Days of Our Lives

Sometime in our lives there come moments that we treasure forever. One of those moments in my life came when my family spent last summer's vacation in Singapore...

Actually, the trip materialized when I was not able to go back home this summer. Having some projects and side works to do in Singapore, Alice and I decided to just bring the kids there for a two-week rest from school and explore what Singapore has to offer for them. It practically was shooting two birds in one stone - me, doing what I needed to do there, and the rest of my family spending vacation with me there also... it really was a win-win situation for us...

We arrived at the same day in Singapore, I came straight from the Gulf and Alice - with the kids in tow - from the Philippines. Our flights arrived only a few hours from each other.

As I mentioned before, one of Alice's brothers had been working for seven years already in Singapore. It made it easier for us to plan our stay there, knowing that we would not have problems with our accomodation while we are there. Indeed, it was a glorious event for the family - the kids had their first taste of going to another country and exploring new environments and a new culture, while Alice and I had the chance of being close to them again even for just a short time after almost 9 months of constantly missing their company. It was indeed the best days of the lives of each one of us in a long time...

While at it, we really made it a point to enjoy our time with each other and also maximized our stay in that fabulous country by discovering what Singapore has to offer. We visited Sentosa and explored its offerings such as the Underwater World, the Songs of the Sea, and much more; we trekked the famous Singapore Zoo, Night Safari, and Jurong Bird Park; we spent a day discovering what's inside the Singapore Science Center, including the Snow City - where the kids really had a fun time playing on the snow; we were everywhere... savoring the sceneries and experiencing the best times.

Of course, while in Singapore one has to visit and see some of its most popular and busiest streets and malls. Thus, the kids had a fun time walking along the Clarke and Boat Quay with their busy restaurants dotting the bay... the Orchard Road and the Lucky Plaza full of "kabayans" and other expats and tourists... the Bugis Street with its popular street market as well as the Sim Lim Square and Tower where Alice and I bought some new electronic gadgets... the Chinatown where we bought some "pasalubongs" and we ate some authentic chinese cuisine... the kids also had some good experiences walking along the Parliament Road, visiting the Suntec City and the world-famous Fountain of Wealth - arguably the biggest fountain in the world, looking at the "durian"-inspired architecture of the Esplanade, and spending some time looking at the Merlion and posing for some pictures.

Well, good things or good times, for that matter, never last... so they say. After 14 days, the kids need to go back and continue their studies once again. As I need to finish other things there, I wasn't able to go back with them to the Philippines. Parting ways with your loved ones is always painful, that's a fact. And so, even if it broke our hearts to know that we'll be apart once more, I bid the kids goodbye after two weeks of spending the best times of my life with them. At least in our case, we are looking forward to a better times - and a better vacation - next year.

Hello River, Rain and Ash... daddy loves you very much!

Photos with Friends...

Dining Outside

We had the chance to go out and have our dinner outside last night. Actually, we (Alice and I) usually do it with our friends every Wednesday evening in a small restaurant called "Blue Dragon" at the city center. We call that activity the "Wednesday Club's" weekly get-together. However, last night was a little bit different since it was only me, Alice, and one of our friends - Marilyn - that went for dinner. We had our dinner in a Turkish restaurant, I would say the most popular waterloo for young people and expats in this place. The dining-out happened because two of our friends from the business department needed to go back to the office during night time for their going-home get-together. Since there's nothing to do anyway, Alice suggested we go with them and get off at the Turkish restaurant and wait for them there until they go back to our flats again...

Anyways, the dine-out was nice. The food at Al-Masharef, as always, was superb. We ordered the "famous" grilled chicken with their specialty hommus on the side, and it was worth every second we stayed there waiting for our friends. We had a very nice dinner, talking about what we'll do in the Philippines when we get back for vacation, as well as other not so important things... the things you normally talk about when passing away time and you don't want to read a book. After "globbing" all the chicken, we drank the equally-superb cocktail juice to at least take out some of the heat you normally feel at this side of the world in summer (even during at night!). Come to think of it, it was already 9:30 in the evening and it's like it's 12noon back in the Philippines. Anyway, the heat this evening didn't do any harm with our festive mood as we drank our cocktails last night. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we're going back home in a couple of days... also, it may be the fact that all work in the office are finished now and there's nothing to do but relax... either way, the feeling was very good indeed :-)

Well, after staying there for about two hours or so, our friends, and for that matter, our transport, finally arrived. We have to go back to the flat once more. Even then, for about two hours last night, we felt how good it is to be working in this region.

Vacation

It's three days before the summer break. Everybody is starting to pack his/her things for the upcoming vacation. It's the good times once again.

For me and Alice, it will be more sweet since we'll see our kids again. After 10 months of just talking to them over the phone and sending text messages, we'll see each other again - the family will be complete once more. Rain had been counting the days since last week. She always sends text messages, always telling us that there are a few days left before they go to the airport to see us. She even said it's okay to be absent in school for one day when they go to the airport to fetch us. Whenever we read those messages of her, we always have an overwhelming feeling engulfing us.

Anyways, vacation is the time to unwind... it is the time to relax. That's why we intend to do just that. Since the kids were not able to come to our place because of some problems in document processing and then due to school commitments, we promised them we'll spend the vacation in Singapore. Alice's brother Edu had been living there for more than five years already, and thus, it will be easy for us to stay there for a while. The place is also good for the children to relax and unwind also. I think it will be a good place for renewed bonding for the family.

Well, vacation is just three days away. Hope everything will be fine...

Cyclone

A FEW days ago, we experienced a powerful cyclone here in the region. It was really devastating. It's not that we're not familiar with nature's wrath as this - living in the Philippines will make you ready for very strong typhoons and storms - but still, pictures shown on the TV surprised us. The cyclone, they say, was the strongest ever to hit the region in more than 30 years. As we have seen from the damages it left to the coastal areas of Oman, the UAE, and Iran, it really was very very strong.

It was a good thing we're living in a region far from where the typhoon struck. We just experienced a little rain, with a little above normal winds during the two days that the storm lashed out in the coastal areas. We were fortunate indeed, that we were spared from the wrath of that powerful storm.

I almost forgot that June 6 was the day the kids start going to school again. Well, it was the day the cyclone unleashed its power in the region. It was during the latter part of the day that I remembered, and thus, I asked how the school went through a text message. Well, the kids said, everything went fine. River and Rain are attending school from 7:00 am to 3:00 pm, while Ash, being still at the prep school, is only having a schedule of two hours - from 1:00 to 3:00 pm. The kids are enthusiastic. After two months of vacation, they will see their friends in the school and meet their teachers once again. Their mom is equally enthusiastic, asking the kids who their teachers are, as well as their advisors. (She is preparing for early gifts, maybe :D )

In three to four weeks time, we'll have our vacation and we'll see them once again. Can't wait for that to happen...