Palawan, Philippines 2013

Asia was never a priority for my travel bug and me.

Born and having lived in the Philippines for the first ten years, it has never been a top place to visit for me.

I mean, apart from visiting relatives, I never saw it as a travel destination. Calm down, I now realise how stupid this idea is.

Apparently, in 2013, the universe had a plan to slap me in the face and show me how amazing my home country is.

Leaving the hustle and bustle of Manila, we landed on the island of Coron, north of Palawan. This was it, a new adventure! I’m a wanderer at heart and nothing pulls stronger on my heartstrings than the freedom of discovering new places.

As we went island hopping, it felt as though my desires were being granted. Fresh air, crystal clear blue waters, sunshine and delicious food were all present and nothing else mattered. Nothing. All I wanted to do was dive into the cool water, bask under the sun, and smell the fresh air.

I did all these things but then something happened. I found myself with my eyes wide open, staring at the natural limestone rock formations found in Palawan. I never thought I would ever look at rock formations and refer to them as ‘beautiful’ but this is what this was. They seemed to be the skyscrapers of nature and there was nothing else I wanted to do but look at them and take in their breathtaking presence.

I stayed in this awestruck moment until the next wonderful thing happened – lunch on a private beach. Nothing, I repeat, nothing compares to being on a tiny private beach with bamboo huts and fresh meals being cooked and prepared for you by locals, all to be consumed with the most unbelievable view of the ocean. They say there’s no such thing as perfect and I’m here to say..well, actually, there is.

As I savoured every single moment of this lunch, I felt nothing but bliss. Utter happiness spiralled out of control throughout my entire body and mind, and I wanted to it to stay like that forever. Totally forgot my family was there too (oops!).

People now ask me what the Philippines is like and instead of referring to what I knew as a child living there, I draw from my experiences as an adult realising what an incredible place it really is.

What a great feeling it is to be able to say I come from a country where people have such kind hearts, a country with extremely tasty food, and most of all, a country that has managed to shut me up for a short period of time because of its spectacular natural beauty. Never happens.