Pinoy Roadtrip

The Matinloc Island at El Nido

November 10, 2012

The Matinloc Island at El Nido

Why see the Matinloc Island at El Nido

From the highest point you can climb at Matinloc Island, you see the most breathtaking view of the sea, the islands and the blue sky. Check out the photos below.

What to expect when you arrive at the Matinloc Shrine

Docking at Matinloc Island

Climb these steps at the right side of the entrance of this island to see the breathtaking view I was talking about earlier. As you can see, my children were able to climb these steps to see the view. It's definitely worth the climb.

They made it!

THE VIEW AT THE TOP OF THE STEPS

Let the photos speak for themselves!

Be careful walking down

The Matinloc Shrine

Inside Matinloc Shrine

Underneath the shrine is a small "museum" narrating the story of why a shrine was built there.

THE STORY OF MATINLOC SHRINE

Guadalupe Yabes, a religious visionary, had a vision of the Blessed Virgin who instructed her to search for a heart-shaped island and build a "Shrine of the New Jerusalem"

The heart-shaped island turned out to be Matinloc Island

The Shrine of the New Jerusalem was eventually built.

The Hidden Lagoon at El Nido

November 2, 2012

The Hidden Lagoon at El Nido

Why see the Hidden Lagoon at El Nido

It's another exotic place in El Nido that's hard to describe on print. The combination of blue skies, the crystal clear waters, the rock formations both underneath the water and above it, and the fact that it's hidden and can be accessed only through a small hole that's sometimes totally submerged when in high tide, makes it a place that pleasures the senses. It's just simply beautiful.

What to expect when you arrive at the Hidden Lagoon

Warning: You need to swim through a hole to access the hidden lagoon.

The kids immediately jumped off the boat to swim through the hole right behind them, which is the entrance to the Hidden Lagoon.

The hole we need to enter to access the Hidden Lagoon.

After swimming through the hole, we encounter this rocky shallow part of the Hidden Lagoon, where we could stand and walk to further enter the Hidden Lagoon.

We walk inside the Hidden Lagoon

More snorkelling

The right side of the Hidden Lagoon

You can see the rocks underneath the crystal clear waters

The left side of the Hidden Lagoon

Getting ready to swim through the hole and leave the Hidden Lagoon.

Leaving the Hidden Lagoon....

....To board the boat waiting outside.

Our boatman showing us the giant jellyfish
he found near our boat.

A close up of the giant jellyfish.

The Secret Beach at El Nido

October 29, 2012

The Secret Beach at El Nido

Why see the Secret Beach at El Nido

I love the Secret Beach because it's one of those isolated beaches in El Nido where kids will enjoy staying in. The beach has white sand, the water is crystal clear. The waters are shallow for at least 50 meters from the shore. You can even go snorkeling in those shallow waters and find an interesting array of fish to amuse the kids. For the more adventurous, you can go to the deeper part of the island on the right side of the beach where you can find Nemo (a clown fish) among the live corrals.

What to expect when you arrive at the Secret Beach

This is the entrance to the Secret Beach

Docked at Secret Beach
Note the people on the right side of the photo:
You can see that even at that distance, water is only waist deep.

Visitors snorkel and find an interesting variety of fish even in this shallow waters.

The beachfront

Deeper and more challenging waters can be accessed
through a hole at the right side of the beach

Entering the hole

The path is rocky and slippery

This is what we see after passing through the hole

Snorkeling in deeper waters

Finding Nemo on this part of the beach

My tip: If you have kids smaller than my kids shown above, this is a nice beach to spend the day in. The waters are shallow and clear, the sand is white. They can learn to snorkel here and be rewarded by an interesting variety of fish.

Since there are a lot of beaches with common or synonymous names in this bay, my suggestion if you want to find this beach is to refer to it as the Secret Beach on Tour C.

What to See at the MoMA if you only have TWO HOURS: Must See Paintings at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York

October 27, 2012

What to See at the MoMA if you only have TWO HOURS:
Must-See Paintings at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) New York

My tip on MoMA entrance fees:
Be sure to check out the following links to see if you qualify for free entrance or discounts: Free Admission at the MoMA and Corporate Membership benefits at the MoMA. In my case, I paid only $10 entrance free for all 6 of us to be admitted to the MoMA. This is broken down as follows:

My husband = FREE (his employer is a corporate member of MoMA so employees are free upon presentation of corporate ID)

Myself = $5 (my husband is entitled to bring 5 guests at $5 each as part of his corporate membership benefits)

My 18 year old daughter = $5 ( same reason as myself)

My three kids 16 years old and below = FREE (MoMA admission ticket rules)

Tickets for the discounts mentioned above can only be claimed at the counter. You don't really need to purchase online because lines are not long at the ticket counter. The advantages of purchasing tickets at the ticket counter are as follows:

1. You can claim discounts if you qualify for discounts not reflected in the online purchase form.

2. You are not limited by the date on the ticket purchased online. You can just drop by the MoMA when convenient with your schedule and get your ticket.

My tip on the MoMA highlights handbook:
If you only have 2 hours, you don't need to purchase the MoMA highlights handbook worth $20. You don't have time to see everything shown in the MoMA highlights handbook. The best thing to do is choose the most important paintings of the museum and spend time viewing it. If you need information while viewing the painting, bring a wifi enabled device and log on to the free wifi of the museum and browse the information on your device.

What to See at the MoMA if you only have TWO HOURS
My kids love paintings so it's not really a problem bringing them to a museum that features a lot of paintings. But if you have limited time, these four paintings are the ones you shouldn't miss. It's so famous that my kids are even familiar with it or at least have encountered it in one of their classes in school.

These paintings are all located on the 5th floor of the MoMa.

VINCENT VAN GOGH'S STARRY NIGHT

SALVADOR DALI'S PERSISTENCE OF MEMORY

We almost missed seeing this painting because it's so small.
It's almost as big as a long bond paper at 9.5in x 13in.
Make sure to ask the guard or any museum personnnel where it is.
One clue may be that a lot of people than usual gather around this painting.

Note: As of this writing, the Persistence of Memory is not currently on view. It will return September 2013.

CLAUDE MONET'S WATER LILIES