West Coast 2016 (Grand Canyon)

West Coast 2016 (Las Vegas)

West Coast 2016 (Stockton)

Yokohama Travel Log

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

The Roman Forum

When in Rome, all roads lead to Rome (sic).

Although the Philippines has its share of old structures in places such as Intramuros and Vigan, these seem freshly built when compared to the millenia-old ruins and monuments of Rome. It's no wonder that Rome is also known as "the Eternal City".

ITALY

Rome

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

I was hoping that Venice would be the highlight of our trip, but limited time and less than ideal weather somewhat dampened the experience. Nonetheless, it was still a beautiful city, and I would love to return someday to wander through its labyrinthine paths under clear blue skies.

FRANCE

Venice

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

The world-famous Leaning Tower of Pisa.

I had planned to take a picture of myself performing a jumping side kick against the tower, but I left behind my tripod on the tour bus. orz

ITALY

Pisa

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

With an area of 2 square kilometers, Monaco is second only to Vatican City as the smallest sovereign state. However, Monaco boasts having the highest population density among these sovereign states at 18,900 people per square kilometer.

MONACO

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

Nice (same pronunciation as "niece") doesn't get as much recognition as other cities such as Paris, Venice, or Rome, but this place turned out to be the photographic highlight of my trip.

FRANCE

Nice

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

Through association with the eponymous film festival, tourists might have high expectations of glamour for the city of Cannes.

Although we saw no movie stars during our brief visit, what I did capture with my camera was a picturesque city and an unusually high concentration of photogenic individuals.

FRANCE

Cannes

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

It probably doesn't get any more First World than this. The standard of living in this country sounds almost unreal.

SWITZERLAND

Geneva

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

Hailed as "one of the most beautiful villages in France" (Les Plus Beaux Villages de France).

Looking around, it's not hard to see why Yvoire was bestowed that honor.

FRANCE

Yvoire

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

Shot from a moving boat in the River Seine at night in the pouring rain.
In-Seine conditions, yes?

FRANCE

Paris

Veni, Vidi, Vagari (I came, I saw, I wandered)

Checking The Latin Dictionary, "veni", "vidi", and "vici" are verbs in the perfect form while "vagari" is in the present infinitive, but I just wanted an alternative to "vici" since "I conquered" would be an exaggeration of what actually happened.

UNITED KINGDOM

Ilocos 2014

Pico de Loro

One Laiya Beach Resort, Batangas

Shallow water, beautiful sunsets, and outdoor cooking.
There's nothing particularly fancy about this place, but it's relatively close to Manila and more than decent enough for hanging out with friends.

If you're the type who enjoys peace and quiet though, you might want to check out other nearby resorts because this one has a karaoke machine for each cottage. It can get pretty nasty when the other guests are tone-deaf.

Corregidor

Tunnels and cannons everywhere.
Freud would have had a field day at Corregidor.

Island in the Sun (Zambales 2013)

Taking a break from my toy photography spam for a bit of landscape.
Zambales: only 4 hours away from the Metro, and with plenty of eye-candy for landscape photographers.

Island in the Sun (Guam 2013)

A tropical island in the Pacific, with a history involving Spanish, American, and Japanese occupation.

However, unlike the Philippines which was granted independence (again), Guam is still an unincorporated territory of the United States.