Oh My Janey

Seoul Budget Hostel: Hotel Maui in Dongdaemun

Hotel Maui in Dongdaemun, SeoulAfter two long years, I was finally able to go back to Korea and fulfill my Kdrama dreams. I’m pretty you can imagine how happy I was to be back. It was my fourth time in Seoul, and instead of staying in the same hostel, I decided to try a new budget hostel in the middle of the bustling city. There are tons of affordable accommodations in Seoul, and I’m glad my sister and I ended up staying in one of the bests!

Hotel Maui in Dongdaemun is relatively new, but I have to say that they definitely set the bar when it comes to budget accommodations. It has everything I am looking for in a budget hostel and then some. Seriously though, they offer quite a lot more than the other accommodations stayed in did.

How do I even start raving about this hostel? From the location to the rooms to the host to everything–we loved every minute we spent in it. [Read more…]

Life Lately: On Productivity or the Lack Thereof

When I started this blog, I wanted to document my misadventures as a professional. But I soon realized that I don’t really want to talk about work here. But lately I feel like all I do is work, and yet, I still don’t feel productive because I haven’t been updating my blog as often as I hoped.

I swore to blog at least twice a month, but look at February being updateless! March is a better month though, because if this post manages to leave the Drafts folder, then this will be my third post this month. *fist pump* Aside from my random trip to Taiwan in January, I haven’t been traveling at all. It makes me sad, but I’m saving up for something big this April. I hope it pushes through because I’ve been praying and hoping for years now.

So what have I been up to lately? Not much. [Read more…]

Trekking to Tangadan Falls in La Union

trekking to tangadan fallsWhen my sister finished her residency program in October, she was set on a mission to travel anywhere and everywhere. I got dragged along in this mission and I suddenly found myself traveling more frequently than anticipated starting November. I was exhausted and tired and broke, but it was all worth it.

I originally planned to visit La Union with Aika, but I ended up traveling with Ate, Riza and KP first. Before the trip, I had never been to La Union but I had wanted to visit for the longest time, not for the surfing but for the chic hostels and the bustling food scene. I am happy to report that La Union didn’t disappoint. We had no itinerary, no plans whatsoever but we still had fun. I enjoyed every minute of it, and the weekend trip wasn’t enough. Even before we left, we were already itching to go back.

We started our weekend getaway with a short trek through the mountains to reach Tangadan Falls in San Gabriel. They said it’s a 45-minute hike but it took us two hours! I blame it through our inexperience and the gazillion of photos we took. [Read more…]

How to Visit Taiwan Visa Free for Philippine Passport Holders

guide to taiwan visa exemption application

(UPDATE October 18, 2017: Taiwan will be visa free for all Philippine passport holders starting November 1, 2017. So I guess this post is now obsolete. But still, Filipinos can now visit Taiwan more easily.

Why not visit my Taiwan travel itinerary instead? :D)

Back in December, I was itching to travel somewhere cold, foreign, and East Asian, lol. I didn’t have enough funds and it was almost Christmas, so I knew applying for a South Korean or Japanese visa would be problematic. When I saw a seat sale to Taipei, I had to book immediately. The next day, I already secured a round trip flight to Taipei for the Chinese New Year weekend with my sister and Marianne.

I had three reasons for wanting to come back to Taiwan. One, I fell in love with the country the first time I visited last winter. Two, the seats are usually on sale. And lastly, I could apply for a Taiwan visa exemption! I had to apply for a visa last time I visited, but now, Taiwan is now visa free for select Filipinos.

Last year they announced that they will waive the tourist visa for Philippine Passport Holders who can meet a certain criteria, such as having a visa issued by certain countries. I was ecstatic because visa fees for Taiwan are not cheap. It also meant I had to skip the process of applying for a visa and organizing all the requirements for it.

As much as going on adventures and conquering challenges are exciting, filing for necessary travel documents is not exactly fun nor exciting. But for my last visit to Taipei, I just applied for a visa exemption online and had a smooth transaction in the immigration in the Philippines and Taiwan.

I love Taiwan and I definitely wish more people will love it as much as I do. To encourage you to give the little country the love it deserves, here’s a step-by-step guide an on how you can enter Taiwan visa free. [Read more…]

From 2016 to 2017: On Being Braver, Tougher, and Punnier

hiking mt. pundaquitIt was still 2016 when I started writing this post. But as usual, life happened. Procrastination happened. And alas, I completely forgot about it. I put it off for awhile and I ended up taking days to finish this post. It’s a perfectly apt way to round up 2016, my worst blogging year since I started in 2010, as it reflected my writing pattern.

I’d love to say something profound, and I’d even want to brag how I ended the previous year with a bang. But I spent the last two days of 2016 binge watching Gilmore Girls, in bed in my pajamas, something I have done every other weekend last year. Do I regret it? Definitely not.

I didn’t even do half of what I said I would do in 2016, but I ended up doing some unexpected things. It wasn’t a bad year. Though it’s not the best, it’s stupid not to be thankful for all the blessings and opportunities the year opened for me. Though there were times that I almost digressed back to my old self and questioned whether my actions are symptoms of depression (apparently not!), I grew up a little and realized that trudging on is better than wallowing. Besides, you can’t possibly go through quarter life crisis twice!

Despite all the memes saying it was the worst and in spite of all the crying, shouting, and delivering lame jokes everyday, 2016 wasn’t that bad. [Read more…]

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