"Mabuhay" said Manila. And I said "Salamat" back. - Prem

Next Stop: Philippines

Congrats JB and Frances!

As Justina Chen says, "Getting lost is just another way of saying 'going exploring.'"

And what better "excuse" to go exploring halfway around the world than to celebrate friends getting married? After all, this amazing event is what triggered the whole trip in the first place. Thanks guys! 

(Check out their amazing video if you want to see more! It's quite extraordinary what their team put together in a few hours and since the bride and groom are gorgeous, it looked like a commercial for cars, watches, wedding dresses...)

I helped plan the Hong Kong leg, so I had no idea what we were going to do in the Philippines aside from the wedding. 

Intramuros

I must say, mis amigos didn't disappoint! First stop was Intramuros, a walled city that was once used as a fort. Now it is a historic center and Manila's oldest district.  One thing that seemed to be a reoccurring theme was that many of the cities churches and buildings were rebuilt because there were many earthquakes that made previous structures tumble down. And if it wasn't an earthquake, it was another natural disaster. 

View from Taal Volcano

Taking a break from the lovely city of Alabang (the Philippines Bel Air), we headed to Taal Volcano in Batangas. According to wikipedia, "the crater lake on Volcano island is the largest lake on an island in a lake on an island in the world." [I'm sure you can see why I didn't try to paraphrase that description...] I kind of think of it like a turducken, but in this case, I've dubbed it #volakano. 

Taal Lake

After a 25 ish minute boat ride across the fresh water lake to the volcano, we took a 45 minute hike to the top. It was a clear, hot day and we took our time, stopping to take pictures and enjoy the beautiful views. It's an active volcano and it has been designated a Decade Volcano because of its destruction potential. (It's active and near a large population.) Currently, only 15 other volcanoes have that designation.

 View from Leslie's

Aside from the wedding, this was my favorite part of visiting the Philippines. I don't know if I'll ever see anything like it again, and since it was when it really hit me that I was on a real vacation!

After we were had taken in the volcano and its beauty, we headed back into town for lunch. Our driver was a very nice gentleman, by the name of Rommel if I remember right. We knew we wanted to have lunch but didn't know where. He recommended Leslie's, along with their a Filipino special Bulalo.

Bulalo

This beef shank soup was delicious! It was the first time many of my friends had tried bone marrow, which I'm a huge fan of. Yum! We had some garlic rice and some tempura like veggies as well.

The weather here wasn't quite what I expected. Considering its location, I expected heat and humidity and to be sweating most of the time. Definitely not the case. It was quite mild and after our Taal Volcano excursion, we even got a little chilly. It's all relative, of course.

Manila American Cemetery and Memorial

As we landed into Manila, my friend and I saw the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial from the plane. More than 17,000 World War II soldiers rest here.

It is humbling to stand in front of the walls that list thousands of names of soldiers that fought for our country.

To end our time in Manila, we all decided to splurge and get hour + long massages. It's ridiculous how inexpensive massages are here. $10USD got me an hour long deep tissue massage! Since it was at a pretty nice spa, that included some piping hot ginger tea as well. If I knew it was SO affordable, I would have done it everyday!

Can't really complain though. It was great and it was the perfect way to relax before heading over to Bali.

who doesn't like surprises?!

Lately, life has been full of tiny surprises.

I know some of these are silly, but I have to share my appreciation for some of the little things in life that have made me give big smiles!

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First off, who doesn't like getting legit snail mail that isn't a bill? I know I do! (It's truly a lost art... in my humble opinion.)

Anyway, one of my best friends got married last month. I got her letter in the mail the other day and it was a bigger envelope that was on the thicker side. I had to put groceries away and momentarily forgot that I received it. Mid-way through putting the contents away, I stopped because it dawned on me that she included PICTURES with the letter! It was like a lotto ticket! In this digital age, having an actual letter is like getting struck by lightning in a good way, and getting pictures too?! Double lucky!!! It was a beautiful wedding and I'm thrilled to be apart of it.

Beautiful bride and bridesmaids

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Another great surprise was a visit from one of my friends who lives in San Diego. She's a crazy one, and let me tell you why... even though she was welcome to stay for the night (weekend, too!), she decided to come up for the day. (Folks, that be 420 miles RT, and since there is ALWAYS traffic in LA, a 9 hour drive!!! In ONE day!) 

Who feels special? THIS gal!

And to top it off, where did we go for dinner?! American Ale! If you want to know what I think about this place, I've yelped about it and on a Happy Hour invitation too, at the amusement of my coworkers... The American Burger is a delicious mix of chuck beef and pork. Double patties, with grilled onions, cheese and if you ask nicely, mushrooms! (they also offer it with bacon and/ or a fried egg)... gee... here I go again! I seriously can't help it. It opened in May. By mid-July, I had already been there 6 times. After not being there for 6 weeks, I was starting to get withdrawals... Withdrawals!!! But, I got to go this weekend and it was just as I remember! De-freakin-licious!

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I've been playing on my company softball team for the past year. If you know me, it's obvious I never played in high school or college. I have terrible form and honestly, I used to be afraid of the ball. I'd be the one thinking (and if I'm in right field saying aloud), "please don't hit it over here, please don't hit it over here!"

I don't know what has changed, actually, I guess I do. I'm not longer afraid of the ball. Maybe it's because I usually play catcher and my senses have become more aware so that I'm not in danger of having "balls fly at my nose" (or bats fly at me in general, if you play catcher in co-ed slow pitch softball, you know what I'm talking 'bout!) 

In any case, this season has been a great one for me! My batting average has improved (it is still pretty darn awful though!), and whenever I hit the ball, I sprint my little heart out. I've even been called "fast!" (Again, if you know me... that has NEVER happened.) Sometimes I even get on 1st! (Thank you kiddie cleats!)  I've caught some fowl balls at home plate. Heck, I've even hurled the ball at third base, to help get an out that ended the game with my team winning our third straight game. (That was unexpected from all and people were talking about it at work for over 3 days!)  Don't get me wrong. I'm not good by any means, but I'm definitely improving. :) And I even got on the Top 10 Fielders Stats list to prove it! Woot!

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Isn't this just the cutest?! I had to take a picture because every time I look at it, I smile.

I saw it in the window display of a local bookstore, Granada Books. This is a lovely one, too. (Yes, the still DO EXIST!) Ok, so I admit it, I loved Despicable Me and the minions. My favorite short right now is "Banana". Gotta love that "hehehehehehe" laugh! I mean seriously?! It's so freaking cute! And every time I hear it, I have to smirk. Personally, I think they made the movie, but this isn't supposed to be a review, so... moving right along!

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 I took a walk to the beach today. It was an overcast day (YES, CA does have some mediocre weather, sometimes...) but I like to use that time to clear my head. Sometimes I reflect on the day, sometimes I'm developing story ideas. Sometimes it's about people and dog watching.

On this walk, I went down this industrial street that sometimes has a few odd characters on it. Today seemed to have a few more than usual. Right before I reached the boardwalk, I was walking towards a guy with a bike (who could have been homeless) and his two companions, a couple.

They were holding hands and bickering a little, but in a somewhat playful way. They looked a little dingy, him in a dirty blue sweatshirt, and her in a dirty leopard print coat that one might find on an old Hollywood set, hiding a red dress.

When I saw them, my gut told me that I should put up my guard a bit. They seemed a bit sketchy. As I walked by the boyfriend looked right at me and said, "Can I ask you a personal question?"

A bit surprised, I said, "Um, sure..." with a hint of uncertainty. I mean, that's a weird question to ask a random stranger, no?

"What nationality are you?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm Vietnamese." I replied with relief. Is that what he wanted to know? That's not so bad! :)

This is where I was caught off guard. He then said, "You're BEAUTIFUL!" With his girlfriend nodding in agreement saying, "Yeah!"

"THANKS!" I blushed. (The fact that I had to document this should tell you how often this happens in my life; um, like NEVER!)

As I continued my walk. I heard him say, "I love that $hi+!" which made me chuckle.

Diversity in Santa Barbara is a little on the low side, with "my" people making up 0.2% of the population (as of 2010, anyway), with Asians as a whole making up a whopping 3.5%! Regardless of the statistics, it's nice to see that snap judgments are not always needed and that people can surprise you in some really sweet ways. That right there, pretty much made my week!

Congratulations to Coral and Chris!

Di Tien and Uncle Jim had a daughter several years after they were married. They named her Coral because they met on a Florida beach and wanted to commemorate that moment with their first child.

 I was 8 at the time and I was elated to have a cousin. At the time she adored me as well. I remember that she would run around the house squealing my name with delight “Kimmy! Kimmy! Kimmy!” We used to sit at the kids’ table in the kitchen for dinner and Coral would happily entertain Steve (my brother) and me by dumping food on her head and in her diaper.  We couldn’t help but be in hysterics when she was up to her shenanigans.

When I was 14, I lived with my aunt, uncle and cousin for a semester down in Tequesta, Florida. One day, Coral and I were watching tv and Connie Selleca was in a Pantene commercial. I don’t remember what we were watching, but I do remember Coral mesmerized by her and when she said, “Wouldn't you love hair this healthy and shiny?” Coral stared, nodded and murmured, “Mmmm, hmmm!”

This is a picture of Coral and my her brother Gary. It's a few years after said commercial brainwashing, but she's still just as cute!

It should have hit me then that she might have wanted to go into Marketing! (Which she did!)


Fast forward 20 years, not only does she have the hair that surpasses Connie Selleca's, but she's got some amazing style too! 

Me, Coral, Chris, and Steve

Earlier this month, I had the honor of witnessing her marriage to a great man. This wedding weekend is what sparked my family appreciation month. Congratulations you two! 

Chris, welcome to the family!!

My they grow up so fast! (tear)