Pretty amazing Johnny Depp could be very deep and sensible when it comes to love.  But I felt the magnitude of truth in his words.  Now I'm enlightened.  Thank you.

Right.  I think people's emotions change, but love remains.  People get angry, frustrated, upset, but underneath it all, love exist. It's the love that binds it. Feelings might not be there anymore, but deep inside there is still a spark of love that keeps the bond alive.  It never fails to connect people.  Never had.  Never will. 

A friend told me over dinner, that people change.  Knowing that she's just gotten out of a divorce, I understood who she was pertaining to.  Probably she meant it generally.  Either way I got her point.  It's not that it was my first time to hear that line, but something really struck me when she said it.  She said it with heart and substance, coming from experience, she knows what she was talking about.  This really got me into thinking.  People do change.  I don't know if this is true for everyone, but there's a tendency that we all will. 

I just pray to God that if I will change, I will change for the better.  And same for my partner, whoever he is. Hmmm yeah...

I'm sorry Oprah.  I love you but that's just what I discovered.  As a fan, I am shocked. I may not be her number one fan but I respect her and I salute her for living a purposeful life and being a blessing to others.  I had a lot of things that I learned from her.  Like I said, as a fan, I went out on youtube to check on previous episodes of Oprah, that I missed.  And I was glad that youtube gave me what I wanted and more.  It's in the knowledge of everybody, well at least most of her fans know that she no longer has a talk show and she's now busy launching her OWN, that is Oprah Winfrey Network.  While working at it, she could be seen by everybody on her youtube channel.  The catch here is, the vids in the channels are vids of her off stage.  So that's Oprah minus the make up and formal clothes.

The other side of Oprah

                                                           Oprah as we know her

You could see her working out or just cooking in her own kitchen.  It's just interesting to see her in her day-to-day routine.  And I feel bad that she only has few views on her channels.  I think only thousands and not millions considering that she is the Oprah Winfrey and that she has millions and millions of fans out there.  I guess probably huge chunk of her fans aren't youtube-goers, or they don't know that there exist an Oprah channel at youtube.  I don't blame the viewers since there's not much really going on in her vids.  But still I think she deserves more. Just saying.

I didn't notice how intriguing this date was until people were fussing about it in FB.  And I figured, hmmm, right.  So what happens now?  That's just something we don't know.  Psychics, meteorologists, palmists were infusing a degree of mystery to this date.  There's some sort of cosmic realignment and revolution that's happening.  Don't you think it's pretty cool to think that something is happening without us knowing?  Well, a bit creepy.  But nonetheless, makes me feel a bit clueless as to what that is.  Makes me wonder if I should be doing something right now to celebrate this day or just anything that is fitting when the dates are synchronized.   People say that there are a lot of 11's that's popping out of history.  Take for example, the twin towers that look like 11, was hit by airplane flight 11 on Sept, 11.  Weird huh? Was this pure coincidence? We don't know.  Just keeps me wondering, is all.  It's tiring to think about it.  I just might as well, go on and live my life. 

Situated an hour away from the city, Isla Reta is a nice go-to place for beach lovers.  Not only does it have the most wonderful beach it is also quite private.  The sand is reminiscent of Boracay.  Well it is like the famous beach minus the crowd and nice facilities.  What makes people really go here is the beach and the talisay trees that serve as shed for beach goers.

To reach Talicud Island you have to ride a boat from Sta. Ana Wharf.  If you don't know where that is, it's just smacked right beside Magsaysay Park.  All davaoenos know where that is, so you could just ask anyone.  The boat doesn't really have regular timings for trips.  It docks out only when the boat is full.  Boarding time starts from 6am and the last trip is 4pm.  Boat fee here is P85 per person, I'm not sure how much is the charge for kids.  The boat trip will take just about 45mins- 1hour.  It wouldn't be really boring because the scenery itself is entertaining.  Last time we went to the island, we saw some dolphins swimming and jumping off the sea.  So that was really a bonus treat for us.  

By the time we reach the island we hurried off to find our spot.  You could either pay as soon as you arrived or before you leave.  Paying fees are done in the canteen.  There is a girl named Joanne who is in charge of collecting fees.  She's also the one managing the canteen.

So the beach, I don't know where to start.  There's really a lot of nice things to say about the beach.  The sand is really fine and white, reminds me of polvoron.  The ocean is clean.  Although there are some wood and roots floating here and there, it's usually cleaned up by staff there.  The debris are usually found near the docking area, but further away from it, it's clean and clear.  So we got our farthest away from the docking area where sand is finer, water is cleaner.  Too bad there are lots of guests who also choose that spot but it's not really that bad to share.  Besides the place isn't really congested with people so at most times you would hardly see any people taking a dip in the water, which is for me, a bit weird considering how wonderful the beach is.  That's a good example how vanity destroys the fun.

Isla Reta Beach Resort

Ships in Sta. Ana Wharf

Scenery from the boat

View from our Nook

View from our Nook: Samal Island

                                                                           Cottages

Anyways, lucky for me we headed on to a more secluded place in the island.  The moment I saw that nook, I knew that it was my spot.  So the moment we landed we hurried off to conquer it.  Going there was really fun, the adrenalin of just running to go to that place was exhilirating, added there are giggles and teases.  I was with my gay friend so that made it all the more fun.  To reach our place we have to go down some really huge boulders that are not only sharp but a bit slippery.  So we really had to be extra careful.  The moment we stepped on our nook, we were so glad we were alived.  It was well worth it.  The place was ours alone, it even felt like we were contestants in Survivors.  Needless to say, we had good fun.  We lied on the sand under the shed of ipil-ipil trees.  So that's like swimming without getting ourselves sunburnt.   Lunch time came, we ate the food that we brought.  Even though the canteen has some chips and drinks, and we can order there, we figured we would save more if we just bring our own.  

Boats there are available if you wish to go snorkelling in snorkelling spots.  You just need to ask the guard there.  It would range from 1200-1500, that is good for 1hour boat ride.  Ours only cost P500 since I negotiated with the guard.  Everything could be negotiated and we managed to do it.  However we only had it for 30mins. which was totally fine for us since we didn't bring any snorkelling gears, and even if we did, we wouldn't have the guts to do that in deep waters.

If you figured you wanted to stay over for the night. You could for P850 for concrete cottages and P750 for wooden ones.  They also have tents that you could rent for P400 for a night.  There is one guard who is roaming around the beach with the flashlight so you would feel safe.  Oh yeah, the gate closes at around 9pm, so if you wish to buy food or what not from outside of the many stores, you could do that before the closing time.  We were able to go outside past 9pm since I had to have my charger charged.   I did bring the charger with me but I forgot the round socket that had to go with the charger or else I couldn't get to charge it.  So smarty me, I had to ask some people in the beach for that.  But I figured that there is more chances for me to borrow that from people from outside the resort.  And I was right.  The second store we visited had the exact thing that I was looking for.  I asked the manang to have my charger plugged in using their electricity.  I would just have to pay per hour.  And they agreed for P30/hr.  I went back to get it after 2 hours.  By then the gate was closed but I had the guard to accompany me outside.  We just knocked on their closed store and they gave me back my charger. The sweetest part is that they only charged me P30 for 2 hours.

If you wish to have reservations, you could contact Joanne at 09282141487.

I used to hate beaches, but now I love them.  It's weird how some things you don't used to like, would be something you would love.  Take my friend for example.  She had a number of skills inspired by previous relationships.  First guy introduced her rap songs, which is something that's useless to her.  Well, probably since that guy was really useless, that made sense.  The 2nd ex bf, she was inspired to get into the debating team.  Next beau, she got poetry from, and the next one, she got photography.  That's the same in my case, with the beach... The guy is gone but some footprints remain...

Reason for watching this is because of the star of the movie, Audrey Tautou, who played the lead role of Amelie.

This movie was supposed to be nice except for the fact that one guy kissed the girl of his dreams and his mother.  That appealed to me as something disgusting.

This struck a cord in me.  Of course, I wanted to write, and of course it's my dream to write my own book, yet I never really thought that it will take a lot of work.  Well of course it will.  Just that I figured if you have the heart to write then it's as good as having that dream fulfilled.  But it does take some time for me to polish my writing skills and review a lot on my grammar.  I used to write well.  Wonder where the inspiration went to.  For some weird reason, there were a couple of times in my life that I wrote well.  First was when I was in highschool,  I remember writing good poetry that when my teacher smiled while reading our works, I knew that she was reading mine.  It was confirmed when she looked at me shortly after and smiled again.  That time, I was determined to do well in class.  I had an aura of intelligence and it's something I identify myself with.  It was good since I saw myself like one, thus I have to live up to it.  And naturally my actions followed.  I was efficient, hardworking and studious student.  I think with every actions there is a vision or image that comes before that.  That will give us fuel to go for that vision and whatever that goes below that vision is unsatisfactory or distasteful. 

Second time was when I was in highschool again, but I guess the reason for my inspiration was because I read 5 books.  I know it's not much, but coming from a lazy reader like me, it's already an achievement.  I read these books one after the other.  And every after finishing one, I would immediately go to our bookshelves and scout for another one, browsing each books like they were candies, thinking which world I would travel into again.  I felt like I was in a really big adventure, but it was an adventure in my imagination.  It wasn't real but it felt like so.  I was moved, captivated by every scene.  Seeing things like I was part of their world, and they were part of mine.  It was refreshing.  Same feeling when I'm doing things first time.   There's a sense of excitement and mystery, discovery.  And I love that feeling!  It's addictive.  Makes me want to jump into another adventure again.  

Now, in this chapter of my life, I am determined to reach my dreams. However slow, I'm still taking my steps onwards.  I wish to fulfill my dreams by the time I reach 35years old.  What are my dreams? I will save that for another post.  I have time in my hands, but limited finances.  I should plan how to allot it wisely.  I think it's time that I should say goodbye to shopping for now...

Good luck to me!

xoxo

The photoshoot was a success! The whole trip was fantastic! We had a lot of firsts! It was the first time we saw dolphins swimming in the wild, first time I saw an initiation of a fraternity, first time for skinny dipping (day and night), first time sitting alongside a boat, first time that I model for a photoshoot.

It was really beyond terrific!

It's weird how something strange to me could be something relevant.  Ok, I'm not sure if it's that relevant but Buddha keeps on popping into my life.  

Mother used to call me that name when I was a baby because I used to be stout and bald.  She started calling me that when our maid had me sit on a box, and mama saw some resemblance of me and Buddha.  Actually even now she calls me that, not that I look like one, but she just like teasing me.  Weird thing here is that she calls me that whenever she comes in my room early in the morning when I'm still sound asleep.  She calls me "buddha" and "gwapa", the latter meant beautiful in tagalog. I know I'm unconscious but I can hear her every morning, because she perms her hair in my room.  Funny thing is, she even talks to me like I'm wide awake, reminding me of the things I needed to do for the day.  What's even more funny is that I could still remember what she had told me, even when I'm sleeping in bed the whole time.  Ok, so we're straying away from the topic, it's buddha. 

Going back, my ex is fascinated with Buddhism too.  Even though he's Hindu and he belongs to a very religous family, he gravitates somehow to Buddha.  Something in him that makes my ex feel relaxed and peaceful.  I think that's something he needs in his life, because his life is ubber hectic.  There was once that we discussed about the religion.  He knew little of it, but no matter how few he knows about the philosophies of religion, somehow I know that he holds those dear in his heart. 

My Japanese students, at times, talks to me about Buddhism.  I asked them a lot of questions but somehow I get only few information from them because they have trouble expressing themselves in English.  

This curiosity would definitely have me read about Buddhism, and probably study it.  I'm pretty open-minded so it would be nice to learn different perspectives about life, love, soul, spirit and destiny.

I could be Buddhist in the future.  I'm open like that.  Let's see though...

Hmmm... ok.  So the thing that I have been wanting to do for months, I will finally do tomorrow.  I don't know, the urge of doing it is more of having to finally get over it.  I know. It's bad.  But I really hope we get good shots tomorrow.  I already have tried out the outfits for tomorrow and even put make up on.  Everything seems to look good except for my face.  If it would've been tried on a real model then even a simple dress would be worthy of a cover page of a fashion magazine.  But since I'm going to be the model, I would have to use a lot of accessories, and make up too,  the heck bring in the fake lashes and contacts.  I need all that to make me worthy of a cover shot.  But I'm afraid that even after all that, it would still be a flunk.  I did try to do a mock shot.  Uhmmm... I looked stupid.  

Ok, let's be positive here.  There are ways and we could get a lot of shots. It will be fun and it will be great! 

Here are the pics that I'm going for:

If you may be so curious, the fashion shoot would be for my online boutique Boho Chic.  I'm planning to take a picture of me for the welcome page. So, let's cross our fingers and hope that it will turn out great. 

I missed it.  I missed that feeling of being in love.  Weird thing is, I haven't really felt that in my relationships.  Only with the unrequited ones.  Ouch!  I so sound like a looser now.  But ye, it's true.  My relationships so far have been long distance, and I must admit that it's hard for me to be in love in that situation.  I guess I almost felt that in my last relationship, but things went sour even before it got really good. 

Anyways, I was inspired to post because even after coming out from a break up, I was still in love with the idea of love.   That means I haven't really given up on love yet.  I know in time, I will experience it again.  It may not be with that perfect guy, but hopefully it would be with the right one.  Time after time, when I have an opportunity to ask people about relationships, it's either they have their own problems or they are doing ok with theirs.  Everyone has their own story.  I wish to start my own.  I know right now, I just got out from another chapter of failed relationship.  It was ok, we both learned.  We learned that we aren't for each other, and even after all the things we said against each other we still managed to friends.  Right now, we're still a bit upset with each other. I guess, it's just the right thing. To separate.

Even when I was 8 years old, I day dream of falling in love with someone.  Strange, because I felt that feeling even when I haven't even been in a relationship before nor I have anyone in mind to be in love with.  I felt so much love in me that I have to let go and share it with someone.  After almost a couple of decades, I still feel like I'm that kid, writing love songs on my notebook, hoping someday I would dedicate it to "him".

Disclaimer: The pics in this post aren't mine.

I watched "When Harry tries to Marry" the other night.  I chose it even when I don't really know much about the it.  All I know is that there's some guy named Harry who wanted to marry someone, and coming from a break up, I was eager to watch something romantic, so that after watching it I could cry once more.  Yes, I torture myself.

Funny enough, this movie was actually an Indian movie. What a coincidence, my ex was Indian. Hmmm.. so I said, is there something that the universe is trying to tell me here?  What the heck, I watched the movie and there was this part wherein Harry invited his girl to this traditional activity in which people were throwing colored powder to each other.  And I'm like, my gosh! That looks so fun! I sure would want to try that as well.  After the movie, I immediately asked Mr. Google as to what the festival is called.  It was actually named holi, a celebration of colors, which was done to eliminate bad auras in people by spreading fun.  And I'm all for fun!

I would have loved for my ex to come with me.  I would've dumped a lot of powder on him and probably poke him in the eyes after.

Yeah, that would be fun! :)

Disclaimer: the pics in this post are not mine.

For some reason, I crave for something sweet when I get frustrated with my "lovelife".  And that too, is same for my friend.  So we message each other and plan to meet up in an ice cream parlor, and gobble down a huge cup of ice cream while talking about our source of frustrations: guys.  They just don't get it.  They don't know how to take care of their girls.  For the luckier ladies who were blessed with very understanding and thoughtful guy,  don't let go of them.  And as for us who are part of the majority who have to put up with our men, we shall wallow our sorrows on coffee, ice cream and cakes.  

Guys.  Some are really clueless.  We have to teach them how to treat us better.   Girls should be treated like princesses. I guess that's the whole part of the paradigm of love that we girls are clinging on.  I've read in Steve Covey's book "7 Habits of effective people", he said that we should be that person who understands, and in order to be that person, we should change ourself from inside out.  And I think, hmmm ok, so if you understand everything about your guy then does it mean that any guy would be fine for you because whatever that guy's flaws are you could understand. Thing is, he should also try to give us what we need emotionally.  We would want to feel loved, and the only way for us to feel that is through his actions.  No matter how run down that saying is, it's true.  Actions do speak louder.  Forget the words, focus on the actions.  

As a filipina, we want to be treated like a princess.  I guess any woman in the world would want to be treated as one.  I guess moreso in our culture wherein guys, before they could ask our hand in marriage they would have to serve the girl's family, chopping woods and doing house chores.  They would even sing songs outside of the girl's window.  The paradigm that guys should treat girls very well is deeply rooted in a filipina's mind.  Ok I know this doesn't apply much in the recent world.  And I know those traditions we had before was just so 1970's. I understand that.  But I also understand that girls at some point are insecure and we want to get assurance from guys that they love us.  And that's constant assurance, that's just the way we are.

And as long as my guy don't understand that.  My friend and I would be meeting again at some place where we could satisfy our cravings for sweets and pour out our frustrations for our guys.  

My first ever country that I have visited is Malaysia.  Why? Because it's truly Asia? hahaha.  True indeed.  Since I have no point of comparison I wouldn't comment much about that.  What I could say is that I really saw how much of a melting pot Malaysia was.  Every time I walk down the street, I always see people from different cultures, and it's always a fascinating sight.

Makes you want to stop from walking and just do people watching instead.  It's really amazing to see how people from different countries live peacefully together.  And yes, it is possible.  

My travel to Malaysia first started with me being emotionally and legally ready for the trip.  I guess that time, I was more concerned on the latter.  My friend who travelled to Hongkong experienced a lot of stress, probably due to her lack of papers and proofs that the immigration was asking of her.  Luckily I tried to get my papers completed.  But when you're lining up for immigration, I think a lot of you would agree that it's still nerve-racking, despite knowing that you don't have any bad intentions and you're nothing but legal.  Documents that they will be asking of you are your passport, reservations of your hotel, air ticket to and fro, sometimes they'll ask you for the cc used to purchase the tickets and even your id's.  Do bring 1K ringgit with you, that's the allowable amount of ringgits you could bring to Malaysia and you could take home, the rest you could deposit in your ATM (through EON) or have traveller's checks.  

It's wise to plan ahead, but seriously when you're there already at times you couldn't follow your plan.  When you check on google map landmarks in Malaysia appear to be very far but don't be fooled.  It's not as far as you think, especially the Petronas towers, the Suria KLCC, KLCC park and the Aquaria.  All these are connected by an underground or over pass way.  

The best way to travel around the city is through the monorail.  Your hotel usually have helpful maps and receptionists are also there to suggest good places or directions.  If in case you have trouble finding your way, you could ask some locals.  Not everyone there though could speak English, so choose whom to ask.  If you have to take taxi, try to take the ones away from landmarks.  There are only few honest taxi drivers.  A lot of them will bribe you telling you that the place is far and it's traffic.  So as much as possible don't take taxis. Monorails there are intertwined, so you could get to almost everywhere, you just have to walk to the station. 

The food is very diverse.  They have food from almost all around the world.  Not to mention it's cheap.  Simple restaurants would range from 3-8 ringgits, while more expensive ones would go up to 12-30 ringgits.  Hotels are also cheap and really convenient. 

We had book ours in the middle of Kuala Lumpur, really close to China Town, called Petaling Market.  It's where you could buy fake bags and souvenirs. Street food is also amazing and cheap.   There are a lot of backpackers around this area because everything is relatively cheap.  If you want something more high-end, try to go to Pavilion.  You could spot real branded items there.  Just nearby is Aquaria that showcases different species of fishes, even forest animals, and insects could be seen there.  Suria KLCC is just around the corner.  It is where you could find the Petronas Towers.

Petaling Market

Pavilion

                                                                   Petronas Towers

If you wish to go all-out shopping with convenience I suggest you go south  to Berjaya Times Square, one of the biggest malls in KL.  They have Cosmo World Theme Park, and they have the longest roller coaster called Super Sonic Odyssey, that's 800m long.  It costs around 35-45 ringgit for a ride. 

Berjaya Times Square

SkyBar

They said that the best view of the Petronas towers is in the bar of Trader's Hotel 33rd floor called SkyBar.  You have to reserve in advance for  the cabanas on the side of the pool.  It is where you could have the best view of the city, not to mention the towers.   Drinks and food are expensive here so try to bring extra cash.  We bought our drinks for 20plus ringgits for each.

Please don't leave Malaysia without tasting Nasi lemak and chicken satay.  These 2 are traditional malaysian food.

Chicken Satay

                                                                       Nasi Lemak

The best place to eat street food is Jalan Alor and Imbi Market.  The food is very diverse and cheap.  Very good for backpackers like us.

Don't dare to miss street performance of street Roda, usually every night at Bukit Bintang.  This is a group of people practicing capoeira.  Aside from doing their own stunt they also do lovely percussion and chants that will get you going.

Street Roda

As a tip for first time travellers, you should have at least a general itinerary for the day and each places are strategically visited so you could get to experience more.  Also make sure to have a map of the city with you so you won't get to ask people always.  As I've said earlier maps are usually available in the hotels or inns that you're staying.  Also try to wake up early.  I know night life in KL is fun but then you'll be missing out on a lot of stuff during the day. 

Also since Malaysia is an Islamic country, try to dress up decently.  Usually when you want to visit temples, you're asked to cover yourself.  And always bring your passport with you at all times.

It's ok if you haven't covered everything, what is more important is that you have get to experience the culture that is truly Malaysia.