an episode of border security

i always say to myself whenever i'm going home after a trip, "sad that vacation time is ending...but man, the people i'm going home to..."

sooooo.....border security went a bit nonsense on me when i came home on wednesday. canadian border security. 

the first officer i met, the one that you give your customs declaration card to before you claim your baggage, asked me the most ridonkiloustic questions. 

"are you traveling by yourself?"

"yes."

"where are you coming from?"

"san francisco. i had a layover in seattle on my way here."

"what did you do in san francisco?"

"visited my cousins."

with a very grumpy poker face, "why do you go there often?"

"to see my cousins and to see the city."

"male or female?"

"pardon me?"

just douchey straight face, "your cousins, male or female?"

(**my inside voice** "does it freakin matter?!")

"both."

"why are you traveling by yourself?"

"because i like traveling by myself. less hassle with planning."

suspicious face, "you brought back $200 worth of goods?"

"yes."

suspicious face with more eyebrow action, "such as?"

"clothing. souvenirs. 2 boxes of chocolate."

"for who?"

"myself and my family."

"$200 on clothing?"

"ummm....yes. and the other stuff i mentioned two seconds ago."

"are you in a relationship with anyone in san francisco? romantically."

"no."

he then encircled the $200 part and handed me back my declaration card. so i proceeded to pick up my baggage. before i exit with my stuff, i handed my card to another officer. he looked at it and then sent me to the room where they inspect your things and ask even more questions.

when i was in that room and patiently waiting for my turn, i started to enumerate any "acceptable" reason why my baggage is going to be searched. i came up with zero. coz if it's the $200 that i spent....WTH?! that's not even close to a fraction of the regulation limit of $10000. 

when it was my turn, officer #2 swabbed and scanned my things. he asked me pretty much the same things officer #1 asked....except for the male or female and relationships part. he asked me more questions while unpacking my backpack. 

"how long did you stay in the states?"

"almost three weeks."

"did you go anywhere else aside from san francisco?"

"yes. i was in new york for about a week. went to chicago and then san francisco."

"what did you do in new york?"

"i went to the US open in queens."

looking puzzled, "and you went by yourself?"

it's amazing how they seem to have never heard of single travellers before. 

"yes. it's easier."

"how much did you spend on tickets?"

i started explaining to him about the whole grounds pass thing. why it is better than getting tickets to ashe stadium during the early rounds. he agreed with me and appeared to have noted some USO "tips" from me. 

"did you watch the finals?"

"yes. nadal owned novak."

he then started talking about the top players. the pre-wimbledon 2013 top 4, serena, venus' health, sharapova's shoulder, ashe stadium's rooflessness, etc. i just nodded along. 

"blah blah blah serena's serve blah blah blah pete sampras' serve."

i inserted stan's backhand in our conversation just because. at that point, my backpack and carry-on was slayed empty.

"alright i think we're done here. you may now repack these and go."

"oh okay. great."

"sorry for dismantling your stuff. do you need help?"

"yes, you douchebag! repack my shit! you people brought me in here to chat me up about tennis?! wtf?! why did you guys bring me in here?! why did you have to murder my backpack?!" is what i should've said. 

but instead, i said "no, i can do it myself. thanks anyway."

"alright. take care. nice talking to you."

"yes, i'm a delight."

when i got home, i brushed my teeth, washed my face, and looked at that wholesome (not) imagery reflected in the mirror. holy shit....the red patches around my left cornea. officer #1 probably thought i was high. yeah for some unrelated to drug reasons, there were red patches (could be blood) around my eye that lasted for more than a week. i don't know how and why. 

so my conclusion to this whole border security experience is.....red patches. oy.

what i would've tweeted: YVR - ICN

- 11:40 hours long flight to seoul, korea. oh boy, my ass.

- spacious economy class cabin is spacious, yo!

- and really good selection of inflight movies too! first movie: ted. he came back to life!! he's jesus!!

- we are seating next to this really nice korean guy. he's from edmonton too. he asked, "how come there are lots filipinos in millwoods?"

- 10 minutes into the flight...boom! turbulence.

- dang! i forgot how much food they serve here! and delicious too! seriously, not too bad for plane food.

- already on my third glass of wine.

- no whiny kids on this flight so... this is a bit awkward. i got nothing to complain about. hehe.

- aaron tveit was on premium rush??

- i'm probably late on the bandwagon but....premium rush was so good!!

- 4:23 hrs til seoul.

- patabaing baboy - fattening pig

- oh my sister is cracking me up like eggs for some benedict.

- michelle's take on the flight attendants: "ate, they look like princesses. i want to take one home!"

- celeste and jesse forever!!!!!!

- you got everything i need. you're like a medicine to me.

- 5 mins til land time! breathe. ass. breathe!

- kowreeyaaa!!

edinburgh and me

i really enjoyed my time in edinburgh....despite the weather. but that's edinburgh for you. crazy pouring rain when we got there from munich. we had to walk a very steep "hill" onto the royal mile with our extra heavy backpacks on...in POURING rain. myself and jodie felt immensely miserable. but once we reached out hostel, the amazing view of edinburgh castle welcomed us. the view from our room? george heriots' school. so nice to look at specially at night.

it's a city that is very rich in history. duh? it's a very old city. i love listening to stories, specially legends and folklore, from and about the medieval times. lots of craziness and gore back then.

every trip changes you. mostly, for the better. that's why i encourage people to travel. try something new, see something amazing, learn something foreign, understand better, adapt, and meet wonderful people along the way.

watching the sunset up on calton hill was really a blessing. it was relaxing up there. my original plan was to go up arthur's seat but my poor tired legs...oh well.

oh oh and i also tried some haggis. soooo delicious! haggis' main ingredients are sheep's heart, liver, and lungs. man, i wish i had more. now every time i see a flock of sheep, i count to myself "haggis....haggis.....haggis..."

munich and me

what an amazing small town atmosphere in munich. it is VERY different from berlin. berlin has that new york city feel to it. munich? not even close and i didn't say that in a demeaning way. munich...or shall we say bavaria is much cleaner, older population, and much less crime rate. let's say 4 berlin pickpockets to 1 bavarian pickpocket. i felt very safe in munich.

went on a free walking tour sponsored by our hostel. but you know how it is with those free walking tours. you have to tip. if you don't tip, you're an asshole. our tour guide was ozzie....best tour guide ever! i felt i became very much of a local after the tour. a non-german speaking local at that. ozzie did not just showed us the landmarks of munich. he informed us about the history, the birth of the nazi party, the positive significance of adolf hitler, difference between berlin and munich, economy, their clean water, and how much bavarians love their beer.

i really enjoyed our time in hofbrauhaus. shared a table with a bunch of good people - fellow travelers. the advantage of missing oktoberfest is the beer price. so yeah we definitely enjoyed that. oh by the way, hofbrauhaus was where the nazi party had their first meeting.

every trip changes you. mostly, for the better. that's why i encourage people to travel. try something new, see something amazing, learn something foreign, understand better, adapt, and meet wonderful people along the way.

munich is a city that embraces its identity. bavarians live among the history, not in history.

münchen mag dich!

prague and me

prague is rich with in-your-face beauty. all you have to do is look around. the history between the old town and new town and the story of its people's faith is pretty amazing to learn about.

for me, it's quite hard to imagine that the city was walled and had a moat. the catholicism that people practice there is still very present. i got to attend mass at the beautiful st. nicholas church right in the heart of old town square. thank god (see what i did there? hehe) they read the bible verses in english as well and not just in czech. quite an experience for me since i never bothered to attend catholic masses at all. the church was very solemn. it was different.

we met four fellow edmontonians (unusual, i know.) on our castle tour. after the tour, we all decided to go up the petrin tower together. as if we are not already captivated enough by prague, eh? the view from up there was amazing. the sun was setting too so it's double amazing.

every trip changes you. mostly, for the better. that's why i encourage people to travel. try something new, see something amazing, learn something foreign, understand better, adapt, and meet wonderful people along the way.

on our second day there, i woke up early so i could enjoy a much less tourist infested charles bridge. got all the shots i wanted, enjoyed looking at every statue, and properly rubbed st. john of nepomuk's statue and made a wish. it was fantastic!

prague is very cheap....if you have euros, dollars, and pounds. i made $80 CDN last for 2.5 days...souvenir shopping included. truth fact: in praha, beer is cheaper than water. i really wish i had room in my backpack so i could've bought more stuff there.

unfortunately, i didn't go to plzen due to time constraints. look up plzen and you'll know why i wanted to go there so bad. czech food is delicious too. i didn't have goulash but their version of roast beef and potatoes was darn good! "celebrated" canadian thanksgiving in prague too. jodie and myself had chicken kebabs and fruit beers. chicken...turkey...same difference.

for way more than the second time, i am very grateful for a rad and loving family, amazing friends who doesn't require much, and being able to see and experience the rest of the world first hand. it's very humbling from where i am standing.

(belated) happy thanksgiving!

berlin and me

berlin - so much history to take in. good and bad parts of history...its history. but if it weren't for the past, the city will never ever be what it is today. the bullet marks on every building tells a story.

every trip changes you. mostly, for the better. that's why i encourage people to travel. try something new, see something amazing, learn something foreign, understand better, adapt, and meet wonderful people along the way.

went to tour the sachsenhausen concentration camp in orianenberg. we all know about the nazi history but we never knew enough. the game changer really is when you visit a concentration camp. brutal.

got to meet a bunch of good people at our hostel too. most of them are staying in berlin for 2 weeks to a month...or more. fun vagabonds. lots of aussie backpackers too.

there are too many to see and experience in berlin. museum square alone...oh man, i loved that area. the dome church, specially. i highly recommend visiting this place. the architecture, inside and out, is just breathtaking. also, wilhelm's body is kept in the crypt. so eerie down there with all the different royal coffins.

definitely going to visit berlin again. four days isn't close to being enough. really. i now have a better understanding of why travelers love berlin.

amsterdam and me

every trip changes you. mostly, for the better. that's why i encourage people to travel. try something new, see something amazing, learn something foreign, understand better, adapt, and meet wonderful people along the way.

my take away from amsterdam is definitely the locals. it is an amazing city, yes, no doubt about that. but the locals are definitely something else. they are incredibly friendly to their visitors. visitors pick up on it right away so there's a quick mutual respect right there. pick pockets? pfft. give me a break. there are pick pockets everywhere.

as far as sight seeing goes, i think i saw everything that i wanted to see. funny that the comments i got on social media we're mostly about going to red light district and coffeeshoping. but then there's me, figuring out where the begijnhof is, the oude kerk, nieuwe kerk, rembrandtplein, anne frank house, vondelpark, koninklijk paleis, etc.

there is absolutely a ton more about amsterdam than girls in the window and flying high as a kite. amsterdam is a very beautiful city!

layover

in san francisco right now. 3.5 hours layover. en route to orange county.

i saw viola davis about a beer ago. she fine.

there's nobody gawkable here from where i'm sitting. four tables away is a group of old folks with money clips. they are congregating and drinking bloody marys. hmmm....maybe if i walk around, the possibility of eye boning somebody might occur.

what? i don't give a shit. i'm not from here. and it's a thursday.

no standing

i broke an annual trip this year. no, not california. never california. never california coz that'll be very very unacceptable. i left my heart in san francisco? yeah wonder that.

it's new york city. i didn't see nyc at all this year. a lot of people say new yorkers are rude. those people are
wrong. for the last 3 years that i have been visiting THE city, i've only (so far) encountered 1 rude new yorker. she's racist too. but whatever.

"you shouldn't let people like that ruin your fun."

after that incident, me and my bestfriend went to wall street and grabbed the charging bull's cold iron balls. glorious.

no "no standing" signs for me this year. nah, i'm not bitter. not even to the slightest. 2011 has been full of surprises. one more month of whatever-is-there-to-come-my-way. then i'd be the happiest to say "it's been a grand humbling year of ups and downs. i'm still in repair but i'm learning."

schmap schnap

schmap asked for permission to use this photo for their new york city map.

this is cathedral of st. john the divine, located in the upper west side of manhattan. i was floored when i saw this building. the gothic architectural style is just amazing.

i took this photo with a point and shoot camera, olympus stylus 720 sw. as the saying goes: it's not in the camera all the time, it's in the photographer too....and the components and the balance and all that technical shit.

it begins this time tomorrow

leaving but i am coming back again

i am leaving again for california in 12 days. it has eventually become an annual thing for me to do. i love california...but i am not one to move there. filipino overload down there. everybody knows everybody.

anyhoo, yes, i'm going to california again. same routine...bay area and a MUST trip down to socal. on this particular voyage, i'm adding a side trip to the rainy shattel...errr...seattle. word.

you'll hear epictuous (is that a word?) stories in the future.

by far...

the recent nyc trip is by far the best not-so-'bonke'-free adventure session with claudine. there were also other people on that trip who i've met for the first time. claudine's sister, mariel (except her)...their cousin, allison...allison's cousin, gem...and claudine's ex-roomie, samantha. we had our share of adventurous mishaps that turned into something we didn't see coming at all. the best mishap would probably be looking for the national museum of fine arts (i think that's what we were looking for). we got lost and walked the wrong way a lot of times just looking for that museum. where did we end up being at? outside a louis vuitton party in soho. yes. we saw molly sims and got waved back at by nina garcia. saying hi to nina garcia was a mix of hilarity and embarrassment. since that night, we pretty much had been seeing different celebrities each night. then we went looking for gray's papaya. they have a "recession special"...$3.50 will buy you 2 hotdogs and a drink. than i had my first white castle burger. i tried their bacon cheeseburger. it was so freakin juicy and good and cheap!

the next night was broadway night. we got to see "gypsy" for free! booya! how did we manage to score free gypsy tickets? we originally bought tickets for in the heights but the agent at gave us correct confirmation info and had an incorrect one on their system. bummer eh? so after complaints were made, they gave us a refund and complimentary tickets for either gypsy or chicago. i suggested gypsy and they trusted me. it was their 5th to the last performance of their broadway run. i've seen videos on youtube and read rave reviews all over the net. but for some reason, those weren't enough to make me want to really see it. yeah not even the fact that the awesome patti lupone (anything goes...evita...anyone?) and laura benanti (loved her in starved) are both starring in it. i was surprised by how much i enjoyed the show and ended up leaving the theatre as a gypsy fan. of course, we did the stage door thingamajig. met boyd gaines, patti lupone, leigh ann larkin and alison fraser. i'm disappointed that benanti snuck out early. i really wanted to get a photo with her. but still, free ticket to see la lupone on my first broadway show experience ever, not too shabby eh? on a nearby theatre, houses the play "all my sons" which stars katie holmes, john lithgow, and patrick wilson. my friends saw katie holmes enter a nearby resto while me and claudine were waiting at the gypsy stage door. then afterwards, we saw john lithgow get on his car. i said hi and he waved back. i like it when celebs wave back. that's how i know they're not assholes.

because of my absolute no holds barred love for "in the heights", din and i went to richard rodgers theatre to purchase tickets. all they had left were orchestra tickets that are worth $121.50. we bought 2 of those hehe. we were both surprised our compulsiveness. saw chris jackson through the glass doors. in my head i was like "yeah you'll hug me tomorrow night" hahaha. come performance night, as me and claudine were waiting in line to get in, we saw rachel alejandro walk behind us. small mother earth eh? we didn't really check out how far our seats are gonna be from the stage coz *pffftt* they're orchestra seats, that's the best section in the house (although i believe that it depends on the show. wicked is better seen from the balconies while RENT and [title of show] is better seen somewhere close to the stage). when we got in, the usher checked our tickets and told us "to your right"...not "the stairs is to your left/right" but a simple "to your right"..."TO OUR FREAKIN RIGHT"! my jaw nearly dropped when i saw the in the heights set. i think i might have had a tiny orgasm when we i got settled in my seat. it was our first "orchestra seats" experience. we were seated 8 rows away from the stage. we can actually see the actors when they accidentally spit while singing. pretty awesome. the show was amazing! felt the "waterworks" gushing on some of the numbers. then of course we hit the stage door. we met almost all of the cast who performed that night, including grammy winning mistah conductah man, alex lacamoire. i got a hug from chris jackson and robin de jesus. robin is CRAZY! love him all the way to the moon. din and i went home (to hampton inn - our home for 4 days. nice hotel...except for the phantom tv) very happy and satisfied. absolutely worth the 100+ bucks.

we also did the nbc studio tour. we were hoping to see neil patrick harris at the snl studio coz he's hosting that weekend. unfortunately, instead of nph, we saw taylor swift. we also paid our respects to lady liberty and father duffy at times square. had dinner at a thai resto in restaurant row. had pizza and beer somewhere at pier 17. we also went to wall st. and each took turns in grabbing the charging bull's balls. getting off the subway at chinatown was redonk. the station has a very distinctive 'chinatown' smell and was full of oriental people carrying orange plastic bags. battery park was cold and windy. took photos with a lonely panda at bowling green park, nyc's oldest public park. watched shakerleg at times square subway station. that guy was amazing. he plays the drums and cymbals with his bare hards. youtube the dude and be amazed. went to the east village (i loved the east village!) and checked out pommes frites. they serve the most delicious fries you'll ever taste. the people who were working there are filipinos and they like us. instead of just regular size sauces, they gave us bigger ones. yeah that's how we roll, we got connections...well sorta lol. we also found a bar at the the village that does $10 for 5 shots. we went it and shared the 5 shots. i had 2. it was 4 in the afternoon. booya! checked out moma as well. i enjoyed the 'iris' area they have. you can just lay there and relax and watch an artsy video on the wall. went to bryant park as well...by accident. they still have their christmas tree up. found a canadian lounge at bryant park. it made me feel like robin scherbatsky for a bit. of course, we didn't miss out on some central park luvin. i love central park. it is so beautiful when it is covered with snow.

also took din to roxy delicatessen. i swear to lucifer, i'm never coming back to that place ever again. why? they have a racist server. she's far too racist for somebody who has a VERY thick cross-over between spanish and german accent. never in my entire life did i experience such bad service. the worst part was when she demanded for more tips. who the fuck eh? lucky her i let it slide. we should've not but i can't let her ruin our day. in fairness to the rest of roxy's crew, you guys treated me and friend nicely.

if you're visiting NYC, it is imperative that you have: a metro card, comfortable shoes, good map, good navigation skills (i'm working on mine) to work with your map, patience, and an appetite for adventure. don't be afraid to look like a tourist. because, sweetie, you are one.

and for the record, new yorkers are NOT rude. specially the natives who say "lemmegetta slice" or "lemmegetta regular coffee"... which, by the way, means 2 sugars and milk.

so where are we off to next? greek islands?

started 09 with a kablam!

i know it's late but....happy 2009!

another year for change (honk honk). another year to make things right. another year to celebrate life and the glory of REALLY living it. another year to make that giant leap of faith. year of the awesome ox! it's our year, 1985 babies! it's our year!

i started 09 doing what i love...t to the ravel! i visited new york city again. yay!

at the literary walk at central park

it's fun to experience nyc in the winter. i enjoyed it so much! i went with claudine and some other friends. more on our adventure on my next post. god i so want to move there. i'd love to be a part of it. even just like a tiny speck in its hoi polloi.

i still have to make an entry for my 2008 recap. it's a young blogging tradition and i enjoy doing it. browsing through my 2008 photos brings a lot of memories. i was blessed with amazing travelling experiences in 08. more on those on the upcoming recap post.

anyways, this news made my day...

Eleven-month-old boy accidentally dials 9-1-1 and gets dad arrested

THE CANADIAN PRESS

21/01/2009 2:55:00 AM

WHITE ROCK, B.C. - A B.C. man probably wishes he had given his 11-month-old son a set of keys to play with instead of a phone, after the infant accidentally dialled 9-1-1 and brought police to dad's marijuana grow operation.

Mounties say a 9-1-1 call came in from a White Rock, B.C. residence Friday morning but whoever was on the other end of the line hung up. Officers arrived at the residence and after numerous knocks on the door went unanswered, they entered the home.

"The gentleman was quite surprised," said White Rock RCMP Const. Janelle Canning.

She said the 29-year-old male, startled by the sudden sight of police, insisted he hadn't made the call.

When it was suggested a child might have dialled, the father objected and said his son was far too young.

That's when police spotted the baby boy, phone in hand.

"We saw him playing with the cordless phone and just pressing all the buttons, so evidently he had called 9-1-1," Canning said.

With that mystery solved, officers began inspecting the residence and soon discovered a 500-plant marijuana grow operation.

The father was arrested and will appear in court in early April on charges of production of a controlled substance and mischief.

The boy was removed from the home by the Ministry of Children and Family Development, though he was later released into his mother's custody.

The mother does not live in the residence and Canning says she had no idea what was going on at the home.

yes people, babies can be trusted to watch their own back.

cali....again

i'm in california again. yay! as always, i'm staying at my cousins' in san jose. but luckily, i never fail to fly down to los angeles to visit my "beshfwendsh" (naks!). i always see to it that i visit them everytime i come to cali. oh and finally i got to hang out with ate abby hehehe. our meeting was long damn overdue. so this time, we maximized it big time. i got to chillax with kuya barok too which is realy cool.

this is my third visit to cali and i'm still liking it down here. there's a fat chance that i'm gonna come back again early next year for a very awesome special reason. just wait and see...errr...read hehe

brown eyes...errrr....arms

i got a pretty cool tan line on my wrist.

i got it from new york city. yeeeeaaaahhhh!

new york city made my arms more darker.

it's no longer manila tan.......it's nyc tan!

now, since i am in california it got way darker than that.

i now call it my santa monica tan.

boogie yowzers!