It's COLD in Vienna

Coming from Manila, Philippines where it's perpetually in the 30's. We have a saying here about our weather, "we only have 2 seasons, HOT and HOTTER" It is really not hotter per we except that the humidity changes. You either have a Dry kind of hot or a Wet kind of hot day. Get the picture?

We arrived in Vienna, Austria early Late May 1998. It was spring and the weather in the 15s to 20's. this was pre internet days so we had no idea other than the warning of our choirmaster, who lived in Europe before,  to bring light jackets.  At the airport it was quite warm and so we didn't put jackets on. We waited for our organizers to show up in the arrival area and while waiting, one person in the group bravely ventured outside the airport

Suddenly he came back inside saying, "it's cold outside!!" The whole group got up and hurriedly went outside. the feel of the cold air was a reminder that we were not in the Philippines anymore. then we saw the tulips. (Tulips are imported, we don't see them much in the Philippines) Everyone went to the tulips to have their pic taken.

(Here is the group posing beside the tulips outside the airport)

Taking a Crap at the Plane

Without much sleep from the night before and a little too excited about the trip to Europe, i forgot to take care of "business" before I went to the airport.

The stopover in Taiwan was short and soon we find ourselves boarding again, this time for Vienna. We took off and right after food was served once again. I will usually eat what's in front of me, a discipline I learned growing up. It was my 2nd big meal in a span of few hours. 

It started as a rumble then a riot in my tummy. I knew I had to go. I've never used the airplane toilet before and it seems I'd have to use one now.   

There was a line and my tummy is saying, you gotta go!! Tried shifting position and think random thoughts to take my mind off. First thing I thought when coming inside, wow its small. I did my thing and flushed. SHWOOOSH! The sound startled me. To my Horror some bits and pieces did not flush away and were stuck. I tried flushing again. Nope that did not work. Water did the trick. I used the water for handwashing to loosen the bits and pieces. Flushed and it was all clean :)

I don’t think anyone enjoys going number two on a plane, but if you’re going to, there are some basic ways to minimize the impact it has on other passengers

• When you’re done, use a lot of soap when you wash your hands — airlines typically have foaming soap, and you’d be surprised by how much of a difference it can make in terms of the smell
• As a courtesy, wipe down everything you used and leave it the way you entered it. 

Orange Juice Please

Have you ever had a friend who at times makes you feel so ashamed that you want to sink to the floor when you are with Him/Her?

Flying out of Manila going to Taipei-Vienna via EV Airlines I got seated beside my choir mate, Dennis. Shortly after takeoff he  pushed the call button requesting for Orange Juice. The flight stewardess obliged his request and came over to our seats and gave him his orange juice.

Whenever the Flight Stewardess would pass he would ask for Orange Juice. After his third Orange Juice, I asked, "are you really that thirsty?" He told me, "No, But it's Free! so you should claim it." I thought to myself , but we are not the only passengers in this plane... imagine if everyone wanted their orange juice at the same time? while I was thinking that, he pressed that call button again, yep, he wanted his orange juice.

Visa Denied Because Someone Farted

Now that I think about it, it seems funny that one of the members in our group got her Visa denied due to someone farting.

Part of itinerary of our Group in the European Tour was to go to the United Kingdom specifically in London. All of our lodgings, host families, concerts were set and all we needed was a visa to UK because the Schengen Visa does not cover the UK.

We prepared our papers and went to our scheduled interview at the UK embassy. Interviews are done individually and you have to wait in line.

In one of the lines, one of the members in our tour group started to giggle. The consul at the window motioned for her to come forward to the window despite it not being her turn yet. He asked her, what's funny? Are you laughing at me? She said, "no, i wasn't laughing at you" She told him someone farted in the line and thats why she laughed.

The Consul would have none of it. Picked up her application and marked it Denied.

My choirmate would have none of it because she felt that her visa had to be denied because of the merits of her application and not because of the demeanor she showed while in a line. When she tried to reason out, the consul called for security so she could be led out.

Our Choirmaster decided that without 2 people in our small team (16 pax)  we would not push through with the UK leg of our trip.  The other one denied because she wasn't a student anymore but had a masteral degree in nursing so they were afraid she would jump ship so to speak (how ironic that now they would jump at this opportunity to hire someone of her status)

So yeah. Denied because someone farted :)

Motherly Advice

Fast forward to my 18th year of existence. We have been preparing for months now to go to Europe. First stop Vienna, Austria. Having joined the University of the Philippines Manila Chorale we were on our way to compete at the Bad Ischl Choral Festival.

 This was before Internet, we really didn't have an idea of where we were going and how much costs it would entail. My parents dropped me off at the Ninoy Aquino International airport and my mom, she took me by the shoulder and gave me an advice: 

Yep, I seriously thought she would give me advice like, don't sow your seeds. Good thing she gave me enough money to spend on food. I barely used it though. because the lack of information on where we where going I hoarded the money in case things got bad on that tour. 

They let me have disneyland all to myself... Sort of

There is an expression that says a kid inside a candy store. Well, that was how I felt after the special treat they had for us after winning in Japan. Aside from the shopping we did in Japan, and the TV I got, one of the things I remember the most is when they let us have a ride-all-you can at the Fiesta Carnival in Cubao. It so happens that my partner's manager is part of the Araneta Clan and had the connections to keep the carnival open just for us. It was weird going there at about 11 pm when all the other establishments were closed. We were the only patrons inside the carnival, with our parents of course and the usual entourage. 

To the uninitiated, Fiesta Carnival is probably the first Theme park in the Philippines. During the 80's it was the big thing. Sort of like a mini disneyland but indoors. Imagine having disneyland all for yourself :)  What I remember the most is the Go-Kart ride. It was such a treat!

The Birthday from Hell

generally don't celebrate my birthdays. It's not that we don't have the money to do so but rather...i don't really know why we don't celebrate it. Right after we came back from Japan my parents decided to celebrate my birthday. We rented seats, cooked food for those who were comingand was really ready for it. The night before I was so excited. Too bad we didn't inform Gringo Honasan, the guy staged a coup d'etat on the same day.
 To give you an idea why i was affected by this, i lived right across an army base. my family (my dad is a pastor) lived right across the logistics command center of the largest military camp in the philippines. The  logistics  command held the ordnance of the Army along with its tanks and howitzers. In a tactical decision to gain supremacy, the rebels decided to bomb this area first. 
I woke up on my birthday hearing loud cannon fire on our doorstep. It seems the rebels did not hit the buiding they were supposed to, but seems they hit the surrounding area..meaning places like the one we live in. Thank God we didn't get hurt. Someone knocked on our door and some people asked if the Yard where I was supposed to hold my party could be made into a triage area for the wounded and dying soldiers. You get an idea of my party now?  the place where i was supposed to hold my party was full of blood and guts scattered around. As the fighting intensified the combatants knocked on every door asking us to leave. We didn't need to be told twice, We got some stuff and left. Oh boy! those were fun days indeed. Come to think of it, in retrospect, this was probably my most memorable birthday.