Adventure Accounting

I have been avoiding eating animals  since my week-long detox adventure in Ananda Marga . It can be tough, but it is manageable. However, managing my choices becomes really difficult when I travel to different place.  Kobe is not a place for vegetarian wannabes like me.  Wagyu is a type of cattle breed which is predisposed to marbling. Marbling results to this nice fat around the lean meat of the cattle.  There are a lot "t rying hard" restaurants nowadays that pass off their Wag yu meat as the real deal. I've read menus that claim they bred wagyu in Laguna and in Cagayan de Oro. Technically, that may be right. But in terms of taste...? I shelled out money for trying some of these local Wagyu stuff but the real deal can be found in Kobe.  We travelled to Kobe to try this authentic real genuine Wagyu stuff.  We got the 1-Day Hankyu Tourist Pass whic h costs JPY 700. This allows the holder unlimited travel on Hanky u lines connecting Osaka, Kyoto and ...

I got a multiple-entry Japan visa two years ago . After two years, I haven't used it. I thought it would be useful when I planned to go to Taiwan but I flushed my promofare Taipei tickets because I got too fed up with China last year . My amiga Sarah booked her Japan tickets, to make her teenage dream come true. I couldn't join her for her Tokyo adventure ( I took a lo t of vacations this year - ergo spent my leaves and moolah on th ose ).  I got excited about Kyoto when she started planning her itinerary. I knew left out some sites in the Kansai area in 2012. When Cebu Pacific had their Piso-fare promo, I snatched roundtrip Manila to Kansai tickets for less than Php 3,000 - without baggage. Sweet. There are some places which will be fun to revisit with a friend! I was extremely happy how the costs fell below my planned budget. I already spent a huge amount of cash outflow this year because of my international trips. The budget was even below the amount I sp...

February 2017: It is taking me forever to update my Holy Land series. I have no excuse.  ========================================= Our second country in this Holy Land trip is Israel.  After we crossed from Jordan , we had a new bus, and a new guide in this leg. His name is Zohar. He used to be part of a paramilitary group, and he has been to the Philippines to a couple of times. He had a handful of Filipino phrases that he used just when needed. He says " walang bibili" whenever we have a limited time in a stop.  Mabenta tuloy sya samin. We had a quick stop at the Mount of Temptation before Zohar herded us to a touristy center. We met the feta cheese and falafels again. Can't really complain though.   In the bible, there's a story about Zacchaeus , the tax collector. He climbed up a sycamore tree to see Jesus (he was a short man). Now this was not the real sycamore tree (or I think this isn't even a sycamore tree) but just a "symbol" for that ...

One really really REALLY nice thing in taking this tour is that we got to stay in nice hotels. Staying in a 3-4 star hotel while travelling is nice. I have tita moments too you know. Comfort does make a difference. I can revisit all the places I’ve been to during my golden years, with the difference of staying in four-star hotels instead of four-bed dorms. Geneva Hotel Jordan rates, October 2015 View from hotel room We didn’t have a hand in choosing the hotels, the tour group selected them. That’s one thing left off our plate. We stayed in Geneva Hotel in Amman, Jordan. The hotel is located in a street where there are a lot of hotels too. I really didn’t know if there was a “city center” in Amman because we didn’t really have a lot of free time during the trip. Well, even if we did, I’ll probably just doze off in my bed if I were not doing my laundry in the hotel sink. Double bed room, for parents

If there was one site I was most excited about for this trip, it was Petra. Petra, also known as the Rose City, is the 2,000 year old Nabatean (Arabs in that region) capital accidentally rediscovered in 1812. The travel agency suggested that we bring a face mask for Petra because the walk could be dusty. I brought them, but didn’t use them. It was almost a three-hour drive from Amman to Petra. Our day began with a mass in a nearby church in Amman. We went back to the hotel for breakfast before getting into the bus for our drive to Petra. We also stopped for lunch before proceeding to Petra. It was early afternoon when we got there. Another benefit of going with a tour group is that they take care of queing up to buy the tickets. The list wasn’t long, but it still saved us the hassle. Museum. The ticket price includes the horse ride going to the entrance of the Siq. The Siq is a half-mile long gorge going to the Treasury. You’ll can walk to...

This trip is mainly my dad's idea. It is his dream to be in a Holy Land Tour. I am the daughter-turned-personal-assistant for this trip. We joined a Catholic pilgrimage type of tour. Pilgrimage tours trace the steps in sacred sites. We did the Jordan-Israel and Dubai route. Dubai is not part of the Holy Land Tour. Another Holy Land loop is Jordan-Israel and Egypt. I've had three years of Catholic schooling so I do have some knowledge about the Bible. Plus, I've read the c hildren's b ible when I was a kid. It pays to have some sort of idea of what happened in the bible before joining such trip. Emirates stopover at DXB We arrived i n Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, J ordan at around 10AM. I was tired but I powered through. Sleep in g in long flights in always a challenge for me. I guess that's also because I 've always travelled in economy. Nyuhuhuhu.  The group lined up near the immigration area where an officer collected all our passp...

I am the family researcher on travel related stuff. My parent’s dream vacation is to do a Holy Land Tour.   That means I am assigned to do the research on this. During the first quarter of this year, I started researching about group tours that offer this. Now I am not fond of group tours. I am used to doing the planning all by myself. I like having control over my time. BUT, this is not my trip. This is for my parents. So, a pilgrimage tour it is. Group Souvenir Photo I restrain myself to taking crossing-timezone trips to once a year. After all, I am not fond of jet lag. AND, crossing time-zones means the airfare will be expensive. I scouted for packages from travel agencies in Manila, and read Tripadvisor recommendations. My parents made the decision to go with Tourworld Corporation (tourworld@tourworldph.com). Here’s their package: Package Tour (26-30 pax) $    2,879.00 Ticket Taxes $      185...

I had phase of being addicted to online shopping. Multiply was still around back then. Checking Ebay was part of my daily routine. I filled-up balikbayan boxes with goodies such as shoes, lotion, perfume and accessories. It didn't make me broke, but it did fill up my room with trash. I learned how to give away a lot of my stuff over time. I'm more careful buying stuff just because they are on sale or they fit me. I changed. LA challenged my changed self. There are a lot of shops. Well, not in Rodeo Drive . I don't know if I can buy anything within my credit card limit there. Jaguars parked under the heat. They are really used. There's a weekend market near USA Hostels Hollywood . I checked it out and thankfully walked away empty handed. Bad idea to start the trip buying stuff. I have luggage limits. A couple of blocks away from the hostel is Trader Joe's. This is very dangerous to your budget and extremely dangerous to your luggage limit. Trader Jo...

Another 8-hour flight from LIM and I was back to the land with stable Wifi.  I had three more days to utilize in Los Angeles before I go home. A friend from high school generously offered the spare room in their home in Norwalk. It would be good to spend some time with her again, and save some money too. I took a shuttle from LAX to Norwalk for $40.  Family dog bubba. A huge cuddly dog they got at the shelter.  Once settled in my room (for the next three days), I took inventory of myself. I needed to cut my nails, my hair needs conditioning, my lips were cracking and my heels were cracked. Ugh. Cracked heels. Disgusting.  When I arrived, I had the feeling of wanting to rest coupled with restlessness.  I didn’t want to go to any theme parks.  No major activities for the day, just going around, shopping and eating unhealthy stuff. Typical American day, don’t you think? Zyra generously offered to drive me around. Our first stop was Citadel....

I didn't know what to expect from Bolivian cuisine. There wasn't a lot of familiar fastfood chains when I wandered around the streets of La Paz . It took me a while to find an ATM that accepts my card so that I could get more Bolivianos. I was hungry and I picked up the delicious scent of friend chicken. Sold! Pollos Copacabana With my hand gestures and limited Spanish, I ordered a meal set with a sad chicken leg, sad plantains, soda and some fries. It was a sad meal for BOB 27. That dang fried chicken scent! Sad chicken meal. We stopped at Mercato Lanza during the walking tour. has a lot of stalls that serve fruit salad, fruit juices, fruit shakes and fruit sandwiches. There were also stalls that serves meals but we didn't go there. I learned that Bolivia grew 600 different types of potatoes. For someone like me who loves fries...that...is...awesome. Fruits fruits fruits

I was looking fo r a pla ce to stay on the day of my flight from La Paz to Uyuni , and the night when I return from the Salt Flats tour. I though it would be good to catch some rest when I arrive and before I leave Uyuni. Somewhere w ith h ea t : hot water, heater rooms and hot break fast. Hostel reviews in the Uyu ni area are mixed - some sing praises while throw curs es in their reviews . I we nt with Hostal Oro Blanco . B ooked 2 nights in Booking.com ($29/ BOB 200 per night).  This i s quite expensive for a backpacker like me but I've been travelling for a while so comfort and wa rm th are a must as t his point - I'm not 21 and backpacking for 8 months, y a k now. ;P . T he hostel is just a couple minutes away from the small Uyuni airport . T axi fare from Uyuni airport to Uyuni town costs 1 0 BOB. The frontdesk staff spoke limited English but we managed. There was one helpful guy who spoke above average English and he came to the rescue when I ran out of hand ge...

I had another restless night. I fell asleep because I tried to lull myself to sleep while reading. I tossed and turned around because I has wearing four layers of top and two comforter blankets. And I was in a winter sleeping bag. Brrrrrrr. Our third and last morning started as cold, as expected. With chattering teeth, we brushed our teeth, had a quick breakfast then packed our stuff to the ever reliable Toyota Land Cruiser. Seriously, I have a whole new respect for Land Cruisers nowadays. That vehicle has a lot of traction that can withstand the terrain of Uyuni.  After an hour of driving (wherein I spent my time sleeping), we arrived in the geyser area. We were warned to be careful because we might slip and end up in the geyser. You don't want to end up in the geyser because the nearest medical facility is miles and miles away.  Geyser in Uyuni Not a lot to do there. We were still sluggish and it was freezing cold even with all that geyser smoke. I took some ph...

I woke up early. I was able to sleep but I was not able to rest. After a quick breakfast and toilet time, we hauled our now salty bags back to the vehicle. Here comes Day 2 ( here's Day 1 ).  We were miles and miles away from the Uyuni (Funny how I use miles and miles as an expression but I have a better idea of what a kilometer is vs. a mile. It is not nice to say kilometers and kilometers away). Good morning Uyuni view. We drove so early in the morning and stopped in these tracks. Our driver told us to get down from the vehicle because he had to get over this train track and we were heavy (He said that in Spanish) It was a beautiful sunny and cold morning in Uyuni. Here's my lying-down-in-the-tracks pose. I should've ditched the bag. We drove for almost an hour to our next time. The landscape in Uyuni reminded me of the Savannah in Indonesia , but it is emptier. And definitely colder.