at home, at last!

I am finally home!

And the rain was saying "Hello" to me when I arrived.

the final day of my three-week long vacation

Today is my flight back home. It's unbelievable. This journey had been one of the greatest I've experienced and doing it all alone, meeting old friends and making new ones, truly make it amazing. Hopefully, one day, I get to do this again, perhaps in another continent.

My friends and I woke up early with G and O cooking breakfast and Fr making the car ready for us. I am thankful for these three wonderful siblings who made all things simple for me during this leg of my trip - free stay at their apartment, picking me up at Victoria, taking my luggage so I can easily go around London (and also so that I won't have to get a locker at the station), the Wicked play, the trip to Dover, the food (which were all amazing!), the talks, the most comfortable bed in this trip care of Fr (thank you so much for lending me your room), the hot showers, and oh! the walk on wheat fields while there's a downpour, and finally this - driving me to the airport when I have planned way before to just take the train at Victoria or Paddington to go to Heathrow. Guys, thank you so much!

At the airport, I easily checked-in at the Qatar Airlines counter with an excess baggage of about three kilos which the kind airline staff let me get away with -- and he even put me in an aisle seat all the way to Manila without asking, and with a very nice smile. Thank you!

While waiting for my flight, I got to go around Heathrow. It was entirely different from what I remembered, then I realized -- it was a different terminal from where we took off the last time I was here. I went around, bought my reg magnet, stamps and postcards to send to my parents and friends (found out later that not any of the cards I sent ever arrived! :( ). Having the free time also gave me the chance to finally get into the book I've brought with me. It was only then that I realized that the book I carried was really pretty hand and quite good! Thanks, Neil Gaiman.

I am almost home :)

white cliffs of dover

 White Cliffs of Dover

So much excitement today. I finally got to see the White Cliffs of Dover.

Okay, for some maybe, it will not be very interesting but to me, as a geologist, I find this a very nice site to look at a formation that is very significant. This coastline, made up of chalk, is identical to the coastline opposite the ocean in France. Isn't that cool. And cooler yet, the view makes it a nice backdrop for era movies where people, in tattered clothes, landed on the beach, with their boats almost sinking and all.

So anyway, O and his brother and sister drove me up there. G even woke up so early in the morning to prepare our picnic - large bacon sandwiches with the works, fruits and chips. How cool can that be? My only contribution to our picnic was a pack of Nagaraya crackers which these guys surely missed from back home. So that wasn't so bad :)

The cliffs in Dover are actually white due to the limestone/chalk that it is made of. However, I noticed that there are some cobble-sized grains within this formation that looks like quartz with an obsidian texture. I wonder what it is. A marble, perhaps?

The guys and me had fun walking along the edge of the cliff but we had to be careful to follow the trail because in some areas, erosion had already taken place and there are cracks in between it (but this one is exactly on the edge). We walked through grasses, fields of wheat, through plants that are unknown to me. Later, O told me to check my phone to get a surprise and when I pulled out my phone, exactly right there, was the surprise! I'm getting a French signal. We were definitely very near France at that moment :) The day was sunny so it was okay although the shoes that I used was not exactly the right one to go on a very long walk (didn't expect the walk to be that long, you see). We walked all the way up to the other side of the cliff, at the lighthouse. Here, we stopped to catch our breath and just enjoyed the sun.

When we finally decided to head back, the sky started turning gray. We decided to go ahead as the dark clouds where still farther away but in a couple of minutes, the rain started pouring down. My umbrella was almost to the horizontal now, my feet got very cold, my jeans got soaked all the way up through my underwear! Argh! It was uncomfortable. Halfway to our destination though, the rain stopped and we walked along a "deserted" road and when we turned a corner, what a sight to see! We were already seeing the Dover Castle. Oh, so beautiful and so majestic! We cut through a field and still, we can see the Dover Castle sitting atop that wide hill/plain, and I found a blueberry plant (or so I thought). I didn't taste it though because I was not sure if it was safe to eat. So, even though I am very cold and wet, I still had fun because I got to see Dover Castle and see its beauty and I got to pick fresh berries from a tree :)

Dover Castle

Next unexpected stop to our trip was at the Leeds Castle. Unfortunately, it was already closed for visitors and we only got to play with the peacocks running around near the Visitors Area :)

Thanks, O, G and F for the tour. I had a blast! :)

wicked in london

BELFAST

After a hearty meal at Ate and Kuya's house in Belfast, we proceeded to the Belfast Airport for my 1130 flight to London Stansted via EasyJet. It's so sad to say goodbye especially since I really felt at home with them. Here's wishing that I could return soonest.

At the airport, I was charged 20GBP for my excess baggage (I'm not sure where it came from as Ate and I made sure last night that I don't go beyond the baggage limit). Anyways, I was prepared for that eventuality and has already prepared my money. But Ate and Kuya where just so generous that they paid my charges! God has given me really kind people for my elected family :)


STANSTED

The flight was uneventful but when we reached Stansted, it was really raining hard. That was probably why our baggages were long time in coming. At the arrivals area, I proceeded to the bus services and bought a ticket on TerraVision again (should have taken the National Express coz it seemed they load faster and there were guys to help you load your bags in the baggage compartment) for about 9GBP. As I was waiting in line, the rain didn't seem to let up and I was afraid that it would still be raining when I arrive in London.


LONDON

Upon entering the city of London, I recognized some of the places such as the Tower of London (came to see the back side of it), the Parliament and the Big Ben. Later, we would arrive at Victoria Coach Station and I had to walk all the way to the Victoria Train Station across the street to meet up with my friend, O, and his brother. I was planning to leave my bag at the lockers at the train station but my friend's brother was kind enough to take it home with him while O and I will go around the city before going to the gala showing of Wicked at the Victoria Theater (which was just beside the station).

It was drizzling a bit (then it rained hard while we were walking), so O and I had an early dinner at McDonald's (yeah, I know!), then took a bus ride around the city instead. We had a chance to visit Hasbro, though, to look at toys (I guess it was Hasbro) and to escape the rain for a while. In just a short time, we had to go back to Victoria so as to be on time for the musical.


WICKED!!!

Another Dream come true!!!!! Wicked the Musical was splendid. I'm so glad to be able to put pictures with the songs in my head now. Everything was just great. Thanks to O for the treat (wow!), it was truly spectacular.


MAIDSTONE

The train to Maidstone was 18GBP one way (probably almost the same price as going to Cambridge) and we arrived a little bit after 11:00 PM. Just so glad that the train station was just beside the theater so we didn't have to run to take the next train out of the city. We were picked up from the station by O's brother and sister so we didn't have trouble getting a ride back to their place.

The siblings' apartment was relatively big with two rooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen and a family room. F was kind enough to lend me her room for the time that I'm there and it I really appreciate it, although I would not have minded sleeping on the couch (they have a lovely couch). We stayed up late catching up, me getting to know O's siblings as this was the first time that I've seen them, and planning tomorrow's itinerary. G was even able to prepare a late dinner for us at that time, amazing! :)

Sleep came late but I was glad to have a nice, warm bed again in a very welcoming home. I truly love my friends! :)

beyond belfast

First stop....

A visit to Downpatrick and St. Patrick's tomb...

In just one afternoon, only the snow didn't come out... Changing weather, indeed!

Another geologic treat for me! :)

Cave formations and I totally love the bacon...

belfast morning

belfast castle

woke up this morning feeling sicker than yesterday. pardon my grossness but today, my phlegm is the green type and i am just so hoping that i won't be as sick as i was late last year/early this year that i had to buy very expensive medicines just to help me get better. this reminds me that i had to see the doctor as soon as i arrive home. but aside from this, everything is great.


today, kuya and i went around belfast city. it's funny because our first stop was at a clothing store where kuya bought me a pink sweater of my own. as i have mentioned in previous posts, i didn't bring any warm clothes as i was thinking that summer would really be warm. i was wrong. so here i am, with a cute new pink sweater, that i don't really need (since ate lent me hers) but still happy to have.

next stop was another surprise. kuya took me to one of his favorite places -- a car dealership :) no wonder. i grew up knowing how his dad and my dad discuss vehicles. for sure it also rubbed on him. so there we were at charles hurst, going around and around looking at cool cars which are sold second hand: ferrari, range rovers, maserati, bmw and other famous european cars. the jaguars were parked in a closed area so we didn't see them. amazing, the cars are really cool! :)

we went to belfast castle next. it's so cool to know that a noble family has lived there and the whole area it sits on was theirs in the "old" times. the estate was really large and overlooks the city. it's cool thinking about how the people who lived there must have raced horses, walked in their walking attires, or partied in the estate lawns. i can just imagine it. it's like the setting for the medieval ages books that i read sometimes. :)

the next thing we went to was the town center, walking around the streets to see the belfast city hall, the prince albert clock, victoria square and it's viewdeck, checking out the perfumes at the department store, and lastly saw the filipino store at this one weekend market building. yet i think one of the coolest things we've done was pass by an asian warehouse where they sell foods that are familiar to me. i guess that it wouldn't be that bad living in a foreign land when you know that somewhere, there is an asian store where you can buy the ingredients to make your comfort food. when i travel, the markets are the one of the places i love going to because i can see in some ways how people live their lives and how they interact with each other. this was one nice experience.

tomorrow, we are going to a new place. it's going to be another great adventure!

sidetrips

 Home of the best Irish whiskey, they say :) 
This is just a stone's throw away from the causeway (sort of)...

Dunluce Castle

Belfast Shipyard

Cl asked me if I know how the ship was taken out of this "hole." I could not remember so she explained that there were small holes around the walls and when it was time for the Titanic to take its journey, they opened the holes to let the water in (like a dam, perhaps) so that the ship could float and navigate its way out. How cool is that? Apparently, I have a very cheap happiness. Facts such as this amazes me. Hahaha!

blessing

Amidst all the joy and wonder that we have seen today, it is still a great source of awe, joy and thanksgiving to encounter God's providence above all else -- He did not let the house burn down today.

It seems that we had forgotten to turn off the burner before we left the house before lunch today and there was a pan with oil sitting atop the burner. When Ate arrived at the house around three in the afternoon, she smelled something burning and ran straight to the kitchen. And there it was, the burner was still turned on. We have been blessed that the house did not burn down!

Ate was concerned that if the house burned down, I'd lose my passport and won't be able to go home! As for me, I'm just thankful that the house did not burn down!

giant's causeway, baby!

posted 19/3/12

I missed going here the last time I was in the UK but never again. I just had to see this. The only request I had when I my family friends that I'd be visiting was that I get to see this. The trip took us around two hours as we took the scenic coastal route...

I have wanted to post just one picture for this post but I can't seem to help but want to post more. So please indulge me. After all, this was a dream come true! :)

Coastal road to the Giant's Causeway at Antrim

The beautiful columnar basalts are more prominent just around the bend...

Spheroidal weathering and lateritic soil...

Columnar basalt at their coolest! :)

It had been said that the Causeway was made by the giant Finn McCool so he can reach his nemesis at the other side of the island, Scotland. But when he found out that the other giant was bigger than him, he ran back and asked his mother to tell anyone who asks that he was just a baby. So when his enemy went looking for him, he was told that Finn was just a baby and so fearing that Finn could be bigger than him, he went back to his island and destroyed the causeway to prevent Finn from coming back. And so, the causeway stands as it is today.

I know that this story is just myth and I also know that these stones were made by geologic processes that began millions of years ago, but still, I love hearing the story. It might not have gotten the story right but if you're interested, you can look it up, too! :)

Contrasting colors as the lower portion probably reacts with water at high tide...

...and here is me, enjoying the vast columnar basalt around me... I could have stayed all day here :)

the immigration interview

This border immigration interview was the longest one that I had since I started traveling.

It started out when I approached the girl officer without a landing card. Ooops. I forgot all about it!

So I had to go out of the line, pick up a landing card, fill it in and then approached another officer and asked if I missed something. No, I didn't. Then she directed me to the male officer. I handed him my papers but he returned it and asked the first female officer to take me because he didn't have a stamp. Okay, so I went to the other counter only to be called back again as the officer was about to bring him the stamp.

So, the interview begins.

Why am I in Belfast? To visit family friends and to sightsee.
Where am I going? To Belfast.
Is this your first time here? Belfast, yes. UK, no.
Where will I be staying? At our family friend's.
How many days will I be spending in Belfast, in the UK? About one week.
Do I know anyone here? Yes, our family friend.
How do you know them? They are my father's godchildren through marriage.
How will I recognize them? (Ummm... I got confused here).... Ummm... They are outside waiting to pick me up. (I don't think that was exactly the right answer).
So, had my biometrics been taken in Manila? Yes.
Let's see. (And proceeded to ask me for my fingerprint on the machine).
Okay, that's good. So is this your first time here? Belfast, yes. UK, no.
When were you here before? I was a visiting student in Cambridge University when I was still in university.
How long did you stay then? One month.
So where will you be staying? At our friend's house. I have the address. Do you want it?
No, it's ok.
(And then runs through my passport again).
The stamps in your passport, are these for work or personal? Both.
Okay. (And proceeds to stamp my passport - finally!)
 It's okay now?, I asked. Yes, you may go through.
Thank you!

And so I picked up my bag, and when I turned around, I found myself alone in the immigration hall. I was the only one left.

*******

So happy to finally see Kuya, Ate and their two kids!!! :) I'm going to a Pinoy home with a nice, warm bed at last! :) At home, Kuya lent me his laptop so I could do FB and other stuff. Thank God! I need a PC to transfer all my pictures :D

of buses, trains and planes

I took these rides within 24 hours.

So after Teresa and I went around Madrid looking for Calle Bastero (where we finally found it in a place with lots of Chinese immigrants -- but not China Town), we had an early dinner as I had to catch my bus to Barcelona at around 11PM. I still have to pack some of my stuff.

I am grateful that Teresa and Chin (a Filipina volunteer in Spain), accompanied me to the train station to make that I get on the right train, going the right way, so I won't miss the bus. At Avenida Americana, I had to go around looking for the bus bay until I finally talked to a guy whose wife was around looking for it, too! Thankfully, this guy was accommodating and asked me to wait so we could all go together. In just a few minutes, his wife was hurrying us along as the bus was going to leave in a couple of minutes. Wow, I am just so grateful that I bought my ticket in advanced or else I would be running mad around the coach station buying the ticket and looking for the right bus!

I was seated on the left side of the bus. My seatmate was from Latin America, who does not really speak English. When asked if he enjoyed the "World Youth Day," he was so confused but when I translated this to "JMJ," he was really enthusiastic. Unfortunately, we didn't get to converse much because he doesn't really speak English and I don't speak Spanish well. The couple who helped me find the bus were seated behind me.

There was one stopover along the way but as the bus was kind of small (leg-wise), I didn't bother going out because it would just be too much hassle. I went back to sleep.

Early morning, we arrived in Barcelona. As I only have a couple of hours in the city, I decided to go to the Sagrada Familia. Luckily, the train station was just walking distance (I had to leave my bag in the very elusive-can't-find-them lockers, though, costing me 5Euros again!) but it was an effort to figure out the ticket machine even if there was English option to it. Hmmm. What kind of ticket should I buy?! So I pressed one, and when that didn't seem to work, I pressed another and put in some money. Later, one ticket appeared and after a few seconds, another one appeared! So I think I got an extra ticket which looked like a day ticket! :D And as I was curious if it was working, that was the ticket that I used to enter the station and it really worked! :)

So in the subway train, I spotted a Filipino whom I was shy to talk to at first but due to necessity, I walked up to him as we were leaving the train and asked if I was going the right way to see the Sagrada Familia. He said that I was and when we arrived at the steps going out of the subway, he gestured towards my back and said, "it's behind you." When I turned around, I didn't expect it to be quite that huge! I mean, I was literally just standing a couple of meters away from it. That was how close the station is. Writing this now, it made me think of the time when I left the station near the Big Ben in London and never really expecting to come out of the station standing smack at that tall building!

 

Unfortunately, I didn't have lots of time to go around and I had to go back pick my bag up, and get on a aeroporto bus. There were so many kind (but old) people around who helped me with where to take the bus. Maybe they appreciated me speaking in pidgin Spanish? I'm not quite sure but they were smiling. Or maybe they were making fun of me, that I was weird? Never mind. I got on the right bus anyway. The ticket that I got at the train station apparently does not work on the aeroporto bus so I had to pay around 4Euros, only for the bus to let me out on the wrong terminal! So I had to walk, and walk, and walk up to Terminal C where EasyJet was.

So there I was, sitting at the pre-departure area, eating my lunch which was the leftover from yesterday's picnic bag. It was not particularly yummy, but it will have to do until I get to Belfast and eat Pinoy food, cooked by Pinoys! :)

Last Day in Madrid

Good morning, Cuatros Vientos!

Woke up to a slightly cold morning that eventually turned hot in the middle of the morning. We started with a prayer and then a mass which was led by the Pope. Unfortunately, I only got bits and pieces of the service because it was all in Spanish (I really do need to study the language more!).

 Relatively clean area, right?

 In prayer, morning mass... 

Here are Gustavo and Mary, hoping to beat the people to the train. We didn't! :P

Right after the mass, we decided to leave right away so that we won't have a hard time at the Metro but when we got there, it was jampacked! We were separated for a while but found each other very fast. Inside the train wasn't any different. But amidst all the people, Gustavo was able to speak with a Madrileno who suggested a place where we can have lunch.

 Our final treat to ourselves. Lunch at a real Spanish bar and real Spanish sangria. Paid my last 20Euro bill here! LOL. I'm already missing the Sangria!

Gustavo's map. A very well used train map, indeed! My map and Mary's fared better than this! LOL.

Lunch, yes. This was our final lunch with each other, signaling the end of this wonderful journey. As Gustavo had said, if ever Mary and I will be in South America and near his country, we should let him know or else he'll be mad. I'm glad to have found these two great people amongst the millions of people here. Others I know had been skeptical about me finding companions online but I guess this was one great experience for me. It just shows that we can still find the nicest people wherever they may be when you have one goal in common and you have trust with each other. For me, they would forever be my friends. Even if we might not see each other anymore, in my heart, they will be there. I thank the Lord for giving me them.

 At one of the buildings at Plaza Colon

 So do you? And have you? :)

At last! Plaza Cibeles without the crowd. It's beautiful!

Last sightseeing in Madrid and dinner with Theresa before I leave for Barcelona at 11PM from the Ave. America coach station. Almost did not make it because I couldn't see the bay area for the coach. Lucky I met a guy who has the same problem and whose wife went around to ask questions. Later, the girl motioned for him to hurry and I just tagged along. Went we got to the upper level, the coach was almost full. I'm glad I had bought a ticket already or I would definitely miss my plane to Belfast the next day! I got seated with a Dominican guy on the bus who doesn't speak English and when I asked him if he had enjoyed the World Youth Day, he answered in Spanish that he doesn't know what the WYD was and that he attended the JMJ. Okay, my mistake. I should have said JMJ! :P When a guy on the other side of him asked what time we would be stopping for a break (in English), he tapped his friend and asked how to say 330am in English. Hehehe. Sometimes, it's really hard not being able to converse in English but sometimes, it's just too bad that we have not learned speaking in Spanish, too. Anyways, the kid was nice so I was patient with him. The couple I was with earlier were seated behind me.

The trip to Barcelona was uneventful. Well, what can I say? It was late and it's dark outside so I slept :P

Day 5

After the very nice breakfast at school, I finally headed to Puerto del Sol station to meet up with Mary and Gustavo. From there, we decided to walk around for a bit then head to the nearest station that would take us near the Cuatro Vientos. My goodness, the walk towards that place was so tiring and it was so hot! Some people would even sprinkle water for us from their apartment windows! Others turn their hoses on so that other pilgrims can cool themselves. There are also those who take advantage of the event and set up shops along the road selling cold drinks. As for us, we decided to sit down.

 Carol, Aims, Kuya, am I back home?

 

 At Plaza Mayor again! 

Can't really believe I've finally seen a place I've only heard before in my Spanish class!

We would have gone on walking when one of the Pinoys I've met there told us that they're waiting coz the Pope's entourage were going to pass here. So we waited and waited and waited some more. 

Finally, we saw the Pope!!! 

(I thought I had it all recorded only to find out that I haven't pressed the record button. Argh!)

Zoom option from Gustavo's camera. You can imagine how close we were! It was so exciting!

Upon arriving at Cuatros Vientos, everything was just so dry and dustry. There were a lot of people everywhere that it was hard at first to find a shade where we can rest a bit. Along the way, we decided to pick up our picnics and had Gustavo do it for us (hehehe). Finally we found a place near the one of the booths that were set up to sell WYD items. As the day wore on, I had to go to one of the WCs. There were lots of WCs set up but the one nearest us had some cubicles that do not have water running anymore, certain places were already flooded and the queue was very, very long! :( The nice thing about it though was that nobody (or not too many) complained about it and were just patiently waiting for their turn. Oh! It was also weird for me to see that others get their drinking water from the WC faucet. Uhmmm... The water must be clean (and definitely cold) but as someone who comes from a place where one should be wary of drinking water from the toilet, this was a bit of a 'weird' moment for me.

 Near the WYD booth when we arrived

 This was how it was only an hour or two...

Our picnic bag has this paper where they suggest what to eat for lunch, dinner and breakfast the next day. This was one of those stuff inside. Yummy!

As the day wore on, the sun was just getting high and it was so hot and we ended up taking our siesta where we were sitting. When we woke up, we were surrounded by more people than before. Later, we decided to move on and go to our designated place. As I am nearer the stage at D, we first decided to go there and try to see if we all can get through the D area but we ended up staying at the concrete space in between G and H. Lucky for us though because later that night, when we were having the vigil with the Pope, lightning and rain came, getting all our stuff wet! Mary and I even had to take cover inside our sleeping bags! How unlucky we would have been if we got into D. Not only would we be wet, but our stuff would be so dirty because the place was just uncovered earth.

Mary and I also got to talk to a girl from the other group beside us who's also from California. We hit it off because Mary also lives in California and the girl is Fil-Am and speaks Filipino. It was a nice treat for us to be making friends, even for just that night, with the other pilgrims. 

Area H at Cuatro Vientos. The stage is so far away that the sound arrives later than 

the one from the radio coverage! LOL.

Around us! So may plastic bags. I thought when they said a picnic basket, it would be a basket. No, it's plastic bag. Hehehe. Imagine the trash that we would all have made by tomorrow!

During the vigil, strong winds also accompanied the rain. Even the Pope's cap flew, halting the prayer for a while. Late that night, under the stars, we tried to sleep on damp sleeping bags. I know I'm kinda getting sick already so all I did was pray that I won't be too sick that I won't be able to enjoy the rest of my trip. I prayed that if ever I do get sick, it will come when I'm back home.

I thought I won't be able to sleep that night but maybe because of the tiresome day we had, I finally fell asleep with all these other pilgrims around me, under the stars, praying with the Pope, saying the same prayers.

I love it!

lozenges

posted 9/10/11 10:00




today, i had to buy strepsils to keep the colds away. to my dismay, the strepsils lozenges are humongous! and they don't sell it in packs. instead, they sell it in the same form we buy our tablets. i can't describe how it is in english, basta yung silver foil na binubutas mo para lumabas yung tableta. basta ganun!

pio xii group

Javier, our housing administrator, together with Maite, promised us a treat for breakfast last night. He said it would be something other than what we were having the last couple of days (pastry bread and chocolate power drinks). So after dressing up and partially packing and securing my bag, I went outside to the school court to see what's for breakfast. I am kinda excited because I was told by the others last night that breakfast would be a traditional Spanish food - churros and chocolate! :)

The bread was kinda salty and the chocolate thick. One of the delegates, after eating her first churros, told the Pinoy volunteers: "Ate, it just kind of tastes like tuyo and champorado!" Hahaha. Indeed, it was something like that but it was a really nice treat and the churros were overflowing and the chocolate syrup was served from these large styro cups (as in really large, equivalent probably to a super large drinks cup from the fastfood chains).

After breakfast, we had our group picture for posterity :)

Thanks to Ate Beck for sharing us this picture! :)

So thankful for the volunteers (green shirts), especially our fellow Pinoys, for helping us with everything and making us feel at home in our "school home." Special mention also to Javier and Maite for the warm welcome and the care you both have shown everyone. For me, you were like my foster parents. Thank you.

water boobsy

Today was really warm and the volunteers can only shower us with water from their water guns to keep us cool. This was around 8 o'clock in the evening at around 35C and so...

Fouche: Can somebody tell that girl to cover up?!

posted 3/17/12 02:32

JMJ 2011 Day 2

 My ID card, by the way... :)

posted 5/1/12
Today was an unhurried day. Mary and I decided to do Route 2 and see the churches in Madrid. We met up at Principe Pio station around 11a (I was late because I woke up late and there were too many people taking the shower late, too). We walked towards the Cathedral of Almuneda and I think we ended up seeing the crypt, which is located at the back of the cathedral. I say crypt because although it was a very nice church, there were buried people there (or just their epitaphs), especially on the floors, along the aisles. Because it was kind of weird for me to walk on it, I always walk around it. Imagine, there were even flowers placed on top or beside these inscriptions. Creepy but also solemn.

Later, we would see the outside of the Palacio Real but got no pictures with us on it because of the crowd (again!). We had lunch at Plaza San Miguel. This was another place I'm looking forward to seeing, a mercado. There were so many choices to choose from and lots of eye-pleasing items! As I have not eaten rice in the last couple of days, I've finally given in to cravings and ordered paella for 4.40E. Expensive and does not taste that good. I ordered one with seafoods on it but unfortunately, the serving was like 90% rice and 10% seafood. We also had frozen yogurt for dessert (3.50E). Now that Is yummy!

Seafood paella with not much seafood...

One funny thing though. Alright, not funny, but perhaps an eye-opener? That people may be the same even you come from different places. As we were eating on the sidewalk of the mercado, there's this "grungy"-looking old woman looking at us and when we looked, she was asking for alms. We were almost done eating at that time and we still have food left so I offered my plate but she refused. I said, "comida." But she again refused. I thought she did not understand what I said and offered her the plate again. She shook her head and then lifted her hand again. We then understood that she wanted money. It just makes me think that people aren't different in so many ways, after all. There are those who just wanted money, refusing any offer of food.

After lunch, we walked around a bit to see Plaza Mayor (at last!!!) but we decided to head back to the park to find some cool shade. We were not alone thinking that because when we arrived there, there were already people setting themselves up for a rest. We chose our tree, near a fountain, and laid down. Eventually, we fell asleep. Imagine that, me sleeping for the first time in an open park without being worried of getting mugged! LOL.

We missed the movies at Calle Falscana (?) so we headed to Plaza Orientale for a cultural program from the Neuf Community but before that, we had lunch (again) at VIPS. Then we were carried away by our curiosity to this small shop with lots of people in it. Apparently, they were selling shoes that look like Espadrilles. Eventually, Mary and I were able to buy our own pair for 8E (with banner). I was also happy leaving this place because I was able to converse in Spanish with the proprietor and he understood me! Here's the full story.

I was also able to have some conversations with my fellow Pinoys. Funny, because they keep asking me where I'm from, meaning where aside from the PI do I come from. When I tell them I'm from back home, they'd be very amaze to find out that I came all the way from there just to be here. Also, as I was talking to these people, especially those kids who grew up in Italy, I realize that they are more nationalistic than those who actually grew up at home. They carry their flag with pride, they speak respectfully of their parents, they speak of their love of everything Pinoy, and their wish to visit home soon, or more often.

Another thing that I noticed. Filipinos, although they take pride in having good hygiene, can be very insensitive sometimes and actually are not clean -- sometimes. I noticed this when I use the bathroom and toilets at the school. The ones I've been with threw their shampoo on the shower floor, leave their other stuff on the counters and even hang their washed clothes everywhere. It was a big difference with our African schoolmates (who left after a day to go to another school) who mop the floor of the bathroom when they were finished. I guess the ones I'm housed with are from a rich group who are used to have helpers to do the cleaning for them. I just felt a bid sad about it.

Anyways, we had dinner at FrescCo, where I was able to use my extra dinner stub again for a buffet. I'm so glad because those who served us where also Filipinos and were very nice to me, and offered help/directions/advice in being safe, especially with my stuff, and stories of living in Madrid :)