MANILA — After joining several walking tours abroad, Filipino applied anthropologist Raizel Pauline Albano was inspired to bring something similar back home.

While walking tours are already available in the Philippines' heritage districts, she said tourists often rely on transportation because of the country's hot weather and insufficient walking spaces.

Over the past 6 years, Albano has produced 44 audio walking tours for locations in the Philippines, including Basco town in Batanes, Vigan, Baguio City, Cebu City, Puerto Princesa, and Siargao, among others.

They can be accessed through the storytelling platform izi.TRAVEL app.

"I wasn't really thinking about foreign tourists when I started this project, but more on locals appreciating their own hometown," Albano, 34, told ABS-CBN News in an online exchange.

"I also firmly believe that it’s about time that we gave honor to each other’s hometowns within the Philippines," she said.

• These PH destinations are becoming popular among domestic and international travelers

TESTING THE WATERS

In 2018, Albano developed a walking itinerary for Angeles City, Pampanga after finishing her research duties for a cultural heritage management project.

This was her first attempt at creating an audio walking tour, which was meant for personal use and to see whether her idea was possible.

She did the same for Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, her father's hometown, when her family spent Christmas there.

Crafting the virtual walking tours for the two cities proved challenging for Albano, but her determination pushed her to keep going.

In 2020, when the pandemic hit, she focused on desk research and used online maps to check if an itinerary would work.

And as travel restrictions eased the following year, Albano continued with the project through her job that allowed her to explore different local towns and cities.

Now, 44 places in the Philippines can be explored through her walking tours without the need to travel physically.

• Palawan is among TripAdvisor's trending destinations for 2024

UNCHARTED TERRITORY

Audio walking tours were considered "unchartered territory" in the Philippines, according to Albano.

As a result, she doubted herself about pursuing the passion project.
But she never questioned its potential, she said.

"My motivation came from the fact that I felt deeply uncomfortable with the fact na ayaw ko siyang ituloy dahil mahirap pero na-prove ko na kaya pala siyang gawin," Albano said.

"Literal na para akong binabangungot nung idea na 'yun every time gusto kong ipagsantabi na lang ‘yung project na ito," she said.

"So I guess it was this internal compass, and all the opportunities that came my way, that guided me towards this path."

EXPERIENCING LIFE THROUGH TRAVEL

The "modern idea" of traveling does not appeal to Albano. Instead, she loves traveling by allowing herself to experience life "in its fullest form."

"As I grew older, I realized that I wasn’t really in love with the idea of traveling, it was about the idea of experiencing life in all its forms, colors, and sizes," she said.

"Kaya siguro nagiging life-changing experience ‘yung travel for many because it offers something so different from what we allow ourselves to experience every day."

• PH is 73rd most powerful passport in the world: global index