#UAE2017: 9 Day DIY Eid Al Fitr Celebration

As soon as I got back from my annual leave last year, I was homesick for at least a month after ~ I kept missing my nephew and niece (self-declared #TitasofMLA), my parents, our youngest (who was already in his 3rd year of med school but was still a baby to me) and practically everybody I left back in Manila. It was my 3rd vacay home to date, but the homesickness was still as pervasive, if not more intense, as soon as I left for the boarding gate.

So 2 weeks into the post-vacay blues, CebuPac had 399aed sale flights again! Granted, it was nothing compared to their original seat sales before where you can get 300aed roundtrip flights DXB-MLA (#ErrorFare) but it was better than their most recent promos so yalla, I booked for 3 people in time for the Eid holidays! Just dropped the bomb a month after that they have no choice but to weather the sweltering heat in UAE for a week and a half HEHEHEHEHEEEE*evil laugh*

I booked the flights in early December so I had plenty of time to plan their itinerary as well as to plot the budget I'll need to allocate for their stay.

However, the main problem I encountered during this stage was actually getting the Affidavit of Support that the PHL immigration is requiring from Filipino tourists. The full list of requirements (which made me feel exhausted just by looking at it) and the need to take time off from work to personally request it from the embassy really stressed me out for a month before I was able to finalize everything a week prior to their flight.

Here's the list of requirements that the embassy needs:

Ugh.

This affidavit was originally implemented to help curb human trafficking but personally, I don't think it helps. Anybody can circumvent the process and it's just a potential avenue (if not yet) for corruption. Plus, I had to request for NSO authenticated certificates for proof, and klutz that I am, I don't have any remaining hard or soft copies on hand so what to do?

I scoured the net for possible alternatives on how the parentals can breezily go through immigration without so much as a glare. I wasn't able to find any, only opinions on just how useless this affidavit is yada yada yadaaaaa so I just made my own checklist of what they need to present to the officers and how to effectively present it to avoid being offloaded. I'll share my tips on another post ;)

Mash'allah :) everything went off smoothly and they were able to experience the mega sales that Eid Al Fitr has to offer, along with the glorious heat/ humidity, local culture and authentic shawarmas that UAE had in store for them! Till the next holidays!

Eid Mubarak!

#PrayforMarawi

No whining for now despite your politics. We are ONE Philippines, let's do our part to help.

CEB Advisory: Suspension of Riyadh & Doha Flights

Here's to hoping they won't do this on UAE-MLA flights! HUHUHUUUUU

*Crossing fingers for my September and February plans*

***

From CEB website: https://www.cebupacificair.com/Pages/travel-advisory?tid=335

CEB is suspending operations to and from Kuwait, Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) and Doha (Qatar) as these routes are no longer viable and sustainable.

Cebu Pacific will continue to operate its daily service between Manila and Dubai (United Arab Emirates)

We are contacting passengers who are affected by the suspension of CEB service to and from Kuwait, Riyadh and Doha. Passengers with bookings beyond the last flight dates on these affected routes are strongly advised to contact their travel agents or the CEB hotline at +632 7020 881 to discuss options. They may also message the official Cebu Pacific Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/cebupacificair) or Twitter (@CebuPacificAir) accounts. The options include:

• Transfer to another airline with the same route (subject to availability)
• Rebook to an earlier Cebu Pacific flight (subject to availability)
• Refund in full
• Get a travel fund in full

*** 

CPB Review

AAPC now has the May-Mania promo which gives you at up to 52% off on exam prep bundles with certification exams!

Soooo... my next exam is in August *teeth chattering* on a totally impulsive decision to give myself a deadline on my 2017 goal-setting plans. CPMA on hold, I decided to give CPB a try first since I know I won't be auditing any time soon, unless it's internal medical documentation reviews - and that's more of either CDEO or CDIP (AHIMA) area.

Anyway, I'll get my study guide by the 18th so I need to finalize my review schedule by then. Inshallah everything turns out ok ~~ then Korea baby! #workhardplayharder ♥

Rakrakan sa Tagfest 2017

... when your weekend plans go EPIC!!! 

Concert noobs

Greenpark peeps!

Accommodations: Real Coast & Surf

Since 2015, me and my girls made a tradition to have 1 night to do whatever we want whenever I go back to Manila. First time was in Ace Hotel & Suites (Kapitolyo, Pasig) where we had a grand time in the water spa, strolling in Capitol Commons and getting crazy drunk with no worries ~ a break that one of them told me (while lounging in the lazy river) was desperately needed.

So we planned to venture out of Manila this time and decided on Real Coast & Surf resort in Real, Quezon after M saw their account on Instagram. The booking was made from a link on their facebook page: Real Coast & Surf and we booked a cabana good for 4 people.

E-Tip:The price was good, but once you get there you still have to pay 200/pax as entrance fee. We thought it included access to the newly built resort on the other side (with a pool) but it was only good for our side (but if your booking was made for their resort, access to our side was already included).

Booking and schedules confirmed, leaves applied and children safely endorsed ~ we're finally off to Quezon! Roadtrip!!

Nobody knows how to get to Real so we had this map from the resort's website (see below). Initially we were relying on Waze but they said it's usually better to use if you're in the city compared to far-flung areas so we had to ask her colleague from work time to time to know if we're on the right track.

 E-Tip: Better make sure all car (or van) parts are in good working order before starting on your journey as the roads, if you're taking the route above, are mostly by the mountainside. We had to check our brake pads twice to be sure, and I'm not taking any chances because I have two moms with me. Safety first people!

On the way L saw the Pililia Wind farm so we had to stop over.

We didn't get to eat the world famous bulalo in Tanay because we had a lot of stopovers already so we went straight to the resort after the wind farm.

We didn't bring a lot of food but there's a market nearby so we went back there after checking in. You just have to be careful of your food as they have a loooot of stray dogs inside the area and  they'll steal it the minute you ain't looking.

Anyway. all the stress and the dogs were erased the minute we woke up to this:

Unfortunately, we didn't surf because as soon as we checked in, there was an earthquake alert in Quezon. My cousin, who drove us here, said the area was landlocked so minimal chance of tsunamis dragging us out to sea but we just stayed put and played in the beach hehehe

E-Tip: Minimal to none cell reception here so be prepared to disconnect from the outside world.

Have fun and stay safe!

Middle East Film & Comic Con 2017

Woke up bright and early at 8AM to go to MEFCC in Dubai, which opens at 10AM:

Battle Park

Overwatch Competition

Greg Grundberg