The Makiav3llian Enchantment…

There was this particular time in my blog that I was slamming the RTA public transport service. Forget their overpriced taxi and stupid 10AED policy because apparently their head nachos all own expensive SUVs and salaries that will lure 60 year olds out of retirement.
Despite all this, after being away from Dubai for almost a year, only coming during the call of weekends or shopping urges, I can startsaying that the RTA seems to have done their jobs finally. I have my own policy aboutgetting jobs done, “It doesn’t matter how long the job takes as long as it gets done.” Well, the RTA have completed the following:

1. Get their air-conditioned bus waiting stations up.
2. Improve the city bus service

I mean with wasn’t a complete overhaul resulting to 90% total improvement. First of all the air-conditioned bus sheds as mentioned as the first of its kind in the Middle East. It is only pure logic when I say that during June, temperature hit as high as 45C to 50C. It simply makes sense to get these facilities or you have customers looking like soaked rags or looking for some other form of transport with taxis being their last resorts. The sun isn’t the thing that’s hot here; its the wind and pavement. Unfortunately, it took almost ayear and a half or even more to get there things working. This was the only complaint I had regarding about this. They advertised this facility as being available but these were not yet completed. There are still some of them awaiting completion and those which will never have it (due to building constraints, Karama Post Office area) but the point is that almost 80% seem to working. The air condition is working and its 20C cooler. Waiting for the bus was tolerable and it wasn’t about the temperature gettingon your nerves but because of bus frequency. This is a good start, I just hope that these facilities last a long time, yes they can turn off the air-conditioning during winter, and I hope they can be enjoyed by all (Unfortunately, the workers in Al Quoz are hard working people and you can smell the day’s work they’ve been through, it doesn’t smell pleasant at all!)
Now increasing the fleet of buses is a very good thing and the fact that these buses were not the same Benz or Scania models used before, makes me excited. The buses theyve got arelarger and longer buses with more space, comfortable seats and better air-conditioning. They accommodate more passengers and makethe trip a slightly better experience. More bus fleet means better timings right? Not really. But RTA is getting there! During this time of recession there aren’t too many cars on the roads now, some how you feel thankful that the roads are less congested but at the same time you have to feel sorry for the guys who lost their jobs because of this economic downturn.
So from what I heard, buses come in more frequently and is easier to ride on unlike the past 2 years where you were mentally and physically sapped out from a 1 1/2 hour bus ride. Aside for their 2AED cost (near or far) charge and card only policies on some of their buses, I really have to hand it to them. Honestly, I can’t wait to get on one of those double-deckers and hopefully zip from point A at point B at a fraction of the cost and a fraction of the time.
As for the DURL (Dubai Rapid Link), all I can say is that this thing should have been planned since the 1990s to address the expansion problem. The problem with Dubai is that the plans were how to make the city more financially expandable not to mention vertical for their insane high-rise aspirations. They completely forgot the population growth and with the emergence of business, of course you will need better transport facilities. So as for the DURL, a little bit too late but I guess we can bear with it. Where were you during my 3 years of work in DIC? I suffered long and hard along with the other people working there. Anyways, better late than never I always say. Its just funny that the transport system is built around known landmarks and shopping malls and not the other way around. I always thought that once youve established transport landmarks, buildings will come up around it, now I see some DURL stations cropping up in the tightest of places. Time will tell how this will go.

* By the way, as the title suggests, GTA5 or Grand Theft Auto V, there are unconfirmed reports that they will make Dubai the model city for the game. Believe me, I bet the roads would be wider there and it would be lovely just to free roam.*

For the entire month of March and April, I have enjoyed my best month of attendance. It is the first time in my entire tenure in Tawam that I have not gone over the 15 minute allowance. Work starts at 7AM and I had the maximum IN time of 706AM. My daily average would be 3 minutes past seven o’clock and I think it good thing for me as a professional. I am earlier than most of my colleagues and gives a very favorable impression on my manager. I am very proud indeed because I have eliminated tardiness at work for 2009. I know it’s too early for me to summarize but its the positive attitude that moves me forward.
Now for the past few weeks I do see that the time I move from my house is getting past 650 and so, for my best interest, I am planning to set my alarm to 525 until I can actually speed up my movements. I’ve actually been thinking a lot of things such as getting things done in the least possible movement from one room to another, maximizing energy and dress up time. It is true that trying to look good will take up a lot of your time and it does, but punctuality is more important to me than looks. I can fix my looks at work. I guess I will need to bring in provisions to work like an extra tie, a shoe brush, a comb and some gel. Oh, lets not forget the tooth brush for those really rushed up breakfast attacks. Oh what the heck, I think better to bring the entire kitchen sink while I am at it.

The UAE has one of the cheapest gas costs around the world since it is one of the oil powerhouses in the Middle East. Unfortunately, taking a cab in the UAE is almost equivalent to the ones in New York. In a place where cars and gas is cheap, water and taxi fares are one of the highest commodities you can pay for here. However, the RTA has gone up one step better (worse) in the art of consumer mud hole stomping! If there was an award for worst way of making consumers suffer, this is one of the candidates for this award.
So what is it all about, well, to put it simply, short trips or the minimum fare will cost you 10AED. What is a short trip? A short trip is a taxi ride which is just a short distance of travel which is approximately 4.8Km. So if you travel 500m to 3Km, you will be charged 10AED as a flat rate, anything beyond that will incur regular charges. On a hot sunny day in Dubai and staying in Muraqqabat, a trip to Al Ghurair Center, roughly 1.4Km will cost me 10AED, when before it costs me 6AED or less when the meter runs on a flag down basis. And just to give you a clearer picture of this, I am staying in Al Ain and I pay 9AED for a 13Km trip, of course this is not Dubai and the taxi service is sub par compared to RTA. RTA used to charge 1AED per 800 meters, yes 800m not per 1KM, a taxi driver has told this to me and they change this rule to encourage longer travel, more profit and avoiding traffic infested areas. By the way, the increased their flag down from 3AED to 4AED, so my computation of 6AED X 0.8Km gives you at least 4.8Km of getting the taxi to travel round and round till you consume your 10AED.
A lot of people have had difficulty accepting this new rule and to tell you frankly, it’s quite a bad time to implement such strategies in the market. This is the time of recession and to some extent you could understand that this is just business but when you attack the consumer in this manner where it would seem more of profit making, then we see it in another light. It is not our fault that we don’t live in Jumeirah, and yes I know that most of your cab drivers love making rounds to really far places. It isn’t our fault that Karama is congested and Maktoum Bridge as well, either the roads were not big enough or there wasn’t a clamp down on car population control. If it wasn’t a crime to do car pooling (before the police department implemented it) then maybe there would be a slight drop in the number of cars, not to mention a very efficient bus service so that people would use them more. If you made the fares cheaper, then maybe the public would ride these taxis more.
I mean there are so many things that can be done to address these mere reasons for putting up such a tariff. Imagine tourists riding a taxi for 7AED just to get dinner, and then when they pay 50AED, they get 40AED in return, doesn’t create a favorable impression at all, and then you see the taxi driver who has difficulty speaking English, let alone read, point to a newspaper cutting about the fare tariff. One tip, remember, this is YOUT 10AED you are spending, make them earn it. If your trip is 2.5KM, then make them travel the extra distance, take the long cut!
Anyways, take a look at this article from Arabian Business and see Dubai do another first in becoming one of the most over rated and expensive places to live in. I know, its the place where I live in and I have no right to speak out like that but then again, I am not the only one with this complaint.

Dubai taxi fare minimum set at AED10
Friday, 03 April 2009

A taxi ride in Dubai will now cost a minimum of AED10, it emerged on Friday.
The increase comes after drivers complained that short trips wasted their time and hindered their efforts to hit their daily minimum targets.
While the starting fare will remain at AED4, transport chiefs have introduced the AED10 minimum fare with immediate effect, UAE daily Gulf News reported.
A Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) spokesperson told the paper that the final decision was taken on March 31 after consultation with the Dubai Taxi Agency and four other franchise taxi companies in Dubai. The new fare is effective immediately.

People keep testing the religious tolerance of the United Arab Emirates particularly in Dubai. We know of the underground things that is happening there and the not so underground things have also shown up and is now being taken notice off. It actually is a blessing that this place does not have the strict regulations of Saudi Arabia where mingling with females is strictly forbidden and punishable by law. Unfortunately, many people have crossed the boundary of indecency (for them). We couldwallow in our own countries and enjoy leg revealing shorts, plunging necklines, arm over the shoulders, sweet kisses on the cheek and so on, but this isn’t our country. For the past year though, this system has been abused and now, the system is fighting back. Below is an article in Al Arabiya about this issue. So it is best to make sure to keeps your lips to yourselves and hands inside your pockets.

Dubai issues list of prohibited public behavior

Playing loud music, wearing short shirts, dancing, nudity, kissing and even holding hands in public are all considered inappropriate behavior under new guidelines laid down by the authorities of Dubai, according to a press report on Saturday.
The Dubai Executive Council issued a list of special standards governing public behavior that requires Dubai residents and visitors to respect the customs of the Muslim country and avoid what the council considers inappropriate behavior, the Arabic-language Emarat al-Youm reported.
The rules, which apply to all public places, include a ban on all forms of nudity, playing music loudly, dancing, kissing between men and women and unmarried couples holding hands. In addition, the council ordered that anyone caught under the influence of alcohol—even a small amount—outside designated drinking areas would be fined or imprisoned. Any breach of the guidelines, by nationals or expatriates, carries a possible prison penalty or deportation, the paper said, adding that the guideline have been distributed to governmental departments and private companies. The order also requires all visitors of public places, such as government buildings, shopping malls, streets and restaurants to dress in “appropriate” clothing, otherwise they would be denied entrance. “Pants and skirts have to be of appropriate length and outside clothing should not expose body parts indecently and should not be transparent,” the guidelines stipulate under section “public behavior.” Slogans or pictures considered “insulting” to any group or religion were also prohibited.

Conflicting reports

Nasser al-Hamali, the council spokesperson, refused to comment on the report. “We are not authorized to give any interview now and do not have any comment on this issue. We don’t care what is published in newspapers,” he told AlArabiya.net. “Let the press and the people talk.” But an official government source familiar with the matter who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter denied that such guidelines had been issued and said that if the report were true other newspapers would have received a copy of it.
Dubai, a member of the seven-emirate United Arab Emirates, has a diverse culture as it is home to a foreign population made up mainly of low-skilled workers from Asia and white-collar, mainly Western, professionals. Unlike most of its neighbors in the conservative Gulf region, the emirate tolerates a relatively relaxed dress code and hosts dozens of hotels that have bars and clubs, where alcohol is legally served. However, a series of incidents, including crackdowns on cross dressers and the expulsion of two British expats found guilty of having sex on the beach, has thrown the clash of local and foreign cultures in the limelight.

Despite not having a single tear drop from my eye, a heart streaming with grievous agony is calling and crying out. Within the past two days, March 6 2009 and March 7, 2009 will be both remember for one reason for two distinct individuals that have changed the lives of many. March 6, 2009, at twelve noon, Francis Magalona, the King of Pinoy Rap, Kiko, The Man from Manila, The Master Rapper succumbed to complications from a very life threatening form of leukemia. The Philippines has lost a national icon and a man who has spoken to the youth and the people of the Philippines through his nationalistic and thought provoking lyrics. I honestly could not believe it and it was difficult for me to believe because I really never paid attention with his batle with leukemia. A person, who in more ways than most politician have, tried to spread the message of oneness and better change for the land of the Three Stars and a Sun. It is so ironic that a person who has been so instrumental to change and nationalism be taken away from us while there are so many people who have no morals, with greedy intent that waste their lives away. It really is a sad day not just for the music industry but for the Philippines as the Pearl of the Orient has lost a true son!
I just want to also take time for everyone to view an Eat Bulaga tribute to Francis M. G-Loc 9 , singing the last verse to the song “Lando” brought so much emotion to this song. I couldn’t help but feel really sad. The song itself also had the rough touch of reality about losing someone which made it even more powerful knowing that my grandfather also passed away.

G-Loc 9

March 7, 2009, at around 7:40AM, my grandfather, Juan Martinez passed away with battles arising from complication of prostate and bone cancer. My Gramps fought this out for more than a year, we thought that he got well after his prostate cancer subdued but then it had spread particularly the bone area. It was really difficult for me to see my Gramps in pain. He was always having pain in his leg area and having his care taker stroke his leg, a feeling of helplessness sets in. I also learned that my Gramps was also taking morphine to subdue the pain and it was just difficult communicating with him because the medication was just playing with his senses. He kept mistaking me for my father.
During all this time, my aunts came home to the Philippines because there were indications that my Gramps was giving in. At the end, everybody knew what to expect. Somehow, despite our loss we were relieved because we know that my grandfather is no longer in pain, no more medication, no more injections and trips back and forth of the hospital. I won’t remember how he died, my Gramps tried valiantly to stay till his 90th birthday on May, he kept talking to my dad and my dad said he would come and visit but he told him that he could make it on his birthday. My Gramps tried so hard, unfortunately, fate had other plans.
Despite this, all I can say is that Daddy Pogi has done so much, not just for 11 kids he left behind but for the generations after that. My cousins and their kids, one way or the other have been brought up and instilled with Martinez family values. Raising 11 children is no easy task, I cannot help but take pride at the things he has done. I may not know all of it or may even know my grandfather so well but I see him in the way that my father brought me up. Living with the Martinez family is living in a very big community, we’ve stretched to most parts of the modern world, the seeds of the Martinez virtues have grown and blossomed and although it isn’t perfect, the world did become a better place. To Daddy Pogi; Thanks for everything. I miss you and I love you. I know that you live within me and through my brothers and sister, my parents, my family, through the entire Martinez clan! From your roots we’ve spread like branches with fruits. You’ve done a great job Gramps, now it’s time to rest… =(

So after thirty eight days of vacationing, I am finally on my way back to the place I also call home. Being away again from my wife, daughter, mom and loved ones, I kind oftook this trip back in a less dramatic manner. Was it because I would not miss them that badly?
Thetruth is that my wife and daughter will be back with me within six months time so it isn’t as bad as before where I had to wait for a year or even more at times. As for my mom and my sisters, I guess you can say that we are a bit parted. I will miss mymom and I already miss my dad. However, my mentality is set that he is still in Dubai although we know that he has already moved to Indonesia. I do know that there is still a lot to do particularly with my brother and sister who is back in Dubai. Marlon,with the ideas of entertaining marriage and moving out of the apartment we’ve called home for more than 15 years and Myra, although we can’t see the mess she is in right now, I am hoping that we can help her in getting back on track, she is taking this bachelorette thing a little bit too far and I am very concerned about her. I guess this will be the family projects I will be working on for the first half of 2009. I do have little side missions as well, completing the change of my passport to machine readable as per requirements of the Philippine DFA, I think the deadline for this is set to April. The next thing is to also get UAE National ID which has a deadline by the end of this year.
As for major things coming up ahead, I have to deal with the flights of Angie and Isa this coming July. Priorities first, to get the appointment that Isa needs for her right eye. Unfortunately a small cyst has formed up on the upper eyelid which can be surgically removed within 20 minutes. It isn’t life threatening at all but of course we would like to make sure that Isa gets the best for her health and appearance. I would like to extend my thanks to Fahad, the clerk in Opthalmology in Tawam who has helped me arrange the appointment with the good doctor.
As of right now, I am not really sure if the wait to July would be long. Travel and communication has really made this world a smaller place to live in. Sometimes, I feel that my wife and daughter is a stone throw away from me. It’s so easy to get in touch with them that sometimes I feel that I my wife is watching right behind me. Hehehe. I love my wife. Shesalways been there for me even though I am such a bum when I get back home in the Philippines. If it weren’t for the computer games I play, I could actually pay more attention to Isa and her. Unfortunately, this is how I am as a father. It does suck and when you are put away from the things you take for granted you sometimes realize the chances I’ve screwed up. It almost seems to be a crime but somehow, my wife has understood how I can be such an @$$, for this I love the way my wife cares for me even if sometimes I prefer that she give all her love to Isa who needs it more than I do. I’m a lucky son of a gun, to have a wife life her, in-laws who really don’t hate me for being like that, although I don’t send a lot, I just hope somehow they know that I care.

So we took the bullet by the tooth and decided to visit Hong Kong. It was my first time without my parents around. I have been to Singapore and Baguio during the late 80s and early 90s and it was my great adventure, something that pushed me to become a pilot, which unfortunately, never materialized. Anyway, after summoning up enough guts and cash, Angie, Isa and I took flight PR300 on an early February 9 morning going to Hong Kong. We took the Econolight of Philippine Airlines and as a word of advise, bring some food because the food at the airport is quite expensive (paid 50 PhP for a bottle of water) and that they do not serve food on the “budget” flight. While the passengers were having breakfast, we were having peanuts,
When we arrived at Hong Kong and went through their immigration, we had to immediately get our things sorted out as we need to make the most of day 1. The thing about Hong Kong is that they have designed this place for tourism. From the airport, brochures lined up the arrival area. It had information on where you want go depending on the vacation you want, whether you are on an adventure trek, a family outing, a nature trip or shopping spree, there are brochures for you to use. It is fairly easy to say that Hong Kong has been prepped up for tourism. The brochure have clear details on where to go, where to get off and what to ride, there are details on the brochure as well as maps with an itinerary of sites to go on foot. It isn’t really that easy to get lost in Hong Kong with train stations and street signs have markers to point you to where to go. Unlike in the Philippines, you really have to rely on the taxi drivers (who like pirates, will hijack your wallets) as well as asking people around of directions. As for Dubai, sign boards on the streets will be your only indication, that is if you are driving on the road, there are maps but it just isn’t as easy finding where you want to go since the places are a bit difficult to reach with public transport except for taxis (which also rip you off but in a legal sense), until the DURL in the UAE gets built, it still has a long way to go for adventuring tourists. The nice thing about Hong Kong is their MTR (Mass Transit Railway) which is very accessible and is all over the city. There are around 10 lines, mostly run underground and majority are walking distance to tourist destinations. What this means is that it is so easy to go around Hong Kong by yourself, you’d make a little mistake here and there but it wouldn’t be a major issue at all.
A word of advise when landing in Hong Kong is to immediately purchase an Octopus card. It’s a card which you can load credit into as it is being used by most, if not all, transport systems and small stores like restaurants, 7-11 and other facilities. You get discounted rates when travelling the MTR unlike using a single fare ticket. You need to pay around 150 HKD when getting one, 50 HKD as deposit and 100 HKD as your credit. Each one of you has to have one, you can not use one Octopus card for all members of your party. Children also have their own Octopus cards. The cards you usually have is a “loan” card which you will return when leaving HK, otherwise, you lose your deposit. You can claim your deposit from the same place you bought it from the airport or in train stations. From the airport, you can take their buses headed to the city called “Air Bus” because they came from the airport or the Airport Express Line, which is a train dropping you off to the MTR stations within the city, the tricky thing is that the Airport Express has a higher fare going to the City which is more than 60 HKD, however, you can expect lesser travel time, nice seats and avoiding confusions and scenarios of getting lost for the first time. You can also use the Airport Express to do an early check-in and still be able to visit the rest of Hong Kong. This is what we actually did on our last day since our flight was at 6PM, we decided to do an early check-in and visit Hong Kong Disney for the second time from 11AM till 4PM. You can check in your luggage at Kowloon station and enjoy the rest of the day, just make sure that the places you visit are near any MTR stations.

I’ll add more stories as we go along but for the mean time I hope these pointer can help you get started.

Ngong Ping 360

• This visit will take 3/4 of your day. This place is huge and will be very very tiring. If you are bringing a child, have a stroller or a strong back.
• There are two types of tickets, a package ticket and a trip ticket. The package ticket includes a return trip via Sky Ride to Ngong Ping Peak by cable car and entry to two shows which are really for kids, Walking with Buddha and Monkey’s Tale Theater. The trip ticket is a return ticket via Sky Ride. If you are under budget, just get a return ticket, you will have access to all facilities except the shows. There is an optional bus route but the cable car ride is just too difficult to refuse.
• A very nice place to eat and will cost less than other eateries in Ngong Ping would be Taiwan Zen Bistro. Serves great noodles, real solid toppings and affordable prices, around 28 HKD than the others which goes up to 45 HKD.
• Bottled water within the Buddha statue costs a lot. Better to buy from the vending machine or the small shops before getting to the Buddha steps.
• Ngong Ping closes at around 6 to 7PM so I would suggest that you leave the place at around 3PM. There are a lot of people going there in the morning and a long line is there. These people return at around 2PM to 4PM so returning at an earlier time will help you out in planning your trip.

Ocean Park Hong Kong

• This visit will take 3/4 of your day. This place is huge and is divided into two part, the Lowlands (Soon to be named WaterFront) and the Headlands (Soon to be named The Summit).
• Always check show timings and their locations.
• Lowlands have the Dolphin academy and the show for the seals.
• The Headlands is a 15 minute cable ride from the Headlands.
• Bus 629 from Admiralty Train Station took around 20 minutes.
• All adult rides are located at the Headlands, children rides located in the Lowlands.
• Try to plan the trip going UP then DOWN, don’t do the opposite, it will be very tiring. Unfortunately, the Ocean Park Theater show takes place at 330PM and 530PM which is a must see for all but it is located in the Headlands.
• Always take the 330PM show on the Ocean Park Theater so you don’t get caught in the rush to go down to the Lowlands. There is a long queue going by cable car, we had to stand in line for 45 minutes.
• There is a small aviary behind the Headlands, try to visit it before going up.
• Wear COMFORTABLE shoes, you will need it.
• We were able to bring a bottle inside Ocean Park, bottled water there is expensive.
• Visit Atoll Reef, it is a must!

Hong Kong Disney

• This visit will take an entire day, extending till 7PM if you want to see the fireworks show. It opens at 9AM. Train ride from Hong Kong Station will take at least 45 minutes. You will transfer to another train once you get to Sunny Bay.
• We were able to bring a bottle inside Disney although it really is prohibited, bottled water there is expensive.
• There are long queues when you want to take pictures with Disney characters, you will find them in Fantasy Land. There is an entire area for them sponsored by KODAK. As always, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse always gets the longest line.
• I loved Stitch Encounter. Make sure you visit it.
• The Disney Parade started at 330PM.
• It would be useless to visit after 2PM, there just isn’t enough time for you to visit or enjoy all the facilities of Disney, besides there are long lines on some rides and some Disney character picture taking.

Tram to Victoria Peak (The Peak Tram)

• This visit will take you no less than 3 hours.
• You are not required to purchase pictures printed out after you pay for the ticket, it is just a thing for tourists, you can simply decline.
• When you get to the last stop, the Peak, you can still venture on top of the Peak building. You have to pay an additional 15 to 22 HKD. The view there is spectacular. If you are carrying a powerful camera, I suggest you pay the extra quid and start shooting away at the Hong Kong Skyline.

I have started out the month of love and my birthday by adopting a dragon. At DragonAdopters.com, you are given a chance to pick a dragon and nurture it from an egg. Think of the movies Dragonheart or Eragon, this is basically your plot without some thing trying to eat you or burn you for breakfast. The secret to this game though is that you need people to visit your Dragon website every now and then. I haven’t really played or got into the groove of Tamagochi (yes, remember that crazy egg that you need to feed, pee and all) but I think the Makiav3llian Forest needs a protector… and her name is Scorch the Lizardus Dragon, check her out!.

After twenty days since 2009 showed up, there are a lot of things I have to be thankful for about the year past. It’s been 12 months of ups and downs, a roller coaster of emotions. New thing discovered, disappearances of old friends and introduction of new ones. I can’t really say Oh-Eight has been amazing but the relative quietness has been a welcome sight.
On the dance and music scene, I got introduced to hardstyle music and the dance, a scene you’d never want to see me perform, was something I got addicted to early last year. I thought there wasn’t anything that could top techno, I was proven wrong and the energy it brings, revitalizing. I also fell out of grace with music from Japan. Oh-Eight brought in Koharu and the rest of the girls, their addictiveness factor was like a sugar high and they are must on my daily playlist.
The first half of Oh-Eight also ushered a new era in my life as I moved to a new job. As reluctant as I was to move out of Stargate, I finally decided to call it a day from my multi-positioned job. On March 8, I moved to Tawam Hospital as a User Support staff which had me moving on a more onsite job. It wasn’t really about moving from my previous job but it was more of moving locale. Being so comfortable in Dubai for more than 13 years was one thing but I know had to actually move in Al Ain, roughly 150 km from the city I used to call home. A change of environment for a more quiet life, same old job and an increase of 500 AED on my salary, definitely worth it when I say that I have 2 days off, 40 days worth of leave, medical benefits, gym facilities and getting to work with more than 1000 people. Oh and I forgot to mention it was a government facility and working hours from 7AM to 3PM. I’d be giving up partying in Dubai and the likes but I think it’s time for me to be in a more relaxed atmosphere.
My overall Al Ain experience was not so tragic. Although I had to sleep on my first night without a blanket, I also had the pressure of finding a place to stay within a one month period or else get forcefully expelled from Tawam accommodation quarters. I did find a place to stay and had a horrible time doing so. Had my first experience staying with people I hardly knew. Not the best of places to stay but it was an eye opener and at the same time a loud victorious cry of independence.
I lost a few friends and gained new ones. As promiscuous as I am, it’s pretty cool that there are friends who open up to me in such a way. Unfortunately, these are the people who pretty much are undecided how to move forward with my antics. I did gain new ones as well and regardless, I used my charms to actually get my message that I am a playful SOB. Being in Al Ain and with nurses actually encouraged me to be a bit more natural with my approach. A disarming smile should be accompanied with an unpredictable sense of humor is a must and thankfully a weapon of choice in the 21st century.
On the anime scene, I was re-introduced to Initial D by my friend Khaled and also got to experience the rebirth of two other legends in the field of Japanimation. Evangelion Rebuild is a small part of a revitalized retelling of Neon Genesis Evangelion with an alternate ending to be shown in the future. And then there is the never ending Macross saga, Macross Frontier which carried concepts of the original. It paid homage all of the Macross series in its own way and establishes its own love triangle and the battle of protoculture. I had so much fun watching it and it was worthy of a sequel especially when 2008 rendition Ai Oboete Imasu ka? (Do You Remember Love?) was played. Awesome isn’t enough to describe the feeling you get when you hear it. If you think you’ve seen it all, this was spine tingling.
This year also brought in the economic recession. This brought a lot of negative vibes and the shockwave of events was felt throughout the world. Without banks being able to lend money, everyone held onto their money with closed fists. Jobs were lost left and right, unfortunately, my father was a victim of this economic downturn. My father lost his job late last year because of lack of projects. Despite the downturn, my father was still optimistic and a week after his entrenchment, he was able to land a job in Indonesia with better salary. Thank goodness that God always opens a window when he closes a door. It has always been like this, God really watches over my family. It’s an end of a legacy and it is going to be my brother and sister leading the charge. To some extent I do feel sad and somehow I lost a little sense of security. This is the opportunity that Marlon and Myra pray to happen, independence. Although it sounds good on paper, it’s a bit difficult because I always saw us as a cohesive unit. I guess we’ll now be the typical OFW family.
I’ll end this Oh-Eight memoir with my Oh-Nine shout out… “This is Ten percent luck, Twenty percent skills; Fifteen percent concentrated Power of Will. Five percent Pleasure, Fifty Percent Pain and a Hundred Percent reason to remember my name.“

During my early days of Project-PC, I made one of the best investments. No, it wasn’t the PC I built, in fact it kept depreciating in value the day the parts arrived. I am actually talking about the Aramex Shop-&-Ship service. Shop-&-Ship is a service provided by Aramex, a popular Middle East courier service based in Dubai, that provides you with a US or UK business address. It allows you to purchase things online from any US/UK online retailer and have them delivered to your home in the Middle East. S&S has worked for me throughout the years, whether I want to get cheaper and hard to find computer parts or even start my “buy and sell” business, it truly was one of the better ventures I went with.
A visit to your local Aramex store within the GCC should be enough. GCC stands for Gulf CooperationCouncil which basically covers the six major countries in the Middle East peninsula (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE, Bahrain & Oman). So regardless if you move to another GCC country, youll still be able to use this facility. Aramexonly requires a passport & visa copy and a fee of 120AED. Once the processing is done you will be given a US and UK business address. Now you can order from most US or UK e-commerce sites and they can deliver it to your business address. The most common site you can use to get things is on Amazon.com and Google Checkout. The thing about it is that Amazon acts as a mediator to the business establishments it has on its site and one thing is that it accepts international credit cards. The problem is that dueto credit card fraud, some e-commerce sites do not allow purchases if the credit card and shipping addresses do not match. This is also one of the reasons why it is also difficult to purchase stuff on EBay if it has “PayPal Verified Shipping Address” written all over it. This is why Amazon and Google Checkout are the main online stores for S&S subscribers. EBay has potential but has limitations not to mention signing up for a PayPal account. The good thing about PayPal is that it acts as a CC without exposing your CC details, providing you security and you could avoid purchasing hassle from sites which do not accept international credit cards.

Well, this entry today goes out to a friend of mine from the US capital. I call her GAP girl because she works in the consumer fashion industry. Anyways, she going through a rough time right now and could be suffering from what we call home sickness. She’s got a bright career but then problems do come and go and unfortunately she is in a stage where all the troubles are piling up which even leads to the more advanced stages of home sickness.
So is there a cure for this? Is there the so called “chicken soup” for this type of sickness that doctors have not acknowledged? The thing about home sickness is that the patient is the only person who can tell if she is sick or not and the prescribed cure has a high percentage of failing. I am no doctor but the most common remedy that can cure this is friends/loved ones. As for me, I use three medications to help with this type of issue. They are a sense of humor, house hold chores and YouTube; of course you can add a dash of prayer and phone calls. Let me just elaborate on my choice of medication since I will be trying to treat Leah to something that could help her. I only offer half the remedy, a catalyst as I would say; the rest is up to her.
When you are usually feeling alone or troubled, sense of humor is always the first thing being attacked by the “solobako singulitus” bacteria (the loneliness germ). So basically, what I do is try to have this germ expunged by stimulating the sixth sense called sense of humor. Cracking up jokes, even the lamest helps. At the end of the day the thing is that you’ll be remembered because this what friends do? Cheer each other up when times are bad and when they are far away from you. A cure for a bad day is always a smile and a hearty laugh. If you really can’t smile about it, then I think the day of Armageddon has already arrived.
The second step of recovery is household chores. Nothing can help you forget of your loneliness unlike doing this activity. At the end, you either end up with a little pain on your back or a really clean house. Being idle is not just the devil’s workshop but just helps you remember how miserable you were. Do household chores, bake a cake, do part time work, be productive. This is what my father taught me and it will definitely do wonders for you.
The third thing you need is the internet. Believe me; nothing eats up more time than watching some funny videos on YouTube. I mean watch people make fools of themselves, sing with your favorite celebrity or chat with a long lost friend, it doesn’t cost a lot to do this and you are basically sharing the same virtual space with anyone, so you are not so far away. Of course if you can quit the forwarding chain letters and senseless emails, I’d appreciate it.
There are a lot of things people take for granted. I’ve been a product of overseas living; just imagine how miserable we were 15 years ago. Phone bills calling back home cost like gold, no internet, no mobiles or sms, no cable television that gave a taste of home. We basically had to call back the Philippines on a weekend since it was the cheapest time to do so, imagine people sending VHS recording of Eat Bulaga or Ginebra versus San Miguel Final series, and don’t get me started on the voice tapes… Consider yourselves lucky because technology just made the world smaller, it doesn’t matter which land mass you are staying in now, it’s about the air we breathe we share and those small messages sent from different mediums that actually help you forget that your loved ones is just a flight away. So stop sucking your thumb you big baby!

For those who are planning to give birth in the UAE or have already given birth and is thinking of how to get they baby under their sponsorship, one of the TipidPC’s proud daddies, Mr. Parusa has created this guide getting your little one sponsored.

In-depth Guide for Newborn Residence Visa in the UAE (Abu Dhabi)
Author: PARUSA (Maui Jaramillo, proud daddy)
Published: November 26, 2008

Fees:
AED 300 for 3 years residence visa validity
AED 30 for application form
AED 20 - 30 for typing
AED 15 for Empost

Requirements for the Immigration Office:

1. Application Form (from Typing Center)
2. One (1) Passport size ID Photo (White background)
3. Passport of Newborn Baby - Original + Copy
4. Birth Certificate (Authenticated English & Arabic) - Copy
5. Health Insurance Policy - Original + Copy
6. Passport of the Sponsor - Copy
7. Work Contract (from UAE Ministry of Labour) - Original + Copy
8. Salary Certificate (Arabic) of the Sponsor - Original + Copy
9. Empost sticker (to be filled up)

NOTE: Your baby have 120 days (4 months) to apply for a residence visa from birth.

Procedure:

1. Prepare all necessary requirements as much as possible with original and copy (B/W or colored) to avoid delays. Many people would ask how to apply for a Health Insurance Policy, you need to know that your company should provide this one as per UAE law.

2. Go to any nearest typing centers that offers immigration services. Provide the following:

One (1) Passport size ID Photo
Birth Certificate (Authenticated English & Arabic) - Copy
Health Insurance Policy - Copy
Passport of the Sponsor - Copy
Work Contract (from UAE Ministry of Labour) - Copy
Salary Certificate (Arabic) of the Sponsor - Copy

The typist will ask other details such as newborn’s mother’s name, sponsor’s P.O. Box (usually the office’s), mobile number in the UAE, home country contact number, etc… Just supply it to them and wait.

3. When Arabic translation / typing is done, of course pay the fee.

4. Go to the Immigration Office (ADNRD) - in Abu Dhabi, it’s on Al Saada Street; open from 7AM - 10PM

If you have the Empost sticker already, go to the Residence Visa Section immediately, which is on the right side when you enter the premises of ADNRD (Abu Dhabi Naturalization & Residence Directorate). Get a queue number.

If you don’t have any Empost sticker, don’t panic. Go to the back area of the department or ask around for the photocopying area where they sell Empost sticker.

When your queue number is called. Loaded with the application form from the typing center, give it to the immigration officer / attendant with the Newborn’s passport & your original Work Contract (from UAE Ministry of Labour).

They will take the application and passport only and will return the original Work Contract and MOI & Empost receiving stub stickers (do not lose this one).

End of Immigration Office.

The WAIT:

A SMS message from “MOI” in Arabic… Let your friend translate it for you if the message is “on the process”.

Empost will give you a call, deliver the Newborn’s passport with residence visa stamp within their working hours, usually 2-4 days. Give your MOI & Empost receiving stub stickers.

You’re done.

Now this guide is made for Abu Dhabi, the major difference here is usually the Immigration Offices, most of the procedures would be the same except for the fact where you get your baby’s passport.

To all the avid readers who have supported me throughout the years and continue to read through my struggles and truimphs, you guys deserve better. So I’ll be trying out new things every now and then to make the site more lively. I’ll be making snips here, cuts there and hopefully be an eye pleaser.