IT'S RAINING AGNES B.

Agnès B. is a brand by French fashion designer Agnès Andrée Marguerite Troublé.  Not really our favorite but lately, it's been raining agnès b. for us!

On Macy's recent trip to London, she got this travel kit from Cathay Pacific.

Two weeks ago in Hong Kong, we munched on yummy agnès b. treats.

We bought matching agnès b. camera straps in pink to replace our old worn out ones.

Macy got this pass holder. (Perfect for the London Oyster card, the Hong Kong Octopus Card, or the Tokyo Suica card!)

Karol's boyfriend grabbed a couple of shirts from their store and qualified for this iPhone case promo.  Karol didn't let the good deal slip away!

And yes... it's pronounced as Anne-yes Be. =)

THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE

And no, we don't mean the fattest most important Vogue magazine of the year.

We call our small travel dilemma, The September Issue.  It just sounds so glamorous!  Haha! 

We know it’s been 3 weeks since our last post and we super duper apologize for that.  A lot of things happened last September and mind you, they’re good things!  So, nothing to worry about! 

Last year, we made a pact that this September 2011, we're going to explore Southern and Eastern Africa.  Macy contacted her friend David of Tour Organizers (he has his own travel blog btw, a must-read!) to inquire about a private tour of Africa.  There should be ten or more passengers for them to organize one for us, so as early as January, we tried inviting friends... young ones... for a fun-for-sure trip!  Unfortunately, that didn't work out.  We then tried inviting older ones just so we can form a group.  That also didn't work out.  Obviously our private tour didn't happen. 

Next is Plan B.  Join Tour Organizers' existing African Safari Tour.  Their tour was only for June 2011 and it clashes with our schedules.  September was our only travel time for this 2^nd half of the year.  Not happening!

Next is Plan C.  Go to Russia.  We couldn’t remember how Russia came about.  It’s not even next to Africa on our list.  But still, we made it our next destination.  We started planning, researching on their visa requirements, asking our travel agent for good deals and such... but at the back of our minds we know that we’re both half-hearted with this trip.

12 REASONS WHY WE CANNOT BE BACKPACKERS

You have no idea how much respect we have for backpackers and how much we look up to them.  Because we can't, for the life of us, imagine how we'd make it alive if we were to go backpacking.   

We know traveling backpacking-style is a better way of getting oneself immersed in a country's culture, and can give you unique experiences that you won't get in traditional travel.

It's just that... it's really not for everyone.  We are part of that everyone.  Don't get us wrong, we are not extravagant travelers either.  Remember we don't even fly business class?  But, our idea of a vacation is one that is at least convenient.  Relaxing.  Enjoyable.  Pure fun.  Unlike some people, we don't have the luxury of traveling for 4 or 5 or 6 months straight.  We can't just leave our lives in the Philippines in a snap.  When we go out of the country, it's usually just for a few days, a week, or 1 month max.  That's why we always want our short vacation to at least be comfortable and leisurely before we go back to chaotic Manila. 

According to Wikipedia, backpacking combines the activities of hiking and camping in backcountry wilderness.  Backpacking is a term that has historically been used to denote a form of low-cost, independent international travel.  The factors that traditionally differentiate backpacking from other forms of tourism include but are not limited to the following: use of public transport as a means of travel, preference of youth hostels to traditional hotels, length of the trip vs. conventional vacations, use of a backpack, an interest in meeting the locals as well as seeing the sights.  Erik Cohen notes that even though one of the primary aims of backpacking is to seek the authentic, the majority of backpackers spend most of their time interacting with other backpackers.

Based on that definition, here are 12 reasons why we can never be backpackers.

1.  We don't even own a backpack. 

Okay we own one, but it's not really the kind of backpack one is going to use for backpacking. 

LAN KWAI FONG: The perfect party place in Hong Kong

When in Hong Kong and can’t decide on where to dine or spend a quick night cap with your friends or family after all that shopping, head to Lan Kwai Fong and be ready to have fun!  Lan Kwai Fong is Hong Kong’s dining and clubbing district and can be found in Central. Come Halloween and New Year’s Eve, people troop to Lan Kwai Fong to celebrate and get crazy.

And whenever we have the opportunity to celebrate birthdays in Hong Kong, we find ourselves trooping to LKF to what else- get crazy! 

But before all that we sort of have this tradition of concocting a ‘Hotel Room Surprise’ (and blogging about it now for everyone to read means we can't do it anymore as a surprise in the future hahaha).  We, Karol and Macy, would always be in charge of this crazy and immature idea. Everything would be planned- the cake, candles, decors and other birthday stuff and this would often mean overweight luggage even before reaching HK. 

2009 

In August of 2009, we celebrated the birthday of our friend, Lyd.  We brought party decors all the way from Manila instead of buying them in HK, where they would cost more.  We got everything from SM Department Store's Toy Kingdom. 

1001 THINGS WE DID BEFORE WE DIE: Have a shot of vodka at 0 degrees in Lan Kwai Fong's Vodka Ice Bar

Click here to see the rest of 1001 Things We Did Before We Die

BALI DILEMMA

Last night, Macy sent Karol an SMS that said "Read Chuvaness."  The blog has an entry about two Filipina friends who went to Bali to celebrate their birthdays, and got harassed by the airport officers accusing them of drug trafficking.  Why are we bothered?  It's because we're leaving for Bali in three weeks.  Just like them, we are two friends going there to celebrate Macy's birthday.

My Traumatic Experience as an Alleged DRUG TRAFFICKER in Bali Indonesia
By Chyng Reyes

For first time readers..
My name is Chyng Reyes.  I graduated with a degree of Electronics and Communications Engineering in a state university in Intramuros.  I work in a BPO company in MoA complex as part of Systems Development team.  Im a blogger who frequently travels.  And Im an individual who has never taken prohibited drugs.

Read the rest of the story on Chuvaness.com's Before You Fly To Indonesia or at Chyngreyes.com's My Traumatic Experience as an Alleged Drug Trafficker in Bali Indonesia

First things first.  Should we cancel our trip?  We really felt bad for what these two girls had to go through, but we admit that the first thing that really got into our heads was if we should still go to Bali.  We already did mental notes about which bookings are refundable in case we decide against it, and luckily for us our only non-refundable air tickets are those from Manila to Jakarta and back…  which is also not a problem, because we purchased travel insurance that covers flight cancellations or no-shows (yes it is always advisable to get travel insurance).  We booked our hotel through our agent and fortunately for us (again), we chose the flexible rate versus the book-and-buy rate.  So, we can cancel those too, any time.

Thus, we can forget about the whole trip without much hassle on our part but the real question is... Do we really wanna cancel it?  When we got to talk on the phone, our conversation went like this:

Karol:  What do we do?  I asked for other people's opinions.
Macy:  What did they say?  Good or bad?  Anyway… I DON’T WANNA CANCEL IT.
Karol:  I knoooooooowwwwww!!! Me too!!! Because we booked a really nice villa...
Macy: ...and they will welcome us with flowered leis and drinks
Karol: ...and they will welcome us with the sound of a gong.

So yeah we asked a few people this morning and here's what they had to say:

"After hearing about the story, I feel paranoid for you guys.  Especially that you are both girls, just like them.  But if you really wanna go, it's fine with me too.  Just be extra careful and if anything bad happens, we'll fly there right away." -Karol's boyfriend

"Well... your Tita Beth keeps on going back to Bali.  Her daughter even got married there.  I never heard about them having any problems.  Maybe it's just a random thing."  -Karol’s mom

"I also heard about a drug incident in Bali involving an Australian model.  Maybe that's their random profiling.  Just take care!"  -Macy's boyfriend

“Ohmygod… That is so sad… Anyway princess (she calls us princesses that’s why we love her) I think it’s okay if you go. There are lots of Filipino tourists who go to Bali every day and this is the first time I heard something like this… so maybe they were just unlucky.  It's just probably an isolated case.” –Tita Zor, our travel agent

"I won't be surprised if things like that happen because it is said that drugs in South East Asia are sourced from the Philippines."- Macy's Brother

Hooray we're still going!!! Everyone kinda approved. 

Here are some of our thoughts regarding the issue:

Do not generalize.  We, of all people, must know this.  We also come from a corrupt country and we've heard about numerous cases of foreigners getting harassed by our officials.  But we wouldn't want them to say "Don't go to Manila ever", right?  Like what we would always say, Manila is full of fraudsters and thugs who know nothing but to trick other people, but not everyone is like that.  There are millions more who are hospitable and warm.  Our officers might have milked money out of tourists, but it is not always the case.  We can bash some of them, but to bash the whole country is just wrong.  That is why whenever we get asked if it is safe to go to the Philippines because the TV always shows the wars in Mindanao, we always reply with "The Philippines is a beautiful country.  Just like anywhere else, you only have to be careful."  So for Indonesia, we will give you a second chance.  Please don't disappoint us.

Not because a bunch of Indonesians are rude, it makes the rest of them rude.  We are all individually different, regardless of what group we belong to.  We call them racist for automatically assuming Filipinas as drug traffickers, but wouldn't it make us racist too if we say "Indonesians are not nice"?  Maybe some of them are, but definitely not all of them in general.  We made friends with an Indonesian server at the cruise we had last year and he is the funniest, nicest guy ever.


Yusuf with our pet penguin, Chuppy.  He is from Central Java.
Yusuf:  Do you have kids?
Macy and Karol:  Yess!!
Yusuf:  Really????
Macy and Karol:  We'll introduce you to our baby... Chuppy! (we took Chuppy out of our bag)
Yusuf:  Aggghh!  I know I'm Krayzeeh but I dunno anymorr who's krayzier, me or you!!

 Maybe they are just doing their job.  We know it is unfair for us to be likely suspects of drug trafficking but what can we do?  There REALLY are lots of drug trafficking cases involving Filipinos.  After the 9/11 Twin Towers attack, weren't all airports extremely suspicious of Osama-bin-Laden-looking peeps?  It must've been stressful for them too, but everyone then were just cautious of not letting anything awful happen again.  If during that time you were seated with an Osama look-a-like on the plane, wouldn't you wish he was thoroughly checked too?  
 
When we, Macy and Karol, arrived Los Angeles from Mexico, the US Immigration officer interrogated Karol with questions like "Are you carrying US$10,000 with you?".  Karol was so flattered she kept on asking Macy if she looked like the sosh type who carries wads of $$ with her hahaha.  Macy would just reply "Heller, they ask that randomly".  In that case, are we supposed to rejoice that the US officers think we Filipinos carry around tons of cash?  Nope.  They were simply doing their job.  The only difference is that carrying $10,000 doesn't sound so bad compared to carrying kilos of heroin.  As long as your conscience is clear, the best thing you can do is to just cooperate with them.

Our own share of hold ups in different places:

Italy 
In 2007 we took a train ride from Rome to Florence via TrenItalia.  We swear it was a 2 hour and a half ride that felt like forever.  There were 5 of us, all girls, and we occupied two compartments.  We were seated in one compartment together with another friend Cara, while our two other friends Lyd and Krishna, were in a different compartment.  As soon as the train left Rome, a bunch of young Italian frat boys started harassing us.  They would open our compartment's sliding glass door and puff out the marijuana they were smoking (i know right) into our compartment.  They would shut the door immediately after.  Hotbox galore for us.  They would bang the glass doors non-stop, open it, touch our friend's face, etc.  They would touch their Willies in front of us, and start pretending to have a "hand party".  Macy took her hair iron out of her carry-on and said "Pag um-attack talaga itong mga 'to, ihahampas ko sa ulo nila to", to which Karol replied "bahala ka, pag nasira yang plantsa mo, kulot ang buhok mo for the rest of the trip."  Macy kept the hair iron immediately and brought out her super teeny tiny almost-useless Swiss knife instead.  HAHA.  Everyone on the train were just WATCHING not giving a shit.  We tried to ask for help from the officer on board but he didn't even bother.  He just walked around as if nothing is wrong.  Our two other friends in the other compartment were already quietly crying.    They did all that the whole effin time.  We couldn't do anything because we were scared that those boys are spoiled rotten sons of Italian mafia members and filing a police report will just be useless.  All we did was to just wait for the train ride to be over and get out of that cursed train car asap.

Did we hate the Italians?  Those boys, yes.  But the others, nope.  Did we ride TrenItalia again?  Yes.  Did we go back to Italy after that?  Yes.


Manila 
In 2008, Karol arrived in Manila from Macau.  Her luggage was "randomly" checked at the customs where they found a shiny new Louis Vuitton Vernis Alma which Karol bought from Macau.  The NAIA customs officer demanded for a receipt and Karol was left with no choice.  The officers did a few calculations based on the receipt and required her to pay a total of PhP24,000 for tax -- P19,000 for the purse, and P5000 for the bag charm (they found out about it after seeing the receipt).  Karol explained that it was just a souvenir (nice try), for personal use (which really is, by the way), and that she does not, in any way, intend to resell the purse.  They insisted Karol to pay the fee or she cannot have the bag back.  We will not tell you anymore what happened next, but we're sure you know what they wanted.

Did we hate all the NAIA officers?  That particular customs officer, yes.  But the rest, nope.  Did we take home designer purchases from abroad again? Yes.  Did it stop us from departing and arriving in NAIA?  No.

Israel

Macy’s trip to Israel with her mother was another one for the books. It was the first time that they were interviewed separately regarding their luggage. They were asked to describe their luggage (color/brand/make), if they were the ones who packed and locked their luggage, if they were travelling with a group/on a tour. After which she was brought to the basement of the airport (as in the airport’s bodega) where all the luggages were, and was asked to identify their luggage and if nothing has changed with the lock and its appearance. Then when it was all clear, they were allowed to board.  They went through the same process going home (Tel Aviv to Hong Kong). 

Hongkong
Karol and Macy went to Hong Kong with 3 other girl friends Lyd, Cara and Krishna. While checking in for their flight going home (Hong Kong to Manila), Cara was questioned as to why her eyes were so red.  She said they just got irritated.  The officer said, "This is not to discriminate you but your race is prone to Sore Eyes" and she was asked to proceed to the airport physician to get checked. Result was she indeed had Sore Eyes and wasn't allowed to fly.  We left Hong Kong without her and she was only able to fly back home after more than a week.

What we're trying to say is that... it can happen anywhere.  Even in our own country.  That's the real world.  Yes it is always advisable to be extra cautious, but don't let incidents like these stop you from exploring the unfamiliar.  

To Chyng and Dyan, you are both brave and you both did well in handling the situation.  We hope that experience won't stop you from traveling again, doing what you love to do. =)

To the Indonesian Government, hello hello!!  We'll be there in three weeks!!  Just wanna let you know that we're not taking any kind of prohibited drugs with us.  The 20kg baggage allowance is not even enough for our clothes and shoes (roll eyes), so we definitely won't be bringing kilos and kilos of heroin.  Please be nice and we promise we'll be nice too! =)

FASHION WEEK X BANATE

Since Philippine Fashion Week has just officially ended, we remember it was also during Fashion Week that we first travelled together. That was Hong Kong Fashion Week 5 years back. We never really thought that we’d be travel buddies. In fact we hated each other the first time! Haha!!

with our classmates, Rica and Jayce

2006 HK Fashion Week for Fall/Winter

But what made this trip so memorable is the scam that was BANATE TOURS AND TRAVEL. Our school organized everything for us in cooperation with Banate Tours and Travel. (What a name! We just have to say it again!) We actually preferred to arrange the bookings by ourselves but then our school said we have to be under their supervision so they must take care of everything.

We paid them USD200 for airfare and accommodation.  It was too good to be true, we know, but since there were around 20 of us, we thought the agency gave us a really good discount.  The day before the flight, they suddenly asked for an additional USD100 each! That short notice got us thinking that something’s not right. Still, we paid and waited for our tickets and vouchers the rest of the day, only to go home empty-handed.  We’re told to just show up early morning for our flight in NAIA Terminal 2.  

On the day of the flight, we got our tickets.  But, still no hotel vouchers!! WTH! We sensed that something was really up but our teacher assured us that everything’s okay (although we can see the worry in her face).  When we arrived at HKIA, no one was there to pick us up.  Our teacher called the agent from Banate and we were told to wait.  We spent the WHOLE DAY waiting at the airport and of course, that got us impatient.  So, we moved our asses together and came up with another plan.  Because it’s already clear to us that we got duped by Banate, we called our agent back home (without our teacher’s knowledge) to find us a hotel.  Luckily our agent was able to get us a room at the hotel right across the HK Exhibition & Convention Center.  It was hard to find hotel rooms last-minute at that time of the year because it was fashion week, so even if it’s pricey, we just had to give it a go.  We ended up paying (last-minute, take note! ughh!) a total of almost PHP50k for our 3-night stay.  Just for one room!  Good thing there were 4 of us who shared.  As for our teacher and other classmates, they ended up looking for hotels, luggage in tow.  Some spent one night here, another night there.  As for Banate, they got sued by our school and it took them quite a few months before they were able to give us a USD150 refund each. 

Apparently, Banate Tours and Travel got sued many times over. Just Google "Banate Travel" and find out. 

Lesson learned: choose a travel agency wisely.  If it’s too good to be true,

then most likely... it is.

TRAVEL BUDDIES

Finding someone who can travel with you isn't easy.  You can ask a hundred friends and they would all love to go, but not all of them would be really willing to shell out for a trip.  Even if you find some who'd be willing, it's not guaranteed that you'd want to visit the same city.  Even if you find someone who'd want to visit the same city you're interested in, you might find out later on that your schedules do not match. And even if (luckily) both your schedules agree and you decided to push through with your plans, you might just realize that YOU.DONT.GET.ALONG.

"There ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them." -Mark Twain

Yes, you get along with each other so well back home. Fine. But the thing is, back home, you don't spend breakfast, lunch, and dinner together everyday.  You don't sleep on the same room every night.  You don't really discuss if visiting a museum is a worthier way to spend the afternoon than going shopping.  As soon as you step foot on an unfamiliar place, outside your comfort zone, it is completely normal to have a different set of priorities and concerns. 

"It is better to travel alone than with a bad companion." - An African Proverb

 

Of course you can't ditch each other in the middle of your trip just because you realized you don't like each other, but one good way to overcome this or at least make things a little easier is to give each other their own time.  Make each other feel that it's totally normal and okay if one would like to spend an afternoon in a cafe, while the other spends her time oggling at the shops.

"Travel only with thy equals or thy betters.  If there are none, travel alone."

-The Dhammapada

   

We are lucky because we, Macy and Karol, are equal.  As in EQUALLY BAD.  Hahaha.  A perfect example is how much we agree on "maintaining" (or, not maintaining) the room that we share.  Our room will always start looking like:

The Royal Pacific in HK

The next day, after dressing up, it will be like:

Costa Luminosa cabin

Or after eating takeaways it will be like:

Genius Downtown Hotel in Milan

It's like we have a mutual agreement that states It's absolutely okay to be messy because the housekeeper will clean it later anyway.  No we don't want to give the housekeeper a hard time, it's just that... we're messy.  Sometimes we feel bad especially if the housekeeper is kinda old already.  We try to make it up though by doing little things like:

A note for our housekeeper from Honduras.  We wanted to add "We never intended our room to get this messy and we're sorry because we know you're probably so tired already of cleaning other people's mess.  We'll try to do better tomorrow." but Macy's Basic Spanish Phrases App for Iphone doesn't have that.