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Pampanga-Tarlac Road Trip After weeks of hard work that culminated in a trade fair in the first week of June, I took the 2-day off I'm entitled to back-to-back with the 3-day Philippine Independence Day weekend. As such, I have an instant 5-day vacation which I would have wanted to spend in the Cordillera. However, a swollen toe prevented me from making definite arrangements.

To appease my desire for an out of town trip, my sister, aunt and I hopped on the car bound to the North Expressway with no specific destination in mind. Along the way, we stopped at a gas station, grabbed a map, and looked for an interesting place to visit.

In the end, we agreed to go to Abe's Farm/Nurture Spa in Magalang, Pampanga. It is a secluded restaurant/spa at the foot of Mt. Arayat that offers local fusion amidst a country setting. We had a sumptuous lunch followed by a stroll in its rolling garden.

Not yet ready to head back home, we thought of driving farther north to Tarlac and visit Monasterio de Tarlac where a relic of the Holy Cross is enshrined. We learned about this monastery from an article passed on to us by my youngest sister. Armed with nothing except the monastery's address, "Brgy. Lubigan, San Jose, Tarlac", we asked for directions and found good samaritans who gave us a map, drew us a directional sketch, and served as our "kilometer posts".

The road to the monastery was long, winding, at some point, steep with very few houses along the road. The monastery is located on the highest peak of the Tarlac mountain range which gives one a feeling of being close to God and to nature. It offers a sprawling view of the towns below and the monastery itself is an ideal place for self-reflection.

We arrived at the monastery at 5:30pm and found the gate closed already. My sister was already maneuvering the car to leave when a worker inside the monastery's compound saw us and motioned for us to proceed to the other gate which is still open. It turned out that the monastery closes at 6pm. We entered the chapel, prayed, and when I was about to go out, a priest approached me and asked if I would like to touch the urn containing the relic of the Holy Cross. At that point, I really felt so blessed to have been given that opportunity. My sister and aunt had their turns too.

What started to be an aimless day turned out to be a day worth remembering.

In between working and travelling, there are the various VT meets I have attended. VT Manila always find a reason to meet up – to welcome visiting VTers, to send off local VTers relocating abroad, or simply to catch up on each other’s activities.

04 May 2009 A month after our last VT Meet, we got together again to welcome first time Philippine visitor, Chris (Balfor) from USA.

He is in the country to attend weddings in Pampanga and Cebu. And it was good of him to travel from Angeles to Manila today to get to the VT dinner venue which was at Cabalen Megamall. We had a fun time introducing him to local cuisine.

The dinner was also Natalie's (NalieNiu) first VT meet. She joined VT a few weeks ago and, at the end of the dinner, was already planning her first VT trip with the group :)

Those who came (and probably braved the heavy rains and flash flood on the way home) were: Jane, Monina, Presy, Aleli (with daughter Kimi), Aimees, Natalie (with friend Rachel), Miko and I.

Born and raised in a city suburb, I had my first trip to Zambales at 7 months old. Maybe due to my early start and being in a family with "itchy feet", travelling has become a part of my life. And while every family trip is memorable, the "all-expense paid" work trips welcomed, and the friends' out-of-town enjoyable, I still try to arrange a solo trip whenever my resources allow.

Travelling alone has its merits. It makes me more organized and budget conscious. It allows me to interact with strangers. And it gives me the space and time to be by myself.

My first solo trip was to Vienna in July 1998 to be part of a Science summer camp as a Counsellor. It was also my first long haul flight and my first time to set foot in Europe. Until now, I am in contact with my co-counsellor (a German lady) and one of the camp participants (a Malaysian girl). In June 2005, I went on my own to Kuala Lumpur to attend the wedding of the Malaysian girl.

My second trip to Europe was also my second time to travel by myself outside the Philippines. I was invited by our Dutch project partner to visit an international trade fair in Utrecht in February 2000. The fair dates fell on the week of my birthday, thus for the first time, I celebrated my birthday thousands of miles away from my family. Our Dutch partner thoughtfully arranged an afternoon champagne party for me.

Locally, I had been to Sagada and Puerto Princesa on vacation. It was my Sagada experience that encouraged me to be actively involved in VT.

It has been our family's silent mantra "to visit at least one place we have not yet been to" every year. Whenever possible, we live up to it regardless if we go together, with friends or alone.

Raised in a closely-knit family environment, I always find my travels with the family memorable and treasured ones. My earliest memory of family trips were to Zambales, Cavite, Laguna, La Union, Pangasinan, Bulacan, Batangas, Tagaytay and Baguio. The road trips to Ilocos and Cagayan regions in November 2004 and to Bicol region in November 2005 turned out to be the last I would take with my Dad and Mom.

My first trip to Hong Kong was also my first trip with my sisters outside our home country. Growing up semi-sheltered and always chaperoned, the first chance the 3 of us had in travelling together by ourselves was in December 1994 when we went to Hong Kong on a packaged tour. We spent 4 days shopping, sightseeing and just goofing around. Twelve years after our first trip, we again found ourselves roaming the streets of Hong Kong and this time, we hopped to the neighbouring island of Macau for a day trip.

This "sisters-bonding" trip was repeated in May 2002 when, armed with enough savings, we went on a "do-it-our-own" 2.5 week 5-country European tour. It was a different experience as this time we arranged everything by ourselves - planning our itinerary, applying for visa, booking our flights, booking our hotels, buying our rail pass.

We covered key cities of the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy and France. We selected the cities we would visit based on our "must-see-before-we-die" places. My personal choice is Munich as I want to step into the site of the 1972 Summer Olympics. My younger sister has been trying for years to visit Neuschwanstein Castle in Fussen, while my youngest sister would like to climb Pisa's Leaning Tower. Our common denominator is Salzburg as we are self-confessed Sound of Music addicts.

Being able to visit different places was a decision factor in my choice of course in the university. And later, the opportunity to travel became a consideration in accepting employment.

In my first job, I was into Market Research and that gave me the chance to visit key cities of the Philippines - Iloilo, Bacolod, Cebu, Davao, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos and Laoag. I remember, my first plane ride was to Iloilo and crossing over to Bacolod was my first ferry ride.

When I moved to Product Management, I had my first taste of foreign travel. It was a week-long pleasure trip to Singapore and Bangkok given as an incentive by the company.

My next work was into Events Management. I headed a team that organizes trade exhibitions and conventions. It had let me travel to Bangkok, Utrecht, Hong Kong and parts of China to visit international trade fairs.

My present work is also into events organization. So far, I was able to travel to Clark when I was involved in a national summit held there. And to top it, my job entails networking with foreign embassies and international clients which I really enjoy doing.

Going to Sagada was the first time I went to a remote area alone. Thus I wanted to arm myself with as much information on the place as possible. It was in the course of my search that I came across VT.

I consider stumbling into VT as one of my blessings. It came at a time when I was restless, looking for an outlet to channel my "excess" resources, and yearning for like-minded people who will share my travel interests.

When I joined VT 4 years ago, my only reason for signing up was to be able to ask questions in the Travel Forum. It never crossed my mind that time will come when I will be hooked to it nor more importantly, that I will discover a new set of friends... Friends who share my zest and passion for travel... Friends who have the same travel principle as mine - WORK, SAVE, TRAVEL... Friends who became my support group.

VT Philippines in particular has transcended being mere travel buddies. We have bonded like long-lost friends whose paths crossed once again. And we extend this friendship to our global virtual friends.

VT also became a venue for me to enhance my communication skills that luckily didn’t go unnoticed. My VT blog became my vehicle bringing me closer to realizing one of my dreams –-- to share my travel experiences through writing. I am now a4trip’s Manila travel guide writer.

In the 4 years that I have been a VTer, I already had 5 out-of-town trips with fellow VTers.

The first was to Bohol in April 2005 with VT's scuba diving couple Penn and Aimees. We flew to Cebu and took a slow boat to Tubigon. From there, we did the countryside tour on our own - Chocolate Hills, Loboc River, Baclayon Church. We even went to Corella to see the tarsier sanctuary; unfortunately, we arrived after the park has closed for the day. We stayed in Panglao and hopped to Balicasag and Puntod islands. We also caught up with fellow VTers in Loboc and Panglao.

The next one was a day trip to Tagaytay in November 2005. We had McDonald’s Greenbelt as meeting point and from there took a rented van to Sonya’s Garden. After feasting on Sonya’s famous lunch of organically grown produce, our group of 11 toured the herb garden and spa. On the way back, we had a brief stop at Leslie’s for a view of Taal Lake and Volcano.

The third one was with my VT soulmate Arnie in January 2006 to Boracay. Our plane landed in Kalibo which gave us time to make a side trip to New Washington and visit Precious Moments at Sampaguita Gardens. Then we were off to Boracay where we spent 2 days just lazing around, swimming, shopping, and sampling the various cuisines available. We also watched the Chinese New Year fireworks with foreign VTers visiting the island at that time.

This was followed by a trip with my VT friend and "counselee" Lili to Tacloban in July 2006. We had Palo as our base where our hotel was next to the MacArthur Landing Memorial and to its back was the historical Red Beach. From Palo, we went to Tacloban and visited the Sto. Niño Shrine, some old buildings and other religious sites. We even spent a day touring the nearby province of Samar after crossing San Juanico Bridge. Using Basey as jump off point, we went caving and trekking in Sohoton, and then went farther south to Marabut.

The latest is the Mt. Pinatubo day trek in March 2008. Aptly called "Pinatubo... akyat... gapang", I joined 14 other VTers in scaling the summit of Mt. Pinatubo. We left Metro Manila very early in the morning to arrive in Capas in time for sunrise and immediately started our 1 hour ride and 3 hour trek journey. We were all in awe at the beautiful scenery that lies before us. Coming back, we took the 1.5 hour trek and 1 hour ride via the Skyway.

Yup, I've been around VT for 5 years now. I joined VT on 01 June 2004. The past years were like a roller-coaster ride for me. There were good times, not so good times. There were lots of laughter, a few tears. And more importantly, I gained a new set of friends and opened an avenue of opportunity.

Meanwhile, the year that passed was a busy one for me, work-wise. Still, I was able to squeeze in a few trips - re-visited Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, viewed the hot air balloons in Clark , celebrated my birthday in Tagaytay, observed visita iglesia in Rizal and Laguna, toured The Flower Farm in Tagaytay, rode the rides in Enchanted Kingdom, and some "quick" drives to San Pablo (Laguna), San Simon (Pampanga), and Palauig (Zambales).

Last year also marked my foray into travel writing when a4trip invited me to write a travel guide on Manila. They got to know me through VT.

But the most memorable event in 2008 was the birth of my niece, Julianna Agatha "Lian" Gregorio Ignacio, 2 days after Christmas.

Now, I look forward to celebrating more years in VT filled with lots of travel adventures and good, true friends.