Isang inhinyerong sibil ang yumaong tatay ko. Matagal syang nagtrabaho sa Saudi, pero nagkaroon rin sya ng proyekto sa Ho Chi Minh sa Vietnam. Ang ilang proyekto naman nya ay dito sa Maynila. Naalala ko nga, nakapunta pa ako dati sa isang construction site dyan sa may Vito Cruz noong itinatayo pa lang ang pundasyon…
Category: Paris Posting
Dee Apilado – An Epitome of an Empowered Filipina
I first met Dee in 2018 when I was posted in Paris as a Third Secretary and Vice Consul. Dee is a ray of sunshine; she always has a ready smile, a charming face, and a vivacious personality. Dee is currently working in UNESCO as a Project Assistant in the Education Sector. She is also…
Emi in Paris
Recently, I started watching Season 2 of Emily in Paris after a long break from watching Season 1. The vibe is the same–cool, fun, trendy. What I like most about each episode is that there’s always a misadventure that Emily runs into but she almost always pulls it off. I could relate to her efforts…
A Thousand Words
A few weeks before I departed from Paris to go back to the Philippines in September 2021, I had a sudden idea. One weekend, I made it happen through the help of two people, one, a dear friend, and the other a Paris-based Filipino artist who encouraged me and thought that the idea was a…
Home
A colleague moved to a new apartment this week and relayed to me that although her new place is comfy and spacious, she was unable to sleep during the first night. That brought to mind my first night here at my place in Paris, about three years ago, when, exhausted from a day’s work, from…
Personal Narratives
Our lives are made up of different stories bound together by various themes. Unlike fictional short stories or novels, however, where the turn of events are sometimes predictable or when the characters and their actions lean towards the theme and the authors’ perspectives, real people’s stories are more complicated and more interesting. In fact, in…
Provins and Rambouillet Getaway
The past week gave me the time to go out of Paris to see some new sights, feel the warmth of the sun on my face and discover high-quality farm products. In fact, it was the search of fresh farm products that motivated the short get-away and it was only a plus that I discovered…
January 2021
It is the last working day of the first month of 2021. It just seemed yesterday when January 4 came, bringing with it both the anticipation and thrill of the new year, the reluctance to part with the fun and free holidays that offered respite to everyone working hard all year long, and the hesitation…
Glimpse of a Diplomat’s Life
What do diplomats do? In the virtual age, is the work of a diplomat still relevant? At a time when even the highest leader of the land or the head of the Foreign Affairs Department can post his/her decisions and sentiments online, available to the public within mere seconds and when news travels more than…
Beyond Routes 