Mt. Jiri Hike

We went hiking up Mt. Jiri-Republic of Korea on May 3, 2008. We didn't make it to the top but it was fun.. My husband was carrying our 16 months old EJ on a baby carrier and I carried our 2 year old, Rylie, when she needed help. Amazingly, Rylie, pushed on further than any other child her age could during our climb....she is a true fighter. It was hard, we tried to keep up with the rest of the hikers but we have to make mini stops for EJ's mimi-time and diapie change. He drunk too much water. Good thing we brought some oranges with us which keep us refreshed. Finally my daughter said, "can we go back now guys, I am tired already?" So we decided to turn and go back down. We were short on time but not on will. We will make the climb again when we have more time to complete it. Forget aerobics class......if you want a great workout, strap a baby to your body and climb a mountain......whew!

This is in front of the main temple

Taking pictures while others were using the restroom at Cheond Phoung Gas Station.

This is where we end our quest lol. Our princess can't endure it anymore..

A sweet hug in exchange of going up further and seeing the falls..

Cooling down from atop the mountain..

Rylie is taking a rest.

Here's some more pictures:

EJ got scared of the inflatable figures lol..

Here's the start of the quest lol..

This was when we got back from the mountain hike... This is the place where the mini temples are..

Notice how my son is freaking out because he wanted his mim

One of the many wooden bridges going up the mountain

Mt. Jiri is a mountain in the southern region of South Korea. Some Koreans see it as one of the three most important mountains in South Korea, with Hallasan and Seoraksan (we also  went on this one) being the other two. This 1915m (6,283 ft)-high mountain is located in Jirisan National Park.

I'm worried....

Our little princess is having fever on and off for three days now and I am getting worried. I thought she's already OK today because she was playing and being her normal self again but after they dipped in the swimming pool this afternoon, she's fevered again. It started when she had her practice this Wednesday, I think she got dehydrated because her urine is very dark orange. We're giving her a lot of water and some Tylenol which helped. But now she's hot again. I'm just thankful that she is a fighter, even if she's sick, she's not cranky like most other kids do. I just wish and hope that she'd be well soon. Please pray for my baby!

Eye Catching Rugs

I always admire houses with beautiful area rugs laid out on the floor. It is always the first thing that catches my eyes especially if the house has wooden floor or tiles. Back in the Philippines where I came from, I seldom seen fancy rugs on the floor, maybe because it's quite expensive there and average people can't really afford to buy one or they don't prefer to have one.

Before we left mainland US this year, we renovated our basement and laid out new hardwood floors as a replacement for the old and rotten asbestos type of tiles that was there when we bought the house three yars ago. My husband and I agreed that the theme for our basement will be a combination of a sailors pad with an Asian feel on it. He wants to hang all the memorabilias that he earned for his twenty years of service in the Navy. We will go back to our house in the States after his retirement next year.

Bicol Pride

I grew up in a small town of Donsol in Sorsogon. It is located in the South of Luzon where you can find one of the best kept secrets in the Philippines, the gentle giants called BUTANDING or whale shark. It is one of the big five marine animals that everyone wants to see. They usually starts to show up from November to June.

We have to ride a boat from the town in order to reach our place so when my husband visited my family for the first time, he was very fortunate to saw one of them. He was so amazed how big and beautiful they are. I can still remember when local people used to catch them. But now they are being regulated by the local government for eco-tourism. Lots of tourist go there during summer just to see the eye catching creature.

This is the view where i lived..

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Another pride of Bicol is the Mayon Volcano which is known as the perfect cone volcano. It is located in the Province of Albay. Although it is dangerous when it's erupting, it is very beautiful! It look like this when she's mad! Half atop of this Mayon volcano is a tourist destination called Mayon Resthouse where you can see the pathways of the lava and magma.

source: http://www.frontierscuba.com/cf/c-whalesharks2.html

Believe IT or Not

Do you believe in the saying, "Dogs are man's best friend"? I do believe so! Back in the Philippines, we have a dog named BUDIK, he is 35 years old now (in dog's age equivalent). He was only a puppy when my father passed away. It's weird, but true, on my father's wake, Budik wasn't feeling very good, he looked so ill. He did not want to eat, no matter what we gave him, he did not even want to move. We thought for sure that he was going to die. A friend of the family told us that he is grieving too with our loss. She said for us to tie a piece of black cloth around his neck . We love Budik so dearly and we didn't want to lose him so we took her advice. To our amazement, it really did work. As soon as we did it, he slowly got up and went to his bowl with food and started eating. Isn't it weird that a dog can feel the pain of losing someone? I think he really did grieve for my father. He and my father we're so close before. They used to play and swim in the ocean.

Budik is very sweet ( as you can see in the picture). He always wants to sit in the middle of everybody especially when we are taking pictures. What I missed about him the most is his sweetness and playfulness. And when he sleeps, his four legs are all up in the air. I find it very funny and adorable. Have you seen any dog who sleep like him? Every time I see a dog, Budik always come to my mind and I miss him a lot. Whenever I talk to my mother on the phone, I always ask about him.

The picture below shows how he sleep. I find it very funny!

When John and I left my Mother's place, Budik swam and followed our boat as far as he could. It was as if he knew we were leaving for a very long time. It made me very sad. Do you have a special pet too? Can you share a story with us?