My wedding kwento (long read)

It was proven – “You will miss the wedding preps when it’s over!”. So here I am, just reminiscing the wedding day…I'll start my storytelling on January 19...it was a sunny day in the Philippines. I was @ our house in Laguna and Randy was already on his way to fetch me. (Wedding paraphernalia were already @ Randy's house in Caloocan since these were fetched by him & his dad on the night of Jan 18). It was 8AM when Randy reached our house...then we headed to Caloocan to fix his things before we check in the hotel. Time check, 12nn, I had my pedicure & manicure while waiting for Randy to finish fixing his things. At 2:30 PM, we went on our way to Ysabelle Fashion (the couturier) to claim my wedding gown & shoes, and some of the ento's & mothers' gowns...and also the body form (manequin) pala...

At 3PM, we already checked in Bayview Park Hotel without any hassle. Randy stayed in his executive room (Room 727) after helping me to fix my things in my suite room (Room 515). It was already 4:30 PM when my brother, Lemuel or Toto, arrived @ my room.
My mother & brother was supposed to sleep with me @ my room. Because I need to send some more documents to Janice (the wedding coordinator), I had to go out to find internet shop...(the hotel is charging too much for wireless connectivity...75/hour! hallerrr!). So I called Randy to go with me and find some internet shop outside the hotel. So we went out and left my brother @ the hotel. It was already 6:30PM when we got back to the hotel. We waited until 7PM when my mother and Randy's family arrived. Randy's 2 brothers and 1 sister had to sleep with him that night. Since, we're all tired fixing our things, we decided to just have a take-out order from Yellow Cab. After having dinner, I watched "desperate housewives" (my addiction!) first before dozing off @ 11PM. I had a hard time taking myself to sleep...I was excited, worried and nervous...whew!

6:00 AM - I woke up from a not-so-tight sleep. I received a text message from one our ninangs, telling me that she wouldn’t be able to come…because of her masteral studies. Waahhh..umagang umaga, I received a bad news na agad…what would I expect for the rest of the day? So I immediately texted Janice to inform her. Janice was on another morning wedding that time but was so sweet to reply still to my message, confirming the receipt of my message. I reviewed again the guest list, the reception program, etc. Then, I tried my best to fit my wedding gown into the body form (mannequin) but hell! I couldn’t seem to fit my wedding gown! The gown’s too skimpy! What should I do? I felt I was gonna cry at that moment…from the look, it seemed that it was very impossible to fit my gown into the mannequin! So, I texted Rhoda (of Ysabelle) which goes like:
Lei: “Waaahhh…I can’t fit the gown into the mannequin. Do you have smaller size of mannequin?”
Rhoda: “Hi Lei, what? Mas sexy ka pa sa mannequin ah! Smallest size na yan eh. Don’t worry, I’ll ask the seamstress to fix that for you…”

Then, I remembered Rhoda telling her people the other day to give me the mannequin for the flower girls…waaahhh! That means…the mannequin was really the smallest size! So, there, I just left the gown on top of my bed…fixed it with the other paraphernalia.

Then I decided to fit the shoes…and gosh! Medyo maluwag sya! The day before, it was OK but on that day, medyo maluwag na sya! Wut to do, yani! So I called up again Ms. Rhoda and asked her kung anong remedyo ang pwede dun. Then she told me that she would ask her seamstress to bring shoe padding for me. So, that resolved it!

8:30 AM - I fixed the wedding paraphernalia on the bed while my brother & my mom (together with Randy & his siblings) went down for breakfast...I had no appetite for any kind of food…Again, I felt lazy so I just watched again desperate housewives..(I’m on my Season 3 then…yey!)9:00 AM - I already took a bath. I stayed inside the shower for 30 minutes which is 15 minutes longer than my usual timing. While inside the shower, I’d been receiving text messages from Val Villarin (Make up artist) and Fiore (Florist) that they’re already on their way. Few minutes after I went out of the shower, the doorbell rang…it was Val Villarin and his assistant, Mike Umayam. Whoa! They were carrying countless luggages…then Val said, “Lei, baba lang muna kami ha. Iwan muna namin to, rest ka muna dyan.” And I said Ok, since I need to dress up pa.

So, there, I dressed up and munched a little of mocha fudge that my mother bought the night before. Then, Randy and his siblings, my mom & my mother came after eating breakfast downstairs. After a few minutes again, my father called, nyay! They are already outside the hotel, with my niece, Kyle (Little Bride) with her yaya, Ira (Flower girl), my other cousins and everyone! Waaahhh…they’re all coming into my room! Thank god, I got a suite room! Together with my father and other relatives, Randy’s family headed to Randy’s room @ the 7th floor…so I bid goodbye na to my soon-to-be (in a few hours’time) hubby to accompany his family to his room. And also…the bridal car with the Hagads (SWAT team) already arrived to the hotel.My room was suddenly filled with people! Time check: 10:10 AM. Lay Tumbaga of Fiore arrived already with the flowers. The flowers were beautiful and delivered in accordance to the contract.

Few minutes later, Val and Mike arrived from their "brunch". Then they fixed their things na…while unti-unting nagdadatingan ang ento members.
First was, Donnabelle Wong, my veil sponsor. Next was Grace Perales (candle sponsor) with her daughter Eunice (Flower girl na super kulit! Hehehe!).

Then, Manang Amy (seamstress from Ysabelle Bridal Factory) arrived. And I was so excited to see her…why? Because I was still worried with the gown. So I hurriedly went to the room and showed to her that I can’t fit the gown into the mannequin and asked her to fix it. She said OK.

Then, Val started fixing my hair already. And Yes…without photographer & videographer. Val decided to just fix his things (the retractable mirror, hahaha!) at the dining section of the suite. Kase raw we should reserve a special place for the pictorial, which was my bedroom. So, there, pinalabas namin lahat ng tao sa bedroom and asked them to stay na lang sa Sala . It was already 11:15 AM when Val finished my hair, that was a quick one…I think the hair was done in just 15 to 20 minutes. Val started putting make up on the mothers, and other ento members.
At that time, I was already in a panic mode…kase wala pang photogs and videographers…waaahhh(kaya ung pictures above were only shot using my cam by yours truly)…pero ok lang, call time was 11AM…15 minutes late pa lang naman. So I called up Randy to his room and asked him to contact Frank or Kelvin or Erik (of Imagineer Digital). So he texted Erik kung where na sila, then Erik replied, “Pa-text na lang po si Frank.” So, Randy called up Frank….Frank told him na they’re on their way to the hotel. Then, I checked na this time yung gown ko if nasuot na sa mannequin! And I said, YEHEY! Galing ni Manang Amy! The gown was already on the mannequin…fitted perfectly! Manang Amy was already ironing all the gowns.At 11:30AM, Frank and his team finally arrived…at the same time, handing me a letter. It was a letter from Kelvin (of Imagineer).Yep…few days before my wedding, I had this premonition that Kelvin wouldn’t be able to cover my wedding…I dunno, but I just felt that way few days before the wedding. And it came true…I can’t explain the feeling I had while reading the letter. I wanted to understand everything but I couldn’t seem to figure out what it is in me that I couldn’t understand what’s happening. I felt devastated, I really was. All the while, I was on a belief that Kelvin will be there on our wedding day. We had 3 sets of prenuptial pictorial with him and nakagaanan na namin sya ng loob. Though may kapalit naman, iba pa rin kung sya talaga ang magshu-shoot kasi nga sanay na kami to pose for him…lalo si Randy na napakahirap namang paartehin in front of the camera. So in order for me to stay composed, I let it go na lang. So the photographers and videographers started to fix their equipment, obtained some of the wedding paraphernalia and arranged those for pictorial. Frank also instructed 1 photog, 1 videographer and 1 assistant to go to Randy’s room to take pictorials while he’s dressing up.

Then, two of the coordinators from Classic Unlimited arrived @ 12nn…as scheduled. I gave instructions about the wedding paraphernalia and I also gave the lunch allowance for all the suppliers present in the hotel. Good thing, I was able to give full payment to all of my suppliers before the wedding day…so no added stress na on the wedding day itself. Few minutes later, Wey Madla (cord sponsor) arrived with Dex David (cord sponsor) and James Lorenzo (singer) arrived. Chika-chika ever…ehehehe!

Then, Val started putting on my make up. I was getting nervous then…the feeling was so unusual…ewan ko ba.So, when we finished, I went back to the bedroom…that’s when we started the pictorial with my jogging pants and sweater. I preferred to wear jogging pants & a sweater for the pictorials kasi I just find it not so amusing when I see the bride in bath robe..I dunno...I just don't feel like wearing a bath robe and then pose for the camera. Parang iba ang dating sakin, hahaha (berde ka kasi, lei...hahaha!)Then after taking shots, Frank instructed Manang Amy to help me with the gown already. So the photogs went out of the bedroom first while I dress up with the help of Manang Amy. So there, I’m now dressed…but hey! I felt something in a rush…ahihihihi…”Manang Amy, nawiwiwi po ako…pano yan?” Frank and his team laughed! O sige, jingle blues daw muna…so Manang Amy assisted me to the CR…when I get to the CR, waaahhh! The CR was jam-packed with my ento members, also dressing up then.
Eh di ko na mapigilan, so sabi ko, “Sige, keber! Pare-pareho tayong girls dito…y not? Eh nawiwiwi nako, hehehe!”. Ayun, Manang Amy was firmly holding my super loooonnng train (eto po yung original train pa lang, wala pang detachable, waaahhh) and the petticoat (na super tigas na ang hirap hirap iangat!), while I was making wiwi…hihihihi!

So, pictorial ulet…then all of a sudden, I remembered the VEIL! Ohmigod! I forgot to wear it, so I hurriedly went to Mama Val and asked him to put on my Veil and the flower pins. So, there…back to pictorial. Then, Frank asked me to put on the garter na, sayang…I did not anticipate this, di tuloy ako nakapag-VEET! Tsk..tsk…tsk...Andami naming pictorials, sobraaaa...Oh did I mention that these little kids had no make up? Yep. Another lesson: Pakainin at patulugin nang maayos ang kids so they won't throw tantrums!!!my gosh!Hirap nila i-control. Ayaw nila magpa-make up! Na-imbyerna tuloy si mama Val...Then, at 2:30PM, everybody was leaving already for the church. Randy called me just to say na magchecheck out na sila and diretso na sya sa church. I gave my 4-meter detachable train to my mom…to bring it to the church na. That’s also the same time na Manang Amy needed to leave already. So, I was left with the photographers, videographers and make up artists. Frank and his team hurriedly ate their lunch at the hotel, siguro mga 10mins lang silang naglunch…wawa! Then, nagpaalam na si Mike & Val to meet me at the reception na lang since ok na yung hair & make up ko.

Then we went straight to a particular part of the hotel na makikita sya in full height….walang kasawaang pictorials! Even sa elevator, on our way down to the lobby, pictorial pa rin!When I reached the hotel’s lobby, I was looking for the bridal car na…Ohmigod! I forgot to call the driver of the bridal car before going down…so hinintay ko pa sa lobby ng hotel yung bridal car since sa may gilid ng hotel sya nakapark.

Then, convoy na lang si Frank…VizMark (Imagineer’s photog) and 1 other guy accompanied me inside the bridal car. Oh by the way, we did not shell out money for the bridal car, it was just one of the gifts of one of our female sponsors. The travel from the hotel to the church was really brief and fast! Special thanks to the Hagads! Galing! Galing! Clap! Clap! No traffic ever!

When we reached the church, the processional had not yet started. So, I stayed inside the car for a while.I already saw Janice, my head coordinator, the principal sponsors, the ento members including Wenda, my bridesmaid, our family & relatives and some other friends. I was satisfied then…thank God, WALANG LATE! Hahahaha…pero may absent na ninang. Ok lang…mas ok ako sa absent kesa sa late, at least yung absent, may abiso…ehehehe!

Then, the processional started. They closed the church doors na so I can make my way out of the bridal car. Janice asked me to stay just behind the church doors na in order for them to put on my 4-meter detachable train…waaahhh…ang bigat!Then, I heard “BEAUTIFUL IN MY EYES” by Joshua Kadison being sung already…it was time for me to walk….down the aisle.I can’t explain the feeling…I wanted to cry but I kept holding my tears back. I can see from afar na teary-eyed na si Randy…when I get to see that he’s crying…I would cry…that’s 101% sure.
Everybody was smiling…everybody was giving me a “thumbs up”…everybody was saying I was beautiful (awk!)…but I couldn’t seem to understand them at that time…I was thinking whether I’m ready for this or not…whether I’m sure about this…whether I’m definite that I want to spend the rest of my life with Randy….and as I reached the altar, I found the answer there. …Yes...I want to marry this man wearing a Chinese collared barong standing in front of me. I couldn’t imagine myself living my life all by myself or with another man…Yes.

The ceremony went smooth however, I felt that the mass was made in a rush..the homily was short, and we did not have our own microphone for the exchange of I do’s. Everyone pa naman was anticipating it to be tear-jerking.

After the ceremony, we held some pictorial inside the church with family, relatives & friends. After the pictorial, the coordinators detached my train na para di na mahirap maglakad. Then we headed to the door of the church na…all the guests surrounded us with a handful of flower petals, confetti and rice. Everybody was joking around…and at the signal of Frank, the guests threw the confetti, flower petals & rice! Ganda! Hahaha…napasobra yung gawa ng confetti! Daming confetti sobra! FYI: My mom is a teacher and she asked her students to make the confetti for us…hahaha…talking about being “masunurin kay ma’am”, hehehe.Outside the church, we threw the doves. Wala na ganong tao that time kasi everybody was hurrying to the reception, hahaha…gutom na ata sila. Pero ako, even though halos di ako nakapagbreakfast, and no lunch, di pa rin ako gutom…ewan ko ba…nasapian ata ako that day.

This time, Randy joined me in the bridal car…again, it only took us mga 5 to 10 mins to reach Baluarte de San Diego Gardens in Intramuros. Thanks again to the Hagads! Hahahaha!When we arrived at the reception, we were astounded! Ang ganda ng set up ng Baluarte! Thanks to Noel of Aramicos Catering and Mervin of Party Channel!!! Hooray! They really did a great job!Since wala pa ganong guests, we headed to the top of Baluarte for some pictorials. All I can say is…parusa ang pag-akyat sa ruins with a long train and a 3-inch bridal shoe.San ka pa! My fault…I forgot to bring flat shoes for the reception. Even though I had an assistant for my gown during the pictorial, it was really hard to climb the ruins! Waaahhh! Before the pictorial, Val made some retouch to my make up.Then, there goes the pictorial.It was still a bright sunny day when we finished the pictorial. Di pa ma-play yung sandamukal naming AVPs to entertain the guests kasi maliwanag pa, di makikita sa projector screen. So, we sit lang ni Randy on one side of the garden…that’s behind the Canyon. We ate the appetizers which were also served to the guests at that time. Nung medyo dumilim-dilim na, they were able to play the first half of the AVP prepared by Rejectkrew. Janice, arranged the ento members, principal sponsors and our family for the grand entrance. Our song for the grand entrance was You & Me by Lifehouse played by Classic Unlimited who also played at the church during the wedding ceremony. Our grand entrance was made with torch parade.Then, the program started…Leslie Vicente lead the opening prayer. Everything went well, the food was great! I am also thankful that our guests did not leave before the program ends. The souvenir stubs were very effective…we had souvenir leftovers pa! hihihihi! And we had so many AVPs – 2 AVPs and 1 onsite photo slideshow from Imagineer and 1 AVP from Rejectkrew (with 4 songs in it).I want to give credits to the following for a beautiful wedding that we had:
(1) St. Vincent De Paul Parish (Church)
(2) Baluarte de San Diego Gardens c/o Intramuros Administration (Reception)
(3) Aramicos Catering Services (Caterer)
(4) Party Channel (Event Stylist)
(5) Classic Unlimited (Wedding Coordination & Strings)
(6) Ysabelle Fashion “The Bridal Factory” (All gowns, barong with pants & accessories & bridal shoes)
(7) Bayview Park Hotel (Hotel preparation)
(8) Rejectkrew (Sounds & Lights)
(9) Pure Gold (Dubai Gold Souq) (Rings)
(10) St. Paul (Mass offerings)
(11) Val Villarin & Mike Umayam (Hair & Make Up)
(12) Imagineer Digital (Photo/Video Coverage)
(13) Eastpark (Invites & Souvenirs)
(14) Jasmine Guitang Wines (PS souvenirs)
(15) Italina – Glorietta & Marcella (Bridal accessories)
(16) Kenneth Cole – Burjuman (Groom’s Shoes)
(17) San Miguel Beer (Refreshments)
(18) IKEA (Candleholders)
(19) Tabora, Divisoria (Other paraphernalia)

Most of all, I wanna thank my ever supportive and helpful sisses @ WEDDINGSATWORK!!! You truly are the BEST! Thanks to mama benz and papa john...hehehe. Ngayon, sa N@wies naman ako makikigulo... =)

I intended to post the "behind-the-scene" photos here for you to imagine what was it like. You can view some of the selected & unedited good shots thru my webshots account (blocked kasi ang flickr sa UAE...so webshots na lang para makita ng lahat). Just click on this link: http://community.webshots.com/user/leirandy

For the AVPs, diko pa sya ma-upload eh...still trying to figure out how since ibang software yun...i'll keep you updated.

For the soon to be brides, just enjoy your preps! Mamimiss nyo yan pag tapos na. Truly being a bride was a great experience and something that you'll remember for the rest of your life. Minsan lang tayo magiging senyorita sa buhay natin at "star of the night" na walang aapela kahit sino! Natural, kasal natin yun eh! hehehe...

Day 1: Dubai Tennis Men’s Open

Yey! I was there! A friend of mine by the name of Flor had 2 tickets for the Tennis Open. Sadly, she’s single and she had no idea who’s to bring with her to watch the game. The ticket was given by her boss and “required” (yes, it was a must!) her to watch the game since her boss is leaving for Kuala Lumpur.

Until one day, (which was last week) we IMed each other…until it came to a point that I agreed to go with her to watch the game. I was so excited to know that I will be having an opportunity to watch a tennis game (…the real tennis game!) and probably hold also a shoot! I haven’t been to shooting a sports scene…I don’t think I have the talent to capture any bolting objects…reason? Because my cam isn’t as high tech as the other photographers‘. But hey, that principle is definitely in contradiction with my blog description. Yes, I believe in my blog description…but sometimes I can’t help but become painfully desirous of other’s advantages of having a good cam set.

Oh not only that…on that day, I felt I was the most stupid person in the whole wide universe! …because I forgot to bring my camera…and I also forgot to recharge my batt! Wtf! So, after office, I had to drop by our house to get my cam and just bought a disposable battery…”goodluck how long this would last!”

I was all set for capturing moments for the game…but hey! We were told that there’s a rule of “No Flash Photography”…wtf ! (for the 2nd time!). Alright…I have a very low shutter speed by default, and now I have to dwell on the fact that I can’t use my flash which means that my photos might be prone to camera shakes! Yeah, right…my guess was right…I couldn’t seem to capture any single moving ball…my god! What a poor skill! I was sooo disappointed.

I was a bit happy though…Roger Federer won! (oh by the way, he’s sooo gorgeous…shhhh…Is Randy here?). As we went outside the stadium and head for dinner, we became curious why bunch of people seemed to be waiting for someone near the toilet. And yes, ohmigod, they were waiting for Federer to come out from his shower room! So I immediately grabbed my poor cam from its carry case…only to find out…I RAN OUT OF BATTERY! Wtf (for the 3rd time)! So I just patiently stayed there and anticipate the coming of Federer. I suddenly remembered that my friend brought her cam, so I grabbed it. I told her to show off our ticket and when opportunity permits, we would ask him to sign our tickets. So, we’re ready!

Few minutes later, Federer came out! And people began screaming and pushing each other (including us by the way!)…since I was an avid fan of Ginebra way back then, I told myself, I can do this…so I grabbed my friend and ran after Federer…I was shouting, “Flor, flor, papirmahan mo yung ticket, ako magshu-shoot!”…we were like crazy, really! But it was all worth it! We made it! Though we did not have the great shots…at least I was able to feel satisfied a bit…we were laughing so hard!
So here are some of the sample pictures that I took (I told you, these are not so amusing...hay):



Multi-tasking? Photo by Flor


The only thing that made me satisfied!

Some of my friends (even my hubby) say, I don’t need another camera…but I just feel like buying another one…would that also mean changing my blog description? I’m afraid not…Good compositions can still be created using any point-and-shoot camera, but one thing you can’t have with these cameras are: “ease, comfort and … winning shots!”. There are many good pictures…but only few make headway…sigh…sigh…sigh

Reminiscing the old days

Since I had nothing to do yesterday (only in the afternoon...I just finished a “forever-rush” task!)…I decided to open old files from my external hard drive. I opened the folder, “Videos” because of that cute little icon that Randy had configured. The filenames were not familiar to me…so I decided to open a single file…Nah! It was the 2004 cheering competition that I have already watched for x number of times. Then I opened a folder with obscure title...wow, inside the folder were 2 files entitled “Bangkok_8-05(1)” and “Bangkok_8-05(2)”. Yehey! These must be the video files that Dexter (one of my beloved batchmates in PwC) took while we were in Bangkok,Thailand in the year 2005. And my guess was right, I saw Dexter’s face when I looked at the Details tab of the Windows Explorer (yep, yep…”Windows”…I’m in the office, remember?). So I opened the 1st video. I patiently watched the video, fast forwarding sometimes (hehehe…of course I can also see in the video the people I didn’t like! Ha!). Then, the video reached the scene where Donnabelle, Mel, Wey, Dex and me are gathered together in a room…that was the room assigned to me and Donnabelle. I was laughing very hard while I was watching the video. My office seatmate would look at me to ask why. After watching the video, I suddenly miss my batchmates who I left in the Philippines. There are thoughts in my mind which will forever remind me of them:
(1) Wey has this tendency to put on “Post it notes” when she runs out of undergarment.
(2) I am afraid of brushing my teeth alone inside a hotel’s CR…and my greatest companion? Donnabelle!
(3) Donnabelle is the best roommate ever! =)
(4) Dexter is the most organized person I’ve known.
(5) Mel can stay all alone inside a spooky room…
(6) When Donnabelle, Wey, Mel & me gather together…for sure, we would talk of other person’s attitude and well-being…bad! That’s why we’re called – MEAN GIRLS!
(7) Dexter can endure our unstoppable mouth without protest or complaint…hahaha!
(8) If you want to have meaningful but funny shots, Mel would be the best subject!
The video lasted for more than 1 hour. Sad to say, I didn’t finish the video. When I went home last night, I told myself:
“I REALLY MISS MY BATCHMATES!
Hope they’re here with me…”


Note: My 4 other batchmates (Ivy, Les, Coco, & Jessamyn) were not in the video because they went outside the hotel that time…but for sure, they are still remembered. *wink*

My trial make up with Val Villarin

Well, I just wanna share the photos from my trial make up with Val Villarin. I really love Val...ang taray ng lola! hehehe...

Take note, that this trial make up was done few days before the wedding...so, no backing out na to...hahaha! Joke lang, Val...

Here are the pics!


right after the tmu


with the make up artist, Val Villarin!


ang linis gumawa ni val, oh!


the bride & groom


...after 8 hours! fresh pa rin...hehehe!


my curly hair! hehehe....

Val did not shave my eyebrows...papahabain na lang daw muna para come wedding day, pwede nang ahitin...hehehe! Right after the tmu, we went to SM Sta. Rosa (yep, we traveled pa from Caloocan to Laguna ng lagay na yan ha) to get my contact lens. Everybody in the mall was staring at my hair & face...ang haba ng hair ko! Then the optometrist assigned to me couldn't help but asked me: "May program ba sa mall na kasama ka?" hehehe...ang haba talaga ng hair ko that day, hahaha!

My 2006 life...are you in or out?

Well, as promised, I will enumerate some important things that happened to my life in the year 2006. 2006 had brought so many changes in my life...there were many transitions happened. And also, I somehow felt the importance of some things and people. Let us cast each and everyone's mind back to year 2006:

JANUARY '06:
(1) January 13 - my last day in PwC. The Group C managers treated me out for lunch @ California Pizza Kitchen. I was really touched with this gesture...to make an extra effort to go out with me in spite of their busy schedule..take note, busy season po nuon...eheheh!). I was a bit sad also on this day...wala ang batchmates and staff ko sa office...si ellen caijo lang ang naabutan ko sa area...while finalizing our client's FS.
(2) January 17 - my flight going to DXB. Mixed emotions...because I was leaving my family in the Phils and at the same time, I was so excited to see Randy again after 3 months.
(3) January 21 - the day I joined Deloitte Touche - Dubai. I was not happy.
(4) January 28 - the day I resigned from Deloitte. I was soooo happy...hahaha!

FEBRUARY '06:
(1) February 8 - the day I joined Arbour International.
(2) February 14 - my 1st valentine in DXB with Randy...we just ate @ chilli's - Burjuman. I just came from a conference call which ended @ 11pm.
(3) February 23 - the day I got my residence visa...after so many discussions with my visit visa sponsor...
(4) We went and hang around Dubai Marina -- one of our friends has a unit there! sosyal!

MARCH '06:
(1) I received my 1st ever 1-month salary in Dirhams! my first purchase/s ?? - oakley halfwire, ipod nano for bro, N6600 for my padir...all in one day...hehehe, di naman excited!
(2) I went to Ski Dubai and Al Ain, UAE!
(3) Transferred to a new home...home nga ba? or hell?
(4) Started thinking about the wedding...civil or church?
(5) Joined the w@w yahoogroup...not a regret!

APRIL '06:
(1) I applied for Australian visa and got accepted.
(2) My first hair rebonding, hhahaha!
(3) Finally settled for a church wedding! whew!

MAY '06:
(1) May 4 - I went to Melbourne for the CSL Project with Steve Lancsak of Arbour - Chicago.
(2) May 12 - my first time to celebrate bday all by myself....not a single family member...oh I almost forgot, Steve just treated me out for dinner...
(3) May 28 - my flight going back to DXB...i was so happy!!!

JUNE '06:
(1) We went to Wild Wadi!!! yey!
(2) Started booking the wedding suppliers...my 1st supplier booked? Mr. Kelvin Montalbo of Imagineer Digital
(3) Booked also the church, reception & caterer
(4) Started studying digital photography...that's why I bought my 1st SLR camera on this month
(5) I got my Serbia and Montenegro visa ... and no, I did not go there...hehehe!

JULY '06:
(1) Wedding preps!
(2) Things are getting worse in our house!

AUGUST '06:
(1) Wedding preps!
(2) Things are getting worst in our house!

SEPTEMBER '06:
(1) Most peaceful month in our house! hahahah!
(2) Developed good friendships with other housemates...eh nagkakasundo ba naman sa hinanakit eh!
(3) Bought my 1st ever HP photo printer
(4) Wedding preps!

OCTOBER '06:
(1) Wow! the busiest month!
(2) Had our 1st prenuptial shoot @ Dubai Creek Park
(3) Our 8th year anniversary...Randy finally gave me an engagement ring...hmph...late! We went to Dhow Cruise as his surprise for me
(4) I bought my macbook! yey!
(5) Finally....we transferred to a new house --- the happiest move in October! hhahahaha!
(6) Had our 2nd prenuptial shoot @ Burj Al Arab open beach
(7) Wedding preps!
(8) I met the UAE pexers!
(9) I met the DXB - w@wies!

NOVEMBER '06:
(1) Had our 3rd and final prenuptial shoot @ Madinat Jumeirah
(2) Bought my iPod Video @ Gitex
(3) Bought my PSP which I eventually sold to Randy, hahhahaah!
(4) Wedding preps

DECEMBER '06:
(1) We went to Desert Safari 2006 - Pasko sa Disyerto!
(2) We went home to Philippines! Yey!
(3) Wedding preps!

So that's it! Pardon me if I failed to remember some of the dates.

2006 was really a memorable year for me...the only year where I can vividly remember the various happenings in my life...no matter how small it is...I wonder if 2007 will beat that...

I can now access FLICKR!!!

I've been out of UAE for more than 50 days. I got no idea on what was happening here...until one day after my arrival, while resting since I just came from a 20-hour flight MNL-HK-DXB, I tried to log in to http://www.flickr.com. And guess what?!? BLOCKED AGAIN BY ETISALAT! wtf!

Few months ago, Etisalat (network service provider in UAE) revived the Flickr.com from being blocked for a number of months (they are saying that the site is against the moral, religious and political values of UAE). Because it was finally been revived, I decided to acquire a pro account from Flickr.com which gave me privilege to unlimited uploads plus other features. I enjoyed Flickr for 2 months just before I left for Philippines. (I was not able to use Flickr while I was in the Phils since I was busy as a bee doing all the preps!)

So, since I arrived here in Dubai, I'm really annoyed with this blocking of sites by Etisalat...reasons? Because I cannot upload my wedding pics and my practice shots in Bohol & Cebu...which many people are waiting for (as if!). Also, I can't release my Wedding Suppliers' Rating without the pictures...pictures will speak for the truth!

But guess what?!? A friend of mine which I met from a forum suggested downloadable programs which will enable me to access the blocked sites. Ok fine, I was able to download one (out of 3...damn! the download sites for some of the programs are even blocked! wtf!). But how can I go around this thing without any knowledge about network configuration?! Dang!

But again, I have proven the saying, "Patience is a virtue."...is true! ahahhaha! After so many attempts to load and reload and run and save and enable and all the things that you could imagine you could do with program files,...haha...SUCCESS! I was able to connect using a proxy server! Yahoooo! One of the happiest moments of my life...not only because I can now access my flickr and make use of what I paid for, but also because I am now a certified network specialist...joke! hahaha! But Im really happy that I was able to make my way around all the jargons...like proxy, binary packages, ports, 192.168..ek..ek... ewwww!!! Stop!

If you wanna know about this...just drop a note, kokei?

Back to reality

Yeah...yeah...I know I owe each one a lot...been out for quite a few days...(few ba yon?!?). Well, I have listed down the things I promise to blog about for the upcoming days (wish ko lang, heeheh!):
(1) My 2006 life...are you in or out?
(2) January 20, 2007...when I walked down the aisle
(3) Randy & Lei - Wedding Suppliers' Rating (im still having 2nd thoughts if I would publish this...)
(4) Honeymoon kwento
(5) Unveiling the personality of *IPod Nano* (with reference to my friendster blog entries)

Now, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for these...

Latest news?
(1) Im officially Mrs. Leilani Villanera - Baytiong (whoa! di pako nakapagpa change ng name, so di pa pala official)
(2) Im back in DXB...arrived last Feb 3, 4AM from a delayed flight. Turning back time, I went to Pinas last Dec 19 as my annual vacation.
(3) Went to Bohol (Bohol Beach Club) & Cebu (honeymoon, yikiteee!)
(4) Finally, I changed my phone...this was due since October 2006 (since my SE W800i celebrated its 1st year on that month)...welcome to Palm powered Treo 650..no violent reactions, please!
(5) I plan to buy my rebel (Canon 400D) in the next month or two. And no, Im not selling my Sony DSC-H2...hehehe!

That's all for now...

DXB w@wies: now with our own E-group!

Yey! Ms. Benz & Mr. John Rana of www.weddingsatwork.com created our own e-group since we are now growing in number...and not only that...we're becoming active!!!

I was also surprised to see a news blog entry in the weddings@work website discussing about the launching of our E-group...follow the link below:

http://www.weddingsatwork.com/news_archive_200612.shtml

Petty things...

Yes..I know it's just a petty thing...but mind you...I'm not your stalker or anything! I would not harm you or anything like that...and it wouldn't harm you either if you would tell which floor you're in or where you are right now. And you would probably ask, "Why do you need to know?"...yeah, you're right...it's my fault to treat you as my friend, that's why.

And the main reason why I'm writing this? -- I hate people who are making a good spin of situations... you don't need to lie... I absolutely don't care if you're on a particular *space* already...just don't LIE to me, okay?

Hindi ako g*go...yun lang... ayoko lang ng niloloko ako...as I always say, *wa pakels*!

DXB w@wies' 2nd EB

Last November 28 (Wednesday), we were able to hold the 2nd EB of the Dubai-based w@wies. You might be asking for the meaning of "w@wies"!?! Well, I consider it as a *sisterhood*... of members of the yahoogroup for Weddings@Work. This group is composed of bride-to-be's (b2b) and a few husband-to-be's (h2b) who are very hands-on for their wedding preparations.

Actually, this is already the 2nd EB...the 1st one was held sometime in October. Attendees were: Me & Randy, Emtee & Rico, Shelai, Grace, Kelvin & Ann (of Imagineer Digital). 1st EB was held in Black Canyon Resto near Wonderland (yep...where Pokwang & Claudine Barretto was working for the movie, DUBAI). Here's a sample picture of the 1st EB: (Sorry for the size, I was not able to retain the original size...



Since we enjoyed each other's company during the 1st EB, we decided to hold the 2nd EB...also to meet other w@wies who didn't make it in the 1st EB. And also, to consume my remaining "Buy one, Take one" stubs in Pizza Express (sayang kasi, hehehe..next time daw Dunkin Donuts naman, meron din akong stubs...hahahah!)

We really had fun making chismisans of anything under the sun, hahaha...therefore, I decided to itemize the things I learned that night...hehehe:

(1) Di pala laging late si Emtee, kase this time, siya pinakauna...pero teka, late pa rin sya!!!...9:++ na sya dumating, 9PM ang usapan, hahaha...
(2) Shelai was busy with work...di tuloy sya nakaattend...same with the other w@wies like Grace, Gladys & Mary Grace
(3) Yna & Nelson are currently staying in Deira, while Gayle is from Al Ghusais (layo, sis, sobra!) and Peejay is from Satwa. Emtee from Hor Al Anz and Rico from Fish Roundabout...
(4) Gum paste pala ang tawag dun sa parang caketopper ni Emily Uy...thanks, Gayle! Parang gusto ko talaga ng cake nya.
(5) I learned na kelangan ko nang gawin ang misalette ko kasi si Emtee, meron na...atatibat talaga...eh July ka pa kaya! haler! hehehe...
(6) *Daig ng maagap ang masipag...* Yna-Nelson is the most OC couple among the group...eh 2008 pa pala sila...buti pa sila dami pang time!
(7) Yna is a co-PLMayer...pati pala si Chelle of Ernest...uyyy, pare pareho tayong mga iska! hehehe...
(8) Rico is also a PSP geek...ehehehe...
(9) Meron din palang *penholder* sa entourage...kung gugustuhin mo, hehehe...ek ek lang..hehehe...
(10) Marami na pala kaming guests!...ayayay..pano ba liitan ang list?!?
(11) Gayle and Peejay are both from San Pedro, Laguna...and I'm from Binan, Laguna!!!
(12) Gayle's bridesmaid (or MOH?) is also from PLM...magna cum laude din, ka-batch ko rin...o divah, daming similarities!
(13) 2-hours ang travel time from Jumeirah 1 to Bur Dubai pag Tuesday...kainis!
(14) Pwedeng maging kamukha ng pandesal ang puto seko
(15) Tuwing November, nagkakasakit si behbe, este si Rico pala... =) because of the weather change
(16) Eto pinakamatindi...."Pag bago ang waiter, wag nyong tatarantahin...lalo syang matataranta..." anyenye!

For sure, marami pakong nakalimutan i-mention. But it was really a blast! But then, let me introduce to you my co-w@wies present in the 2nd EB:

Emtee & Rico - July 2007

Nelson & Yna - December 2008

Peejay & Gayle - April 2007

(Sorry, I need to practice more on *portrait shots*...)

And here's our group picture (wala si Randy ko kasi sya kumuha ng pic...)

Now, I'm looking forward for the 3rd EB... sana bago kami umuwi ng Pinas...hehehe!

One fine photo whoring session!

Last Saturday, as I was waiting for our photographer (for our Prenup: Part 3) outside our house, I decided to hold up my camera and shoot whatever my lenses would reach. Well, I've been a practicing or should I say, still on *learning stages* of Photography. And sadly, my equipment right now is not capable of producing panoramic & picturesque of every single detail (kahit na it's not a point-and-shoot type, still it lacks somehow of various features that I'm really looking for). In short, all the features are purely M-A-N-U-A-L. What I usually do is to just edit the shots using either Fireworks (which is no damn good for me, kasi naghahang palage!) or Photoshop.

However, I already got tired of editing photos...I want shots that are dramatic, impressive & spectacular as it is...no edits...no modifications...none whatever! *Wut to do, yani?!?* No more *moolah* to shell out for an upgrade...so I had no choice but to practice manual focus...with my Sony Cybershot DSC-H2...sniff!sniff!sniff! (thanks for my initiative to read...read...and read!) Well, these are the outputs...and purely, these are unedited...hooray! (Been practicing DOF, FL & aperture for weeks...now I'm a *bit* satisfied -- only a bit, okay? hehehe....). Tell me watchathink?! (The descriptions are below the corresponding pictures...)

My first attempt...using f/2.8 (my largest aperture)

Now, I tried to adjust it to f/3.5 (next largest aperture), still with no flash...

I was captured by this shot! Noticed the branch in front? It's a little blurred, right? And the rear detail...? It's blurred also, right? My focus point is the plant in the middle! PERFECT!

Just another PERFECT shot! a shallow DOF! hehehe...sorrrryyyy for my subjects...total nonsense...but these are just practice outputs...oks lang...easy easy muna...

Yep...they're bad...after smoking, they tend to throw the butts here...baaaaddddd!

Then, we headed towards Jumeirah Beach Park and Madinat Jumeirah to do our final prenup. In between takes, I was able to shoot few sceneries nang patakas, hahaha...pasaway talaga kay direk, ehehehe....Here are the samples:

Uyy, this was my shot while running...no camera shakes..pwede na rin ang shutter speed! oha!

sumasideline lang ng shot while having prenup...

So that's it...tell me watchathink!!!