I'm BACK!!!

Exactly a week ago, Philippine Airlines flight PR905 landed at NAIA Terminal 2 around 4 o'clock in the afternoon to officially end my adventure to the country across the Pacific Ocean, the US of A.

Two and a half months ago when I first stepped on the US soil to stay there to work at Headstrong office in Sunnyvale, California. During the first two weeks of my stay, I was very homesick and had a hardtime adjusting with jet lag. Things became interesting when the Pinoy connection composed of Edge, Janice, Cary, Chryshyll and I (and sometimes Rhefee) began touring different interesting places near Mountain View (San Francisco, Carmel, San Jose, Milpitas, and of course, Los Angeles!). Time really flies fast when you are enjoying and having a good time!

What really helped me feel less homesick was the fact that my friends in Manila are always talking to me in YM. It made me feel that I'm just in one of the provinces in the Philippines that is very far from Manila. Thanks to the Bash trio of Carissa (aka Rowfa my anak who is in NY right now), Juber (aka Tito Jubert/Boryong) and Kit (aka Tito Boy/Kititoy/Hali Potter) because they were always online and kept on updating me with the different activities and happenings. We shared different stories and some of which are very hard to share with other friends. Kahit na minsan busy sila, nagtyatyaga pa rin silang kausapin ako... hehehe...

Special mention also to my HS friends Trina, Kat, Paolo, Ainah, Cendy and Berns and also to my Sunlife friends Tita Os, Manang, Deo, Frank, Warner, Rinette and Francis. Mga kakulitan ko rin kahit anong oras... hehehe... Syempre, I would never forget Ekai because of her numerous stories about her BOYS... hehehe... we became really close eventhough nag-uusap kami through YM lang...

When Rhefee broke the news that we will be back to Manila on September 13, part of me felt really sad because I will be leaving my friends there in Sunnyvale. Actually, I wasn't feeling excited at all when she told us that news. Pero nung malapit na ung September 13, I can't explain yung excitement ko to see old friends and my family, of course. But, when we arrived at the airport and learned that our flight was cancelled, biglang nawala agad lahat ng excitement... I told Chryshyll then 'Kaya pala di pa ako ganun ka-excited talaga'... Bumalik lang lahat ng excitement na naramdaman ko nung talagang nakasakay na kami sa eroplano. Parang di na ako makapaghintay, gusto ko nasa Manila na ako. I want to see my family... my friends... Mas lalo akong naexcite umuwi nung nalaman ko na di pala natuloy yung alis nung brother ko pabalik ng US, I guess God really allowed that... almost 1 year na rin kasi kaming di nagkikita...

Hay... the experience that I had in US is really very memorable. Kaya ko rin palang maging independent. Kailangan kong asikasuhin lahat kasi wala namang ibang gagawa nun... Kailangang gumising nang maaga para magplantsa ng damit na isusuot at magluto ng breakfast. Pag wala nang maisuot kailangang mag-laundry (although washing machine naman gamit). Pag ubos na ung stock, kailangang mag-grocery. Masarap sya na mahirap pero sulit ung experience.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we already landed at Ninoy Aquino International Airport..."

I'm really here in the Philippines!!!

I'M HOME!!!

LA Adventure - Universal Studios Hollywood

In our second day in the City of Angels, we scheduled our trip to the Universal Studios. Since it is a long weekend, there are lots of people in line buying the tickets. We almost decided not to go inside because of the long line and because Edge might be late on his training session with the new Extensity members had not been to the Express Lane Machine! We noticed that the line there is not that long because you have to use credit card to purchase the tickets. We immediately bought the tickets there and our adventure inside that huge theme park began.

We hurriedly checked the map for the Studio Tours that they offer to all the visitors of the park. Eventhough the line is very long, the waiting time is short since there are lots of tour buses coming every now and then. The first stop of the trip is the different studios inside the vicinity of the park where most of the filmings of movies and tv shows were shot. Then the tour went very interesting when the bus took us to behind the scenes to where some of the movies and tv series where filmed like Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds, Jaws, Bates Motel and Desperate Housewives. Seeing there places is really amazing! It's like you are really there during the actual filming of those movies!

After the Studio Tour, we decided to try the different rides - Revenge of the Mummy The Ride, Jurassic Park the Ride and Terminator 2 3-D. We also went inside the House of Horrors.

Though we weren't able to try all the rides and shows, the experience and fun that I had inside Universal Studios are really very memorable!

LA Adventure - Hollywood Boulevard

Visiting Los Angeles is not complete without going to the famous Hollywood Boulevard. Here you can find different tourist attractions like the Kodak Theather (venue for the Oscars), Chinese Theater, Wax Museum, Guinness Museum, Ripley's Museum and of course the Walk of Fame.

Going here is like I'm dreaming coz I usually see these places on TV but I'm not! I'm really here in Hollywood!

LA Adventure - The Wax Museum

One of the places I wanted to visit upon our arrival here in Hollywood is the Wax Museum. The experience here is like having close encounters with the celebrities of Hollywood! The wax models seem like very real as most of them look real depicting famous Hollywood movies.

Seeing Hannibal, Spiderman, King Leonidas, Jack Sparrow, Angelina Jolie, Linda Blair's character in the Exorcist, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles among others is very memorable and enjoyable!

LA Adventure - Guinness Museum and Hollywood Sign

The last two places that we went on Day 1 is the Guinness Museum and the famous Hollywood Sign.

After going to the Wax Museum, we headed to the Guinness Museum. I didn't enjoy the museum that much since all you have to do is read the different things on display there though it is very informative.

Finding the best place to take a picture of the Hollywood Sign is very difficult. We thought that there is a way going to the sign itself but we ended taking pictures on a street where the sign is very visible. This is where most of the visitors are taking their own pictures of the sign.

Rose Garden, Mystery Point and Santa Cruz Beach with the Cadas

Yesterday, we met Cliff and Bing Cada, my friends way back from my Sunlife days. We were also able to meet also their beautiful daughter, Marcy. We first went to their house in San Jose for lunch with a lot of kwentuhans and updates. After a delicious lunch, we headed first to the Rose Garden in San Jose. The garden is very beautiful with lots of roses with different colors.

The next destination is Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz. The place is really mind boggling cause it seems that there is really something that is happening there! As they say, laws of physics don't apply there. Or is it just a trick of the eye? Hmmm... it's hard to explain... but if you happen to be in Sta Cruz, California better go there to experience the peculiarity of the place.

After that weird experience at the Mystery Spot, we went to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. What's very interesting in this place is that it is a beach with a theme park! After enjoying the rides, you can have a swim on the nearby beach, that is if you can swim on the cold water! hehehe...

I wasn't able to try the rides kasi nakakatakot sumakay :P I can't stand watching people riding the Double Shot! Nanonood pa lang ako natatakot na ako... parang maiiwan ung kaluluwa mo sa taas... hehehe... But Rhefee, Chryshyll, Cary and Cliff tried it. After that, they decided to ride the Fiz Ball.

I was really a very exciting day! Meeting old friends and going to new and odd places.

* I also added pictures taken by Cliff and Bing.

Recovered!!! Big Sur Photos

Hay... I thought I would never see again the pictures I took at Big Sur in Carmel but they are here!!! Thank God that there is a program where I can still recover deleted files! Thanks too to Ekai for telling me that there exists a program for that - the Piriform Recuva.

And because of that, I added all the pictures I took on that SD Card here so you might think that the pictures are just repeating... hehehe...