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Let me tell you how my 2017 was but honestly, I barely remember what happened.

January. I remember hating my job, my schedule, and the people around me. I remember going to work before the sun rises and heading home after all the establishments closed. I remember not being able to eat and sleep properly. I remember not seeing my housemate, who is my friend, for a week and the only interactions we had were the short conversations when we see each other. I remember feeling so tired and fed up. I remember wanting to quit.

And I did. I submitted my resignation letter and was asked to stay for a month to train the newbies. On my off days, I remember going to a theme park with my workmates and thinking that I'm going to miss them. I remember being thankful that I've met them but the friendship wasn't enough for me to make me stay. I also remember going to new different places every weekend just so I could cross out an item on my list. I remember wanting to do everything because it felt like time is running out.

February. On the day of hearts, I finally left my job. I cried on that day, not because I was sad for leaving the people I worked with but because I don't like goodbyes. I trained new employees before I left. I remember being close with one of them. I remember laughing with her and all but now, we don't even check on each other anymore. There are people who are just meant to be that but I wish it didn't turn out that way.

March. I flew to Malaysia, my first international trip. It was fun but I could've explored more and did things I really wanted to do. I will be back for sure. I also visited Malacca City during the 4-day trip and it became my 2nd favorite city.

April. May. June. July. I took a break, went back home, became batugan, learned how to paint a bit. It was also the months of decision making and finally taking the path I was always afraid to take.

August. September. October. November. December. I was back in school so I can only remember a few. I remember working on our school mascot until 12 mn and going to school early the next day. I remember spending late nights and weekends working on our lanterns for the university's annual lantern parade and preparing for the Anatomy exhibit at the same time. I remember balancing school and extraco activities. I remember studying. I remember procrastinating, sleeping 8 hours even though I have quizzes/exams the next day and cramming. I also remember crying on the eve of the worst quiz day of the semester (4 quizzes, 1 pracs) because I have to do good in all of it and I got anxious. My self-esteem was also really low and I was so tired of everything (physically and mentally).

But in those 5 months, I gained new friends and learned new things.
In those 5 months, little did I know, I gained more courage.
After those 5 months, I was able to survive.

2018 will be a year of healing, of commitment, and of growing.

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Hello! I've been trying to catch up with all my travel diaries but I realized that I'm having a hard time writing my thoughts. It has been quite a while since I let out all my thoughts. 2017 was a confusing year, a year of low self-esteem, a year of discoveries, and a year of learning. I quit my job, got stuck at home being completely useless for months, going back to school to face a path I've been afraid to take, and feeling a more hopeful than I did mid-year. This year, I'm entering it with a new hope, with more strength and courage, and less self-doubt. I'm going to be more focus and be more productive.

I started writing without a topic in mind but I didn't expect I'd write something that is positive. But this year, I will do better.

I'll let you know how I did at the end of the year.
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Disclaimer: Hi, if you've stumbled upon this blog to research on your next trip, I'm gonna go ahead and apologize because there's not much information here. The tourists spots that we visited were briefly described since it can be easily searched on the web. Have a good day!

This is a very long overdue post. I went to Malaysia in March of last year (2017) for my parents' wedding anniversary but got too lazy to sort out the photos and write about it. Anyway, I'm still on break and I'm very bored so here we go. We had a travel agency do everything for us, from booking a flight to hotels and arranging our tours. They were very accommodating and so were their contacts in Malaysia. If you're from Ilocos Norte, try checking out Travelcent Travel and Tours on Facebook (no, not sponsored).  

We stayed at Arenaa Star Hotel which was quite good (3-star hotel) and cheap. The room wasn't that spacious but since we were out most of the time and only used it for sleeping and whatnots, it wasn't a big problem. We got free bottled waters and they refilled our coffee supply everyday. The room was clean and so was the bathroom/restroom (this was the most important thing ever). Arenaa Star Hotel is near shopping centers/pasalubong centers like Chinatown and Central Market. Fast foods like KFC and McDonald's and food restaurants serving Indian and Chinese cuisines are within walking distance. 

Malaysia reminded me so much of the Philippines except it was cleaner. The weather felt a lot like Manila, the people looked like Filipinos (Hekasi 101: They're one of our ancestors) that a lot of people talked to me in Bahasa Malay only to end up feeling bad cause I didn't know what they're talking about. However, some of their words are quite similar to my dialect (Iloco) like their numbers.

Day 1





Our first day was spent on airports and hotels. We arrived at around noon, got picked up from the airport, checked in, and went out to have lunch. 

Our hotel room view. It is a museum for telephones and telecommunications but we didn't check it out.

Mirror selfie cause why not.
Our hotel was near a university so there were food stalls and other restaurants. Up until today, I still don't know the name of the food we had for lunch. Everything was written in Chinese and when the store owner saw us, he gestured for us to take a seat and served us chicken and rice. It was good but the soup that came with it was kinda oily and salty. The food was also cheap. 





Day 2


The view from the top




Second day was my least favorite. We visited the Batu Caves in Selangor, just north of Kuala Lumpur. Batu Caves is an important religious site for Hindus and one of the most popular tourist destinations in Malaysia. After that, we went to a duty-free shop in the same town where I bought a pack of milk tea (Royal's Teh Tarik or something) and tried out local sweets. I'm gonna be honest, I was expecting a bigger store with a lot of products but it just looked like a typical grocery store.


We drove up to the mountain and rode a cable car to reach Genting Highlands. During our visit, the outdoor theme park and the shopping center were under construction so there was nothing much to see. They do have indoor theme parks and other exhibits but since we weren't interested, we just walked for a bit and went back. 





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A few days (12/30/2015) before 2015 ended, my cousins and I took a short trip to Marcos to witness this man-made falls that my neighbors were all talking about. Everyone who told us about this place said "nagpintas" (ang ganda/maganda) so we had to see it. And it was just an hour away from our hometown, Batac. I actually visited this place 4 years ago for my high school batchmate's graduation party but it didn't look as beautiful as it did today. 


We got lost. We had to ask 3 persons because my cousin's friend (I think he's my second cousin but I don't really know) wasn't familiar with the place. I think this photo was taken while they were asking the 3rd person for directions. 



Four years ago, they haven't developed the place. Presently, they put up cottages that can be rented for Php 500. Tip: You can bargain your way to a lower price if you want and if you're good at it, they might give you a discount. We only stayed for an hour or less so we didn't rent one. 


Basuraan* / translation: may basurahan po, 'wag niyong ikalat


Candid shots of my cousins 



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(Note: A photo-loaded post)
A week already passed and it was just yesterday that I got to post-process and write a bit. I went to Lucban, Quezon with my workmates for Pahiyas Festival last May 15th. It's one of the most famous and most visited festivals in the country and is known for its iconic aranya. Aranya is a three-layered chandelier made of kiping. The festival is being celebrated in honor of San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of farmers. When my workmate first mentioned it over lunch, I remembered how I first saw it printed on a calendar (I think it was Ajinomoto calendar lol) and how it caught my attention because of the colorful decorations and it looked really fun and festive. 


Lucban is just 2 1/2 from Laguna. We rode a jeep from Carmona (Cavite) to Calamba (Laguna) and from there, we took a van that took us to Lucban. Direct trips from Cubao to Lucena is also available and you can just ride a jeepney from Lucena to Lucban. We arrived in Calamba at around 7 or 8 due to heavy traffic so I was a bit worried about the long line since it's the day of the celebration and it was expected that there'll be a lot of tourists. The queue was quite long when we got there but it moved faster due to the availability of vans/jeeps. 


First stop was Lucban Church but we didn't attend the mass. There were make-shift shops or tiangges that sold random shenanigans and also food trucks. Fun fact: Lucban has no Jollibee or McDonalds because they like to promote the local food chains. It was packed with locals and tourists and it was very hot so we didn't get to see much of it. However, we tried kiping as it's also edible. It's made of rice flour and tasted like pinipig.


My workmate saw his friends while we were roaming around town and they invited us to hang out with them. We went to one of their friend's house to eat lunch (for free!) and we also went to another one later in the afternoon for meryenda. In Philippine festivals like this one, it's a tradition for people to prepare food and invite people over. It's a plus to know someone who lives there when you go because you can save money. 


KAMAY NI HESUS


We took a side trip to Kamay ni Hesus since it's also in the area. Kamay ni Hesus is a very popular place for devotees especially during Holy Week. You have to climb a mountain and visit all the stations. I am not the fittest human being so climbing stairs is my weakness. First station and I already want to go back but had to push. My shirt was drenched in sweat.

The peak of Mt. Banahaw should up when we were on the top.


Since none of us own a car, we had to commute to and fro. We had to walk from Kamay ni Hesus to the jeepney terminal but ended up sharing a tricycle because the line was really long. From the grand terminal in Lucena, we took a van to Sta. Rosa. We arrived at around 1 am and we had to take a jeep to Binan.

Tips:

  • Wear light and comfortable clothes. Shoes that won't hurt after walking a lot is also a must. 
  • Bring sweets and water, wear sunscreen, and umbrella. It was hot and humid when I went.
How to get there: 
  • If from Binan, Laguna, take a jeep to Calamba. The jeep will stop at SM Calamba terminal then you can take a van directly to Lucban. 
  • Bus companies like Jam Liner and Jac Liner have direct trips to Lucena and take a jeep to Lucban. You can check their sites (linked) for the schedules. 


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About me

About Me

Hi, I'm Jess and this blog contains a bit of everything.

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Blog Archive

  • ▼  2018 (3)
    • ▼  January (3)
      • Recap: 2017
      • 2018: Renewed Life
      • Malaysia: Day 1 and 2
  • ►  2016 (2)
    • ►  May (2)
  • ►  2015 (4)
    • ►  January (4)

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