Some families are lucky enough to have a rich knowledge base of their history. For early-generation Americans, they need look no further than parents or grandparents to locate their foreign roots in other countries. But for families who settled in America several generations ago, tracing their ancestry can be complicated and daunting. The process may even lead to several dead ends – much like playing games at an online casino. As frustrating as it might be at times, discovering your family history can be a fulfilling and rewarding experience, no matter where you are from.

Long ago, solving the mystery of ancestry was a tricky tangled web. People only had family member’s stories handed down for generation to help piece the puzzle together. Often, stories were either misconstrued or completely fabricated, which led to a lot of misinformation about family legacies.

Now, we are lucky to have technological advances and web resources like ancestry.com to lead the way. Furthermore, social media sites like Facebook make finding distant relatives of the same surname as simple as typing into a search bar. Now, instead of immediate family regaling stories, we can locate the source of our families from across the world.

If your family history lies in a non-English speaking country, web resources like freetranslation.com can help decipher newspaper articles, family crests and books and poems written by far removed relatives. Now, it is easier than ever to find and understand family members, no matter where they live. Planning a trip overseas has also never been easier or more affordable, if you are interested in visiting the country where your legacy originated.

With the help of modern technology and knowledgeable historians and family members to help you along your way, tracing your legacy might just be the missing piece to your family. Discovering where you came from can be a wonderful and enlightening experience.

I am reading about Blue Cross Blue Shield NC trying to figure out which plan would fit our needs and budget. But I realize I’m not even sure why I was planning a life in NC when our family lifestyle may be a match to that of in NJ.

Well, only because the husband has relatives in NJ. But if I care much about cleaner air and the seasons (oh I love countries with four seasons because there’s so much to take pictures of! hahaha), I’d pick North Carolina.

Ok, fine, let’s settle with NY.

We’re back!

A lot were asking for the 5-day itinerary for our trip to Singapore. I think ours is ideal for a family of 3 or more. So I’m sharing it so others will have an idea in arranging theirs. Take note though that most were done in a weekday. Traffic may be different on a weekend, and likely longer queues.

Day 1 (Sunday)
- arrival at the Budget Terminal. If you were able to catch a piso seat sale from Cebu Pac, you will arrive at the budget terminal. The next thing to consider is where you are planning to stay. If you are staying at a friend’s place in Tampines where most pinoys are, you can ride the taxi. Taxi rates are different depending on the time of day. And if you’re staying in the city, you can ride the bus to Terminal 2 for free. Then from Terminal 2, the MRT would work perfectly. Just make sure you buy the ezlink card which we were able to use for our entire stay both for MRT and bus rides. What made it easier for me to compute for our fares and travel times beforehand is the gothere.sg website.

- lunch at the park mall in dhoby ghaut after we left our luggage to the concierge
- checked in. slept. we deserved it.
- woke up at 6pm then went to esplanade for dinner at the hawkers stalls
- went to Merlion for some picture taking
- went back to the lodge to sleep. yes, we needed energy for Sentosa the following day

Day 2 (Monday)
- had to wake up at 9am for breakfast buffet (6am-10am only)
- from dhoby ghaut, we went straight to harbourfront station: vivo city (purple line). I guess this is the major advantage of our lodge. it is very near the dhoby ghaut MRT station. Dhoby ghaut has both the red and purple line.
- vivo city L3, we queued for our Sentosa express ride which also serves as our entrance tickets. S$3 for each adult or kids more than 3 years old. Purchased the “choice of thrill” for hubby, as well as Songs of the Sea tickets 2 combo A (show and meal) and 1 combo B (show and toy for our little girl)
- first stop: waterfront station. We just took some photos in front of Universal Studios which was not yet open that day
- second stop: imbiah station. We had lunch at Delifrance, and then took some more photos before heading to the Luge and Skyride. We had to buy our tickets there as the ticket booth at vivo city sells only package tickets (e.g. choice of thrill, songs of the sea combos, etc) BG’s ticket is discounted as she only had to sit in front of me.
- we walked towards the megazip. Husband parajumped and megazipped.
- went back to the butterfly park (imbiah lookout), in front of which is a small fountain where kids play. BG played while we waited for our pizza. That’s early dinner.
- had to buy clothes for BG as she was all wet from playing in the fountain
- rode the Tiger Sky Tower, which gave us a 360 degree view of Sentosa
- third stop: beach station. we had nachos for our combo A (you have the option to have nachos, popcorn or hotdog sandwich)
- sat. waited. watched the long queue for the 7:40pm show. we bought the 8:40pm show just to be on the safe side. We didn’t know if how long the rides and walks in between would be.
- watched songs of the sea
- went back to vivo city / harbourfront station
- went back to the lodge. slept

Day 3 (Tuesday)
- woke up at 9am for breakfast
- slept again
- woke up at noon. left the lodge at 2pm
- from dhoby ghaut we had to go to Ang Mo Kio station, then go to the bus interchange
- rode Bus 138
- singapore zoo 30 stops later. that’s 4pm to 6pm. Among others, there’s the rainforest kidzworld where there’s wet play. But what I love about this zoo was our elephant ride.
- night safari
- went home. this time, we chose to ride a bus express which from the zoo, stops at common hotels in the city. you can not use your ezlink card with them. A ticket is worth S$4 for adults and S$2 for kids. Too expensive but we no longer had the energy to transfer from bus to the MRT. Plus it was faster.
- slept

Day 4 (Wednesday)
- woke up at 9am for breakfast
- packed our bags
- checked out at noon
- arrived at my friend’s flat in Tampines at 1:30pm. lunch
- catched up with my college friend Maui
- met with Jacq and Iyah
- around 6pm, we and our kids went to the playground
- dinner -> wine -> bed

Day 5 (Thursday)
- woke up at 5am
- left Tampines at 6am
- bus -> MRT
- vivo city at around 7:30am
- bought tickets
- universal studios at 8am. Lots of media people. Dragon dance
- opened at 8:28am (or was it later than that?)
Battlestar Galactica
Ancient Egypt / Revenge of the Mummies
Accelerator
Far Far Away – castle
The Lost World
Madagascar

- left at 1:30pm
- arrived at the airport at 3:45pm -> flight at 5:45pm

I will update this post with links once I finish blogging about them.

What did Sir Isaac Newton, Ludwig van Beethoven and Van Gogh have in common? They all have bipolar disorder. The first time I heard of Van Gogh is bipolar, I had to check my textbooks if they were referring to the same person I had in mind. Bipolar disorder is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated mood.

Well, this post isn’t about that disorder but rather about our CNY’s eve slash Valentine’s family date. I was looking for a new dining place where we could have late dinner on a Saturday till midnight and where kids are allowed. I stumbled on a review about this Van Gogh is bipolar restaurant, which serves all natural and authentic happy-hormone-producing foods. It got me so intrigued! Not to mention they have selection of tea! (A little trivia: I eat once a week at Hap Chan because that’s the only place that serves hot tea near our office. Pathetic huh.)

I was the one who had the red wine that goes with this order.

I was eating halfway when I remembered to take a photo of this.

We left the place satisfied, full and HAPPY!

~~~
A little trivia about the owner, who by the way talks to the customers personally before and after preparing the food. He is a travel photographer by day which is the reason the restaurant opens only at 5pm and till 12:30am.

Location:
van gogh is bipolar
living art space • cafe
inner courtyard of 154 maginhawa st.
(behind “Redbucks cafe)
sikatuna village

Christmas is so much fun! I love that I was able to give gifts. What amazed me this year was I love (ok, some I just like, but at least not I hate) all the gifts I received!

They’re not as luxurious as Ferrari parts, some are so simple that I actually been meaning to buy for myself only I was too busy to. At least a friend or relative had done it for me, without me telling, or even hinting I need one.

Thanks everyone. It was really a Merry Christmas.

It is my mom’s birthday today. She opted to just cook and bake and invite everyone at home. My sister told me they are bringing cake so I thought I’d bring Pansit Malabon without asking / telling my mom. Guess what? When we got there, I saw my mom Pansit Malabon in her dining table. Oops!

Anyway, my aunts and uncles came (after visiting the cemetery) too to celebrate with my mom. It was fun watching them bond. The women were like teenagers gossiping about the best weight loss pill, while the men were chatting about politics with my dad.

I ate the white forest (for the first time), and I definitely prefer the blackforest over it. Why? You see with blackforest, the sweetness of the cherry syrup is balanced with the bittersweet taste of black chocolate. While with the white forest, it’s too sweet. For me, it was like eating milk powder with cherry syrup. Well, that’s just me.

Before I continue researching on the cheapest way for the family to go on a cancun vacation, let me share with you some more photos on our Macau trip.

I remember reading in one of my favorite forums that it is nice to eat lunch on the Fisherman’s Wharf. We didn’t because we’ve just taken few photos when it started to rain. Argh!

At least, we were able to capture that nice red yacht in this photo.

On day 1 of our vacation, we went to Macau. We got there via ferry. We got a tour van with a contract of only 2 hours for the entire tour. Unfortunately, it rained!

I actually liked streets in Macau. It looks like Italy to me. I was sort of waiting to see manufactured homes but what I saw were small (same-looking) houses lined up on a sloping street, floor of which is made of old bricks. Looks very European to me.

My husband had been planning to bungee jump on the Macau tower, but the waiting line was too long. He was told he had to wait for another 2 hours. We just decided we’d go back to Macau some time in the future.

I bought some goodies for family and friends just at the foot of the ruins, right side.

We did not go to Venetian anymore. I guess the rains had dampened our spirits. It was hard to appreciate the place and take lots of photos when we are holding multi-colored umbrellas.

Oh well. Next time.

I just received good news from my sister. She’s joining me and my mom in our Hong Kong trip on the 14th! Hihihi. I’ve been worrying lately how to entertain myself while my mom and aunt do their 50-plus-year-old-women stuff.

For one, I plan on checking another hotel for our October trip (with my in-laws). I need to check how big a standard room is, if there are walk in tubs and if there’s free wifi. ^-^

Well, we plan on going to Macau but I bet the ladies won’t be able to appreciate the place. Although my mom might decide to play in the casino. I sure hope so.

Oh, and I plan on meeting Caryl too! We agreed on probably having coffee, and do some photoshoots together.

Now that my sister is coming, I’d definitely have a night life in Hong Kong!

My daughter had a BLAST this morning playing at Active Fun, located at the 3rd level of SM North Edsa. At first, she didn’t like to go inside. I kept showing her the giant slides which I knew she’d love. Still, she refused.

After 30 minutes of watching the other kids, she realized she wants to join the fun.

And she’s back…

An hour and a half later, she didn’t want to leave!
Any kid would definitely enjoy this fun-filled place! Visit them now!

Click on the thumbnail below to see a wide-angled view of the place.

You can read about their price list here and their party packages here.

More photos will be uploaded to my Facebook and Flickr soon. Stay tuned.

I have been busy looking more information about my research, treatments for Mesothelioma, that I forgot that I should be concerned with the family health too.

“Prevention is better than cure.”

This morning, BG’s school held their first Family Fitness Fun Run of the year. My daughter was too sleepy as the registration was at 7am. She was so used to getting up at 9am.

I actually had more fun during the 30-minute warm up session where a fitness instructor led the parents and kids. We stretched and danced in preparation for the run.

Daddy took this that’s why he wasn’t in the picture. I have no pictures of us while three of us were running together. I sure hope the teachers post the photos they took during the run.