things i'm grateful for: road trip! (frankfurt)

zeil is a main shopping street in frankfurt, complete with designer and high-street shops.

things i'm grateful for: road trip! (frankfurt)

experience.

mr t and i are both suckers for travel experiences.we may not have the latest gadget or the most luxurious fashion item, but we have countless experiences that are simply priceless.

i cannot speak on behalf of my husband, but i am sure he has thousands of stories to tell.as for me, i thrive in experiencing little things.

power of two

i've totally forgotten about this song, until now.

memories! haha.

weekend roundup

it was a weekend just for us! friday was beach day as we took baby out to the sea.and oh, how she loved it!

we were quite surprised as it was not hot as we thought it would be.we went out at around half past seven in the morning, and went back home two hours after.we would not have gone home yet, except that baby swallowed some sea water and we did not have her water bottle with us!

fujairah lovin'

so this time around, mr t and i decided to spend our special day in fujairah.

fujairah is one of the seven emirates of the uae.it is about a two-hour drive from dubai.it's a popular getaway among residents because of its mountains and beaches.

hey you

yes you, dear readers.all 3 of you.heee...

just a li'l inspiration to get us moving.


EAT from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.


LEARN from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.


MOVE from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

hey mr t

this sweet poem which i wish i have written myself is all for you.

Having a coke with you… by Frank O’Hara

is even more fun than going to San Sebastian, Irún, Hendaye, Biarritz, Bayonne
or being sick to my stomach on the Travesera de Gracia in Barcelona
partly because in your orange shirt you look like a better happier St. Sebastian
partly because of my love for you, partly because of your love for yoghurt
partly because of the fluorescent orange tulips around the birches
partly because of the secrecy our smiles take on before people and statuary

it is hard to believe when I’m with you that there can be anything as still
as solemn as unpleasantly definitive as statuary when right in front of it
in the warm New York 4 o’clock light we are drifting back and forth
between each other like a tree breathing through its spectacles

and the portrait show seems to have no faces in it at all, just paint
you suddenly wonder why in the world anyone ever did them
I look
at you and I would rather look at you than all the portraits in the world
except possibly for the Polish Rider occasionally and anyway it’s in the Frick
which thank heavens you haven’t gone to yet so we can go together the first time

and the fact that you move so beautifully more or less takes care of Futurism
just as at home I never think of the Nude Descending a Staircase or
at a rehearsal a single drawing of Leonardo or Michelangelo that used to wow me
and what good does all the research of the Impressionists do them
when they never got the right person to stand near the tree when the sun sank

or for that matter Marino Marini when he didn’t pick the rider as carefully
as the horse
it seems they were all cheated of some marvelous experience
which is not going to go wasted on me which is why I am telling you about it

**

so thankful that you understand my definition of love - crazy, irrational, yet beautiful

because isn't love supposed to be like that?

**

here's to more wonderful, blessed years together! xoxo

ramadan kareem

have a blessed ramadan.

summer!

*warning: video heavy.don't say i didn't warn you!

yes, the temperature is somewhere in the 40s. thank god for air conditioning.thank god for summer.contradictory much? heh. that's pretty much our life here.

and thank god for happy summer songs

exactly

so sad with what's happening in the world...

baby update

baby was a handful during our trip, but we would not have it any other way!our li'l family bonded to the max, and baby just developed socially.it was amazing.

now, she can name parts of the body like head, nose, eyes, mouth, teeth, ears, chin, hands, feet.one of her favorite songs is, you get it, "head, shoulders, knees and toes."

things i'm grateful for: tuscany

tuscany is *love*

if tokyo assaults your senses in a wonderful way, tuscany lulls you in the most relaxing way.

its gentle rolling hills, golden fields, endless rows of vineyards, magnificent cypress trees, stunning churches and picturesque villas are enough reasons to just stop, and let your surroundings take your breath away.

look who's back!

let me get back to reality.

meanwhile, here are some of my favorite photos from this remarkable trip:

st moritz, switzerland

munich, germany

tuscany, italy

disclaimer: we have not (yet) won the lottery, we just work our a**es off.and i'm also shouting my gratitude to the entire universe for this wonderful opportunity.that is all.

and what's worse than forgetting your camera on a trip to tuscany? well, it's actually taking the camera with you, without the charger! WTF. anyhow, our video camera saved us as we were able to take decent (but grainy) shots.could this be another reason to return to possibly the loveliest place on earth?

seriously, i left a piece of me in tuscany.

this is the place i can stay in forever.

off we go

our li'l family is off to get some bavarian/swiss/tuscan sun.so excited to see how baby will react to these new surroundings now that she's more aware and she's physically stronger.

see you in three weeks' time.

**

meanwhile, i leave you with this. would you rather be an octopus or a mermaid? hee.

whoops...

there's an iceberg in the sea!

things i'm grateful for: road trip! (denmark)

our next stop on the next day was a romantic summer residence park called liselund.it was buit in the 18th century by a french nobleman for his wife.

there were houses like this manor

things i'm grateful for: road trip! (denmark)

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things i'm grateful for: road trip! (dusseldorf and gelsenkirchen)

we did not get to spend a lot of time in dusseldorf.we just went there for dinner and walked around altstadt or old town.this is called the "longest bar in the world" because of its abundance of bars and nightclubs.i remember circling the area for a long time, just looking for a restaurant that appeals to us.so amongst all the cuisine readily available there, i suddenly craved for thai food.haha.poor mr t could not really say no.so there we were, the only two people in a thai restaurant in dusseldorf, eating noodles and rice.

things i'm grateful for: road trip! (frankfurt suburbs)

we did not actually go to frankfurt city centre as we stayed for a night at the g family's house in the rhine-main region, near frankfurt.they have two young sons who were just simply adorable!

they took us around the town the next morning.again, local guides! yay!

things i'm grateful for: road trip! (bavaria)

so this time we went to starnberg where we were able to peek inside a church wedding and take a snapshot of this cute car.

we went inside the church when the wedding was over.

happy father's day

to daddy t!

you are a wonderful dad.

and for that we are grateful.

thank you for the saturday breakfasts, the yummy dinners, the kisses on bruises, the beach outings...

thank you for all the love and happiness :-) thank you for being the best dad ever!

xoxo baby and mommy t

things i'm grateful for: road trip! (bavaria)

we will embark on yet another road trip around germany and some parts of europe in two weeks time.that makes me reminisce about our first ever road trip in germany and denmark which was almost two years ago!

as soon as we arrived in munich, we headed out to one of the beer gardens and made "lamon" (filipino slang for "ate")

my favorite: cure for all

is salon pas liniment! haha.

image from ioffer.com

tried and tested from muscle aches to sprains to bruises.pati insect bites, pwede!

movies

i was just telling mr t, that probably, deep in our hearts, we secretly adore crappy movies. everytime we try to decide to watch a movie, we always end up watching sh**ty, b movies.sometimes the movie that we want to watch is not yet released or is not shown here.sometimes the timing just does not match with our schedule, etc. etc.

so tonight, instead of watching the latest in the "pirates of the carribean" series, we ended up watching "hangover 2." it did not help that we haven't seen "hangover 1." but it helped that we were seated in "premier business class" seats.yes, we seriously paid good money to sit on reclining seats with blanket and pillow services (plus your food gets delivered to your seat!) to watch a bad movie.

yep

my favorite: perfume

hands down, is light blue by dolce and gabbana . it has a refreshing and clean scent.i've been a fan since it was released in early 2001 or 2002, i guess.wow, that means i've been using it for almost 10 years now!

BUT i left one half-empty bottle of it in the car of t, mr t's friend, when we borrowed his car during one of our road trips in germany.and i haven't bought a replacement since! mahal, noh. arg. when is the next friggin' sale?!? you gotta love dubai when it comes to perfumes.almost always, there are chances that you find these items on ridiculously low prices.you just have to be lucky in knowing where and when to get them!

runners-up: nenuco baby cologne (gurls, remember this?!), flower by kenzo,
l'eau d'issey by issey miyake, very irresistible by givenchy, happy by clinique

why am i making this list? so i won't forget! and so that you will know what to give me for christmas :-) *hint* thank you.bow.

hatta

hatta is about an hour away from dubai.it's a popular destination among dubai residents because of its heritage and cool temperature.mr t and i visited it about 3 years ago, right smack in the middle of summer.

al ain

i've always been blogging about dubai and other cities in the world.let me blog about somewhere close, about other cities in the uae.

my favorite: lipgloss

is victoria secret's strawberry fizz

image from blog.cdn.com

i've been using this product for almost five years now.the first tube that i got was a present from a friend who bought it in new york.

it suits me - i love the taste and the smell, and it lasts long and does not dry up so easily.

this is not an advert ha.i just like this product so much! it's one of the few staples in my (very bare) "kikay" (make-up) kit.

weekend (s) roundup

mr t and i just got back from a roman holiday, possibly our most stressful trip ever.more about it later while i catch my breath.

in the meantime, some overdue stories...

senti na kung senti

i've forgotten how much i adored this song until scotty sang it on american idol.

off we go

la dolce vita

**

and a hearty congratulations to my mr t! you certainly deserved all these blessings coming your way.way to go! baby and i are super duper proud of you! cheers!

**

Wonder of the World 2: Great Wall of China and Beijing Memories

day 5

last day in beijing!

Wonder of the World 2: Great Wall of China and Beijing Memories

day 4

so this was it. the day to view and traverse the great wall of china.we woke up early as we were picked up by our tour guide.yes, it was one of those rare times that we actually joined a tour group.we did not really trust ourselves to find the way going to the great wall so we figured, what the heck, let's just join a group.

Wonder of the World 2: Great Wall of China and Beijing Memories

so yes, hou hai is apparently an expat and tourists hang-out, with its rickshaws and tandem bikes and plentiful shops.

a li'l intermission

and a li'l perk-me-up note!

Wonder of the World 2: Great Wall of China and Beijing Memories

day 2

we were blessed with sunshine on thus day.thank god!

Wonder of the World 2: Great Wall of China and Beijing Memories

day 1

finally my long waaayy overdue beijing post! mr t and i took this trip back in august 2008 during the olympics! and with the 2012 summer olympics fast approaching, i better get my lazy a** moving to writing down this post.

so why beijing, you might ask.and i may answer, why not, coconut? first, there was the olympics, and second, there was the great wall of china.that would tick off one of our seven wonders of the world list.

sigh

weekend (s) roundup

we've been taking advantage of the great weather and eating out a lot in the balcony.soon it will be summer, and i will not be able to properly breathe na naman...

my favorite: painting

is the one by paul delaroche called "la jeune martyre (the young martyr)"



i will not pretend to know anything about art, but when i saw this painting (i was fortunate enough to see the real one at the louvre in paris), it just tugged at my heart.

i didn't even know about this painting until i saw it in person.it's just so serene and pure.

and yes i still have to blog about that first-ever-oh-so-memorable paris trip (with aix-en-provence/marseilles side trips) that i took in 2007.wow, has it been that long?

weekend(s) roundup

life happens.so sorry for the late posts.

we still love our cafe o or paul's friday breakfast brunches .here's our view from cafe o:

things i'm grateful for: milestones

how time flies.as of now, baby can:

-say mama, papa, (her name),hi, dada, babye, hallo (aha! a german word), yaya, whatsthis, whatsthat, why
-eat finger food
-use fork and spoon when she feels like it!
-sign "keep quiet!" by putting her chubby fingers in her mouth
-"read" fliers (adorable!)
-walk forward and backward,(almost) run
-do "beautiful eyes," "close/open"
-kiss you when you tell her to
-point to her head/mouth/nose/ears when you ask her to
-recognize the names of her toys
-give you a book, ball, toys, if you ask her to
-pick up a mobile phone and say "hallo?" haha.mr t said he gave her a calculator once.she then picked it up, put it near her ear and said "hallo?" freakin' hilarious.
-dance! honestly.if there's music playing, she would shake her li'l booty.cutest thing ever.
-kick/throw balls
-scribble with crayons
-climb stairs(thank god we don't have stairs!)
-stack blocks

her favorite (non) toys are cotton buds, newspaper, toilet paper.hehe.and oh, she has six teeth now.

goodness gracious.we are so proud of this adorable li'l one.

i hope...

please be brave, japan...

(chibird.tumblr.com)

good times!

http://www.boingboing.net/2011/02/24/five-seconds-of-ever.html

:-)

you're welcome.

out and about

as i'm typing this, mr t is somewhere up in the air , off to germany for a (well-deserved) skiing holiday! he's also going to meet some of his friends, including c and t, whom i have grown fond of as well.i might steal and pass them off as my friends, too! haha.hi c! hi j! hi t! it's so nice to be with people whom you have known since you were in knickers probably.hee.my own best friends are the ones i've known since we were in kindergarten or grade 1, i think.

as usual, i digress.

things i'm grateful for: celebrations

so for the valentine's weekend (meaning the weekend prior to v-day), mr t and i decided to stay at crowne plaza on yas island.it saved us the long drive back to dubai coming from the office and and we got a really goOd deal on the hotel.thank you, office.thank you, *connections*.heee.

hey mr t

happy valentine's day! xoxo

hey mr t

happy birthday.xoxo from me and baby bee.

london memories part 3

it was my birthday!

after a delightful birthday surprise (a hair make-over from one of these trendy beauty salons!) from mr t, we had a typical english dish!

senti: jars of clay

i'm sorry, but what ever happened to jars of clay? this has to be one of the best songs ever!

london memories part 2

we would always pass by this interesting-looking building when we'd go for our breakfast.i think this is their city hall.

london memories part 1

mr t is currently in london for a combined work and holiday trip.baby and i will have to fend for ourselves for a few days then...waah...

mr t loves london so much! he lived there for a few years and every time he goes for a visit, he gets giddy with excitement.as for me, well, i've only been there once so i could not really say if i get giddy every time i see the city.BUT, i can clearly remember that i was in awe of it during our week-long visit in 2008.

so i'm down to memory lane today...

ramblings

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how remiss of me...

to not post about our holiday celebration.well, life happens.and now i'm posting so i won't forget.

christmas was an easy affair.we were like a family of gypsies the whole year round hopping from one place to another that we just wanted to be on our own in our own place and to celebrate our first christmas as well, just us...

kyootness

when i grow up, este, when baby grows up and goes to school, i'm going to prepare these hello kitty bento lunches for her.oh yes, i will!

kyotness factor palang e winner na! not to mention din that it's a sneaky way to make baby eat her veggies!















it's so kyoooot!!!!

ramblings

dude, mr t and i are totally digging "how i met your mother."

this is "friends" that we have been missing for so long!!!

**

and yeah, this is what i want to do this year and next year, and the year after that...you get the drift...

to my baby girl

Ida Rentoul Outhwaite, “Hear the Fairy Whisper” (by Sofi)