I’ve been MIA for two weeks as I have been to Beijing, China and I cannot get WordPress to work there!
Anyways, I’m back! I may bombard you with pictures of my trip so I apologise in advance.
Stay happy!! 😊😊😊
Tag Archives: travel
Groundhog Week – Weather, family, fun!
Today’s Daily Prompt:Â If you could relive last week, would you? Would you change anything?
We had an amazing week last week, weather-wise, here in England. As I have said before, sunshine and warmth rarely grace Manchester. Therefore, I am really grateful to have experienced a full week of sunshine last week, and if I will be allowed to relive last week, I would do so mostly because of the weather. In addition to not having to take an umbrella everywhere, people are generally happier when the sun is out.
I also had the pleasure of being with my whole family last weekend. We spent some time away in Lake District, Cumbria. We swam, ran, walked and talked all weekend. We also ate together – a very pleasant and therapeutic time for all of us. It is amazing how we all cherrished the time we had together as times such as this do not often happen due to our busy schedules and geographical locations.
All in all, I do want to relive last week and I do not want to change a thing. However, if reliving last week would mean that I would lose the next seven days, I would refuse the opportunity. I would rather experience exciting things in the future, armed with the hope that there are even brighter things ahead than relive the past.
PINGBACKS:
I’m a Citizen of the World!
Today’s Daily Prompt asked: You’re embarking on a year-long round-the-world adventure and can only take one small object with you to remind you of home. What do you bring along for the trip?
I have always felt that everyone should not be classed as a citizen of any country. Rather, we should all be classed as citizens of the world. We should be free to travel and live anywhere we want without the unnecessary paperworks. Won’t that be nice? We could call the whole world our home!
Having lived in different countries, I probably have a very different definition of home compared to others. My ‘home’ is wherever my loved ones are. If they are coming with me to the trip, I do not need to bring anything. But in any case, I would not bring anything with me. I have a pretty reliable memory which would provide me everything I would need to remind me of ‘home’. The connections and emotional attachments that I have made with my friends, family, colleagues and students cannot be replaced by any object.
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PINGBACKS
Making Friends and Autism Busking at the Airport
Today’s Daily Prompt asked: You’re at the airport, your flight is delayed for six more hours and none of your electronic devices are working. How do you pass the time?
This could either be the most depressing, exhausting and annoying six+ hours or I could make it fun. Well, if you know me, you know I would pick the latter.
I would make new friends by talking to the other passengers, console them and try to make jokes about the situation. I would talk to parents and their kids, teens, the elderly, and even the airport staff. I’d also make sure that I am hydrated, full and had some sleep.
I’d make the wait even more interesting by Autism-Busking. I’d talk to my new friends about Autism. Educate them more, talk about research and my experiences. It will be a learning experience for all of us.
Rome and Singapore: A Tale of Two Cities (Daily Post)
If I could split my time between two cities and two cities only, I choose…
1. ROME-Â Because of the food:
and the breath-taking historic sights:
and…
2. Singapore– for its beauty:
and because I want to buy everything at Bugis Street:
I have been to both Singapore and Rome before. I loved the people, the sights, food, travelling within both cities and the different atmosphere they both have.
What would I do if I can spend my time equally between these cities? A lot!
The diversity of the residents in Singapore fascinated me. I’d love to spend more time to observe them and explore the ways in which the migrants’ different cultures affects the country as a whole. In Rome, I would spend my time learning the language, eating the food and exploring the ways in which they have kept their tradition (from cuisine to language and the whole customs).
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In response to Daily Prompt: Tale of Two CIties
Here are other Tales of Two Cities:
Trains, trams and aspirations: what’s the difference?
Every afternoon I take the tram from work to my house. This afternoon, the second tram was more than a half hour late. People were huffing and puffing at the platform complaining to each other about how tired they were and how terrible this occurance was. But yet, they waited. Our faces lit up everytime we hear the sound of a new tram coming our way. Collectively, we sighed after finding out that those trams were not what we wanted.
Some decided to take an alternative transport, while some including myself waited. This got me thinking about life.
We all have dreams and aspirations. We want to get somewhere and most of the time like me and my fellow passengers at that stop, we all have an idea how to get to where we’re going. Much like passenger who’s going to the city centre to pass some time who might decide to go back home if the tram’s cancelled or delayed, people who are uncertain about what they want may abandon a goal after a hurdle.
But what happens if we need to get home and the trams are not running? We find a way to get home, right? We take a bus, a taxi or even walk for miles just to get home. Sometimes we wait a few hours or days. Why? It’s not that we have no choice, it’s because we really want to go home.
The next time you set yourself a goal, ask yourself these: do I really want this? Am I prepared to do whatever it takes and labour how ever long it takes to get there?
Remember, when we are trying to go home, we never ask ourselves whether we can walk 15 or 20 miles. We just do it. So when you set yourself a goal, always think that you’ll achieve it, as long as you really want it!!!
😉
My 2011 in pictures
I spent the first hours of 2011 with my partner, our family and friends.
A few weeks later, my partner celebrated her birthday again, with friends and family…
In April, me and my friends played a benefit gig for the people suffering Aplastic Anemia, which sadly was the cause of why one of our friends is no longer with us.
The gig was a success as it raised quite a bit of money and the people seemed to have had a good time.
We also said goodbye to two of our friends who moved to Den Haag. These guys warmed our hearts with their generosity, whilst inspiring us at the same time with their continuing success in their lives.
Dr. North is a magician on the grill
One of the prettiest moms-to-be I’ve seen:
I visited Pistyll Rhaeadr falls in North Wales during the spring. This place was breath-taking. I didn’t realise that there is such a lovely view in Wales!
A milestone has been reached by my partner in 2011. After 3 years of hard work and dedication, she graduated with flying colours!
I then went back home to the Philippines for a while with my partner. One of the first things we did was watch basketball- courtside! This game between UST and Ateneo was a really good one.
We visited Singapore, the tidiest and one of the most friendly cities I have ever visited…
Look at this for food choices:
And of course, we shopped at Bugis Street:
We then went to Boracay, Philippines, the greatest, most beautiful and relaxing beach I have ever been into…
When we got back to the UK, we moved to Manchester in preparation for the start of my Master’s Degree. Manchester is amazing. The city feels so alive and vibrant. I love how multi-cultural the city is. I also like how the buildings look.
This is a bonus: Old Trafford Stadium, the home of Manchester United Football Club:
Made new friends in uni…
Friends visited me for my birthday…
Remember our friends who moved to Den Haag? We visited them just before Christmas, and look, they have a baby! Thanks again for letting us stay at your place…
We then visited Amsterdam. Most of the pictures we took may offend people so, these are the only ones I will show you…
PS. Thanks, honey for the birthday gift!
My girlfriend and I spent Christmas at our place with our families. Our parents ended up cooking everything and doing everything for us, which was great! Family times are the best times!
Lastly, we had a meal at Wagamama on New Year’s Eve. We decided against cooking and staying in because that’s what we have always done for the past few years.
All in all, 2011 was a fantastic year for me. This is the reason why I do not have a New Year’s resolution this year. I think all I have to do is carry on what I have done. Here’s to another year of awesomeness!!!
Understanding and Embracing Diversity 