My 2014 - Part 6

OCTOBER (PART 2)

I wasn't kidding when I said my October was Oh-some.  In fact, I could not write just one blog for my October.  So, here I go again.

Another reason this US trip was so worth it, aside from Ally's Birthday and my Oath-taking, was because of my sister's graduation from her Masteral.  I am one proud sister!

Up there!

Full Support!

 Celebrate good times!

 Triple celebration!

We are family!

And of course, we also went to San Diego to visit Auntie Juvy and her cool family :)

National History Museum

Love Teams!

At USS Midway!

Mom and Dad left a week ahead of me.  Their trip was 2-week escapade US-Canada-US.  And just before their flight, we visited the Andradas :)

Barkada!

The reason I stayed for another thing was because I went to Minnesota to visit my friend and her family.  And that deserves a separate blog!

My 2014 - Part 5

OCTOBER (PART 1)

October was one heck of a month!

Just before we left for the US, I had tons of work to finish and I was thankful that I was able to accomplish them.  I noticed that every time I have to leave Davao City for an out-of-town travel, work amazingly multiplies! Hehe

Anyway,  October was also Oh-some.  I left for the US to take my oath as member of the New York State Bar.  I received a letter sometime in January that I was supposedly scheduled for the August oathtaking.  I begged off since I cannot leave in such short notice, and because I still had tons of stuff to do along with my classes.  So I requested for an October schedule so it would coincide with the sembreak.   

But before I left, I had to finish my classes first!

 Sales Class 2014 (2-Manresa)

And so my mom, dad and I left for the US. We arrived in Los Angeles in the evening and we celebrated Ally's 3rd birthday at Goofy's Kitchen the next day.

Goofing with Goofy!

Notice how Ally is mesmerized! (haha)

In the evening, we left for Toronto, Canada.  Start pa lang, hectic na .. haha!

The View from our room!

And so we went around Toronto!

You can stay under my umbrellas! Hehe

Toronto Downtown Centre with the grannies!

Teaching Ally how to do a Jump Shot!

Taking a Break

At the CN tower

I'm on the Top of the World looking ..

We just stayed for two nights in Toronto as we left the next day for New York.  But before that, of course, we just had to stop over at Niagara Falls!  I have been truly blessed to see this God's spectacle twice.  The first time was from the New York side, and this time from the Canada side! And also, I got to ride the Hornblower!

 Girl in the Hood!

 Happy!

 Amazing!

Riding it out!

From Niagara Falls, we then went to Albany for my oath taking.  Yes, the main reason for this whole trip was for me to take my oath as a member of the New York State Bar.  I am so happy and grateful that I passed the exam.  No more what if!  I don't know yet what to do with this title but I am sure glad that I was able to prove something for myself once again.  And of course, I am really happy to make my parents happy and proud :)

And I Swear!

Certified

Full Support!

New York, New York!

And I am not yet done!

Sightings

If you know me really well, then you do know that I'm a big celebrity fan as I have personally handwritten a number of fan letters to celebrities across the globe.  And I have been lucky to get a number of replies as well.

I said to myself before that if I see my favorite local celebrities, I surely would get a picture with them.  If it's a Hollywood celebrity, an autograph would suffice. 

But I have to tell you that I'm immensely shy when they're right there in front of me.  Yes, I need back-up in times like that.

Anyhow, I had a number of celebrity encounters in my latest trip.  I guess I could say that among all my trips, I had quite a haul this time.

As I was lining up for immigration, I saw Venus Raj.  I realized later that we were taking the same flight and that she was just seated a few seats from me - I could see her as she reclined her chair, just 2 seats away from me.  Anyway, all I can say is that she is really tall and slim.  And as far as I can see, she does not seem that "maarte".

On the day I left Albany, 98 Degrees, New Kids on the Block and Boyz 2 Men were going to have their concert in the same venue where I took my exam.  Unfortunately, I did not see any of them.  I then had my hopes high as my mom and I made a side trip to New York City.  

And I sure had a close encounter with no other than Zachary Levi of the Chuck TV Series.  I watch it every now and then, and I really like him.  Anyhow, he was having his Broadway Show, First Date, right beside the hotel where we were staying.  On our last night, as we were going back to the hotel, there he was, having his picture taken with those who watched the show.  I immediately gave to my mom the camera so she could take the picture.  

I tried my luck and asked him if I could have a picture with him.  Oh, yes! I was truly nervous!  He asked if I watched the show and I answered "no" (honest ako!).  And he said it would be unfair to those who watched the show if I would have a picture with him. I said that I'm a big fan from the Philippines and he replied that I should watch the show tomorrow.  (Yes, we were really having a conversation!) I told him that we were already leaving the next day (which is true) and he said that I should be back to watch the show and said he was sorry.  Believe me - he seemed so genuinely apologetic and so kind.  I get his point.  Sayang lang jud!  

My hands were really cold and clammy and my heart was really beating fast that time.  I was one of the 2 or 3 people left.  And he said his goodbyes and left.  I explained it to my mom what just happened and asked her if she was able to take a picture nevertheless.  Apparently, she could not figure out how to make the camera work as it suddenly turned off.  This is the only picture I have ...

Yes, that's Zachary Levi in white shirt and that is me with that big arm and pink shirt.  Oh, well!  At least, I have this one.  And yes, Zachary Levi is tall and handsome and not geeky as I expected him to be (the Chuck effect).

We then flew to LA and then to San Diego.  Together with my Aunt's family, we went to Legoland, where there is also a water park.

While sitting and just waiting for my cousins to finish swimming, my aunt ran to me and said that Lou Diamond Phillips was just right there.  And yes, I saw him with shorts and no shirt on with his wife and daughter - yup, just like any ordinary family.  Some may have noticed him and he just seemed so normal there.

When I saw my uncle, who chaperoned his children by the kiddie pool, he told me that he was the one who noticed Lou Diamond Phillips.  Apparently, both of them were looking over their daughters at the swimming pool.  My cousin was even playing with Lou Diamond Phillip's daughter.  When my uncle noticed him, my uncle said "LDP" to him (they were just near each other), LDP acknowledged him and fist bumped with my uncle!

My uncle asked my aunt if she was able to take a picture of LDP.  My aunt said she forgot since she was totally nervous .. haha!

Anyway, I was back in LA and my sister brought me to The Grove where Extra TV is shot daily.  And yes, we saw Mario Lopez and Maria Menounos.  I was not able to take a picture with them because they were quite busy.  I think I did not see them taking picture with any of the fans that day.

Yes, that's Mario Lopez.  He looks good but I think he looks better on TV

 (Maybe because he had too much make-up at that time for tv purposes)

And that's Maria Menounos - she is indeed pretty and sexy (very slim!)

We then went to Santa Monica Place and my sister mentioned she saw Shannen Doherty there one time.

As I was just sitting in the Promenade, I then saw this Beverly Hills 90210 guy right in front me (yes, he was really close).  I told my sister "si Beverly Hills 90210" repeatedly.  I forgot his name!  Haha!  My sister then called her husband and told him about the Beverly Hills 90210 guy (yes, complete name ng show jud!).  My sister then searched the net for his name and we realized he was Ian Ziering!  He was a bit old but still recognizable (to me at least!).  My brother-in-law mentioned that it was a good thing I noticed him because he looks old (But of course, the show was so long ago!)  He then asked if we want to have a picture with Ian Ziering.  My sister and I said it was not necessary.  My sister even said it's okay if we don't get to have a picture with him because he does not have a movie.  My brother-in-law then searched the net through his phone and mentioned that he was in Sharknado.  I said I'll let it pass since he was with family.  He had his little daughter with him, as well as his wife and some relatives.  I did not bother to take a picture of him from afar.  My brother-in-law did but I forgot to ask him to send it to me as well.

Yes, I guess I could say "naka-quota" ako.  Before this trip, the only close encounter I had with a Hollywood celebrity (outside of concerts) was the one with Geoffrey Rush when we saw him at Melboure Aquarium with his family.  He was in Australia at that time as he just promoted "Finding Nemo" sometime in 2003 or 2004.  But we did not have any picture with him.

Anyway, in my flight back to the Philippines, as I was talking my luggage from the overhead bin, Amanda Page was just right beside me.  I'm not sure if you still remember her.  But all I can say that she was really pretty and she did not seem that old.

That's it for now.  Hoping for more sightings in my next travel.

Battle: Los Angeles (2011)

I guess we started on the wrong foot. There is supposed to be a free shuttle from our hotel to LAX. The problem is we got on the wrong shuttle. We had to be dropped off at another hotel and took the cab from there. Good thing though that our hotel was not that too far.

-oOo-

The hotel where we stayed in had complimentary continental breakfast, free wi-fi and free shuttle to and from LAX. It was far-off from downtown Los Angeles but we chose for the freebies. It was a blessing in disguise since it was near a post office and my mom had to send an urgent mail.

-oOo-



Universal Studios – Hollywood! It had a few changes since the last time I was there. They now have that King Kong 3D feature in their Studio Tour, which was cool, and I got to see up close Wisteria Lane from Desperate Housewives, which was closed the last time I was there since they were taping. I still had fun riding the Jurassic Park! My brother and I decided not to ride the Mummy because we felt that one thrill ride would be enough for us. 3Ds and 4Ds were all over with the Simpsons, Shrek and Terminator – truly a “D” overload with 3Ds and 4Ds. Although, I guess it is really much better when my sisters and my father were with us.

-oOo-

On our way back from Universal, traffic had to be rerouted because there was a robbery on a jewelry store. The police had to block the street where the bus we will take was supposed to pass. We had to figure out other possible route of the bus and we were lucky we found it.

-oOo-



Santa Monica! I had fun that day since it was my first time to visit a beach in the US (First time mo? First time jud!). The Santa Monica Beach was pretty cool and I was able to truly appreciate it because the weather was great that day! I was really excited when I got to visit Santa Monica beach. California Girl was really my song for that day!

-oOo-



Next Target: Hollywood! We had the usual pictorials with the imprints of the stars at the Grauman’s Chinese Theater and I was lucky enough to see Keanu Reeves’ Star on the Walk of Fame. At least, kahit papano .. konswelo kay hindi ko pa siya nakita in person. On the side note, Speed was on TV a few minutes ago. And I was happy watching it since makarelate ako kasi LA yung location and it had scenes featuring some of the places we passed by!

-oOo-

Commuter on the Go with matching Walking Exercise! Thank you Google maps and the Metro Los Angeles Web Site! We got all to the places because of the directions I got from the said sites and we were never lost! The sites give you the schedule of the bus and train as well as time to walk to the stops. All in all, it was an achievement!

-oOo-

I get to see different kinds of people in riding public transportation in LA. There was that bus driver who was really kind to me when I asked questions. There was another driver who was sort of rude when, in a bus stop, a passenger who had difficulty walking and was using a walker of some sort was by the bus door and therefore, he had to use the bus ramp. Their conversation went something like this:

Elderly man: Please, please
Lady bus driver: Please what
Elderly man: Please, the ramp .. it’s common sense
Lady bus driver: Well, I ain’t got no common sense

I guess we were just lucky that nobody was that rude to us. Although, when the elderly man got off the bus, I think they exchanged apologies. I am also grateful for a passenger who gave us tips on our way to Santa Monica.

-oOo-

I am appreciative of how people with disabilities in US can still commute and go to places. They can still visit and enjoy Universal Studios among other destinations.

-oOo-

Well, that’s it for our LA trip. Until the next update!