A Week from 19

This morning, I woke up at 6:40 to my phone's alarm clock and went to get ready for school. Seeing as I was taking a car, I figured I could leave later than I usually would if I commuted (which out be at around 7 in the morning, anticipating the traffic and so forth).

When I was all set, it was already a little past 7, and I told myself I'd leave the house at 7:30 so I could get a good parking space and had time before my 8:30 class. At around 7:20, my mom and her sisters came back from the airport to pick up my grandpa, which was who I was basically waiting for. xD

After saying some quick hellos and chomping on a piece of pancake one of my aunts brought for breakfast, I headed off to school. There's not really much to talk about school, but rather what happened after.

I went home right after my last class that ended at 12:30, and got to the house a bit before 1 in the afternoon. My grandpa, mom and sister went out for lunch, so I was able to rest a little before they came home. Spending some time with my grandpa to catch up on things, I eventually left with my parents to see an orthopedist concerning my scoliosis. We went from the National Kidney and Transplant Institution along East Ave. to Veterans Memorial Medical Center along North Ave. to meet up with Dr. Antonio Sison, who was the director of the latter.

I'm happy to report that my scoliosis is nothing to be worried over. ^__________________^v

After that, we went to TriNoma for a little bit so mom could buy grandpa some shorts, while dad and I went to Starbucks so we could get drinks and I could finally get my Starbucks planner.... which I did. Yay!!! ^o^/

And whether I want to admit it or not, I'll be celebrating my birthday next week. Time flies so fast. T-T

Treasure Hunt

Composing this entry at the new Rizal Library here in school. It took me a while to locate the RSF, which turned out to be in the fourth floor of this humongous building! @.@ Gah.

But anyway, I had time on my hands before Kai and I would meet for a late lunch after her 12-1:30 class today, so I decided to check out the new library here in school.

As I look around the place, it's quite spacious - the study foyer a.k.a. internet center - compared to last time, so it's much more conducive to privacy (at least a bit better now) and concentrating on whatever you plan on doing. ^____^b

Of course, there's no denying the fact that a bigger library means more space. Consequently, that means more tired feet going up and down the stairs looking for whatever you need, provided the elevator is full or just isn't working. Haha.

All in all, my first trip here to the new library was a good choice (even if my legs and feet are killing me from futsal this morning T~T). I'll have to make note to come here by and by. Note to self: Bring crocs on PE days.

The Bangkok Experience: Abridged

This entry will be allotted for sharing a few pictures throughout our family trip to Bangkok, Thailand from November 1-4, 2009. Brief explanations will be provided, of course.

Here we have a family picture upon our arrival at the airport. The terminal was HUGE. Seriously. @_@

The second picture is a shot of our whole group who went on this trip. Thirteen (13) of us all in all. This was in front of the first shrine we visited during our half-day city tour, and the picture was taken by our tour guide Popeye.

Before making our way to the second shrine of our city tour, we came across a McDonald's where the ever-familiar Ronald McDonald was standing outside. His pose, despite the usual 'Follow me/Welcome, step this way!' pose, was uniquely Thai in nature. "Only in Bangkok," so Popeye said. And what better way to capture the moment than to have a picture with it! In this picture is me with my two aunts copying the pose, and my nephew Tristan being his usual, silly self.

Next we have another family picture at the second shrine we visited. Forgive me for not providing names as I didn't expect to be using these pictures anytime soon. Hahaha.

Our group was lucky to have come to Thailand as we were able to take part in the Loy-Krathong Festival held during a full moon that happens every November (or the 12th month in the Thai lunar calendar). It was a wonderful experience! Above is a picture of my mom and I with our krathongs.

Day three of our trip brought us to Samphran Elephant Grounds & Zoo. The highlight of our visit there was of course to see some elephants! I don't know why, but I'm a fan of elephants. Ah, the nostalgia of having read Babar when I was young. xD The ivory that is that elephant's tusks that I'm touching above was really smooth! >u<

This is the climax of my trip: riding an elephant! It only lasted for a short time, but it was exhilarating to have had the opportunity to do this! ^_______________________________^b

And finally, a shot of the my father's side of the family at the airport as we head back to Manila. We basically took this picture to send to my grandmother in Belgium (my dad's mom).

With all the shopping, the site-seeing and the bonding, I think Bangkok is a place I wouldn't mind paying a visit to a second time. ^___^b

The Bangkok Experience: Day 3

Our third day in Bangkok had us experience strong winds in the morning and slight drizzles in the late afternoon. The procrastinating side of me turned off my 7:15 alarm and ended up waking up to a phone call from my dad at around a little past 8. When I got up, I realized how much my legs hurt like hell. Dx

After showering I headed downstairs and saw my parents there and the strong winds blowing in the breakfast area. It was a cool breeze for the most part, so everything was good. ^_____^b Today we had another set of tours to go to that was outside Bangkok, so the road trip was longer than usual. Not having anything to do until 10:30, I went upstairs to play a few games on my DS.

And pretty soon, we were off! Our first stop was to the Samphran Elephant Ground & Zoo. There was a lunch buffet there before we entered the place, but I must say I didn't eat all that much. So much for the buffet. xDD Anyway, at around 12:45pm, we went to see the Crocodile Wrestling Show. There were two guys. More than wrestling with the crocodiles (mind you, there were around five crocodiles there), they performed a few death-defying tricks like sticking their hand in an open crocodile's mouth and pulling away just as the mouth snapped shut. What's interesting is the crocodiles can really hold a position like a statue! Sugoi! ^_________^b

When that was done, we moved to watch the Magic Show. We watched this and the Elephant Theme Show that followed with a group of students on field trip. Let's talk about the magic show first. There were a lot of tricks that the magician pulled off that you'd see in any typical show (tricks you'd find on Breaking the Magician's Code, for one xD). But there were a few tricks that were quite eye-catchy.

One involved catching doves out of thin air with a wire (I think it was wire) net. Another involved transforming a bird into a rabbit. And then of course, there was making a school of fish appear inside a tank! It was something to enjoy, really. The interesting part is that the magician does his tricks to the beat of music playing the background. I like, I like. ^______^b

And then we go to the Elephant Theme Show. It was a sight to see elephants up close striking funny poses and doing spectacular things. At one point one of the elephants walked through the small opening of the barricade to the front of the audience area. Hahaha. It was funny to look at. What was really interesting for me was the elephants playing soccer!! When the show was done, we got to go up-close and pat the elephants, and feel their tusks! Some of us even got to ride the elephant for a while!! It was, I believe, THB70, so the short ride was worth it. Quite the unique experience. Will share pictures another time.

When that was done, we took a quick trip to the Rose Garden to watch a short cultural show before heading back to the hotel. It didn't take long before we were heading back for another afternoon of shopping. I was supposed to get that vest I saw two days ago but couldn't locate the store. Me and my short term memory. But hey, it was a big place! @_@ It's fairly easy to get lost. But yeah. I managed to get something for myself: 3 shirts for THB270. It was a good deal and I love the designs. xD I didn't have time to take pictures of them since mom had to pack already as soon as we got back to the hotel.

We had dinner there at the food court before heading back here to the hotel. My feet and legs are aching, but the experience is well worth it. Tomorrow morning, I'll be going to purchase that vest since my cousin Dabz kindly located the store for me so I have an idea where to go before we're picked up at 11am from the hotel to head to the airport. Our flight will be at around 2 in the afternoon, so we'll be back in the Philippines at around 6:30 Philippine time. Set your watches, we're coming home!!

The Bangkok Experience: Day 2

So this morning I woke up to my 6:30 am alarm for breakfast. As much as a buffet it was, it really had a variety of foods to choose from! At least after looking around yesterday, I have a good idea of what I'm getting tomorrow. xDD

So this morning we went out to a city tour, visiting two temples and Gem Company amidst our little road trip around Bangkok. But since I didn't have the camera most of the time, I won't bother going into much detail, save for having to ring 44 (well, 41) bells at the second temple, supposedly for good luck. ^___^b

MBK was a nice place to be at afterwards. My sister recommended we eat at Pepper Lunch, ironically a Japanese restaurant where she, my mother and I ended up eating Chicken Pepper Rice as our lunch. xDD I have to admit, though, my sister was right. I should really think about taking Kai to one of the branches back in the Philippines on one of our dates. ^__^v The amakuchi (aka honey brown sauce) was delicious too!

Ahaha. After that, we had some Dairy Queen for dessert (though it was sad that they didn't have Kit Kat. DDD8) before we all went about our ways browsing MBK for things to buy. And boy was there a selection! xDD

Here's a list of the things I bought for me and/or for Kai!

The first thing I bought was a hat worth THB250 for myself!! Hahahaha. I've been looking around for this, and I'm glad I finally found one~ Wheeeee~

Next thing I bought was a shirt for Kai. I didn't take a picture of it since I wanted it to stay in the plastic. But the shirt color is red and the design is of two dogs. 8D

After that, my sister and I spotted our dad miraculously amidst the crowd before we headed upstairs a floor to look at all the gadgets and gizmos where my dad suggested my sister looks for a case for her iTouch. I piped up about a DS to my dad and we looked around for a while for a reasonable price.

In the middle of our search, I found this Animob container worth THB120 whose design just reminded me so much of Kai I just had to get it for her~

Not too far from there, my dad was talking with one of the clerks about a Nintendo DS and we agreed that we'd purchase that! 8DD After all, spending THB3900 on it with the package sounded like a good deal. ^__^b A little downside was that I had to spend some time choosing the 40 games, and I spent the other half of my trip money plus a few from the money I still had for it but at least I already have it!! 8DD (Note: I wasn't really playing with the DS here. I was just posing. xDD)

After that, we regrouped at the ground floor where I browsed around the souvenir store and ended up purchasing Kai a panda hat worth THB220. Since it couldn't fit me, it'd fit her just right (I think xD)!

The last thing I got before we left were two bracelets worth THB80 each; one for myself and one for Kai. Wheee. And finally we headed back to the hotel to rest.

Our evening trip was out to the Loy-Krathong Festival near the Pagoda. 8D We got to experience making a wish and setting our krahtongs down into the river and watched them floated off. What I found nostalgic about it all was that back in my 2nd year of high school, we celebrated an Asian Festival where my class was assigned the country of Thailand. The song we sang was what you'd call the theme song of the festival. When our tour guide, Popeye sang it in the shuttle, I remembered. xDD

So yes. Afterwards, we headed to the night market for a while to browse around before heading back to the hotel. I got to experience room service with my mom and enjoyed some carbonara! Mmmmmmmmmm~

Day two was just as tiring, but altogether another fun day. ^__^b

The Bangkok Experience: Day 1

This is the first time since I've made this blog that I'll be making short accounts of my trips abroad. Finally, I can finally get away from the Philippines!!

^________________________________^

I only have a limited pictures to share (ones that I take with my laptop xD), but I'll be sure to link you all to the pictures that we accumulate during our trip here in Thailand.

We all woke up at around 6:00 or 6:30 in the morning before leaving for the airport earlier. @__@ Now I may have had my share of waking up early, but this is a different thing altogether because it's a trip abroad that doesn't happen everyday.

We checked in at around 9:00 am since the flight was at 10:30 am. The flight lasted for about 3 hours. It was interesting to note that i actually enjoyed eating airplane food this time around. Not that it mattered since all of it dissolved during landing. Hahaha.

So yeah. We checked in here at Centre Point. Mind you, we're a biiiiiiiiiig group. About... 13 of us? *counts* Yeah.

Since we didn't have any plans for the day, we spent the rest of the day shopping. Not my cup of tea, but hey, if there's money to spend and people worth spending on, why not, right? xD We looked around Platinum to eat things to buy and I was looking around for some souvenirs for Kai and things for myself. My mom gave me money to spend (US$100, which is approximately... THB 3200) for this trip. ^___^b

And spending all that time looking, surrounded by clothes, bags and the like (and do take note, I have my eyes set on a limited selection of things and designs), I saw a few interesting things to purchase but didn't purchase them yet. xDD. Although, I DID end up purchasing two things. And that's what I took pictures of. xDD This way I can show Kai too. :3

These pictures are in my hotel room that I share with my siblings. I'm at the desk charging my laptop as I type this entry.

This first picture displays the 3-forTHB100 keychains I got for Kai. My first pack of sovenirs! 8D From left to right, you'll notice the designs. Puppies, bunnies and pandas. Uberly uberly cute!! (>u<)

This second picture is what I bought for myself. A bracelet worth THB150. ^___^b The red one over there. *points* How does it look? Tell me what you think!

Alright. I think I'll start getting ready for bed now. Need an early start tomorrow with that morning tour. I'll be back tomorrow evening to update you all on how the day went, and update you with pictures too if I can! I'll be sure to have a picture taken with my awesome nephew Tristan. Hahaha.

Night one and all!

PS. We're one hour behind here in Bangkok (with respect to the Philippines)! ^__^b