2015 Recap
Wow, 2015. It has been such an awesome year.
I must say, I am quite impressed at how this year turned out for me.
Change of homes, work, friends and perspectives. It has been a year of traveling. A year of surf. A year of firsts. A year of highs and lows. A year of victories. A year of dreams coming true. It was indeed a year of new beginnings for me.
I have been out and about, and it has never kept me more alive. I can honestly say, that this year is a year of moving on to better and brighter things.
My first solo trips outside PH and KL and SG.
My first surf in Bali during my 35th birthday. My first motorbike rental. My first motorbike accident; where i got scraped in different parts of my body because of my clumsiness. My first beach travel with Sophia, a friend from India (my sister's friend's sister). My first stay in a dorm-type accomodation, care of B&B. My first english surf instructor, Jack.
My first time to sleep in an airport. My first experience of an all-girl surf competition in Siargao, and to be included in the video shoots. And to be photographed a lot by the pros. My first time to stay in this beautiful resort in Siargao, called Sagana. My first time to surf wearing just a bikini top. My first time to get that overhead set which drove me nuts when I was able to surf it, and drove me even more nuts when I wiped out big time. My frist to meet and hang out with a pro girl surfer girl from Oz - Philippa A. My first surf and yoga camp. My first stay in a hostel in Siargao and actually enjoy every single moment there, surrounded with such good vibes and beautiful people. My first time to surf a wavepool in Manila (in CME) and actually took it seriously I enrolled myself to a three-day surf program. My first surfboard order from Skwala - which to this day has not been completed yet and delivered to my home address.
My first trip to Hanoi, Vietnam. My first time to stay in a backpackers place (in VN) surrounded by hot caucasian british guys from all over. My first flight (to Siem Reap and Singapore) which I purposefully missed due to the fact that I value my sleep and my well-being more. My first authentic Vietnamese meals, which I adored and sometimes crave, to this very day.
My first time to migrate. My first plane ride to Oz. My first time in Oz. My first encounters with squillions of westerners smiling, beaming and being so nice to me. My first dates with caucasian guys. My first experience of four seasons. My first time to surf in cold waters. My first surf wearing a wet suit. My first surf in Sydney. My first surf in different spots in Melbourne. My first time living alone, in a studio apartment. My first male guest in my apartment who is Italian. My first surf meetups with total strangers - which turned out to be fantastic. My first beach trip in Melb spent with my first surf crew who were all europeans. My first Latin festival with my Sri Lankan colleague. My first Filipino festival with my long-time friend from uni.
My first time to be a full-time BI consultant. My first Black Tie event. My first company forum (which was held on my 5th day of working in the company). My first time to deal with new different technologies. My first time to work in a company where I'm the only Filipino, and for the most part, the only girl in client/team meetings. My first IBM exam. My first hilarious tech certification exam. My first time to witness my direct manager getting sacked on the very same day. My first time to break down and cry, all because the pressures of migrating and work. My first time to feel I belong despite being new to a certain place. My first time to feel alone.
My first Christmas spent outside my home country, Philippines. Same case with my New Years as well. My first quiet and peaceful New Years. Christmas and New Years spent without my family, instead spent with new sets of friends who turned out to be my family here in Melbourne. My first time to ride a longboard.
It has been a mix of ups and downs. Despite of inevitable bouts of melancholy and loneliness and uncertainty, I stil would not have it any other way. At the end of the day, I am happy that I have gone through such memorable moments in different places with different people, and that I am finally here where I really REALLY want to be.
2016, I predict, will just a be a continuation of all these beautiful life transitions. I'm pretty sure I will still feel all these mix of emotions in the next couple of months. But it's totally valid and understandable as these are all part of the journey, and that I just have to embrace them as they come.
Thank YOU, God. Thank YOU, Universe. It has been such a beautiful journey this year, I will remember all these for the rest of my days <3
I must say, I am quite impressed at how this year turned out for me.
Change of homes, work, friends and perspectives. It has been a year of traveling. A year of surf. A year of firsts. A year of highs and lows. A year of victories. A year of dreams coming true. It was indeed a year of new beginnings for me.
I have been out and about, and it has never kept me more alive. I can honestly say, that this year is a year of moving on to better and brighter things.
My first solo trips outside PH and KL and SG.
My first surf in Bali during my 35th birthday. My first motorbike rental. My first motorbike accident; where i got scraped in different parts of my body because of my clumsiness. My first beach travel with Sophia, a friend from India (my sister's friend's sister). My first stay in a dorm-type accomodation, care of B&B. My first english surf instructor, Jack.
My first time to sleep in an airport. My first experience of an all-girl surf competition in Siargao, and to be included in the video shoots. And to be photographed a lot by the pros. My first time to stay in this beautiful resort in Siargao, called Sagana. My first time to surf wearing just a bikini top. My first time to get that overhead set which drove me nuts when I was able to surf it, and drove me even more nuts when I wiped out big time. My frist to meet and hang out with a pro girl surfer girl from Oz - Philippa A. My first surf and yoga camp. My first stay in a hostel in Siargao and actually enjoy every single moment there, surrounded with such good vibes and beautiful people. My first time to surf a wavepool in Manila (in CME) and actually took it seriously I enrolled myself to a three-day surf program. My first surfboard order from Skwala - which to this day has not been completed yet and delivered to my home address.
My first trip to Hanoi, Vietnam. My first time to stay in a backpackers place (in VN) surrounded by hot caucasian british guys from all over. My first flight (to Siem Reap and Singapore) which I purposefully missed due to the fact that I value my sleep and my well-being more. My first authentic Vietnamese meals, which I adored and sometimes crave, to this very day.
My first time to migrate. My first plane ride to Oz. My first time in Oz. My first encounters with squillions of westerners smiling, beaming and being so nice to me. My first dates with caucasian guys. My first experience of four seasons. My first time to surf in cold waters. My first surf wearing a wet suit. My first surf in Sydney. My first surf in different spots in Melbourne. My first time living alone, in a studio apartment. My first male guest in my apartment who is Italian. My first surf meetups with total strangers - which turned out to be fantastic. My first beach trip in Melb spent with my first surf crew who were all europeans. My first Latin festival with my Sri Lankan colleague. My first Filipino festival with my long-time friend from uni.
My first time to be a full-time BI consultant. My first Black Tie event. My first company forum (which was held on my 5th day of working in the company). My first time to deal with new different technologies. My first time to work in a company where I'm the only Filipino, and for the most part, the only girl in client/team meetings. My first IBM exam. My first hilarious tech certification exam. My first time to witness my direct manager getting sacked on the very same day. My first time to break down and cry, all because the pressures of migrating and work. My first time to feel I belong despite being new to a certain place. My first time to feel alone.
My first Christmas spent outside my home country, Philippines. Same case with my New Years as well. My first quiet and peaceful New Years. Christmas and New Years spent without my family, instead spent with new sets of friends who turned out to be my family here in Melbourne. My first time to ride a longboard.
It has been a mix of ups and downs. Despite of inevitable bouts of melancholy and loneliness and uncertainty, I stil would not have it any other way. At the end of the day, I am happy that I have gone through such memorable moments in different places with different people, and that I am finally here where I really REALLY want to be.
2016, I predict, will just a be a continuation of all these beautiful life transitions. I'm pretty sure I will still feel all these mix of emotions in the next couple of months. But it's totally valid and understandable as these are all part of the journey, and that I just have to embrace them as they come.
Thank YOU, God. Thank YOU, Universe. It has been such a beautiful journey this year, I will remember all these for the rest of my days <3