travel and food

These two would always be in conjunction with each other if you were to ask me what heaven on earth should be like.

I love food – although it might not be too obvious if you were to see my tiny frame (laughs out loud). However, I’d like to take that as an advantage, knowing that I can devour (sorry for the word) any food that I like. Traveling is also another passion of mine. As a kid, I always listed places all over the world that I wanted to visit. Beyond seeing new places or world class attractions, it is experiencing new cultures, meeting new people, and the act of traveling itself that entice me. Hence, road trips always excite me and have been on several of them as a child.

That is why I am crazy over Food Network’s “Giada’s Weekend Getaways“. I’ve always loved Giada de Laurentiis’ Everday Italian but this is like Super Bowl for travel and food shows. Call it voyeurism if you like, I like that the show satisfies my dream – a day in a foreign country and enjoying local delicacies. Indeed, Giada hit the spot: “One of the best ways to get to know a city is through its food.“

Watch the video below for Giada’s weekend getaway in Santa Barbara, California:

wanderlust

Most people hate geography, which I find hard to discern why. It is one of the geekiest things about me that only a few people know about.

As a kid, I always kept a world map. Then, I would study different countries from certain continents. After recognizing each country, I would memorize their capital cities, which is indicated by a star (or they usually come in bold letters). And while my expertise in geography has waned as I grew up, I could still remember some of them. Lately, this urge to learn more about cities from other countries is fueled by my dream to travel.

Not many people might be aware of this but I know every capital city for all of the US’ 50 states. Hence, I also wanted to visit every single state in the US. I am serious about this but will be something worth investing on. It amazes me how each state offers a unique experience each time. Here are a few things I look forward to in visiting these states:

1. The rich history of the South – visiting states like Alabama, Mississippi, or Louisiana. I’d like to listen to some jazz music or attend at least one Mardi Gras celebration before I die.

2. Beauty of natural formation in the Southwest – canyon formations in California and Arizona, and the huge desserts in Nebraska, Utah, or Nevada.

3. Roadtrip – It should be fun to drive around Florida and experience its famed Everglades National Park and the world-class Daytona Beach.

4. And who says you can’t have fun with snow? Over at Alaska, I might be able to learn some new snow skiing skills.

Some rainy nights, I would sit on my bed and watch the world through the window, especially when a slight rain is pouring. I always dream I was in Paris, walking in cobbled stone paths. Or in Amsterdam, picking out my favorite white tulips on a spring day. Or better yet, bungee jumping in New Zealand.

Just the other night, I was flipping through magazines on a bookshop and I saw this log cabin house and I dreamt of a winter vacation on the American Midwest, Aspen perhaps. Meanwhile, another shown a bungalow somewhere in Hawaii, with a terrace overlooking the blue-green ocean. I instantly thought of having breakfast there while sipping a cup of coffee.

Diving Getaway!

I’ve been wanting to go on vacation in a long time now. The last time I went on one was way back in May – that is a good 4 months from now. With a few days left on my vacation leave credits, I wanted to reserve that for a special occasion. These past few months, I feel like I have been an extreme workaholic, burrowing myself into work and just taking whatever free time I got to spend with Ed. So, I was extremely glad that we finally got the chance to do our own mini pool getaway for the 21st monthsary celebration. However, we were both planning to do something not so grandiose but extreme for our second anniversary.

While strolling at the mall last night, we saw this exhibit that features activities which was exactly what me and Ed had in mind. When they went to Kaputian Island last February, he got the chance to do some snorkeling – something of which I envied so much because we both wanted to do that together (see attached photo of Ed while snorkeling). During the same exhibit, we got to look through some exciting activities that we could do. Until we learned about this diving tour and we both got so excited that we were already planning on a perfect date to do that. It is quite costly but that would be nothing compared to the experience and the time we could both spend together (awwww). I am already thinking about the underwater pics that we’ll be getting. We were contemplating on that island tour adventure as well.

However, we thought about doing this with some of our friends. It should be real exciting since we planned on going on a vacation anyway! We’ve scheduled this up for mid-October. So guys, are you up for it?

(ghost)writer’s lament

I’ve been having this issue for a while. It never totally vanished because I never had the chance to confront it.

My job as a content writer is a pleasant idea for someone like me who is naturally inclined to writing. Indeed, it is totally different from creative writing wherein I had to create my own characters, scenarios, and even create my own world. On the other hand, the writing that I do now for my job is an entirely new venture. I got to write about topics that I previously had no idea about. I have to say, despite the fact that they are mostly profit driven, they are fun to write at least.

However, seeing my own writings published on the Internet without my name on it is probably the toughest issue I HAD to deal with. So much for taking credit for other’s work, huh? I guess it’s really true what they say about people controlling the means having more power.

The fact that I had been doing this for almost a year, it still has not sink in. If I had to choose between both cases, plagiarism (I think) is much better. Because with the latter, I still have contention over my written work. But with this? What do I hold up against people who hold more power than I do? Dilemmas, dilemmas.

Looking at the bright side, this has fueled my desire to go back to creative writing. I have been inactive in that department for over a year now. So much for promises broken regarding the supposed revision of my thesis entries, I better get started on that. In fact, just recently I had the impulse to travel and hence if I did push through with that, I can probably write a travel essay.

I am already thinking about the long bus ride and the people I will meet there. Can’t wait!

wishful thinking

today, i got a new set of tasks from my client. he promised me before that i’d be writing something totally different, meaning it has nothing to do with playstation games whatsoever. sure thing, that made me excited.

when i arrived at the office today, i was curious to find out what that new task is. turns out, i’m going to write a sort of feature article of some of the major attraction cities in the US. one heck of a job right? i mean, i just returned from a brief vacation and having that short break only fueled my desire to have an even longer break, maybe out of town this time, who knows? and i here i am, writing about these famous tourist destinations and telling potential readers the best places to go in, say Beverly Hills or Miami, when I, myself, have never even been there yet. not only do i lack the means (right now, at least), but time is my biggest adversary as of the moment.

i guess i should quit procrastinating and return to writing my articles. cause then, i will not only be able to have a glimpse of places i’ve never been to, but also visit those that are so lovely and pristine, they existed only through the human process called imagination.