After roaming around Singapore’s rich natural reserve, it’s the city sights that we wandered the next days. First off is the now famous Singapore Flyer. With the construction of the flyer, the country has a new towering landmark next to Merlion. It is currently considered the largest observation wheel in the world; even larger than London Eye. It has a total of 28 air-conditioned capsules that serve as the observation decks. As soon as you get into the capsule, you will be taken into a half an hour tour of the city and its fascinating history. A free radio will be given to the guest and you just have to follow the voice prompt for the narration. No city cab driver is needed to know the bits and pieces of the country. It’s a no-sweat kind of sight-see, truly enjoyable.

The increasingly becoming popular Hippo Tour. We were not able to try this one, but will definitely look forward to it when we get back on January.

During this time of the year, Orchard Road truly enchants with the vibrant holiday decors and lights. We enjoyed numerous leisure walks day and night.

We're back from our recent trip to Singapore. I must say that much has changed and progressed in the Lion City since the last time I visited there. To a great deal of delight, the country has a lot of new things to offer. The Singapore Flyer for instance and the Hop on Hop Off - Duck Tours were another must try experiences. What with the opening of the Universal Studios by January 2010? Indeed, Singapore never ceases to amaze its locals and tourists alike. The country definitely has always something new. That's why undoubtedly; no country is too small to dream big. I've seen this realized from everywhere I've looked in Singapore. But before we can have a taste of any of their new offerings, we feasted on what's available at the moment. So for this photo essay of our Singapore Trip, I tried to capture those that we considered are must haves and a pleasure to do.

The first in our list is the Jurong Bird Park. It’s a large habitat for a varied population of aviary. It is the best place to indulge into the colorful world of birds. We enjoyed in high heavens the bird show which is usually slated at 11 in the morning. This is the highlight of the visit. Hence, it's a must that you catch this one when you visit the park. I was taken back in childhood time and it sure was a feel good experience to have.

Next in the list is Singapore Zoo. It is home to a wide array of animals. Wild or tame, name it they have it. We underestimated its vastness so make sure you are armed with a good stamina and highly conditioned feet to do the trails.

Night Safari is being claimed as the first and only in the world. For such a big claim, it makes this attraction a must do when you visit Singapore. No visit to Singapore is complete without having been terrified and enthused at the same time by the Creatures of the Night Show. This animal tour is one good example of a uniquely Singapore experience.

We're currently vacationing in Singapore. The past 2 days were spent roaming around popular destinations such as Jurong Bird Park, Zoological Garden and Singapore Flyer. The weather is a bit exhausting here. It's hot and humid in the morning then light to heavy rains pour in the afternoon. Hence, it makes it more difficult to sight see especially when you have kids around. Nonetheless, we have to maximize our stay and appreciate the city since it'll soon be the "new home" for us. Here are some photos we can share for now. I'll make the complete post about this trip when we get back. Ciao... (off to Orchard Road).

Think of any tourist destination near your home and the likelihood of you not having visited it or did rarely visit the place is high. I would bet for this claim. It's surprising but it's true, sometimes we tend to miss an opportunity for too much familiarity. This holds true to my not having visited Villa Escudero despite being a native of San Pablo City, Laguna. My parent's home is roughly 15 minutes away from the place but I didn't have a single chance of visiting it while I'm still living there. To add more irony to it, my high school classmate belongs to the prominent family who owns the Hacienda. Many times I was invited by her for a day tour to which I will usually respond a procrastinating next time. Gladly, we finally found the luck to pop in.

General ambiance inside the Villa is relaxing, homey and serene. It's a typical laid back atmosphere to enjoy. If there's one thing that the Villa is highly commendable for, it's having maintained its distinctive "Filipino" offering. It could be one of the remaining few heritage sites to explore in the Philippines. This is one place to visit for Foreign and Balikbayan visitors. Among the must try are the carabao ride, lunch at the Labasin Falls and view of the cultural show.

Apart from the hits, of course we've likewise identified some misses. First, is the poor maintenance of the lake. The water is not clear and a lot of dried leaves and wastes made the overall look of the lake unsightly. The repertoire of the lunch buffet is less appetizing too. The meal selection is ok but the quality is far from what I have expected. It failed to meet the value of the day tour ( P1250). Overall, I feel that there's something missing in the experience. At any rate, it still is a must visit place. But it's not something you would miss every once in a while.

It's been a while since we last explored the north of Luzon. Now, that the kids can take relatively longer road trips, we brought them to Subic one weekend. Summer time is finally here. And during this season we talk about fun, sun, travel and more! So, it's but high time to finally experience Subic. It was great to say the least, adventurous and exciting. A close tiger encounter was the most thrilling feel we've ever had. It's a must activity inside Zoobic Safari. We had a day to spend so we settled for Zoobic Safari and Ocean Adventure. I would suggest a morning visit to the Safari and an afternoon to the Ocean Adventure. Here are some of the things to expect from these Subic hot spots:

A tour of animals

Personal feeding of some animals (baby goats - 2 wks old)

Animal Show (very entertaining)