Philippines

A Category Three Christmas

It's not letting up, I thought. The wind screamed and wailed, bending the thin walls of our beachfront cabin with every gust stronger...

The Black Nazarene – how a black Jesus effigy from Mexico became a symbol of hope and healing

The Black Nazarene is the single most highly revered religious icon in the whole of the Philippines - and for such a fervently Catholic...

MANILA. Limtuaco Distillery - where whisky is born from an erotic dream

Deep in the tourist mecca of Intramuros, stands the weather beaten 'wouldn't look out of place in a David Lynch film' Limtuaco Distillery...

PHILIPPINES. Camiguin Island - Volcanoes, jungle and sunken graves

Flying into Camiguin feels a lot like flying into Jurassic Park - if Jurassic Park were real with rumbling volcanoes, a sunken city and...

PHILIPPINES. Fantasy World, when theme parks go wrong

An abandoned theme park in the Philippines complete with Bavarian castles, broken windows on rooms never entered and ghostly rollercoasters.

PHILIPPINES. 24 hours in Taal

This weekend I found myself with 24 hours to spend in the historic town of Taal, a small district of Spanish Colonial houses with a...

PHILIPPINES. The Rizalistas of Mount Banahaw

Mount Banahaw is a holy mountain home to the Rizalistas, followers of a new religion where the Philippines' most famous son is God.

MANILA. Living with the dead in Manila's cemeteries

It was a steaming afternoon in mid-summer when I found myself at the gates of Manila North Cemetery drenched in sweat and wondering what...

MANILA. Five things to know

Think of Manila and your first thought is likely to be “traffic”. Or maybe crime, or pollution or a whole host of other negative...

PHILIPPINES. Puerto Galera - a paradise island in the Philippines you DON'T have to fly to

Last weekend I spent a few days in Puerto Galera on the northern end of the island of Mindoro. It was my second trip down there and it's...

The Best of Manila - Pinto Art Museum

A lush garden oasis hides in the hills above Manila The verdant paradise that provides the setting for the Pinto Art Museum is probably...

PHILIPPINES. Crucifixion in the Philippines. Yes, it's a thing.

Good Friday is commemorated to the extreme in San Fernando, Pampanga The blood whipped through the air lightly spraying my arms and...

Siquijor Island - mysticism and deserted beaches

I've been to Siquijor twice now and I'm still bowled over by the beauty of the place. A tiny speck of green mountains and deserted...

The Best of Manila - Ateneo Art Gallery

Modern art and sleek spaces, Ateneo is a gem Feeling hungover yet a little culture starved, I recently ventured north into Quezon City...

The Best of Manila - The National Museum of Natural History

Manila can often seem like just the sum of its most obvious parts - traffic choked roads, never ending tail backs, polluted streets and...