How We Moved from the UAE to Canada

Even before we came to Canada for a vacation back in 2015, Hubby and I already knew we wanted to move here eventually.  We tried applying for Permanent Residency through Express Entry and looked into other options, but unfortunately our points were either not enough or we weren't 100% decided with the choices available.  So, Hubby checked vacancies that were posted on the internet and applied for positions that were similar to his current job. Also, we included it in our family prayer every night for God to allow us to work and live in Canada.  This went on for more than two years.

Touring the Emirates Aviation College with NaWie Sisses

I’m sure you’ve all heard of Emirates Airlines. It’s the largest airline in the Middle East and has received several accolades for their amazing products and services. And who can forget Jennifer Aniston’s commercials of the Emirates A380? ☺ If I had it my way, I would only travel on Emirates flights. Their in-flight entertainment is packed, the seats are comfortable, the crew are courteous and professional, and the food is delicious!

Viral Ball: The Souqpinoy Slimdown Challenge Press Launch

I admit I’m not a fit or athletic person. I don’t go to the gym and the only exercise I do is walking and jogging around the neighborhood park. And although I’ve been trying to watch what I eat lately, I’m far from what you would describe as health conscious. So imagine my surprise when I received an invitation to the press launch of The Souqpinoy Slimdown Challenge. I was sure I wouldn’t fit in (pun intended ☺), but since I honestly wanted to know more about it, my family and I headed to The Coach Academy in Al Muneera Gym last Friday.

How to Get Travel Insurance for People Visiting UAE

Back in November last year, my siblings and I made a sudden decision for Mama to have a 3-month vacation in Dubai. We applied for her visit visa through a travel agency, received it on the fifth working day, and proceeded to buy her ticket online.

Since we were running out of time, we didn’t go to the Philippine Consulate to get an Affidavit of Support & Guarantee anymore. Why? For one thing, Mama is already a senior citizen. For another, my sister would be travelling with her; she could answer any questions if they asked why she didn’t have an Affidavit. We weren’t sure if it was needed, but we just took the chance and hoped that the authorities at NAIA wouldn’t request for the document. Luckily, they passed through Immigration uneventfully and Mama happily boarded the plane.

My Elite Experience at Ed Sheeran's Dubai Concert

I had been looking forward to a long overdue massage at home last Thursday night; my shoulders and back needed it and my appointment had already been scheduled.  But just before lunch, my sister called saying that she was invited to watch Ed Sheeran’s concert that night and if I wanted to join her.  Hello?! Free tickets to watch the sold out concert of one of today’s popular and amazing musicians?  Of course I said yes, even though it meant I had to (very embarrassingly) cancel my massage session for the second time.

Filipino Food Fiesta at Olive Oil, Jumeira Rotana

Manila, Manila. I keep coming back to Manila…

As my family and I stepped into the lobby of Jumeira Rotana and walked towards Olive Oil Restaurant last Friday, it was hard to miss the strains of the familiar song. We had been invited to try the Filipino Food Fiesta, which is Olive Oil’s new offering for their Friday brunch, and upon seeing that the hotel’s all-day dining outlet had been adorned with colourful buntings near the entrance and at the bar, it instantly put us in the festive mood. And the photobooth with the Philippines’ “King of the Road,” made us more excited to see what was in store for us.

Iftar at Olive Oil, Jumeira Rotana

Ramadan Kareem, everyone!

How are you finding the holy month of Ramadan, so far? I'm sure you're enjoying the shorter working hours, right? ☺ Well, aside from the fact that I get to spend more time with my family, what I also love about Ramadan are the Iftars. Invitations from friends and companies to join them to break their fast is always a treat, and these are always great opportunities to get together and catch up.

So when I received an invitation from Jumeira Rotana for their Iftar Night at Olive Oil restaurant last week, I wasted no time and confirmed me and Hubby right away.

We arrived at the hotel located in Satwa at around 7:45pm last Wednesday night and were immediately welcomed by Ms. Monaliza Doush, Jumeira Rotana & Villa Rotana's Cluster Marketing & Communications Executive. Other blogger friends I knew had already arrived: Mauh of Blessed Days in Dubai, Jhoysi of The Thrift Trip, Carla of My Yellow Bells, and Doc Gelo of Beyond Toxicity were already relishing the food on their plates.

Anyway, moving on to the buffet spread.  Since Hubby and I were already late by the time we arrived, a lot of the dishes were already more than half-empty.  Fortunately, their Sous Chef Marius Weise, and the rest of the servers frequently checked the chafing dishes to make sure they were promptly refilled so we still had the chance to taste everything.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to take any good photos of the mains but there were several to whet our appetites and satisfy our hunger.  While I enjoyed the seafood dishes, Hubby frequently went back to the spread for his favorite item, the lamb ouzi. You can be sure he savoured every bite he took of the tender meat.

Thank you, Ms. Mona and the rest of the staff of Olive Oil Restaurant and Jumeira Rotana for such a delightful evening.   

Want to have your next Iftar at Olive Oil? The original price for the buffet is Dhs129 which includes Ramadan drinks and soft beverages, but you can avail of 50% discount by printing the voucher here.

Disclaimer: We were invited to the Iftar Night. However, all views and opinions are my own.

Olive Oil Restaurant
Jumeira Rotana
2nd December Street, Dubai
Phone: 04-3455888

Grease the Musical

Back when we were kids in Papua New Guinea, whenever my siblings and I had the chance to borrow VHS tapes from our friends or the neighbourhood video rental shop, my sister and I almost always chose the movies with lots of singing and dancing. I guess it was because Papa was musically-inclined so he somehow influenced our preferences in movies. Some of our favorites until now are The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and Grease. I remember we enjoyed watching those movies over and over again, singing along when the characters sang, and not caring if we were out of tune ☺

How to Get a Personal Nol Card for Students

Since February, because Hubby often has errands to attend to or has to work on Saturdays, Caila and I have been commuting more frequently during weekends when we have to go out.  This led me to find out how to apply for a personal Nol card for her because students get a 50% discount on the original fare!

Fortunately, the steps to get one are pretty easy.

Mama’s 75th Birthday (Part 3): Desert Safari

Wanting our guests to experience Dubai as much as they could during their brief visit, my sister and I decided to take them on a desert safari the day before Mama’s actual birthday. After all, it’s one of Dubai’s famous activities to do when in town, right? Since they weren’t fussy and our group was a big one (11 adults + 1 kid), we availed of Yalla Banana’s Dhs55 per person deal online and called the company to schedule our group once we received the vouchers via e-mail.

Downtown Slide and More at the Burj Plaza

Bored at staying home almost everyday last week (because our nanny is in the Philippines for vacation and it's my turn to be the stay-at-home mom until she returns), I begged Hubby to take me and the girls out last Friday.  Although we needed to buy some groceries, I didn't want to just visit the mall and go to the supermarket; I wanted a change of scenery.

Fortunately, Caila remembered seeing a giant slide at Downtown Dubai when we passed by the area a week before and asked if we could go there.  I agreed, and we convinced Hubby that that would be the place we would go to that afternoon.

No Christmas Tree? Attend Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremonies!

Oh hi there! How have you been? If you've been wondering why this space has been quiet for some time, well...I had been planning to update it early this month, but then things got busy (like it always does during this time of the year), and before I knew it, we're just few days away before Christmas.

Ahh, Christmas! Isn't this season just great? Busy, yes, but still great, right?  Practically everybody loves this holiday.  And to get into the festive feel, and since we didn't put up a tree this year (don't ask because I have no explanation), our family attended Christmas tree lighting ceremonies almost every night during the first week of December.

Resolved

The issue with my NOL card has now been solved. Finally! After almost three weeks!

According to the RTA Customer Representative who called me yesterday, the reason why the machine and system showed that it was expired was “due to technical issues.” He didn’t give any other explanation or provide any other details as to why it took so long, but he did apologize many times.

Ok fine. At least I can recharge and use it again until it officially expires in October.  I can now return Hubby's card to him so he doesn't have to dig in his pockets or search the car for coins for parking tickets.

Thank you, RTA. But next time, please solve these issues faster. And give us clearer reasons and updates on the investigation statuses regularly.

Hay Naku, RTA at Etisalat!

Unang araw ng buwan, kabwsitan ang ibinigay sa akin ng RTA at Etisalat.

Yung NOL card ko kasi, sa pagkakaalam ko sa October pa mageexpire. Nung sinabi ko yun sa RTA, sabi nila nag-expire na nung Mayo. Eh ayon sa nabasa ko sa dyaryo, August 2009 binenta ang unang batch ng NOL cards , so paano ako nakakuha ng card nung Mayo ng taong yun di ba? Atsaka ayon sa nabasa ko, kapag nag-expire na yung card, hindi na mare-recharge uli. Pero until early August this year, nakakapag-reload pa ako ng credit sa card ko.

So anyway, halos araw-araw ako nagfo-follow-up sa RTA kung anong status ng pag-investigate nila, pero ang lagi nilang sinasagot ay under investigation pa. Humingi pa sila ng e-mail address, full name, at mobile number ko. Itong mga nakaraang araw, naiinis na ako sa sobrang tagal at walang kwentang reply nila sa pag-follow-up ko kaya sarcastic na yung tono ng mga tanong at sagot ko sa kanila; pinapakita ko sa kanila na talagang naaasar na ako sa bagal ng aksyon nila. Ngayong umaga, binigyan nila ako ng Reference Number at ang sabi sa September 21 pa expected na ma-resolve ang issue na ‘to. Nagbibiro ba sila? O talagang gusto nila mang-inis? August 14 pa lang, alam na nila yung issue na ‘to. Bakit aabot ng mahigit isang buwan ang pag-investigate ng isang simpleng bagay, at kung kailangan lagi ng reference number ang isang case, bakit ngayon lang nila binigay?

Kalokohan!

Ang Etisalat naman, nagpadala ako ng request na i-disconnect ang apat ng company mobile numbers namin nung Miyerkules. Pero after less than a couple of hours, nagreply ako sa original message ko na ‘wag putulin ang linya ng isang numero dahil ginagamit pa. Sumagot sila na hindi nila magagawa yung hiniling ko dahil kailangan ko magbigay ng kopya ng ibang dokumento, na nabigay ko naman at pinaalala ko na ‘wag putulin ang isang linya ‘pag inasikaso nila yung request namin. Kahapon ng hapon, natanggap ko yung RID number at confirmation na pino-process na nila.

Ngayong umaga, may natanggap akong e-mail na na-disconnect na lahat ng numerong sinabi ko, kasama yung sinabi ko na wag putulin. Nung tinanong ko kung bakit, ang sagot nila ay na-raise na yung RID number bago ko yun sinabi. Sana naman sinabi nila yun nung umpisa pa lang di ba para ma-anticipate namin at makagawa kami ng back-up plan.

Nakakainis! Nakakabwisit! Nakakaasar!

Camping Out in the Living Room

This was our solution when the air conditioner in our bedroom conked out two weekends ago.

We didn’t have any thin mattress that could fit the four of us so Hubby and I struggled in bringing out the queen-sized one from our bed. You could tell Caila was excited by the way she enthusiastically helped in carrying the pillows and blankets out. And when the mattress was down and the duvet arranged, our girls started jumping up and down, using the mattress as a trampoline. Haaaay!

Caila wanted to stay awake as long as possible. First she asked if we could watch TV. When we said no, she asked Hubby to read to her. He did. Then she said she was hungry, so we gave her some cereal. After that, she wanted to talk. Finally, she fell asleep.

As for Sophie, she was practically restless from the excitement of a new place to sleep. Even though all the lights were off, the faint light from the moon made it easy for her to climb on the sofa and entertainment unit easily, and jumping on to the mattress from wherever she was. Finally, finally, she tired herself out and she settled down beside the rest of us.

You'd have thought that since she slept really late, our youngest would wake up later than usual the following morning.  But nooo! She was the first one awake, and seeing that we were all asleep, decided to try and wake me up by climbing on top of me.  Or maybe she just wanted a cuddle.

Judging from that night, I don’t think we’ll be doing this again anytime soon. Caila and Sophie would love to camp out again, but it was so exhausting to put our girls to sleep. If the air conditioner doesn’t work again, we’ll probably just resort to using our box fan instead.

My NOL Card Has Expired…or Not

I’m confused. Here’s why.

Since I only had Dhs4.10 credit left on my NOL card, I decided to top it up at the station before going on the metro. However, when I placed it on the reader, the screen didn’t show the usual recharge screen. A metro employee who happened to pass by told me that my card must be expired, thus the reason for the different screen. He pressed some tabs on the machine which printed out a receipt, and told me to go to one of the tellers.

I was already in a hurry so I didn’t bother to do what he said and just stuffed the receipt in my wallet without looking at it. I tapped my card on the reader at the entry gate and proceeded as normal, planning to approach one of the tellers some other time.

During lunch, I checked the receipt…which is the reason why I’m confused. Here’s a picture of it.

As you can see, the Card Status says Expired. However, just below that, the Expiry Date mentions 05/10/2014. (Just in case you’re wondering, that’s 5 October 2014. In this part of the world, that’s how dates are formatted.)

Obviously it’s still August, so how can it be expired when the expiry date is still less than 2 months away?!

Please explain, RTA.

thankful thursday: skyping with hubby

Thanks to Skype, we can see and talk and be goofy with each other even though we’re miles apart.

a decade in dubai

Today marks my 10th year in this sandpit.

I praise and thank God for the Christ-centered community, family, friends, job, and career that I've gained here, as well as the struggles, successes and opportunities I've experienced.

Praying for another decade in this amazing city.

(slightly) detailed kwento of my busy december

I can't believe we're more than 1 week into the year already! Honestly, where did the time go?! After I posted my last entry a few days ago, I was supposed to start blogging again to share what kept me busy last month...but I just didn't have the time to “collect my thoughts” and now I can't remember all the details of what happened. Gaaahhh!

But I guess I owe you guys some kwento, at least just to prove to you that I really had many things to attend to. And this post is it.  There will be dates where I’ll tell you all about what happened, and some where I just mentioned the event. For those, I’ll try to prepare separate posts because there are more details and pictures and then link them up to this later. So please just bear with me if I forget some specifics. Epekto po ito ng anaesthesia…twice na ako na-CS eh. (hahaha!).

6 December. This was Hubby's birthday and the KFC Coords & PST Family Christmas Party which took place at the Creek Park. We spent practically the whole day there from 8am to 8pm because (1) we needed to secure a good place for our big group, (2) we also had the cluster's annual evaluation and planning, and (3) we had the long overdue farewell and honouring for Tito Del and Tita Madz as well. There was lots of food, several games and prizes, and of course, the exchange gifts for the kids and adults.

 

 7 December. Baptism of my SFC baby’s baby. I was one of the godparents of pretty Agatha Miche, but since the ceremony was in the morning in Jebel Ali and I had work that day, our family just went to the reception venue directly after they fetched me from the office. Good thing the reception took place in the evening. Again, it was a great opportunity to get together with our old friends from SFC and CFC.

family picture without ate caila (because she just didn't want to have her picture taken)

10 December. Hubby and I were invited to attend the Christmas tree lighting at the InterContinental Hotel in DFC. When we arrived, we were immediately offered hot chocolate, marshmallows, and something else I can’t remember. They were delicious and really brought the festive feel to the occasion.

Part of the program was the singing of popular Christmas songs and carols by a group (most probably employees of the hotel) which we all enjoyed.

And after the hotel manager said a few words, upon given the signal, kids jumped on the big switch and we all saw the big tree light up, prompting the crowd to say “Ahhh!!!” and clap their hands in awe and appreciation. After that, we were led to the outdoor part of the hotel’s Vista Lounge & Bar where we enjoyed various dishes while taking in the cool weather and breeze and listening to the music being played from the piano.

We left a while later when we had our fill and felt that the winter air was becoming a bit too cold for us. After we said goodbye to the Sales Manager handling our company’s account, she gave me and Hubby a bag each of treats from the hotel: macarons, gingerbread cookies, an An Badia Golf Club stress ball, and a discount/deal voucher.

It was a great evening and a nice date-night for Hubby and me.

my pogi date =)

11 December.  FS2 Annual Sports Meet.

13 December. We had our Pinoy Mafia Christmas Party that night. As with usual Christmas parties, there were games (I was the game-master/host) and prizes, exchange gifts, and plenty, plenty of delicious food! I was a bit angry at myself earlier that night because I had prepared a big bowl of fruit salad but only realized when we were almost near the venue that we had left it at home. Since we were already running late, I just let it be, transferred it into a Pyrex food container when we reached home, and brought it to the office 2 days later which my colleagues eagerly finished.

14 December. KFC Cluster Christmas Party. Instead of the usual monthly activity, we had the Christmas party at Zaabeel Park where most of the KFC members came to have fun. A thinner-than-usual Santa Claus also made a surprise visit, much to the delight of the kids (and adults too!) even though almost all of them knew his real identity.

That week (from the night of the 11th until the morning of the 15th) was also the time we had some guests stay over at our home: cast members of the Teen Saint Pedro musical (headed by Makisig Morales) which took place on December 13 at St. Anthony Padua Church in Ras Al Khaimah. However, because their group had been busy with rehearsals and meetings since they arrived, it was only that Saturday night when we were able to spend time with Tita Grace and her son Paolo. We went to the Dubai Mall where we had dinner at TGI Friday’s while enjoying 3 amazing shows of the Dancing Fountain. Tita Grace was especially thrilled with the songs that were played: The Prayer, I Will Always Love You, and My Heart Will Go On. After taking pictures in front of Burj Khalifa, The Address, the Festive Castle, and the Waterfall, we headed to Atlantis where they took more pictures.

15 December. First Simbang Gabi Mass. Last year, we didn’t get to attend even one day of the Simbang Gabi. It was a mix of reasons really: we often arrived home late from work, Sophie was barely 3 months old, Mama had rheumatism, traffic, etc. This year, although we wanted to complete the novena, there were things we had to attend to, so we only had the chance to attend the first and eighth nights. From what I noticed, each year the number of people attending Simbang Gabi seem to grow more and more. The parish grounds are becoming full and practically overflowing with Filipinos. I heard on the first night, it was just so full that many just attended mass from the parking area. Wow!


another family picture without caila (well, slight) because of the usual reason

19 December. Parent-Teacher Meeting and Collection of Reports, and Processing Jovy’s Visa. 

20 December. Company Family Year-End Party at Radisson Blu.

23 December. I went to the Philippine Consulate to collect my passport which I had renewed earlier, and then headed to Dubai Media City to collect the prize tickets I won. It was a very wet morning (much like yesterday) and I was really tempted to postpone my errands. But since I wanted to get everything done with, I left the apartment in the appropriate weather gear, braving rainy Dubai.

24 December. Christmas Eve with the Fajarians.

25 December. Christmas Day. We woke up later than usual because of the late night we spent at our friends’ apartment. My sister had called us inviting us to have lunch with her and Gabe and our (cousin’s) nephew Louie. When we arrived at Nando’s in Al Ghurair, they were already there and had already placed their orders. Hubby and Caila joined them, but Sophie and I had to go to the bathroom because she had soiled her diaper and I had to clean her up.

The bathroom in the restaurant was very small so it took me some effort to change her nappy. Fortunately, I managed. But what really pissed me off was a kid who kept knocking on the door. When she tried to turned the knob and found it was locked, I called out that it was occupied. A few seconds later, I heard her knocking. Again I said that someone was inside. Shortly, I heard several knocks again which wouldn’t stop even though I tried to ignore them. When I became fed up from being rushed with the constant knocking, I shouted “Can you please wait?!”

A woman then irritably answered “See, my daughter needs to go to the toilet.”

I answered back “Well, I’m trying to change my baby’s diaper in a small room, so can you be patient?!”

That made them stop. A minute later when I stepped out with Sophie in my arms, I heard the woman mumble “Oh, sorry.”

Hay! Kung hindi siguro araw ng Pasko, baka na-Anne Curtis ko sila. Hahaha!

After lunch, we had dessert at Cinnabon, then headed to St. Mary’s Church to attend the mass. After that, we shopped for groceries at Carrefour in Deira City Centre before heading home. Later, Hubby left to pick up Louie to drop him off at the airport.

27 December. The Erik Santos-Parokya ni Edgar-Eraserheads Concert.

31 December. New Year’s Eve. Unlike majority of Dubai, our family didn’t go out to see any of the fireworks that night. Instead, we avoided the heavy traffic, crowds, and cold weather and stayed at home where we gobbled up the dinner we had prepared earlier and enjoyed the 3 fireworks displays from the best view of all: the television =)

Whew! I told you they were a lot. At least now I’m only slightly backlogged in my posts. But then there are more things that have happened since the beginning of the year and more that will happen in the coming days. Yikes! I guess I've gotta make a move on it then, huh? =)

bagsakan by chito

Belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!

Sorry, I know I haven't been posting anything on this blog for almost a month now.  As usual, I've been pretty busy.  December means Christmas, which means lots of parties, events, and get-togethers, ergo no time to sit and gather my thoughts. 

But since the busiest month of the year is over and 2014 has begun, hopefully I'll be able to find time to blog again.

In the meantime, I just wanted to share this video I took during the High Impact A2 Festival.  I won tickets over the radio, remember?  The concert was so cool! I promise I'll tell you more about that night in a separate post.  But just to give you an idea of how amazing it was, take a look at this clip where Chito Miranda sang "Bagsakan" without Francis M. (naturally!) and Gloc 9.

Galing! Astig! Amazing!