Banking Woes

R and I went to do a long overdue errand - have our details updated with the bank.

Being an OFW before, you will always end up having a lot of half-used prepaid SIM numbers because your main purpose was to contact your friends in a few weeks before you leave again and come back the following year or maybe a few months.

photo courtesy of http://siliconangle.com/blog/2013/07/21/sim-card-vulnerability-puts-one-quarter-of-all-phones-at-risk/

Others who knew they will be going home more often, invest on getting a roaming SIM which they ask their loved ones to top up when the credit is about to expire (yep, it only allows 75 days for Globe subscribers... not so sure about share-a-load credits... have to find that out).

Anyways, with any bank transactions, a contact number is required.

Now that we are back here (gulp!) for good we thought it is best to update the bank of our new contact details and at the same time, update any other necessary information that needs to be changed.

Upon coming in, we were greeted by a warm smile in our BDO branch. Immediately, we were offered to sign up a credit card. My mom informed us that there is a promo running right now regarding this and we thought

why not?! (BIG SMILEY for me)

After the initial purpose of going to the bank, I inquired about it and rightly so, we were provided with forms to fill in.

We obliged and fill in what we can. The customer representative was very patient and read through all the answers. She smiled and asked

Ma'am, we need to have your landline number so that the request can be processed.

Oh no (BIG FROWN-Y). I told her that we do not have a landline number as we did not think it is really necessary at this day and age. She offered to provide suggestions (like maybe we have relatives who have a landline or the neighbors!). We said there is really none.

She smiled again and said,

Okay Ma'am, let us see na lang po if they process.

So in the end, we do not have our hopes up about the credit card thing-y because they might not even give us a call because it's not a landline number.

Let us see how it goes... I will hold on to our bank's slogan (teehee) :)

photo courtesy of BDO

 

 

Memberships

Are they really worth it? 

A few days after coming back home, my mom and sister have been telling me to avail of the card membership from S&R.

I think I have only been to this store once or twice when I was still in my tweens (ahem! yeah, a long time ago). I have to say I like the idea that you can buy stuff in bulk. Another interesting fact is that I (and the entire family) like love their humongous pizza slices!

photo courtesy of http://www.istorya.net/forums/food-and-dining-18/335954-s-and-r-pizza-you-better-try.html

I also know that they have reasonable sale items for their members.

R and I had a talk. He thinks the idea of being member sounds like a good idea but then also asks me if the PHP 700 membership is worth it.

Please do not take this as if we snub these kind of privileges because we are also members of the Robinsons Rewards and BDO Rewards. These two only have a minimal fee. Apart from that, we frequent the places they offer rewards to (Hello! Robinsons and SM - wherelse!). So I mean you know, you will definitely reap rewards on these cards.

I am still contemplating on this because there are a few household items that can be bought in S&R that you cannot find elsewhere. I think this is the Philippine version of Target or Costco.

Though I have also read online in one of the women sites that buying in bulk has its disadvantages too. You do not maximise the use of your supplies because you know that you have enough to cover you till you need them. A wrong notion to be quite honest because that also means you are not getting your money's worth.

I think there is an advantage in bulk buying because you and your family can share (though this can be a bit tricky especially if your siblings or family do not use the same brand!!).

The 'bugging' has stopped for now but I think I can be persuaded... most especially if my mom brings me inside the establishment. I swear I am such a fanatic now of supermarkets and homeware items. I have been transformed into being a gadget freak to a home freak (yes! cleaning items? COME TO MAMA!)

I will need to go through our budget and see if there is an excess... nuninuninu... excess? what excess???? :p

We have gone crazy at Krazy Garlik!

Since R & I have been back home, we now have these one-time family dinners with (of course) the entire family - almost (background: bro and his family are not here in the Philippines and have migrated to Canada).

I was searching for a place that R & I have not tried before that is unique to our palate and at the same time, a bit easy on the budget.

Yes, we are not OFWs anymore so we are a bit conscious on how we spend our money.

Since I am a coupon and deal freak when we were still in Dubai, I have tried scoring for good deals in the Philippines as well. I came to know about ClicktheCity and have downloaded their app to secure some good deals (I will have a seperate blog post about this wonderful app).

After downloading the app, I have browsed through it and ta-da, I have found the Krazy Garlik :) Initially, I thought okay maybe this restaurant serves most of their dishes with garlic (but this ingredient is a staple in almost all the dishes, right)?

Half expecting for the dishes to be garlicky, we all went and head to the restaurant.

First off, I like the ambiance. It has a very cheerful surrounding with the yellow hues all over the restaurant. There were not a lot of people that time (being a workday) so we were immediately seated. The staff were all smiles and attentive to what their customers need. Our server also gave us suggestions since we were kind of a medium-sized group (a total of 5 persons).

We ordered the Garlicky Crispy Pata (yes! pork!), Korean Style Sesame Beef for mom, their famous 40 Cloves Chicken and the Tofu and Baby Eggplant.

I am assuming that the dishes where made on order because it did take awhile before the food came which was okay because my mom was busy watching the finale of My Destiny (I resisted taking a photo because she will get very mad about it!)

(grabbed from my sister's instagram account)

Over all, the price was reasonable as they do have enough portions. The two men (dad and R) were so full (double thumbs up!). 

I would recommend you to try this again or if you did then come back and have some more! :) 

*The Krazy Garlik outlet that we have tried is at Greenhills Promenade, San Juan City 

The Weather

is something that I/ we need to get used to.

Yes, Dubai is known for it's extreme weather and when we left that city, it was still the dry season. Fortunately there, the electricity charge is not as exorbitant as it is here in Manila.

In Dubai, you can still enjoy the cool breeze of the air conditioner if the condition persists. Apart from that, it is the heat that is your enemy. Unlike here in the Philippines, you need to think a thousand (yes, a thousand times) before switching on the air conditioner (or is it just us being stingy?). More than the heat, it's the humidity that I think is causing a concern for me and R. That sticky feeling, you know (yes, that's the one).

Now it really makes me get very scared when the summer season kicks in.

I need to find alternatives to stay cool under the summer heat in the Philippines.

Mr. Sun 

(source: http://freedesignfile.com/13215-elements-of-summer-sun-vector-art-03/)

And so here we are...

It has been two weeks since we have moved back here.... yep, in the Philippines.

We were welcomed by traffic, endless sweat and nonstop rain! Hahaha but overall, it was a fun welcome most especially since I get to see my family (mom, dad and sissy).

Until this moment, I do not have any strange feeling about the decision that we have made. Friends have said (or actually analyzed) that it is probably because I still feel that this is a vacation.

I think so too...

I don't feel any fear to be quite honest. I am not sure why but it's like my doubts about how the financial aspect will turn out seems to be a distant issue now. It felt like the Almighty has given me the peace of mind regarding this decision.

I am still in touch with my friends and colleagues at work back in Dubai but have not touched base with my friends here in Manila. Not that I do not want to see them (of course, I do!). It is just that I want to savor this moment with R. I feel that finally, we are building our own home and not just a temporary one.

We get to decide where to put what. To let you in a secret (sort of), I think we still try to put everything in our room! I guess it is because in Dubai, we only have a room for ourselves (except for kitchen items, of course). Slowly, we now make use of the other areas in the house!

Our house is slowly becoming a home... though we still have a lot of stuff coming in the next few months (5 boxes!!)

I just have to say, it is hard to pack everything up and close a decade of your life in another country.... because you do not only temporarily close it but you have to familiarise yourself with what is in front of you, what is in store for you in the place you are in.

Slowly, we will get there but for now, I enjoy the peace (though at times, the bickering!!) our home brings :)

Series Addict (an uberly late post!)

Now that I am slowly regaining my strength by eating the right amount of food (meaning no diets!) and drinking vitamins, I have converted myself into a series addict!

June 29 was the start of Ramadan here in Dubai and usually, this means that the working hours are now shorter (6 hours to be exact). We were given the 8am to 2pm stint and that means I am usually home by 3pm.

At first, I was thinking of something to do and fell asleep!! The second time I tried, I again fell asleep so I thought to myself, what should I do so I do not fall into this "routine"

Watch TV series

I have been watching a lot of television during weekends but do not really follow any series in particular. I said to myself, I do not want to be hooked however I weighed my options if I want to sleep throughout the afternoon or try to keep busy. I guess that was the reason I decided watching a TV series instead.

Now, I am more than addicted to watching this TV series, Bones.

(photo grabbed from Episode Generator)

This is a series about a forensic anthropologist and an FBI agent who solves crimes using what's left of the human remains, bones.

I like the series because it gives me a taste of the world of anthropology and a crime scene. I have been very fond of CSI so I guess this is just one of them however, the twist on this series is that they are also intertwined. Aside from the bones that they look at, their personal lives are also being discussed here to which I think this series evolves in the perfect subject --- LOVE.

I am still in Season 2 but I do sense chemistry on the two main lead characters, Temperance Brennan and Seeley Booth.

A friend in the office said that she thinks they hooked up in real life and I had to check (not so sure if I am just a sucker for romance but I was really hoping they ended up in real life as well). Turns out, they are not husband and wives but are just co-workers.

Though most of the crimes are solved, they inject a lot of different topics in each episode like how Booth is a devout Catholic while Brennan is all about science. I thought this was just a one-off topic but it's not. Now, I am interested to know how this kind of faith rubs to Brennan since she always needs to have a rational explanation and does not believe in God.

Aside from that, it also gives me a picture of various types of American families on how they live their lives - individually or together.

Okay, I think I am being absorbed by their world on how I write this blog but I really find the series exciting. There are still hundreds of episodes that I need to watch and I am amazed how time pass by watching this.

I will let this series devour my time until the end of Ramadan which is two weeks away... better go back to my series!! :)

Lazy Me!

This has been my outlook for the past few... weeks months.

I always attribute it to the fact that I have been sick for the past few months (well... it was on and off) and the fact that the lazy weather (aka summer) has been creeping in slowly that I am not moving that much (translation: it's only my fingers who are the most active... by browsing online through my Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more... if it's not that, it occupies its time browsing through channels on the telly).

The fact that I am sick is true.

I have been having colds that take forever to heal. I do not want to admit to myself that maybe the "age" is catching up you know but then again, I am trying my best to eat healthy (however does not do anything in terms of enhancing the body i.e. exercise).

Friends have been telling me that I have been sick most of the time they try to get hold of me and I, too, wonder why. R and I have been trying to research why am I getting sick most of the time. I don't think it's because of my inability to exercise because I am really not a 'gym' kind of person. So what we did was we kept on looking for sources e.g. we looked for molds because last time my ex-roommate and I were sick for about 2-3 weeks only to find out that our room was beginning to be moldy (kind of).

Molds out of the list.

Aside from that, I have also taken vitamins again to give my body the nutrients that it needs.

As I have said also, the summer season is coming!!!! It is here!!!! I love the sun but not this kind of sun exposure.

Though I have to say, it should have started in the month of May but the summer season is just about to start because during the night, you can still walk around and still feel a light breeze.

Not really sure why I am struck by this sickness (i.e. having a lazy attitude) when I have a thousand things to do --- one of the major thing is to start packing things up!!!

The D-day is very close to happening and I only managed to ship out one box... uh huh... just one box.

I hope this feeling goes off really soon... including my cold and cough so that I can concentrate on the important stuff...

Now, let me get back to my tea ;)