Happy Holidays! It's never too late

Christmas 2012 was the first time I was away from any member of my immediate family who were all in Mindanao, except for my OFW brother. I was in Manila, celebrating Noche Buena and Media Noche with my wonderful aunt's family in Paranaque. It was a choice to be away from Mindanao, and I was quite content with this choice. Don't get me wrong; I adore being with my family. For Christmas 2012, I simply wanted to experience being away from them.  The initial plan was to stay alone in my own unit for the Christmas Eve. But, nah, it wouldn't make a happy story to tell friends and colleagues when we see each other once we report to work. So, Tita Mila's it was. Nevertheless, there was a semblance of family, and for that I was thankful. Truly, Christmas is a good time to bring family closer. This brought me to think of the many Filipinos abroad who are away from their families, including my brother who is in a country that doesn't 'do' Christmas. 

The day after Christmas, brother started posting Facebook pictures of his housemates with all their Christmas fare sans the Philippine Christmas staple ham. He and his friends seemed happy. So was I.

We make our own Christmas story, wherever we are, whomever we are with. My story was that of gratitude. There are so many things to be grateful for. Twenty twelve was a blast!

The year that passed has brought me nothing but greater appreciation for life's many blessings.  I have been blessed in every possible way imaginable. I went to this:

THE Taj Mahal

I stopped being credit card dependent.

I bought a four-inch foam for my improved condo unit.

I traveled internationally and domestically.

Singapore

I made more friends.

I inspired one friend to get her own house.

I work with the most fun and inspiring people.

I was able to buy my nieces nice Chinese dresses.

I reached 10000 hits on my blog! hehe.

I reached the 29th year of my existence.

For all of these, I am grateful. Thank You, Wonderful Giver!

Overseas Post

I have no idea how Manila looks like by now; it's December, and Christmas is just around the corner. I would suppose Manila's streets had already been adorned with Christmas decors and lights to usher the festive season. The news I got of Manila from international news channels had been about the typhoon that ravaged Mindanao and Visayas and Pacquiao's loss. However, there seems to be a good news in the passing of the Reproductive Bill into law! 

I have been away from the Philippines for several weeks now. Why? I am in India, again. This time I am in the capital, New Delhi, for a training. I have been here for close to a month now, and will be going home very soon, before Christmas, in fact.

I will go home with much anticipation because I have loads of memories and stuff to share from this memorable trip. 

Arrival in India: Indira Gandhi International Airport

Familiar scenes of the Indian capital

A popular mode of transport: Autorickshaw, an Indian version of the Philippine tricycle

Philippine Embassy in New Delhi

This is a common sight in Delhi

Delhi traffic

More autorickshaws

They have an underground metro

Men holding hands

Not Taj Mahal, obviously. Taj Mahal in a future post, maybe!

Cuddly Indian school kids

One of Delhi's more famous tourist attractions: Qutub Minar

I shall be writing more during the Christmas break, or not. The next posts on India will be written in the Philippines.

Commuter/Travel Post: Dumaguete and Siquijor

 I lament the state of my blog. I really think it has become a showcase of what I do instead of what I think. Nonetheless, I will continue writing what I write. 

Allow me to digress for a bit. My friend has been telling me to get a nice camera and try to be 'in' photos to document all the travels and experiences I am having. I don't know how to explain this, but I am probably one of the few people who don't get too excited at the sound of a clicking camera. If it can be avoided, I stay away in front of the camera. My answer to his argument is that I have memories of everything. This blog also documents the things I do and the places go to.

I recently visited  Dumaguete and Siquijor with my officemates/travel buddies, and the trip became the most relaxing vacation yet.

Let me tell you more about it. Four of us, having a long weekend, decided to go to a place none of us have gone to. Armed only with the knowledge of the  Visayan language and online information on our destination, we set forth to Dumaguete during the All Soul's Day Weekend. To add to the excitement, we added Siquijor in our itinerary to invoke some eerie experience during what the Visayans call "kalag kalag" or 'ghost' or the All Soul's Day celebration.

Our port of entry was Dumaguete. 'Teddy,' our travel companion, expressed his amazement in the tricycle we were to take, as seen in the picture below. Traveling to various towns in the Philippines makes you see the different designs of the tricycles.

 I did not have expectations of my visit to Dumaguete. I was glad I did not make any as I was surprised by the many things I saw and experienced. Rizal Boulevard was a foodie haven, and the scenery in the area was superb.

Rizal Boulevard, Dumaguete City

Silliman University, a beautiful campus

 The next day we went to Siquijor...

... and the beautiful beach welcomed us, signalling good times ahead.

The trusty tricycle was to be take us literally around the province of Siquijor. We saw old churches, greens, more greens, and beaches, all in one day!

 I did not take many pictures apparently. I was enjoying myself too much that I forgot to take out my mobile phone to snap images that were of interest to me. To be honest, there were many. The number of foreign tourists in Siquijor was an indicator that the province was more than the mystical place that Noli de Castro popularized in his November 1 Magandang Gabi Bayan Specials.

I had to go back to Dumaguete alone and cut my trip short to catch my flight back to Manila.

 I was smiling the whole time. The Siquijor leg of the tour was a well-deserved trip and a break from the busy city life. Dumaguete, on the other hand, provided my palate with various international cuisine that made me smile more. Indeed I was a happy tourist. My friends back in Manila would be likewise smiling because I bought Dumaguete's famous sansrival and other goodies.

I did not do my research as to the distance of the airport to the Dumaguete downtown area. Let's us just say that it was peak season and I had no plans of missing my flight, so I went to the airport three hours before my departure, thinking that the drive to the airport would take long. Well, I was wrong. During my arrival in Dumaguete from Manila days before I did not take notice the length because the four of us were all excited about the trip.

What to do with plenty of time at the airport? I had a relaxing foot message by blind masseurs at the airport. Happiness!

I may have added additional fine lines around my mouth for smiling the whole time.

You deserve some break, too. Enjoy!