Today I was privileged to get a tour of the garbage dump Tondo, home of 1.5 million of Manila’s residents. It was one of the most humbling and disturbing experiences I’ve ever had and I still haven’t processed my experience enough to blog about it yet. For now, the...
There are times when it’s easy to lull yourself into a false sense of security with this lifestyle, telling yourself that there’s no reason the bad guys would want to hurt little old you. Unfortunately, Saturday was a tragic reminder for Foreign Service Families around the...
You can’t help being inspired by this couple, who still know how to have fun with each other after 62 years of marriage. Add to that the fact that it happened at the Mayo clinic and it became a must-share in my book!
I really like the Chinese concept of “Year of the …”. I think that fits well into everyone’s lives and allows us to concentrate on key priorities for that year. For Nick & I, this is the Year of Travel and we’ve committed to getting a minimum of 10 trips...
After 8 months of painful waiting, I was finally able to have my first taste of Tater Tot Hotdish overseas. Despite the simple ingredients in the recipe, it was surprisingly hard to execute. I battled with it for months, trying to decide if I was willing to eat a sub-par version of it or...
Today was a big day. It was the start of my pro-bono coaching work at Carewell, a local Cancer Resource and Wellness Community. If you remember back, I found Carewell in the midst of a personal crisis. Or maybe I should be cliche and say that Carewell found me. Well, no matter who found...
On Monday we got back from what could surely be titled one of those “once in a lifetime” adventures. We had left early Saturday morning and flown to Legazpi, on the Southern part of Luzon, the island where Manila is located. When we disembarked the plane we were greeted with a...
Must give all the credit to my talented husband for this great video and the underwater shots. My coordination is definitely not at the level where I can keep up with a shark and shoot video of it at the same time… thank goodness for Nick! We hope this gives you a sense of what we...
I am not sure how I got talked into this, but over V-day weekend, instead of going to a romantic dinner, I will be jumping into the ocean to swim with whale sharks. Seriously, have I lost my mind?? We will be spending the entire weekend going out in little fishing boats chasing these...
Just wrapped up part two of our two week Valentine’s Day celebration at Friendship Home. My Mom and Dad helped me kick it off last week when they were in town. Last week’s party was 1/2 Bingo and 1/2 pouch making. Mom was instrumental in planning and preparing the activities...
Awww. What can I say? I’m a sucker for weddings. Especially for my own. As you know, my big day was a 20 year event in the making. I can remember back to 7th or 8th grade when I started going to the library each week to page through the bridal magazines. I always dreamed that one...
I am simply addicted to this song at the moment. Produced by the Philippines Department of Tourism, it features 21 top Filipino artists. It’s magical! Take 5 minutes and enjoy the pictures and stunning harmonies…
Delightful, delicious Bangkok. Like Manila in many ways, but about 20 years ahead from an infrastructure standpoint and with way better food (No offense to my Filipino friends, there’s just something unique about curry). We got a four-day taste of Bangkok while my parents were...
My parents, Janet and Steve, arrived in Manila late on the 28th. Instead of letting them rest and adjust to the time change, we jumped on another airplane and flew to Bangkok, where we’ll spend the next few days discovering the city together. I’m so excited to introduce them...
My thoughts this week have been filled with curiosity around what 2010 will hold for both myself and the planet. Times are a changing. Just listening to stories about what expat life was like five years ago leaves me in awe….it’s a cool time to be alive. Found this video and...
This is a great example of a constructive use of “exercise time” at the Cebu Prison in the Philippines. You may be familiar with previous videos of Michael Jackson’s hits performed by these inmates that have circulated around the Youtube. Not surprisingly, they just...
WHOA – I was just sitting back this weekend reflecting on the fact that Nick and I just crossed the one year mark for our Civil Ceremony that took place back on January 2nd, 2009 in a Maryland Courthouse. It blows my mind to think of all the things that took place over the course of...
With my Manila adventures becoming more routine, I thought I’d begin sprinkling in a few of the “must share” ideas and products that I come across. This one is beyond cool. It’s called IdeaPaint and the basic concept is that you can turn any surface into a Dry...
The big news in our neighborhood this week was the opening of St. Luke’s Global City, a new hospital in Fort Bonafacio. With 600 rooms and 400 doctors’ clinics, it’s sure to give the current front-runner Makati Medical Center some good competition. Not that too many...
We had the pleasure of being invited to a Worst Gift Exchange Party on Thursday night. The objective was to bring the worst thing you had in your house and wrap it up for someone else’s pleasure. The thing is, I’ve been to these parties before and instead of trying to offload...
I’m sure it won’t come as a shock when I say that I’ve been a bit down lately. The six month mark hit hard, compounded by the Christmas factor. Thank goodness for Rachel’s visit or it could have been really bad! I’m pretty sure I set myself up for this...
Greetings- It’s been a full couple of days and I’m horribly behind on my posting. Just got Rachel off on the airplane this morning, so now I have a moment to catch you up on the rest of our adventures… One of the must-share experiences that we had was a trip to the...
Made my third trip to the ER in six months today. Instead of accompanying Norma or Nick though, this time it was me checking in. I wish I had some fabulous glory story to tell about what happened… alas, it was merely my klutzy-ness that got me into trouble once again. Here’s a...
Just got back from 5 glorious days in Bohol, an island in the Southern Philippines. As you know, my friend Rachel is visiting and we wanted to take her somewhere that would give her a feel of the island life (versus the chaos of Manila). Bohol had been high on our list for awhile, so we...
Day 2 was a huge success by all accounts and measures. We completed our first massage (a Lymphatic Drainage Massage at Neo Spa) and took in Mall of Asia. Avatar at the Imax surpassed all our expectations – definitely one of those must-see films to put on your list. I’ve never...
The 24 hours leading up to Rachel’s arrival in Manila were filled with non-stop pacing and a few mini panic attacks. The mix of anticipation, concern and lack of control threw me into a tizzy. Here’s the play by play. She was 45 minutes late out of MSP airport due to a hold-up...
I swear, we tried our best. There was a solid plan, we stuck to it steadfastly and yet…nothing quite turned out right. Guess we’ll just chalk it up to that old adage “The best-laid plans oft go awry.” In order to prevent you from making similar mistakes, we’d...
Ah, what a strange time it’s been lately. Holiday events wrapped up around the 15th because 50-60% of the expat population was going home. I was doing really well up until the activity stopped and have fallen Grinch-y place over the last few days. It’s just not fun when all...
I know you remember the horrible “biscuit” faux pas I made at my last tea party – well not this time! I knew a scone when I saw one and dabbed it with clotted cream and jam. Now that’s progress! This holiday tea party and ornament exchange was put on for the...
Sadly, as seems to be the case with our family lately, sickness rained on Nick’s birthday parade. :( Not exactly how you want to spend your 30th. It was just stomach issues, so we decided he could survive a small party (we refuse to let this ongoing illness ruin all our fun). We...
I was in charge of designing a holiday party for the Friendship Home kids. I was determined to make it highly memorable, introducing the kids to a few new holiday activities. It didn’t take me long to decide on cookie decorating for the main activity. Norma was in the kitchen for 2...
I’ve had some fun holiday-related experiences recently that I thought I’d share with you…been running short on time to blog lately, but I’ll try to do better next week! 1. There are lots of holiday work parties taking place right now, as you might expect. The thing...
Dear Minnesota Friends, Please stop complaining about the snow on Facebook. I do not feel sorry for you. Yes, I know it’s cold and the hairs in your nose are freezing and that you’re sick of shoveling and your car got towed in the St. Paul Snow Emergency. But that just gives...
As I lay in bed writing this post, I can honestly say that after five hours with 35 eleven and twelve-year-olds, Nick and I are officially exhausted. But it’s a good exhaustion, one of those moments of exhaustion where your body has given out but you can’t wipe the smile off...
I am well aware that I have been a horrible blogger lately and I promise to make it up to you. Soon. It’s just that there was the honeymoon and then the nasty cough decided to come back for round two. And those are my current excuses for today. Please don’t stop reading, okay...
I’m quite behind in my blogging, so I thought I’d use a moment of down time to fill you in! Nick and I are adjusting nicely to Balinese life. We are enjoying our private water bungalow and plunge pool the most. It’s the perfect place to lounge the day away. In contrast...
Greetings blog readers- Sarah here. Remember me?? Sorry for the gap in posts! I’ve really missed blogging these last few days, but the time and/or internet connection just wasn’t accessible. Right now I’m currently in between flights, hanging out in Kuala Lumpur...
As many of you know, our honeymoon had to be indefinitely postponed after our May 2nd wedding due to our transfer to Manila. We received incredibly generous wedding gifts to fund this trip and put it in a “honeymoon fund” until Nick had enough leave time accrued for us to go...
Nick took up golfing in Manila recently and even joined the Embassy Golf Club! Last night he played his first round of night golf at one of the few public courses in the heart of Manila. The fascinating thing about this course is that the 18 holes are built around the remnants of the old...
We had set the intention to put up the Christmas decorations this past weekend. Like most things in Manila, it didn’t end up going at all according to plan. The first problem we had was that none of Nick’s Xmas decor made it here and one of my boxes was missing (although I...
BIG WEEK for Embassy Manila last week due to an impromptu visit from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. It was a whirlwind day and a half visit for her while on a tour of Southeast Asia. Secretary of State visits require lots of orchestration, so each officer had a specific role during...
There once was a house that fell ill And racked up an emergency room bill. They hacked all day and night With no end in sight, Thank God the Neti Pot works better than a pill. WE LOVE YOU NETI! Thanks for clearing up our sinuses. You’re so much more reliable than Western Medicine...
After purchasing five sets of pearls for friends and family, I just couldn’t resist anymore. The pearls were calling to me. But not just ANY pearls, the Ralph Lauren set of Pearls… And by Ralph Lauren I’m not referring to cost (they were actually quite reasonable around...
On Sunday we attended a baby shower for our good friends Andrea and Brian. Nick and Andrea trained together in Washington, D.C. and have been inseparable ever since. Andrea and Brian are also immensely likable because they are fellow Minnesotans, having lived in St. Paul before joining...
Yes, it is true. We are still sick. New symptoms seem to be showing up each day. I haven’t kicked my cough yet despite all the various remedies I’ve tried. And then Nick woke up on Saturday morning and told me he had an ear infection and needed it looked at immediately. So off...
Last night was a big one for the Novak family – our first ever Marine Ball! Just to give you a little history, the Marine Corps Ball is an annual event that is celebrated each year on the Marine Corp’s Birthday. This year happened to mark its 240th birthday and celebrations...
Manila is big on bazaars. There is always one a month for the American Women’s Club of the Philippines. The US Embassy Club does two annually as well. And then there’s the myriad of church and local bazaars that spring up in other locales… point being that bazaar...
Friends, it’s been a long few weeks. I swear, our house is plagued by disease and injury. As you know, I picked up the nasty whooping cough in Hong Kong two weeks ago. It’s finally working it’s way out of my system (100 cough drops and 3 bottles of cough syrup later)...
All I can say is WOW. I am still reeling five days after seeing Michael Jackson’s This Is It. I can’t seem to get it out of my head… I struggle to even write a review of it, as the experience was more visceral than anything for me, making it incredibly hard to put into...