In a separate post, we named Siquijor as one of the top 10 beach destinations in the Philippines. While Salagdoong Beach in the town of Maria is a strong contender, it is not as long as the beaches in the town of San Juan. The latter is not only significant …
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“Laci” is synonymous to heritage. Inferring from the sheer size of its convent to the remarkable interior architecture of its church, I could tell that this place must have been one hotbed of religious activity. As it turned out, the Lazi convent was the retreat center, in the late 19th …
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Thailand gets all the hype as one of the world’s glitziest beach mecca, but what does not get as much exposure, at least outside the birding community, is that it is the avian lovers’ paradise for its staggering diversity of winged creatures big and small, bland and colorful. Its more …
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Maria is a common Spanish name, and it is also a name of a town in Siquijor, a province deeply devout in the Catholic faith. Maria, the town, is famous for a delectable beach and (eerie) Catholic (night-walking) image of Santa Rita. To get to Maria, you can take a …
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Summer in the Philippines was achingly short this year, with the monsoons roaring in as early as the latter half of May (which they sometimes do as late as the latter half of June). When it’s raining for days on end, there’s really not much to do except stay indoors …
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In Filipino folk culture, if you want someone to fall in love with you, or if you want to cause someone harm to avenge an offense, you go to a sorcerer who brews a potion to your desired effects. (Or, if you want to put live fish to sleep so …
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Volcanic eruptions are both a spectacle and a terrifying sight to behold (being in the shadow of Mount Kanla-on and having seen it throw tantrums thrice), a reminder that beneath the placid surface we call earth lies a heaving, gurgling river of molten iron that could wipe out everything we …
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