2010 Is Here!

Happy New Year to all readers of my blog! A new decade begins in the 21st Century! 2010 will be an exciting year for me. I have more travels planned, and I get really excited thinking about where I will be going this year! But before I get carried away with talking about my travel plans for 2010, I’d like to share with you some of the photos I took of the Sydney New Year’s Eve fireworks.

This is my third consecutive year of watching the fireworks by the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and it never ceases to amaze me how beautiful the fireworks display here is during New Year’s Eve! Each year is a different theme. Last year, it was more aboriginal themed, and this year, it is more of “awakening the spirit”. I suppose this has a lot to do with the recent financial crisis which has affected the overall mood of people, especially those who have invested in the markets.

The photos I focused on was mainly the 9PM fireworks, as I had a great view of the harbour from a friend’s balcony in Milsons Point. Check out some of the images of the Sydney NYE fireworks for 2009 below:

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - First shots

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - more 9PM fireworks at the harbour

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - Up close

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - sparkles

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - more 9PM fireworks

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - about to finish

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - to the finale of the 9PM fireworks

Sydney NYE 2009 Fireworks - the smoke after the 9PM fireworks

Happy New Year! - the Harbour Bridge comes alive

More midnight fireworks from the Sydney Harbour Bridge

Sydney Harbour Bridge is lit up!

More snippets of the Sydney NYE firework 2009

Sydney is definitely in one of the top 10 locations in the world for New Year’s Eve. The amazing fireworks by the beautiful and picturesque harbour and the numerous parties happening all over the city makes it just a cut above the rest. Even if I have spent my third year watching the fireworks in Sydney, I never grew tired of it, as it is just simply superb.

Come and see the fireworks spectacle here in the New Year in Sydney!

Happy Holidays from Fabulous Journeys!

Well, it’s been a heck of a year, and it has been a great one for Fabulous Journeys. For starters, this website started only 10 months ago, and there has been some avid readers of this travel site already! Thank you to all of you who have supported the site. I hope to continue sharing my experiences and my knowledge of the different trips I make around the world and also locally, and help encourage more people to travel and enjoy travelling!

This will be a short post just to wish all my readers all the best for the holidays. If you’re driving, please drive carefully and safely. I’ll be spending Christmas here in Sydney, away from my family but with a good bunch of friends. I’ll be camping at Port Stephens on the mid-North Coast of New South Wales, and I’m very much looking forward to it! I’ve been researching on my trusty Lonely Planet book, as well as other great websites around.. And you can already tell what my next blog post would be!

I will also be watching the fireworks here in Sydney and I’m bringing some friends from out of town to witness this grand display of lights that Sydney is always so proud of.

All the best to you all, and enjoy the time with your family and friends and whatever it is that you will be doing. May the holidays and the New Year (and new decade) bring more joy, peace and love to everyone! Here’s to more travels and awesome, fabulous journeys ahead!

Yours sincerely,

Kelvin Lim
Chief Blogger and Travel Nut – Fabulous Journeys

New Year’s Eve Party In The Spanish Capital

Puerta Del Sol, Madrid

Madrid, Spain – It’s one of Europe’s great cities. With great food, vibrant culture, fabulous architecture and friendly people, Madrid has a lot of appeal to people who visit the Spanish capital. However, I personally think it’s an underrated European city in relation to its peers. Often, visitors to Spain would either go to Barcelona or head down south to Andalucia and the Mediterrannean coast for some sun, and bypass Madrid altogether. I think people are missing out, but I’ll be happy to keep this secret to myself (oops! spilled the beans now! LOL!) Madrid still gets its fair share of tourists visiting from all over the world, but the numbers are nowhere near those visiting Paris or Rome or even Barcelona.

The New Year’s Eve celebration is a big thing in Madrid. It hosts Spain’s biggest New Year’s Eve festivities and is televised nationwide to the rest of Spain. The party centres on Puerta del Sol, in the heart of Madrid. Several stages are setup in the area, offering a wide range of music from techno dance music to hiphop, to Tango and Flamenco style music. People flock to the streets and the verandahs on the buildings surrounding Puerta del Sol have tons of party goers looking down on the street to check out the festivities.

New Year’s Eve Luck

Clock Countdown at Puerta Del Sol, Madrid

I was fortunate enough to have experienced this New Year’s Eve festivities a couple of years ago. I flew in from London to Madrid on the 31st of December just to be able to celebrate the New Year in this fabulous Spanish capital. It was my first time to travel on New Year’s Eve, and I hadn’t realised how busy the airports in London can get on that day! The queues were ridiculously long, and we almost missed our flight!

Our flight was in fact overbooked, and the lady at the check in counter shouted to everyone that the last direct flight to Madrid only has 3 seats left and the rest of the passengers would have to take the flight to Geneva and connect to Madrid from there. I was travelling with my sister and my brother in law, and my brother in law went for it and luckily we got the 3 seats just in time! The downside was, because we checked in too late, they forgot to load our luggages into the plane and we landed in Madrid with no luggage at all!

We reported the case of our missing luggage to the airline, and they told us it would be a couple of days before we get our luggage! I needed some clothes to wear for the next few days, and my sis, brother-in-law and I didn’t have a clue where to shop in Madrid. So, we ended up at the department store called El Corte Ingles, which we then realised is one of the most expensive places to shop in Spain! Nevertheless, we enjoyed shopping for our new outfits in time for the New Year’s Eve party at Puerta del Sol!

Venezuelan Party goers, New Year's Eve, Puerta Del Sol

One interesting tradition they have in Spain is that at the stroke of 12 midnight, everyone on the streets start to eat 12 grapes to symbolise good luck and great fortune for the upcoming year. This is one tradition that has actually been adopted into the Philippine culture, as it was something I grew up with, and I never knew it was originally a Spanish tradition!

In Puerta del Sol, people were just handing out grapes and sharing with people on the streets. It was such a great atmosphere where everyone is just so happy and having a great time with the party. When the clock struck midnight, some fireworks display happened in Puerta del Sol, and confetti poured in.. I met a few Venezuelans and locals alike on the streets, and everyone had a fantastic time! This is one place I’d recommend to go for a New Year’s Eve Party!

More of Madrid on the next post. Have a Fabulous Journey ahead!

Melbourne’s Unique Charm

Melbourne

I recently spent a few days in Melbourne to watch the Melbourne Cup and also celebrate my birthday there. I’ve been to Melbourne a few times and the city never ceases to fascinate me! There is always something new to discover in Melbourne. From eclectic to artistic, Melbourne packs a lot of interesting sights, architecture and cultural activities in a small place. Its laneways, trams and parks give it a very European feel to the city. It’s distinctly different from the rest of the Australian capital cities. Despite not having iconic landmarks like Sydney has, Melbourne still offers a lot of things to be explored and enjoyed. Here’s my top ten list of things to see and do in Melbourne:

1.) Art and Cafe Culture

Brunetti's

One of the first things I noticed when I landed in Melbourne is the way the freeways and buildings are so stylishly designed and decorated. Certainly the road from Tullamarine airport into Melbourne CBD felt like a big modern art exhibit, with colourful, modern architecture and art structures along the highway, and the best part, hardly any vandals can be seen! When you walk around the city centre, it’s all funky buildings, sculptures and designs.

There is also a cafe culture in the city. Nearly every corner of the city has a small cafe, and because there is a big Italian community in Melbourne, you can almost guarantee that they take their coffees seriously! I have always had a great cup of coffee in those small cafes. After so many visits, I managed to find my favourite cafe there called Brunetti’s. They have a great range of pastries, cakes, and best of all, their hot dark Italian chocolate is really something not to be missed! The biggest cafe is near Lygon Street, but they also have a small outlet in the CBD on Swanston Street.

2.) Laneways

The myriad of laneways that dot the city centre are remnants of the original city planning of Melbourne, which dates back to the 1800s. This system of small alleyways used to be the lifeblood of the city and has now given the city its unique charm. The laneways have been spruced up and converted into nice shops, bars and restaurants. There certainly is that European character feel with these laneways, and definitely worth checking out.

3.) Museums and Art Galleries

NGV

Melbourne is considered to be the art capital of Australia, with a wide range of museums, art galleries and performance theatres dotting the city. You will never run out of things to look at and do if you love art and culture, as nearly each day, something new comes up in one of these galleries or a new theatrical production opens its curtains.

The Museum of Melbourne near the Carlton Gardens is a great place to check out. It has displays ranging from dinosaurs and the Australian bush to the Aboriginal life and culture. More importantly, it has an exhibit on the Melbourne story (how Melbourne evolved into the city it is now).

If you love art, another great museum to check out is the National Gallery of Victoria. This is where you find paintings and artwork from famous local and international artists such as Andy Warhol and Frank Gehry to name a few. It has moving exhibitions of different art forms and genres that are worth looking out for.

4.) Gardens and Parks

Conservatorium, Fitzroy Gardens

The one surprising thing with Melbourne is the fact that it is a compact city yet it is filled with a number of gardens and parks surrounding its CBD. One garden truly worth checking out is Fitzroy Gardens. This has the Conservatorium, which houses so many colourful flowering plants and tropical varieties. Next door to it is Cook’s Cottage, which is the original cottage where Captain Cook’s family lived in and was shipped from England as a gift to the people of Melbourne and reconstructed in the Fitzroy Gardens.

Another great park to check out is the Carlton Gardens. It has a nice pond in the middle, and a beautiful fountain at one end of the park. It is adjacent to the Melbourne Museum, so worth checking it out if you are on your way to the museum.

The Shrine of Remembrance is also another great place to check out. It is an ANZAC memorial built on top of a small hill, with great views of the city. The botanical garden is just next door and is definitely worth checking out.

5.) Eureka Skydeck and Rialto Melbourne 360 Observation Deck

Eureka Tower

Melbourne has some of Australia’s tallest buildings, and 2 of them offer great views of the city and the surrounding areas. The Rialto was the tallest building in Melbourne and was the first to offer a viewing platform called the Melbourne 360 Observation Deck. It offers a fantastic view of the city and across to Southbank, the Dandenong Ranges, and to St. Kilda and the Bass Strait. It seems that the Rialto has just announced that it will be closing its doors on 31st December 2009, so before it does, make sure you avail of their $7 closing entry deal and enjoy the great view!

The Eureka Tower’s Skydeck 88 is a more recent addition to the Melbourne skyline and is much taller than the Rialto. The Eureka Skydeck 88 is the highest viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere and offers a  slightly different perspective to the Rialto. The Eureka Tower is on Southbank, which is on the other side of the Yarra River.

6.) Crossing the bridges over the Yarra

Princes Bridge

It may not sound like much, but the many bridges crossing the Yarra River each have a unique design to it. The Yarra River is a prominent feature of the city.  Walking and crossing the bridges by foot is a great way to explore Melbourne, and a great exercise as well. A couple of these bridges are pedestrian-only bridges, and each are designed differently from the other. One of the bridges has a list of countries where the settlers in Melbourne came from and some details on when and how they have arrived into Melbourne. The Princes Bridge is one of the oldest bridges crossing the Yarra and links Swanston Street to the Southbank area. The view of the city from the different bridges is great and worth exploring.

7.) St. Kilda and Port Melbourne

The seaside suburbs of St. Kilda and Port Melbourne has recently had a facelift and resurgence from being a rough area of Melbourne to one of the best place to live in the city. It has a great cafe culture, and a great lifestyle being close to the beach. In St. Kilda, there is a weekend market near the Pier and St. Kilda Baths which is worth checking out for works of local artists and businesses. Port Melbourne, on the other hand, has a good beach and is where you can take the ferry over to Tasmania.

8.) Day Trip to the Yarra Valley

Domaine Chandon - Yarra Valley

The Yarra Valley is a wine region just 45 minutes away from Melbourne CBD. This wine region produces one of the best wines in the country, and has over 70 wineries in the area. The makers of Moet & Chandon have a winery here called Domaine Chandon, and proves to be a popular one for many tourists. They make a sparkling red wine, which is quite an unusual one. Another great winery to check out is Yering Farm, which is one of the smaller boutique wineries in the region. It’s a family-owned vineyard and only sells its wines in a few restaurants and hotels in Victoria (apart from the winery itself). One of the more popular wineries is the Rochford winery. What makes this winery so popular are the numerous events and concerts that they hold on the grounds of their winery. They do make great wines as well!

9.) Shopping

Shops

Melbourne is known to be the shopping capital of Australia. It’s not that the rest of the capital cities of Australia don’t have much choices, but it is more of the number of quaint boutique stores that are available in the city. I’m not into shopping myself, but I can tell that there are so many cool boutique stores dotted around the city. The shopping malls have also started to crop up. Direct Factory Outlet (DFO) has the most branches in Melbourne than any other city in Australia. Melbourne has capitalised on this, and even has organised shopping tours where a tour guide will take you to the best bargains in the city!

10.) Docklands

The Docklands is one of the areas very near to the CBD that is being developed into a nice urban residential and entertainment complex. What used to have old warehouse and dockyards have now been demolished and transformed into nice brand new apartments and cafes and restaurants. A new shopping complex called Harbour Town has been built with a good range of outlet shops. This area being by the water has a nice waterfront walk where you can just relax and chill out.

Melbourne may not necessarily have the distinctive landmarks and the beautiful harbour that some other major cities can boast of, but it definitely has a unique charm that is worth exploring. If you find great deals on flights domestically or if you plan to visit Australia as an overseas holiday destination, I suggest you have a look at Melbourne.

Have a Fabulous Journey ahead!

Travel Is Not About Bragging Rights

I recently read an article from the Sydney Morning Herald about “Where to get your travel credibility” and this really sparked me to write about my views on travel. The article describes how certain travel destinations have become more accessible to tourists, and you can’t say you’re a great traveller just by mentioning these places. Apparently, your travel credibility is measured by the toughness and remoteness of the places that you go to. Being an avid traveller, I totally despise people who talk about their travels for the sake of bragging where they have been and what they have done.

Travel is not about having bragging rights of where you’ve been and what you’ve done. Travel to me is an experience, a personal journey that people embark for themselves to experience different things in different places. It may not necessarily be a very spiritual experience, but the mere fact of seeing something different and being in a different environment offers the mind and soul a whole new perspective. Travel, whether it be for leisure, adventure, luxury, or business, is not an area where you need to build credibility on.

Each person has a different take and reasons for travelling. Some people may want to travel to relax themselves from the usual stresses and pressures of everyday life. Some people may love to travel to seek out new adventures and to experience new cultures. And there will be some people who want to travel for the sake of being said that they have been to certain places. Whatever your purpose or reasons for travel, the whole idea is not to have a scale of how good or “seasoned” a traveller you are. It is all about what you want out of travel.

Travel As Food For The Soul

Travel enriches someone’s knowledge of the world, of perspective, of humanity, and of life. Oftentimes, people tend to live in their own silos and enclosed world that they forget that there is a bigger world out there. When you think you have had the worst job and the worst day of your life, you forget that there are other people in this planet that have it a million times worse than you, and yet, they don’t moan as much. Travel can offer you that experience and realization that it is a matter of perspective. Travel can open people’s eyes, no matter where you go. It may be through a package tour to Africa or some real intrepid adventure through the Amazon rainforest, but the truth is, people who travel can see different things in a different light.

What Travel Means To Me

I may have already said this through the previous paragraphs, but I truly believe that travel is a personal journey in many ways. It’s a journey of discovery of new things, new perspective, new realizations and learnings. I believe people have different ways of discovering and embracing new things, and hence, travel is done in many different ways to suit a person. I believe that every person on this planet has the right to travel, and the right to say that they are a traveller regardless of how they travel. We all travel, one way or another, and there is no scoring system.

So, to those who think certain people have less credibility as a traveller than others, think again. Different people have different agenda for travel, and there is no set standard on what constitutes a fabulous traveller or a great traveller. For all intents and purposes, it all boils down to personal experience.

Have A Fabulous Journey Ahead, whatever it may be!

My kind of travel

Kelvin Lim

The Grand Pacific Drive

Many people are familiar with the Great Ocean Road along Victoria’s southern coast. It’s a fantastic stretch of road that offers dramatic scenery and has a great history around the construction of the road. One thing not many people or tourists are familiar about is the Grand Pacific Drive along the eastern shores of New South Wales. This stretch of road starts from the Royal National Park just south of Sydney and goes through small villages and towns including Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama, and finishes in the inland town of Nowra. The Grand Pacific Drive doesn’t have the rock formations like the Twelve Apostles of the Great Ocean Road, but having a bridge built on the side of a cliff face and passing through some gorgeous beaches is a great sight to behold.

Reason # 1: Catch The Sunrise

Watching the sunrise is one of nature’s best light displays, along with a sunset. However, I’m not an early riser, and I always find it difficult to catch the sunrise, and only do I occasionally wake up to see it. Since moving to Australia 2 years ago, I’ve never seen the sunrise, and I thought it would be awesome to coincide it with a road trip to the southern parts of New South Wales. I managed to convince 2 of my friends to come with me and drive down from Sydney to Wollongong for the day along the Grand Pacific Drive and check out the sights along the way. Catching the sunrise at Stanwell Park and Coalcliff was one of the highlights of the trip, and seriously, one of the most underrated (or unmentioned) activities along this coastline. Catching the sunrise is not a tourist activity along this coastline, and only locals know of this. Before any tour groups start descending along this stretch of magnificent road, go and witness it yourself really soon!

Reason #2: No Tour Groups Around

There are so many organised tours to the Great Ocean Road, and while this is great for those who don’t have cars or only have a short time to get around, having busloads of people fighting for the view can be annoying. The great thing with the Grand Pacific Drive is that it is not as far from Sydney as the Great Ocean Road is from Melbourne, and the drive is not that long. It generally only takes over 2 hours and you will be able to cover the entire distance. If you take some time to enjoy each spot, it might take a little bit longer. However, it is definitely more manageable on a day trip than the Great Ocean Road.

Reason #3: Great Beaches and Views

The view along the Grand Pacific Drive is awesome! It’s either totally underrated, or underpromoted by the general public. It may not offer such dramatic scenery, but the numerous beaches and the sea views from Stanwell Tops are great! The city of Wollongong and the township of Kiama are also great attractions on this stretch of road. Wollongong has a nice beach and harbour, and an old lighthouse that adds to the character of the harbour. In the city itself is the largest buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere, the Nan Tien temple. It’s architecture is distinctly Chinese, and it was built by the members of the Chinese Fo Guang Shan community who have migrated to Australia. Which leads me to the next reason..

Reason #4: Interesting attractions in the area

Sunset at Kiama Lighthouse - Grand Pacific Drive

Before reaching Wollongong, I had the impression that there is totally nothing interesting to see in the town itself apart from the usual shops on the main town centre. I thought it was just another industrial town, with totally nothing to offer. Was I completely wrong! The harbour and beach is an attraction on its own, and the lighthouse adds character to the place as well. If you drive all the way down to the town of Kiama, you can find some blowholes along its coast. It’s a natural phenomenon wherein holes are formed from the erosion of rocks on the coastline. If you do a slight detour from the Grand Pacific Drive, you can check out the Illawarra Fly Tree Top Walk, which is about a 30-minute drive from Kiama. It offers a spectacular view of the Illawarra coastline, and the structure itself is quite a unique in its design. Its edges are suspended from the cantilever, making it bouncy and quite challenging to those afraid of heights.

Reason #5 : Relaxing, Laid Back Atmosphere

The Grand Pacific Drive is only 45 minutes away from the CBD, and yet, the pace of life is totally different from the buzz of the big city. If you are ever tired of being always on the go, squeezing in with other people and the long queues, this place can soothe those angst and worry aside. The towns along the Grand Pacific Drive are quite small, and people are just totally laid-back. The beautiful beaches along the way would have been a highlight of the trip, and something that you can look forward to, if you’re never been down the Grand Pacific Drive.

Enjoy a drive down the Grand Pacific Drive, from sunrise til sunset on a nice clear sunny day, and you won’t regret it!

Have a Fabulous Journey ahead!

Sponsored Links:

Typhoon Ketsana Disaster

Saving a drowning person

On 26 September 2009, the northern part of the Philippines was struck by a strong typhoon that dumped a month’s worth of rain in a matter of 6 hours. The typhoon was called Typhoon Ketsana, though locally known as “Ondoy”. Typhoon Ondoy came like a thief in the night. No one expected that this typhoon was so intense. Severe flooding happened very quickly, and there was little to no time for people to respond and prepare themselves for what’s to come. Rivers burst their banks and overflowed into the villages and neighbourhood, submerging the capital Manila into neck-deep waters. People scrambled to rooftops and searched for higher ground. Many were stranded without electricity, water, and mobile phone coverage. Families were split apart, not knowing what has happened to one another.

It was a scene of utter chaos. The whole city looked like a warzone, with cars damaged and strewn all over the place, and walls collapsing due to the strong current of the flood as it gushes through the entire city. Typhoon Ketsana disaster has claimed 250 lives in the Philippines and left 500,000 people homeless, and now Typhoon Ketsana has wrecked havoc to Vietnam and Cambodia. 33 people have been reported dead in Vietnam and so far only 9 in Cambodia.

This is a travel blog and I realise that I may have just breached my rules of only putting out content related to travel. However, having come from the Philippines and seeing the disaster, I would love to contribute and help my fellow countrymen out. The Philippines is a great travel destination, and like most places with a good tourism potential, this disaster will hurt whatever tourism industry there is in the country. It is a bit like the Boxing Day Tsunami in Thailand where the devastation is intense, and tourism has plummeted, causing more suffering to its people.

Feeling Helpless While It Happened

Floods in the Philippines

I was logged into Facebook on Saturday night, trying to see what’s happening to my friends when I saw a barrage of status updates from my friends pleading for help. It was so distressing seeing one of my close friends from university who was really pleading for help for her family. My friend is now based in England, but her family is still in the Philippines. Her entire family got stranded on the roof of their house when the flood waters gushed into their home. They had to endure the wind and rain for several hours while waiting to be rescued.

Some of my other friends were frantically looking for their relatives, as they didn’t know where they were, and they didn’t have any mobile phone coverage.

First Hand Account of the Tragedy

Here’s a first hand account from a friend’s friend, Lisa Navidad of the Typhoon Ketsana disaster:

“It was raining non-stop since Friday evening. Hubby and I were watching TV and heard that Pasig was flooded. That was where my younger sister, Bubut and her husband was living. I texted her and asked how things where in Pasig since they were also living with my bro-in-law’s grandma who is 87 y/o. She replied with exclamation points “Hanggang ankle na inside the house!!!” (It’s ankle-deep inside the house) and that was the last time I heard from her.

I was texting here the whole afternoon and way into the evening. No response. I thought it odd that she won’t reply to me and even when my mom and dad texted her. I felt that something was wrong.

What happened next was excruciating. News flash of ranging waters in Pasig and on different parts of Manila was shocking to say the least. How could this be happening. I was scared for my sister and her family. They lived in a one-storey house, with an old woman who is blind in one-eye. Where will they go? Are they still alive? Those where the thoughts that ran through my head. I’ve been calling their cellphones the whole night, but it was out of service. Panic and hysteria are bubbling inside my head. The storm and fear forming inside my chest was devastating. Where they still alive?! I hoped so, I really hoped so.

I talked to the sister-in-law, younger sibling of my sister’s husband. She told me the last time they talked to them was around 4pm. They urged them to transfer to an abandoned apartment in front of the house because it had a second floor. Then after that no news. Each hour that passed, fear and terror crept into our hearts. My dad did not take it well, he passed out. His blood pressure climbed high, he was beyond consolation. So is my mom.

No one could help us. The rescue was a slow, pain-staking process. The night passed and we wondered if they were safe, if they had food, if they were alive. The following day, we waited for news, none came. It was after lunch already – still no news if there was any rescue going to happen. We called everyone we knew, all the government agencies, anyone who can help, strangers. No one could help, all the government agencies were deployed, all we can do was wait…and hope that they were still alive.

September 27 4:47pm, my sis-in-law got a message from them, they were alive! Thank God but stuck in the 2nd floor of the apartment, cold, no food and no idea if help was coming. That gave us hope, they were alive. We will move heaven and earth to get to them even if we had to swim there ourselves.

A lot of people from Facebook responded to my urgent request for help. But still we couldn’t do anything. If only there were more rubber boats available, if only we could get there faster, if only help was sure to come. We couldn’t do anything but wait. Wait for any good soul to tell us that they will get them. My sister had hypoglycemia, her grandma was sickly.

After waiting for almost 2 days already, finally news! People from Red Cross and the Armed Forces got them. It 12:30am September 27 they were riding, 1 of the 4 rubber boats deployed for the whole City of Pasig, back to our waiting and longing arms. Rescued at last.”

My sister’s account of what happened brought goosebumps in my arms, people wailing at night in the dark asking for help, asking for food, but they couldn’t do anything…the water was high, way past the one-storey roof. There were dead bodies, mothers who gave birth prematurely, sick people in respirators who lost their lives due to hypothermia and no electricity. No words could describe the devastation. Still even as I write this people are still on top of roofs, people are still starving waiting and hoping for help, people have lost their loved ones, people have lost their means to live.

The Typhoon Ketsana disaster is not over yet. Cleanup is still in progress, and there are still missing people, unaccounted for after the flood. Some have been presumed dead. The Philippines is now appealing for international aid.

Images of The Flood

Here is a video clip of the terrible disaster that struck the Philippines:

Help The Flood Victims – Please Donate

The Philippines need a lot of help in recovering from this disaster. Poor people have lost their homes completely and would need to rebuild their lives literally from scratch. If you can donate to any of the organizations listed below, it will go a long way to helping the people of the Philippines recover from this tragedy. Below are the list of good organizations that you can donate for the Typhoon relief:

Philippines.com.au – Sagip Migrante Fund Drive: Donate to Ondoy Flood Victims
Philippines.com.au is a site dedicated to Filipinos living in Australia. They are currently accepting donations for the victims of Typhoon Ondoy. This is a great site for Australians to donate.
Caritas Australia

Caritas Australia is part of the global Caritas Foundation, whose aim is to help the poor and the disadvantaged. Caritas Australia is currently accepting donations for the Philippine Flood Relief. Caritas in other countries would surely have a similar fund raising for this disaster so visit your local Caritas website.

Ayala Foundation
Ayala Foundation is a Philippine-based organization that was founded by one of the Philippines’ wealthiest families, the Ayala family. The foundation has several projects that help the poor and the disadvantaged. You can donate for Ondoy victims here.
Philippine National Red Cross
The Philippine National Red Cross is part of the International Society of Red Cross and Red Crescent, and is responsible for reaching out to those who are in need of medical assistance and aid. Please donate to this wonderful organization.

Thank you for your generosity and for your reading this post. I will be back next week to write about another exciting destination.

Have a Fabulous Journey!

The Run With A View

Sydney Harbor - after the bridge run

On 20th September 2009, I was fortunate enough to have participated in possibly one of the best running events in the world in terms of scenery of the course. I participated in the Sydney Bridge Run, which started from the suburb of Milsons Point, and then crossed over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and finishing at the Sydney Opera House. The run covers two of Sydney’s most popular landmarks, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House. It’s an amazing experience, to be able to run across the middle of the Sydney Harbour Bridge (possibly the only time people are allowed in the middle of the bridge itself).

I did this run for 2 reasons: one was to raise money for charity, and two, to help a friend achieve a weight loss objective by training for an event like this.

Running For A Cause

The charity I supported was the Diabetes Australia. I decided to raise money for this charity because my dad had suffered from Type 2 diabetes which caused a number of his internal organs to fail over the course of 11 years. He passed away 6 years ago, and I felt that I wanted to help raise awareness of how terrible this disease is, and how it can really kill you if you’re not careful with your health and your diet. Diabetes Australia is involved in doing research and education about diabetes, how to prevent it and how to best control it. Diabetes is one of those illnesses that once contracted, will never be healed, but can only be controlled before it starts destroying the other organs of your body. If you want to donate for this cause, it would be very much appreciated. The website is on this link.

I decided to do this run only 3 weeks before the actual event itself. I was not entirely well prepared to do this, but I have a friend at work who has been wanting to lose weight, and I wanted to help him achieve his goal. Having an event to do is something he can look forward to with his workout training/exercise, and that can help him push himself with his exercise. The run was only 9km, but at the start of the training, I was only fit to run 2km. It wasn’t an easy task to push myself to get up to the fitness level to run 9km in a matter of 3 weeks! I had no expectations of how long it will take me, but I just did as much training as I can in the limited amount of time.

Admittedly though, I’ve been into running for the past 7 years, but over the last 8 months, I have been very inconsistent about my training, and I’ve not done any running events since a year ago. It can be hard work trying to get back into the swing of things, and you really notice the difference in your fitness level. I love running, and if I can afford it, I would love to take part in the numerous running events all over the world! It seems that there is a growing trend that a lot of cities around the world are hosting their own city marathon event. London has one, New York and Boston have one, and even Queenstown in New Zealand has one!

State Of Mind

I’ve been a believer that the mind is a very powerful tool that can enable you to do anything you want from it. I really believe that as long as I focus on the task at hand, visualise my outcome that I’ve achieved it, that it will happen for me. Thus, when I started training, I had in my mind the time that I wanted to finish at. I kept on thinking about, and well, true enough, I crossed the finishline at the time that I had wanted (to the exact second!). I literally had goosebumps on the back of my neck when I saw the time on my stopwatch, as it was really what I wanted to finish at!

Photos from my run are below:

If you’re ever in Sydney for the Sydney Running Festival, it’s a fantastic way to see the 2 most iconic landmarks of Sydney and getting fit! Great offers are always available with Zuji.

Have a Fabulous Journey ahead!

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Finding The Lost City of Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu has long been one of the places I’ve always wanted to go in this lifetime. Ever since I was a kid, I read it through history books and learned about the ancient Inca empire that once ruled majority of South America. Machu Picchu was a sacred place for the Incas, and it was built in a very isolated area where it was hidden from the rest of the world until it was re-discovered in 1911. I got fascinated by the Inca culture and how they were able to build such great cities in very remote locations that no one from the outside world managed to find it until recently. The ingenuity of the Incas had me wanting to see this mystical place.

I finally fulfilled my dream of seeing Machu Picchu in November last year, when I visited South America for the first time. Getting there was half the fun and excitement. Although Machu Picchu is reasonably accessible by train and coach, it’s not a straight-forward as flying into the city that is literally next door to the ruins.

Getting To Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is accessible from a small town called Aguas Calientes, which is situated about 4 hours away by train from the city of Cuzco. Majority of tourists who come to visit the magnificent ruins of Machu Picchu start their journey from Cuzco. Cuzco is an amazing city, a great place to learn about the Inca culture, and perhaps the most preserved Inca city in Peru. Cuzco on its own should be explored in more detail, and I’ll leave this city for another post to tell you more on what it has to offer. From Cuzco, there are 3 alternatives to get to Machu Picchu:

1.) Take the PeruRail train from Cuzco railway station all the way to Aguas Calientes, and then a bus from Aguas Calientes to the ruins of Machu Picchu. This is by far the easiest way to get to Machu Picchu, and offers some spectacular scenery along the way. The train ride from Cuzco to Aguas Calientes takes 4 hours, and the bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu takes 25 minutes.

2.) Take the bus from Cuzco to the town of Ollantaytambo, and then catch the train from Ollantaytambo to Aguas Calientes. Then, from Aguas Calientes, take the bus to Machu Picchu. This is, according to some people, a bit of a time saver, as there are buses that go straight to Ollantaytambo through a shorter route than the train. However, you will be catch the same train on Ollantaytambo as the train that started from Cuzco anyway. Perhaps this is also cheaper as buses are generally cheaper in fares than trains.

3.) Trekking – The very popular Inca Trail starts from just outside Cuzco and finishes at Machu Picchu. This is ideal for the adventurous guys who want to see more of the countryside and local Inca life. It takes 4 days to do the trek, but you can hire a porter to carry your backpack gear for you and you can hire tents as part of the package. It’s an experience not to be missed.

The Views From Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is better described through photos than words. The spectacular scenery of the mountains surrounding the ancient ruins, plus, the way it is designed, is much better seen by the eye than read as verbose text on a blog. Below are some of the shots I took during the trip:

Machu Picchu - view from the top

Machu Picchu - at the edge / mountain view

Machu Picchu - original main entrance to the city

Machu Picchu - Llamas roaming and resting

Machu Picchu - Terraces

Machu Picchu Guardhouse

My sister Irene, who travelled with me on this trip, took some great videos of the view, and also of a part of Machu Picchu’s walls that were used as some sort of megaphone. The walls were cleverly designed to resonate sound at a higher pitch, and it only worked when women used it (men’s voice are too low and deep)! Check out the videos below:

View of Machu Picchu (video):

Megaphone Wall video:

I hope you’ve enjoyed this post. Please feel free to leave your comments below, and if you want to get the latest updates to your mailbox, please subscribe by leaving your name and email address on the sidebar.

Have a Fabulous Journey ahead!

Kelvin Lim

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The Philippines – an archipelago of 7,107 beautiful islands in the warm tropics. It’s one of Asia’s best kept secrets, and one that has not been overrun by tourists who come to Asia from Europe and the Americas. The Philippines has been considered off the beaten track by most travellers to Asia, due to its geographical location being across the South China Sea from mainland Asia. Another factor that has caused the Philippines to be off the mainstream Southeast Asia circuit is the bad publicity that the country has gotten over the years. The negative publicity has been bad for tourism in the Philippines, however, it can be seen as good for those who want to experience a not-so-usual holiday in Asia.

Having 7,107 islands, there is no shortage of wonderful places and things to see in this tropical archipelago. I grew up in this country, and I have yet to finish exploring all the 7,107 islands. However, while I was living there, I had the opportunity to experience first hand some of the best that the country has to offer. Being a local, I had some advantages in getting around and experiencing some places that not many foreign tourists have managed to wander to. Here are some of the top ten things to see and do in the Philippines:

1.) The Islands and The Many White Sand Beaches

It is obvious that the number one attraction in the Philippines are its thousands of islands sprawled between the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean. There are so many white sand beaches around the country that it is easy to lose count. The most famous of all the white sand beaches in the Philippines is on the island of Boracay. Boracay has been known for its 3km powder-fine white sand beach and a great place to either relax or party on til the wee hours of the morning. Other great islands to experience for beaches are Bantayan Island (near Cebu), White Beach in Puerto Galera, Camiguin Island, El Nido in Palawan, and Bohol.

2.) Fiestas

The Spaniards colonised the Philippines for nearly 400 years and brought their festive traditions from Spain to these beautiful islands. Fiestas are abound in the Philippines, and each island or town/city would have its own unique celebrations, mainly in honour of a patron saint. It’s one of the biggest celebrations in each town’s events calendar and one not to be missed. The biggest and most popular fiesta in the Philippines would be the Sinulog in Cebu. This generally occurs on the 3rd week of January, and is celebrated to honour the patron saint Señor Santo Niño (the image of the Infant Jesus wearing a crown and holding a golden globe on one hand). People in Cebu would take to the streets to participate in the parade, and celebrations happen all over the island. Most locals would have parties and open their doors to any guests to have a feast. Another great fiesta is the Ati-Atihan in Kalibo on the province of Aklan. The locals paint themselves black to emulate their patron saint, the Señor Santo Niño. This generally happens around the same time as the Sinulog in Cebu, but it is worth checking out the colourful celebrations.

3.) Churches and Cathedrals

The Philippines is a predominantly Catholic country, thanks to the Spanish who had subjected the natives to be baptized and take the Catholic faith onboard. As a result, the Spanish built several cathedrals and churches across the islands. The Baroque architecture is very evident in many of these cathedrals and churches. One of the best churches to visit would be the San Agustin Cathedral in Intramuros in Manila. Another great place in the Philippines to check out nice cathedrals in the Philippines would be in Vigan, Ilocos Sur in the northern part of Luzon in the Philippines. Cebu is another place that has an abundance of these awesome Spanish churches, as Cebu is the first place that the Spaniards landed in the Philippines.

4.) Shopping Malls in Manila

It may come as a surprise to most people, but Filipinos are shopaholics, and they love to cool themselves in the shopping malls and escape the tropical heat that can be sometimes overwhelming. Some of the world’s biggest shopping malls are located in the Philippines. The SM Mall of Asia, built on the Manila Bay area, is the world’s third largest shopping mall, and is two times bigger than Edmonton Mall in Canada (which held the previous world record). Apart from the massive size of the shopping malls, there are a lot of great bargains to be had in the shops and markets around the country. When going to markets, it is advisable to negotiate the price with the vendors, as they are generally priced higher than what the item is worth.

5.) Tropical Rainforests

The tropical rainforests in the Philippines are fast diminishing. The poor farmers who are struggling in life and don’t own any land need for land to cultivate on, and the rainforests have been chopped down. On top of that, there are a lot of illegal loggers who chop down the trees for the lucrative logging industry. Conservation efforts have been in place, but because of the widespread poverty in certain areas, some people still cut the trees and burn the forests. There are many species of wildlife that are in danger of becoming extinct due to their habitats being destroyed. While there are still some rainforests left, it would be worth checking them out and exploring the lush jungles in the Philippines. The Philippine Eagle, the national bird, is one of the many endangered species living in these forests and they can be found predominantly in Mindanao, somewhere between Bukidnon and Davao.

6.) Exploring tribal culture

There are many different ethnic tribes in the Philippines. Many of them have settled in the islands long before the Spanish came to colonise these islands. The different ethnic tribes have very distinctive cultures and customs that have survived through the centuries. Most of the ethnic tribes in the Philippines live in the islands of Luzon, Palawan and Mindanao. The rest of the islands somehow have lost the indigenous population. Among the popular tribes are the Ifugao (in the Mountain Province in Luzon), the Badjao (in Sulu), the Tausug (in Mindanao), the Maranao (also in Mindanao) and the Aeta (in Luzon). There are many more to mention, but the first four tribes are well-known for their colourful costumes, dances, folklore and customs. The Aeta is unique in that they are widely regarded as the descendants of the very first inhabitants of the Philippines.

7.) Christmas celebrations

The Philippines is known to have one of the longest and most festive Christmas celebration in the world. You start noticing in October that Christmas carols are already being played occassionally in department stores and shops around the country. By the 1st of December, most Christmas decorations would be all out, and shops and houses would be decked out with very colourful Christmas regalia. The Belen (a diorama of the scene of the Nativity) is a very common sight during the holidays. The Catholic church starts its early morning vigil from the 16th of December all the way til Christmas, and the start of the early morning vigils is the actual start of the many feasts and parties that people go to in the leadup to Christmas Day.

8.) Holy Week/Easter Celebrations

Being a predominantly Catholic country, most of the festivities center around the church calendar. Lent (and/or Easter) is another celebration that Filipinos religiously celebrate (excuse the pun). The main highlight that would interest most tourists is the Good Friday penitence rites that some devotees perform in different parts of the country. In some cases, people devote themselves to be nailed on the cross (literally). Though this isn’t a sight for the faint-hearted, it is somehow an amazing fact that there are people who have vowed to do this ritual to cleanse their sins. Another ritual that has become a spectacle during Lent is the flaggelation. Devotees whip themselves on the back with bamboo-tipped burillos to reenact Christ’s suffering before he was crucified.

9.) Sampling Local Cuisine

Filipino food may not make it to mainstream cuisine like Thai, Indian, Chinese or Malaysian has, but it is an interesting mix of the various influences it has over the centuries. The best way to describe its nature is that it is a fusion of Spanish, Malay, Chinese and American cuisine. You get a range from grilled seafood and stews to paella, to pancit canton (stir-fried noodle, Canton style) and the Filipino spaghetti ( a variation of the American-style spaghetti). Each region in the Philippines would have its own local specialty, and it can vary vastly from town to town. Most of the dishes are not spicy, except for the Bicol Express, which is known to be the spiciest Filipino dish.

10.)  Listening to a live band

The Filipinos are very musically oriented people. They have been known to be great entertainers around the world, gracing the stage in many nightclubs and lounge bars across different parts of the world. If you travel around Asia and sit in a bar with some live music, there is a high chance that the band is from the Philippines. Thus, listening to some live music in the many bars and restaurants across the country offers you a glimpse of the musical talents that Filipinos generally have, and their passion for music. You will also find that singing Karaoke is a national pastime, and it doesn’t matter if you have what it takes to belt out those notes. Everyone is very encouraging and supportive, and it’s all for the fun of it.

I hope I have enlightened you of the wonderful things that you must experience while in the Philippines. It may not be the most common tourist things to experience, but hey, that’s what traveling is all about..

Til the next Fabulous Journeys!