Hanoi can easily be a shopping mecca for souvenir-seekers, but the country’s capital offers so much more for both art lovers and accidental tourists. A typical walk around Hanoi would lead travelers to Hoan Kiem Lake to take in the sights and catch a glimpse of its centenary “great grandfather” turtle. If you’re lucky, locals…
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Dense, humid and mechanical, Kuala Lumpur’s city center is constantly on the move. But the city slows down to breathe in its hidden nooks, where true Malaysian way of life slips through the urban form. Save your pocket money and go on a free city tour in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by visiting these points of…
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Walking away from the train platform at Batu Caves in Selangor, Malaysia is a revelation. The air changes as you divorce yourself from the steel surrounds and saunter down to its entrance. The mood is light and convivial. A lady in brown saree traces curlicues with dark ink on a tourist’s forearms. Jewelry vendors hover…
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Mahogany Market in Tagaytay City isn’t normally the place that gets featured in glossy magazines, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t warrant respect. Plenty of people have come to love the humble public market, where home-cooked fare is served piping hot, and the freshest farm produce is light on the budget. No other market is…
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For the jaded tourist, Rod Fai Market Ratchada may seem like Thailand’s hipster central, from its barbershops and their manufactured vintage facade to pubs teeming with countless yuppies. Sure, the young crowd may not be the most ideal for a cynical thirty-something. Yet Rod Fai’s effervescent nightlife is prescribed for people looking to blow off…
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PHOTOGRAPH BY JAKE DESCALSO
The Bodhi tree, the same tree where Buddha was said to have achieved enlightenment, is the most photographed tree in the Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya District. But there’s one in particular that beguiles tourists the most—the tree whose roots are wrapped around a detached Buddha head—which greets visitors at Wat Mahathat. Maintaining a respectful distance,…
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Enamored with the idea of setting foot in the oldest street in the oldest city of the Philippines, tourists flock to Colon Street in Cebu to see what have become of the historic thoroughfare. What greets them, at times to their dismay, is its urban decay: decades-old buildings, decrepit and sallowed by the elements, and…
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Mactan Island is a sprawling island paradise in Lapu Lapu City, Cebu that calls to mind vestiges of pre-colonial Philippine history. It was the site of the historic battle of Mactan, where the the island’s native chieftain, Lapu Lapu and Portuguese-Spanish explorer Ferdinand Magellan came head to head. Today, the island is now peppered with…
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PHOTOGRAPH BY SANDY MIGUEL.
The Panagbenga Flower Festival in Baguio is a rite of passage for most travelers in Luzon, if not the entire Philippines. Almost everyone wants to go to Baguio, especially during Panagbenga, either for a day trip or a week-long escapade. Usually held in February, the Panagbenga flower festival runs for an entire month. The festival…
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