S.O.L.O

This blog is a duplicate. Wondering why? I manage two blog sites. One is my personal blog and the other is work-related. WordPress makes me feel stupid so I prefer Blogger. That's also the reason why this is more updated than the other. However, I finally came up with the most brilliant idea that would surely keep me updating my WordPress account. Here's my first photo blog inspired by an article I found here.




American-Vietnamese relations

"The White Riders"


Never mind the dust. These tourists seem to enjoy riding solo around Ho Chi Minh City.

Test Shoot with Popoy

Been reading too much about photography since 2011 started and yesterday I decided to buy another accessory for Laura. I was reading some articles on DPS when I saw this article. I immediately looked for a pop-up flash diffuser so I won't have to bring a speedlight with me when I travel and shoot outdoors. Below are some sample photos I took using Popoy, Laura's new accessory. I must say that Popoy will be Laura's forever partner.

ISO 800 30mm f4.2 1/3sec w/o Popoy

ISO 800 30mm f4.2 1/3sec w/ Popoy

ISO 800 30mm f4.2 1/3sec w/o Popoy

ISO 800 30mm f4.2 1/3sec w/ Popoy

My New Year's Wishlist

Yes, you read it right, I have already listed my wishes for this year. I just realized that it is unfair not to give people enough time to save up in order to grant my wishes and so I decided to make a list of what I want before the next Christmas comes.


Let me start it with a dream. Every child dreams of having a Christmas village. No living thing exists in this village and is only something your eyes could feast on. The changing lights, the miniature shops, church, houses, old grandma crocheting, Santa and his reindeer, and many more make this village appealing, not just to kids, but also to the kids at heart. Because of that certain "appeal", I wish someone would give me a Christmas village, or maybe take me to wherever it is.


Next is probably the simplest wish you could ever hear or maybe you know someone who's fond of reading and often uses paper clips as bookmarks, who also wishes for a new bookmark which actually adds excitement to the art of reading. It's like garnishing your home-made pasta with fresh parsley. Aside from smelling the scent of paper and ink, carrying the weight of that 642-page "The Historian" in hardbound and the sound of paper being flipped by the reader's delicate candle-shaped fingers, as a book lover I enjoy the anticipation of going to the next page and not even clipping that nice bookmark on but just caressing it. Plus, you get something nice to look at aside from the text.


Moving on, I wish that I could get more camera accessories. I'm a photo hobbyist so I tend to explore more and as I do so I begin to crave for accessories that will enhance the quality of photos I take. I have shaky hands and so I often bring my tripod with me. I already have a tripod so that's not my next wish. I just got a lens cleaning pen from a coworker so I don't need a new one yet. I'm planning to take another workshop and after that I'd probably wish for a set of studio lights. This surely requires more money to be spent and that's what this early wish list is for.


Last, but I'm sure I'd come up with more wishes as the days pass, I wish that I could go on another backpacking trip with my friend Carmelle. I love traveling with her because you can take her anywhere and you won't hear her complain at all. She's also an historian which is great for a budget traveler like me because that means we don't need a tourist guide. We never had a tourist guide when we went to Cambodia and Vietnam last summer. Carmelle also does well in Math so that's good for me because I don't need to do all the conversion all by myself.


That's all I can think of for now. This is a reminder I should share to all my friends.

The Party Never Ends

We find it too hard to move on. We really can't. After seeing all our party photos and the video for the nth time, we still can't move on. I've been telling my parents and friends about how well we did this month to win almost all the contests the company prepared for us in celebration of the Christmas season. I'm just that proud, proud that I'm part of this group. I can now say that I have found new brothers and sisters in all of them. It's just sad that two of them must say goodbye to pursue their hearts' desires. I wish them good luck and no matter how far we may be from each other, our friendship will remain unchanged. Cheers to a successful 2010 and I look forward to an even merrier 2011.

Masks On!

This may appear as a post-Halloween party but I can assure you it's not. Our division thought of having a theme for this year's Christmas party. The company-wide Christmas party is a different story. Later on I will post photos of our Punk Rock Party. For now, I'll share to you my first Christmas party with the EdTech people. A few months after I left teaching, I gained the pounds I worked hard to get rid of. Seriously, since I started working for C&E, all I ever did was eat and party. Nevertheless, I remain thankful for all these "bilbils". I've been very blessed this year. I've turned most of my plans into reality and I can't thank the Lord enough for all these. I guess I've been a nice girl after all. I'm blessed to have found another home and to meet such intelligent, creative and nice creatures. They are unique in every aspect and I'm proud to be working with them.


EdTech's Masquerade Party, not really a ball, served not only as a Christmas celebration but a celebration of friendship as well. The food filled our empty stomachs, the laughter painted our almost-pale-faces, and the gifts were wishes granted. But overall, the party gave way to a more meaningful relationship. A memorable event we will forever treasure. Thank you EdTech.

'Tis the Season to be Busy

December is, indeed, the busiest month of the year. Endless partying, last-minute Christmas shopping, fat-burning gift wrapping, and many more. I guess this is the most stressful yet fun-filled Christmas I've ever had. In preparation for our corporate year-end gathering, nine different divisions will compete for the best Christmas presentation and so I'm gonna give you a sneak peek of what we've been doing in the past couple of days.






The stress doesn't end there. We also had to decorate our area. The theme is punk rock and so we made a Rocker Santa for that rock n' roll vibe.

I have been invited by Her Majesty.

It was such an honor to be invited by the Queen herself. It was not my first time to meet the Queen but believe me, it was unimaginably exciting. Alright, alright, I did not meet Queen Elizabeth or any queen from somewhere else. I went to Cebu, the queen city of the south.


Cebu is one of the famous cities in the Philippines. Located in the Visayas region, Cebu was already the center of trade in the south even before the Spanish colonization. However, it is the Spaniards who brought Catholicism in the Philippines and it all started in Cebu.


Enough about history, I went to Cebu for a business trip and that's what I want to share with you. I know you're thinking that all I did there was eat and work but you're wrong. Yes, I had to work but I made sure I would have the best business trip ever. Allow me to share some photos I took during my four-day trip in Cebu.



These were what I went to Cebu for. We joined the Philippine Librarians Association, Inc. National Congress 2010 to promote our new products namely: the RFID LibBest, CE-Platform and the Philippine E-Journals(www.ejournals.ph). I was sent to Cebu with one of our digital librarians and our E-Publishing head. We stayed at the booth to entertain questions and distribute flyers on our first day. The next day, we did the same but with presentations and sponsored a party for the attendees.




After the party, we felt like we've done our part and it was time for us to relax and do what we do best, party! Yes, we had lots of time to party and get around the city. I never had the chance to try the SkyWalk and the Edge Coaster during my first trip to Cebu with mom so this time I made sure I try it with friends. It really took my breath away. At first, I felt like not walking further during the SkyWalk experience. There were no railings and I only had to hold onto the harness to support myself. Good thing it was not windy when I started the trail. Took some photos and then we were asked to stand on the edge of the platform and pose as if we were Superman. It was surely nerve-wracking and I thought I looked terrified in that particular photo.



The following pictures are proofs of how much we enjoyed the trip. Plus, you'd see my Korean student I met during my third night in Cebu. I taught her for a couple of months and before I quit teaching, she flew to Cebu to study English. It was our first time to see each other in person.