Oh Christmas Day

I spent the 24th and the 25th with the family as usual. We attended the Misa de Aguinaldo at around 9pm of the 24th. When we got home from the mass we already ate Noche Buena and then started opening gifts at around 11pm. Di na nakaintay! My parents are getting old they can't stay up late for too long! Joema and I usually give them separate gifts. Pagkasal na kami as one na lang yung gift dapat magtipid na e harhar. We gave my mom two blouses - one polo shirt actually and other blousy blouse. Then to my father I gave him a polo barong and Joema gave him board shorts. My brother naman gave them watches (nung nakabalot akala nila sabon haha!) To my brother I gave two shirts while he got messenger bag from Joema. I actually benefit from that coz now he doesn't have to borrow bags from me. Anyways, Joema and I joke that we should ask our parents (both sets) to have dinner and then they should use their Christmas presents kasi ako I gave his mother the same blouse I gave my mom (same color, same style, different sizes) and then the same polo barong din to his father (different color, same style, same sizes). Naku baka yun ang isuot nila pag namanhikan hahaha! Ako I only opened a gift or two from my officemates which I know are body lotions. The rest I opened on the 25th coz I waited for Joema. After opening the gifts, my parents went to bed and my brother went to his girlfriend naman. Hay iba na talaga pag tumatanda ang mga bata may kanya-kanya ng buhay. Ako naman I waited for midnight. Although I slept around 1am din. Our Christmas celebration is really very simple basta attend mass, Noche Buena and opening gifts ayos na.

The next day, Christmas day, Joema went straight from work to our place. We let him eat breakfast first before we all trooped to my Tita and Lola's house. Ayun he got to meet everyone although he met most of them naman na talaga. We stayed there for a couple of hours making chika and eating again haha. My cousin bought his IMac so he and Joema has something in common to talk about. Not that Joema has one hahaha but he knows the features and other hooplas being a tech support and all. The joke is you should call him kasi he won't be able to help you pag face to face. I borrowed three DVDs from Adam - Stardust, Underdog and I Know Who Killed Me. We watched Stardust when we got home. Sidekwento lang about the DVDs I borrowed. I loved Robert de Niro in Stardust. He was believable na gay ha! Unlike other actors na obvious na umaarteng bakla. And Michelle Pfeifer is beautiful - the most beautiful witch ever! Underdog was okay, movie na pambata. Ika nga ng mga entry sa Metro Manila Filmfest pambata kaya panoorin dahil ang Pasko ay para sa bata. Crazy! But that movie of Lindsay Lohan sucks! I thought it was drama at first and then was hoping na medyo deep yung movie dahil parang Indie film ang dating coz it was kinda dark and the character had conflict. And then it turned parang scifi sya. Now I have to reserach kung totoo ba yang stigmata twin na yan or they just cooked it up for the film. Oopps! I should have done a separate post for the movies. Back to my story: we hadn't finished watching the movie when we ate lunch. Interesting part yung lunch coz my mother and my father told Joema na about the family stories (father side). You see their story is straight out of a telenovela. I don't want to tell it here coz it's not really my business. Kumbaga pag ginawang pelikula e supporting role lang ako. Yung pwedeng wala naman don pero pandagdag lang sa cast hahaha. Very juicy kasi yung details sometimes I can't believe it really happened.

I forgot na Joema and I opened gifts pala before we watched the movie. We didn't have gifts for each other. No material gifts - tama na muna yung pagmamahal at pagkakalinga wahahaha. Sweet talk for no moolah! After all that, Joema had to go home na to be with his family naman. Although pagdating nya sa bahay nila nagtulog lang ang loko. Ako naman I watched the two other DVDs. Next year hopefully, it will be a little different - different coz I will be married but just a little coz we'll surely be celebrating it with our family.

Happy holidays!

Getting Sick during Holidays

Yep, you read that right. I'm sick right smack in the middle of my vacation leave. I was on leave yesterday and was supposed to have dinner and watch a movie with some friends. But I had to beg off because of this f*cking fever. I had chills the night before yesterday but I only thought it was because of the cold weather. When I took my temp it was 37.7. Argh! Tonight my girlfriends and I are supposed to have a slumber party Sharon's house (she's home for the holidays) but I have to tell them I won't be coming. Huhuhu. I'm feeling a lot better now but I have to watch my temp because last night before I went to sleep I was okay, then I woke up at 3am and felt feverish again. This sucks big time. I hope I'm feeling 100% better come New Year's eve.

Santa's Elves

You wanna see us dance? Go here.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Wishing all of you a blessed Christmas! Let's not forget the real reason for this day and share our blessings to our less fortunate brothers. I hope you have a meaningful yuletide season.

Reservations

In our recent travels out of the country like in Hong Kong and Kota Kinabalu, I’ve usually booked our hotels online. What I usually do is I google “Hong Kong hotels” or “Kota Kinabalu hotels” and then search on the different websites that is listed on the search results. Little did I know that Hotel Reservations exists. This is like a one stop shop for travel bugs like me. I can book our hotels from this site. And not only hotels but flights in and out of the country. They even offer vacation packages. Aside from the time you save, you also save money because they offer the lowest rates. Next time we travel I will book from this site.




This post is sponsored.

We're Engaged!

I can't get over the fact that we're actually engaged. Huwaw ganon pala feeling non. We've been talking about getting married pero iba pala talaga when you finally hear those words asking you to marry him. Hay!

Yesterday was supposed to be our housewarming party for Mands. Kaso nag-backout si Steve cause he was sick, then si Jose had practice for their Christmas party presentation, Charline and Allan had to beg off na rin cause super trouble for them to commute from the south all the way to Commonwealth, si Penny nagback-out na rin dahil may family lunch pala sila. So yes my original plans didn't push through kaya I told Joema he can come by the house na lang dahil wala akong gagawin. Ayaw pa nya nung una dahil originally dapat today kami magkikita 16th (kaya pala gustong sa monthsary makipagkita). Anyways, so yon he got here around 2pm dahil he had to meet his brother pa in SM North.

We were kissing and fooling around (haha naughty!) when he suddenly stopped and reached for a red box. Ohmygas! This is it!

Me: Seryoso ko ba? (when he handed me the box)
We hugged then I started crying.
Joema: Marry me. (It sounded like a statement to me, not a question)
More crying from me. And hugging. And kissing.
Joema: Gusto ko palagi na tayo magkasama.
Crying. Hugging. Kissing. Crying. More crying. Exchanging of I-love-you's. Crying still.
Joema: Nililigawan palang kita alam ko gusto na kita pakasalan. (Awwww!)
Crying. Hugging. Kissing. More crying. Crying pa rin. Exchanging of I-love-you's. Buckets of tears.
Until he finally said:
Joema: Hindi ka pa sumasagot...
Cris: Yes (and still crying!)

Tinanong pa nya kung nagustuhan ko yung ring dahil di ko pa agad sinuot. E pano naman busy ako kakaiyak noh! hahaha! The ring was a bit big so I'm earing it now in my middle finger. We'll have it resized this coming week.



In my pambahay after the proposal. Fcuk you!




Watching Vacancy after the proposal. (pangit ng kamay ko!)




Wrapping Christmas gifts after the proposal.




I've imagined of elaborate and grand proposals pero this was just perfect. It's so him and so us. Steady lang sa house and just the two of us.

Messenger gets shot

ALWAYS.

ALWAYS.

ALWAYS.

ALWAYS.

ALWAYS.

ALWAYS.

ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS. ALWAYS.

It's All Good

Last Friday was Tita Percy's daughter's wedding and fortunately we were invited. Lorena and I went to make usyoso haha. It was both our first time to attend a wedding at Fernwood Garden. We left the office at 3pm because the invitation indicated 4pm as the start of the ceremony. We were there at 3:40! No traffic on a Friday from Ortigas to QC! Walastik! E kaso mo late nag-start ang ceremony so tagal namin nag-intay. As usual while waiting picture taking muna.







The procession of the entourage started at 5pm. But the bride walked down the aisle a few minutes before 5:30pm dahil sa dami ng entourage.



It was my second time to attend a Christian wedding but this was different from the first one. Dito, pagdating ng bride sa altar tinanong agad ng pastor yung "Do you accept this man/woman to be your husband/wife?" With Patrick and Heili's wedding I don't remember that being the first part. Or am I really that forgetful. Gosh! That was like four years ago lang nakalimutan ko na agad?!??! Back to the wedding, aside from that sa Christian wedding pala parang wala masyadong role ang principal sponsors. Unlike sa Catholic wedding where the principal sponsors are the ones, together with the parents, bless the union of the couple. Dun sa wedding na yun parang in-acknowledge lang nung pastor yung principal sponsors and thanked them for being ninong/ninang. Aside from the exchange of vows, the couple also said some things to honor their parents. Syempre medyo nangilid ang luha ko when Iriz mentioned Tita Percy.

The reception was fun. Aside from the fact that it was then that we got to eat hehehe, may audio-visual presentation that tells the story of the couple and also yung hotel preps and some snippets from the ceremony and reception itself. They also had games. May "Bring Me" which asks for the guests to bring something related to the love story of the couple kaya medyo madali hulaan kung anong ipapakuha nila. Na-coach ko pa si Lorena na yung next na itatanong was dirver's license because the couple's first date was at LTO hehe. Binigay tuloy nya sa kin yung prize nya. =D They also had "Love It + Hate It" game. They chose 5 couples to participate and the couples had to answer love it or hate it depending on the question pero syempre they have to have the same answer. Tita Julie and Tito Philip almost won.



Sayang! They did not get the last question "Does your wife love or hate whipped cream in bed?" Hate it sagot ni Tita Julie while Tito Philip answered love it. Then Ms. Aggie, being a ninang, said a few things for the couple. She said that their marriage lasted for 30 years (their wedding anniversary is this Dec 17) because in those 30 years, every time they said "I love you" they follow it up with a question "Are you happy?" She said that you should always seek your partner's happiness because in his/her happiness you will find your own. Basta something to that effect which is really true noh. You will be happy if your partner is happy. Sabay giving emphasis to the pastor's sermon na "It's good" kasi daw si Lord when he made this earth (Genesis) at the end of every day he would say "It's good." It's all good. Anyway, when Ms. Aggie mentioned that its also their anniversary, the host asked her husband to get in front and they were asked tokiss each other for 10 seconds. Pero more than 10 seconds pa yon kasi super bagal magbilang 10....9.... tapos sa dulo 2...2...2... di na ata natapos. =P




Here's wishing that Iriz and Don's marriage will also last more than 30 years! I know that will make Tita Percy happy.

SanFo Treats

I've been missing Grace lately. One of the reasons for this, I think, is that I'm envious Joel will be seeing her this Saturday. He's going to the States for a one month vacation. He was insisting that we should throw him a despedida. We didn't cave in although Gary and I met up with him for dinner yesterday. It was supposed to be last Thursday but because of the attempted coup Joel wasn't able to make it.

Anyway last night we parted ways by 9pm. It's either we're all getting old for late night-outs or because it's an ordinary weekday and they (Joel and Gary) both have to go home from Makati to Fairview. With the long ride home and throw in the traffic jam caused by the Christmas rush it was understandable they wanted to go home early. The two hours worth of tsismis was enough to satiate the tsismosa in me hihihi.

Anyways, back to Grace. I bought her a DVD copy of A Love Story. I should have bought it over the weekend, instead of just yesterday during lunch time, so that I could have watched it before giving it to Joel harhar. Joel got a bit worried when he saw it because he will be bringing two copies with him - one for Grace and the other one for his cousin. He said he might be suspected of selling the DVDs there. I hope not. Grace was also asking me to buy her polvoron from Goldilocks but Joel didn't want to bring any food with him. Aside from this, she asked me if I can buy her disposable contact lenses. She gave me her grade as +3.25 and +2.75. The two optical shops I went to told me that they still have to order it (because of the "+") and it will take a week before I get them. When I told her this this morning, she apparently gave me the wrong grade and it doesn't have to be "+". Anyways, she also asked me if she can have my financial calculator. She said that Texas Instruments is not making those models anymore. They are releasing new ones and Grace is not comfortable using the new models. So I will be stuck with the new model and she with the old. I'm okay with that because she's giving me seasons 1 and 2 of Prison Break plus DVD coy of 300. Double yay! I'm so happy! I wish Joel would come back home soon so that I can have the DVDs already hehe. But I'm still envious they'll be seeing each other even for just one or two days. They will be meeting up in San Francisco, that's Joel's first stop in the US.

I should really apply for a US visa. One reason to go there next year is Karen's wedding. Ooooh I hope I have enough money!

Furniture for your Home

At the bank where I’m employed, staff may avail of the housing loan with interest lower than commercial banks. That is after five years of being an employee. So I have 2 more years to go before I can avail of that special benefit. For now, I will just drool over furniture in Furniture From Home. You can choose your furniture by room, by style or by color. And ordering is just one click away. Just choose the furniture that best suit your home and your taste and you're good to go. For me, I like going through the site by room. You can see in full the combination of the different pieces of furniture in one room. I love it! If you can’t afford to pay for an interior designer you can always look at their rooms and then just buy the pieces of furniture there. It’s a complete guide in furnishing your home.

Here at home, we probably should by a new sofa. I so love their recliners. I wonder if I could egg my mom to buy one. They have a lot of options too if you're looking for a bed. I especially like this loft bed with desk. Such a space saver! If you have kids, you have to check out their kid bedroom furniture.

It's so easy to navigate this site. Equally helpful are their Lifestyle Suggestions and Furniture Tips that are located at the bottom right portion of their homepage. Check it out!

It's beginning..

...to look a lot like Christmas. We've finally set-up our Christmas tree this year. That is, after spending a few years without it. I think the last time we had it was in 2000 or 2001. Ever since my parents came back from living in the province, we haven't had a Christmas tree in our home. Christmas has been very different now with five adults (including our help) in the house. I remember when we where kids, we'll be very excited to wait up for twelve midnight and then open our presents from our parents and Santa Claus. Actually, we usually hear the midnight mass then come back home for the presents. When we were teenagers, we have our younger cousins come over to eat with us and open their presents with us. But they eventually grew up too. Now, more than ever, I really that Christmas is for children. It's really not that exciting for me anymore...because I don't get as many presents hahaha! Just kidding! The truth is now that I'm an adult, I feel the Christmas spirit once I buy the gifts for my family, relatives and friends. Because it is really that…sharing what you have. Anyways, aside from the Christmas tree we also bought new curtains and pillow cases to make our home more Christmas-y.

On other news, aside from my tell-tale signs that Christmas is around the corner our unit has also celebrated our Christmas party last Wednesday, even before the Trillanes brouhaha. My “mommy” gave me two books. Yippii!!! I was actually expecting just one in the list of five books that I gave so I was really happy to get two with a bookmark to boot! Oh, and my "baby" gave me Toblerone. =D

How about you, how do you know that Christmas is nearing? Do you attend Misa de Gallo? I was never able to finish the nine novena masses for this. I always end up missing one or two because of Christmas parties and dinner with friends. So I now I just don't go to any of the nine unless of course during the regular Sunday masses hehe.

$ $ $

I need extra cash because I have been saving up for something. Before, I usually help students with their Math subjects as their tutor. But I am not really into that. I only do it if someone asks me to or someone referred me. I don’t really seek out students who are having problems in Math. But now, I think I found an easy way to earn extra cash - while sitting at home in front of the PC and surfing the net. I recently signed up at PayPerPost. I first saw this from some of the blogs I read frequently and some that I just bump into. And all of them are happy with the income they are generating from PayPerPost. The deal is you write stuff about their advertisers and then they review your blogpost and then you get paid if you pass their requirements. You also need to sign-up for a PayPal account. Isn’t that easy? I get to blog and earn money. I guess the easy part comes with the option of choosing which subjects/items I can write about. Of course, I will always choose those things that I am familiar with or am interested in. I am actually excited. As their badge says “Get paid while blogging about the things you love”. Ka-ching!

Mush Alert!

Was able to watch One More Chance last night with Cristina. May tatlong scenes don na super na-guilty ako dahil ginagawa ko rin yon kay Joema. So after the movie tinext ko sya…

C: Honey naiinis ka ba sa kin pag sinasabihan kita ng bawal kainin? O kaya pag ginigising kita para pumasok sa office? O kaya pag sinasabihan kita na bawal magresign?
J: Bakit tungkol ba dyan yung pinanood mo?
C: Oo medyo. Kasi parang specific na ganon yung pinakita sa movie na inayawan ni Bea e. As in yung tatlong yon.
J: Okay lang paminsan-minsan. Wag lang makulit. =)
C: So ayaw mo ng ganon? Bat di mo sinasabi?
J: Love kita e. Whatever makes you happy.
C: ganon? E what makes you happy?
J: You.
C: Honey ang sweet mo sobra!

Anyways, all in all di naman sayang yung P122 ko. Galing ni John Lloyd napaiyak nya ko. And okay yung kwento although the ending could have been better. Parang nandidiri lang ako dun sa first "bed scene" nila haha!

Team Aniston

Convo with my father early this morning...

Tatay ko: Napanood nyo na yung Beowulf? Di ba andon si...Angela (?)...yung asawa ni Brad Pitt?
Me: Hindi sya asawa ni Brad Pitt! Hindi pa sya pinapakasalan!
Me: (After realizing that wasn't the main question) Hindi pa namin napapanood...

What Movie is your Love Life like?

Your Love Life is Like Annie Hall

"A relationship, I think, is like a shark. You know? It has to constantly move forward or it dies." You believe that love (if you even believe in love!) is a very complicated thing. Maybe love is pain. Or maybe it's all a big therapy session. You're still figuring it out. Your love style: Brainy and a bit neurotic Your Hollywood Ending Will Be: Realistic and reflective

What Movie Is Your Love Life Like?

Well, Annie Hall is an old movie so I did not know anything about it. So I googled it and got this from Wikipedia:

Plot

The film is set in New York City and Los Angeles.

Allen plays Alvy Singer, a comedian obsessed with death, attempting to maintain a relationship with the ditzy but exuberant title character (played by Diane Keaton). The film chronicles their relationship over several years, intercut with various fantasy trips into each other's history (Annie is able to "see" Alvy's family when Alvy was only a child, and likewise Alvy observes Annie's past sexual relationships). In the flashbacks showing Alvy as a child, we learn that Alvy Singer grew up in Brooklyn. His father operated a bumper cars concession. He claims the family home was located below a roller coaster on Coney Island.

After several years, many arguments and many reconciliations, the two realize they are fundamentally different and split up. Annie moves in with a Hollywood record company executive (played by Paul Simon). Alvy eventually realizes he still loves her and tries to convince her to return with him to New York. He fails and, resignedly, returns home to write a drama about their relationship. Later, after they are able to meet on good terms as friends, Alvy ends the film by musing about how love and relationships are something we all require despite their often painful and complex nature.

I don't want to end up with no one. But come to think of it, I like movies like this. The ending is not "happily ever after". I actually love movies with tragic endings. Sometimes happy endings just don't work for me. Like inthe movie The Break-Up, I was glad the character of Jennifer Aniston did not go back with Vince Vaughn at the ending. Okay let me breakdown the result:

"A relationship, I think, is like a shark. You know? It has to constantly move forward or it dies." - yes, I believe that it's constantly moving. It's either its growing or you just stop falling in love. It can't be constant.

You believe that love (if you even believe in love!) is a very complicated thing. Yes, I believe that love is a complicated thing. But spare me the sarcasm cause I do believe in love.

Maybe love is pain. Or maybe it's all a big therapy session. You're still figuring it out. - maybe I'm still figuring it out. As you go on with life and love you continue to learn new things, about your partner, about you. But I don't think love is pain although pain is a part of it. The pain is there to let you know that it hurts. You won't fully appreciate the bliss of love if you don't know the pain.

Your love style: Brainy and a bit neurotic - hehe brainy...meaning I use more of my brain than my heart? siguro..but not neurotic naman.

Your Hollywood Ending Will Be: Realistic and reflective - I do look at love realistically. I'm prepared for the downs as well as the ups, the hurts as well as joys that comes with loving a person.

********

Happy monthsary, honey! Here's to more brainy and neurotic loving from me. Love you much!

Kota Kinabalu 2007

So yeah it was just the six of us who finally were able to go on with the trip. Out first day/night was like a series of unfortunate events. First, Janice and Al weren’t able to come because Janice was sick. Then Allan was held back in line on the check-in counter because of his passport. After Immigrations and the final x-ray thing, Penny and I had to go back to the check-in counter to check-in our umbrellas because we had them in our carry-on bags (umbrellas were not allowed because of the long metals). Pao and Joema were joking that they were the only ones left and be together the whole trip haha! But things did not end here in the Philippines. At the airport at Kota Kinabalu, after I got my passport stamped and was already waiting for our luggages, Joema called me back and said the Immigration officer was asking for me. I was like “Huh? WTF?!?!?” It turned out he stamped 90 days in my passport and had it revised to 30 days. Then when I left the counter for the second time, he called me back again because he did not give me back the portion of the disembarkation card that I had to keep for my departure. I was telling them later on that the officer was so entranced by my beauty (or the lack of it) that he gave me 90 days to stay on the island. =P After we all got our luggages, we searched for our sundo but as luck would have it, the hostel forgot to arrange our airport pick-up. Ugh! Good thing there were Filipinas there who were picking up other people, they help us talk to the guy manning the Tourist Information desk. He called the hostel and we asked them to pick us up. We had to wait for 30 minutes before we were picked up. After that, everything went smoothly na. I think the taxi drivers of our cabs (as in 3 cabs because there were nine of us originally, kaya ayun isang cab isang couple ang nakasakay), were expecting us to give them tips. Oh so sorry because we still didn’t have ringgits then. We planned to have our money exchanged when we reach the city. So that’s the first things we did after checking in our things at the hostel. We went to Centerpoint Mall, it’s like Tutuban Mall (but I think that was only one part of the mall, the other part was more sosy), to have our pesos exchanged to ringgits.

We had dinner the nearby Sedco Complex. And when I say nearby, it was just next door. The complex was sort of our dampa here in Metro Manila. Pili ka ng fish, prawns, crabs or any other seafood then they will cook it for you. There was another Filipina there, the waitress who took our beverage orders. I tell you there were a lot of Pinoys in Kota Kinabalu which was really good because it made things easier for us. We ordered seafood fried rice, prawns and fish. Ang sarap!


After dinner we went to the night market. But only a few stalls were open because it was raining. Parati na lang ata umuulan pag bumabiyahe kami kaya natuto na kami lahat..lahat kami may dala ng umbrella. We went back to the hostel feeling a bit tired and disappointed because we didn’t get to do much on our first night.

Day 2

Since we didn’t have our tour guides (Janice and Al) we had a sort of hard time deciding what to do on our first whole day in Kota Kinabalu. Whole day island hopping in Tunku Adbul Rahman Park? City tour? Will we be able to squeeze in Klias Wetlands? Where do we arrange the package tour? How do we got to the jetty – taxi or arrange with the hostel? After talking to the reception lady at the hostel (she can’t understand or speak that much English) and talking to someone over the cellphone (I think it was their manager) we decided to just arrange the pick-up and ferry to Manukan island (part of TAR park) at the hostel. We shelled out RM40 per pax for that. We didn’t have time to eat breakfast because after a few minutes the van was already there. They took us to the Shangri-la Tanjung Aru Resort where the Beach Bums Jetty was located. And the travel gods was looking down on us that day because from the resort we made arrangements for the Klias Wetlands later that after plus they gave us 10% off from the original price of RM190 because we were a big group. Yey! They told us to leave Manukan island at 130pm and the van will pick us up at 2pm at the resort lobby. Weeeee!!!!

The beach sand in Manukan island is not powdery. Actually it's not recommended for swimming dahil puro bato talaga yung beach. There were a lot of fish to feed though. As in super dami.



We had lunch at the island where we met another Pinoy, Mang Justine, who gave us free chicken bbq. =) Actually, Pao made a mistake of ordeing the bbq instead of the chicken satay. Nung cinorrect namin binigay pa rin nya sa min yung bbq compliments of him. Trivia pala, yung ibang Pinoy don actually dun na pinanganak so they understant Tagalog pero they don't speak. Katuwa nga e kasi when you ask them if they're Pinoy they will say yes pero technically hindi na because they were born and raised in Sabah, like Mang Justine.



After lunch we rode the ferry back to Shangri-la. Ganda don! Wish we could have stayed there. Mga kurips kasi sa board and lodging haha. This was were we were picked up the van that will take us to Klias Wetlands for a river cruise. We rode for two hours before arriving at Gamana River. Ready na for the cruise!



There we saw different kinds of monkeys - proboscis monkey, long tail macaques and silver langurs. Then after dinner we were able to see thousands of fireflies glow like Christmas lights. Sayang lang dahil we only saw that for a few minutes. Then it was time to head back to Kota Kinabalu.

Day 3

We intended to go to Kinabalu Park and Poring Hot Springs. We originally decided to take the public bus going to Kinabalu Park but after eating breakfast and walking to the bus stop, as you may have noticed our original plans don’t really happen, a Pinoy sweet talked us into hiring their van going to Kinabalu Park. We paid them RM120 for the whole van which is okay because the bus fare to the park would cost us around RM15-20 per person. They just told us to take the bus going back to the city proper and make sure that we don’t go home later than 5pm because that’s the last ride back to the city. As you would have guessed that didn’t push through as well. We rented out a van going to Poring Hot Spring and commissioned the driver to bring us back to Kota Kinabalu. I think he asked for RM220 for it. But I’m getting ahead of the story.



We're no mountain climbers so we followed a few trails at the Kinabalu Park. Sayang it was cloudy so we did not see the peak of Mt. Kinabalu. Anyways, we first followed the Bukit Tupai Trail where we went to see their botanical garden. Then we went to Padanus Trail hoping to get a peek of the mountain. Argh! Akyat ng akyat na wala naman palang patutunguhan. Sabi ni Joema "We're beach loving people, bat ba tayo napunta dito?".



After the 500m mark we went down the Kiau View trail. Super pagod after that. We had lunch at the cafe at the foot of the mountain.

Poring Hot Spring naman after that. We were a bit disappointed with the place. We didn't get to soak in the hot spring dahil hindi namin ma-take ang itsura. The hot spring in Camiguin was much better (or was that because it was already dark when we got there?) Anyways, we just soaked our feet in the tub for feet only haha! Then we waited for our van na. We asked him to pick us up at 5pm but since wala nga kaming ginawa sa hot spring we were already at the rendezvous before 5pm. We were so bored waiting...


In fairness naman he arrived exactly on time. Super speed driver namin before 7pm we were at the waterfront of Kota Kinabalu na. Natuwa kami sa nakita naming malll at dun na kami nag-dinner. Sarap dinner namin and super mura. By the time we were full, we're ready to explore the city again. We went back to the night market and were able to buy a few more things. Including some glow-in-the-dark shirt na hindi naman nagglow. Hayop! Penny and Joema bought the same shirt...different times lang dahil we separated while browsing through the market..pero they got it different prices. Mas mura ng RM5 yung kay Penny...tapos yung kay Joema kulang pa ng logo sa likod ng shirt. Laugh trip talaga!

Day 4

Since it was a Sunday, our schedule well me and Joema squeezed in our schedule to hear mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Karamunsing. While the others went to the Handicraft store at the waterfront and bought pasalubong. Anyways, after the mass Joema and I had a hard time finding a taxi that will take us to Warisan Mall. We were two lost tourists walking around. We had to go back to the church and ride a bus. There was a friendly passenger who told us that we had to get off the bus at the same stop he got off and that we had to walk going to the mall. Argh! Walk again?!?!?! But since this story has an ending, we were finally able to reach the mall and meet up with the others. We were so hungry! Buti na lang the store where they bought the pasalubong was just a block away. I asked Joema to buy our pasalubong first before we eat para makapahinga kami ng dire-diretso. After eating (whil the others went around the mall), we all headed back towards the hostel for check-out. Then it was bye-bye time.

Math Problem

Nine friends planned to go to Kota Kinabalu as early as April. They booked the free flights offered by Air Asia. Two days before the scheduled flight out from Clark, one friend declined to come. Let’s call him friend A. He and his two sisters were supposed to go home to Nueva Ecija on the 30th of October but one sister cannot go home until the 1st of November. So he opted to stay and wait for both his sisters instead of going out of the country. Phew! Lame excuse.

On the 1st of November, friend Mrs. B, texted friend C that she was sick and she cannot come. Oh shit shit shit! She and her husband already went to KK so they were indirectly in charge of the trip – where to go, what to do. But she’s such a sweetheart she texted friend C all the info that she has about KK. As in panic texting!

When the remaining group of friends arrived at Clark for check-in another friend found only found out that his passport was about to expire come February 2008. Good people at Clark only asked him to sign a waiver.

Q: How many friends were able to go to Kota Kinabalu?
A: Six friends. (Those who did not come - friend A, friend Mrs. B and husband Mr. B, so that’s three friends hehe )

Prison Break

I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE PRISON BREAK!!!!



AND I SO LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE WENTWORTH MILLER!!!



I know Prison Break is so 2 years ago. And I'm not gonna explain why I'm only watching it now! Heck, I've always been late when it comes to TV shows. Basta I so love Wentworth Miller!!! *drool* as in *tulo laway* hahahaha

Miglets

We were finally able to see and visit the latest addition to our ever growing family of friends (family na friends pa! tama ba yun?). But before we went to their house we had our dinner at Jollibee where Luigi enjoyed his French fries. He’s so healthy tabachingching even though he’s a very picky eater. He loves French fries, pizza, Oreos and his all time favorite Skyflakes crackers. Aaahhh the joys of a child!

I’m so engot I didn’t take pictures of Kyla. She’s getting to be a fine little lady. She told us that they already have a copy of High School Musical 2. Her Ninong Joema quipped that we already have the third one! Hahaha Sabi nya wala pa naman non e. Okay I’ll just post an old picture of Kyla.

Now, here’s Gavin Megan, the little angel of EJ and TJ. She’s so cute and still so tiny.

Sayang we don’t see Yuri as often. Sya pa naman ang inaanak ko. This is also an old pic taken on his birthday last year. This was the most recent pic that I have of him.

Dami na kids sa barkada. Sino kaya susunod? Any takers?

I Accept

I was trying to list the things I'm thankful for. My number one is: I'm living NOW. I guess that's the first time I said thank you for being alive other than on my birthdays. I'm just thankful for this moment. For the realization that I have to bow down to a Higher Being. I'm melancholic but at the same time feel very at peace with myself. I guess that's what you feel after acceptance.

Basta it just hit me. I can plan and plan and plan but it still won't matter. Now, I truly believe that it will happen in God's perfect time. I've learned to accept that. And I'm also thankful I did not learn it the hard way.

Hong Kong Part 2

Third Day - 6 Oct 2007

Golden Bauhinia

It was still early to head on to Ocean Park so we went here. Just a few minutes for picture taking. There a lot of other tourists since this is part of the half-day city tour of most travel agencies.

Ocean Park

We took Citibus 629 at the Admiralty MTR station to get to Ocean Park. It was just afew minutes after 9am (which is the first trip) but there was already a queue for the bus. We arrived at Ocean Park even before the gates opened so we had to wait a few minutes. My mom was so tired going around Ocean Park maybe because of the terrain. I was able to see two attractions that I didn't visit the last time I was there– Pacific Pier and Sea Jelly Spectacular.




Citygate Outlet

Now this is where my mom really enjoyed herself ahahaha! Well, I enjoyed too but I wasn’t really on my shop-till-I-drop mode. Because I was eyeing on buying a Samsonite luggage. I got the luggage I wanted 50% off plus I was able to buy a duffel bag for HKD99 only. They have a promo where you can buy the duffle bag for that price if you buy one piece of luggage. Wiii! I’m so happy! Oooh, I was also able to buy a pair of Seven7 jeans.


Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade


Okay, we were supposed to watch the Symphony of Lights but we were late. So much for running along Nathan Road just to be there on time. We were all just exhausted when we got there. We rested for a few minutes then headed back to the hotel to rest and eat dinner. And then we were off to...

Mong Kok


Wasn’t able to buy anything from here either because we were lugging around with my father looking for shoes – that he wasn’t able to buy that night. Naubos oras kakaikot wala naman nabili. Haaay! We should have just went our separate ways so that we’d accomplish more. But that’s what we did the next day.

Fourth Day - 7 Oct 2007

Rosary Church


First we heard mass at this quaint church. It was the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary when we were there. After the mass we had brunch and was off again. My brother and I were on to search for Mands’ clementoni puzzle. He gave me the address where I could buy him one. It was at Chinachem Plaza at Mody Road. But the office was closed (since it was Sunday). Of course I didn’t know that it was an office, I thought it was a boutique/store. Anyway, that’s an A for our effort hahaha! I was too tired to even bother to shop along Nathan Road (that’s what my parents did whil we were on Mody Road) so when we met up with them we told them that we should probably go to the airport already.

HK International Airport


It was just after lunch and our flight was later that night but we went anyway. Atleast we had time to rest. And that was probably the first time we really rested. We did some last minute shopping - I bought a Disneyland keychain for Joema. Sssh! Don't tell him I didn't buy it at Disneyland! Then we had dinner at Burger King after check-in. My brother almost lost his jacket when he left it at the x-ray screening right before you go to the waiting area. When he went to get it we forgot to take the tokens he bought at the Duty Free shop. Ohmigod! We were losing items one thing after the other. But we were getting them back so it's all good. I brought along a book so I wasn’t impatient waiting for the time. I was so engrossed with the book I didn’t realize we’re about to board the plane and leave HK already.

Awww! I hope to see you again!

Everybody's Getting Engaged!

Well, not everybody but two of my good friends are. Penny, whose a former officemate and friend, got engaged with Pao. He proposed during their recent trip in Boracay two weekends ago. Romantic! And Karen, my childhood friend, got engaged to Joes. They were shown on TV at the Today Show with their Just Engaged plackard. So cute!




Love is in the air! <3 Congratulations!!!! <3 I'm so happy for you!!

Hong Kong 2007

I wish I could travel as often as I want. Yung tipong every month may ibang country na pupuntahan. Ang saya siguro non. Anyway, here’s a rundown of our recent Hong Kong trip. It’s our family’s first out-of-the-country trip so we’re all very excited. Although, di pa kami nakakaalis ng Manila nagkaproblema na kami. Hay sus! Apparently, my father did not have a booking in Cebu Pacific’s system simply because he and my brother have the same name. Different middle name (mother’s maiden name) lang. The problem was Cebu Pacific’s online registration did not have the field for the middle name so pareho talaga sila ng name na lumabas sa system nila. I found out later from an officemate who used to be in PAL that the system usually cleans up the list of passengers at pag may nakitang duplicate name talagang automatic na dine-delete. We waited for a long time sa check-in counter dahil pabalik-balik yung tao nila from the counter to their office which is nowhere near the counter. Napaka-pathetic ng NAIA Terminal 1! Wala man lang phones sa check-in counter (which is a very useful tool dahil nung nasa HK airport kami going back to Manila via phone lang nag-confirm yung staff sa check-in counter nila)! Argh! Kakahiya to think na yang terminal na yan ang nagho-house sa lahat ng international flights to and from Manila (except PAL). Sana buksan na nila yung Terminal 3 para naman di nakakahiya ibang biyahero. Mas maganda pa ang international airport ng Davao!

Okay enough ranting about that! We arrived at the HK international airport around 7pm. Katuwa kasi dun kami sa kabilang terminal nag-land so we had to take a short train ride to go to the Arrival Hall. Kaaliw haha! Good thing nagpa-arrange kami ng pick-up sa hotel kaya worry free na kami pagdating. We just exchanged a few dollars for us to buy their Octopus card. Pagdating sa hotel ayos lang sandali ng gamit tapos gala na agad. Well, nagdinner lang muna kami tapos saka gumala. Super okay yung location ng hotel namin kasi pagbaba on our left is a Chinese resto then on our right 7-Eleven. Tapos ka-parallel lang ng street namin yung Temple Street so nakapag-night market agad kami. Although wala naman kaming binili nung first night haha. Ikot ikot lang sa night market then sa Nathan road. Ay mali! Meron pala kaming nabili na shirts sa Giordano hahaha. Alam nyo naman sa HK every corner ata may Giordano.

When we went back sa hotel pinlano ko pa kung anong gagawin namin kinabukasan. Gusto ko kasi mapanood namin lahat ng shows sa Disneyland. Di baleng hindi na makasakay sa lahat ng rides kasi mga tanders naman kasama ko hahahaha. Before we went to Disneyland, we passed by the Avenue of Stars and the Promenade. Then from there we took the Star Ferry that will take us to the other side, HK island! Super saya sa Disneyland! It truly is the happiest place on earth! Here are our major stops:

Click on image to enlarge


1 picture taking with “floral” Mickey mouse in the HK Disneyland Railroad
2a picture taking with Jack Skellington
2b Space Mountain
3 Mad Hatter’s Tea cup
4 lunch at Clopin’s Festival of Foods and picture taking with Alice in Wonderland
5 The Golden Mickeys
6 Fantasy Gardens – picture taking with Minnie and Mickey mouse
7 Mickey’s PhilharMagic
8 picture taking with Donald and Daisy Duck, watched the Disney on Parade and bought some pasalubong at the gift shops
9 Festival of the Lion King
10 dinner at some pizza place – Hades’ pizza if I remember it right
11 Sleeping Beauty Castle
12 The Disneyland Story
13 pictures taking with the pumpkin characters (this is before we went to Tomorrowland in the morning so this should be #2 also) and watched “Glow in the Park” parade and “Disney in the Stars” fireworks

Don’t mind the numbering hahahaha! Nalito na ko sa pagkakasunod-sunod. As you can see we barely explored Adventureland. We were just so tired. Probably from the heat. It was so humid and felt like we were back in Manila during summertime.

To be continued…

Bwisit!

I should be blogging about our recent HK trip but I haven't had the time. Natabunan ako ng work after going on leave for 3 days. Hay!

I just want to blog for a while sa sobrang bwisit sa isang babae dito sa bangko! Leche! Trabaho na nya yon bakit sa kin pa nya tinatanong? Bakit hindi pa sya dumiretso dun sa kailangang tanungin at ako pa ang tinatanong nya! Haller! Di ko alam kung san nagmula yang mga tinatanong mo. Kung iche-check mo yung binigay ko sayo andon na lahat ng kung anumang ibinigay sa akin. Yang BSB na yan baka BackStreet Boys yan! Punyeta!

See You Later Crocodile

Lately, I’ve been going to a lot of send-off parties. There was Grace’s, my boss’, Joyce’s and then last Friday was Jen’s. She was just transferring to another department but we bid her farewell as well, hoping that she will come back to us in the future.

(L-R) Seated: Tita Olive, Jen, Rhoda; Standing: me and Riza. That's Nixon at the back.

And then tonight, we’ll be sending off my college kabarkada Sharon. She will be going to Singapore this coming October 8. Seems like I’ve been saying goodbye to a lot of people. Well, it does not mean they’re leaving my life. It’s just sad that they are leaving…and that I can’t see them as easily. I have to book a flight in order to see them. Haaay….

In other news, I gave in to the fad. I bought Crocs yesterday. Remember, I was deciding which shoes to buy to use in HK? Well, after much deliberation I decided that I won’t buy shoes anymore. I will just use the old ones that I have ( the not-so-fashyown-shoes). But yesterday I offered my mother that I will buy her shoes as a birthday present. She turned 53 two Sundays ago. Plus she doesn’t have shoes to bring to HK also. We went to Podium because they were on sale. After going around we haven’t found the right shoes for her, it’s either she doesn’t like them or they don’t have their size. We went to Shoe Salon and she started fitting Gola sneakers there. I tried one display of the Crocs that they have and it fits and it’s perfect on my foot. I told my mom to try one and if she likes them I will buy one for the both of us. She liked it too! So I bought them. Haay… I never thought I’ll buy one of these. Funny thing pa Joema and I were at Trinoma last Saturday and we went inside Crocs (you know how big the store they have there). But I didn’t try on any one of the styles they have. Ewan ko ba…I think I’m a bit skeptical in getting one because of the horror stories I read in the internet. So please pray my foot won’t be caught in an escalator somewhere in Metro Manila or HK.

Rome

Haven't I said it enough na super inggit ako kay Reyna? I'm sharing with you the pics she had when they visited Rome last weekend. Hay, I'm so inspired to save up for a Euro-trip! And aren't her pictures amazing! As in if I can only will myself to be in Rome right now I would especially after looking at her photos.

Oh when, oh when can I spend a romantic night in Italy? *sigh*

Click on the images for a larger version.