PNOY's SONA

Later this afternoon, President Noy Aquino will deliver his State of the Nation Address (SONA). Many a number of citizens predict his speech will be most about the previous administration. Sec. Carandang on SONA: " Hindi maiiwasan na mabanggit ang nakaraan. But it won't be all about the past. It will be about the future."
I,without biases,also feel that sometimes Pnoy's government is going overboard in  placing all the blame and putting too much emphasis on the wrongdoings of my cabalen. However, I clearly understand as well that bulk of the headaches and worries they encounter here and there were brought about by GMA's regime. So,balance is the key here. Necessary actions should be shouldered by Pnoy and his trusted men to solve the existing problems,minimize finger pointing yet do not neglect to file appropriate measures to meet justice and punish those gulity of corruption.
On a personal note,I know the signification of fanaticism to its letters. I hear persons reprobate any of Ninoy's and Cory's kin and I get easily exasperated.Be it Noy's hair loss,Luisita's endless employees's chaos,Krisy's twisted personality or PNoy's apparent disregard to the real problems of his countrymen. I on the other hand, fly with delight and gratitude when adulation and praises are accorded to them.Citing Pinky's strong advocacy for free kindergarten education to all Filipino children,Krisy's customary contributions to Gawad Kalinga,Habitat for Humanity and Girl Scout of the Philippines,not to mention her payment of hefty sum of money for taxes,or Noy's petty guilty pleasure-music. I uttered once to the detractors,"I-assassinate na lang kaya si Noy?Para wala na akong pinoproblema." That left them dumbfounded.

Noy's inaguration as PNOY.

 Going back to the SONA,let me quote a few tweets:

• Anton SD:" Can't wait to watch the SONA, we need to move forward, we need a plan of action, and to focus on it.As a nation we have so much potential."
• DBM Sec. Butch Abad: "People don't appreciate how cleaning corruption actually leads to better and right spending. " THIS I LOVE- "Public health budget is up by 53%-Php 40B,we aim to cover 5.2M of the poorest of the poor."
• Abad: "This is a gov't that puts it money where the mouth is. Education budget up by 15% at 237B for 2012."Havvveeeyyyy!!!
• Abad: " The biggest paradigm shift in this administration is the leader himself- he is COMPLETELY HONEST."
• Jimparedes: " If we don't investigate how the past got us in a mess, we will be condemned to repeat it. This is not vengeance. This is JUSTICE."

Indifference and apathy slowly yet surely kill a nation. So guys,catch PNoy later and listen with an open mind and heart.

Thank you,HARRY and company

Time indeed flies fast . Who would have known that a decade had passed since the birth of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone book. I am admittedly guilty that I watched the movie version because of the hype and hysteria brought about by the spectacled wizard personified by Daniel Radcliffe. I immensely enjoyed it for it was able to entertain me with the flying broomsticks on Quidditch match, the intellectuallly arrogant yet sweet Hermione, and the floating candles and food of all sorts in the Great Hall. I knew it would be the start of my beautiful friendship with the wizards and witches of Hogwarts School of Magic. I hurriedly purchased the book and finished it in less than three days.  I empathized with Harry especially so each time the Dursleys practice their habit of cruelty on him. 

I have a complete seven-book collection of Rowling's EPIC story. I read each volume with as much gusto.They are amongst my priceless treasures. It is amazing how young and old alike rekindled their passion for reading,especially in these times of Facebook and Youtube. I am not,technically speaking,a voracious reader,yet if there's one thing that can relax me after a strenuous task or when I feel down the gutter,reading would be my top choice to zest me up and again.                                Reading these children's books catapulted my imagination at a maximum,what with the centaurs,werewolves,goblins and Hagrid's appearance. Add to these the Quidditch Cup,the 9 3/4 train station and the Weasley twins's funny inventions.

I was as happy each time Gryffindor scores house points,sad as much for detentions of bffs Harry,Ron and Hermione. I cried unabashedly with the death of Cedric,Sirius, Dumbledore,Dobby,Remus Tonks and George.I get to be more anxious and depressed in times when obtaining the Horcruxes seemed impossible.

I was tickled on the other hand with the goings on with matters of the heart of the young students of the school of magic. It fascinated me no end the constant bantering of Ron and Hermione.Harry,The Chosen One needed also inspirations in Cho Chang and Ginny Weasley.

I place Dumbledore in the highest regard. His brilliance was way beyond what You-Know-Who can endure and equalize. When he died in the sixth book, I almost considered breaking my friendship with Harry and his friends.Gratitude to the author,the Headmaster stayed till the very end.

The trials and triumphs of Harry Potter in a great length,were very palpable that the readers and fans felt in their bones and hearts. I was with the three protagonists all the way.No doubt there's Wizardworld and Harrymania in every nook and cranny of the universe. Albeit, I am also aware a good number of people can't comprehend the attachment of adults to a series of children's books. 

Potter treasures. Now that the final had come,I have these in times I get to miss you.

Every thing must come to an end,be it good or bad. On the day,the trailer of Deathly Hallows Part 2 was shown on Youtube,I was ambivalent. Part of me was excited,a tiny portion whispers "I can't let go yet." Now that the final installation of the movie series was released,it is somehow bittersweet for me. I was excited to catch it on 3D yet there's sadness because the END has finally arrived. I am simply weak with goodbyes. 

It is,nevertheless a great consolation to know that I have my books and movie videos that are well-placed in shelf.I can just succumb to these if and when I get to miss my friends and go once more with your saga of adventures and misadventures. I can't help but feel I was somehow part of something special and magical.

Thank you very much,Harry for your courage and brave heart to lead the battle and fight evil. GOODness triumphs and reigns!Thank you for showing us what true friendship means with the help of Hermione and Ron. To the Dumbledore Army,I admire you all for showing us the meaning of family and loyalty.Thank you for reminding us that family and friends are worth living and fighting for. Thank you J.K. Rowling for this best-ever masterpiece of yours. I love your creativity. It is truly a gift form up above. I salute you. You will live forever.

It is somehow ironic that through the world of wizardry,I get to deeply realize that in the end, LOVE indeed makes the DIFFERENCE and the most powerful magic ever.

Memoirs in Shanghai

Here's a sample of a vendo machine in Shanghai.Found this one in Decathlon. All that's written here is Chinese. Lucky you when you're not color blind.Just press what you want by identifying the color trademark of products.Green for Sprite,blue & red for Pepsi. I however did not try it,it was just arduous for me.

A picturesque of the lunch at Dolar resto.I want to have a place this kind here in Pampanga. Having my own hotpot reminded me of the kurang-kurangan we played with in our childhhod where in we'd pick fresh leaves of aratilis and mansanitas,mix them with water and we'll begin cooking.:)

Picture there,photo here. If Shanghai can maintain the cleanliness and "greeness" of its environment,so can we. It makes me sad each time I hear friends and strangers speak death sentences about our country. This is our home,no matter how long others may live in foreign lands,still the blood pulsing in their veins shouts Noypi. My point is, who can start cleaning the mess at home but the owners. And yes,we own Philippines. Bayan natin 'to.I came across Panjee Tapales's column once and she wrote: Indifference is the end of hope. I dare agree.

Our first almusal in Shanghai.Delimondo corned beef(available at S&R),scrambled eggs and fried rice-prepared by us.I loved the refreshing new taste of UCC instant cofee.We had to have enough carbo for a day of walking,you know. Not to mention the introduction of Kirkland's sea salt and pepper grinder/shaker which we had fun using.

The gigantic tower.

 

I wanted to see the ancient-slash-conventional China architectural buildings.Due to lack of time, I settled for this for the time being.

I likeeeee these tiny bits of finger foods bought at Carrefour.

Three's a company.

Ville,Sha and I enormously enjoyed the low prices that greeted us at Lacoste outlet in Malcolm Plaza. Imagine, a pair of denim jeans was only 300RMB.I had one.I am a softie when it comes to heart designs,yes, the jeans has one stitched on it.:)

SWFC Tower.

Traveling with best bud Sha is no hassle. She is easy to get along with. She is ready for new adventures and experiences as well. We both hope that in due time,Kei will join us for our future world explorations. Sana meron pa kaming budget.:) It helps a bunch to be with people who know you amply enough and share common interests.No pressure whatsoever.

Best photo.

Indeed,one of the best captured shots this is. HEhehe! Arlette and Sha braved the rains and crossed the street to buy a phone card. Where's Ville? Zzzzzzing to acquire energy for the night's event. Buti na lang,walng nilagnat.:)

Asus,ang pamatay na Rayban shades.LOL! Oh come on,cousin Ville,enough of trying to copycat Derek.Pero sige na nga,his edge over you narrowed to about 20%.Hehe!Seriously now, I am grateful for the friendship I have with this blood of mine. He and Bingbong are part of my beautiful childhood memories. Their countless sleepovers at home, with me and brothers,cramped in one tiny bedroom,the numerous adventures and playgames here in our street together with our neighbors are only but a few of the things that solidly built our affinity and closeness.Up until now,we "gimmick",nonetheless with a brand new company of sorts-his Sha,Botchok,Gelo and Tam.:)

68 store is the shop I have been dying to see even before I set my feet at NAIA terminal simply because I glimpsed Arlette's FB photos with her carrying this pink bag with the digits 6-8. My curiosity escalated when she and Myra giddily told me how girly and pink-y the products were. My expectations were satisfactorily met. I immediately adored all I tthat I saw in the shop,tried this tube and skirt there.As expected, I walked out of the retail store with an almost-filled eco-friendly pink bag.

With infinite photo shots, I had to adjust,edit and change my smile,pose,positions and angle.Feeling talaga ako.I needed to do that so I'd stay interesting and captivating to my public.Feeling Greta.LOL!

This photo we originally intended to post on Facebook and tag my sis-in-law Ate Reggie.Take a closer look at my sad face here and you'll know why.I wish she makes time to peek at this blog.:)

A tour anywhere else will never be complete without a visit to Starbucks. A big difference I noticed right away , there is a supply of paper napkins placed beside the stirrers and straws which patrons can readily get without having to ask from the counter's staff. We bought our own tumblers since there's no one of that kind here in Pinas plus another design for our LTO angel,Sir Rene.

can't buy it?kodak it.:)

Cantonese dinner with Arlette's friends.

Have you been to a fine-dining place where tissue/table napkin need to be bought if you ask for one?There is such  and boy,were we surprised.I wanted to ask the waitress serving us WHY..I didn't because she will not understand my English anyway.

Post-massage .

 

Katy Perry - Teenage Dream

I don't get tired of this song. I was first introduced to Katy Perry thru California Girls. Then my sinister sister/kid brother-friend Prynz declared to the world his fascination for her. To support him, I made an effort to get to know Katy more. By far, this is her song which I opt to be my favorite.The most appreciated line is "I've finally found you, my missing puzzle piece,I'm complete."

Katy's songs I now personally support,play and sing as well because they are relaxingly light and fun. They never fail to make me flex my muscles and sway my hips a few degrees each time I hear them on my ipod and radio. I wish to see Katy perform live in Manila so we can dance with no regrets and be young forever.

Ni-hao,Shanghai

Day 2 of Shanghai holidays started literally early. Believe me,we had to set the alarm 6:45 in the morning. Sha woke 5AM coz she was afraid to be late on a special walk.What was it? To see Dion off to his school bus on one drizzling day. How can we say NO to this bright and sweet boy when he asked us the day before,"Hmm,shall you see me to my bus tomorrow morning.It comes 7am.The bus never gets late."

Dion and his bus: Off to school now.

Dion expressed the mood of one who was happy and delighted to have us with him on the road. What he was not aware of his how tickled we were just as much to see him off his bus.It was pure glitter when he kept on waving us goodbye.At that moment,feeling ko proud na proud xa showing us to his schoolmates.

Byebye.See you in a lil while.

Yu Garden aka Divisoria.

A set itinerary off we go in spite of the water drops from up above.First stop was at Yu Garden considered as Divisoria of Shanghai.It was with cheap prices of merchandise that can be brought either wholesale or retail. Everything was there.Haggling skills of Arlette was placed into practice again.

Rampa under the rain.

Tired or thinking ahead of the next place to see.

We look good together.

And this time,let me present our gastronomic explorations in Shanghai. On Day 1,Arlette brought us at Dolar restaurant,a fine-dining one. I must mention their restrooms, they were quaint and tiny-lit that I wanted to sleep coz they were cozy.We had our individual hot pots.Arlette just ordered quite much for five persons. Hey, voluptuous Myra is here!!Nice to see yah.:)

Hot pot on own: A 2-hour lunch.

The meal was sumptuous.I am partial to hot soups. The various choices we placed in our pots like mushrooms and tops,spinach,shrimps,lobster ball etc. obtained our nods. The minor enigma as we would experience on the rest of the days was how to have the Chinese understand our language. Actually we weren't talking to them. Arlet did everything. No choice xa. Illustrations on menu cards were helpful anyhow. Hay bondat na tyan ko!!

Introducing Xia Long Pao. It's a famous steamed bun of Nanxiang Restaurant. We were lucky enough to grab a table.There was a long queue of pipz waiting outside waiting to be seated. The buns I thought were like the siopaos we have here. Soon I discovered they resembled our siomai.

Xia long pao.

Inside these buns is crab meat plus its "taba." Sinfully yummy. I looove the seasoning,dunno what it was. I simply put lots of shredded ginger on it and yey,perfect!

Viewing room.:)

Arlette made sure we the "turistas"(naks!!) get a taste of her impeccable food preference. On a rainy afternoon,our feet were led to a Vietnamese restaurant. My apologies for not being able to scribble the names(I get too excited each time) and locations(they're too Chinese).

Tea was served in a unique presentation. There's fresh leaves visible.It tasted refreshingly good.Could I have this cup please?

Here's  grilled beef seasoned and cooked to perfection. It's tender and juicy inside out.

I say,this one is the best we've had in the resto that's why Arlette ordered two servings.There's sugarcane wrapped in flour-like,veggies,meat rolls,chicken strips. The secret of its yumminess was to dip whichever you pick with lemon,pepper and chili flakes.Afterwards wrap in the green leaf/veggie. Voila! You have the best bet of the day.

Sharon and I shared the beef curry and we enjoyed its creaminess and authentic flavor as well.

On our last day,Arlette brought us to Goody goody noodle house at Laia Plaza.

Goofing around while waiting.

Beef noodles with tomatoes.

Healthy "sisig" version with peanuts and celery.

Yes to pipiNO.

Goody noodles indeed.

After a marathon walk,photo shoots at SWFC,and Lovers in Shanghai moments,we rested our gastroc-soleus and pampered our intestines at Paulaner's Italian restaurant. It's relaxingly located at the river area. Here I am once again,wishing we could have this someday at our very own Ilog Pasig.

This cheesecake I bet my pwet is the best.Realllyyyy!It's unbelieveably yummy I can't describe it.

I wonder... where the h_ll are Danding's agents.Can't they see I 'm the biggest possible and most-effective beer endorser?LOL!Remember,this is my blog.:) Oh these sausages are delicious.It mattered to combine them with the smooth and palatable mashed potatoes.

Cheers to these two Filipina prized-possessions of Shanghai.

I will definitely pay back a visit to the places that warmly welcomed my taste buds and cravings. "Thank you" for the gained weight.My tour of Shanghai had my goal met-that is to explore unacquianted and never-before-tried foodies.

On the night of our departure,Ayiiii,Dion's nanny, cheerfully prepared a hearty dinner for us. Delicious yet healthy options were on the table. Bonus- fresh cherries!Xiexie Ayiiii.

Last supper at 9G.

Oh yes,with all these,really now, up to our boarding time, there's no Shanghai rolls served.