When 2009 rolled in, I had just returned to the the United States from Patagonia to attend my sisters wedding in Phoenix, Arizona.
It was in February 2009 under the influence of a carne asada burrito that I decided it was time to record my migrationology travels in the form of online documentation. I knew next to nothing about the web world, (twitter was literally just the sound of a bird to me).  Utilizing gallons of my parents coffee and my addiction to yerba mate from Argentina, along with free internet, I …

After hearing about boating the Mekong River, there was absolutely no way I could leave the country of Laos without embarking on the water journey.  I happen to be getting a Thai visa in Vientiane and had some spare time to explore the country a little further North.  After a number of ultra lazy days in the charming town of Luang Prabang and setting up the transportation logistics, I boarded a slow boat en route to the Thai border.
For 250,000 Kip (equal to about $30) we would receive 3 days …

1. Chili Peppers…Please!
I grew up eating food with spice and sometimes with chili.  Throughout SE Asia however, I have nurtured my ever craving lust for the succulent seeded heat of chili peppers.  I simply can’t taste food unless there is an abundance of hot chilies involved in the meal.  In my month in Indonesia, I was able to come up with 9 mandatory foods to eat in Indonesia and every single dish would not be the same without a massive dollop of sambal chili sauce.
2. No Toilet Paper …

The People’s Democratic Republic of Laos had already impressed me.  The sense of community, the warmness of the people, and the loyalty.  I could observe friends and family members alike helping each other out, caring for each other,  and socializing everywhere.  It seemed to me that the people of Laos really took time to enjoy small and simple things in life like relaxing under a crimson sunset, or watching the consistent calm flow of the Mekong River go by.
I arrived in Luang Prabang early one morning to a magnificent sunrise …

The scenery on the ride was ravishing, and the bars that were imprinted on my buttocks for the next 2 days from sitting on the top of the jeep up the snake winding, unpaved road, were equally great.
As we continued to gain elevation the environment around us changed from humid tropical to mountain fresh.  Palms were converted to evergreens and even the cuisine changed from buko (coconut) juice and adobo to mountain coffee, pancakes and yogurt.

The jolt of clean air could be felt from my nostrils all the way into …

This is Part II of the Trek From Mayoyao to Batad article.  If you haven’t already seen Part I, check it out here.

I had been in Southeast Asia for 5 months.  I had hired guides to summit Mt. Merapi volcano on Java and for Orangutan Trekking in Sumatra.  I had volunteered doing construction with locals in Payatas and everyone I had come in contact with wore slippers (flip flops).  The toughest jobs where people in the Western world would be required to lace up steel toes,  SE Asians, wore slippers.
I …

This is Part I of a 2 part series of a wondrous hike through the gorgeous 2000 year old paradise rice terraces of Mayoyao where one is not just a tourist but a family friend to the magnificent rising amphitheater of Batad, in the Ifugao province of the Philippines.

I sloppily released a mouthful of bright red beetle juice saliva onto the ground as I struggled to keep my balance on the mud bogged trail.
“In Ifugao, American country music is very popular,” said my guide Efren.  “At a cafe in Phoenix,” …

The jaunt from Batad to Mayoyao took nearly eight hours and included hiking, walking down completely barren mud roads, keeping my footing while crawling over fresh landslides, swinging back and forth on creeping jeeps, and clenching on to highly unstable homemade vehicular devices.
“In Mayoyao you are not just a tourist, but a family friend,”
said Efren, my guide.  “Let’s go and register at the town (village) municipality.”  I arrived to see 3 or 4 cops drinking coffee sprawled out in the office, elevated feet, and chuckling amongst themselves.  They sprang to …

The overnight bus was glacial (the aircon), the sharp winding curves were dizzying, but the morning sunshine that awakened me wriggling its rays through the green mountains was breathtaking.  I was aboard a Florida Liner (no website) bus from Manila to the town of Banaue in the rice terraced out countryside province of Ifugao, the Philippines.
After a quick breakfast and a teeth brush at one of the world’s more magnificent sinks, in the town of Banaue, our group hired a jeep to transport us an hour away where we would …

One hour, or three hours, depending on traffic conditions, and where from Metro Manila one is starting from, there is a small volcano, the smallest active volcano in the world known as Mt. Taal (slightly ironic as the world’s smallest volcano…pronounced taw-all).
Mt. Taal is located near the town of Tagaytay (probably the most pleasant city in Asia- according to the website) and is very easy to navigate to from the Metro Manila area.  Buses can easily be caught from the Cubao station.  The close proximity to Manila makes Taal Volcano …