SEA History

The Beautiful, historic churches of Ilocandia

posted by: Prime Sarmiento I love to travel around Southeast Asia if only because I'm on a temple tripping kick. The region after all has a rich Hindu-Buddhist tradition. The kind that produces the magnificent Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Borobudur in Indonesia. You can't see these structures in my country. We debated the reasons behind...

I joined the Pahiyas festival and I got this kitschy souvenir photo

by Prime Sarmiento Thank goddess for entrepreneurs! In fact had not been for this photo booth that was set up by a group of twenty-something entrepreneurs, I won't have any souvenir photo of me enjoying this year's Pahiyas festival in Lucban,Quezon. I forgot to recharge both my digicam and video cam the night before and...

Visita Iglesia 2010: A short tour of some of Manila’s historic churches

posted by: Prime Sarmiento Growing up in a devout Catholic family means spending a lot of time hearing mass in any place where there’s a Catholic church. And in a predominantly Catholic Philippines, that’s very easy as Filipinos don’t only go to church on Sundays- the traditional day of obligation. For people like my mother,...

Binondo Food Tripping (part 2): Food Wok Tour with Ivan Man Dy

posted by: Gypsygal Prime Note to self: I should really spend more time in the gym. I was thinking about this, out of guilt, or maybe out of vanity, as I munched on a spring roll (which, I have to remind all you foodies there, really goes well with a dollop of that sweet brown...

A Solo Female Travelers Weekend Guide to Penang

Posted by: Gypsygal Prime Located at the northwest part of the Malaysian peninsula, Penang island was established as the first British settlement in Malaysia in 1791. Its capital, Georgetown, evolved into a colonial administrative center, with Captain Francis Light, who once worked in a European trading house, as its superintendent. Penang was a part of...

Channeling Lara Croft in Ta Prohm

Next only to Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm is perhaps the most recognizable Cambodian site, having served as a location for the Angelina Jolie starrer-Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. Ta Prohm ("ancestor Brahma") was built in the 12th century the Khmer King Jayavarman VII. It served as a Mahayana Buddhist monastery and university. The temple's main deity...

Weekend in Siem Reap: Angkor Wat

text by Gypsygals Nina and Prime photos by Gypsygal Nina We can only reserve three days to "flashpack" our way to Cambodia (ahhh, the agonies of having a day job!). So, the only way for us to savor this Cambodian trip is to go to a place that will best define Cambodia: the ruins of...

Postcard Moment: Angkor Thom

Text and Photos By: Gypsygal Nina I finally got my first elephant ride while sightseeing at the ruins of Angkor Thom! Wheee! It did cost me and my sister (Gypsygal Prime) 20 U.S. dollars (we paid 10 bucks apiece) . But I think it’s worth it. It gave me a bird’s eye view of the...

Chillin’ in Bagan,Myanmar

  No night bars, no cafes, no cable tv, no malls, no dating scene” how do you exactly ‘chill’ in Bagan, Myanmar? By simply taking the place for what it is, enjoying it for what it can offer, putting in your head that there’s more to traveling than looking for another sex-and-the-city adventure. But perhaps...

This is (NOT) really about Aung San Suu Kyi but….

April 30, 2008 Myanmar   It’s difficult not to be political about Myanmar. Not when the whole time I was there, I can’t access the internet nor avail of international publications (except for the Singapore Straits Times. which I’m sorry to say isn’t really my idea of in-depth reportage) because the military junta isn’t exactly...

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