The main reason I came to Malapascua Island was to dive with the Thresher Shark. The island is the only place in the world where Thresher Sharks can be seen pretty much any day.

I really enjoy diving with sharks. It’s quite a thrill to see these scary looking predators swim towards you, turning away only after coming almost within a few meters. For some reason I’m not scared of sharks. I get so excited when I see one that I forget that they could kill me if they wanted to. Continue reading »

Over the last few years I’ve stayed at hundreds of resorts, hotels, hostels and B&B’s. I normally don’t review them on my blog, unless I think it’s an exceptional place and I would naturally recommend it to my friends, like the Travellers Oasis in Cairns, Australia.

Ocean Vida Beach & Dive falls into this category as well. The resort is located right in front off the main beach in Malapascua Island in The Philippines. I loved it so much, I ended up extending my stay twice! Continue reading »

This month I’m doing a tour around Asia. After a short visit to Hong Kong to catch up with friends I flew to The Philippines, starting off in Butuan, where I flew like a bird on Asia’s longest zip-line.

I have now arrived in Malapascua Island, a small island located just north of Cebu. I wanted to go to this island for quite a while, for several reasons. Continue reading »

Although I’m not against checking out touristy destinations featuring famous highlights, I also really enjoy going to less well known off-the-beaten-trek places. I like to just stroll around, take in the atmosphere and experience normal, local life.

My visit to Butuan, The Philippines, definitely falls into the latter category. As it turned out though, there is something really cool to do here: it features the longest zipline in Asia. Continue reading »

Airplanes have always intrigued me, so to fly the biggest commercial airliner in the world, the Airbus A380, is an exciting event for me! On my way from Amsterdam to Hong Kong, I flew with Emirates from Amsterdam to Dubai, the first leg of my itinerary.

The A380 is the only airplane with two full-length decks: the lower deck where the economy seats are located and the upper deck for first and business class passengers. That is, Emirates’ A380′s are designed this way. Continue reading »

One of the main reasons why I love to travel is to satisfy my curiosity. I want to know what other places look like, how people live their day-to-day lives and what the local habits are. I love to just stroll around and take in the atmosphere.

This is why I much prefer to stay with locals rather than in a hotel or hostel. So when I get the opportunity, I will literally travel half-way round the globe to take advantage. When my sister-in-law’s family invited me to stay with them in Santiago de Chile, it wasn’t long until I booked my ticket. Continue reading »

Together with cheese, wooden shoes and tulips, the windmill is one of the things Holland is most famous for. Tourists flock from all over the world to catch a glimpse of these historic buildings. But the windmill is not just a pleasure to the eye in our typical, flat landscape.

Windmills played a crucial role in the development of our country. Windmills were used in various ways throughout the history of Holland. They were used to create land, build ships and produce flower, oil and even mustard! Continue reading »

It was my first ever visit to Mexico, so I was super exited. A friend was getting married and invited me to join him for a bachelor party.

Ever since I watched Desperado, a great movie featuring Antonio Banderas, I wanted to visit Mexico. I imagined myself walking into a small bar in the middle of nowhere, wearing a cowboy hat. I’d sit down at the bar and sip on a tequila with a few locals, while enjoying a performance of a sexy Selma Hayek look-a-like signing to the tunes of a local Mariachi playing the guitar. Continue reading »

Do you know where the 2nd world war started? Or, to be more precise, where the first shots were fired? I knew it was in Poland, but I had no idea where exactly until I visited the city of Gdansk.

Just outside the city lies a small peninsula named “Westerplatte.” This was the scene of the first battle of world war II. It now functions as a memorial site and it hosts a small museum. During my visit to Gdansk, I took the short boat ride to this historic site to find out what happened exactly. Continue reading »

One of the best things about traveling is engulfing yourself in local delicacies. Finding a good local food joint is not that hard these days. There are all sort of websites and apps to point you in the right direction: tripadvisor, foursquare etc.

But sometimes you find yourself in a situation with no internet access. Darn, now you have to resort to more traditional ways to find a good place to eat. But don’t worry, base your judgement on the signs below and you’ll separate a descent place from a tourist trap in no time! Continue reading »