Philippines Photo Tour 2011 with Karl Grobl Baguio-Sagada-Vigan Leg

It’s not often we get an international Photo Tour to come here in the Philippines unlike our competing South East Asian neighbours, that’s why it’s a welcome development that the Jim Cline Photo Tours and Workshops decided to test the waters here in the Philippines where no other Photo Tour Groups have tried. On the helm is Humanitarian Photojournalist Karl Grobl where he took the group on key places around the country for a Photographic journey for two weeks. I assisted Karl on the photo mentorship and was their local guide for their Baguio-Sagada-Vigan leg of the tour which lasted for 5 days. Here’s a rundown of that very interesting segment.

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Ifugao: Banaue Batad Bangaan Photo Adventure Chronicles 2011

It was three days and 2 nights at the cool highlands of Ifugao. It was a mini Photo Adventure with the small number but we did give out what we promised which is adventure, immersion and tons of photographic opportunities. This was our first Backpack Photography for the year and we’re cooking something up for the last quarter of the year. In the meantime here’s our itinerary for the Banaue Photo Adventure last May and I’ve also added some Ifugao posts from previous weeks.

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Lakbay Norte 2 2011 Chronicles

Last year’s first Lakbay Norte was a blast so I was thinking how would they top it again this year? Well this year’s magic number is 2 for Lakbay Norte 2 2011 is twice as big with two separate legs around northern Luzon. The first leg held January 23-27, 2011 explored the South Western part of North Luzon particularly Baguio, La Union, Tarlac, Subic and Pampanga. The second leg held March 2-7, 2011 focused on the Upper north portions of Cagayan and Ilocos. Here’s a chronicle recap of both legs with links to corresponding posts. It would be a good guide in case you want to do a somewhat similar itinerary.

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Three Days Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte Chronicles

I’ve been up north several times already but it’s not often I get to tag the family along. The Ilocos Region is probably one of the easiest place to travel by road and add to that, it has a number of sights from beautiful old churches, heritage houses, delicious food, mega structures and wonderful beaches. Even from the several times I’ve visited the place there’s always something new to try and discover. This trip was last September 14-16, 2010. It’s a bit cramped and covers the ‘usual’ sights first timers in the region and more manageable sights.

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Four Days Hong Kong with Disneyland Park

It’s all about getting to know the place. Riding the trams, the buses, the taxis and the MTR. Then Savoring the flavors from the soothing noodles and tasty dimsum and dumplings. Of course there’s the sight and sounds of this modern city. I like the developed Hong Kong. It’s convenient and for a gadget lover like me, it’s a haven. And of course I wouldn’t forget Hong Kong Disneyland, one of the main highlights when coming to Hong Kong.

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Ironwulf Travel Chronicles 2010

Sometime in 2010, I was on a plane with a travel writer heading back to Manila from a recently concluded feature assignment. He borrowed the book I was reading “Honeymoon with my Brother” by Franz Wisner and pored through the pages and read through some entries, he was laughing by himself then threw this question point blank at me “When was the last time you really had a personal trip?” I hesitated for a moment as I think. So what has 2010 been like in terms of travel for me that I couldn’t readily answer his question?

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Three Days in Puerto Princesa Palawan Chronicles

Palawan Sabang Beach

They call it the Green City and I can’t agree with it more. While I find Puerto Princesa as the most modern city in Palawan, it’s also the most livable for me in terms of setting up a business or staying for good. The city itself is not as scenic as Coron, sleepy as El Nido or rugged as Taytay but it is developed in a good way modern industry can function well. Here is a three day itinerary which is merged from my recent 2 trips to Puerto Princesa. It’s not a backpacker’s budget since I was with family on my last trip there but I hope the itinerary would give you an idea what to expect in Puerto Princesa.

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