Showing the World to my Folks

when my travel to the philippines was disapproved due to many urgent reasons, i was so stunned, then depressed, then angry. since january, i have been planning for our church camp, for my friend's wedding, and for all the other things i usually do when i am home.

all those day-dreamings came to a crashing halt on that one fateful January afternoon...

after going thru the different scenes of emotional tapestry, i finally got hold of my senses and thought for a while. 'what if i bring my home here to dubai?' hmmm.... when i mentioned this to my boss, he did not give second thoughts. so we rushed my folks' visas and travel documents.

a few days before their arrival, i was already so excited, and anxious, can't sleep. i was going thru the mental exercises of reviewing worst case scenarious in the manila immigration where many visit visa holders become victims of extortion. i'm thinking of how to guide them since this will be their first journey abroad. i gave them a step-by-step guide from manila airport to dubai airport and rehearsed them everytime i phone them. and now... they are here!

barely two weeks, i think they have covered more grounds than those who have been for two years! after all the practice in being a tour guide the past month, little did i know that the ultimate application would be for my folks!

showing this world to my folks has been an exciting one. they are like little kids curious about anything. many things are new to them, coz indeed, they are. from third world to first world. it's so easy to please them, and i appreciate that so well. all the mundane things becomes so amazing. the many things i take for granted, they effectively highlight and unconsciously bring to my attention.

i took them to the malls, the cultural places, desert safari, dhow cruise, abu dhabi, sharjah...

also showed them where i work and where i live, and the people i move with.

more than the new things that dazzled them, i was more than happy seeing my mom and my dad together, sans worries and just enjoying each other. i think i have not seen them like that. never. all their lives, they've been working their ass out to try to give us a bright future. i guess this trip is a small yet sweet recompense...

Nanay's Day

last march 21, we celebrated mother's day here in UAE, earlier than the May celebration in the philippines and western counterparts. for Adventureland, we had the usual roses and treats for the moms...

we were on our way to abu dhabi when i remembered it. . .i seem to have missed already 3 or 5 years of mom's day-- she, is the phils, and me in dubai. so now, i am so glad we are together for it this year. i bought a rose at the convenience store while we gassed up the car. then gave it to nanay. hugged her and kissed her. it was a very very small token of love, incomparable to what she has given me, and continues to give............

long before, she admitted to me that because of economic situations, and because she was so young then and didn't know any better, she actually tried to get rid of me when i was still a few months in her womb. she'd jump from the table to reach the ceiling and down to the floor. i joked that maybe inside, i felt it was more of a playtime! i did not feel any anger at all, as what others would have felt when they discover that. God moved me in a way that i understood.

i grew up not seeing her much, maybe that's why i used to be tomboyish- what with three olders brothers and a father surrounding my daily routine! all i knew was that she'd go to work very early at the socks factory, and she'd come home when we are sleeping already. but i would know she's there coz she'd leave pancit, spaghetti, or any other meal that she prepared for selling to her factory-mates. i'd bring lunch to her everyday to the factory when i was younger, until i think i was old enough to be shy about it.

even when i was in high school, seldom did i spend time with her. she was totally wrapped up with earning extra income so that we can go to school. she wants us to finish college, as she was even short of having an elementary graduation. in college, when she already retired from work, that was the time i moved out and into the confines of the university dormitory. so it's only weekly that i get to see her.

despite that, i don't think i missed out on having a mother-figure. when i was old enough to understand, i appreciated so well what she silently did for us. what she lacked in words, she more than compensated in action. i've seen her strenght amidst all the storms she weathered. she has the humor and laughter that keeps her young. she's very street smart that would put to shame my college diploma. she's the epitome of my human version of sacrificing one's happiness for her family.

it did not take much for me to accept why she has to be away most of the time. when i was already working, we already have the time and the resources to enjoy each others' company. moreover, when God answered my prayer to give her the gift of salvation last 2000, it sealed our best friend status! it erased all the years when we seemed to be foreign to each other.

now, my friends are her friends. my burden, her burden (though i sift a few which may unnecessarily bother her, you know moms). my joys, her joys. my travels, her travels. my achievement, her achievement. my dreams, her dreams. my God, her God.

....tonight, she's cooking her version of 'sinigang'... can't wait to go home...

10 Things I like about UAE

1) the roads - well paved or cemented, with clear road marks and signs, and with most drivers respecting road rules, which makes my driving such a pleasurable trip most of the times. i'm sure some europeans will disagree with me as i read that they find driving here below their standards. but hey, you know where i am coming from. it's a far-cry from what we have in manila. however, i hate some of the roundabouts and the overall urban planning in dubai! it's so confusing! but i like the road system better in abu dhabi.

2) safety - the feeling of security is notches higher than what i am used to, and if you're a manileno, you'll know how priceless it is!... freedom to wear your jewelries, freedom to roam the streets, freedom to use your mobile, freedom go home late in the evening, freedom from safety worries, etc... case in point, i lost my mobile a few weeks ago, and got it back on the same day!

3) stone's throw away from beaches and other leisure options - no need to allot a whole day for planning and another day for the actual going to the beach. you can be very spontaneous!! and if you feel like hotel-hopping, your spoilt for choice. malling. cultural immersion. nice parks. all these always come wit superb toilets (with tissue and hose bidet!)-- the underrated public necessity in many countries.

4) freedom to talk in the company of foreigners - no need to hold those candid thoughts. just blurt it out in tagalog with your kabayan (just make sure though that your facial expression does not give it away!). also, use the deeper tagalog terms or a philippine dialect, as some of these foreigners can already understand our tagalog such as 'mabaho', 'gwapo', 'maganda', 'pangit'...

5) multi-national community - i love the opportunity to mix and mingle with the others. there are just so much stories, so much culture, so much novelty! just perfect for a sponge like me! and also, this country is awashed with my idea of pretty and handsome faces! and oh i forgot to mention, very cute kids!

6) winter - oh, i love the winters here! just the right weather. perfect for strolling and numerous outdoor activities. perfect for sashaying fashion statements. perfect for natural cooling system in the evenings. oh, just perfect.

7) sale!!!! - twice a year i get to have my dose of Mango, Nine West, Marks & Spencer, Debenhams, Per Una, Esprit, etc. Plus, my latest indulgences such as Ikea, The One and Home.

8) unity in diversity - Dubai represents the modern world, Abu Dhabi the serene, green and laid-back ambiance, Sharjah the cultural center, and the other northern emirates the nature-laden spots. whatever you fancy, you'll find it in any of the emirates.

9) exploring the impossibilities - Philippines is experiencing brain drain when it comes to engineers, architects and autocad operators. why? they are all here in UAE where their skills are put to much use, where budget does not restrain their creativity. who has not been amazed with all infrastructures such as Burj Al Arab, Madinat, The Palm, The World, Ski Dubai, Burj Dubai (tallest building in the world) etc.

10) no tax - need i say more?

Coffee Talk#3 and #4 Grand Hyatt

oh, we broke the rule of hotel-hopping!!!! as you can read on the title, it is #3 and #4! why there? oh, let me count the ways...

1) very nice lobby! huge expanse of space! this must be the biggest lobby i've ever seen!

2) very nice themening! if you do not have the real one, recreate it! from where we were comfortably seated (second level lobby), we can see the nature-themed back area where rows of great restaurants are lined up! they mimicked falls, lake and a lover's type bridge which serves as the passageway to the different dining options. the lushy greens (which are real plants by the way) makes you feel you are not in the middle of the desert!

3) very welcoming grand lobby! the front side which houses the piano bar, exhibits the grand staircase leading down to the main lobby, which is also by the way, huge in comparison to the others.

4) very relaxing mood music! the lobby reverberates the smooth piano and sax music. we've befriended also the resident musicians, so when they see us coming, they already play "moon river', as requested by Mano on our first visit!

5) very cheap valet! no problemo in parking!

6) good tasting drinks! on our second visit, it was not 'coffee talk in the truest sense of the word', as we experimented on other drinks, such as cocktail, hot mocha and frozen iced tea! we actually called it 'confused talk!' hahha! but the club sandwich is very poor! the smallest and most expensive club sandwich i have seen. and by the way, it also does not taste good!

7) very good place to take-off your mind from work! since the whole ambiance seems to take you into another dimension (wow!), you are assured of full mind relaxation... or stimulation, whichever you wish. for the later, make sure to bring with you well-equipped resource persons! and we had that for the past two sessions!

8) very good place for people watching, in case you have gone out of topics to talk about! poor guys!

9) very good reason for us to dress up a bit on a thursday night! who knows whom we may bump into when we stroll around the place?

10) spoilt for choice of restos in case we need a gastronomic challenge before a coffee talk! haha!

well... we have to hop on to other places once in a while... at least for now, we've found OUR PLACE under the mid east moon!

The Iraq Paradox

just like for most, media has painted a very bad picture of Iraq for me. but talking to my arab friends confirm the truths in what were written. civil wars, killings, bombings, etc... it's the never-ending saga of trying to build a new government. i only need to click "war in iraq" in google, and there pops 120,000,000 sites within 0.42 seconds! wow! just imagine all the space this topic occupies in the cyber history...

lately, i've been working frequently with our iraqi co-employee for some of our local business development projects. yes, an iraqi, but he is not the stereotype. trips going to traffic-congested dubai, and all the inner streets therein, leave us with so much time to kill. and being the ever-curious cat, i pestered him with my questionings...

"how's your family?" "since the war started in 2003, they stayed in Barsa, which is south of Baghdad. they are fine but i always worry about them."

"how has the war affected your life?" "i think things are never going to get better. we used to be a rich country, with good sources of oil. but now, economy is plunging sooo low. "

"what really is the war about" "i think it is more of the unresolvable conflict between Sunni and Shia, the two types of Muslims."

"what??? I thought there is only one type of muslim" "no. sunni is the bigger of the two. they have been fighting in iraq ever since. when saddam was ousted, we knew it was not going to be an end, but another beginnning. a new reason to fight over... and the cycle goes on... "

"what are they fighting for" "i really don't know anymore."

"blah blah blah".... my line of questionings were endless, with some bordering into ultimate boring ones, so i will spare you the details...

even if i ran thru the whole of the 120,000,000 sites, i still would not find one real answer to "why is this happening?" nor will i ever find a good rationalization on the occurence of all these. but one thing i have always been sure of, as cliche-ish as it may sound, truly, there are no winners in any kind of war. thousands of innocent lives have been taken away. thousands of lives shattered. thousands still are better off dead than slowly dying...

i remembered reading some marvelous things about Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilization... and centuries after, now Iraq, the cradle of uncivilization! A sad paradox.

My Second Home in UAE

i was supposed to be just going for a 3-month stint in Dubai on May 2002... and now it is 2007, and we are already celebrating our 5th anniversary! wow, how time flies...

being a BS Food Technology graduate and having part of my work experience in product development, my first mission was to assist the food service department when Adventureland (family entertainment center) opened last Feb 2002... it was cut-short when the then marketing officer resigned and the post was opened. spending most of my working years in the philippines in the marketing field made me more at ease with this new mission rather than the first.

Marketing-wise, it was much different! i can say it was a blast! being part of the pioneering team, marketing was in full gear-- from tri-media to local store promotions to PR relations! this was my dream-come-true work and i've been a part of the department for 3 years, with our major accolade as being the Anchor (of the Mall) of the Year Awardee for 2004.

afterwhich, i shifted to other departments such as operations management, audit, hrd, admin, and general management as a whole. every step has been such a different world for me, adding multiples perspectives that i found useful not only at work, but for my personal life as well... with colleagues coming in and going out, and others coming back again... with different ball games at each period... with birthday, eids, christmases and ramadans coming in so fast... my life in Adventureland surely has been one heck of a roller coaster ride!

i'd always remember the faces of the happy kids complete with joyful shriekings that enlivens our center day-in day-out...

i'd always love the people i've worked with who has become good friends, and all the new friends i made from the different countries...

i'd always be thankful for the countless experiences that have pained me, but ultimately enriched me...

i'd always embrace the joys and the fun times i had with my workmates...

i'd always treasure the bosses who've never failed to support us, mentor us and share a good laugh with us... they are rare in this corporate world!

i'd always bring with me all the tricks of the trade that i learned, which i can apply even in the most mundane aspect of my life...

i'd always be thankful to God for the opportunity to see the face of this part of the world...

this is another rich chapter in my life that i'd surely remember with fondness and much thanksgiving