Korea

skating

One Friday afternoon in 2013, with zero knowledge and background on skating, I excitedly joined the VendAsta troupe on the public ice skating rink downtown in Toon City.

nice background Allan… ok.. and also the pose. 🙂	scared mouse!
Scott showing off!	glide… glide… glide…

I grabbed a chair in order for me to get movin’ which also helped me balance and not stumble while skating. The most challenging part for me was climbing a REALLY tiny hill to get up to the rink… I got stuck on that spot.

skating alan tp susan — Alan also doesn’t know how to skate!

skating -thecuriousme-no chair — my ice walker… :p

Nathan P had to help me tighten my skates so I could skate “better” and gave me a push to get me over the hill.

skating nathan and thecuriousme — with Nathan P

After my first lap, I decided I’d had enough skating for that day and opted to hang out and chat with my colleagues.

skating - no chair — standing without ice walker 😀

skating cody thecuriousme andreas — with Cody and Andreas

In any case. watching Michael Christian Martinez* and Kim Yuna** effortlessly glide, spin, jump and do other complicated techniques on the ice skating rink makes me wonder… how in the world did they do that?

P. S.
* Michael Christian Martinez is the only figure skating athlete from South East Asia in the Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 and the Philippines first Winter Olympics representative ever. Coming from a country without winter, he’s absolutely amazing! More support from the Philippine government please… Michael deserves it!

** Kim Yuna is the figure skating representative of South Korea. She took home the figure skating gold and silver medal in the Vancouver Winter Olympics 2010 and the Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 respectively. I had goosebumps while watching her perform. Such passion and grace!

family reunion

The December 2010 family reunion of our clan (father side) was extra special because it’s the first time that we hang out with our cousin Kuya Jimson. He returned to the Philippines from Korea after 20 years. Ha!

The reunion was “planned” out of the blue.

I just came back from Singapore when my brother kept asking me if there’s a family reunion. When I got tired of him bugging me, I contacted Kuya Jimson and asked if he wants to organize the reunion and at the same time request the rest of the clan to chip in.

Ranie, TheCuriousMe, Auntie Josie, & Freddie

Kuya Jimson readily agreed. The preparation was not smooth sailing because there were mishaps and misunderstandings which is very normal in every family. The reunion took place in Auntie Remy’s house exactly during Christmas day. The food and drinks were absolutely overflowing!

After eating, we were all bored and sleepy. Somebody mentioned about games… however, we don’t have prizes. Our cousins and other relatives eagerly reached out from their pockets and handed me some fat bills when I went around to “solicit” for prizes. Thank you so much for your generosity!

With Ronnalee and Jillian’s help, we decided to have longest line, Pepsi drinking contest, water refilling contest, trip to Jerusalem, direction dance, and of course, our version of Eat Bulaga’s Pinoy Henyo (click here to check how Pinoy Henyo works). Thanks to Alvin for taking the pictures. Below are the captured crazy moments:

longest line	pepsi drinking contest
“what to do???”	water refilling contest?
trip to jerusalem	direction dance
Pinoy Henyo	Pinoy Henyo

So far, it was one of the happiest reunion that we’ve ever had! It was soooo spontaneous!!!!!!! #It’smorefuninthePhilippines indeed!

“wish” list

And the tower topic continues… (click here to read the “towers” article)

Below are the towers and buildings (as well as statue!) that I would like to visit in this lifetime (hopefully it will come true… cross your fingers for me please? ):

(Japan ) Tokyo Sky Tree

the tallest tower in the world which will be completed by February 2012 (Source: Wikipedia)

(China) Canton Tower

second tallest tower in the world (Source: Wikipedia)

(Korea) Namsan Tower

simply because I love Korea. 😀

(Taiwan) Taipei 101

I also love Taiwan because Jerry Yan and Ella lives there. 😉

(Dubai) Burj Khalifa

I want to see where Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie stayed. :p

(USA) Empire State Building

because it’s New York! New York! New York! 😉

(USA) Statue of Liberty

it’s not a tower or a building but I would like to see it!

(France) Eiffel Tower (one more time)

I want to relive that magical feeling… :p (click here to read the Eiffel Tower article)

Who want’s to go with me? The more the merrier! And if there’s a tour guide out there who’s willing to plan the itinerary and show us around for free, that would be totally awesome! Ha! See you! :p

That ends my wish list… for now. What’s yours?

heads up!

I cut the Saranghae Korea! into different links. I separated each Korean TV Series to give way to Leila’s request. She wanted to comment on separate TV Series. I think it’s a very good suggestion because it made the article more organized and “clean”. Thanks Leila! By the way, check out her newly set up blog site -> Vaindulgence

Have fun reading everyone! More articles will be posted in a flash! Saranghae!

– thecuriousme 🙂

Hearts of 19

I saw this series being shown in Singapore and I got captivated! I admire the female lead’s “never say die” attitude. Incidentally, she’s also the female lead in Boys Over Flowers. I admit that triggered me to watch the show. 🙂

I can’t say much since I haven’t finished it yet. Nevertheless, I’m loving it to the maximum level!

go back to Saranghae Korea! article

My Lovely Samsoon

This is another good show for unattached individuals who are chubby and with a very odd name which is “unacceptable” in the society. I fit the bill for being single and fat. Well, my name is unique and strange… but i love it! :p

The series also emphasized that being vocal is an asset. Know what you want, voice out how you feel and fight for your rights!

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Soulmate

This made me stop and ponder on things. It truly hits home!

Whether we admit it or not, we all want to meet our soulmate. There are relationships that are not meant to be, no matter hard you try to make it work. Tragic but it’s reality. Accept the inevitable and move forward. It’s such a waste to live a pathetic life. :p

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Marry Me

It’s a story about an old spinster (a.k.a. old maid) who wants to get married badly. This series kept me glued for two reasons:

The male lead is so cute (he’s also one of the characters in the Boys Over Flowers)
I can relate well to the story because I’m also an old maid. LOL I also want to get married but for the right reasons, otherwise, I’d rather stay single. Ha!

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I Really Really Like You

At first, I don’t like the plot of this series including the title (it’s corny!) but after watching few episodes, I finally find it appealing. The male lead is very charming and has an endearing hilarious antics. The way the male and female leads tried so hard to avoid the love that they feel for each other makes me think of some people I know. Indenial stage eh?

Also, this series made cooking an interesting and artistic undertaking as well as provided helpful tips and tricks.

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Bad Couple

It’s kinda weird because the female lead’s plan to have a child without a husband coincide with mine. Hush hush! I even sent a text message to my prospective “donor” two (2) years ago. We did not yet talk about it. I think he’s ignoring it on purpose. I wonder why. Maybe… Just maybe… He has something else in mind that I will know soon? Or it’s just my wild imagination?

Hmmm… Whatever it is, he has still six (6) months to think things over. You know who you are. Ha! If I don’t receive a reply after that period, I will resort to plan B. :p

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Saranghae Korea!

Aneong Ha Sae Yo! (Hello!)

As promised in my previous article (Korean Aficionado), below are the Korean TV Series that I’ve watched for the past two (2) months. You may click the links to view:

Note: I prefer watching the original series with subtitles than the “Tagalogized” (dubbed in Tagalog) version.

I’ve also watched Boys Over Flower (multiple times!), Coffee Prince, Sassy Girl, Temptation of a Wife, Full House, Baker King (partial) and… I forgot the others. I plead guilty. I’m a sucker for Korean TV Series and reached the point of becoming proficient in the art of reading subtitles!

iPhone crunchyroll app provided a convenient way to watch Korean shows whenever and wherever. Thanks much Steve Jobs and the Apple people for developing the iPhone! I hope the Flash Player issue will be sorted out soon so that I can watch more. Ha!

As for the Hearts of 19, it’s not yet in the crunchyroll so I have to watch it in mysoju.com. I hope the crunchyroll guys will soon add it in their list. Wheey! Time to stop! This blog entry has gotten way too loooooooong! :p

See you all in a bit! Saranghae (I love you)! Aja!

Korean Aficionado

First things first.
I’m not a Korean.

I’m a true blooded Filipino who was born and raised in the Philippines. I stayed momentarily in Europe and Singapore then eventually migrated somewhere in North America. Moreover, I’ve never been to Korea… and nobody paid me to write this. :p However, if Koreans would like to treat me with an all expense paid trip to Korea… that would be awesome! If given the chance, I want to see the Jeju Island, Seoul and the Namsan Tower.

(courtesy of http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/yuyuart/3366356346/ ) — Korean Hanbok

I can’t really understand why am I so hooked with Korean TV Series.. maybe because it’s an excellent stress reliever? Koreans make simple stories into a great feel good and charming series. I’ve finished watching five (5) series plus one (1) in progress. Every episode lasts for an hour and the usual series have 17 to 25 episodes.

Only Hearts of 19 has 160+ episodes. I’m now in the 95th episode but currently I stopped watching so that I can focus in writing entries for my blog site and at the same time, live my life like normal human being should do. :p

Until next time! Aja!

hooked!

Darn! It’s been quite sometime since I’ve updated my site. What can I say, I’ve been watching Korean Comedy series at least 3 hours a day. I’m totally hooked… again! Sigh…Forgive me … I don’t have much life at the moment. -_-

Hmmm… makes me think that I should start going out on a date or something since the weather is getting warmer. Ha! :p Being idle during the long weekend is such a waste! Maybe an inspiration to keep me going can do the trick… calling MST!

Going back to the Korean Comedy series… I thought I was already over it but I’m completely addicted again… I guess this is better than eating chocolate most the time… What do you think?

Whether I like it or not, I need to get hold of myself and stop watching for a month or so. I want to spend my energy writing articles for my blog site (www.thecuriousme.com). I have several pending interesting articles which will surely keep me occupied.

For those who visits my site every now and then, my warmest thank you to all of you. I love reading your comments!

Aja!

time flies

My stepmother called at 12:38 a.m. yesterday, 22 July 2010, to inform me that my Uncle J already “left” the world. I was dumbfounded and I thought of my cousin, JC, who was suppose to fly the next day to be with his father (Uncle J). It’s very depressing because it’s just one day difference.

After the phone conversation with my stepmother, I sent JC a message via yahoo messenger. I thought his immediate relatives already informed him but when I mentioned about it, he said they did not call him yet. He felt dejected because he was not able to see his Dad alive and give the things that his Dad asked him to buy. To think that they haven’t seen each other for almost 17 years (if I remember it correctly).

Although, it’s a very sorrowful moment, I’m sure they can overcome the painful experience like what my brother and I did. It’s almost 20 years now since our mother passed away. We were very young then but we were able to survive the ordeal.

As they say, life must go on. Self pity is a big no no. Aja!