2017 it is!!!

A driver's license!

I already have my driver's license!!!

I took my road test two weeks ago, and I passed right then and there! Yipee!!! So glad to finally get done with this! Now on to driving more and more!!!

This is just liberating!

Thank you God! :)

May my stay here in Jacksonville last for more than just the paper!

The Sunshine State in the Land of Milk and Honey

Hello there Star Spangled Banner!

It has been more than a month now since I arrived in the US.

It has been more than a month now living in the Sunshine State Florida, where the sun shines brightly and the gators flourish!

So here I am working, and living in the US!

I got accepted many months back of a position here in our Jacksonville office.

And it's been a month already living in this rented apartment with a fellow Filipino officemate.

So far the weather is good. It gets hot like back home.

I love our spacious apartment.

I have just passed the DMV written exam.

And soon I will be taking some driving lessons and then getting the road test, and hopefully pass it and hopefully get the license so I can drive.

It is very difficult to get around here! Well the good thing is Uber works here. But then again, it is better to have your own car!

So this is it! This is the American life!

Midway to Midlife!!!

I just recently turned 35, and yes 35!!!

I am uberly thankful, forever grateful, super duper blessed with this life of mine.

I am happy to have reached 35!!! It is a milestone! I am half way to the midlife, er, crises?! Hopefully not! =)

I celebrated my birthday in simple ways. It was Holy Thursday. The day of suffering in the life of Jesus.

It was a simple celebration with a simple meal with the people dearest to my heart, my family.

I am very blessed to have them. I am very blessed for the people who love me so much.

I pray for this year, that the prayer I have been praying for a long time will be granted.

I pray for good health, not only for me but for my family and loved ones too.

I pray for safety, for peace, for a calm and happy community.

I pray for good things to come to my friends, family, and countrymen.

Please bless my heart, my mind, my soul, Lord.

Please pray for me always Mama Mary and St Joseph.

Thank you always!!!

My heart is bursting with love!!!

Exploring Albay - Daraga

Last day in Albay, it was Sunday. 

Dearie and I were really hoping for a sunny day, and that Mount Mayon would come out of the clouds. 

Our plan was to visit the town of Daraga where the beautiful Daraga church is situated atop a hill and where you can also get a view of the volcano. 

Daraga church or Nuestra Señora de la Porteria Parish Church (also Our Lady of the Gate Parish Church) was built by the Franciscans in 1772.

Our itinerary for our last day was first go to church at Daraga since it was a Sunday, and then get a good view of the volcano.  

Mayon was still in hiding when we got there. Our mass was 830-930am. Afterwhich, we stayed a bit. We love the cool breeze that day, and just enjoyed the beauty around us.

We then went to Cagsawa Ruins, where we can find the remnants of an 18th-century Franciscan church, the Cagsawa church. It was built in 1724. Although allegedly destroyed by the eruption of the Mayon Volcano in 1814, photographic proof demonstrated that the church remained standing well into the 20th century, ultimately destroyed by over a century of neglect. 

In the area, you can find a number of young adults offering to take your picture for fun shots using your camera. I gamely gave in to their invitations.  You don’t need to give them a certain fee, just a tip. So if you are happy with the shots, give these kids more!

Here are samples!

Good thing Mayon came out although the tip was a bit hidden by clouds. It was a lovely day! And we were just happy that finally the sun came out!

After our pictorial at Cagsawa, we then decided to check out Balay Cena Una, a famous restaurant in Daraga. A bit pricey, but the food was great and so was the place.

It is an old house transformed into a restaurant. During Sundays they serve buffet lunch which starts at 1130 am until 230 pm. I really didn’t want to do buffet but since we didn’t know about it and we were already there, we just had to go for it.

We were the first customers. And we were soooo lucky to have met the mother of the owners. She was very welcoming and she asked where we were from. And it turned out she has Ilonggo roots and was married in Cebu. That got us some connection! I am from Cebu and my dearie is Ilonggo. When she learned that I was from Cebu she gave me a hug! She told us briefly of her wedding and how it happened in Cebu. She was just lovely! And so heartwarming!

After lunch, we went back to our inn in Legazpi. We packed our bags, and then left for the airport for our flight at 250pm.  Our flight was a bit delayed but it was actually a blessing in disguise as Mount Mayon showed its grandeur! No clouds obstructing the view. The passengers at the boarding gate were all mesmerized, and took out their cameras! Even as we were boarding the plane, passengers took pictures with the beautiful Mayon in the background.  She was boasting of her perfect cone! Oh what a lovely way to end this trip!

Exploring Albay - Camalig, Ligao, Polangui

On our second day in Albay, we decided on visiting Camalig, Ligao, and Polangui.

The second day was very very rainy day, so our mobility was limited.

We decided on going first to Camalig. We took a jeepney from Legazpi to Camalig and asked the driver to drop us off at the town center or where their municipal building is. We first have to visit their tourist center and ask for advise on what is the best way to go around the tourist spots in Camalig. The tourist center is actually just along the highway.

The guy on duty at the tourist center suggested we skip Quitinday since it's a really rainy day, and besides we don't have our own transport so it makes it lot more difficult. So our itinerary was short - Hoyop-hoyopan Cave and Sumlang Lake. The guy got us our tricycle who took us to these spots.

Hoyop-hoyopan Cave was  like a 40-min ride by tricycle.

The fee for the tour at Hoyop-hoyopan cave was 300 pesos.  It was cheap if you were in groups of 4 or more. But I find it expensive as there were only two of us. They should have pegged this fee per person rather than per group, and have it at say 50 per person.

After touring Hoyop-hoyopan cave, we went to Sumlang Lake. It was still raining hard, and Sumlang Lake was just like any ordinary lake. There were a lot of school kids that day, who despite the rain took effort to ride the rafts.

After a quick stay in Sumlang Lake, it was time to have our hearty lunch with the famous Bicolano dish Pinangat.

Thereafter, and still raining, we took a jeepney ride to Ligao City to check out Kawa-kawa Hill.

Kawa-kawa hill is named as such because the hill resembles a 'kawa'.

And since it was still raining, we just took a pic of the Last Supper sculpture.

Then we found a resto serving Halo-halo with lambanog. So we took our respite in this place.

Still having much time left for the day, we decided on going to Polangui. We think it might be worthy checking out their old church.

So we ended up getting soaked when we reached Polangui town. We just went to their church.
And since it was raining very hard, we took shelter there. But there was a funeral service. So after 10 or 15 mins, we left and went back to Legazpi.

We had dinner at the 1st Colonial Grill. My dearie wanted to try the chili ice cream at level 3!

Called it a day after dinner and slept well hoping the next day will be sunny!!! =)


Next - 3rd day - Discovering Daraga!

Discovering Albay - Tiwi and Legazpi

I have been to the province of Albay twice, specifically to the city of Legazpi.  First time was on the trip from Donsol, Sorsogon.  My friend and I stayed overnight in Legazpi before catching our flight back to Manila early morning the following day. We didn't get to see the perfect cone at that time, but were able to catch a glimpse of the volcano's hugeness.  The second time was enroute to CamSur Water Complex with a group of friends. We took the overnight bus to Legazpi, hired a van to take us to CamSur but with side trips to Lignon Hill and the Cagsawa Ruins. It was a cloudy day and Mt Mayon was hiding behind these clouds.  That was 2010 and 2011.

Now this year in February, dearie suggested we take a trip to Albay.  He has not been to anywhere in Bicol except passing by it when he took the land trip on the way to Bacolod. He has not seen Mayon Volcano, too. So I was cool with his suggestion.  I'd like to make another attempt to see the famous cone shape of Mayon.  So we decided on a 2 1/2-day and 2-night- stay in Legaspi, took the overnight bus on the way and a plane ride back to Manila.

We wanted to explore Legazpi and nearby towns so we decided to visit Camalig, Daraga, and Tiwi as well. We were not very lucky with the weather. It was raining for two days! And Mayon, was still covered in clouds. We were blessed on the last day, and she showed herself with her grandest beauty and perfect cone at the airport! And everyone at the airport was really in awe when all the clouds disappeared, and she just stood there so amazingly beautiful! Mount Mayon is the most beautiful mountain I have ever seen!!!

I bought our bus tickets online via www.pinoytravel.com.ph.  This was my first time to use their service, and it was all good. You first reserve for a bus seat, the following day you get the confirmation, then you pay via payment centers or the banks. They charge a fee but it is alright, as it saves you the hassle of buying tickets in advance at the bus stations.

I chose DLTB. And after our trip, my British colleague told me that DLTB is a deadly bus having the most number of accidents!!! Oh my!!! Oh well we got there safe! Thank goodness!!!

We took the 9pm bus trip, but actually it departs Metro Manila at 10pm, and has lots of stop overs to pick up passengers.  We arrived at the Legazpi Bus Terminal at around 9am the following day.

I booked our accommodation via Agoda, which has always been my preferred booking site for accommodations.  I chose Night and Day Inn in Bonot, Penafranda, Legazpi City. The place is conveniently located, and is a few minutes away from the airport, bus terminal, and malls.
It was a cheap place, so you cannot expect superb service for its price.

1st day - Tiwi, Albay

We took the van from Legaspi to Tiwi, fare is at 60Php per pax. Got off at the town center, ate hamburgers, and visited the church (pic on the right).

We decided to go to Philippine Ceramics Center via a padyak (bicycle with side car), bought souvenirs, and then off to our next destination by taking a habalhabal (motorcycle) and asked the driver to take us to any beach nearby.

He dropped us off at Sugod, where the black sand beaches abound. It was a public beach, with hardly people around. The waves were huge, not good for swimming. We didn't intend to swim anyway. We loitered for a few minutes, and then decided to go back to the town center. The question is how to go back! We waited and walked along the highway, and finally found a tricycle that took us back.   

We had lunch/merienda at DJC's Halo-halo, a famous shop in Tiwi. 

Afterwhich, we decided to go back to Legaspi.  There were still other places of interest in Tiwi. I guess we were just tired from our bus ride, plus the van from Tiwi to Legazpi had limited trips.

We roamed around the Embarcadero, which was already losing it's grandeur.  Lots of shops were closed. Fewer people compared to the Pacific Mall, which was really teeming with people.

We wanted to try the Chili Ice Cream at the 1st Colonial Grill so we decided to check this out the Pacific Mall.  The 1st Colonial Grill was also situated beside Graceland and Biggs which are famous food chains in Legazpi.

Aside from the Chili flavored ice cream, they also offer other unique flavors like ginger, calamansi, and tutong na kanin. For the chili flavored ice cream, you can choose 3 levels, depending on your appetite for "hotness".

After indulging in ice cream, we decided to roam around the Pacific Mall. It was also too early to go home. We could have opted for other activities, like exploring the nearby Lignon Hill. But dearie was not a fan of it. I didn't push my luck. I have been to Lignon Hill anyway.

Inside Pacific Mall, you can find the Metro Gaisano department store and grocery. This department store is owned by Gaisanos of Cebu where they have started their chain.  They have been very successful in their expansion, I must say.

NEXT: 2nd day - Camalig/Ligao/Polangui, Albay

London.Paris.Amsterdam.Scotland 2014

I was very fortunate to travel to these places in 2014 care of a training from my company.

I am blessed! I am grateful!

Notting Hill market

Recipease by Jamie Oliver!!!

Heineken Experience with the hunkie guide!

Eiffel Tower!!!

Arc de Triomphe

Chateu de Versailles

Chateau de Versailles

Chateau de Versailles

Pagoda at the Kew Gardens

Edinburgh Castle

haggis, nips, tatties

Edinburgh Castle

Heineken Experience

Bye bye 2015! Thank you for the love!

A review of the memorable events and milestones in 2015:

January

Met Dearie's family for the first time! Travelled to Bacolod-Iloilo-Guimaras.

February

Finally celebrated Valentine's day with a boyfie. Hahaha.

Promotion at work!!! Also means a raise!  Yipee!!! Thank you!!!

March

It's my birth month! Received a beautiful bouquet of flowers from my dearie! :)

My dearie and I's first out-of-town trip together, and just the two of us. It was to the laid back yet charming province of Aurora.
Enjoyed some beach resort time with my dearie and my family! 

April

Had another fun summer time with my dearie's family in Sipalay, Negros Occ. A town filled with beautiful beaches, unadulterated beaches and waters!

May

Attended a dear friend's post wedding celebration in Cebu! 

June

Family reunion on my mother's side! Yay! Bonding time with uncles and aunties!

July

My dearie and I's first trip abroad. And it was to the truly Asian city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We also did an overnight trip to Melacca.  It was the longest time dearie and I were together 'physically' (considering we are on a long distance relationship).

August
Road trip with dearie's family from Iloilo to Antique! Did the fish spa and kawa bath! I love the shoreline of Antique!

September
I did a short trip to Cebu to celebrate my lola's birthday! Dearie also visited me in Cebu to be with me! :) Sweeeeet!!!

October
Joined my dearie's barkada trip to Punta Fuego, Batangas. Not even the storm hindered this trip!

November
Dearie's 35th bday!!! Too bad we were not able to celebrate this together. Dearie's trip to Manila got cancelled due to APEC. Huhuhu...

December
It's Christmas time!!! The most wonderful time of the year!
I enrolled myself in driving lessons! Gosh! I know how to drive now (with some assistance! hahaha).
Dearie came and we made a short trip to Baguio. Enjoyed the cool breeze, and the good food of Baguio!
Spent Christmas and New Year with family in Cebu! Missing my mom, dad, and sis who are in the US.
Spent time with old friends! :) Lovely lovely month indeed!

At the start of 2015, I promised to prioritize my relationship with dearie. We promised to spend time together once a month! We have achieved this! :)

Dearies' first trip outside Philippines

So we are all excited about this trip. One it's my first trip to Malaysia. Second, it's my dearie's first trip abroad. For this trip, I didn't make an organised itinerary. I just had a list of places to go. But one good thing is of course I booked all the accommodations in advance. One thing is sure that on the four days we are in Malaysia, we have to do Kuala Lumpur and Melaka.

In Kuala Lumpur we stayed at Myspace Inn. It's accessible via the monorail (get off at the Titiwangsa station).  Place is cheap and clean. Although the walk between the train station and the hostel is a bit creepy at night (and on weekends), it was a good find.  Just to be safe don't book the place if you're a woman travelling alone.  

In Melaka, we stayed at the Riverview Guesthouse. It's an old house turned hostel. I love the quaintness of the place. It's also situated beside the Melaka river. You can enjoy a good view of the river at night and have some beers. 

We arrived at KLIA2 via Air Asia on July 25 1030am. It was a long walk from the tarmac to the immigration counter, like it was 30 mins or more. 

KLIA2 has wifi and has a mall. So if you feel like going shopping, there are a wide range of shops to spend your money. If you're hungry, don't fret KLIA2 has lots of food choices.  We were both hungry and opted for a Malaysian meal so we ate at Kluang Station Heritage Shared. It was the first Malaysian resto that we saw. 

I had my Philippine monies changed to ringgits at the airport which was a bad idea. I know! Yet I still changed my monies there. Anyway, we had my dearie's monies changed at the city where the rates are better. 

According to the instructions of the hostel, we can either take the bus to KL Central or the KL Express train. Of course, the bus was the cheapest one. The KL express can take you 35 mins to KL Central. The bus will take more than an hour. The bus was only for 12RM per person while the KL Express would cost your 35RM per person. 

Once we got off at KL Central, we have to get on the monorail and head off to Titiwangsa Station and from there we have to walk some 3 minutes to the hostel. We just followed the directions provided by the hostel, and by asking around, we reached Myspace Inn with not much hassle. 

Tired and sleepy, and it was raining, so we didn't plan much touristy stuff.  We had dinner at Nando's, Festival City. It was one of the must do we listed. And did some shopping. :)

Next day was full packed as it was our last day in Kuala Lumpur.  It was also a Sunday, and as Catholics, we have to attend mass.

First stop was Batu Caves since it opens at 7am. We got there at 8am, climbed up the 270+ steps.

Next stop was St. John's Cathedral to attend the mass at 10ish. As expected, you'll find lots of Filipinos at the church. :)  Outside the church, you'll also see our kababayans selling stuffs. 

Now both hungry, we had lunch at this somewhat hawker center which served buffet meals. 

Another Malaysian treat. I've been eating a lot of rice on this trip. 

Right after lunch, we went around the area near Masjid Jamek: Merdeka Square, KL City Gallery (where you can find the I LOVE KL sign), Central Market, etc. 

After walking around these areas, it was time for my IKEA must do. There is no IKEA in the Philippines so I really wanted to go to one! 

IKEA in Malaysia is located in Damansara. It is not accessible via train. But there is a free shuttle bus from Petaling Jaya station. 

Well, when we got to Petaling Jaya, we couldn't find the shuttle bus. We ended up taking the cab for 25RM. No meter. :( 

Goodness, IKEA was teeming with people on a Sunday! And I was not prepared. I didn't know what to do inside an IKEA store. So we first went to the showroom. Then off to the warehouse. 

I bought the curtains I wanted to buy. We also bought an umbrella, hangers, scented candle, fridge locks. Okay, I was there for the IKEA experience. I wanted to buy other stuffs but didn't know how to find them. :( 

We took the free shuttle bus back to Petaling Jaya and headed off to KLCC for the Petronas twin towers. I love how the towers lit up at night! And of course we just had to take our pics with these grand towers. 

Now hungry, we went inside KLCC for our dinner. And again another Malaysian staple food of Nasi lemak. 

Tired and done for the day, we headed back to our hostel. 

Next day was bound for Melaka. 

It was a sunny Monday. We have to take a bus from Terminal Bersepadu Selatan (TBS) to Melaka. There were a number of buses that serve Melaka from TBS. 

We didn't book our ticket beforehand. Besides it was a weekday so we didn't think it would be that difficult. 

The bus ride to Melaka Sentral takes about 2 to 3 hours.  No stopovers.  So you better have some food with you on this trip.  

We took the 1030am trip and we got to Melaka Sentral by noon, we were famished. 

We had lunch at a Thai carenderia.  We decided to purchase our bus tickets for the following day. We booked it for 245pm. Our flight back to Manila was at 950PM. 

The hostel's instructions were simple and clear. Take no. 17 bus, and get off at the Dutch (red) square. I can't remember how much the fare was (either 1 or 2RM).  So I told the driver we have to get off at the Dutch square.

From the Dutch square, we walked our way to our hostel. Instructions provided were easy. But it was a very hot day, so the walk from the Dutch square to the hostel was quite tiring. 

Once settled in at our hostel, we decided to take the colorful trishaw rides. It's a bit pricey. It costs us 50RM for both of us. It should only be 40RM if you are alone in the trishaw. 

The ride is only for 45 mins. Actually you can opt to walk around. The places we went to are just walking distance. But it was a very hot day, so doing the trishaw was not bad after all.

After our trishaw ride, we decided to explore the malls to buy souvenirs. 

We had an early dinner at an Old Town restaurant. I had my fave Kaya toast. And we again had a feast of Nasi lemak. :)

We went back to our hostel by foot, passed by Jonker Street. If we had been there on a weekend, we would have enjoyed the night market on Jonker Street. 

We capped the day with beers by the Melaka riverside at the Riverview Cafe (also owned by the same people as the Riverview Guesthouse).

The next day we decided to just go around the center, walk up the river, and visit a few museums. Well I think we ended up visiting only the Islamic Museum. 

Then we had lunch at the best Hainanese chicken rice ball in town!!! We saw this place on our first day and was wondering of the long line of people. So we decided to have lunch here. My dearie was not fascinated with the rice balls but I was! If I had a longer time in Melaka, I would go have another meal in this place. It was only after the trip that I learned of the resto's name Kedai Kopi Chung Wah. This is situated beside Hard Rock Cafe.

Check out time at the hostel was 12noon. We took the cab instead of the bus to Melaka Sentral bus station for 25RM which the hostel arranged for us.

Since we got early at the bus station, I requested to change our bus trip from 245PM to 145PM. 

From TBS, we took the bus to KLIA2 4pm trip. Arrived at KLIA2 past 5pm and learned that our flight back to Manila was moved to 1130PM! Sigh...We had a lot of free time so we googled for options, and decided on going to Mitsui Outlet which offered free shuttle buses to and from KLIA2. 

Mitsui Outlet just opened this year. We roamed around, tried to look for cheap stuffs, had dinner at the food court and went back to KLIA2 at around 8pm. 

Spent the loose ringgits on coffee and a few goodies. 

Vacay ends. Planning on for the next one. 

Oh by the way, Air Asia plane had electrical troubles by the time we landed in Manila Terminal 4. Hmmm. What if that had happened mid air??? I'm considering not taking Air Asia ever!!! But glad we got back home safe. 

Terima kasih, Malaysia!