Amelia's Nest

First day activity of our Hong Kong trip was a visit to Avenue of the Stars since it's just a walking distance to our hotel.



Avenue of the Stars was built under the inspiration of Hollywood Walk of Fame. And is located along Victoria Harbour in Tsim Sha Tsui and fronting Hong Kong island.


In the evening, hubby and I went to night market or ladies-market in Mongkok. We walked the long stretch of Nathan Road all the way to Jordan and headed to Mongkok. The night market offers a lot of sale, from garments, shoes, electronic gadgets, paintings, toys, and street food.



We also found the Esprit outlet and of course I didn't walk away without purchasing apparel for me, hubby, my mum and kids. It was really a good buy almost 70% off the usual price here in Singapore. We also bought painting in there. Hubby and I normally purchased paintings to the place we have visited. A unique painting in that place.

Note: If you are a shop-a-holic be sure you have someone with you to watch out your spendings. It is true indeed that Hong Kong is a shoppers haven.

For our four-days-three-night stay in HongKong we stayed at Standford Hillview Hotel. this is located at Observatory road in Kowloon area. The place was strategic since is just a walking distance to History and Science Museum, Cultural Center, Avenue of the Stars, Art and Space Museum, Nathan Road and Temple Night Market. If you know what's in Nathan Road I bet you'll going to love Mongkok. Nathan Road is where most of the branded shops are located and they really offer a lot of sale and discounts. Stretch a bit and you can go to Mongkok where the so-called night market or ladies market is located. There you can find also at lot of sale. Street market, gadgets, accessories, street food, everything, you name it they have it.


Hubby choose this location personally since he knows it will be a convenient place for all of us. Hubby used to worked in HongKong and China for a year or two. If you decided to go to Macau, ferry is just few blocks away. By the way, this hotel offers a free shuttle going to the ferry. Just have to approach the receptionist for your booking.


The hotel is good though it's not that spacious and I bet most of the hotels in HongKong is like that for space is a big deal for them. We occupy two rooms. They have everything you need. A bath-tub, small fridge, lcd tv, a warm and cozy bed.


Maybe if you're planning to visit HongKong you may want to consider the place. But one thing that is a bit difficult and challenging was the location especially if you have kids. It's like you're climbing a hill.They are located at the top of observatory road. But the view is excellent.

This year our family out-of-the-country trip was in Hong Kong. We had arranged this since February 2010. We bought the package and payed for it. It was a five-days-four-nights stay in Hon Kong. We scheduled it in August 19-23, 2010 timing for our birthdays celebration.

It could have been happier if things didn't happen before this trip. But we never know what's going to happen. Indeed life is full of mystery. But since we can't cancel or reschedule the event so we decided to push-thru with it. We did enjoy the trip and the kids especially. Especially our Disney Land stay. So memorable and lot of fun. And since we were in HK, hubby and I grab the chance to visit Macau for day trip. So we allotted one day to visit the place. I love Macau! For those who are in my Facebook, I have uploaded the photos and ready for viewing. I will post photos here later.

It’s been almost two months since he left. And is now with our Creator.

Six years ago, my husband introduced this great man to me, his father. And a year after I was officially part of his family. But before meeting his father in person he was telling a lot of things about him. How his father raised the family, how he helped his brothers and sisters and how he worked as a public servant. And it impressed me a lot. I even envy my husband to a certain extent.

He worked in one of the Philippines government's immense and prominent department. He started in as apprentice and rose from the rank becoming regional director. I describe this man as honest, hard working, diligent, humble and giving father, friend, colleague, and leader. He stood his grounds. He fights for it even at the expense of the family. As long as he knows he’s right and that his conscience tell him to do so he will. He was a natural leader. He was born to become a leader and no doubt that he has been. He will not waste time even when he retires from the organization he was still active doing consulting work, conducting workshops, lectures and doing business. He wouldn’t use his authority or connections just to gain personal advances. This you can vividly recognized of him. A simple illustration, he never used government’s car to go to a certain place but instead he will use his personal car or take public transportation. He imparts good values to his children, subordinates and siblings.

On the day when his colleagues and superior gives their eulogy. They are saying a lot of good things about him. They are not saying this just for the sake of saying because he was no longer with us. But they said it because that’s what their hearts and minds has to say. I feel the sincerity when they are uttering those words. There’s this man who is on teary eyes when he was delivering his piece. Two of his superior remembers him as, “moral compass” and “work barometer”. His colleagues and subordinates, remembers him as good mentor, leader and friend.

Many people pay respect on his last days. You can see it on the flowers, time spent to express sympathy to the family. Some of them even traveled from north to south, east to west of the country to bid farewell and extend condolences in person to the grieving family. Even his classmates from NDCP (National Defence College of the Philippines), a prestigious school where most of the leaders of the Philippine government studies, came and spoke to us about him. Influential and rich people in his place, people from all walks of life in one way or another has touched their lives by this great man has gathered and offered prayers for him. I was told by my mother once, when we attended an interment that a person’s value or significance can be measured from the people who attends your interment. And the words they are saying about you. And that was really true.

He will always be remembered with this lines:

"you can not give what you don't have"
"you can not be pope-ish than the pope"
"let's call it a day for tomorrow is another day"

He has lived a noble life. Self-less, passionate and unswerving. It was so inspiring hearing those things and makes me even prouder to say, “I’m glad to be part of his family”.

To you Pang, thank you for living your life to the fullest. Thank you for the time and chance that I came to know you. Thank you for the love and care you have given us. You will always be missed but you will always be in our hearts. You will always be remembered and your legacy will live on.

About a month ago, hubby and I was having a good time with our cup of coffee when out of nowhere he asked me a simple yet profound question. Tough it’s not difficult to reply for I am very sure of what I want. And will surely answer him clearly and vividly. What was the question, it’s like this, “Most of your friends are still single and no kids and surely they are enjoying their selves traveling here and there, drinking and partying all night, would you want your life be like them given the choice?” And I heartily say, “no! I wouldn’t trade my life now with that so-called temporary happiness.” Opps, sorry I may sound too harsh. Pardon me but in my honest opinion, I say its temporary for what is life without someone whom you are taking care with. One may travel around-the-world, eat at the very best and fine restaurant, and wear a very expensive clothes without having someone to share all of those with. How lonely and tragic it maybe. What is life without a child of your own? Or simply having a significant person that you can share your ups and downs. And a family that you can call your own and share your life with.

You may have a different perspective about life in single-hood and I respect that but mine is different. Mine, is about having a family.

Family is where, happiness, trials, difficulties, success & joy collides in any form. It’s a mixture of everything. Since you are taking care of a human being and maintaining relationship, that itself is a challenge. But I love it. I love every single bit and time when me and my hubby argues about what to buy, where to go, what to eat and what-not. And I love every single time when we agree on all of those things. I love seeing my kids grow, oh boy they are growing so fast and I can't stop them from doing so. I love sharing their innocence and energy, and I wonder where on earth they get all those energy. I love every single bit that I need to joggle my time for work, family and other activities and yet I was able to manage them all.

My life may not be simple and easy but I love every single bit of it and I will not trade it for anything else in this world. And I can say, my life is great and profound.

After two years of blogging I decided to give a lift on my blog. A minimalist and clear look. I love the shades of green that's why I still have it. My previous template was dark green with the touch of nature. I like the combination of this new template; green, pink, white, and gray.

Maybe I will settle with this for another year or so. Thanks for the free templates available in the web I managed to change and do some customization on the template. I'm no technical person but I understand a little on xml. When I was changing the template, hubby asked me why I am spending time in changing and why not retain what I have. But I feel the need to change. Maybe because I'm so used to before and I felt that I'm seeing the same thing again and again. As I said, whatever gives me pleasure I will surely do it. I'm happy with this new look of my blog and looking forward for more blogging. I hope so with this current situation that I have now. Joggled everything in a limited time.

Thanks for dropping by!!

It’s a thirty-minute ride from my place going to work. It may be a long journey for others but for me I find solitude every time I headed to work. Sitting-in-the-bus-while-reading my book gives a sense of tranquility and pleasure. A time away from a busy schedule of a working-mum. A time to be with myself while enjoying the thing I wanted the most. And it’s a good way of spending my time while waiting for the bus-stop where I need to alight. Reading is one thing I can’t live without. When I was young I was told to never stop reading for in reading you got the opportunity to read what it’s in the mind of the author. You can experience what they have experienced, just merely reading what they have wrote, the extremes of things, life's great adventure, misfortune of someone, dilemma of a confused lover, and whole-lot-more that you can ever imagine. It will teach you great things. These are information that may or may not helpful but still its information. Information that can last a lifetime. And so I quote,

I received this article from my former boss back in the Philippines and it was very enlightening. Indeed it's true. Carry on reading and you'll understand what it is.

Filipinos, let us keep our head up high and hopes even higher. Be always reminded of our culture, values and history. Never lose hope but instead we keep our faith and all that is with us. I kept quite about what happened last August 23 in Hong Kong. The day when we were also in Hong Kong for our family trip. Little did we know that there was something bad happened. As I was also living in a foreign country it hurts me more as I need to defend my beloved Philippines from the eyes of the foreigners. But needless to say a thing but rather I say, I am proud to be a citizen of the Philippines and will always say I am a true Filipina that will always love my country no matter what.

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The Filipino Today
By Alex Lacson


After the August 23 hostage drama, there is just too much negativity about and against the Filipino. “It is difficult to be a Filipino these days”, says a friend who works in Hongkong. “Nakakahiya tayo”, “Only in the Philippines” were some of the comments lawyer Trixie Cruz-Angeles received in her Facebook. There is this email supposedly written by a Dutch married to a Filipina, with 2 kids, making a litany of the supposed stupidity or idiocy of Filipinos in general. There was also this statement by Fermi Wong, founder of Unison HongKong, where she said – “Filipino maids have a very low status in our city”. Then there is this article from a certain Daniel Wagner of Huffington Post, wherein he said he sees nothing good in our country’s future.

Clearly, the hostage crisis has spawned another crisis – a crisis of faith in the Filipino, one that exists in the minds of a significant number of Filipinos and some quarters in the world.

It is important for us Filipinos to take stock of ourselves as a people – of who we truly are as a people. It is important that we remind ourselves who the Filipino really is, before our young children believe all this negativity that they hear and read about the Filipino.

We have to protect and defend the Filipino in each one of us.

The August 23 hostage fiasco is now part of us as Filipinos, it being part now of our country’s and world’s history. But that is not all that there is to the Filipino. Yes, we accept it as a failure on our part, a disappointment to Hong Kong, China and to the whole world.

But there is so much more about the Filipino.

In 1945, at the end of World War II, Hitler and his Nazi had killed more than 6 million Jews in Europe. But in 1939, when the Jews and their families were fleeing Europe at a time when several countries refused to open their doors to them, our Philippines did the highly risky and the unlikely –thru President Manuel L Quezon, we opened our country’s doors and our nation’s heart to the fleeing and persecuted Jews. Eventually, some 1,200 Jews and their families made it to Manila. Last 21 June 2010, or 70 years later, the first ever monument honoring Quezon and the Filipino nation for this “open door policy” was inaugurated on Israeli soil, at the 65-hectare Holocaust Memorial Park in Rishon LeZion, Israel.

The Filipino heart is one of history’s biggest, one of the world’s rare jewels, and one of humanity’s greatest treasures.

In 2007, Baldomero M. Olivera, a Filipino, was chosen and awarded as the Scientist for the Year 2007 by Harvard University Foundation, for his work in neurotoxins which is produced by venomous cone snails commonly found in the tropical waters of Philippines. Olivera is a distinguished professor of biology at University of Utah, USA. The Scientist for the Year 2007 award was given to him in recognition to his outstanding contribution to science, particularly to molecular biology and groundbreaking work with conotoxins. The research conducted by Olivera’s group became the basis for the production of commercial drug called Prialt (generic name – Ziconotide), which is considered more effective than morphine and does not result in addiction. The Filipino mind is one of the world’s best, one of humanity’s great assets.

The Filipino is capable of greatness, of making great sacrifices for the greater good of the least of our people. Josette Biyo is an example of this. Biyo has masteral and doctoral degress from one of the top universities in the Philippines – the De La Salle University (Taft, Manila) – where she used to teach rich college students and was paid well for it. But Dr Biyo left all that and all the glamour of Manila, and chose to teach in a far-away public school in a rural area in the province, receiving the salary of less than US$ 300 a month. When asked why she did that, she replied “but who will teach our children?” In recognition of the rarity of her kind, the world-famous Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States honoured Dr Biyo a very rare honor – by naming a small and new-discovered planet in our galaxy as “Biyo”.

The Filipino is one of humanity’s best examples on the greatness of human spirit!

Efren Penaflorida was born to a father who worked as a tricycle driver and a mother who worked as laundrywoman. Through sheer determination and the help of other people, Penaflorida finished college. In 1997, Penaflorida and his friends formed a group that made pushcarts (kariton) and loaded them with books, pens, crayons, blackboard, clothes, jugs of water, and a Philippine flag. Then he and his group would go to the public cemetery, market and garbage dump sites in Cavite City – to teach street children with reading, math, basic literacy skills and values, to save them from illegal drugs and prevent them from joining gangs. Penaflorida and his group have been doing this for more than a decade. Last year, Penaflorida was chosen and awarded as CNN Hero for 2009.

Efren Penaflorida is one of the great human beings alive today. And he is a Filipino!

Nestor Suplico is yet another example of the Filipino’s nobility of spirit. Suplico was a taxi driver In New York. On 17 July 2004, Suplico drove 43 miles from New York City to Connecticut, USA to return the US$80,000 worth of jewelry (rare black pearls) to his passenger who forgot it at the back seat of his taxi. When his passenger offered to give him a reward, Suplico even refused the reward. He just asked to be reimbursed for his taxi fuel for his travel to Connecticut. At the time, Suplico was just earning $80 a day as a taxi driver. What do you call that? That’s honesty in its purest sense. That is decency most sublime. And it occurred in New York, the Big Apple City, where all kinds of snakes and sinners abound, and a place where – according to American novelist Sydney Sheldon – angels no longer descend. No wonder all New York newspapers called him “New York’s Most Honest Taxi Driver”. The New York City Government also held a ceremony to officially acknowledge his noble deed. The Philippine Senate passed a Resolution for giving honors to the Filipino people and our country.

In Singapore, Filipina Marites Perez-Galam, 33, a mother of four, found a wallet in a public toilet near the restaurant where she works as the head waitress containing 16,000 Singaporean dollars (US $11,000). Maritess immediately handed the wallet to the restaurant manager of Imperial Herbal restaurant where she worked located in Vivo City Mall. The manager in turn reported the lost money to the mall’s management. It took the Indonesian woman less than two hours to claim her lost wallet intended for her son’s ear surgery that she and her husband saved for the medical treatment. Maritess refused the reward offered by the grateful owner and said it was the right thing to do.

The Filipina, in features and physical beauty, is one of the world’s most beautiful creatures! Look at this list – Gemma Cruz became the first Filipina to win Miss International in 1964; Gloria Diaz won as Miss Universe in 1969; Aurora Pijuan won Miss International in 1970; Margie Moran won Miss Universe in 1973; Evangeline Pascual was 1st runner up in Miss World 1974; Melanie Marquez was Miss International in 1979; Ruffa Gutierrez was 2nd runner up in Miss World 1993; Charlene Gonzalez was Miss Universe finalist in 1994; Mirriam Quiambao was Miss Universe 1st runner up in 1999; and last week, Venus Raj was 4th runner up in Miss Universe pageant.

I can cite more great Filipinos like Ramon Magsaysay, Ninoy Aquino, Leah Salonga, Manny Pacquaio, Paeng Nepomuceno, Tony Meloto, Joey Velasco, Juan Luna and Jose Rizal. For truly, there are many more great Filipinos who define who we are as a people and as a nation – each one of them is part of each one of us, for they are Filipinos like us, for they are part of our history as a people.

What we see and hear of the Filipino today is not all that there is about the Filipino. I believe that the Filipino is higher and greater than all these that we see and hear about the Filipino. God has a beautiful story for us as a people. And the story that we see today is but a fleeting portion of that beautiful story that is yet to fully unfold before the eyes of our world.

So let’s rise as one people. Let’s pick up the pieces. Let’s ask for understanding and forgiveness for our failure. Let us also ask for space and time to correct our mistakes, so we can improve our system.

To all of you my fellow Filipinos, let’s keep on building the Filipino great and respectable in the eyes of our world – one story, two stories, three stories at a time – by your story, by my story, by your child’s story, by your story of excellence at work, by another Filipino’s honesty in dealing with others, by another Pinoy’s example of extreme sacrifice, by the faith in God we Filipinos are known for.

Every Filipino, wherever he or she maybe in the world today, is part of the solution. Each one of us is part of the answer. Every one of us is part of the hope we seek for our country. The Filipino will not become a world-class citizen unless we are able to build a world-class homeland in our Philippines.

We are a beautiful people. Let no one in the world take that beauty away from you. Let no one in the world take away that beauty away from any of your children! We just have to learn – very soon – to build a beautiful country for ourselves, with an honest and competent government in our midst.

Mga kababayan, after reading this, I ask you to do two things.

First, defend and protect the Filipino whenever you can, especially among your children. Fight all this negativity about the Filipino that is circulating in many parts of the world. Let us not allow this single incident define who the Filipino is, and who we are as a people. And second, demand for good leadership and good government from our leaders. Question both their actions and inaction; expose the follies of their policies and decisions. The only way we can perfect our system is by engaging it. The only way we can solve our problem, is by facing it, head on.

We are all builders of the beauty and greatness of the Filipino. We are the architects of our nation’s success.

To all the people of HK and China, especially the relatives of the victims, my family and I deeply mourn with the loss of your loved ones. Every life is precious. My family and I humbly ask for your understanding and forgiveness.