(Marahil lahat ng taga-LP ay alam ang lokasyon ng aking lahok. Isa ito sa paborito kong puntahan sa Tagaytay kahit noon pang sa Cavite ako nakatira. Paborito ko ang mamasyal sa Taal Vista para magpahangin at makapag-isip-isip.)

I guess most if not all LP members know the location of my entry for this week. Taal Vista is one of my favorite spots in Tagaytay. I like hanging out along the deck to relax and unwind. I miss Tagaytay.

May isa pa akong lahok dito at marami pa mula sa Litratong Pinoy.

Taken at a restaurant in Las Vegas, 2005

I have a “not-so” wordless entry here.  More wordless entries here!

My daughter Amelie got invited to a birthday party last Saturday. The celebrant’s mom asked me to bring my camera along and so I started snapping photos as soon as we reached the party.

I like this particular shot because of the little boy who was dead set in breaking the piñata. Each kid was given three chances to hit the piñata but this boy went on and on to the point of dropping his pants while at it. We all had a good laugh watching the kids in this game.

(To protect the privacy of my friend’s guests, I purposely covered their eyes on the photo.)

More weekend snapshots, here!

Mahirap maghanap ng eksaktong kahulugan ng salitang “balingkinitan” sa diksyonaryo. Ngunit mayroon itong ilang salin, tulad ng salitang “Lean” sa ingles. Ayon sa http://www.tagalog-dictionary.com:

lean
lean adj. 1 thin: payat 2 having little fat: di-mataba, payat, walang taba 3 thin, slender: balingkinitan 4 producing little: mahina, salat · v. 1 to bend, not upright: humapay, kumiling, humilig 2 to rest sloping or slanting, set or put in a leaning position: humilig, ihilig, sumandal, isandal

Ito ay kuha sa Sentosa, Singapore 2006.

Mayroon pa akong isang lahok. Maraming pang litratong pinoy dito!

Taken at Goldcoast, Australia 2004.

I have another entry here. More wordless(ness) here!

My husband went on a four-day business trip last week to Perth and came back home Thursday evening only to replenish his office clothes. He left again the following day to Canberra to attend to an urgent project matter.

He knows that I will be upset because of the sudden work assignment that he left these for us the following day. The cute koala is for our daughter and the sweets are for me.

More from the other weekenders!

(This meal is popularly called Tapsilog. Tap for “tapa” or beef, Si is for “sinangag” or fried rice and Log is for “itlog” or egg. Wikepedia has defined tapa as:

Tapa is dried or cured beef or venison, although other meat or even fish may be used. Filipinos prepare thin slices of meat and cure it with salt and spices as a method of preserving it. Tapa is best fried or grilled, often served with rice, fried egg and achara (pickled papaya strips). The term tapa was coined from the Spanish word tapas, meaning “light finger food”

We had this dish at Breakfast at Antonio’s in Tagaytay. I paired this with their homemade hot chocolate and it’s just heavenly.)

Di natin maitatanggi na isang sikat na tatak Pinoy ang tapsilog. Kahit sa almusal o tanghalian, hindi ko ipagdadalawang isip na ihain ito. Sadyang masarap. Sadyang tatak Pinoy.

May isa pa akong lahok dito. At marami pa dito!

Taken at Royal National Park, Sydney, June 2008.

I have another wordless here and more wordless(ness) here!

This was taken at the Royal National Park in Sydney’s south last Saturday. The two friends seemed to enjoy the serene waters under the bright, clear skies and cool winter weather.

I felt relaxed myself just looking at them.

I have another entry here. More from the other weekenders!

“Learning begins at home. As a new parent, there is so much that I want to teach my daughter. Not because I want to ‘push’ her to succeed in life but because I want to open up as many doors of opportunities as I can for her. That way, when the time comes for her to choose a career or a hobby to pursue, she will have options. She will be in a better position to make life changing decisions.

At her stage, she enjoys learning so much. From simple words, the alphabet, numbers to building blocks. In return, I learn from her too. I learn about love, patience and acceptance. I treasure this ‘learning’ moments with my daughter.”

Bilang isang bagong magulang, napakaraming bagay ang nais kong maituro sa aking anak. Hindi dahil gusto ko sya ‘itulak’ para maging matagumpay sa buhay kung hindi para matulungan kong buksan ang mga pinto ng oportunidad para sa kanya. Para pagdating ng panahon na kailangan nyang mamili ng karera, mayroon syang pagpipilian. Mas magiging maganda ang posisyon nya na gumawa ng mga mahahalagang desisyon sa buhay.

Sa ngayon, tuwang-tuwa syang matuto ng maraming bagay. Mga simpleng salita, mga letra, numero hanggang sa pagtatayo ng mga ‘blocks’ na nasa larawan. Sa katunayan, ako rin ay natututo sa kanya. Natututo ako ng pagmamahal, tyaga at pagtanggap. Pinapahalagahan ko ang mga pagkakataon na ito na maturuan ang aking anak.

Taken at East Coast Park, Singapore May 2007

I have another wordless here and more wordless(ness) here!

We were strolling around the city area when my husband and I decided to stop at this alley where old buildings run parallel throughout the stretch. If not for the passersby, I would have taken a shot of each door that I saw. They just might think I’m crazy for doing so. Hee.

I just find them so interesting as they offer a nice nostalgic feel to the city.

I have another one here. More from the other weekenders!

Ang aking asawa na si R at anak na si Amelie

(My siblings and I grew up not seeing much of my father. He worked in the US merchant marines and managed to go home only twice a year. Needless to say, we grew up not knowing who he really is. Until he retired two years ago, we got all the chance to know each other and catch up on lost time.

Not discounting all his efforts, hard work and sacrifice to give us a good future, I knew then that the setup is not something that I would want for my own family. I want my child to see much of her father as much as she sees me.

I am happy that my husband’s work does not require him to travel a lot and be in another country. That is one blessing that I am always grateful for.)

Lumaki kami ng aking mga kapatid na hindi nakakasama ang aming ama. Siya ay nagtatrabaho noon sa US merchant marines at nakakauwi lamang ng dalawang beses sa isang taon. Lumaki kami na hindi namin sya nakikilala. Hanggang mag retiro sya dalawang taon ang nakakaraan at doon pa lamang nagsimula na kami ay mabuo bilang pamilya at magkakilanlan.

Bagaman malaki ang hirap at sakripisyo nya sa paghahanap buhay sa ibang bansa, alam ko noon pa na hindi ganoon ang gugustuhin ko para sa sarili kong pamilya. Nais ko na makita at makasama ng aking anak ang kanyang ama.

Masaya ako na ang trabaho ng aking asawa ay hindi nangangailangan na sya ay magbyahe ng malayo at mamalagi sa ibang bansa. Isa yang pagpapala ng Diyos na lagi kong ipinapagpasalamat.

May isa pa akong lahok dito, sana ay makapasyal kayo.

Do you like wearing thongs? I do!

Taken at Esplanade Entrance, Singapore, 2005.

I have one more wordless here, hope you can also visit! More wordless, here!

Hyde Park is one of the World Youth Day venues. Despite that it’s winter here now, I am sure that this area will be packed with so many delegates from all over the world.

Although I am not a Catholic, I went to a Catholic university in Manila, Philippines. When World Youth Day was held there in 2005, Manila was put on the spotlight with the Pope’s visit. The streets were extremely crowded during the Pope’s parade and security was on high alert at that time. I wonder how it will be like here. Honestly, I am keen to know for photo opportunities. Hi hi.

Here are some more shots from Hyde Park.

Pathway that connects the St. Mary’s Cathedral to the Museum

St. Mary’s Cathedral

Archibald Fountain

I have another entry here, which I hope you also visit. More from the other weekenders!

Kalayaan. Isa sa pinakamatamis na salita sa mundo. Hindi mapapantayan ng salapi o ng anumang bagay ang mamuhay ng may kalayaan.

Malaking biyaya ng Diyos sa atin ito lalo na’t ang mundo natin ay likha ng magulo. Kahit paano ay nabubuhay pa rin tayo ng may kalayaan. Kalayaan na makapaghayag ng damdamin, magmahal, magbigay sa kapwa, sumamba sa Diyos at marami pang iba.

We were on our way back to the mall when we passed by this flock of birds and took note of the man sitting quietly on the green patch of grass while reading the paper. With the birds chirping and wings flapping, he remained calm amidst the noise.

I have another entry here, which I hope you also visit. More from the other weekenders!

(When I was a child, I remember asking my mother why those birds are called love birds. She told me that it is so because of their “love” for each other that when one of the birds die, the other one weakens and eventually dies, too.

Isn’t this true for us humans? If the love in a relationship is true and strong, when one partner goes away, the other one weakens in heart and longs for the other.)

Nung bata pa ako, naalala ko na naitanong ko sa aking ina bakit tinawag na love birds ang mga ganitong ibon. Ang sabi sa akin ay dahil kapag nawala ang isa sa kanila, nanghihina o namamatay din ang kabiyak. Makatotohanan ito sa ating mga tao di ba? Kapag tunay ang pagmamahalan sa isang relasyon, kapag nawala ang isa, nanghihina at nangungulila naman ng isa.

The post title is taken from a beautiful poem by Corinne Roosevelt Robinson.

Visit Wordless Wednesday for more participants.

Here in Australia, that is. It’s time to bring out thicker sweaters and store all the summer clothes. In fact, the cold season started early this year. Even if it was summer, there were days when the temperature hit a low 19degC.

Since it doesn’t snow in Sydney, the family is planning a trip to Snowy Mountains with our friends. It will be the family’s first snow experience so we hope it pushes through.

I have another WS entry here. Have a beautiful week ahead!

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