Shot & Sprayed

H1N1 Intranasal Spray

After getting a shot in the arm for seasonal flu vaccine a couple of weeks ago, I finally received the H1N1 vaccine. And since I'm within the age group without underlying medical problems, I got the intranasal spray version. A quick spray into each of my nostril and I thought "wow, these live, attenuated viruses are now traveling into my body". I know many people who had doubts about this latest vaccine but so far I haven't displayed any signs and symptoms of adverse reactions. No runny nose, cough, body aches or fever. Nothing like turning me into a zoombie in time for Halloween.

What about you, have you already received your shot/spray for 2009?

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has issued vaccine information statements for the 2009 H1N1 Vaccine Live (intranasal spray) and the H1N1 Vaccine Inactivated (injection).

Charice Sings With David Foster & Friends

"I'm a Foster child!", 17-year-old Charice Pempengco declared during last night's David Foster & Friends concert at the WaMu Theater in New York's Madison Square Garden. After all, David Foster - the Hitman - has been her mentor ever since Oprah Winfrey introduced her to him. When David talks about Charice, he confidently talks about her singing talent and where it's going to lead her to - just like a Celine Dion he helped achieve musical success many years ago. Things have indeed gone up for this little girl and just a year ago, Charice sang in Celine's concert right at the Madison Square Garden. What she lack in height, she did compensate it with a soaring voice.

Keeping The Faith

Despite the many calamities and natural disasters that have befallen the Philippines, one thing that never ceases is the unwavering faith of Catholic Filipinos. It's something that no high winds can topple nor rising waters can drown. In faith we seek solace, in prayers we seek support. With Typhoon Ramil on its way to slam the Philippines, the country certainly needs all the help it can get, including divine intervention from Above.

Lea Sings For A Cause

What's so special when a great singer performs in a small venue? It feels so intimate. Such was what I felt listening to Lea Salonga as she sang inside a packed Kalayaan Hall of the Philippine Center in New York last night. I've seen her previously perform on two Broadway shows - Flower Drum Song and Les Miserables - but I've never seen her this close onstage. And boy, did I see much of her backside!

Adventures In Travel Expo 2009

Getting another mighty push for the itchy feet happened to me at this weekend's Adventures In Travel Expo in New York (October 10-11). In what has been my ritual this past few years, I go to these events hoping to find destinations worthy of my tourist dollar. Booth after booth representing travel ideas became a mini-round-the-world trip as I spend the entire one afternoon at the cavernous Jacob Javits Center. Thanks to an email from National Geographic Adventure, the $15 entrance fee was waived.

Right after the entrance, GAP Adventures - one of the travel outfitters I've previously traveled with - handed out enormous tote bags, just what I needed knowing this will be filled with brochures, books, pens, business cards and more brochures than I can manage to read. Of all the exhibitors though, nothing really gave me more pride than seeing the Philippine booth. With the support of the Philippine Department of Tourism, they managed to secure a very visible spot all on its own. While the Philippine participation earlier this year was geared towards wellness, this time it's more about activities for the adrenaline-junkies in the archipelago.

And what's an Adventures Expo without the adventure right within the venue? There were three free activities at least worth trying: zip-lining, rock wall climbing and introductory scuba diving. It amazes me to see kids as young as 5 years old climbing up the rope ladder to the launch point where they go back down via zip-line. As expected, this activity became a hit among visitors as we all line up to sign our lives away. I skipped the climbing and scuba-diving as I was running out of time and there were still travel seminars I need to attend.

It's always a highlight for me attending seminars and listening to people who's been there, done that. There were several speakers today simultaneously talking in two different places so I timed myself in order to see four: Arthur Frommer - author of Frommer's Travel Guides, Holly Morris - Globe Trekker host/Adventure Divas author, Jon Bowermaster - National Geographic Adventure writer and filmmaker, and for the first time, Emma RuthYulo - director of the Philippine Department of Tourism at the Philippine Center in New York.

• Arthur Frommer is always a source of helpful travel tips, giving us websites upon websites that have current deals on destinations everywhere. What's missing this time was his daughter Pauline, also an award-winning author, who's been teaming up with her dad in previous seminars I've attended.

• Before her scheduled talk, Holly Morris stood at the Globetrekker booth where I initially didn't recognize her. We talked a bit, asked where her next assignment is (Syria) and eventually asked her the same question I threw at Ian Wright and Megan McCormick: have you been to the Philippines? (No). At the seminar, she talked about behind the scenes while filming for Globetrekker (previously known as Lonely Planet). Compared to the wackiness of Ian and Megan, Holly appears to be the more serious if not profound presenter as she recounts an experience meeting a pregnant tiger shark while scuba diving. She also read an excerpt from her book Adventure Divas.
  

• Jon Bowermaster showed a dramatic film of their rigorous kayaking trip in Antarctica - a region that's been hugging the 'climate change' limelight. They happen to be filming in the area when Gap Adventures' polar expedition cruise ship M/S Explorer sank.

• Emma Ruth Yulo discussed the various adventure destinations in the Philippines through a slide show, including her recent escapades in the Bicol region. The highlight of her talk was a raffle for an all-inclusive adventure trip to the Philippines. While I'd be happy to have won it, I'm very glad it went to an American lady who happens to be a nature photographer. I didn't go empty handed though (not that the goody bag they gave wasn't enough): I won a photo frame ingeniously made from coconut!

Now that I have more stuff to read, I don't even know where to start. So much for itchy feet. I'm doing armchair traveling for now.

Madventures Philippines

screenshot from travelchannel.com

All the way from Finland comes not another mobile phone but two guys with a passion for extreme travel experiences. For the two-man crew of Madventures, Riku Rantala and Tunna Milonoff, theirs is not a typical idea of a holiday. They visit remote areas of the hemisphere in search of the unusual, the bizarre and the totally insane, immersing themselves to it while filming themselves without a script and merely going with the flow. Their show became a cult hit in Finland that Travel Channel decided to show them in the US which began last month.

On air last night was the premiere on the episode of Madventures Philippines. Shot on location in Palawan, Cebu, Manila and Pampanga earlier this year, the show is at times funny, often outrageous and shocking to the senses, a very raw depiction of things no ordinary tourists would want to encounter or experience. I didn't even know about Bagbag Cemetery in Manila until I saw the episode and found the desecration of tombs rather distasteful. To my surprise this morning, segments of the episode are already posted on Youtube including this one below:

Rain

It's a rainy Saturday in New York and my thoughts went back again several thousand miles away to the Philippines still reeling from two typhoons that brought death and devastation. Rather than sulk in my apartment and watch depressing news on CNN, I decided to grab my camera, meet two friends, have coffee and just see the world go by in New York under an umbrella. Dear Philippines, my prayers are with you!

"I do", rain or shine

Sunshine? What sunshine?

View from the train

Soaked sightseeing

While I Was Away

You've got mail

God bless America for its very efficient USPS (United States Postal Service). Every time I go out on a trip that takes longer than a week, I always request online to put my mail on hold, to be delivered only at a date I specify. And sure enough, a bundle of it, strapped by a rubber band, was wedged tightly into my apartment's mailbox when I opened it today.

Why put a mail on hold? For security reasons. A mailbox that's overflowing with mail is usually a red flag for thieves. New York, even with its high rise apartments, have thieves just like there are rats in its subways. Besides putting the mail on hold, I also use this gadget that, at a designated time, turns on and off a lamp in my living room. It's as if to say "I'm home". This kind of in-house security system has been working well for me so far.

Let there be light/Let there be no light. . .

I went through my mail, an assortment of letters, bills, magazine subscriptions, special offers, catalogs, and brochures. What really caught my eye was this postcard-size mail from Adventures In Travel Expo announcing next week's exhibit in New York. The photo below - that of the rice terraces in Batad (left) - struck me, having just arrived from typhoon-ravaged Manila. The good news is, the Philippines is joining this important travel show once again. Oh well, I miss the Philippines already!

When can I see you again Pilipinas?