My 2014 holidays in the Philippines

A photo recap of the past ten days. This is my longest holiday back home since I started working in Singapore.

I flew to Manila on Christmas day onboard PR508. The flight was packed. I got to “surf the web” for the first time while up in the sky. As usual, the ice cream was great! But I skipped the alcohol. No beer or wine this time. When we arrived in Manila, people started jumping up from their seats. Grabe wait lang.

Reminder to self: Don’t travel on Christmas day again! I had to wait longer at the luggage carousels. We shared our belt with another PR flight from Macau. So many TV sets on the belt.

First order of business while in Manila? Celebrating Christmas dinner with my family. We went to Yellow Cab at D. Macapagal Boulevard. Cheese pizza, Charlie Chan, and soda. Sodas should be fine, it’s the holidays!

On the 26th I met up with my former colleagues T and R for a Cavite road trip to Balay Indang. We stayed overnight and ate almost every 3 hours. The place remains peaceful and serene. The food was great. 😀 Oh and I must comment, ang laki na ng arms ni R. And I miss T so much.

Went to MOA which was crowded! The holiday shoppers were busy. I did my own shopping. It has been months since I last shopped. I noticed some things like a new “Tap and Pay” system at the parking lot (finally! similar to Malaysia and Singapore and other SE countries). Picked up gifts for some people. Dinner at Tokyo Cafe to escape the crowds. And picking up Paul’s friend J. Oh, and a FROZEN tree.

On the 29th it was time to catch up with my college friends. We planned this months back. We stayed overnight at La Luz in Laiya, Batangas. I brought my family along to enjoy the beaches of San Juan. More food, more fun. 😀

The 1 night in Laiya was honestly bitin. But we made the most of it I guess. Playing cards late at night. Playing charades underneath the palm trees. Sands on our toes. Doing an unofficial prenup for my friends K and CJ, recently engaged. Asking for more mango sago.

The following day was a bit cloudy (Typhoon Seniang was in the southern Philippines). The wind was a little chilly so I didn’t want to get in the water. We headed back to Manila but had two pitstops along the way. Lunch at this cute local cafe called Cafeno in San Juan. Followed by a visit to Starbucks at Shell SLEX Binan. That’s where we parted ways.

New Year’s Eve was at home in Cavite. The best place to welcome the New Year is with your family. I did some last minute chores like clearing my closet of old clothes I don’t need. I counted about 80+ t-shirts and polos that I gave away. That’s 12+ years of clothes. My selection of clothing is also quite eclectic. My parents prepared our traditional spaghetti and barbecue.

My brother got to use his new GoPro which was fantastic at capturing this moment:

2014 ended on a high note. My boyfriend has a job and an employment pass. I am doing reasonably well at work (I guess so? Hope my manager thinks so haha). We are truly lucky and I am very grateful.

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I got to drop by my old stomping grounds in Cavite. SM City Bacoor is as bustling as ever with more “contemporary” offerings like Cotton On. There are some others. They stand next to renovated favourites like Kenny Rogers, Wendy’s, and National Bookstore. This mall is approaching 20 years old if I’m not mistaken.

I got to meet my high school friend C and her husband and three kids. 😀

On the 3rd of January I was invited by my housemate in Singapore (who gave birth to her 2nd kid here in Manila) to be her son’s ninong. What an honor. Both my boyfriend and I are ninongs to baby Z. I went to the baptism ceremony at Malate Church and the reception at Tramway Buffet along Roxas Boulevard.

That same afternoon I met up again with college friends at MOA. My mom and dad invited me to experience the “SM Prestige Lounge” hehe. The toilet paper though. 😀

Yesterday, the 4th of January, relatives came over to our house so we could all have a post-New Year potluck. Great to catch up with relatives on my dad’s side. Some of which work in countries like Qatar and the United Kingdom.