2017 Wrap Up!

I know, I know. This post is four months overdue. But who says I can only write a year-ender post at the end of the year or at the beginning of the new year?!

The first quarter: Anniversaries and Roger Federer's 18th GS title!

Anniversaries. This quarter celebrated a lot of anniversaries. First and foremost is my 4th year anniversary with Kevin. I was in Manila that time, but we didn't have any fancy celebrations because it was Kevin's brother's wedding the following day, so it was a hectic time for his entire family. We just ate dinner in Eastwood City to celebrate. Next anniversary is my parents' 25th wedding anniversary. I flew to Manila again, along with my dad, to celebrate. We checked in at Ascott BGC. We booked only the 2-bedroom suite, but they upgraded our room to a 3-bedroom one. We've checked in to many hotels already, but this was our first time to get a free upgrade! What a beautiful gift to my parents! Lastly, of course, I also celebrated my blog's 1st year anniversary! I did a small giveaway to commemorate it.

Roger Federer's 18th GS title. It may seem weird to put this to wrap up my 2017, but this event is a memorable one for me. If you know me personally, or if you follow me on Twitter and read my tweets, you are aware that I am a massive fan of Roger Federer. Before this, Federer has not won any grand slam title in 5 years. Throughout those years were a nightmare for the fans: he was plunging down from the rankings, he was losing on his first round matches, he was plagued by back injuries, and he had a major surgery for the first time in his career. The surgery made him take a 6-month long break from tennis. Many critics and analysts have claimed that he would never win another grand slam again, and his career is basically over. But then, the 2017 season came, and he won the first grand slam, the Australian Open! To make the win even sweeter, he beat Rafael Nadal. Federer has not won a grand slam event against Nadal since 2007! The match was an intense 5-set match. Ahhh, I still remember how happy I was when he won the championship point! I have always believed he will win another title, and he did!

The second quarter: Travels, birthdays, and Kevin in Singapore 

Travels. For the third time this year, I flew home to Manila again for my sister's graduation. In May, I travelled to Cambodia and Thailand with my college girlfriends. 

Birthdays. Kevin celebrated his 26th birthday in April, while I celebrated my 25th birthday in June. For my birthday, my family and I travelled to Bintan, Indonesia to celebrate. In addition, as a gift to myself, I upgraded my camera to an Olympus OM-D EM-10 Mark II (phew, what a long name!). 

Kevin in Singapore. Kevin came to Singapore in February to try his luck for a job. After his 30-day social visit pass was up, he went back home to Manila. While he was here, he only got one interview. Fortunately, he passed all the stages, and they offered him the job. We waited for more than a month for the all his papers to be processed, and his employment pass to be approved. At the end of April, he flew back to Singapore, and started his job in May. It is so hard nowadays for foreigners to get a job here, and he's so lucky to get one! I'm so happy and proud of him! Our long-distance relationship is finally over! #LDRNoMore! 

The third quarter: IPL and Formula One 

IPL. I am sick of having my underarms waxed every 2 or 3 weeks, and how expensive it is compared to the prices in the PH (S$ 20 per session!!!), so I started researching about IPLs. There are lots of salons offering IPLs here in Singapore, but the one which stood out for me was Strip. I bought a 6-session IPL underarm package. Thankfully, they have a promotion when I bought the package, so I got to save a few hundred dollars. Anyway, I think it's worth it despite the high price tag. I saw the results just after the first session. As of this writing, I just finished my last session, and my pits are virtually hairless. If you are curious, I got my package for S$500; original price is S$800 for females. 

Formula One. The Formula 1 Grand Prix in Singapore happens every September. I became a fan of the sport just last year, and from then on, it has been my dream to watch a race live. Unfortunately, tickets costs a fortune (no surprise there, though, it's Singapore!). Although, there are "cheaper" tickets, I prefer the main grandstand where I can see the garages, and the start and finish lines. Anyway, I have already accepted that there is no way I can watch the race live, so just to feel the hype of the event, Kevin and I went to the city to just randomly roam around the surrounding area where the grand prix takes place. It was the qualifying session on the day when we went, so we heard the loud but beautiful sounds of the cars' engines. There was also a concert on going, and we heard Arianna Grande's singing. While walking, we saw a terrace in a mall, and there were lots of people swarming it. It turns out, from there, you can see the cars passing by. The view was not bad at all. It was so surreal! I can't believe I saw the cars! This experience really increased my desires to watch a race live! 

The fourth quarter: More travels! 

My last quarter of the year was spent on a high note as I have travelled to four cities. 

In November, I travelled to Beijing with Rajni, my office best friend. I hope I can blog about it soon as I have enjoyed that trip so much! I fell in love with Beijing! (Edit: Check out my first post about our Beijing trip here!) 

In December, Kevin and I travelled to two cities in Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur and Melacca. We finally saw the Petronas Twin Towers, and we celebrated our 5th anniversary in advance by eating at a fine-dining restaurant. We went to the historic state of Melacca afterwards where we celebrated Christmas.

Before the year ended, I flew to home to Manila for the fourth time to welcome the New Year's with my family. I also met my high school friends, whom I have not seen for many years. 

——— 

So that's how my 2017 went. I thought 2016 was already an exciting year, but 2017 proved it not! I am so thankful to God for letting me experience all these things with my loved ones. As usual, I hope 2018 will be even much better!