TRAVEL AND LIFESTYLE DIARIES

When I was in Singapore last year I managed to meet up with a very old colleague for lunch. Let’s call her Sashay. We were both very young when we met (circa 22+ years ago). It was in fact my first corporate job in Manila. I worked in the marketing department and was looking after the merchandising and design of our upscale retail shops. Sashay and I didn’t have any contact whatsoever for more than a decade until a few years ago when we bumped into each other in Facebook. She now lives in Singapore and when she knew I was in town we quickly set up a date to catch up. It is quite extraordinary to know someone from a long-time ago chapter of your life, and then to see them again now, as if it was just yesterday. Sky-high lunch with a view of Singapore. When we were communicating in Facebook I told her that it would be nice if we can have lunch in a nice place with a view of the city somewhere in the Orchard area. She told me not to worry as she exactly knew a place that ...

This is another one of my long overdue posts. I visited the Royal Palace for the first time in December 2014. Locals call it the Dampaleis or the Dam Palace (abbreviated from the Amsterdam Palace). December 2014 was a challenging end of the year month for me as I was recovering from the Pneumonia sickness I picked up during my Japan - Philippines holiday. It was the first time for me to be really sick as an adult. I felt helpless. Walking 500 metres was already a daunting activity. It was a nightmare to go up the stairs. I cannot even sit straight for half an hour without having back pains. So I managed to arrange working 50% instead of fulltime and remotely at home as well for the whole month of December while I slowly recover. I also exerted effort to be active again by going out for walks whenever I can. The month was really about moving forward one day at a time. So during this period I spent a lot of time at home but I also did some things that I have long wanted to do but...

This post is insanely long overdue. Like 2 years overdue! The City Hall of Haarlem. My blogging backlog is amazing and in a way I am quite grateful because that means I have been travelling and enjoying life to the fullest. I work fulltime and I work hard. I also save majority of what I earn for the future (read: I want to retire early). But I also do my best in enjoying life the way I want to. That said, I am doing what makes me happy, and this is what is important. Why? Because life is fleeting. I have to remind myself this fact of life everytime. I have seen it up close how life is so precious, so fragile and so unfair... Nevertheless, I was in Haarlem 2 years ago (2014) in March. It was the end of winter and the day was exceptionally lovely. The sun was shining and the skies were blue. This happens rarely in cold and grey Netherlands. In fact as I write now it is cold and raining outside. I remember having lunch at the Grand Cafe Brinkmann , otherwise known as the l...