even at an early age of five i was already traveling with my parents on long hours of boat trips to visit our relatives in Iloilo, Bacolod, Romblon and Manila. after graduating from high school i had to transfer to Cebu to finish college and later got a job in Laguna and now in Makati. thus, traveling by boat, by plane or by the road was a norm. but what kept me from exploring places was a number of people who i would like to feature in this post.
National Geographic Society
"Inspiring People to Care About the Planet since 1888"
now running for more than 120years of great photos, places, people and stories. i grew up browsing National Geographic magazines at home and no matter how many times i would check each feature again and again, it always reminded me that we have a world too big for us to explore for a lifetime. the people behind that yellow portrait frame society has consistently make me love our planet and traveling.
Website: National Geographic
Howie Severino
"Work hard, read a lot, ask plenty of questions, love our country"
this was Howie's answer when i asked him what he wants the younger generation to learn from him. this was taken from one of my earliest post in this blog on an online interview with Howie. his passion to cover those often forgotten stories of people, culture and uncharted places has influenced me so much to explore. yet despite all the achievements he received as guru in making documentaries he remains one of the most humble journalist. also on that interview, he considered the Lamitan siege in Basilan as his most dangerous cover.
Blog: Sidetrip
Online Interview: Eskapo Jan 2008
Ferdinand "Ferdz" Decena
"Everything is the same everywhere, they’re just dancing on a different beat"
i discovered his blog when i was trying to find if somebody has already featured Malamawi island in Basilan in the internet. few months after that i had the chance to meet Ferdz on his exhibit entitled "Living by Water" which included photos of Basilan. his years of experience and achievements in photography, travel and blogging here and abroad cannot easily be surpassed. i always look up to him as he would always upgrade the mode of his blog and travel. i had the chance to travel with Ferdz in Batad and Palawan.
Blog: Ironwulf, Happy Foodies
Portfolio: Ferdz Decena
Rolly Magpayo
we were once on the same community way back in 2003 and i was always surprised when he would start checking people if they would like to donate some school supplies. soon, i learned that he was actually bringing these to remote places. his mission. he also worked as a volunteer for WWF and was assigned in Babuyan islands. though he did not directly influenced me to do mission trips, his actions alone were good enough to have made me consider doing volunteerism. did i mention h e is also a really good photographer?
Website/Portfolio: Rolly Magpayo
Oggie Ramos
"The great unknown. You can only research so much but your actual experience would be different from what the internet or the books may tell you. Either way, you come out richer for the experience"
from an online interview i did with Oggie when i was just starting to blog. this was his reply when i asked him what makes every travel special. if there's a blogger who i've been following for the longest time, it would be Oggie. i've learned so much from this person on how he would connect himself to his photos. he writes really great stories matched with outstanding photos. each post from his blog is a great read. i am fortunate enough to have traveled with Oggie to Batad and Taal where i got great tips in photography.
Blog: Lagalog, Happy Foodies
Portfolio: Oggie Ramos
Online Interview: Bloggurs April 2008
Paul Theroux
"Travel can induce such a distinct and nameless feeling of strangeness and disconnection in me that I feel insubstantial, like a puff of smoke, merely a ghost, a creepy revenant from the underworld, unobserved and watchful among real people, wandering, listening while remaining unseen."
first learned about this person through his book "Ghost Train to the Eastern Star" when Oggie Ramos recommended me to read the part about Tokyo. in just few pages i was drawn to his stories. i don't have time to read thick books with small fonts but not with Paul's stories. he has his way of making each of his journey unique. he made me want to explore more of the countries that he visited. now i have three of his books.
Website: Paul Theroux
20 comments:
i love howie blog.. sobra ganda.... yun na :D alam na :D yun iba di ko pa napuntahan pero dahil sabi mo eh naging influential siya sau. bibisita na ko sa kanila :D
im actually drafting a blog like this, about people who inspired me to go out and travel. I might include you sir..
very nice post of sharing the people who inspire you to keep on traveling. hope to travel with you guys soon and also 'learn' in the process.
you've got great influences. no wonder you've got great passion for what you do.
This is a great way to visualize your influence Dong. I will make sure I get a copy of Theroux's books. He's been recommended by a lot of travelers. Thanks for the pointers!
>Axl, for sure you'll find the rest as influential.
>Dee Quixotic, looking forward to see your own list.
>Ed, salamat. we actually call Ferdz and Oggie the masters.
>Gillboard, i was fortunate enough to have read or seen how these people worked for the love of travel.
>Lois, thanks for dropping by! ive been thinking of posting this for quite some time. finally did it.
Paul's such a great observer.
I got a collection of old Nat Geo Magazines, those you could buy from Book Sale. I remember reading them when I was way younger. Dun ata talaga ako nakagat ng travel bug!
ito ang tinatawag kong GIANTS WORKING WITH GIANTS. kaya naman eh. this explains why you go to places nobody dares to go and your motivation to explore is that consistent. sana magkaroon din ako ng ganyang circle. Ito na yung sinasabi ko sayo dati? remember? I am not READY TO RUN WITH THE BIG BOYS?hehehe
about my blog.sorry ginaganahan magblog--ayoko kasi magkabacklogs.baka ma-stress ako.lols
Great blog, very nice.
we get a lot of inspirations from our "colleagues" in the blogging world. i find that i learn so much from fellow bloggers from how to compose a picture to where to get teh best eats.
thanks for sharing your influential sources of inspiration.
Humbly enough, I am honored to have met two from among your top travel influencers, Ferdz and Oggie. And I love Howie Severino too!
i like natgeo too. since hindi pa uso ang cable dati, pinagpupuyatan ko tlga yung show nila every sunday at 10pm. and napapagalitan ako kai puyat for monday classes. haha. pero how come i wasnt influeced to travel?
so nice to see oggie and ferdz names included in your list. i am pretty sure travelling with them is really a great experience.
Glad you get the chance to explore all the islands and share the experience with us.
if there's a term as B.I. (bad influence); yours is otherwise -G.I. sila -great influence!
i had a chance of having wonderful time with ferdz, oggie (and estan cabigas with 6 other fascinating bloggers) in thunderbird resort, in poro point la union and i agree with you, they're really inspiring! you all are --kasama ka, dom!
What makes us go.... Neat post.
..and India is larger than the world!
thanks sa book. hope it inspires me too! =)
gang ngayun naghahanap pa rin ako nung the great railway bazaar, out of stock lahat ng bookstores na napuntahan ko =(
cheers. ang saya talaga ma-inspire!
Thanks for sharing your nice trips!
Dong, I found this just today. Thank you for including me in your circle of influence. I am truly honored to be with my friend and kumpare Howie Severino.
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