Sakura Forecast 2013

Japan-guide.com finally posted the following cherry blossom forecast for this year:

Location	Opening	Estimated Best Viewing
Tokyo	March 25	April 1 to 10
Kyoto	March 28	April 3 to 12
Kagoshima	March 25	April 2 to 11
Kumamoto	March 24	April 1 to 10
Fukuoka	March 23	April 1 to 10
Hiroshima	March 27	April 3 to 11
Osaka	March 27	April 2 to 10
Nara	March 30	April 3 to 11
Nagoya	March 25	April 1 to 8
Yokohama	March 25	April 1 to 8
Kanazawa	April 5	April 10 to 17

We'll be leaving for Japan on the 9th and returning to Manila on the 18th. Can somebody say perfect timing? Just thinking about the beautiful pink trees make my heart skip with joy. Not too excited about the sneezing though. Yes, I'm one of those people who are unfortunately allergic to sakura pollen. Found that out the last time I was there. It didn't stop me from getting up close with the pretty flowers though. :)

No Tricks, Only Treats at Trick Eye Museum

I love museums. But don't you just hate it when you see "Do not touch." signs all over the place? Trick Eye Museum changes all that. Here, you can experience art in the literal and figurative sense. And if you're into cam-whoring, you're definitely in for a treat!

Just like in any other museum, of course you have to get tickets before you could get in. But unlike in other museums, you are actually encouraged to touch the art. Or better yet, be part of it!

We freely opened random doors, drank fresh cups of wine straight from the barrel, accepted bribes from tax collectors, picked up dollar bills along the way, caught a falling apple right before it hit the ground, and even gave a naked lady a manicure.

We filled a priest's glass with more wine, stole a few bills from a lovely couple, pulled on a lady's beautiful necklace, and helped a stranger cheat his way to winning a card game. All without having to suffer the consequences. How fun is that?

We became as tall as a giant and as tiny as Tinkerbell in a matter of minutes! Oh it feels so good to be tall even for just a moment.

We washed our hands in mystical water, caught a Bungeoppang/Taiyaki (a fish-shaped Korean/Japanese pastry filled with sweet red bean paste), and played with an Old English couple's dog.

We went from being all lady-like smelling roses and pouring tea to going crazy splashing water at a random lady and almost staring at Medusa's eyes. Oh the horror!

We also had part-time jobs for a while. I got chased by a rhino in court while Jona smoked under a No Smoking sign. We kept feeding an obese Mona Lisa but tried to stop David from eating yet another cone lest he gets too fat. You see, you do get fat if you don't move.

We tried a few more things: breaking in by kicking a glass window, stealing a neighbor's pig, and playing billiards. Aaand almost got hurt in the process.

We sure gave "The Scream" man something to scream about. Haha

We even became ballerinas for a day!

Who cares if it's raining cats and dogs outside? It was sunny inside - perfect weather to ride our pink Vespas around the city!

Where the party at?? We've got cake, balloons, moving paintings, and uhh... a floating head for the main course? Yikes!

Who says you can't be rich in an instant? We obviously did! We were so filthy rich, the paparazzi couldn't help but take pictures of us. How flattering! Better grab a copy of this month's Forbes magazine before they run out! HAHAHA

So what do you do when you've got that much money? Go shopping, of course! See, we even brought our posh dog along.

And because we're rich, we can do anything we want! We tried our hand at weight-lifting, cutting other people's hair, and photography. We even tried to stop time! Or at least slow it down a bit. So what do you do if you have that much time in your hands? Just sit under a train stop? Go traveling, of course! First stop: Hawaii.

Then we stopped by Venice for a quick gondola ride, Japan to have a taste of their giant sushi, and Korea to have tea with the king.

Oh and China too, to hang out with these adorable pandas. *u*

We even explored some unknown territory. HAHAHA

And became sexy laaaadies. Op-op-op-op oppa Gangnam style!

Time is too short though. Eventually, the tour had to end. But not without going through a mirror maze before you can get back to reality. One should be careful enough not to bump into one of the mirrors but not too cautious that you end up holding hands with strangers and start screaming your head off like I did. Oops.

Jona and I had too much fun in the museum, we ran out of time! We weren't able to explore the rest of the installation art scattered around the floor like the rest of the girls did. Well, there is always next time.

Trick Eye Museum is located at Seoul-si Mapo-gu Seogyo-dong 357-1 Seogyo Plaza B02-01 and tickets cost ₩13,000/person. Don't forget to bring your cameras with you! And if you're in a large group like us, it's better to split up into groups of 3 (not 2!) for faster photo ops. But if there are only 2 of you, you can always ask the staff to help you take pictures.


Traveling party: Erin, Faye, Jona (organizer), Light (organizer), Rona, Sera (organizer), and Vanie
Travel date: 11 November 2012 [Day 6]
Photo credits: Faye, Light, Vanie

SK 2012: Itinerary? What itinerary?

The past few days have been nothing but amazing. However, a great vacation always comes with a price. We were all exhausted come Day 6. By this time, the minty smell of pain relievers no longer bothered us. Yep, not even me and that says a lot. Salonpas, Katinko, Korean menthol strips. Name it, we have it. So for our last day, we decided to drop everything off our itinerary and just do whatever we want.

For a change, we woke up late and went to the nearby Hollys Coffee to grab some breakfast. Yay, breakfast at 10AM instead of 6AM! It was raining pretty hard so we were drenched by the time we reached the cafe. It was all good though because the cafe was toasty. I had a blueberry bagel and a cup of their Real Belgian Cafe Mocha. The bagel was okay, nothing special. The coffee was a bit too sweet for my liking but you can really taste the Belgian chocolate in it. I just prefer my coffee/hot cocoa rich and creamy, not sugary sweet.

Starbucks South Korea merchandise

Due to the rainy weather, we decided to head to Trick Eye Museum first. We passed by a Starbucks on the way there and we couldn't help but check out their merch. I have a thing for limited edition tumblers so I had to buy a Seoul Day tumbler. Too bad, the Seoul Night design was out of stock. :(

At Trick Eye Museum

We thought it was a good idea to visit the museum on a rainy day. It turns out, most people thought so too. The place was packed! We split into groups of two to make the photo ops faster but yeah, it still took us a while to get through the entire exhibit thanks to our OC-ness. Our trip to the museum was so fun, it deserves it's own post. :)

Bring out the inner child in you!

After the museum, it's time for merienda (which ended up as lunch as well). Faye and Ate Light went to look for Charlie Brown Cafe (which has been closed down unfortunately) while the rest of us went to Hello Kitty Cafe. Jona asked for directions from a petite girl while the rest of us chatted away. Jona suddenly told us, "Oh, okay na. Ihahatid daw tayo." and we all went "Yay!" when the girl (I forgot her name OMG :c) suddenly got all excited and asked if we're from the Philippines. We wondered how she knew, but we said yes. It turns out, she understood what Jona said! What's even more amazing was that she studied high school in Colegio de San Agustin and her favorite subject was Hekasi. How awesome is that? She was on her way to meet some friends when Jona approached her so we waited for them to arrive. And when they did, she was so excited to tell them that she met people from the Philippines! I love how her friends reacted the same way. She obviously had a fun time in the Philippines and I'm glad she did. Makes me even more proud of our little country. :)

Kitty-chan, we meet again!

I've been to HK Cafe before but that didn't stop me from buying more merch. :"> After our super late lunch, we went along Hongdae road (which we thought was the Ewha strip haha) to shop. Jona and I bought matching bags from a cute little store whose owner was blasting a familiar song. As if thinking what I'm thinking, Jona asked me if I was listening to the song. We couldn't contain our excitement as we asked the shop owner if she knows who the singer is. She said with a smile that it's Juris, a Filipino artist. Antaray lang ni Juris! International levelsss!!! [FYI, it was an MYMP song/CD. :)]

Did I mention how much I love Market O?

After shopping in Hongdae, Jona and I were on our way to the subway when we passed by an Olive Young store. Olive Young = Market O goodies. So we had to stop for a little while and finally finish our Market O hoarding. Yes, hoarding! WE LOVE MARKET O! I still remember the first time I saw it's beautiful packaging and the first time I tasted it after starving for so long. It was love at first bite, I tell ya! And I just couldn't forget it from then on. I just have to bring home enough Market O goodies to last me a couple of days. Or weeks. Haha

SK 2012: Dramarama in South Korea

As you all know, I got addicted to The Moon That Embraces The Sun (해를 품은 달) thanks to my love for Kim Soo Hyun. Want proof? Click here and here. So I made it a point to include MBC Dramia to our itinerary. But come Day 5, we were down from 12 to just 9! Talk about survival of the fittest. Who would have thought that in our party of 7, Erin, Vanie, Faye and I turned out to be the strongest? >:) Jona, Rona and Ate Light decided to stay behind because of fatigue.

We left the guesthouse before 9:00 AM (way past our scheduled time) and went to Nambu Bus Terminal to catch the bus going to Baegam Terminal. The ride from Seoul to Baegam was almost an hour long and we had to keep an eye out for landmarks.

For tourists who can't even construct a proper sentence in Korean, it was a pretty risky trip. But we didn't want to pass up this opportunity to get off the beaten track and start a new adventure. Chos! I think it was our wanderlust and the fangirls in us that made this trip possible. Even Karen was surprised to learn that we were on a bus to Baegam when she checked up on us. Haha

Thanks to our sharp eyes and my Hangul-reading skills, we got off at the right stop even though the road was under construction. It was truly then that we realized we're in Korea. Unlike in Seoul, everything was in Hangul! Sure, I can read them. But I absolutely can't understand them.

Lunch at a No English zone.

Since it was almost 11:00 AM, we decided to grab a quick lunch at the town proper since there were no restaurants in MBC Dramia. Again, everything is written in Hangul so we looked around for pictures of food. We settled for the nearest restaurant which was also near a restroom sign. As expected, the owners cannot speak a word of English so I put my Hangul-reading skills to use. I recognized most of the items on the menu except for the specifics. In the end, we ordered kimbap (김밥) and bibimbap (비빔밥) while Faye's cousins had bowls of ramyeon (라면) and udon (우동). It was so funny how we ordered and asked for our bill. It was like playing charades with the owners. We even tried asking help from our smart phones but for me, nothing beats old school charades.

MBC Dramiaaaaa!

To get to MBC Dramia, you can either take the city bus or hail a cab. Since the road was under construction, sharing a cab was the better choice. It took around 10 minutes before we finally saw the complex. It's located in a pretty huge and isolated piece of land which I suppose is what makes it perfect as a filming location.

SK 2012: East Meets West

I've been to Nami Island before and the almost 2-hour commute is literally a pain in the ass. It's worth it though and I wouldn't miss going back there during the fall season where all the leaves are turning into beautiful shades of red. As expected, Nami found it's way back to our itinerary. To make the commute even more worth it, we decided to visit Petite France as well since it's also in Gyeonggi-do, just two stations away from Nami.

We woke up around 7:30 AM (an hour later than our original plan) and met up with Faye's cousins so all in all, there are now 12 of us. Field trip much? As we made our way to the subway, a group of ajummas approached us and asked for directions. They looked like Filipinos but I know better than to assume. We were already telling them how to get to their guesthouse when one of their amigas suddenly spoke in Filipino! Kami na nag-Englishan sa Korea! Haha Apparently, they thought we were locals and told us we look like Koreans already (even though we've been in SK for only 4 days). Maybe because of our outfits? :)) I don't know. But as a traveler, passing as a local in any country is definitely a compliment.

Before and after

To get to Gyeonggi-do, it took two train transfers, one of which was more than an hour long. But as you already know, I can sleep through anything. And apparently, so can the rest of the girls! Haha Obviously, this week-long trip is slowly taking it's toll on us.

Indirect Words of Encouragement

I've been thinking about something over the last weekend. It's about time I take action and take that little step into making my dreams come true. But each time I try to, it stirs up the butterflies in my tummy. I don't know why but I keep on second-guessing myself. But God, being the omniscient being that He is, felt like I could use some words of encouragement in the form of random tweets.

Monday

Change is a choice exercised by those willing to endure pain for ultimate gain.
- @Jamieavastera

Tuesday

It's Tuesday again! Still second-guessing or doubting something? Just remember #GoLangNgGo!
- @enjoyGLOBE

Wednesday

Don't let your dreams be dreams.
- @alexanderdeleon

Thursday

If you are gonna dream, might as well dream big. It takes the same amount of energy.
- @iamjonathancook

Friday

When you are discouraged and you quit, you limit what God can do in you and through you.
- Ptr. Peter Tan-chi (RT'd by @kalachuchai)

The funny thing about this is I keep forgetting what I'm supposed to do but each day, these tweets keep reminding me of my dream. Amazing how much He knows me. Better start working on it. Bit by bit. :)

Answered Prayers

They feel so good no matter how trivial they may seem. To know that someone listens to your heart's every little wish is beyond amazing. Thank you, Lord, for always spoiling me. It's little things like these that make my heart swell with gratitude. If He pays attention to your smallest desires, how much more to the bigger ones. As long as your will is aligned to His, consider it done.

Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Matthew 7:7-8 (KJV)

Kala mo kung ano na nangyari e no. I just booked tickets to my second trip to Japan. In spring! If you've tried booking flights to Japan, you know that cheap tickets are hard to come by so I've been praying for a seat sale for a few weeks now when lo and behold, here it is! Score!!!

So keep praying. For anything. No matter how small it may seem, nothing is too small for a bighearted God. :)

*Photos belong to their rightful owners: http://seekthingsabove.files.wordpress.com, http://www.wallpaper4me.com, http://fanpop.com, http://fineartamerica.com

SK 2012: From Neverland to Everland

The first time Jona and I were in South Korea, our trip to Everland became more like a trip to Neverland. It was on our itinerary but we never made it there. We just didn't have enough time on our hands and the winter air was too harsh for outdoor rides. So this time, we vowed to go to Everland no matter what happens.

Bus #5002

Jona is our navigator for the day so she's responsible for all the commuting directions which felt really good as I can finally relax and just enjoy the trip. I've been having cramps since last night so today kind of felt like a day off for me.

SK 2012: Traditional Meets Modern Seoul

I woke up around 7:00 AM feeling recharged. Thanks to our hanok's ondol flooring, I slept like a baby. The heated floors were like hot compresses on my tired and hurting legs. So good~!

Complimentary traditional breakfast. Excuse our bangag faces.

Our host called us one by one for our free complimentary traditional breakfast around 8:00 AM. She told us that we should eat breakfast first before anything else (i.e. make-up). I later found out that she told Faye to wait for everyone to be seated at the table before she starts eating. Haha Low EQ kasi e! I guess they value meal times that much.

SK 2012: Hey Seoul Sisters!

Autumn in South Korea is hands-down our most-awaited trip of the year. The girls and I have been raving about it for the longest time, even our office mates can't help but get excited for us. Even though it'll be my second time there, I feel just as giddy as I was the first time simply because it was love at first sight for me and SK. It's definitely one of those places you'll never get tired of going back to.

We were lucky enough to book tickets during one of Cebu Pacific's crazy piso sale promos, so it's alright even if we ended up with red-eye flights. Not bad for Php 3,000+ yo! At least we get a breathtaking view of the city skyline during take-off and landing. Plus, we can easily sleep through the 4-hour flight. This trip was a year in the making and I spent grueling hours researching just to make the most out of our 6-day trip. All that effort was worth it though seeing them girls get excited by just looking at the itinerary and sample photos.

Waiting for airport limousine bus #6002

We arrived at Incheon International Airport (IIA) around 6 AM. After exchanging a few dollars to wons at the nearest Foreign Exchange booth for breakfast and transportation money, we bought/topped-up our Seoul City Pass Plus cards which is basically T-money with additional discounts for tourists. Tip#1: Do not exchange all your travel money at the airport. Wait until you get to Myeong-dong where you can find some of the best rates.

My 2012 Highlights (and Lowlights)

 JANUARY

• Started using Filed instead of BDJ. Goodbye coupons, hello doodles!
• Bought my very first pair of Toms.
• New tourism campaign: It's More Fun in the Philippines. Love it!
• Watched Simple Plan at Araneta Coliseum.
• AND went to Edsa Shangri-la the next day to meet the guys and get things signed. First SL (Stalking Leave) of the year yo!
• SC Batch 2 Year-starter at Subic (Tree Top Adventure and Ocean Adventure)

 FEBRUARY

• Watched Mamma Mia! At CCP Theatre.
• Went to all LIV5 dates and watched A+ Dropouts, The Summer Set, The Ready Set, A Rocket to the Moon, and Forever the Sickest Kids. Fell in love with Jordan. :)) Thank you Ayala Malls!
• Enrolled in Fitness First for four months.
• Fell in love with yoga and zumba.
•  TGIS reunited to attend Tats and Puchie's wedding as bridesmaids.
• Missed Bill Beckett's StageIt show because of time zone confusion. FAIL!
• Had a Leap Year Party at Cyma (then Watering Hole) with '04 batchmates.
• Got addicted to Draw Something.
• Took my One Direction addiction to a whole new level by buying Forever Young.

MARCH

• Met The Cab atthe CD signing event at SM Sky Dome.
• Watched Smash Project featuring The Cab, Cobra Starship, Dashboard Confessional, and The Used at Araneta Coliseum.
• Start of Magnum craze!
• Fell in love with Mark B.'s zumba class.
• Booked KUL-REP flights.
• Uncle Melic passed away. :(
• Hunger Games!
• Got addicted to Community.
• Watched The Maine for the fifth time, this time at SM Sky Dome. Pulp Royalty, baby!

APRIL

• South-East Asia Trip!!! My most ambitious travel adventure to date. Manila - Singapore - Kuala Lumpur - Cambodia - Bangkok - Manila. AHH-MAZING!
• Went to Singapore for the second time.
• Woke up at 4 AM just to get the chance to go up the Petronas Twin Towers.
• Finally saw the famous Angkor Wat plus some other temple ruins.
• Tried Happy Pizza and got high. Unfortunately, my kind of high was the sleepy kind so yeah, I just fell asleep.
• Drank all the Thai Milk Tea I want while in Thailand!
• Experienced my first foreign festival ever - Songkran in Bangkok. I'm definitely coming back!
• Experienced MRI for the first time because of my left knee.
• Had to enroll for 10 PT sessions at Healthway.
• Forever 21 finally opened at The Block.
• Our company had to retrench some people. :(

MAY

• SAGADA! Survived the back-to-back Cave Connection and Pongas Waterfalls challenges! Plus some other minor ones: Marlboro Hills, Kiltepan Peak, Echo Valley and Hanging Coffins.
• Ate Pinikpikan for the first and last time.
• Had Karaoke Night with the entire Axiom team plus Pat at Centerstage.
• Filed a half-day SL and went to MOA just to see Ian Somerhalder for a few minutes. Totally worth it!
• Went to Street Food Fridays for the first time.
• Watched Weekend Getaway for the first time because of their Sagada episode.
• Celebrated Mother's Day at Café Juanita.
• Goodbye Magnum, hello Korean icecream craze!
• Started blogging again. Hello, Endless Summer!
• Missed We The Kings' second show in Manila. :(
• Joyce and Jappy flew to Singapore to look for new jobs. Gonna miss these two!

JUNE

• Watched Set Your Goals, This Century, and We Are The In Crowd at Araneta Coliseum.
• Lola Melba passed away. :(
• Spent the weekend at Club Balai Isabel for my pre-birthday celebration.
• Had lunch at Restaurant Uno and dessert at Fleur de Lys for my 25th birthday.
• Watched There For Tomorrow, Every Avenue, and William Beckett at SM Sky Dome on my birthday.
• Celebrated Father's Day at Crisostomo.
• Emergency Eng'g Meeting aka Gemini Babies' Bday Merienda Treat at the big pantry.
• Pink & Fab Party at Music Match with my favorite people.
• Annual flu vaccine.

JULY

• EIGA SAI! Watched PEAK - The Rescuers, Happy Flight, Colorful, Abacus and Sword, Villain, and Ninja Kids at Edsa Shangri-la.
• Started learning how to read and write in Hangul.
• Transferred to a new cube.
• Not-so-good increase at the performance review.
• Opened a COL Financial account so I can invest in the stock market.
• Bought my first shares - Ayala Land and SM Prime Holdings.
• Reserved rooms for our hanok stay at Friends House.
• Got addicted to Suits.
• Mezza Norte finally opened in Technohub!
• Finally bought a pair of Hello Kitty sneakers - my second pair of Vans ever.

AUGUST

• Watched Cirque du Soleil's Saltimbanco at MOA Area.
• Went to Davao with the girls just in time for Kadayawan Festival.
• Flew with SEAir for the first time and ended up boarding an It's More Fun in the Philippines plane.
• Saw Philippine Eagles up close for the first time.
• Ate sutukil for three consecutive days.
• Tried the giant and mega slides at Maxima Aqua Fun.
• Naligo sa dagat ng basura.
• Experienced my most-chillax beach getaway ever at Talikud Beach Resort.
• Fell in love with Durian-flavored goodies.
• Hoarded fruits (pomelo, durian, marang, and mangosteen )at Bangkerohan. Hello, 19kgs luggage!
• Got addicted to The Moon That Embraces The Sun. New crush alert: Kim Soo Hyun!

SEPTEMBER

• Watched Potted Potter at RCBC Plaza.
• Went to Kalibo for Lola Melba's interment.
• Surprise Boracay getaway!
• Watched BONA at PETA Theater.
• Celebrated Karly and Daddy's birthday at Kanin Club.
• Went bowling at SM Annex afterwards.
• Watched The Cab at Trinoma.
• UP Pep Squad won first place in this year's UAAP Cheerdance Competition.
• Watched The Phantom of the Opera at CCP. BEST. MUSICAL. EVER. So I bought tons of merch.
• Went to Zac Efron's Fan Conference at MOA Arena.
• Went to Bazooka Rocks Festival by Pulp to watch Avastera, The Wonder Years, A Skylit Drive, Forever the Sickest Kids, The Maine, Marianas Trench, Mayday Parade, and The Pretty Reckless at SMX Convention Center.

OCTOBER

• Went to the South Korea Embassy at Taguig to apply for our tourist visas and got approved!
• Traded in our old luggage and bought new ones at Travel Club's Luggage Sale.
• Booked our room at Hongdae Guesthouse.
• Decorated our area for the company's annual Trick or Treat and prepared treats for the kids.
• Mabel finally resigned. I'm gonna miss her!
• Broke my sennies and bought the new earpods.

NOVEMBER

• Celebrated Ate's birthday weekend at Balay Indang.
• SOUTH KOREA 2012! Autumn in my heart ang peg!
• Wore hanbok  for the first time at Myeong-dong Tourist Center.
• Stayed at a hanok (with complimentary traditional breakfast) for the first time at Friends House. Communicated with very little English.
• Visited Gyeongbokgung for the second time but this time, we watched the Changing of the Guards and wore traditional costumes (court lady and guard).
• Went to Petite France for the first time.
• Wanted to try Nami Zip Wire but failed. :(
• Went to Everland for the first time. Didn't try the T-Express though.
• Strolled across Cheonggyecheon for the Seoul Lantern Festival Exhibit.
• Went to MBC Dramia where they filmed most of TMTETS.
• Went to Trick Eye Museum for the first time.
• Went to the Lee Min Ho Benchsetter Fun Meet at Araneta Coliseum.
• Celebrated Mom and Ate Elsa's birthday at our new unit in Bldg 31.
• Had a house blessing for Bldg 31.

DECEMBER

• The office had a bidding for excess office supplies. Bought a new computer set.
• Watched Rurouni Kenshin. OH THE MEMORIES!!!
• Finally bought a white Lumix LX7 from Kimstore.
• The company's theme for this year's Year-End Party was 60's inspired. Our batch went as the cast of Mad Men.
• Had an Axiom Year-end Party at Music Match.
• Had our SC Batch 2 YEP at H Cuisine.
• The world didn't end so we celebrated by having lunch at Roberta's Flavors of Asia.
• Our unit at Grass Residences was finally turned over to us (after 4 final viewings).
• Celebrated Christmas at Bldg 31 with the entire family.
• Celebrated New Year's Eve at Cavite with our fetal friends. FUN!

As you can see, the past year has been nothing but great. So thank you, Lord, for the continuous blessings. And to everyone who were part of my 2012 for making it absolutely fun. Here's to an even more exciting 2013!

[ EDIT: I can't remember exactly when but I did start using my left hand to control my mouse so I can lessen my right hand's activities. Hihi Carpal tunnel prevention, yo! One step closer to being ambidextrous. Chos! ]