-
How I got stuck in Tulum, Mexico and turned it into a working holiday
After working abroad professionally for 11 years, the last thing I imagined doing at 33 was a working holiday on the Mexican Caribbean for four months Asia When I left Hong Kong for New York on December 15, 2021, I had no clear plan in mind. All I knew was, I hadn’t seen my family…
-
How to get an e-visa to Argentina using the new AVE system (Philippine passport)
DISCLAIMER: Please read the entire blog before asking me any questions! Last February (2019), the Argentine government announced the inclusion of the Philippines in Argentina’s AVE (Autorizacion Electronica de Viajes) system. The system allows Filipino nationals with a valid non-immigrant B2 United States visa to apply for their Argentine visa through the website of the…
-
REVIEW: Easy Manhattan hike at Inwood Hill Park
You don’t need to get out of Manhattan to get into nature. I figured just as much on my second month in New York, fresh off the boat from the hiking paradise that is Hong Kong… Difficulty: Easy Duration: 2-3 hours Distance: Depends which trail you choose (details below!) Alone in New York for the…
-
Turning 30 in New York City
Originally published on September 25, 2018 on the Atlas Corps Blog Yesterday, I turned 30 in New York City. It was a joke I had made to my father a couple of weeks ago, which made him laugh in spite of himself: “While all my friends are getting married and having kids, I’m going to move…
-
Ishigaki is Japan’s best-kept ‘sun, sand and surf’ secret
If you haven’t heard of Ishigaki before, neither had we – until the day we impulsively bought tickets to that southernmost of Japanese islands. Typing ‘Everywhere’ on Skyscanner had yielded direct flights from Hong Kong to an unknown Japanese-sounding destination: Ishigaki. “Japan is always a good idea,” we thought, and hit ‘PAY’. These situations can…
-
The Ultimate Guide to Cebu for Travellers, written by a Filipino
Cebu is a gateway to some of Asia’s greatest tropical adventures Manila’s southern sister is nothing like her. Cebu is older, prettier and more relaxed. She doesn’t even speak the same language. Manila’s tongue is that of the northern Tagalog minority – the country’s official language despite having only 17 million native speakers. Cebuano, on…
-
The Future is Female: Hong Kong’s Gender Imbalance
The controversial feminist slogan takes on a literal meaning in Hong Kong where the ratio of men to women in continues to favour the latter in numbers that have been alarming population health experts Women all over the world love to complain about the dating scene in their city, but if you’ve ever been a single…
-
Journeying through Jordan’s Lost Cities: Petra and the wadi
The first draft of my story on Jordan as published by Gafencu Long before the first Muslim dynasty arrived in Jordan, ancient civilizations built majestic cities in its dramatic terrain – from the Greco-Roman Decapolis in the north to Petra’s Nabatean kingdom of sandstone in the south When you begin the winding path through the…
-
A Quick Guide to Cusco, Machu Picchu and beyond
Originally published as ‘Into the Inca Empire‘ on Gafencu’s September 2017 Issue Machu Picchu may have been the crowning glory of the Incan Empire, but discovering it was just the start: follow the Inca trails that lead out of it, and you will uncover countless archaeological splendours beyond, scattered over the Peruvian Andes Make sure…
-
Tel Aviv Diaries: Alone in Israel
Originally published as ‘Seeking the Promised Land’ on Cosmopolitan Philippines August 2017 Israel: Birthplace of Jesus, Wonder Woman, and Natalie Portman. The author goes on an adventure that stands out as the most intensely unique of her life — transcending South America and Europe. As the epicenter of the world’s oldest monotheistic religions, we suppose Israel has had…
Morena Travels
Travel & Personal Essays by Julienne C. Raboca
Morena Travels 