Ark Avilon Zoo Christmas family treat

Looking for a place to teach kids a little lesson on animal appreciation? Check out Ark Avilon Zoo in Tiendesitas, Pasig City.

The day after Christmas the blogger and his family traveled from their home in Pampanga to urban Manila to give the kids a view of the cityscape. Their first stop was in Ark Avilon Zoo.

Ark Avilon Zoo is a good place to treat kids to an animal of an experience within the city. The blogger always pass by Tiendesitas everyday and he never had a chance to explore it himself. This became a good excuse to be a kid again! :)

Entrance is P300/adult and kids that are not taller than 4 feet get a discounted rate of P200. Operating hours are from 9am-6pm. They have extended hours for the holiday season to cater to more visitors.

Christmas in Pampanga - Giant Lantern Festival

After some thought on what to post this Christmas, our blogger decides to use one of the most popular Christmas symbols in the Philippines to be his subject -- the "Parol".

Last December 17, he and his family (mom, brother and nephew) went to Robinsons Starmills, Pampanga to witness the Giant Lantern Festival.

This is a yearly competition of the biggest and brightest lanterns made by the best lantern-makers in the region. The materials used for each entry in the giant lantern festival may sum up to approximately P500, 000 or more (not counting the hard work and craftsmanship put into it).

Taiwan - Taipei, North and Northeast Travels!

 

On his third time travelling on chinese territory, our stoked traveler finds himself in Taiwan - the birthplace of F4 and other TV drama that Filipinos are so fond of. He was picked up at the airport by a chauffeur driving a Lexus! Yihee! The 45-minute Lexus ride from the airport to the hotel was nothing but luxury. Nothing beats driving down the highway and looking at the road-side scenery while riding a Lexus J

Our traveler and his companion were booked at Howard International House. They would’ve been able to stay at a 5-star hotel, Fullerton Hotel, if only it weren’t fully-booked at the time due to the Computex-Taiwan Expo.  

I survived an accident!

A personal post from the stoked traveler - 12/17/2011

Sometimes the end comes when everything seems to be at its greatest. In my travels I’ve been thru a few mishaps: being caught by crashing waves while on a small outrigger boat in Busuanga, falling off the rubber boat while on a white water rafting adventure in Cagayan de Oro and swimming through murky waters with bat guano while on a cave in Bukidnon. None of these can compare. I, the stoked traveler, am writing this blog post still fazed by what I’ve just walked out from.

Jamba Juiced!

Our stoked freebie grabber had a free jamba juice creamy smoothie care of his aloha card. He was only supposed to get the classic smoothie but the jamba juice crew was kind enough to give him a 16oz peanut butter moo’d creamy smoothie with a free energy boost. He wanted a 22oz (medium) but it would be pushing the courtesy too far so he settled for the small one.

The drink

The peanut butter moo’d creamy smoothie consists of a chocolate base, soymilk, lots of peanut butter and frozen yogurt and banana. The extra energy boost was made of soymilk too (perhaps). It tasted great for a smoothie. For calorie conscious drinkers, our blogger got this drink to get the extra calories (around 500 calories in one drink :) )