And God made Vettel....

Seriously, I am meaning to make this blog exclusively for my memes and digital scrapbook stuffs but I just can't resist with this feeling of elation that Sebastian Vettel won in the F1 race in Sepang, Malaysia earlier today.

So I was not an original fan of Grand Prix and I honestly thought of it a boring. But I do know Michael Schumacher and Mika Häkkinen while I was growing up, but that was it.

Until this young and vibrant driver from Germany named Sebastian Vettel, I am so impressed with his record and the way he downplays his winnings. I like a humble guy of course. And the fact that he keeps his private life private (read: he doesn't bring his girl to his competitions) which makes the women swoon and drool. LOL.

So I am happy with Vettel's win today and I am rooting for him to their next race in Shanghai. Go Red Bull!

Eating Fondue in a Sunshine

Summer time is here once again and summer means a good excuse to eat ice cream! So for this week at DSB, join us as we celebrate the sunny season with kits of various themes. I personally like My Sweet Life by Rita Massela. This kit has delicious elements that are perfect for your photos of those sweet treats! Here is the kit preview.

And here is the page that I created using the kit. I used the photo I took when my mother treated us for an ice cream fondue while lounging at a mall during our recent trip to Singapore. Of course, you can never go wrong with a Haagen Dazs!

Another feature kit at DSB is this awesome collab from Elker W. and Sugary Fancy named Flourish Morning. The kit has a fresh appeal and would be great for photos of your summer activities or even those smiles that brightens up your world. This is a bundled kit and I have to tell you, you will not regret buying this one! It's full of elements and there are tons of papers to choose from for your spring photos. But of course, you can buy the Economic Pack (i.e. papers only or ribbons only) but you can save a lot of $$$ when you buy this bundle. And it's on a 40% OFF Sale this week so you really might want to grab this one now!

And here is my page using this kit. The photo shows of my daughter and her sunshine-y smile.

So what are you waiting for? Go to Digiscrappers Brasil for your own digital scrapping fix.

The Bloggers Exchange Episode 2

Here are the links for The Bloggers Exchange for the month of April.

I like the way they organize the link exchange thing and the way they control the number of sites that they publish and I am lucky to have made the cut. Anyway, these blogs are fabulous in their own merit, you may want to check them out.

@ STEP UP!
1 TWELVE ST.
BEAUTY AND FASHION DIVA
BROWN PINAY
CORBITONESS
DASHING SMILES
EAT,DRINK AND BE HEALTHY
EL OWEINI’S LIFE
EXOTIC PHILIPPINES
EXPERIENCE OF A SUPER MOMMY
FASHION AND PASSION ONLINE
FROM WALA TO OKAY
GENEFAITH’S HOME
HAPPY HOME WORKING
HAPPY MEALS
HERE…THERE..& EVERYWHERE….
HOBBIES AND EVERYTHING
I LOVE DARLY!
I LOVE HUES
I’M ONLY SLEEPING
I AM BUT… GAGAY.
JARED’S LITTLE CORNER
JE’S ANATOMY
JEN’S JOYFUL LIFE
JOY’S FLAIR
FAB MOMMA
KAYCE’S ONLINE DIARY
KERO’S CELEBRATION
KNITS READS AND REVIEWS
LEVYousa
LIFE ACCORDING TO ME
LIFE AS A WAHM
LIVE.LAUGH.LOVE
LOUE’S JOURNAL
LYZA’S LANE
MAKE MORE MONEY ONLINE
ME AND MY MESTIZAS
MIRAGE
MOM DAUGHTER REVIEWS
MOM’S SPECIAL DIARY
MOM’S UPS AND DOWNS
MOMMA HELPS
MOMMY SURVIVAL
MOMMY’S JOY RIDE!
MONEY,MAGIC AND MAYHEM
MUM WRITES AGAIN
MY BRIC-A-BRAC
MY CRAFT AND OTHER INTERESTS
MY CRAFTING DEN
MY DAILY MUMBLES
MY JOURNEY BEING A MOMMY
MY LITTLE LIFE
MY RANDOM BEST
MY RENDEZVOUS
MY THOUGHTS IN LETTERS
MY TOTS EXACTLY
MY TRAVEL FOLIO
MY WEB BLOG DOT COM
NATHAN STEPPING STONES
NEW HOME SWEET HOME
NSHIMA SERVINGS
OCCASIONS OF JOY
OUR HOMESCHOOL ROOM
OUR VILLAGE IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT
PAGASPAS FAMILY BLOG
PINAY MOM’S MUSING
PINAY MOMMY A DREAMER
PINAYMUM-MOMMY’S LIFE AROUND…
POP UPS OF MY MIND
POSTCARD PERFECT
PRETTY OPINIONATED
PURE THOUGHTS
QUIRKS OF A DELUSIONAL MIND
SCRAP TEACH RANT
SEPTEMBERCHARM
SHAHZ MUSING
SO THE MORAL OF THE STORY…
TAGA DAVAO AKO
TEACHER MOMMA DOT COM
THE ALL-AROUND MOM
THE BLOGGERS JOURNAL
THE BLOGGING QUEEN
THE BLOGGING TRAVELLER
THE FILIPINA WAHM
THE KNIW WIT BY SHAIR
THE MISIS CHRONICLES
THE PEPPERRIFIC LIFE
THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH
THE TOTTERING MAMA
THESE AND THOSE
TRANSPLANTED THOUGHTS
TRAVELHOLIC’S EXPRESSIONS
TWEN TEEN MOM
UNWRITTEN CHRONICLES
VERNS DAILY
VIVA TRIPS & TIPS
WHIMS AND VIEWS
ZOWANDERER

The Vacation: Singapore

Okay where should I start? Singapore. Oh Singapore is a small place. I never thought I’d like it there. We hired a private van for the duration of our trip so transportation is not a least bit of a hassle on our part. And since I was the one assigned on the itinerary and accommodation, I researched a lot about the city. Before we went to the hotel, I briefed my cousins about the do’s and don’ts and their expectations. I knew that orientation was kinda boring but at least I have to tell them that.

In comparison to Hong Kong, Singapore is not congested and the landscape is way much better. You can see trees and flowers and there were pink bougainvilleas that almost looked like cherry blossoms. The landscape was a sight to behold. Our hotel was even nicer than my expectations because we were greeted by Filipino bellboys so we felt already at home. We chose Peninsula Excelsior to be our place to stay because from the reviews I have read, it is near everywhere. As in you can reach the spots just by walking, and the reviews were right! Plus we also get free breakfast and a high speed internet connection also for free at 10MBps.

Peninsula Excelsior at Coleman Street

On our first day at Singapore, we had to wait for my mother and cousin to arrive and when they did, that’s when we started to explore. We walked. And walked. And walked. We walked a lot and we didn’t mind, everything’s an eye candy. I particularly like the tunnels and the flowers. There were practically botanical plants wherever we go.

With fellow walking tourists from UK at the Supreme Court

So the Singapore sun rises late and sets late. 7:30 in the evening still looks like this.

The view of the bay

And here is Singapore skyline by night.

The Singapore Flyer. Taken at the top of Marina Bay Sands

Our second day was spent at Sentosa Island. As usual, we had long walks and contrary to our first day's weather which was fair, our Sentosa day was hot. Scorching hot.

Sentosa is an activity haven. If you like beach and sports, you should definitely go there. Plus you get tons of look at sexy women too.

But everything has a price. And they are pricey if I may say. We just tried on the 3D and 4D attractions and the Luge which we all really enjoyed. Plus of course, the must see Songs of the Sea presentation. We should have seen the 7:40PM show because we were all tired from all that walking that we didn't bother to go out to eat when we arrived at the hotel that night. However, the sunset is gorgeous!

Sunset at Siloso Beach

Songs of the Sea

We went to Universal Studios on our third day and before we left the hotel, we all made a pact that all of us should ride the roller coasters. Luckily, when we entered USS, we saw Frankenstein and he agreed to pose for a photo with us. Only us! He left the Hollywood Street after we had our picture taken.

We went to see Lights, Camera, Action! first and we had a great time. We were watching the special effects in front so we got splashed a little. And after that, I couldn't believe my eyes, I saw the Streetboys perform!

Streetboys Rockafellas

I knew the Streetboys are regular performers at USS but I totally forgot about them as my mind's straight on the roller coaster rides. Okay for the information of my non Filipino readers, they're a dance group in the Philippines and they used to be BIG and my high school classmates are all ga-ga over them.

So after their show, we went to ride the heart stopping Battlestar Galactica in Cylon. Including my mom of course. And then after the ride, all of them were traumatized so my cousin and I tricked them into riding Revenge of The Mummy (which is an indoor roller coaster) and Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure. We told them that the Revenge of the Mummy was just a train ride to see the artifacts and the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure was just a boat ride to see the dinosaur exhibit. They were stupefied and we laughed at them with so much gusto! But of course they had fun. We were all drenched after the Rapids ride though.

Drenched!

And we also got to watch the Waterworld attraction which we did not regret. It was like watching a real movie shooting.

I have to say that I can post hundreds of pictures but I just put them into a minimum for obvious reasons. We did a lot of things there too like shopping. haha! So there goes my Singapore visit.

The Vacation: Part Undecided

So our vacation is over and I do not know how to sum it up in an entry or two, or probably three that's why the title has the "undecided" tag line. Anyway, as I have said (or did I ever?) my mom left ahead of us because she has to attend a seminar in Manila. The day before our departure was my pupils' graduation and so are the paperworks that I have to get done. I got everything alright, but that also meant me being stressed out plus the fact that my aunt and uncle wanted me to follow up on their Shengen visa application as they will be going on a cruise this May. Yep, that's me, everybody's secretary, though I am not complaining.

So the day of our departure was full of excitement, my aunt and uncle drove all of us at the airport, paid for our tax fees and made sure we had plenty of food and chips to bring to the flight. We were good. Until there was an announcement that our flight is going to be delayed. Doomed. So my cousins and I brought out all our chips and gobbled them all up before we even boarded in the plane. A cousin of mine, not at all contented with the food, went out to eat at a nearby eatery. So what? We eat a lot! We consumed all the food that we brought (there were two duffel bags of food more but those were already in the checked in baggages) and we have nothing left to consume once we're in Manila.

So our flight was supposed to be at 1:45 but it turned out to be at 3:00, we arrived at the NAIA Terminal 3 at around 4PM met another cousin who will be coming with us but comes from a different city, and then met my mom. We are all fine and dandy until I helped my mother check in. It was kind of a shock because apparently there were some glitches in her tickets and that could not be re-booked or refunded. Another doom. After almost fighting with the airline staff about their incompetencies and absurd fare conditions, my mom said that she will back out of the trip. I, then calculated all the costs that we will be losing as against to the cost of purchasing another ticket in a skyrocketed price plus the fact that I wouldn't want to experience Singapore without her. I closed my eyes, took out my wallet and counted my money. I paid more than 12 thousand pesos for my mother's flight from Manila-Singapore but what the heck, one should never ever count money when it comes to your parents right? When I paid, I saw my mom look at me in disbelief and kept saying, "No. No. No." and "Are you sure?" I shrugged her off and told her it's just money and I am going to earn that again. However, it turned out that my mother cannot be with us in our flight because it is all fully booked so we opted for her to catch the first flight for the next day and told her to go to my brother's girlfriend to rest and prepare for her flight. We were settled.

And so there we were, lining up at the immigration in order for us to board the plane. We all had coffee, had our little chitchats, ate again, and took a quick visit at the loo. Until it was 30 minutes before our flight, my cousin realized that his passport was missing. We were all so dumbfounded. We searched for his passport, my other cousins went to the paging counter while the others went to the xray section to check if he left his passport there. All to no avail. And the plane's about to leave! We were in panic. My cousin told us to go and board the plane and his brother accompanied him in looking for the passport. While we were lining up at the boarding section, we called our aunt and she was in panic too. My cousin went to the security and requested to have a look at the CCTV camera just to check whether someone picked his passport or he left it somewhere. The airport security told them that they can show the footages only after a desired time. So my cousin, who accompanied the one whose passport is missing decided to board the plane with us instead of paying thousands of pesos more if they both miss the flight.

When we arrived at Singapore, we contacted our aunt who told us that my cousin's passport was found. Apparently, some idiot guy flying to Ho Chi Min picked up my cousin's passport by mistake at the xray section of the airport. He only noticed it when he's about to board the plane and the ground crew found out about it. We never knew the guy's name but I sure hope he'll suffer from diarrhea. He caused us stress and not to mention another plane ticket! On the brighter side though, at least my mom has someone to accompany her on her flight the next day as the two of them are on the same flight as well.

So that's how dramatic our trip was. AND WE HAVEN'T LEFT THE PHILIPPINES YET!