Answering Back

Just thought it would be appropriate to really get into this comment from a viewer on my channel.

Some people can be so tactless. NO, this isn’t a constructive criticism. It is not. Quicks Q., perhaps you should take pointers from this site: http://www.wikihow.com/Criticize-Constructively

“Sana hindi ka na lang sumikat…”—really? What a mean thing to say to someone. I’m not surprised, because crab mentality is common in our country.

“Dati yung videos mo talagang nafee-feel mo yung passion pero ngayong sponsored ka na…”—hold on, this comment was on my HAIR CHALK VIDEO. And it is NOT sponsored. If you watched it, you’d know how I DISLIKED the product. And gumastos po ako ng 228.00 para sa full size and refill para lang ma-video ko para sainyo. I spent my OWN money buying that product so that I could film it because I thought it would be HELPFUL to people who watches me and wants to try it too!

“…puro hauls, review na basta basta lang.”—they say, “Stick to your forte.” Mine is definitely not makeup tutorials. And lately I’ve been LOVING doing hauls and trying out new stuff for the SAKE OF REVIEWING THEM FOR YOU. Bakit ako magrereview na basta basta? Edi sana hindi na lang ako nagfilm.

“Vlogs na ‘para may maiupload na lang.”—you are so unfair. If only you knew HOW MUCH EFFORT I PUT INTO MY VIDEOS AND VLOGS. Kala mo madali magfilm ng sarili araw araw para maishare sa mga taong taos pusong gustong manuod sakin? (Do you think it’s that easy to film everyday to share videos to people who genuinely love my videos?) IT TAKES EFFORT. And yung effort na yun, hindi mo maiintindihan hangga’t IKAW na ang gagawa.

“No more thorough reviews na makakatulong”—didn’t I just put out a bunch of new videos which ACTUALLY HELPED a lot of girls decide whether or not they should buy a product or not?

“I’m sorry but you’ve gone downhill.”—what a way to end your supposedly constructive criticism. NOBODY GOES DOWNHILL. It’s only the people surrounding them that wants them to believe they’ve gone downhill.

THAT’S ALL I HAVE TO SAY.

We are not robots. And I hope I addressed all your concerns in this post.

Morning Coffee Reads – HOW MUCH DO YOU SAVE? (May 14, 2014)

Goedemorgen! (That’s ‘good morning’ in Dutch)

I’m up by 7:00am today and back to writing MCR posts! :) How is everyone?

I had a late night planning for the months ahead! I re-assessed [mainly] my financial status and decided to create a whole new plan just because my current one isn’t the best one yet. I’m a 22 year old freelancer in this big, big business world, and I have to face the fact that if I want to be financially secure in 30, 40 years, I have to start now.

I made the best decision of getting a life insurance last year via Sunlife Financial; and believe me, sometimes I think it’s a pain in the ass and just an unnecessary addition to bills—but in the long run, I will benefit most from it. The best form of money spending is putting it where it will grow. INVESTMENTS!

I have laid out an 8-month trial plan which I have to stick to and I’ll definitely update you guys as I go along.

It’s easy! For every month’s worth of earnings, a percentage will ALWAYS go to the following:

- life insurance

- pure savings

- electricity bill

- PhilHealth (health insurance)

- emergency savings

Also, in a few month’s time, I’ll start with my Safety Net Project. This means being able to save up a year’s worth of your monthly earnings so that in case of an unfortunate event, you will still have a year’s worth of money safely tucked and ready to be used for anything.

All of these have to be carefully planned, actually started, and religiously followed through. Don’t break the cycle. Finish for the sake of starting.

That’s it for today’s MCR, everyone!

I’ve got a pretty long day ahead. I’m heading out to go jogging after my light pre-breakfast meal. I need to shed weight and keep it off!!! Hehehe. Also, a whole day of filming ahead. So stay tuned tonight, as I will have a new video up by then! And you guys will LOVE it.

HAVE A GREAT DAY!!!

My First Car

Hey everyone!

It’s been quite a while since I updated my personal blog! I just wanted to share something new—if you haven’t watched my latest vlog, that is! :)

I spent last weekend with Mark’s whole family. What I was looking forward to more than ever that time, was February 17—mine and Mark’s post-Valentine’s date at Bag of Beans in Tagaytay! Little did I know…something even bigger was going to happen.

The car for me FOUND ME! You read that right! It found me! Not the other way around.

Car-hunting is not a walk in the park. It’s more tedious than I thought it would be. I remember last year, we spent a whole day with Mark’s dad, Tito Larrie driving around and hopping from one place to another just to look at cars. ONE WHOLE DAY. We ended up finding the best one during our last stop. But I had to postpone buying since it was too expensive for me.

It’s a whole different thing when you buy something for yourself. I don’t get to ask my parents for money anymore. Everything is from what I save up. It’s been tough commuting all these years for myself. And so I promised…and I really swore I’d get my own car by 2014-2015.

I don’t need a brand new car, that will come siguro later pa, perhaps when Mark and I get married! A brand new car is too expensive. I considered a lot of things before even thinking about getting a car.

First, there are bills to pay. Meralco, and life & health insurance. And tax too! I have budgets for all my projects and just can’t afford to spend big bucks all at once.

Handling your own finances is not as easy as you think. This definitely made me feel like I’m all grown up na talaga.

Going back to how the car found me…

I really wasn’t looking for cars anymore that weekend, but it was a coincidence that it was offered to us while Mark’s ninong was checking out another car.

Tito Larrie asked me if I was interested to take a look. I was really hesitant, because I kind of slashed it off my priorities already. The trip to Singapore was what I was getting ready for! But I thought, oh what the heck, why not…

So we went and checked it out.

I must admit, it wasn’t LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT, but it definitely made me feel like it was the car for me.

HONDA ACCORD 1996. Not brand new, but it looks pretty decent! Take a look at the interiors!

I seriously, seriously think that it was meant to be… You know why? It fits all my “qualifications”:

• must look neat and clean (both exterior and interior)
• must be automatic (because I can’t imagine myself driving with a stick)
• must be red OR black
• must look decent, even for a second hand car
• must cost lower than ____ pesos

I looked at Mark and I knew he could see the disbelief in my eyes. “Baka ito na hinahanap mo, bi!” / “Maybe this is it, baby!” he told me.

Only a few repairs needed for the windows, and door handles. Everything is powered.

I had the whole night to think it over. I went over my savings. I was torn. Torn between buying and not buying. For the first time in my life, I felt scared of buying something.

Perhaps it was more of a fear of taking a huge step. And losing money, too.

I felt extremely overwhelmed and I sure am too lucky to have Mark help me decide. We weighed the pros and cons.

In the end, we decided to take the car. :)

I have Mark’s dad to thank for helping me with everything!!! Even Mark’s uncles and grandfather who helped check the car for defects and whatnots.

February 17 came and we didn’t go to Bag of Beans… we went to pick up the car instead!

I felt heartbroken that I had to part ways with my savings, but I also thought to myself, that this car would benefit me. A LOT.

And it has been… truly!

First road trip!!!

You can see my eyes smile… It felt wonderful. Although at this point it still hasn’t sunk in… I told Mark, “Perhaps when I see my saving accounts, it will sink in.” LOL!

Thank goodness Mark is a professional driver! He drove us home! My baby boy had his first car wash at a local car wash station!

It felt wonderful taking a huge step and making a big decision with somebody I trusted so much. Mark is seriously a keeper.

There he is!!! I still don’t know what to name him. He looks handsome, so it’s probably going to be “Ricardo”/”Antonio” lol, something that sounds Español. Any suggestions?

Mark concentrating :)

I want to cry whenever I think about all the things I went through to be able to save up for this, and many more things…

See? Goals can be reached! Just don’t let anybody stop you…

This is just the beginning of many many many beautiful journeys.

And I am happy to share this with everyone :)

Keep chasing your goals!!! You’re closer than you think.

When Hate Reaches a Whole New Level

I am writing this post to stand up for myself once and for all. People have told me to keep quiet for the longest time. But in times like this, being quiet is no longer an easy option.

I am well aware of the people who hate my guts. Both strangers and people from the same industry as I am alike. I tried my hardest to just stay away. But all these demons just keep running back. Once and for all, I wanna say my piece. Not because I owe it to anyone reading this right now, but because I owe it to myself.

I love my job very much. I love it too much that nothing can make me stop whatever I’m doing right now.

I am a graduate of Marketing at UST. I chose to work by myself after college because I think self-employment is right for me. It has been barely 7 months since my graduation and I am able to keep myself alive with all the things I call “work”.

I make vlogs and beauty videos on Youtube—yes, I am paid for that. I admit I am not the best Michelle Phan out there, but at least I don’t try to be. I make videos which feature affordable makeup products that Filipinas can try. I review products that can be found locally. When I do make makeup videos, I just do what I can. I have not and will never claim to be a professional makeup artist because I’m not. What I am is a beauty enthusiast. In addition to those, I also make vlogs to share my life to the public, think reality TV. Yes, I know this is putting myself out there, I still chose to do it because I find joy in recording my life and perhaps one day look back at them. It’s a personal choice. A lot of people in the US do it but that doesn’t mean I am copying them. There are millions of vloggers worldwide. Such a thought won’t even cross anyone’s mind if one knows that fact.

Aside from my videos, I hold makeup workshops monthly to give interested participants a starter guide on applying makeup (basics). I am new to this as I only started July 2013 with my first 5 students. Months passed and more and more opportunities came. I now hold these workshops monthly and document them on my Youtube channel and even my blog (all my social sites actually) Just like anything else in this world, you have to start at the lowest. And I did—with my workshops. I bought affordable yet still usable mirrors for all my students to use. NONE of them complained about it. I laid out all the makeup brushes and products I own for them to be able to try them all out without hesitance. I keep my workshops fun and informal because I don’t want my students to feel any kind of intimidation. That’s just my style. Little by little I was able to upgrade my mirrors into stand mirrors which I bought from Japan Home Center (last October 12, very recently, too, I must say)—clearly much better than my former mirrors (those mirrors traveled to Davao for a makeup workshop, too, so I can’t say they didn’t help, they truly did) I am now able to afford offering free makeup brushes and meals at my own expense for my students. After finishing 6 batches of my makeup workshop I thought of giving out a promotion—celebrating the “half-year” success of my classes—and that was my PHP1,500.00 makeup classes! That ended really well yesterday. Everyone was a delight to be with.

What I’m trying to say here is, I did start at a low point but that doesn’t give anyone the right to use that against me. I am building my workshops. I am not the richest person in the world to start at the GREATEST but I did try to give the best I could. There will be more and more people holding workshops in their own right and with their own reasons. Reasons we don’t have control over. And that’s perfectly fine. Some people just need to realize and accept that.

Aside from my makeup workshops, I hold mini bazaars/selling events in cooperation with Chedelyn’s Cosmetics Collection to bring it closer to people who want it. I did this after receiving a lot of requests from my online viewers. You see, Chedelyn’s is based in Cebu City. The idea of bringing them to Manila and other cities through these mini bazaars came to mind while I was in the shower. I even tweeted about how the best business ideas come into mind when I’m in the shower about a few weeks ago. I never intended it to be a big bazaar like that of the Supersale, or the Rockwell Bazaar—what I wanted was just bring it closer to the people. Some people took it the wrong way--claiming this idea was something I stole. Yes I did steal it…from my brain cells. That’s where it came from, in the first place. My intentions were pure and clean. And it was to bring Chedelyn’s closer to those who requested it. Nothing more, nothing less. Trabaho lang, walang personalan.

The topic of working with other people in the industry—they say I’m the one with the problem, I’m the one that every other guru hates, being the reason why I don’t work with them, why I’m not included in “groups”. If you know me in real life, you will know and understand why I wholeheartedly choose to work by myself. It’s my prerogative to accept or decline projects. Just because I’m not in a particular project doesn’t mean I was kicked out. Perhaps the idea of me backing out should enter your mind. Conclusions without concrete basis are just pure crap. It’s difficult to trust people. Especially after everything I’ve been through. No one can blame me if I prefer to work alone. This isn’t a high school team-up anyway. This is real life. No one ever died choosing working alone. It’s the way some things really go. Why that is an issue for some people? I will never understand.

Who knew Instagram could be so vicious? Sure, anyone can make accounts and bash anyone if they wanted to—but only up to a certain level. You see there is a “maka-tao” and “pwede pang pagpasensyahan” level and there is also a below the belt level. I won’t be speaking out if this wasn’t about the latter.

A lot of you have already seen it by this time. And all I can say is--What kind of sick person can do all of this? Only God knows. I received hate before, but not to this extent. I somehow have the idea who is behind all of this but then again, conclusion without concrete basis is just pure crap.

I can take everything they post against me—I have people who keep my head up and my spirit strong. But don’t you dare drag my partner or anyone else especially in my family because I can’t promise I won’t take serious actions.

Keep throwing stones at me.

My Vindicator is BIGGER than any of you.

Thank you to all the people who defended me. I smile at the thought that many of my readers can go out of their way to do all that for me. I am deeply touched and will forever be thankful. I will never stop doing all the things I can—because I know in my heart that I am not dragging anyone down nor stepping on anybody.

At the end of every day, there are only a few people you can really, really trust. I am watching my back.

Morning Coffee Reads (September 28, 2013)

I literally deleted the first 4 sentences I typed in. I’ve been gone for a while and haven’t written any MCR for the past weeks. The reason for that is…well, I’ve been busy. Like I always am. I never run out of things to do. Or at least that’s what I think. I have slaved my body into doing more and more and more work for the past weeks and I got what I deserved. A FLU. Yes, I got sick on the second day of the Private Selling Event (Round 2) which I later canceled because of the crazy downpour. I have learned to hate the weather because it kills businesses. That’s one thing you can’t control and what makes it so frustrating to deal with. I got sick for about 5 days. And I’m feeling a lot better now. All I had to do was REST. That was what my body was longing for. REST AND SLEEP. I also tried taking Berocca. I was a bit hesitant to continue it when I saw that it contains aspartame—that stuff isn’t good at all, I learned it from Prof. Yu in college! If it isn’t good, then WHY did they put it in the Berocca tablets?! Berocca is something I should’ve taken a long time ago. It has everything that I need to function. I lack a lot of vitamins in my body and after taking Berroca daily for 3 days, I felt that I had more energy—or at least that’s what I’d like to think Berocca did to my system. Anyway, I didn’t take it today because lately I’ve been getting headaches. It comes and goes. It’s weird. I’m assuming it’s from my intake of Berocca as it is the only thing I’ve incorporated in my diet. Has anyone of you ever experienced the same thing? If yes, let me know in the comments, please.

The last 2-3 days of this week was one of the most stressful period of my life. But I am glad I am so over that stage and back on my feet! This just goes to show that whatever they try to do to me, I will still keep on living the life that is planned for me and meant for me. No matter how many tactics they pull to ruin my name and my business altogether—it all just goes by. None of it will stay. In 100 years I will never ever see these people again. I refuse to waste another second trying to defend myself from people who see nothing but wrong in me. I don’t even have to defend myself. I have a lot to say, I do, really. But what for? I can curse them all I want, believe me I want to—but what for? There is no “starting anew” with these people. There just isn’t any more room for that. I am moving past all of this and I will try hard to forget I ever met them. I received a heartfelt email from a reader of mine with initals RL. She made me cry. I never thought someone could put the pieces of the puzzles together. I felt vindicated in her message. And that was enough for me. Thank you RL. You made things lighter somehow.

There are people you meet in life that pass by to teach you lessons, but not necessarily stay in your life forever. That’s something positive we can end this paragraph with.

Being a marketing graduate I always knew that whatever business you choose, you are bound to always have competitors. You cannot go crazy over the fact that someone does the same damn thing as you are. Unless you perhaps, patent an activity—then maybe so, you could even sue people for doing the same activity. Nobody stops for anybody. The business goes on. It’s just that some people choose to play dirty. This definitely belongs to “T” when you do SWOT/TOWS Analysis. You learn a lot with business courses.

Speaking of business courses, I have to call up UST tomorrow because they haven’t delivered my diploma yet! It’s been months! Perhaps it’s sitting at the office waiting for me to pick it up. I’ll find out in the morning. I also have to call the vet to find out the rest of the results from my dog Princess’ blood test. She’s been sick for 2 days now. Swollen tummy. First diagnosis was she couldn’t get all the feces out, but then she started vomiting. Took her back a day ago, and they told me she has an infection. Her WBC spiked for some reason. She is now taking antibiotics. She isn’t able to eat as much now because some of her teeth have fallen off. She is 11 years old. I still remember the day I took her home. I bought her from the newspaper ad I saw. I was really young and spent ALL my allowance of PHP5,500.00 to buy her. She made me the happiest. I’d rather see her live longer as an old dog that live with sickness. The vet is also not a place for me because I swear I can cry easily for animals. There was this cat right next to the operating table Princess was on and I was told that the cat had a heart disease. I WANTED TO BURST OUT IN TEARS. My heart was crushed. I don’t know why I have this connection with animals. Please pray for Princess. St. Francis of Assisi is real. Before I had 3 dogs who all had parvovirus—it’s one of the DEADLIEST. I spent all my money to buy medicine and treated them from home, and they eventually got well and are now beautiful grown dogs. I miss them. Haven’t seen them for so long. Mommy misses you Lacey, Foxy and Chichi!!! If you’re a long time reader, you will know where they are.

I was supposed to wash and disinfect my makeup brushes tonight but looks like that’s not gonna happen. I’ll wake up early to do that instead. I really HATE washing my makeup brushes. Seriously. I know I’m not the only one.

The last thing I wanna share to you is the punching bag I ordered and received 2 days ago!!! I bought it out of impulse because I watched JlovesMac’s Sexy Loser video and she had the same thing. See how implusive I can get?! Anyway it’s not a waste of money as I will be able to workout again, punch the heck outta that bag, release anger and stress, and basically have fun with it! I have 2 pairs of gloves now which I can finally use! Every once in a while I walk pass the punching bag and give it a few jabs. It’s really fun! It also doesn’t take up a lotta space as it stands on its own. Very nice. I got it for PHP5,500.00 on sulit.com.ph from the username “TorchMike” I am excited for all the other people who will be ordering it as well, I got lots of “I want to buy that too! Where did you get it?!” on IG, and believe me, I’m excited for you too! It’s such a fun activity. Anyone can do it.

Time flies, noh? September is ending. That was one quick month.

I hope my MCR wasn’t too heavy to deal with in the beginning. :) I appreciate everyone who believes in me. Expect more and more and more makeup workshops in the coming months. I will be flying all over the Philippines for this. Next destination for November is Cagayan de Oro! I am excited to travel once again.

This weekend I will be holding my workshop and the Private Selling Event in Cavite! Specifically Dasmarinas, and I can’t wait! If you need details for this you can text me at 09156218309.

That is all for today’s MCR, I hope you have a wonderful day!!!

How Do You Handle Stress

There are times when things just seem to simultaneously topple over. I hate being put in the same negative zone over and over and over. If only they can all shut up forever so everyone can harmoniously COEXIST; or coexist without having the need to establish friendship or establish anything between one another.

I’ve been thinking and thinking of ways on how to shift my focus back to where I originally was before all of this surfaced (yet again) and I came up with a list. And this list I shall share (if ever someone out there is also going through the same thing)

1. Take boxing lessons just to learn the basics of boxing (Mark actually offered to teach me, knowing muay thai and all that, for FREE of course! Yay)
2. Purchase a standalone punching bag (ordering now)
3. Punch every single day (I am excited to)

Not only do I get an outlet to release all the negativity (anger, aggressiveness, annoyance, irritability…etc) but I also burn calories! And I promise to punch every day.

1. Leave Manila for 3 days. I am in the process of planning this. I will go somewhere far, shut off everything related to work, media, bitches and all that and just find QUIETNESS
2. Reconnect with the my spirituality. With the help of my angels

This is exciting. Will definitely write more about this when they come to life soon.

Morning Coffee Reads will resume soon.

Thank you for reading this. Share in the comments how you deal with stress.

Maid of the Day (House Chores)

Well hello there!! 1:09AM (HELLO SEPTEMBER!!!) I had a productive day. I was supposed to attend a bloggers’ event earlier but I skipped it because I felt like cleaning the whole house. I love cleaning. I find it so therapeutic. When you have dogs in the house (in our case, 8 dogs) you know you need to clean every single day. I started with our main room, then moved to my sister’s computer area (cleaned out a whole lot from there!!! Alikabok is so annoying!) And then finished dusting and sweeping as usual. I moved into the bedroom CR afterwards. I scrubbed and disinfected and threw out a bunch of hair/body products which are no longer used—only displayed! As much as I love cleaning, I also love throwing away things w/o use!! The drain got clogged because of so much water and I looked for our pump for about 15 minutes. All the while it was beside the toilet, geez. I learned it was broken so I had to maneuver it in a way that it would still pump. It took me 20 pumps before FINALLY getting that one pump which cleared the drainage..thank goodness! After the CR I moved to the sala area. Lotsa dusting and sweeping and mopping happened. As well as the other room and the dining area. I washed the dishes afterwards while singing out loud—I forgot what song but I was listening to FM radio! Love it! You’d think I’d be done after the dishes—but no!

I gave my dogs a bath one after the other. And we have 8 DOGS! 1 small one, and 7 big ones (mixed breeds w/ a Labrador breed) Bathing the first 7 was a piece of cake (I didn’t have to chase them around the house, just carry them and into the bath they went) but for the last one, Harry, I still had to chase him and make sure he didn’t get away! Talk about pakipot.

Bathing them was pretty alright because I use a hose. It’s when I use a pail and a tabo that it gets too hard! I ran out of shampoo for our last dog so I used Sunsilk on her. Hahahaha! She smells lovely.

After the dogs, I gave myself a bath.

And then I went shopping at Watsons.

Yummy dinner. And now, I’m working (online) :)

How about that for a Day in the Life of Say?! I told you life is not all glamorous! But I’m proud to share what house chores I do!!! No shame in that!

I’m up finalizing details about the 2 major events I’ll be managing this September and this October! If you are reading this, I hope you support them! It would mean a whole lot to me, really.

September 14-15, 2013 Private Selling Event with Chedelyn’s Cosmetics Store Ticket PHP200.00 Read more information here: http://saytiocoartillero.blogspot.com/2013/08/private-selling-event-chedelyns.html

September 21, 2013 Batch 5 Basic Personal Makeup Workshop with Me PHP2,000 no need to bring anything! All tools and makeup will be provided!

Read more information here: http://saytiocoartillero.blogspot.com/2013/08/batch-5-open-for-reservations-personal.html

October 26, 2013 HALLOWEEN COSTUME AND MAKEUP PARTY! Only PHP400.00 for a ticket! FREE FOOD AND DRINKS ALL NIGHT!!! 18 y/o and above! 8PM-12MN!!! Lots of makeup sponsors! 2 major awards will be given (best costume/makeup)

Read more information here: http://saytiocoartillero.blogspot.com/2013/08/halloween-costume-and-makeup-party-2013.html

I do hope you can come to one/two if not all events!! It would be so much fun to meet you! We’ll have so so so much fun! And I’ll be forever grateful! :)

Last Day in Davao (Durian, Jack’s Ridge, Luggage Left Behind)

Hello dear readers!! I almost forgot to blog about my last day in Davao! So here we go… I didn’t have any blanket that night so what I did was use the bed sheet as my blanket. I also turned the aircon off because I couldn’t take it!! Taking a bath that night was also pretty scary as well because of the window. I really prefer bath rooms without windows. I kept thinking maybe there was somebody watching me!!! But there wasn’t haha. I just really wished Mark was with me that time. Ever since we got together, he’s been my security. My handsome bodyguard! Haha. My sleep was pretty alright.

Watch the vlog here! More photos in this blog entry :)

I woke up at around 8:30 or so. Showered real quick, and joined Chedelyn and Olga for breakfast. Breakfast was alright, nothing special. Rice, hotdog, tocino, egg. I felt really bad that morning because---I GOT SICK FROM DRINKING TAP WATER!!! My stomach kept growling and I kept using the toilet! I had to go to the mall to buy medicine ASAP.

And so I did. I took a cab to Abreeza Mall. Oh Abreeza mall is beautiful. I headed straight to Mercury Drug and got my Imodium and a bottle of water. I had to take it right there and then. After that, I felt much better. I went around the huge mall and I loved it! Not much people around. It was early. I went to Watsons and bought a couple of toiletries. And then headed to Digital Walker Zoom to buy SD cards! I was in luck because they were having a 30% off sale! So I got myself (2) 32-GB SD CARDS! One for my SLR and one for my vlogging camera. I was glad!! I only paid around 1,800.00 for the two. Drop by Abreeza mall and see if they still have the promo going.

I was pretty worried I would be able to fly back to Manila that night because it was raining terribly. The typhoon was getting worse. My mom texted me and told me to not rush back home because the weather is pretty bad. I still wished and prayed my flight won’t be canceled because as much as I wanna stay longer in Davao, I wanted to go home to my family, dogs and see Mark as well. And besides, I had a lot of work piled up in Manila.

I went to the Department Store and shopped for a little makeup, accessories, and bought a Nike sling bag for Mark! They were also having a sale!! PHP900+ for the sling bag which totally looked like Mark! He’s obsessed with sling bags and I automatically thought of him when I saw it on display. I had to get it for him!!

I also got myself this REALLY ADORABLE RING from iCandy! It’s gorgeous! This serves as a reminder of my first Davao trip ever!!! 

Before leaving Abreeza, I saw a FOR ME store. My heart jumped a bit and I leaped into the store. I finally bought the Someday sweater I always wanted! It’s from their new collection! I also got 2 more tops from their line until I finally had enough. The saleslady was really friendly! She entitled me to a LUXE CARD! 10% discount on all purchases wooohoo! Oh, that reminds me, I have to activate the card! I needed to buy clothes anyway, because I only brought enough clothes for 2 days. What if my flight got canceled?

After Abreeza, I went back to the hotel and packed. I also got ready for my Davao makeup workshop. Ate Emafe insisted on picking me up from the hotel and it was really nice to meet her finally in person!!! Thank you Jillian, Ate Emafe, Chris, and Mimi!! :)

The Davao Makeup Workshop went great! I had so much fun with all my lovely students! Thank you Olga and Marla for being my models!! <3 Here’s a separate post of what transpired during the event: http://saytiocoartillero.blogspot.com/2013/08/personal-basic-makeup-workshop-in-davao.html

After the workshop, I went to eat durian on the streets with Olga, Marla, Kat and  Angela! It was FIRST time trying out durian and I must say, I love Arancillo better than the native one! It’s GREAT with Coke too!!! Mmm mmm mm! Durian is the most interesting fruit I’ve ever tried.

Here’s a funny photo of my reaction upon eating the native durian (HAHAHAHAHAH!!!)

After eating durian we went to Jack’s Ridge!!! Ahhhh! I had to see the whole of Davao before leaving. Olga and Marla told me about this beautiful place overlooking the whole city! We were pressed for time but I was eager to have dinner there before my flight!

This is my I AM SO HAPPY I COULD CRY smile. The view was so BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!

Olga offered to show me around the place real quick and took photos of me!!! THANK YOU OLGA!!! <3

LOOK AT THE JAPANESE AIRCRAFT!!!! I’m not entirely sure of what happened here, but it’s a tourist spot!

My last meal in Davao

Sisig

RIBS!!!!!!!! (Remember my first meal when I got in Davao? Ribs! And I left eating the same!)

We had to rush to the airport after dinner because my flight was at 8:40PM. We got there just in time. I said my goodbyes to Olga and Marla and went to my boarding gate.

FLIGHT WAS DELAYED FOR HALF AN HOUR OR SO. I snacked on the plentiful durian goodies my friends gave me. I LOVE THE DURIAN COFFEE CANDY!!! When I visit again, I will make sure I try Durian Coffee!!!

I was losing my battery already so I had to find an outlet. I found one along the hallway and I sat on the floor. A Bisaya girl approached me and talked to me and asked if she could use the other socket. She was speaking in Bisaya so I told her, “Tagalog ako” Hehehe. She was so nice! And then when we were already called to board, I said my goodbyes to the girl. She was really friendly.

This reminds me, I think I forgot telling you guys about my seatmate in the plane going to Davao! She was friendly too! She started a conversation about work. Apparently, she’s a Mary Kay Consultant! Really cool. :)

FELT HUNGRY on the plane so I got cup noodles and a bottle of water.

I landed safely in Manila and as I descended to the conveyer belt for the luggages, I saw a Cebu Pac officer holding up a name card with my name on it. I was kinda confused. And then they told me MY LUGGAGE WAS OFF LOADED AND IS STILL IN DAVAO! I was like “WHAT?!!!!!!” I couldn’t leave it behind so I told my mom we had to wait. We went to Mcdonald’s to eat and I waited for 2 hours for the bag. UGH! First time I got so pissed.

Good thing the baggage arrived together with the last flight from Davao as they promised. If not… nako lang talaga.

It was pouring down ridiculous rain but thank God we got home safely.

I shall never forget this trip ever. I love Davao so much. And the people there are very very nice. Until next time, Davaoenos!