The Philippine Consulate General in Sydney announced that the Philippines commenced on 11 August 2009 the issuance of electronic passports (e-passports), with regular implementation scheduled for October 2009. The e-passport has advanced technology security features which protect this important identity and travel document from forgery and tampering. One major feature of the new passport is […]

15 September 2009. The Philippine Consulate General in Sydney advises travellers that Filipino dual citizens holding Australian or other foreign (non-Philippine) passports are exempt from exit fees when they depart the Philippines. The Commissioner of Immigration of the Philippines issued a Memorandum dated 17 April 2009 that exempted Filipino dual citizens holding non-Philippine passports from […]

Every night without fail, Jim Turner is there at the far corner of the bar, chain-smoking his Marlboros and sipping ice-cold San Miguel from the bottle, watching over the Little Ones.   He considers them family, but they’re not his children. They’re the dwarfs and other little people the 70-year-old Iowa native has rescued from […]

To all those who travel frequently: please be very, very careful. Read on… An Indian was detained in Bangkok for stealing a box of cigarettes in a duty-free shop at Bangkok International Airport. He had paid for chocolates and a carton of cigarettes. The cashier put an extra packet of cigarettes into his bag and […]

by Laura Ernde (Lifted from The Daily Journal) Judge Efren Iglesia escaped the Marcos regime in the nick of time, and then capitalized on his strong work ethic to build his legal career. As editor of his college newspaper in the Philippines, Efren Iglesia wrote articles criticizing the increasingly authoritarian regime of Ferdinand Marcos. Iglesia […]

Effective Friday, April 17, 2009, Philippine Airlines will offer a Special Fare of AUD499 plus tax to any destination in the Philippines where PAL regular flights operate.  Your relatives and friends can avail of this promotion.   As an example, a passenger who would be going to Legazpi, Albay will spend a total amount of […]

Australia and the Philippines have agreed to new air services arrangements, opening the way for expanded services on the routes between our two countries.   Under the new arrangements, Australian and Philippine airlines are now able to offer up to 4,000 seats each way per week between major Australian destinations (Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and/or Sydney) […]

When travelling to the Philippines, beware of using C-5 Road in Manila. It is not just accident-prone. Most accidents are caused by the squatters along the road. They throw stones to passing vehicles thereby purposely causing vehicular accidents so they can rob the victims. One such victim was the daughter of George Antonio of Manila. […]

Many years ago, Al Capone virtually owned Chicago. Capone wasn’t famous for anything heroic. He was notorious for enmeshing the windy city in everything from bootlegged booze and prostitution to murder.   Al Capone had a lawyer nicknamed ‘Easy Eddie.’ He was Al Capone’s lawyer for a good reason. Eddie was very good! In fact, Eddie’s […]

  It’s not an airplane. It’s not a Hollywood movie. What it is is the biggest in Asia.   One hectare, three stories. First class, business class, economy class. Plus a basement. And a parking lot for 600 cars.   In one wing of the building — which has cathedral windows minus the stained-glass images […]

From 1 January, the new national scheme started rolling out to allow seniors to use their concession cards outside their home state. “This scheme will provide incentives for seniors to take holidays and visit family members interstate as well as boosting communities and businesses that depend on tourism” Mr. Price said. The Australian Government has […]