Remembering Dad and Getting Back On Track

Hi.  I've been MIA lately and I would like to apologize for that.  I've been crazy busy with work and other stuff. There are still a lot of things left to do, but I decided to take a break and do some blogging.

Dad just passed away recently, as you all know.  All of us in the family are still grieving, but the manner of grieving is different for each of us. I do miss him a lot. I miss his voice, his laughter, his presence. However, I don't wear a long face maybe because I have peace.  Sure, I feel sad sometimes, but I know that Dad is in Heaven now.

Moving on, we visited Dad again last Sunday, May 20th.  Here are some photos.

My nephews

 Michael and Mom at Little Asia 

Mel and Andre

Mom playing Tap Tap Revenge on iPad. Cool, huh?

The following day, May 21st, my officemates and I went to Anvaya Cove for a much needed break from work.  

Red Spruce

 Red Willow Unit

It was super fun!!!  I even got myself a henna tattoo.

The food served were mostly Filipino dishes.  I loved it!

I haven't been out of town in a while, so the trip to Anvaya definitely recharged my batteries! Going back to nature is a welcome respite from life in the concrete jungle.

I still have so much more to tell you, but I guess I'll save it for my next post. Perhaps, I'll talk about the jungle and its inhabitants next time. For now, I thank the Lord for the grace and love He showered on my family; that enabled us to still enjoy life even without Dad.

Paradise on Earth

I’m back in China and I have time to blog again. Back home, I was swamped with backlog at work and my schedule was just chaotic. I had a few days off from work though when I went to Boracay for a short vacay. Stayed at Shangri-la’s Boracay Resort & Spa. And true to it’s name, I did go to a faraway haven of idyllic beauty and tranquility. Truly a paradise on Earth. God has been so good to me for all the blessings I’ve been receiving and favors I’ve been getting even from people I don’t really know. God rocks! =)

 Doesn’t this look like paradise on Earth? 
This was the view from my room. Click photo to enlarge.

Looking at that photo and reminiscing my experiences there, I can’t help but be in awe of God’s love for me in spite of all the painful experiences I’ve gone through in life. I know in my heart and in my spirit that God hasn’t forgotten me yet. He is mindful of me.

 Anton, me, Io & May

My friends and I on board Shangri-la speed boat that brought us to the island.

Enjoying the sun with my shopping buddy, Anton.

 Enjoying the water with friends

  Fun!!!

These things were results of my hard work and God’s favor last 2010. I wouldn’t have achieved all these without God’s help. He was not just my provider. He’s also my cheerleader. I couldn’t thank the Lord enough for everything He’s done.

  30th Macaulay Club Marketing Congress

 30th Macaulay Club Awards Ceremony at One Esplanade.

I believe that this is just the beginning of all the beautiful things that will be happening in this season of my life. There's so much more to come, and I'm praising God in advance for them.


Thank you, God, for making me happy. =)

Shopping in GZ

Today is Dad's last day of infusion.  Dad is feeling better today, unlike yesterday when he felt woozy the whole day.  Anyway, Sherlyn, Cristina and I went shopping at Shangxiajiu (上下九), a commercial pedestrian street in Liwan District, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. I bought a couple of maxi dresses and tops and  a couple of belts for my sister.  You can buy cheap clothes there; you just have to choose and dig in to find the nice ones.

Sherlyn and me

We also had Milk Tea from Tea Da Ye. Can't leave China without having Milk Tea.  =)

With Calvin, the owner

We also went to this huge place called Jade Plaza where they sell all kinds of jade stones. We just looked around, we didn't buy anything from here though... too expensive.  Haha!

Jade Plaza

Oh, and we went to another Chinese temple called Hualin Temple (华林寺), also at Shangxiajiu.

Here's something funny we saw on our way to Shangxiajiu. 

Haha!  Umbrella inside an air conditioned bus

Anyway, back at Fuda, our new friends from Oman left to go back to their country. Oman is a country on the eastern border of Saudi Arabia.

Yuseff (white shirt), Kalil (red shirt) and Faris (little boy)

Early this morning, my head accidentally hit the railing of my bunk bed. I now have a small bump on my right brow. I can't see a bruise, but it still hurts a bit.

Today was a pretty exciting day.  Thank you, Lord!

Ready to Go

How time flies.  Dad  and I are leaving for China again tomorrow.  I'm done packing this afternoon and I'm actually ready to go.  I'm emotionally more prepared now than I was the first time.  Anyway,  since I've got nothing else to do, I've decided to watch (again) the Twilight Saga, all three in the series.  

By the way, my rashes are gone.  Thank God!  But it left dry patches on my skin.  Well, I can live with that.  I just need a heavy duty lotion for dry skin and the good news is, I already have one and I'm  bringing it with me to China.

I'll post again when we get there.  Please remember us in your prayers.

Day 25: Chet's here!

Chet flew in from Singapore this morning. He'll be with us 'til Sunday.  We had lunch at the hospital with Dad.

In the lobby with Dad while waiting for a cab

My brother, Chet, and Dad

Me and Dad

Dad needed some fresh air, so we took Dad out for dinner. We went to Lihua Congee House located at 903 Renmin Beilu, Yuexiu District (inside Liuhua Park), Guangzhou.

Lihua Congee House

Inside the restaurant

The place served fresh fish. They kept the fish in a small fishpond. Customers choose the fish they'd like to have for dinner and the resto's waiters will take it out of the fishpond and cook it for them.

The fishpond

We ordered vegies with tofu and mushrooms, beef with tofu and congee. The congee was really good! We even took some out for dad's breakfast tomorrow.

Vegies with tofu and mushrooms

Beef with tofu (I know... the photo's not too appealing)

Anyway, I bought speakers for my laptop so Dad can watch movies tomorrow. He wanted to watch "Seven Hills of Rome" featuring Mario Lanza, his favorite actor. I, on the other hand, would love to listen to my music with something other than my earphones.  Remember what happened last Sunday? 

Tomorrow, Dad will have some blood tests to prepare for his chemo on Friday.

Our bill today: ¥936.52 ($144.52)
Total bill as of today: ¥120,819.21 ($18,535.95)

Lost in Guangzhou 2

Yesterday was Dad's last day of CIC infusion.  Thank God!  Dad said his muscles felt weaker now than before, but according to another cancer patient, that's normal because that's one of the side effects of chemotherapy.  Dad's right eye, though, was back to its normal size.  It used to be smaller; droopy to be exact.  I read from an article that having droopy eyes is one of the symptoms of lung cancer.

Anyway, Loren and I had another adventure yesterday.  We went to Nanyang Tumour Hospital at Baiyun District to inquire about their services and compare them with that of Fuda.  We took the subway from Kecun to Baiyun Dadao Bei.  After we got off the subway and while waiting for a cab, we looked around and were astonished how magnificent the view was.  It was beautiful!  

When we reached the hospital, nature was calling, so I hurriedly looked for a rest room. I found one and when I stepped in, my jaw dropped. What the...???!!! I thought these things only existed in the ancient days.

No way!

Later on we went to the White Cloud Mountain Scenic Spot (Baiyun Mountain Scenic Spot).  It is famous for its veil-like clouds rising during the late spring and autumn, but didn't see any because it's summer. Ha! We rode the cable car to go to the other side.  The lower station is set up east of Yuntai Garden and the upper station at the Peak Park, a difference of 198 m (650 ft) in altitude and a horizontal distance of 1,672 m (5,486 ft) from each other (Thank you, Wikipedia).

My view from inside the cable car

On our way back to Fuda, we were asking which bus we should take to the subway station.  The people in line couldn't understand us... again!  Worst was they spoke in Cantonese.  If I can't even form a single decent sentence in Mandarin, how can they expect me to speak Cantonese?   I took out a sheet of paper and drew a train. I thought that by pointing to this and sayng "subway", they would understand what we were trying to tell them, but, no... Oh boy!  To cut a long story short we got lost again!  This is getting to be a very nasty habit.

Wait a minute... It looks like a....What the heck did I draw here? Haha!

I was so tired when we got back to Fuda.  Whew!

Anyhow, before calling it a day, I got to chat with Michelle, my blogging buddy, and she informed me that her mother-in-law is also confined at Fuda.  I dropped by to say "hi!" =)

Auntie Evelyn and Auntie Susan Ong Martinez from Rm 706

Over all it was a good day.  Thank you, Lord! 

Our bill yesterday and today: ¥355.30 and ¥407.64, respectively. ($117.56 total)
Total bill as of today: ¥118,107.79 ($18,118.56 )

Day 18: One More CIC to Go

Loren, Gian and I had dinner last night at Ruikee Hainanese Chicken Rice at Beijing Lu.

I wasn't too happy with the food though... 

Me and Loren

Gian and her grandmother, Pilar Marquez, left Fuda around 7 p.m. this evening for their flight back to Manila. They'll be back on June 13 for another chemo session.

Gian with her Lola Pilar

Dad's condition improved.  He ate a lot today.  Tomorrow is his last day of CIC infusion. Then, we'll just wait for his next Nano Chemo which was scheduled for June 4.  In the meantime, the doctors are focused on treating Dad's allergies. The rashes are still there, but they are not as itchy as they were a few days ago. So far, so good. 

Anyway, some nurses here don't have English names. We remember their faces, but we always forget their names.  So what Dad and I did was give them English names.  We assigned the name Nancy to one and Gina to another.  They both liked their new English names. =)

After doing the laundy, Loren and I went out to buy food for her Dad. Loren was kind enough to include my Dad and I in her shopping list for today. Thanks!

Tonight, while Dad rested and watched TV, I chatted with my friends who sought my advice. I'm very grateful that YM still works. Hehe!

Our bill yesterday and today: ¥1,329.90 and ¥400.30, respectively. ($ 264.96 total)
Total bill as of today: ¥117,344.85 ($18,001.00)

Day 16: Rashes Begone!

The doctors found out what Dad was allergic to. It was the medicine that was supposed to protect Dad’s stomach and prevent him from vomiting. It was administered through the infusion. The doctors gave him oral and topical medicines for his rashes. The rashes have begun to subside according to Dad.

The rashes were all over Dad’s body

Today is the start of Dad’s CIC and it will be until Thursday. Each infusion session lasts for only 30 minutes.

Another patient went back home to the Philippines this evening. Danny has bladder cancer. He was accompanied here by his wife, Luchi. They will be back in July for Danny’s follow up treatment.

L-R Standing: Erwin Tan (from Rm 607), Muriel, Loren (from Rm 601), Linda (from Rm 611)
Sitting: Danny and Luchi (from Rm 603), Gian (from Rm 610) and Rolly (Linda’s husband from Rm 611)

Loren, Gian and I went to the market to buy fruits and veggies. Loren offered to cook a Filipino dish for us. Yum!

On our way home from the market, we saw this cute looking toy dog.

Isn’t he cute?

Later that afternoon, we went out to go see more places and stop by Starbucks before going back to Fuda. We were surprised to see two Starbucks shops closed as early as 11 p.m. We ended up going to KFC instead. Duh! KFC again?!

Haixinsha Citizen Square at Pearl River, where the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Asian Games were held.

Guangzhou Zero Point

Here’s Loren trying to get a nice shot of the TV Tower

Haha!

Guangzhou TV Tower

Loren, Gian and I at Guangzhou People’s Park.

Got back to Fuda kinda late. Good night! I’m off to bed.


Our bill today is: ¥532.64 ($81.57)
Total bill as of today: ¥115,614.65 ($17,736.04)