Cruise- Star Virgo

Our first cruise- Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia

We had this cruise after our wedding. Sorry, guys, I just got to learn how to blog a year after our wedding, thus, this might be too late- better than never!

I just want to share our momentous events with my readers- no matter when they happened.
The cruise was Star Virgo-5 days/4 nights- Manila to Singapore. Then, we went to Singapore Cruise terminal to board. Being a first timer, me and my husband went around the ship. I think what made this trip memorable was, you guess it right, the FOOD. The package included 3 meals, with 1 gala dinner and 1 great BBQ dinner..Imagine this:

1. 3 restaurants were opened for breakfast, lunch and dinner, as per inclusion. And, there are still other restaurants you can try, but you have to pay as you consume.
2. Midnight snacks were also offered- we are talking big crab legs here!
3. The BBQ dinner was so fantastic, I ate a whole bucket of grilled prawns with steak. Did not mind the carbos, just take those seafood and steaks. The dessert buffet was so huge in selection, I had 3 cups of tea, with two visits to the toilet.. yeah, you are right, to load more.. i know, i committed Gluttony.
4. the gala dinner was so great, waiters had a show before serving it.

I thought, we will be bored. But the ship was filled with so many activities from line dancing, theatre shows, selection of DVD in the lib and night shows. Stopovers to Phuket and Penang, were to look forward too. Hubby and I got to have the elephant massage us, had authentic thai massage, thai food and see great buddhas and temples.

Another note to be proud: Filipino crew everywhere..the Cruise Director was a Filipina as well.

Should I recommend? YES
Are we going to be back? YES

My First Photo Shoot

I just had my first photo shoot in Dubai Heritage Village.

The group that I had joined is Lightform- a group of volunteer Filipino professional photographers who aims to help fellow OFWs in Dubai to learn photography and, if pursued further, the student can earn more money. We meet once a week in a two hour class, this will be for at least 3 months.

This group is still recognized by the Philippine Consulate in Dubai. So there is no question of legitimacy. Their projects and programs are also supported by the local government in Dubai.

It was our first project as photography students. We came in early as 7 am to the village. The aim was to know how to use our previous lectures on lenses, camera functions and exposures. The task was to shoot as many photos as possible with information of ISO, aperture, focal length, shutter speed and bracketing. Thus, each shot must be underexposed, overexposed, and rightly exposed. Composition was not yet discussed, so it was up to the student to set the subject of his/her photos.

Armed with my newly bought Canon 350D camera, I was limited by my sole lens of 18-55 mm, no tripod. Due to budget constraints, I have to do with what I had. Never mind my fellow students who carried their expensive tripods, cameras and bags of lenses.
I had applied theories and learned to experiment in taking photos.

One good thing that photography has imbibed in me is, I get to see everyday things in a new light. I always pursue angles in everything that I see even when I am in the bus, going home. I sometimes look in a soda and, look at it again, intently, with an immediate question in mind, "how will I take a shot of this soda can that will put meaning into it?"

With the sweltering heat, and, since it is Ramadan here, drinking water in public is not allowed, aggravating our situation more.
I did not use these excuses to give up, instead I used it to propel me more to take shots.

Above is a slide show of some shots I have taken. These were reviewed by our teachers and guess what?... for a beginner, I got the score of "EXCELLENT"! Hope I get to retain it till I graduate!

Travels- HK, Shenzhen,Shanghai and Beijing

Group picture -Forbidden City, Beijing, China

Being an OFW myself, a month's vacation is something I look forward to-every year.
Aside from getting to eat my faves, we get to relax, see other places and be with our loved ones.

My hubby and I together with my mom and friends went on a 12 day tour to China including Hong Kong.

It was early 1990’s when I last saw Hong Kong and seeing it this year made me realize that it has grown economically. It has grown so much that buildings are getting closer to each other. As our tourist guide had put it, “you can shake hands with your neighbors in the next building when you open your windows in the morning and greet each other with pleasantries.”
Victoria Peak at night, the harbor view, the food, Bruce Lee and the short boat ride were some of the highlights of the HK tour.

Victoria Peak at Night

Bruce Lee from the Harbor
Boat Ride in HK

Shenzhen is another story,the train ride from HK was fine. We went to "Window on the World" where you can see the whole world with its miniature landmarks. It was a whole day tour, one day is not enough actually.

Arc de Triomphe in Shenzhen

Shanghai was my fave. The "old" and "new" Shanghai were both evident to its present state. The Bund at night was a sight to behold and the TV tower is not be missed.
The Magnetic Levitation train while waiting for the flight was just 10 minutes back and forth to the airport.
Hubby enjoying the sight of the TV tower!

Hubby having a "Bentosa" in Shanghai

Food Trip-siopaos of varied fillings with hubby and Maya, my sister's best friend

Inside the Magnetic Levitation Train with hubby and our friend, Noel
In Beijing, the Great Wall is a must, Forbidden City and Tian'anmen Square must not be forgotten.

Great Wall top view

Great Wall of China with my mom (in front),friends, hubby and me

All throughout our journey, the food gets to be different in each place.
Shenzhen has sweeter side on its dishes, Shanghai gets to be saltier and Beijing gets to be spicier. With more than 10 courses on each meal time except breakfast, I have ballooned so much in such a short time. Of course, who would ever forget the most authentic Peking Duck in Beijing and the mini-siopaos of varied fillings in Shanghai.

With various scenic spots in China, the only challenges we had were:
1. There were almost no English speaking people- but with just signals of our hands and expressions in our faces, they seem to understand.
2.The "squat" phenomenon. Some toilets were ages back, you have to squat to do your thang!

The trip going back was so tiring, we even missed our flight to Manila!
Time to head Home!