it's never too late for a field trip

pasig river at fort santiago

they say that field trips are boring. well, not for us! we planned our own field trip and the destination: intramuros. the old structures are still standing but the place is not well kept. but there's still hope though as restoration projects are on the way.

fort santiago entrance with ian

at fort santiago with manila cathedral on the background

we also took the pasig river ferry from escolta to guadalupe. i was actually surprised that i didn't get to see any trash in the entire trip which lasted for about an hour.

the view from escolta station

the kids on their field trip

this is very encouraging to know that the government has stepped up their efforts in saving the ferry service and promoting awareness. manila might be an old jewel, but a major polishing could make it shine again.

please, please, please

i've always watched every season and every edition of pinoy big brother but i've never campaigned for any housemate... except for bea because i only want to ditch the bitch wendy from the big four but unfortunately, she made it and she even bagged the 3rd place. oh well, at least she was booed by the audience which she rightfully deserved. anyhoo, back to my campaign, please vote for ethel booba. she's the reason why this show rocks. oh please, please, please. that's bb13 for the ultimate pasaway and send to 2331 - globe / 231 - smart.

true love

a dog was knocked down by a car and died on the middle of the road. later, this dog is seen beside the corpse of the dog, he tried to wake his wife up using his leg.

when his attempts to wake his wife failed, he tried to push his wife to the side of the road. but the weight of his wife was proven too heavy for him.

though the traffic is busy and dangerous, he just will not go away from his wife. just stand beside his wife howling and crying.

a lot of people saw this incident and feel very touched how even a dog can show his loyalty and love to his wife.


sad :(

coming soon: ocean park in manila bay

another tourist attraction is soon to open this christmas season. the manila ocean park, located behind the quirino grandstand at the rizal park in manila, is the world's first marine theme park to adopt a "fusion concept", housing an oceanarium, a mall, a boutique hotel and open marine habitats. construction is in full-swing.


its main attraction is a 25-meter long, 220 degree curved acrylic walkway tunnel. visitors will be exploring the secrets of the ocean and surrounded by such underwater wonders without actually getting wet. here's a rendering on how the tunnel would look like:


sweet! aside from the oceanarium, the manila ocean park will have a marine–themed mall and a boutique hotel, which are scheduled to open late next year. the mall will feature new and unique shops that are not commonly found in other malls and a unique restaurant row located at the rear of the facility, alongside a promenade that offers an unobstructed view of the manila bay. this part of the park is free and accessible to the public.



the first phase of the park, its aquarium facilities, is set to open on december 15, 2007. the mall would be launched in april 2008, while the 150-room hotel would begin operations by july 2008. entrance fees will range between php 200 (for students) to php 400. sounds kinda expensive but just by looking at the pictures, i think it's worth the price.

and there's more. for those who would like to snorkel or even dive without having to go to far-flung places, the two open water marine habitats will give you that exact experience. this facility is scheduled to open in april 2008. not as awesome as hk's oceanpark but the plan looks promising. can't wait! ^_^

why worry?

there are only two things to worry about.

either you are well or you are sick.

if you are well, then there is nothing to worry about.

but if you are sick, there are only two things to worry about.

either you will get well or you will die.

if you get well, there is nothing to worry about.

if you die, there are only two things to worry about.

either you will go to heaven or hell.

if you go to heaven there is nothing to worry about.

but if you go to hell, you'll be so damn busy shaking hands with friends you wouldn't have time to worry!

so why worry? be happy! sha-la-la-la! ^_^

mayonnaise jar & 2 cups of coffee

got this from mara. nice.

when things in your life seem almost too much too handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.

a professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.

when the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. he then asked the students if the jar was full. they agreed that it was.

the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. he shook the jar lightly. the pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. he then asked the students again if the jar was full and they agreed it was.

the professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar . of course, the sand filled up everything else. he asked once more if the jar was full. the students responded with a unanimous "yes."

the professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. the students laughed.

"now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "i want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. the golf balls are the important things- your God, family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions--things that if everything else was lost and only they remained your life would still be full.

the pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car.

the sand is everything else -- the small stuff.

if you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. the same goes for life. if you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. play with your children. take time to get medical checkups. take your partner out to dinner. play another 18. there will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal."

take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. set your priorities. the rest is just sand."

one of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

the professor smiled. "i'm glad you asked. it just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

have we met?

i've been glued to pinoy big brother celebrity edition 2 since day 1 and one particular housemate seem to remind me of someone. the way she talks, the way she moves, and even the way she dress.


anyhoo, her name is rizza santos. she's a beauty queen. she maybe canadian but riza is pure pinay, her parents hailing from bulacan and bataan. both engineers, her parents’ jobs took them to canada as immigrants. and although she has lived in north america all her life, riza is raised with filipino values and has very close family ties.

isn't she lovely? ^_^

don't think hierarchy. think journey.

since i'm into complaining about our careers, marimar showed me this article. awww!

comparing yourself to other people has got to be one of the easiest things for any person to do. we can't help it. people feel the need to do it in order to understand where they stand in society's "hierarchy".

most people buy into this "hierarchy" that society has created and they want to be at the highest level possible of it, as well as know where they stand in it at all times. there are a ton of barometers to indicate one’s placement in it.

from elementary to up until high school, it was all about appearance and popularity. after that came the comparisons of universities fellow students attended, if any. then came the all too popular financial barometer. how much money do you make? what kind of material possessions do you own? what’s your marital status? how many friends do you have? and on and on and on.

there's a seemingly invisible set of "rules" that people have subtly agreed upon to play by, which has probably been initiated by advertising and the media in order to create this social "hierarchy" and play off the wants of people to be at the very top of it. the majority of people tend to play by these rules and because the majority of people play by these rules, it creates enormous pressure for everyone in general to play by the rules, to play within the system and be "ranked" according to it because that's the system everyone is using.

so the question remains. how do you stop comparing yourself to other people given the "hierarchy" society has created and that the majority of people are playing by the "rules" to determine one’s placement in it?

don't think hierarchy. think journey.

topple the concept of hierarchy in your mind right now and watch all those different pieces on all the different "levels" come tumbling down and settling on one, even, level playing field called life.

what most people who think in terms of "hierarchy" don’t realize is that they're potentially, and most likely comparing themselves with false data, and they’re letting that comparison based on false data dictate their future actions accordingly.

the easiest example to illustrate this is with the financial barometer. it’s probably the top barometer used in society today and the majority of people realize that.

and because the majority of people realize that, they understand it’s imperative to "look" financially successful in order to be on top of the social "hierarchy", leveraging that rule everyone plays by in their favor. to do that, it might and most likely means getting into severe debt.

and sure enough, despite the fact they’re deep in the red financially, they "look" financially successful and that’s all that matters in terms of cementing one’s position at the near top of the social "hierarchy".

but that’s not where it ends. that’s just where it begins. other people see that happening and not wanting to fall lower on the totem pole, try to outdo the other in terms of looking financially successful. but remember, it was based on a false front to begin with. then the original person seeing that, doesn’t want to get left behind and ups the ante and on and on and on.

you know that phrase "keeping up with the jones'?" what most people don’t realize is that the jones' are too busy keeping up with the smiths and smiths are too busy keeping up with the browns and the browns are too busy keeping up with the millers, etc.

if you keep thinking "hierarchy", you'll always find somebody that will be "above" you. you can't win that game. it's a loop that will never end.

everybody is taking a different path in life. the most important thing to remember is to make sure that you’re doing what you want to be doing. other people will be doing what they want to be doing, even if it means manipulating their appearances based on the "rules" of the system to be at the top of the "hierarchy", but that’s ok. they’re doing what they’re doing. you can’t judge them for that.

some people might start their own business; some might choose to practice medicine or law. that’s fine. that’s what they want to do.

what do you want to do?

if you keep focusing on everyone else's journey, you’re going to stop paying quality attention to your own. what i mean by quality attention is attention free from jealousy, worry, envy, strife, etc., - just a calm, objective look at your own journey that can provide answers to help move you forward or to even determine what that journey should be in the first place.

if you keep on looking at other people’s journeys, you’re going to crash and that’s what a lot of people do.

focus on your own journey. your journey is no better or any worse than anybody else’s. it's yours alone.

it's unique, it's different, and it's one that has never been taken, nor will ever be. nobody has lived your exact same life, has had your exact same thoughts, feelings, and experiences that make up who you are today.

focus on what you want and only what you want. that's it. it's your journey. other people will have their own to follow.

and even after all that, if you still feel the urge to compare, compare yourself to yourself in terms of your own journey - how far you’ve gotten, what you’ve learned, how you’ve grown and you’ll find that will prove to be one of the best barometers you will ever use in life.

please share and enjoy!