I am back in the Philippines. This trip was originally planned in October 2012, the purpose of which was to visit my aging parents. But as I have mentioned in my previous post, my dad fell ill and needed emergency surgery last month. I had to go earlier here then. Likewise, I had planned to join an open boat expedition with Tao Philippines. So I did...spent 5 days in a Philippine bangka visiting various remote islands in Palawan. Palawan is made up of more than...

My unexpected trip to the Philippines this time was due to the deterioration of my father's health. As much as I enjoy traveling, this time is an exception. My dad had surgery to remove the blood collection in the space around his brain. He survived the surgery considering his old age. He is now in the process of recuperating. We are hopeful and praying that he gets well and recovers fully. I took random photos. Wish I had more time to take photos....

Yesterday was 2 days after Hurricane Sandy wreaked havoc in the Greater New York area and the other tri states. The sun came up earlier in the morning- ?a sign of brighter days to come. It was a perfect opportunity to go for a run after having been homebound for a few days...these are what I encountered....major clean up was going on- the sound of chain saws, leaf blowers, the sight of many down trees, electric poles and wires, yellow caution tapes, down trees on...

With the "Frankenstorm" lurking behind us, there might just be no Halloween this year. I feel bad for all the kids. However, there were lots of them at The Haunted Pumpkin Garden in New York Botanical Garden (Bronx) today. There was a parade of kids in costumes with their parents in tow. Tonight there will be Spooky Nighttime Adventures. Too bad, we can't stay for that. We did enjoy looking at the amazing pumpkin creations- spiders, flowers, caterpillars, other ...

This past weekend found us driving 75 miles up north and west to Dutchess County. Following one of the 101 Things To Do in New York during Fall by TimeOut Magazine- New York, we went in search of the Walkway over the Hudson. The Walkway used to be the Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge which first opened in 1889. In 2009, it reopened as a State Historic Park. It is considered to be the longest elevated pedestrian bridge in the world. It is about 1.25 miles lon...