2D1N in Baguio, Philippines (2020)

Random photo taken at Camp John Hay.

At long last, I have already granted my mother's wish for me to bring her to Baguio City last February 29 to March 1, 2020. Originally, we chose these dates to witness the Street and Float Parades during the Penagbenga Festival 2020. The said events were postponed due to coronavirus threats. My mother insisted that we still push through with the plan since my sister will no longer be available to take her place as 'dialysis nurse' for my father if we choose to travel instead on March 28-29, 2020, which by the way is my birthday (28th). We availed the services of a travel agency for a hassle-free experience. I actually contacted 4B Travel and Tours and they were the ones who made arrangements so we can be transferred to Byahe ni Jigz care.

How to Apply and Get a Japan Tourist Visa without Income Tax Return (ITR) 2019

It's the time of the year that I have to visit another country! Yey! This time, I will experience summer in Japan with my beshies. Since the Japan embassy does not accept direct applications anymore except for certain cases, I had to go through the usual application process and avail the service of a travel agency. Few weeks before I got my visa, my friends and I have already decided where to apply - Reli Tours in SM North EDSA. I didn't know what happened to me on the day that I submitted my application, I forgot to research where it was exactly located. I had some mishaps and thought it was on the first floor of SM The Block. I went there with my mother past 6:00pm already to find out that no Reli Tours can be found on the area. Luckily, there were other travel agencies who accept Japan visa applications. I chose Travel Pros and even though it was not planned, I did not regret choosing them.

7-in-1 Day Tour in Antipolo, Rizal (2018)

Holiday season! Woohoo. It's that time of the year again for parties, cheat days (controlled diet no more) and hang outs with friends, families and loved ones. Every year, we celebrate the Christmas Eve and Day (also New Year's Eve and Day) at home. Usually, my mother and my older cousin cook the dishes and we just eat together as a family. During Christmas Day and New Year's Day, neighbors, relatives, godchildren, and my parent's friends get together in our house and do usual celebratory acts like videoke singing, occasional drinking, and movie watching, among others. My father usually go to Pasay to be with my grandmother and relatives there. Most of the time, they eat and watch a "Kapuso" movie in SM Mall of Asia. My mother, auntie and younger cousin just entered the world of social media (or at least became active) this year. No wonder why there are lots of facebook posts involving our family recently. They're so cute and so millenial. Hihi. Plus the fact that my sister, an ex-OFW, got us a wifi connection when she came back this February. Actually, this also made me pursue having a personal blogsite.

Snow village in Casa Santa Museum.

One-day Tour in Tagaytay and Batangas on a Budget (2018)

I really have travel blogs that are overdue. I didn't have the luxury of time to write and organize my thoughts. I spent my free time mostly on youtube, watching videos about my 'ship', stalking them on social media and even reading this wattpad story that I came across while reading comments about them. Nakakaloka 'cause I think I'm too old for this. Haha. Anyway, I am going to share one of my recent travel with my family. I have a lot on my table actually but I'm posting this earlier than the others since the memories are relatively fresh.

Live your dreams in Fantasy World.

So my family and family friends had a day tour in Tagaytay and Batangas last October 21, 2018. We availed the services of Adventuristas Travel and Tours where my sister works as a travel agent/marketer.

South Korea Visa Application through Travel Agencies starting July 1, 2018

Wow! Hallyu wave in the Philippines have pushed the embassy of South Korea to make some changes in the visa application. It has been implemented for 2 weeks already as of this posting. I came across this while trying to write about our South Korea trip last April 2018 which I will share one of these days.

Announcement from the embassy’s (located in Taguig) website goes like this:

“…From July 1, 2018, visa application will be processed through designated travel agencies only due to increased number of Korean visa applicants. Total number of visa applicants increased from 90,000 in the year 2015 to 120,000 by the end of 2016. In the year 2017, total number of visa applicants recorded was around 160,000.

 

This increase in number of visa applicants caused the applicants to stand in hot weather outside the embassy for hours to wait in line for their turn to apply for respective visas. To avoid such inconvenience, the embassy has designated 35 travel agencies to process Korean visa application.

Approved South Korea Visa with only 30+k show money and without ITR (2018)

This is such an unexpected blessing! I never thought that getting a South Korea tourist visa would be possible for someone like me who is nearly broke. Haha. I still couldn't believe it. Blogs of people whose visa applications got denied made me really worried at some point. It's a good thing that I'm a risk taker when it comes to #internationaltravelgoals and still pushed through with my application. Since I am not an expert and it is also my first time, I will only be sharing my experience and give some tips that I have come up with after completing my visa application at the Embassy of South Korea in Manila. More complete and extensive visa application guide can be found on various blogs on the web.

How to get Bank Certificate from Landbank of the Philippines for South Korea Visa Application

After almost a year, I needed to request a bank certificate from Landbank of the Philippines (LBP) again. I was surprised that it costs 200php now. I got one last year (2017) for only 100php. It is still very easy to get one though from your mother branch, i.e., where you opened the account. Last February 15 in the afternoon, I went to LBP UP Diliman. There were a bunch of people inside doing over-the-counter withdrawals because the ATMs around were offline. Luckily, I was the only one requesting for a bank certificate that time. The security guard gave me the forms. I submitted the accomplished forms which contained details such as my name, account number and purpose of request (South Korea visa application). The security guard also asked for my ID for verification purposes. Then after I paid 200php, I got a claim stub. One banking day is allotted so I got mine just today, February 19. February 16 turned out to be a holiday because of Chinese New Year. This is my bank certificate with wiped out details for confidentiality. Chos.