Babysitting at the Bay

16 April 2013

The Philippine Pediatric Society just had its annual convention and my pediatrician aunt from Pangasinan had to attend.

They stayed at the Sofitel Manila, one of the poshest hotels in the city (at least in my humble opinion). Doctors' accommodations are usually sponsored for these things and my aunt usually lets me tag along. In return, I watch over my cousins while she attends the conference and business meetings, and catches up with her residency friends from Manila.

The room had a nice balcony.

Look at that smog. I wonder if the sky was bluer before the automobile was invented.

There are times when I dread these things because my cousin Matthew can get a little... bratty. Thankfully, he's less pushy and more subdued this time. It's a nice change from last time (I made him cry), but it also reminds me that the cousins are growing up fast.

Matthew.

I purposely brought my camera so I can capture the sunset. But because of a brief (2-hour) jaunt in the pool with a 7 year old, I missed the actual sunset by minutes. I got the orange glow instead.

But the orange glow is still pretty nice.

Mind Moving

12 April 2012

Our friend Joan is moving back to her hometown of Davao City right after graduation. This is round one of her so-called "despidida"

We went to the Mind Museum, because:

 a. Manila Ocean Park is too expensive for us

b. The museum has discounts for public college students... and we're about to graduate.

 

We liked the exhibits and experiments inside, but I liked the Science Park best.

I have a lot of pictures of Gelmer. Either everyone lese was camera-shy or she deliberately makes herself available to photograph.

Badass Aileen testing the Mobius strip slidey-thing.

A lot of things happened after. We had a jaunt under the Trees of Burgos Circle with small dogs and their yayas, we went to the other parks of BGC, and stole the patintero court from little kids in a playground.

We talked a lot about the things we're going to do after graduation. It's funny because even though I haven't graduated yet, I already feel like I'm drifting into a world where there are less rules and more things can happen. It excites and scares me at the same time.

Playing in the Mind Museum and the BGC made me feel like saying goodbye to part of my life that's more relaxed. It's like the world was telling me to enjoy things while I can.

I plan to do exactly that.

Pass

Tadaaaa!!!

This is my thesis book. It is printed and signed and bound in a pretty maroon. My name is embossed in gold. It is to be kept by the College of Architecture Library for students of the future to see.

I passed the book along with these DVDs that will be given to the faculty and the adviser.

I passed these along with my friends and classmates.

Fooling around...

All in all, we passed.

Cheers to a new chapter ahead!!!

Solitary Walk: The National Art Gallery

08 March 2013

Pictures taken on: 06 March 2013

I promised myself another solitary photowalk after my deliberations, but then there aren't a lot of areas in Metro Manila where I can't take pictures with a DSLR alone without getting mugged or stealthily robbed (or at least feeling like it). So I thought of cancelling the solitary thing and just taking someone with me. 

Then the Anthropology professor assigned us to go to the National Museum's exhibit on Baybayin, which is the Philippine's ancient script.

So I decided to go on with the solitary walk in the Museum of the Filipino people. But I've already been there.

Once I got to the museum, I saw the building right next to it, which is the National Art Gallery. I realized I've never been there.

So before doing my extra credit Anthro homework, I went to the National Art Gallery first.

I'm super compressing this post because the museum is so big and there's just so much to see. I spent a few hours inside and I was very hungry once I got out.

Ah, Neocolonialism. You so pretty.

Since the building used to house the country's Senate, it was super fancy inside. It made me think of other public buildings in the country, where fanciness isn't exactly a priority. What if it was?

Alive.

04 March 2013

Wow. 

It's almost over. Yeah, there's still a few minor things to do, like the report I'm supposed to be doing for Anthro. But just... wow.

I can honestly say I look forward to graduating.

I'm the type of person who likes having clean slates and finding myself again and again. When the opportunity came to go to college in a university where I know almost no one, I took it. Now endless opportunities are in front of me, and I don't know which path to take yet.

But before I forget myself, I'm going to dump a bunch of pictures that I managed to take during the past two months of blog inactivity.

Arki Vicky's dynamite. Snacks for champions.

Hazel buying siomai

Ate Allie of foureyedwonder sent me these by mail. It brightened up a hectic day.

The badass Aileen F. being grilled by the badass Dean.

Me, dying.

If someone asks why my model is so unruly, I can always tell them these Molecular Biology majors made it.

Claire, despair.

Joan being grilled by an antagonistic prof, a former dean, and a plasma physicist.

And at last, a blurry post-delibs picture.

 There are so many people to thank for this. I am grateful to be a part of a batch who really knows what the word "bayanihan" means. My family was also very supportive, even if they couldn't understand what I was doing, or why I had to totally forego sleep for a while.

After this, I have to complete a bunch of requirements and complete my portfolio (which I will link here once it's done). The thought of actually finishing this excites me.

Before embarking on anything else though, I shall be going to Hungary. (HUNGARY!!!!!!) I'd like to include here why and how, but that's for another blog post. :)

Pucay Road + Bencab

27 December 2012

My mother had a mini-reunion in Baguio City, where she studied high school. My grandparents sent her to an exclusive all-girls school up there in the mountains. It was run by nuns. My grandfather said that they were not satisfied with the high schools in Pangasinan, so they sent her (and one of my aunts) to Baguio because Holy Family (now co-ed and runs by a different name) was a good school.

My grandmother said they wanted her to become a nun. Yeah, right.

Anyway, we went to Baguio and visited one of my grandmother's friends, and her neighbor. The neighbor owns a really beautiful house, with extensive views and gardens that grow just about anything.

Coffee

Then we went to the Bencab Museum along Asin Road.

I found it interesting that Bencab found his muse in a vagrant woman.

My grandmother nagged me into taking pictures of paintings that she liked.

Stealing old flower seeds.... shhhh.