Author: embarkwithsmallsteps

Adventures in Cebu, Philippines

PHILIPPINES

It all started with a casual conversation with my colleagues at lunch, “I want to go to Cebu.” My Filipino colleague who has been there before said, “You should.” We started asking around and six of us had actually agreed to proceed with the plan. What are the odds! Fun fact, we were promised that there is a company bonding trip held each year before we joined the company but that never happen to us so instead, we plan our own trip at our own expenses.

We had booked a 2 days tour via my colleague’s acquaintance (I wish I had the contacts so I could share the info – but not to worry, you can easily find tours via Klook). This 2 days tour cost us $158 SGD and the package includes:

  • 1 night accommodation
  • Transportation
  • Canyoneering at Kawasan Falls
  • Snorkeling at Pescador Island
  • Sardine Run
  • Swimming with sea turtles
  • Swimming with whale sharks in Oslob
  • Tumalog Falls
  • Sumilon Island

FYI, the bigger your group is, the cheaper the price of each pax will be. Thus, it is recommended to go in a bigger group. Else, you can always join a non private tour for cheaper options. I did not know what to expect of the tour at first, but now that I know, let me share with you my experience.

Day 1 – Moalboal & Badian

Got ready as early as 5 am in the morning for the tour to pick us up at the hotel in Cebu City. We thought that we could take a nap in the van but boy, were we wrong! The ride to Moalboal was so SO bumpy – it was as if we were on a roller-coaster ride throughout. We had arrived at Moalboal around 6:30 am and we were already up and about for our snorkeling session. I had my GoPro with me but the tour guide was so kind to help us take videos and pictures throughout the tour. The corals at Pescador Island looks healthy and they are breathtaking, as expected. Next up, we got to swim with MILLIONS of sardines. You have no idea how epic it was to get so close to them. Watching them dancing in the water was thrilling! Last stop was swimming with the sea turtles! This was quite an appealing yet painful experience because there were so many jellyfish – too many. It was all worth it though, because how cute are those sea turtles! You guys, I am not even an animal lover so if I say they are cute, it means they ARE cute.

Right after the swimming session, we head back to the van all wet, drove to a fast food restaurant to grab a quick brunch, before heading to Badian for our canyoneering session. I have never done canyoneering before, nor have I done cliff jumping. I was terrified – but willing to give it a try. There was a 15 – 20 minutes hike before reaching the falls. First stop at the falls was that 4 meter jump; my first jump. I was wearing my contact lens but that first jump shook me till I forgot to close my eyes. L-O-L. All in all, canyoneering was so much fun. It is a perfect activity to do during summer especially, because the water is so damn refreshing. Our activity ended around 4 – 5 pm, and we drove back to Moalboal for the night. I did not actually take a picture of our accommodation, but it was rather pleasant. Not a 5 star kind of stay yet comfortable.

Day 2 – Oslob

The next morning, we had to meet our driver at 3 am in the morning for our ride to Oslob which took us about 2 hours to get there. We were told to arrive in Oslob earlier as it was a Sunday and it can get very crowded. When we arrived at Oslob, I was most excited about swimming with the whale sharks! On top of it all, we managed to watch the beautiful sunrise while waiting for our number to be called. In case you did not already know, whale sharks are the largest fish on the planet! I believe we had about 30 minutes to swim with the whale sharks, just enough time to admire them in the wild. I loved that experience, and I would definitely do it again! After swimming with the whale sharks, we head over to Sumilon Island for its white sandbar. Spent around 1 – 2 hours here taking pictures and snorkeling. Honestly, at this rate we were knackered. Plus the amount of sea water we drank by accident is unaccountable for, L-O-L. Right after that trip, we were given some time to freshened up, changed to our dry clothes before heading to Tumalog falls. It is a nice place to take pictures but not so recommended for swimming.

So that sums up the 2 days tour! It is totally recommended and save the hassle. On top of it all, you get to enjoy your own private tour with your buddies. What a better way to enjoy the tour! I LOVE CEBU and I would definitely come back again. Shout out to my colleagues (now ex-colleagues) for making this trip happen!

Extra info for tourist

Tourist are required to pay a terminal fee of 850 Peso ($23 SGD) at departure hall of Mactan Airport *for international flights only. This is something new for me as I have never been asked to pay for terminal fee at any other airport, so, good to know! Also, if you want to buy souvenirs back to your hometown, please get it at the city markets. The goods at Mactan airport are way TOO overpriced.

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2 days in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

MALAYSIA

Long weekend? No idea where to go? Kota Kinabalu may be your perfect destination to fly from Singapore! I had booked for my trip a week prior to my departure and it cost me about $180 SGD (for a return trip on a public holiday weekend). It could have been cheaper if I had book my trip in advanced but for my case, you can say that it was a pretty impromptu trip. Nonetheless, no regrets because I had the best time there. You can get the best of both worlds – beautiful greenery mountains or the clear blue sea. On a side note, it was my first time flying with Malindo Airlines and all I can say is, if you have limited time at your holiday destination, do NOT fly with Malindo. They are pretty famous for flight delays. Moving on, here is what you can do in Kota Kinabalu!

Island Hopping Day

Get your boat tickets at Jesselton Point at 8am in the morning! There are many counters available everyday at 8am to 5pm. Do note that last boat service ends at 4pm. Price varies depending on the number of islands you are visiting. Here is the price breakdown:

Adult (RM)Child (RM)
Two Islands3328
Three Islands4338
Four Islands5348

There is also an additional terminal fee and conservation fee at RM8 (Adult), RM4 (Child) and RM10 (Adult), RM6 (Child) respectively. You may also rent snorkelling gears at the counter (it will be cheaper as compared to renting at the island itself). I went for the two island package hence we visited Sapi Island and Manukan Island. At Sapi Island, you can go for Coral Ziplining at RM86. Based on my research, Sapi Island is the best place to snorkel. Unfortunately, we could not swim near the corals due to low tide. Instead, we took the boat to Manukan Island to have our lunch before going for a 2 hour snorkelling session with our guide. The sea water was cold but it was the best snorkelling session I ever had at that point of time. Clear water, swimming with the fishies – so much fun.

Coral Ziplining
Opens daily: 10 am – 3.30pm
📍 Sapi Island
📍 Manukan Island
📍 Manukan Island

Road Trip Day

You can easily rent a car in the city. Once you have exited the airport from the arrival hall, keep an eye out at the car rental companies. Make an arrangement in advanced or get their contacts so you can make a booking arrangement with them easily. You can even arrange for a pick up location at your convenience (that depends on their availability too). My friend and I had rented Perodua Myvi at RM150 for a day and paid an additional of RM50 for the petrol.

We drove to Desa Dairy Farm which took us about a 2 hour drive. Mind you, it was not easy to get a parking lot. It is recommended to arrive early if you want to see Mount Kinabalu clearly. The view can get pretty foggy by noon. You HAVE to get the gelato, milk and yoghurt! The queue may be long, but I think it is worth the queue. Once you are done spending some time at the farm, you may take another 1 and a half hour drive to Le’ One – Kokol Elf if you are up to taking insta-worthy pictures! It cost us RM40 per pax. By the time we head back to the city, it was already 6pm therefore we took a quick drive to the beautiful Kota Kinabalu mosque.

Desa Dairy Farm
Opens daily: 8 am – 5 pm
📍 89308 Kundasang, Sabah, Malaysia
Le’ One Kokol Elf
Opens daily: 9 am – 7.30 pm
📍 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Masjid Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu
📍 Jalan Pasir, Jalan Teluk Likas, Kampung Likas, 88400 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia

So that sums up my 2 days adventure trip in Kota Kinabalu! I am pretty sure there are more places/island to explore, hence I would love to come back if given the opportunity. Shout out to my friend for being spontaneous about this trip! ;)

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3 days in Amsterdam

NETHERLANDS

Amsterdam was my last stop of my Fall in Europe 2018. I love Amsterdam so much (I think I said that for every city I visited oops)! My Airbnb host were so lovely and I definitely do recommend their place! We had a private room for 2 that comes with an en-suite bathroom! It was one of the best Airbnb’s I have ever been to. Location wise, it is close to the tram station and it is just 20 minutes away to Central Station via tram. For convenience sake, you can get their 3 days travel ticket which cost €26 that includes going to the airport!

Day 1 – Get lost in the city

Literally. We planned to rent a bike but ended up strolling in the streets with no sense of direction. I love how quiet the streets are – so calming. Admiring the street houses – how they are built differently. So beautiful. PS: Do try out The Pancake Factory when you are in Amsterdam! Before it gets dark, we head over to Amsterdam Lookout Swing to see a 360 view of the city! Watching over the city from the swing can be quite a terrifying experience if you think of the worst, but it can actually be relaxing if you just forget about the height for awhile and jam to the songs they are blasting.

Day 2 – Exploring Zaanse Schans & Red Light District

It took us about 1 hour to travel to Zaanse Schans from the city. It was actually pretty convenient to get there via train. It was pretty cool to see the how cheese were made, seeing the windmills, cows, and also tasting the best hot chocolate in Zaanse Schans ever. We head back to the city by lunch and spent our day shopping in the city. Before ending the day, we head over to the red light district just to get an insight of how it is like. Growing up as a Muslim, it is actually pretty crazy to see how one can actually watch live sex performance as if they are watching a movie. PS: You can’t take pictures of woman in sexy outfits standing behind the glass door as you like else they will catch you!

Day 3 – Exploring Zaandam and De Foodhallen

It was our last day in Amsterdam and our flight was not until in the evening hence we had our day free. Not knowing what to do, we decided to take the train to Zaandam (which was just 20 minutes away from the city). The first outlet I spotted when in Zaandam was Primark! I have so much love for Primark; if only they do world wide shipping, then I’ll foresee myself spending some time in the home-ware section on the net. Zaandam is such a cute place – felt like in a fairy-tale. Since our host had recommended us to explore De Foodhallen, we decided to try it out for lunch! It is like a food expo. Thankfully there are some seafood options for us halal eaters! We ended our day in Amsterdam by visiting the Body Worlds museum. It is actually surreal to think that the figures in the museum were actually from real body donors. How absurd. Nonetheless, it was a good experience learning about human body. Before leaving Amsterdam, do not forget to grab some stoop waffles back home! Honestly, they are amazing.

⬇ MY VIDEO BLOG ⬇
Check out how we spent our days in Amsterdam (INCLUDING AIRBNB ROOM TOUR + FOOD VLOGS & MANY MORE)

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1 day in Venice

ITALY

I truly enjoyed my time in Venice. I was told by many that Venice looks great in pictures, but rather dirty in real life. In my opinion, it was not even bad. What you see in pictures is kinda what you get in real life too. Yet again, everyone is entitled to their own opinion! I had one whole day to explore Venice and we wanted to make sure that our day was well spent (despite the rain, seriously Venice?). We had stayed in Venice Mestre instead of the mainland as it is more convenient to travel with luggage. You can easily get to the mainland in less than 30 minutes, which is great! My Airbnb host was so lovely too, she kindly borrowed her map to us!

We took an early tour to Murano, Burano and Torcello at 9 am in the morning. The highlight of the tour has definitely got to be Burano, where you can see fisherman houses in so many bright colors! It is so picturesque-tic. Right after the tour, we were just roaming around the city by foot, getting lost in the streets and snapping endless photos at every pretty corners, also obviously we had to experience getting on the gondola ourselves by paying 80 euros (we convinced ourselves that it is a once in a lifetime thing so just do it!) and lastly, ended our day by watching the sun goes down at St Mark’s Campanile tower which I so so recommend! The view at street level is great but the bird’s eye view of the city is stunning… especially when the sun is going down. I am just going to end this post with a bunch of photos I took (and I have way too many). Hope you enjoy!

Murano, Burano & Torcello tour

Ticket price: $30
Website: Book via Klook!

Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of sighs)

📍 Piazza San Marco, 1, 30100 Venezia VE, Italy

Doge’s Palace

📍 Piazza San Marco, 1, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy

Rialto Bridge

📍 Sestiere San Polo, 30125 Venezia VE, Italy

Gondola ride in the canals

Roaming around the streets

St Mark’s Campanile

📍 Piazza San Marco, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy
Opening hours: 9.45 am – 7 pm
Ticket: 5 euros

Get a 24 hour ACTV travel pass!

📍 You can get it at any convenient stores!
Very convenient to move around with trams or boat. Your feet will thank you! Also, you get to just sit back and enjoy the amazing view!
Ticket: 20 euros (for more info)

⬇ MY VIDEO BLOG ⬇

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