Travels with Gusto: books

Monday, March 7, 2011

Waiting for these in the mail

Never heard of her previously but, after reading the excerpts, I felt like I should be reading this. My gut is often right about these things.

A Year by the Sea: Thoughts of an Unfinished Woman

Joan Anderson

I fell in love with his writing. Among the bunch, this is the book I am most excited to read.

As I walked out one midsummer morning

Laurie Lee, Leonard Rosoman

I love Leila Hadley. Enough said.

A Journey with Elsa Cloud

Leila Hadley

From corporate life to an itinerant life. I live between those two worlds. I just might find something to learn from her.

Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World

Rita Golden Gelman

Being a travel writer, I read a lot of travel literature. This book simply rocked my world. Leila Hadley has a voice and a perspective uncannily akin to my own. Bright, headstrong, ruminative, she embodies a modern woman seeking to find a place of meaning in the world by abandoning a life that is largely predefined. Give Me The World is the story of her 18-month trek in the Far East, with a brief stop in the Philippines.

About Me

I am a writer with a big appetite, for food, for travel, for life.

For more than two decades, I have been writing travel and food pieces for international and regional publications, including Travel + Leisure US, T+L Southeast Asia and Conde Nast Traveller UK.

I have a few books to my name, both as writer and editor. These include two coffee table books, Sonya’s Garden and the DOT-funded Best of the Best Philippines. I also wrote for Insight Publishing's guidebook, Asia's Best Hotels and Resorts.

Several years ago, I was the executive editor of Mabuhay, the in-flight magazine of Philippine Airlines.

In 2002, I was awarded Best Travel Writer in the ASEAN Travel Awards.

In parallel to my writing career, I also work as a digital media executive.

About This Blog

I was raised on good food, courtesy of a maternal grandmother who was relentless in the kitchen.

Lola Illang, a retired Home Economics teacher, could make anything by hand and was ardent about growing her own ingredients. By her example, and from the beaming faces of friends and family who came to share our table, I learned that food was love made manifest.

It is little wonder then that I became an advocate of slow food (or, as I like to call it, soul food), in restaurants and in my own kitchen. I look forward to the thrill of tracking down the finest ingredients, whether fresh produce that are tended with care and plucked at their peak, or artisanal elements that can be savored with very little embellishment. I find joy in watching my food putter quietly in the stove for hours until its flavors mellow and deepen. Good food takes time. I suppose the same can be said about love, and everything else that matters.

My appetite only grew bigger when I started a career in travel writing. My best adventures are those that begin and end at the table, with frequent grazing along the way. I never go anywhere without visiting the local market or signing up for a cooking class. For me, the kitchen offers the best view of the world.

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Monday, March 7, 2011

Waiting for these in the mail

Give me the world

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