Dubai

Reuniting with friends whom you haven’t seen for a long time is always a great time. When I found out that some of my high school and college friends are in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, I cleared one of my weekends to travel and explore the city with them. But two days were not enough.

Burj Al Arab

Dunes

I really wanted to see the sand dunes up close, so I booked a Desert Safari tour in Abu Dhabi. This is also an exciting way to celebrate my birthday. The tour includes sand bashing, camel riding, sunset watching, belly dancing viewing, and BBQ dinner. The first activity, and my favorite, was the sand bashing. Inside of the 4x4, we braced ourselves for an adventure. I was seated at the front seat, so I can clearly see the slopes, and feel the turns. It felt like I am in a rollercoaster ride.

 

etched by the car tires

winds tamper the evidence

golden sands of time

/totomai

Airshow

Time zooms. Few months ago, I worry a lot being of jobless for almost a year. Soon, I will be two month old in two weeks time in my new company. So far it’s been great. I think I have adjusted well, the relatively cooler temperature helped a lot. Summer will be coming in a few months though and could very well test me and my allergies. I heard the temperature shoots up to 52 deg C and humidity reaches 100%.

the man-made rainbow

vanishes just like my dreams 

with or without rain 

 /totomai

Tokyo

Funny thing is — I worked in Tokyo for 10 years but I have never blogged about it. Well, I made a few Tokyo-related posts such as the Asakusa Samba Festival, Odaiba, and the Lolitas.

Boracay

When a friend asked me if I wanted to go to Boracay Island again, I immediately said yes. It’s been a decade since I first visited the island. The weather wasn’t perfect during our visit, it rained a lot and flooded streets welcomed us. But it did not spoil our quick escapade. Or there were no other options but to enjoy our stay.

photo by Julie

hums of splashing waves 

drown the sounds of the city 

temporary bliss

—
the waves of summer
crash and brush off a kingdom 
golden sandcastles 

/totomai

Bantayan

While waiting for the results of my job applications, I and a friend decided to explore Bantayan Island in Cebu to relax, and of course, to shoot. From my hometown, I had to travel by plane for 45 mins, by car (from the Mactan airport to Hagnaya port) for 3 hrs, and by ferry to the island for an hour. 

photo by Russel

lost in a blue world 

the waves of summer found me

a pearl for mother   

/totomai 

Chiba-koen

I have mentioned before in one of my posts that Chiba-koen is my favorite hanami (flower viewing) spot in Japan. Not much have been written about this park since most locals and tourists prefer Tokyo area during spring, but I and my friends usually visit this place every year.

pink cherry blossoms 

falling faster than my hair 

i am growing old 

~ totomai 

Firebush

Often listed as one of the most surreal places in the world, Hitachi Seaside Park is a must visit destination in Japan. The park is very popular in Ibaraki Prefecture just days before the peak of autumn. The red-colored firebushes / kochia flooding the park is a sight to behold especially to photo enthusiasts like me. One would want to stay there forever.

Owls

The Takeshita Dori in Harajuku, Tokyo is one the crowded streets in Japan especially on weekends. It is filled with fashion shops , souvenir stores, crepe stands and cafes. Talking about café, there is a newly opened one - Owl Cafe and Bar Owl Village right in the heart of this busy street. This doesn’t surprise me at all since theme cafes are very popular in the country.

pleas of once-caged owls

freed in a man-made forest 

plastic autumn leaves 

 /totomai

Auction

Five years ago, we went to the Tsukiji Fish Market to experience the tuna auction. However, we made a huge mistake of not checking the schedule. The auction was canceled because of the March 11 earthquake. The tuna auction is often listed as one of the must-do things in Tokyo. And with the news of the market’s possible relocation at the end of the year, we again decided to give it a go.

a giant tuna 

from wasabi-green sea to

a pool of soy sauce 

/totomai

Crystals

Aside from the matsuri, Japan has hundreds of exhibits too during summer. One of the exhibits that caught my interest was DMM Planets Arts by teamLab. It is currently being held in Odaiba from July 16 to August 31 2016 [10 am – 10 pm]. The event is located just a few steps away from the Diver City [Gundam]. It costs 2,000 yen and an additional of 1,500 yen for priority ticket, in case you are too lazy to be in queue for more than 30 minutes. You can get a 500 yen discount for online reservation.

crystals

songs of good luck charms

only heard by the superstitious

choir at the pawnshop

/totomai

Pond

Last year, I visited the Fuji Five Lakes. Between those lakes are villages turning to be tourist attractions as well. One of them is Oshino Hakkai (忍野八海). I haven't heard about it until a friend invited to join the bus tour.

Turquoise

Somewhere in Shizuoka Prefecture, there's a not-so-hidden place for some sort of adventure. A three-hour drive from Tokyo will lead you to a turquoise paradise. Or emerald. But perhaps, because of its accessibility, I haven't seen many tourists during our trip to Sumatakyo.

songs of cicadas

 outside my window, I dance

 chance of summer rain

/totomai

Mankai

After three years of attempting to capture the cherry blossoms aka sakura at Nakameguro, Tokyo, Japan, I finally did it last weekend. My previous experiences had been too early or too late. This year, it was the perfect timing and the elusive bloom missed its chance to escape from my camera.

Equator

What would you do if you have to spend 12 hours at the airport waiting for your next flight? That would be sad, uninteresting and boring. I arrived at Quito from Esmeraldas around 12 noon and my flight to Houston will be at midnight. Thinking that I may never have the chance to visit Ecuador again, I saw to it that I can visit the Equator. So days before my flight, I contacted Happy Gringo for a half-day tour. It was quite pricey but considering that it will be hassle-free and safe, I took the offer.

Quito

My first business trip for this year was in Ecuador, a 2-week assignment in one of the refineries in Esmeraldas. It was my first time in South America. Prior to my flight, I searched for information on what to do in Quito, the capital city of Ecuador and the point of disembarkation. I have few hours to go around the city before flying to Esmeraldas.

Majesty

Unlike last year, I did not attempt to chase the last sunset of 2015 and the first sunrise of 2016. I spent most of my time in bed. I met some of my friends though on January 2, strolled along Enoshima Beach and waited for the sun to set. It was freezing but, strangely, relaxing.

Fit

DISCLAIMER : I am no health expert. I am sharing below experience because of the positive results. It may be effective to your body or may not. At least, it is worth a try. And don’t be surprised by the accompanying photos, it is my tradition to be in my birthday suit every year. 

I reached 91 kgs last June. I ignored the gain thinking that it was a part of getting older. However, that particular mindset changed after I completed one of my supervisory works. I was assigned in the field and it was getting difficult for me to climb and inspect the vessels. I got tired so easily. Back in Japan, my office mates would always say ohayo goizamasu to my belly instead of saying it to my face. Talk about adding insult to injury. Friendly banters.

curl like a fetus

in a cold-hearted city

thirty eighth birthday

Aokigahara

Few months ago, I saw a documentary about Japan’s Aokigahara or Suicide Forest. It was an eye-opener and I have been thinking how a beautiful forest can be the final place of lost souls.

Aokigahara (青木ヶ原), also known as the Suicide Forest or Sea of Trees (樹海 Jukai), is a 35-square-kilometre (14 sq mi) forest that lies at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan. The forest contains a number of rocky, icy caverns, a few of which are popular tourist destinations. Aokigahara forest is dense, shutting out all but the natural sounds of the forest itself. more here

Masks

Our city, Bacolod City, is known as the City of Smiles. But behind these smiles are a couple of tragedies. To hide the pain brought by the tragic events, the city decided to change the dark atmosphere into a cheerful one, thus the birth of MassKara Festival. 

The festival first began in 1980 during a period of crisis. The province relied on sugar cane as its primary agricultural crop, and the price of sugar was at an all-time low due to the introduction of sugar substitutes like high fructose corn syrup in the United States . It was also a time of tragedy; on April 22 of that year, the inter-island vessel Don Juan carrying many Negrenses, including those belonging to prominent families in Bacolod City , collided with the tanker Tacloban City and sank. An estimated 700 lives were lost in the tragedy. more here