All posts tagged: family travels

Discovering Laos

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Visiting Laos for the first time and getting over my incomprehensible fear of communist countries

How I came to love traveling

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Traveling has always been a fun and memorable experience for me, especially when it’s done with my family. I was in junior high when I first traveled, and I did it with a beloved cousin. We toured Ilocos, both north and south, and she introduced me to my mother’s relatives–our relatives. That was one summer vacation that I would never forget. For the first time, I got to meet nearly everyone in my mother’s clan. I saw the places she frequented when she was growing up, and I finally acknowledged that I had an Ilocano blood in my veins. We went from one museum to another when we were in Vigan, and  sought out some of our distant relatives in certain barrios. I even got to name a newborn calf at one of those remote places we visited! Of course, I named it after myself so they would remember me. I also got to play not only at the beach, but also in the river banks. It’s like a whole new world opened up to me when I visited …

Counting the hours at Suvarnabhumi Airport

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31 December 2015 It’s the last day of the year, the last day of our vacation, the last day before my husband goes back to Singapore while the girls and I go back to our home in the Philippines. It’s going to be months again before we get together as a family, and the day’s not turning out well. I was hoping that we could still do some sight seeing, have fun while we wait for our flight, make the most out of the little time that we could still spend together. Guess what, our flight is not until half an hour past midnight later, though my husband’s three hours ahead of ours. Now that means we’re spending about 12 hours doing nothing at this airport. Twelve hours! We’re in a different country, it’s sunny outside, and we’re stuck here! I’m not happy, and I’m venting it all out here. I’m sorry, but you just got to let me. Everybody’s reluctant to go out and I don’t understand why. Am I the only one who wanted …

The Sunday Currently, Vol. 5: The one on our first weekend in Laos

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reading the titles and headlines of local magazines and newspapers in Vientiane, Laos. It’s a good thing many of them are in English (unlike in Bangkok, Thailand). writing key words down to help me remember some of the interesting things I’ve learned while traveling. listening for Filipino words that may be spoken around me. It’s interesting that although the people around me look vaguely Filipino, they speak a foreign language that are not even remotely familiar. thinking about what it’s like to stay here in Vientiane for at least a year or two, or maybe raise the girls here. It’s peaceful and quiet here, after all, and there are so many institutions where I can practice my profession either as an ESL teacher or PR professional. smelling the scent of wood every time I open the closet in our room wishing we’re experiencing the same weather back home, i.e., 19–24º C hoping to find a battery pack for my Nikon D5100 very soon. I have packed the whole thing, complete with charger and an SD …