Rest In Peace Grandma

I was not able to type out an entry so soon to follow up on the previous one because my family suffered another loss of a loved one recently.

My dearest and beloved grandma passed away on Friday morning (17^th April) in RIPAS hospital. She collapsed and slipped into a coma the previous day and never regained consciousness. She was 97. Just 69 days apart from my grandpa, who passed away last February this year.

On Thursday, most of the families were at the hospital eagerly waiting for news on her condition. We met the doctor and were devastated when he said there was no hope left and just be prepared in the next 48 hours.

She was admitted in the SICU and only two visitors were allowed at a time. All of us took turn to go in. I was anxious for my turn and keep asking my relatives about her condition but none said anything. When my turn came, seeing her lying on the hospital bed with tubes everywhere broke my heart into pieces. I was expecting her to be sitting upright in her bed, smiling and welcoming us but that didn’t happen. It pains me so much to see her that way. I shed more tears the rest of the day and went back home feeling gloomy. I was really praying and hoping for a miracle to happen.

The following morning, I got up as usual to get ready to go to work but I was feeling in doubt and knew something was wrong. I wanted to take another emergency leave from work that day. My dad was also on his way to work when he received a phone call from my uncle informing us my grandma was in a critical condition. This saddened me more. I left home just after 7am and received another call from my dad… the news that I dread to hear… my grandma had passed away. I made a turn and called my niece first. It took a while for her to answer it and when she finally did, I couldn’t speak because there was a lump in my throat. Eventually I blurted out that our grandma had passed. We both cried on the phone and there was nothing left to say.

When I reached home I woke my mom and told her the news. My dad came home a few minutes later. We busied ourselves that morning getting ready to go to my grandparent’s house in Kg. Lamunin. Her body was brought back to the house that morning while my uncle and cousins arranged for the coffin and other funeral arrangement.

I did not want to believe that she was gone. I expected to see her walking around the house, spraying ridsect on some ants or sweeping the floor…her regular activites. It pains me so much that even up till now I’m still regretting for not visiting her for the past few weeks. My last visit was before I went to the Philippine and the UK for my holiday. Now I will only have memories of her to cherish: her sweet laughter and beautiful smile.

Dearly missed by loved ones

Love you always grandma.

Country Hopping: Philippine

It has been a while since I last update my blog. Well anyways I'm back home now and thought I should spend some time updating it. So where have I been lately? Hmmm... let say 'country hopping'. I've been traveling a lot lately and I've raised few eyebrows here and there when I told them about my unusual hobby hahaha... I was in the Philippine last month for a couple of days to attend a meeting in Tagaytay for an upcoming event to be held there this November. It was my third trip to the Philippine. I've been there before in 2000 and 2006. We arrived in the evening on a direct flight from Brunei.We stayed at a very nice place called Bukal Ng Tipan (no idea what it means) upon our arrival. It is situated on top of a very high hill just outside of Manila. It has a very nice and peaceful environment and a great view of the city.
We arrived a day earlier so we had the chance to go around Manila for sightseeing and shopping. We first went around Quezon city looking for a shop that sells priest vestment and for lunch till in the afternoon, we went to the Mall of Asia (MOA), one of the biggest shopping malls in the world. Went around the mall and manage to do a bit of shopping here and there.
We left for Tagaytay on the same day and it took us about 2½ hours because of the traffic. It was a long and tiring journey. We arrived safely at the meeting venue by nightfall and rested for the night.
I recognised some familiar faces during the meeting. I met them during a conference I attended in Johor in 2006. The meeting went smoothly and I really enjoyed my short visit there. The people were very helpful and kind and also, the food was amazing! Our meals were prepared by two Italian nuns and a Filipino nun.

Sadly we had to leave a day early because there was no flight the next day and also, I had another flight to catch the day after. There are a lot of preparations to do and I'm looking forward for the next trip =)