People of My Year 2015

Then there was 2015.

Can you believe it, it's 2016 already. it feels like it was only yesterday that we celebrated the 2015 new years eve.

This year have been very good for me and my family, though it was not perfect, it gave us the opportunity to learn more, Earn more experiences in work and in life, it taught us to forget and forgive, and it brought so much happiness that we can't contain. The highlight of the year was when we went for vacation in the Philippines and I got reunited with my mother after 5 years.

It was a tradition in my blog to give thanks to the people that made my 2015, one hell of a ride. Here are the People of My Year 2015.

First and Foremost:

 

MY WIFE, MY MOM  and MY FAMILY.

 

I am not who I am today if it weren't for them and because of them. These are the people I will die for. We are not rich, and maybe we will never be, but I am happy for whatever we have.  I am so blessed to have a big family. I am so blessed that regardless of how often we speak with each other, I know and you know in our hearts that whenever you need me, us, we are just one message away. I am so happy to see you this year. If Papa is alive, he is surely smiling because he wanted us to take a picture as a whole. Thank you Kuyas, Xy and Rex, for being a great provider for your children, you know that I have soft spot for your kids,. You show me how to be a great dad, if, In Jesus name, will happen soon. To my superwoman-apprentice Ate Px, Thank you for bringing home Denden, he is very adorable. I am thankful that you’re always there especially when there are emergencies in the Phil. I am assured I can always say ikaw muna ate, wala akong pera. (haha) and Bunso, CPA, Tal, thank you for keeping us proud everytime. We love you, no matter what!

 
This year I was able to bond with my in-laws. These are the people that I am sure will always be there for us and will support us in every decision we make. Thank you Mama Zeny and Ate Jen for taking care of what we need during our vacation,. to Makulit na bata Ruel and Ara, I love you both! To all Nieveras, Mendozas, Villenas, Tuazons, Rodriguez, Happy new year to all!

 

 

My wife, my framework, my everything. Every day I spent with you has always been worth it. You know that I am always grateful and blessed of the love you’re giving me. People always think I love you more, or I love you better, but the truth is, you love me so much not even to equalize how much I love you. lahat ng sacrifices natin is wotth it. Salamat sa pagtitiis, pag aalaga, sa pagbubudget, sa paglalaba, sa paglilinis. naapreciate ko lagat yun babe. Thank you babe, every day I’m thankful. God gave me you! 2016 will be our year! Sure. As long as we have each other.



ROXANNE GUALBERTO SIBAYAN

Roxanne and I became friends after I joined his husband, Ronel, in his network business. She exudes the Woman with Class and that I am so glad to have met her. The reason why she was a mention on my list (although all of my friends included) is there was one time when we went out of town to go swimming. She brought her kids. We are all there, laughing and having fun in the cottage, but she went swimming to look after her kids. One (girl) friend of ours told her to let the kids play in the pool alone, but of course she refused. and so I asked my friends to go swimming too. She got my respect and I salute her big time. Safety of her children will always be her priority. Not only that she is a good mother, but also she got my respect amidst the issue with her and my other friends, she handled the situation calm with class. I am so glad to be a friend of yours Roxanne. Thank you!. 

 

MY BORACAY BUDDIES GEESON AND SARAH PACADA, RONEL-ROXANNE SIBAYAN

 I could not ask anyone else to be with us in this amazing Island but with these amazing people. First, I invited my friends who have not been in Boracay.. For me, it is best to explore the place with people who are also first timers like us para may thrill (hehe) When I was in college parang dream lang sakin yung makapunta ng Boracay. And I thought OA lang lahat ng appreciations nila sa Boracay, but it was really amazing. And we went there in a perfect season.

 

 

Geeson, ofcourse being his usual self, is very enthusiastic and excited. I'm so glad to have visited Boracay with him. Syempre the fact na mas mayaman sila sakin, makes me rest  assured na hindi kami magugutom. haha Hoping for our next adventure. CamSur? Yes? Yes!!

RUTH VALDEZ PARAYNO

Ofcourse, my best friend. my confidant. She has always been my sumbungan and source of chika. My God Bff, remember earlier this year, I was so down and depressed about almost everything. I am happy that it all turned out well. Thank you for you are the literal "just send me a message and i'll be there" cause you were always there. I have seen how much of a grown woman you are now especially with Chloe and I am so proud of you!

GLAIZA BACNIS

This year I also got reunited with my Old friend Glaiza. When I went home in 2013, she couldn't find time to see me, So this year we drove all the way to Clark, Pampanga just to see her. Matagal na kami magkaibigan ni Glaiza and it is really different when she's around. Her innocence is so appealing. (Innocence ba tlga?). Our friendship is deep that even if it was like 3 years after we last seen each other, we spoke as if we just saw yesterday. Iba tlaga ang tawanan pag kasama ka. Salamat tol.  you just didn't know how we felt after we've seen you. Umuwi kaming naka-smile.

 

 

SHENG AND DEXTER ENGARAN

This year I have fulfilled a promise for myself- to be able to help a friend to come here in Doha. Since 2012, Sheryl was my first choice, just because I know that she have the same drive as me. She is strong willed like me, positive like me, and achiever, like me. (haha so much compliment for myself). I may have helped you. But you came in a very right time. We were homesick because we just came from vacation, but when you arrived, nahawa kami sa enthusiasm mo and your excitement to see the city. I know,  2016 is our year. God bless you more tol!
 

I met Dexter, Sheng’s husband, this year. Sobrang na-appreciate ko yung thankfulness mo when I helped you to get Sheng pero it was all you. Thank you cause if weren’t because of you, hindi maeenganyo mag abroad si Sheng. I’m so happy na padami na tayo ng padami. Anytime soon, Andito na ang barkada without we, even noticing it.

 

JOVY OBELLO

This year also, ate Jovy came to Qatar. She is my friend (Sarah)’s sister. The loud but energetic ate a great addition to our group. Now it really felt like home. If you don’t know Ate, you’ll get annoyed with her tactlessness and loudness,  pero sanayan lang yan kay ate. Hehe You just need to constantly remind her about her loudness. Thank you ate. It was a great year for us, for sure next year as well.

Then Ofcourse My Bully Friends.  Lean Mallari, Anneza Ali, Fahad Ali, Sofia Hossain, Jan May Josue, Jovanie Cabrera.

They may count a few, but these few people always have my back. We have each other back. When one is weak, every one becomes their strength. Why should I care for quantity, when I know I have quality friends.

Anneza Ali- From the start, we became each other’s confidant about everything. From heartaches, frustrations, happiness, we never fail to communicate. Thank you for whatever celebrations, we didn’t fail each other.

It felt like a found a younger brother in him (Fahad Ali). My co-Aldub Nation, haha. Thank you.. Mabait, masipag at laging maasahan. parang ang gaan gaan lang pag kasama ka! We are very proud of your achievement! Happy Birthday!

My sisters by covenant, Jan May, Thank you for constant reminding me to be more accepting, and more grounded. I know that God has plans for me and thank you for keeping my spirit high always. Forever and ever and Congratulations! To brother-in-law-by-covenant Jovanie, Thank you because of your willingness to drop and pick us to the airport when we went for vacation. You became more patient and more understanding of Jan May and I am so proud of you.
 

They say that a group will not be complete without… Sofia (haha)  Well that is true. She is very funny without exerting effort. She may be shallow, sure she is, but when in times you need some ideas, sometimes surprisingly it would come from her. Thank you Sofia for being our entertainer.
 

And lastly to my brother, Lean Mallari. From the exterior, people may see you tough, careless, impassionate, but for us, especially for me, you are the sweetest guy friend I have dito sa Qatar. Wala kang tinanggihan sa lahat ng pabor na hiningi ko sayo. Hindi ko alam kung bakit pero maling mali silang lahat, lahat sila, na piliing saktan ka, at iwanan. Thanks pre, kasi you always tease me, as in, everytime, but when I’m at my lowest, especially early this year, you helped me get through with it. Akala ko after natin magkasama sa work, isa lang tayo sa ibang tao na magkaibigan sa trabaho, pero I know now for sure na kaibigan kitang tunay.  The simple, "Pre ano nakauwi ka na ba?" message shows how you care for your friends (ok, how you care about me. haha). My wish for you this year ay magka-lovelife ka, this time, someone who would appreciate and love you cause you deserve it brother. Hugs.

 

Special mention:

I know SAMI is not a person. But for me, he is my newest buddy. Never in my life I dreamt of having my own car kasi mahirap lang kami, and I have real fear of the road, but I am happy Sami came. Yung I wont feel very frustrated anymore when there is no taxi or bus, because I got you!

 

Jerald Ronduen and Jeffrey Liceralde.

 

Jerald was my workmate before in Wajba and Sheraton but we became closer here in TCC site. Isa rin sa mga sweet kong kaibigan. Before when I don't have my car yet, he fetch and drop me home. I won’t forget that day that when he needs to go home early, he will look for someone who’ll drop me. I mean if he isn’t my friend, why would he care how I will go home. I doubted myself to pass my driving, but you always uplift my spirit. "kaya yan kaya yan" you always say. Thank you pards. Lahat ng hinaing mo, I’m all ears. Promise.  Congrats kay baby Marcus!

Jeffrey Liceralde- When I first met Jeffrey, I was like “ok”. I wasn’t very open cause I know that time I will be only be a nurse reliever in his site. So when he speaks, I really didn’t care. (haha) when I found out that I will be assigned in the site permanently, then so,  I started having real conversation with him. And he makes sense naman, haha Jeffrey, alam ko maswerte ka kasi kinaibigan kita (haha), swerte din naman ako sayo, Lahat ng pinagdadaanan mo, relate ako, kaya wag kang mag-alala papasaan ba at magiging okay din ang lahat lahat. Marami pang darating na pagsubok pare. Kaya fight lang ng fight.

 

ALDUB
Naku sige totoo, fan ako. Ay hindi, fan na fan pala. Hahah pero there is something more in the shallowness.

If you notice, I kept repeating about being depressed early this year. Yes, I was. I’m sure it was midlife crisis. But it is more of the supposed increase in the salary that they ALMOST gave, but retracted after 3 days. It was devastating as we were in need of additional income that time. My spiritual belief was greatly affected. I questioned God’s existence. I was bitter. I was angry. I felt there is nothing more in this life.  Yes, with help of friends and my family, I got over it, but still I lost my faith.

Then when I started watching Eat Bulaga, the segment Juan for all or For Juan, that time Aldub was not yet in the scene. For one hour of the program, I was not thinking of depression. I was happy and genuinely laughing. Until ALDUB came. I followed Alden Richards twitter account and read his previous tweets,  And surprisingly, reading his tweets about God, how great God is, How appreciative of him with God’s blessing, I cried so much. I felt  guilty,  Yes. I was so sorry to God that I questioned him. I started praying again. And my faith restored. That is their greatest contribution in my life. Not just the kilig. For that I am thankful of ALDUB, for being a great role model for all. kaya ako nakikipag away pag sinasabi nilang mababaw ang ALDUB, because there is so much more not just the kilig,. It helped me, and im sure it help other people too.

 

 

(drumroll… )

 Then Lastly.

Our vacation was great especially with the help of my Sister-in-law, Ate Jennifer Barrientos. She was my first drive instructor. I actually learned from her more than I learned from the driving school. She was our chef, literal, dahil sa quality food na sineserve nya samin every day. Before, you can’t disturb her to drive us to the mall, but this year, sya pa ang mag kukusa na ipag drive kami since ayaw ni Hazel mag commute. My first line defense kay Haze especially pag sinusungitan nya ako.

 

Thank you Ate Jen. Not only for this year, but from the start, you were always forgiving and understanding of me. Thank you for giving me and hazel another chance to love each other after all the fiasco that has happened before. If there are people who are happier right now that you are in America, it was Hazel and I, cause we know how much you wanted to go to  US. We are happy that you are happy. We will always be here for you, as you are with us. Whatever you need, just give us a call. We love you Ate.

Basically what I learned this year is that, Happiness can only happen with Contentment. Be happy for whatever you have in your plate and the only time you'll look on the other's plate is to check if they have enough. I believe that I am happier and more contented now. With the help of the people around me, and God Almighty. I know everything will be fine!.

So those were the people that made impact with my 2015. Who were yours??

 

Happy New Year! And May God Bless you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 AM THOUGHTS

So yeah I'm at work. Without internet on my desktop so im doing the whole blogging thing here in my smartphone. It's funny cause the first time I got my first smart phone, i actually looked for "blogspot" application. That was 2012 and blogspot app still don't exist. So last month i tried to search for it then tarrran.. So for the bloggers out there with blogspot, you can actually download the app. My apologies for any mistyped words because i usually don't re-read my post. I don't correct grammar so it will be as human as i intend it to be (you know, that thing that all men err). 

My thoughts at 1 am? Well, besides stalking twitter of the Aldub phenomenon (yeah, i got the aldub fever) and reading about them on google, I just actually finished watching Cheaper by the dozen (for the nth time) and still sobbed like it was the first time i've seen it. For those who doesn't know what this movie is, please try to watch it. It's very hilarious and touching. It's a movie of a couple with 12 kids, that through chaos, they still function as a whole. It was very moving how Tom Baker (a character portrayed by Steve Martin) sacrificed his dream to become the headcoach of a football team to prioritize his 12 children. SACRIFICE. Believe it or not, in my life i have sacrificed a lot. For my family, my love, and for myself. That soon, if i will have my own children, it would be easier to prioritize them, whatever it takes, or sacrificing my life. This led me to my another 1 am thought. The family of my own.

I read one article about a married woman 's rant about people asking her why she is still childless for her age. That is when i realize that their choice (to conceive or not to conceive ) as a couple are none of our business. People tend to ask too many questions that a part of it is really pressuring them. We become insensitive to those people who maybe trying so hard to conceive. We tend to become intruders of their own privacy.

For a record, those who were asking us if we want to have a child, ofcourse we do. 

My wife and I were married for two years now. Life here abroad wasn't that easy. You have to consider all other aspects. First and foremost, to raise a child is not something you grow up with. It takes emotional stability and preparedness.  We thought, that time, that we are not yet ready to have a child. The past two years you may have not just noted but we are having a little financial crisis so it was not really the best time for us. Yet, we realize that NO ONE is ready, even the richest people in the world is never ready. So after our second year of marriage, we decided to try to build a family of our own. We want a child so bad but we believe that God has a perfect timing. So whenever that is, we are and we will be patiently waiting.

Let's keep praying that it will be as soon as possible. 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

Chinese Restaurant Freaks must Visit Ruby Wu.

 

On June 18 of this year, We celebrated our Second year wedding anniversary. Since we just came from vacation and expectedly broke, I opted to look for restaurants that has class yet not expensive. I don't know if there are chances but I am certain that I will not bring my wife in a buffet-type restaurant. Here is where Zomato and tripadvisor apps became very useful. The Application Zomato will give you insight of the restaurants, the dining time, menus, and contact number, while the TripAdvisor will give you idea of the restaurant's food and place in the eye of the other costumers.

 

The first thing that came to my mind is choosing a restaurant inside a Hotel because I want to share a drink with my wife after the meal. Most 5 star hotels here in Doha have Bars and Discos that serves alcoholic beverages. So when I saw Ruby Wu, which  is located in Raddison Blu- Al Muntazah, I checked it and wrote it down in the piece paper, together with my other choices. I typed the restauranst in TripAdvisor app and started  reading critics on my restaurant choices. RUBY WU has the most positive reviews. I was so intrigued and because I am Chinese food lover, I called up and reserve a seat for that night.

 

The restaurant is located in the left wing of the hotel, just after entering, stairs will lead you to Ruby Wu.  According to the reviews I read, this tends to get busy by dinner time, so I was surprised to see few people dining. And I remembered it was Ramadan, so the 'drinking in a bar' will not be possible at that moment. As we enter the restaurant, we were assisted by courteous staff to our reserved seat. The place is dimmed, perfect romantic set-up for our celebration. The place has a smoking and non-smoking area, however have no physical barrier, just a fancy fence and a bridge over a river-like running water. As we sat down, The waiter, who is by the way, Authentic Chinese (hehe), gave us warm towel to wipe our hands with. She also handed us the menu. The prices weren't expensive compared to other restaurant so we wished to try them all.

 

 

For the appetizer and starters, we had a  dim-sum of chicken (steamed and fried). It was not fast food so we understand that we need to wait for a little however we have been given a complementary crackers that is best with their restaurant's vinegar and sweet and sour sauce.  We have been to many Chinese restaurant in Doha but this place, my friends, have the best dim-sum! in one bite, you really taste the richness of the chicken, very soft and juicy, because the wanton that wrapping the chicken is not thick. With this serving, I don't know how can I go on with my entrée because just by the starters, I'm satisfied.

 

for entrée, I got myself a Szechuan Duck with walnuts while Hazel chose the Beef Broccoli. the problem most of us encountered when eating duck is they tend to have a tangy taste especially when you didn't get the temperature correct. I wished I have chosen the Roasted Duck to examine further but the main course I got is not regretful. The duck is well- cooked, and the walnuts just add that crisp and sweet taste I am looking for. For Hazel's dish, It was, well, Normal, not phenomenal. With that we had a fried rice and noodles which is perfect with the meal, besides,  Chinese meal wont be Chinese without rice and noodles right? The serving of the rice is actually enough for the both of us. we just ordered the noodles because according to the waiter, it is also terrific. It was!! yet because we are already full from the large servings we had, we opted to take it out.

 

 



 

For the dessert, although we didn't need to, I just wanted to taste (haha), we ordered sherbet with chocolate mousse and tropical fruit. The sweetness is not exaggerated, and the sourness of the fruit ball inside is excellent to balance the taste.

 

We paid for less than 500QR and we had take outs. How amazing!

 

 

Over-all the food is above average, the prices were very cheap for their servings, The waiters and staffs were all attentive and accommodating. I then realize you don't need to pay more just to get best foods. and I found out that only on Ramadan that they suspend the serving of alcoholic beverages. :) I will definitely come back to Ruby Wu.

 

 

(CHECK BELOW FOR THE MENU. photo credits to zomato.com)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summer 2015 at BORACAY Philippines

(How did you like my new homepage? Isn't soothing in the eyes? A big shout out to my Friend Jovanie P. Cabrera. I am not so much fond of the editing. so thank you!!! )

People said it was beautiful. People said it has the best beach in the whole country. I never thought I will say this, but damn right, Boracay is Amazing. Like so Amazing I want to visit again.

The reason why I said "I never thought" because although I'm a beach bum, I didn't think that I will be travelling so far to visit a place. First, travelling is not very cheap. Second, I don't like long travels. Third, there are many beach resorts in North Luzon, so why Boracay?

Yes.. why Boracay?

Boracay is located in southern Visayas. The travel time from Pangasinan to Manila (Pasay terminal) is 3 hours 30 minutes via TPLEX. So we travelled at 3 am on June 3. My friends have different flight so only Hazel and I travelled first. We reach the terminal at 6:40am and on the Airport (terminal 4) at 7am. Our flight supposedly was 9:45am but since it is like normal in the Philippines to have delayed flights, we took off at 10:45 am. We chose to travel to Kalibo International Airport because it's way, way cheaper than in Caticlan. (By the way, for the people near Urdaneta, we booked our ticket in PACIFIC CRUISE, located at Gualberto Building. Very accommodating staff and affordable trips). We arrived to Kalibo at 11:45am and went outside by 12NN. Straight up we went to see the bus that was waiting for us. So we travelled again for 2 hours to Caticlan. at 2PM we rode a ferry to go to the Island. and from the Island we rode a cab to the resort. We reach the resort at around 4pm. No lunch nor snacks eaten. Exhausting.

A REVIEW OF LA CARMELA DE BORACAY. Reading the reviews on TripAdvisor.com, we were hesitant to book the hotel. Some said the room is dirty, the air condition is not working, the breakfast is bad. We were supposed to book a room in Boracay Regency but when my friends decided to come with us, we chose the cheaper one.

this photo is for representation only.

When we arrived, the reception area is like chaos. But the good thing is that the receptionists were very accommodating and they tried their best to cater us all at the same time. Hazel forgot our hotel vouchers, and it was posted in the desk "No voucher, No check in". Good thing that I took a screenshot in my phone to show them. I also informed them that we have booked a room for my friends. Original plan was Geeson and Sarah will go with us so I booked a room with a maximum of 2 pax, so when my two other friends, Ronel and Roxanne came with us, I asked the receptionist to upgrade their room and we'll just pay for the additional. First Good news in Boracay, The room I booked for them is good for 4 so no need to upgrade it! Yes! Then we headed to the our room.

The room was clean. The beddings are not "white" white, but not dirty though. the bathroom is also clean, functional, the AC is working. The room is enough for both of us. Even bigger. One piece of advise, in agoda.com from standard rooms, there is semi-deluxe which has higher rate, so we booked for the semi-deluxe but when I saw my friends room (which is the standard) it was exactly same! anyways it's only 200 php higher so its ok.

You get what you paid for of course. If you expect a bigger room, a fancy pool or an amazing service, you book another place or book at a 5-star hotel. But again, I still recommend La Carmela because it is way cheaper than the other resorts and it has class. Most of the time you are outside the resort and indulging yourselves on the beach and in activities. you only need the room to sleep with. For the breakfast buffet, it was ok, though some food are bland. but i would rather have a bland food than salty ones.

I also read another comment (tripadvisor) that they are not doing the housekeeping, but it was clearly stated before we checked in that the housekeeping is not automatic, you can inform them to clean your room if you want to and it is free of charge. It's just funny cause for other nationalities, they understand that they get what they paid for and gives good review whereas Filipinos became instant critics, they scrutinized every single things as if they booked a fancy resort. Again, I recommend La Carmela especially for families and groups who have a tight budget like us. it is not so bad as what is written.

THE BEACH AND THE NIGHT LIFE

When we arrived after seeing our room, we immediately went out to check the area. The beach was clean and amazing. The long travel was worth it. I expected that there will be weeds on the shore as they said its rainy season already, and I expected cigarette butts or trashes but it was clean. Their was an ordinance from the municipality stating that Smoking on the sea and seashore is not allowed. It was the busiest beach I have seen.

on the same site (Tripadvisor.com), there are list of things and foods you need to experience when you're in boracay. So we searched and tried those things as many as we can. We first searched for the "d talipapa", according to reviews, it is where you can find cheap food and fresh sea food. basically you will buy fresh sea foods, then you will have to give it to the restaurants and they'll cook it for you. We checked the place but we didn't eat there. It is not cheap, I'm telling you. and Then you need to wait for your food to cook, but we are already starving to shop and to wait so we decided to go to Mang Inasal. You will never go wrong with mang inasal (haha).  After eating, We headed back to the room and took a short shower, then we searched for the Jona's fruit shake. It is, however, located in Station 1, so we walked for like 30 minutes to reach it. It was normal, Nothing extraordinary so i don't know why it is in the list.

My friends came at around 7pm. After touring them to their room, we went outside to eat dinner. Another good thing in Boracay, the food is not that expensive. Usually people would take advantage of tourist spots that they tend to put higher price, but here in Boracay , you can have buffet meals for as low as 300php.

Most of the bars are located in Station 2. If you want peaceful and quiet place, book hotels in station 1 and 3. We have some beers while the girls treated themselves with massage. We (at least, I) stayed until 12mn and decided to go back to the room as I was very exhausted.


On the second day of our escapade, We were welcomed with a cooling breeze as it was raining, but after we ate breakfast, the rain stopped. It was the perfect time to swim! We were scheduled on an island tour at 9:30am so the first activity we tried was the paddle boarding. It cost 400php for an hour and we could all use it. The original plan only is take picture on it, but they rented it anyways. The funniest thing in that activity is when Geeson, Ronel and I tried to ride the paddle board all at the same time (We did not succeed haha)

We went on the Island tour. (btw, Island tour net price is 600php. Activities are located in Station 3)  First stop was in Crocodile Island where we also did snorkeling and fish feeding. Since we failed to snorkel, we remove our headgears and mask and just enjoyed the beach. haha After that we went to take Lunch in one island (I forgot the name lol). It was Filipino buffet. Damn right, it was so satisfying. the lunch is worth 200php but it is already included in the whole package of the tour. Then we go to another island, the crystal cove. It was a private island, so those who wanted to go inside should pay for another 200. We chose not to, but one Korean wanted to go inside so we didn't have a choice but to wait for him. We are not allowed to swim in the area, so we were just near the sea shore. Although we were waiting, we definitely did not bore ourselves as Geeson was really entertaining, like everything that comes from his mouth is funny. after 30 minutes of waiting, finally we went to the PUKA Beach, another island. Funny is that it is supposed to be Island hopping but we did not try to check the island. We loved the beach.

We went back to Boracay island at 3:30PM. We started right away on our next activity, The Banana boat. the activity was ok, not extreme. It cost 250 per head.  Yet you'll enjoy it if you are with your friends, well I enjoyed it. After that, we did the fly fish which is 350 per head. It was so fun and thrilling. We finished at 5:30pm, went back to our rooms to take shower, then went out again to eat and drink. I stayed up to 12mn only again, because I was so tired.

On the third day we supposed to take the helmet diving but because we lack time, we were not able to. We swim again instead. 9:30 when we started to shower and pack. We checked out at 10:30am.

 

 So Let me Go back to The Question. "Why Boracay?". Well my answer... Why not?

 

The long travels and expense were worth it. Boracay is a place for beach lovers. This is a place that is worthy visiting again. It is also best enjoyed with good friends. I'm glad that we have to experience Boracay, All for the first time.

 

the other side of my wife you did not know.

Many people thought my wife and I can have everything we wanted. Financially, they thought we never have problems because they see us dining often to fine restaurants, or having new tech things. But the people only see what we wanted them to see. Of course we won’t post our struggles here abroad. For what? To make our family worry? We can have everything we want, we can eat wherever we want, but it doesn't mean we didn't struggle financially.

 

For one year, My wife and I have been paying our debts. We only earned basic so we didn't have savings at all. Thinking back about those days, I was crying inside because I thought that I wasn't giving my wife all the things she deserved. I got insecure and jealous of people who earn so much. But my wife was my strength. She never demanded on anything. She's contented on what I give. So as a price, we go out often. We dine on her favorite restaurants. Without her, I am nothing.

 

When we were younger, we talked that right after marriage we will have children. But decision changes when you're older. Qatar is not so cheap to raise a child, so although I'm dying inside to have a child right away, I still considered the life we could give him if we will prepare a little. And with that control, I admire my wife. She wants to have kids too, right away, but she was right. We aren’t ready. Although no one is really ready, we have decided to take it one step at a time. I may joke about it and tease her that she doesn’t actually like to have kids, but I know she knows I understand.

 

My wife is very hard-working and very compassionate to people. Her facial features may often misinterpret as "suplada", but deep inside she is very sweet, caring person. Whenever she sees patients waiting for a long time, she will speed up to finish what she's doing to attend to that patient. Even she complains of "over work" and even if I advise her to slow it down, and take one patient at a time, you can’t stop her. And I am proud of that. I am proud how hardworking she is.  So even if she came home early, I will still be the one cooking because I also know that compared to her work, mine is a less toxic.

 

I can't say I'm "makalat" but I can't also say I'm "maayos" when it comes to our stuff. My wife does the cleaning of our room. I refused to clean the room not because I'm lazy, but my wife has a different kind of clean (lol). Even if I already clean, she will re-do. Never disarrange the things she makes because she will know specifically the changes you did. But what good thing about her is that when you need something, even a single receipt, she knows where she placed it. And life is easier with someone who knows where she keeps whatever what her husband needs.

 

People thought she was spoiled with me. Yeah, maybe. But the truth is I am twice as spoiled with her as she is with me. She will drop things she likes just so I can buy what I want. I don't need a new phone but she insisted me to buy a new one. I couldn't have bought that phone without her; I mean at least wait for few more months after iphone 6 was released. I told her last month that I want to buy new Lacoste sneakers. Just 3 days ago, she bought me a pair. A week before that she bought me pants and polo and a week before that she bought me a backpack because I told her a need a bag for gym, days before that I told her I need to buy gym outfits and we bought. Then I teased her about apple TV months before and last month she bought it for me. I am currently teasing her of a car. And, well, let see. :)

 One problem of husbands to their wives is that they tend to become madamot to the guys family. Maybe because they are saving for their future like that, I remembered the judge who wed us, she told us to “give your money to your wife but don’t give all, keep something for yourself too” but it was never a problem for me. She is very generous to my family. When my siblings ask for help, I won’t hesitate to tell my wife and she will say “Ok”. Or for example my older brother asked for her daughter’s dress for graduation, without hesitation, my wife replied. We even paid for my mom’s ticket just for her to have vacation on the same month we’ll have ours. I am forever grateful.

People thought that she doesn’t know how to cook. We’ll they are wrong. She knows how to cook and she cooks very tasty. And I know this year she will cook often now because the cooking range is now electric so it will be easier for her.

The biggest misconception of being beautiful is that they are dumb. Although I know some people that make this misconception true, my wife is not one of them, she is indeed very intelligent. She is like an old wise lady. Sometimes I am surprised of her intelligence. There are things she knows that make me ask myself how she would know that.

And the last thing. People thought that I love her more. That I am the “patay na patay” to her, that I’m the one that always shows my love and shows to public. But believe it or not, she is very much in love with me.  I know, I can feel it and I can be proud of that. At home when we are alone, she would do these crazy things like biting my cheeks, my ears, and my body like I’m a toddler. When I am all over her, she will get mad and tell me to get off her, but when I turned my back on her, she will demand me to hug her. She couldn’t sleep without me hugging her. She will hit me on my back very hard then when she sees I’m hurt, she will kiss me and say “I love you” in a strange voice. She loves pulling my hair, then again when I got hurt she will caress my hair instead. Just last night she accidentally scraps her ring on my elbow and got me a big abrasion. She kissed it at first then she put alcohol to hurt me more, then she will kiss me and say Sorry in a very strange way. She loves me… in a very bizarre yet adorable way.

 

She is not perfect, who is? I have done terrible things to her as well. I hurt her sometimes that she doesn’t even deserve it. She could be anywhere she wants to be. But she is still with me. She chose to be with me. And I am so glad marrying her.