2 more nights

....and we're off to Manila!!!! Yipeee!!!!

Despite early bookings we made last Sept., there was an 80% chance of not going home.  Mid last week the plan was to rebook our tickets and it was only last Tuesday of this week that we finally made a decision to go with the original plan.

My pregnancy is the sole reason why our schedules almost got mixed up. I am experiencing a high risk pregnancy. I was diagnosed for the past 4 weeks experiencing threatened miscarriage as I've been continuously spotting. Plus my ultrasound results doesn't coincide with my LMP. The last 11 days showed a big big improvement as it suddenly stopped. It was one hell of a crazy month and I know I'm not yet in the safe zone.

One thing I learned from this experience is to live one day at a time. Worrying, speculating, thinking of what it could be are all useless mind activities. It's just stressful!!!!!!

So, as of this time I am just excited that we are going home soon. We are actually flying out Friday night but our connecting flight to Manila is still the following day. That gives me time to rest which is good given my condition. I hope nothing goes wrong and that it will be a an extra merry christmas for us :-)

New Finds

IBC Bookstore has a new branch along Sihanouk Blvd. Yehey! I don't need to go to Monivong anymore to shop for office supplies. Sometimes I just go there to window shop -- checking out what they have so that in case I need one, I already know where to buy it. 

Look what I found....

 

I wasn't planning to buy anything but I just luuuuuv the designs plus it's not something bulky so in case we move places I can bring it with me :-) 

Sweet Tooth

Even if there is a lot (like 5-6 of them in one street) of coffee shops here in Phnom Penh, I haven't found one that serves the kind of cake I like -- rich chocholate, moist cake. Until Secret Recipe opened I think some time in Sept-Oct. 

My friend from SG who went to visit me early this year observed that it's because local coffee shops use cake flour. Well, I am not into baking so I'll stop here... haha....

So even if Secret Recipe is quite far from my place, I really frequent the resto just because of their cakes. I already ate almost each kind except for the usual flavors -- black forest, tiramisu. Talk of calories and fat gained! 

Here's one of my favorites -- chocolate moist cake!

TOUS les JOURS

I don't know how to pronounce the name of this newly opened bakery here in Phnom Penh. I just call it "toos-les-dyoo-rs" hahahaha...

 

(they officially had their grand opening today)

They have good bread selections -- a lot of variety and one can buy in bulk.

 

So we ordered the following: fruit bread, ham croissant, 2 capuccino coffee and chocolate cupcake. Bread is really good. You know that it's freshly baked. 

 

 

Benefits of WFH

I am very grateful that the company I am working for allowed me to work remotely 100%. When I accepted this role, it was virtual in the 1st place. Since we have an office in the PHL I physically report to work 2-3x a week dependng on my schedule. If I have several calls, especially if I need to use a virtual room to share presentations, then I would usually take it in the office. Network connections are not 100% reliable at home. 

When the opportunity came that my husband got an offer to work here, me being able to work from Cambodia is a major consideration. So now after 14 months, let me share with you the advantages of this set-up:

1. no need to wake up very early in the morning just to prepare breakfast,  cook lunch (which you take to work) & prepare for work (yes, choosing clothes and putting on make-up takes up so much time)

2. you work in your PJs ...or whatever clothing you want, as comfortable as can be

3. multi task with household chores

4. if you feel you need to take some break, you can just lay down in the sofa and check on what's brewing on TV

5.  if you don't feel like responding to an irritating client, I can just click "away" status in chat...yeah, they won't be able to ask anyone to validate if I am around

6. you save on gas, parking fees :-)

Next time I will blog about the challenges I face. Of course it can't be a perfect world out there...so whatch out for it before you make your decision :-)

Pregnancy

Last year I had my 1st pregnancy yet lost our baby. It was a very painful experience and such a roller coaster ride. We were just so high about the thought of having our baby then the next thing we knew, I had to do a DnC. Not to mention the medical bills I had to pay, which was just the same as giving birth, yet nothing came out of me. It also had a big impact to my work which adds to the trauma. Time heals all wounds but the trauma, I guess will always be there. 

Last week Thursday, I did a urine pg test and it turned out positive. I was teary-eyed knowing that God is giving me another chance. Later on, the trauma started to dawn on me. What if this is the same as last year? 

Faith in God and being positive -- that's what friends and family tell me. Easier said than done but we really want to have a baby so despite all the difficulties I am going through now -- physically, mentally and emotionally -- I am going to fight and do everything just to have this baby. 

Wish List

For people who are asking me what I want this Christmas....here's a list for you, not in any particular order and....I don't mind receiving as many of these LOL :-)  I just have to say it because you might be worried if someone else has bought one.

I know it's the thought that counts but mind you, I do not have a permanent place so as much as possible I only bring with me (back to Cambodia) things that I will use.

1.  shoe lace string holder - it's diffidult when you are in the middle of your exercise then suddenly you have to stop just to tie laces. So having this is really a big relief.  Available in your favorite sports store.

2. bills organizer - available in Beabi. I love sorting out a lot of stuff so thisis really very useful.

3. headbands....and i like slim, colorful ones so that I can use with any clothes

4. storage for my make up - I have none right now and my make up stuff are just on top of my bathroom counter. Availale in Muji :-) 

TFC

When we moved to Cambodia, more than a year ago, the first thing I looked for was TFC - The Filipino Channel. We had more than a hundred channels but no TFC. I found out it's an additional subscription, not to mention other costs (router, connection fees, etc.). 

So now I've been contemplating if we still need one. I would like to believe I got used to not watching Pinoy soaps, showbiz talkshows  and variety shows.

You see, my typical day starts with work then I take a break to have breakfast with my husband. Lunch break I cook food for us then right after eating it's back to work until 4:30- 5pm (5:30 in SG). I use the rest of the time to prepare food for dinner, fix the house, do errands etc. The only time I can watch TV is during night time. But hey, there's HBO, Fox Movies and my favorite AXN.

But there are days like last weekend when there's nothing nice to watch in these channels. That is when I start thinking of subsribing to TFC. But then again, there's ipad for games and video streaming!!!

So I don't know....

Unusual Holiday

As mentioned in my previous entry, I do WFH. Still, I follow Philippine holidays and today & tom are no work days for me. But how come I'm still responding to some emails?!?!? (loser LOL)

It's actually difficult for me & my husband having different set of holidays. We can't go on vacation. Either one of us will need to file a leave & most of the time it has to be me so that hubby can use his during Christmas time. Yeep, it's not celebrated here therefore not a public holiday. 

So times like this, I take the opportunity to do errands and spend more time doing things I like. Today, aside from answering emails (to clarify, i dont like it but I have a deadline), I spent 2 hours in the gym (wahoo!!!), went to market, had a foot & hand massage and finally I was able to clean the house! The last thing I said has it's own story which I cannot write in my blog. So, just PM me if you wanna know ;-)

Have a Blessed Day, everyone especially to my kababayans visiting their departed loved ones. 

Christmas is in the air...

In less than 2 months, I am home!!!!! .....

Yes, we are spending Christmas in the Philippines. Where else?!?!? I can't wait to see our families again and really spend time with them. I also want to see my close friends. Although I get to chat almost daily and I get to go home more than once in a year, it's different being with them physically. 

So, today after my husband's swimming workout at Himawari Hotel, we decided to go to a nearby shop (I don't want to say the name because ......) to buy our christmas gifts! Ho ho ho....santa from Cambodia!

In the mean time, here's my hubby setting up our Christmas tree. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.....

Roaming

I use a prepaid card everytime I am back home. I don't like the hassle of informing friends every now and then of a new contact # so I am maintaining this #.  Based on what I've researched, a Globe prepaid SIM can last with zero balance for up to 4 months. Luckily, I get the opportunity to  travel back home every 3 months so maintaining the SIM has never been a problem. Except that my last travel was July and the next one will already be in Dec. That will exceed the 4 months requirement so I asked a friend who went home during the Penchumben (All Souls Day celebration in Cambodia) to load my card. 

I got it this morning and not really excited because I didn't activate imternational roaming. So I said, what the heck I wont't be able to use it anyway. But at least I got to 'activate'  it before it reaches it's 5th month. I went to Globe's webpage and saw this feature "talk2globe" chat. Hmmmmm..... curious enough, I clicked on it and in 5 minutes I was already chatting with their customer service. Eloisa, name of the CS Rep.,  assisted me and she activated international roaming. What really exceeded my expectations was that after the chat, the system will ask you how do you want  a copy of the conversation transcript --- via email, print or download a copy. 

This is cool, right?! At least in case the request will not work out right, the customer has a saved copy of the chat. 

A happy & satisfied customer -- that's me!

Cravings

Food here in Cambodia is one of the country's 'best asset'. Restaurant food is a no no which means, everything is cooked as you order using only real & fresh ingredients. NO PRESERVATIVES. However, I still have my cravings. I've searched everywhere here but I just can't seem to find them. When I go home to Manila this December, I will make sure I eat these...

I am not sure though where to get this by the time I am up :-) (like 10:30am....)

Costa Brava's caramel cake. A friend, Raquel Flor, introduced me to this cake during her birthday years ago. The best caramel cake in the entire world!!!!!

heavenly! need I say more? 

Organize It!

I need help here!!! I have boxes that are left unopened as I don't have space for them. In the old apartment we used to have a storage room so that was never a concern. Right now, the boxes are kept in the guest room. But still, I find it an eye sore seeing recycled boxes piling in one corner. I am thinking of buying a small cabinet which I plan to place in the dining area as I have an empty space/wall. I went around and check out some of the furniture stores here and my gad!!!! It costs like USD1,000 for this kind of cabinet (minus the TV). I am not permanently staying here so I don't want to invest in expensive furnitures. 

Another option I'm thinking of is to buy this DIY boxes. It's made of canvass material plus it's something I can dismantle and bring with me anywhere I decide to live in the future. 

Maybe buy 5 of this kind and stack it all away. The only downside if I choose this is I can't place this in the dining area/hallway. It will not match the other furnitures plus it doesn't look like a living room/hallway 'display' material. 

New Home

Finally! We've moved to a new apartment last week (that is why I was not able to post anything here) which is near to my husband's office. Cost-wise I don't think there's much difference. The closer you are to the city center, the more expensive it is (rent-wise). But what we are seeing as an advantage is the use of time. Now, my husband can go home during lunch. Goodbye to cold 'baons'. Just to give context, here in Cambodia lunch time is for 2 hours. So people usually go home during lunch. That is also why they do not have microwaves in their offices.

Aside from being able to eat lunch that is freshly cooked, he also has siesta time :-) For my part, it saves me the effort to wake up very early in the morning to cook/prepare for his baon.  Noticed that I didn't say 'it saves me time'. My work arrangement is work from home (WFH) given that we do not have an office here in Cambodia.Since I am a regional resource, I follow Singapore time (hub in Asia). I still have to wake up early considering the time difference but at least now, I am not toggling between laptop and stove. 

Another advantage I noticed is that it made life more convenient. If I need something (i.e. crave for a coke, coffee), I just need to step out and voila..it's all there. The downside ---- if I get used to this kind of living, aha! it will be challenging to go back to a fast-paced life.

UAAP Ateneo vs La Salle

I'm not really a UAAP follower because my alma mater never made it even to the semis (i think!) except in cheerdancing...ehem ehem... Since my husband is a sports fan, he watches anything related to it. Unfortunately our current apartment is not yet supported by fiber optic thus not able to subscribe to TFC. So off we go to Cafe Namu, which is soon-to-be our neighbor.

thank you to live streaming 

ambience in Cafe Namu

Hope everyone is enjoying the game! Whoever wins, congratulations!

Christian Bautista in Cambodia?

Nooo wayyyy!!!! After my last call(meeting) this afternoon, I decided to continue work in a coffee shop. It's been a while since I did this. I think my parents were still here in Phnom Penh so that must have been a month. Anyway, going back to my story. I am not really attentive to listening to songs. But the one playing right now sounds so familiar. I paused and kept thinking why is that so. That's because it's sang by Christian Bautista. He is a famous FIlipino singer (obviously I am from the Philippines) and his songs are really popular there. So there, for the first time I felt close to home just listening. I don't know the title but the lyrics are like "there is something in the way, you look at me...."

Brown @ 'd Riverside

I frequently get my coffee from Brown because of it's accessibility and it"s variety of coffee types (caramel macchiato, hazelnut frappe, decaf) which you can seldom find in other coffee shops here (cafe fresco is another option).

A colleague of my husband, from Vietnam, told us that the branch in riverside (facing Tonle Sap River) has opened and he likes the ambience of the new store. Since we are in the area today, I asked Ryan if we can have dessert here so we can try out the place. I agree....the place is bigger compared to its other branches yet they were able to maintain the 'homey' feeling. 

   Depends on your mood, there are high chairs, 

    comfy sofas and usual small group tables

A New Beginning

There are just so many things happening to me, many thoughts in my mind which I am just excited to share and write about. That is why I created this blog.

I was actually having 2nd thoughts if I will just continue with my old blog (last entry was year 2010) or create a new one. So, I kept on procrastinating this 'to-do' for almost a year. Thinking that I have to customize it again -- choose fonts colors, do some programming to change tags/labels/layout. My usual excuse to myself is that I don't have the time. But like all other activities, you just need to find time.

So welcome back to me in the blogging world. I hope my (conversational) writing skills will improve. I also hope I could update this more often :-)