6 Weird Things About Me

This post is long overdue. I was tagged by Maping to list 6 weird things about myself and I came up with so many things. Haha! Anyway, here are 6 random weird things about me:

1. I used to have this small childhood pillow that I just cannot sleep without it. I had it with me for more than 20 years and just let go of it when I moved to Manila. My mother and sisters thought it was already ragged, thin and stinky but I thought otherwise. I would get into fights with my sisters if they tried to touch it, made fun of it or keep it from me. When I was sharing a flat with college classmates in Manila, I missed my pillow so much that it gave me sleepless nights. Then one of them had this old and extremely thin pillow that reminded me of my old one. She agreed immediately when I told her I’ll buy a new pillow and swapped it with her old one. Then I had that pillow for five years until I moved here in England. I would have brought it with me but my father firmly disagreed. Hehe! Now, there are nights that I truly missed my pillows. Good thing though, I brought a new one with which was a Christmas gift from one of our managers in Globe.

2. I am very afraid of thunders. I cower and curl down everytime I hear their loud blast and I am having the fastest palpitation ever. I feel like the earth will tear apart and swallow me whole. I slightly recover from that fear when I was living alone in Manila and I would just pull the blankets over me and hug my pillow (see how much it gave me comfort...hehe!)

3. I have a sensitive nose. I seem to smell things even before anybody else do.

4. I love okra! I know most people hate it but for me it’s my favorite vegetable. As a child, I don’t eat any veggies except okra. Even if it’s just plainly boiled or steamed, it’s a treat for me eating them dipped in vinegar and soy sauce.

5. Studying and memorizing for me is easier when I write down my thoughts. During quizzes and exams, I would remember how I wrote them down while studying. At work, even with the existence of laptops, I still keep a notebook handy and write down all things learned along the way. It’s more effective for me in remembering them.

6. Once in a while, I will have dreams that suggest events or information that is bound to happen. Or, out of nowhere, a name or some thought will popped in my mind and learn later about their relevance. One perfect example was when I was in high school. My sister’s senior class was involved in a legal issue. That night, I dreamed of opening my notebook and found out the name ‘Delfin’ written all over the pages. I brushed aside that dream but was taken aback the following night during dinner when my sister announced that they found a lawyer to handle their case: Atty. Delfin!!! Weird!

I’m tagging my friends listed in my blog list and any readers who want to do so. Go ahead, help yourself. :-)

Lost…

I lost my wedding and engagement rings last Friday. :-(

No, they were not just simply misplaced at home. It was a big-time foolishness on my part because it was only on Saturday afternoon that I realized they were missing. Hubby and I were about to leave for the mall and I ran to grab my rings that I normally keep on top of the drawers. But they were not there and it occurred to me that I went home last Friday evening without them on my finger. I really panicked and don’t know what to do. I want to go and look for them but I don’t where to start. The last I recalled was that I removed them Friday morning while washing my mug at the pantry and put them in the shallow pocket of my jeans. Then, they slipped off my mind and didn’t remember them until that Saturday afternoon.

I know I’m not really fond of jewelleries but those where among the few that I have that meant so much for me. It was the sentimental value that I was after. No other rings can replace them. I was so down no matter how much Hubby comforted me not to think about them and we’ll just order the same rings from the jewellers in the Philippines. Even attending two parties that Sunday and eating Filipino fiesta dishes did not took my mind off them. I kept on hoping I dropped them in the office so I can asked the cleaners if they noticed it and not in the supermarket where we it will be impossible to find them again.

And Found!!!

This morning, I came in the office a few minutes earlier than usual. I crawled under my table hoping I just dropped them there and I traced my usual route going in and out of the building. Then the Workplace Resources staff replied to my email telling me that found items are usually turned over to the Security Office. I didn’t waste time and dialled the Security Office’s number and inquired if, for some chance, my rings were found and turned over to their office. And the reply is, “Yeah, a couple of rings were found in the ladies toilet. Have a look if they’re yours.”

Despite the rain and cold, I ran to the other building while praying that hopefully those rings were mine. Indeed, THEY WERE MINE!

Thank God!

I was so inspired with the honesty of the people here. They would not dare get things that do not belong to them. God bless their hearts!

It's Good to Be Back!!! - Part 2

Geneva, Switzerland

After spending the weekend resting and waking up late in the morning, I packed my bags again and head back to the airport on the 11^th of June. The next destination was Geneva where the bi-annual 2-day CSI Technical Seminar was held.

Geneva is a resort city with calm lake and surrounding green hills and vineyard and with a fantastic view of the peaks of French Alps. It is known for being the base of many international organizations and headquarters to most of United Nations’ agencies.

Jet d'Eau - Symbol of Geneva

View from my hotel window

having a break

This time the trip was exciting since I was travelling with colleagues and met a lot more from other countries in the seminar. It was a venue to share work experiences especially with new colleagues coming from the other partner company (whom my parent company merged with). It was more like blending together Finnish and German work culture and learn from it.

Interestingly, I met a Filipina (who works for United Nations, Cool!) through an Indonesian colleague who has lived in the city before while working for ITU. It appears that there are a lot of Filipinos working for the United Nations in Geneva Headquarters.

Unfortunately, the seminar was held in Moevenpick Hotel which is a few meters away from Geneva International Airport and I was scheduled to fly back to London on the night after the closing of the seminar thus I was not able to explore the whole city except for the Tuesday night dinner held in the city center. Nevertheless, it was really great that I get to visit the country and hopefully I can go back soon and this time for more sightseeing around Geneva and Lausanne.

It's Good to Be Back!!! - Part 1

Finally! After weeks of going from here to there…I’m back in my base office and in a new desk location! This is sort of a fresh start for me after a very busy month.

Anyway, here’s where I’ve been and what I’ve been up and about the last few weeks:

Budapest, Hungary

I was in this beautiful city for 10 days supporting a project for one of our big customers. At first, I thought that I will just be doing remote planning support from England ( as what I have been doing the past year) but it turned out that the project manager wanted me to be in Budapest for the whole duration of the project. So after availing myself of a business visa, even before I can prime myself to the idea of travelling, I was off to Budapest on the 29^th of May.

It was not really a smooth travel for me as I was only accommodated in the late evening flight and as expected, it was delayed by another hour which meant that I will be arriving in this unfamiliar city way past midnight. While in the plane, I was worried that I might not be able to find a taxi going to the hotel and indeed I was right! There was not a single taxi in the airport and there were about 15 people ahead of me in the queue. Worse, I had no idea which part of the city my hotel was located and I had not a single clue about Hungarian language. Good thing though that I decided to try my luck getting out of the queue and wandered around the arrival entrance and found out that they have this airport minibus which brings passengers to downtown Budapest at a cheaper price. I just told the driver that I need to be dropped by my hotel and that’s the only place I knew. So off we go and I shared the ride with 5 other people all talking Hungarian and myself not having a single idea where we were heading to. I just can’t explain the relief that I felt when I saw the Ramada neon lights from afar.

The rest of days were spent at the Budapest office finishing my planning document for the said project. I was seated next to the PS Core Planner and he was very helpful in all my logistic needs and most importantly, in my technical queries regarding the project. Since it was getting dark quite late in the evening, I’ve been walking around every after office hours and trying out different restos each day. Food was great and heavy and the city ambiance was definitely striking as they have preserved pre-war structures and architecture but sometimes it’s quite frustrating to be walking around without having any idea what the people around me are talking about.

Traditionally Budapest:

Towards the weekend, I got a little homesick and missed hubby so much that I even thought of going back to England and just come back by Monday. But after his convincing me not to cause anymore hassles to our secretary who is doing all the plane and hotel bookings, I decided to stay and discover more of the city. So, when Saturday came, after a light breakfast, equipped with the city map, I decided to roam around the city. Luckily, it was a sunny and warm day despite hearing some rain forecast the previous day. Walking around, you can see that the city is both peaceful and bustling. It is a big metropolis but people are laid back and friendly and the historic structures blend with the modern ones. For me, the highlight of this city is the river Danube which flows through the city with hills on one side harmonizing with it. Towards the afternoon, I just found myself walking along Vaci Utca. It is one of the famous streets in Budapest where upscale and fancy shops, cafe and restaurants lined up with very interesting façade and stunning architecture.

The following day, a Filipino colleague based in the city, invited me over to his superb place for a barbecue. He lives on the quiet and hilly Buda side of the city. It was a fun afternoon spending time with his friendly wife and kids. It was very uplifting talking about their life and experiences in Hungary, England and Philippines. On the way back to the hotel, we decided to drop by Citadella. It is located in Gellert Hill which rises high and offers a great view of the whole city, the Buda side and some parts of the Pest side, the banks of the Danube and the majestic Royal Palace and the Parliament. From there, we went to Heroes’ Square for a few picture-taking as it is one of Hungary’s famed spots. It was only during the drive to his place and back that I discovered the other parts of the city which was simply impressive.

among the Hungarians. :)

overlooking Budapest and The Danube

Elisabeth Bridge

Szabadság Szobor (Liberty Statue) with Roselyn and Alex

Budapest at night

Heroes' Square

Museum of Fine Arts

It was indeed a beautiful city and I was thankful that I was given the chance to explore that part of Europe. At the end of my stay and the completion of my planning task, I can say that I enjoyed my short stay in the Budapest office and city as a whole and can’t wait to go back to England that has been home for me for quite a while and of course looking forward to see my dear husband whom I terribly missed.

Hanging Out by the Sea

Yeah! I am in the office right now sitting in this same old desk and staring blankly in the laptop in front of me. Physically here, that is! As far as I know my mind is somewhere else, back in Portsmouth where we spent the long weekend by the sea (having May 7 as May Day bank Holiday) and the loads of shopping items we were able to avail at great, great prices at Gunwharf Quays!!!

We headed off to Portsmouth at the southern coast of England early last Sunday. It was truly a marvellous weekend as it was a mix of travelling, sightseeing and SHOPPING! What more can be so fun? Despite the wrong-timing onset of clouds, showers and wind, our energy level soared and hubby and I tremendously enjoyed our two-day holiday which we have planned two weeks ago.

The moment I spotted the Spinnaker Tower on our approach to the harbour, I got overly excited and started giggling uncontrollably. The thrill of having to shop at Gunwharf Quays’ designer outlet shops totally got over me and maybe due to adrenalin rush or whatever, I became energetic despite waking up quite early and missing breakfast that morning. Gunwharf Quays, home to a large shopping center, is located in a historic setting with the Historic Dockyard and Old Portsmouth just a few walks away. It is basically an interesting contrast and integration of old and new architecture. It is where one can experience shopping in the pedestrian avenues, relaxing in the wide open spaces, see spectacular views across Portsmouth Harbour, and enjoy the vibrant atmosphere. It has over 85 designer outlets, 20 cosmopolitan bars and restos, health and fitness centers, 14-screen VUE cinemas, bowling, pubs, discos, comedy bars and hotel.

After grabbing something to eat and a location map, we started off our shopping galore. Initially, hubby and I can’t seem to agree on what shops to check out first as both of us have particular ones in mind. We even considered splitting and meeting up after we have done our own shopping but I immediately decided against it since I really can’t buy well and wisely without Zach. You see, shopping for me is never complete and enjoyable without my dear hubby. Then realizing that we will be staying until the next day, as we have booked a room in the nearby Holiday Inn, we planned out our itinerary and check out the shops one by one. Indeed, it was heavenly especially discovering huge discounts on top of outlet prices shop after shop. The day was literally spent going in and out of shops and fitting rooms.

When it started to get dark, we decided to take a short rest and freshen up in the hotel room to get ready for dinner. All week I’ve been looking forward to eat in La Tasca. It is a Spanish restaurant with warm and colourful Hispanic decors, friendly and hospitable environment, great entertainment and of course, their authentic cuisine of tapas, paellas, sangria and wide range of Spanish wines and beers. Somehow, this restaurant made me feel closer to home. Zach decided against having paella as he is on diet (so he claims…heheh!) so we decided to settle to start on some salad and hit the tapas. While waiting for the food, they served their house sangria which was just perfect. Minutes later, our food came and saw pairs of eyes widen around us as we have ordered far too much for two people. hehe! We had the salad: ensalada de tomate y queso de cabra (salad of tomatoes and goat’s cheese); patatas bravas, champinones al ajillo (mushroom sauted in garlic and olive oil); seleccion de embutidos; chorizo frito al vino; gambas gabardina; calamares andaluza; and pan de ajo y queso. We truly enjoyed our meals and it was gone before we knew it.

With heavy stomachs, we decided to stroll along the harbour and took photos. The Spinnaker Tower looked fabulous at night. The whole setting was amazing and even the strong wind did not ruin the romantic backdrop of the sea and skies. A few people had been strolling around as most of them were inside the pubs, cinema, comedy bars and discos. After grabbing a drink from one of the pubs, we retired to our hotel room and rest the night away.

The weather kind of turned more gloomy and windy the next day and we got up quite late. Luckily, we were able to avail the hotel breakfast just when they were about to close. We spent the whole morning shopping around and the headed off to the Portsmouth Historic Dockyards before heading back home. Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is home to the world famous historic ships that have shaped British history – HMS Victory, the Mary Rose and HMS Warrior 1860.