The tropical world competes to grow the best mangoes. The bragging and puffery is legendary and it is all a waste of time. First of all, mangoes are the world's greatest fruits. Other claimants to that crown will always be pretenders and anyone who claims that durian is No. 1 clearly lost their taste buds in the last gorilla attack. 

Guimaras Island in the Philippines has the world's greatest mangoes and if you don't believe me, just ask anyone from Guimaras. 

For the people in this small island, their mangoes are protected from any outside influence of any kind. No other mangoes are allowed to come in to the island. They want their mangoes to remain the sweetest ever. In fact, there are claims that these are the only mangoes allowed in the kitchen of Buckingham Palace and the White House.  

During the mango season which is around May, people flock to this island to have a taste of their mangoes. They have stalls offering "All You Can Eat Mangoes" for a minimal fee. 

But there is much more in Guimaras than mangoes. The beaches are also stunning and there are resorts for every budget. The underwater caves are remarkable and tropical fish in their millions flock there probably having heard of the mangoes.

My favourite place is the Trappist Monastery where you can sit and be at peace with the chanting of the monks in the background. The Trappist also make the most delicious guava jelly and they have also added to the list of products that are world championship class. So, put Guimaras on your life-time bucket list.

It's not that difficult to visit the island. You can fly from Manila or Cebu to Iloilo. The flight is about an hour and 10 minutes from Manila and about 50 minutes from Cebu.

From the Iloilo airport in Cabatuan, by taxi, it is about 45 minutes to reach the Ortiz and Parola wharf where you can take a quick boat to sunny Guimaras (Jordan wharf). There's a boat every 30 minutes and the crossing to the island only takes 15 minutes.

​Plan to stay a few days so you can eat and drink mangoes in every possible form and get some beach time and diving in before you have to leave heaven.

Hanoi has closed off some downtown streets to vehicle traffic especially the ones around Hoan Kiem Lake. This blind man often plays there his nose flute and it is always a treat to listen to him.

For those who want to know more on these closed off streets of Hanoi, here are the links: 

• Ta Hien and MaMay : Food Streets in Hanoi
  
• ​Downtown Park in Hanoi
• Pho Sach: Book Street in Hanoi

Hanoi is one city in Asia which has retained its old world charm so its downtown streets are still fun to explore. Here's a recent video of our adventure.

It was not until 2000 when deminers and archaeologists started to clear the area and as the villagers were hired, they had first glimpse of what remained of the Temple.

Largely covered by vegetation, Beng Mealea still has many hidden secrets. More of this temple will be revealed to us in the future but, in the meantime, let's revel in the mystery.

​For more on Beng Mealea, click here.

The Himalayas in the Springtime when the rhododendrons are in full bloom, Japan with its cherry blossoms, the crystal clear lakes of Muskoka, the waters and reefs of the Maldives teeming with multicoloured underwater species, the geysers of New Zealand, the tulip fields of Holland, the desserts in bloom in Oman, the wadis of Jordan, the water falls of Victoria and a thousand more places that not only engage the eyes but the soul as well. ​

Some things you might try:

• In your visit to these places, use only materials that are not harmful to the environment in whatever activities you do.
• Dispose of garbage appropriately. If there are garbage bins in the area, then chuck them there. But if there is none, bring it back where you can dispose of it. Better still, when you can, take some garbage out. 
• Participate in education programs on sustaining the environment.
• Take part in poverty alleviation programs. Poverty impacts on the environment often adversely.

Over and beyond these, sharing the beauty of your own spirit will forever mark not only the people you meet in your trip but also your own self. Often, the memories you treasure the most in many of your travels are the wonderful people you met along the way who made you feel special. ​

In this Church resides the statue of Mary, Our Lady of the Mekong River. What makes this unusual in this largely Buddhist country is the story of how it was found. On the 16th of April, 2008, a Muslim Khmer found an iron object trapped in the river bed of the Mekong.

As he could not carry what he'd found, he called other fishermen to help. With 8 Vietnamese companions, he used a cable to haul the object to the boat. They found it was a statue of a woman.

​One of the villagers reported to a Catholic woman named Chenda, who after checking it out, recommended they talk to the Queen of Peace Pastoral Council. The Council agreed to give the fishermen 2,000,000 Riel (abut US$500) in exchange for the statue.

The story did not end there. That night, between 8 and 9 in the evening, as the Vietnamese fishermen were asleep in the boat, one of them had a vision of a Lady looking like the one in the Statue flying over them several times. He panicked and told the other fishermen who thought it might be an omen of something bad happening to them and their families.

So, the next morning, they went back to the Church, knelt in front of the Statue and asked for peace and happiness in their lives. They met with the Pastoral Council and returned the money. The Council, however, knowing how poor they are, decided to use the money to supply them regularly with food.

Below is a close up of the statue which since then has been known as Our Lady of the Mekong River.

This is the grotto that houses Our Lady of the Mekong River. Located on the right side of the Queen of Peace Church, people come from all over the country to go up and see the statue as well as pray for peace.

​Once again, the story did not end there. A second statue was found in the Mekong river bed and once again, the story is worth telling.

During the night of the 18th of November, 2012, Phang Vaing Hou, a Vietnamese fisherman in Areiksart, had a dream. In his dream, ​he saw a big figure of a man asking him, "Please lift me out of the water because I am very cold. I have been here in the Mekong for so long. I am not far from where Our Lady was found before. Please help me".

The next day, he went to a coffee shop close by and told the owner, who was Catholic, "today, I am going to take Jesus from the water". So, he brought his two sons and instructed them where to search for the statue.

At 12:38 p.m., of the 19th of November, 2012, the men hauled the statue of Mary carrying the child Jesus, to the river bed. About 50 young men helped carry the statue to the Church. As this is the second time the people here have this experience, everyone rejoiced and gave homage.

As early as 1858, Vietnamese Catholics fleeing persecution by the Vietnamese Emperor Tu Duc settled in Cambodia. Above this, you have the war in Vietnam and the boat people, some of whom went to America but many came by boat up the river to Cambodia. 

Another vignette of history found in Areiksart are the two statues of Mary and the Child Jesus found buried in the riverbed by Vietnamese fishermen. These statues must have come from some of the Churches in Phnom Penh when they were destroyed during the Khmer Rouge reign. There used to be a huge Cathedral in Phnom Penh built in 1951. A Phnom Penh Post article details the story of this Cathedral.