Philippines: Boracay

 Getting to Boracay from Manila takes a plane, a bus, and a boat, but the voyage is definitely worth it! Boracay is obviously a tourist destination, cramped with hotels, malls, restaurants, mixed with the residences of the locals. But everyone is nice and there's a small town feel to it. Don't be surprised to run into people you've met on the plane or the bus over the course of your vacation.

Beach dog!

On our first night there we spotted this dog digging through the sand like nobody's business but as soon as we got close to take a pic, he quickly stopped and slumped on the ground like he wasn't guilty of anything.

Getting my hair cornrowed. I ALWAYS wanted to do that, & felt like Monica from the TV show Friends (minus the beads)

The water is so clear and there are even fishes swimming with you near the shore. My cousins and I went helmet diving which was the highlight of my trip, but sadly the company responsible for sending us pictures of that flaked(i think it was b/c i threw up in their truck?). but oh well. it's all good, because I'm definitellyyyy going to do it again someday! I thank my cousins sooo much for this getaway. If you're looking for a beach with friendly locals, nightlife, and activities - Boracay is your place to be! Do I sound like a travel agency?

Philippines: Baguio

Let me introduce to you one of my favorite places of the Philippines - the beautiful mountains of Baguio! Why do I love it so much - it's simple, really. The air. The cool breeze. The weather there is like fall in New York, not too cold, not too warm. I am not a summer-weather girl by any means, so a break from the tropical weather was so lovely.

The only negative thing I have to say about my experience there - and will be the negative aspect of ANY place that I visited or will visit in the future - is their exploitation of animals for tourism purposes. In Minesview Park, they had small horses working till they looked so obviously tired, having person after person ride them and pose for pictures. They even dyed their beautiful manes crazy colors. They also had dogs posing with people, and one dog looked so tired he sat down on the chair where people were supposed to sit. Seeing this made me so upset, I wanted to leave the park immediately.

Even though Philippines is the place of my ancestors, I will not be silent on or accept their treatment of animals.

Philippines: Tagaytay

Tagaytay has some beautiful volcanoes, and a small amusement park where you can ride this (air-conditioned) ferris wheel and see all the beautiful sights.

Philippines: Antipolo

As soon as I landed in Manila, my aunt & uncle took me to the cathedral where my parents got married. It's located on a hill & is really beautiful.

Antipolo Cathedral

Antipolo is located right outside of Manila, and it's where I'll be staying for my six week trip.

The atmosphere is chill, hot, and busy. Everyone is working, everyone is hanging around. Even the animals are chill and unafraid of people.

The jeepneys deserve their own post. No two truck is the same, and everyone uses it to get around. Sometimes you'll see people hanging outside at the end of the truck if inside is full. I never rode one, mostly because it's too hot and crowded, and I could already guess what the experience will be like just watching, haha .

More soon!

Here's to new beginnings.

I'm about ten days late, but HAPPY 2016! 2015 has been awesome, and I hope yours was too.

In 2015 I:

-acted a lot, & learned a lot about the craft (I love referring to acting as The Craft).
-filmed in a couple of student films, one of which I had a lead role & the other required me to dance (bad) ballet moves in the middle of a subway station.
-graduated college with a BA in Psychology & my scholarship still in tact.
-Worked, worked, worked (in a vegan restaurant owned by my favorite & most nicest chef) and saved up enough money in order to travel 10,000 miles by myself across the globe to...
-THE PHILIPPINES! Finally visited my family members (including my adorable grandmother) which has been a dream of mine for so long.
-Went helmet diving & parasailing in Boracay
-finished a couple of drafts of my manuscript & have come a long way in making it something query-able.

I am so grateful and feel blessed for all that happened in 2015. Did I accomplish everything that I wanted to in 2015? Maybe not, but that's what's going to make 2016 awesome. Every year we should strive to step it up and live without fear. I think fear is the most crippling thing to let overtake us. Fear of failure, fear of being criticized, fear of embarrassment, fear of being rejected, fear of so on and so forth. We create plans in our heads, then worry about those plans - how will we execute them, how will it all work out. Why worry about these things when it's up to God. We shouldn't worry about our plans, but instead look to what God has in store for us, and whatever that may be - pray for acceptance of it.

There are many things that I *hope* will come to fruition in this upcoming year. One of which is getting in shape and losing my Freshman 15, Sophomore 15, Junior 15, and Senior 15. My go to strategy plan for this is following a healthy vegan diet, and exercising, and portion control. Wish me luck!

2015 has been wonderful mainly because I strived to reach out of my comfort zone one step at a time. This year, I hope to do work in more acting projects, possibly get my SAG card, and just get back in the swing of learning and auditioning. I also want to try my hand in modeling and working in front of the camera and learn how to be confident in front of it.

But if you know me very well, you can probably already guess that my number one dream is to become a published author. I am currently in the middle of the fourth draft of this fantasy manuscript & since I don't have school, I hope that I can have time to finish it and finally beginning the process of querying agents. I'm going to work hard to make 2016 THE. YEAR.

Even if I don't accomplish any of this however, I want to look back at 2016 and know that I've done my best to serve. I have to be reminded of how lucky I am, even in times of despair, and the only way to express that gratitude is to give back. My new years resolution is to volunteer more and find a job that gives back to the community in some way.

But like I said earlier-- it's all up to God. Whatever plans He has for us, know that it is made out of love. I hope you have a healthy, happy new year!!! 2016 will be the best year yet.

Catskills Animal Sanctuary, & New Headshots!

For my graduation present, my parents took me to Catskills Animal Sanctuary! It took 2 hours to get there, but I love road trips. My mom and I were the only ones in our group for the tour, and our tour guide was so nice and so knowledgable! It was a relief to finally be amongst people who loved animals just as much as I did, and knew even more about the sufferings these animals go through for the expense of human taste.

I wish I took more photos, but I was too "in the moment" with nature, haha.

I also read this amazing book "The Sense of an Ending" by Julian Barnes. Amazing book on nostalgia, memory, and reflection.

On June 6th, I went to take my first headshots! I've been wanting to get into acting more, so getting a headshot is essential! The photographer was really nice, and I plan on going back to get new ones.

Not gonna lie - I am not a fan of my face. haha!