Michi Photostory

Hong Kong is on my bucket list and I was happy that I finally ticked it off on my list. Whenever there’s international seat sale, I always check Hongkong but I wasn’t lucky in booking a flight. It took me years before I was able to score a cheap fare during P1 seat sale and would you believe it was only P2000+ for 3 persons. 



One way fare only because I booked another flight from Macau so I could save time and ferry fare. I'm sharing with you, our Hongkong and Macau itinerary when we went there last November 2012, I’ve revised it so many times because of the weather but still, we enjoyed our stay especially in Hong Kong Disneyland. 

They say one week is not enough to enjoy Hongkong but since we want to do Hong Kong and Macau in one trip, I need to choose the tourist spots that we’re going to visit in four days. 

Hongkong

Upon Arrival in HKIA, we immediately went to Yiu Fai Guesthouse to check-in our luggage before starting our tour. We rode A21 bus going to Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) fare is $HK33. From bus stop we walked to the Golden Crown Building where the guesthouse is located. 

Day 1 City Tour at Tsim Sha Tsui and The Peak

We visited 1881 Heritage, Clock Tower and Avenue of Stars which are all walking distance from TST area. 



From TST, we took the MTR going to Central Station and head to Exit J2. We just follow the signs going to lower Peak Tram terminus where we will ride Peak Tram. We rode the Peak Tram to reach “The Peak”. My husband was not interested in Madame Tussauds so we did not buy package ticket just a roundtrip Peak Tram ticket. 

Day 2 

Chin Lin Nunnery
Nan Lian Garden
Ngong Ping Village   

We woke up early on our second day because we will visit Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Garden. It was surprising that there is a garden in the midst of a busy city.  



After that, we proceeded to Ngong Ping Village. 



Shopping is not included in our itinerary but we did a quick visit in City Gate Outlet because we need to buy some clothes. We need warmers to survive the coldness of Hongkong weather. 

Day 3 and 4 Hongkong Disneyland 

From Yiu Fai Guesthouse we transferred to Disney’s Hollywood Hotel for our next accommodation. We spent our two remaining days in Hong Kong Disneyland. We let go the Ocean Park because we’re more interested in Hongkong Disneyland and my son really adores Mickey Mouse. 



Read: Disney's Hollywood Hotel  
Day 3 Hong Kong Disneyland
Day 4 Hong Kong Disneyland

Tips:  If you are on a budget you can eat at Chef Mickey’s Restaurant for breakfast but if you want the meet and greet experience with Disney characters, book your breakfast in Enchanted Garden. 

Read: Chef’s Mickey Restaurant

If you are looking for affordable fast food in Hong Kong, you can try Cafe de Coral, they have branches everywhere. 

Read: Cafe de Coral  

Now I know why people always go back to Hongkong, if only I have the budget, I will go back again. Bitin ang 4 days. 

After Hongkong Disneyland, we went straight to the Sheung Wan Ferry Pier. We refunded our money on the Octopus card and bought a ticket at TurboJet Counter. 

Read: Travel Guide: Hongkong to Macau

Macau 

We stayed in Hotel Sintra, I chose this hotel because of the location. It is walking distance to New Yaohan Mall, Tourist Spots and Hotels. 

Read: Hotel Sintra

We had two whole days to roam around. Macau is not only for people who love casino because there are several things that you can do in Macau. Sharing with you our Macau itinerary. 

Day 5 Macau City Tour

Walking Tour



We visited the famous tourist spots such as Senado Square, St. Dominic Church, Ruins of St Paul, Macau Museum and Monte Fort. Then we went back to our hotel to rest. 

Then we went to Michael Jackson’s Gallery in Sofitel, no entrance fee. We're not really a fan of MJ but since this is a free museum, we paid a visit. We went back to Senado Square for night photo. 

Day 6 Fisherman’s Wharf and Hotel Hopping

We woke up early to finish our itinerary. We were not able to watch Prosperity show because it was under maintenance so we went straight to Fisherman’s Wharf. It is a tourist spot near Macau Ferry Terminal.



Then we started our Hotel Hopping, we visited Grand Lisboa, Wynn Hotel, City of Dreams Hotel and Venetian Hotel. We watched Bubble Show at City of Dreams. We only experienced Bubble Show because Dragon’s Treasure, Prosperity Tree and Fountain Show are under maintenance. 



Finally, we went to Macau International Airport. Back to Manila, Philippines. 

Tip: Take advantage of the free shuttle bus of different hotels. We did not spend any money for our transportation in Macau. We just walk or ride shuttle buses. 

There are free food tastes on your way to Ruins of St Paul. This is also the place where you can buy pasalubong. 

Do not forget to taste the famous Portuguese Egg Tart and Lechon Macau. 

Read: Food Trip in Macau

Hongkong and Macau Itinerary

Day 1 City Tour at Tsim Sha Tsui and The Peak
Day 2 Chin Lin Nunnery
Nan Lian Garden
Ngong Ping Village 
Day 3 Hong Kong Disneyland
Day 4 Hong Kong Disneyland
Day 5 Macau City Tour
Day 6 Fisherman’s Wharf and Hotel Hopping

Our Day 4 Advent Calendar Activity yesterday was “Bake a Cupcake”. Since last year, my son wanted to bake a Rainbow Cupcake but it took me a long time to fulfill his wish. If you remember my post last year, we tried to bake a rainbow cupcake but I only had two food coloring at home so we ended up baking a Christmas Cupcake. 

Read: Bake a Christmas Cupcake



So every time I go to supermarket, I always check the food coloring and I was able to buy 3 primary colors which is red, blue and yellow. But the problem is, I can’t find the white cake mix. Good thing, I saw the Pillsbury White Cake Mix two months ago at S&R so I bought 3 boxes na because bihira ko siya makita. The cake mix is more or less P80. 

I did not bake this immediately because I will include this in our Advent Calendar Activity. To make the long story short, we baked Rainbow Cupcake yesterday. 



Since I’m using a ready cake mix, all I need to do is add 3 eggs, 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup water then mix everything. I divide the batter in 6 bowls then put food coloring. 

I have the primary colors, so I just mix two colors to produce secondary colors which is violet, green and orange. O di ba, instant art lesson pa. My son was really happy in mixing the batter. 



Then I put the batter in baking cup according to rainbow colors, red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet aka ROYGBV. Yes I know, kulang ng indigo. Hehehe! 

We baked it and we’re so happy with the result. Finally we did it. We’re so happy to see the layers of the color and I can definitely say that we will do this again. But next time, 1/2 full na lang yung batter para di lumagpas yung cupcake sa baking cup. 



Rainbow Cupcake Recipe 

1 box of Pillsbury White Premium Cake mix 
1/2 cup oil 
1 cup water 
3 eggs 
Food coloring 

1. Set oven to 350F. Coat bottom of pan with no-stick cooking spray or shortening and a flour dusting. For Bundt cake, coat an entire pan. For cupcakes, use paper baking cups. 
2. Beat cake mix, water, oil and eggs in bowl with mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes. 
3. Divide batter in separate bowls. Add food colors and mix. 
4. Pour batter into muffin pan. One color at a time.
5. Bake at 350F for 19 to 23 minutes. When a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, cake is done. 
6. Cool for 10 to 15 minutes before removing from pan. Cool cake completely before frosting.

One thing I look forward every Christmas Season is visiting different bazaars. There are 3 bazaars that I frequently visit during the past several years such as Noel Discovery Bazaar, World Bazaar Festival and St James Bazaar. 

Read: List of Christmas Bazaars 

St James Bazaar was established in 1991, so they just celebrated their 25th anniversary last week. It was built to raise money to build the church in Ayala Alabang Village which is the St James the Great Parish Church. 

I only learned about this bazaar when I moved to Southern Luzon, there are tarpaulins near Alabang Town Center area. At first, I was hesitant to visit this bazaar kasi feeling ko pangmayaman at nasa Ayala, Alabang. 

2008 was my first visit in St James Bazaar, as in baby pa anak ko. But during that time, there are only few stores but few years ago nag-improve na. Now, there are more than 500 concessionaires in the bazaar. 



8 Reasons Why I Love Shopping at St James Christmas Bazaar? 

1. Location 

Most of the bazaars are in Metro Manila, I live in Southern Luzon so Alabang is my good option to avoid the city traffic. I also save more in toll and gas. 

2. No Entrance Fee 

Some bazaars has P75 or P100 fee but St James Bazaar has no entrance fee, the best thing in life is always FREE. Big savings for me or else, I will pay for 3 tickets which is pang foods and drinks na rin yun.

3. No Parking Fee

Aside from no entrance fee, there is no parking fee but there are times that it is hard to find a parking slot so you need to go there early or be ready to walk far.

4. Money? 

No problem if you ran out of cash because there are ATM machines in the area where you can withdraw and some stores accept credit card transactions too.

5. You will not get hungry or thirsty 

There are food stalls too where you can buy drinks and food. In some bazaars that I’ve visited, there are no available tables and chairs, so nakatayo kakain. But in St James Bazaar, no need to worry because there are tables and chairs when you dine. We ate at Ineng’s Barbecue and Ellies Roasted Calf during our last visit. 

6. It is Like a One Stop Shop 

When I say One Stop Shop, it means there are different stores that will cater to different customers. They sell foods, beverages, jewelry, accessories, home decor, personal care products, toys, clothes, stationery and many more. 

I prefer going to bazaar because there are products that are not available in the mall. There are online stores that I follow in social media that have kiosks in St James Bazaar so it saves me from shipping fee. I just buy products at the bazaar and sometimes they have promo too if you buy there.

7. Activities and Raffle Prizes

If you are into contest, you can join the different activities or you can buy raffle ticket to win some prizes. 

8. You Can Help 

You can help because the proceeds of the 4-day bazaar will be given to St James Parish Church. Not only that, you can help small entrepreneurs in earning money. Yes, support small businesses. 



I won’t share photos muna because some of the stuff I bought is panggift. Hehehe!

Yey! Nakahabol sa last day... #stjamesbazaar #bazaar #christmasbazaar

A photo posted by michisolee (@michisolee) on Nov 26, 2016 at 10:10pm PST

The not so fun part of traveling via airplane is waiting. You need to be at the airport 3 to 4 hours before your flight. Sometimes there is delayed or canceled flight so you have no choice but to wait again. 

If you have a connecting flight, you need to wait or run to the next boarding gate to catch your next flight. Or the worst case is sleeping at the airport. It happened to my husband when he went to Yangon, Myanmar.

Read: Glimpse of Yangon, Myanmar



There is no direct flight to and from Yangon, Myanmar so he has no choice but to have a layover in Bangkok, Thailand. Going to Yangon, Myanmar is not a problem but going back to the Philippines is the problem. 

Yangon to Bangkok Friday 

19:50 Yangon, Myanmar, Union of Mingaladon 
21:45 Bangkok, Thailand Suvarnabhumi International Airport 

Bangkok to Manila Saturday 

07:45 Bangkok, Thailand Suvarnabhumi International Airport 
11:55 Manila, Philippines Ninoy International Airport 

He has no other option but to wait for his connecting flight which is the following day. A 10-hour layover is no joke, I experienced that too at Thai Airways. Weird noh, same experience namin but different destination. Hehehe! However my experience was different because I waited from afternoon till my midnight flight but my husband needed to sleep.

I did not search for day rooms in Bangkok Airport because I’m confident that there is a transit hotel there sa laki ba naman ng airport nila. He can also go to Novotel Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel which is 0.15 kilometer away from the airport. 

The good thing about the Novotel Bangkok Aiport Hotel is they have no set check-in time, so you can arrive anytime you want and check out 24 hours later. They also have a 24-hour shuttle that transports guests to and from the airport every 10 minutes. 

According to my husband, he needs to pay 700 baht (not sure if travel tax) if he goes out the airport and comes back the following day so he chose to look for a transit hotel in the airport.

He found one at Concourse G but unfortunately, it was already fully booked. Thank God, there is available room for him at Louis’ Tavern Transit Hotel Dayrooms Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel. It is situated in Suvarnabhumi Airport’s transit area on Level 4 Concourse A. Lesson learned, do not forget to book accommodation. 

What is nice about this transit hotel is you don’t need to go through immigration again. You are literally sleeping at the airport because of your view. 



The rate is 137USD for 6 hours use + set breakfast meal. Yes, it is not affordable. It is expected na when you’re inside the airport, everything is expensive even bottled water. 


So in case you need a room for your layover, you can stay in this dayroom.

Traveling is really fun, I always look forward to visiting new places and experience new things. Our family loves to travel if time and budget permit but I guess traveling for work is not fun at all.

It’s been more than a year that my husband travels a lot because of work and I am not really happy about it because he is always miles away from us. I am thankful before that he did not choose to be an OFW but now it seems that I have an OFW husband.

Whenever people hear that my husband travels a lot, the initial reaction is “Wow, ang saya naman” or “Wow, ang suwerte naman ang dami napupuntahan”. If my husband is still young and single, maybe work traveling can be fun.


But for someone who has a family, it is not amazing at all. The truth is a family trip is very different from a business trip. So I will share with you why travel for work is not fun at all, the way I see it.

1. Less Time for the Family  

Yes, this is the first reason why work travel is not enjoyable because you will be away from your family. Even there is a technology that connects you like video call, nothing beats the personal presence.

If my husband has a business trip, most of the time he is not home either Saturday or Sunday because he needs to travel the day before or the day after his work schedule.

Weekends = Family Day, but he is not with us so most of the time we just stayed at home when my husband is not at home.

2. Irregular Work Schedule  

If you will not travel for work, the regular working hours is 8-5PM except if you need to render overtime without pay or with pay if your company offers that. But if you have a business trip, you need to wake up as early as 12AM because as a general rule, you need to be at the airport 3 to 4 hours before your flight.

Then sometimes you can’t sleep yet because you are waiting for your boarding time which is 12MN or 1AM. The worst-case scenario is you need to sleep at the airport because the next connecting flight is the following morning.

You need to adjust to different time zones. It is not enjoyable to adjust your body clock. Sleeping and waking time is very much affected.

3. You Have No Time to Enjoy 

Work travels allow you to stay in luxury hotels but the problem is, you have no time to enjoy the amenities and facilities of the hotel. Most of the time you will just sleep and eat in your hotel because you are already tired. You tend to work longer hours if you are on a business trip because you need to finish your agenda.

4. You Miss Home Cooked Meals 

Yes, you can eat in the restaurant but the problem is, you are not sure if you will eat those foods. If you travel, expect that foods are not the same. Sometimes you will eat the same hotel breakfast food every single day.

So when my husband is home, he eats a lot and missed my home-cooked meals even it is already our leftover food. Especially if he came from a non-pork eating country.

5. You Missed Important Occasion, Events and Holidays 

If you have a business trip, you can’t just say “No, I can’t go because it is my wife’s birthday, my son’s recognition or whatever reason you have”. So there are times that you will miss the important occasions, events and holidays. Yes, even holidays because you already booked the flight before the government announced that it was a special non-working holiday. I experienced that a lot of times like APEC and EDSA holiday.

6. You Cannot Just File Sick Leave 

Even you are not feeling well, you can’t just message your boss that you will file a sick leave. You have work to do that needs to be finished before you went back to your home country.

It is not easy to buy over the counter medicine if you are overseas. Good thing my husband was able to buy medicine when he was in Thailand. Lesson learned, do not forget the medicine kit.

Update: March 2020 
7. You Can’t Say NO When You Need to GO 

Lastly, you cannot say no when you need to go because if you don’t travel, it means you are not doing your job. As of this writing, there is a coronavirus that greatly affected several countries around the world and because of this, there were canceled business trips. But it’s been two months already and there is still coronavirus.

There are works that need to be done so my husband and other employees who need to travel for work have no choice but to travel despite the coronavirus health scare. Life must go on!

Here are my 7 reasons why travel for work is not fun. Despite all of these reasons, my husband is not looking for a new job and he does not need to check out ORB for sales associate resumes.

I have to admit that there are perks in traveling for work because you can visit different countries and places for free. You can stay in luxury hotels and try different foods. We can expect pasalubongs. Hehehe! But the bottom line is traveling for work is not as glamorous as it sounds.

Myanmar is not on our bucket list so we really have no idea about this country. A few weeks ago, my husband told me that he might go to Myanmar and he asked me, ano bang meron don? Hehehe! 

Honestly, the only thing I know about Myanmar is the famous Hot Air Balloon in Bagan. But my husband is going to Yangon, Myanmar so I searched for this place and I said, parang puro temples don. 


There is no direct flight from the Philippines. He checked the different options and Thai Airways has a nice flight schedule. Manila to Bangkok to Yangon, Myanmar. It was a long flight including the layover. 


If you’ve been a regular reader of this blog, you know for sure that my husband doesn’t like taking pictures. So even if he’s been to different places, there are no souvenir photos. The last time I blogged about his trip was four years ago, ang tagal na nung Shanghai so now I will share some photos about his recent trip. There is a miracle, he took some photos so we can see Myanmar.  

Read: Glimpse of Shanghai, China  

Hotel in Myanmar: Taw Win Garden Hotel 

My husband stayed in Taw Win Garden Hotel which is 30 minutes away from Yangon International Airport and 10 minutes away from the city center and Shwedagon Pagoda. 

Taw Win Garden Hotel is a 4-star hotel that offers gymnasium, sauna, indoor jacuzzi, salon services, spa treatment and salon services. There are four restaurants in the hotel; Thiri restaurant, Su Chinese restaurant, K Khine Restaurant and Lobby Bar, and Lounge. 

This is the room. 




There is free wifi but the connection is very unstable hindi man lang kami makapagvideo call. When my husband was out, he could not have a good phone connection too. 

Shwedagon Pagoda

Since this is a business trip, my husband has really no time to explore the tourist spots so after 4 years, now lang ulit siya natour. After work, his officemate brought him at Shwedagon Pagoda which is few minutes from his hotel. 


You need to remember to dress conservatively when you visit pagodas, temples, and monasteries. In addition, you need to remove socks and shoes when entering religious buildings, restaurants, or even entering someone’s home.


From the parking lot, my husband was surprised because they would walk barefooted. So they left their shoes in the car and walked to Shwedagon Pagoda. This is also known as Golden Pagoda, a famous and most sacred site in Yangon.


It is 326 ft tall and made of bricks but covered with gold and the crown has gems. My husband informed me that people all over the country, rich or poor donate gold and gems to maintain the pagoda. According to his officemate, mas maganda daw sa gabi kasi may light which I’ve seen on the internet. 

Entrance Fee: 8000 kyat

Salient points to be observed by the pilgrims/visitors

1. Must not wear ladies blouse with wide or deep hives.
2. Must not wear above knee short pants and skirts.
3. Must not wear shoes.
4. Must not wear socks and stockings.


White Elephant Garden

Then they went to the White Asian Elephants. It is not the usual elephant that we see in the zoo. It is an albino elephant but mukha siyang pink elephant sa kin. Hehehe! There are three elephants here but at that time, hubby only saw two elephants. 


Some people said that this white elephant is a symbol of royal prosperity, and power and brings good luck to the country. The elephant looks like a statue maybe because they have chained in their paw so very limited movement lang.

Well, that’s it! I hope my husband will take photos again on his next trip. Hehehe! 

The currency is Burmese Kyat

Taw Win Garden Hotel 
45 Pyay Road Dagon Township, 
Yangon, Myanmar

Shwedagon Pagoda
Yangon Division,Myanmar

Four Entrances

South - Shwedagon Pagoda Road, Kandaw Min Road, Arzarni Road. 
West - U Wisara Road
North - Arzarni Road
East - Arzarni Road, Gyatawya Road

Read: Parkroyal Yangon Hotel

Two years ago when I first started making DIY Advent Calendar and my son really enjoyed the everyday activities. But this year I was not planning to make Advent calendar because I don’t think my son is still interested and we have very limited time during weekdays. Blame it to homeworks, quizzes and exams.

So I was really surprised when my son mentioned “Next month, we will change this calendar, we will put the Advent Calendar”. He was referring to our calendar hanging at the back of the door. Waah! I thought graduate na kami sa Advent thing, hindi pa pala. 

Here I am, cramming again to finish my project before December 1. Thank God for Pinterest where you can search for Advent Calendar Ideas. I've already used the old Advent Calendar for the last two years so this time, I made a new one so I don’t have to remove our calendar. 



Christmas Countdown in a Box 

I used the free printables of Dating Divas that I received on email. I printed the blank countdown cards so I can write my own activities. I just put labels on the old box where I will place my countdown cards. Sharing with you our activities next month. 



December 

1 Measure your Christmas Tree 
2 Make Christmas Card 
3 Sing the 12 Days of Christmas 
4 Bake a Cupcake 
5 Drink Hot Chocolate 
6 Read a Christmas Story 
7 Go to Bed Early Tonight 
8 Read “Legend of the Candy Cane” 
9 DIY Paper Star (origami) 
10 Do a Chore 
11 Name all of Santa’s Reindeer 
12 A Special Christmas Treat 
13 Listen to fun Christmas Music 
14 Study about Advent Wreath 
15 Use Tissue Tubes and Construction Paper to Make Santa or Elf 
16 Watch Christmas Movie 
17 Make Homemade Ornaments (Polymer Clay) 
18 Read “Legend of St Nicholas” 
19 Play a Video Game for 40 minutes 
20 Learn “Merry Christmas” in different language. 
21 Learn How USA Celebrates their Holidays
22 Play a Board Game 
23 Unwrap One Present Early 
24 Read Luke 2; 1-20 



Check my previous DIY Advent Calendar 

Advent Calendar 2014
Advent Calendar 2015

If you don't like to make your own Advent Calendar, you can just buy. I saw this Advent Calendar at H&M, but I forgot how much. 

Advent Calendar at H&M. #momfinds #michifinds #adventcalendar

A photo posted by michisolee (@michisolee) on Nov 24, 2016 at 6:47pm PST

How about you? Do you also do Christmas countdown?

Ever since I transferred my son in traditional school, I always treat him every grading period. In the previous school kasi wala naman grades so when we moved to his new school, my son doesn’t care about his grades. 

So in order to motivate him to study hard, I told him that I will treat him if he has an eagle seal on his card. At that time, Happy Meal nga lang ok na kami but things change when he entered grade school. 

Now, he really says what he wanted when he gets an eagle seal. Last grading, he wanted a Power Rangers Dino Charge Megazord but I said no. I said, it is so expensive even though I really have no idea how much it is. But I treated him in Kidzania Manila.  



Last month, my son said he wanted to play bowling when he gets a gold eagle seal. I did not take it seriously since ang tagal pa ng kuhaan ng card but last week, he told me about it again. But I said, gold eagle seal + general average should not below (insert gen.ave of 1st grading).

Since lumelevel-up request niya, level up din ang condition ko. Hehehe! Actually, I totally forgot about the school card so when he went home last Friday, all out smile siya and hawak na niya card niya. (2nd and 3rd grading, binibigay na lang sa kids) He was so happy because he met my condition. 

My husband was asking him kung san kami magbowling and he said, SM Southmall. Honestly, we have no idea that Southmall has bowling center but we still went to Southmall at meron daw sabi ng anak ko. 



True enough, there is bowling center there so wala kami ligtas. We ate early lunch at Pizza Hut para recharge ang energy. Hahaha! We ordered Meal 6 P699 + SC, it includes 1 Family Pizza, 2 pastas, 4 pcs wingstreet, 4 soups and 1 picther of drinks. 

After lunch, we went to the bowling alley. Hubby and I played bowling before but this is the first time that we played bowling with my son. I was in grade 3 when I started playing this with my family. Yan madalas bonding namin with my mom pag nasa Pinas siya. Yun lang yata alam ng nanay ko na mag-enjoy kami, movie or bowling game every weekend. 

They don’t have bowling balls for kids so nabibigatan anak ko, he was surprised siguro sa bigat hindi tulad nung plastic bowling balls and pins sa bahay. Hehehe!



My husband was teaching him how to hold and release the ball pero hirap talaga sa bigat. The staff even suggested to use a metal bar (don’t know what it is called) na ngayon ko lang alam na may ganun. Pero nakakanal pa rin yung balls, naawa tuloy ako pero my son looks happy kahit hindi natatamaan yung bowling pins. 



So we continued playing it as long as happy siya and hindi siya affected sa score niya. He enjoyed it and said sa third grading daw, bowling daw ulit kami. Well, sa February ko pa makikita yun card so let’s see kung magbago pa. 

Click here for our video. 

SM Southmall Bowling Center 
Bowling Rates 

P165 per game/per person 
P50 shoes rental

Reading the title alone, makes you raise your eyebrow. Seriously? How can you save money by using your credit card? I know that some people dislike credit cards because they may lead them to temptation but for me, I like having a credit card because I don’t need to bring a lot of cash. It is very useful if you have emergencies and have not enough funds. There are also perks if you have a credit card.

No credit card yet? Read my Credit Card Tips here.

If you have a credit card, read my personal tips on how you can save money.


1. Waive your Annual Fee 

The annual fee is not cheap so as much as possible I try to maintain one card only so less temptation and less annual fee. Every year, we call our credit card company to waive our annual fee, which is always granted.

But the time came that they don’t want to waive our annual fee, they only offered 50% which we accepted. But because of that, we decided to apply to other credit card companies and they always waive our annual fee, with no conditions, and no questions asked.

So we stopped using our old credit cards and we even called them to cancel the cards but they are offering now free annual fees, just don’t cancel the card. Weird noh?

There are cases where they want you to use your points to waive the annual fee. So I feel like I'm just saving points for the annual fee, what if my points are not enough? I stopped using that card too.

2. If possible, always use your credit card 

As much as possible I always use my credit card because I can earn ...

A. Points - points that I can use to redeem products. I was able to redeem stand fan using my points.

POINTS = FREE PRODUCTS 

B. Cash Rebates - yes, cash rebates. You can earn a certain percentage when you use your cards in the supermarket, bills payment, and more. We use our points to pay for our bills.

POINTS = CASH 

Read: Save Money Using Citi Cashback Card 

C. Miles - if you love to travel, earn more miles by using your credit card. Transfer these miles to your preferred airline, in our case we transfer them to Mabuhay Miles (Philippine Airlines).

POINTS = FREE TICKETS 

D. FREE eGift Credits 

We are not aware of the existing promos so we were surprised when we received SMS stating that we have free eGift credits worth P10,000 that we can use to purchase eGift vouchers from any participating merchants.

SPEND = FREE SHOPPING CREDITS 

Read: Spending our Free P10,000 eGift Credits 

3. Save some centavos

As you will notice whenever we buy stuff or pay for meals, we don’t get an EXACT CHANGE. For example, I ate in one restaurant and my bill is P689.11, I gave them P1000 and I only received P310, I lost the P0.89 centavos. I understand if the cashier gave me P310.75 but she didn’t. I know it is just centavos but if it will happen every time I eat and buy stuff, those centavos can add to my savings.

4. Earn some pesos

In buying appliances or furniture, always ask if there are discounts if you will pay in cash. If there are no discounts, take advantage of the installment plan so you can earn some pesos. How? Several years ago, I bought my laptop on an installment basis, I have the money to pay the laptop in cash but I chose the installment plan. I only withdraw the amount that I need for the installment every month, in that way, my money is still earning interest in my savings account.

5. Promo 

Be updated with all the credit card promos. In the past, we were able to get FREE Starbucks Beverage, free meals from KFC and Yellow Cab, and Caltex gas rebate by just using our card. Sometimes free entrance fee at travel expos.

6. Discount 

Nowadays, there are so many discounts that you can avail of because your credit card companies have different partners. There are hotels, restaurants, and airline discounts that you can take advantage of. Several years ago we bought a gas range and the Service Staff informed us that if we will buy it using our card and avail of the installment promo, we can get an additional 2% discount.

7. Free Airport Lounge Access 

Traveling is costly if you have a long layover because you have to buy drinks and food. We all know that the foods and drinks at the airport are all expensive. So having a priority pass in airport lounges is a good perk because you can have comfortable seats, free food and drinks, free wifi, and many more. If you like to travel, choose a credit card that has free airport lounge access.

Read: Miascor Airport Lounge at NAIA 1
Skyview Lounge at NAIA 3

8. Free Entrance 

There are a lot of travel fairs or travel expos that you can visit to score cheap airfare, discounted hotel or resort packages, and affordable tour packages. Sometimes you can avail yourself of the FREE entrance by showing your credit card. Just check the bank partners of the travel expo.

Sometimes you will not only get a free entrance but there is a special lane for you and if you are lucky, an early bird sale. You can get the first dibs of the sale, promo, and discount before the expo will be opened to the public.

Read: Philippines Travel Tour Expo Tips and Guides

Here are my personal tips and hope this helps. Feel free to share your personal tips.

Note: Do not use your credit card if you do not have the money to pay your due. Be careful in using it to avoid hackers.

Read: My Credit Card was Hacked

I’ve been blogging since 2011 but most of my posts only include pictures because honestly, I don’t know how to put videos on my blog before. Hehehe! I tried uploading in YouTube but it takes time because I have very slow internet (up to 2MBPS only) so tinatamad ko.



My son is a fan of YouTube and he really likes watching videos. Ever since he was a kid, I always filmed his performance in school then I will upload on my Facebook (for family). He always asks me, “Did you video me, Mommy?” or “May I see my video?”. He will watch his videos for the nth time. 

But I feel that my videos are low quality so I don’t share it in my social media but when my husband gifted me iPhone 6 last year (birthday gift), feeling ko, ok na videos ko, HD quality na. Lol. Who will watch blurred videos di ba? So that’s the time that I shared videos on my Instagram. 

Last February, my husband gifted me Fuji XA2. Yehey, I can now record 15 minutes video so that is the start of my Michi Photostory Channel. I started uploading videos last summer, so far I have 45 videos.

I’m not a pro so I’m still learning how to edit videos but my son is satisfied in watching his YouTube videos. There was one time, he went home and he said, his classmates said to him, “I saw you on YouTube”. So I was happy na may “reach” na videos ko even I have few subscribers. 

But last month, out of the blue I searched for my website and then I discovered that there are two websites that uploaded my videos. I tried to report it na but when I visited the site again, nandun pa rin. As in, one page, nandun yung videos ko and take note ang title talaga “Michi Photostory Channel”. 

I don’t know why there are people who will do this. I don’t know how he can earn from uploading all my videos on his site. The site is in different language pa so I don’t really understand why. This makes me sad, so I asked helped in “Ask Pinoy Bloggers” FB group and they are generous enough to give me tips.

One person advised me to turn off my embed code in my You Tube videos. I have 40+ videos at that time so it took me hours just to remove the embed code. In addition, I have to edit my blog posts too, because it will also affect my videos. 

Nakakainis di ba, hindi ko na tuloy magamit yung own video ko sa blog ko because I will turn off the embed code. But this is the only way I know to prevent bad guys to use my videos in their website. So if you have YouTube, you might want to turn off the embed code. 

How to Turn off Embed Code in YouTube Video

1. Sign-in to your YouTube Account 
2. Go to Creator Studio, Video Manager and Videos. 
3. Choose the Video and click Edit Button 
4. At Info & Setting Tab, click Advance settings. 
5. Look for Distribution Options and uncheck the “Allow Embedding” 
6. Save Changes.

If you have Playlist

1. Click on Edit Button. 
2. Click Playlist Settings. 
3. Uncheck the “Allow Embedding” 
4. Click Save 

Hope this helps.