July 21, 2019

CAMERON HIGHLANDS TRAVEL GUIDE | Things to Do, Where to Stay, What to Eat

Cameron Highlands Travel Guide covers all the essential information you need to make your stay memorable.  I was the only Asian in the 4×4 jeepney. An Israeli couple traveling with their little girl Luna was an endearing sight. The morning air was cool. Everyone donned their cardigan or jacket. I […]
June 21, 2019

CALIFORNIA TRAVEL GUIDE | Where to Stay in California

California Travel Guide covers one of the most important part of your trip: where to stay in California? We narrow down your options to the best CA hoods! NO TIME TO READ IT? PIN IT! A prison to visit? A gate to admire? Trails to choose from? Swells to ride […]
June 10, 2019

New HANOI TRAVEL GUIDE 2022 | 51 Things to Do in Hanoi, the Touristy, Local, and Expatish

UPDATED HANOI TRAVEL GUIDE 2019 | In a tail-end of a long-term trip and long relationship, I arrived in Hanoi in cool October 2017 with a heavy heart and wheeled backpack, ballooning body and credit card bill, and a very light savings barely enough to cover rent and essentials for […]
May 4, 2019

DOWN SOUTH | I’d Rather Eat and Try to Understand

This was written five years ago. There was Agness. Now there is Erik Matti. There were angry Filipinos. Now there are angry Cebuanos. Last week, I was on a boat of mixed races: Filipino, Chinese, Korean, French, Belgian, and perhaps other races that I overlooked or forgot to ask. It […]
April 29, 2019

I Dress Best When I’m with You

You know me, I can get up from bed with my bird’s nest of a hair, prepare coffee in my underwear, don’t even bother to brush my teeth, and slump myself in front of the computer and check on the day’s tasks.   But I always look forward to seeing you.  […]
April 16, 2019

On Being a Brown Filipina: Righting What Is Not Wrong

Bet nila yong skin mo. Ganahan ang mga puti sa imong panit. They like your skin.I’ve been told countless times by many fellow Filipinas, both young and old.  Nila, They refers to white men, both young and old, who salivate over exotic creatures like me. And each time annoys the hell […]
April 6, 2019

At Almost 33, Letting Go Becomes Easier, But It Still Stings

TRANG AN, NINH BINH—I missed someone. I don’t know who exactly. It can be T whom I shared my first visit here with. It can be D, whom I cut communications for the past weeks. Or it can be anyone, someone I’m connected to. I missed the feeling of having […]
April 1, 2019

An Open Letter to My Fellow Travel Bloggers

Dear Fellow Travel Bloggers, In my list of daily chores to do, one task remained unfinished for the past four months: it says, “Japan, at least 1000 words, for god’s sake, Jona.” I am referring to my sponsored week-long trip to Onomichi City, Hiroshima, Japan last November. I have written […]
January 7, 2019

Dear D, Don’t Blame Yourself for Dreaming Big

Dear D, It’s okay. You can open your eyes now. It’s all over. You can open your eyes again. Breathe. Come out from your covers now. It’s all over. You’re not alone. It’s not over for you yet. Come out of your covers now. It’s a new day, you’re back […]
September 22, 2018

Being 32 and Single

I fell in love. I was five years old. I named him Bona, after Tatay Boni who raised his mom. Bona is a cat. We got a ginger cat and named him Kitty.I was seven years old when my paternal uncle told me you love cats so much you would […]
September 8, 2018

The Best Sunset Photoshoot Location in La Mesa, California

Looking for the best sunset photoshoot location in La Mesa, California? We curated some of the best spots for that perfect instagram look!  A town in Southern California, La Mesa — some 9 miles from central San Diego — is known as the Jewel of the Hills. What used to […]
September 1, 2018

TAIPEI TRAVEL GUIDE 2022 | The 35 Unique Things to Do in Taipei

Taiwan is a rising destination for many of us who are curious of how is life in a developed country that doesn’t struggle against the chaotic and problematic public transport, uncollected heaps of trash along the streets, unlit alleyways, snatchers at gunpoint [I personally witnessed this], and all the daily […]