Something About Cars

I love to travel but I have never traveled before driving my own car. I don't know anything about cars. I don't have money to buy a car but reading and searching always gives me new ideas about this stuffs. Thanks to my friend who is based in Los Angeles, California. I have now a little idea about it.

A friend of mine from abroad-California,USA who is planning to get a secondhand car asked me to search the internet if where can she find good car models and reviews. She's not an internet savvy so I did the favor she was asking. I scanned through most search engines and found this site http://repairpal.com/ford-explorer-2000. I said that I'm not really into cars but you can try to look at Ford Explorer for a start. The brandname itself symbolizes quality and besides once you go to that site, you can click on the dropdown list to check the reviews of that car or better else check other car models. They do have this user friendly tabs and dropdowns, easy to navigate. It wont take a computer freak to do it.

She replied to me via chat that she was able to go to the site I recommended and was really thankful. It was indeed user friendly and she asked one of her neighbors if they heard about Repair Pal. She got a good response about it. Her neighbor said that there was something wrong with the head gasket of her car while driving through Los Angeles and luckily she stopped over one of Repair Pal's shop and got a good service. My friend put a laughing emoticon on our chat because she doesn't even know what a head gasket is. I told her to try going to this site: http://repairpal.com/head-gasket-replacement . I said I never heard of head gasket as well but good thing Repair Pal's site has a lot to offer.

Before we ended the chat session, I told her that if you do have a car and if I get there, dont forget to tour me around Los Angeles alright? She sent a laughing and evil emoticon again. Yeah and if we ever we need a Los Angeles auto-repair just go to Repair Pal http://repairpal.com/los-angeles-auto-repair. We laughed and told her that hopefully her neighbor is right about this repair shop and hoping of all hopes that I can also visit Los Angeles, California. Soon.

Tip:Airfare

The only time I got to ride a plane was everytime I go home (vice versa). The first time was free because I was relocated by the company I was working for and the airline was Philippine Airlines (PAL). I got the chance to ride the same airline again and during that time, I was really not satisfied with the fare I paid for because it was expensive. Believe me you wouldn't want that especially if you're on a tight budget.

These tips I will give out are probably common knowledge already for those who love flying but for the benefit of the first timers and for those who are on a limited budget, I'll give some tips that might be helpful based on my experiences.

1.First things first, keep always in mind that airfare doesnt come cheap. Better put this in mind so as not to get disappointed.

2. Book flights ahead of time. If you know your schedules already, better book flights earlier. The earlier, the cheaper the fare, that's always the situation.

3. Fares don't come cheap especially during peak season (like holidays) because airline companies believe that passengers' will have no choice but to get those flights because of the occassion. Remember that airlines do take advantage of the peak seasons. So this tip will sort of lead you back to tip#2. Book flights ahead of time.

4. Go for promo fares. Here in the Philippines there are some local airlines that always have promo fares say for example Cebu Pacific. Few of my flights are promo fares. You can save 25%-75% of your fare. The trick here is to get updated always by subscribing to these companies like emails or follow them through your social networking sites or check their websites from time to time.

5. Be a light packer. If possible don't bring a lot of stuffs, just the important ones. Excess baggage is quite expensive when you're at the airport already. You might be shocked that you paid more to your excess bagage than your airfare.

6. Check your options. Don't just settle to one airline. You can have a seat reserved within 3 days to a week depending on the airline company without paying them. Once reserved, you could check other airlines if how much are their airfares and from there, you compare the prices.

7. Comfort and safety. Of course, no matter how cheap the price is, if you're safety and comfort is at risk, it would be useless. These are what matters. I suggest that you check out comments and forums regarding each airline of your choice so that you'll know a little of what to expect when you ride their planes.

Happy flying!

Cebu City

Queen City of the South or better known as Cebu City opened the door for me towards a greater opportunity and a different kind of adventure. I had my first step in Cebu way back 2008. I also had my first airplane ride that time.

There are many places to visit when you're in Cebu knowing that it's one of the biggest city in the Philippines like their beaches, the metro, its islands and a whole lot more. Although I'd live there for almost two years, I admit that I wasn't able to visit all the wonderful places in Cebu, not even half of it.

Magellan's Cross. Easy to find because all the Cebuanos know where this is. You can ride a cab or a jeepney (jeeps are marked with numbers) depending on your location. The streets for this is either Osmena Blvd. or Magallanes St. Based on my observation, if you can't speak bisaya, better speak English. Cebuanos prefer English than Filipino (country's language).

A few steps from Magellan's cross, you can find the Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino.

One of the white sand beaches of Cebu. This is somewhere in Lapu-lapu in one of our team buildings.

Sinulog. Cebuano's annual celebration to honor their patron Sto. Nino. This happens every first month of the year. One of the most celebrated festivals/fiestas in the Philippines.

We had a picture in one of the participants of Sinulog Festival. Cute! Fun, fun, fun but the downside? Prepare those spa-pampered feet for a long walk.

You could try to check its islands like Bantayan, Malapascua (for diving), Camotes, and etc. There are also good places to visit around the metro for example, the Zipline (Tops), Crown Regency's sky adventures, Taoist Temple, clubs, malls and more. As I've mentioned, there's still a lot of places I have failed to visit when I was in Cebu. I hope I could go back there.

More pictures?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/xymyr23/sets/72157624444630489/

Bohol

Our thorough planning has finally paid off when Bohol trip came into reality. For two days and one night we were able to complete a day tour and visit Balicasag and Virgin Islands. That was quite an achievement in a short period of time however it was sort of "bitin" because it was like a whirlwind trip.

We searched everything through the web from expensive to cheap deals. We hired a van from Cherry's Home and toured us around the famous landmarks in Bohol. It was a good idea because it's not easy to find a public transportation around the city especially if the destinations (between tourists spots) are miles away. If my memory serves me right, I think the van was Php1000-2000 good for 10 persons depending on the season and negotiation. Airport/pier transfers are inclusive. 

We stayed at Cherry's Home, Panglao and paid Php3500 for the room (airconditioned and good for 6persons/one night) including bathroom, TV, ref and the use of the pool. You could check Cherry's Home website for more details.

Blood Compact. Nothing really unusual because it's just a statue but if you know something about it's history you will appreciate looking at these stone gentlemen. You will also appreciate this place because it is overlooking the blue sparkling sea, still worth the visit!

Baclayon Church. You are not allowed to wear short shorts (if there's such a term), skimpy dress, sleeveless and the sort when you're inside the church. If you're wearing one, they will only allow you to enter if you wrap yourself with one of their clothes. There is an entrance fee of Php25.

Tarsier (Tarsius syrichta). Camera flashes are not allowed when taking a shot of these nocturnal cuties. Hands off as well. They are considered one of the endangered species.

Man made forest. The place is covered with trees and steep low slopes. It's quite cool when you're in the vicinity obviously because of the presence of the trees and vegetation. 

Loboc River. The first thing that comes to my mind is food everytime I think about Loboc River. We paid Php 400 per person for a ride at the floating restaurant. It includes an eat-all-you-can food (appetizer, main course, dessert, softdrink) and a local musician will serenade you while cruising the murky river.  

Chocolate Hills. The famous and controversial hills due to its unusual geological formation and can only be found in Bohol. It was one heck of a climb just to see the whole Chocolate Hills.

Panglao. Explore the white sand beaches of Panglao. Although the place is booming already and a few restaurants and hotels have opened along the shores of Panglao, there's still that rural aura in the area. You can find posh and cheap hotels in Panglao. Again, the van that we hired took us here then we just walked from the Cherry's Home to the beach.

Balicasag Island. We need to ride a pumpboat (Php1500) to reach the Island (would also take you to Virgin Island). Snorkeling gears are free but it would be better if you bring your own. We also heard that dolphins and whales are to be seen in the vicinity of the Island if you come early.

Whoah! Virgin Island. From the name itself, it's really virgin. No inhabitants just a few toursits.

From Cebu, we rode a fastcraft since it's much cheaper than plane and there's no plane promo fares during that time. It will take you an hour or two to get to Bohol from Cebu. Since Ocean Jet Liner had an ongoing promo that time, we only paid one way for a back-and-forth trip. Tip, don't forget to check for promo fares.

Bohol is a good place to visit because there are a lot of tourist destinations. Your expenses and efforts will all get paid when you see it's scenic beauty. Bohol is great for the nature lovers, beach bums, extremes sports enthusiasts and divers out there.

More photos?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/xymyr23/sets/72157624443699833/