Koje-do

Koje is the name of the Korean island we are currently located. Actually, its Korean character name can be read either Geoje or Koje. The first character of its name can be read either "k" or "g" since Koreans basically pronounce it similarly. After more than 6 months living here in Korea, I have learned the Korean alphabet which I think is much easier than the Japanese alphabet. Japanese alphabet is composed of 2 styles - the Hiragana for Japanese words and Katakana for foreign words (not to mention, they also have to study the chinese characters or Kanji) while here in Korea, they have only 1 style which is Hangul. I am impressed by the way they have created the written alphabet which I can say is basically a phonetic alphabet. I have been with a Japanese company for the past nine years and I have been to Japan more than 5 times but I still haven't mastered their alphabet(s). But here in Korea, in just a matter of months, I can dare say, I have definitely learned to read their writing system and I am even not that gifted in the art of languages. Ofcourse, I am still in the very basic stage of their spoken language which is more complicated. Well, atleast I know how to read. My wife is currently studying the Korean language with the sponsorship of the Koje government. Hopefully, she will get to learn more than I have since I believe girls are more adept in the languages. I won't dwell much on the Korean language since we are still in Grade 1. I have passed grade 1 but my wife is still studying and hopefully go on to study the Korean language until Grade 3 (which is more advanced) for Foreigners.

This post will be about the recent places my family visited here in our 2nd hometown - Koje Island. When we first arrived here, we thought it is a laid-back mountainous island where we can expect to have a quiet and serene life. Yet, we learned this island has many beautiful spots quite famous in Korea. In fact, my officemates coming from bigger cities said that Koje is the vacation island famous for beautiful beaches and other historical places. Indeed, the beaches are beautiful and there are definitely some historical places one must visit. One of the more famous sites is the Korean POW Camp which has been converted into an impressive tourist attraction. I haven't been there but my wife and daughter had the chance to visit it together with our Korean friend - Hee Jeung. Based from the pictures, I would definitely go there together with them specially now that spring season has started. It would probably be a spritually enlightening feeling setting foot on such a historical place reminding us of the perils of war. I surely hope we won't get to experience war in our lifetime. Another place which my wife and daughter visited is the the Botanical Garden. A place where you get to see some nice plantation surrounded by sculptures made of stones and trees. A place where man-made creations intwine beautifully with nature. We hope to visit more of Koje's historical and beautiful sites and take advantage of this opportunity of living in Korea.

Lady Presidents of my Country

I just would like to share the very nice article of Conrado de Quiros of the Philippine Daily Inquirer about Cory & Gloria. The article aptly titled Study in Contrast is very insightful on the strikingly different aspects of these two leaders of my country - the Philippines. Cory, the first Lady President put in power by the first People Power of Asia while Gloria, the current Lady President still in power despite the many horrible issues surrounding the legitimacy of her presidency. Eversince I read the post in my Manoy Jigz blog about Conrado de Quiros article proclaiming him the Filipino of the Year 2007 (better read his post and learn more), I had been drawn to read the intriguing articles of Conrado de Quiros which I find helpful in giving me insights into the current situation of the Philippines. I pray that this political and moral storm in the Philippine government will end soon and my country will contrinue to try to achieve its own dreams of becoming a great country with its own real identity.

Su-tu-kil Saturday

One of our friends, Jayson is leaving for Singapore as he was offerred with a better oppurtunity. Actually, Singapore is the hot place for Engineers working in the Shipbuilding industry like us. And its probably a place beeping on our career radars for years to come as the shipbuilding industry continue to thrive with cargo ships and oil & gas offshore structures foreseen to be in demand in the next couple of decades. Most of my friends from my previous company are stationed there. However, I like my situation here in Korea right now as I look forward to a better opportunity in the next couple of years.

Anyways, after having hosted the small salo-salo birthday celebration of Danielle just a week ago, we decided to bring the private Farewell Party to our house. Jayson's Place does not have a living room since he didn't brought his family over here in Korea. So, he requested to have the venue in our place.

Being a Black Saturday, we decided to have a seafood-theme dinner with a menu we fondly call as Su-tu-kil (Sugba-Tula-Kinilaw). Sugba means grill as Jayson bought big squids we stuffed with spices prepared for the grill. Tula means soup for which shells was the main ingredient. Lastly, Kinilaw or fresh fish served raw together with spices and vinegar. A seafood feast we have all been craving since we arrived here in Korea. It had the familiar atmosphere of a homey family dinner as the party ended just after midnight for the Easter Sunday!

Love Chocolate Hills

I love Hershey's Chocolates as these remind me of my beloved hometown Bohol's Chocolate Hills! If you haven't been there, you missed one of the world's wonders of nature! Yes, it's true, it's nominated to be among the New 7 Wonders of the World. I have voted for it for I dare say, its one of the breath-taking places I have ever been to. Not that I have been to a lot of places in the world but I don't know if there ever will be a feeling of awe over the breath-taking beauty (I mean it literally too.. as you have to climb atop one of the hills to experience it) of a thousand cone-shaped hills located in one place! It's an awesome feeling... it makes me proud to be a Bol-anon! So, if you ever have the chance to visit Bohol, experience and explore Chocolate Hills!

My brother - Manoy Jigz started a campaign in his blog in having this wonderful site of our native Bohol be voted among the New 7 Wonders of the World. Do visit his blog and read more about Chocolate Hills and Bohol! I hope you enjoy reading his blog as much as I and my family does.

D' Day

My Korean Mentor once told me that "time travels directly proportional to our age". Thus, as we grow older, time travels a little bit faster. And I do agree with it because once I was still young, I was eagerly awaiting the day I will be able to work on my own. At that time, I contemplated that time is very slow. Yet, these days, time seems to fly by in a second. And so, the day has come again for me to celebrate one of the best things that ever happened to me - the birth of my daughter Danielle. It seems just months ago that I held her in my arms and placed her on her hanging crib as she sleeps. Now, when I come home from work, she runs around our house and doesn't want to sleep even though her eyes beg to differ. I guess time for her runs 3 miles per second now that she is 3 years old.

Danielle has the same birthday as my eldest brother - Kuya Noem on March 14. We even contemplated on naming her Noemi but I decided to name her Danielle from the Holy Bible prophet Daniel. The prophet Daniel in the Bible had the gift of understanding visions and dreams. Eversince I became a father, I have somehow cleared my mind of unnecessary things in life and just focused on becoming a good provider for my family. Somehow, she is the clarity to my dreams and living a life of direction. She completed my family and gave me a direction. I continue to hope and pray that the Lord will continue to bless me and my family as I work towards the fulfillment of my dreams. I added Marie to her name hoping she will get my Mom's virtues.

I really didn't want to have a birthday party due to some concerns within our families in the Philippines. I would feel guilty celebrating a party with the situations back home. Yet, I don't want to miss the chance to share the happiness I feel having a complete family here in Korea. As one saying goes, "Happiness is only real when shared." Thus, we decided to hold a small salo-salo with my close friends at work and some friends of Danielle who are actually Korean-Filipino kids with Filipina moms. As we tried to minimize our budget, we were still able to squeeze in a simple Filipino birthday party with Filipino foods - Bam-i, Pork Humba, Breaded Chicken, Crispy Pata, Bulalo, and Macaroni Salad. Ofcourse, we had a Birthday Cake, actually two cakes as one of my friends brought one to the party. With our Magic Sing and some beers and soju (Korean traditional rice wine), we had a relatively enjoyable evening with my friends. As gift for Danielle, we bought her a children's piano/keyboard from the internet which is the best way to buy things here since its cheaper and its delivered right at your doorstep. Danielle also received some nice gifts such as stuffed toys, a Barbie doll, a toy stroller (which is one of her favorite these days) for her stuffed toys and dolls, coloring pens, and some nice dresses. The party ended at midnight as my friends enjoyed singing on our magic sing and talking with each other beyond work concerns. I guess it was all worth it and sharing time with friends and family is one of the best things money can't buy.

March Birthday Watch

March is a special month for my family as we celebrate 5 birthdays on this month. Check out these dates:

• March 5 - Manong James' birthday
• March 7 - Mano Jojo's birthday
• March 9 - Simon's birthday (son of Manong James)
• March 14 - Kuya Noem and Danielle's birthday

Speaking of birthdays... my family also have two other special twin birthdays (not counting mine and my twins birthday):

• February 18 - Dad & Cean (son of Manoy Jigz) birthday
• April 10 - Mom & John Paul (son of Manoy Jigz) birthday

119

Last Monday, we bought a potty seat for Danielle as she now likes to use the toilet to "u-u". Since my wife went to a clinic with our neighbor, she finally bought one after weeks of contemplating. And right away after arriving at the apartment, Danielle requested to use the potty seat to "ish-ish".

That night I arrived late from overtime work and Danielle was in the living room watching Hi5 (she has been very fond of this show lately) and dancing as she greeted me with a smile. I never suspected what had transpired that night as my lovely wife told me a funny but quite concerning story.

While my wife was washing some dishes after their dinner, Danielle called her and shouted "Mommy, help! I cannot get my hat.". She saw the potty seat was in Danielle's head as she imagined it to be a funny hat to wear like the ones Barney does. My wife was not alarmed at first as she tought the potty seat was soft enought to easily take out. However, after some careful pulling, the seat won't budge an inch. So, she called me up at the office but didn't receive an answer (I must have already been on the company bus by this time). She decided to ask help from our friendly neighbors Min & Jeung and unabashedly knocked at their door. Min also tried to cautiously pull it out but to no avail.

Thus, they decided to call 119 - Emergency Rescue system! Within minutes after the call, the rescuers arrived to check what needs to be done. My wife wisely turned on the TV and Danielle watched her current favorite show "Hi5" as the men gingerly cut the new potty seat. In just a few minutes, Danielle escaped without a scratch from her funny hat. We are now among the grateful benefactors of 119 (or 911 in the US). We might have to buy a new potty seat but we are quite sure Danielle won't be using it other than just her potty seat.