International Volunteering can be an extremely valuable way to travel, make quality friends, learn about a new place and culture, and come away with unparalleled experiences.  Some of my most interesting stories and adventures have been the result of a few spontaneous voluntours I have gotten into.

In the Philippines I had some incredible times volunteering with an organization called Gawad Kalinga.  I helped a family do a little bit of construction in Payatas, checked out a few house building projects, and talked to many caring locals.  The local’s I met were eager to tell me stories, share …

I spent 2 enjoyable months in Manila doing things like volunteering in Payatas, jogging through chaotic side streets, eating peculiar fried and boiled edible items, and making ultra spontaneous decisions.  Though Manila is not the cleanest or nicest looking city in Asia, it has a unique atmospheric buzz and presents amazing opportunities of adventure and submersion.  Here is a list of 16 fabulous ways to have a Thrilla in Manila.
1.  Spanish Old Town (Intramuros)
The colonial Spanish walled in area of Intramuros is an interesting place to breeze around. Churches and schools built with complete Spanish influence make it …

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 …

This is the Part 2 of Voluntouring in the Bicol Region of the Philippines: Part 1

In July 2009, I ventured to the Bicol Region in the Philippines to check out some Gawad Kalinga villages (Building Houses with Hope), see some local attractions, eat some chili peppers and bicol express, meet some people, and have more valuable adventures with Gawad Kalinga.  I was on assignment as a volunteer with Gawad Kalinga and the newly developed voluntourism program for students from Ateneo de Manila University.  GK builds homes in the Philippines, aiming …

To follow Thanksgiving, I thought it might be appropriate to introduce a small nameless store I stumbled upon in the heart of Quezon City, Novaliches area in Manila, the Philippines.
Ironically, I had just taken a jog in Manila, when my wonderful couchsurfing friend and I decided to invest in some “treats.”  Little did I know we were about to enter a stuffed cavern of highly creative and very processed nibbler’s paradise.
On the side of Quirino highway, we crouched on hands and knees into a tiny cave opening.  I tried to …

Migration Mark has been in South East Asia since March of 2009 and has grown to love a few serious things but mostly the extraordinarily quirky things.

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 …

This is Part 1, check out Voluntouring in Bicol, Philippines: Part 2
Recently a super typhoon has battered part of the Philippines including the region of Bicol.  Many people have gathered together to make efforts at helping others through the devastating destruction.  GK is making efforts for relief, clean up, and rehabilitation.
In July 2009, I ventured to the Bicol Region in the Philippines to check out some Gawad Kalinga villages (if you don’t know what GK is check out Building Houses with Hope), do some touristy things, eat some chili peppers …

I had been eying, smelling, hearing, and came close to touching, but still had not officially tasted the famous Dampa seafood extravaganza in Manila, the Philippines.  Dave Damron from Life Excursion (check out his site) donated a small monetary fund which translated directly into getting dirty in some Dampa, also known as engorgement.

Dampa is a wet market full of all living and dead great tasting things from the sea.  Stalls at the market are piled high with an abundance of ultra fresh, squirming goodness.  I went to the Macapagal Blvd. …

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 …