blogging coz i aint got anything to do..

Oh well.considering my 2 disastrous days in the office, things are going well now. I died and I've resurrected.

I know how to handle the metro subway and i can sprint and dodge a bit like a local now. hahaha.. as one british colleauge said this morning "i though i had it bad in the london subway, but here in moscow, i have to expertly dodge 'em russians because they are like buffalos trying to ram me with their horns when i get in their way." i still wear flipflops though coz d ko carry ang heels inside a traincar pa coz its one big balancing act.

I am already familiar with 15 letters of their alphabet. hehe. big thanks to happy for the book she gave me. 16 more letters to go.. hahaha..

I already have a flat. Its only one metro station away from the office and its only 20 minutes walking distance. Its near a mall and a market and theres a mcdonalds at the ground floor! yipee! heheeh..

My roaming service will be activated tomorrow. thank you she for the asikaso! you could text me at my globe number starting tomorrow. no calls please. hehe.

At work, though i already have a formidable workload. I still havent started yet coz there are still some pending documents i need. so its all easygoing for me this week.

My diet is totally radically changed. hahaha.. People are not much into eating here so I have to conform. haha. and besides, the food is really weird. Yesterday, all I had for lunch is PINK soup (I dont know what it was, i think its beet?). I havent adjusted to it yet. papayat nako!! yipee! hahaha.

I already have some friends in the office now. They all call me Claudia here.

Hihihihhi..and last but not the least, there are so maaaaany many mAany gwapo guys everywhere. hehehe.

my first 3 days in moscow.

Sorry the pictures are late. I just got my laptop yesterday and bummer, I couldn’t install anything on it :p Finally, I am in Moscow. I didn’t get to take a lot of pictures yet because im kinda scared some police guy (they are everywhere here!) might put me in jail me or something. Hehe.

These are just random pictures from my first 3 days in Moscow (and maybe 2 pictures in Qatar - the airport, that is). These are all just in the vicinity of the hotel im staying in. I didn’t get to go far. ALL signages EVERYWHERE are in Russian. Go figure.

All I know is PECTOPAH, roughly translated as Ryestoran. Guess? Hahahah..

Maybe this weekend when my colleague from Uzbekistan tours me around the city, I will take more pictures. I will even take pictures of (my dread) the Metro (subway) and its deadly 85 degree-tilt/200 kph ancient escalators.

the BEST first day!!!!

Okay so now is my first day at the Moore Stephens Office in Moscow and it was a complete disaster. I couldn’t have described it in any other way. I will enumerate the following:

 

1.      I have to get to 3 stops before I get to the office. You have to understand that as a newcomer, the Metro is like a life and death experience. It is sooooo old and rickety that as it speeds through the tunnels, the lights inside the trains go off and it sways from side to side. It doesn’t help that the Metro runs like 300 kph. There is no air-conditioning and therefore, the “spicy” smell of the people around me really overpowered the train.

2.      I rode on the wrong side of the escalator inside the Metro station and therefore, I got a lot nasty words that I didn’t understand. :p

3.      The heel of my FAVORITE shoe broke off as I got off the escalator because the escalators are also fast, like 100 kph whatever. *SOB* totally broken!!!

4.      I had to go to the office in flip flops. Remember friends, this is my first day in the office!!!!

5.      I was introduced to the people in flip flops, which of course did not match with my corporate outfit!!! :p I was introduced to Dimitri, my very, very gwapo lawyer seatmate. It was so embarrassing. hehehe.

6.      I do not understand even ONE BIT of anything that the people around me where saying! My head hurts. (Happy, I need you!!)

7.      I couldn’t buy a sim card! (Globe!!!! You said there’s roaming here!)

8.      Going home, I got scolded at the Metro again because I was in the middle of the traincar, with my hands full of bags, and I couldn’t move because the freakin train was going fast!

9.      There were no supermarkets in sight and I had to buy food and water!

 

All these events compose my whole day. You could just imaging how bad my day was that when I got back to the hotel, I bawled my eyes out to God till my head hurts silly from all my crying.

 

What did He say? Stay. He brought me here and He will sustain me. If it weren’t for my decision to follow Him no matter what happens, I would’ve been on the next flight out of Moscow. But I will stay. As long as He wants me to stay.

 

Tomorrow, I will no longer have Yelena to accompany me inside the Metro. I am left alone to explore it. Hopefully, by God’s grace, I will arrive at wherever I should be (I couldn’t litok the name of the place).

Im flyin to Russia with love!! part 2

Start:	Jul 20, '07 4:30p
End:	Jul 21, '07 07:45a

Delayed! due to some frustrating circumstances (note: if ur flying QatarAirways and ur ticket will be prepaid by somebody outside the country, give a lot of lead time coz stressful cya iprocess), my flight was postponed.but its okay im flyin business class and im not complaining..haha!

the very last stand

this is the very last MMG get together before magliparan ang mga resignees. winaldas ang natitirang MMG fund (race to P10K para sa 3 tablegroups) sa national sports grill (NSG).after that, punta sa timezone where we had lots of fun!!

Im flyin to Russia with love!!

Start:	Jul 19, '07 06:30a
End:	Jul 19, '07 7:00p

sooo OFW!

this morning i attended the pre-requisite OFW seminar. i went there with my mind already programmed na its really gonna be lame. hehe sorry. but yeah, i still had to submit to the 6-hour session so that i can fly away. it was actually informative, in fairness to the speaker. Like, be aware of STDs and AIDS and how to deal with becoming the BAGONG BAYANIs. hahahahaha. it was good to know about the health issues and other adjusting to stuff though. i was actually believing that i will be immune to all of these and everything's gonna be oh so rosy for me when i get there so it was good to see the real picture because no one is exempted from loneliness and homesickness. i got my certificate now and im one step closer to becoming an ofw na. mabuhay ang mga bagong bayani!! hahahahha..

wala lang factoid: do you know that there are 8 million filipinos out in the nations right now?

april's visit from china

Start:

Jul 10, '07 11:00a

bacolod-april 2006

just rearranging albums.haay i miss bacolod!!

the yancha twins

visited paz and the twins at u 204. joaquin and miguel are nearing 2 months and theyre leaving for cdo na. joaquin looks like paz while miguel took after wysz (complete with the brooding look!).

comfort zones

Why is it that every time I get a bit settled and comfortable with the way my life is going, God always, ALWAYS uproots me out of my comfort zone and drops me off someplace uncomfortable (at times,dangerous)?

 

It started when I passed my board exam. I went to Cebu because I actually suffered (no joke) when I started to entertain the thought of just staying in Cagayan for work. I really fought with all the doubts and the fact that nobody wanted me to leave. Everyone was against my going to Cebu. But still, I went although it was all steps in the dark. And when I was finally starting to understand why I was supposed to go to Cebu and I was just starting to settle and have a good time there, He then hurls me to Manila! Oh how I promised before that time that I would never, ever stay for long in fast-paced Manila (to think I was born and raised in Manila). Hah! I actually settled and worked here in Manila for almost 4 years until now. And guess what, now that I’m starting to love it here in Manila (goodness. It took me almost 4 years to like it here) because I already have lots of friends, a really, really good career, and a bright, predictable future, God sends me off to (tadaa!) Russia!!! Oh God. This is so typical of you. You always have the knack of making me squirm. I feel like a kindergarten kid who wants to pee but can’t raise her hand to ask the teacher to excuse her- so she resorts to being fidgety in her seat.

 

I can only scratch my head in response because despite all my complaints, dramas of running away (ala-Jonah type) and everything, I wouldn’t dare (and don’t want to) disobey Him. I know He will hound me with it until I give in. Hahaha.