At the Back of the FX part 2

...

Sigh. But I do believe in fate. I mean, if he was the one for me, he would be. We would meet no matter what the circumstance. But then again, if I don’t make a move, all will be lost. He could only be the one guy that could have been my life, the one I would offer my successes, the one who would share with me my life’s adventure. He could have been.

I made a compromise with myself. If we get off at the same stop, I would make the first move and introduce myself. Why does it have to be like this? Here was my one chance and yet I am hesitating. He looked decent and presentable naman. I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen with (he he, the question is, he might be the one be embarrassed to be seen with me). But still, I made a promise to myself. If and only if he gets off at the same stop as I am, then and only then would I make the move.

And he did get off at the same stop. Shucks, I could not back out of my dare. I got off first. I told myself, if he overtakes me, that’s it, or if he didn’t, I would chicken out. There you go, I was still afraid to try. Funny thing is, I was never given the chance. He walked right beside me and matched me stride by stride. Well, I guess he would be receptive for a casual talk after all. So, I mustered all my guts and blurted, “You going my way?” Duh, a good opening line... “It looks like it” he said. Good. “I am Paolo by the way, you?” “Call me Adan.”

To continue

Surprisingly, after that introduction, I wasn't nervous at all. It's as if we clicked and that we knew each other already. Adan and I shared a tricycle, apparently, we lived on the same subdivision, we were just a couple of blocks from each other. During the ride, we were chitchatting. Adan I learned worked at a bank. He graduated from the same university as I did but from a different college. Adan will be the first to get off. Before the tricycle stopped, he casually asked me if I would like to come in his apartment and have coffee, I said why not.

Adan was renting the apartment with his sister but tonight he was alone. His sister was out of town for a seminar. The apartment had a cozy feel to it. Adan asked me for coffee, at the back of my mind, I would want to say no, if I drink coffee, I will be up the whole night but since it's a Friday, I said why not again. It seemed that for Adan, I couldn't really say no to him.

At this day and age, I really thought he would served me instant coffee, but he didn't. He took the coffeemaker, filled it up with ground coffee beans and let it percolate. I was relaxing on the sofa while Adan turned on his stereo and played soft music.

He asked me if I was comfortable and I said yes (again!). He asked if it's ok to leave me for a while as he would like to change for a more comfortable clothes and asked if I would like to change too. I wouldn't want to be presumptuous as to say yes this time so I said no. He went upstairs and while he was gone, I looked around the living room.

Adan had a framed graduation picture on the wall. He looked so adorable. His smile melted the pants off me. My weakness was guys with dimples, and his was the deepest dimples I have ever seen. His teeth was very white and even and those lips, so kissable. I stared at his eyes, which drew me as if they were talking to me. Another weakness of mine are eyes that looked dreamy, as if those eyes were just awakened from a beautiful sleep.

I didn't know that Adan had finished changing nor the coffee was done. With a soft cough, he caught me staring at his picture. As I turned around, I couldn't help but stare at this real version of the picture.

He was holding a steaming mug of coffee in his boxer shorts and white sando. Oh my, my legs were shaking. As I grabbed the coffee he was holding out for me, I immediately put it down for fear that it would spill as my hands begun to shake as well.

How could I find the Mr. Right of my life? I have tried going out for dates, meeting new people. I have been used, abused, manipulated and terribly hurt, only because I thought that if I only give-in, I will have Mr. Right. Talk about being desperate! But still I haven’t met him. Some may argue that to meet Mr. Right, one has to be one. One has to be the right person too. And I believe I am. I am caring, passionate, romantic and giving. I am sincere, thoughtful and sensitive. I appreciate life, I love fun. I am a good conversationalist, understanding, and smart. I am simple, and yet complicated. I am not a high-maintenance person. I admit, I am not perfect, but who is? I am not looking for Mr. Perfect; I am looking for Mr. Right.

Have I found my Mr. Right? Is Adan my Mr. Right, someone who, unabashedly, will sing me a song or recite to me a poem he had written. Adan isn’t necessarily good looking but he is pleasantly clean and neat. I can feel he is confident, and supportive, understanding and romantic. But will he encourage me to try new things and discover new activities as I imagine my Mr. Right would? Or is he quiet, preferring a night on the bed, talking. Or holding hands at the movies. Would he enjoy going to the beach once in a while and with me, wait for the sun to set, the moon and stars to come out, sleep on the sand with the waves of the sea lulling us to sleep only to be awakened by the sunrise. Or an evening where he would cook pasta and set the table with candles and have dessert while listening to my favorite song “Your Song” or watching “Sleepless in Seattle or Serendipity.” Would we have the same taste in music, food, books; or not. Is he complicated, and even if he is, I would cherish every moment in my life I’m sharing with him understanding his complexity. He could be simple and I would enjoy every moment of simple life, as long as it’s with him. I’ll share with him every thought, dreams and aspirations I have. He could be of my age, or older or younger. He could be all of the above… or not, again, I’m not looking for Mr. Perfect, just the one, someone who would feel right to me. 

And tonight, he felt all right to me...

(To be continued) - comment if you want me to post what happens next :)

Budget for a 4-Day 3-Night stay in Hong Kong

Below is a list of expenses I have incurred for my trip to Hong Kong. This does not include the "pasalubong" but includes tickets to Disneyland and the two tours I have availed. Some figures are rounded off but generally, a budget of at least Php20,000.00 will tide you through. All amounts are in PHP. I used the conversion of 1 HKD = 6.5 PHP when I have my money exchanged at BDO.

Tip though, you can get a higher exchange rate in HK so exchange only a minimal amount (i.e. fotr the Octopus card, avail of the HKD 100 card plus 50HKD deposit, total of 150HKD. Load it another 150 HKD for a grand total of 300 HKD. Don't worry, you can refund the unused amount at the HK airport. You can use the Octopus card for the trains, bus and even for food at McDo and 7-11. At the end of my trip, I was able to refund the 50HKD deposit and 35HKD change. A 9 HKD will be deductetd for service fee. Not bad :) )

RT Airfare	2,500.00
Travel Tax	1,620.00
Hostel (4D3N)	1,500.00
Disneyland	3,500.00
Tours	3,000.00
Octopus Card	2,000.00
Food (4D3N)	3,822.50
TOTAL	17,942.50

For the Round Trip Airfare, it is best to book ahead of time during a seat sale promo. The Php2,500 RT airfare is quite a bargain. Additional cost for baggage allowance. I didn't opt for this as I am not really planning on shopping (my bad! The outlet stores, especially Giordano, are really on sale!)

You have no choice but to pay the travel tax as you leave NAIA though.

The hostel cost is actually Php4,500 but there were three of us sharing in a two bed room, so my share came down to Php1,500 only (or Php500/night) not bad since you'll only stay in the room to sleep and shower as you'll spend the entire time exploring Hong Kong right?

I got my Disneyland tickets from Klook as well as the tours (Lantau Sea and Land Tour and the Peak Tram).

The Disneyland one day pass is worth it, you will need the whole day just to explore the entire park. More on this on my later posts.

The cable car is under repaitr so we opt to take the Lantau Sea and Island tour, if you have the option, skip the Sea tour and go directly to the Big Buddha to spend more time. The Peak Tram includes the tram ride, access to the Sky View, Madame Tessaud and the 3D Trick eye Museum. More on these later too.

Food is really costly here. The average meal is at least PHP260 and the food inside Disneyland is at least Php650. 

With this budget, I hope you'll have an idea how much to prepare for this trip.

Next post will be about exploring Hong Kong in detail.

Hirayamanawi,

Rob

Hong Kong Itinerary - 4 Days 3 Nights

Hi All,

For now, I'll be sharing with you a sample itinerary based from my four days three nights stay in Hong Kong.

ITINERARY - ACTUAL

Manila-Hong Kong-Manila

March 21 to 24, 2017

Day 1 – Tuesday, March 21, 2017

4AM      Check-in NAIA Terminal 3

7AM      Departure to HK

9AM      ETA HK

10AM    Transfer to Hotel

                Merryland Guest House

Flat D2, 13/F, Mirador Mansion, 54-64 Nathan Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
Hong Kong

Phone: +852 9815 2660

11AM   LUNCH

1PM     Check-in at Merryland Guest House

2PM     Explore Tsim Sha Tsui

·         Kowloon Mosque

·         Kowloon Park

Avenue of the Stars is closed but they have a “replacement” called Garden of the Stars at the Promenade.  All of these are walking distance from the guest house:

·         Salisbury Road – take the Salisbury Underpass where you can see the Hong Kong Academy Murals and Museum to go to the following:

·         Hong Kong Cultural Centre

·         Tsim Sha Tsui Ferry Pier

·         Tsim Sha Tsui Clock Tower

·         Hong Kong Museum of Art, Museum of Science, Museum of History (all adjacent to each other)

·         Hong Kong Space Museum

·         Victoria Harbor where you can see Hong Kong skyline and bay and watch the Symphony of Lights at 8PM

·         There is also a food park within the vicinity where we had our dinner after watching the Symphony of Lights

9PM     Back to the Hotel

Day 2 – Wednesday, March 22, 2017

8AM     Breakfast

9AM     Travel to Disneyland

10AM   Disneyland – whole day

9PM     Back to the Hotel

Day 3 – Thursday, March 22, 2017

8AM     Breakfast

9AM     Travel to Tung Chung

12NN   Lantau Land & Sea Guided Tour

·         Tai O Fishing Village

·         Big Buddha

·         Ngong Ping Village

·         Po Lin Monastery

6PM     Peak Tram Tour

·         Sky Terrace

·         Madame Tussauds

·         Trick-Eye Museum

10PM   Back to the Hotel

Day 4 – Friday, March 23, 2017

8AM     Breakfast

9AM     Free Time for shopping

·         Citygate Outlet Mall

5PM     Travel to HK Airport

9PM     ETD to Manila

Admittedly, there are other sights we fail to visit, so add another day for that? If you are not yet tired from your day trips, you can shop at Mongkok Night Market which closes at around 12 midnight.

Next post will be transportation – going around to these places J

More pictures per trip to be uploaded as well.

Hirayamanawi,

Rob

Step by Step Process for first International Trip - from NAIA Terminal 3 to HongKong International Airport, including tips and itinerary

This is a new post after my 2-week vacation leave and I would like to share the process of my first international trip since I got my passport last year.

Upon receiving my passport, I checked which country is visa-free for Filipinos to visit and there's quite a lot, including the countries in Southeast Asia. At that time, April 30, 2016, Cebu Pacific had a seat sale.

Tip: Cebu Pacific usually offers seat sales during public holidays or within three days of the holidays - i.e. Labor Day, Easter Sunday, National Heroes Day etc. So either regularly check out their social media accounts for seat sale announcements.

I got a round trip ticket to Hong Kong for only Php2,500! Usually, travel period for seat sales would be six to 12 months from the time of the promo period. So while I booked last April 30, the travel period I got was March 21-25, 2017.

Tip: Since the trip will be way in the future, save on cost by advance booking online for accommodations and attractions you want to try. This will allow you to pay ahead of time, get discounts and in case of accommodations, a lower rate. In my case, I got discounts by booking my tours at www.klook.com andf accomodations at www.booking.com. More of my experiences in these sites later.

It pays to do a research on what to expect but it's still scary in reality since I have read of travellers being off loaded or Immigration officers denying departure so it really counts to be prepared. So what to prepare before going to the airport?

Here are some of the things you have to be prepared for, especially for first time travelers like me:

1. Passport - make sure validity is more than 6 months
2. Round trip tickets
3. Hotel reservation/ address where you will be staying
4. Itinerary
5. Certificate of Employment and Company ID 

The above items will assure the Immigration Officer of your intent to return to the country after your trip.

You should also prepare for:

1. Php 1,620 to be paid at NAIA for Philippine Travel Tax
2. Ballpen for filling up your Departure Card and Arrival Cards - these are basis of Immigration Officersr at NAIA and HK Airport respectively
3. Make sure your baggage is within the 7kg. hand carry allowance, unless you have separately purchased a baggage allowance for check-in.
4. Pocket money - exchange your peso at the airport for at least 200 HKD which you can use to purchase a refundable Octupos Card (more on how helpful this is later) and exchange for more HKD once in HK since they have a highrer peso to dollars exchange rate in HK than here in the Philippines.

Once you are mentally and physically prepared, here's a step-by-step process I went through.

1. Arrive early at NAIA Terminal 3- at least 3 hours for your first international trip. Why? The security check at the entrance is very long! No matter how early you are, the security check at the entrance is long as some gates are not yet open. All gates are common for both domestic and international flights. Tip: Senior citizens and PWD can cut the line
2. After the entrance security check, look for your check-in counter. If you have checked-in online, you can proceed to #3. 
3. Pay the Philippine Travel Tax amounting to Php 1,620.00. Their booth is located near Aisle A & B.
4. Go back to your check-in counter to surrender a copy of the travel tax. You can also get a copy of the Departure Card here or before entering the Immigration area.
5. Fill-up the Departure Card with all the pertinent details required and present this with your passport at the Immigration counters.
6. The Immigration Officer may ask you questions regarding your stay abroad and may ask for proof or other documents. Just answer the questions and produce the required documents when asked. If everything is okay, the officer will stamp your passport. 
7. Proceed to the final security gate with your boarding pass.
8. By this time, you can wait at the gate for boarding.
9. During your flight, the flight attendants will be distributing arrival cards which you will need to fill-up and present at the HK airport immigration counters.

Upon deplaning, board the shuttle train which will take you to the Hong Kong International Airport Arrival Hall.

1. Follow the directions pointing you to Immigration. If you have checked-in baggage, you will need to go through Immigration before getting your baggage. It will still be at the same area though.
2. The Immigration Officers may look intimidating and in case you are asked, just present the documents you prepared.
3. In HK, they do not stamp the passport but they will issue you a sticker stating until when you are allowed to stay.
4. Once cleared from immigration, you can claim your baggage and proceed to the bus/MTR terminal.

Tip: Upon exit from the immigration/baggage claim, get free HongKong Map from the Tourism booth and buy your refundable octopus card at the booth adjacent.

This is all for now :)

On the next post, will share with you my itinerary and budget and how best to get around Hong Kong.

Hirayamanawari,

Rob