destiny

i was just got curious of this love calculator i found while net surfing. me and my hub got 85%. i dont know what that means. is that an average level? whatever! anyway, i guess love can't be calculated at all.

i just believe, love is destiny! you just can't get away from it.

richard and i have known each other for almost 17 years. funny, when we actually 1st met, we were at the NBI (Nat'l. Bureau of Investigation) in Manila filing up a criminal case (Estafa) over someone who betrayed our mothers and other people with a large amount of money. that was 1993. Me and Richard really didn't uttered a word. just plain glancing and ignoring each other. after a year, we saw each other again. this time at the Makati Regional Trial Court for our arraignment. I was with my bf that moment and Richard kidded us "how sweet. ants will bite you two". that was it! i never heard from him again. i flew here in Milan that same year (1994) and i didn't know what happened to him.

i had a son with my exbf, but my relationship with him had sadly ended. distance and communication barriers! we totally got lost contact. but i never blame anyone. that's life. maybe it wasn't really meant to be.

Richard came here by Feb. 1997 and inevitably we met again here in Milan. he was attached to someone back in the Phil. but we still had the luxury to be the best of friends: sharing thoughts, stories, almost everything! obviously he knew my past relationship so i didn't have to explain about my son.

later on, her gf called and told him she can't wait for him anymore and wants to get married as young as possible. so she broke up with him. he was hurt and we became closer than ever. going out, holding hands, hugging weren't BIG deal for us. no monkey business. but before the year ended, he then uttered the word "LOVE".

Wow! Amazingly, we were just in love. (giggles)

of course, not all love stories are perfect. we had our own trials in our relationship. at one point i gave him up. too much pressure and all, with the people around. he just fought for me and that's what matters most. our love survived. by 1999 we decided to live-in together. we had great times! nobody ever believed that not even once we really "fight". little arguments of "what to eat" were just normal, right? but big fights with shouting and harsh words? NOPE! i'm proud to say none 'til now. maybe he's more patient than me. maybe i'm not the type who nags. maybe we just simply trust each other.

by 2001 i was surprised to find out i was pregnant with Jaki. it's just unexpected. but, of course, we're so happy about it. when we've gone home for a vacation in the Phil. we had never thought of any church or grand wedding. we didn't have a lot of time too, to plan things out. so, we both decided to have a civil wed for the meantime. i wasn't feeling good too coz i was pregnant. Jaki "tortured" me a lot until birth.

2009, i gave birth to a baby girl, named Zendra Kiara. i could not ask for more!

by november, we are on the 13th year of being together. lucky for us. a lot of relationships didn't last that long nowadays. i guess that's TRUE LOVE. i still feel nervous when he's around and that's one thing i love about us. we've been best friends. i guess understanding, communication, respect and passion were some of the ingredients in our relationship.

so here i am jotting our love story...where our destiny led us to.

Small is Beautiful :)

a gift a challenge a book, for  people like me...

missing the cows

i just miss these cows, so i want to look back. Europe in 1998, cow parade has evolved to become the world's largest public art event. This one-of-a-kind artistic spectacle has stampeded across the globe, capturing the hearts and imagination of artists, and the public alike, wherever the cows have grazed. It was an idea of a famous Swiss sculptor Pascal Knapp. Since 1998, cow parade has been on the scene in 40 cities (New York, Chicago, Sidney, London, Paris, etc..) last 2007, Milan is part again of this art event. April 14 marked the greatinauguration of this open air "cow show". Life-sized cows creatively designed were positioned all over Milan--city proper and parks, and endured until June 17, 2007. In the final event, the cows were bidded (conducted by Sotheby's) & held on Trienalle in Viale Alemagna, Milano. The money from the 'selling of the cows' were given to the ONLUS CHAMPIONS FOR THE CHILDREN. This foundation was pioneered by a great football Milan A.C. player --Clarence Seedorf-- together with some other italian football players, to help the children of the third world. it's been almost 3 years and all i ever see now areminiatures of these exhibited cows displayed in the office where i work. i am glad me and my son Jaki had pictureswith the cows. (",) Mooooooh!

Padova, Italy

Padova, or Padua claims to be the oldest city in northern Italy. According to a tradition dated at least to Virgil's Aeneid, and rediscovered by the medieval commune, it was founded in 1183 BC by the Trojan prince Antenor, who was supposed to have led the people of Eneti or Veneti from Paphlagonia to Italy. The city exhumed a large stone sarcophagus in the year 1274 and declared these to represent Antenor's relics.

The Cathedral of Padua

The Basilica of St. Giustina, facing the great piazza of Prato della Valle.

In the 15th century, it became one of the most important monasteries in the area, until it was suppressed by Napoleon in 1810. In 1919 it was reopened. The tombs of several saints are housed in the interior, including those of Justine, St. Prosdocimus, St. Maximus, St. Urius, St. Felicita, St. Julianus, as well as relics of the Apostle St. Matthias and the Evangelist St. Luke. This is home to some art, including the Martyrdom of St. Justine by Paolo Veronese. The complex was founded in the 5th century on the tomb of the namesake saint, Justine of Padua.

The Basilica di Saint Anthony of padua

The most famous of the Paduan churches is the Basilica di Sant'Antonio da Padova, locally simply known as "Il Santo". The bones of the saint rest in a chapel richly ornamented with carved marbles, the work of various artists, among them Sansovino and Falconetto. The basilica was begun about the year 1230 and completed in the following century. Tradition says that the building was designed by Nicola Pisano. It is covered by seven cupolas, two of them pyramidal.

this is the second time i went to padova and as far as i can recall, not much have changed. it's still beautiful, especially the piazza dell prato, it's still breathtaking! when we toured, it wa Sunday, so there is a long flea market around the plaza. yet, we didn't have much time to roam around the market, we're busy capturing the sights, visiting the churches, buying souvenirs and all.

piazza di prato della valle

One of the best known symbols of Padua is the Prato della Valle (Prà deła Vałe in Venetian), a 90,000 m² elliptical square. It is the largest square in Italy, and one of the largest in Europe. The square today is a monumental space of extraordinary visual impact, with a green island at the center, l'Isola Memmia, surrounded by a small canal bordered by two rings of statues. the centre is a wide garden surrounded by a ditch, which is lined by 78 statues portraying famous citizens. It was created by Andrea Memmo in the late eighteenth-century.

Prato della Valle has, from its very beginning, taken its place in the hearts of Padovans who frequently refer to it simply as Il Prato. At various times it was also known as valley without grass because the number of trees prevented much grass from growing there. Today, however, it is completely covered with grass, and many small trees.

During the 1990s, the "Prato" went through a period of degradation and neglect, but today it has been restored to its original splendor through reclamation projects and the concern and involvement of the citizens of Padova. During the summer, the square is animated by large numbers of visitors who skate, stroll or study while tanning themselves in the sun. Summer evenings are marked by the presence of teenagers and young adults who chat until the early hours of the morning.

For several years, Prato della Valle has been the seat of the Padovan section of the Festivalbar, and recently it has even played host to skating competitions, thanks to the wide asphalted ring which surrounds the square.

Every New Year's Day (Capodanno), and during the Feast of the Annunciation in August (Ferragosto), parties with music and fireworks take place in the Prato.

There are 78 statues sorrounding the canal of the piazza. but according to the original design, it should have been 88 statutes.

at the center of the plaza

rainy monday

another monday again. the wheather forecast was right, it will rain today. we got sunshine yesterday...the wheather's continue changing here each day. 2 more weeks and it will be spring. i hope by march the rain will diminish.

my son is still sleeping, so i called him up..."svegliati jaki" (wake up), "you'll be late for school". zendra is still sleeping. it's 7am. hub went to the kitchen and fried some hotdogs for breakfast. he went off to work at about 8am.

jaki and i got out of the house at 8:17am and left Zendra to my brother-in-law in the house.

the bell is already ringing when we arrived at jaki's school. so he kissed me up quickly.

back to the house, there are two peruvian guys who are installing a surveillance camera. it's about time they put a cam. the buildings' basement were robbed last year and we lost some of our things down there. few days ago, i saw bottle garbages near the gate. what the...? what was that person thinking? the bin for bottles is just 10-step walk out of the building. why would he/she left it in front of our gate? but, no cams yet. we can't point the suspect.

i peeked at our mail box and there's a letter for me, from ASL (health department). info's of vaccinations and stuffs. seeing the porter, i asked her if i can post the "avviso" (notice) for all the "condomini" (all the people living in the building). we have an appointment on wednesday for hydraulics, so the main switch for water supply will be closed from 9:00-11:00. we got leaks in the bathroom for quite sometime. i showed the porter my note and she said, make it bigger. so i went up, re-print the notice, in bolder and bigger fonts.

it says: Avviso Importante

Chiusura dell'acqua per lavoro, 24 febbraio, mercoledi, 9:00-11:00

Scusate per il disagio, grazie

(translation: important notice: closing of water for a job, 24 february, wednesday, excuse us for some inconveniences, thanks)

my daughter is still sleeping. i remember the bags and packs i still need to put in order. i was busy last saturday for carnevale and, sunday for making/editing invitation for baptismal and birthday parties. of course i'll be paid..small business. it's global crisis, no more "thank you's" hahaha. i'm talking of 100 copies, so i'm crazy if i don't ask for a cash, right?

so we got a surprise package from New Jersey, USA (my hub's cousin). these are for my daughter zendra.

last saturday, hub went to decathlon (sport store) and bought us surprises, yey! i got a black nike sweat shirt, adidas for jaki and a pink shoes for zendra. hub got his new spring jacket (again). i would say he got thrice the number of jackets compared to mine.

yesterday my friend arrived from the philippines and i got some packs from my sister-in-law, Bheng. she sent shoes for zendra and some vitamins for me. there are 6 bottles, but i gave my brother 2 and my mom, 2. of course, dvd films! yey! got 17 english films! i might have a movie marathon this weekend.

i seldom go to the theaters here because they all dubbed the new english films to italian. although, honestly i can understand more of italian now than slang english, i still prefer the original film language. i just need to put subtitles, 'coz im having a difficulty now with vocal english comprehension. it's not easy when all you're hearing here is italian. you tend not to practice speaking english. thru writing it's much easier. speaking is another story.

kiara don't want to remove the pink shoes anymore...

it's almost 2pm and i gave zendra some of her snacks: banana yogurt for kids, albicocca juice and a bread. she's really a "mangione" (great eater). she never rejects any food.

after eating she tried her acrobatics skill...standing up on her toy bag carrying her balloon. i guess she'll be in circus one day, hahaha.

still raining...

i can't open up some Fb applications. argh!

anyway, i'm busier these days at blogger site.

gotta think about my lunch. i'm starving.

Milan's Carnival Festival 2010

Carnevale (or Carnivale, or Carnavale, alternate spellings you may find), is a festival which can trace its roots back to the Roman Saturnalia, a festival held in mid-December to honor the god Saturn with feasting, gift giving and role reversal. As often happened with such festivals, Catholics found a way to work the festival into their own liturgical year.

One commonly accepted derivation of the word "carnival" is the Latin "carne vale" or "farewell to meat." Carnival was the final hurrah as winter headed towards spring, and the long Lenten season of fasting and abstinence. It was, perhaps, not only a last chance to indulge the passions of the flesh, but an opportunity to consume any meat which had been put up for winter that might not stay fresh enough for consumption until spring brought the end of Lent and Easter.

Because of its ties to the liturgical calendar, Carnivale varies in length. It can be considered to begin with the feast of Epiphany (the 12th day of Christmas) on January 6, and always ends on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. The Lenten season is the 40 days before Easter, which falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox.

If you've never heard of Shrove Tuesday, perhaps you've heard of "Fat Tuesday" -- also known in French as Mardi Gras, or in Italian as Martedi Grasso.

Carnivale is celebrated with enthusiasm around the world; in the US the celebration in New Orleans is best known. In Brazil, Carnivale in Rio is famous for its wild abandon. Many cities in Italy have maintained or revived their traditions of Carnivale; especially well-known among them are Venice and Florence.

While Carnivale has a rich history and ancient roots in Italy, the festival remains a vital and contemporary celebration. A simple web search will reveal many images of celebrants in both historical and contemporary costumes. One of the common elements found throughout the tradition has remained the Carnivale mask.

Paddle Challenge

Friday again. my son's still on vacation so i'm with my two kids here. the rain is pouring outside...

Jaki requested for chicken nuggets as a snack while having fun watching "Bee Movie" over and over again. i guess he watched that film 20 times already. he almost memorized the songs in it. "here comes the sun...little darling..."

It has no italian version, 'coz i bought it back in the Philippines, where italian menus and features aren't available.

on the other side, i'm busily preparing for my daughter's soup (and mine too). Jaki's not fond of it, so nuggets for him will do. i'm not a good cook but of course, i can cook. it's just so challenging to cook now with my daughter Zendra, roaming around and pushing buttons of our washing machine, or swtching on and off our oven. kind of hard if there's no one around for help. Jaki can't just look after her little sister. She can now escape in her play pen and cries when i put her on her stroller. really a mother's challenge to multitask.

oh ow...the meat! zendra's collecting the onions at my back! shuuuu shuuu little one :)

boiling, boiling....i'm dressing up Zendra...run run teena to the kitchen.

served finally! a pipe rigate soup!

whew!

zendra ate two servings. lucky me! i have a fan! hahaha...=)

we're all settled and i'm ready to go for work. i got a part time job during fridays, so i need to leave my kids to my mom.

til next challenge!

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveller, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference Robert Frost this is one of my fave poems ever. i remember i have this poem poster during my freshman days in high school

This Thursday

i woke up about 5:30am this morning when i heard

my hub's alarm.

every thursday, he needs to go out so early at 6:30am

for work.

i peeked on my daughter and she's still on her

fave sleep position - like a frog.

i wonder how she manage to sleep that way,

without even changing position.

my son, Jaki have no classes today and tomorrow,

but he still woke up early. he's used to it i guess.

i prepared some hotdogs for him for breakfast.

he asked if he could eat "with spongebob squarepants" on tv.

so, i said "ok". no classes, so i give him his "tv freedom day"

schools are closed because of the "Carnevale" thing.

yesterday, my son enjoyed their Carnevale party at school

and showed me the mask he made for the party.

cool. my daughter Zendra keeps on staring at the mask.

don't know if she's amazed or scared. at least she never cries.

Carnevale is a tradition here in Italy where they celebrate by

wearing different costumes.

but i guess the most amazing place to celebrate here in Italy

is in Venice.

Of course not to mention Brazil,

which is famous for their glamorous Carnival.

i bought a fairy costume for my daughter for Saturday's Carnevale.

My son still got his batman costume. he's just too shy to wear it.

i hope it will be a sunny day on saturday for the carnevale.

it has been rainy the last few days.

i wonder what i'm gonna wear.

maybe i'll take the challenge of my son's

hand-made mask. :)

refreshing my mind

i haven't done blogs for a long time when i left my Multiply site. i got stucked on Facebook with their games and other applications. Since i'm a bit of a "housewife" since my daughter was born, i kind of have time for madness on FB. but, sometimes, especially when the internet connection sucks..it's annoying. not until i read one of my FB friends' site here. i just finally recalled my writing instincts. i was like "hey, i missed that writing fun"...so here i am again...refreshing my mind...what to write...i should have just gonna continue jotting thoughts...and stick to my journal.

Chiavari, Liguria

from milan, we travelled about two and a half hours

by train

going to Chiavari.

it was a hot summer of August that we

decided to get away from the 33°C temperature of Milan.

this is where we finally stop and welcome

ourselves to the Chiavari train station

heading out of the train station,

we saw lots of oranges along the roads.

we were tempted to pick some of the fruits.

this is the municipal building i guess

finally, we're almost at the camping area.

we were walking for almost an hour i guess

i took this one when the sun is beginning

to rise. it's early morning and i just decided to walk by

the beach..breathing some fresh air.

taken at night when the sun is amazingly

going down

whoops..that's my hub over there...

time to rest inside the tent,

posing with my son, Jaki

having fun the next day after

with my mom and cousins

we enjoyed the beach. and we will probably come back here

My Beloved Town: Lucban, Quezon

LUCBAN (Lucban, Quezon-Philippines)

is known for its great PAHIYAS FESTIVAL,

also known as SAN ISIDRO FESTIVAL.
This festival is always held every 15th of MAY,

special event by decorating their houses with

vegetables, fruits, rice, etc.--everything's that a farmer harvests,

or any edible products.

Every year, the municipal give a designated streets in which

they have to decorate, and it changes each year,

so other lucbanins will have chances to decorate their houses.

This artful decoration is called "pahiyas" or "payas"

and of course, every single house are candidates for

the pahiyas competition--tending each family to be creative to win

prizes and recognitions.

The traditional decorations are called "Kiping" which was

basically made of rice, delicately grind and put into

leaves, creating colored leaf forms or other creations.

It could be eaten by frying or simply grilling--sort of flakes.

The other looker is the "Anok"--scarecrows, and it has its

own category of the competition which is called "Best Anok".

During the parade, a lot of "Higante" (Giant Mascots)

roam thru the streets, cows having their shows (they

can basically kneel down). It's always a wonder to see

these carabaos dressed up and artfully decorated too,

bagging the "Best Carabao" competition.

And of course, the beautiful lads and handsome guys

included the town parade.

Lot of tourists, artists, photographers, showbiz personalities

always flock our town every year.

They wouldn't want to miss this May 15 event in Lucban. I'm just

so proud of our town for its original Pahiyas.

A lot of town nearby had done their imitations of our festival,

but Lucban,Quezon will always be unique!!

Below is the Lucban Cemetery.

This used to be a church during the World War days.

Pancit Lucban or the famous Pancit Habhab

"habhab" means eating with your tongue only, no fork or spoon, directly from the "dahon" (banana leaf) when you buy this pancit (noodles)

Rolling store and lucban sweets & delicacies

the gate called "kinse-kinse" outside the Lucban church

inside the churchThe Lucban Parish Catholic Church

The Famous Grotto:

Kamay ni Hesus

Every Holy Week, people flock here.The Lucban Mayor & Vice-Mayor

The logo says :

Yanong rikit, baling ganda means

so unique and so beautiful.

we have our own dialect.The Municipal Hall

COME AND VISIT LUCBAN...

honoring the farmer's patron Saint San Isidro Labrador (St. Isidore).

It becomes a tradition for all "lucbanins" to join this