Aside from being known for its breathtaking beaches, the Philippines is also known for the exotic foods that it offers both to foreigners and its locals. Some of the Pinoy street foods have been featured in TV shows and many tourists are trying to eat at least one delicacy during their visit. Below are some the most famous street foods that you need to try in the Philippines
1. Isaw (Chicken/Pork Intestine)
It is well-known street food that is made either from the intestines of pigs or chickens. It is grilled and dipped in vinegar. The most successful business owner who ventured into this type of business would probably be Mang Larry. Mang Larry was an aspiring chemical engineering student but due to poverty,  he had to stop and look for ways to support his family. He started his humble isawan in 1984 inside UP Diliman. With a capital of just Php40, he started selling pork and chicken isaw and betamax. And soon enough, people outside UP were falling in line just to have a taste of his famous isaw.
2. Betamax (Grilled Blood)
This is made from chicken blood which becomes solid when exposed to an open container. It is cut into small rectangles that resemble that of a Betamax. It tastes blunt and is best eaten with vinegar with lots of chilies.
3. Kinilaw Na Tamilok (Woodworm)
If you will visit Palawan and ask the natives what food to try, without apprehension they will tell you it's Tamilok. Tamilok or woodworm is an edible food that you can dig from rotten mangroves. Some say that it taste like your usual oyster while some narrated that "It was slimy, fishy, sour & a little bit salty. It looked like a spaghetti pasta strip, only bigger and translucent.” It is eaten raw and served with vinegar  with chopped onions and chili.
4. Betute Tugak (Deep Fried Stuffed Frog)
Betute originally came from butete which means tadpole in Kapampangan. It is a famous delicacy in the province of Pampanga. These frogs are caught in the farm who came out during the rainy season. Frogs are stuffed with minced pork and then deep fried.
5. Balut (duck Embryo)
Balut is made from developing duck embryo that is boiled and eaten with salt and vinegar. These duck eggs are 16-21 days old eggs that made foreigners screaming. Foreigners found it gross and were even included in many reality shows to serve as a challenge. It might be a difficult task for non-natives to eat these duck eggs but it is a usual food not just in the Philippines but also in other South East Asian countries including Vietnam, Thailand. Laos and Cambodia.

 I'm always in search for new places where I can just sit back and relax while having either iced coffee or a few bottles of beer. I try to avoid crowded gimmick spots like Eastwood and Timog because of the heavy traffic in these areas. I'm sure people my age have outgrown these hot spots and would rather go to a place where they can sit comfortably and enjoy either the view or the ambiance.

Recently, I saw a new condo rise in one of the busy streets of Cubao. Cubao is known for a few shopping malls and is now developed with many sky  scrappers, both residential and commercial. On the rooftop of one of the newest condominium sits the newest place where you can catch up with friends. Chill Top is located along P. Tuazon in Cubao and just a few meters away from where I lived. Chill Top is a two-storey open bar that is quite big, I'm guessing it can accommodate more or less 200 guests on each floor. The view from the rooftop is breath taking.

Through travel, you learn more about the world, the people around you, and yourself. You get
wiser in your days and richer in more ways than any paycheck can match. You collect sunsets
and sunrises, and you bottle them up in every laughter and conversation you share with every
familiar stranger you meet. And sometimes the best way to relive all these moments is to write it
all down.

The WTN Planner 2017 is not just any ordinary planner. Each month acts like a chapter in a book
with art and narrative based on real life experiences. In between the stories are pages for the
owner to fill with his or her own adventures. Take a peak inside the pages and you will see the
following details:

1. The pages are dateless - You can write incessantly for a month and skip the other. It takes into
account that sometimes life gets too busy that we stop writing down plans. But then when we do,
there are neat lines and clean pages for you to write on.

2. Tick off WTN's travel bucket list - It contains a list of experiences from what to eat, to ride and
what to learn in the Philippines as well as other destinations in Southeast Asia.

3. Plan your vacation leaves - The planner also has a section where you can organize your
vacation dates and it has a template that may help you get your boss to easily approve of your
leaves.

4. Backpacker’s checklist - Most travelers would say that packing is one of the most exhausting
parts of a trip but it also one of the most essential. The planner contains a checklist of personal
items as well as group equipment that will help you prepare for your next expedition.

5. Thoughts from fellow travelers - Each chapter of Lessons on the Road is based on a lifetime
of passion for travel shared by a group of friends. There is also a section where people share their
thoughts on following their passion and finding purpose.

Compared to the previous WTN planners, the 2017 is no longer a collaboration between WTN’s
co-founders Ayen and Rachel. It is a direct product of crossing paths with people who chose to
live a life dedicate to the pursuit of adventure. And it is the authors wish that it will also inspire the
owner to explore this vast and beautiful world, experience as much as they can and create their
own stories.

WTN is an online community of creatives based in the Philippines. WTN stands for Where To Next, a question often asked by people who love to travel. It is also the driving force of the brand as it creates products, curates stories and organizes events that aim to inspire others to travel with passion and purpose. Learn more about WTN: www.wheretonext.ph, @wtn_wheretonext on Instagram and their official FB Page

In this age where cameras have WiFis and snaps disappear after 24 hours, the tools for creativity are much more accessible. But some would argue that since you see what everyone is working on in an instant, it's also harder to find your own niche.

These storytellers are working professionals coming from diverse fields such as finance, marketing, academe and entrepreneurship. As much as they are driven in their chosen career paths, they also devote time and effort to cultivate their passions for adventure and storytelling. Each individual is drawn to different kinds of art from landscape, portrait to drone photography, to motion films and story narratives. And now it's time to learn more about their own story.

1. Angelo Mendoza (@angelomendo) While others remain in bed, Angelo is up at dawn, eager to catch the sunrise. He documents his encounters with light and places, creating magical interpretations when the two elements meet. And in his captions, he shares amusing stories involved in the search for epic light scenes often saying that all it really takes is just a little less sleep.

2. Enzo Cruz @iamenzocruz
On weekends, you will find Enzo looking for inspiration along the trails and in the company of friends. For Enzo, home is not meant to be lived within the four corners of a house nor is it ever in one place. And this feeling of familiarity can be seen in every direction he goes, through the photos and words he shares, as if the viewer was right there, taking it all in with him.

3. Rachel Halili @rachelhalili
If you've seen Coldplay's Up & Up music video, you also got a glimpse of Rachel's creative process.
A graphic designer by profession, Rachel's idea of a break from her work is to play with photoshop, combining two or more places to create fictional travel destinations. She does it so seamlessly that some wouldn't notice that the photo is actually a collage art. And it helps that she climbs and free dives, providing her different perspectives of a place.

4. Javi Cang (@javycang)
Among his friends, Javi is known as the boy who loves mountains. Point to any mountain on the road and Javi could probably tell you the height, trail difficulty and other interesting facts about it.

When he's not busy crunching numbers, Javi spends most of his free time in the outdoors—be it hiking up a peak, rock climbing, or exploring an island. His photos pay homage to the vastness of Mother Nature, a constant reminder for us to take a step back and be fully alive in the present

5. Benj Ramos (@benjstagram92)
When not handling the hostel chain he works for and part-owns, Benj looks for quick get-aways from the city or plans his next expedition with his friends. His style revolves around natural elements perfectly grounded by a human subject. He believes that in this way, he is able to provide more depth and dimension to the photograph in the same way character driven stories do.

6. Nella Lomotan (@nellal)
Nella started climbing mountains 3 years ago. It wasn't intentional. She was just looking for something new to pour her energy into and so she said yes to an invitation the night before the actual hike.

That yes lead to new friendships and majestic views. Nella discovered another passion - photography - as a way to document her experiences and share her love for the outdoors. She also uses her Instagram and photo site as space to promote sustainable tourism eventually leading to a project with Masungi Georeserve and National Geographic.


7. Ayen dela Torre (@ayenonlife)
Others say life consists of milestones, too big for you not to notice. But for Ayen, the moments she remembers in detail started with minute decisions. Just like Nella, this includes saying yes to 3 am hikes, trading the comforts of her bed for long bus rides and starting conversations with strangers. She is drawn to portraits and long form captions that serve as chapters in her continuous essay on life.
 
 

8. Paolo Cuarteron @paocua
Pao used to suffer from severe asthma as a kid and as he pushes himself every time he goes on an adventure, he keeps in mind that with all the panting and struggles along the way, he is sure to bring home lessons and photographs. When he's not busy managing his own restaurant, he enjoys taking landscape photographs as well as creating short travel films.

9. Sab Bengzon (@lovewesay)
Sab has always been drawn to the sea, and when she tried surfing for the first time in 2008, she fell in love.

Two years ago she pretty much left everything to find ways to live near surf spots and bring other interests into it, like surf photography, as a way for her to explore another dimension of the sport. She now lives in a van and shares stories in the hopes to show others that there are ways to live a little differently.


10. Aya Cabautan (@_positivity)
Aya is a 17-year-old self-taught photographer. Her passion for photography began as a hobby back in her 1st year of highschool. She enjoys creating fairytale-like portraits and her imagination is evident in the way she captures people and places.


11. Patrick Martin (@patrckmartin)
A social entrepreneur who loves to explore, Patrick sees to it that he has time for both of his passions. You'd be surprised that most of Patrick's adventure films are taken using his mobile phone. He is fearless with his drone shots (often risking equipment for the chance of a good story) and often has a song in mind as he puts the story together one frame at a time.



12. Carmen del Prado (@carmendelprado)
A visual storyteller raised in the islands of Negros, her film portfolio cuts across different genres from fashion to animation to travel documentary. Her photos also have a film-like quality to them. Her love for plants is evident in both her videos and images, Carmen even made a series out of it called #NaturalSpecies.

WTN is an online community of creatives based in the Philippines. WTN stands for Where To Next, a question often asked by people who love to travel. It is also the driving force of the brand as it creates products, curates stories and organizes events that aim to inspire others to travel with passion and purpose. Learn more about WTN: www.wheretonext.ph, @wtn_wheretonext on Instagram, and their official FB Page