Singapore Lah!

Last June 16, my friends Blanca, Tiny, together with Tiny's friend Liza, and I boarded AirPhil Express' 3:20PM flight to Singapore from Cebu. We were to spend 6 days in Singapore for a holiday.

I must say, the immigration officers at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) are tough! They asked for a lot of documents from my friends (aside from the usual company ID that we know will be checked). After a few minutes of delay at the immigration counter, we breezed through the last security check before we settled in the waiting lounge.

When we got to Singapore's immigration counter, the only thing the immigration officer said to me was 'Good evening,' as a reply to my greeting. He did not even ask a single question!

Another college friend, Kirk, and his brother Don met us at the airport. Despite their suggestion, we chose to take the MRT instead of a taxi (or two taxis). Ha! We lugged our suitcases around as we moved from one train to the next, one station to the other.

We have already anticipated that we will be walking a lot around Singapore. In fact, I brought along some sneakers and flip flops just so I can go around Singapore comfortably.

For a Filipino earning in the Philippines, Singapore is just so expensive. But I had a lot of fun going around the different sights and attractions, meeting friends who have already called Singapore home, and just exploring a completely new place and culture with close friends.

We will definitely go back to Singapore. By then there will definitely be another new attraction to check out (Singapore Zoo's River Cruise, for one).

I'm sharing some pictures from our trip. Enjoy!

A Pushover

There has been some unneeded drama in my life recently. The highs of my recent Singapore trip were replaced by a lot of heartache and tears.

My closest of friends know the reason for the negativity in my life these days. In fact, I have always felt so helpless and trapped. I cannot even share these with the people we assume will always be there to support us for the reason that they are the cause.

I have cried buckets before and thought I have run out of tears. Boy was I wrong!

I was in the middle of my cry-a-thon when one of my good friends sent me a message on Facebook about a comment on one of our photos from our Singapore trip. She made me laugh. And for a while, I forgot about how down I was feeling. Even if I didn't want to unload my problems on her, she insisted that she can be a friend who'll listen. So I spilled my guts to her. At first, she didn't say much except to urge me along with my story. However, after I have told her everything, she told me that she'll be brutally honest and let me know that I have always been a martyr and pushover when it comes to my family. She apologized for being blunt, probably fearing I might get offended. I assured her that she shouldn't apologize because she just voiced what I had been feeling all along. And she was right, 101%.

Yes, I admit that I always accommodate the wishes and decisions of my family for me. Not anymore. From then on, I said to myself that I will have to stand up for myself. That day, my friend was just the person I needed. I didn't need another lecture on how I should think of my family, or that maybe they just care so much about me. Nor did I need a friend with the usual 'okay ra na' (it will be okay). I needed that wake-up call.