easter holiday sa pinas

the minute i found out that the easter weekend will also be a long weekend here in jakarta – thanks to their party elections that coincides with holy thrusday and their paying respect to christianism that makes good friday a holiday, i immediately made a booking to go back home in the philippines.  my luck even hit the skies when our managing director allowed me to extend my vacay at home until wednesday the following – giving me an opportunity to rejuvenate and catch up with relaxation after months of stress and pressure due to endless demands from work.  

over-all, it was a vacation very well-spent.  the moment i arrived in manila’s terminal 3 airport that holy thursday (yup, i used cebu pacific budget flight again), we didn’t waste any time and immediately hie-off to doing our annual family visita iglesia.  contrary to the usual churches that we go to around laguna and batangas, we decided to do it around manila.  after finishing the 14 stations, i just realized that little do i know about churches in manila – i was just accustomed to attending masses in the makati area, but there are still a whole lot more that manila churches can offer!  these churches gave me such lasting impression – san agustin church, manila cathedral and baclaran.

 

the new church in front of naia 3

 

baclaran church ritual

 

glorious san agustin

 

manila cathedral facade

 

manila cathedral bell tower

 

quaint san sebastian

 

3 generations of sampaguita vendors in sto. domingo church

another notable time is spending lunch with my brother and sis-in-law.  we are all excited about my soon-to-be-born nephew, a little less than two months from now and i will be a full-fledged first degree uncle.  just yesterday, my bro texted me the final name that they have chosen for the baby – knives acid river m. alcantara.  i would have to say that it’s pretty unique and sums up to an interesting set of initials.  knowing his non-mainstream taste, he would really opt for this as opposed to the current trendy names like miguel, joaquin, luis and mateo or the combination of his and his wife’s initials like vince sebastian or vincent simon.  on the nickname, he says that i would be ”buchukoy” but i also suggested ”riv” (from river) or ”cid” (from acid).  let’s see what the final name and nick would be come end-june or early-july.  

saturday to monday was spent with my favorite people.  same with how we spent the last year’s holy week, we all went to tagaytay just to have an early dinner and share our most recent life stories with coffee and dessert on the side.  the day after, its again dinner and after is a long ktv session.  it’s been months since i did karaoke, and i missed it too, so what better way to end my vacation with this fun groupie but to sing our hearts out in the usual ktv place that we frequent along jupiter street.  so, who says that finding ways to cope with ”homesick” is hard?  :)                    

 

 

will always have to take its shot!

 

 

with aids and cris @ josephine, tagaytay

 

one of the many reasons why i keep on coming back home...

 

cris, nons, aids and moi on an early "black saturday" dinner

 

aint tired of the volcano view...

 

 

BFFs reunited!

 

 

 

first time sa A-Venue, second time mag San Miguel Premium Beer - sarap!

 

 

 

360 - sa labas lang!

 

 

syempre di pedeng mawala ang videoke sa agenda

 

 

just before the concert starts!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

schedule for the holidays

the long wait ended last 23 december, 0525 in the morning. i finally arrived in manila for my christmas and new year holiday break. sarap ng pakiramdam, naiintindihan ko na tuloy yung mga ofws na kaka-land pa lang ng eroplano e gusto ng tumayo, kunin ang mga gamit at tumakbo palabas ng eroplano! hehehe!

since my break is only 10 days (inclusive of saturdays and sundays), gumawa na ako ng schedule (knowing me) kung anu-ano mga gagawin at pupuntahan ko in the next 10 days – basta ang objective e ma-maximize ang bakasyon, maka-spend time with family, friends and loved-ones, at me-enjoy ang mga pinoy stuff na na-miss ko, lalu na yung feeling of christmas na di ko masyado naramdaman sa jakarta.

23 december, tuesday

sinundo ako ng pamilya ko (oo, kumpleto sila – mom, dad, bro) sa naia 3 since cebupac flight ko. after that, we went straight to shell-magallanes para kumain ng breakfast, saan pa e di sa jollibee (kailangan pa bang i-memorize yan?!). had my favorite super breakfast joys – longganisa, tapa, pancake, fried rice, at nag sundae din ako – yung bago nilang variant, black forest yata yun or something. while having breakfast, it was a catch up time for the four of us, kahit lagi ko silang nakakausap thru text, email or ym, iba pa rin yung tipong kaharap mo silang nakakakwentuhan. after that, we headed na to my “home” mall to do my gift shopping for my inaanaks. but since it was early pa, sarado pa ang glorietta at rustan’s, so nag-starbucks na lang muna kami sa 6750. since i’m one of those people na nauuto ng starbucks mangolekta ng stickers tuwing pasko para sa planner, i asked the barista to give me a sticker card since la pa akong nasisimulan – good thing, less ang requirement pala this year, but apparently, di rin ganun kaganda pala yung planner – its way too simple compared to that of last year’s, so mejo nawalan na rin ako ng gana to do starbucks marathon in the next 10 days just for the planner. at exactly 10am, we entered na the mall (kakatawa, parang mga katulong! hahahaha!). went straight to rustan’s kids section to find gifts for inaanaks and pamangkins sa cousins. in 2 hours time, kumpleto na ang gifts ko para sa mga bata (galing ko noh?!). while the toys were being wrapped, we headed muna for lunch at dad’s. nagsimula na ang aking lechon feast! sarap! naka-tatlong balik ako ng main course at dalawa ng desserts – masarap pala ang puto bungbong ng kamayan (i just realized)! after kumain, bili lang konting groceries, claimed na the gifts and headed home na sa laguna. wala akong ginawa sa kotse kundi matulog simula makati hanggang alaminos – bagsak talaga, considering that 2 hours lang ata ang naging tulog ko sa eroplano. pagdating sa bahay, we just had a simple dinner, then natulog na ulit ako.

24 december, wednesday

energized! first lunch with a couple of college friends – mela and cris. mela just got home din last week from shanghai, while cris naman went straight to palmera’s from makati to meet us up. saya ng kwentuhan – di mo alam kung saan mo sisimulan, not to mention na distracting ung masasarap na pagkain – crispy pata, crispy tilapia and sinigang na baka! hahaha! after that, nag-coffee rin kami sa cafe aviano and the lunch ended at 6pm!

balik sa bahay ulit and spent time with the family – attended the mass together and enjoyed the noche buena feast and gift giving. but the biggest difference that night was that from 4, we became 5 in the family – my bro’s gf spent the eve with us as i will become a full-fledged tito soon! exciting!

25 december, thursday

christmas day! it was a pretty standard family (i.e. including titos, titas, cousins, pamangkins, etc.) celebration starting from lunch to dinner. in short, puro kainan, kwentuhan at regaluhan the whole day! had fun catching up with cousins, pamamngkins and inaanaks. side story – never give a gift to your inaanak that you don’t know or will have a hard time assembling for him – i gave gino a high-tech (complete with assembly stuff) hot wheels toy – syempre kailangan may gumawa for him since it’s not so easy for a 7-year old kid to put it together, unfortunately, weakness ko ang mechanical stuff (whahahaha), so he didn’t have a choice but to force his dad to set it up for him!

26 december, friday

hectic! time to meet the complete group during lunch at kusina salud, san pablo. fun din, walang katapusang kwentuhan! good thing din that we chose the said place (though quite far) coz super masarap yung food (second time ko pa lang kumain here) – the best ang lechon, binagoongan, sisig, sinigang na baboy at crispy bangus! plus, the ambiance is perfect – it’s a blissful provincial air surrounding the endearing place.

after lunch, derecho na sa manila since meron akong dinner commitment this time sa first batch ng jollibee friends naman. so after enduring the afternoon traffic of south luzon express way (buti na lang it’s my bro in charge of the wheels – hehehe!), i made it to cyma, greenbelt to meet up wena and coleen for a fun dinner and coffee session at coffee bean. (sidebar: by the way, salamat pala sa gifts! if ever nababasa mo to coleen, i got the gift na pinahabol mo kay wens! hahaha!).

almost 2am na kami natapos – geeez, i need to remind myself that i had to be in the airport at 0930 am the following day. so we packed up and i stayed in my friend’s flat (adrian), para maki-squat for the night.

27 december, saturday

beach mode! it’s boracay vacay for me, aids, nons, mels and josh. this had been planned na even before i finalized my sked of going home, so it was an anticipated trip. i was also excited considering that the last time i was in bora was in 2003 pa, and my first time was way back 2000 pa! ang tagal na! also, since i love lounging around the beach, kahit 3 weeks ago lang e nasa bali ako, iba pa rin yung bora with your close friends.

so it all started with waking up early and dragging yourself to the bathroom! waaaah! after that, went straight to the airport na – major highlight is eating 2-pc chickenjoy and extra rice for breakfast! hahaha!

1230 pm, we reached caticlan and another 30 minutes passed before feeling the powdery white sand of bora’s station 2! wala na kaming sinayang na oras, derecho kain na sa smoke, ikot sa d’mall, lakad/tambay sa beach area at naghintay ng sunset sa harap ng jony’s (kahit umaambon) while enjoying their famous fruit shake variants (note: tried the new bananatella, but for someone na mahilig sa rich taste, nabitin ako sa lasa ng chocolate).

after mag-chill, umulan na nga ng malakas – punyeta! blessing in disguise naman that we had to find a shade at we got near gasthof… so we decided to have dinner na and enjoy the famous ribs of the said place! sarap! it’s the best meal that i had during the entire bora stay!

after the dinner feast, gimik time na. there were only 2 places na pinuntahan namin the first night – juice bar and boom bar. tama laid-back relaxation lang sa boom with reggae acoustic music sa background at mga foreginers na mukang mga tanga sumayaw na pang-aliw! hahaha! had lang my usual rounds of vodka mix. main highlight is the kwentuhan – love life aspect! go mels, punta ka na ng mexico! hahaha! the very looong day finished early morning the following day actually, around 3am na.

28 december, sunday

have to wake up early to maximize the 3 days and 2 nights. so at exactly 0900 am, we were at real coffee already to enjoy a sumptuous light breakfast (well, para sa akin light lang ang omelette at pancake). sayang lang, ubos na ang famous calamansi muffin pagdating namin…

then, tamang lakad-lakad muna sa station 1, pa-picture sa kung anu-ano (kakatawa, kahit pangatlong beses na kong nakakpunta bora, di pedeng walang picture sa grotto ng station 1!) at tamang painit sa araw. pero nung nakakita na ko ng massage station, wala ng isipan, higa na agad para pa-masahe.

para naman ma-enjoy ang privacy ng beach, we decided to go to puka and nami. very wise decision, we had fun fighting the waves of puka while enjoying the serene breeze of the isolated place, while we also had a great time looking into the perfect view that nami offered – not to mention the yummy foodies that we truly enjoyed. the next time i go back to bora, i’ll check-in sa nami, perfect place if you’re so damn tired na of the busy atmosphere of stations 1 to 3!

tapos, magsu-sunset na ulit… syempre kailangan ceremonial ang viewing ng sunset since finally hindi na umuulan! so, we went back to station 1 to do paraw sailing while seeing the sunset up close – in the middle of the ocean (teka, ocean nga ba ang tawag dun?! haha!). while into it, mas enjoy as we were having red wine and there’s the beach music in our background habang umaandar ang bangka! eto nanaman yung moment na masasabi mo sa sarili mong: “this is the life!”…

then finally, dinner and inom na ulit. since it will be the last dinner, we decided to eat at aria (pizza, pasta and fire dancers on the side), then for drinks naman, we revisited station 1 (disappointing though, sobrang jologs na nga ng cocomangas side) and went back to station 2 to settle at hey jude. the night ended pretty early (around 0130 am) since our flight the following day was in the morning, mahirap ng hindi magising!

29 december, monday

beach is over! went back to manila early morning (but before that, managed to finish a tapsilog and logsilog meals at the caticlan airport). after an hour of plane ride, we went straight to aidrian’s flat where i quickly had my bathroom routine as i need to make it to rockwell before 1400 to catch up with the second batch of jollibee friends for lunch. fortunately, i made it past 1200 in c2, powerplant and saw kay, trix and wens. feels like 2005 again – jollibee days na hagalpakan ng tawa sa mga nakakatuwang kwento at chismis! hihihihi!

latter part that day naman was with monde friends. we met up at high street for dinner at claw daddy (first time ko dun, not bad but kinda overpriced – first time ko rin malaman and matikman yung san miguel premium beer – ok naman, parang watered-down heineken at smooth na san mig light) then drinks at texas grille.

twas nice knowing and seeing na after years na nagkasama-sama kayo sa trabaho, nakakapagkwentuhan pa rin kayo na parang same level nung year 2000-2004! parang walang nagbago! considering din that some people went out of the country (like kim and wen, by the way wen, salamat sa pagbabasa ng blog ko, ayan inextra kita! hahaha!), going back to manila to meet up and make kwento with old friends is like a pleasant and exciting routine that you won’t get tired of! salamat din tony for organizing and pau for the ride!

30 december, tuesday

glorietta and sm makati day – kailangan na mamili ng pasalubong pabalik ng jakarta. but of course, for the day to be more productive, i met up with another monde friend (sheila) over lunch at tgif. tamang usual bonding and kwentuhan which lasted for three hours…

after that, i headed home na to laguna na puno ang trunk ng kotse ng used clothes, groceries, gifts at dragon fireworks.

31 december, wednesday

new year’s eve template! attended mass, lighted the fireworks, ate media noche with the family.

01 january, thursday

while writing this blog entry, i just realized that i need to plan my life for this year… let’s see what i’ll come up with, but perhaps my mantra for 2009 can be encapsulated by the picture below

by the way, for more pics – please check out my facebook and friendster accounts…

pumayat daw ako… :P

wala na yatang gaganda pa sa pagbating, “huy, pumayat ka!”…  wahahaha!

matapos ang mahigit dalawang buwan na di ko nakita ang pamilya at kaibigan sa pinas, ito na siguro ang pinakamagandang pagbati na narinig ko nung dumating ako ulit sa maynila.  well, ang sagot ko lang jan e, “mantakin mo ba namang, talong beses lang ako nakatikim ng baboy sa nakaraang dalawang buwan, isama mo pa ang stress at pressure sa trabaho at adjustment na rin na mamuhay mag-isa sa banyagang lugar – sino ba naman ang di papayat?!”.

ganun pala ang pakiramdam maging balikbayan – sobrang masaya at exciting.  parang gusto mong wag na gumalaw ang oras para di matapos ang bakasyon mo.  walang tigil na kwentuhan at tawanan – akala ko dati, exaggerated yung nga eksena sa pelikula, pero hindi pala – iba talaga yung pakiramdam na makasama mo ulit yung mga mahal mo na sobrang na-miss mo!  usual stuff ang ginawa ko kasama sila, pero naging masaya ako:

day 1 (umaga): pagkasundo sa akin ni dad and mom sa naia 3, dumeretso kami sa jollibee!  wahahaha!  default order – 2pc. chickenjoy meal, extra rice, soup at large coke light!  tapos nun, nag-check in na kami
sa intercon, nagpahinga muna ng konti then lumabas na ulit para mag-mall.  nagpunta kami sa landmark para bumili ng barong na gagamitin ko sa wedding ng pinsan ko kinabukasan, tapos nun, nag-lunch na kami – gerry’s naman this time!  sinigang, pata at bangus!  sarap!  ikot ulit sa mall, then nagpagupit ako.  nagulat ang favorite stylist ko na si aureo dahil nagpaalam ako sa kanya two months ago – told him na bakasyon lang ako, nakwento ko rin na nakapagpagupit na ko sa jakarta, kaso lang, iba pa rin ang nakasanayan ko ng gupit nya sa propaganda, so malamang ang next kong gupit e sa pasko na ulit pagbalik ko sa pinas!  balik hotel na ulit at andun na ang kapatid ko.  konting kwentuhan then nagbihis na ko.

day 1 (gabi): dinner with usual (but really longed-for) friends at gb5.  first time ko sa myron’s place – ok naman, overpriced nga lang.  importante, masaya ang kwentuhan at tawanan naming lahat.  kahit pano, ang dating 9 e naging 5 ulit – kaso lang, bago matapos ang taon, may isa na ulit aalis papunta naman australia.  so, 3 na lang sila matitira sa pinas.  haaaay, kakalungkot, pero ganun ata talaga, kanya kanyang alisan, ang importante, magkakaibigan pa rin – who would have thought that after more than a decade e kami pa rin ang magkakasama?

mabilis na kwento: bena-papunta ng australia sa nov, aids-bagong trabaho bilan abm ng tv5, cris-patiently waiting kung anong kasunod, nons-new work at shell

buti na lang walang tao - di nakakahiya magpapicture! wahahaha!

day 2:  wedding day.  yung details and pictures nito is in the previous post.  after ng event, umuwi na kami ng laguna.

day 3:  home sweet home!  na-miss ko ang bahay namin – ang kama, ang kusina, ang dining room, ang magic sing, at kung anu-ano pa.  syempre, di pedeng hindi magluluto ang mommy ko ng food na gusto ko – so we had adobong manok sa gata, galunggong, bangus, chopseuy, etc.

day 4:  balik manila para i-meet ulit ang mga pinsan at ibang kaibigan for the last time since malapit na ko umalis.  nag-late lunch kami nila pau and joan sa sentro at nag-cofi sa figaro.  sayang, di nakasama si tony at vic for valid reasons.  sa pasko na lang siguro kami magkikita ulit.  after nun, mga pinsan ko naman ang mineet ko.  nag-dinner lang kami at nag-two rounds sa eastwood.  needless to say, pinoy food pa rin (since kasama sina kuyas aloy and jun na galing amerika) – dencio’s this time.  after nun, konting inom lang – kurant 7 and bailey’s for me.

meeting up with the newlyweds at mccafe

dinner!!!

after dinner

day 5: huling araw kasama ang mga kaibigan.  eto ang naging mandatory glorietta day kung saan nag-dinner kami sa tgif, nag-kape sa starbucks at nanood ng movie na tagalog (request ko kasi – hehe!).  sinamantala ko na rin ang pagpunta sa sm para bumili ng mga pasalubong sa mga officemates ko – walang kamatayang dried mangoes, otap, rosquillios, sampaloc, t-shirts at bags na may “pilipinas”, pearls, at kung anu-ano pa.  after nun, nag-overnight kami sa condo ni adrian – konting inom lang ng gran matador with coke (skwaks!  hahaha!) at isang masarap na umagahan courtesy of the gracious host!

at aids' lounge

dating gawi... drinking while copying files - mp3s, tv shows, etc.

day 6: balik laguna.   natulog lang ako maghapon.  nakakapagod din na magpuyat para magsaya.  lalo tuloy akong inubo.  bumili rin pala ko ng 100 tablets/capsules ng stresstabs at solmux – eto ang mga kakampi ko sa pagkakasakit at depresyon!  hahahaha!  bukod sa pagkain, nag-marathon lang din ako ng abs-cbn shows – simula wowowee hanggang bandila!

day 7:   after lunch with my folks, luwas na kami manila…  hinatid na nila ulit ako sa naia 3.  haaaay…

yan ang naging isang linggo ko sa pinas noong nakaraang linggo.  ngayon, andito na ulit ako sa jakarta.  magtatrabaho ulit sa susunod na more than 2 months at pagkatapos noon, uuwi ulit ng pinas para doon mag-pasko at bagong taon.

just wondering, sa december kaya, maririnig ko pa kaya ulit ang komentong “huy, pumayat ka!”? 

kasal, kasali, kasalo!

sa wakas, nakauwi na ako ng pinas at ikinasal na rin ang pinsan kong 47 years old!!!

big event sa pamilya namin ito dahil si kuya jun na ang pinakamatanda kong pinsan – matapos nyang libutin ang mundo sa pagiging army ng amerika, gawin at i-accomplish lahat ng ginusto nya at magpayaman sa buhay, tama lang naman na mag-retire na sya sa pagiging single. buti na lang kahit huli na ang biyahe, may nakilala pa syang nasa parehong sitwasyon, si ate gemma – ang bagong pinsan ng pamilya.

bukod sa naging masaya ang wedding dahil parang naging reunion na rin ito – may mga pinsan akong umuwi mula amerika, nakaka-aliw ang reception (maayos ang program flow at content) at masarap ang pagkain (kahit talagang i’m not fond of hotel food, nagustuhan ko ito). kaya sulit na rin ang pagod ng pagmamadali ko ng uwi from jakarta para makapag-turok ng veil sa pinsan kong na-late pa sa simbahan! wahahaha!

with balikbayan insan kuya aloy and fab fashion designer cuz ate grace

partner sa buffet table! hahaha!

family lobby shot!

the men in the family with the kengkoy groom!

finally!

unang uwi sa pinas

27 sept to 03 oct, nasa pinas ako – 4 days to go! ito ang unang uwi ko makaraan ang dalawang buwan na mamalagi ako dito sa jakarta para mag-trabaho.

actually, naka-plano itong pag-uwi ko bago pa man ako umalis dahil ikakasal ang isa sa mga pinsan ko sa 28 sept. pero, noong una naisip ko na weekend lang ako sa pinas (sat-sun), pero sa kabutiahang palad, sumakto ang sked ng uwi sa sked ng lebaran (end of ramadhan), kung saan isang buong linggo ang bakasyon nila dito! kumbaga, ito ang pasko ng mga muslim. pero dahil jan, may catch – fully booked ang flights at mahal ang ticket. buti na lang umabot ako sa booking ng cebu pacific – kahit first priority ko ang singapore airlines at second ang philippine airlines. ok na rin dahil 12:30am ang flight at dadating ako sa manila ng 5:30am, so tutulog lang ako sa eroplano at pagdating ko, time to party na! yahoo!

e-ticket sa unang pag-uwi ko

lesson learned – kung holiday at kailangan mag-book ng flight, dapat months before confirmed na. so sa pasko, kailangan ngayon pa lang mag-book na ko, unless gusto ko mag-paskong mag-isa dito, na syempe wala akong balak gawin.

also, sakto rin sana ang uwi ko sa game 3 ng uaap! dlsu vs admu pa naman ang finals. kaso lang, if manonood ako assuming may game 3 (well, sigurado na yan since talo dlsu sa game 1, hehehe!), di ako aatend ng kasal, which is malabong mangyari!

anyway, exciting na rin – makikita ko ulit ang pamilya ko, mga kaibigan at kamag-anak. at syempre, makakakain na ulit ako ng totoong lutong pinoy – looking forward to feasting over sinigang, chicken adobo sa gata, fried boneless bangus (na luto ng mommy ko), tapa, at syempre, ang walang kamatayang chickenjoy! not to mention ang pagko-concert ko sa magic sing sa bahay! wahahaha!

haaaaay… so with that, let me sing this relevant song line – “ilang tulog nanaman, jollibee nanaman… i love you sabado pati na rin linggo!”… pucha, with this mindset, isang ganap na akong ofw na looking forward maging balikbayan! no qualms about it, actually proud of it – and no worries, wala akong balak magsusuot ng denim jacket at thick gold necklace pag-uwi ko.