Christmas Means Sharing

I apologize for the late post. But I know it's never too late.

It's been my KSP barkada's tradition to celebrate our Christmas Party with underprivileged families, most especially with kids who look forward to a fun and exciting Christmas. This year, we held our Christmas party at the same venue as last year's, at the NCE 1 chapel. This time, it was a different set of families from Payatas whom we shared our Christmas with. We were also thankful for our friends who helped, plus some company sponsors: Toby's and Pepsi.

Again, it was an afternoon packed with games for both kids and adults. Besides the meals we provided, we also gave Noche Buena bags to each family. At the end of the day, we were tired yet happy to have helped.:)

 thank you!

 longest line!

 pink!

 they're singing for us :)

 Noche Buena bags

artwork winners

Once I was a Fan :))

I knew they were coming back here in the Philippines. A few months before their concert date, I've been seeing their posters around the Big Dome. I missed their past concerts here because those were the days I knew I still couldn't afford concert tickets 'coz I was still a student. But even if I knew about their upcoming concert here in the P.I., I didn't bother to look for tickets because I realized it's ok if I'll miss this concert. Two days before the event, I asked my source for complimentary tickets and he didn't promise.

September 29, just a few hours before the concert, I was informed that I've got 2 free Lower Box tickets! Then another friend called inviting me to join them in Upper Box A. But since I've got another friend joining me in the Lower Box, that's where I stayed. And when I got to the concert venue, I saw a lot of friends! Haha! See, I wasn't the only supporter!:))

Are you ready to know whose concert was this??? Uhm...WESTLIFE!!! lol! Yes, it's Westlife's Gravity Tour 2011 haha! It's been my favorite boy band since my grade 6 days! I even sprained my ankle in 2nd yr high school as i was jumping for joy while watching their newest music video that time! And everybody in school knew that because I was absent in class the next day! haha! In fact, when they learned about Westlife's concert here, a lot of them posted on my FB wall reminding me of the concert!:))

Well now on the bests part...I really had fun! It's probably one of the best concerts I've seen. uhm, maybe because they sang a lot of songs, plus I enjoyed the enthusiasm of the crowd. A lot of girls and gays were screaming for the boys to the top of their lungs haha! Westlife even chose a couple of fans holding interesting posters to join them on-stage! Lucky people haha! Yikes, it's been 14 years, yet they didn't look that old; though Mark definitely gained weight! LOL.

 Nicky's hot!:))

 Shane's still the same

I loved their outfits which got a theme every segment. And those outfits were matched with the songs they sang for each segment. I also like the fact that they were taking photos and videos of the crowd and sharing it via their twitter accounts. And the boy band effect was just so alive! Super cool! They got a perfect opening song, which was "When You're Looking Like That" haha! They sang songs chosen from each of their albums. They also did a mash-up of Rihanna, Lady Gaga and Black Eyed Peas' songs.

 they're taking a video of the crowd

 their RnB/Pop Mash-up - and fat Mark! haha

 so near yet so far haha

 and another set of outfit!

the crowd was asked to turn on their mobile phone's as they sing "You Raise Me Up"

I was also touched when they sang one of my favorites, "Flying without Wings". Like every other show, the concert has come to an end. Their finale song was "Uptown Girl"...and it was really appropriate! I super enjoyed the show!:)

 Uptown Girl - the finale

This night definite made me relive my high school days!:)

Autumn in Beijing Day 1 - CULTURE

This trip was booked 3 months ago. After a long time of waiting, it's finally time for our Beijing trip! Our accommodation and meals were covered by our friend Pam, who was sent there by her employer for a bit of work.

Currency Conversion:

CNY 1.00 (Chinese Yuan Renminbi) = PHP 6.78

Our plane left Manila at 7:35 of September 15 and we arrived in Beijing International Airport at 12:05am of September 16.

Tip: Go where the bulk of people are going. There's a long line getting a cab but it's fast moving. Don;t let other cab drivers on the side fool you. Flag down rate that night was  CNY 11.00 and meter was CNY 2.00. We paid CNY 100.00 upon arriving at the hotel.

Essentials:

Map of the hotel and its business card

Beijing map w/ Subway guide

A list of helpful vocabulary written in Chinese characters

We stayed at the Grand Mercure Hotel. Our friend got a free upgrade from a Deluxe Room to an Executive Room, which was at the topmost floor (10th) of the hotel and can only be accessed by the elevator upon swiping the room card.

We slept for a couple of hours and woke up at around 9am to prepare for a long day of walking around Beijing. Since Pam was at work, only my bestfriend Dianne and I toured the city together for the day. Our map didn't let us down! It was fun walking around in a bit cold weather and a clean surroundings.

 nice flowers we saw along the way

happy BFFs!:)

THE EGG (National Grand Theater of China)

It was just a few blocks from the hotel. We referred to our map and we ended up passing by the inner streets that were a bit scary haha. Then we reached The Egg, however, they said it's better to go there at night because of the nice effect of its lights.

The Egg at night (a photo from Pam)

THE FORBIDDEN CITY

From The Egg, we're supposed to go to the Tian'anmen Square. But we kinda lost our way and entered the street on the left of the Monument to the People's Heroes. Then we found a garden on our right where we entered. We paid CNY 3.00 to get in. We kept on walking 'til we saw a gate full of tourists. As we entered, we saw a huge "plaza" and realized that it's the gate to the Forbidden City.

We bought tickets at CNY 60.00 each. Since it's kind of expensive, we just chose not to rent audio guides anymore at CNY 40.00. It's a gadget that tells you the story of the Forbidden City in your preferred language as you tour around. We actually tried finding a group of English tourists and free-ride on their tour guides but we didn't find any 'coz most tourists were Chinese speaking also.

  at the entrance

 it's just so awesome!

After an hour of walking around, we finally reached the exit. We rode a bus headed to Dongzhimen and we went down somewhere along the way to have some authentic Chinese late lunch. We were so delighted that we got really good service. There were a lot of choices from the menu! Thank God for the photos of the food haha. They also served food fast. And the best part was, we only paid CNY 59.00 for everything we had -- roast duck, soup, fried rice, soda!:)

After lunch, we walked going nowhere 'til we found the Oriental Plaza, which I will discuss on my next blog entry. So after there, we tried going to the subway. We're supposed to go back to the hotel and go down at Xidan but we accidentally went down at Tian'amen haha! 

TIAN'ANMEN SQUARE (Gate of the Heavenly Peace)

So there, we're surprised to see the Mao Zedong Mausoleum, which actually led us to the main entrance of the Forbidden City. It took us a long walk to have such discoveries haha.

Then we walked going to Xidan station where we road the train to Xuanwumen, which was just a few meters away from our hotel. It has been such an awesome day of experiencing ancient Chinese culture. We may be tired from walking, but we're happy on how our day turned out.:)

Crazy over Kobe!

It's the third time that Kobe Bryant visited here in the Philippines. And I didn't let the chance to see him pass. Hello, he's my basketball idol! Well that's besides Michael Jordan, which is already given haha!

Thank God for my job that I gained a lot of basketball-related contacts, and even contacts inside the Big Dome. We got 4 free Upper A tickets from our friend from Araneta Coliseum, but a few hours before the show, some of our bosses backed out and didn't use their tickets, and those tickets were given to us! We got 4 lower box tickets so we gave away our 4 Upper A tickets. It's indeed our day!

This "Take Every Advantage" Manila Tour 2011 of Kobe Bryant drew a huge crowd in Araneta Coliseum. The dome was filled with all of his fans, including us! Everytime the big screen focused Kobe, we were cheering for him. In fact, out of thousands of people there, me and 2 of my girl friends were captured by the camera and flashed in the big cube screen at the center of the dome! Wah! So fun! haha

Also, we're not only there for Kobe, but for our friends from the 2 competing teams: UAAP All Stars and the Smart Gilas Pilipinas. I must say that Nike was never wrong in getting Kobe as their endorser. This was actually the first and I think, the best Nike event I've ever attended.

Originally, the UAAP All Stars and Smart Gilas teams will only play for 10 mins; but when Kobe saw that Smart Gilas beat UAAP All Stars with a huge score gap, he decided to put 8 mins on the clock and play with the UAAP All Stars against Smart Gilas. Kobe wore an FEU jersey. He played so well that the lead was cut down to 2, which could've been a tie, not until Greg Slaughter messed up with that crucial shot from under the ring for the last few seconds. So the Smart Gilas won even if Kobe didn't make it easy for them.

After the game, before Kobe entered the dugout, he threw the jersey that he used to the crowd. Two girls were able to catch it at the same time and nobody was letting go. Security guards had to stop them.

 After the game, we went to the dugout to greet our player friends. Then we had dinner in Coffee Bean, Coliseum Circle; finally, we're off to Blue Onion, Eastwood.

I may not have gone too close to the Black Mamba ('coz we're too far from the court), I was still happy because we were able to have fun and experience this for free!:)

P.S.
A day after the game, we found out that Marcus Douthit of Smart Gilas is actually a friend of Kobe since their basketball days in the US. In fact, they partied together in Republiq Club, Resorts World after the game. Cool!:P

Philippines Bikes for Water: LTdF 2011

Last April, we took part in the Le Tour de Filipinas Cycling event. It's a 4-stage cycling event wherein cycling teams from different Asian countries competed. In this event, we have aligned our advocacy of protecting the environment and providing everyone an access to clean and safe drinking water -- the Philippines Bikes for Water.

Stage 1: Manila (April 16)

It was Rahim Emami of Azad University (Iran) who won this stage.

 Mayor Fred Lim

 with my officemate Kris

 Mr. Cayton & Ms. Patricia Hizon awarded the winners

chillin' by the Manila Bay

Stage 2: Bataan to Zambales (April 17)

It was Kazuo Inoue of Bridgestone Anchor (Japan) who won this stage, however we weren't able to join the group this day.

Stage 3: Zambales to Bataan (April 18)

Mirsamad Pourseyedi Golakhour of Azad University (Iran) won this stage, but we didn't make it here because it's just the morning that we left Manila. We proceeded to our boss' rest house instead for a meeting and a bit of unwinding.

 Our boss' rest house. It's "antique"-themed

 i enjoyed swimming at the pool during sunset

 while resting on the hammock

the beach with dark gray sand 

Stage 4: Pangasinan to Baguio

The final stage! We witnessed the cyclists as they rode up to the high lands of Baguio City. I really admired their determination. We stopped by a few spots to cheer for Team Smart (Philippines). It was Rahim Umami of Azad University (Iran) who crossed the finish line first. And after the long journey, it was Team Azad University (Iran) who won 1st place, 2nd was Team 7-Eleven (Philippines), and 3rd was Team Smart (Philippines).

After the race, we had lunch at Rose Bowl and proceeded to Microtel. We attended the awarding ceremonies and party at night. We also had late dinner and drinks at our company president's resthouse in Camp John Hay, then we headed back to the hotel. The next morning, our bosses just attended a couple of meetings while Kris and I shopped in the  Baguio City Market. Then we headed back to Manila. But since it's already Holy Week, our bosses had their own family reunions in their respective provinces on our way home.

 before stage 4 started

Our team :)

 at work in the hotel

 Mayor Domogan of Baguio City at the center

 Team Smart

 proud!

 fireworks!!!

 Don Podring band

 Microtel

 late lunch in Pangasinan