2025 didn’t unfold like a classic “travel year.” It was a year of packed suitcases, family responsibility, and long-haul miles, where joy and worry often sat side by side. We crossed continents several times—sometimes for adventure, sometimes because life demanded it. Our 2025 timeline (the way it really happened) January 2025: Back to the Philippines …
(This Article is kind of a chapter 2 of the previous article, and if you have just arrived here, you might want to read “Born Restless — On Wanderlust, Ancestry, and a Dream Called India” beforehand.) People say, “If you can’t take India, try Sri Lanka.” That sentence used to sound like a compromise to …
Some people can live an entire year without thinking about the next trip. I’ve never understood how. For me, longing to travel isn’t an occasional desire—it’s a constant background noise. Even when life is good, even when routines are comfortable, a part of my mind keeps scanning the horizon as if it’s looking for an …
Flying back to the Philippines from Europe is never a quick hop. Even on a “good” day, it’s a marathon of terminals, time zones, and that strange in-between state where your body is in Munich but your mind is already sweating somewhere near the equator. Add my 82‑year‑old mother to the equation—frail, exhausted, and not …
It’s been a while since our last update. The last time we posted, we were in Germany, and honestly… our heads were full. Family stuff, doctor appointments, decisions that never feel 100% right, and that constant feeling of being “on standby” emotionally. And in the middle of all that, we didn’t even tell you about …
After almost 35 years of being on the road—planes, trains, and the occasional tuk-tuk—I find myself asking a question I never thought I would: is traveling still worth it? It’s not that I’ve fallen out of love with discovering new places, far from it. Vietnam and Cambodia recently gave me some unforgettable adventures, the kind …
When Travel Means More Than Adventure Most people travel for fun, for the thrill of discovering new places, or to reunite with old friends. But when I boarded a train to Poland in late summer of 1989, I wasn’t just another tourist. I was 20 years old, full of restless energy and hope, and I …
There aren’t many dates that everyone remembers exactly where they were or what they were doing. But September 11, 2001? That’s one of those days. This year marks the 24th anniversary of that tragic event, and like everyone else, I have my own memories. No stress, no worries. Well, actually… On 9/11, I was as …
Note: This article recounts an experience from September 2001—24 years ago. Back in September 2001, I found myself on Tetiaroa for the fifth time. By then, my annual visits had made me something of a regular—enough that I’d gotten to know a member of the Brando family, I call him here Tama. We’d fish together, …
From the Archives: Australia 2002 The story below is an excerpt from my handwritten daily diaries, which I scribbled during my first adventure across Australia from October to December 2002. Group tours, outback sunsets, and plenty of drama—some things never change! New Faces, Old Drama It’s day 46 of my Sydney-to-Sydney adventure, and our little …