Category: The Wanderer

Live Your Dream

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Ever since I was a kid, I’d had two favourite Princesses: Belle and Cinderella. Belle because I could relate to her most, and Cinderella because she just represented the ultimate Disney Princess for me. But lately one other Princess has been climbing my list. With her hair.

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Punzie.

I can count on one hand the number of situations I am truly able to sit still. When I’m reading, and when I’m eating. That’s pretty much it. I can’t even Netflix and chill without looking for something else to do mid-movie. I just like to keep myself busy – my friends would say ridiculously so. I can pretty much sing, dance, sew, read, work, and paint all in one morning, and still feel bored. So when I heard Rapunzel’s When Will My Life Begin I thought, wow. This girl gets me.

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Whosits and Whatsits

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Tokyo Disney Sea – what Disney travelers call the best park in the world. And for very good reason.

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Having only seen photos of the world famous Disney Sea, I couldn’t quite decide which character I wanted to Disneybound. There were so many choices. So many magical lands.

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Then I saw it. Mermaid Lagoon. The colors looked so vibrant and the theming looked absolutely incredible, I knew in an instant that Ariel was it. So Under the Sea we went.

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Disney Tradition

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A few weeks ago, I went on the perfect Disney trip with mom – filled with laughter, music, food, conversation, and a whole lot of fun. Pretty much what I do on a regular basis with her, except with that added touch of Disney magic.

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I’d always considered my family to be a Disney family. Dad and I enjoy re-watching the movies together on Sunday mornings after breakfast. My brothers and I always geek out over new releases from Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars. And Disney music is pretty much the only genre of music we actually agree on as a family. But going to Disneyland? That’s for me and mom.

Ever since I was a kid, it was always my mom and I who enjoyed the same things in the parks. While the boys were off riding roller coasters, my mom and I would go on kiddie rides. When my brothers started to outgrow the Mickey shirts, my mom and I got into twinning outfits and Minnie ears. When my dad started to get bored lining up, my mom and I would look for every possible food cart we could sample. So this year, we talked about going on a little girls trip. We decided to dress up, take photos, eat, and ride all the kiddie rides we wanted. And for this very special trip, we decided to go to a park we’d never been to before – Tokyo Disneyland.

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Three Magical Days (Day 3)

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Just because there were only 2 day park tickets in our package, it didn’t mean we were only going to limit ourselves to two days of Disney fun! Since we took a late flight home, we decided to make ample use of our last day.

I made three sets of outfits for the three Disney resorts in Hong Kong Disneyland. Because by golly we were going to hang out in all of them!

*If you don’t know what I’m talking about, maybe start with Day 1 here, and Day 2 here.

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Three Magical Days (Day 2)

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When I made the itinerary for this trip, I took outfits into account because, well because that’s just who I am. I love dressing people up, and I love taking pictures of the clothes I’ve made and the outfits I’ve put together.

So if Day 1 was meant for rides, parades, and exploring every inch of the park, Day 2 was meant for Disneybounding, watching shows, and picture taking. And well, that’s exactly what we did.

 * If you’re just tuning in now, I’ll link Day 1 right here.

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Three Magical Days (Day 1)

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Back in January, as I turned the big 3-0, I decided to do something a little different for my birthday. Since my debut, I had always done two things: a family gathering, and a themed party for friends. I had been throwing themed parties for 12 years, and I knew that it was time for a change. That and the fact that I practically do these parties for a living made me decide to skip the party this year, stick to the traditional family gathering, and go on a trip with my two best girls instead.

And if you know me well – or hey, if you know me even just a little, you know I’d choose to celebrate in the Happiest Place on Earth.

And let me tell you, that was the Best. Decision. Ever.

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What’s in my Disney Park Bag

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Since I’m heading to Hong Kong Disneyland in about 10 days time, I figured I’d show you what I take with me inside the Disney Parks. This doesn’t really change regardless of which park I go to, as I pretty much have my Disney routine down pat.

On my last post, someone asked me what kind of bag is the most practical choice for Disneyland. For me, it’s a crossbody. I don’t really like taking backpacks because you need to swing it in front of you every time you need to get something, and I sweat more when I have something stuck to my back all day. With a crossbody, you can choose to make it hands free, when you’re tired you can switch shoulders, or carry it on the crook of your arm or in your hands. Now depending on what I’m going to do for that particular day, I bring different sized bags.

RIDE DAY

For a ride day, where my only goal for the day is to finish all the attractions on my list, I bring a bag like this:

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Loungefly

I love this. It’s a pretty decent sized barrel bag, and it’s enough to carry all my essentials without getting a locker. It’s quite sturdy as well so I know that it can survive a good long day inside the parks. Plus it’s Mickey Mouse. Need I say more?

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21 Disneyland Tips and Tricks

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Going to Disneyland is a major production. Everyone knows this. You plan it for months, spend a lot of money, and sometimes you get there and you realize that you’re flying blind. You end up wasting time on long lines for rides, character meet and greets, and on food, when you should be skipping along to your favorite Disney tunes and having the BEST. DAY. EVER.

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So on my recent trip to Disneyland, I decided I’d come up with a list of things you should know before going on your magical adventure. As someone who isn’t a local (I live in the Philippines), but who goes to Disneyland as often as she can, I do have a few things up my sleeve I’d like to share.

*Just note, that this is for Disneyland, not Disneyworld. As my last trip to Orlando was in 2014, I’m not confident that my tips will be up to date. Continue reading →

The Potter Pilgrimage: Part I

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Harry Potter Studios | Leavesden 2015

Tickets to my Happiest Place on Earth

Tickets to my Happiest Place on Earth

I have absolutely no shame in saying that the Harry Potter parts of our UK trip last year made my 2015. We made several stops in different areas of significance in the Harry Potter series – some were planned, some were not. The first stop was indeed planned. And planned carefully. (Details and tips at the end of this post. Stay tuned for part 2!)

Two months or so before the trip, we had already purchased tickets to the Harry Potter Studio Tour in Leavesden. I knew I wanted to spend the entire day there, so instead of taking a tour package (with transportation, but with a limited number of hours in the studios), I decided we could just go there ourselves, that way we could spend as much time as we wanted inside. It took us about 30 minutes from our hotel in London to Watford Junction, where a shuttle picked us up to bring us to the studios:

Now you can imagine my excitement at being on that bus. I was quite emotional pulling up to the lot in Leavesden because I was in complete awe at seeing the place where the cast and crew of Harry Potter filmed for 10 years. The sight of the unassuming, yet massive building alone made me feel like I was riding on the back of a Hippogriff, and I hadn’t even seen anything yet.

 

Fighting to keep calm as I entered the gate to heaven

Fighting to keep calm as I entered the gates to my happiness

People always ask me which I liked better – The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Orlando or The Harry Potter Studio Tour in London. While I will say that being in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter made me feel like a real witch living in a real Wizarding town, there was something truly magical about getting to walk where the cast and crew worked for a decade. The wonderful thing about the theme park, is that you get to go in and out of the shops, you get to visit Hogwarts as if you really are a student there, and you get to experience what being a witch or wizard is like. But the Studio Tour is different. You don’t get to do those things, but stepping into that lot will make you feel truly special – because you will get a glimpse into the love and care and hard work that went into making the films. I personally could not stop touching whatever wall I was allowed to, hoping to get some sort of spiritual souvenir from the cast and crew. And seeing the original sets and props? Wow. I could hardly stop myself from crying.

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Some fear conquering, and a wedding

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Coron | January 2016

Beautiful, breathtaking, Coron!

Beautiful, breathtaking, Coron!

I didn’t really grow up much of an island girl. I was born and raised in Manila by parents who like to travel to places with colder climates, so I never really had much opportunity to bond with the ocean until I started traveling with my friends. Nevertheless, I was always afraid of it. I know the basic swimming strokes which I learned in school, in a safe pool, but I never learned how to tread, hence my fear of drowning (which is a pretty rational fear I think) and my fear of not knowing what’s swimming by my feet (which I will admit, is a little less rational).

The spectacular view from Kayangan Lake. A bit of a climb, but worth it.

The spectacular view from Kayangan Lake. A bit of a climb, but worth it.

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