Chasing Waterfalls in Poblacion, Bakun Pt. 2: PIKAW and SAKUP FALLS

“If you are scared, you can’t see beauty. Fear kills your ability to see beauty.” These were words uttered by actor Will Smith in one of his vlogs of a family vacation they had somewhere in Italy. And I’d have to agree with what he said, because I have seen a lot of people fail to appreciate nature because they are afraid of this or that when, in the first place, they haven’t even tried it, much less stepped one foot out the door.

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Chasing Waterfalls in Poblacion, Bakun Pt. 1: TEKIP FALLS

Strong – and seemingly nonstop – rains, combined with relentless winds, is one of two things that, in my opinion, can put a damper on a most anticipated adventure. (The other one would be “lousy company”, in case you’re wondering.) I’ve had my fair share of being caught in the middle of an adventure or exploratory trip with the rain pouring, and I gotta say it does screw up even the best-laid plans all around. But there is one adventure that we can still totally rock, yes, even in a downpour. In fact, I think it can actually make the view better. What adventure, you ask? That would be chasing waterfalls.

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Video: Hiking Hallasan in Jeju, South Korea via Yeongsil-Eorimok Trails

The first time I did any hiking out of my country was when I went up Bukhansan in South Korea some years ago. Last year, it was Hallasan in Jeju, also in South Korea. And here’s a short clip of it. (You can read my blog posts about it here and here.)

Yes, it was raining that day, and the original plan was to take the Seongpanak Trail, which will take us all the way to the summit. Alas, the weather going afoul on us meant that trail was closed, so we had to take a different one. Bad news: it does not take us to the summit. Good news: it was still fun and memorable.

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Seoul, South Korea: Wandering Around Hongdae

I’ve always heard and read about Hongdae being the “trendy” hub of “pop culture” in Seoul. Arts, music and entertainment, from mainstream to indie to underground… you name it, this place seems to have it. But this is more on the hip side, so the crowd is pretty much younger. That, in itself, is quite daunting, for some reason. But I still thought I should check it out, to see a piece of it, even if a small one, in a short amount of time.

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Seoul, South Korea: Walking Around Ewha Womans University & Shopping Street

If you thought the title of this post has a grammatical error, let me correct you outright: that’s really how the name is written. Womans. Not Woman’s or Women’s. It’s really Ewha Womans University. I, too, did a double-take when I first saw it, and took several clicks and readings to be enlightened.

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Seoul, South Korea: The Ddong Cafe (Poop Cafe) in Insadong

Coffee shops everywhere have truly evolved that I’m no longer surprised when someone used “old school” to describe the likes of coffee giant Starbucks. Even here, in my town, coffee shops have ceased to be places that merely offer a selection of coffee-based beverages. They now sell experiences revolving around a specific concept, from the weird to the fantastical, from the whoa to the duh, and so when I heard about poop-themed cafes springing up in this or that city, it was not surprising at all.

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Seoul, South Korea: Insadong (feat. Ssamziegil)

The strong rain and wind has been going at it for the past several days, and only getting stronger by the day. But I know for a fact that if I go downtown, I’d still see more than a few tourists going around, umbrellas and raincoats in tow, doing all the touristy things visitors do when they come here. I can relate. I’ve been to several places where the weather was not at its best, but that did not stop me from exploring what I can of it. Like that time we went to Insadong, strong lashing rain and all.

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Seoul, South Korea: Around Bukchon Hanok Village (and Granhand!)

There’s something jarring and otherworldly when I visit temples and palaces, especially those located in urban areas. It is mostly that disconnect between the future and the past, having that no small piece of the historical ancient in the middle of a thriving metropolis. The Bukchon Hanok Village is one of the most popular tourist-y places to visit in Seoul, but it wasn’t only until my 3rd visit to the City that I actually got around to checking it out.

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Seoul, South Korea: The Innisfree Cafe in Samcheongdong

If I had the luxury of time and money, I’d love to go back to Seoul and do a cafe tour, hopping from one coffee shop to another. Never mind that I’m not much of a coffee drinker, I’d just do it for the aesthetics, because have you seen Korean cafes? Especially the concept cafes? Describing them as “instagrammable” will be understating it, because of the overall experience they provide. On top of my list would have been the Innisfree Cafe.

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Seoul, South Korea: From Gyeongbukgong to Samcheongdong

I agree with the consensus that the best way to explore one place is to hit its pavements and walk around. Sure, it can become exhausting on the legs, but nothing will get you more up close and personal with a place than by walking its streets. Yes, even when there is some drizzling going around. The continuous showers certainly did not deter us from our original plan of walking around Samcheongdong that day.

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Where to Stay in Seogwipo, Jeju: Gudeok Guesthouse (Jeju Hiking Inn)

Looking for a place to stay is honestly one of the more difficult parts of planning a trip, and I can’t say it’s one of my favorite things to do. It can be fun, it’s just that… it can become tedious and tiring, especially when logistics come into play. But let me still give a quick shout-out to the roof that sheltered us when we were in Jeju: the Gudeok Guesthouse (because, as much as we want to, we can’t all be selected to stay at Hyori and Sang-soon’s Bed and Breakfast, now, can we?)

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Video: One Fine Morning in Iloilo (feat. Netong’s La Paz Batchoy, Madge Cafe & Jaro Church)

It’s the first of July! I can’t believe half of the year has officially passed and, in less than another 6 months, it’ll be another year. Wait, wait, I’m getting way ahead of myself, aren’t I.

Dropping by briefly to drop a throwback video of our last morning in Iloilo some months back, where we went to the La Paz Public Market to have a breakfast of authentic La Paz Batchoy at Netong’s, then capped it off with some iced coffee from Magde Cafe. Then, after another short jeepney ride, visited the Jaro Church. Enjoy!

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FoodVentures: Foodtrippin’ in Jeju, South Korea

It’s been a while since I posted anything related to food on my blog. Even my monthly foodventures posts stopped, and I’m not quite sure when I’d be able to get back to it. I do miss posting about food, but I tend to go to back to the same place repeatedly if I liked it, so it doesn’t make sense to keep blogging about the same food place, don’t you think? This time, though, I just have to talk about the few foodventures we had during our trip to Jeju, South Korea more than several months back.

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The Longog Cave in Balakbak, Kapangan, Benguet

The other day, on the way home from two days of chasing waterfalls, I found myself on familiar roads, and not just because it happens to be in Kapangan, my father’s hometown. There was the Amburayan Bridge where I rappelled off of some years back; the roadside store-cum-coffee stop where we leisurely waited for time to pass… and then I was reminded about my most recent visit to the area, and how I haven’t made a post about it. Yet.

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