Asia - Thailand, India, Japan, Malaysia, Brunei, Hongkong, China, Singapore, Vietnam and Cambodia

My foreign trips realized in Thailand and India were both related to my work in DEVELOPMENT. And my current involvement with a global NGO - Global Network of Religions for Children (GNRC) brought me to Japan.

THAILAND

In1997, I visited the development projects in Bangkok and Nakhornratshima Province to learn from and about community-based programs, women development projects sponsored by the Majesty King Bhumibol as well as government-sponsored projects.  Thai people are the gentlest race I have ever met in this world.  They are respectful and gentle in their manners and behaviors.  The harmony and creativity is an asset shared by people to boost up their tourism and economy specially during the financial crisis suffered by this country in 1997.  The buddhists temples in Bangkok and in Pattaya Province attract a very positive energy and solitude among its pilgrims and tourist-visitors.  I prayed in the temples and used incense sticks following the buddhists´ tradition.  Food is excellent.  Oh, how I loved the elephant ride around the city plus the crocodile show.Thai´s tuk-tuks are equivalent to our tricycles.

In Janaury 2019 I had the chance to visit and stay in Hua Hin Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, south of Thailand. It is a tourist area where beaches and hotels abound.  Body massage including fish massage is a delightful experience.  And around August, had visited Bangkok with 2 members of my immediate family.  We visited its known tourists spots in the city: The Palace and Temples riding on a boat. Enjoyed the shopping malls and flea markets as well as its food.

INDIA

The 2004 World Social Forum held in Mumbai, formerly Bombay was the site of the forum.  A mass of people would hurdle to get a place in the jampacked trains, - public mass transport in the city.  There is a separate cabins for women and men.  I have witnessed and defined for myself the caste system that this country has.  The Dalits --- the most marginalized group marched to make their voices heard in terms of equality.  I have mingled and conversed with the Dalits.  Basically we are equals and all are human beings.  The labelling, classification and system we humans introduced made the whole question of disparity among us. I have been in squatter areas of the Philippines but the scene of poverty in India made my gut react.  The Hindu temples I visited in the South, - the Tamil Nadu province  formerly Madras left me a feeling of strange mysticism.  In the province of Karnataka where I visited the huge dam of Mysore, this left me an impact on how the residents can use the same source of water for drinking, cooking, bathing and washing.  I visited a number of Community Colleges in Bangalore as well as in Tamil Nadu administered by the MCRDCE - Jesuits.  The system helped me improve the e-skills/technical education program for the Out-of-School Youth of Payatas, QC and Angat, Bulacan.


JAPAN

I was lucky enough in a sense to have given up my seat from Japan to the Philippines during the layover in Tokyo from USA in 2001 in favor of those who were stranded for days because of a computer system failure.  I saw the industrialized Japan and was impressed by the cool weather, clean air and industrious people (women and men).  I am making my personal impression that Japan has the most advanced technology as compared with that of US.  The technology that does not degrade human dignity especially when you go the immigration department.  Maybe because Japan is an Asian nation, we in Asia have more sensitivity to the privacy and feelings of the person even if we are facing the human race threat "terrorism" that for some countries / people this has made them paranoid.  But even then, the hotels, airports, restaurants, train, roads, --- Japan, it´s definitely more advanced.


My second trip to Japan was in 2008 when I participated in the Third World Forum of the Global Network of Religions for Children (GNRC) in Hiroshima.  Having lived and worked with Japanese, my repressed feeling emerged as "a filipino victim of world war II", but thanks to the historical museum at Hiroshima Park where I struck the PEACE BELL three times and I committed myself to making PEACE.



MALAYSIA 

My backdoor trip to Malaysia was thru Sabah, then to Kota Kinabalu.  It was a very organized and economical trip by ship and bus to get there together with the association of professors and administrators of Colleges and Universities in Davao City.  We were in a big group and it was really fun.  Have seen filipinos eke out a living by making trade in the coast areas of Malaysia.  People from Zamboanga and those small islands in the peninsula are able to study in Malaysia.  Though there is an open relationship between these neighboring countries, filipinos are closely tracked down because of illegal stay / work in Malaysia.  I have enjoyed the virgin forests and volcanoe park in Kota Kinabalu, including a close encounter with orangutans.  I have never liked the Malaysian food because of a distinct smell that my stomach simply refused.  Malaysians and filipinos, they look alike.


BRUNEI

A short ferry ride from Malaysia brought us to Brunei where imported goods is a splurge.  I can notice at once the economic difference between Malaysia and Brunei.  Brunei, being an oil-rich and monarchical country has no trace of poverty at all.  Everything looks like clean and beautiful.  A fabulous and enormous park is available to all.  All the amenities inside the park is free.  The hotel where we were billeted is excellent, food is superb.... a long buffet.  I have eaten the food I was supposed to eat while I was in Malaysia  where I was forced to fast.  My appetite for food just failed. It was the first time I have seen muslim women dressed up like the rest of the world.  They are modern and liberal in fact.


HONGKONG

Thanks to mabuhay miles that I have accumulated for years of travels, I got my free vacation trip abroad and so I chose Hongkong and China.  The Kowloon and Hong Kong Islands are connected by an underground tunnel.  It was an experience of claustrophobia.   It was overcome nevertheless by the wonderful parks.. including the famous ocean park, ¨hold your breath¨ train ride as it mounts the highest peak, cable rides, etc.  The chinese meal composed of 12 courses more or less, had spontaneously draw out in me the expression ¨¨¨ano pa kaya ang susunod¨ they are so gooooooooooooodddddddd.  Shopping spree is the best experience here in Hong Kong.  Signature clothes, bags and jewelries, they are so cheaapppppppppppp.   Maybe, they are only imitations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CHINA

Maybe I got only an illusionary claim that I have this ¨chinese blood¨.  For my chinese look, size and color many chinese have talked to me in chinese in those jeepney rides to Binondo and even a chinese guy got off his car and approached me in the posh Makati ¨¨¨....when I was still a young college student¨¨¨  I never liked to become friendly with any chinese though because they looked to me very intelligent especially in math and in making business.  I am a simple pinay, doing a small business, hahaha.  Anyhow, China, is a realization of a dream in me to get connected to the roots... maybe a Chinese root that was buried because of the hispanization of names in the Philippines.  The tea-ceremony is the most endearing experience of sharing love and friendship with the chinese kababayans.  And so I brought home with me chinese green tea plus the percolator that became a part of my custom.

SINGAPORE

Lee Kuan Yew. the best country president who we could proudly claim, the world has produced, changed Singapore in a rapid rate. I was lucky to visit Singapore and enjoy the efficiency and honesty of the people / government as well as enjoy its natural beauty in a city setting.  This is the only country I have visited that a taxi driver will give you a receipt which is automatically printed out as you get out of the car.  Efficient.... honest.... I chose the night zafari over a city tour, where  humans can have a close encounter with animals in their natural habitat and habits. There were no barriers/fences... a waterway was put up instead so animals won´t be able to cross over the said gap.  The lights that were provided to the animals that night are like natural light from the moon.   As regards the best part in any trip, chinese culture and dish is also shared by this country, so a bowl of chinese noodle was a real treat plus other dishes.  Workers congregate in this open-air restaurant areas. Hotel  workers are very nice, accommodating and kind.

 VIETNAM
A two hour and a half flight from Manila to Saigon is not that long to be able to transport oneself to a different culture influenced by the French and castigated by war with the US in the 70´s.  It must be a different picture of what affluence we now can enjoy in Ho Chi Minh City.  A lot of restaurants (local and international names), bars and hotels.  Rising buildings are all over the city.  What I´d like most is the coffee and breakfast offered us in the hotel, in the center of the City.  Just a walking distance to get to the Market Area where one can shop Kipling bags and enjoy the traditional Pho soup as well as the fresh spring rolls. There´s a bounty of museums and historical places in the city where one can just walk.  Walking and crossings roads is not that easy though.  A lot of motorcycles roaming and servicing the people in the city.  The drivers and pedestrians just kind of know how and when to cross but for me a first timer, I have to stop and let the cars and motorcycles go.... but they don´t stop.  Later I have learned to cross but cross with precautions still. 
What I liked most in this part of Vietnam is the typical hospitality, gentleness and kindness of its people, also to be able to still use the hat which is made of native materials and wear that around the city, for me that´s conserving the culture and its identity as viets.

CAMBODIA
We were serviced by a nice bus company from Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) to the capital which is Phnom Penh.  Hotels here are cheaper and offers more amenities.  We visisit the ocean area where one can take pictures with the pigeons and walking back to our hotel close the University area we passed by a lot of street food.  We enjoyed our overnight stay in hotel after eating our selected street food.  We proceeded with our travel after buying some food items at the public market.  Observing that rice cakes are also similar with that of the Philippines.  From Phnom Penh we took a stop in Siem Reap with the intention to visit the ancient temples of Angkor but it was futile, we arrived late afternoon so there was not enough time to do the tour.  We enjoyed the hotel facilities and the neighboring area as well as the buffet service.  It was worth doing this trip by land visiting three countries of South East Asia from Vietnam down to Bangkok, Thailand.