The Island Explorer

And so it begins. Cebu Pacific finally opens their 50th route to the southern most province in the country, Tawi-Tawi. I've been wanting to go back to this elusive group of islands, given its remoteness and charm. Of course, one cannot discount the security concerns, but as long as you keep close guard, Tawi-Tawi is relatively safe. So, time to escape to Tawi-Tawi. I'm not a fan of Cebu Pacific, but I just want to congratulate them for opening a whole new era of tourism for the province. With Sitangkai, Simunul and even the Turtle Islands on its realm, Tawi-Tawi is indeed the new Batanes. Time to explore! Read more on Tawi-Tawi from my previous entries here .

And yes, more on this top island destination coming up next.

A trip to Pagbilao won't be complete without a visit to Puting Buhangin, arguably the best beach on this side of Quezon Province. To get here, it's best one takes a boat from the Silangang Nayon coastline. We, however, took the trail by land, since the waves were strong.

It was the end of Summer, and we hoped to shipwreck ourselves to Cagbalete, one of the destinations I desired this 2011. However, the weather was bad (a storm was still lingering), so we decided to go to Pagbilao in Quezon Province instead.

The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands is one of the best looking malls in Singapore. It's just the right size, sprawling yet still luxurious in feel. Of course, most of the stores here are high end, but there are your regular favorites as well. 

We were granted a late checkout at 1PM, and decided to head up to the Sky Park. This was one of the top draws for the hotel after all. I kind of regretted staying in the room the whole morning after seeing the  highest infinity pool in the world.

The Marina Bay Sands in Singapore has become an overnight icon for the tiny island nation. Who would have thought that a spectacular hotel could topple the iconic Merlion in front of it. In fact, the Merlion is currently undergoing a renovation, and during my time of visit, was nowhere in sight.