Join us as we explore the Philippine Islands and Regions. Three regions, hundreds of islands. Deep-dive guides organized by Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao – not by tourist ranking. And we cover the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Maria handed me a woven bracelet and smiled the kind of smile you give someone when you’ve done this a thousand times before. “For you, sir. Support locals.” Her English was careful, practiced. I looked at the bracelet. It was pretty enough, the kind of thing I’d seen in a dozen other island towns across
Culture of the People of Calaguas Island: True Respect Read More »
I stepped off the boat onto Calaguas Island expecting adventure. What I got was a reality check on my expectations for food as I ate the first of many Calaguas Island meals. No beachfront bistros with Edison bulbs. No chalkboard menus promising farm-to-table artisans whatever. Just sand, sky, a handful of small nipa huts, and
The Real Luxury of Eating on Calaguas Island: Fresh, Simple Community Meals Read More »
The table looked like something from a travel magazine. Grilled tuna gleamed under the afternoon sun. Steaming rice-filled ceramic bowls. Fresh coconut halves sat ready for drinking. Sliced mango and pineapple made neat rows across plastic platters. This is what we’ve come to expect when thinking about Filipino Island hospitality. I stood there at the
Calaguas Island Meals: The Hidden Costs You Never See Read More »
I watched Maria stare at the menu for a full three minutes. Her friend Jen had already ordered grilled bangus. The cook was waiting. Maria’s hand hovered over the laminated list as if she were disarming a landmine. “Do you have anything without meat or fish?” she finally asked. The woman behind the counter smiled
How to Pack Tofu for Calaguas Island: A Vegan and Vegetarian Survival Guide Read More »
A Day in the Mangyan Village Lila held a handful of soil and let it fall through her fingers like sand through an hourglass. We sat under the shade of a massive dao tree, just outside the newly erected fence that now marked the boundary of a protected conservation zone. The land beyond that fence,
Why Protecting Nature In Mindoro Shouldn’t Mean Displacing People Read More »
The Trail That Told the Truth The guide stopped at a fallen tree, wiped sweat from his forehead with a rag that had seen better decades, and said something I didn’t expect: “My cousin cut this last month for firewood.” We were two hours into what the travel blogs called Mindoro’s “pristine wilderness,” also known
Visiting Mindoro Island Responsibly: The Truth About Its Jungles Read More »
Maria Santos sat on her bamboo porch, grinding rice with the same mortar her grandmother used. Three men in pressed shirts waited on the dirt road below, clipboards in hand, a white SUV idling behind them. They’d driven three hours from Manila to talk about an “eco-tourism partnership opportunity” that would preserve her barangay’s forests.
Mindoro Natural Resources: Why Communities Need Power to Refuse Read More »
When Paradise Feels Like a Mirror You Didn’t Want to Look Into The dive boat rocked gently in the early morning calm. I watched a German backpacker, maybe twenty-five, stare out at the endless expanse of the Mindoro Strait. His GoPro sat unused beside him. His phone lay face down on the bench. He looked
Mindoro Island’s Ultimate Natural Attractions: Why Loneliness Is Part of Transformation Read More »
A visit to Dinagat will leave you with the realization that you truly worked for your memories. The Man Who Wouldn’t Smile for My Camera The first time I stepped off the bangka onto Dinagat Island, a fisherman named Roel watched me fumble with my bags. He didn’t offer help or even a smile. He
Forget Boracay, Dinagat Island Tourism Will Challenge You Instead Read More »
I stood on the deck of a small bangka as it cut through the turquoise water off Mindoro’s coast, watching a fisherman named Mang Tomas repair his net with the kind of patience I’d forgotten existed. This is Island Life along the coast, and across Apo Reef here in Mindoro. He didn’t check his phone.
Why Mindoro’s Natural Attractions Demand You Slow Down and Focus on One Place Read More »
I stepped off the bangka in Calapan, Oriental Mindoro, on a Tuesday morning that smelled like diesel and dried fish. The pier had more cracks than planks that didn’t creak. A trike driver named Mang Ernie waved me over with the kind of smile that said he’d heard every foreigner joke about this place and
Mindoro Gold Mining: Beyond the Gold That Never Existed Read More »
I met Aling Lili on a humid afternoon in Mansalay, Mindoro. She is part of the Mangyan indigenous peoples of Mindoro. She sat cross-legged outside a bamboo hut, fingers moving across a loom with hypnotic precision. Geometric patterns emerged from the warp and weft: ancient symbols handed down through generations of Hanunoo Mangyan weavers. Tourists
Mindoro Island History: the Mangyan Indigenous Peoples’ Struggle for Survival Read More »
