Flight chronicles of the backpacker Tutubi, with travelogues, pictures/photos/videos, travel guides, independent and honest reviews, affordable, recommended resorts and hotels (including inns, guesthouses, pension houses, lodges, hostels, condotels, bed and breakfast and other cheap accommodations), commuting guides, routes (sometimes street maps and GPS coordinates/waypoints) and driving directions to answer "how to get there" questions, information and tips on tourism, budget travel and living in Philippines, Exotic Asia and beyond!
Backpacking, independent travel, and flashpacking are cheaper than the "cheapest package tours" and promotional offers around but you can also use travel information for family vacations, even romantic honeymoon destinations.
More than the usual tourist spots and "places to see," this blog advocates heritage conservation, environmental protection, and history awareness for Filipinos, foreigners, and ex-pats wishing to explore Paradise Philippines and Exotic Asia!
I read recently some observations of a balikbayan (i don't why he called them impressions since it's not his first time here) but he always get depressed seeing underfed, un-sheltered, un-clothed and unwashed people that is really part of Manila's landscape.
I have something for all of you who see and think the same:
The Happy Planet Index: An index of human well-being and environmental impact', moves beyond crude ratings of nations according to national income, measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to produce a more accurate picture of the progress of nations based on the amount of the Earth's resources they use, and the length and happiness of people's lives.
The Happy Planet Index (HPI) strips the view of the economy back to its absolute basics: what we put in (resources), and what comes out (human lives of different length and happiness). The resulting Index of the 178 nations for which data is available, reveals that the world as a whole has a long way to go. In terms of delivering long and meaningful lives within the Earth's environmental limits - all nations could do better. No country achieves an overall 'high' score on the Index, and no country does well on all three indicators.
partial ranking with countries familiar to Filipinos:
1 Vanuatu 12 Vietnam 15 Sri Lanka 17 Philippines 23 Indonesia 31 China 32 Thailand 41 Bangladesh 44 Malaysia 48 Timor Leste 61 Austria 62 India 63 Brazil 64 Switzerland 66 Italy 70 Netherlands 76 Papua New Guinea 77 Burma 78 Belgium 81 Germany 84 Taiwan 87 Spain 88 Hong Kong 89 Saudi Arabia 91 Cambodia 94 New Zealand 95 Japan 98 Denmark 100 Brunei 102 Korea 108 UK 109 Laos 111 Canada 129 France 131 Singapore 140 Australia 150 USA
you may not agree with them but read the whole story here before you freak out.
I got interested in Vanuatu when the immensely popular "Survivor" series on TV landed on their shores.
Some explanations:
“People are generally happy here because they are very satisfied with very little,”
“This is not a consumer-driven society. Life here is about community and family and goodwill to other people. It’s a place where you don’t worry too much. The only things we fear are cyclones or earthquakes.”
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