crushed. literally.

Yesterday, I left the Ateneo Professional Schools Congress with a bit of hope and a bit of dream. Mostly I was pondering what was my place in the world when it came to playing my part in nation-building. Lately, it has been mattering to me more and more. I have to do something. What it was, I was uncertain.

I continued pondering as I walked to the Guadalupe MRT Station. When I got there, I was aghast by the number of people. It has been quite a while since I set foot there though there was a time that was my stop. It was re-awakening of MRT rush hour.

With exasperation and surrender, I positioned myself in the throng of people that stood by each door. How I wished there was a line but that seemed logistically impossible given a people that lacked discipline. Myself included.

At first, I was in the general section instead of the ladies' (scoff) section. After two cars, I noticed that the cars for women had more space so I decided to move to that part. It was a mistake to have done so. I should have stayed with the men than be in a stampede of women desperate to go home. Though that was the least bad thing about the situation.

After a couple of cars, another came with a couple of cars which had relatively more space to accommodate people. I was to find out why. The women in the car refused to go in the center section! Despite the sardine situation by the doors, none of the bitches would budge to make way for more people to be able to ride. I was absolutely infuriated. Such inconsideration!!! Out flew the window my thoughts of a better Philippines. Sheesh.

A couple more cars came until I was pushed by a wall of people inside the train. I didn't need to move my legs at all. I just allowed myself to be pushed. And there I was on the train. I tried to make it to the other door because I was just a couple of stops so I can get out easily without having to worry about getting left behind. But no, none of the women refused to move to the center. And I bet more than half of those are getting down Ortigas or Cubao.

I had to be impolite and brutal myself. I had to push in between people, which I was sure would push others as well, to get to the other side.

When my stop came, getting out was as disastrous as getting in. People were trying to get in, people was trying to get out with me. Someone was shouting, "may bata, may bata" which hardly mattered even if it were women in there. After what seemed like eternity, I made it out.

So much for hope and trust and dreams.

It was a rude awakening. Not all people are as giving as they should be. I was angry. Pissed. Irritated. But that doesn't mean I want to give up. It didn't make my resolve better. I was just myself in the unforgiving real world. Where little things can get in the way the greater scheme of things. Little things that eat away at your resolve.

But this is the world. It has ceased to be flowers and butterflies since the bronze age and currency. But this is the world. People are stubborn. I will just have to make that constant choice to be stubborn in a good way.

i need to get a job soon because

1. i want to buy books i like in a bookstore and not just stare at them longingly.

2. i want to eat snacks that are more than P40 without guilt.

3. i want to watch more movies. i want to watch zombieland again but it seems silly right now.

4. i want to go on weekend trips.

5. i want to buy a nice notebook. cattleya and king jim just don't cut it anymore.

6. i want to have my camera fixed. the auto-focus is not working anymore and i'm getting tired blurry pictures of myself.

7. i want to stop asking jan, 'libre mo ako' all the time. i want to actually say, 'libre kita!'

8. i want to be involved in something again. i want to have a purpose.

9. i like the fact that i can read books in a day but sometimes pacing makes stories more exciting.

10. i want, when the time comes, to be able to give the best to my child/ren and not worry too much.

work hard and be kind

the world bid farewell to the tonight show with conan o' brien last friday.

this guy just made a very touching farewell to his fans. and an impromptu quotable quote that will be remembered for a long, long time. he said it beautifully and eloquently:

Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard, and you're kind, amazing things will happen.

this guy is a class act. with a good heart and great mind. we will definitely seeing more of him soon.

think about your local governent too

I've been quite concerned for the past few days regarding the 2010 elections. Most of the information that we are getting are those in the national level. Followers of presidential candidates are doing a lot of hard sell. People are thinking hard of who to vote for this coming May. I, for one, have yet to decide for who to vote for. But one thing I have been bothered about the last few weeks is the local government level. I think we should work as hard educating our peers about local candidates especially those in Congress.

GMA is running for Congressman in Pampanga. This just goes to show how much she really lacks dignity or pride. Much worse, this goes to show how much she is addicted to power. I do not know who her opponent is but I heard that that person hardly stands a chance. Given how loyal Kapampangans are (for better or for worse), it is highly likely that we have not seen the last of this evil incarnate.

We know that she holds majority of the Congress in her hands. In a few months, we will be seeing her in the Congressional halls. I am certain that she will once again push for Charter Change. If majority of the people in Congress are loyal to her, then it is highly likely that she might just get what she wants after all.

So I really worry about this. Seriously worried. Thus I hope that people will be vigilant to campaign against those who have continuously supported GMA if we want to see a semblance of integrity return to our political system with her departure from Malacanang.

LP 89: Maibigan o magustuhan

Nung naglakbay kaming magkaka-klase patungong Marrakesh, isa sa mga inaasam-asam ko ay makabili ng sapatos na disenyong Moroccan at gawa sa leather. Nakakalula ang dami ng mga uri at kulay ng magagandang sapatos na naroroon. Ang hirap pumili! Sa kasawiang palad, ang mga sapatos na nasa larawan ay di yata nababagay sa akin kahit ganano ko pa sila kagusto! Pero hindi bale, nakabili din naman ako ng isang pares kasi mura lang.

* * * * *

When my classmates and I traveled to Marrakesh, one of things I really desired was to buy a Moroccan design camel leather shoes. The different kinds and colors of beautiful shoes were overwhelming. It was so hard to choose! Unfortunately, the shoes in the photos do not suit me no matter how much I wanted them. Never mind though. I was able to buy one pair because it was really cheap.

In response to 'Ganito Tayo Noon, Ganito Tayo Ngayon' centerfold in the Inquirer

In the centerfold of the Inquirer is a huge table of data comparing our present data compared to past presidents. It is undeniable that this is another attempt by the government to laud the 'achievements' of the nine-year GMA regime.

First response to that is that the UN itself is saying the Philippines is performing poorly in the Education For All program (EFA), trailing only after Tanzania and Zambia. Here's the link:http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100120-248349/UN-RP-trails-Tanzania-Zambia-in-education

Data given:
Teachers' salaries from P9,939 in 2000 to P14,198 in 2009. Excuse me but given the inflation, their value is probably just about the same.

Textbook to student ratio: 1:1 for English and Sibika in Elementary, 1:1 for English, Math and Science for High School. Sounds good. But what about the other subjects? And do you honestly think these books translate to better understanding on the kids part? AND are they allowed to bring this books home in the first place? I've visited rural public schools before and the kids ARE NOT allowed to bring them home because they will get old fast and may not be able to be used the next year.

Classroom to Students ratio: 1:39 Elementary and 1:55 HS. This ratio is not exactly something to feel good about. A conducive learning environment for children and a manageable classroom level for teachers would be a ratio of 1:20--25. 30 at most. And excuse me, but you have failed to note that A GOOD NUMBER OF SCHOOLS HAVE THREE SHIFTS OF FOUR HOURS just so there would be less students in class. So you think students can learn seven subjects in four hours?!! Tell me.

PAG-IBIG calamity loans for Ondoy and Pepeng victims: None for 2000. P12B for 2009. ALANGAN!!! Walang Ondoy at Pepeng nuon. Please say NOT APPLICABLE.

Farm to Market roads: 1998-2000 = 3,044 kms. GMA term = 17,517. Woman, you had nine years to accomplish that. Your average is just about the same.

OFW Deployment: 841,628 OFWs in 2000. 1.28M Jan-Nov 2009. You are proud of sending people abroad to work to keep this country afloat? Many are leaving this country, finding work abroad because they are desperate to survive. Nothing to be proud about.

Land distribution through agrarian reform: 523,000 hectares 1998-2000. 1.8M from 2001 to Sept 2009. That's just an average of 200,000 hectares per year for you. 260,000 hectares for Erap.

Buying rice for palay: P8.50 per kilo in 2000. P17 per kilo in 2009. Excuse me, magkano bigas nuon? I think it was around P18. Magkano ngayon? P30-40. Hello.

Cellphone subscribers: 6.4 M in 2000. 75M in 2009
Internet usage: 1.98% 2000/24.5% in 2009
1) It was just starting then. What do you expect?
2) I think Globe, Smart and Sun are the ones we should thank for this. Not you.
3) And oh... do you remember the time when text messaging was free? We pay P1 per text now. Whee. Hah.
4) Wala pang FB at kasisimula pa lang ng Friendster. Wala pang halaga ang internet nuon. (hehe! joke lang to)

There are so much more data in the newspaper. I can't seem to find it online yet. But those stuff up there are the only ones I have an answer to. The economy part... malamang it's true. I know crap about econ.

I mean I understand the needing to justify what you have done for your work. I used to that for my work too. But the thing that pisses me off is that those data pretends that everything is fine and dandy in this country because she took over. Pshaw. No, it's not.

knowing it's your time

Press Secretary Cerge Remundo passed away today from a heart attack. Sudden and unexpected. I don't remember ever liking him. I even came to a point of absolutely disliking him after the Le Cirque incident last August. Despite that, I feel for his family and friends who mourn his loss.

But I wonder if he saw it coming. His last FB status was a prayer of entrusting all worries and fear to the Lord. It gave me goosebumps reading it.

It led me to wonder how much of a blessing it is for someone to somehow know it is his time. He can be able to come to terms with all the things he has done or failed to do. He can say goodbye, forgive those who have hurt him and most importantly, forgive himself for whatever guilt one may have in the heart. At least one can go in peace...

Movie: Zombieland

Two thumbs up for this romp of a movie!

I was glad that May8, Jan and I were able to watch it together because movies like this need to be seen with other people or else you'd look silly laughing like a loon as people get eaten on the movie screen.

Love love love the script! It had really funny lines executed perfectly by the characters. Woody Harrelson has mastered the acting of a crazy lunatic (he was probably the most memorable in 2012) with a gun. Can't imagine anyone else in the role. And damn... Bill Murray's death was predictable yet was still funny when it happened.

This movie has to be nominated for at least an MTV Award or a Scream Award!

Awesome. Simply awesome!

travel diaries: a moroccan meal

I had no idea that filipinos do not require a visa to enter morocco, so thanks to G and L, I was able to find out.

As usual, it was the Pinoys who started it all. Conversations during parties grew our group of four into an international group of eight. Thus we formed an ISS contingent represented by Philippines, Indonesia, Sudan/Saudi Arabia, Colombia and Canada. Seven ladies and one gentleman. Or as C says it, "me and my seven wives." Two of us were Muslims who can interpret the calls for prayers and inform us about etiquette in a Muslim country. Two can speak basic Arabic and basic French to help us with transactions. With that kind of mix how can the trip not be exciting?!

There were two batches since we booked different flights but agreed to meet up at the El-Fna Square. We took a cutting trip from Amsterdam to Madrid then Madrid to Marrakesh. Our seven hour lay-over in Madrid merits a story by itself, but suffice to say, I never thought I would do an all-nighter club hopping with crazy and lovable Colombians. Definitely an interesting night!

When we arrived, I was astounded by the beautiful Marrakesh airport! The design seemed to be inspired by a honey comb. The glass had designs that reflected beautiful shadows on the floor. I was already impressed by this city!

A basic information we got was to try and haggle everything in Morocco, including the taxi. Drivers approached us offering to take us to our hostels for a fee. It was not something we could easily decide on. We eventually chose to take the taxi for an extra 50 dirhams assuming that we will be dropped off right in front of our hostel. Apparently not. The streets of Marrakesh were too tiny to accommodate big vehicles. From where we were dropped, we had to get lost, er, walk around for 30 minutes before we found our hostel. We could have asked around but we were a little wary because we heard that people tend to ask for money for every little help they get. This was not entirely true. Some were more than happy to help out though there are some who you can sense is out for a few coins.

It was 2PM and we have yet to have our breakfast or snack or lunch so we decided to eat. We stopped at the first restaurant we saw and checked the menu. I was happy to know that the complete set of marrocain salad, tagine, moroccan mint tea and yogurt cost 45 dirhams (less than 4.5o euros), while the couscous set was just 50 dirhams. Being more familiar with couscous, I ordered the tagine set for my first Moroccan meal.

Most meals are served with bread. Ours was warm and fresh out of the oven. Perfect for our rumbling stomachs.

The marrocain salad was served with the bread. I was expecting greens but we found out it was just diced tomatoes with chopped parsley, onions and salt. It was a perfect combination with our warm bread.

Our tagine arrived shortly. I ordered tagine viand or beef (it is called so because the meal is cooked in a tagine, made of clay and composed of two parts -- the base and the conical cover), which at first look made me wonder where the meat was. After digging through the potatoes and carrots, I found the meat at the bottom. The food floating in oil was a little scary but it just looked so good. And it tasted great too!

We were most excited with the moroccan mint tea having heard good reviews from friends who have been there. It did not disappoint. The tea was more on the sweet side but the mintiness was undeniable. It helped take away the aftertaste of the tagine too.

Their yogurt was a pleasant surprise as well. It had the taste of natural yogurt mixed with honey and a bit of lemon. Even after being filled up with the appetizer and meal, I could have gone for a second yogurt.

It was quite a satisfying meal which sated the hunger we have been feeling since morning.

on being told to be pregnant...

a couple of years back, i wrote an entry about the many questions women are asked in their lifetime. as i re-read it again, there are some things i may take back. like men not suffering the same questions as women do. i have come to understand that the issues they face are different from ours, so i really can not say that one or the other has a harder time.

i still stand by my belief though, that women, especially here in the philippines are subject to expectations at certain ages in their life. this is called life course theory in sociology. it is actually an interesting study especially in a society like the philippines which seem to have a set idea what people should achieve at a certain age. for the individual and/or those surrounding him/her, there is the tendency to be alarmed if they have not achieved the indicators of the life course.

what do i mean by this?

here at home, there is the tendency that there are just two options in life when one becomes an adult -- either one gets married or one enters the religious life. the idea of remaining single is alien to many people. to many, it does not seem possible for individuals not to want to get married. there is concern when people hit their 30's and are still single, especially for women. (these concerns have yet to cover those who are gay, single parents or common unions... for me that would be a separate discourse i dare not get into)

"settling" is the expected life course for adults. it seems that society dictates that the point of getting an education, getting a job is to prepare for family life. and many choose that path. but society has to realize that things have changed so much in just a few decades. technology and globalization has given people more options with their lives. getting married or having children is not the sole purpose of living. while sushmita sen may have said that the essence of being a woman is motherhood, women of today have now more options open to them. it is not always the most obvious choice anymore.

why this particular rant today?

i just somewhat received a lecture from a stranger (a person i encountered twice and hardly even talked to) that i should be pregnant already because i'm already 31.

since i returned home, jan and i have been asked when we plan to have a baby. but these are friends and relatives so i don't mind. it is an expected question though not necessarily a welcome one. i choose not to take offense and rather choose to be amused... it is a valid question just one we do not have an answer to.

but when a complete stranger tells you that... it is intrusive. does she even know me for her to even merit the license to be a commentator of my life? nee. i wanted to throw so many retorts at her. 'and this is important for you to know because?' or 'if i give birth, would you spend for all my child's needs since you seem so excited about it?' instead i just smiled and let her keep talking.

and in my head, i was doing a discourse analysis of the exchange. might as well put what i learned to good use and practice my already rusty brain than waste a good day on people that don't matter.

the year that was 2009

i did this last year lacking the time for introspection and review of what 2008 was for me. now i have the time to introspect, but i can't seem to put the right words together. so i do this once more to review what the year was like for me. thanks to diane for reminding me of this 'quiz'


2009 Year-End Report

What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
write a research paper

Did you keep your New Years’ Resolutions, and will you make more for 2010?
i don't make new year's resolutions. but i made one this year, so let's see how i do in 12 months time.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
yep, toni. and may be some that i might have forgotten because i was away.

Did anyone close to you die?
none. but i was really affected by the death of alexis tioseco.

What countries did you visit?
dami! france, germany, spain, switzerland, greece, italy, slovakia, hungary, austria. i think my masters was MA in Budget Tourism rather than development studies. heehee.

What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
quality and quantity time with jan. and savings.

What date/s from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
december 11. graduation! june 12. the day before my wedding anniversary. the hubby finally made it to netherlands, just in time for us to be together again a year after our wedding.

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
graduating with merit despite the fact that i did too much television, facebook and travel and hardly gave as much as i should with my studies.

What was your biggest failure?
not appealing for a better grade for my research paper when i knew i deserved a better one. i did feel a little better when my supervisor herself told me that i should have gotten higher.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
flu several times of the year and regular bouts of dysmenorrhea plus weird discomfort in my achilles heel.

What was the best thing you bought?
plane tickets to athens and boat tickets to santorini for jan and me

Whose behavior merited celebration?
jan. for being so patient with me being away

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
The perpetrators of the Maguindanao massacre. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo

Where did most of your money go?
travel

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
jan finally getting his schengen visa.

What song(s) will always remind you of 2009?
i gotta feeling by the black eyed peas. it will always remind me of the great vibes of the ISS community

Compared to this time last year, are you:

i. happier or sadder?
happier.

ii. thinner or fatter?
definitely fatter. i was so sedentary and i'm in my 30's. bad combination for someone who loves to eat like me. hahaha.

iii. richer or poorer?
definitely poorer! but still happy

What do you wish you’d done more?
focused on my research paper. seriously.

What do you wish you’d done less of?
TV and FB

How many one-night stands?
why is this an important question? and none, to answer.

What was your favorite TV program?
how i met your mother, glee, america's next top model, american idol, top model, coffee prince. shows that got in the way of proper studying.

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
the ampatuans

What was/were the best book/s you read?
I didn't get to read as much as I wanted to because of academics. But because of school, I finally got to read Ch. 1 and 2 of Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Hope to finish it someday. And definitely loved "The Graveyard Book."

What was your greatest musical discovery?
Queef and Dave! my classmates rock!

What did you want and get?
a trip to a greek island.

What was your favorite film of this year?
star trek. 500 days of summer.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
nothing. i turned 31!

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
a higher RP grade. ;p

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
european - coats, jackets and boots. me likey!

What kept you sane?
the pinoy mafia.

What political issue stirred you the most?
The Maguindanao massacre!

Who did you miss?
jan

Who was/were the best new person/s you met?
Peter and Anky Jansz. My dear dutch family

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
It's a small world after all.

What was the nicest thing someone told you about yourself.
everyone loves the pinoys.

The most touching experience you’ve had this year?
seeing the filipino unite for ondoy/pepeng and cory aquino's passing

What did you like most about yourself this year?
i had the guts to travel by myself. it's nothing new, but i did it a lot more this year.

What did you hate most about yourself this year?
not having the discipline to be focused in my studies.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
'the rest is still unwritten' from natasha bedingfield's unwritten. it is the ode to my RP

Was 2009 a good year for you?
very much

What was your favorite moment of the year?
riding the atv with jan around santorini island.

What was your least favorite moment of the year?
finding out about ondoy and not having any communication with jan during that time.

Where were you when 2009 began?
In Paris

Who were you with?
crevette and albert, our french-vietnamese hosts. rino, reg, bernice, alma, maricar, risa, dani, nick. and crevette's french guest.

Do you have a new year’s resolution for 2010?
to buy a filipino book or smart non-fiction book for every juvenile fiction book i buy. which should also translate to reading it.

What was your favorite month of 2009?
november, june-july

How many concerts did you see in 2009?
two

Did you drink a lot of alchohol in 2009?
not much. hardly.

Do a lot of drugs in 2009?
tried some marijuana but was unaffected by it. figured it's no use spending my money on something that does not do anything for me.

How much money did you spend in 2009?
too much

What was your proudest moment of 2009?
graduation day

What was your most embarrassing moment of 2009?
i probably blocked it out of my memory.

If you could go back in time to any moment of 2009 and change something, what would it be?
booking tickets for my trip with jan. i'd have found a way to sneak in rome somewhere.

What are your plans for 2010?
get a job. get an apartment. spend lots of time with jan. travel locally and hopefully one south east asian country.

How are you different now that the year has ended?
i'm now a master of the universe.

What are your wishes for the new year?
a job i will love and still pay well. a comfortable and accessible home/apartment jan and i can afford. good health and safety to all those i love. to keep communicating with my ISS friends. a clean and honest elections.

from the web,,,

from icanhascheezburger:


from postsecret:

LP 87: makapal (thick)

May salamangka ang Praha. Misteryoso. Tila may tinatagong lihim.
Sa kalagitnaan ng tag-lagas, kung kelan nagsisimulang maghari ang gabi sa araw... makapal na hamog ang bumabalot sa buong lugar. Hamog na lalong nagdadagdag sa kahiwagaan ng Praha.

There is magic in Prague. It is mysterious. Like it is keeping a secret.
In the middle of autumn, when night starts to reign over day... thick fog wraps itself around the whole place. Fog that adds to the mystery of Prague.

artwork

before i left the philippines, i had 15 artwork shirts. i heart artwork.

i think i still have all of them. some of them don't fit as perfectly as they used to. :P
that's all i wanted to say.

in compliance to my new year's resolution...

when i returned from studies, the first book i bought was artemis fowl: time paradox by eoin colfer since i collected the series. bad idea. my bro gave me the same title for a christmas gift. oh well.

then a few days ago, i bought the first book of the percy jackson series. i'm curious about the book especially after learning that instead of witches and vampires, this juvie fiction deals with the greek gods. ahhh... a mythology close to my heart. how can i resist!

but then, i did make that resolution that for every juvie fiction i buy, i should get one that is either adult (which meant non-fiction, i forgot to say) or filipino literature (comics don't count though because i will buy and read them anyway).

so to fulfill my new year's resolution, i bought...


i actually saw this last summer and found it quite interesting. being a sucker for philippine pop culture, i wanted to have a copy. i didn't get it because i had to buy another book which i thought i needed for my research paper.

i still find it a little expensive given my current unemployment, but i figured... might as well get it. it's a chance to see how discourse was applied on popular culture, given that my research topic is somewhat related to it. not to mention that i am a fan of zsa zsa zaturnnah and darna (the pre-angel locsin one). everything else in between will definitely tickle my jologs fancy. so i'm actually excited to read this one. not to mention that i had soledad reyes for a teacher and found her to be a brilliant woman. :)

the other book i bought was edgardo reyes' maynila sa kuko ng liwanag (two reyeses in a day. i impress myself. heehee!). jan mentioned the other day that he wrote somewhat like hemingway. having read only a couple, i'm not sure what that means. haha. but i bought the book anyway because jan said he was impressed by e. reyes' writing style. i think the filipino used is quite deep and the story is quite depressing, but i will force myself through it.

i don't know when i can start though... i borrowed a couple of HP books thinking i won't be buying any new books, but i can never resist a national bookstore when i am in the mall.

sigh. addictions, addictions!

resolution for 2010

i've never really been big on resolutions. back in high school, i tried it and failed it a lot. apparently, there is an explanation for it (thanks to rowie for this link). knowing it's pretty futile, i've given up making one and just started the year with the hope that things will be better than the last.

this 2010, i decided to make one: for every juvenile fiction/children's book i buy, i also purchase either one filipino literature book and/or an educational book.

i am so much into juvenile fiction that i actually hardly read books outside the genre. this was one of the things i revealed to my supervisor/convenor during our last lunch together. and she said, i have to change that habit. haha. i'm not one to change skins quickly, nor do i want to let go of something i dearly enjoy but i do believe that i should expand my horizons more. studying in the ISS made me realize that real world issues are as exciting as fantasy, that informational stuff can be great literature.

at the same time, last year's fiasco about carlo j. caparas being nominated as national artist got me really riled up. yet, he did have a point when he said that how many people have really read the works of rio alma or f. sionil jose? i, unfortunately, am not one of them. while he has been allowed to receive the award, i thought it important to continue to advocate against him by reading the works of those who oppose him. that will be statement. and that will be my support for the local arts. i want to have legitimacy to promote arts and culture which represent the genius of our country and not the capitalist side of it.

so while the article above somewhow says that resolutions are physiologically hard to keep, i'd like to challenge myself this year. reading is always fun. purchasing local books not only contributes to the local economy but will encourage more and more filipino writers to blossom in their craft. and reading more mature books can help me have confidence dealing with people my age and older.

Q

i don't remember when the last time i saw my jvp partner, Q. my memories dictate my birthday in 2003 but i'm not entirely certain. though i am sure we ate corned beef sinigang in sentro-greenbelt 3.

when i found out that he would be going home for the holidays, i hoped that we would have the chance to meet. but knowing how busy and popular he is, i was open to the possibilities of just a phone conversation. luckily, he sent me a message if i had some time to meet up with him in greenbelt. but of course i did!

it was great seeing him again. he looked as cute and scruffy as ever. but then i'm as cute and scruffy as ever too. we both gained weight. we both hit our thirties. thinga change. things stay the same. i was just so glad to find out that we still adore each other. and that we both as cheap as we were 11 years ago. ;p we just had a tour of greenbelt 5, amused at how posh the place is in a third world country. i can finally discuss with him the people of the world because i've finally had my chance to observe.

our time together was too little to really get in depth with how we are, but we were able to do that. but more than that, i was just glad to finally see him after a long time and to know that we still share that special friendship we've always had. and yes, we still both miss our dear mindoro terribly.

2009 in review: travel

2009 spent mostly with my ISS family has been quite amazing.

it was opening the eyes and mind, widening horizons and expanding visions. it was about my personal globalization. whereas, prior to ISS, my world was limited to my beloved philippines, my 15 months in the ISS has expanded it to at least 52.

it has taught me to understand and accept what is different from what i have come to believe in my lifetime. yet it also taught me to strengthen what i truly believe and value without having to compromise my ability to be in solidarity with those who are unlike me. this, i can say, is truly one of the best things i have learned for the year. but there is so much more. extracting lessons from 365 days would be quite a task when what one day can already be very educational.

2009 was also about living a dream. back in my youth, i remember reading about europe. and every time i saw the pictures or read something about it, i wished that i could see it for myself. 2009 was about that.

i do not know if the miles i covered for 2009 would ever happen again so i know a blessing when i see one. allow me this moment to relish the journeys i took, not to brag but to rejoice knowing that dreams come true.

many of the pinoy ISS students greeted the new year in paris through the generous hospitality of crevette. wine, cheese, sausage, balloons and friendship are definitely wonderful things to have at the beginning of the year.

february. maricar, marwell and i hied off to maastricht to celebrate the carnavale celebrated every palm sunday as preparation for the solemnity of lent. it was a 'holy' day indeed. ;p

march was a date with risa in beautiful barcelona. casa battlo, sagrada familia, parc guell... gaudi architectural pieces that made me a fan! (i also had a study trip to geneva... not as exciting as barcelona, definitely)

april was time for tulips. i was able to visit keukonhof twice. within three weeks, the flowers a-bloom were different from each other. being in the midst of a sea of colorful flowers will not fail to lift your spirits. what's more, they make good photos! ;p


may. it was my first trip to by myself with out the pinoys. nadya of sri lanka and sanjukta of india were my companions for this trip. we had a marvelous time with the red tours who had young, vibrant guides (and quite cute) to take us around berlin. definitely one of my favorite cities with its rich history.

june finally brought some good news. jan finally got his visa after being rejected once. most of the month was spent working on papers and exams. but there were study breaks which gave me the chance to bring jan around netherlands. it was the perfect time because it was summer and we can bike for as long as we like. and who would have thought we would spend our first anniversary abroad?!


july. after we have fulfilled all our requirements, off we went to greece and paris. i remember watching 'the sisterhood of the traveling pants' with jan. and i told him to take me to greece. it was such a blessing to have that declaration fulfilled sooner that i expected. though it was me who did take him there. :p

august. i was able to go home for a while for research. i was looking forward to celebrate my birthday only to be met with the news that our dear president cory aquino passed away. yet, while it was a great loss, i feel somehow that people may have regained a little something from that event.


september. i think i spent most of my time in the netherlands trying to cram for my first draft and RP presentation.

october. what i missed for that month in travel, i made up by being in four different countries in one month. austria (vienna). germany (munich). hungary (budapest). slovakia (bratislava). quite a brave but dumb thing to do, a month before our RP deadline.

oktoberfest was definitely the highlight of october having celebrated the occasion with an international contingent of 9 countries!

november. one of the motivations to keep on writing the RP even after wanting to give up is morocco. it was another international contingency with 5 countries represented. we finally got out of europe without needing a visa. the experience was totally different and arguably more exciting. definitely one of the most memorable trips ever! especially since i finally got to see and ride a camel.

december. last trip using my scholarship money is rome. it's one of the top of my list of places to see before i die, thus i had to go while i had the visa, the funds and the chance. michaelangelo just happened to be my favaorite ninja turtle, so all the more i should go and visit. heehee. ncient rome. medieval rome. catholic rome. every place we visited in rome was just spectacular and breath taking. a must-visit!

and of course, december meant graduation! i am a master of the universe now. wheeee. here's hoping it will convert to a job soon. ;p


i can not deny how much of a blessing 2009 was for me (though if jan and i were together physically, it would have been perfect!). it would be hard to replicate what the sugar and spice that happened to me last year. though i pray that happens again sooner than later.

here's hoping that 2010 brings more journeys and adventures. :)