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Showing posts from July, 2022

Whitecaps FC Canadian Championship Final

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I moved to Canada from the Philippines in 2015 and have watched the Whitecaps on and off from 2016 to 2020. Last year, Jomar would always remind me to watch the Whitecaps, and we did on TSN consistently. We even managed to watch two games in person last season. In December, I decided to take the plunge and purchased the Flex Pass. We'll watch 12 of the 17 home games in BC Place. This is a big financial and time commitment. However, with our Flex Pass came a free ticket to the Canadian Championship first game, and I purchased the tickets for today's final at a discounted price. Home is a Vancouver shirt. There's an extreme heat warning today, and Vancouver's peak temperature reached 31 degrees Celsius. So we decided to take an Uber to BC Place. Fortunately, the gates opened 15 minutes earlier than expected, and they even gave a "Stand by Me" shirt to the first 15,000 fans. "Stand by Me" Shirt We had dinner, then it was the kickoff. Here is the highlig

Trip to Squamish, BC

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My dad is celebrating his birthday this year, so my siblings and I planned a trip to Squamish, BC. Every summer, my dad requests that we go "camping" and have a BBQ. He really  wants to grill meat. Day 1: Shannon Falls and Sea to Sky Gondola Jomar and I woke up early to prepare for the trip. First, we grabbed breakfast at the nearby Tim Hortons location; when we were finished, my mom called to let me know they were leaving from Richmond to pick us up. So we hurriedly walked back home to change and bring down our stuff. We stopped by McDonald's in North Vancouver, so they could have breakfast. Then, off we go! Shannon Falls We're enjoying our road trip and love the view along the Sea to Sky Highway. After 50 minutes, we found ourselves at the Shannon Falls Provincial Park entrance. We did the 5-minute walk to the base of the falls and attempted to take as many photos as we could before the buses of tourists arrived.

Stargazer: An Immersive Experience in Outer Space at Tsawwassen Mills

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Happy Saturday! I feel extra special today because my husband planned our date. He asked that we go to the Stargazer Exhibit at Tsawwassen Mills, but I wasn't motivated to go, so he insisted and offered to pay. We started our day with breakfast from Wendy's. It's our first time trying their breakfast options. Check what I thought of it  here . Afterwards, we took the train to Bridgeport and rode Bus 620, which stops at Tsawwassen Mills. It's a big mall (by Canadian standards). I was telling Jomar that it reminded me of the malls in the Philippines minus the crowd. Before heading inside the mall, a kind stranger asked us if we knew how to go back north (We looked like tourists!), we said no (since it was our first time here), and he kindly explained where the stops were located.  There are Indigenous art installations all over the interior of the mall. We arrived an hour before 11 AM and had time

Stickers, Me, and addy

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I'm a passionate person. When I love something, I go all in. For example, when I was in elementary, I collected stickers and would save any allowance I got to buy them. Then, I got into washi tapes in high school and decorated my planners as scrapbooks. This hobby of using my planner as a planner and then scrapbook continued in university. I stopped when I started working. The physical planner has been replaced by Google Calendar, and any event during the day was checked in on Foursquare (now, SwarmApp). Until I got married. During our first wedding anniversary, Jomar gave me a planner for the following year, but I didn't use them that much until the end of 2021, when I started going back to writing my thoughts in it. This year, I try to do it every day or worse, once a week. I even committed to designing it by buying stickers from Michael's. I also started cutting stamps from any snail mail we received and just putting them in the planner. Doodling and writing in my planne

Weekend of The Khatsahlano Street Party

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It's the second weekend of July and we have activities planned out. I like visiting new places, but Vancouver has many events that every weekend feels like a mini-vacation. With that said, below are some of the things we did. Friday Night at BC Place  Weekend starts Friday evening. We walked to and from BC Place to watch the Vancouver Whitecaps FC lose to Minnesota FC 3-1. 😐 Despite the results, I enjoyed the view on Cambie Bridge. View from Cambie Bridge at 6:12 PM View from Cambie Bridge at 9:47 PM Saturday Morning at Costco Because we had a long night with the heartbreaking lost of the 'Caps, we woke up a bit later than planned and went straight to Costco for early lunch and groceries. Just like the night before, we walked across Cambie Bridge to get to Downton Vancouver. View from Cambie Bridge at 11:36 AM  We feel more like an adult with our own Costco membership. No more mooching off my parents' card. Saturday Afternoon at The Khatsahlano Street Party After running

How to Change Legal Name in BC, Canada?

If you just got married and have decided to change your last name to your husband's last name, you would need to inform quite a list of organization to make sure they are aware of the legal name change. Below are some of them that I had to deal with in doing this process in British Columbia, Canada. Be ready with a copy of your marriage certificate to start the process. How to change legal name with BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) and in your BC Services Card? Please go to this link: https://my.gov.bc.ca/msp/deam/personal-info Provide the Personal Information they asked for. They will also ask for information on your spouse and any children as applicable. You will need to upload a copy of your marriage certificate. Submit everything in that portal. You will need to wait up to six weeks. A letter will arrive via mail confirming that the name on your account has been updated. ONLY then you sho

Canada Day Long Weekend

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Canada Day falls on a Friday this year which means a long weekend. It's our first Canada Day as citizens of our new home, and below is how we spent the weekend. Thursday: Movie Date After working hours, we went straight to Marine Gateway and had dinner at  Tim Hortons . But, more importantly, we watched Lightyear at Cineplex. I need Sox in my life. Afterwards, we grabbed groceries from T&T. I can't wait to prepare the kimchi fried rice and okonomiyaki we got. Friday: Canada Together celebration at Canada Place For the first time ever since moving to Canada, we decided to head to Downtown Vancouver and enjoy the festivities at Canada Place. The main stage of the "Canada Together" event. We started the day by walking across Granville Bridge to Canada Place. We stopped by Tim Hortons at Hornby Street because Jomar requested we get the S'mores Iced Capp, and I agreed only if we pass by a Tims location. View from Granville Bridge (n