DIY Visa Series - How to Apply for a Japan Visa in Abu Dhabi

After 10 years, I finally have the info here for you people! :) YASSSSSSSS!!

When I initially did my research on how to apply for a Japan visa here in Abu Dhabi, the only result I got was how to apply from Dubai (which is only applicable for Dubai residents btw) so I had to rely only on the details provided by the Embassy of Japan - Abu Dhabi for the visa application and a variety of travel blogs for the rest.

First off, download the visa application form here by clicking here. You can fill it up electronically so it looks neater, below is a guide on how to do it:

Then prepare the requirements as follows:

Tourist requirements (Non-UAE nationals)

1. Passport (more than 2 blank pages)

2. Copy of passport ( and residence visa page)

3. Visa application form (Don't leave anything blank, just put in not applicable where necessary).

4. Photo (1 recent clear photo, white background w/n 6 mos. and pasted on the form)

5. Copy of confirmation of flight booking and accommodations

 - I made my bookings on booking.com to avail of the free cancellation and no prepayment offers to allow adjustment for last minute changes

6. Schedule of stay - I followed the samples from these blogs:

• TinCo Was Here
• The Madaldal Kid
• Project Gora
• Wandering Waffleheads

Although I had to do a lot of revisions a month before the trip because Jetstar Asia gave us a free option to reschedule our flight back on the 3rd day so yey!! 

7. Documents to show financial capability (ex. Certificate of Employment and at least 3 months bank statement, signed and stamped by HR and bank)

** Some say that bank activity is enough to guarantee a visa approval but to be sure, always leave enough balance to show that you can sustain your stay throughout the duration of the trip. I personally recommend this if you already have concrete travel plans because if denied, you can only re-apply after 6 months.

 8. Proof of current address (ex. utility bills) - I don't have any so I just printed off my credit card statement with my home address and they accepted it.

 9. Letter of Guarantee (if a family member is a minor/ student, etc.)

Then once everything's prepared, you can submit all your requirements to the Japan Embassy, a 6 aed taxi ride from Al Wahda Mall. You don't have to set an appointment, you can walk in from 8:30-1:30PM from Sundays to Thursdays. 

The lady who processed our application was really pleasant and after checking our papers for a few minutes with a couple of questions, she said we can get our visas on the 4th day (we applied on Thursday and she said the 4th day was Monday so even weekends were included in the count).

Best part, visa is free if your visit is less than 30 days! :)

That's it~ hope my guide helped you and enjoy your stay in Japan! 

6th Annual Health Information Management Congress

I'll be in Manila/Osaka for the whole of November but be sure to attend! Click on the picture to go to the registration page and sign up to get the early bird discount. Especially for nurses *winkwink*

Really proud to mention that our Case Management Director / CMRC-AA COO will be one of the speakers so CMRC will be well represented this year *fistbump* Go Ms. Catherine! 

Also, it's wonderful that we have a speaker from DOH-Philippines (see below) in the lineup! Too bad really that I can't go ~~ next year I'll make sure to schedule my leaves appropriately so I won't miss out. It's a great batch of speakers notwithstanding, and I'm pretty sure that the registration price will surely be worth it, given the 14 CEUs and the opportunity to network with HIM industry's heavyweights.

Don't tarry, sign up now!

Post Wedding Celebration at AAPC Regional Conference

Here's a glimpse on what went down at the first ever AAPC Regional Conference held in the Middle East on 19-Aug-2016 and was hosted at the Hilton Corniche, Abu Dhabi UAE.

And also, it's the day after N's wedding :) congrats and best wished N & D! 

During the conference we had options on what breakout sessions to attend - which are all excellent subject matters btw - and I really had a hard time whittling it all down to what I needed the most. Anyway, here's all the sessions, what I attended are highlighted:

• 1A - I 10 PCS Root Operation Evaluation
• 1B - Deep Dive I 10 Coding for General Surgery
• 1C - ICD-10-CM Clinical Concepts (A)
• 2A - Emergency Department Coding
• 2B - General 1 10 Training Organ Specialty Specific (B)
• 2C- Compliance Made Easy A Medical Practice Case Study
• 3A - Deep Dive  I 10 Coding for Pediatrics
• 3B-Concurrent Coding for Anesthesia
• 3C-The Difference Between Coding and Auditing
• 4A - I 10 Coding for Orthopedics
• 4B - Deep Dive I 10 Coding for External Cause Codes (EDWorkers' Comp)
• 4C-Coding for Hospitalists Services
• 5A - Deep Dive  I 10 Coding for Cardio Conditions
• 5B- The Difference Between Coding and Auditing
• 5C- Advanced E&M
• GS2 - Chronic Conditions and Their Impact on Healthcare Initiatives

It was such a fun time, and we have a variety of excellent resource speakers whom you could really see the passion shining from their eyes whenever they talk about their field. It was a great learning experience that I'm already looking forward to the next conference and certification!

*cross fingers* HEHEHEHEEEEE

See y'all next year! :) 

Accommodations : Dirty 31 at Aloft Abu Dhabi

To date, we have stayed here twice already - first was my birthday then my habibi's. By far, compared to all hotels we stayed both in DXB and AUH, Aloft Hotels remains no. 1 in my heart in terms of customer service, facilities, the view and the room, everything was exemplary.

TP on UNCLOS's Decision: The South China Sea Decision and Perfecto Yasay's Face

Better content than any other news outfit out there. Great read guys, what we should be deliberating on right now.

Click on the link to read the full post.

The South China Sea Decision and Perfecto Yasay's Face

DIY Visa Series - How to Apply for a Schengen Visa (Czech Republic) in Abu Dhabi

Last year my sister and I impulsively tried booking a 3D4N trip to Romania via Holiday Factory to tick off Going to Europe from our bucketlist. However, the plan underwent a lot of revisions due to timeline errors in itinerary planning, last minute air ticket additions and visa mistakes so we ended up going to Budapest (Hungary) and Prague (Czech Republic) instead.

Fisherman's Wharf, Budapest, Hungary

Travel Tip: To my fellow Pinoys, if you would like to enter Romania before these 2 countries, make sure to get a multiple entry Type C Schengen Visa or get a separate Romanian visa entirely if you were given only a single entry Schengen visa to make sure you'll be able to do the cross-country thing without any issues (So alam na kung saan kami nagkamali hehehehe) that will let you end up in transit for more than 24 hrs like this one right here:

For our Schengen visa, we decided to apply via the Embassy of the Czech Republic since Prague was the last and longest stop on our tour.

Steps:

1. Make an appointment online by clicking here: VISAPOINT. Applicants can apply from up to 3 months but no later than 15 days before the planned travel.

2. Complete your requirements. I based this list from the embassy's website and partly from the endless budget traveler blogs I scoured online:

     a. Filled out application form;
   
    b. Valid national passport with at least 2 empty pages and photocopies of passport ID page, Emirates ID, UAE residence visa page and previous Schengen visas from the last 3 years, if any.
   
    c. Salary Certificate and/or Employment Certificate (stamped and signed by your HR dept)
 
    d. Proof of sufficient financial means 
            - You have to request this from your bank personally, as it will be stamped and verified by the bank for the document to be considered valid
            - I read online that many has bank statements of up to 6 digit balances to show that you're capable of financing your tour. Here in the UAE, I only have my payroll account so what I showed on my bank statement is my activity for the last 3 months, along with my salary regularly being deposited. When I applied, I only have like half of my salary (not much actually, it was basically just enough to cover the duration of my stay) on the account and I was approved.
   
    e. Flight ticket reservations (c/o Holiday Factory and Cleartrip)
   
    f. Hotel reservations (c/o Holiday Factory and Booking.com)
   
    g. Detailed travel plan (for a sample itinerary, leave your email address in the comments section below to receive one for free)
   
     h. Cover letter ( I added this to my list of requirements to explain all the changes in our itinerary). Here's a sample of what I submitted:

      i. Travel Insurance certificate (from Union Insurance)
      k. Recent passport sized photograph (photo centers are usually aware of photo specs needed for specific visa requirements. Let them know for what country it's needed prior to having your picture taken.)

                                                              

3. Go to the embassy. As soon as you have prepared everything and it's already your appointment date, just head on over to the embassy at Marina Village, Villa A-09, Breakwater, Abu Dhabi. It's among the villas near Marina Mall and if you're taking a taxi from Al Wahda Mall or Central Bus station, it will only be 20-25AED depending on traffic. Once you're at the embassy, go to the backside for the visa consular services and ring the bell so they can let you in.

Visa fee is strictly 252AED, you should bring the exact amount or else you'll delay the application process. Personal appearance is required for the application since they'll be needing your biometric data. Everything can take up to 15-20 minutes tops and if you're travelling with someone you can submit your docs at the same time using the same appointment but keep in mind that you do have to submit complete requirements for each traveller.

That's it! Good luck and enjoy your trip!

Accomodations : Eid Break in DXB

Since our gang were blessed with a 5 day weekend for Eid Al Fitr, we planned for a staycation to decompress and destress from the rigors of the OFW life. And where best to do that with just a hint of going bankrupt? Dubai, of course!

               

As we booked the place at the last minute and everything got expensive fast, we opted for a hotel apartment so we can cook our own food and of course, an outdoor pool with steam/sauna. My sister and I got on Booking.com (genius perks baby!) to quicky scan and filter everything and we settled on Savoy Central Hotel Apartments.

The air-conditioned apartments feature a modern interior with traditional decorative touches. All apartments have a seating area with satellite TV, a kitchen with an electric oven and an en suite bathroom.

                                      

Starbucks, Al Ghurair Mall

Basically we stayed in the whole time, we only got out twice to grocery shop and to try out the pool/steam/sauna. It was too hot outside for us to explore the creekside so we just basked in the heavenly AC, watched war movies, gorged on the food and had a few friends over to catch up. 

Travel Tip: You can do your grocery shopping at Baquer Mohebi (my personal fave) which is right next door. Make sure to check out their daily promos specially at the frozen section for great savings!! Plus the Savoy has a lot of freebies until September 2016 so do check their fine print for more details.

Many cultural sites are accessible by either walking or bus/metro. Free shuttle rides are provided by the hotel to and from the beach from 10AM-2PM and you can opt to try 1AED ferry rides from Dubai Creek to Deira and vice versa as well.

How to get there:




Metro: Take the Green line to Fahidi Station and the location is a 10-15 min. walk during the winter. The nearest landmark will be Baquer Mohebi supermarket, which is at the hotel's left side. If it's summer, don't even think of walking during the daytime. Just take a taxi, it will be a 5 min ride max for 12AED (min. rate). 

Bus: There are no buses that stop in front of the hotel directly but you can take any bus from Fahidi Station (Green Line)/ Burjuman (Red Line) station along Khalid Bin Al Walid Rd. going to Ghubaiba Station and get off at Raffa 2 bus stop. From there, take the footbridge across and it's a 7 minute walk to the hotel.

How To: Eating Out in AUH Even If You're Broke

Eating out 2 days prior to payday aka Lingo De Peligro doesn't have to break the bank -- you can even do it for free! AMAZEBALLS!

That's what we did tonight at WTC's The Souk 😃 me and JRA decided to do dinnertime at a restaurant called Shakespeare & Co. The ambience has a Phoebe Buffay sort of vibe with its kitschy Victorianesque decor although the heat kind of ruined the mood a little bit. It's already summer over here and if you haven't experienced one yet in UAE, then you're in for a wonderful treat 👌🏽😃

Anyway, let's get back to the question at hand : How in the Seven hells does one have a very fulfilling meal even if you don't have moolah yet? Without going over your monthly alloted budget just to indulge your inner foodie?

All you grasshoppers have to do is download the Beam app, it's available in either Android or App store. It's the number one wallet app that you can sync with your cards and you can earn back rewards  for every transaction you make! Be it discounts on your Carrefour purchases, free coffee at Costa or additional credits to use at any of their partner stores (Vox cinemas, Aldo, Tim Hortons, etc.), you can be a wise consumer and take advantage of it all with Beam!

Over the weekend they had a surprise waiting for their users, you just have to shake your smartphone and you get 100aed in credits! We credited it to Vox and Shakespeare & Co. so it's like free date night ~~ Now that's what I call excellent customer service 😍 especially with Ramadan coming up and all.

So what are you waiting for? Download the app now, you can use the promo code KDJLCPV and get right on getting your rewards! Seeya around! ☕️

To check it out, go to their site by clicking here. You can also check if everything is within the allotted credit by going to your choice of resto's menu details by going on Zomato.