Looking Back at 2014

It was an unforgettable experience. Less than ten of us gathered in a small bookshop and traded stories with the theme “Dream”. My story was about my childhood and the secrets that I never thought I’d share.

In February, I packed all my things in a backpack and flew to Singapore with Jeremie. I had no clear idea of what I was doing, but I let time take its course. I loved it there–the new environment, the secret shops, the food, and the fact that Jeremie and I were together.

Since Jeremie had to be in San Jose for a month-long business trip, I decided to book my own adventure to Indonesia. I went to Bali and Java for a month, and it was the best decision I ever made in 2014. You could even say it was a life-changing experience.

We took this photo on top of Wat Tham Sua (Tiger Cave Temple) after climbing about 1200+ steps. We traveled to Krabi Thailand in a spur-of-the-moment decision to celebrate our 7th-year anniversary. We swam with sharks in Ko Phi Phi and were mesmerized by the bioluminescent plankton.

I went back for two weeks despite the news that the military declared martial law. I walked the streets of Bangkok, took a train to Kanchanaburi, had a gastronomical experience in Amphawa Floating Market, saw the temples in Ayutthaya, and slept on an overnight train to Chiang Mai.

After half a year of being away, I went back to the Philippines near the end of June. My sister gave birth to her second son Niche who is such a cutie.

One of our closest friends got married! Louwil and Emilio had been secretly engaged since the year before but announced their wedding a couple of months before the date. Shocked, surprised, and happy, we organized a bridal shower for Louwil a week before the big day.

Back to being in a long-distance relationship, Jeremie and I devised a plan to keep each other busy while away. We started a small project called “Oh Periscope” where we took turns drawing/writing short stories to help us practice.

Jeremie proposed to me in one of our favorite neighborhoods in Singapore (Tiong Bahru, specifically Yong Siak Street). It was an ordinary date night that turned into something much bigger.

Since Jeremie gave me a surprise the month before, I decided to surprise him for his birthday too. We went to Kuala Lumpur for a couple of days and visited the famous Batu Caves. I have yet to write about our experience since I got lazy with my website. There’s a backlog of stories waiting to be told. I need to gather the courage to stay motivated.

Ah, and finally December. My highlight for the month would have to be speaking in public and sweating buckets. A friend asked me if I wanted to present something and I went ahead and took the challenge. Pecha Kucha Night was fun even though I was anxious the whole time. My talk was kind of like this summary I have now–a recap of my year.

And since it’s January, we have been running around trying to finish errands for the wedding. Just 22 more days before the big day and I haven’t even prepared myself because I’ve been so busy with work. Good luck to us! Hah!