Jetsetting with Mikael Daez

SINGAPORE — You could say that 2014 is turning out to be a great year for this Filipino TV host and pin-up.

On top of being asked to be one of 12 Contiki Storytellers, as part of the Contiki Cares project to save turtles in Costa Rica, Daez got to hop over to New York City and has already lined up trips to Cambodia, Abu Dhabi, Beijing, United Kingdom, Spain, Croatia and Slovenia for the rest of the year.

“Being from a family of eight kids, it was so darn expensive to travel as a whole family,” the travel enthusiast explained. “I was finally able to travel two years ago (as part of work).” Needless to say, he’s extremely grateful to be able to undertake these journeys, though he added it would be pretty hard to beat Costa Rica. “Costa Rica is amazing. The country is like one big conservation project. I’ve never seen a country with so many national parks!”

Q: You met Celine Cousteau (granddaughter of French explorer Jacques Cousteau) in Costa Rica as part of Contiki Cares. What was she like?

A: She’s inspiring, extremely inspiring. She’s one of those people whom you want to keep listening to the moment they say their first few words. You feel like you want to do something after hearing her — you want to pay it forward. She’s also such a positive person. She creates her own documentaries for different networks and I love learning from her. She’s living proof that I can do documentaries on my own without requiring big production budgets.

Q: So what else did you learn from this trip?

A: I find that, as travellers, we go out of our comfort zone to experience something new. But in doing so, it does take its toll on the location and environment. It’s important for us to give back and travel sustainably. We want others to experience what we did as well. We can’t be selfish with that.

Q: What are you like as a traveller?

A: I’m “all go, never say no”. I might hesitate but eventually I’d try to say yes (to new experiences) because travelling is getting yourself out of your comfort zone.

Q: You also went to New York for the first time.

A: Yes! I was in NYC for around 60 hours. It was the craziest 60 hours I ever had in terms of eating. We just ate and ate, as my cousin took us around. I loved it. We had Artichoke’s pizza, went to Shake Shack, and Five Guys Burger And Fries. And I had the best porterhouse steak at Peter Luger.

Q: What’s your favourite place in the Philippines you’d recommend to travellers?

A: Sand dunes in Ilocos Norte. I love the sand dunes. Go to the highest sand dune and stay till sunset. That’s the magic hour. SERENE LIM