Enzo's Travel Journals

Wrapping up the five-blog-series of my Singapore year-end trip features a last-minute shopping spree in Chinatown in search of souvenirs, followed by the New Year's Eve Countdown at Marina Bay Sands, all held on the last day of 2024. Is this the best way to end the year? Find out by reading below. Notes: This blog is the last (Day 4) of five parts of our  2024 Singapore Year-End Trip , spanning from Days 1 to 4. See these links for  our flights ,  Day 1 , Day 2 , and  Day 3 . Exchange rates between currencies are: 1 Philippine peso = 0.017 USD and 0.023 SGD. I apologize for the late posting  of this blog due to academic constraints and other circumstances.

On December 30, 2024 , we visited Universal Studios Singapore as part of our third of five days in Singapore. The theme park is the first and only Universal-themed Park in Southeast Asia, having opened in 2011. This is actually my fourth time visiting this park following our first three visits in 2013, 2015, and 2019. Notes: This blog is the fourth (Day 3) of five parts of our  2024 Singapore Year-End Trip , spanning from Days 1 to 4. See these links for our flights ,  Day 1 ,  Day 2 , and  Day 4 . Neither Universal Studios Singapore nor Resorts World Sentosa endorsed or promoted this b log. Exchange rates between currencies are: 1 Philippine peso = 0.017 USD and 0.023 SGD. To better be guided, visit the official park map here .

Continuing our year-end "escapade" in Singapore was a visit to Bras Basah, followed by Little India, before being trapped at Singapore Botanic Gardens for three hours due to a heavy rainfall. We then ended the day with a Christmas Wonderland visit at Gardens by the Bay. Despite the rainfall, we successfully concluded the day with more attractions and new treats. Marina Bay Sands at night, as viewed from Gardens by the Bay. Notes: This blog is the third (Day 2) of five parts of our  2024 Singapore Year-End Trip , spanning from Days 1 to 4. See these links for  our flights ,  Day 1 ,  Day 3 , and  Day 4 . Exchange rates between currencies are: 1 Philippine peso = 0.017 USD and 0.023 SGD.

It started as a sunny late morning from our Cebu Pacific flight on December 28, 2024 . As my mother and I walked down the elegant corridor of Changi Airport's Terminal 4, we were preparing for something extraordinary: an overseas Christmas vacation, which I embarked for the very first time after spending the yuletide holidays every year in my home country, the Philippines. This is actually my sixth time  visiting Singapore, having been visited there for the past five times every two years from 2013 to 2019, and in 2022. But, for the first time ever, I'm sharing with you my experience. Notes: This blog is the second (Day 1) of five parts of our  2024 Singapore Year-End Trip , spanning from Days 1 to 4. See these links for our flights ,  Day 2 ,  Day 3 , and  Day 4 . Exchange rates between currencies are: 1 Philippine peso = 0.017 USD and 0.023 SGD.

The five days from December 28, 2024, to January 1, 2025, constitutes the longest possible "weekend" in a calendar year. Since my favorite season to travel is Christmas (and by extension, New Year), we took this opportunity to book a round-trip ticket via Cebu Pacific for my first year-end vacation outside the Philippines. An Airbus A321neo of Cebu Pacific parked at its gate at Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 shortly before dawn on Saturday, December 28, 2024. My mom joined me in this vacation to Singapore . Notes: This is a personal blog on our travel experience and is neither promoted nor endorsed by Cebu Pacific. This blog is the first of five parts of our  2024 Singapore Year-End Trip , spanning from Days 1 to 4. See these links for Day 1 , Day 2 , Day 3 , and Day 4 . Exchange rates between currencies are: 1 Philippine peso = 0.017 USD and 0.023 SGD.

The Philippines is known for having the best (and longest) Christmas celebrations in the world. Our cherished traditions include Simbang Gabi and caroling of youth groups at neighborhoods. But did you know that we also have a unique Christmas tradition in this Southeast Asian archipelago? This is  Panunulúyan , or  Panulúyan  in short,  which is a dramatization of the events leading up to the first Christmas in Bethlehem, as well as the nativity scene itself. A lineup of the characters that led the  Panunulúyan  on the evening of Christmas Eve, December 24, 2024. Taken with permission. For this year, I traveled a hundred kilometers south of the capital Metro Manila to  Ibaan , a small town in the province of  Batangas , for our annual holiday visit with our family and some of my friends in the province.  The Archdiocesan Shrine and Parish of St. James the Greater , a Spanish colonial-era church founded in 1832, is the main focus of this blog...

Back when I was a child, my parents would bring me to parish churches early in the morning to take part in an early church service in the days leading up to Christmas. This is Simbang Gabi , a centuries-old tradition that forms an important part of celebrating the yuletide season in the Philippines. Held before dawn from December 16 to 24, this is something that we, Filipinos, and as a Roman Catholic myself, cherish. It is believed that one devotee who completes the traditional nine-day novena will make his/her wishes granted. Christmas decorations illuminate the sanctuary of the Manila Cathedral before the pre-dawn Mass of Simbang Gabi in December 2023.

Happy Friday the 13th! For those frequent viewers of my blog and my YouTube videos, you may remember when I published my June 2023 flight review on Cebu Pacific to Japan last November 2024 and other Cebu Pacific blogs in this site. Here we are again, onboard the Philippines' leading low-cost airline back home after my mom's sojourn autumn trip to Tokyo. Notes: This is a personal blog on our travel experience and is neither promoted nor endorsed by Cebu Pacific. See  this link  for the previous trip report on Jetstar. The author of this blog did not board this flight. Rather, my mom represented me due to my school classes. Exchange rates between currencies are as of December 2024: 1 Philippine peso = 0.0172 USD and 2.58 JPY.

At the end of November 2024, my mom, who, by the way, took this flight due to my school classes, flew on Jetstar to Tokyo, the capital of Japan. Will this live up to her expectations? Read further to know more. Let's hop on the plane to a vibrant autumn adventure ahead! Notes: This is a personal blog on our travel experience and is neither promoted nor endorsed by Jetstar. The author of this blog did not board this flight. Rather, my mom represented me due to my school classes. Exchange rates between currencies are as of December 2024: 1 Philippine peso = 0.0172 USD and 2.58 JPY.

When you hear about bullet trains , you think of Japan — with its famous attractions from Tokyo to Osaka as well as their extreme level of hospitality and good manners of its people. But did you know that their Shinkansen  is also one of Japan's famous "attractions" and landmarks? Shinkansen trains at Tokyo Station. In operation since 1964, the Shinkansen has transformed the lives of the Japanese, as it pulled cities closer than ever before. It shortened travel times between Tokyo and Osaka — two of Japan's largest cities and famous tourist hotspots — from almost seven hours on a conventional limited express train to only 2.5 hours today! This blog covers my experience on the 515-kilometer  Tokaido Shinkansen  — the original line opened — as part of my first-ever trip to Japan in July 2023. How we bought our tickets? For first-time travelers, I highly recommend buying your tickets on online platforms like Klook  — which has a more comprehensive guide by clicking...