Living la vida in Nica

Yes, I am still alive and now farthest from home. Literally right across the globe! What a fun journey!! Benj & I have temporarily settled in San Juan del Sur (SJDS), Nicaragua.  I wanted to learn how to surf & study Spanish that’s why I picked this place.  Surprisingly, I haven’t dipped in the freezing Pacific Ocean nor improved my Spanish. Haha.  Let’s say I’ve adapted quite easily to the sloth slow life.

View of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua

We live FAR from civilization…almost inside a jungle.  To get to town, we need to climb down a dirt road hill then we need to walk for a few kilometers under Nicaraguan heat, hitchhike or catch a chicken bus that is always jampacked! Hitchhiking has been the best option so far! Doing chores such as grocery shopping takes time as well.  We go from one pulperia (local shops which has various local & imported goods) to the other, to the mercado for fruits & veggies then lastly, to Pali (a big supermarket chain in Nica) for the heavy stuff before we ‘borrow’ a taxi from one of the customers getting dropped off at Pali. The good thing is that I’ve picked up a new hobby – cooking! Aside from being budget conscious, SJDS caters to mostly gringo palate (read: buffalo wings, tacos, nachos, overpriced smoothies & coffees bleh..) plus we are trying to lose weight & get fit after enjoying too much Costa Rican food.

Special Sunday Brekkie: English pancakes, fried plantains, tortilla with cheese, fried eggs & of course, Nicaraguan CRACK coffee (best coffee I’ve had so far!!)

My life is on pause button and I love it.  The place we live in is more than beautiful. An orchestra of sounds surrounds us every day.  The wind gusts uncontrollably.  The birds chirp all day long.  Sometimes, the howler monkeys join in the chorus.

Our original plan was to stay in Nica longer but there’s nothing much to do over here so we decided to explore the rest of Central America.  Next week, we’ll be heading to Guatemala to see Antigua and the biggest Mayan Ruins in Tikal. After that, we’ll be popping by Belize.   Speaking of Belize, since we are cursed with Philippine passports, we need to get a visa just so we can swim with Belizean sharks and rays.  And since Belize doesn’t have an embassy in Nicaragua, we are heading back to my favorite country, Costa Rica!  I will talk about how amazing Costa Rica in a different post. So amazing you’ll get sick of me talking about how amazing it is.

I am going to Bollywood!

Haa Haa achaacha!

22 days til India! I can’t believe I’m going!!! It was 2 years ago when I first realized that I wanted to go to this magical land.  Most of my friends are aware of my amazement in this country.  They even threw a farewell Bollywood party before I left Hongkers! Miss you guys!

MUST DO LIST:

• Go to an AUTHENTIC Bollywood party dressed up in a colourful Sari
• Attend a North Indian wedding. I want to see GLITZ & GLAM!
• Celebrate DIWALI (aka Festival of Lights) on Nov 13!
• Vegetarian diet: Prathas & Palak paneer everyday baby!
• Take a Camel Safari in the desert

How to apply for an Indian Tourist Visa in Philippines

The Indian Embassy in Philippines outsources its visa applications to an agency, BLS International.  You need to go to 601-A, One Corporate Plaza, Arnaiz Avenue, Makati City, Philippines to process your application.

Prepare the required documents:

1. Application Form (http://www.embindia.org.ph/Forms/visaform_new.pdf)
   • Write  NO for items that you don’t have/need answers for.   Do not put N/A or No details  in the form.
2. Two recent passport size colour photographs
3. Passport with a minimum validity of six months
4. Photocopy of the passport bio page
5. Return ticket or computer print-out with ticket number
6. Proof of financial standing / recent bank statement
7. Signed Invitation letter from family / friend / sponsor in India
   • Financial statement of family / friend / sponsor in India
   • Passport photocopy of sponsor
8. **Optional**  Letter of Intent – The lady at BLS requested us to write a letter of intent since we were heading to a non-touristy destination, Bangalore.   I think she was used to Filipino tourists heading to Mumbai, Kerala, Delhi & Rajasthan area.  Since our purpose was to visit a friend in Bangalore, we had to indicate her name, address and company.
9. **Optional** Authorization Letter – If you need someone to submit your visa application on your behalf, you need to provide a signed letter.

10 Things I Love About Cambodia

I just came from Cambodia with Benj and it was a blast! We spent our 9 days in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh.  Here’s a rundown:

10 – Tuk tuks

Yep, you read that right! I love them!!! They are very persistent and can be very annoying but c’mon..they are just trying to make a living. I like the fact that I can stretch my legs and nap in Tuk tuks! Coming from Philippines where our equivalent of the tuktuk is the tricycle.  They are cheaper than tuktuks but they’re so cramped and the drivers can just refuse you at point blank.  Tuktuks are always there for you, wherever and whenever!

9 – Biking

I am a big fan of biking! I usually bike around my city but it gets daunting since cars, motorbikes and most especially jeepneys don’t care at all!  I’ve heard too many horror stories of bikers getting run over and die…

In Siem Reap, we were lucky enough to have free bicycles from our hotel.   It was only in Siem Reap where we could bike since Phnom Penh is a bit too hectic.  I love that they have proper bike lanes and cars are very respectful of cyclists.

8 – Plenty of space 

This is really random but I value space since I come from Philippines and lived in HK.

The Cambodian country side is really beautiful.  It is similar to Philippines’ but there’s less people and houses.

Camalig, Albay

Albay is located in Bicol Region and is known for Mt. Mayon, the world’s most perfect cone due to its almost symmetrical conical shape.  It’s also the most active volcano in the Philippines.  I remember our parents brought me and my siblings to watch it spit out some outrageous lava.  I think I was about 11 that time and was studying the different kinds of rocks in school so the nerd inside me had a pretty awesome time! Thank you adventurous parents!!

This time, we only went to Camalig to visit one of Benj’s aunts who now resides there. We had a delicious lunch hosted by Auntie Nene then she showed us around.  She shared to us her memories  of growing up in the ancestral home before moving to Manila.  It’s a pretty old house so it also had pretty creepy/haunted stories.  I will not dwell on that since I’m about to sleep and I don’t want to imagine ‘things’ under my bed or outside the window…

Enjoy the photodump below!

Snapshots of the 200-yr old ancestral house