From Across The Sea: Some Photos for You

Effortless

Olivia Palermo in NYC

Even Then I Knew

I love Jim and Pam. And Andy :)

Monday Afternoon in Banawe

The moment you drive up to Banawe, the car parts, car accessories, car repair hub of Manila, the men start swarming towards you. Whether to ask what you're looking for or to size up your vehicle, giving unsolicited advice about what repairs or improvements could be made, wink wink, they were there and they were eager.

These men are the free agents of the street. They know where to find this headlight, or that fender. They know which person to call for any car part imaginable. A Blaupunkt stereo? A man would appear and help us out. The driver's side door of a Honda City type Z, 2002 model? Another man would appear and attend to us.

The car door would prove to be elusive. We went to four or five shops, cramped with car engines, headlights, tail lights, seats, and various other unidentifiable objects. Always, they would pick up the phone and call someone to ask for the availability of the said door. Always the answer was that it was unavailable. It had to be sourced from Pampanga, and their supplier would take two or three days to get back to us. Pretty soon we wondered, if whether each shop we went to, were dialing the same number, calling the same person.

J called it a “Man's World,” and apologized several times for bringing me there. But I found it fascinating. That Monday afternoon, I would normally be ticking off items from my neat to-do list, in my little carrel in the faculty room, in my little air-conditioned corner of the city. But there I was this whole other structure-less universe, where men smoked, stood around, chatting idly, while some squeezed underneath cars getting greasy from various repairs. It was the kind of place where, jostling each other for every oncoming car spelled the difference between earning something or nothing.

And amidst shops with names like Autorama, Joe's Car Shack, and all these men who looked like they , belonged there, in their Honda Cars or Nissan Team shirts, with their smudged hands, and Good Morning towels wrapped around their heads or neck, there was one, incongruous sight. 

A man in a gray sando, was sitting on the side walk, one foot plopped on a chair, immersed in Sudoku. Lost in a world where logic and number placements were more important that radiators, bumpers, alternators and brake pads, nothing could touch him.

"Being in the world, but not of this world " :)

The Magazine is Out!

My two articles on Krabi, Thailand are in THIS issue of Asian Traveler magazine. Available in all major bookstores nationwide :)

When You're A Kid

Beijing 2011 Lightbox

108 yuan beef dinner at Bikarouji. The red doors of the Forbidden City. Temple of Heaven. 100 yuan. Directions found at the Great Wall in Jinshanling. Forbidden City courtyard. "I Climbed The Great Wall" keychains. 20 yuan. Houhai Lake. South Gate of The Temple of Heaven. Bird's Nest at Olympic Park. Beijing City Map and handwritten directions from Rick, City Walls hostel manager. The interesection we always crossed. Bird's Nest at the Olympic Park. Jotham at the Forbidden City red door. Dimsum and noodles breakfast in our hostel in a hutong.Boardin pass going home. The snow-covered Great Wall at Jinshanling. Forbidden City and more photos at the Great Wall.

Switchfoot By The Numbers

"We were meant to live for so much more.."

"Hello hurricane, you can't silence my love!"

"If it doesn't break your heart, it isn't love."

"I'm finding that You and You alone can break my fall."

"When I look at the stars, I see someone else."

"Every breath is a second chance."

"We are the children of the scar, I wanna start from the start"

"This is home, this is home, now I'm finally where I belong."

"Where you gonna go? Where you gonna go? Salvation is here."

"I know now, You're my only hope."

2:    hours standing in line at the gates of Ultra.
5: (or more) new friends Jotham made, while standing in said line.


4:   number of bets made about which song Switchfoot will sing first (Iya - Yet, May: Dare You To Move, Jotham: Hello Hurricane, Bianca and Hayz: Made To Live)
150:  pesos worth of dessert the bet's winner could order.
4 : (or so) other bets made that night --- time the show would start, number of songs they would play, name of the opening act. 
0:   actual number of winners that night.

16:   number of songs in total, that Switchfoot performed that night, which included Always (Jotham's favorite), This Is Home, (Iya's favorite), Meant To Live (Bianca and Hayzel's favorite), Only Hope (Mainstream ako! My favorite)
3:  number of songs we were hoping they would play, but didn't (Yet, Sing It Out and You).

2: eyes on Shariya's face that gave us a withering look when we suggested dinner to her "friend." 
11:  the hour that we were finally able to eat dinner at Dencio's Metrowalk.

1 : ONE AMAZING GOD, who brought us together, to watch this AMAZING, BLESSED band, whose songs fill our nights, resplendent.

I Mean Bizznezzz Thizzz Time!

Okay one of the resolutions I made just now, is to update this blog more often. And by often, I mean every time a significant event has happened in my life, or an epiphany lights up my heart.

And right now I am sooo behind. From Beijing to Baccalaureate Breakfast, to Graduation, to Caramoan, to sooooo many more events, big and small, through which God has lavished His love on me.

Having said that, it is time to get to work.

Sarang Hae David Park

Homemade card for David

Fruity crepe thing courtesy of Anton Reloj

David!

With Juan The Man

Iya with Brucie, Joy and Ivan

It's Jego time! With Jotham

Surprise lunch at his house and soccer shoes c/o Cambridge  + movie (Source Code)  + afternoon surprise of crepe, video (Banana Shake!), card c/o teachers + a little bit of Time Zone = HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAVID PARK!!!

My Girl Maggie

My girl Maggie, she’ll be tall and as tough as a tree…

Like a tree she’ll grow with her head held high

And her feet planted firm on the ground.

And you won’t see nobody dare to try

To toss her or boss her around.

I guess it's safe to say, that from now onwards,  every gathering in our family - whether they are birthdays, reunions or anniversaries, they will all center on one special little girl.
 
To celebrate my brother, Alpee's birthday, my sister Kat was gracious enough to lend her condo unit as space for celebration. It was our first time going there, and we got lost in a maze of strange, twisting streets and dead end alleys. I was agitated, because Maggie was already at the condo, and my brother said they had to leave early. (Nooooo!!!)
 
When we finally got there, she was in a pretty sun dress, just traipsing along the paved grounds, smiling and laughing gaily as a light breeze blew her hair. She was having the loveliest time, and it was only natural to skip and twirl along with her.
 
Inside the unit, Maggie proudly showed off new tricks up her sleeve. She performed animal sounds like "bok bok" for chicken, "kokak" for frog, "raaarrr" for lion, and "aw aw" for dog. She cupped her hands to her face, and displayed her "pretty girl look." She put on her tiny pink shades and modeled for us.
 
There were moments, when she would say uncannily grown-up things. Rummaging through my bag, she found my phone, and told me bossily, "Cellphone mo." Or, when asked for a kiss, in exchange for food, she irritably said, "Naman, eh!"
 
Her expressions are priceless. There is unabashed joy in her eyes and her smile, as she sees and feels and experiences something for the very first time. Oh, to be that young, that every single moment is just sheer delight, with no past or future to drag down or encumber you.  
 
She is like that Sting song, "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" -- an endlessly fascinating little person, at whose existence I marvel at constantly. Who is this young girl, who, only years ago did not even exist in our lives? And now she is a walking, talking, thing of beauty.
 
Amazing, amazing, amazing, this gift. Thank you God, for this gift of a precious new life! :)

The World is Just Awesome (Boom De Ya Da) - Caramoan, Philippines

So how do you tell the story of three days of island hopping, boat rides, exquisite sandbars, resplendent blue waters, with the absolute best people on the planet? Why, make a video of course! (Thanks, Josam.)

So here it is, 2 minutes and 44 seconds of pure gloriousness in Caramoan, Camarines Sur, Philippines.

"All powerful, untameable, awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim, YOU ARE AMAZING GOD!"

My Tombstone

Echoing an activity we did during a Tuesdays With Morrie lesson, my seniors presented a tombstone they created especially for me, during their Baccaulareate Breakfast.

What makes this gift extra special, is that I'm not even an adviser this year. And yet the kids were sweet enough to stay up late creating an extra surprise for their English teacher.

The inscription is a lovely poem, created by the boys (Anton R., Juan, Henry, Anton Z, Christen, David and Bruce). It reads --

Undefined

Rarely do we ever see

A combination of brains and beauty

But proven wrong were we

When we met Martinez May Lady

Everyday we saw this face

Which gave our classroom such grace

She never frowned in all her days

No word can describe, no sentence, nor phrase

Inspiring and caring for all her kids

Her love and affection, she never hid

Ironic as it was, she never stuck to the book

As an English teacher, she had an alternative look

A subject most people would abhor

That's why "WE LOVE ENGLISH!" it was never a bore

Her style of teaching was new and unique

She brought topics to life even if they were bleak

With The Little Prince, she gave us back our childhood

Teaching us to dream, just like little kids could

Not just on Tuesdays, we had Morrie

The value of life exposed through the wisdom of the story

You gave yourself away

For us you chose to stay

And so you should be in the dictionary, for no word can describe

Therefore you, Ms. Martinez, are meaningfully undefined

Okay, so not only did they make a poem from scratch, they also made sure to include a line from my all-time favorite song, With Or Without You -- "You gave yourself away."

You know, I've sometimes been a bit bothered by the idea that most of my peers have achieved or earned more than I have, at this age. Most of them have enough disposable income for nice clothes, and shoes, gadgets of every kind, cars, condos, etc.

But then something like this happens, and I know in my heart, that this handmade, somewhat tattered, unevenly cut piece of cardboard, is worth more than anything money can ever buy. This, right here, is pure love, baby.

"Why do you spend money for that which is not bread, and  why do you labor for that which does not satisfy?" - Isaiah 55: 2

Dear Cambridge

To tell you the truth I came this close - this close - to quitting my job last year. But boy am I glad I stayed. Because I met, and fell in love, with a class called US 4 Cambridge.

My previous classes tried my patience, provoked me, and made my life a virtual rollercoaster ride.

But Cambridge 2011. Cambridge gave me endless days of laughter and smiles, great lessons, amazing essays, beautiful insights, happy, childish times.

I am so jealous of their class adviser, Mr. Briones, because I'm not their adviser. In fact my boss, Miss De Guzman said, "Etong si May nagpipigil lang magpaka-homeroom adviser ng Cambridge."

Thank you Cambridge. You are the main reason I go to work everyday. You are the reason I have less wrinkles and feel prettier this year, the reason I feel blessed and loved. You are the reason my last year as a teacher wasn't great. It was GRAND :)

Pico Iyer Quote for the Day

"Yet for me the first great joy of traveling is simply the luxury of leaving all my beliefs and certainties at home, and seeing everything I thought I knew in a different light, and from a crooked angle."

from Why We Travel by Pico Iyer

I Can Hardly Believe It Myself

The Great Wall at Jinshanling 

 

Beijing in February

So it looks like I am going to Beijing. I didn't want to say anything because I was a tad worried about the visa situation. But the travel agent told us last week that everything had gone well and the visa was ready for pick-up on February 10.

Needless to say, I am over the moon at this bit of blessing. I can now, finally, maniacally plan this trip down to the very last detail. With just three days in this sprawling capital, I would feel uncomfortable leaving anything to chance.

Which is not to say I won't welcome surprises or even setbacks along the way. I expect there will be some, but at least I'll know my way around or through it.

I've made a 3-day Beijing itinerary, which I thought was pretty nifty, but then I went online today, saw this very comprehensive site  and realized what an amateur of a trip planner I actually am.

So today, the itinerary will have to be beefed up and trimmed down at the same time.

I am enjoying this so much, I'll have to find a way to make a living out of this.

PB and J

P : "We're dating..."
J: "Whoah. There it is..."
P: "We haven't told anyone yet... but it's going really great. Right?"
J: "It's going really good."