The Pinay Solo Backpacker

Left Manila groggy one cold foggy afternoon on March 2010.  After 10 years, I’m going back to Iloilo. Last time I was here we did fieldwork one summer for linguistics and anthropology in the neighboring province of Antique.  I’m a freak of remote places so I had plan to visit Buri and see their majestic rice terraces. Yes, rice terraces can’t be found in Banaue, Mountain Province alone but in almost every part of the Philippines. But due to a mad typhoon that hit the province a couple of months before my visit, I ended up in the province of Igbaras and Miag-ao.

aerial photo of Iloilo province

No definite plans, no guidebook, no research, (more…)

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Growing up in a strict religious and conservative family, I was thought to help but never advertise about it. “You wanted to help because you wanna help not because you wanted to show to the world that you are kind-hearted.  Spread kindness but never brag it. ,” that’s what my parents instilled into me early in life. That’s why when I decided to get in touch with an organization that I really look up to, The Black Pencil Project, I wasn’t sure if I will blog about it or not,  for fear that I may look like a politician who’s helping those in need in order to get votes for the elections.  They say, it’s not what one does, but why one does it. But then I realized that I’d rather look at it in a positive light, blogging about volunteerism is one way of spreading awareness to the community and encouraging more people to help.

Sometime in February 2010,  I returned to Iloilo after almost 10 years I think.   Without any definite plans, I decided to head to Igbaras to visit Nagsadjan Falls. (more…)

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It’s 4am but I’m already  awake in my room at  New Emperors Palace Pension in Iloilo City.  I couldn’t figure out my next destination.  I reached for my backpack on the side table of my bed and took out the flyer I got  from Iloilo airport’s tourism division.  As much as possible, I wanna include a visit to a remote place on my trips and my 1st choice was Bucari in Leon.  I texted my friend  Marcos .  He replied, “‘ I have to warn you though, trekking is hard, its a very remote village and it’s no longer as lush as it appears on my photos post-typhoon Frank.”   Being a  probinsyana, I am used to trekking (except for Tappiya falls in Batad! ) so I wasn’t scared, but I need to go back at the end of the day.  I looked up my map to check out which village is closest to Iloilo City and I decided to go to Igbaras!

Igbarras falls

I don’t wanna bother asking Marcos for directions anymore as  he seems tired from his night out.  I went out to look something to eat and found a 24hr internet café instead just right beside my hostel. I went inside and browsed the internet for directions.  I found a write-up by Mon Corpuz, a photographer and one of the coordinators of  The Black Pencil Project, a group of photographers, whose committed to give pencils to early learners (Day Care to Grade 3) of select public elementary schools from beneficiaries of remote and or indigenous communities of the Philippines. . (more…)

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