Down the Rabbit Hole

The reason why my parents suddenly flew to the Philippines soon after my vacation  with them ended was because my paternal grandma, Lola Bats, fell seriously ill. She was in hospital for several days, with a few stints at the intensive care unit even. It's worrisome because Lola is at such an advanced age that she's really fragile. A bug that people my age can easily recover from could lead to a difficult time in the hospital for her. Here's the thing, though, and I am very happy to report: my grandma successfully bounced back, yet again! She's well on the road to recovery... and hopefully it will be an easy trip to her 100th birthday from here on out. Just 14 months to go! Everyone in my family could sigh in relief now. Lola's out of the woods.  Lola Bats is recovering! 😄👍🎉 She got discharged from the hospital two weeks ago. A photo posted by Rochie Cuevas (@rochiecuevas) on Jan 30, 2015 at 6:32am PST

Daddy and I found a golf set for left-handed girls! And when he went home in January, he bought it for me. The first time I was able to use the set was when we went to the Fernando Airbase in Lipa, Batangas with Biboy and Ninong Romy. I really felt that I was struggling with myself. See, I've learned how to swing right-handed golf clubs. I've hit a few balls in the driving range with my dad for several years, albeit intermittently; however, I found it challenging to correct my swing since I'm left-handed. I since stopped practising in the meantime as Daddy agreed it would be best if I got my own proper clubs. So during our most recent trip to the driving range, muscle memory for swinging using the right-handed stance kept trying to surface while I was learning left-handed swings. It must have been a funny sight. I was really fighting with myself! Ninong Romy, after seeing a few good swings from me, recommended that I join them on an 18-hole round of golf. Fortunatel...

Have car; will travel. Yep, just give us a weekend with no concrete plans and you'll find us driving on the highway to wherever the road would take us. That's how my family was back in the day (e.g., we drove to Imus, Cavite to see the Christmas lights on the road when my mom saw it featured in the news). And I'm happy to find out that that same sense of adventure is still there. With my brother and my father as drivers, we took the scenic drive from the Bay Area to the Central Coast. Our aim was to reach the Hearst Castle; however, if we didn't reach it, it's fine because the journey is just as important than the destination. I was itching to take photos but it's difficult to do so in a moving car and I was seated in the middle, away from the windows, most of the time.  We stopped to take in the view of this lighthouse on top of a hill. Thankfully, we made a lot of pitstops along the route because there were many viewpoints for picture-taking! We ...

After the peaceful afternoon walking in the woods , Ate Maddie and I headed back to the city. We drove in just in time to catch San Francisco's rush hour traffic jam. This actually gave me the opportunity to tick another thing off my bucket list: to see the Golden Bridge at night. I've always thought that this red bridge was called "golden" because of gold rush that had swept over much of California in the old days. But no; it's named after the Golden Gate Strait, which connects the San Francisco Bay with the Pacific Ocean. John Fremont originally named the strait "Chrysopylae", which, while reading a historical article about San Francisco in the Concord Public Library, actually reminded me of the movie 300 , which featured a fictional account of the Battle of Thermopylae. Anyway, the spot Ate Maddie and I climbed was worth going to despite the bitter cold wind. Look at that view! We were in the Marin headlands, close to Battery Spencer, when...

Special thanks to my brother, Biboy, my sister-in-law, Barbara, Mommy, Daddy, my aunts, uncles, and cousins for making sure that I got to try as much of the good food that the Bay Area has to offer as possible. My last visit was one for the books because I gained a sense of the diversity of the cuisine choices there. Without further ado and in no particular order: Limon Rotisserie (San Francisco) This is my absolute favourite among the restaurants Biboy and I have visited. Peruvian rotisserie chicken... it's better than Andok's, Señor Pedro, and Baliwag's rotisserie chicken because the flavours go beyond the usual lemongrass. The chicken was so rich in complex tastes and aromas plus it was so tender. There, I was also introduced to Inca Blu's mango lemonade and to Pisco Sour. Biboy said that Limon has got to be one of San Francisco's best-kept secrets. I couldn't help but agree. Burmese Kitchen (Oakland) My brother is always spot on in choosing restau...

I've had layovers at a total of three Chinese airports, the latest one being Shanghai's Pu Dong Airport (over the holidays). Unlike Hong Kong's airport, where there's a wide selection of food choices, the Shanghai airport's restaurant options (at least where I was in between flights) were few. I opted to eat Korean food because the restaurant had the nicest presentation among the restos I passed by. The chili tofu soup had enough kick in it to keep me warm in the wintry conditions of Shanghai. It was delicious! However, since I'm used to having a lot of kimchi, maize, yellow sweet potato, and other side dishes in Korean restos in the Philippines, I got a bit surprised that there's none of those here... Maybe, the side dishes are just a Filipino adaptation. Or is something I'd typically see in Korea.  I enjoyed eating here a lot that I decided I'd go back on my return trip... after the New Year.

Ate Maddie brought me to Muir Woods, home of some of the oldest and tallest organisms I've ever seen. Trees, of course! California redwoods, to be specific. I was expecting to see bears, deer, squirrels, and other wild animals, but I guess these were not around due to the number of people milling about. No worries... the trees were so fascinating that soon enough, I forgot all about the animals! Imagine being in the presence of a tree that must have been living there since Biblical times. I couldn't get my head around that concept yet. Also, the foliage was so thick that the temperature inside the park was actually lower than outside. And it was darker inside too. It was quite a challenge to take pictures during our trip. I totally gave up on using my SLR because I was using the kit lens but what was needed inside was either a wide-angle or a fish-eye lens. Since I didn't have any of these lenses on me, I contented myself with taking pictures of the foliage from bel...

Biboy, Joycelyn, Tita Babie, and I were walking along the Martinez marina when we came across this health bulletin about fish consumption for women and children. It's well-intentioned; it is! But reading it from a different perspective could strike a chord for men most likely at the peak of their health (their 20s to 40s) and for women who are approaching their late 40s. Or maybe it's just because English is a second language for me... But this bulletin board appeared to be saying that kids and women aged 18—45 have to be extra careful with the fish that they eat; older women, and men 18 years and older, can eat whatever fish they like. As for me, my seafood allergies limit my fish choices. The fish included in the bulletin might induce allergic reactions in me so I avoid them anyway. No biggie.

After a very delicious Burmese meal in Oakland, my Oakland adventure with Biboy and Barbara continued on with a trip to Lake Merritt. This body of water appears to be a bird paradise because when we were there. So many of these birds were lounging by the water's edge, hunting in different parts of the lake, and/or just paddling to and fro with the other birds. And it's not just about one species; there were different types and species of birds (although I call most of them ducks). The lake must have a lot of fish to attract a lot of birds (which I assume eat the fish). It was a clear and sunshiny day. Perfect opportunity to take pictures of these birds. If ever I find myself in my very own Big Year , at least I can say that I've seen quite a few birds in one location. a lot more to see, surely, since the year is relatively young. Thank you, Biboy and Barbara, for bringing me out there!

Biboy and Barbara took me to one of the most peaceful parts oaf Oakland: the rose garden. I felt like I landed in Wonderland ! I almost expected the White Rabbit to pop up out of nowhere, frazzled, as usual, because he's late; the card soldiers who were painting the roses red; the flamingoes that were used as croquet mallets for the hedgehog croquet balls; and of course, the Queen of Hearts .  The walk, however, made me change my mind. Because it's still winter, the flower beds were bare. Twigs abound in the garden as if it were an abandoned part of the city! Only the hardiest of roses were in bloom; the rest were hibernating. Those that were in bloom, however, were so pretty. I could just imagine how fragrant and how colourful this place will be once all the flowers are in bloom! So yes, my mind's changed. We weren't in the Queen's Garden. We were in Mary Lennox's secret garden ; a place where wheelchair-bound kids get to walk, where previously aloof fath...

I have a short to-do list when I go on vacation so that I'm sure that I complete everything in the list. In 2014, I was determined to see snow for the first time ever. My (Christmas) wish was granted when Biboy and Barbara brought me to the mountains of Sierra Nevada for some snowboarding.  Hello, Sierra Nevada!! Hello, snow!! Here's the thing though: I didn't know what I was expecting so I was dressed rather inappropriately. No, I wasn't wearing shorts, a t-shirt, and running shoes. I had four layers of t-shirts under my jacket; however, I was wearing denim pants. It wasn't waterproof. I didn't think that snow melts into water and could be very cold. I knew, in the back of my head, that I was supposed to wear waterproof pants but I still didn't... Oh well... Blooper #1 right there! Me and my snowboard for the day One more thing I didn't think about immediately: the grade of the slope! This was my first time to snowboard and I didn...