2010, you really shattered those darn windows

As it's the last day of the year, I couldn't help but look back on all that happened to me.  It had been a year of extreme everything -- physical, emotional and social changes.  I'm so proud of myself for having the tenacity to drag myself out of the muck and made sure to end 2010 on a high note.

I have learned more in the last few months than the last 5 or 6 years put together.  I've discovered that what really held me back from realizing my true potential is just one thing -- 

Fear.

I was always afraid.  

Afraid of disappointing my parents.  Afraid of making mistakes.  Afraid of making a fool of myself.  Afraid of changes.  Afraid of failure.  Afraid of success.  Afraid of meeting new people.  Afraid of letting people get too close.  Afraid of going out of my comfort zone.  Afraid of uncertainty.

I stuck to well-lit roads, did not move or just abandoned the things I started because of all those fears.  And I have just realised that I was only half-living my life. 

Now I know what I need.  

For 2011 and for the rest of my life, I pray for courage.  The courage to follow my heart, to listen to my instincts, to allow myself to make mistakes, to be selfish with compassion and to accept that there is no love in peace.  

Welcome 2011 sa Barangay Tagumpay!

Sydney Rendezvous with U2

I think what ultimately convinced this stingy girl to blow off her savings and haul her big ass all the way down to Australia was going to see U2 at their 360° Tour show at Sydney.




Frustrated Sosyalera doing her tourist-y thing in front of the ANZ Olympic Stadium. Loadsssssss of people!




Got seated at about 7pm and Jay-Z was performing as the band's front act. He performed all his great collaborations (with taped Alicia Keys & Linkin Park -- boo.).




We did a fair bit of waiting after Jay-Z finished and the place slowly filled up. We were wayyyyyy up the bleachers -- much farther than my seat at the Gin Blossoms concert back in Manila -- but I had a feeling it didn't matter because the spaceship stage had a huge screen on it.





Another token tourist photo while waiting (good thing I didn't do them hand signs -- I almost did).




That spaceship of a stage was absolutely amazinggggg.




It was a complete light and sound show that just confounds the sensesssss.





There's also this bridge that goes around connected to that ring around the main stage.

Money well spent here! It was one of the best nights of my entire XX years! I'd never seen anything like it and I doubt any other act can pull off anything close to it (especially now that Michael Jackson's gone). Tell me if I'm wrong!




Bono, Edge, Adam and Larry are definitely showing their age, buuuuuut their performances are still top quality.

(Geez, I'm such a gushing fangirl right now that it's becoming a little embarrassing.)





It's funny how the doors down/up to the seats were open the whole time -- it made the stadium look a lot more like a space colony.




People standing by the doorways look eerie.


To really get how awesome this show had been, here are some amateur videos (not mine though, as my camera conked out early) --



Beautiful Day -- Opening.




I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For -- Bono made the audience sing practically half the song, but it's still awesommmmmme! He also mentions the celebrities in the audience (e.g. Oprah, Nicole Kidman, Kanye West).




City of Blinding Lights -- The screen at the top expands down, making it look like a cage with mighty fine lights.





With or Without You -- Finale. Shet, kinikilig pa rin ako. Hahaha!





Bad -- If I'm lucky enough to go see them again, I'm DEFINITELY getting Red Zone tickets (plus 10-inch platforms because I'm so short)!!!



I told myself years ago that if there's one act I'd really want to go see live, it'll be U2. I thought it was something I could live without doing, though. Now that I've actually done it, I felt like I've really indulged myself. Being selfish never felt so good.

Here, fishy, fishy, fishy

It’s just a hazy memory now.

I was lying on a blanket, spread over a patch of grass underneath a shady tree. My auntie was sitting near me, unpacking sandwiches. Uncle Robert was down by the riverbank, trying to catch some fish.

Whenever I look back on that idyllic April afternoon, it has taken on a dream-like quality – like some kind of romantic movie flashback.

I can still remember having had a bacon and eggs breakfast that didn’t agree with my stomach before we went driving around the Scottish highlands – and vomiting every 5 minutes. Accompanying Uncle Robert on his fishing trip to Scotland didn’t seem so attractive at the time.

Uncle Robert was very passionate about fishing, particularly fly fishing. Thankfully, he doesn’t make a habit of wearing fish t shirts. He’s got this little box of flies – hooks with different kinds of hairy or furry attachments in various colours – that he uses to bait fish. I’m sure you can see these in a fishing magazine or something. They apparently pass for living bugs. He even has a fly that has a lock of auntie’s hair on it! I’m not sure if that’s a sweet thing, but he claims to have caught fish with it.

Fishing ain’t for me, though. I won’t be able to stand still, just waiting for fish to bite. I’d rather do that than hunting, however, even if I’m offered hunting t shirts.

Frustrated Sosyalera Plays Chicken with Gravity

Like everyone else who's been to Cebu, my friends and I went for the Sky Walk Experience at the 40-storey Crown Regency Hotel.



I was feeling mighty adventurous at the time.




You basically walk around a fenceless walkway all around the outside of the 37th floor in a suit and harness.




The view of Cebu from that high up absolutely stunning.




The suits are apparently cleaned after each use. Trainers are recommended footwear and if you arrive without any, you can buy a pair of socks at reception and pairs of shoes may be provided.

I was absolutely fine until we started putting the suits on. I thought I'd forgotten my extreme fear of heights, but I apparently haven't! I can't remember how many times I've gone to the loo before we went out -- I was really nervous!

When we did eventually went out for the 10-15 minute stroll out in the open air, I could hardly walk.

And to my horror, the photographer made us do these poses --







Jen was particularly enthusiastic about it --





I, on the other hand, could only manage this --


Wtf is that, so far away from the edge???


PATHETIC.


I just froze up! Seriously paralyzed!! I'm glad there wasn't any videotaping going on, otherwise people'd think I've got Parkinson's with all the shaking I've been doing. Sheesh.
I will need to redeem myself in the future somehow... I'm dead serious.


The group photos were a lot better, though, thank goodness.








Ooooh! Look at that, I was able to dangle my feet over that gaping ledge of horror!


Overall, it was good (despite my momentary paralysis). I want to go do it again, but not at night -- so I can see my death in broad daylight.


Rates for this "experience" on the main site.

Casa Escano & Don Merto's Restaurant, Cebu

Casa Escano is this lovely little B&B we stayed overnight in while in Cebu City.




It can be found along Juana Osmena Street, just outside the busy city proper.




I was given one of the standard rooms (just enough room for 1 person), which costs at least P1,749/night.




It was comfortable and very clean -- I was very happy with my room, except that I got the one which was at a dark corner of the B&B.




Not that it matters, really, as I only had to stay the night. Plus, you get a newspaper everyday!




Casa Escano also has its own restaurant named Don Merto's. Meals here would set you back at least P200 per head, but they are very good and worth the money.




It's also where you get your free breakfast in the mornings.





Pork Back Ribs




Mushroom Swiss Burger (a half pound burger that I shamefully couldn't finish -- quite tasty,though!).

Lost in Cebu

I kept churning out these emo-boo-hoo posts lately and I don't even have a clue if anybody's reading them. I'm not entirely sure if that even matters to me, but I just can't help but wonder, if you know what I mean.

Anyway!

After one night at Nalusuan Island and enjoying its beautiful sunset, my friends and I decided to go back to the mainland and experience Cebu City.

Unfortunately, it was a little difficult leaving that amazing resort and we arrived in the city a lot later than planned. So we didn't have that much time to really get around.

So we just made sure we went to the city's major attraction -- Magellan's Cross.




It's not much really, when you look from afar...




But when you think about how much of the country's religious history comes from this cross, it becomes rather amazing.




So don't underestimate small things.




The trouble with having photography as a hobby is it's kinda hard to have others take your photos -- so will hafta make do with some camwhoring instead (of course, that was only an excuse).




It was getting dark and we wanted to go to some market to buy pasalubongs to take home, but we didn't know which direction to go. So a friend asked the local policeman.



I don't know what happened, maybe nobody understood each other, but these other policemen arrived and another friend had to go explain some other things about where we were supposed to go, etc. It turned out to be such a palaver that evening fell and we ended up not getting to that market after all.

Never mind, that's what happens when tourists don't do their research properly, right? Sheesh. Lesson learned!

No Humbugs Today!

Ah, this is the gif I use every year... My own ritual, perhaps? Hehe!






To make this year's greeting a little different, though, here's some Vampire Weekend for yah!




Let's now open our pressies! XD

Holiday blues

I hadn't left the house since Monday and in that enclosed space, Christmas is very far from my consciousness.

So when I'd gone out to visit the office earlier today, that's when it really hit me -- the traffic is horrendous, too many people at the malls, everywhere you look is red & green and everybody's unusually perky.

What's with my Scroogey attitude? Well, that's probably because this year's Christmas, for me, feels disconcertingly cold (figuratively) and quiet. But every time that thought creeps into my head, I think about the times I spent Christmas in a strange place and having next to no friends. That's a lot worse than what I'm going through now.



So I'll try my best to keep things in perspective... No matter how difficult that may be.

Taxi Driver Chronicles

I hailed a taxi on the way home earlier. When I got in, the driver was expressing his concerns about the lady that just got out of the cab.

He said the lady was flirting with him, asked him too many personal questions and was hoping he'd pick her up after work.

He then proceeded to tell me all about his lovelife -- how he doesn't love his current live-in partner, how he met and impregnated his ex-girlfriends, blah blah blah...

I just listened politely, nodding and reacting at the right moments. I wasn't really interested, so I looked out at the window the whole time. Then he started asking about me. I guess he ran out of lovescapades to tell. The conversations was translated from Tagalog, of course --

TaxiDriver: Are you married?

Me: No.

TaxiDriver: Boyfriend?

Me: None.

TaxiDriver: Why?

Me: It's a coincidence.

TaxiDriver: You look like you're good to your men, like you wouldn't give them anything to worry about.

Me: There's bound to be something.

TaxiDriver: Then it'll be jealousy.

Me: I doubt that.

TaxiDriver: You look like you've got good genes. You look like the type that it won't matter if you get older, men would still find you attractive.

Me: Riiiight.


It made me laugh, though, I didn't know what to make of it. I was in a really sour mood.

Buena Casa Hotel, Subic

After a long day spent waiting, traveling and attending a wedding in Angeles, my friends and I checked into our room at the Buena Casa Hotel in Subic.




It's a nice little hotel located along Betty Lane corner Sampson Road, within the Subic central business district.




That means it's right next to Pancake House and Teriyaki Boy in that area.




In fact, I can see people going into Pancake House right outside my window! Hehe!




The rooms are spacious, clean and the beds are very comfortable.




I was given a Deluxe room that was worth P2,100 a night.




Looks like staying in hotel rooms all by myself is becoming an expensive habit.




The bathrooms are bright, had just enough room and clean -- all of these are very important!




By the way, we got free breakfast with our rooms! I actually get two with mine (*sigh*), but I my appetite wasn't capable of wolfing down two plates at the time.





You get your breakfast at the Sabrosso Restaurant & Cafe which can be found right beside the hotel lobby.





The French Toast Breakfast was very nice, with the option of getting hotdog, ham or bacon with it. Lovely!

Their flyers say you can get a room for as low as P1,418. It may be good to check with reservations about these rates before your trip.



Buena Casa Hotel
Tel. nos. -- (047) 250 0663/ 052 0664
Email -- buenacasa@subictel.com