Down the Rabbit Hole

I visited DisneyWorld's  Magic Kingdom for the first time with Kuya Rendo. It was a fun experience but since we were there for only four hours at night (after a day of 2005 AACC sessions), I didn't have time to really see much. It took me 19 years to return, this time with more family members accompanying me. It's Donan's first time in a theme park. I was so excited for him to see Magic Kingdom because it was such a magical place to be in. All the characters I had grown up watching were there in "real life" (they were actors portraying roles, of course, but still...). However, Donan wasn't into Disney characters because he hasn't watched many shows. He's not into Mickey Mouse and his friends anymore. He doesn't know the Disney princesses, except for Mulan . It was interesting to see what he'd gravitate towards. Kuya Rico, Charlenne, and their children were with us. This must be a return visit for them because they knew where they had pla...

When I first visited Orlando, FL (in 2005), Kuya Rendo  and Ate Lori drove me around the tourist spots in their home city. I noticed an upside-down building; it was as if a tornado pulled it out and then dropped it with the roof on the ground where it now stands. It has intrigued me since then; when we had some free time between the airboat ride and the dinner at Kaya , I checked in with my parents, my sister, and my aunt to see if they wanted to see it. They all said yes, and so we drove to WonderWorks. (Façade of WonderWorks. The rest of the family was not in the photo because I was taking the picture while Daddy was making sure Donan wasn't too close to the road.) WonderWorks is where we can let our imaginations run wild (the company's motto). It is divided into zones crammed with hands-on exhibits. It was sensory overload. Extreme Weather Zone Anna and I were blown away by the 74-mph wind in the hurricane simulator.  As if that wasn't chilly enough, we dunked our hand...

I was with Kuya Rendo and Ate Lorie during my first visit to the Kennedy Space Centre (KSC) in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Twenty-four years later, I was excited to see how Donan would react when he saw the life-size versions of the rockets and spaceships that brought men to the Moon and back. Mommy, Daddy, Ninang Trining, and Anna were with us, too; this made this visit even more fun. During this adventure, I drove our rental minivan, so I didn't take as many pictures as I would've loved. It was a 61-mi trip from Orlando. The day was sunny, allowing us to enjoy the view on the way. We went through wetlands before reaching Merritt Island. It felt like the road was going on forever until we saw the welcome signage of the KSC Visitor Centre. Donan was so excited! The bus tour brought us close to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). When I was there in 2005, this building housed the space shuttle. 2005's STS-114 was dubbed the "return to flight" mission after the Colum...

(screenshot from  https://www.restaurantmaligne.com/ ) Anna and I have always looked for opportunities to eat delicious food. During our most recent trip to Monterey , our research led us to Maligne, a restaurant in Seaside, CA. The restaurant is located at the corner of Broadway Ave and Hillsdale St. We were expecting Danville or Walnut Creek vibes (e.g., brightly lit streets with a bustling restaurant scene). Instead, we drove into a quiet city where the shops were closed when we arrived. The corner street lamp highlighted Maligne's minimalist (or brutalist) concrete façade (it was hard to tell; I'm not an architecture expert).  Maligne is small, with about 10 to 12 tables (if I remember correctly). The distance from the door to the open kitchen and the dining area was so short that I felt awkward standing there, not wanting to seem like I was ogling at people eating their dinner while waiting an hour for my family's table to get ready. To me, the wait meant that this res...

I seriously need a change in routine. My recent physical exam and lab tests show the consequences of my sedentary lifestyle: I gained weight, my complexion is pasty, and my Vitamin D levels are too low. My medical provider presented a simple solution: increased sunshine exposure and movement. Walking seems like an easy enough exercise to start, but it's challenging to fit into my daily schedule, especially with afternoon daycare pick-ups. I decided to hit two birds with one stone by taking a 15-minute walking break during my lunch period. To keep my walks from becoming boring, I needed the perfect audio gear that keeps me aware of my surroundings while listening to music or podcasts. Bowers & Wilkins PX7 S2e The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e headphones quickly became my favourite walking audio gear for my lunchtime walks. On this walk around campus, the weather has started to turn cold and crisp, yet my ears were warm, thanks to these headphones. What I liked about the  Px7 S2e...