Month: January 2024

5D4N summer trip itinerary to South Korea for P30,000 ($600)

Are you a die hard K-pop fan? Do you love Korean make up or skin care products? If yes, you might have plans to visit Korea but kinda hesitant because you’re thinking that it is too expensive!

Korea probably seems intimidating to go in terms of cost but do not let that stop you from going to your dream destination! Read on to see how I managed to travel to a place that requires us a visa – South Korea for less than P30,000 ($600)! BTW, it was my very first trip abroad!

Here is the story and costing me and my friend incurred:

Round trip ticket (P6000): One random day a year before our flight when my friend contacted me and asked me if I wanted book next year’s flight to South Korea and who can say no to a round-trip ticket amounting P6000 ($120)? The key is to patiently wait and look for the cheapest promo round-trip tickets or have a thoughtful friend who will book for you.

Accommodation for 5D4N stay for 2 (P 10,000/2 = 5000 each or $80): We got lucky here for finding this very affordable place to stay for 5 nights! Try looking from different accommodation sites. We tried several sites (Agoda, Airbnb, Booking) and they all gave us several selections of places to stay and we compared prices and terms of agreement on lodging. Make sure to eye for a place near to your itinerary or train stations. We ended up in a single room with two beds, air-conditioning unit, common restroom, free self-service laundry amenity, free breakfast and free wifi plus it is near the train station and places we planned to visit. Bonus point was they have English speaking and accommodating personnel.

Visa processing (P2,000 or $40 since SK requires our country for a visa): Entry to South Korea requires visa for Philippines residents. Prepare your application form, passport, ITR (if you do not have an ITR, you need a letter stating why you don’t have one), certificate of employment, bank certificate and bank statement. Make sure you have a reasonable amount of money in your bank for the duration of your travel (I only had P50,000 or $1000 in my passbook). We had an agency to process our visa.

Pocket money (P15,000 or $300): The pocket money I had was allocated for food, transportation, entrance fee and pasalubong. I exchanged my Peso bills at BPI to USD in the Philippines and then exchanged the USD to Korean Won in Korea. Don’t worry, there are several money changer kiosks in shopping districts (like Myeongdong) in case you run out of cash. I also had to pay for transportation from my house to NAIA and travel tax with a total of P2,000.

Transportation (round-trip): P6,000

Accommodation for 5D4N: P10,000/2pax = P5,000 each

Pocket money: P15,000

Others (visa, travel tax, transportation): P4000

Itinerary:

Day 0

5:10PM (ETD) – 10:40PM (ETA) : NAIA to Incheon Airport

11:30 – 12:44AM – immigration stuff duties

12:45 – 1:15AM – strolled around Incheon airport, ate midnight snack, bought T-money card and SIM card for internet

Day 1

1:16 – 4:50AM – waiting/sleeping time

5:25 – 6:30AM – Incheon airport to Seoul station

6:31 – 8:00AM – Strolled around Seoul Station

8:00 – 10:00AM – Bfast, Myeongdong Cathedral

10:00 – 1:00PM –  Myeongdong and Hoehyon (lunch + makeup and beauty products shopping)

1:20 – 2:20PM – Seoul Station to Jongno

2:30 – 7:00PM – Rest time

7:30 – 9:40PM – Strolled around Jongno + dinner

10:00PM – Sleep time

Day 2

9:00 – 9:30AM – Guesthouse to Gyeongbokgung Palace

10:00 – 3:00PM – Gyeongbokgung Palace, Bukchon Hanok Village and Changdeokgung Palace + lunch

3::30PM – 4:00PM – Gyeongbokgung Palace to Dongdaenum History and Culture Park

4:10PM – 9:00PM – Gwangjang market and Dongdaenum Park + dinner

10:00PM – Sleep time

Day 3

9:30 – 11:00AM – Travel time from our guesthouse to Gapyeong station

11:20 – 3:00PM – Nami Island + lunch

3:30 – 6:30PM – Garden of the morning calm

7:00PM – 9:00 PM – Dinner + travel back to the house

10:00PM – Sleep time

Day 4

10:00 – 10:45 AM – Guesthouse to Seoul Grand Park

11:00 – 1:00 PM – Seoul Grand Park and Rose Garden+ lunch

1:20 – 2:20 PM – Seoul Grand Park to Yeoido Park

2:30 – 5:00 PM – Yeoido Park and KBS

5:00 – 7:00 PM – Yeoido Park Station to  N Seoul Tower

7:01 – 9:30 PM – N Seoul Tower, Observatory, Hello Kitty store + dinner

9:31 – 10:30 PM – Going back to guesthouse

11:00 PM – sleep time

Day 5

10:30 – 11:00 AM – Guesthouse to Ihwa-dong mural village

11:10 – 6:00 PM – lunch + Insadong, Myeongdong, Jongmyo, Lotte World, Muji

6:00 – 7:30 PM- Went back to guesthouse to leave the pasalubong + freshen-up

7:30 – 8:00 PM – Guesthouse to Myeongdong

8:00 – 10:30 PM – Myeongdong night market

10:30 – 11:00 PM – Myeongdong to guesthouse

11:30 PM – sleep time

Day 6

9:30 – 10:00 AM – Guesthouse to Itaewon

10:00 – 11:00 AM – Around Itaewon

11:30 – 4:30 PM – Seoul, Gwangja, Myeongdong

4:40 – 5:10 PM – Going back to guesthouse

5:10 – 7:00 PM – Prep to go to Incheon airport

7:30 – 8:30 PM – dinner

9:00 – 11:30 PM – Guesthouse to Incheon airport

Day 7

3:05 – 6:05 AM – Incheon airport to NAIA

Up to this point where I have been to quite several places out of the Philippines, this was still the best travel I did! I think it was because of the cheap cost of the overall trip, my first travel out of the country, with one travel-responsible friend, the opportunity to go to an old palace I have seen from my favorite K drama (I am a big fan of historical places), good food and accommodation. It was my first time travel abroad and everything felt perfect!

The cheating incident: what friends can do?

In the recent events on cheating incidences I’ve been seeing from celebrities, it reminded me of the time when someone was caught cheating not just once but several times.

It has been a big question mark for me from that moment until now why people cheat. I even Googled reasons why cheaters cheat. Some answers that I found were between insecurities and no contentment of cheaters. But I guess the answer would be cheating will never be justifiable by any means.

Luckily, it was not me who got cheated on. Not happily though because it was a friend that was very dear and close to my heart.

That relationship lasted for 5 years. The cheating happened every year. At first, as a friend you will advise them gently of what they can do, but as years passed by with the same cheating happening, you will get tired of your stubborn friend especially if you are someone who has never been in that kind of relationship and does not fully understand the why in there.

It was easy for me as an immature friend to tell my friend how stupid and dumb she was for accepting that guy each time he knocks on the door asking for forgiveness, wanting her back and telling her that he won’t do it again after concrete evidences of the cheating incidences. It repeated several times that I lost count and got tired of repeating my advise to her – which was a mistake from an immature friend.

Then, on their fifth year, I was very happy but still doubtful when she called it quits because it happened several times before. She would tell me that she would break up with him but then after a week they will get back together. It became a broken record that keeps happening over and over again until that point. But, on that fifth year, she broke up with him and never accepted him ever again despite his pleas and promises.

I was so proud of her. She was strong. But, that made a huge impact on how she sees her worth now not only in love but also in other aspects of life like career and friends. It was sad but still a beautiful beginning. She may start again but at least she did not end up spending the rest of her life dealing with the pain from an unfaithful partner.

As a friend, the least that you can do is to not get tired of telling your friend about their worth. In my experience, people in a relationship stay in the relationship despite unfaithfulness because they have hopes that things may change for the better because of love. It may or it may not. Some would argue that cheaters will always be cheaters and I hate to admit it but I agree with them. There may be rare occasions that they will change but it is as rare as the number of people going to the moon. If you know your friend is in a relationship with a cheater, be patient with your friend and give your well-thought advise without making her feel that she is being judged. Do your best to not let them get trapped with an unfaithful partner for the rest of their lives. As a friend, our role should be to shed some light that will let them see what is their worth and hope that in the end that friend will decide for the best.

24 Things we take for granted that we need to appreciate this 2024

If you are reading this, then it is one of the things that we are taking for granted and have to appreciate this year. We often take for granted simple things in our lives because we get to experience them regularly.

But, think again of the world now. The wars and the poverty around.

Not everyone is lucky to experience the things that look simple and easy to us that we often take for granted.

Here are the 24 things I have been realizing that I am taking for granted but I have to start being grateful and appreciative:

1. Bed that gives you a good night’s sleep

2. A roof that protects your from the sun or rain

3. Food that fills your growling stomach

4. Water that you can drink safely, use for shower and washing the dishes

5. Job that pays your bills

6. Friend that always nag you

7. Table that allows you to eat, write or work

8. Trees that provide you shade

9. Clothes that give you warmth

10. Light that brightens your day and way

11. Vehicle that moves you from one point to another

12. Shoes that protects your feet

13. Your privilege to travel that makes you see the world in a different lens

14. Your faith that keeps you believing

15. Your strength that shows you your limitless abilities

16. Family that loves you

17. Mentor that guides you

18. Book that widen your perspective

19. Small wins that you made

20. Exercise that builds a stronger body

21. Chirping birds around that gives free concert

22. Parcel that you ordered and arrived on time

23. Technology that makes life easier

24. Yourself

Unsolicited thoughts on the PhP 299 engagement ring: What went wrong?

Would it be fine if your long-term partner gave you a PhP299 ($5) engagement ring?

Some may be ok with that but others won’t. And, both cases are valid.

But, is that really a question to answer there?

When I first heard it from a friend I genuinely didn’t know that it was going viral. (Context on the viral post: this anonymous girl posted about the engagement ring that cost PhP299 ($5) her 8-year bf gave her. She was disappointed and felt like the bf didn’t make an effort to show her worth because of the price of the ring but hesitant to confront him about her feelings).

Whether this is a true story or not, I wanted to give my unsolicited thoughts here. Not because I am an expert but because…why not. LOL.

What went wrong there?

Lack of communication.

If after 8 years of being together you are still not comfortable to share your feelings or thoughts to your partner, then you should reassess if you are with your “person”.

Having issues with your partner is a part of the relationship journey. If your main goal is to be with this person for the rest of your life, you have to be transparent to him/her especially with stuff related to your relationship. That person should be your confidant and safe place.

Life has its difficult parts already and you and your partner should make it less difficult by talking about it with respect.

5 Things you can do in Los Baños, Laguna for a day

Los Baños is one of the municipalities in the province of Laguna in the Philippines. It is surrounded by mountains and there’s a lot of hot springs around.

If you have a whole day or two the 5 things below are possible to do:

1. Visit the University of the Philippines-Los Baños campus

It is a beautiful campus to visit. The buildings are surrounded by trees and other plants. During the regular semester you will see a lot of students walking around. You can get some dairy products close to the Baker Hall. Attend a mass at St. Therese Parish Church or walk around the Baker grounds and see the Carillon tower. If you were there during Valentine’s week, you can attend the yearly Feb fair at night!

2. Trek Mt. Makiling

A day won’t allow you trek a lot. But, if you are done with your campus tour early you can ride a jeepney that is bound to the mountains. Not all jeepneys drive there, some will put a sign that says FORESTRY but most of the time you will have to ask the driver by using your hand and pointing your index finger upwards like signaling #1 and confirm to the driver if they are going there. You can stop by close to the college of forestry library and walk around, see large trees, smell the forest, and hear the birds and cicadas.

3. Try the buko (young coconut) pie and espasol

Los Baños is known for its buko pie and espasol. I personally like Lety’s and Original buko pie. You will have to be early in their stalls as they sell out pretty fast and the line is usually long. You can also try the cassave cake if you are too lucky and the pie sold out before your turn. You can get them for yourself or as pasalubong to your loved ones.

4. Do street food crawling

Being a kind of suburban town, this place is busy with so many people especially during rush hour. With that, you can expect a lot of street food around and do the street food crawling. You can try grilled food like chicken intestine and feet, or fried calamari or proventiculus, or banana cue/camote cue. You can also spot bibingka and puto bungbong in the streets even during the regular months of the year.

5. Dip in a hot spring.

There are public hot springs you can spot that requires you to pay a small fee. If you had a tiring day, this hot springs will help your body relax.

That ONE decision that changed my LIFE – I jumped off the cliff without a parachute

I was not born from a rich family nor a jobless set of parents.

But, I grew up in a neighborhood surrounded by poverty. When I was a kid I still ate 3 times a week and even attended a private school. I did not know poverty back then. Then, my family hit rock bottom in terms of finances just before my 11th birthday.

I experienced poverty. I had to walk an hour to go to school. I could not afford the food my classmates buy in the cafeteria. I mostly had thrifted or hand-me-down stuff. We could not afford to get our house fixed – and in a country that gets typhoons with heavy rains, every year we would have dripping water inside our house, get anxiety because the typhoon may destroy our house or we would have to evacuate somewhere because of flood.

And then I wrote in my journal: I wanted to own a new house for my family that is at least not situated in a flood-prone area. A goal I thought I could get with a simple job after college.

I studied because admittedly I believed the classic saying that it will give you good fortune.

I worked while I was studying so I can have extra money to help my family’s finances. But, we were still struggling a lot. Always anxious whenever a family member got sick.

If you grew up in a place surrounded by extreme poverty, your mindset will be simple. You will just want to eat in a day and not get sick. My goal was to finish school and get a job. Because my thinking was we struggled and survived long enough so why do I have to raise the bar and struggle for more? I did not dream big back then. I became scared of making a mistake because I could not afford to lose my job.

I graduated. I got a job enough to pay the bills and help my parents. But I grew up scared of going out of my comfort zone and make mistakes because I could not afford to not have a job even for a week especially that we pay a lot of medical bills every week and my parents stopped working already! I feel like at that point I was contented being able to help in the bills and provide our basic needs.

Then, my contract in my job was about to end. There was an internship offer abroad but no assurance of me having a job after 8 months there nor in the Philippines. It was both scary and exciting because for the longest time a tiny speck of dust like me would be able to experience the vastness of the universe.

That time I had to make a decision – to jump off the cliff without a parachute. It was a move without any back up plan nor someone to pick me up if I get to crash myself into pieces. I had zero savings and an ounce of optimism in my heart.

But, that jump was the decision that CHANGED MY LIFE drastically. It gave me an opportunity that I never thought I could possibly have. It was not easy though. I still need to work hard on myself to have a better mindset and get things done very well.

Although I am not rich yet, I can say that I am now in a better place as well as my family.

I am debt free. I have my own car. I can buy food I crave. I have stuff that I bought brand new. Although I do not own a house, my apartment is located in a place that is not flood prone and has no dripping roof and can thrive strong winds. I am experiencing a new life I never imagined in my wildest dreams possible.

I still have a long way but I am confident now that all the decisions I made brought me to where I am now ,and it is truly fascinating to see the growth I have made and I will make in the future.

Going out of our comfort zone is never easy but it will be worth it in the long run.

Jobs for agriculture graduates in the Philippines

Are you a new Agriculture graduate in the Philippines? Or, graduated years ago and trying to be in an agriculture-related job?

Here are places you can apply in if you have a degree in agriculture:


1. Agriculturist in the government office

Government offices like Department of Agriculture or Philippine Coconut Authority or Bureau of Plant Industry are usually offering contract or permanent positions. They post the job offerings with the description that your CV may fit in. Do not get your hopes high too much with permanent positions though especially if it will be your first time applying in that deparment.

2. Agriculturist in the industry

As in government offices, specific industries have specific needs. The good thing in the industry is their benefits especially the health benefit if they have one. The places you can try would be big industries like Bayer, Pioneer, San Miguel, Nestle or Unilever. Or start-up and small agriculture companies.

3. Agriculturist in the academia

Universities offering Agriculture degrees or other STEM related programs usually have research projects that hire people with agriculture skills. You can be a technician, researcher, instructor or field worker or even go back as a graduate student. Depending on your specialty and what you want to do, academia is also a flexible place to work at as an agriculturist.

4. Agriculturist with a business

If you are a business kind of person, why not start your own? You can have your own agriculture supply shop. Or a soil-less garden and sell your produce. Or have a farm for crops or livestock with the goal of making it into a business. You can have an 8-5 job and a business as well. I did that. It was not easy but I had fun!

4 places I want to experience the 4 seasons

I used to live in a country that has wet and dry season all year round. And, because of that I wanted to see the changes from winter to fall.

Poof! Dreams do come true! I made it! I’ve been seeing winter, spring, summer and fall for the last 3 years in the US, and I haven’t gotten tired of them.

However, I still wanna see these seasons in a different light.

The four places below are where I wanted to see each one of them aside from US.

1. Winter – somewhere in Europe (Either Switzerland or Iceland. I wanna see a Christmas village and Aurora borealis.)

2. Spring – somewhere in Japan (Osaka for sure. The peak of the blossoms and the castles and temples.)

3. Summer – somewhere in South America (Either Brazil or Argentina. To see the rainforest or Andes range!)

4. Fall – somewhere in Canada (Maybe Alberta? I wanna try their maple syrup!)

12 books for 12 months of 2024

They say don’t judge a book by its cover but I still did. Here are 12 books that I am planning to read each month based on some bookstagram accounts and friends’ recommendation. I based the selection by its cover. LOL.

January: The Secret History by Donna Tart

February: What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher

March: Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

April: Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

May: The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E. Schwab

June: What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

July: A Stitch in Time by Amanda James

August: Loving Kindness by Sharon Salzberg

September: Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang

October: Little Women by Louisa M. Alcott

November: The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

December: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel A. van der Kolk

Here’s an online spreadsheet to track your reading goals (email me if you want access to this for free!): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PM67Jq_plNEtuqeVEEcyYn7IEckPtRzYt1VaiLngYfY/edit#gid=0