My 30th birthday was spent in the air, en route to the Philippines. Because of the different time zone, I technically "skipped" December 30 and arrived in Manila on New Years Eve. I fell asleep practically the entire flight; and so the whole day on my actual birthday I was on a plane. At first it seemed a little sad but as you can tell from the pictures above, getting to spend the rest of the week in paradise definitely made it worth it.

I consumed large amounts of mangos every single day, had breakfasts at Shangri-La's Circles buffet (they do breakfast the best), hiked to the top of Taal Volcano, and best of all -- I discovered the most beautiful place I have ever visited -- Palawan. Just thinking of our stay in El Nido gives me withdrawals and there are no words to describe how amazing it is. If you have the opportunity to go, I highly recommend staying at Lagen Island Resort. I've always wanted to stay in a water cottage and we were lucky to get the best one (request 109). I can go on and on but a few highlights were: Secret Lagoon, Small Lagoon, Entalula Beach, and Big Lagoon -- all in that order. I can't wait to post the videos from the trip. Tons of footage to edit and I apologize for the month delay to even post these.

Time is flying by and I can't believe it's almost February. This year has kicked off to a good start and I look forward to more adventures this 2014! Cheers!