Musings of a human trapped in the Philippines
Thursday to Sunday
February 12 to 15, 2026
I spent this year’s first vacation leaves on a trip to the southern part of the country. Cagayan de Oro was our port of entry, but most of our time was spent in the barangay of Dahilayan and on the island of Camiguin. Read on to find out how thr trip went.
Continue reading “Gala: Cagayan de Oro and Camiguin 2026 Trip Report”
Saturday to Thursday
December 27, 2025 to January 1, 2026
Since reaching retiring age, Mama has wanted to spend time traveling with her kids, but our schedules never seemed to line up. This year, however, the New Year holidays were strategically placed to justify spending some time outside the country. This is the recap for our annual family trip, this time to Singapore, Melaka and Kuala Lumpur.
Continue reading “Gala: Singapore, Melaka, Kuala Lumpur 2025 Trip Report”
Another year is ending and that means it’s time for my annual gaming audit. The Steam Deck has made it very convenient to fit a gaming session into my life in between my other endeavors like travel and fitness. Here’s a rundown of all the games I completed in 2025 as well as a quick review and ranking of each.
Continue reading “Laro: 2025 Video Game Round-up”
Friday to Tuesday
November 21 to 25, 2025
The popular saying goes that “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” There must be a lot of truth to this because bite by bite, Taipei is a city that has succeeded in capturing my heart. Here is the travelog for my trip to Formosa’s capital.
Continue reading “Gala: Taipei 2025 Travel Log”
Friday to Monday
September 19 to 22, 2025
Iloilo is celebrated online as a very romantic city, exhibiting traits of both rapid urbanization and deep cultural tradition. But I only know it as the place my brother studied high school in. In the midst of a wild rainy season, we were able to spend a few days exploring parts of the city and see what it has to offer. This is my trip report.
Continue reading “Gala: Iloilo 2025 Travel Log”
Friday to Monday
August 22 to 25, 2025
There are some places that stay on your mind far after visiting them. Kota Kinabalu is one such location. Not only is the Mee Goreng still a constant craving, but we missed the entire experience of walking around the city. Add to that the activities and places we have yet to see and do. Therefore, a return is almost pre-destined.
Our goal was to try new things as well as revisit everything we loved in Sabah’s capital city. Here is the daily log of this trip.
Continue reading “Gala: Kota Kinabalu 2025 Travel Log”
Wednesday to Sunday
July 23 to 27, 2025
While Fukuoka remains my favorite port in Japan, I had some business in Tokyo scheduled this time. Unfortunately, things didn’t go according to plan. But I am not one to waste a trip to Japan. So while it’s a little different from what I originally wanted it to be, here’s my Tokyo (plus Yokohama and Kamakura) trip report.
Continue reading “Gala: Tokyo 2025 Travel Log”
Whenever I find something to hyper-fixate on, it doesn’t end until I have something tangible to hold in my hands. So when my interest in fountain pens reached its peak, I knew buying one was the only way to satisfy my curiosity. That’s how I ended up with a Pilot Kakuno.
Continue reading “Sulat: The Pilot Kakuno, my first fountain pen”