Monday, April 28, 2008

We Walked from Canada to the US

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yes, you read that right. we walked from canada to the US. and back. walked.

i've always wanted to say that. in fact, the only reason we did it was to experience what it was like to walk to the border. and to be able to say, "i was in 2 countries at the same time." haha... sounds like some movie i know.

so we drove to niagara falls. parked the car. then walked to new york state via the rainbow bridge.

it wasn't a long walk. in fact, it would only take you 5 minutes to cross the border. of course, it's a totally different story when you stop to take pictures.

here's the door that would take you from canada to the US -

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the boundary line between US and canada -

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the flags to mark the boundary lines -

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what did we do in new york? we ate lunch. we had lunch at hard rock cafe.

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and then headed back to canada again..

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Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Tell Me About Yourself



i would love to hear from you and get to know you and the people who drop by my blog. if you have time, do take time to answer one or two of the questions below. my answers can be found above.

better yet, why not get paid while answering these questions? you can answer the same questions above and get paid for it by clicking here.

1. What are you most afraid of?

2. What is your place of birth?

3. What's your favorite food?

4. What's your natural hair color?

5. Ever been a Neat Freak?

6. Have you ever been skinny dipping?

7. Have you ever loved someone so much it made you cry?

8. Have you ever been in a car accident?

9. Of the following, which do you like more? Croutons or Bacon bits?

10. What's your favorite day of the week?

11. Why is that day your favorite?

12. What's your favorite restaurant?

13. What's your favorite flower?

14. What's your favorite sport to watch?

15. Of the following, whose movies do you prefer? Warner Brothers or Disney?

16. What's your favorite adult drink?

17. What's your favorite everyday drink?

18. What's your favorite flavor of ice cream / gelato?

19. Have you ever been on a ship?

20. What's the color of your bedroom carpet?

21. How many times did you fail your driver's test?

22. What do you do when you are bored?

23. What's your bedtime?

24. How many pets do you have?

25. What are your favorite colors?

26. How many tattoos do you have?

27. What do you want to do before you die?

28. Have you ever been to Hawaii?

29. What is your favorite country outside your current country?

30. Other comments about yourself? e.g., favorite teacher, New Year's resolution, next travel location, political philosphy, most comfortable clothes, biggest motivation at work / school, ...

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Canada's Point System: Language Tests vs. Written Proof

one of the requirements for obtaining points in canada's point system is your fluency to canada's official languages.

as i have previously mentioned, a mere self-assessment of your proficiency is not enough. you have to provide proof. this can be done by either taking a language test (such as IELTS) or by submitting a written proof of your proficiency.

there are 3 common concerns that make an applicant think twice about taking the IELTS.

1. cost. the current cost for taking an IELTS test in the philippines is now at PhP8,960. if you want to take a workshop to review your english skills, the course fee is PhP2,200. the workshop is not a requirement though. and if you think you are proficient enough, then it is not necessary to take it. i did not take any workshops prior to taking the test and i still did great on my test.

2. test schedule. due to the number of people taking the IELTS, waiting time may be quite long. it is advisable to schedule your test early especially if you are taking the test in manila. i waited until the last minute to schedule my test only to find out that the earliest available slot was in 4 months time. since i was pressed for time, i ended up flying to davao to take the test.

3. fear of not passing the test. from what i hear, a lot of people fail this test. and failing this test is not only frustrating but also costly. when i took the test, i met a number of people who were taking the test for the second time. a portion of the test uses recorded instructions and questions and these are recorded by someone who has a british accent. someone who is not used to listening to the british accent may have difficulty in following the questions. preparing well for the test is definitely the key. you may check out these sites to help you prepare for the test.

i took the IELTS myself and personally, i would recommend it too despite the above concerns. the cost for taking the test may be a lot more expensive than providing a written proof but it is definitely worth the cost. especially if you think you can score some big points.

the one thing i like about taking the IELTS is that it quantifies your level of proficiency. your score on the test is equal to a certain number of points. there is definitely no second-guessing and you get to see how many points you scored before it even gets sent out to the canadian embassy.

on the other hand, when you submit a written proof (such as a certificate from your school), there is no guarantee as to how many points you will get. you submit the written proof together with your application and the embassy determines the number of points that your application merits. if you are not pressed to get more points, then i guess it would be okay to gamble with this option.

ultimately, it is your decision as to how you want to go about submitting your proof of language proficiency. try to weigh out all the pros and cons and choose which is best for you.

if you want to take a sample IELTS test, click here.

Monday, April 21, 2008

A Lock-less Society

yesterday, my kids were playing ball in the backyard.

my son accidentally threw it a bit too much that it accidentally crossed over the fence into our neighbor's yard. so he went over and rang their doorbell to get his ball back.

when he came back with his ball, he told me that our neighbor said that, "whenever you need to get something in our yard, feel free to enter. the gate is not locked."

i grew up in a society full of locks. doors have locks. cabinets have locks. drawers have locks. gates have locks. almost anything that can be opened can be locked.

when i was in the philippines, i had to use 3 keys just to get into our house. one for the gate and two for the front door. aside from that, i also had keys to my bedroom, my cabinets and my drawers. you can imagine how heavy my keychain can get.

when we got here, it was totally different. aside from the front door and the washrooms, no other locks can be seen inside the house. there are no locks on the bedroom door. no locks on the cabinets. and no locks on drawers. it's a lock-less society.

thank god their washrooms have locks!

Thursday, April 17, 2008

My First Encounter: First Communion

my son had his first communion last saturday.

and boy, was it different! different from the first communions that i know of in the philippines.

in the philippines, the school takes care of the first communion. it is a big school event where everything is practiced - how to walk, what songs to sing, how to take communion, and if i remember it right, even the actual mass is practiced.

there are pictorials before the big day. solo pictures of the child kneeling down and holding a rosary are taken. on the day itself, an official photographer and videographer is on site to make sure that this special day is properly documented. children also exchange giveaways or souvenirs with classmates to mark their special day.

here in canada, despite the fact that my kids go to a catholic school, the first communion is not a school affair. it is a parish affair. and the responsibility of registering your child for first communion lies with the parent and not the school.

different parishes have different ways of going about the first communion. but some things are constant. there are no rehearsals. no pictorials prior to the first communion. no exchanging of souvenirs with classmates. and definitely no pictures taken during the ceremony. yes, no pictures of my son taking his first ever communion!

instead, we were required to attend retreats to help us prepare our child for the sacrament of reconciliation and the sacrament of the holy eucharist. workbooks were given for us to do with our child.

in our parish, the first communion is held during regular sunday masses including the anticipated saturday mass. a maximum of 10 participants take their first communion per mass schedule and they are lent a white robe to wear during the ceremony.

before everyone else lines up for communion, the lector calls the child one by one. and the child and his immediate family all go to the front and partake of the holy communion. the participants are also in charge of the offertory and they join our parish priest in the recession march.

it was special day for us and i can't help but wish that i had pictures and videos of the whole ceremony. oops.. don't get me wrong. it's not like i don't have any pictures at all. we do. we took pictures after the ceremony.

but it's not the same. the pictures i want are those of my son taking his first communion. and of him marching down the aisle during offertory. and of him being called in front to get his certificate and pin. and of him marching during the recession. i want those pictures!

truth be known, after the ceremony was over, i actually contemplated on asking the priest to pretend to give my son his first communion while i take his picture.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Survey Time!






questions for you:

1. if you had an awesome experience or even a bad one, how many people would you inform about it to help them with their own selections/choices?

2. are you a hopeless romantic? what have you learned from your last breakup?

check out my answers above.

Worldwide Link Love

i've been tagged! so i'm joining the worldwide link love! if you wanna join, please see the rules below.

~* start copying here *~

Join the Worldwide Link Love!

Benefits of Worldwide Link Love!
1. Make new friends around the world.
2. Feel the Link Love.
3. Gain new readers and subscribers.


Rules:
1. Copy from ~* start copying here *~ to ~* end copying here *~ and paste it on your blog.
2. At the end of the list, put your name and the country you're in, it doesn't matter what your nationality is, just put the country where you are publishing your blog from. Dont forget to put links on your name.
3. If u have many blogs, you can link all of it, just make sure you post the same on each blog.
4. Tag eight (8) or more of your blog friends.
5. Tip for blog*spot users: make sure you copy and paste the code in Compose mode.
6. Wanna join, and you can't find your name on the list? Just leave a comment here.

Worldwide Link Love! Participants:

1. Julia (Philippines)
2. Catherine (Malaysia)
3. Blog Tambayan (Philippines)
4. Make Money Online (Philippines)
5. Pink (Korea)
6. SurigaoBabe (USA)
7. Blognation (Philippines)
8. Celeb World (Philippines)
9. Repah (Philippines)
10. PinayWAHM (USA)
11. Etavasi (Malaysia)
12. Dru (Philippines)
13. Chanter (USA)
14. Mind Relaxing Ideas (Philippines)
15. Shen (Philippines)
16. Mellifluous (Philippines)
17. Filipino in Canada (Canada)
18. Name (Your Country)
19. Name (Your Country)
20. Name (Your Country)
21. Name (Your Country)

~* end copying here *~

i'm passing this tag to the following: Artsy Creatures, In My Innocence, Kevin Paquet's Online Journal, Creative Thoughts, My Library, Maria Finds, Back to the Philippines, Makoy's Memoirs Of A Certified Blogger, My Drift, Being Single, Retchel's Product Reviews, My Nurse's Notes and Technophilliac.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Canada's Point System: Fluency in English or French

here is the 3rd installment on my article on canada's point system.

as i've said in my previous post, your fluency in english or french will give you a maximum of 24 points. this will be based on your ability to speak, read, write and listen in english and french.

if you are able to communicate in both english and french, you have to decide which between the two languages you are more comfortable with. if you are more comfortable in english than french, then english would be your first official language and french would be your second official language.


claiming proficiencies in these languages isn't enough. you must also provide proof of your level of proficiency. you can do this by either taking a language test or by providing a written proof of your proficiency in these languages. more on this next time.

to help you assess your proficiency level, below are the descriptions for each skill level and their respective points. please remember to assess your speaking, reading, listening and writing skills separately. it is possible that you may have a high proficiency level for listening but moderate proficiency level for writing.

high: you can communicate effectively in most social and work situations.

first language
speaking - 4 points
reading - 4 points
listening - 4 points
writing - 4 points

second language
speaking - 2 points
reading - 2 points
listening - 2 points
writing - 2 points

moderate: you can communicate comfortably in familiar social and work situations.

first language
speaking - 2 points
reading - 2 points
listening - 2 points
writing - 2 points

second language
speaking - 2 points
reading - 2 points
listening - 2 points
writing - 2 points

basic: you can communicate in predictable contexts and on familiar topics, but with some difficulty. note that you can only have a maximum of 2 points for this proficiency level.

first language
speaking - 1 point
reading - 1 point
listening - 1 point
writing - 1 point

second language
speaking - 1 point
reading - 1 point
listening - 1 point
writing - 1 point

no: you do not meet the above criteria for basic proficiency.

first language
speaking - 0 points
reading - 0 points
listening - 0 points
writing - 0 points

second language
speaking - 0 points
reading - 0 points
listening - 0 points
writing - 0 points

if you want to take the complete assessment, click here.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Cooking the Whole Week

i'm back!

i've been away for a week. not actually away. but more like slaving myself all week. which explains why i haven't checked my mail, updated my blog and returned dropped cards the whole week.

so what have i been doing all week? cooking.

i was cooking the whole week for the first communion party of my son yesterday. i made 5 viands plus desserts for 30 people. and boy, am i tired! dead tired.


of course, my husband would say not to bother and just buy food to serve. he thinks i like to torture myself. but buying something off the rack doesn't give me as much pleasure as creating something from my own hands. seeing people enjoy the food i bought won't give me as much pleasure as seeing them enjoy the food i made. there is a difference.

and as if that wasn't enough work, the mom of my son's classmate ordered rosaries to give away for her son's 1st communion too. and instead of declining her request, i found myself giddy and excited to create some for her.

hmm... maybe i do like to torture myself.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Canadian vs. Filipino Parties

we had a very long day last saturday.

my kids had an activity at 10am. a children's party at 2pm. and still another children's party at 5pm.

the 2pm party was the "typical canadian" children's party where only my daughter was invited. it lasted about 1 and 1/2 half hours. they were served pizza and cake. and given a lootbag before leaving the party. its really quite simple.

i remember the first time they were invited to a party. i was uncomfortable with the fact that i had to just drop them off and pick them up again. in the philippines, it goes without saying that when your child gets invited, the yaya is invited too. we do not leave them alone to attend a party by themselves. especially when they're just 5 years old.


but that's how it is done here. only the child is invited. the party would last between 1 1/2 to 3 hours and usually involves a specific activity (i.e. swimming, mini-golf, arcade, etc). they almost always serve pizza and cake. and the kids get a lootbag to bring home.

the 5pm party, on the other hand, turned out to be a "typical filipino" children's party. when the classmate of my daughter invited the whole family to attend, i thought they were just being nice. we are "friends" after all.

so what is a "typical filipino" children's party?

it's a party where not just the kid is invited. but her whole family as well. where the adults far outnumber the kids. maybe a 5:1 ratio. where the buffet table is overflowing with food meant to satisfy the adults and not the kids. definitely no pizza anywhere in sight. where the activities are varied and satisfies both the kids and the adults. there were parlor games for the adults as well. where balloons are scattered everywhere. balloons rarely make it to the "typical canadian" party. where not only the children get lootbags but the adults as well. in the form of take outs. where the party lasts into the wee hours of the night. we left at 10pm and were considered to have "left early."

and most importantly, it's a party where people start coming in at 6pm when the invitation clearly says 5pm.

i miss these parties. you just gotta love filipino parties.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Who Parked In My Driveway?

i pulled into the wrong driveway this morning.

and this isnt the first time it has happened. it has happened twice before.

of course i can always say it isn't my fault right? it isn't my fault that all the houses look the same. and all the driveways look the same.

i remember the first time it happened to me. there was a van parked in the driveway. a van i can't recognize. and i was wondering who could be visiting us today.

it was only when i had parked behind the van that i realized i was in the wrong driveway!


now this is something that would never happen to me back home. i have never pulled into someone else's driveway before. because back home, our houses do not look the same. and we don't just "pull into the driveway."

good thing i always realize it before i even get out of the car and try to open the front door.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Canada's Point System: Education

as promised, here is a closer look at canada's point system.

let me start off with education.

education gives you a maximum of 25 points. this is based on the number of years you have spent studying.

in determining your points for education, you will encounter 2 terminologies - full time study and full time equivalent study.

full time study is defined by having "at least 15 hours of instruction per week during the academic year, including any period of training in the workplace that is part of your studies."


full time equivalent study on the other hand, is defined as the "length of time that it would have taken to complete a program of study on a full-time basis, but was actually completed on a part-time or accelerated basis."

before you get confused, all it really means is that you were able to complete the number of required years of study whether you did it full time, part time or in an accelerated mode.

below is the list of categories and their respective points. remember that you must meet all the conditions to earn points in a particular category. this means that if the highest degree you've attained does not match the required number of years of study, then you must give yourself points based on the number of years you've studied.

a. 25 points if you have a master’s degree or PhD and at least 17 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

b. 22 points if you have two or more university degrees at the bachelor’s level and at least 15 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

c. 22 points if you have a three-year diploma, trade certificate or apprenticeship and at least 15 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

d. 20 points if you have a university degree of two years or more at the bachelor’s level and at least 14 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

e. 20 points if you have a two-year diploma, trade certificate or apprenticeship and at least 14 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

f. 15 points if you have a one-year university degree at the bachelor’s level and at least 13 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

g. 15 points if you have a one-year diploma, trade certificae or apprenticeship and at least 13 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

h. 12 points if you have a one-year diploma, trade certificate or apprenticeship and at least 12 years of full-time or full-time equivalent study.

i. 5 points if you completed high school.

if you wanna take the complete self-assessment, click here.

 
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