May 2, 2023

Yes! Not Everyone Can Quit Their Jobs to Travel Abroad

EDIT: This was written in 2016. A lot has changed in my life. I moved to Vietnam, went back to teaching, and lived the expat life. In November 2021, my two cats and I moved to Munich, Germany. You can follow me on Instagram: @jonajournals for more current life updates. Some […]
May 2, 2023

A Developing Country Citizen’s Perspective: What’s Wrong with “Leave Everything Behind and Travel the World”

 I shared the table with a Dutch traveler for our complimentary breakfast of coffee, two toasts, and few slices of melon—something that the Burmese or us Filipinos do not normally have for breakfast. But I enjoyed it, nonetheless, especially after an hour or so of pedaling on sandy paths, checking […]
April 24, 2023

A Letter to My Younger Self: Here Are 37 Life Lessons from Your 37-Year-Old Version

April 22. Mama said I was born in the afternoon at home with the help of Nang Lodi, the midwife in Tuburan. There are so many things going on in my life right now. I’m gloriously 37. With that age comes a bit of life experiences that I wish the […]
April 19, 2023

The Best Boutique Hotels in Sacramento for Your Romantic Getaway

Unlike California’s glitzy coastal cities, Sacramento’s Central Valley location gives it a sincere, small-town, inviting, and unpretentious feel. In this article, we scoured independent guest reviews after independent guest reviews and compiled the top boutique hotels in Sacramento we could find on Booking.com, and to make it more fun, we threw […]
April 12, 2023

From Expatriate to Entrepreneur: How to Start a Bar Business in the Philippines

Top bars in the Philippines earn from $3 to $11 million per year. Sounds profitable, right? But as an expat, you may face challenges. First, these are legal requirements that may differ significantly from those in your home country. Let’s take a closer look at the process of opening a […]
April 7, 2023

Natvisa: The Solution You Need for Your Visa Application Struggles

Traveling to other countries has been an integral part of human history, with people traveling for various reasons such as leisure, work, education, and trade. One critical aspect of international travel is obtaining the necessary visas for the destination country. In today’s increasingly interconnected world, the visa application process can […]
April 5, 2023

How It Is to Travel Abroad for the First Time with a Philippine Passport

“Timan-i, stranger ka didto.” Remember, you’re a stranger there. The first lesson arrived in a text message from Mama who had no other choice but to accept that I am not settling down just yet, and that I’d rather spend my money travelling than buy my own lot to build […]
April 5, 2023

Whang Od and Her Village

She sighed. She was crouching on the floor, shifting some leaves with her frail-looking wrinkled hands. She then slit the middle of one elongated leaf, which looked like pandan, and inserted the base of another. She repeated the process until she made a beautiful mandala of leaves. She then pushed […]
April 5, 2023

We Selected the Top Romantic Hotels in Malibu

The locals endearingly named it the Bu—a chill, celebrity-packed beach town that radiates as a carefree, sunny state-of-mind beach town in California. Although the bustling Pacific Coast Highway runs through it and there is no actual town center, the charms of this famous beach town—with a population of around 13,000—is […]
March 23, 2023

Coliving in Europe: Hear It from Someone Who Has Done It!

The closest to coliving I did in my adult life was when I tested the teaching waters in Vietnam and became a volunteer teacher for three months in Hanoi back in March-May 2017. I found this opportunity on Workaway, a famous website for cultural exchange and volunteering programs in many […]
March 22, 2023

The Top 16 Independent Bookstores in NYC Worth Checking Out

Joan Didion. Jeniffer Egan. Mia Alvar. Eula Biss. Ada Limon are some of the names that come to mind when I think of New York. These writers have written about and from New York. New York City has long been a hub for literary creativity and inspiration, and its independent […]
March 21, 2023

Amazing 22 Cool Hotels in Seattle to Consider for Your Next Trip

Known for its coffee culture, vibrant music scene, and stunning natural surroundings, Seattle has something to offer every traveler. From the iconic Space Needle to the bustling Pike Place Market, Seattle is filled with unique attractions and experiences that are sure to leave visitors enchanted.  When it comes to accommodations, […]