Sabi ko kaninang madaling araw bago ako matulog (around 1:30AM), pagkagising ko magbblog ako agad. Gagawin ko na syang everyday routine. Eh pag gising ko (mga 9:30AM), cellphone agad hinanap ko. Nalimutan ko ata yung deal namin ng sarili ko. Ok lang naman. Maganda naman ang result kasi madami na bumati sakin. Maganda ang gising. Buti naman. Medyo bad mood kasi ako kahapon. Bumaba na naman self-esteem ko kahapon. Kaya nag-Tumblr ako bago matulog and sinearch ko yung #magma hashtag ko. Ayun umokey naman ako somehow. Nakangiti naman ako bago matulog.
Excited na ko bukas kasi bukas yung parang celebration ko since weekday ngayon. Baka mag-dinner lang kami mamaya ni Kenneth. So ang itinerary bukas:
Buy Aly’s cookies at the Spectrum Fair
Avail Eatigo’s 50% off on Applebee’s
Print Watercolor Zodiac Galaxies Series
Go to BGC Art Mart
Avail Eatigo’s 50% off on Tipple and Slaw (di pa sure)
Parang may nalimutan ako. Mamaya ko na lang aalalahanin.
Christmas party namin sa Monday. Hindi talaga “namin” kasi hindi ko na sila ka-team. Pero natuwa naman ako ininvite pa din nila ko.
Gutom na ko kaya umorder na lang ako sa KFC. Ittry ko yung bago nilang hotdog sandwich at nuggets. Ano kayang difference nung nuggets sa fun shots nila. Buti tumatanggap na ang KFC ng credit card kasi 92 pesos na lang pala ang cash ko.
Wala na ko masabi ang boring na ng mga kinekwento ko. Ay. Work from home ako ngayon. Buti pinayagan ako ng mabait kong boss. Kaya super chill lang ako dito sa bahay. Tapos kakain lang kami mamaya. No fuss birthday. Hindi naman talaga ko mahilig magpakain or magpainom sa birthday ko. Kuripot kasi ako. Saka na ko magpapa-party pag millionaire na ko.
Sasabihin ko sana as conclusion, “Enjoy your day!”. Pero naisip ko mas okay ang, “Enjoy everyday!” Kaya enjoy everyday! Wag na masyadong weak. That’s so not you.
When I got home from the Korean Embassy for our visa application (sobrang haba ng pila!), I stumbled upon this Goalcast video where a woman in a wheelchair is making a motivational speech. Her name is Muniba Mazari. I was completely blown away by her strength and optimism despite countless misfortunes that I found myself getting teary eyed while watching her tell her life story. Her words resonated with me and made feel really inspired.
That day I decided that I’m going to live my life for myself. I am not going to be that perfect person for someone. I am just going to take this moment and I will make it perfect for myself.
Embrace each and every breath that you are taking. Celebrate your life. Live it. Don’t die before your death.
Here is a woman, who was forced by her parents to be married at a young age. A woman who sustained several injuries after a car accident that made her paraplegic and unable to bear any child; but then I look at her, and see a woman who is truly unbreakable. I felt guilty for those days when I complain too much; whether be it about my job, my relationships, and life in general.
But now I’m feeling so inspired and somewhat contented on where I am in my life at the moment. Just because some things aren’t within my reach right now, it doesn’t mean that it will stay that way forever. Unless I let it.
Thanks to Muniba for giving me that needed push. And as they say, “You do you.”
Sounds good, right? And this includes plane tickets, airport fees, accommodation, food, a pocket WiFi, a trip to Universal Studios Japan and a few souvenirs. But a little disclaimer, I just have to say that this isn’t easy. You need to have the stars aligned in your favor to be lucky enough and get the cheapest flight, to not be choosy and book the cheapest (but still decent) accommodation, and be patient enough to do some research to score some deals (ticket discounts and vouchers).
I actually didn’t spend ₱18,000 because I bought a lot of stuff for my online shop and I also did some art tools hunting for my artsy projects. But not everyone has an online shop and not everyone has this art hobby, so all the money I paid for those things doesn’t count. Some of you may think that this is a joke and say that the ₱18,000 could just cover the plane tickets and terminal fee alone. But as I’ve mentioned earlier, you have to be really lucky to get a roundtrip ticket for just ₱2,400 like I did (thanks to GetGo). But even if the circumstances are different for you now, I think you can still pickup a couple of money saving tips with this trip. So this is how I managed to do it:
Visa Application (₱950)
For the second time around, I applied for my Japan visa via Reli Tours and Travel agency because they have the cheapest handling fee. Luckily, I was granted a multiple entry visa for this trip. Yay!
I booked my ticket via Cebu Pacific using my GetGo points. At that time (maybe 7 months before our actual trip), GetGo held a promo. For only 10 points, you can book a one-way ticket to any country you want (so 20 points for a roundtrip ticket) and all you had to pay for is the travel taxes and web admin fees which amounted to ₱2,400. If you have a gazillion points, you can also have the option to pay the taxes and fees with those points so you can basically fly for free. I had about maybe 15,000 GetGo points at that time because I kept on converting my BPI Real Thrills Reward Points to GetGo points. You can do this as well if you have a credit card and love traveling. If you can cover the base fare with just GetGo points, all you have to do is pay for the taxes.
Accommodation via Airbnb (₱2,650)
I stayed in Japan for 7 days so that’s just ₱450 pesos per night! Some person gave me a referral link and that includes a ₱1,000+ voucher discount for my booking. You can also get an additional discount from Airbnb for a one-week stay. I came with four of my friends on this trip so what I did was, I gave them my own referral link and they got the same discount. I’m going to share with you my link as well if you also want to get that P1,100 discount on your first booking with Airbnb which is: www.airbnb.com/c/gleniza.
We stayed at Four Letter Words Hostel which is a very humble and straightforward accommodation. All the basics are available: comfy sleeping nooks, fast WiFi, hot showers, it’s also in a great location plus you get an entertaining and very kind host. He even offered us a free stay on our next trip to Japan! He said that we can stay there for as long as we want and bring some friends. I honestly don’t know what more could you ask for.
Pocket WiFi via Klook (₱1,615 – only ₱230 per day)
This I think is optional for some people. But I like renting a pocket WiFi when traveling to Japan. Their train lines can get pretty complicated so I always have to look up train stations and the appropriate fare for each train ride online. When navigating, the site I always go to is called Hyperdia. This amount could get much cheaper if you’re traveling with your friends or family since you could just split up the total rental fee. I was given a 7GB data allowance and I only consumed around 4GB during my whole stay.
Kansai 3-Day Pass via Klook (₱1,990)
I got a 3-day pass since I planned on traveling to Nara, Kyoto and Kobe. You can opt for a 2-day pass which is a couple hundred cheaper if you want to leave out Kobe in your itinerary. But going to Nara and Kyoto is highly highly recommended! In my case, I lost my pass when we were in Kyoto so I had doubts to go to Kobe the next day. So it’s up to you if you would like to get a 2 or a 3-day pass. Klook also offers promo codes, and since I’m a first time Klook user, I was able to get roughly 15% discount when I purchased the pass and pocket WiFi. I just used the promo code GETKLOOKD (not sure if this is still active though).
As you may notice, I kept on thinking of ways to get discounts in every purchase I make for this trip. That’s what I meant when I said that you got to have patience. Research first before making hasty (and expensive) decisions. Ok next:
Universal Studios Japan ticket via Klook (₱3,380)
I didn’t really visit USJ during this trip because I had the chance to go there last year. But my friends did so I included it here. I was busy buying stuff in Don Quijote while they were enjoying their USJ visit. I think last year, we spent ₱3,500 for our USJ ticket; so booking via Klook is a bit cheaper. And as you may already notice, Klook really helped us a lot with this trip. It’s very convenient that we can book all these things with just one app. Aside from convenience, the most important thing is that it’s cheaper.
Transportation to and from Kansai International Airport (₱850)
I included this separately because traveling to and from the airport is pretty expensive. From the airport, we just rode a train going to Tengachaya station which is just a 10 to 15-minute walk from our hostel. It was quite a long walk because we had our luggages in tow. But it’s much easier since we don’t have to transfer train stations.
Tourist Spots (Almost Free)
With our Kansai Passes in hand, we toured around Kyoto, Nara and Osaka for cheap. So all we need to set aside are the entrance fees for the different shrines, temples, etc. But the great thing is, most of the entrance fees for some of the great tourist spots are free! I think I only shelled out ₱200 when I went to Osaka National Museum of Art. It would have been another ₱200 when we visited Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion) but our good friend Irving took care of that (Thanks Irving!). But still, it’s just a couple of hundred pesos and the rest of them are free! Let me show you around:
Nara
I think this is at Kasuga TaishaNara ParkNandaimon GateThe five story pagoda near Kofukuji TempleOne of my most favorite shots by Doc IrvingSome cool background we foundEastern Golden HallPhoto OpSomewhere around Nara Park
Kyoto
Tenryuji TempleSomewhere around ArashiyamaArashiyama Bamboo Grove!Near the Togetsu-kyo BridgeFushimi Inari TaishaTorii gatesKinkakuji aka Golden Pavilion (₱200)
Osaka
DotonboriOsaka National Museum of Art₱200Osaka’s New World: Shinsekai
Food (it depends)
This is somewhat tricky because different people have different appetites. In my case, I can go having only two meals per day; but I’m always tempted to buy desserts (which can get a little expensive). And it also depends on your food choices because some restaurants are really pricey (like when we craved for katsu). Your best bet for a filling but inexpensive meal is at gyudon restaurants. It’s a good thing that everything is somewhat still fresh from my memory so I can give you a general food price guide when eating out in Japan.
Crab flavored piggy
Instant noodles [₱60-80]
Pwede na
Sandwiches at Family Mart/Lawson/7-11 [₱100-120]
Mcdo [₱150-200]
Best takoyaki (somewhere in Namba)
Takoyaki (6-8 pcs) [₱250-300]
Gyudon [₱150-200]
Ramen [₱300-500]
Mouthwatering okonomiyaki
Okonomiyaki [₱200-300]
Sosyal na chami
Soba [₱300-400]
Katsu meal set [₱500-600]
Lengua cone
Ice cream cones [₱150-200]
Souvenirs (₱400-500)
The above amount can buy you a keychain, maybe two fridge magnets, and one pouch of Kit Kat. So if you have a lot of friends and relatives requesting for their pasalubongs, or if you want to try all the different flavors of Kit Kat and other Japan goodies, adjust this amount accordingly.
And that’s it! So a sample itinerary would be:
Day 1 – Arrival at KIX (in our case we arrived at night)
Day 2 – Nara
Day 3 – Osaka (USJ)
Day 4 – Kobe
Day 5 – Kyoto
Day 6 – Osaka + Shopping
Day 7 – Departure
I hope this helps! Enjoy your Japan trip in the near future!
Haven’t done any blogging lately and I’m hating myself for it. It always crosses my mind but I wasn’t getting myself around to do it. I almost didn’t want to write now because I’m about to sleep already. My neurons are still kind of recuperating from the art class that I took this morning (I took an art class! Yay!). But so much stuff has been happening lately and I need to talk about it. I want my future self to go back and remember these things. Let’s have it as a list.
CANADA We’re done with our medical test and we passed! All we have to do now is wait for the passport request. Once we get notified of this, it means that they’re going to stamp our passports with PR visas (finally)! So keeping our fingers crossed for that. It’s kind of bittersweet though because that also means we’re leaving our families here in the Philippines. 😢 Oh well.
ART VENTURE I’m becoming more serious in pursuing my passion in art. Last week, I took my first ever art workshop about water brush calligraphy and it was a lot of fun. It was kind of bitin and pricey (Php 2,000 for 2 hours) but I enjoyed it. What I liked most about the experience is meeting the artist. I saw firsthand how she works and just listening to her tips and insights made me feel really good about this art venture. Seeing how good she is at what she does motivated me more to be as skilled as her. And then earlier this morning, as previously mentioned, I attended another workshop. This time, it’s about the fundamentals of drawing (Php 1,950 for roughly 5 hours). I guess I’d have to reserve a separate post for this because I’m thinking of writing every detail that happened today because it’s still fresh from my memory. To cut things short, I learned A LOT today. Didn’t think of actually being able to draw this (pictured below). I felt more confident than yesterday and I’m actually glad that I’m taking the necessary steps to improve my skills (even if it comes with a price). It’s definitely worth it! The instructor (Joms de Mesa) said something that I want myself to always remember. He said something along these lines, “If you were able to do this on your first try, just imagine what you can do if you keep on doing this for a year.” And that’s very true and a really good reminder to keep on going. To tie this all up together, I made an IG account dedicated to my art called @dust.designs (hence the title of this blog post). I hope to see a transition (from noob to expert) on my future posts so I need to keep on learning and practicing.
TRAVEL Hope everything goes well when we apply for our Japan visas next week. We’re hoping to go back there again this coming October. Nick should better be approved this time! I’m excited to stroll around the districts of Osaka then maybe go back to Kyoto. Not sure. Haven’t made an itinerary yet. I’m also looking forward to go visit some art stores in Japan. I hope I won’t get overwhelmed and start buying everything that looks kawaii. I also notice that most of the quality tools that’s being recommended in art blogs are from Japan, so I think I can buy it cheaper there. More better reasons to go back!
LIFE IN GENERAL I’m actually in good spirits right now. Mainly because of me trying to do the things I love like drawing, watercolor and some traveling. I feel happy whenever I produce a decent work and see myself improving. It’s an extra boost if I post it and somebody likes it (sometimes ❤️ or 😲 if I’m using Facebook 😄). Although in hindsight, I sometimes worry and think about some negative things. Thoughts like, “What are you planning to do with art? Are you going to get money from it? There’s a lot of people better than you.” and “Why do you keep on traveling? Traveling costs a lot of money. Do you have a lot of money? No you don’t! Why not save it instead and use it for things that really matter? You’re being selfish.” Stuff like that. I try not to think of these things because it dampens my mood and it demotivates me. I know that this “art thing” isn’t something that’s certain to make me earn money; but I’m loving every minute of it!What’s important is that I’m doing what I’m passionate about and for me, that matters. But it doesn’t mean that I’m going to quit my job (for now) and just do art. Of course I’ll keep my job (for now 😁) while doing stuff I like on the side. I’m just now in a state where I fully understand that life is really short. Yes, earning money is necessary to live. But making art and traveling is what I live for. For me, it gives more value and quality to my life. I’m just thankful that I finally know what I want to do. I felt very lost before. I was in a position where I’m very discontented and don’t know what I’m doing. I wan’t someone to tell me what to do and give me the answers because I have no clue what I’m supposed to be doing.
And then, just like magic, I finally figured out who that someone is. That someone who will give me the answers. Me. Finally, I was able to figure it out. And I’m not gonna stop now.
My logo!
Okay, that’s it. Got kind of emotional back there. Haha. I hope I can blog more frequently. I almost forgot that writing feels soothing and therapeutic. It also keeps my mind in the right perspective. Until then!
Pagkatapos kong mag-CR, naisip ko na mag grocery at dumaan sa Boulangerie para bumili ng discounted bread. Malapit na kasi mag 7PM. Pagbaba ko ng office, nakita ko yung officemate ko papasok. Sabi ko sa kanya, “Uy ang aga mo ah!” 8PM pa kasi pasok nya. Pagpasok ko ng Grand (amoy) Canal Mall, binati ako nung security guard ng usual nya na, “Buona sera!” Umakyat muna ako para i-check kung may aloe vera gel na sa MUMUSO (wala pa din). Sabi naman ni ate na taga MUMUSO, “Annyeong haseyo! Mumuso!” Napansin ko medyo madaming tao. Friday kasi siguro. Nung papunta na ko sa tinapayan, may madadaanan uli ako na guard. Eh di bumati sya ulit ng, “Buona seraaa!” tapos sinundan nya ng “Bukas ang zipper nyo Ma’am.”
Waaah! Nasira ref namin. Ah ah nakakasura. Pano na ko makakapagluto ng masasarap (?) na pagkain?? Hay. Sana mapaayos pa ref namin. Kung ako nga masusunod sana bumili na lang kami ng bagong ref. Second hand lang kasi yung ref namin na yun. Hay pano na.
May consultation nga pala ko mamayang 2pm sa Health Way Greenbelt. Mag-12 PM na pala. Tinatamad pa ko maligo. Saka ansarap ng panahon ansarap mahiga lang at magchill. Kainis parang tumila na ulan. More rain please!
Ay sige pala pupunta ko Greenbelt tas dun na din ako kakain. Kaya lang. I have no money. Magbabayad na ko ng kuryente namin bukas kaya wala na talaga. Ang mahal ng kuryente namin eh. 2,711! Halos tig 1k kame. Grr. Kung kelan naman nagtitipid ih.
Gusto ko na itry yung lucid dreaming.
Kakasura ang tamad ko ngayon. Where is the motivation??
Bad news. Patay na si Terror. Yung aso namin. Di ko inexpect na ganto ang magiging impact nya sakin at sa pamilya namin. Kahit yung mga barkada ng mga kapatid ko nalungkot din nung nalamang wala na sya. Si Kim apektadong apektado di daw sya makatulog. Si Tricia at ang Kuya nagiyak din. Ako nagulat ako nung naiyak ako. Di talaga ko mahilig sa kahit anong pet pero nakakalungkot talaga. Siguro dahil antagal na nya samin. 8 years na pala namin syang kasama. Ibig sabihin highschool pa lang ako nasamin na sya. Di ko sigurado pero parang mejo malaki na sya nung napunta sya samin. Ang nakakalungkot pa, sabi ni Kim tahol pa daw ng tahol si Terror nung bago sya mawala. Parang hindi mo aakalain na maya maya pala mawawala na sya. Hai.
Sabi ng mga Mama kukuha daw ulit kami ng aso na Labrador din na golden retriever tapos Terror din ang pangalan. Ok sakin yun 🙂 Parang indi pa din sya nawala.
Ang cool ng date na to. 121212 (Dec. 12, 2012). Matagal na ulit bago magkaron ng ganto kasi 2013 na ang kasunod. 12 lang naman ang months.
Malapit na birthday ko. Sana makabili na ko ng iPod touch na 5th gen. Tanda ko na 24 na ko. Parang dati sabi ko mag-aasawa na ko ng gantong edad. Tas ngayon kung iisipin mo, parang antagal pa nun mangyayari. Wala pang pera. Wala pang ipon.
Limang oras na ko dito sa office at limang oras na din akong walang ginagawa. Wala pa kong chat kahit isa. Inaantok na ko. Nagttumblr lang ako, internet ng konti. Kain.. Yun na yun. Parang gusto ko na ng mahirap-hirap na trabaho. I want to be a medical coder. Kelan kaya yun.. Hai.
Pangit ng balat ko. Wawa naman magiging anak ko.
Uuwi na ko sa Pagbilao bukas 🙂 Halos isa’t kalahating buwan na din nung huli kong uwi samin. Kaya ko pina-adjust VL ko, para makauwi na ko bukas.
Ang boring ng buhay dito sa Maynila pag wala kang kasama. Pag solo ka lang sa bahay. Nakakadepress. Feeling mo andami mong problema. Konting pangyayari na di mo nagustuhan parang nagiging malala. Pag nagkasakit ka, nakakaiyak kasi wala ka man lang kasama para alagaan ka. Maaawa ka na lang sa sarili mo. Nakakatamad din maglinis ng bahay kasi wala naman ibang makakakita ng kalat mo kundi ikaw lang. Kahit nakakatuwa dahil pauwi na si Kenneth, di pa din ako matuwa ng lubusan dahil alam kong aalis din sya. Baka mas matagal pa. Hai. Nakakalungkot. Nakakainip. Pag nagluto ako ng kakaibang potahe, nakakalungkot din kasi ako lang ang kakain. Gusto kong ipatikim sa iba kung masarap ba, kung kulang pa o kung patapon yung niluto ko. Buti na lang din samin muna nakatira si Nick, pero madalang din kami magkita dahil sa shift ng trabaho namin. Dadating ako ng bahay, wala sya. Dadating sya ng bahay, tulog ako. Pag gising ko, tulog sya. Pag gising nya, nakaalis na ko. Pero ok na din, iba pa din yung pakiramdam na alam mong may kasama ka sa bahay kesa sa wala talaga.
Kaya natutuwa na kong umuwi samin. Madami ako kasama sa bahay. Miss ko na ang Mama, ang Papa, mga kapatid ko, Daddy, Mommy, Tito at Tita ko, mga pinsan ko, si baby Gilian, mga barkada ko, mga Pagbilaoins, etc.
Napaka-ironic. Dati rati, naiisip ko nang magsarili. Tas natutuwa ako sa idea na solo lang ako sa bahay tas parang ang saya. Naiimagine ko dati parang mas sasaya ako sa ganung buhay. Siguro dahil dati, hindi ko naiimagine yung mga parts na kelangan mong maglinis, magluto, magbayad ng bills, magtipid at kung ano ano pa. Haha nakakatawa lang. Parang dati winiwish ko yung buhay na ganun. Yung magnenet lang ako, magbabasa ng libro tas solo lang ako. Mali pala. Di pala nakakatuwa.
Na-curious kase ako. Tas ang description pa eh non-sticky, non-staining, alcohol at paraben free. Di ko lang alam kung ano yung paraben na yun. Search ko mamaya.
Mabilis sya matuyo. Ewan ko lang kung ok yung mismong action nya. Nagsisisi ako kung ba’t yung spray form ang binili ko. Ang hirap pindutin tas napapa-spray pa sa muka ko yung iba. Sa susunod roll-on na lang. Yun eh kung maganda ang effect.
Andito ko ngayon sa Taguig. Nag-apply sa United Health Group. Kakatapos ko lang ng final interview. Ang last step eh online assessment daw, wala pang specific date. At ang probable date ng start ng work eh sa July 30 pa. Ang tagal. Magaapply pa ko sa iba. Habang hinihintay yun. Maganda daw kasi dito sa UHG. Andame kong kasabay na nag-apply na currently employed sa ibang call centers at gusto nilang lumipat dito. Online assessment na lang ako tas ok na. Eh madali na yun. Very easy na yun. Haha. Yun pati ang pinakagusto kong part. Yung test. Haha. Sana makapagstart na ko sooner. Ayoko maburo ng 1 month.
Excited na ko magtrabaho dito. Kaya lang ang hirap makapunta dito. Di pa din ako marunong. Akala ko makakapagsolo na ko pabalik ng Makati pero di din pala. Inaantay ko Kenneth ngayon puntahan nya ko dito. Sakit ng ulo ko eh. Nakakailang kasi isuot tong salamin ko anlaki-laki. Kaya di ko sinusuot kanina sakit tuloy ng ulo ko.
Nasa Market Market na daw si Kenneth. Kahit pa sabihin nya wala din naman akong idea kung san yun. Nagtanong pa ko. Haha.
Ok din magtrabaho dito kaya lang yung building ng UHG ang layo layo. Tas ang layo din ng mga kainan. Kapagod mag-lakad. High-heeled shoes are a no-no.
Ah ah I really want to start na next week! San pa kaya makapag-apply. Sa Thomson daw maganda din. Kaya lang parang ayoko ng account dun. Hindi related sa health care.
Gleniz da Menace 