Dec
11

8th Wonder of the World

…or How I Hiked the Toughest Climb of My Life.   A few weeks ago, somewhere close to 28 of us PCVs met in Sagada for a glorious thanksgiving feast. Delicious, wonderful, tasty. This post is not about that. But it is about the trip I took the day after, into Ifugao, the next mountain… Continue reading »

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Jul
03

One Year Thus Far…

Yesterday was my one year anniversary of when I first arrived in the Philippines. I can’t believe a year has gone by already! Life here as a volunteer is ambivalent and complex but it is also such an amazing journey as well.

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May
11

Serene Sagada

Tumbling down the “highway” on a non-airconditioned, non-shock absorbent bus, I popped an anti-nausea pill in my mouth in preparation for the journey. With 5-6 hours ahead of us I passed the time gazing at the awe-inspiring mountain scenery and chatting with one of my good friends. We both agreed that this spur of the… Continue reading »

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Apr
10

Marinduque Adventures

Beside the Moriones Festival, we explored the area a bit for some relaxation and fun. Beautiful beaches, purple starfish, gently swaying palm trees, and bat-filled caves gave our weekend the right amount of island adventures. One of the nights we bought food at the market and grilled our own dinner. Unfortunately, the power went out… Continue reading »

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Apr
10

Moriones Festival, Marinduque

Holy Week and Easter is one of my favorite times in the Catholic Church’s liturgical calendar. From traditions like washing the feet of 12 parishioners during the Holy Thursday Mass, to walking the Stations of the Cross, to the solemnity of the Good Friday service, there is something about the familiarity of the rituals, old… Continue reading »

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Feb
06

Sunset Surfers

This weekend I went to San Juan for an international surfing competition and of course to just chill out on the beach. Some of my local surfer friends from San Juan were competing in the competition. Unfortunately I didn’t get pictures of the actual competition but I was able to get some good shots of… Continue reading »

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Jun
08

Travel Adventures – Mr. G

There’s a running joke in our family that one of us girls will go to Italy and meet a handsome Italian man named Sven. So when my sister and I went to Italy one summer, we were on the lookout for Sven…

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May
02

Travel Adventures – The Quiet Beauty of Assisi

We boarded the train for Assisi, riding through the Tuscany countryside. Somehow we ended up getting off at the wrong town, met an old Italian grandma at the station who tried to invite us to her house for coffee, got back on the train, and finally arrived in the right town…

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Apr
27

Travel Adventures – Walking (Climbing) The Great Wall

Climbing The Great Wall is probably one of the coolest things I’ve done in my life. In the movies it always looks like it is just a nice smooth walkway that lasts for miles and miles. That is NOT true. The Great Wall has steps. LOTS of steps…

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Apr
27

Travel Adventures – Cantonese Words & Pink Umbrellas

So recently I was inspired to write about some of my travel adventures. And since I have some free time now (no more school!) I thought I’d write a few posts about some fun travel stories. This one is from Hong Kong and Beijing.

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