable.
Painting Tauts of Bagan 10 years ago I bought copies of Bagan Murals from a gifted young painter there selling his works.
Lots of care and work went into these pieces of art and they were well worth the money spent.
Now, I'd like to understand the history behind the subject matter.
fun to read, very well written, insightful, lots of pictures, I want more info on menhirs Also, please describe some of the food, and tell us about the locals, not just the 2 corrupt cops. The difference with crookery in the US is that here they make MUCH MORE money, by giving tons of tickets for anything, parking tickets most of it. In Santa Ana, CA, they stop anybody who looks Latino, give them a ticket for anything (stopping at a red light!), threaten them with "resisting the law" if they utter the slightest disapproval, impound the car and keep it for an hundred dollars a night; since poor people do not have that amount of money, the fine gets up to a thousand dollars in less than two weeks, which is close to what the second hand lemon car costed them; thus they still hundreds of cars every year; then the police sells them at auctions; and you can buy "legally" a car stolen by the police "legally". See, with Americans it is just a matter of doing things properly, and giving it a nice name
D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Madagascar
Good to see you blogging and traveling again. Sounds like a great place to explore. Wonderful photos.