The Petronas Towers of KL

The Petronas Towers is the world's tallest twin towers. It is located at the heart of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Petronas Towers is the corporate headquarters of the government-owned Petronas oil company. It is Malaysia's grand national landmark. And indeed it is very grand, especially at night when it is illuminated brightly with beautiful white lights. There is an extraordinary glow that makes it tantalizing. If you remember the movie, Entrapment, starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Sean Connery, then you'll remember that the Petronas Towers was featured in the climax of this movie.

Connecting the two towers is the Skybridge, located at the 41st and 42nd floor. The 41st floor is used for visitors while the 42nd is used by the tenants of the towers. Access to the Skybridge is free, but you just have to line up and get tickets for a certain alloted time. There is a limit of visitors per day so usually by mid day, all tickets for the day have been given out. And the earlier you go there, the earlier time slot you get. Like for us, we got our tickets at around 10am and we were already on the 5:30pm slot.

There's a nice exihibit there though, that you could see while you wait. It features facts about the Petronas Towers, a documentary of how the Towers were built, its history. Then there are also telescopes/cameras that's like The Eye of Auckland's Skytower. However, the image resolution was not that good and zooming is not as zoomed in as that of the Auckland Skytower, so the view didn't really seem like real time. But the Petronas have this cool device that's simply entertaining, a device that measures your height and calculates how many times the Towers are compared to your height. You can also select other skyscrapers like the Empire State building and Sears tower to be compared to your height. Then there's also a miniature model there that is used to demonstrate what would happen in case a lightning hits the towers. A simulation is shown with electric currents hitting the miniature towers.

Upon the free tour of the Skybridge, there is first a short 3D film showing about the background and history of the Petronas towers. Then the group will be led by a guide to the 41st floor and will be given a few minutes (around 10 minutes) to look around there and take some pictures. I am impressed that this tour is free, and inspite of that, everything is well-maintained and are of quality, including the good the service of the personnel.

Another great thing about the Petronas Towers is that it has Suria KLCC at its foot. Suria KLCC is one of the biggest malls in Kuala Lumpur. Something I don't recommend though is to go to the Twin Towers on special ocassions where there would be many crowds of people. We did that for New Year's eve of 2006 and we just got mobbed by crowd and after getting out of the crowd, my friends lost their wallet and cellphone. So just be cautious. It's only in Singapore that you can wave your phone and wallet in the streets without worrying that someone would snatch them right from your hands.

~~~~~

Photocredits to me :)

So What

I start to just exist and cease living

I sigh instead of breathe...

I start to murmur instead of speak

I walk and not stroll

I look but I do not see

I hear sounds but not music

Everything becomes senseless

Suddenly I am going around in circles

Where is that kindred spirit?

Has it gone adrift?

Somebody take my hand please

I am drowning, help me...

The Phantom that will haunt me forever

The greatest consolation (and the highlight of this month) for me from all the stress I have been having is watching Andrew Lloyd Webber's broadway musical, The Phantom of the Opera at the Singapore Esplanade Theatre. Me and my friends have long been waiting for this day to arrive. We have bought our tickets five months in advance.

My fascination with The Phantom of the Opera started in High School. I had some classmates who were so into broadway musicals and particularly, my classmate, Jimmy, was a fanatic and as I was his pseudo slave during Grade 7(1st yr highschool), I had no choice but hear him sing this musical's songs over and over again (peace, Jimmy!).I did not know the story actually, I have not read the novel it was based from (Le Fantôme de l’Opéra , a French novel by Gaston Leroux) but I fell in love with its music and I remember I tried playing two of the songs on the piano while I sing (oh yeah, step back Alicia Keys, hehehe). So"Music of the Night" and "All I Ask of You" have become my favorites as they were the songs from the musical I got familiar with. In Grade 9 (3rd year high school), each class was to perform an excerpt of a broadway musical. Our class performed (the very sad) Les Miserables, but I was much in awe to the section who performed The Phantom of the Opera, I became more fascinated with this musical as I got to know the synopsis of the story. They did the scene at the boat where the Phantom was taking Christine to his underground hideaway.

A few months ago, I saw a DVD of The Phantom of the Opera movie at the gym I go to so I rented it out, watched it and that was it! After seeing the whole story and hearing all the songs, I have declared to myself that I have indeed fallen in love with this musical. It has this magical feeling of elegance and beauty that lingers on. I rented out the same DVD at the same gym at another time, I was just hooked. Thanks also to Chuvanescense for giving me his VCD copy, I can now watch the movie over and over again. I just had a little reservation though, because knowing that I will be watching the broadway play soon, I was not sure if watching the movie would do me good since I would now have a point of comparison. We know that movies are different from plays in that movies can have take twos, threes or more to make the movie perfect plus the locations can be chosen and special effects of computer graphics can be utilized, but in live plays they are only allowed take ones, notwithstanding the challenge of changing backdrops and props along the different scenes.

So yes, I did have expectations before watching the play because I have seen the movie and I was wondering if the play would have the same magical feeling that the movie could give since I was not sure how the play would create the effects that was done in the movie. After watching the play though, I was gladly surprised that not only did it meet my expectations, it exceeded it! The set and props of the play was perfect! It was amazing how they did the effects almost the same as in the movie. I have to give special mention to the scene in this play where the Phantom takes Christine on a boat going to his hideaway, as it was truly incredible, and way better than in the movie!

I only have praises for Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera broadway musical. Indeed, it's a musical so enchanting that its music you will keep on singing by heart.

~o~

Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera is playing at the Singapore Esplanade until May 13th. Tickets are still available at Sistic.

Photocredits: The Phantom of the Opera Official Show site and Sistic website.

15 hours of zzz and 300 oohlalas

The weekend that has passed was....hmm...I can't find the words to describe it...

Perhaps I have been so deprived from a cool and comfy sleep for the last week because of my defective aircon that last Saturday after it was temporarily fixed by the aircon contractor (they just topped up gas again but they said it will eventually stop cooling again since apparently the gas is leaking and the pipes need to be replaced), that at around 6pm I felt my eyes were so heavy and I fell asleep on my bed. I woke up at 9am the following morning and that makes a 15 hour record breaking sleep! And too much sleep is not good, especially when life has been getting stressful, as it starts unthinkable thoughts to play in your mind, thoughts like becoming a 40 year old virgin, quitting your job and becoming a bum, or disappear from the mainstream and live as a hermit.

But good thing that before getting eaten by the sadness monster, I was able to push myself to do my Sunday routine -- go to the gym and then go to mass. Sunday night was supposed to be also my tennis night but my teacher was not available so tennis was cancelled. That left me with a lot of time for the evening so I decided I'd go watch a movie. There have been a lot of good movies lately and most of my friends have watched at least one of them, so I thought I should at least try to watch one. I decided to watch the movie 300 at the mall a few blocks away from our condo. Alone and armed with popcorn and cola, I sat there and watched in awe at 300 oh so wow abs and legs of men. The movie was great, not because of the sexy men (well ok, fine, it counts as well) but the movie in general, good cinematography, graphics, and storyline. Plus, I have to give credit to the abs and bodies really, because contrary to what most think that those abs and sexy bodies were part of the movie special effects, those are actually the actors' real 6-pack abdomen and muscular torso and legs. I've watched the interview in TV of the lead actor and they really worked out for months to prepare for that movie.

Anyways, I'm just glad that I made a good decision to watch a movie, even by myself. It was the first time I watched a movie in a cinema by myself here in Singapore. Well actually, it's just my second time to watch a movie by myself in a cinema, my first time was waaay back in highschool and I needed to kill a couple of hours to wait for my studio pictures to get developed (I know, I know, that was so pathetic, hehe). It's a good quality time for myself, to just relax and forget about the hussle bussle of the real world. Yup, I think I'd do this again, moreso, more often. ;)

~0~

Photocredit: Image from warner bros shop official site

F for 4th Friday, frustration, fondue and friends

It's the fourth friday of the month and it means that it's been four weeks that I have been getting frustated at work. The everyday waking up to go to work starts to get to be a heavy thing to do. The weather is becoming hotter everyday and what perfect timing could be for the aircon in my bedroom to stop cooling again and needs to be repaired. Something inside me would like to scream and run amok. I'm just so stressed out.
Omar said he observed my self esteem is low lately...then later on in the afternoon he invited me to meet him and buddy Wit for dinner and drinks at DXO. Unexpectedly though, he got a little held at work so Wit and I started dinner without him at a Japanese restaurant, Haru at One Fullerton. Had he made it in time when the ika sashimi was served, I'm sure he would've taken a picture of it's presentation and would be featured in his foodblog. But nevertheless, here's the fondue we ate at Max Brenner in Esplanade mall, after we had that Japanese dinner. We were so full with all the food. But wait there's more, we went to DXO bar for some drinks and what do you know, it was ladies night so I got in for free plus free flowing drinks! The band playing was a Filipino band and they were good. There were not much people though, perhaps because it was just 10:30pm and it was early for a clubbing night. I was looking forward to the free flowing drink for the ladies so that atleast I could get a little tipsy but after I had 2 glasses, I concluded it would take me atleast 10 glasses of those drinks before I could attain my goal. You see, my first glass was a shot of vodka and lime juice, diluted in gallons of water (sorry, im exaggerating) and the second glass was a shot of vodka and ribena soda, diluted in liters of water (ok, im still exaggerating). So, I took the liberty to snatch Omar's half full glass of tequila plus sprite drink from the "real bar" and tadah, it served its purpose. ;-)
We went home after staying half an hour at DXO. It was a fun night, simple but I really enjoyed it because of my dear, dear friend who's never been at DXO before and I think, just wanted to lift my spirits up because he knew that I've been wanting to go to DXO because I told him before that I hear the band playing really good whenever I eat at Makansutra (the food centre beside DXO). How can you not help but be cheered up by having such a thoughtful friend?
Thanks Omar, that was really sweet (na-touch ako ha). :)

Tell me this is not how journalism is here

I read in the newspaper today about a restaurant supervisor being stabbed by one of his kitchen staff and he died right there in the restaurant. The article wrote how the family and colleagues of the victim were surprised that the victim could be in a heated argument with the staff that would lead to a violent act as the victim was a diplomatic person. At the end of the article, it writes:

"The restaurant is closed today in respect to Mr..., according to Mrs.., the restaurant manager."

Then right after that the next paragraph reads:

"The restaurant has other branches located in...."

Now I don't know if it's because I didn't have enough sleep last night, or that I am stressed out at work that I am easily irritated but I am in quite a disbelief at how this article was written. I mean, can somebody tell me what is the significance of that second paragraph!?! Is it just me or is it really that insensitive to do indirect advertising?

March is fastly marching by

After that fabulous NZ experience, I am back to the real world, back to my routine, back to facing the sad monitor of my computer at work. I do expect that March would be quite a challenge for me because of work -- I have a 1,001 tasks that I need to accomplish and I would be doing it alone. And there are no travels for me this month, so I will not be going anywhere outside the 4 corners of this island of shopping centres and malls.

The first 11 days of this month seemed like it have zoomed fast though and I don't know if I'd be happy because this dreaded month will be almost over or if I'd be scared because quarter end is always is a critical period at work for me and I have to be prepared to face it alone.

Let's see what this month given has me so far:

the hoorays:

• After three weeks of not being able to go to church and hear mass because of my travels, I have finally spent quality time with Him again these past two Sundays. It was a heartwarming, teary-eyed reunion.
• I have accomplished a big initiative I have been leading at work: finally, our database is 3 bundles upgraded and less bugged, this would be my first bundle application in my almost 5 years in the InfoTech world. Ahhh, my baby, my bundle of joy! ahehehe.
• Had a fun time when we celebrated Aoisoba's sweet 16 + 12 birthday with literally a round of different handcrafted beers of Brewerkz in our table (really enjoyed that, chilis!)
• Was able to recharge a little and finally able to do some writing after spending some quality alone time at my spot, my sanctuary (besides church) yesterday.

the boos:

• My second semester of French class has started and I have not been studying diligently, unlike the previous
  semester where I would do extra reading.
• On our Chinese new year dinner at the first day of this month, I was chatting with my colleagues that I shared the dinner table with, and this French guy colleague called me a pervert after I told them I lined up for almost an hour in Disneyland Paris just to have a picture with Mickey Mouse. I am considering his limited English for having used that adjective. But then he also crashed the tiny hope left in my heart when he asked me the qualities I am looking for in a man and when I told him a man who is loyal, hardworking and who loves life, he said I must be looking for a priest (reminded me of Mon Homme Idéal), otherwise the man is inexistent. Ouch!
• The two consecutive strong tremors from the two earthquakes in Indonesia last March 6th left me so nauseated at work that I had to put on some scented balm to keep me in my senses. Our office is on the 26th floor and I don't know why it seemed like it was only me and the second big boss who felt the tremors and reacted upon realizing those were tremors and not just a sumo wrestler running around in the office.
• I have been so stressed at work for pushing myself to be supergirl that last Friday I just realized that I have been coding directly in our Production database (and yes I have clicked the save button already!). If you are in the programming world, this would be like one of the greatest mortal sins you could ever commit. I felt like my blood was drained from head to toe when I saw the database name I was working on.
• I got okrayed* twice by pseudo BF Omar when we met for dinner one after-office night: 1) He said I looked like I was wearing pambahay** clothes (I was wearing slacks and blouse) and 2) He was greatly disturbed upon hearing me speak in Singlish in talking to the taxi driver that he had to send me an sms that night and called me at work the following morning to remind me to take care of my English.
• I cancelled my tennis tonight because I ate a lot of different food which led to an attempted stomach revolution and a successful lazybug infection.

OK, now let's see the score: 6 is to 4, in favor of the boos! oh noooooooooooo..

-----------

*Okrayed - a term in Tagalog slang for giving negative criticism

**Pambahay - a Tagalog adjective pertaining for the house

Hamilton Gardens and the one-legged duck

Around 2 hours drive from Auckland going down to the South is the city of Hamilton where they have the Hamilton Gardens, a 58 hectare area of a variety of different gardens. The gardens are grouped into 4 garden collections. It is owned and is well-maintained by the Hamilton City Council and admission is free (kudos to the Hamilton City Council! ;)

Missy's sisters, Ate Jojo and Ate Joan, left us there to explore the whole afternoon and would come back for us by late afternoon. So Missy, Beth and I toured the first two garden collections and on the way to the 3rd collection where there was a Rose garden, we decided to get some coffee and then rest on an open field and as the grass was too inviting, we took a nap and by the time we were woken up by the rehearsing country band for a concert that night, Ate Jojo, Ate Joan and John (Ate Jojo's bf who resides in Hamilton) still found us on the grass slouching and we could only grin when Ate Jojo asked how was the Rose garden.

We had a picnic of a bucket of KFC chicken (by the way, there's also no gravy sauce in KFCs in NZ like in Singapore where there is no gravy but chili sauce...I wonder now if is it only in the Philippines that there is an overflowing supply of gravy in KFCs?) with a number of ducks that seemed to want to join us and the other picnickers. This is how we discovered the one-legged duck. We thought the duck was just hiding his other foot under its feathers (to amuse us and get the food? hehe) but after more observation, we saw that it just really had one leg. But the amazing thing is the one-legged duck looked healthy and seemed like it doesn't have difficulty with having one leg as it just did a little duck hop instead of duck walk. It looked cute but at the same time it made you feel pityful, as obviously this one-legged duck was singled out by the other normal ducks. So we gave the special treatment to the one-legged duck, it was only to it that we shared our food (the bread we had and not the chicken, ok? :-P we didn't think a duck would like to eat its relative, chicken). Funny how even animals behave like human beings on singling somebody out because of its being different from the usual. I admire this one-legged duck for despite its abnormality, it has managed to survive healthyly and was moving with the other normal ducks. This makes me wonder, how people who are called "abnormal" could actually live normally and are happy while some people who are born "normal" feel incomplete. But the again, is the one-legged duck really happy?

The City of Sails

That is Auckland, New Zealand.

It is the most dense place of New Zealand, having more than 25% of the population of the country residing there. It is very understandable though, because indeed this city has so much to offer. It has a charm that attracts you and makes you want to stay...

What makes it different from all the other cities I've been to is that amidst it being a busy and dense (but not crowded) area, you can have your space and relax. Perhaps because it is a city that blends the beauty of urbanity and rurality. It has the usual huffs of a city -- the cars and traffic jams, the tall buildings, the people walking along the streets, the bars, the red light district, the lights, the urban ambiance but at the same time the sky is clear, the air is clean and fresh, there are beautiful parks and amazing harbours that simply make one tiring busy day conclude with a big smile on your lips for sure. They have the perfect summer weather: sunny but cool. It is very conducive to having nice strolls and naps in the parks, something I found hard to do in the summer of Singapore (too hot), or the summer of Ireland (too cold), or the summer of Paris (too unsafe). It's no wonder I felt at home in Auckland, it was like I am so familiar to the place that I enjoyed going around the city by myself during the day, lie down on the grass in parks, and end in Starbucks to wait for Missy and Beth after office hours. What happens after we meet up is even a whole new wonderful and exciting adventure around the city, so exciting that time can be forgotten and you realize the car got locked in the parking lot! :)

There are many things to see and do in Auckland but aside from the natural landmarks like the harbours and volcanoes (oh yes, Auckland is surrounded by 50 volcanic fields!) there's two man-made landmarks that you shouldn't fail to go to:

Skytower - this is like the Eiffel Tower is to Paris and the Empire State building is to New York. It is the tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere. Though it does cost a bit much to go inside it (23NZD), I think it's worth it because you can get to see a good view of Auckland from the observatory above. Plus, the interesting thing is, the Skytower has this device called "The Eye" where you can zoom in to areas around Auckland in real time and you can get a clear visibility of the place, too clear that I actually had an ingenious (i think) idea: that it is a perfect spot for proposing marriage -- you could for example, ask someone to hold up a "will you marry me?" placard in the garden of Albert Park, and then you go into the tower with your girlfriend and you innocently ask her to zoom in to Albert Park and voila! Sweet as! :)

Auckland Museum - is one of the best museums I've been to. As you know, I am not really into museums so it took me quite some effort to convince myself to go inside Auckland museum. It is quite a big museum, all 4 levels of it but amazingly, I enjoyed going around it because the exhibits are really interesting and interactive. Plus, the museum staff are really friendly and accomodating.

Though I wanted to try to take the public transport to go around the city and be non-touristy, I decided to take the Explorer bus anyway, a hop-on-hop-off shuttle service that tours you around the city as I could not afford to do a lot of experimenting since I didn't have the luxury of time (besides, I have a high tendency to get lost whenever I do my "experiments") . And I am glad I took it because it was really worth it for 30NZD -- you get to have a recorded commentary which is very informational and you could chose where to spend your time among of the 14 attractions it goes around to.

(Sigh) Ahhhhh...the awe of Auckland...

Backpacking in the Northland

On February 16th, I went straight from work to Changi airport to catch my flight going down under (way more down under than Australia, dude :). Ten hours later, I was looking out from the window beside my seat and I was already amazed at how New Zealand looked from a bird's eye view.

New Zealand is divided into two major islands, the North island and South island. Our plan was to take the up-to-the-North-then-down-by-the-West route starting from Auckland.


Day 1: Kia ora!* The perfect way of getting to know New Zealand (see the red arrow in the map)

From Auckland airport, we went to missy G-clef's house and met up with Beth. Two hours later we were on the bus going to the Bay of Islands. Four hours later we checked in to Peppertree lodge. We were given room 13 (hmm..I wondered if that was a good sign or bad sign, hehehe.) Since it was almost evening we looked for something to spend the night with and decided to watch the cultural show at 7pm in Waitangi. It was a great start of my New Zealand experience, as the cultural show oriented me with the history of New Zealand. Now I know that the first settlers of New Zealand were polynesians, called Maoris, and then the British came in the 1800s. So today the New Zealander people, or Kiwis as they refer to themselves, are composed of the native Maori, the polynesians, and the British Kiwis. We ended the night with our stomachs full from missy G-clef's very delicious cornedbeef pasta (yum yum!)

Day 2: The Dune Rider experience (see the green arrow in the map)

This day we were to have the Dune Rider day trip tour of the Northland. What we knew was that we will be picked up by 7:30am so we woke up at a few minutes before 7am, only to find out that the tour guide was already there at 7am and was looking for us! So we just grabbed our things, and just went up the truck without having been able to actually freshen up for the morning. I had no idea what this tour was, missy G-clef didn't give me the details so I had no expectations and oh boy, little did I know that I was to be in one of the greatest tours of my life. We were with around 20 other people, composed of Germans, Brits, Australians and Spanish. We were the only Asians in our group. The tour guide/driver introduced himself as Spike. While he drove, he did the narrating as well, how cool is that!
From the Bay of Islands, we went up further to the North. First stop after having breakfast at a local restaurant, was at Manginangina Kauri Walk, a reserve of Kauri trees. Kauri trees are one of the biggest trees in the world. They are now protected trees in New Zealand because they are endangered. After a brief walk around the forest, we headed on and drove a few hours going up to Cape Reinga, the northest tip of the North island where the Tasman Sea and Northern Pacific Ocean meets. It is a sacred place for the Maoris, because they believe that this was where the spirits of departed Maoris go. Indeed it was a very serene and magnificent place. The sights are just simply tantalizing. Next we went down at a nearby beach where we had a break and were given the time to eat our lunch and have a quick swim in the beach for those who wanted to. Then we headed further on to our next cool stop (see the upcoming irony here..) -- sand surfing! Oh yes, I couldn't believe that New Zealand had sand dunes and I was so thrilled to do my first sandboard surfing. Walking up to the top carrying your surf board was a struggle for me, but it was all worth it when you slide down the slope head on. I managed to stay on the board half way thru the ride but half way thru the end I went tumbling down like a rolling ball, ahehehe. It was a fabulous experience! Then after sand surfing, we drove going down by a long stretch of beach called 90 mile beach (although in realityit is just 64 miles long). We stopped briefly to get some seashells which we ate instantly and surprisingly, for a raw state, it tasted really, really good! (better than oyster I tell you!) The 90 mile beach is known also for having wild horses in the land across it, although we were not lucky enough that day to have a glipmse of them. Then we went on and drove down and stopped at a souvenir shop then at a restaurant beside a harbour and we ate of course, yummy fish and chips (fries) and made a last quick stop in front of one orange farm in Kerikeri (place in NZ known for having lots of orchards of citrus fruits) for those who wanted to buy some fruits. Finally, at around 7pm we were back in our lodge. We spent the rest of the night at an Irish bar across Peppertree lodge with Elena, an Italian backpacker that we shared our room with. What a fantastic day! Sweet as! ;o)

Day 3: The start of a marvelous road trip and camping (see the pink arrow in the map)

We started the morning by having a hearty breakfast - one loaf of toasted sliced bread, one pack of bacon and 6 eggs. Yes, a big breakfast could be an understatement. The two German guys on the next table told us they were so surprised to see the food at our table and was wondering how could 3 girls could eat all of it while two big guys like them were just eating bread and jam. (well, had they known about Filipinos' love for eating that should've explain it, hehehe). It was our last day in Peppertree lodge. We rented a car and missy would be driving us from the Bay of Islands going to the West and down. We stopped first at the historical place of Waitangi again to go around the place. Then we drove down down down to Opononi and Omapere where we had a spectacular view of the Hokianga Harbour. We camped out with our tent at a camping area across the beach in Opononi. It was another whole new experience for me. Our plan was to have some drinks on the beach side while watching the sunset but because we have forgotten to bring a flashlight and it took us a while to cook our dinner, this didn't happen. The sun seemed to have set so fast but it was ok, we still had a fun fun night eating another hearty dinner because besides for our fried chicken, we also cooked and ate some fresh mussels which were given to us by two camper Hungarian guys who went fishing that afternoon.

Day 4: The unexpected highlight of the road trip (see the purple arrow in the map)

Before mid day, we got ready to start the long road trip going back to Auckland. A few meters from the camp site there was a sign with an arrow pointing to the right of the road which says, "scenic view". We decided to check it out and we were amazed at what we've discovered -- indeed a marvelous view of the Hokianga Harbour. We went down to the beach (together with 2 senior American couples we met there) and was just hypnotized at the beautyof waves splashing on the rocks in front of us. And so we stayed at the place longer than we expected. After realizing we had enough basking in the sun, admiring the beauty of the New Zealand Northland, we headed on to continue our road trip. After around an hour's drive down, we stopped at Waipoua Forest where Tane Mahuta was located. Tane Mahuta is the oldest and largest existing Kauri tree in the world, dating to about 2,000 years old and measuring a girth of 13.77 m (45.2 feet) and a trunk height of 17.68 m (58.0 feet). Such a wonder how this tree could live so long, withstanding all the storms and earthquakes for centuries. After consuming our packed lunch and an icecream for dessert, we continued our journey. After an hour or two's drive Missy G-clef said she wanted to have a quick stop at a waterfalls or any body of water so we tried to look for a waterfalls along the way. We didn't find any waterfalls but we did find a sign that says Lake Kai-iwi if we turn right. So we did, and followed the long road leading to this lake. When we got there we saw a couple just going up from the lake. They said they had a swim and told us the water was perfect for swimming. So we went down to the lake and found ourselves to be the only ones there. We went in the water, and indeed it was perfect to take a dip, too perfect that we decided to do the unimaginable -- skinny dip!!!! Oh yes, we did it in broad daylight! We took off all our clothes while inside the water and just enjoyed the place like it was ours. A first time for all of us and Missy, Beth and me all agree that it was the highlight of our road trip. The perfect highlight to conclude our adventure. The travel from Lake Kai-iwi to Auckland would take around 4 more hours so halfway through, we stopped at Dargaville to have a quick coffee -- on the roadside beside the river, literally. We sat on the ledge that divided the road from the river, drinking our coffee and eating hotdog in waffle. Maybe people driving by probably wondered if we were suicidal...hmm, not really because the brown water from the big river was not that inviting, hehehe. So finally, we got back in Auckland in the evening. I had my first view of Auckland skyline at night, with all the tall buildings and the Skytower shining brightly in red. We concluded the night with a fish and chips dinner along Mission Bay. Ah yes, now I'm about to see the City of Sails....

*Kia Ora is the Maori greeting for hello or good day.

Hinagdanan cave in Bohol

I have to write this entry to mention another must see in Bohol -- the caves. We only managed to go to one cave in Panglao, the Hinagdanan (meaning "laddered") cave but I read that Bohol actually has many caves giving it a nickname of "Cave Country".

Hinagdanan cave is an underground cave and is indeed beautiful. Inside it is a pool of water where you could swim. We didn't see it in its full glory, though, because we went there at almost sunset. The best time to see it is perhaps early afternoon, or as long as the sun is shining high because it is quite dark without the sun, it is just quite warm inside, since the entrance is a small hole on the ground and then you go down inside the cave.

I really hope to go back to Bohol someday and see the other caves and more things of interest. Anyone willing to let me tag along when you go to Bohol in the future? :D

Wide awake under the sun in Bohol

I surprised my family when I came home on Friday and announced I'm going with them to Bohol. I am so glad I decided to go because as expected it was sooo fun with us cousins goofing around and just laughing our hearts out (although it would have been the best if all of us cousins were complete) and I was able to be with Daddy M and Mommy B for even a few days. We owe a lot to our "adopted cousin", Tita T, for organizing everything for us. ;)

I am so proud of my beloved country, the Philippines for it's beautiful places like Bohol. This beautiful place is even supplemented by its beautiful native people, the Boholonians.

Bohol is most famous for the Chocolate hills. I was really awed by seeing the chocolate hills for the first time. They indeed look like how they are in my gradeschool history textbooks. The Chocolate hills are a range of more than a thousand hills. They are called as such because of their brown color brought about by the dried up cogon grass that grows on them during the dry season (they are actually green in the rainy season so perhaps the name could vary to the Chocolate-Mint Hills at this time? hehehe).

Bohol is also famous for the Tarsiers. These are the smallest primates (i.e. monkey) in the world! See how small it is as it sits on my shoulder? They are cute but I find them actually a bit scary because of their big eyes, hehe.

Another thing that you should not miss if you're in Bohol is to cruise the Loboc River. This river has a grand ambiance, I find it fascinating, with its clean, green waters, and the coconut trees that grows on both sides of it. This river extends to the sea but on the other end, the river ends with waterfalls. Loboc river is also a source ofspring water. There are springs on its sides but the water is not hot since there are no volcanoes around. This river is also popular for fireflies watching at night, which we did not see since we cruised the river in the afternoon but I was happy enough to learn that there are still fireflies existing because I used to see them like a usual thing when I was a child but I noticed as I grew up they seemed to have disappeared so for the younger generation, like my brother who's 7 years younger than I am, seeing a firefly for him would perhaps be extraordinary.

The beaches in Bohol are also superb. And I heard that the people of Bohol would like to keep their beaches to be as natural as they are so the government does not allow the construction of commercial buildings/structures near the beaches, land owners of beach side lands are required to turn their place to a resort only. I think this isgood because it makes the Bohol beaches a tranquil and serene place where you can enjoy and relax.

Although I did not get the tan I was hoping to get even if I had myself barbecued under the sun (either my sun block was too effective or the morning sun of Bohol is too mild), I got all the warmth I needed -- from my family. :)

~~~~o~~~~

Going to Bohol from Singapore in a not so big budget:

Option 1 - Take Cebu Pacific Air going to Manila and then take a connecting flight to Tagbilaran

Option 2 - Take Cebu Pacific Air going to Cebu and ride a ferry (2 hours) going to Tagbilaran

You may also take Option 1 route via Philippine Airlines if you feel like spending twice as much. :)

For more information on Bohol visit their website: http://www.bohol.ph/

Outgrowing my pink

One of the things I enjoy about having a routine is that I am amused with how my routine can sync with other people's routines especially my neighbors' and it makes it like a group dance, everything is in harmony and I have different dance partners depending on which routine I choose for that day. For example, if I wake up early and decide that I want to be in the office before 9am I have a group of people I expect to be waiting with me at the bus stop and another group if I chose to go to work a bit later.

It's been around a couple of months that I have been taking the go-to-work-a-bit-later routine and today I chose to take my go-to-work-early routine. I chanced upon my neighbor and her cute toddler daughter in our condo's elevator. There was one time before, that when we saw each other I was wearing my pink outfit -- pink pants, striped pink and black blouse, and pink shoulder bag; and I think the mom liked the whole ensemble that she couldn't help but tell me it's nice that I was all pink. So today, as like déjà vu, I was wearing my pink outfit again, but in a more subtle version -- same pink pants, floral blouse with beige base, beige hand bag, and pink stud earrings. She first noticed my new short hair though and afterwhich the "pink compliment": she said she liked my whole outfit, she said it's so pink. I told her I have not outgrown my pink. She said I shouldn't have to because "that color is you", as per her words. That made me smile, as a simple conversation like that can be really perceptive. Pink color is usually associated with little girls' clothes and things and usually as girls become ladies their color preference also change to the "mature colors". This made me ponder: why do we need to give up our pink when it suits us fine indeed? Why do we need to give up the child within us when this child makes us see life in an innocent and magical way?

I believe we all each have our own pink, and the question I leave to you is: have you outgrown yours?

One hot and steamy week

And it's over, thank God.

Last Saturday, me and my housemates had a date with the aircon contractor for our bedrooms' regular aircon cleaning and maintenance. I didn't have any problem with my aircon before that but after last Saturday's service I noticed that the air seemed to be not cold. I thought my sleepless nights were just because of my long hair, my pajamas and my thick blanket or maybe even just my imagination but after one week I knew it was the airconditioner who was making me have those oh so hot nights. And so today I had another date with the aircon contractor. It turned out my aircon compressor ran out of gas (leaked apparently). I was not happy of course, because aside from the contractor being late, I had to pay for the gas top up (which was almost double of the cleaning service fees!). But well, even if I was convinced before that, that the reason for my aircon's regression in performance had something to do with last week's service, I just had to shrug it off and accept that it was just coincidential. Acceptance is, anyways, the start of moving on, you just have to accept and give the benefit of the doubt and trust. In the end, I chose to be happy anyhow since all's well that ends well.

So to celebrate the end of my hot and steamy sleepless nights, I endulged myself in a relaxing bubble bath, thanks to: Kimage hairsalon, The Body Shop's Papaya Foam bath (now on 20% sale from usual S$19.90), the candles lit and Hayley Westenra's angelic voice in her Odyssey Album.

Sometimes, all you need to get consoled is that embrace from the warm, fragrant water and the tranquility you experience as you close your eyes and feel your body relax in it's most natural form of nakedness.

****
Photo credits:

~Candle in l'alcazar bar , Paris

~Wikipedia
~The Body Shop

10 things I think about this month

1. Get some sun

2. Review my French to prepare for the start of class on the 28th

3. Spend more time in the gym

4. Read my backlog books to read

5. Enjoy Kiwi Land

6. Consider that job in the US

7. Have ampalaya on the 14th

8. Buy a tumba-tumba and do cross-stitching (dapat gantsilyo pero para naman mas modern, haha)

9. Have a haircut (a very short one)

10. Stop blogging

It's the start of another month

If I look back on the month that has passed, I would say it felt like one year has passed. Indeed, the year 2007 has a lot in store for me and it has already started with overwhelming happenings that I never expected would happen. Amazing how things happen in one's walk of life, on some parts the road is smooth, on some the road is rocky. The funny thing is even if you thought you are walking on a smooth road, you can still trip along the way in surprise no matter how careful you are in your strides. And you wonder how did it happen that you can actually trip on your own feet and fall. Then you look up and realize that you bumped in another person walking too close beside you. You don't know what to think, as in the first place everyone knows that in walking the road of life we are each equipped with an invisible privacy bubble, and the trail you walk as far as you know, is a trail where nobody crosses each other's bubble. But then you just get up on your feet and decide to not think about it anymore because you have to continue your walk. Some things are better left unexplained and perhaps even be forgotten, so you just keep silent and carry on smiling as you stride and perhaps even do a little glide, towards the end of the road you chose for the walk of life, because you are sure of who you are and where you are going to.

And so I walk, still holding flowers in my hands.

~o~

It's not only sad movies that make me cry

I stopped watching love story movies a couple of years ago. Well not really stopped, I just avoided watching them if I could. Because no matter how a love story went I was sure to cry. In the times when I did watch, my pretending toughie-toughie heart would reveal that it's actually a softie. So I decided to give my heart a break and gave it a chance to beat a little slower so it wouldn't completely die out of exhaustion. So I temporarily switched off my heart's romantic valve and put more lights on it's filial valve.

And the heart lives, filially.

But perhaps it has a natural way of saying that it can beat a little bit faster as time pass by. Perhaps even circumstances collaborate with the heart to remind you of the existence of the other valve before you completely forget about it.

But it could've also just been the 2 kilometer stride on the transport machine in the gym that made my heart beat faster that I suddenly had the urge to grab "You've Got Mail" instead of any non-romantic movie I was hoping to watch when I get home.

It's interesting how one movie that you have watched before could be different when you watch it again. Amazing how something that was just a line in the movie to you before would suddenly ring a bell, how hearing a foreign place would suddenly sound familiar to you, in just the exact moment.

Maybe that's it.

Maybe the heart needs a chance to show that it is ready to open up that other valve again so it starts to skip a little, then more and more... until you are convinced that it is time...

I still cried at the ending of the movie, oh yes.

But this time, though, with a smile.

***************
Image taken from http://youvegotmail.warnerbros.com/

Flying like the flowing river

On my flight back from Manila to Singapore I started to read the book Like the Flowing River, a collection of thoughts and reflections of my favorite author, Paulo Coelho (my friends' birthday gift to me last November). A few pages after, I felt the tears flow down on my cheeks (like a flowing river). It has never happened to me before that I cried during a flight and I tried to be discreet about it as I didn't want to embarrass myself from the ladies sitting beside me. Good thing the cabin lights were off but with only my reading light on from among the seats in my row, it made it even more dramatic. And indeed, tears trying to be held back is like water being held in a dam which once it breaks, the intensity of the water's cascading flow will be too powerful to stop.

What has made me cry?

Could it be I was so moved by Paulo Coelho's beautiful thoughts on life?

Or could it be because of something else?

Perhaps those last words I heard at the airport?

I think yes and yes. I've read many of Paulo Coelho's novels, all of them fiction but all I adored. But reading real life thoughts and reflections of a person written in impromptu, has an extraordinary impact on me. I was deeply moved at how He sees life in a beautiful way, full of hope, love and peace. It made me ask myself

Why do people lose this drive in life?

Why do people tie themselves up with the ghosts of their past?

Why not make the most of what you have?

Why those last heavy words need to be said?

We know the answers to these questions but I just wish that we do not let ourselves be spun by the web of sadness. No matter how things may seem frustrating, there is always a way to see things in the light. We say we err because we are just human but it does not end there. While it is innate for us to err, it is also innate for us to love. To love is to appreciate, to love is to see beauty and so I hope that we do not forget that this is the gift of life. Our ability to change is more powerful that we can ever imagine, let us not underestimate our ability to become the person that God wants us to be.

Signs that I've been in Singapore too long now

1) While shopping with my mother, I was starting to get impatient that she was walking slowly and was like taking a lot of time at looking for what to buy. Just after I uttered to her (trying my best not to offend her) to walk a bit faster, I looked around the mall and realized that my mother was not slow because everyone was the same pace as hers, it was me who was walking too fast! :(

(I was also not anymore used to the moderate motion of the escalators in the Philippines. Oh yes, the speed of escalators in Singapore is significantly faster).

2) I was meeting Debbie at Robinsons Galleria and I sent her an sms to meet me at Pastamania. She asked where was it and I told her the third floor. I was surprised she didn't know where Pastamania was, because she frequents Robinsons Galleria and she should know where it was. When I got to the third floor, I almost gave myself a tap in the head -- the restaurant I had in mind was Chef d'Angelo! There is no Pastamania in the Philippines.

Tsk, tsk, tsk...