North America

Montreal

Montreal is dubbed as the sin city of Canada and the largest city in the province of Quebec. It is said to be the second-largest in Canada and the 8th-largest in North America. There’s so much to see and do in Montreal… it would probably take a month or so!

Little did I know that I would be in for a challenge when my Popster friend, Mydzz, and I decided to go to Montreal via train (VIA Rail) last October 9th, 2012. Thanks to Google, Mydzz found the a number of popular places in Montreal to visit in our 4-hour time frame.

As expected, we had several bloopers during our trip…

1. Confused!
We nearly got off at the Dorval station, one stop away from Montreal, because we got confused with the announcement for the next stop.

2. Photo oppsie!
I was taking my photo (a.k.a. “selfie”) with the Notre-Dame Basilica in the background when a guy across the street offered to take my photo. His shouting was so loud and animated that I ended up being the center of (unwanted) attention. OMG! Mydzz laughingly walked away and pretended not to know me. O_O

It’s a good shot though…. 😀 Hmmm… better than my “selfie” on the right… Don’t ya think?

3. Train seats mixed up.
We were finally settled in our designated seats when the VIA Rail officer asked us to move. Our fellow passengers told us that there was a glitch in the online booking system that mixed up the seating arrangements.

4. So French!
The VIA rail employees were talking to us in French while directing us what car to take. All we could do was to smile and say thank you. “Car 4” was the magic word that we needed to hear to put together all the things they were saying.

5. So lost!
Our million dollar smiles opened the hearts of strangers, happily chatting with us and helping us find the best views in the city.

Below are some of our snapshots:

Notre Dame

Surprisingly, we covered several tourist spots in 3-4 hours with no tour guide. Ha! We spent an hour having lunch in a Chinese buffet… we pigged out at the Jade Restaurant! :p

The trip to Montreal proved to be enjoyable after all. Until next time! Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmwa!

credit card :(

I previously worked with a North American bank so roughly I have an idea on how the deposit and credit card accounts work. Thus, as a new immigrant, I was aware that I won’t be able to apply for the “normal”* credit card since I don’t have yet a credit score**.

It is advisable for people who have no credit score or bad credit standing (a.k.a. delinquent payers) to apply for a secured*** credit card instead. Nonetheless, when I received a call from my deposit account bank, informing me that I was “pre selected” and qualified to apply , I “pushed” my luck and made a go. Ha!

After two weeks, I received the rejection letter. Darn! I was a bit devastated and in denial for a few days. When it finally sinked in, I went to the bank to inquire on the following:

why my application was rejected?
how can I earn a credit score?
what other alternative card should I get?

The bank personnel referred me to go to another bank and apply for a secured credit card. Just what I’ve known from the beginning. I got too excited when I received that phone call which overpowered my common sense and made me gullible. Sigh.

I did not go to the bank where she suggested me to go. We’re not talking about vengeance here, I just went to my preferred bank. Ha! I prepared the documents (payslips, employment letter, bills) and IDs needed. I even took a screenshot of my bank account summary (which proved to be beneficial ).

The bank officer was impressed on my “preparedness” and he particularly adore my screenshot. Hence, he offered me a “normal” credit card and not the secured one! And he assured me that he will do his best to help me get the approval.

I will know the result next week. Fingers crossed… Let’s hope for the best! Aja!

at a glance

I bet you’re curious on who thecuriousme is? Get to know me at a glance… Read on!

I’m blessed with a very complicated name… to the point that I have to spell it all the time in order for people to understand it. What can I say, it’s a lifetime battle. 😉

I’m the kind of person who loves to smile and laugh. I enjoy hanging out with energetic and crazy people. I’m addicted to Korean and Taiwanese Comedy TV Series. Writing is one of my passions and it serves as an outlet for venting out my curtailed emotions.

My unending thirst for learning has driven me to take up and finish several courses. These are: BS Computer Science in Lorma Colleges (Philippines); MA in Technological Education at Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (Philippines); through a scholarship grant given by Netherlands Fellowship Program, a Post Graduate Diploma in Managerial Control and Management Information System in Maastricht School of Management (The Netherlands); and a 10-week London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Level 1 Bookkeeping course in Uptrend Business School (Singapore).

Education, work experience and traveling helped me a great deal to become a well-rounded individual. Teaching at the age of 20 helped me become more flexible, open minded and extremely patient. While in HSBC, I learned to become an effective team player. Dealing with irate clients can be irksome but it’s absolutely fulfilling when they end up being happy and satisfied on how their concerns were handled. Whereas, working in Singapore and studying in Netherlands ignited my interest in learning other cultures and languages.

One last note, I’m a self-confessed nomad. So far, I have travelled few countries in Asia, Europe and North America. I still have four (4) more continents and several countries to go. The three (3) other things that I want to do in this lifetime are: to sing one song without a glitch, become a DJ for a day, and get drunk like there’s no tomorrow.

TheCuriousMe.com — a gift from Big Sis & Manager

planning

One thing that doesn’t apply to me is planning my life. Whenever I intend to aim for something, it will automatically become elusive. After doing several attempts, I finally accepted the fact that planning doesn’t work for me.

Proof? Here you go:

Lovelife. I wanted to get married by year 2000 but it did not happen. I thought, it maybe too early so I extended it to 2005. It “almost” happened. However, some obscure phenomenon hindered it. Thus, this stage is still UNDER CONSTRUCTION. :p

Habitat. Initially, I intended to work in Qatar but I wound up working in Singapore. I planned to settle in Europe for good but I ended up migrating in North America. I’m still in limbo with this turn of events. Maybe fate brought me here? Whatever it is. I’m here to stay.

Work. My goal is to follow my late mother’s wish which is to keep away from the teaching force and my ultimate dream after graduation is to become a Programmer (aka Software Developer or Software Engineer). Yet, I ended up teaching for almost 8 years and did several other jobs but never as a Software Developer.

The above-mentioned are some of the instances which made me stopped outlining my goals and just go with the flow. It`s kinda weird because when I stopped planning my life, things started to fall into place.

Let’s wait and see. 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!

snow!

It’s always been my childhood dream to see a real snow and experience the four seasons (Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall). I lived most of my life in the Philippines and few years in Singapore wherein it’s summer most of the time!

Winter just ended when I went to Europe but I did experience Spring for three months. So, I still have Winter and Fall in my bucket list. Also, I promised myself that when I see a real snow, I will definitely take a pinch and savor the taste. Ha! Pardon my naivety. I am what I am. 😉

Following Big Bro’s master plan, I quietly migrated to North America during Winter time! It was crazy in a way because there were different timezones in every airport I went to for my connecting flights. Thus, my body clock was in a total chaos and I reached my destination absolutely stressed out… for a moment. :p

Stress was replaced with unconcealed childlike grin and excitement! My cousin picked me up at the airport together with her family. She told me that my “Matrix” coat is for Spring and is not thick enough for the Winter. My “Matrix” look had to wait (sorry Majestic Mom!). 😉

When we arrived at their house, I took a pinch of snow on top of her other car and tasted it. It reminded me of the ice in Chowking’s halo halo (Filipino dessert). It’s absolutely delicious and refreshing! Wohooo!

Previously, I never bothered to do it because the season was either sunny or rainy, warm or cold. I always bring small umbrella anyway. That would suffice back then. 😀 In a four season country, I learned that it’s a must to know the weather forecast so that you will know how to plan your outfit (how many layers), what jacket to wear (how thick or thin it is), if you will need mittens, etc.

Time flies… Spring is just around the corner and it will be Summer soon! I’ve noticed that a lot of locals love summer! However, for me, I anticipate Fall, Winter and Spring rather than the Summer. I’ve had my fair share of Summer in this lifetime, I think. -_- I was told that I will change my mind in a year or two. We’ll see.

Next winter, I will definitely make my own snow angel and snowman. Yabadabadoo!!!!