STEP 1: Very Rough Itinerary

Step 1: Finalizing the Itinerary (sort of)

Finally, after contemplating on where to start in our Indochina trip, I have our (not-so) final itinerary. Good thing, I have found a blog which had an itinerary for the same trip, so I basically copied it. Though we will be having a different tour from the author, I thought that duplicating her itinerary will make a better choice since I do not have proper knowledge in travelling to these foreign lands. We are looking at August 20 - 28 trip (9 days/ 8 nights) since there will be 2 holidays on this week (Ninoy Aquino day and Araw ng Kagitingan), and so we can only have 5 day-leave from our respective work.

Anyway, we will be having the said trip as:

Green: MNL- BKK; Yellow: BKK - SR; Pink: SR - PP; Blue: PP - HCMC; Red: HCMC - MNL

So, here is the draft itinerary for the trip:

Day 1: Flight to Bangkok, Thailand (afternoon fight will do). Night 1 at Bangkok.

Day 2: Bangkok tour. Night 2 at Bangkok.

Day 3: Morning train to Siam Reap (6 hour-ride to Aranyaphathet, crossing the border to Cambodia through Poipet and taking a bus ride for 3 hours to arrive in Siam Reap). Night 1 at Siam Reap.

Day 4: Angkor Wat tour. Night 2 at Siam Reap.

Day 5: Morning bus to Phnom Penh (6 hour ride to Phnom Penh). Night 1 at Phnom Penh.

Day 6: Phnom Penh tour

Day 7: Morning bus to Ho Chi Minh City/ Saigon (7 hour bus ride to HCMC)

Day 8: HCMC tour

Day 9: Flight back to Manila.

So this is the itinerary we will be following during the 3-country travel. We have yet to discuss the specific areas we will be visiting from each of the country. :)

Step 2: Look for a cheap flight from Manila - Bangkok, HCMC (Saigon) - Manila. :)

And yes, step 1 and step 2 are interchanged. We made this so we can properly allot the times we will be spending from each of the country, so we know when we will be leaving Manila and coming back. Its hard to miss these small details.

Its time to color the skies!

While I am looking for tickets for the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta in Clarkfield, Pampanga, I stumbled upon TicketNet's announcement on tickets for the 3rd Philippine International Pyromusical Competition.

I barely make it in the first two, because it overlapped with the fieldworks for the several projects I managed. So this time, I promised to myself that I won't miss it.

The 3rd Pyromusical will be on all Saturdays of February and March, from February 11 to March 17. Show starts at 7pm and two competing countries will bring color to the sky for the next 6 Saturday nights. :)

Here is the schedule of the shows:

February 11: South Korea (7pm) and Malta (8pm)

February 18: United Kingdom (7pm) and Spain (8pm)

February 25: Finland (7pm) and Portugal (8pm)

March 3: China (7pm) and The Netherlands (8pm)

March 10: Australia (7pm) and Canada (8pm)

March 17: Italy (7pm) and Philippines (8pm)

Ticket prices are as follows:

Patron (sitting with dinner buffet) : Php 1500

VIP: Php 500

Gold: Php 300

Silver: Php 100

Here are sample pics from the contestants:

(credits to the owner of the images. from pyrophilippines website)

I will be coming with my family in this event and we have yet to discuss what show we would be watching. But for sure, I will be seeing the Philippine show. :)

For more information, you can visit Philippine International Pyromusical Competition's website at www.pyrophilippines.com.

Trip of the Year: Project C

While everybody in the office is cramming for their projects in hand, I am, on the other hand, is busy reading blogs about Southeast Asian travel. Amae, Coeli and I initially planned to see the Sinulog festival in Cebu earlier this month, however, due to time constraints and lack of preparation (I am proud to say I'm a street-smart travel planner, as repeatedly showcased in my trips with Louie), we weren't able to see Sinulog.

This SEA trip (or what Amae calls Project C) was brought up when we were talking about foreign trips so we can get our passports stamped (for the first time). Initially, we thought of HongKong-Macau trip, however, we find that it would only give us one immigration stamp and not so much of a trip. Macau seems to be more for the lovers and not for college buddies. :)

So we opt to research about Indo-china trip and one of our university acquaintances mentioned about a Vietnam-Cambodia-Thailand travel. We are particularly interested with the said trip as it would cost us 3 immigration stamps in one travel. (wee!)

Manila-Bangkok/ HCMC- Cambodia- HCMC/Bangkok - Manila

(if we could squeeze in a day trip in Laos, that would be so great!)

I have been reading blogs about Indo-China trips, and it would cost us a little above Php 10k for the logistics for the three countries (cost of living in these three countries are definitely quite less than of the Philippines, and if we have the right time to purchase the airline tickets, hopefully, we can get them in Php5k for a round trip one. The three country trip will more likely be a seven-day trip, so we are planning them in a month where the three of us are less busy.

We initially plan them in August, I have to check if flights are available and if not, I have to move them in early September. In between reading blogs and work, I have to find time (and effort) to save for the trip and its other costs (luggage and other personal items), my MBA application and other necessary bills.

I guess I have to write another entry if ever I have a rough itinerary for the trip.

Be-students-again day at UP

Well, its been a while since I last visited my college, College of Mass Communication. Though I recently visited UP Diliman (earlier this month for my org event, I am quite an active alumna), this will be the first time that I visited UP again with my blockmates/ college girlfriends. Amae and Coeli were thesis-mates during college, and I am the sole author of mine, so I am usually the third wheel everytime we need to go overtime for our respective thesis. :)

Anyways, since we have our long weekend, we decided to meet up at UP and visit, eat and roam around the campus, like we used to when we were in college (its been 2 years then since we graduated). We met at our college, took our pictures posing as undergrads and eating like them too.

Since it was UP and recently, I noticed that many of UP students are wearing shorts in the campus, so Amae and I decided to wear our respective "campus outfit". Coeli wasn't able to join us in wearing shorts because she came from her Spanish class before we met, and she reasoned out that she still doesn't know how to translate "shorts" in Spanish so she wore her pants (los pantalones... I still remember my Spanish!)

My outfit is a laid back Saturday outfit that I usually wear if I need to run errands for the family.

Taken at Long Island at MassComm (the replacement for our old canteen):

What I wore: Plain tshirt and shorts (thift find), boat shoes (bought in St. Francis Mall) and Tomato watch in White (interchangeable watch straps)

This is taken at our favorite department couch:

Good thing I had my hair cooperating with each shot (but I still have to work on making my side-swept bangs more visible, I tend to comb my hair sideways, getting the bangs away from my eyes)... I am definitely loving my hair this year. I have to grow them soon, just in case Louie comes home earlier than planned.

Yesterday was probably one of the refreshing days I had with my college girlfriends, and we planned our Cambodia trip already and thinking about taking Capoiera. :)

My Watermark

Finally, I have my watermark for the pictures I take. :)

Its actually my informal signature (one that I use when I am in a rush of signing things, informal documents). So, here it is:

Parvati: A Haven of Desserts

Honestly, I am not of a sweet person (personality wise). But I think, I have cravings for desserts and chocolates once in a while. Initially, cakes were meant for special occasions. (Cupcakes are of different topic, I crave for them when I am on super down mode.)

I stumbled upon Parvati when I was browsing pages on my Facebook news feed and realized on my timeline that everyone I know in UP is starting to like its FB page. So I checked the page out and the menu was the first thing that checked out. Its definitely a place to be when you want a good chat with good selection of sweets.

So I told my college friends (my boyfriend's college buddy) that if ever we have time, we should check out Parvati. Sad to say, they visited the shop without me, when their college block went out for their annual Christmas get together (my boyfriend was there).

Earlier this month, my boyfriend and I celebrated our 62nd month together and met at Trinoma. I was really sad that I wasn't able to visit Parvati before them so he was so kind to get me a monthsary cake at Parvati before heading out in the moviehouse (we intended to eat the cake while watching but since it was Sherlock Holmes, I was glued on the screen and wasn't able to open the box).

(A Long story this is...)

Yesterday, I was out with my college girlfriends for our "be-UP-students-again" day and since we were about to end our day, I recommended that we visit Parvati. It is a dessert shop offering homemade desserts, pastries and meals.

The place was jampacked (it was really a small store, a little bigger than Sonjas) and there were no vacant seats. Though there was a douche bag guy who saved a table but didn't sit there, we managed to get a table after nearly 15 minutes of waiting.

Our server offered us their free coffee (my girlfriend Coeli is a coffee addict) and we ordered our three cakes away (after browsing the menu several times). Amae got Mango Cheesecake, I got a Triple Decker Cheesecake and I got Coeli the Dome cake.

(L-R: Triple Decker Cheesecake, Mango Cheesecake, The Dome)

1. Mango Cheesecake (Price: Php 155 - mini)

It was my second time to encounter a mango cheesecake and initially, I wasn't a fan of it. I felt like mango and cheese don't complement each other, but Parvati's Mango Cheesecake was a right choice. The mango doesn't overpower the cheesecake and it was on the center. Before you come across the mango filling, you have a good experience with the cheesecake.

2. Triple Decker Cheesecake (Price: Php 140 - mini)

I liked how CoffeeBean and Tea Leaf makes their triple decker cheesecake, but Parvati's TDC will make CBTL's TDC a second choice for me. The layers of chocolate and cheesecake is definitely a heaven for me. The chocolate was not too sweet to overpower the second layer. And despite having the cheesecake in between the chocolates, it still has its own personality in the cake.

3. The Dome (Price: Php 135 - small)

Purple Oven's Dome cake was one hell of an experience for me. It was sweet, the filling was over the top but I liked it. We hesitated to order Parvati's The Dome because the girls thought that it will be too sweet. I managed to change their minds and we ordered it. Coeli became a fan of it right away. The chocolate is not too sweet as we thought of, and the Nutella center is to die for! (By the way, Louie got me the same cake for our monthsary.)

We managed to finish the cakes and we still ordered others for our families. Initially, Amae wanted the Gourmet Pulvoron but it was sold out, so she went to buy the carrot cake, Coeli was into the Revel bars and Milk/ Dark Truffles and I got the Chocolate Mousse. (I have yet to interview them about their food experiences.)

Sadly, Parvati is too far from my place, with its only branch located in Trinoma. But I wouldn't have second thoughts on grabbing something from this place whenever is necessary. I still have a lot to taste from this dessert shop anyway.

Parvati: Lower level, Mindanao Lobby, Trinoma.

(near Gourdo's, Beabi and Fully Booked. Below National Bookstore)

SOPA: What's the fuzz all about?

I am not a Wikipedia "fan" because of the consequences that articles can be revised and give wrongful information, but I came across this screen when I recently accessed the site for a random information gathering:

In a related note, these past few days, while checking the trending topics in Twitter, I stumbled upon SOPA and with the curious cat inside me, I checked it out. Maria Ressa, a veteran journalist who I have been following in Twitter have retweeted these pictures to further understand SOPA. I think I do not need to elaborate each picture as they speak for themselves. (pictures are captured via Snipping Tool.)

Work

I hope this will inspire me for the rest of the year. :)

Credits to the owner of the photo (from deviantart.com).

I'm an artista (sort of!)

I am a follower of Mr. Anton Diaz's blog, ourawesomeplanet.com and being a fan, last November we attended the Ultimate Taste Test 7.0 (yes, its the 7th edition, thus 7.0). I will be having a separate entry for the Food Taste event, I just need to gather my thoughts about it.

Anyways, since I am interested on the list of winners this edition, I checked the website and voila! my officemate and I made it to the website. Merry Moo was the ultimate winner for UTT 7.0 and we were on the right place and time when one of the event's photographer captured this photo.

This may be the start of something new... hahahaha!

The Lous

This post has been inspired by Patty Laurel's blog and life, dapattylaurel.blogspot.com. There she has written how their friends call them The Pats being her as Patty and her fiancee as Patrick. Cool, huh?

Coming from then, my real name is Lourdes, there's a Ma. (Maria) before it which I rarely use. My boyfriend only use that to stress points on me (and sometimes, when I am hardheaded). My partner's name is John Louie, thus, the Lous.

The Lou's in Boracay

We have been together for the past 5 years, basically on a long distance relationship. We never had a good anniversary celebration because we always spend it apart. :( He was assigned to their office's HQ in Yokohama, Japan and get only a vacation twice a year (one in August (because its Golden week there) and one in December). By the way, our anniversary is November, so we get to spend it alone.

We were never the ordinary couple. Our closest friends will know that we started as orgmates (yey, UP KEM, thank you!) and our relationship is a product of kalokohan and pustahan. With Louie, I have found my bestfriend and a brother. He would always support me in any of my decisions, my plans and sometimes, be my kontrabida (I am fickle minded, so he would always say to focus on one thing before I ask for another)... He will always be my shopping buddy (he loves asking me what I need, so I would go to shoes and bags and dresses, ask me if I could try one and he likes it, he would buy it) and he is my foodtrip buddy.

Since he only gets to see the Philippines in very limited time, we make sure that we visit new places and try new restos when he gets home. He's been my travel buddy in Bohol, Cebu, Boracay, Tagaytay and Baguio. :)

Bohol, Cebu and Boracay trip

This year will never be the same. His contract in Japan work will expire this May, so there will be two ways in this event - its either renewal of contract or not. And there will be two consequences. If contract will be renewed, he won't be coming home twice this year and just take an early vacay in December in time for his sister's wedding. And if otherwise, he will be home by June.

I don't really know what I would wish for on that contract. Our friends know how korny he is (he is the king of mais, as we call him) and by then, I have someone to report everyday and spend my office hours after. As I jokingly tell our friends, my prolonged exposure to his kakornihan is very dangerous to my health and the society. I think its enough to have one korny person in the world. :D

I'm writing this entry as he is on his way back to Japan and I am single again for the next N months. :)

Page 6 of 366

This trending topic confused me, so I need to get an answer from the ever reliable WikiAnswers. It simple meant that we are in the 6th day of the 366
days of 2012 (in case you didn't know, 2012 is a leap year).

Anyhow, since its been a week since the start of the year, it should be fine if I write about the friendships I had. Currently, I have 3 groups of friends: my highschool buddies (we're about 10 in that group), my college girlfriends (3 of us) and my office girlfriends (its 4 of us now). I just want to say how lucky I am to belong to this group, as they make me sane (and insane) when I need to.

1. Highschool buddies. This group made me stronger in preparation to the college life. We're basically a group of highschool classmates (and ex-classmates) who clicked right from the very start. We still have our little groupies within our circle, nevertheless, we managed to get along with each other just fine.

2. My college girlfriends.

I never knew I will find great people in the university, being it a big one. Its really fate that made its way through our friendship (we shifted courses and got accepted to our new courses in the same semester). Amae and Coeli were simply the best buddies I ever had.

One, they managed to keep me on the ground whenever I need to.

Two, though I am the oldest of the three, they never hesitated to give me advices - on life, careers and love.

Three, they never complain whenever I drag my boyfriend along our dates (maybe because Louie often pays for our food).

Four, they get along with my boyfriend like they were friends right from the very start. Though they need to endure his corny jokes, they clicked on the topics of anime, manga, series and books.

We belong almost on the same industry (Me and Coeli on Market Research, Amae on Media Planning) and we share things about each job. We may have rants on our respective jobs, yet we support each other. We spend about 5 hours (each time we meet) on talking on different topics.

3. My office girlfriends.

Our friendship started in a very negative manner. Our company hired a new boss for us (we were three then - Khriz, Lissa and me) and we ranted it to each other. We were tagged as the bad sheeps then. After office coffee dates (just to talk about our jobs and people around us) made our connections stronger. When Camille joined us in our division, we tagged her along then and then our group was formed. These girls were my jogging and malling buddies, food trip buddies and sometime, travel buddies too. They have only "experienced" Louie but I guess, there will no second time. :))

Just like anyone else, I do not stick with a group. I make sure I spend times with each of my friends and date with them. Just like this week... Dates with the girlfriends with Louie. My highschool buddies missed having time with Louie because we didn't have the annual holiday party.

I have more days this year with them, its only page 6 of 366 then.

First Book of 2012

I am really fond of reading. Books are my great companions when I was in college. (Long lines during enrollment, waiting for classes and when I was a Registration Assistant). I even become a Library Assistant for two years during my senior year in college. My love of books just grew. However, my main dilemma is that I can finish a 300-page book in one sitting (about 8 hours on weekend). I read so fast that I should have a decent stock of books for my next reading.

However, when I started working, my fictional books were left lying on the floor and I went to a more professional and non-fiction categories. I have few marketing books on hand, which were relevant to my field.

Late last year, I stumbled upon Percy Jackson book series (yes, fiction!) and managed to read them through e-books (oo, kuripot ako). My boyfriend, who is into books too, was reading Cassandra Clare (which I call 'The City Series") and Brandon Mull (Fablehaven).

Now, since its New Year, I think I have to fall in love again with books (and e-books) to bring my sanity when I am bombarded with projects and more projects.

My first book of the year:

OUTLIERS: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell. I love his first book, BLINK. It was given by my Communications Professor as the subject of our book review. Despite my liking of it, I managed to somehow lost track of who borrowed it (maybe due to the lipat bahay I made when I was in college).

Now, I am reading the third book of Mr. Gladwell, well to basically inspire me this start of the year. This is a story of how the men and women do things that are out of the ordinary. I was on the first pages of the book when I stumbled upon these sentences:

"... And in examining the lives of the remarkable among us --- I will argue that there is something profoundly wrong with the way we make sense of success."

"It makes a difference where and when we grew up... It is only by asking where they are FROM that we can unravel the logic behind who succeeds and who doesn't..."

I have to go back in reading the rest of the book in order to determine whether I will be successful or not. While doing that, I am waiting for my e-books to download.

Cheers to a more intellectual and smarter me! :D

Hello 2012!

2011 was a great year for me. I was able to travel to local places I have never been, tried (and managed to survive) various adventures and grew friendships along the way...

However, 2011 was never easy. My attempts on change in my career failed, knocking on the doors of opportunities and dropping ones that I felt I will not grow. I hope I really made good decisions in 2011.

Now, I hope its a year of change. I will be trying again to change my career path and try my luck on a global MBA. I never had New Year resolutions, but I have a list to do this year. Here it goes:

1. Be a librarian.

I need to check what books I have on hand, build/ buy a book shelf and start displaying them on our sala. I need to organize the books Louie and I have, so I know what to buy this year. I have few collections to be earned, such as:

2. Learn photography.

I was able to practice basic photography skills with my friend's DSLR and I think I should buy one. I have to convince my boyfriend first to get me a good camera by my birthday (hehe...) I will be trying out several image mode on my point-and-shoot camera because I haven't tried them all yet. :)

3. Be a local traveller. (If time and budget permits, do an Asian travel.)

Because of my current job, I was able to travel within the Philippines. My boyfriend and I make sure that everytime he goes home from his Japan work, we have to visit a place we both never been to. I have few more places to go this 2012.

With this, I should invest on good bags and luggages.

4. Blog and blog for more.

Being a writer is never easy, especially with the things I have on my hands during weekdays and rest during weekends. I should start squeezing in my blog entries during free time.

I am still thinking what topics I should write and food and travel tops the list. As of the moment, I have to write 4 more blog entries regarding my travels last 2011.

I guess, to make things easier, is to invest on a good laptop or tablet. I have to check with my boyfriend/accountant if this fits within our budget this year. :D

5. Spend more time with my boyfie (whenever he's on vacay).

We have been in long distance relationship for the past 4 years and we only have our personal time during travels. I should then start planning with our walk travels within Metro Manila and return to our food trips.

Life will never be easy with the list I have. I have to have more (and more) money unless my boyfriend will take care half of my gadget list (hehehe...).

My mantra for the year: Work hard, earn hard. Work more, learn more. :D