Parrot's Peak, Mt. Pico de Loro [via iPhone]

Cagayan de Oro (part 2- RAFTING)

DAY 3- Extreme-level White River Rafting
(read part 1 here)

Cagayan de Oro (part 1)

A few of my high school batchmates and I decided to book tickets to Cagayan de Oro after Sinulog since my college buddies Ayen & Steph convinced us to visit while they were guests at my house. I've been to CDO before with the girls from PSID (see previous posts here and here) and I had loads of fun, so I was so excited to travel again with my childhood friends (most of us have been classmates from nursery til high school!). 

Our group had 3 girls and 9 boys, plus Ayen and Steph (who flew in from Manila just for us!)

I arrived with Kaine, Jed and Javy first and our flight was at 4AM. River trekking was supposed to be the first thing on our agenda, but we had to cancel it since the rain was so strong that morning. We even thought a storm was coming! Thankfully the weather got better at around 11. 

We waited for more people and had lunch at Candy's at the new Centrio/Ayala mall. 

Cebu/Sinulog 2013 photo diary

Kryz's birthday at the very chic Henry Hotel (formerly known as the House of Cebu)

Cebu (Nov. 2-3)

Photo diary- first half of October

My new DOOMED crystal skull shot glasses are pretty awesome and I regret purchasing only three. I've been hosting a lot of those chill nights at my flat and had to go through a lot of disposable cups for shots. Right now my place isn't earthquake-proof because of the accumulating glassware at my minibar. 

I got those shot glasses from this site but you can purchase them on eBay or Amazon as well. 

BTS- Mia Arcenas shoot

Boracay 2012

The purpose of this trip's stated on my previous post...

the Shangri-La

livetattoo.ph launch in Boracay

I was invited by Globe Tattoo along with other Filipino bloggers to the launching of the LiveTattoo.ph site at Boracay. 

I knew my parents weren't going to allow me to travel with people they didn't know so I told them the week before the trip just so they couldn't say no, with the tickets and hotel reservations all paid for and ready. Thankfully they didn't get angry and they even gave me the numbers of important people on the island just so I could contact them in case I got into trouble (haha). I guess they figured I was getting really old & they had to start allowing me to go out of town without chaperones. Yes, I am too sheltered like that. 

I saw a couple of friends, made new friends and finally experienced the night life in Boracay. My previous visits weren't centered around partying since it was mostly with the family and I didn't really get into that until college. 

So glad I got to party and visit the island again this year, all thanks to Globe Tattoo. 

❧

First we had dinner at Epic...

Doyzkie of iluvcebu.com

with Ivy of WhenInManila & Cheyser

Baguio photo diary

Cebu photo diary (0226-0307)

My Beauty and Beyond godmother, health/fitness freak & kindred spirit, Jen. 

chill out

Hong Kong photodiary

We stayed at the Kowloon Shangri-la hotel

Touristy

The day after we arrived from Camiguin, we drove to Bukidnon to Dahilayan Adventure Park.

white island

photos from my recent trip to Cagayan de Oro and Camiguin island

Iceland and Morocco in the eyes of Vito Selma

My very talented friend and "kuya" Vito Selma was kind enough to send me his photographs from Iceland and Morocco a few nights ago. I envy this guy's life right now (who wouldn't?!) since he gets to travel all over the world, study Industrial Design for free and work under a huge firm in Italy. He deserves all of that, of course... He's my best friend Izabelli's brother and I can definitely say that he's one of those really hardworking Filipino designers who is just overflowing with talent and love for our country. He's one of my idols, really. His photographs inspired me to pick up a camera at a young age, and being able to see their factory while I was in high school sort of convinced me to really dive into the world of design. Even if he didn't finish Interior Design to focus on making furniture, that hasn't stopped him from creating amazing displays during expositions (and never fails to bag awards at each one he joins).

I think he took down his blog a long time ago, so he continues to post these type of beautiful photos only on his Facebook page. You can go to his viewbook or check out his design portfolio instead.

So here are some of his photos. I'd share with you the rest from his European adventures but I tell ya, there's just too many and they're all so pretty! He was too lazy to put a watermark on his photos that night so he told me to just fix them for my site. Chose Morocco and Iceland from his collection because of the scenery and the details in the interiors. Enjoy!!!

♥♥♥

ICELAND

Vito met Bjork's sister through his friend Sonja, so he got to meet their parents (and he just HAD TO write that on my Facebook wall to piss me off, jeeeez hahaha). He says Icelandic people are the most fashionable people you'll ever meet. I think this is easy to believe since I remember Yvan Rodic saying that every kid there has a band and dresses impeccably. It's like they go out everyday looking like they've hired a brilliant stylist to dress them. Vito said that in Iceland they don't follow trends and they're just really creative. Even 5-year-olds are fashionable! I'm more pressured to really prepare my wardrobe before visiting! I think Bjork will be there when that time comes (she was in New York when Vito visited their house, HA HA HA!!!).

I really wanted to cry when I saw this photo! Vito said that you could spot 3-5 rainbows a day at this time of the year!

People keep asking him if he sends his photos to National Geographic but all he says is that those guys are PROs... And Vito, you're not?! Jeeeez :))

Quirky shoes from KRON, one of the most expensive boutiques where Vito's friend works. LOVE IT.

Iceland only has a population of 300,000+. If I were to live there, my name would be Raleene Ralphsdottir and Issa/Izabelli would be Isabella Moisesdottir. We'd have to use our father's first name then dottir after it. HAHAHA! My brother would be named Ralph Ralphsson (he's Ralph Jr.).

♥♥♥

MOROCCO

I decided to share these photos on my blog the moment the first photo below was posted on Facebook. These were taken inside a Moroccan riad, one of the small apartments converted into a hotel by its previous owners. I was amazed at how detailed everything looked and how nicely each tile was placed. The smaller details are hand-painted. According to Vito, there's really nothing else to do there so their interiors look AMAZING and they have all the time to put such details on everything. He's also visiting during the hottest time of the year. He said Morocco was a place for travelers, not tourists. Girls have to be more careful as well... One of his friends kept being bugged and a man wanted to buy her for 10 camels. Oh my gosh! :))

The door on the left is the only thing you could see from the outside. "Never judge a house by its door."

From Vito's window

And here's just one of those enviable status messages he posts on his Facebook (mind you, he posts one or two each month!):

"DREAM COME TRUE. working with a documentary filmmaker, sustainable designer and consultant for a new program show for National Geographic. Empowering people with sustainable solutions in the Philippines and the rest of the world."

GAAAH. Make us proud, Vito!!! Thank you for sending me these awesome pictures!

♥