“Can we be friends?”

Yesterday - We were resting on the grass in front of the massive and impressive structure of Reichstag building in Berlin when little C caught sight of a Russian boy playfully posing for his dad’s camera.  Without any hesitation and too happy to find a new playmate, little C hurriedly crawled towards him and befriended him.

Later on, whenever the boy would ran, little C would crawl after him too.  It was an amusing sight!

So many contests are going on in the blogosphere these days! Lots of bloggers are giving out EC credits, some are giving out cash, goodies and web hosting too! I have a blogger friend who’s planning to hold a contest wherein she will give out either EC credits or free web hosting. I was excited to join her contest though I chose the EC credits so I can use it to advertise in other websites but I also wanted to win that free web hosting coz I recently bought a domain for an upcoming project. But it seems she’s busy lately; I haven’t seen her around the net for sometime now. Anyway, my project is already on and yes, I’ve got the web hosting services I needed after the long selection process.

Some friends have been asking me about my web hosting company coz they want to compare the services and packages with what their host is offering. They’re planning to create new websites and they want to know which hosting company offers the best in terms of services and prices. Though my provider isn’t the best, I can say that it fulfills most of the criteria I’m looking for a web host which unfortunately don’t seem to be good for my friends. Instead I told them to look for other hosting companies such as Networks Solutions which might have provide them with their needs.

A dramatic silhouette of our crazy poses… teehee!

Last Saturday’s weather was better than today.  Even when it was cold at least the sun came out several times hence we were able to have a great time at a friend’s weekend house in Lipence; so did little C. But today might be a different story. I guess it’s going to be raining all day.  Well, let it rain then, it will make the plants happy. We’ve decided to just stay at home anyway so we don’t tire ourselves as we’re going on a trip to Berlin tomorrow. 

Last weekend’s pictures:

*Thanks to Jirka for the silhouette shot.

Whenever I do my rounds of EC dropping, I can’t help but notice how the blogosphere is filled with SAHMs and WAHMs. The internet has made possible for everybody including moms to earn money even when they’re at home taking care of kids; I’m one of those blessed few who have found a way to make money through the internet. But I have only attempted few of those money making schemes with much luck. I know there are still numerous means waiting for me to explore which would give me passive income yet the lack of time (or maybe interest ) has hindered me from getting into it.
Read the rest of this entry »

The Prague Castle entrance at the Prašný most side

I hadn’t realized until yesterday how extremely big Prague Castle (Prasky Hrad) is. According to my sis it’s one of the biggest ancient castles in the Guinness Book of World Records and yesterday I had the chance to see it for myself when we (my sis, little C and I) strolled around the huge castle complex. I’ve been to the castle few times to see the St. Vitus Cathedral and some adjacent parts but never ventured far. Too bad my parents weren’t able to see the rest of the castle grounds and the gardens when they were here; there was just too much to see in a day!

What we saw that day:

The Inner Courtyard
The gothic church of St. Vitus Cathedral and its superb interior
The St. George Basilica
Garden On The Ramparts
The Episcopal Palace
The Schwarzenberg Palace
The New Orangery
Royal Garden and many other structures that we can’t identify.

Inside the grand St. Vitus Cathedral and the ever present swarms of tourists

The southern wing of St. Vitus cathedral

At the Garden On The Ramparts, with little C posing a smile

The Schwarzenberg Palace

A building in the Royal Garden with intricate carvings on the wall


Parking little C’s stroller while she sleeps at the Royal Garden

*Thank God for the kindness of a Brazilian couple who helped us carry little C’s stroller up the stairs from the Garden on the Ramparts.

It’s payday for most employees today and hey! it’s Friday too! What does it mean? Time to splurge? It used to be happy times for my friend back when she was still single. With no big financial responsibilities to think about, her salaries usually are spent all on herself. But everything changed when she had a family of her own, especially that she’s got plenty of kids!

She usually complains that her husband’s salary isn’t enough to pay for all their expenses and financial obligations; they have to oftentimes avail of Payday Advances. Well it’s tough for them coz they only rely on her husband’s salary. Personal Loans help them get by during those hard times but it’s a temporary fix that’s why she’s thinking of working again to augment their income. Well, who isn’t having money problems these days anyway? It’s either you’ve got too much or too little. If your problem is the former, don’t forget to share some of your extra moolah with me!

We were choosing a nearby place to see that day; either Kutná Hora or Vyšehrad and M chose the former (which is actually farther compared to Vyšehrad).

I’ve been to Kutná Hora, a UNESCO World Heritage site in the Central Bohemian region of Czech Republic four years ago. I was intrigued by the so-called church of bones which my cousin has seen in a website. She asked me to visit it. Well, “creepy” as what my sister described upon coming out of the chapel, but for me the work of art using human bones (God bless the souls of these plague victims) was extraordinary.

Our itinerary that day:

Sedlec Ossuary popularly known as the church of bones (pic below)

The right wing of Sedlec Ossuary from afar

Cathedral of Our Lady
St. Barbara Church

The facade of St. Barbara Church

Jesuit College
Gothic Stone Fountain
and not to forget the souvenir shops in Kutná Hora!

A lovely souvenir shop in Kutna Hora

Shopping tip: It’s better to buy souvenirs in Kutna Hora than in Prague coz the prices are way cheaper here.

Photo credits: happysteps.net

*Click on the images to enlarge

We’re supposed to go to Berlin today but M said he’s tired so we postponed it. Instead we went to “China” to watch the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympic Games 2008. Little C went too, dressed in a cute red Chinese cheongsam.

“China” here means our living room where the TV is (hehehe). Eurosports was covering the said event live from Beijing earlier.

I was inspired by these Chinese children who sang in the opening ceremonies wearing the national costumes from the different countries participating in this famous sports event:

I want to buy little C a shirt with her name on it. I saw one stall during the Pori Jazz making personalized embroidered shirts but it costs too much. I wouldn’t spend 10 euro on a simple embroidered name on a simple tee shirt. Call me cheapskate or whatever, but I just don’t think it’s worth it. And it wasn’t really that tempting to buy anyway coz if it was, then I would have done so the minute I saw it, just like this cute shirt I saw but ugh! it seems unfair, see this:

It’s cute alright but why don’t they make the same irresistible design which declares “I love mommy” too? Then there were more designs I saw which really fits little C, see below:


Read the rest of this entry »

After more than a week of hibernation, I was out last weekend. Saturday was spent visiting maminka or mam for short. It has been awhile since we last saw each other. I brought along my sister so they can meet each other and of course, little C too. It was a pleasant meeting. Mam gave us flowers and prepared food for us which we gladly devoured. Mam on the other hand was happy with our humble presents and of course, enjoyed little C’s antics! We were also glad that she offered to take care of little C on Sunday so I could tour my sister around Prague.

beautiful pink roses from mam, sis had a blue rose


little C with her grandma

So on Sunday, my sis and I were trudging the cobblestones and narrow streets of Prague, admiring the beautiful medieval architecture and buildings along with sea of tourists that were overflowing in Prague. Yeahhh, you can’t even extend your arms sideways or you’re sure to hit them. That’s how crowded Prague is especially that it was a Sunday and summer at that. It’s the peak season for tourists!

Our itinerary that day included:
Our Lady of Victorious Church
Museum of Our Lady of Victorious Church
The John Lennon Wall
Charles Bridge

a view of Vlatava River taken from St. Charles Bridge

Old Town Square where you can see the following buildings:
Astronomical Clock
Clock Tower
Old Town Hall
Tyn Church

the Tyn church up ahead with two Gothic spires

Jan Hus Monument
St. Nicholas Church
Kriz House
House at the Minute
Palaces in the Old City Square
And lastly at the Wenceslas Square where the statue of St. Wenceslas is, and the National Museum. We occasionally stopped at several souvenir shops to buy souvenirs which took almost half of our time!

the pretty white & yellow roses in full bloom. pic taken along Wenceslas Square

Whew! It sure was a hot, tiring and long walk! What’s good is that Prague’s tourists’ attractions are concentrated in the centre which made our walk on foot possible. Tomorrow we’ll go out again, dekuji mami!