Away from Home and Worrying

October 21, 2007

Everyday I open my laptop to view the news in two major Philippine newspapers..The Philippine Star and the Inquirer. Whenever theres a happy news home I become happy and when there are grim news like the Glorietta bombing…I feel so down.

Maybe some people in the Philippines think that Pinoys like us working and staying overseas dont mind what is happening in the Philippines but I guess 80-90% of us rejoice when there is good news about our country and get sad and angry when crisis and situations like this happen.

How can we invite our friends here to join us for vacation in Manila when we ourselves are not sure whether something wrong will happen to them while they are in Manila for vacation. Even now I am thinking what we will be doing for our two weeks holiday in December when the threat of bombings is always at the back of my mind.

I dont know how things will get better. If the main purpose of these bombings is to sabotage and bring down the current government, I guess a lot of us working and staying overseas will never have a chance to go back and enjoy the fruits of our labor. Why cant we help the government improve the economy and maintain peace so that we can all improve our image overseas.

I pray that I could still see this in my lifetime. At least my two kids still have a good image about the Philippines.Maybe if we were not able to achieve this in our lifetime, my kids could do so.Amen.

 

 

 

Im Sick and working from Home

October 17, 2007

Last night was a terrible night for me. My blood pressure went up to 150/93. I knew this time I have to go to the doctor.

My body is an efficient machine.It gives me signals.Im lucky for that since some people just drop dead from a heart attack. No I am not having a heart attack but I had to make sure.

I am not afraid of going to the doctor.I am more afraid of paying too much for nothing. But today was MAJOR. I went to the Doctor as soon as woke up and lo and behold I was given 13 as a queue number,I told the lady at the counter to give me another number but I dont think she heard me so she just shoved the queue number to me with a card of the doctor(in case I want to make a follow up).

So i was given 4 kinds of medicine , one for hypertension, aspirin which they said protects the heart, a pain reliever since I was having tingling feelings on the left side of my body. I was also given an ECG and the results were insignificant. Total cost was $140 for the ECG,blood test and medicines. This is why I am afraid to see the doctor.

After taking the medicines,I felt dizzy and when I checked my blood pressure it was already  97/60…So that was the reason why I felt dizzy.(low blood naman ako).

I could just smile when I remember what Niles said last night while he was watching TV about a man who had AIDS. He told his kuya Nygel" Lets look at the bright side…at least he will already see God"(meaning if he dies he will see his creator) 

  But  again I had to see the heart specialist (consultation fee is $89)on Tuesday. I hope nothings wrong with me.

 

 

 

 

Our Krabi Vacation

October 3, 2007

       We We  just got back from Krabi.

View our Krabi photos here and here

What will you get from a 3 day 2 nights trip to Krabi?

-chance to ride a boat and experience the huge sea waves(exciting and scary ride)

-chance to see a lot of natural rock formations and maybe do rock climbing if you are still young to do so(not me)

 

-chance to island hop in just one day and see some of the most beautiful islands in Thailand

How much budget do you need to take a 3 day trip?

-2 airlines fly direct from Bangkok(One to Go and ThaiAirways) and 2 direct from outside(Tiger from Singapore and Air Asia from Kuala Lumpur) The cheapest ticket(Tiger) costs less than S$100 per person(All inclusive)

-3 star accomodations in Aonang hotels range from S$30-$80. My best tip for you is to stay at Tipa Resort.

-Food is cheap, you can buy barbeque at any outside stall at BHT20 each or eat all you can restaurants at BHT250/person

-Trips to the islands would costs from BHT100 to as much as BHT6000(renting one speedboat)

-Airport tax out of Krabi is BHT400/person

for a party of four inclusive of shopping, the budget would be around S$1000(the cheapest)

Where to Stay?

Aonang beach is reachable by land and is 30 minutes from Krabi airport, Phi Phi and Railey Beach can only be reached by long tail or speed boats. Aonang has a lot of 3 star hotels at every nook and cranny of the stretch of Aonang Beach. Choose a hotel that is not located near a club since it would be hard to sleep at night with all the music and karaoke singing going on.

Tipa resort (where we stayed) is like a mountain resort with cottages near the hills and is surrounded by trees and thick foliage.

What to bring?

  Lots of sunscreen,sunglasses, shorts, t shirts, camera, slippers, rubber shoes, insect repellant(specially for bees),beach wear, hat, snorkelling or diving equipment,cash(most restaurants dont accept credit cards).