Welcome to I Travel Rocks Rox!

Hi! I’m Roxanne M. Tamayo

You can call me Rox. I created this travel blog in March 2013 as a travel repository. Previously, I stated I wasn’t born to be a traveler but I wanted to be one. Now, I am happy to say I am doing it.

From owning a point and shoot digital camera, I upgraded to a Nikon D5100 camera. My wanderlust grew of the idea of taking a lot of pictures from different destinations. Discovering places when I still have the energy to do so.

I am not a good storyteller nor even a good writer. But I am hoping that I can be able to share my experiences and useful tips here on my blog.

Facts about Me

• No experience working abroad.
• Ambition was to travel to different countries while working in the Philippines with a low salary.
• My parents are poor and so am I.
• I quit studying in college on my 3rd year taking Information Technology course due to financial reasons.
• Working experience at IT Park only lasted for 10 months.
• I quit my job due to health reasons.
• Working as a freelance online worker since October 2009 and beyond.
• An Associate Degree holder in Computer Technology (2-year course) – a late graduation in October 2014 while traveling in the Philippines and in some countries.
• Started the digital nomad life in 2014.

Mission

As a Philippine passport holder, they say that traveling is a privilege. Only if you’re rich or your family, or if you graduated from a reputable school with flying colors and landed a good paying job. A great advantage if you’re working abroad. Another more advantage is if you’re earning a lot and you only keep it to yourself.

Not all Filipinos are born rich. Some of us are breadwinners. We also love to travel so we are finding ways to travel even on a weekend just to feed our wanderlust. Most of us are average wage-earners.

Most of us have difficulties in getting a visa. You have to show a proof that you have strong reasons to return to the Philippines because of work. You need to show loads of money in your bank account just to say you can afford to travel.

As the owner of this blog, my mission is to travel with a purpose. I am writing my travel experiences about my failure and success of getting a visa, travel hacks on traveling for free, travel on a budget, travel long-term funny stories and travel mishaps and misadventures that somebody can relate.

I want to inspire people that no matter what status we have in life, we have the right to travel. We have the right to enjoy our own country.

What Am I Doing in Life?

I am a freelance online worker since October 2009. I work as a Virtual Assistant doing administrative work such as data entry, web research, email management, social media management, writing contents and blogging, doing basic SEO stuff, graphic design, editing and enhancing photos. I started traveling out of Cebu with my small netbook in November 2012 which was the first destination and first airplane ride experience going to Manila with friends. It took me three years before I get addicted to travel because all I did before was working hard my @$$ off and saving money for the future.

Buying a laptop, a smartphone and a DSLR camera helped me to gear up to be a digital nomad which I slowly invested when the year 2013 started. Of course, I love to learn photography and somehow it helped me to earn money on the side as a wedding photographer.

As a digital nomad, I am enjoying the life of traveling without the worry of taking a vacation leave for few days instead I can go whenever I want to if money permits. 😛

How I Travel?

I travel mostly during my free time and of course, using my personal money to spend. Somehow, I got personal invitations from friends and travel bloggers. I travel solo most of the time just because my friends can’t keep up with me. Along the way, I met other travelers and travel with them. My way of traveling is totally different and not really after for freebies and sponsorships. Although the freebies and sponsorships are the perks of being a travel blogger.

Volunteer work is awesome and it gives me the chance to stay longer in a place. Same time, I can travel on a budget. So yes, I have the luxury of free time but not the luxury of having a lot of money. I love to travel at my own pace and time. I also get the chance to get off the grid and enjoy the moment of meeting people.

Know More About Me

You can find me in other blogs I created:

roxannetamayo.info – my personal blog

fotografirox.com – my wanna be photo blog