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 | Mabuhay Po Tayo! | Jul 14, 2007 |
Hi guys! Welcome to my gateway - an accessory of exploring life's purpose and finding answers to question only Him can provide. Prior to discovering life’s “secret,” I would believe that life is full of ups and downs, and whatever comes into our way, be it happiness or frustrations, it happens for a purpose. What is important is we should not stop from dreaming and getting what we want. Now, with our Father’s guidance, I believe that this life is great! We just have to know ourselves better, set our priorities, create plans and stick to it to get it. And soon enough, the things we have been wanting will just be within our reach. Feel free to visit any corner of this blog; you may post your comment, suggestion or whatever reaction you feel like saying.
In Emirates, flights are equally distributed according to seniority of more than 11 thousand cabin crew and class grades. From there, we are again divided into 7 groups.  Your flights being granted depend on what group and how senior you are. Let say for example, in my case, I’m in group 6 and my group has the highest chance of getting flight requests in July. The month after that will be the reserve month which is like an AVAILABLE schedule in Etihad Airways. This AVLB roster will then be changed a day or 2 before current date to a flight or standby. If you are lucky, you will get pre-rostered flights.
Month of August was my reserve month and I felt uneasy. Of course, it is always better to have a fix roster and know where you are going. Only God knew what part of the world I would be flying.
Fortunately, when we got our August schedule, I had a pre-defined NYC flight. I was very thankful! What made this trip great was I flew with 4 Filipinos plus a Korean who spent her secondary school and university days in the Philippines. It was a blast – a Filipino Mafia aboard EK flight to New York.
|  | After a 2-week leave in Manila in July, we went back again in August for another 7 days. Truly this was wonderful and well worth it than spending it somewhere else like Bangkok or San Fo or Los Angeles, as we originally planned.
Well, during these times, one of the things I did was to practice photography in my Mama's garden and here are the results: |
In my mom's side, we believe everyone has a green thumb.
My Mama loves varieties of plants - be it ferns, flowers, trees, etc.
So when we moved to Bacoor, Cavite, I made it sure to
provide her with a garden where she can carry on her hobby
and cultivate various species of plants.
The following were taken from Mama's garden:
| | These pictures were taken almost a year ago (2008); if I remember it right, few weeks after I moved from Etihad Airways to Emirates Airline. It was a sunny, cold and windy day in Dubai when Arnold and I decided to drive around the metro and discover what this sand dune has to offer.
Arnold has spent more than 2 years in the UAE yet he hasn’t been to places here. Pictures below are some Dubai’s icons: Burj Al Arab, the newly built Atlantis, and beach shores.
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| | Black and white photography continues to be a niche till now because of its classy style. This can also be mixed with a varying shades of gray yet achieve its artistic purpose, in this context called grayscale. |
| | Time passes so fast and Mayah is now 9 months old. Growing big and more beautiful. We are waiting for her to menstruate and we will bring her to Arabian Ranches for a mate hehe. I want another baby chi! |
 | Mayah! | Dec 30, '08 6:11 AM
for everyone |
Meet Mayah! She is a chi yet looks like a persian kitten in a quick glance from her back.  Her name in Hebrew means close to God.  She is a gift from heaven. 
  We are missing our respective dogs back home. Arnold had several but what he missed most is his Poquita, a chihuahua. Mine is a dachshund. In Dubai, we thought it was impossible to nurture a pet given the life and work situation here. Nevertheless, our passion for pets is greater than any reason.
We went this morning to Arabian Ranch to check out what Arnold saw on this site: http://www.winnielene.dk/contact.html and after almost an hour drive to this exclusive village, we get to see various options for pick of Chi’s.
Here were some of our options.
Have you chosen? See more of them. And below is our choice – an almost 2-month old chocolate-purple female chi. She is very cute for its miniature, tea-cup size and so adorable for its loving temperament.
 Thanks alot, Dad, for this gift of life.  On Christmas was also the same day I celebrated my graduation, indeed an amazing feeling to rejoice the commencement of embracing the skies once again and the birth of our Savior.
It was six weeks ago when I started my Ab Initio training here in Emirates. And it has been seven weeks that I haven’t been flying… oh boy… I’m missing it a lot!
EK destinations are vast and I’m just very excited to explore every single trip it will offer. -------------------- After attending Christmas mass, Arnold, Eden and I celebrated the occasion with a decent dinner along Dubai Creek. We initially decided to go home after the feast, however, we thought of going to the City Centre. Guess who we saw in that mall? It was Bruce Quebral, ey! Eden wanted to have her picture taken with him and since we know each other, I no longer had hesitation to call him. By the way, that is Arnold’s new car with a very lucky plate number. 
Merry Christmas and a blessed and prosperous new year to everyone! 
Few didn’t like it but most of my friends gave 2 thumbs up.
It’s been a week since I had this haircut and I’m planning to maintain this style (daw oh?) until whenever.
For the meantime, let my boy-next-door image be on the side and wave a hand to a clean-cut 1960s mod-influenced style to less-strict punk and hardcore influenced style.
With this haircut, I look fresh, more masculine, and best of it, less maintenance, or should I say, None.
Ciao!
| | It has been awhile since I updated this portal, and I missed every aspect of doing it.
When I ended a great beginning in my journey as I resigned in EY, better ones come along as I joined EK and continue the voyage of this great life of mine.
Before I left for EK, I contemplated about the great things I experienced for the past 15 months of my stay in EY. I would miss great and some not so good roster destinations, frequently granted flights, the cozy space I had in Al Jazeera, going home in the Philippines once a month, and ofcourse, great friends – chitchats with them, the food they prepare, their company, their love…
At this time, I miss my friends – Arriane, Aimee, Maricar, Matet, Joanna, Michelle (and others – too many to mention) and ofcourse, my dear Cristia…
Though Dubai is just 2 hours away from UAE capital – Abu Dhabi, to keep everyone in a string would be a challenge due to unaligned schedule and priorities.
But hey guys, I’m back… I’m now online… I’ll be posting whatever comes into my mind.
I wish everyone happiness, good health and more blessings! Take care, my dear friends.
I’ll see you very soon!
God bless us always.
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| | Arriving at night in Paris, though we wanted to see Eiffel Tower at night, we decided to just sleep instead. In the morning, as early as 7am, we fixed ourselves and took the hotel shuttle service to the subway station. We bought the ticket valued at 18 Euros which enabled us to avail all-day trip within the metro. For 7 hours, we managed to see 3 icons of Paris: Notre Dame, Arc De Triomphe and Eiffel Tower.
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Paris – Checked! In Paris, France is where you can find some of the most famous landmarks
and icons of any European city. Here are some: 
Eiffel Tower If you think of this lovely place, a landmark that instantly pops in your mind is the
Eiffel Tower (or Tour Eiffel in French), named after its designer/ engineer
Gustave Eiffel. This was built to commemorate the centenary of the
French revolution This well-known monument has become the global icon of
France and is one of the most unique structures in the world.  Arc De Triomphe
Another spot that I have been to is the Arc De Triomphe,
which was built by Napoleon to honor the magnificence of Imperial France.  Notre Dame De Paris Also, the much older Notre Dame De Paris is one of the most famous
and oldest landmarks in France and considered one of the premium examples of
gothic architecture. The name Notre Dame ïs the French translation of Öur Lady”. There are more to see in Paris like Basilique du Sacré-Coeur, Sainte Chapelle,
Musee du Louvre, etc. and these would be my destinations as I visit France next time. Paris, see you again!!
| | The 8.26-hour flight to Dublin was indeed very tiring, not to mention that it was very bumpy due to winter winds. During the first day, Karen, Priyanke and Khaye (our Cabin Manager) met after lunch to see the city, then decided to just take the Dublin Sight Seeing Bus Ride, which drives within the city for about 2 hours. It was a cold and windy day then but this did not stop us from exploring Dublin. Afterwhich, bought some souvenirs and got a bite at the nearby mall. On our second day at 7am, we availed the free breakfast from the restaurant, then Khaye and I went back to the Park to focus on getting pictures. It was just nice that this new-found friend loves to take pictures, that my moments in every nice corners and places in Dublin were taken because of Khaye.
I will see her again in our Milan flight, with my beloved. |
Pre-fligh: I am going to Dublin, Ireland for 4 days and temperature there is as cold as 4 degrees celcius so I should be again ready for this almost freezing temperature as my body cannot really stay longer in cold weather. Post-Flight: Ireland - the home of the popular Irish bands, The Corrs, and West Life, and the famous beer brand - Guinness.  Knowing that it is barely possible to see those Irish bands, just to be in their home country made me excited, which I can say, "So, this is where The Corrs and Westlife live?" And the Guiness Beer? I will tell you more about it later. First, read further for the happennings... First day-
We arrived in Dublin, the capital of Ireland, at past 7am but unlike in other places where sun shines at this time, Dublin was still dark. In the bus to the hotel, I observed that everyone fell asleep due to tiredness from the long and tiring 8.26-flight time to this city. The Pinoy Mafia (Khaye, Karen & I) with an Indian collegue Priyanka decided to see the city after lunch as we needed to re-energize ourselves. As advised by the hotel receptionist, we took the Dublin Sight Seeing Bus Tour (valued at 15 Euros) which drives within Dublin for almost 2 hours. This enables tourists to take a glimpse of Dublin, afterwhich, tourist can get-off at bus points of their choice. We took the seats at the upper deck of the bus only to find out that this would make us disconcerting. Although the weather in Dublin was not that cold as expected, however, it was a windy day then which somehow added to our discomfort. Nevertheless, we just enjoyed the bus ride and continued to take pictures of this medieval city. This city is considered to be the best capital city and most content country in Europe. However, during our bus ride, I was looking for spot, a place which identifies Dublin, an icon easily recognized as Ireland's vista, which is comparable to Opera House of Sydney, Eiffel Tower of Paris, Petronas Tower of Kuala Lumpur, etc., but to find nothing but structures, statues and the likes which are very common in European countries. Maybe, the Spire of Dublin, located in the Irish capital, rising (at 393 feet) like a huge, pin-like monument, can be considered as one, which the local people claim as Ireland's Eiffel Tower. But this piece of steel is just like a flag pole in the center of the city, which is at par from other unique icons of the world. After the tour, we went to Londis, a convinient store, to buy something to eat during the night, though we had light meal at the mall prior to buying some souvenirs (ofcourse fridge magnets are there, and also bought added some Guiness chocolates and glass tumblers). Karen bought 2 cans of Guiness Beer, the extremely popular beer among Irish and is the best-selling alcoholic drink of all time in Ireland, where Guinness & Co. makes almost €2 billion annually. This dark-colored beer tastes bitter than the usual beers in the UAE such as Heineken, Bitburger and Amstel Light, etc. and maybe, its flaked and roasted taste made the Guinness Beer distinct and unique. Second Day- Khaye (our Cabin Manager) and I again went out to take some pictures. We went back to the park and its nearby shopping district. This lady, just like me, loves to take pictures so whatever or wherever she feels like getting my photographs, my camera just needs to always be ready. All we did that day was just to take pictures here and there. So if you can realize, my photos in Dublin are at par many than the rest of my picture post, and that is through the courtesy of Khaye.
Our second day ended 5 hours prior to wake-up time as we took lunch at Khaye's room.
To end this blog, here are some pictures of Dublin City.       - - - Dad, our Father, I know that saying thank you is not enough for all these blessings. My gratitude to you, Lord, our Father, for the wonderful things that I and my family is having right now. Thank you, Lord, Father. | Plus 1 | Jan 24, '08 4:41 AM
for everyone |
 Three (3) days to my flight to Ireland, a day after finishing my standby schedule, I headed to Abu Dhabi taxi stand and took a 2-hour bus ride to Dubai. I was much relieved that I would be spending my birthday on my days off.
There was no definite plan for my birthday but Arnold and I just decided to go clubbing. On the night prior to 22nd of January, as recommended by our friend Barry, we went to Jules Bar in the Le Royal Meridien. This bar is a Mexican lounge and restaurant, which is open every day for both lunch and dinner. It was a Monday night at Jules Bar and it so happened that it was a Filipino night so we were priviledged not to pay the entrance fee of 40 Dirhams or almost 500 Pesos. So, what more can I say about this bar? Jules, a lively bar located in Garhoud, Dubai is a venue, with a truly eclectic crowd, to find if you are looking for a little enjoynment and ecstasy. A Filipino live band plays everynight except Saturday (as posted outside the bar), with the emphasis on entertainment rather than musical endeavour, and the constant crowd participation, elaborate dance routines give the bar a camp of night-out feel. Requests of songs is gladly accommodated by the performers. I am looking forward to visiting this bar again. I just love the bands perform. These were what happened during that night - decent dinner, a few botlles of beer, hanged out and enjoyed the crowd, listened to live performances by Filipino bands (they were really great out there), and had a perfect time with Arnold. Pictures below were glimpses of that night.   J
U L E S =) | | Visiting London, Heathrow in England during the cold month of December was wonderful except that for Asian like me could not bear an almost freezing temperature of 2 degrees celcius. And with my friend Ann with me, doing this flight was just great. The time of our arrival was perfect (8am), as we took a 4-hour rest prior to departure of crew bus service to Hounslow at 12 noon. From Hounslow, we took the tube train to Westminster to see Big Ben, House of the Parliament and London Eye.
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 On our way back to AUH, we had quite a number of VVIP and VIP in our flight and 1 of those was His Excellency, the President of Iceland, Mr. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson. All the crew were happy because we were able to give, as always, an excellent service to these people. Pictures below were taken during my Heathrow trip last December 2007 with my friend Ann . Having only 20 Pounds, we took the crew bus service to Hounslow where London's National Railway could take us to Central London. Ann and I just went around the area for a little shopping, afterwards, bought an all-day rail pass at Hounslow station and took a 30-minute tuberide to Westminster. The temperature then was almost freezing (which was at 2 degrees celcius), nevertheless, Asian people like us, who are not used to this kind of weather, could not embrace the cold breeze of London. We only spent almost 5 hours wandering at Central London because our winter clothes were not enough to protect us from this unbearable cold. See pictures and know a little things about them (source: Wikipedia).   Cock Tower (pictures above): Big Ben  Big Ben forms part of the Houses of Parliament (pictures above).  British Airway's London Eye We headed back to Hounslow to catch the bus service to the hotel, unfortunately, we missed it so we just took it as an opportunity to experience a bus ride to get back to Park Inn.
Despite the high standard of living in London, I would always want to do this sector, not to mention the nice and well-mannered passengers, because there are alot of things to see in this city like London Bridge, Buckingham Palace, etc. Hopefully, next time, when I get to do this sector again, I can be with someone I love. Soon, maybe? Who knows? In God's time...
| | Flight to Sydney, Australia was 14 hours, indeed tiring but worth it because it was compensated by the beauty of the city. I was by myself to wander this city, the first time to wander alone in a strange place, yet I enjoyed it very much! Everything is nice - the iconic places are wonderful, city is clean, people are beautiful, etc. except that everything is expensive. Knowing that Sydney airport is very strict when it comes to imported items, I just left my bag of food in AUH. My food expenses caused me more than half of my allowance. Next time, do not forget that bag of goodies but never ever forget to declare it or else, a fine of 200 US Dollars awaits those who violate. As Aussies in the airport say, "Be Aware or Beware.
I enjoy this trip. |
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