my complicated life

got up around 7:15 AM. pupungas-pungas pa... i heard the sound of flowing water from the shower as my hubby prepares for work. i rushed to the kitchen and prepared sauteed corned beef and fried rice for breakfast. i owe that to him as he always prepare my breakfast this past week. =) we had our breakfast around 7:30 AM, satisfied and full kami pareho. i cleaned up the kitchen right after he left and i had a quick shower as well. i did some last minute phone calls to friends (Charry and Eric). aba, i heard from Charry that Nelson was able to go back here in UAE sometime between August and September pa. ni hindi tumatawag! <inis> anyway, eric promised to relay the message as to how disappointed i am dahil nalimutan na nila ako. **sniff, sniff** arte!!! hehe. charry and me had a serious conversation regarding our friend tina. i won't divulge the details as she might go back and re-visit my blog sometime. hihihi, tamang guilty daw ba. peace tina!!! ;P

so, right after the phone calls, i went out around 10 AM and strolled along hamdan street to mashreqbank to pay my credit card debts. the weather was kinda nice these days. nde na masakit sa balat ang araw plus it's windy now! sarap nang namnamin ang pagdampi ng hangin sa pisngi! =) after i paid my bills, i passed by a grocery shop and bought some in by the nice weather. i saw some pinays working for Bhs (department) store setting up the Christmas trees by the store window. wala lang, the scene made me miss our Christmas tree back home in the philippines. =(

when i got home, i rested for awhile before starting to prepare lunch. instead of steaming the tilapia, i opted to cook it in the oven. less grime, less work. hehehe. that's what they call, smart cooking! =) i also prepared fruit salad for dessert. everything turned out to be tasty!!! sorry, i wasn't able to take some snapshots as proofs because i was on a rush and the fish was now flesh and bones that i won't consider capturing how the two of us enjoyed devouring the poor animal. btw, i had lunch by myself since i couldn't wait for hubby anymore as i have an engagement to attend to in the church. he just ate his meal on his own today as well.

i arrived 10 minutes before 2 pm in St. Joseph's Church. the choir was just starting to have its last minute practice. the wedding ceremony started a quarter past 2 pm. it was the most organized, solemn and elegantly celebrated and decorated wedding ceremony i was able to witness here in abu dhabi. despite the small number of gfc members who was able to make it, the choir's performance for this wedding was superb, too. feel na feel! =)

the photo above was taken by the sweet young white lady (american?) who volunteered to take the shot for us. she's sweet alrighty, but she also has shaky hands... bad ko... hehehe. actually, she already caught my attention when we were singing during the ceremony. she loves singing with the choir kasi while she sat back on the seat near the couple. we just waited for the ceremony to end before we posed below this arch decorated with so much roses. too bad, considering almost everyone has a digital camera of his/her own, no one brought one today. bad timing talaga. ayan tuloy, we just contented ourselves with a mobile phone cam. we used my mobile phone, by the way, which was admired by the white lady. <yabang!> the photo below was supposed to capture only the arch. anyway, as you can see there was an abundance of flowers in this wedding.

as we went outside when the ceremony adjourned, we saw that the bridal car was a two-seated top-down sportscar. we later realized that when the owner pulled the top down, of course! pero hanep talaga! we couldn't resist to have a photo taken with it as souvenir. ganda talaga eh! oh well, even the idea was great! as it was a two-seater car, only the bride and the groom will drive away! now, i just dunno if it will be the bride or the groom who will be behind the wheels.. hehehe.

i went straight home after i bade goodbye to my choirmates. we were still supposed to go to Taza food store in hamdan. well, they did went but i passed on the invitation. i was kinda shy kasi... asus!!! hahahaha. anyway, all's well that ends well.

my hubby and i joined the filipino Manila Ecotourism Club (MAETRICS) in the tour they organized, called "Lakbay UAE". assembly time was at 5:30 AM infront of Abu Dhabi Mall. since there wasn't any cab yet at that time (muslims [including taxi drivers] were celebrating, EID), hubby and i walked from our flat to the mall. we left the house at 5:00 AM and got to the meeting place exactly 5:30 AM!!

the buses left Abu Dhabi at exactly 6:00 AM. two of kuya's officemates and their husbands were on the same bus as we were. we had breakfast on the road. we headed first in Burj Al Arab and Wild Wadi.

after that, we went to Al Wasl Park to have our morning snack and before heading off to a long travel to Fujairah.

i wasn't able to keep track whether it was a two-hour or three-hour trip from dubai, as i dozed off occassionally. =) however, i was able to take note that there were fewer and fewer buildings as we got to Fujairah. the first laps were mountainous regions. UAE mountains were inclined 45 degrees and rather pointed and slippery. it was in Fujairah mountains were i saw examples of "fanning" and "bedding". terms i learned from the sedimentary petrology classes i attend to (omigosh, i sound like my boss now!). from a climber's point of view, climbing UAE mountains would be a nightmare!!! either you die from sliding from the top down to the foot or you get punctured from sharp protruding rocks. however, i definitely look forward to climb one. ngahaha. tigas talaga ng ulo!!!

upon reaching the town proper, we noticed that they also have KFC, Pizza hut and Golden Fork restaurants. not bad... =) however, it also caught my attention that there were some houses which looked like Iraq villas. not that i have been to Iraq, but the way some houses were built in Fujairah really looked like the small box-lix houses i saw on CNN when they feature news in Iraq. we reach Khor Fakhan beach just in time for lunch. we had picnic together with the other pinoys. only the little ones took a dip as grown-ups were not enticed to the water anymore or should i say, to Fujairah amenities. =(

we left the beach area around 2:30 PM and stopped by to Al Badiya Mosque, the oldest mosque in UAE. after taking photos, went off to the market to buy souvenirs. the road has been congested this time as people were coming and going in & out the different emirates in time for a workday tomorrow (does not include me and hubby, though!).

"outside the Al Badiya Mosque"

"towers above the Al Badiya Mosque"

after Fujairah, we had another long travel to Al Ain's Jebel Hafeet mountains. my hubby and i were not ecstatic this time, as we have gone even to a grander part of Jebel Hafeet before. at the top, i even had a feat with some arab women. pinainit nila ulo ko!!! i raised my voice and scolded these hard-headed arab women, saying "don't you know how to fall in line, people!!!". they really got into my nerves! after that, ayun, i was finally able to take a pee in peace. hahaha, line pala sa comfort room!

our last destination was in Green Mubazarrah Garden Park. the park has hot springs and green grassy areas. however, i have a feeling that these were just man-made though. i'll check out with the professors when i get back at work on Monday if my guess was right. however, had fun climbing the high areas. proving i really miss mountain climbing!!!

the pack was able to reach abu dhabi at 2:00 AM. my hubby said that i slept like a baby on the bus so i have no absolute excuse to claim otherwise. =) the tour has been memorable in itself except for the fact that i have been disappointed with the organizers. maybe because i do organize events myself and for them to have tours like this on a regular basis, the way things went on today hasn't been a superb job for nth-timers. just my piece of honest-to-goodness view.

we (me, hubby, big bro and big bro's friend) had an early swim near the Ladies Beach at the back side of the Emirates Palace Hotel. we got there at 7:30 AM and swam until 10:30 AM courtesy of kuya's friend, kuya Ed. he got a car thus we were able to roam around abu dhabi. we don't have any BBQ or any kind of food as it is still Ramadan period. anyhow, the dip has been refreshing! kakatawa... this beach has no public restrooms that's why when we were finished swimming, we dress up on the parking area just along the street. para akong lalake! hahaha. and then, a police car just passed by. buti na lang, we were finished dressing up na... =) kakaibang trip!

my hubby and i went to Hamed Center and bought a PS2 console, the slim-type. eid vacation (the last few days of Ramadan which are usually declared as non-working days in UAE) will be next week thus we deemed we need something to spend the time with. we got the unit for 690 AED including an 8 MB memory card, 1 additional joystick and 10 free CD games. the PS2 console was already modified, meaning it has the capability to play both original and p****** softwares. hehe.

the CD titles we got were mostly the violent and morbid ones. selected the list from the top-rated games in pinoy gaming console forum www.pinoypsx.com. quite a helpful site for game beginners like us.

Game list:

1. Call of Duty
2. Devil May Cry 3
3. Mercenaries
4. God of War
5. Tekken 5
6. Medal of Honor
7. Mortal Combat Shaolin Monks
8. Stealth Force
9. Black Hawk Down
10. Gran Turismo 4

i can foresee that this can be another distraction for both of us. unahan na naman ito!!! ngahaha.

went around town by myself and wired some money to evangeline. she borrowed some money since she just started at her work and has no budget for the coming month. i lent her my ticket money for the meantime. we've been friends since high school so i have no worries about trust or whatsoever when it comes to her.

while i'm in liwa centre, i went around jewelry shops and was so happy to see this bracelet! actually, i've seen it before in another shop but i have forgotten the offer. as for the shop i was in today, the vendor quoted it for 500 AED. i was able to lower it down to 450 AED. it's a 22K singaporean gold. it has some round and heart-shaped dangling studs. i liked it because the studs looked like the necklace that my sister gave me years ago, which was snatched from me while i was walking alone street near the marketplace in Bicutan. =( anyway, i got this bracelet a bit pricey than the saudi or emirate gold, probably because it is imported from Singapore! hehe. but then, i just love the dangling studs that i just couldn't let go. ;)

i bought the bracelet before i change my mind however i felt guilty when i finally got hold of it. i told myself kasi that i won't be buying anything for myself from now on since i am going home by december and needs as much money for the HK trip. pero ayun, i had let myself be tempted and uncontrollable. =( nakakainis talaga. i am so weak.... hay...

i was watching the filipino business TV program titled Kumikitang Kabuhayan when a topic about chocolate cake was featured. it looked so yummy kaya tinakam ako and decided instead to bake my own. =) well, this time i have been successful!!! i have a perfectly baked two-layered cake topped with creamy chocolate icing. everyone in the house just cant get enough. hehehe.

i had a terrible day. been working from 8:30 a.m. till 3:00 p.m. then florian has been his usual self (the "aligaga" mood) and scolded me for not attending his class this morning. i dunno, i just find it too boring for me. maybe because his teaching technique is just too boring? or because i was just so not into the rocks!!?? hay. when will they realize that it's just difficult for me to study geology and work at the same time. well, i could. but not to have a boss like florian perhaps! and then, when i got home, it's still work!!! so pissed off with my hubby because he just thinks of himself. life has been easier when i was still single. hehehe. too late for grumping now...

i then planned to either to walk by the beach or try the free cinema ticket sponsored by HSBC card. yep, i read it from my credit card statement that HSBC's sponsoring free movie tickets every saturday night in Cine Star Cinema in Marina Mall. i dressed up and got ready to leave when my hubby tried to make peace. i have two choices, either i make myself ugly due to stress or just forgive instead? i chose the first. siyempre noh! who want's to be ugly? so off we went to the mall and confirmed that there is no catch after all with the free ticket and half the price Maxi Coke and Maxi popcorn (8 AED). the only downside is that, you can't choose which movie to watch. i dunno if it's the cinema or the card's decision, but only the movie of the week gets to be the one that comes with the offer. not bad for a freebie though, especially that watching movies in UAE is a luxury.

we got to see Four Brothers, a drama genre. rating? good enough. not too dull, yet not too grand. a drama, with a little comedy and a little action. it is about four adopted brothers to come together to bury a dead mother. later, they found out that their mother has been murdered and they seek revenge. i liked the way the bond between brothers were showcased in the movie. plus, that being the adopting parent, you can also be loved like the real biological parent and vice-versa as to being the adopted child.

this is a photo of the chicken that i baked. it doesn't look so yummy because the picture was taken using my xda and after the chicken has been taken apart already. hehehe. pano ba naman, as soon as the chicken was placed on plate, hands were already dunking its way into it to disassemble every joints it have. with the "almost" successful chocolate cake that i made a couple of days back, i got kinda inspired to bake some more. =) so, this is my first baked chicken! tinalo nya ang lasa ng andok's, promise!!! haha.

what's the secret?

1. the chicken has to be rubbed with rock salt first to take out the bad smell. however, since there's no rock salt in UAE i just rubbed iodized salt on it and crossed my fingers that it'll make wonders. and it did!!! =)

2. i rinsed it afterwards and let the liquid drip so the chicken will dry a bit.

3. then i poured bout 1/4 cup soy sauce, pepper to taste, squeezed in some lemon, put some lots of well-pounded garlic and a teaspoon of hot sauce. it would be best to put pandan leaves as well inside the chicken. i couldn't find one in the market yet i still managed to do without it though.

4. i let the chicken soaked in this mixture for a day, tossing it each side within the soaking period.

5. after the marinating period, i wrapped the chicken in aluminum foil and cooked it in the oven using 180 degrees Celsius heat. wrapping it in aluminum foil makes the heat be concentrated all throughout the chicken and ensure that even its inside will be cooked as well. plus the meat will be really, really tender!

6. when the chicken became tender, the process is done when one wants to have a tender and juicy chicken. however, i removed it from the foil and baked it again to make chicken's outside crisp!

viola, we had a delicious chicken for supper! the three of us (me, my hubby and my big brother) had a sumptuous meal today. i owe this recipe from my friend istanli, who claims to make the tastiest turkey. come Christmastime, there will be two of us who will stake that claim! haha.

after we were able to clean up the table, me and my hubby went to church for the 3rd day of the Tagalog Mission. the topic for tonight was about FAMILY. about how filipino families were so close-knitted and how each pinoy values his/her own blood. i took my hubby to church hoping he will like this Filipino Abu Dhabi tradition, amongst many of course!

this is the first day of the ramadan period. at this time, the muslim people prays a whole lot more than usual and were forbidden to eat or drink when the sun rises. therefore, they only gets to eat after sun down, they call it the IFTAR. with this, all shops and restaurants opens later lasting until about 2 a.m. the next day. alongside with this, offices both government and private were only required to work 6 hours - muslims or non-muslims! in my office, our timing from Saturday to Tuesday is from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., while on Wednesday we only work from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. in my case, i report 30 minutes before those timings and extends during Tuesday as i attend lectures in sedimentary petrology. aahhh.... kainis nga eh.

ramadan period lasts for a month. to pay our respect for this muslim tradition, we do not eat nor drink in public. as we know they are not allowed to eat nor drink when the sun is up we therefore, do not eat nor drink in public because doing so will only make them hungrier or thirstier. in addition, it is more of a prohibition by law. thus, we only eat in our own home or lock ourselves inside our office when we are to take a bite in the workplace.

i usually get home about 3:30 p.m. and my hubby is already home by then. as his boss is a UAE national, they only work from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Lucky him! hehehe. me and my hubby can now stroll around the city more often as time is in our hands! hehehe. above is a photo taken in Marina Mall during one of our casual "walks". sporting my shorter haircut which was now 1 month old.

marvin had invited my choirmates (the boys, specifically) for a drink in our home. subsequently, we had choir practice this evening so together with josie, we just waited for them down kuya jun's building. we went out to buy some alcohol first, a Fundador and some Red Horse beers. while they were doing their drinking, me and josie were devouring on extravaganza-flavored Domino's Pizza.

they gulped up all the alcohols at about 12:30 AM. bitin daw! =) Dennis suggested for continuation of the drinking session in Manila Bay, a disco bar, where we could also do some dancing and drinking at the same time. =) so, on we went to the bar. it was jampacked but we still managed to squeezed through! hehe. we had some drinks and disco'd like crazy! how did the boys (and girls) behaved???!!!

• marvin - he's my hubby and yet all i can say is, he's malufet!!! imagine, going out for a gimik with your wife and yet still managed to dance with another girl!!! sweet pa yung tugtog huh!!! ain't that malupit to the max??!!! and the girl held on so tight!!! grrr... gusto ko siyang sabunutan!! next time, i'd bring a lighter along and burn a girl's hair who tries to steal my hubby.... talaga!!!
• romy - he's not on his wits and gone really mad tonight! sobrang kulet nya! panalo siya sa kakulitan! when he's still sober, he kept on criticizing the pulutan i made for them. when he got drunk, he kept on messing josie. hahaha. and when the dancing finally finished, he still kept dancing!!!! kadiri pa ang dance moves nya, mala-erotic! hahaha. grabe, para siyang naka-take ng shabu sa trip! if he hasn't volunteered to make the next session's "pulutan", we could have abandoned this guy! =)
• wilfredo - he's the tamang drunk and red. namumula sa pagkalasing! hahaha. but he managed to keep poised and be quiet. volunteered to cook "pulutan" for another drinking session in the future! yey! (on second thought, why were they volunteering to cook pulutan? were they implying the pulutan i prepared tasted aweful??? ggrrr...)
• mandy - he's the quietest of them all. he should have been the "spartan" slippers' model. because he was able to go the bar/disco wearing only beachwalk sandals! pero na-carry nya huh??!! bka naman haiavanas yun?? hehehe
• bong - considering how makulet he is, he was quite behaved tonight. although he almost got into a fight, he is still a peace-loving person and managed to make peace just before a heat builds up.
• dennis - quite unexpectedly, he's almost as makulit as romy. even if romy tops the kulit list for the night, dennis got the dancing king spot. haha. galing niya sumayaw, dami nyang gimik!
• josie - despite being extremely worried how her butt will take the spanking of her aunt, she has stayed and partied on with the group. she was romy's apple of the eyes! haha.
• mai - (me!) i behaved really well. just did some dancing until i got exhausted, drunk only 2 bottles of Breezer, and didn't pulled off the malandi girl's hair off her scalp!

everyone had a fun night... the boys even got a secret joke about a brotherhood sign. i won't disclose it here, else i might be kicked out of the group. haha. yep, me and josie are part of that brotherhood. =)