time machine

I may already have a post with the same title, but what the hey =) I am still up after finishing my last night shift for January (Mind you, I did six nights in a row and I survived!). Yup, lucky me, no work until February! If you haven't already heard, we will be away the whole month of January as we will be visiting the beautiful islands of the Philippines! (I suddenly felt like a contestant in a beauty contest hehe) It's been almost ten years since my last visit, and A hasn't been for about eleven years as well so no doubt,  it will be a very interesting trip. 

The idea of going back has been on my mind for awhile. The last time I was there, I didn't get to see  many of my classmates and friends even though I was there for almost 10 weeks. I was 19 and was in a completely different state of mind. I was lonely and heartbroken. I remember thinking, how different it would be had I been in a different situation, older and travelling with someone I love and care about. Who knew that this day would come?

So, I'm sort of planning to reunite with these people. This picture was taken in 1996 I believe, back when we were 13 or 14 years old. So it will be almost 14 years since I saw some of them. Yikes haha. I only say this because, though I'm so excited to see them all again, I feel much older and not at all like my old self =P My school years in the Philippines were among the best and most significant years of my life.  I think if I didn't have that to compare it to, I wouldn't appreciate the things I went through as much as I do now. I remember having a hard time adjusting to high school life here. I would eat my lunch in the library to avoid social interaction. I was quite anti-social and felt very much like an outcast. But these people were there for me in many ways and were like my own brothers and sisters. They made me feel like I belonged. And for that, they would always hold a special place in my heart. 

I guess I better start packing. I'm trying very hard not to bring so much stuff, as I know, everything back there will be so much cheaper. We might not bring along our tech toys so although, there's plenty of wifi and internet, I may not be able to update for awhile (since I'd rather spend time on the beach than attempt to find an internet cafe of some sort). We will be taking tons of pictures I'm sure, and hopefully do some island hopping at some point. I can hardly contain my excitement!

By the way, if you can guess where I am in this picture, I might bring you a very special prize all the way from the Philippines! I don't know what it is yet, but it will be something cute and amazing. Oh and those of you who already know the answer is automatically disqualified, so don't even try cause I know who you are =P hehehe. Guess away! Keep joining these contests because we're feeling very generous this year. I have a hunch it will be a great year for all of us =)