renevicamago [dot] com: How it all began?

It’s been more than a year since I started this blog. A year full of enthusiasm to share the experiences I had in every place I visited. Although most of my travels were few years back, I’m still capable of remembering each and every little detail that made me smile once in a while. During that period, I never had a chance to think gravely why I really made this blog, what good or bad will it bring to me, how will I grow, why this kind of thing, etc, until now, thank you for Pinoy Travel Bloggers Blog Carnival for letting me pause for a while and think, why and how my travel blog started? 

I have been traveling since I was a kid. I love roving around, clashing these itchy feet into different places away from home. Meeting friends and go out of town. I’m not a homebody that spends the 24 hours of the day at home doing something or nothing. I love going to different places; capturing it, mingle with different level of people; talking with them, seeing architecture; being amazed with it, and feel the nature; treasure them. 

Typically, I’m a curious traveler that’s neither looking for something new nor searching for a place to be called home. Being a traveler for me is not a form of escape in the real world, rather it’s one of the hundred ways to accept and face the real world. It’s a medium that will help us grow and adapt to the fast-paced environment. Learn things, re-discover culture, treasure and protect it for next generation. 

It was late summer of 2011 and I’m still planning for a getaway. Since I’m working in oversea and have limited time in Philippines, I would like to maximize my stay and make the most out of it. That’s why I’m doing effective planning, advance making of jam-packed itenerary, and preparing a bucket of to-do list. I used to visit Gideon’s guide to mountaineering in the Philippines (www.pinoymountaineer.com) eversince, for me, it is the most comprehensive guide in terms of hiking in Philippine mountains. He inspires me of trekking all the mountains but not to point of sharing it through blogging. Until one day, while surfing the net and searching for a beach or hiking destination along Southern Tagalog, I came along at Claire Raborar’s travel blog www.lakwatseradeprimera.com featuring beach and island destinations in Quezon Province. I’m very much excited to visit Borowan and Dampalitan beaches the way she described it by her words and captivating photographs. I even printed that particular article and brought in Ph to serve as my guide. I admire her passion not only in traveling but also in sharing her experiences thru her gorgeous blog. From then on, I started mind-digging of all my past travels and organizing the thought within. Luckily, I have most of my photographs backed-up from year 2004 until now to showcase in every post that I’ll make. The eagerness of writing the tale of my travels started there. Day by day I always cross into Pinoy Travel Bloggers members’ travel blog, like James of www.journeyingjames.com, Mervin of www.pinoyadventurista.com, Marky of www.nomadicexperiences.com, and many more. These sites greatly influenced me to hit the keyboard and strike that blogger.com. At first, I don’t have any idea on how to write a travel blog post. I just wrote it like as if I’m sharing my experience rather than a steer for a practical tour. I’m not experienced to write a guide for a functional itinerary. That’s why the tales in my blog are short and mostly just have pictures of me smiling to the lens. My only goal is to share my experience to other people and attest to everyone that traveling is blissful. I like to enlighten every reader that you don’t need to be rich in order to travel and enjoy the world.I aimed to travel the entire Philippines, from the most-northern Mavubis Island in Batanes down to most-southern Saluag Island in Tawi-tawi. Explore its vast plains, soaring mountains, and gorgeous beaches. I intend to travel into jungle, islands, water, and in most remote areas of the country. I found peace in these places that’s why this is my topmost choice but not to limit myself in urban areas. That’s why I chose the name “Mandaragat. Mamumundok. Lagalag.” for this travel blog. (Sailor. Mountaineer. Nomad.) 

Traveling taught me a lot of things. From saving money for my next trip down to taking pictures in right angle, being organized, responsible, determined, being practical in the way of reasoning and decision making, being healthy not only physically but also with healthy heart and mind, giving importance from what other people have done, camaraderie among co-travelers, preparing necessary things for an specific travel, and of course it taught me how to write and share all great experiences that I had in my travel. 

Traveling has been part of my life and I’m glad that I found the passion within my heart. I’m very grateful that until now, I have the chance to explore the world and share my treasured experience through this blog and hoping that I have inspired every reader to find time to travel also, enjoy every destination where they have been to and have in mind that not everyone set their feet where you had set yours. 

This is my entry to this month's (July 2012) PTB Blog Carnival hosted by Edmar Gu-Quibb of EDMARATION: Town Explorer with the topic: "The Journey That Made Us a Travel Blogger"

 

Click the PTB Blog Carnival logo to view previous carnivals.