Welcome fellow travelholic! Mabuhay!
How are you doing? I’m Arrianne and I’m from Manila, Philippines. Go Travel First is my personal collection of travel stories mainly from the Philippines to the rest of the world.
I’m an IT professional who has a passion for writing, photography, and traveling. Long before I learned to write my first program using C++, I wrote for our school publication and dreamt of becoming a writer one day.
Travel gave me confidence. Travel healed me.
As a shy girl growing up who always think of what other people will say, travel gave me confidence. It made me believe in myself.
Travel also saved me during one of the lowest points in my life. I remember my Psychology professor saying those people who do not want to continue living found no meaning in life anymore, that they have no reason to stay alive. As a 17-year-old student I did not quite understood what he meant. How can you not find a reason to live? That question stuck with me until one day, life hit me so hard.
I didn’t know people can hurt you so badly that you lose your self-worth. In a snap of a finger, my world doesn’t want to spin anymore. Finding no will to continue in life, I told myself, so this is how it feels to not have a reason to live. I felt like dying. I just wanted to die.
But the universe is kind. It made me move and travel more. I discovered more places and do things I’ve never done before like hiking and scuba diving. Healing slowly followed and when I was able to finally pick myself up, I promised myself not to allow anyone to make me lose my self-worth again, ever.
Job fills your pocket. Adventures fill your soul.
How did I start developing this blog?
Growing up in a typical Asian household, I am made to believe that I need to dream bigger and not to be a starving creative. I need to be top in class and find a lucrative job later.
So instead of writing stories, I wrote computer programs. It did filled my pocket with IT providing some of the highest paying jobs in my country. I even got paid for my internship (game programming) while fulfilling academic requirements.
I did not hate taking the path I chose. I enjoyed the challenge of taking a technical course and getting myself involved in rewarding projects Iike working for the largest electric distribution company in the country. I learned a lot and met wonderful people.
But somewhere buried within me is my first love, that is, writing.
Call it fate or divine intervention but my technical background brought me back to writing. Combining my love for photography and traveling, I was confident to build and design my own website where I can showcase my writing.
I started blogging in 2013
Having a website or blog of my own has always been at the back of my mind and I finally built one in 2013. While I write mainly about my travels, I tried to write about other things, too. As a person who loves doing so many things and loves documenting them, I also wrote about the language classes I took or the book event I went to. During these times I participated in a lot of photography related events like joining photowalks and photography clubs. The blog became an outlet for sharing the things I am passionate about.
Website Update in 2015
In 2015, I decided to focus the blog on travel and food. I had some major life updates during this time and I thought of updating the blog, too. Aside from traveling more, I experienced more adventures for the first time like hiking, scuba diving, and paragliding. I joined blogging conferences and got invited to some press trips where I met some of the travel bloggers I admire even before I started my own blogging journey.
Transition in 2023
When I started blogging, I just wrote anything I am passionate about. The only thing I had in mind was to share my love for writing and photography.
Having experienced more during my travels and having met more people, I learned so much through the years. I grew more as a traveler.
There are also some huge learnings when it comes to travel writing and sharing my stories on the web. I did not plan it but I felt the need to rebrand and put into better application the things I learned.
So in 2023, my blog that originally started in 2013 was reborn to Go Travel First.
As my travel dreams evolve (visit all the 7 continents of the world and the 82 provinces of the Philippines), my goals and intentions for my travel blog also grew. As the web and various online content develop, I also want to create more and improve my creative side. At the same time, it became clearer to me that I want to write for the rest of my life.
Go Travel First Mission
Travel has always been a privilege. The challenge to explore the world out there is different for each one of us. If you have a third-world passport like me, you know how much effort and money we put on visa application alone to visit other countries.
But now more than ever, traveling has become more accessible to a lot of people. If you find yourself bitten by the travel bug too, fret not! Opportunities and resources have been made available that will enable anyone to travel, even to the farthest end of the world.
I remember what my Literature teacher whom we met while traveling in Singapore told us. He said, “I wish I traveled more back in the day. Like what you all do now.” I smiled and answered, “That’s fine. We just got a little luckier that travel has been more accessible when we already had the means to go out there. Cheaper flights, people sharing their experience and itineraries. But it’s not too late. It’s never too late.”
Whatever you are doing in life now or wherever you are, you can go travel first. Take your time and don’t worry. Take inspiration from others but don’t compare your journey. Traveling is not a one-time, huge escapade. You can even start by exploring your town or a nearby destination.
I’m not going to tell you to quit your job and travel the world. But to help you make the most of your precious and limited time, I wrote my travel stories so you can do the following:
- Plan better your next trip so you can maximize your schedule and spend wisely your hard-earned money.
- Grab a copy of my itinerary (I love planning and I dedicate so much time researching for my travels).
- Get tips I got from the locals themselves (and real stories from amazing people you won’t get from Google or the most trained AI).
- Know about the travel resources I use (equipping yourself with adequate information and apps make a huge difference).
- Get inspiration from my travel photos.
- Learn from my travel mishaps (you don’t have to repeat the same ones I committed like sleeping at the benches of KANSAI airport because our plane left us while we’re having misunderstanding getting through customs with the boxes of instant curry we tried to take home).
Most importantly, my mission is to inspire you to break that everyday routine and find some worthy travel pursuits while thriving excellence in our respective careers or whatever path we choose in life. Accomplishments and milestones will always be there but how do you get there? Let us make that a lot more exciting. Ready?
The primary mission of this blog is to inspire you to travel and invest more on experiences while thriving in whatever path you choose to live.
What could you do to make today memorable? It need not to be as extravagant as going to N Seoul Tower in South Korea. Visit that stunning museum near home. Ride a bus and explore a beautiful town or destination. Go for a day hike. Find a nice beach or if you’re feeling more adventurous, go surfing. Try paragliding or scuba diving. Discover some fascinating waterfalls around.
Whatever you decide for yourself to make your life memorable, I am hoping you’ll find something here in my passion project.
The next thing you know you’re 40. Where did the time go? Life is not the number of days you live but the number of days you remember. How many days in the past month do you remember? The problem is overtime we developed a more ingrained routine with fewer novel experiences. Break the routine. These are the experiences that stretch us. These are the experiences we will remember. And with each new memorable experience, there is a value gained. It added richness to life. We began to refer to it as life profit. The key to living a memorable life is the pursuit of a memorable life.
– Excerpt from The Pursuit of a Memorable Life, Dustin Garis, TEDx Talks
Always strive to be the best person you can be. Do not settle for anything but excellence. And while doing it, make an investment on getting more travel experiences. Travel as often and as far as you can. May you throw off the bowlines and sail away. Carpe Diem!
What You Can Find in this Travel Blog
I love experiencing new things, discovering new cultures, meeting amazing people, immersing with nature, eating local food, and getting a nice cup of coffee. I am fascinated in learning the background of a destination, even folk legends and traditions observed by locals.
You can find the following in this blog:
- Visit to national parks, temples, and museums.
- Outdoor adventures like hiking and diving.
- Visit to historical sites.
- Island explorations and stunning beaches.
- Trying out local food. I splurge on food but I fancy eating street food, too.
- Coffee shops! I live for coffee.
- Spa and massage experience (the coolest one I got to try was a sulphur massage near a volcanic crater in Bandung, Indonesia).
Is this Blog For You?
This blog is intended to mainly inspire working professionals like me or those people who are busy working out the path they chose to travel and invest more on experiences. I’m one of the typical millennials who chose to spend their hard-earned money on booking flights and learning from the world out there. Travel can be one of the best rewards you give yourself.
I’ll show you that it is possible to travel and thrive in our everyday lives. Instead of giving up anything for travel, let’s integrate travel in whatever we decide to pursue for ourselves.
Whatever you do and wherever you are in life right now, I believe you can get a bit of inspiration from this blog.
Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s OK. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.
– Anthony Bourdain
I think I have made a lot of memories both as an individual and as a family. The problem now is how to make more money! hahahah
I guess I am beginning to rewrite my story. I used to be a strict mom who divides her time between work and family. Now that I am spending more of my time with my boys, I am learning to be more forgiving and patient, more loving and open–more of a mom and not a stranger to them. What am I driving at? I would love to invest on love and time now as I was not able to give those two to my boys before. It is not too late, is it?
I started to blog to also share my experiences and travels. I think as a blogger, all we actually wanted is to share every experiences we have with our readers. I hope you get to visit more places and continue to share your experiences in this blog! 🙂
My ultimate dream is to travel, but budget does not permit as of the moment. So for now, I’m building on myself and my expriences, I spend time with my son, and I try to grab whatever opportunity that will come my way. I used to not be a risk-taker, but that didn’t get me anywhere. Changing this attitude brought in a lot of breaks for me this year, and the 1st quarter has just finished. I’m loving this braver version of me. And I’m excited for what I can still accomplish this year.
I really love to travel. What’s stopping me is my financial status. LOL But there are really times when my friends are able to get together and go outside of our city.
What a great mission Arriane! Surely, present and next generation travellers will benefit a lot from your purpose and this blog. Enjoy!
I hope so, Sonnie! Thank you 🙂
A wonderful mission. I’m sure many people will appreciate your optimistic and uplifting posts. I’m not much of a traveller, it’s not that I don’t want to, we just have too many commitments but believe me once we hit retirement age we will be hopping on motorbikes and touring!
I’m glad to meet you sis and I hope we have a chance to travel together. Continue writing and sharing your experiences. Keep traveling, cheers!
I’m very glad to meet you too, dear! Yes, looking forward for our future travels together 🙂 You’re one of the most passionate travel bloggers I’ve known and you inspire me a lot. Here’s to exploring the world and endless blogging! 🙂
“Experience is the best teaching”-This saying makes me want to travel and do a lot of activities. I really love to travel but something is stopping me and its my financial status haha. Hoping to explore the Philippines soon hihi
You will, dear! One day 🙂 There’s a lot to explore in our country alone.
Absolutely, do not settle for anything but excellence!! Great read!! Keep traveling and discovering the world!! 🙂
I will, Saswati. Thank you 🙂
Hi sis. I really adore you for pursuing your passion. It feels like I don’t have an excuse for not doing mine. I hope we can go on a trip together w/ Louise and other bloggers.
I am turning 39 in 5 months and I realized when I was younger travelling was a luxury. There were no budget airfares or accommodations. Well, no flight delays too! I haven’t travel as much as I want to but reading travel blogs is the next best thing for me.
Nice mission – to “inspire you to break that everyday routine and find some worthy leisure pursuits while thriving excellence in our respective careers” Your site is an educational tool for travellers. more power!
I love the mission of your blog, Arrianne. 🙂 It’s very inspiring and encouraging. I’m glad that I found your blog and I’m very much happy you’re my blogger friend now. Continue to share and encourage people to go out of their usual daily routines and try new things.
❤ Louise
Hello there,
We’ve contacted you in the past for guest post collaboration but didn’t hear back from you.
Do you accept guest posts on your blog? If yes, how much do you charge for an article?
Provide Your Website Details: https://forms.gle/g1tLTgmgCqbrwut68
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thanks & Regards
David Smith
Outreach Executive
I love your blog’s concept! Traveling to “experience firsts” is a wonderful approach. Your writing is engaging, and your passion for exploring the world shines through. Looking forward to more of your adventures and insights!
Thank you for dropping by! 🙂