may 2012

hi blog, so as what i've said in my previous post, i'm gonna tell u what happened on my may 2012, this is also the continuation of click this,

ARRIVAL IN LAS VEGAS

i did not have any problem setting my feet in las vegas, i was not interviewed by any immigrant consul since my hawaii was my first territorial entry in America. the only problem i was having that time was how to contact my sister coz i'm gonna tell here i arrived already. luckily in the arrival section of McCarran airport, my bb detected a strong wifi connection, then i immediately told (through fb chat) my sister and bayaw that i am waiting already at the airport. i stepped my foot outside the airport, the first thing caught my attention was a line of limousines and a billboard/sign of limousine rates and of course, the cooler wind striking me. anyway, i arrived at exactly 11:58pm (something), almost midnight. i waited for 30 min, i was busy looking at people, the limousines and the not-so-high-buildings. 

anyway again, i was shocked  because i was expecting a very bonggacious night lights, but i only saw that typical city night lights, very ordinary. and sa wakas, dumating na rin yung bayaw ko, with my niece and nephew (danica and andre).

we were already at my sister's/their house after a 10-min ride. their house is huge, when i say huge, it's a typical mayaman-looking house or more like of a mansion in the philippines but it's a typical/average house of a commoner in america. and i realized that time how much work, perseverance and effort exerted by my sister. i'm just so proud of her. period. first thing in the morning, my sister woke me up (after her 9pm-6am duty) and we hugged and kissed, like what usual sisters do when they missed each other. we talked, gossiped, name it all the chikka. haha. we ate breakfast and sent my niece in her prep school. she's the only Asian/pinoy in class. she bragged her octopus thingy. her classmates were all white and i was having a hard time talking to them because...uhmm, dude, they have this very slang sleng tongue. haha

everyday was a routine, spent my day time cooking lunch, baby sitting andre, cleaning the house, facebooking, skype-ing, sleeping, exercising, wii-ing, watching movies yo gaba gaba, barney and the like. i usually go to bed very late (11pm-2am) and wake up at 8-10am.

LAAG

since my sister's and bayaw's day off were set on sundays, mondays and tuesdays, of course, that's the time of my "stroll around the sin city". we went to different HUGE and FAMOUS hotels and casinos, namely, Aria resort and Casino, Caesar's Palace, The Venetian, Belagio, Green Valley Ranch Resort and Casino, shopping outlets, night club (eg, Tao Club where paris hilton went clubbing years ago) (we did not go clubbing, i just took a photo of myself) and some place else, FOOD places! one time (mother's day), we went to this ugh-very-expensive-buffet-house, and ang bayad lang naman per person is enough to feed me for 2weeks! but it's okay, it's not my money anyway and minsan lang ito sa buhay ko. i did not have the chance of visiting mandalay bay and mgm grand because i don't know why. haha. and finally, on my last weekend stay there, i finally saww the bonggacious city night lights of las vegas strip, the brightest and the only visible area of earth seen in space. las vegas is indeed a sin city, 24 hours casino/gambling, numerous entertainments at streets anytime of the day and of course, countless tourists/casino people/gamblers. it's a very alive city and i loved it, less traffic, wide and clean high ways but i just hate it when the temperature rises to 40 C, hotter/warmer than the philippines. haha. to sum up my trip, here's a video i made 5 nights before i went to a new state, California.

june 2012 post, up next. keep updated bloggie lovie love! ew.
PS: SORRY LUNGS SA GRAMMAR. lisod mag-english.

sleeping problems

dear bloggie lovie love,
every night na lang, andami dami kong naiisip na gusto kong ishare, but when the time comes i open my laptop i usually open my facebook, yahoo, some random news articles, fashions blogs and whatsoever. i regret to do this everyday coz you know, sayang naman yung thoughts ko every night. siyempre gusto ko ring ishare yung mga daily activities, some shits i do in school, some coping mechanisms and again some stupid things i always do. since i put up this blog for my purpose of revisiting my memories and activities when a year ends, siguro naman pwede akong magsulat ng kahit ano I haven't shared enough for a long period of time na rin, isaisahin natin yung mga nangyari sa buhay ko na hindi ko nasulat o nahiya akong ishare dito (eh, kasi nga, public site ito, baka sakali namang may stalkers ako. haha)

the last time i shared my activities was last march pa, so let's start with April 2012

April 2012

april, as far as i can remember, was one of the busiest and most challenging month (so far) this 2012. why? as a tradition, my family sponsored the crowning of thorns "paso/karo" the parish church uses during Holy week, so siyempre, busy talaga sa mga flower arrangement and all. it was this time also na pumunta ako ng Manila to follow up my US visa case, maliit lang nakakaalam na kumuha ako ng 3 vaccines shots simultaneously, nag pa genital/vaginal exam (which was the most awkward physical test i did!) and name it you got it na tests sa st. lukes extension clinic, (medical exam was a requirement for visa applicants like me). kinabahan naman ako sa results ng xray ko, kung alam niyo lang yung kaba ko. eh kasi ganito yun, i have previous cases of right basal pneumonia, eh kasi naman, super weak ng lungs and immune system ko. but luckily, wala namang palya, okay lahat ng results. eto naman yun, yung love life ko sa panahong ito, "on-off" yung stage namin dito, eh kasi ako busy sa sa mga application files, siya naman na busy sa duty. grabe rin yung inis ko sa buwang ito, dito ko talaga narealize na may mga tao pala talagang okay lang sa umpisa, pa sweet-sweet pa, caring and all, then in just a blink, baliktad na. nagiging cold na sayo, walang pakialam, basta ganun. kasalanan ko na rin siguro, magkaaminan na, i realized in my first 2 relationships, sila ang effortful, naghahanap palagi ng paraan para makausap ka and ako naman yung effortless, halos hindi naappreciate yung ginawa nila, so i told myself in my next serious relationship, gusto ko, i exert force and effort na. but in this relationship, ako lang pala yung isang mag eefort nang todo, if u know what i mean, nag effort rin siya, oo, pero hindi ganun talaga siguro ka todo. eto yung sabi ko na challenging ang april, i always thought of us that time, and of course, my US dreams. ipasok natin ngayon yung interview ko sa US embassy. mga at least 1 wk before my interview, siyempre, ako, effortful talaga sa paghahanap ng outfit, so ayun, nakabili rin ako ng high waist mustard yellow pencil skirt and blue see-through long sleeves blouse and high-heeled black shoes, with all the formal bag. 6 am nakalagay sa notice of interview ko, 5:30am, andun na ako. ayon, tanaw na tanaw ko na ang manila bay at us embassy, ang haba-haba ng pila. pero ang ikinashock ko nang bongga ay ang effortless na pagdadamit ng ibang applicants. pwede naman pa lang mag tsinelas, mag pantalon at mag t-shirt! bwiset talaga, nadamage pa ang pera ko! pero choks lang, siyempre, habang rumarampa ako patungo sa pila, grabe naman kung makatitig ang mga tao sa akin, artista ako doon, eh kasi nga, ako na ata ang pinakaformal doon, with all the eye liner, lipstick, blush on and wag kalimutan ang newly rebonded long hair. hihi. naamaze ako sa automatic at super bigat na caution door sa loob, lahat automatic. 5 times ata akong ininterbyu, siyempre, english, hindi naman ata ako nagka wrong grammar, siyempre, super rin ang praktis ko bago ako dun sumabak. na shock na lang ako sa sinabi ng consul "ok, you're visa is approved!", hindi ko naman kasi inexpect na siya pala ay isang consul, ang kapal ko man, pero promise, super simple lang nga mga tanong, "what is your name?" halos. tama pala, ang dala ko lang sa loob, panyo, and files ko tsaka perang enough pangtaxi pauwi.  siyempre, kinabahan ako nang bongga, hello! i was in manila, and manila to me is so nakakahilo, but to the rescue ang super pogi kong kuya na naghintay sa labas ng ilang oras under the scorching heat of the sun, nakauwi na rin. after 1 wk, dun ko na receive yung passport and visa ko, umattend rin ako ng seminar "counseling for teens" (seminar that will help those children under 18y/o who will be migrating and staying for good, u know, para makaadjust) dun sa POEA (phil overseas enforcement agency), ako yung pinakamatanda sa lahat ng umattend, nashock naman sila when i said, i was from sultan kudarat. i spent the last week of april shopping, eating, sleeping, workout, spending time in bulacan, nakifiesta sa pampanga, Echanted kingdom with college friends, mall hopping and coffee with friends, luckily, that time, nagduduty sila sa mga manufacturing companies in nearby central luzon provinces. ayun.

sunod na yung may, june, july and august, imma sleep na. exams pa later.

you look better when i'm drunk

i've been teaching myself to drink some proofs of alcohol and been shisha-ing lately with my friends and classmates. i realized, for the past few years, i drown myself in academics and some demure works for my social life, last week, just last week, after my 6th exam, i and my friends drunk a little the night before our 7th exam. just because we're thirsty and just because i want to be naughty sometimes. and just because i want to experience some usual-college-students-do-before-exam. 

*no internet connection for a week now because my smart bro connection sucks and has not replied yet on my complaint!

*been doing my specialization duty at SPH, 3pm-11pm shift.

diversion road

i've been taking doses of perseverance and patience on my academics and it's helping me too, to divert my attention to forget something/someone that i should forget. /sighs/

PH to HNL

yes, nasa pilipinas na po ako, halos 3 weeks na rin. i went home to finish pharmacy, sayang naman kasi yung 3 years na inilaan ko sa pag-aaral. 1 year to go, gagraduate na talaga ako, at magtatrabaho bilang cashier ng walmart, or target. seryuso, pero ang plano ko talaga maging pharmacy assistant sa cvs pharmacy, mag-iipon muna ng pera pang take ng american pharmacy board exam. plano pa lang naman. i spoil too much info about my plans, baka kasi hindi matuloy, takot rin akong hindi matuloy ang mga plano at gusto ko. of course,  i just won't be talking about my dreams and plans here, i want to share my 1-month experience in the cold and friendly country of united states of america.

DEPARTURE: may 3, 2012 Manila International Airport, Philippines

my flight to hawaii was scheduled at 8pm, i was at the MIA around 4pm. as i entered, my tears are so ready to fall, why? first, i can't find the Hawaiian Airlines counter check-in, second, i can barely see Filipinos, most passengers were foreigners, it was awkward for me to talk to them in english, third, i was really scared, imagine that was my first solo flight and take note, international flight that would take me 18 hours air travel and take note again, i have motion sickness.

after check-in, it was my time again to look for this immigration counter, i was soooo ready to cry again because i can't find it, luckily, thanks for my reading skills and enough guts, i found it. i fall in line, i held my passport and some terminal fees to pay. and the usual random baggage inspection happened.

ENPLANED: may 3 or 4, 2012 inside the plane

my seatmate was an american, i've been talking in english awkwardly, because i've been trying to be so "slang" to fit in. but i still failed. haha. everything went on so smoothly, (praise You oh Lord!), just a little dizziness after taking off. the food was great, except for the hawaiian-filipino flight attendant who i think is unfriendly. so maldita-looking.

ARRIVAL: may 3, 2012 hawaii time 12 noon, honolullu international airport

when we were getting out of the airplane, the first thing i noticed was the very cold air that has been striking me, it's 12 noon to be exact, but i can still feel cold even though i was wearing a blazer, jeans and socks. 

i was welcomed by a border protection officer and an immigrant officer. i showed them all the files from the us embassy including the passport and the like. i stayed for an hour to get me approved. my flight to las vegas was at 3pm, and it's almost 1:15 pm, i panicked. luckily, this friendly and nice custom officer taught me the airport direction and the terminal where i should be checking-in, that was a relief. but i was just 1% relieved actually. 

DEPARTURE TO LAS :when i entered the terminal 3 building, another sweaty moment (like what i experienced at MIA) happened. where the hell was the check-in counter of hawaiian airlines bound to las vegas? i filled myself with guts and confidence to talk to some fellow passengers, "excuse me ma'am, i have this boarding pass already i got from the phil airport, so do i need to check-in again?", and they replied "haaaaaaaaaaaaa? noooo noooo english". i think they were japanese or koreans.  i was so down already. i can't even ask some airport staff because they're all busy and have been entertaining some Qs from passengers too. but a utility man answered my question. i got in and had my baggage and myself for inspection. another problem arose. where was the boarding gate? i later found out that you need to take a bus to get to another building-the boarding gates. at the bus, another sweaty moment again, i was so nervous, i was the only Filipino passenger. when we were enplaned, my seatmates were japanese, at my back were also japanese, there were also some noisy teen americans and i've been so jealous because they have plenty of food and what's left for me was 3 crackers of skyflakes, i was so really really hungry that time because i did not eat lunch. (i did not each lunch because i'm scared to buy, not really to buy but to pay using dollars! hahahahaahhaha). but thank God, after 30 minutes complimentary snacks and meals were served. i was happy because i filled my tummy, and i don't like their food. pasta with curry sauce? ugh, very bad for me.

i'll post about my arrival in las vegas and experiences in famous casinos/hotels, in los angeles and my shopping in san francisco aaaaaaaand stepping foot to los angeles airport aka LAX!

bye for now.