Celine's Life Adventure

As soon as Jomar and I got back from our "big" Philippines wedding, it's summer in beautiful Vancouver! We attended one of three Honda Celebration of Lights. We're only free to watch Team India on July 27. After attending the 5:00 PM Saturday Mass celebration at St. Augustine's we walked with our chair to Vanier Park. There's a lot of people from couples like us to families with young kids to groups grilling meat. It was a great atmosphere and a reminder of why I love Canada and Vancouver. Moreover, we enjoyed a wonderful, clear day and the amazing sunset. The crowd at Vanier Park Beautiful Sunset Dusk. The show is about to start. Honda Celebration of Lights 2019 It's the second year we're watching at least one team participating in the competition. I told Jomar this is one of our annual summer things. Here is a 4K / HD video of the fireworks show. It's in 3 different files because for some reason either Google Camera or Goo

We're finally in Japan and on our way to Canada. This time we have more time to roam around and decide where to eat (unlike our layover coming from Canada). We walked the whole airport (at least the area we have access to) and checked out places that serve Katsu Curry and Ramen. Somehow, we ended up having a meal at Yoshinoya. Eating Katsu Curry in Japan Enjoying a bowl of ramen in Japan After our meal and while walking to our boarding gate, we purchased a bunch of Kitkat with unique flavours. I think this is where I will end my series of blog posts about our trip to the Philippines. Sorry, it took three months to share them here. As soon as we got to Vancouver, we went straight home. I ordered Indian food using SkipTheDishes and cooked some rice for our lunch and dinner. We went back to work the following morning. It's great to back!

I haven't posted in a while (busy and stress is an understatement), but in the next series of posts, I want to share the nearly two weeks we spent in Manila for our wedding. Breakfast and Lunch in YVR Our flight is at 2:25 PM (Pacific Time), but we're so excited that we're already at the airport at around 9:00 AM. We took a Yellow Cab going to Vancouver International Airport (YVR), and knowing full well that the check-in counter will still be close, we grabbed breakfast at Tim Hortons. Tim Hortons for breakfast before we leave Canada It's the same Tims I worked full-time for a week before I quit. But that's a different story. We were standing in line at 10:00 AM, and the employees of Japan Airlines (JAL) was only setting up. The check-in counter opens 3 hours before (not 4!). We stayed in line and was playing Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. Playing HP: Wizards Unite By 12:00 NN, we're done checking in and going to security. We're enjoying

I just had my interview for a US Tourist (Nonimmigrant) Visa this morning, and in this post, I want to share the process and my experience to hopefully help you with your application. I am a Canadian Permanent Resident (PR) card holder with a Philippine passport. Do I still need to have a valid US Visa to enter the US? Absolutely! How much does it cost to apply for a US tourist visa from Canada? USD$160.00 (depending on the conversion rate; I paid around CAD$215.00) How do I apply for a US tourist visa (as a Philippine passport holder with a PR card)? Part 1. All online Complete the Nonimmigrant Visa Electronic Application (DS-160) form. Pay the visa application fee. It's all online. You will need a valid credit card to do this. Schedule your appointment . Read and follow the instructions carefully and thoroughly. Part 2. Prepare things to bring You are required to print the DS-160 with the barcode. Yes, a  printed  copy is required. If for some reason, yo

It's delicious, flexible, and affordable. Every Wednesday, Gumstix pays for our team lunch which I manage (meaning I order food for the team). One of the places we're consistently ordering from is Russet Shack. Today I want to share what customized baked potato variety I have tried from this place. Yes, I daresay that this is the best-baked potatoes in Vancouver. If there are other places that you think is better, please let me know in the comments below, and I would love to try them out. Chili & Cheese Potato Greek Potato  with chicken shawarma, feta cheese, and tzatziki sauce Chicken Avocado with Chipotle Sauce Potato Mexican Potato  with avocado, beef chilli, chicken shawarma, cheddar cheese, feta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Canadian Potato with steak Russet Shack Menu (as of April 2, 2019) You can visit their website at Russet Shack ( https://russetshack.com ) to learn more. They are also on DoorDash, SkipTheDishes, Foodora, and LazyMeal if you pre

I borrowed a few books from the Vancouver Public Library, and the first I read and finished is Zero to One, Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future, by Peter A. Thiel. In summary, the book discusses questions and things startups should ask in their quest to build things that will change the world. Below are the seven question, in the book that you should ask for before launching that product. If you answer, yes to all seven items, then your chances of success will be higher. Can you create breakthrough technology? Is now the right time to start? Do you have the right team? Are you starting with a big share of a small market? Do you have a way to not just create but deliver your product? Will your market position be defensible 10 and 20 years into the future? Have you identified a unique opportunity that others don't see? I have a couple of product ideas that I think can be startups but going over this question, I always have a tough time answering 4, 5, and 6.

It's Therese's birthday, and she always chooses a casual dining pub to have lunch or dinner with the family. Three years ago (2016), we went to Cactus Club Cafe Two years ago (2017), we went to Earls Kitchen + Bar Restaurants Last year (2018), we had Romer's Burger Bar This year (2019), we went to Moxie's Grill & Bar Moxie's Grill & Bar First, I love the service! Our server, Jessica, is friendly and she didn't hover around us as other waitresses do at other places. Second, I like the ambiance. Since we went there on Saturday for lunch, it's practically empty except for two other tables. We had fun catching up. It's been a while (Christmas?) since we're all together sharing a meal. It's great to spend time together. Lastly, the food is okay. I won't be coming back for the food, that's for sure. For appetizers, dad ordered Calamari and Tableside Fresh Smashed Guacamole which is amusing and fun to eat. Jessica smash

After 10 hours looking at clouds and admiring the icy window, Ice on the plane window. Being back in Vancouver is good! What's the first thing we did as soon as we landed (and after security check)? Eat. Specifically, eat fish and chips from Pajo. Fish and Chips Dinner Pajo is a Steveston, Richmond local fish and chips place. It's one of the first fish and chips place I've tried when I migrated to Canada. I had it on my second day. Anyway, Jomar and I had salmon and halibut for dinner. We went home; unpacked and it's already 11 at night. Time to sleep because we're both going to work the following day. Wicked Cafe Breakfast After a surprisingly good night sleep, we're up and ready to go back to work. However, our fridge is empty, and we have no food for breakfast. Instead, we decided to have breakfast in a cafe which we always walked by on our way to work. Wicked Cafe (7th and Hemlock) For breakfast, I decided to have vegetari

It's the only day of the year we eat pie. That might be an exaggeration. We eat pie on Thanksgiving as well. Pi Day 2019 After work today, Jomar and I decided to go to Granville Island Public Market to eat savoury pie and sweet pie for dinner. Laurelles Fine Foods We decided to have our savoury pie from Laurelles Fine Foods. I chose the Salmon Pie while Jomar picked the Chicken Pot Pie. I like the chicken better. Chicken Pot Pie and Salmon Pie A La Mode After eating our savoury pie, we had sweet pie for desserts. Just like last year, we picked two pies from A La Mode. I (as predicted) chose Pecan Pie while Jomar wanted to try the Coconut Cream Pie. Surprisingly, I didn't enjoy the Pecan Pie as much as I did last year. It was too sweet. The Coconut Cream Pie is good but nothing like the buko (coconut) pie we have from the Philippines. Coconut Cream Pie Pecan Pie Where did you eat pie today?

This post is first of my PH vacation series: Day 0 of PH Vacation . Valentine's Day at Vancouver International Airport Day 1 of PH Vacation . Time with Family Day 2 of PH Vacation . Confirmation and Time with Friends Day 3 of PH Vacation . Errands Day 4 of PH Vacation . Interview and Ocular Day 5 of PH Vacation . High School Friends Day 6 and 7 of PH Vacation . Jomar's Hometown Day 8 of PH Vacation . Food and Pre-Cana Seminar Day 9 of PH Vacation . Last Day I'm sleepy. I'm writing this in the International Terminal of Vancouver International Airport (YVR) while we're waiting for the boarding of our flight to Taipei. We will have a transfer there for approximately 1.5 hours before our flight to Manila. Waiting near our boarding gate Why we're going back? We're going to Manila to organize and finalize our Catholic wedding in the Philippines in July. As you already know by now, Jomar and I are already married in Canada but we want to be bl

The closest Filipino restaurant to our house (that we know of) is not walking distance and that's saying a lot because Vancouver is a walkable city. It's 18 minutes via bus or 35 minutes via walk. Josephine's Restaurant and Catering I grew up in the Philippines and somehow it will always be home. I love Filipino food and cook at home but there are dishes that are just too complicated to cook that eating out is always fun. Jomar and I tried Josephine's Restaurant and Catering one Saturday for lunch. It's beside another Filipino store, Aling Mary which has freshly baked Pandesal (yum!). When you're walking along Main Avenue, you can actually smell the freshly baked bread. It smells so good! The food is awesome. We tried as many type of viand as we could because they have a combo of 2 viand plus rice. We even needed an extra rice because we ordered too much. Plus, turon! I will definitely come back because this is the closest place I could have all the Fi

It was the first Monday of the year and we're adjusting back to work. Jomar and I decided to have dinner at the small Vietnamese restaurant close to the office. The Food This is my favorite pho place in Vancouver. We ordered Vietnamese Spring Roll to get us started. Spring Roll Then, Jomar a large House Special Noodle Soup and I had a Vermicelli bowl with Grilled Chicken and Grilled Pork Chop. Vermicelli Bowl House Special Noodle Soup I love the broth in Jomar's chosen pho! Unfortunately, we didn't realize that they have desserts until we're home and I am looking at photos online.

Bella Pizza is the closest pizza place at our house and it's the first time we tried it. Pizza by the Slice Jomar and I decided to eat in and observe Bella Pizza. It seems to be the only pizza by the slice in the area. There's Fresh Slice along Granville (between Broadway and 8th Avenue) and Panago along Broadway (between Birch Street and Alder Street) which I believe also offer pizza by the slice but this is surprisingly popular. Pizza quality is okay. It's not the best but by the 3rd bite of my Pepperoni pizza, it's not too bad. Pasta and Wings My biggest regret is ordering the Buffalo Wings and Lasagna because it's not good. Are we going back here? Maybe or we'll just take the extra steps to better tasting pizza at Domino's or Panago.

As you know, I got married last 2017 ! Now, Jomar and I are planning for our Catholic wedding in the Philippines with more family and friends. Based on our initial list, we're looking at 300 guests (but knowing that not everyone will come, we may be down to 200-250). I will be writing a series of post in the coming week (or month) on how our remote planning is going. Please feel free to leave a comment for any questions! This post is about finding the right wedding dress. What's your priority? When I dream about my wedding, I don't know what style of wedding dress I want to wear. I know it's going to be white but that's about it. Being a plus size woman, it's extra challenging to find the dress so I need to make decision and know my priorities in selecting my wedding dress for my Philippine wedding. I will not be spending more than $1,000 CAD (around Php 40,000) for a wedding gown. I want to look good without worrying about breaking the bank. I don

Last January 1, Jomar offered to treat me to dinner. He asked me to look for an open place on New Year's Day. Fact: almost all places are close during Holiday in Vancouver. However, it must be my lucky night because Cactus Club Cafe a few blocks from our place happens to be open. Cactus Club Cafe Cactus Club is one of those places you only go to on special occasion like The Keg, Joey Restaurant, and maybe to some extent Earls Kitchen + Bar. This is the 3rd time I've been here. The first time is for Therese's birthday 3 years ago, then to my parent's anniversary last year. However, out of the 3 Cactus Club I've been to, this is the most beautiful one I've been to. The Victorian era fireplace, the huge painting, and beautiful chandelier. It's unexpected. The Food We were there 30 minutes before 6:00 PM and their happy hour is just about to end but we were able to order some cocktails and appetizers at a discount. Piña Colada (for me), The Belli

2018 has been a busy year. I stopped writing here mid of last year because I got promoted at work (yay!) but has been really busy. One of my goal for this year (and was my goal last year) is to write 1 post each week. Last year is also the first time I didn't have a year-end summary. Oh well. Let's  be positive as we welcome the new year. New Year's Eve I arrived in Canada last 2015 and I spent NYE for 2016, 2017, and 2018 thinking and dreaming of watching the fireworks in Downtown Vancouver. I didn't go those previous years because of the cold and crowd. I told my brother during my first NYE in Canada that we should book a hotel in Downtown where we could see the fireworks, avoid the crowd, and be warm. Pan Pacific Hotel That dream came true NYE of 2019. Last September, I booked a hotel room at Pinnacle Hotel. However, in November, I learned that the fireworks display won't be visible from any of their rooms which is unfortunate. I, then, called Pan Pacif