I am back in Thailand again. Bryna and I first met in Penang, Malaysia. We are both in Thailand so we decided to share a room together near Khao San Road. We availed Ayutthaya Tour by Olavi Travel Tour Agency for 500 Baht each. It is shared with a whole bunch of people, more or…
The shared taxi to Mount Popa gave me the opportunity to meet 3 Koreans. Our hostels were right next door. As we cycled on the way to see the temples, they passed us by and invited us to join their donation day. I had no idea where we were going but they had a bunch…
We left Yangon about 8PM and arrived Bagan about 5AM. The taxi from bus station to Old Bagan costs 8,000 Ks even though it was less than 10 minutes drive. There was an entrance fee of $20 per person which surprised us. Although, this will entitle you to get to all the temples. On the…
Myanmar is on my top list of countries to visit this 2015. I got a one way flight from Kuala Lumpur to Yangon via AirAsia for $76. I landed in Yangon on January 20, 2015. Finally! It was like a dream came true to me. 🙂 Yangon’s airport is tiny. The immigration was fast. I…
I did not have any idea about this place until one of the receptionists in Reggae Mansion suggested it to me. On my way out, I saw a guy from Colombia and a girl from UK in the lobby so I asked them if they want to join me and they did. We took a…
I am not a party person but I really enjoyed the Reggae Mansion’s Rooftop Bar. I was literally on the rooftop every night. Reggae music is being played early in the evening then it will be switched to a party music around 10PM. More party and crazy music starts at 12 midnight where people can’t…
I took KTM to Batu Caves from KL Sentral. One way ticket only cost RM 2.00 and the travel time was about 25 minutes. Once you exit the station, just turn right to Batu Caves. You will pass by this big statue and a temple. Then there is this beautiful tall statue of Murugan and…
I checked in and Lovely, a Filipina receptionist greeted me with a smile. Reggae Mansion Hostel is a bomb. I really like it here. I am in a 24-bed dorm. It sounds crazy and this is the biggest dorm I have ever been. The room is very spacious though and since the bed has curtain,…
I took a train from Bangkok to Butterworth because I have to be in Kuala Lumpur to meet a friend. I was in Penang couple weeks ago just for a day so I decided to come back for 3 nights to relax after the exhausting two weeks in Bangkok. Since I’ve seen Georgetown the first…
I left Manila, Philippines to backpack (for the first time, alone) some parts of Southeast Asia in July of 2014. I started in Singapore then I flew to Cambodia. From Cambodia, I traveled by land to Vietnam, Laos and ended in Thailand in October. I was 27 years old then. Most of the backpackers I…
I had to stay in a hostel for couple nights because my friend’s dad would be home. I spent a day with my roommate from Germany. On our way to Wat Pho, we saw this in the park. There must be some kind of event later on. We paid 100 baht to enter Wat Pho…
Not only it was my first time to spend New Year in Bangkok but also my first time to do the countdown somewhere. My friend Jenny and her sister Cyn decided that we will do the countdown at Asiatique. As I expected, it was crowded. I opted to buy this thing we put on our…
Before I left Penang, I had breakfast with the two Chinese girls at the Dimsum place. I took a bus from Komtar bus station to the ferry terminal and again the fare was MYR 1.40. I didn’t have to pay anything to board the ferry back to the train station. I arrived around 1pm and…
I met two Chinese girls in Kimberely House. As we wait for check in at 2PM, we decided to check out the Street Art in George Town. I’m glad to be with them because they speak Malay. 😉 There were all kinds of fun painting on the wall. Then we found this bakery! Man, they…
I finally got to travel by train! LoL! So here’s what the train looks like. We left at 10:05PM. I didn’t sleep well. The bed was perfect size for me. It was comfy but despite the antibacterial I sprayed all over the bed and pillow, I was still itching a little while on that bed…
I decided I’d go to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia today. I arrived in Suntec City Bus Station at 8:25AM. Luckily, there was one available seat to Kuala, Lumpur to leave at 8:30AM so I got my ticket for S$25. We left on time and after an hour we arrived in departure area for our exit stamp.…
I just wanted to go back to Thailand to continue my unfinished volunteering and backpacking there last October. It was cheaper to fly from Manila to Singapore so I decided to take it and travel by land to Thailand later. I spent my Christmas with my friend and a whole bunch of her friends from…
I must admit that I am a frustrated model. My sister recently got a job at a studio as marketing assistant. I met her co-worker/friend Fredie Resurreccion Garcia and we suddenly decided to have a photo shoot. He was our make-up artist as well. He did a great job and so did I. 🙂 Here…
Not too long ago, I posted about how cool backpacking is– https://iamryshel.com/2014/09/26/i-am-a-backpacker-i-am-a-filipina/. I wanted to know all the countries where a Philippine passport holder like me can access without applying for a visa so I decided to collate and post the information here which I got from wikipedia.com. Let’s start with the members of The…
So, I turned 28 on October 28th. I celebrated it with different people on different days. 😊 First was a barbecue party with my former teammates from my last job. Second was with my former co-workers from my first ever job in 2007 who are still my good friends until now. Third was with my…
Getting something done in the Philippines can be a pain in the butt. Everything is just slow and there are processes that just don’t make sense…to me! To my surprise, I got my passport renewed without hassle. On October 9th, I went online to get my appointment and the earliest I got was for October…
After a week in the north of Thailand, I had to cut my trip short to help my American friend in the Philippines on some legal issues. Yesterday, I took a flight from Chiang Mai, Thailand via AirAsia. I had a connecting flight in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and my layover was 7 freaking hours! Since…
Jenny and I were roommates at Empire Hostel in Singapore and got to reunite in Thailand. We decided to take a photo of us with the names of the two Indians who were with us in Singapore hostel as well to tease them on FB. On my first day, Jenny and her two other Thai…
Prior to coming to Thailand, I contacted some people through helpx.net because I wanted to try volunteer work so I can be useful while I’m traveling. I chose the Canadian and Thai couple Patrick Waters and Yanat “Nong” Wauters. Patrick is starting a french learning center called youtopia. He wants volunteers to help him so…
I did not want to have too much dilemma while crossing the border so I bought a bus ticket from Luang Prabang Laos to Chiang Mai, Thailand. Khounsavan Guesthouse is offering the fare for 330,000 KIP. I went to town first to check prices and they were more expensive which surprised me so I bought…
Read more I crossed the border from Houay Xay, Laos to Chiang Khong, Thailand.
Out of curiosity, I took a boat from Nong Khiaw which cost 25,000 KIP to get to this tiny riverside village in Northern Laos named Muang Ngoi Neua. There are only two boat trips daily which depart at 11AM and 2PM. Since the tourists from Luang Prabang usually catch the 2PM boat I chose the…
Backpacking is not very common to Filipinos. I know there are few backpacker bloggers from the Philippines but only few. I literally have one backpack with me weighing about 8 kg the last time I checked. I only have a week worth of clothes so I just keep washing them. I avoid buying anything I…
I had such a good sleep last night. I woke up around 6AM and did a little walk. I then headed to Chennai Restaurant for breakfast. I miss Dosai and last night I already decided that this is what I’m going to have for breakfast. Oh it was so good with Indian masala tea! I…
The van dropped us off a kilometer away to where the guesthouses are. I decided to walk instead of taking tuktuk for 5,000 KIP. I had to cross this bridge and while the kids are passing by on their bicycle, they were smiling at me so I said Sabaidee which means hello and they all…
I immediately liked the laid back impression of this little town. No people to sell me stuff. No people asking me to avail tour packages. I stayed two nights at Khounsavan Guesthouse for $5/night including simple breakfast. The hostel has a whole bunch of backpackers but it has a good vibe. I guess the garden…
I paid $22 for a bus ticket from Sapa, Vietnam to Muang Khua, Laos. The bus left at 7PM from Lao Cai to Dien Bien Phu on Saturday. There were 3 other foreigners on the bus but the sleeping bus was overloaded with locals. There were people laying on the floor and some were just…
I have been looking forward to be in Sapa. I heard nothing but good things about it. After about 10 hours travel from Hanoi to Sapa, a whole bunch of local people were waiting for us to get off the bus near the lake. All of them wanted us to do homestay with them for…
Read more Disappointment in Sapa, Vietnam despite breathtaking views!
My bus ticket was VND 340,000 for another 18 hours bus ride from Hoi An to Hanoi. I walked about an hour to get to Hanoi Lucky Guesthouse 2 from where the bus dropped us off. I was so tired but my room was not yet ready. One of the guys asked me where I…
My travel time from Dalat to Hoi An took 18 hours including couple hours stop in Nha Trang. I paid VND 350,000 for bus ticket. I chose Hoa Binh Hotel for $8/night including breakfast. They picked me up from the bus stop and I got a 3-bed room which was nice. Their buffet breakfast was…
I chose this hostel because of the good reviews I saw and the fact that it’s only $4 per night including breakfast. Shortly after I booked my reservation through hostelworld.com, I got a text from Win Le of Dalat Smile Hostel asking my bus information to Dalat from Saigon. He offered to pick me up…
I just planned to be in Dalat for 2 nights but I ended up staying for 4 nights. I spent my last night with Zohar from Israel. She was my roommate. We walked to the market and had dinner at Cafe 13 which has a very relaxing ambiance. I love the cold weather in Dalat.…
Everybody in the hostel was talking about this canyoning tour so I decided to do it. Dalat Smile Hostel arranged it through Highland Sport Travel for me with the 4 German guys I met in Saigon who came to Dalat as well . Our tour guide, Dao picked us up at the hostel around 8:30AM. It…
I wanted to see the flower farm and and coffee farm so I hired Ling, one of the guys in the hostel to take me to places. He charged me $20 for the motorbike tour. He first took me to flower farm which was beautiful. It started to rain when we were in the flower…
I met a Vietnamese girl named Yuli. She took me to a Crazy House. The entrance fee is VND 40,000. It was pretty cool because when she told the personnel that she just wants to show me the place, she did not have to pay an entrance fee. Well, I got nothing much to say…
I woke up at 4AM to take the what they call sleeping bus to Dalat with 4 guys from Germany. I’ve never been to this kind of bus and I find this really cool. Comfy and perfect for me. Of course, this bus is made for asian people so the guys were not as comfortable…
Since it’s our last night in Ho Chi Minh City, Ashley and 2 of her Vietnamese friends took me and the 4 German guys she introduced to me (Stephan, Stefan, Philipp and Dmitrij) to District 7. We ate dinner then headed our way to Anh Sao Bridge which is one of the famous dating place…
Read more A romantic night in Saigon with 3 Vietnamese and 4 Germans
Today, I am back in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. My Vietnamese friend picked me up at the airport with her motorbike. She took me to my hostel to check in then we went for lunch with her other friend. Each ordered noodles and shared fried spring roll. Our bill was VND 108,000 (around $5…
Who would have thought there is such place like this in Singapore? Last August, I wanted to visit this place but I couldn’t get anybody to go with me. The people I know have been here already so I wanted to go with someone who hasn’t seen the place. Finally, I found one. I met…
I decided to do backpacking with so little money in hand. I only wanted to go back to Vietnam so SG is not in my budget but when I was searching for flights, a one way flight from Manila to Singapore and a one way flight from Singapore to Vietnam is way cheaper than a…
I arrived in the Philippines 25 days ago. Now, I’m sitting in the airport waiting for my flight to Singapore again with nothing but a backpack. I will then head back to Vietnam on Tuesday, the 9th. I just had to go back to where I left my heart. This time, I plan to explore…
My 17 days in Mindoro came to an end. I surely had fun with my friend and her family. It was such a simple life living in the province and I certainly prefer it more than living in the city. Eating fresh seafood, coconut juice and vegetables everyday surely made my skin healthier. Here, I…
I have been restless since I got back home from my vacation. For some reason, the comfortable place, the access to all my stuff, the malls around me, the nice restaurants and whatever life I have back here in the city don’t seem to be what I like anymore. But hey, we don’t always get…
I jumped in the shower right when I got home today. Boy, it was so nice to take a shower without having to take your stuff out of your bag and put it back after. I got plenty of clothes and shoes to choose from and I’m now again able to charge my 2 mobile…
So, I’m back in the Lion City. I’ll be here for 4 days before I return to the Philippines. I’m still thinking of Saigon though. I can still taste the Vietnamese food. I can still hear the Vietnamese people. I want to go back to Vietnam and live in different parts of the country. I…
We decided to do Cu Chi Tunnels on my last day in Vietnam. The hostel was offering a tour for 130,000 VND/person excluding the entrance fee of 90,000 VND/person. We took a bus instead which cost us 26,000 VND/person round trip. That was way cheaper than the tour package. The first bus took us one…
I Am Ryshel 
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