First Photo Exhibit

I enrolled in a basic photography course and ended up graduating. One of the highlights of the course is a photo exhibit wherein you send a photo entry that goes with the theme, “Our climate, our actions, our future”. I took a shot of one of my colleague’s daughter (future) and let her hold a globe(actions), with a clear blue sky (climate) at the background.. a rather positive outlook, thus, the title, “My World, My Future”.

It was an experience to see my own work posted with other photo entries. I did not win anything but the pride and joy it gave me was priceless.
It has let me realize that the 3 months worth of waking up early and attending the course every Friday, which is the best day to wake up late, was all worth it. The course did not only let me get a certificate but has given me the opportunity to gain new friends and acquaintances.

The course was spearheaded by Lightform- a Filipino group of photographers whose aim is to help fellow overseas Filipino workers gain knowledge and, if pursued well, may be a means to earn money. True to its sense, a lot of the students have been gaining some customers and experience.

But one thing I will not forget is my own group (all students were segregated into groups), Group 7- we call ourselves, The Raketeers, since we all aim to earn more money (hahaha), and we won the Most Outstanding Group for Batch 19.

My first photo exhibit was truly an experience for the year 2007.

Al Ain Trip

The picture above is the first picture I have taken that is published by our company, it was used in our recruitment brochure.

I took this chance to practice my outdoor photography skills and I loved it.!
Look at the slideshow below for more pics.

Al Ain is one of the seven emirates of UAE. Two hours from Dubai and another 2 hours going to Abu Dhabi.
Our company sponsored a bus trip for all colleagues during Eid. Eid was a celebration by Muslims after a month of fasting called Ramadan.
Hubby and I decided to take this chance to go there, after 3 years, since we went there for an overnight stay I have won in a magazine trivia.

Al Ain is unlike Dubai. “A refreshing view to the eyes” as my hubby told me. There are no construction trucks, barriers along the way… just pure green.. trees, grass and more trees…. Yes , it is a “green” desert.

We went to Al Khadra Park, a park surrounded by mountains.
It was evident that lots of overnight campers were already there a day before.

Next stop was Jafeet Mountain. The trip going there was like going to Baguio. You are right, zigzags. I ould say that this is the highlight of the trip.

Last stop was Al Ain Zoo. The zoo was great in size, the animals were enclosed in an environment close to their habitat. Though a lot different that our own Manila Zoo, the place boast more than a zoo, it is also a park where you can bring some picnic food to bring with you... bring some blanket or banig, hats, food and lie down in oblivion.

It was a fun filled day! My realization at the end of the day.... I have only few pics with hubby coz I was the photographer for the whole group.

Vegetable Rolls-Food

During our early days as a couple, my husband and I were able to invent a dish of 7 vegetables sautéed together with onions and garlic and seasoned with oyster sauce.
Starting from that dish, the recipe revolved to adding more ingredients, making it a dish of more than 7 veggies. Then, he suggested that we use it as a filling to our lumpia.
It did great! Then revisions came, the amount of kinds of veggies reduced but the same taste is achieved.

Receipe

1/4 cup of each:

Mushrooms
Baby corn
Brocolli
Cauliflower
Bean sprouts
Carrots
Green beans
Pork, cut into bits
Potatoes
½ cup oyster sauce
½ cup onions, sliced
4 tablespoons garlic, minced
2 tablespoons oil
Salt and pepper

Lumpia wrapper
1 cup oil for deep frying

Sauce:

½ cup onions
½ cup garlic
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup vinegar
Chillies, fresh, cut into strips.
Salt
Pepper
Brown sugar

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil. Saute garlic and onions, add the pork (or chicken), and the veggies.
Pour oyster sauce. Mix . Season to taste.

Lay down one piece of lumpia wrapper, place 1 tablespoon of the mixture. Wrap securely.
Deep fry. Drain the fried lumpia of oil by using paper towels.

For the sauce, mix all ingredients. Season to taste.

Tinolang Manok- Food

I saw one whole chicken in the freezer one day. We usually buy cut up pieces of chicken so as to make menu planning easier for the rest of the week. So I was surprised that I saw a whole chicken in the freezer. I was never brave enough to buy a whole chicken unless it will be used to make a stuffed whole chicken, which, as far as I could remember was one of my failed attempts, ending up cutting the whole chicken into pieces.

I learned that my husband bought the whole chicken and decided to make 2 dishes, “tinolang manok” and “ginataang adobong manok”. Well, I told him, since he bought it, it is his responsibility. Yup, you are right, he did spent quite a time with the chicken. Fortunately, after going through a chicken butchery course all by himself, he successfully cut up pieces of chicken for his two dishes. Since he was playing the “executive chef”, I have to make ado with the role of a “commis”. I sliced up strips of ginger and garlic. I cut up the green papaya as well. Result: yummy dish!

Recipe:

250 grams chicken, cut into pieces (recommend the bony parts of the chicken with some breast parts so as to maximized the flavor of the dish)
4 tablespoons ginger, cut into strips
4 tablespoons garlic, cut into strips
250 grams green papaya, cut into small pieces
2 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoon fish sauce
Water

Saute ginger in hot oil till lightly browned. Add garlic and continue sauteeeing till lightly brown. Add the fish sauce and chicken. Make sure that the chicken gets cooked by looking into it, no pink blood. Add the papaya slices and pour water just enough to cover the ingredients. Let it simmer for 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Palitaw- Food

My husband was rummaging through our pantry when he saw this opened pack of glutinous flour that we have used when we once made “ginataang bilo-bilo”.
Then he asked me if we can make “palitaw” for the rest of the flour. Palitaw is made by mixing water with the glutinous flour to make a thick dough, formed into balls. Each ball of dough is flattened and dropped into a deep pan of boiling water. After 30 seconds, the flattened dough then surfaces, thus the term, “palitaw”. The palitaw is rolled into a plate of freshly shredded coconut and sprinkled with white sugar and toasted sesame seeds.

Recipe:

2 cups glutinous flour
1 cup water
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cp sugar
1 cup toasted sesame seeds
1 deep pan filled with boiling water

Mix flour with water to form a thick dough. Form balls and flatten each ball. Drop into the boiling water. Wait till the dough surfaces. Use a slotted spoon to get the palitaw.
Roll the palitaw in a plate of shredded coconut and sprinkle with sugar and toasted sesame seeds before serving.

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!