Post-chicago blues

I wrote this article in the plane on my way back to Manila...it's a bit mushy so bear with me please...I actually cried while writing this (yep, now you know, I'm such a crybaby), good thing the lady beside me was sleeping else she'd probably think I'm crazy or something...niweis, here goes...

I can't believe I am actually going back to manila..seems it was just yesterday when I was having butterflies in my stomach for taking an international flight alone...when I first stepped in the land of milk and honey to supposedly learn more about ESS...when I first saw lynne and tita gloria at the the chicago o'hare airport...when I first took a step towards the mag mile...forgive me for being too nostalgic and mushy, it's just that the past seven weeks had been a rollercoaster of emotions for me. At one point, I thought I just shouldn't be here...my family almost fell apart just when I was a thousand miles away and it sucked too bad that I could not do much about it...but all's well now and the experience just made me believe more in the power of prayers...hey don't get me wrong...it wasn't all bad during my stay...I've met some wonderful people who have really touched my heart...there's the Rogge family who welcomed me in their home like I was family...kapamilya kumbaga...hehehe...there's nancy and her family who's house I've frequently visited everytime I go to lynne's place..julio was the sweetest and most adorable...there's liz who's already been very kind since our first meeting and naomi who's very charming and kulit at the same time...there's rich who's so kind and really tried to make me feel comfortable in the office...and of course, lynne, who did everything to make my stay in chicago memorable and fun...we may have had petty quarrels but our friendship has already gone through a lot that we can't just throw it away over some trivial misunderstandings..What she's done for me, especially on my last day, was just something I didn't expect...Hayy...all these make leaving even more painful...This is like waking up from a really good dream that you wish you could just freeze that moment in time..with a weary heart, I will now go back to manila...i will have to wake up to reality now and face my own battles with the hope that I come out of it victorious...with the changes that has happened in manila, i wonder how i'm gonna cope up...hayy...i can only hope that everything turns out fine...and who knows, baka makabalik ako ulit ng chicago...hewhewhew...i wish!!!

enough of the mushy stuff, here's a list of why I fell in love with the windy city:
1) Friendly People - admit it, when you're in manila, you rarely see strangers smiling at you and greeting you hi's and hello's...sa chicago, everyone seems to have a ready smile pag nakasalubong mo sa daan...others would even try to initiate conversation...it's kinda weird at first, pero in the long run, you'll realize na they're really just friendly...

2) Shopping - when your apartment is just right beside the mag mile, what more can you ask for??? and if that ain't enough, a trip to the outlet store is just $5 away!!! sobrang enjoy tlaga shopping dito as in!

3) Pizza - whatever flavor, whatever size, whatever brand, chicago style pizza is really something you can't afford to miss!

4) Work Schedule - this may seem kinda odd, but really, I love it when you get to leave the office somewhere around five thirty to six, reach home in about 15 minutes and still have time to do other stuffs!

5) C.W. Napkin - the only restaurant that we had our dinner delivered for something like 6 times in a week? their chicken barbecue was just delicious!!! and their chocolate cake isn't bad either! yumyum!

6) Portillo's - if it's burger and sandwiches we're craving for, portillo's the place...just a block away from anton and raymond's apartment..I love their steak and cheese sandwich!

7) Build-A-Bear at Navy Pier - I like the concept of this store...sweet and it brings out the kid in us..tapos you get to help others pa...if i get the chance to come back, I'll go build my own bear! sana lang meron pa din nung dimpled bear that I saw when we went there!

8) Long Daylight - ain't it nice to have the sun still up at 7PM? it's only til about 8PM that it starts to get dark...kinda gives you that feeling na mas mahaba ung araw mo thus, you have more time to do the things you want to do! hehehe...kinda weird at first but I think it's better than the usual thing we have here...hehehe...


that's all I can think of for now, medjo antok na din kc ako...basta, to cut the story short, gusto ko bumalik ng chicago! hehehe....