Trip to Orlando

I've always been vocal about my desire to visit Orlando, Florida someday. I'd like to visit the theme parks (what else?!?), especially that the Harry Potter theme park will open in 2009 (I am a Potterhead!). Of course, I would choose to go there with my entire family and probably some friends. Since we are now considered a big family, we can probably avail of group hotel bookings so we can save a bit. I also heard Orlando.com can arrange vacations in the area and they can even suggest the perfect itinerary so we can make the most of our time. I just can't wait to feel like a kid again!

Thinking of Summer

We missed a big part of summertime this year since we went away. We weren't able to go to the beach. I would have loved to go again to Boracay or Palawan or just Subic. Or maybe we could have tried Puerto Galera, Pagudpud, or Cebu. Just before we left, our badminton buddies suggested we go to Kota Kinabalu. That would have been nice too, eh? We are a big group and a beach house rental,  seemed perfect. The holiday season is fast approaching, so maybe a beach trip will have to wait.

US Pics finally uploaded!

Finally, I finished uploading our US pics in Flickr. Thanks to Yahoo/Flickr, for giving me a three-month free PRO account. See Yahoo photos is closing down in a few months and I was made to choose what to do with my pictures uploaded there. I figured that since I already have my Flickr account, I will use that instead. Then the PRO account for choosing Flickr (a Yahoo company). Now I must have $25 by the end of three months for me to continue the PRO service heheheh paktay na naman kay Ane.

Oh I miss that silly face! This one was taken by Kuya J. THIS IS WHERE THE REST OF THE PICTURES ARE. Thank you for looking. Thank you for sharing our trip through pictures :)

Ninong can go home by himself.

Said Joaquin. Hehe. He didn't want me to leave, but jokes my Ane that he can leave anytime. But he was happily waving goodbye at us at the airport. Later he said we were just at the market. Poor boy, thinking we are returning anytime soon.

I was talking to him this morning and asked me, "Ninang, are you still in the airplane?" Which made me laugh, hihi. And made kwento about his Mommy getting him a new Lego Set (of course my sister was denying it to his face hahaha). Anyway, I always tease him and tell him "You silly boy!" for which he would retort, "You silly mommy!". My answer would always be, "I'm not your mommy!". One day, I was startled because he answered back, whispering, "But you are my secret mommy." Aaawwww. How can I not adore this boy?

On our last day in San Jose, we still managed to watch Tranformers again :). We accompanied Kuya Jun. Of course, we had a blast (again!) and I understood the movie better the second time around. Because then, I was more observant and saw all the small details of the movie which are quite important too. We got home around two pm and continued packing our stuff. We also managed to get some boxes of Girl Scouts cookies from (Tita) Didith. We love free stuff :)

While packing though, we received some sad news from Ate's college galpal (more on that later). On the way to the airport, we grabbed some Krispy Kreme Glazed Doughnuts and some Burgers from In N Out so we'll have something to eat at the airport while we wait for our boarding. I'll miss the burgers for sure!

We parted ways around 830pm. I felt like crying especially when we said our goodbyes. We took off shoes and passed through security. I was trying my best so my tears won't fall until...

Security asked me about my handcarried bag and whether they can open and inspect it. And then boom! I was instantly scared (a bit) while thinking about the contents (not that there are prohibited things in there, duh!) but just the thought of being held for a few minutes. I was nervous! It was just the ref magnet we bought from Disney that did it. Hehe. So there. My momentum was clearly ruined, hihi.

After that, I looked back and realized that my sister and her family already left. Sigh. I miss Joaquin already.

FAQs

1. When did you arrive?

- We left San Francisco Airport on July 6 at 11pm. There was a brief stop-over in Guam but we were not allowed to unboard. Our plane landed on NAIA2, July 8 430am, one hour earlier than ETA on our tickets (prolly because of DST? hmmm).

2. How was the flight?

- The flight was pretty smooth from SanFo to Guam (about 10hours). Our seats sucked though. We were assigned on aisle82 (waaayyyy behind) beside the area where the food was stored. It was a noisy area. The man sitting behind us was pushing our seats forward, even had the guts to take his shoes off. He put up his foot where we can practically smell it! For dinner, we had some steamed fish (we ran out of choices!) over rice and vegetables. We didn't have our own tv monitors installed on the seats in front of us so we decided to just sleep. But couldn't. Sigh. Breakfast was served before landing Guam (corned beef and rice). The short flight from Guam to Manila (about 3hours) was bumpy. Rainy season has arrived so it was cloudy.

3. Why did it take so long for you to come out of the airport?

- Baggage claim took ages!! Okay, more than an hour. The carousel for our flight was also used simultaneously for another flight. Argh! No problems though with Immigration and Customs.

4. You look fat, did you gain weight?

- I beg to disagree! I did gain weight, only about a pound or so but that's pretty insignificant. :) Ane also gained a few pounds...The gain is something a badminton game can easily shed.

5. You got tanned, did you?

- Yes. I guess those times we were out at the Theme Parks did it for us.

6. Where's my pasalubong?

- Sorry to say that we didn't bring home any. At least not that much. We weren't there for a shopping spree as our pocket money was very limited. We did buy some stuff for others who sent in money though.

7. The biggest question of all: Did you get pregnant while you where there?

- This is a dreaded question, it gets me stressed really. But to answer the question: NO. I was delayed for 45days until I felt cramps while onboard.

Golden Gate, Crookedest at Lombard, Coit Tower, Alcatraz and Gay Pride Parade

It is past 3pm and am still in my pj's. Hhhhmmmmmm...

Anyway, Friday and Sunday (we were just home on Saturday) were spent in SanFo. My sister had a three-day conference in Burlingame, so we dragged ourselves to explore more of the city. We were here, there and everywhere the past weekend...all on a sudden decision to drive my sister and drop her off at the hotel where the conference was held. I would have met with a fellow Bebot, Joyce since she lives somewhere there but because we have no control of where to go, I missed the opportunity (wow, a dragging sentence!). Oh, maybe the next time we come here, I could plan ahead. (whoa, I just realized that we are homebound in less than two weeks and that the 1st half of the year is almost over! Time just flew by).

Friday, we arrived at Pier 33 where we could purchase tickets for the Alcatraz tour but we found out that the trips were sold out and the next available slots were for Sunday. A cruise arrived that day and another will dock the next day so the trips were all full. We decided to buy tickets for the first trip on Sunday instead. We had so much time to spare that day as a result (my sister's sessions will end at 5pm that day). We drove around to find a really nice spot to see the Golden Gate Bridge, sought the help of the GPS. But we got lost. Hehehe. The GPS just like any other device runs on gigo system. We entered "Golden Gate park" and we were led to a well, park that is miles away from the bridge. Kuya J thought of typing "Presidio" on the GPS and we found what we were looking for, after we followed a short trail from the Crissy Field Center! There was no low fog that day (although still cold!) so we were able to get very nice pictures of the GGB. :)

Then we drove round and round again to find the Crookedest Street along Lombard :) We missed this the first time we went to SF so I was so insistent that we should find it on Friday. We found it, anyway, and even did the drive-down twice hehehe (had to brave the very steep Hyde Street!). That was just so cool! Afterwards, we stopped briefly at the Coit Tower where one can see a spectacular view of Downtown SF and the Bay. We didn't stay long coz by then, we were hungry and needed to grab some lunch already. We drove back to Palo Alto and along El Camino Real, had a very late lunch at Boston Market (traffic at 101 was terrible, an effect of the repairs being done).

Our day ended with a mad woman because we were 45 minutes late in picking her up. I told yah, we spent more than an hour on 101 just to get there (regular travel is around 20 minutes only!).

On Sunday, yesterday, we were up again early. We dropped my sister at the hotel and went straight to Pier33. We were just on time. We boarded the 930am boat and were in Alcatraz. We took advantage of the Audio tour which was really interesting and educational (took more than an hour). We missed the trek though (where the guide will show the escape points) because we had to get in the 1130 boat back to the bay (my sister is to be picked up at 1220pm). We finished the audio tour at 1115am and had to run towards the dock (10minutes walk down) so we won't miss the trip. We got in two minutes before the gates closed. :)

We parked nearby so it didn't take us too long to get into the car and start driving towards Burlingame which is just 15-20 minutes away. Upon turning at Embarcadero, traffic was slow moving. Uh-oh, we cannot be late AGAIN! We took Battery St and were detoured even before we reached Market St. And then it hit us. The Gay Pride Parade was that day! Earlier that day, we saw people in costumes and there were floats being readied. (On a side note though, I would have wanted to watch the Parade because it only comes once a year and WE WERE THERE already...sigh). By the way, to get to 101, cars must cross Market and the only accessible road was Embarcadero! And of all days, Kuya Jun and Ane forgot their mobile phones at home while I left mine on purpose. So how are we supposed to let my sister know that we will be late? We found a payphone and I was able to leave a message on Ate's supposed voicemail. We were off the hook or so we thought.

We arrived at the hotel, more than an hour late and the lady was furious. She said we almost gave her a heart attack because she could not contact any of us. She even called Alcatraz if there were any accidents of that sort. We told here we sent her a VM and she answered she didn't get any. Turned out the number I sent the VM to wasn't hers. We missed the last number (8 instead of 9). Nyeks.

We were all hungry and the ride home was freakin' silent (as if waiting for a bomb to explode). Hehe. We grabbed some late lunch at Goldilocks (yep yep!) and headed home. We all took a nap (from 330pm to 6pm, woah), attended the mass at 7pm and had pizza dinner at Round Table. My sister was in an okay mood already by then.

That's it for now, we are off to Walmart to return the Coleman inflatable bed that has a small puncture. Hehe.

Disneyland Adventure

Warning: This is a four-day kwento, so it will be long :) Am doing this because I do not trust my memory.


Monday, 11th of June

We woke up just before 6am to catch our 840am flight. I was still sleepy because we slept late last night. We got to SJ airport at 7am and immediately checked-in. We got some breakfast from Burger King and waited at gate4. The news was on at the boarding area and there was a story about a roller coaster in Arkansas that was left hanging upside down. So Ane and I decided not to ride the roller coaster anymore at California Adventure. We can't be too sure eh? (We're just paranoid, hehe).

Our plane left on time and after an hour or so, and a very bumpy flight, we landed at LAX already. We got our small luggage and asked where we could find the center island. We knew we had transportation already included in our package. We just didn't know it would be a big bus where all tourists from all hotels within Anaheim Resort can ride. We thought someone with a placard will come and get us to our hotel. Hehehe, paimportante pa. The bus ride was about 45mins long. We got to our hotel and our room simply exceeded my expectations! I didn't know there were two Sheratons in that area (Anaheim and Park at Anaheim), and we got the better one (Sheraton Anaheim got really ugly reviews)! I was so happy to get this room. Yup, there were two queen-sized beds! You bet, Ane and I was so glad to have two big beds. But we ended up using just one, hihihihi. We were on honeymoon mode! Our package didn't include breakfast though, which wasn't a big deal anyway.

By then, we haven't eaten lunch yet (around 1pm) but we decided to go the Disneyland right away and get our three-day parkhopper tickets (Disney and California Adventure). We told ourselves we will just go in and check the place out first then we could get food outside. We entered Disney and you bet we can't get ourselves to go out anymore for food! Not to mention the long walk going to the park, we felt we belong in the "happiest place on earth". There we were, mesmerized by all of it. :) We got to Main Street and saw the left-handed Pluto right away! We got our pictures taken and we noticed some kids having his autograph taken, which was cute. Ane's eyes met mine and after talking about it, we got ourselves our own authograph book with matching pen! [Later, we found Pluto again, and guess what, ours was a right-handed Pluto...hhhmmmmmm] You know, one thing we realize the minute we got there is that -- it is okay to be silly...Silliness is accepted in the place where parents, not kids, get lost.

Our agenda for our Day1 was to stalk the characters for pictures and signatures (hehe), study the map, find a way to ride Pirates of the Carribean, and watch the Parade and Fireworks that night. We did all that and more! Although we didn't see all the characters on day1, we were able to do most of the things we planned to do plus all the unplanned ones. We almost forgot to eat but somehow, we were able to grab some pizza and soda. The Pirates ride had a long queue but we got in in less than 1hour. Twas a pretty cool ride if only the girls riding behind us in the boat did not scream just before the short drop in the darkest part of the ride! Talk about spoiling the adventure for us, tsk. We also did the Haunted Mansion, Tiki Room, Jungle Ride and Indiana Jones (among others) where we didn't mind waiting in line. We knew there were fastpasses in some of the attractions but we were happy just as it is waiting, because that meant some talk time for us. :)

We caught the 330pm Parade near "It's a small world" and we were like kids in awe. Disneyland has always been a dream. And just being there, one of our dreams came true right before our eyes. Call it silly (even if I wrote earlier that silly is not taboo there) but I almost cried. I wondered at what age we will ever be capable of bringing our kids there. The Fireworks display at 925pm was equally awesome, it sent goosebumps all over me. I was choking and trying to keep the tears from falling. I was just sooooooo elated!

The park's closing was at midnight but we decided to leave and rest after the Fireworks show. We grabbed some dinner at Mcdo and headed to our hotel room. We called it a night after showering. It was a long day!

Tuesday, 12th of June

There is a newly re-opened attraction at Disney, the Finding Nemo Submarine Ride, so the lines were obviously mighty long. Since our tickets included one-day early entry, it meant we could enter the park at 7am. We planned on waking up early that day but alas, we woke up at 10am, even with the alarm and all! We jumped out of bed and arrived at the park just before noon. We failed to grab some brunch coz we hurried to "Find Nemo" (no fastpasses here). When we got to main street, Mickey, Donald and Minnie (whose authograph we got yesterday already) were there for photo-ops! I hurriedly fell-in line for Mickey but he left even before I got to him. The attendant said we could find him in his house in ToonTown. Sayang, we should have lined up for Donald instead since Ane wanted his signature badly! But we missed him too after Mickey left. Sigh. But we were able to meet up with Mickey behind his house in the Barn.

We headed on to Tomorrowland and found that the waiting time for the Nemo ride was 3hours. Three hours! We definitely wouldn't want to wait that long, noh? We promised ourselves that we should be in the park by 8am the next day, no excuses whatsoever, hehe.

We hopped on over to California Adventure where the crowd was much more tolerable :) We did the Monsters's Inc ride and then we got curious and queued at the Hollywood Tower Hotel, which turned out to be the Tower of Terror where riders are seated in elevators, and dropped abruptly! Now of course, we didn't know that! Had we known, we wouldn't even dare at all but we enjoyed it immensely! The 4D show, "It's hard to be a bug", over at Bug's Land was a nice surprise and instantly became my favorite. We rode the rapids (an Indian family cut our line but then nobody complained anyway, so we just let them) and got wet a bit then met Tow Mater and Lightning McQueen by the streets. By 530pm, it was time for the Block Party Bash which was as fun as the Disney Parade :)

That night, we were also scheduled to meet up with a childhood friend of mine, Weng, who is currently based in Van Nuys. She texted that she'll be late for our 730 agreement and told us to expect her by 8pm. To be more productive of our time, we stayed in CaAd and lined-up for Soarin' over California, a must-try according to my sister and BIL. Just before our turn, a sign was posted saying that people who are afraid of heights should not ride. That is me, certainly! I would have backed-out but Ane promised it would be okay. It was not. I did not enjoy it at all. I was stiff and holding on to my seat and was just looking straight all the time. The ride is a simulated tour, as if one is riding a glider, and one's feet are suspended on air. I was freaking out, I tell you!

By the time we were done, Weng already texted that they were already outside our hotel. So we ran to Sheraton and found her there in her car with her two friends, Rusty (who I also know from grade school) and Malou. We drove along Harbor Blvd, looking for Red Lobster but didn't find it so we settled for Tony Roma's. It was a nice dinner and chat session. It's been years since Weng and I saw each other. We parted ways around 1015pm and we forgot to take pictures! Ugh!

Because I had too much to eat, we dropped by 7-Eleven to get some coffee before we headed to our hotel room. We got ready for bed and fell immediately asleep as soon as Weng texted they were already home as well. :) We were so thankful that she was able to see us and drove 45mins (one way) just to treat us to dinner.

Wednesday, 13th of June

We did get up a bit past 7am and were able to enter the park at 810am. We were already at the end of the line at the gates when we got there so naturally, the line at Nemo was already long when we got inside. We were told it would take an hour and 20mins for our turn, but we were ready for that. I left Ane at the line and bought ourselves some breakfast :) When I got back people around us were teasing -- "That's not fair!", "Share your breakfast!", "Oh, thank you for breakfast", "That was smart of you to do that!" etc etc. It was so funny because people are obviously clamoring to ride the sub that some missed to eat their first meal. The Nemo Sub ride was the longest attraction in Disney at the moment, lasting for 14mins. But sadly, I believe that it is a bit overrated as the other attractions were better, IMHO. Talking with Crush, Live at CaAd was more entertaining! Ane and I enjoyed the sub ride just the same.

The rest of the day were spent stalking some more characters, re-riding some of the attractions (in both parks but not Soarin' again, heheh) and just enjoying ourselves. We also bought ourselves (and Joaquin) a pair each of Mickey Crocs and some Jibbitz to go with it. We are not really Crocs fans (Go Havis!) but the Mickey Crocs are worth the memories we could keep so we grabbed 'em. :)

We were really tired by 3pm so we decided to head back to the hotel. But only after we strolled in Downtown Disney where we went into various shops. The Anne Geddes store took my attention and there I found some newborn baby dolls being sold. The dolls looked so real and if they were not too expensive at $215, I would have bought one right away! I have my Sissy already and I guess it's about time she gets a baby brother, eh? Ane said if it is that steep, maybe we should just make our own baby? Hehe.

After the stroll, Ane didn't want to go back to the Harbor exit because it was far. So we found a map that leads to Katella Ave access to our hotel. Now if the map we saw didn't have too many "you are here" marks, then we would have found our way fast enough. We got lost in Downtown Disney and found our hotel a bit after 5pm. Because we were just walking (and have been walking the past three days), my legs were already shaking I was just glad I did not collapse. We bought some hotdog sandwiches at 7-Eleven and stayed in our hotel room all night long. I was in pain and could not move my legs anymore. I felt paralyzed! Hehe. So it was a long restful sleep for us.

The next day, we were San Jose bound. Checked out of the hotel at 930am, we were already at LAX by 11am. We were so glad to see Joaquin waiting at the Arrival area with his Dad. The boy was happy to see us again, and even welcomed us with "Hey, you're back!!!!!".

There, I am done writing about our Disney Trip :) This is a loooong entry, I hope my grammar and spelling errors are minimum hheheheheh. Next on my agenda is to scrap, scrap, scrap and/or post our pictures (including the other pictures form our previous trips here)! But after am done with the wedding album I was paid to do mwehehehehe...

Off to Disney soon!

Hubby and I are flying to LA on Monday courtesy of my sister and her husband. We will stay in a hotel near Disney Anaheim so we won't have problems with transportation anymore. It's exciting that we get to travel on our own. But it could have been a lot better if everyone of us will go. My sister's family have visited the theme park four times already. My family have been there once before. So to cut on costs, we all decided that just the two of us will go this time. We are honeymooners, anyway! Wink! Wink!

It is in our long term plans though, to visit the bigger Disney World in Florida. By then, everyone of us must be here in the US. It's gonna be a real holiday with the complete family (my parents, my sister with her family, my husband & I, and my two brothers). Maybe we will look for an Orlando vacation home, when that time comes.

In the mean time, I will just have to look forward to going to LA soon. Am also looking forward to see a few people, I hope we'll find a way to meet them there!

Hang-over

I woke up this morning with a headache. I would have asked for some Tylenol but I figured I'd be able to get over this little pain once I've eaten. I remember going to bed at 1am late last night (or early this morning hehe). My head was spinning as a laid myself beside Ane.

No I wasn't drunk. I do not drink alcoholic beverages at all. So what was going on?

Oh well, Ane, Gi and I spent the day at Paramount Great America in Sta. Clara. Ane took on 4 rides while Bro and I conquered 7 thrill rides! So it just makes sense that even hours after we got home last, I was still dizzy and almost knocked-out (well, I had to take some assignments before I retired). Go check on the site: Gi and I rode -- Vortex, Demon, Grizzly, Psycho Mouse, Rip Roaring Rapids, White Water Falls...and Top Gun (we have a video of our entire ride of this monster hehehe)! My knees were shaking by the time Kuya J fetched us from the park!

I've would have rode the seven thrills all over again if I weren't too dizzy :)

I conquered Medusa!

We left the oldies at home and drove to Vallejo where Six Flags Discovery Kingdom is located. :) We decided to go today because we thought it wouldn't be crowded since it's the day after the holiday. We arrived just a bit after the park opened and we couldn't believe our eyes as busloads and busloads of students are being unloaded at the parking lot! It wasn't the best day after all. But since we drove more than an hour just to be there, we went in anyway, thinking that it wouldn't be that bad considering that the parking lot is still nearly empty.

We walked around and had pictures taken with the Looney Tunes Characters (neat!), and watched water creatures in their respective areas. Local Dolphins (as in, those born inside the park) were showing their craft in Merlin's Island party. Thirty minutes after, the show starring Shouka the Whale, was on. But Ane, Gi and I missed it coz we were already in line to get on Medusa.

Ane was too chicken to try it, but Gi and I endured the one hour or so queue just to ride Medusa for about 3minutes. The wait was worth it considering that the thing is the fastest, tallest, and longest thrill ride in Northern California. Being floorless, just looking at it, made me sick but I conquered it! We would have line-up again but the queue is just too long. We rode Roar, the Wooden Roller coaster and the smaller one with no loops, Cobra. This time with Ane. Am not sure though if he will ever ride again. Hehehe.

We didn't eat inside the park except for some snacks because you know how expensive park food can get...twice or thrice as much as when you get the same food outside. I do not understand why theme park owners (even in the Philippines) do not allow food to be brought in and then let their tenants sell food at skyhigh prices, tsk tsk tsk. My sister said I should wait until we get to Disney and realize that it's still cheap at Six Flags. Hah!

We left the park before 6pm and drove to the nearest Denny's...big servings at low prices! Perfect for budget conscious people like us (well, that was until we got here, hehehehe). The food is so yummy I finished everything! I had to skip dinner, mind you. :)

Was a fun day!

San Francisco

So anyway, I should really post some pictures so you will see how awful I looked earlier today. Am not really a fashionista but then again, I know what looks good or otherwise..hehehe. The temperature today was around 7-9 degrees C. That's too much for me.

First stop was at Pier 39. I would have bought myself really hot coffee, but I realized that standing under the sun (with no sunblock, argh!) will make me feel comfortable. We walked a bit, took some pictures and decided at 11am that we should go grab lunch already because we wanna miss the long queue's at the restos. We had some nice lunch at Bubba Gump where the ambience is the same as that of Greenbelt's. Yum! The service is really good, our server was so accomodating. We also had a nice view of the Marina. We couldn't linger any longer because people started to arrive and we needed to give our table up for them.

And then we tried to catch a trip to Alcatraz but we weren't able to get any tickets. Tickets were sold out until Monday (bad timing I guess, we were there during the Memorial Day weekend). So we decided to walk towards Powell Street so we could ride the famous Cable Cars. It was an exciting ride, going up and down the steep streets. At the end of the line stood Westfield Mall (and a lot more vagrants). So yeah, we were malling again, hehehehe. The interiors/architecture of this mall is rather different. More like a church/palace to me, teeeehhheeeee. Very nice indeed.

This is also where I experienced having make-up in the mall for the first time :) So the raves about Bare Escentuals are true. If you know me, I do not wear make-up everyday. If I can get away without it, am fine with that. So it's a nice surprise for me to find something that does not irritate my skin and is cheaper than Chanel (which works for me too!) :)

After getting coffee at Starbucks, we were back again on the cable car to Pier 39. Sadly it was time for us to go home. A day is far from enough to explore all the nice places. I vowed to come back... I just don't know when.

We didn't go straight home since it was already dinner time when we were still on the road. It was Gerry's Union City for us. Not that we are already missing Filipino food but it was a break from all the American food we've been eating :)

Off to the Beach

I asked Ate if I should wear my bathing suit and shorts and Havaianas today but she gave me that funny look. She told me that I might not be able to take the cold. So I wore gym pants and rubber shoes. Kuya J even suggested that I bring my windbreaker with me.

I'm glad that I was "properly" dressed for Sta. Cruz Boardwalk. Even with my clothes on, I was shaking cold.

The trip was about an hour away and we got there an hour before the rides started operating (there was an old roller coaster made of wood called Giant Dipper! Scary, eh?). We let J play in the sand for a while and then we started to walk towards the wharf where the sea lions were. Cool! While there, we had light lunch and immediately walked back to the beach to check out the place more. Rides, arcades, games, food and people all around! It was the part of the Boardwalk's 100 years celebration. We missed the Thrilling Trampoline & High Dive Show and didn't wait for the next one anymore. We didn't play or ride either because there were just too many people.

By 2pm we were off to The Mystery Spot also in Sta.Cruz. It was an interesting tour lasting about 30 mins for $5 each person. Ate, Kuya and J did not join us anymore because they've been there before. They just waited for us in the little park down. Joaquin was so happy to see us after the tour that he hugged us all :) This is also where G found some crispy crickets he was more than willing to try. He did buy a box and Joaquin was grossed out upon seeing his uncle eat the bacon and cheese flavored bug. Hehe. I should post his picture real soon hehe.

We were home and tired around 5pm that we fell asleep. I woke up at 8pm realizing that I should have cooked Tinolang Manok for dinner a couple of hours earlier! Hmp. So we ended up eating my tasteless Tinola for dinner an hour later. Ugh, I messed up.

It was a good day that even a crappy dinner didn't matter. :)

To Shrek or not to Shrek

Shrek the Third is now showing today. I've been waiting for this time to come but I found myself at a position where am torn between watching it (and spending precious money) and just missing it altogether. You see a movie pass cost $6 in the morning and $10.75 in the afternoon onwards. We planned to see the movie in the morning to save. But, $6 is still $6, and that is something extravagant especially when in Manila we would only pay around P120 (we don't even go to IMax) for a movie or we could head out to Metrowalk & you-know-what. Wink, wink!

So you guessed it right. We decided to miss it. But promised ourselves to catch Ocean's 13 when it plays on June 8.

Since we got here, we've been really careful about spending our pocket money. I know converting is not healthy but then thinking we didn't earn the money here, makes it hard NOT to convert, if you know what I mean.

We stayed home until we got bored. We decided to hit the road and ended up in Fry's Electronics where I drooled some more. Hay I want a new laptop and a DSLR but I have to set my priorities for now. We picked Joaquin from school and dropped by the supermarket to buy stuff for dinner. Then headed home where Ate was.

Dinner was a mean Sinigang courtesy of Kuya J. :)

PS. It is fiesta time in Obando (May17, 18, 19) and I missed it for the first time in years. Sad. Especially now that Ane and I have a big favor to ask God & it sucks that we weren't able to participate in the Fertility dance.

Operation Laundry

I found out today that Summer hasn't officially started yet. It will in a few weeks time. It is still Spring. And still cold in my opinion hehe.

We decided to stay home after the long day yesterday. Anyway, I did our laundry today which is quite as easy as 1-2-3. Put the labada in the tub, set the machine, put detergent, and wait...when done, transfer clothes in the dryer, set the timer then leave it alone, and wait again until it's done and then fold. Sisiw! Hehehe, no clothesline needed! It's so easy I forgot I have trauma doing the laundry. It's so easy I would want Ane to buy me the same machine if only water and electricity in PI weren't scarce and expensive.

While doing the laundry, I cleaned up some of the kitchen cabinets, as requested by Ate. Man, I had to throw out stuff because they were expired. I didn't finish everything but I was able to clear an area where we can put the goods we brought here. The OC monster in me was satisfied a bit. We all took a nap after my chores and after lunch... and woke up just when Ate got back from work at 5pm!

We all went to Oakridge for dinner where we ordered Chinese food, express style. The honey-chicken was delicious. Ane had Orange-chicken. But since the serving is big (as every servings here), we had to bring half of our food home, heheh. Then we went to Target to buy some stuff and we were on our way home around 9pm.

Sleeping time! :)

First day out!

Joaquin had school today and Kuya Jun got some errands to do somewhere in Newark so we decided to tag along and show ourselves around Fremont instead of just staying at home. Joaquin goes to Teacher Nancy MWF 8-5, so it's actually a daycare and school in one. :)

We left the house around 10am. After Kuya Jun "briefed" us around the Fort Bonifacio-like area in Fremont, we dropped him at his appointment and we were on our own. It was Ane's first time to drive here! I was both anxious and excited for him hehehe. Anyway, he did pretty well but stayed clear from the road leading to the freeway, haha!

First stop was Circuit City where we checked out cool gadgets and techie stuff. If you know me, you would have imagined me drooling! Ane and Gi tried the Xbox 360 connected to an HD tv. Whoa! The graphics looked so real! Amazing. But then the console is cheaper in Manila. And besides we didn't have the budget for that. We plan to buy PS3 here though, you know for the big boys, ugh. :)

By the time we went out of CC, we were hungry and decided to grab a bite at In-N-Out. Now, we saw one just around there but when we started walking aimlessly, we couldn't find it and I started to get cold. So we got the car and drove around. The three of us each ordered Cheeseburger and it was simply heavenly yummy! :) I was telling Gi I read somewhere that In-N-Out has a secret menu and promised him I'd find that article. Here it is.

Then we were off to the local Badminton Court, United. I planned to play but the $5 all-day fee got me thinking. Hehe. And besides, I haven't played in a while and there's no one to play with. So the boys just played singles. When we arrived, the players on the court were mostly Chinese. We were even mistaken to be Chinese, haha. The owner was talking to us in his native tongue that it took us a few seconds to realize that we didn't understand him. Ane and Gi were tired and done after about three sets.

After the courts, we visited a 2nd-hand CD/Book Store where Gi found 2 interesting CD's that cannot be found in the Philippines. Then later to Starbucks where we stayed until it was time to pick Kuya J.

Ate and Joaquin were already home when we got back and it was late to cook dinner so we decided to go to our

Splurge of the day destination: Jollibee in Eastridge. I said so because we paid around $45 for Dinner (a bucket of 12 Chickenjoy, Salo-salo Spaghetti, 2-pc Burger steak and Drinks! Too much I'd say so I guess we won't be going back anytime soon. Heheh. The food tasted different though.

That's it for today :)