Monday, October 16 - Slept almost the whole day today, since I went to bed at 7:00 A.M. I think the time difference between the two countries is messing me up. I’m still adjusting my sleeping habit, and I need to get back to my old routine. I’m glad to be home, though! Home sweet home!

October 14 – I left Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Saturday at 12:10 A.M. for Incheon Seoul, South Korea. This was my first stop, which took a little over three hours. I spent the rest of the morning at the airport waiting for my next flight to Chicago. The flight from Incheon Seoul, South Korea to Chicago O’Hare International Airport took a little over 12 hours. Then, I waited there for four hours for my next flight to Kansas City, my final destination. While at the airport, I finished reading a book called “Mission Possible” by Ken Blanchard, the coauthor of The One Minute Manager. It’s a good book to read for me – very informative!

My plane arrived at the Kansas City, MO Airport around 4:30 P.M. on Saturday, October 14. The flight from Incheon Seoul, South Korea to Chicago was the longest. Fortunately, each seat in the plane has its own screen to watch news, movies, see the actual route of the plane we’re on—it’s status, games, shopping, and etc. I ended up watching four movies, and I had to stop because my ears were starting to hurt from the headphones. Overall, I have a positive experience with Korean Airlines, and I will definitely take this airline again!

October 12 - This would be my last post of my vacation to the Philippines; however, I intend to keep and update this blog site with my other future trips.

I spent my remaining time with my family, visiting and reminiscing the good old days with my sister and brothers (back when we were still young); and of course, eating native foods at the same time was also part of that. (I think I’ve gained a few pounds - not a good thing.) Wish I could stretch the time longer, but my two-month vacation is now over, and it is time for me to go back to my Mahal, who is patiently waiting for me.

There were places I wanted to see yet, such as Corrigedor and Cebu, but the weather was the hindrance; therefore, I wasn’t able to do what I had planned. I was told that starting August through part of November is "habagat" season, and it’s not the best time for riding a boat/ship because of the strong wind and frequent heavy rainfall. There is always "next time" to see these places, but I don’t know when that would be, though.

Also, I have a couple of pictures that I’ve taken when we went to Sta. Cruz and Quiapo church. I almost did not recognize the area in Quiapo as it wasn’t as crowded as I can remember. The streets from Sta. Cruz to Quiapo looked clean, and there were fewer street vendors, selling fresh flowers, rosaries, candles, and other things. I even noticed that some parts of the streets were made of bricks, just like downtown’s old market – what an improvements!


Sta. Cruz Plaza, going to Quiapo Church


The Quiapo Church (also known as the "Church of the Black Nazarene" and, in Tagalog, as the "Basilika ng Nazareno") houses a large black wooden statue of Christ bearing the cross (the "Black Nazarene"). This crucifix was carved in Mexico and was brought to the Philippines from Mexico by Spanish galleon in 1767. It is said to have miraculous powers. On Fridays thousands of Catholic devotees may be seen inside the church edging forward on their knees towards the crucifix.

Overall, it was an awesome vacation! I was very happy to see my family, relatives, and some of my friends. Also, I was able to help my nieces and nephews set up their computers and get them working properly for them. Of course, they were delighted and very appreciative. Now, I’ll be able to communicate with some of them online and through the “webcam.” (Thanks to my husband, who made this trip possible for me. Love you, Hon, and thanks for everything!)

I gave up on uploading some pictures. This computer is very slow, and it's taking me forever to upload one picture. Need to get some sleep now for my big trip back home tomorrow.

FYI - I leave Manila on Saturday, October 14 and arrive in Kansas City in the afternoon on the same day - isn’t that amazing, huh? I hope you enjoyed my blog. See you all and bye for now!

October 5 - At last, the power in Las Pinas has been restored, but many are still without power in Metro Manila. Saw many billboards this morning, along Edsa Blvd., that were still down because of the typhoon. I’m using April's computer (my niece) to check my email and update my blog site, but it’s very, very slow. I prefer using the Internet in one of the malls. No new pictures to upload to my blog site at this time; just spending some quality times with my family.

Monday, October 2 - Still staying with my sister in Tarlac, waiting for good news from my brothers in Cavite and Manila regarding their power, if it has been restored yet or not.

Sunday, October 1 - We attended a mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Manaoag in Pangasinan. Rose, thanks for telling me about this place! Never been there before, and I'm glad you told me about it. As always, the place was crowded. People from all over come to this town just to see the Shrine. It was also "fiesta" there that day, since it was the 1st Sunday of October. Lots of street vendors outside the church, selling all types of native items and "kakanin." Please check out both links above. It is very informative, and the place is historical.

Had a chance to eat the "kakanin" called "topig" (I think that's what it's called). It was delicious! Loved it! Never had that kakanin before. I'll try to make it when I'm home. It is made of shredded young coconut, mixed with sweet rice flour and sugar, wrapped with banana leaves, and then grill it or "inihaw." I think it's Pangasinan's delicacies. (Oh, in Naic, Cavite I had the "puto bong-bong" - the purple one; it was delicious!)

Unfortunately, my digital camera wasn't working at that time (for some reason), so I don't have pictures of the Shrine of Our Lady of Manaoag to be posted here. When I got home that night, I transferred all of the pictures from my camera to my niece's computer and reformatted the camera. Now, it is working again!

Well, I think I need to go now as it is getting late. I'll keep you updated. I have less than two weeks to go here in the Philippines! Bye for now.

Saturday, September 30 - What a week this has been! At least the weather today is decent, and it is not raining. I'm hoping that it won't rain again this afternoon - can't really do or go anywhere when it's pouring hard outside. Oh, it's that time of the year! I almost forgot! It's rainy days in the Philippines.

It's been awhile now since the last time I've updated my blog, and I think it's that time again to post new pictures and update everyone.

September 28 - I wasn't able to post my updates on this day because the power went out at the mall, where I was trying to update my blog in one of the Internet services there. All stores inside the mall had been closed, and employees were sent home early because of the bad weather - the wind was picking-up and getting stronger. On our way home to Tarlac, we saw a lot of fallen trees along the road, and one tree fell on top of a Ford car in the middle of the road, so the traffic was very heavy. We made it home safely that night. Thank goodness!

Found out that night that there was a Typhoon, and Manila was hit hard. Both of my brothers in Manila and Cavite are without power to this point. I hope they get their power back soon. When we left Manila on Thursday afternoon, it was already raining very hard, and when we arrived in Tarlac that night, the rain was still pouring hard.

Anyway, enough of that. I've taken the following pictures in sequence (from here down), based on the places I'd been to and the activities I've done this far:

Cubao Crossing - Went through this market on our way to Antipolo Church. This is one of the fruit stands in the market in Cubao Crossing. Thought it was kind of neat, but maybe not to others. :)

Antipolo Church - Attended a mass here. This is a historical church, dating back during the Spanish period. It was a day trip to get to this place, but I think it was worth it, since it was my first time here. The inside of the church is beautiful! Decided not to take a picture inside, since it was crowded.


Antipolo downtown - a block away outside the church.






We took the Mass Rail Transit (MRT) from Cubao Crossing to Baclaran. Taking MRT is super fast compared to taking the bus or jeepney to go to a certain place (within MRT's routes). However, it is always crowded, and we ended up standing on our way back to Baclaran. Also, taking pictures inside each MRT station is prohibited, according to the security guard. This picture was taken while I was on (top) overpass to get to the other side of the road.



Naic, Cavite - strolling along the bay with my family. Across Naic, Cavite is the Corrigidor Island (the island can be seen in this picture). Click on the link above to learn more about "The Battle of Corregidor" during WWII.

It was high tide and the waves looked rough and big – not the best time for swimming.


Naic, Cavite - an awesome view of the sunset while we’re strolling along the bay, a block away from my brother’s house. My sister, brother-in-law, sister-in-law and my nephew are in this picture.



Naic, Cavite – My niece, Jane in 5th grade, participated in their school “Sportfest 2006” intramural. She was the class muse, taken inside her classroom.








Seen here are all of the contestants for each class.



Irene and Jane, my nieces, were celebrating their father’s birthday.




Naic, Cavite - outside the church with my family, after attending first mass.




Baclaran Church – attended a mass in this historical church, where mass is being said hourly every Wednesday. People from different places come to this church to attend a mass.







Manila Bay - close to CCP (Cultural Center of the Philippines). This is where to catch a boat to get to Corrigedor Island, but today there was no tour going to Corrigedor; we'll try another time. The weather wasn't that great - not the best time for riding a boat.

Along Manila Bay










Manila Bay - that is the boat that goes to Corrigedor Island.





Along Manila Bay










In front of the CCP building.

New updates! Finally, I'm able to update my blog site today, since I wasn't able to yesterday. I think the site was down as I tried to access it several times, and I couldn't access it.

This is the Bamboo Organ Church in Las Pinas, Manila, taken after attending first mass at 6:00 A.M.

Guess what? Today is my birthday, September 16, and we're celebrating my birthday here at the Mall of Asia with my two nieces, mother, sister and her husband. This is, I think, the biggest mall yet I've seen. It has almost 700 shops (according to their Ad), and it is located right next to the Ocean Bay -- a beautiful view!



Entrance to the Mall of Asia.




Inside Mall of Asia.




This picture was taken at 6:10 P.M. from the 2nd floor of the Mall of Asia; it is overlooking towards ocean view.

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I stayed with my sister in Bamban, Tarlac for almost two weeks. Left Tarlac yesterday, and I'm now staying with my brother in Las Pinas. I've visited some places while I was in Tarlac, such as the Lourdes Grotto, downtown Angeles City, the market in Capas, Tarlac, and a beautiful farm. The following are pictures I've taken while I was in Tarlac.



Hon, I thought you'd like this picture, the guy in his Harley. I know you like Harley better than Yamaha, NOT! (lol) I was inside the jeepney when I took this picture.



And, more bikes for you to check out.






This is the view of the Lourdes Grotto looking up. It has 100+ steps to get to the top.












We were on top of the Lourdes Grotto, and this is the view looking down. You can see the new Bamban Bridge, a remodeled one after it was destroyed when Mt. Pinatubo erupted in the early 90s.





The site of Lourdes Grotto from the distance.





My sister and I in the middle of the Orchids Garden (in the farm). This place is very peaceful, and I love the fresh air and the scent of the beautiful orchids.




Ma, here's the picture when we went to the farm. I hope you made it back to New Zealand safely. Please leave me a message/comment if you're able to view this. Take care and we love you!





Ma, here's Jing and Mana Sonia's picture.






I assembled Jennilyn's computer for her.




Hon, this is the computer desk that my brother-in-law made from scratch. I think the computer desk turned out very nice.

August 28 and 29 - Went back to Burauen, Leyte to get a copy of my birth certificate. Had to stay for another day because the person in charge for releasing the document was on leave for a day. But I was glad we stayed for another day because we were able to see the rest of my cousins.

Visited the church in Burauen, Leyte.


August 30 and 31 - Went back to Tacloban and visited the area where we used to go swimming, along Magsaysay Blvd., (see image: my Mom and sister) when my father was stationed in Tacloban.


It is now a nice City Park, overlooking the ocean, with restaurants and accommodations. Stayed overnight in Tacloban, but I was too tired to do the Internet and update my blog site. Left Tacloban around 7:00 A.M. in bound to Manila.


Took another bus ride back to Manila. I was able to take a photo of San Juanico Bridge that connects Samar and Leyte islands.


September 1 - Arrived in Manila at 5:00 A.M. Went to NSO headquarters in Manila for follow-up on my birth certificate. Stayed overnight in Las Pinas with my oldest brother, Rey.


September 2 - Went to Naic, Cavite to visit my youngest brother, Sonny, and his family. Visited with them, especially with my two nieces and nephew. Did not have enough time to stay another day because my brother-in-law was coming home from Saipan the following day, but I was delighted to see my brother and his family! We'll be going back to Naic, Cavite for a picnic/swimming soon!


September 3, 4, and 5 - Went back to Las Pinas, Manila early morning so we can pick-up my brother-in-law from the airport. Then, we went straight to Bamban, Tarlac that night and have been there since. Have been resting most of the time because of my cough. The weather here is crazy! It's been raining, and then it'll get very hot and humid. Had to shower two to three times a day. Yes, it's that crazy!

This picture was taken this morning, while I was climbing a guava tree in my sister's backyard. Was able to pick several ripened guavas -- yummy!



I'm updating my blog site here at SM Clark. This place is awesome! The mall is huge, clean and with lots of stores and native foods to choose from. Please see the following images taken inside SM Clark:





Bottom picture: my Mom, my sister's mother-in-law, who is also vacationing from New Zealand, Jennilyn, my brother-in-law, and my sister.


At Shakey's Pizza Restaurant - my Mom and my sister's mother-in-law, visiting from New Zealand.

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