Category Archives: travel

musings, sketch, travel

wherein we wander into artsy fartsy territory

benjamin padero 20130220padero cambodia--407.jpg

when i was looking for hotels to stay in siem reap, some friends suggested 1961, an art cafe hotel gallery space exhibit space slash slash slash artsy fartsy place. this is owned by loven and faith, a pinoy couple and would have been perfect except that we were traveling with a big group and the place is not that kind of touristy hotel. it’s more for the crazies like carlo and me. and jetro of van gogh is bipolar.

benjamin padero 20130220padero cambodia--403.jpg

nevertheless, we made sure to visit this place while in siem reap. the hotel is located towards the end of the river in a quiet side of town. there were exhibits on display when we got there but since we went at 3 in the afternoon, there were no people around except for a russian photographer moonlighting as a tour guide named olga who i spoke with, and a few others. this place is just awesome, just standing there made me want to pick up paper and start to draw. or a hammer. very quaint, really nice space and actually reminded us of home. chos.  Continue reading →

Standard
laundry therapy, travel

temple run

i thought i had it down pat.

on a whim and circumstance, i decided to purchase tickets for the whole family early last year so my dad’s wish to see cambodia would be granted. at that time, my dad was undergoing radiation therapy for his prostate cancer in manila and carlo and i just came back from ho chi minh city in vietnam. it would have been one where the family travels outside the Philippines together also because we’ve never done that before.

my dad was thrilled with the plan and it put his mind off things but it would still be a year before we could go. unfortunately, my dad never made it to see the temples. he passed away last august.

in his memory we proceeded with this trip. and seeing the beauty and majesty of this place, it breaks my heart a little (no, a lot) to not see him enjoy the sights, be with us in photos or to take his arm and help him up the corridors.

this trip is actually more emotional than i thought it would be.

payong, i saw a fisherman’s cap for sale at the angkor national museum this afternoon and i thought of you.

labyu, payong.

Standard
filmmaking, laundry therapy, music, musings, travel

lake sebu revisited

this is y’egas, a t’boli singer from lake sebu in south cotabato. i came across her in 2004 when i went up the area to work on a documentary (which unfortunately i didn’t finish).  the first time i met her at her home and asked her to sing for the documentary, y’egas started lamenting in song about the conditions of her people and fighting for ancestral domain land titles in a largely government protected area (watershed). i gave her a token of thanks (p500) for her help and left.  i later learned from my guide that she didnt like me recording her; she was saying i might exploit her and her people and all that jazz. i was oblivious because she sang in her native tongue and didnt speak a word of bisaya! i also found out my recording got corrupted (used minidv tapes and for some reason they were pixelated and “choppy”) so i had to go back and redo the footage. i braved asking her to sing again and thankfully this time she was more than helpful, smiled a lot more and sang of the beauty of lake sebu and hoped i bring with me only good memories of her and her land.  she even recounted the death of a beloved datu chieftain and sang about a local epic.  here is the video to that song.

.

sorry, i have no way of translating this video.  took me a while to find this file, one of the few scenes i was able to digitally convert and keep 5 years ago, and upload on youtube.  has it been that long?  i have one more of y’egas dancing and her brother, ma’afil, playing the hegolung he made for me.  ill upload this vid at another time.  here are my blog entries on the trip around zamboanga and lake sebu in 2004:

cruising down the freeway in the hot hot sun
more on motorcycle diaries

Standard

DSC01332.JPG

DSC01343.JPG

DSC01345.JPG

DSC01344.JPG

laundry therapy, travel

opol beach nov 2007

Image
filmmaking, movies, travel

visit to caramoan

picturetaking.JPG
pic by neil daza. cheers!

mustafa-ben.JPG

visited caramoan island in camsur bicol a few weeks ago for a location check for the film. we brazenly took to the 8 hour road trip and hopped on a 1.5hour bangka ride to “shorten” our trip, that eventually got us at casa del roa by 11am the next day, almost 13 hours after we left manila. we then had to proceed to gota beach and get on another bangka to see the islands including honongan, lahos, matukad and tayak.

direkwithben-2.JPG

thegang1.JPG

williamcarloamiel2.JPG

bancaride.JPG

frolic1.JPG

caramoan is beautiful. too bad when i got back last weekend to start work on the preparations for the film’s shoot this week, i learned that they clean-shaved the island forests in time for survivor asia’s leg here in the philippines in february. so what we saw of lush jungle forests set against the limestone rocky mountains in the middle of clear blue waters are no longer existing.

benanderwinbacktocam.JPG

andywilliamben.JPG

ergo hindi na pwede pang shoot! on top of that, the weather forecasts tell of thunderstorms and a low depression area in the vicinity and most likely a storm on its way. around 12hours after we arrived on camsur this weekend, we get a text from the line producer that the shoot there is packed-up and postponed indefinitely. and that we had to hurry back to manila immediately. good luck.

DSC01302.JPG

Standard
musings, travel

how much of the philippines have you seen?

i love to travel. when i get the chance i go and take the bus, the boat, a broom, see the sight of unending greens, a blur of leaves, a neverending possibility of life unfolding before you. a life youve never had, a way of living youve never experience. a chance to be a part of things greater than yourself. taking a crap in dugout holes. bathing in the middle of the street. walking in complete darkness and being on the lookout for leeches. waking up to the beautiful view of lakes or the sea air in your face. drinking under moonlight in a shack out in siargao. internet on an island ! walking in your flipflops in venice. eating halal chicken in quiapo. washing your clothes in the river (ergo white water rafting). the world never fails to fascinate me. God’s gift to all.

have passport. will travel.


My Lakbayan grade is B-!
How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out atLakbayan!
Created by Eugene Villar.

Standard
musings, travel

trip home and back and home and back

20070414-DSC00724.JPG

black saturday april 7 i traveled to hometown cagayan de oro with titatems and tito-ed to visit the clan. from thereon i stayed until after laya’s birthday on may2. i decided to paint my room dark gray while i was there and purchased a new mattress and two-tone deep red curtains. i would have scored the facing room wall myself to reveal its original cement surface but given that i couldnt even finish a foot area in an hour, i dropped the hammer and went to the mall instead. i ate my way through my vacation and gained a few inches on both sides of my face. food is always an abundance in the provinces. glorious food.

ben-carlo-tnt-zambo3-2.JPG

carlo flew in cdo for a few days before we headed to zamboanga for the TNT event there. ate seafood like the ocean would dry up the next day. and we stayed at the astoria in zamboanga ! hehe. a regular hotel but one of the best in the city. was great to reacquaint myself with zamboanga as i had major fun the last time i was there.

after laya’s birthday carlo and i flew back manila for the last leg of talk and text gaaniversary. waited for tito omar and tita tina’s arrival from hawaii on the 16th. went back home cdo on the 17th as escort, guide, photographer and videographer, bellboy, bellhop and grocery packer. astig.

DSC04249.JPG

we had tons of fun, vegging out in the hotel and talked about what is good and bad with the phils, the US, and about family history (gossip). pic below was taken at home, first night of the fellowship of the ring, involving tons of canned goods, a roasted pig and videos from my grandparents’ 50th anniversary.

DSCF4957.JPG

i flew back to manila with them to attend tita tina’s uncle’s 50th birthday in manila hotel by the 23rd. got a coat and a tie and i was set.

IMG_3386

afterwards we headed to bataan to see tita tina’s family. took a dip in the mountain spring overlooking the whole of bataan in my underwear. they followed suit of course.

IMG_3631.JPG

ate lots of mangoes and more seafood. one morning i weighed in at 60kls. by the evening i gained another kilo. the horror ! hahaha then it was back to manila and more shopping before they flew back to hawaii. talk about jetsetting! did i mention i love to travel? 😀

Standard