As it stands, I may be going to the following places in the near future:
April
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
May
Hanoi, Vietnam
June
Siem Reap, Cambodia
July
Siberia
Kidding on the last entry. Anyway, it looks as if I'm going on the great Indochina trip so soon after coming back from Thailand. A lot of it is still up in the air (so to speak). But it's fun to plan especially if a lot of people want to go (and seem intent to go, a big difference). Oh hell yeah, it costs a lot of money but I can't be doing this when I'm sixty and retired.
When I'm sixty and retired, you'd probably find me seeking enlightenment instead of material wealth. Probably somewhere in Tibet.
Before that, maybe stop by Bangkok, Laos and various other places. While we're young, while we're young...
Fresh off the Bintan trip, we thought of another opportunity for a holiday. And so it started as a question of where to go and what to do over the Easter weekend. Around here, Holy Week is not as observed as it is back home. It means that at most, we only get Good Friday off (in fact a radio DJ mentioned that it was Easter Friday). Now for the past twenty-six or so years, the Easter weekend to me means going to Bulacan and participating in the salubong on early Easter morn. Obviously, I wasn't planning to be anywhere near home for this year. Instead, a couple of people in the office and I decided to go Krabi, one of the many beach towns in Thailand. To short-circuit the [even more] boring story of correspondence with the travel agent, we ended up going to nearby Phuket and the much-hyped "most beautiful island in Thailand" Phi-Phi. Besides, there's a general consensus around here that you're never really on holiday unless you get out of the city-state. Away from the urban jungle and back to nature.
Fast-forward to the present.
It was a great holiday that left me rejuvenated and recharged. Once I get my flickr account sorted out, I'll post the two-something gigabyte collection of snaps I've taken during the trip, and put descriptions to boot. Tune in next time.
For this weekend in the beaches of Thailand, I imagined myself lounging under the sun, getting some rays, listening to music, and maybe having a drink.
One thing is missing in that pleasant scene, though: a good book.
In preparation for the trip, I set out to find a good book to read that's not too heavy, not too light, not too dark, not too serious and definitely one that I would enjoy reading. So no Neil Gaiman's Fragile Things, no Lonely Planet travel guides, no 1492: How China discovered the U.S., no The Little Book on Investing, and definitely no books on Agile Methodology.
After a bit of looking around in Borders out on Orchard road, I came upon the sports section. This was a good idea. I haven't read a good book on sports as far as I can remember, and there are a lot of good ones on the shelf.
I took some time browsing through wrestling titles. And by wrestling, I mean professional wrestling. By professional wrestling, I mean the WWE, which is professional, yes, but hardly competitive (oh, you didn't know? ;) ). Rowdy Roddy Piper's book, Hulk Hogan's book (incidentally, there's a reality show called Hogan Knows Best, shown here on cable), Terry Funk's book, Mick Foley's book, etc.
And then there are the books about basketball. Unauthorized biography of Bobby Knight, Coach K's book, Michael Jordan's (hardly-a-book-more-of-promo) book, Charles Barkley's book.
In the end, I picked the book which I thought was a bit dated even if it was very recent.
Yes, I finally picked up Phil Jackson's book on the season the Los Angeles Lakers had four future Hall of Famers and lost.
I read the first few chapters on the train ride home and I was hooked! I bought the perfect book for me.
In the immortal words of Samuel L. Jackson, "goooood motherfuckin' choice, motherfucker!"*
*actually it was Dave Chappelle as Samuel Jackson, but you get the point. Or maybe you need to see it yourself.
They pulled the plug on using webmail in the office. Along with it, Gmail chat. Sigh.
Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.
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Been glued to the TV watching the new Bobby Chinn show on Discovery Travel and Living: World Cafe Asia. It's generally about different kinds of food all over Asia. He's been to Vietnam eating Pho Bo and having a barbecue out on the rice paddies. He had a curious trip to Tokyo taking a slice of fresh tuna and a bowl of Chanku Nabe, the same thing sumo wrestlers eat. Today's episode was about delicious Hong Kong food, which I like myself. It's a bit short for half an hour. I guess it's less of a travel show than it is a food show; however, I prefer the former.
There's never a bad time for food tripping.
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This is what it looks like outside our balcony window.
Not bad, eh? I should make a blog design out of it. That blog redesign's about one year past due, anyway.
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Finally, finally got to watch High Fidelity on DVD. There was this lone copy for rent in Gramophone inside Centrepoint mall (not to be confused with SM Centerpoint). $3 was all it took. I'm supposed to return it tomorrow, and I will, since now I have a copy.
Honestly, while the music is good, and Jack Black's funny here, I need to watch it one more time. It's hard for me to keep from comparing it with the book (which was much, much better on first viewing).
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Have a good Holy Week everyone! I'll be back from Thailand on Monday B-)
I caught an interesting programme for the upcoming film festival here in Singapore. I still remember trekking out to Greenbelt to catch excellent films in Cinemanila. Those films were my aids for cultural immersion, and gave us all a taste of world cinema without having to look very hard for it. I've discovered a couple all-time favorite films in these film festivals: The Ring, In the Mood For Love, Y Tu Mama Tambien, Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros, etc.
There are quite a number of films which I would like to see, if schedule permits. In fact, I'd like to see all Filipino entries to start with. They're showing Kubrador and Imahe Nasyon among others and I might just catch them after work.
Tickets normally cost $8.40 plus $1 booking fee through SISTIC. It's priced much like a normal movie around here.
We're 100% going to Phi Phi Islands on April 6 - 9. The plan however had to be adjusted since we weren't able to get a morning flight. Now, we spend a night in Phuket near Patong Beach before transferring to Ko Phi Phi Don the morning after. Not bad, eh?
That area was about decimated by the 2004 Tsunami but the businesses sprang back up after some time. They're even repeating the same development mistakes as before. But it should still be a good experience, nonetheless. In fact, I'm really looking forward to this trip
'Tis the season of course, for sun, surf and sand. At least, around this part of the Earth.
It finally happened. I feel like shit having this sore throat, which prevented me form going to work today. I might not go tomorrow either to have a check up at one of the clinics.
It's times like these when you miss being home and taken cared of. Again, I don't regret my choice of going away from home and duking it out myself. Still, it feels nice to be taken cared of.
Something has stolen my voice, and I need the doctor to tell me what to do. I sincerely HOPE, they don't give me just painkillers. They usually do. At least give me antibiotics.
And give me another weekend to waste at home.
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I blame the weather, though. I believe it was that sudden downpour last Tuesday which got me. By Wednesday, I was coughing throughout the day until it became uncontrollable. Must've caught something.
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What a bad time to be sick. I was bent on starting on the get-to-300 shape (you know what I mean) for the next couple of weeks. This is in preparation for the Phi Phi trip during the Easter weekend. Less than a month away. The arrangements for the trip just got confirmed today, so we're all set.
Last Wednesday, an email was sent out inviting participation on the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge. It's a 5.6Km run just around central Singapore. I wanted to join just to prove something to myself. Alas, it's in jeopardy with this condition of mine. I should've started training days ago.
I'm such a weakling. Whatever the hell happened to my immune system?
Used to be, back in high school, I'd go just one day absent in an entire school year. And if I had gotten sick, I wasn't filled with self-pity like now.
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In lighter news, I managed to buy Fa Yeung nin wa, also known as In the Mood for Love on DVD, however. Good for my collection. A Wong Kar-wai classic.
I recently survived a financial diagnostic test of sorts, covering topics in investment banking. With luck and effort, I managed to pass the 32-item exam with a not-so-pathetic grade of 24 (75%). Passing is 60%. I'm quite proud, considering there are questions like "What's the minimum tick size of a DAX 30 futures contract?" or "the differences between futures and forward rate agreements". Enough to drive you N.U.T.S.
It's all good education nonetheless. The thousand-page information that I've squeezed in my brain should leak out in the next few weeks to come. It's never to be heard of or seen again. Except perhaps in my resume.
So what now?
We'll I've managed to save myself a couple more training sessions and tests because of this. And I'll be able to concentrate more on the real work that pays me every month.
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Work hard and play hard. We're also set on going to Phi Phi Island on the Easter weekend. It's where the movie, The Beach was shot. It should be fun. I haven't been to any part of Thailand before. Thank God for the visa-free entry for ASEAN members.
We were thinking of either Krabi, Phuket, Langkawi or Cebu at the beginning. However, might as well go the distance, so to speak. It's not cheap whatever our British expats say about it. It makes quite a dent, in fact to savings. So let's hope it's all worth it.
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So to immerse myself in the memory that will be the Phi Phi Island trip, I've trekked to the IT Show in Suntec and found myself a couple of good buys. How about a 2GB Kingston SD card for my battered and bruised camera for $25 (around P750.00)? Not bad eh?
Anywho, I'm not rich or dedicated enough to buy a "wasteful-for-me" DSLR, running upwards of a thousand dollars at least. I know a people who did, though. (And she has my full support, as long as she includes me sometimes in her pictures). So good luck with that.
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Now, let's move onward with the abs-tastic movie 300. What can I say, it's another spectacular film WORTH watching. It's visually stunning, very creative, and the girls seem to like the Spartans so much. Incidentally, I hope those washboard abs will be nominated for best supporting cast on an awards event somewhere. Go see it!
The Men on Film sketch of In Living Color would have loved this one.
I'm thinking of buying the graphic novel. Still thinking...
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I have such a headache today. Almost done with laundry. It's probably the Indian food that I ate this lunch. OK, I got carried away. Anyway, for dinner, I made a sandwich with breakfast ham, cheese, some greens and butter on toast. I had nonfat yoghurt for dessert.
Gotta have chiseled abs for Phi Phi. The clock is ticking.
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It's a good week for friends last week. Hope to see them more often.
...is that most of the time, you go back to reality like you were never away.
My three-day week happened to be as stressful as an 80-hour work week. Even though:
1) I just came from a vacation, 2) I spent time with good friends, 3) I ate delicious food and, 4) I got paid this week.
Thursday, I was already so down that I had to buy something. Yeah, shop-theraphy works for me as a temporary solution. I had to pick wisely even at this state. The choices include Appleseed DVD (don't know if it's worth it), Dishwalla - Greetings From the Flow State (wasn't there when I went back for it), Better Than Ezra - Before The Robots CD ($47.95, highway robbery), David Lynch's Blue Velvet DVD (pricey as well), High Fidelity DVD (not available) and other miscellaneous CDs and/or DVDs, or another good book.
In the end, I got a copy of Damien Rice's first album, O. It's good music, and mellow enough to fit my current mood, which is down, but not out. Not yet suicidal down as in The Cardigans - Long Gone Before Daylight (which I bought the Chinese version weeks before for a bargain $9.99), though.
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Pau dropped the suggestion of a retreat for this Lenten season. (It's perhaps the only season that Singapore hasn't capitalised on yet). I think I need to go to one.
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I am required to take an exam on investment banking financial concepts. 1000+ pages in a week or so, on top of actual productive work.
Housemate Nes, hope you had a nice vacation. And don't mind what I said about vacations :D
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I managed to avoid using my credit card this month. Credit cards are evil! Letting you spend money you have not earned yet is dangerous for financial stability. So I'm quite proud that I was able to achieve such resistance to temptation. It's all about control.
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You know there are just no slow news days on Philippine politics and showbiz.
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How do you get into a state when you are really ready to take a vacation? You know, like in school, you take summer vacations, and not worry about old things when you come back.
How's that for an axiom: The thing I miss most about school is summer vacations.
Anticipating the absolute boredom that envelopes Singapore for the duration of the Chinese New Year (CNY) celebrations, we had to go somewhere else to get some R & R. A lot of expats, who choose not to go home for the holidays (Feb 17-20, this year) go the same way as a couple of officemates and I did: head for Bintan Resorts.
Lagoi, as it is originally called is a Singapore colony off one of the closest Indonesian islands from here, Pulau Bintan. It takes around an hour or so travel from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal. The weather was a bit unfavourable at the beginning; but we were still hopeful of a good stay at the resort we chose, Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel.
It's good news for me as well to know that my "old" waterproof case still works. Some wear and tear cracks but normal, really. The beach at low tide is full of sea stuff and you could see that the coast is hardly on an incline.
Instead, I just made the best out of the waterproof case in the swimming pool/s.
There are quite a number of novelty things to do there. One of which was to ride an elephant for S$10 (P310.00).
But the beach wasn't so bad/gross during high tide. The sun was out, and the waves were alive.
Not bad, not bad at all. Beats the heck out of any beach in Singapore. Except for the inflated food prices (S$15-30 per head), it was all worth it. Travel is hardly a problem from here. I'll be back some other boring long weekend.
I've just been handed a blank tax form to be filled up in the near future. They don't withhold taxes here like they do back home; they give you the entire thing to spend away. Good thing I set money aside every month for taxes and miscellaneous expenses. Aaand, I'm planning on paying for last year's taxes on installment throughout this year through auto-debit (GIRO). It's a considerable ease on finances.
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I'm getting to like Indian food a lot. It's very much like Filipino dishes (served with rice and all). Roti Prata/Naan breads dipped in curry, the spicier, the better. In Manila, I've only really tasted Indian food in Queen's Crystal Garden Restaurant. Paneer, Tandoori, Samosa...
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Chinatown is busy this time of the year, in preparation for Chinese New Year (CNY) celebrations. People are hawking abalone, dried food, candies and selling Hong Bao ("ang paw" in Hokkien) envelopes. I've heard that Singapore stores and restaurants will generally be closed during the time, February 16-20. So if you're planning on visiting Singapore that time of the year. You might not get to do much in the city-state.
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Sometimes, rummaging through sale racks and bins, you find some gems that not a lot of people care about. For example, in one of the shopping centres in Chinatown, I got myself a copy of Birth of A Nation for a good $5 (P150.00). It's a really old (1915) movie regarded as a pioneer in the industry, paving the way for beyond-an-hour long pictures. I'm no movie expert, but I never pass up on a chance to watch a classic, even if it's just to see what the fuss is all about. Yeah, I'm a poser.
I'll view it during one of my lonely laundry days.
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One of the rare finds I found in London was this Japanese movie, Battle Royale, which I only was able to watch recently. It has very highly illogical, insane, yet fascinating premise. It involves Japanese schoolgirls, guns, and violence galore. It's also got Chiaki Kuriyama, more known worldwide as Go-Go Yubari in Kill Bill. What more do you want? (Oh yeah, sex. Well it depends. The film doesn't really need it.)
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Tried out kickboxing with a free intro course. Interesting but expensive at $20 (P600.00) per class. And you're supposed to take four or eight in a month. I'll stick to the free workouts for a while.
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And so while Singapore sleeps over the Chinese New Year. A couple of friends and I are headed towards Bintan, Indonesia. A nice coastal resort-town some forty-five minutes away by ferry. Time to take out and test the ol' waterproof case that hasn't been used since Fontana last year. I just hope it still works and my camera doesn't get wet... and broken...and I won't have to replace it...with maybe a DSLR...during March IT Show...if ever I'll have money to buy...which I won't have...Nope...I don't need it...don't spend...don't spend...Nnngh!
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I've finished reading High Fidelity. (Hey, I'm on a roll on reading books!) I like it a lot and I can't wait until I get my hands on a DVD copy of the movie. The ending is not for me though, not at this point in my life. Nonetheless, go read this one, if you haven't.
My mom showed me pictures of the work being done to my room in Manila. They're cementing most of as termites were infesting a good portion of it. That part of the house was just an extension to the original design of the house.
It's way overdue. Termites destroyed my precious comic collection some months ago and prompted me to get a blog just to vent. Since then I've been venting out on other things.
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A couple of interesting reads went around through email: Jim Paredes' blog post and John Gokongwei's Commencement Exercises speech. (The latter I can email to you from work, if you want)
It's interesting how you can effect change just through experience and words.
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Phoenix Suns are unstoppable! And fun to watch as well. Now THAT is how basketball is played.
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I've finished reading Good Omens recently. It took me quite a couple of train rides and sit-down sessions (you know) to finally be done with it. It's quite funny in a twisted blasphemous sense.
So now I'm off to another book, High Fidelity, as recommended by my lovely friend, who thought I'd like it a lot. I'm enjoying it so far. I haven't seen the movie, so I've really got no idea how this one plays out.
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Ok, I've got the consumer sales in Singapore all figured out. All the other people here probably know about these quarterly events already. But it goes:
If I get a U.S. visa, June: San Francisco, Las Vegas, Houston, New York
Or else, March: Hong Kong 2Q/3Q: Australia
And scattered trips around Southeast-Asia if finances allow (but it probably won't be)
I hope it happens for me this year. It's nice to plan, then life would get in the way but you keep trying anyway.
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I recently signed up for Last.fm. To check what sort of junk I'm listening to, click here.
Tell me if you've signed up already and let's connect.
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Yesterday, we took a free introductory course to kickboxing. It's an active aerobic exercise, and I got easily winded (because I'm out of shape and overweight!). I'm thinking about continuing, which will cost me a good $20 per session. I mean, I just got a bike for $100 already.
I've found another anti-spending measure, and not to mention, it's quite healthy too.
The bike taking a break from my ass at Bedok Jetty.
Last Saturday, we went to the East Coast Park, rented a couple of bikes, $5 for two hours and biked away on the trail. It's good exercise and nice to do every now and then. In fact I'm getting a bike myself (wait, what about that thing on not spending?). The apartment is just two kilometers from the East Coast Park and there are park connectors to and fro, made for pedestrians, joggers, skaters and bikers.
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Today is the day I start to anal-retentively track ALL my spending. Let's see how this one goes.
I was walking inside Ngee Ann City and Wisma Atria earlier. Both establishments sit atop Orchard Rd. The commercial stretch frequented by tourists and casual shoppers alike and where it is very apparent that Singapore equals shopping.
I had been drawn a couple of times out of my way to check out good deals on some products
G2000 long-sleeved shirts: $19 (~P603.00) each Giordano grey shirt (just the way I like it): $39 (~P1240.00) Empire Magazine Feb 2007, Optimus Prime cover: $16.50 (~P525.00)
Sale here, sale there. "End of Season sale", "Final Sale"...
It's very difficult to resist some bargains or just plain good products. And it's very easy to pull out the plastic, and sign away the purchase into the next statement date.
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Well, you've dreamed about this since when you were a kid and you couldn't buy that toy that you've always wanted.
At least I did.
And now after a couple of hours a week, sitting down and "applying" myself, I get paid every month. With that, I get to buy whatever the heck I want. The trick, of course, is not to get crazy with the spending. Because the more money you have, the easier it is to get carried away.
Starting next pay day, every expense is going into this nifty Microsoft Money program installed in my laptop. That way I can track spending and forecast cashflow (or so the program says). I also need to set up another account, maybe a time deposit or a unit trust just to have a place for my money to sit in. I've been advised to look into more long-term investments next year probably. Property and such. But that's still too far ahead.
Career started to take off. Made a lot of new friends. Reconnected with old ones. Strengthened existing ones.
The trip to London was extremely memorable. A lot of firsts. First business trip. First time in Europe. First time to miss a flight. It proved even more that I was capable of a lot of things, and in many aspects.
Singapore was a blast. For the first time in my life, I was able to do whatever I wanted provided I just take care of myself. And with this newfound freedom, I was able to focus more on myself and what I can do.
[I don't usually spills my guts out here, but anyway...]
And so that has been the theme for 2006: The change in me. It's not where I am, where I go, how much I'm making, what I am spending it on... but rather, what I make of myself, where I'm headed, and how I get myself there. How melodramatic. But that doesn't make it less true.
I've been through a lot last year. A LOT. Goods things and bad things. Of careers, friends and loves. One of the lessons I've learned was that you should take all these things, swallow them, and become better. Never try to forget or escape. Always be thankful for everything.
I've been given a blank slate for 2007. It's all up to me.
The year started with angst and ended with optimism.
Travel: Was it more of going away or going back home?
After months of staring into my then blank passport, I was able to save up for a trip to Hong Kong. It was a foreshadowing perhaps, of the travelling I would be doing for the next couple of months.
But first, a I made few trips to appreciate how naturally beautiful the mother land is. First off, the wonderful and oh-so-near to Manila, tropical paradise of Puerto Galera.
