21st of May 2009, I considered that day as the most devastating day of my life. I felt torture the whole time I was forcibly taken away from my friends whom I already considered family. Also saying goodbye to that one special person through a glass wall was like in comparison to a real life drama. I never ones thought in my life that I would be that torn apart. I was shattered into pieces and now I am in the process of regaining that strength I lost ones again. Not a day that goes past in here without having the thought of those important people back home. They would be all constantly missed and it would always feel like a piece in my life would be missing until I finally reach the day that I get reunited with these people again.
Australia and Philippines are both very different countries which made it hard for me to settle in the first few weeks. The traffic, noise and pollution made it even harder and having to face the fact that there is no such thing as ‘give way’ in here made it even scarier to go out, it’s like people don’t give a shit and all just switch lanes whenever the hell they feel like it, it’s very different from the usual Adelaide scene were people are very cautious about their driving as they are constantly monitored by speeding cameras and if traffic regulations are not followed then a speeding fine will eventually hit your ass hardcore. Also in here, it’s like sleeping does not exist in everyone’s vocabulary, you can still see people lurking out in the streets at pass midnight and some still even go around places at that time to sell food for a living. People here would just do anything to make a living, it is such a sad scene to see little kids walking along the traffic selling cigarettes, food and little items to make some money in order feed themselves and their family, some even beg for money. To see this kind of scenario, made me realise how lucky I have become to have the things that I posses now and it also redefined the saying that “The things we have should not be taken for granted.” Most of us don’t appreciate the things that we have in front of us and we don’t realise how lucky we are compared to many people around the world, we all just have to be given the opportunity to see things thoroughly and then we’ll begin to realise all the love that God has given some of us and maybe even one day we, the people who are lucky enough to posses the things that poor people in this world only dreamed of can also help them somehow.
Living here in the Philippines was not such a bad thing after all, being reunited with my family has been a highlight of coming back here, and I am mostly occupied by spending time with them. We have visited a few places here in the Philippines and I would say that Mall of Asia is one of my favourites considering it is the third largest shopping centre in the world, it’s pretty great. You can find pretty much everything you’re trying to look for in this place and because of the difference in Filipino and Australian currency, everything is pretty damn cheap, also they have Krispy Kremes pretty much in every shopping centre you go to. Also there’s a place next to Mall of Asia called the SMX, this place is where models from local and international fashion industry gather to bring the latest fashion. I got the chance to watch the ‘Philippine Fashion Week’ twice as my cousin is now one of the models here in the Philippines and the other time was because I was given a free ticket while shopping in bench/ (a popular clothing brand here in the Philippines) but as I thought that the ticket was only a brochure, I somehow decided to discard the ticket *sigh* so I only ended up watching one show (My childhood friend, Cartess threatened to kill me because of that XD) It’s weird seeing my cousin in the runway as I have known him all my life but still I am happy for him. Coming back home also gave me the chance to visit my Mother’s grave, it was such an emotional reunion, I cleaned her grave and kicked the weeds on to side and lit her some candles and gave her flowers and talked to her as if she was really there. I missed her a lot.
Food in here is fair awesome (Sorry guys didn’t get the chance to take photos, because for some reason my camera always goes flat when I want to take photos of food T___T”) There is a large variety of food and everything has to always come with rice. I have also been drunk a few times since I came back here considering you can pretty much buy alcohol everywhere without having to show your identification, tequila is what people drink in here, we smashed two bottles one night and decided to hit the beers, I was gone by the end of the night. Karaoke bars are also everywhere as Filipinos grew such fondness towards karaoke and don’t get me wrong, Filipinos are great singers and pretty much everyone here can sing. I am now getting used to the weather and coping to the changes especially the surroundings but I would say that I prefer living in the country instead of the city, I appreciate the quiet, peaceful ambience that the country side offers which also comes with the breeze of fresh sea air.
Anyways there’s still a lot to write about but I’m too lazy to blog about them so I’ll just leave you guys with a few photos. I’ll blog again sometime. I miss you all.
philippine public transportation (jeepney and tricycle)
jollibee, a popular restaurant here in the Philippines
the globe thingy at the mall of asia
me and a few cousins at the mall of asia
the wall clock at my grandma's house
a bird comes out every hour, how i love this thing
i wish to inherit it someday
here's some pictures from the country side:
