Nice blog you have there! You take very nice photos, felicitations!! With your eye on good photographic subjects, I look forward to your shots of these London events.

Thanks for visiting me here and really hope we could meet up in the future!

Take care.

Yeah, it’s always been my dream to put “A Pinay in Europe” on paperbound version. Thank you very much for the encouragement! Now, I must put my act together and start writing that book! Time waits for no one….

I admire your decision to go on a 3-4 month solo backpacking trip across Europe! “Huge expenses”, yes! This continent is very expensive and how ever you scrimp on food, it’s the accommodation, transport and unexpected expenses that will make a huge hole on your pocket! WWOOFing is a great idea! There’ also the Helpx org. where H and I volunteered for one month to work at a Bed and Breakfast hotel in Tuscany last November in exchange for food, accommodation and heating (it was getting to winter that time!). We gained a lot from this experience - learning Italian culture, how to run a hotel, how to cook a 5-course meal for 25 people in just two hours, speaking Italian like an Italian and a lot more. There was also the opportunity to visit awesome places nearby such as Siena, Florence, Lucca…. Hence, I really encourage you to do a bit of this but limit it to 1 or 2 weeks at a time! It’s the best way to get immersed in European culture and it’s free!

About your concern on safety, it’s generally safe. I’ve been travelling on my own, exploring courtyards and empty streets all in the name of photography but haven’t encountered anything nasty so far. Just beware of pickpockets which are rampant in big cities, otherwise you will be okay. I see a lot of solo lady backpackers everywhere I went, they stay in hostels where they meet travelling ladies like themselves and it’s fun to exchange stories!

The language barrier - as long as you do your homework which is to learn those simple phrases and they will take you a long, long way! Buy a phrase book. Anyway, the best language is body language and you will never go wrong! Just don’t smile at French men as they will take this as flirting…hehehe!!

Good luck and pls let me now if you are travelling around Paris or somewhere near so we could arrange to meet up for a café or a bit of touring around!

Best regards,
Maria

Ako nga pala yung nag post sa PEx about wanting to meet you and Neodyn!

I’m living in Harrow. Not part of Central London (Zone 4 eh) but I’m just less than 15mins away by tube from Zone 1
Ok! Will definitely share Olympics & diamond juilee celebration pics!

I’ll definitely follow your blog!

Been reading a lot of materials about traveling in Europe. So glad I happen to stumble upon your blogsite thru Pinoy Exchange. It is so informative, and you keep it interesting with your humorous style of writing. You should write a book one day and get it published

I am also passionate about traveling. This time, the travel bug has caught me real bad In fact, I will taking a sabbatical soon and spend 3-4 months backpacking across Europe. It’s going to be a long trip (read: huge expenses) so will be staying in hostels to stretch my budget. Thinking also of doing a bit of WWOOFing.

Because I am woman in my 30’s who will be traveling alone, my loved ones are concerned for my safety. It will be my first time in Europe but I have done a few solo traveling in the past e.g. USA, Fiji, Hong Kong and it all went well. It would be different this time because there will be lots of walking/commuting around carrying a huge backpack, and of course - the language barrier.

I wonder what’s your take about my upcoming journey/adventure. Salamat and hope see you in my travels

It’s readers like you who come forward that keeps my inspiration going.! Welcome to the site and please feel to ask questions if you need some help in planning your itinerary. I’m typing this from a hotel room in Padua and my days are full, as always, so my apologies for not responding to you earlier……Thanks and hope to see you here more often

Maria

I stumble upon your website thru your post in Pinoy Exchange. I find this very interesting especially for me who are starting to plan our family trip to Paris on a budget. I haven’t explored this yet as at the moment it is late evening already. In the coming days, i’m sure i’ll read a lot from here. Pls. keep posting esp. for us who haven’t been to Europe.

Kudos!

your new fan,
Janette C.

I travel extensively around Europe and Southeast Asia and have a huge library of photos which have not been published online so if you have any particular theme or country you are interested in, or you have any special research requirement or assignment I may be able to help you. I am an aspiring travel writer but photography is my passion. My dream is to publish a book of photographs and travel stories.

Best regards,
Maria

Am I able to use any photos, with a credit for travel articles that I write?
You will see some of my articles on my blog, address listed here.

I will follow you from now on!

Thanks in advance for your reply and permission, if at all possible.

Kind regards,
Laurie

I am so touched by your words….. Not only that we have the same interest for travel and photography, we also share the same passion for writing our joyful sentiments. You write creatively so I encourage you to write your own travel site.

Let me share with you a site I found on the web which speaks exactly about my passion for photography:

“CAN PHOTOGRAPHY BE AN ADDICTION?

“I do it for a living, I do it on my breaks, days off, vacation… Sometimes I wonder if I ever have a day off or if I have a job. Is addiction one of the job hazards? Should it be added to the list of things to seriously consider when you’re thinking of turning pro? Or is it simply pure happiness?”

……………totally addicted. The snick-click of my camera gives me a feeling of satisfaction. I don’t go a day without a camera in my hand. I got nervous when my camera was inaccessible due to a recent earthquake–so I borrowed one for a day. Husband so does not understand–says my priorities are wrong….
(comment by a certain Terry regarding above article. It speaks so much of my own addiction..hehehe!!!)

Anyway, I am typing this from a Bed and Breakfast hotel in Tuscany (Italy) where H and I are currently working as volunteer helpers in exchange for food, accommodation, immersion in Italian way of life, learning the language, Italian gastronomy not to mention the running of a hotel, meeting people and keeping fit (doing hotel maintenance work is good exercise!). So far, so good….we are enjoying the experience extremely well particularly that part where we have the chance to assist and observe an Italian chef preparing gastronomic meals at rapid speed, 5 courses for a big number of people! It’s like watching Masterchef Live at close range!

But the bottom line is, we just want to do something different….still incorporating our foremost love which is travel, but this time, with a purpose! We have been tinkering with the idea of relocating to Italy and this adventure is a good way to start the transition!

Thank you so much for the kind words and hope to hear from you again. By the way, I’ve worked in Bahrain some years back before transferring to Dubai, and finally moving to France. We were in Dubai in February this year, I invite you to browse on my February 2011 postings to check on the photos.

Take care and talk to you again soon!

Maria