Kikay Katambayer, Signing Off

"Lights, camera, rolling..." I never imagined myself hearing this in the background while standing in front of a camera and holding a microphone with the logo of the show printed on its box. But look! I have been seen on TV all over Europe and Middle East.

I graduated with a degree in Mass Communication, major in Broadcasting without the expectation of practicing it thereafter. I have always thought this course is viable for 2 reasons; First, I know how hard it is to be in the related field, especially in any network in the Philippines. Second, my dream was to be a flight attendant. But this thought ceased to be known after I auditioned for Kabayan Tambayan. It was the newest show on TFC at the time. It featured inspiring stories of OFWs, showed their talents, and challenged them through games with prizes.

I saw the television advertisement where TFC was looking for segment hosts. I submitted a clip from the documentary show I hosted back in college. Humbly, I was chosen to be part of the show. I was then called "Katambayer".

My first shoot was taken in a bowling event of one Filipino Community in June 2012. It was my first time to meet Kuya JP (coordinator), Sir Roland (mentor), Brian (co-katambayer), and Kuya Tims. I was in a tense state, highly strung. With everyone's help, I was able to pull it off. Yay!

It was just a passion at first. Few months passed, I met new Katambayers and made friends with a lot of people. I became active in Filipino Community. Unconsciously, our passion turned into delightful public service.

We have been Katambayers for 5 years. Those years are very memorable, especially the hosts and staff became one family. I experienced many firsts because of this show. I became friends with the Cardio boys and Ms. Dimples Romana. I witnessed how kind and simple they are, no matter how big their names are in our country. My skills in media production got developed. I gained self-confidence. And the best things I had from this show were the people who eventually became my friends/family.

The show has ended but this experience will forever be treasured.

For the last time... "Hello there, Katambayers! Ako si Annizah Camid, ang inyong Kikay Katambayer, na nagsasabing... see you again!"

My Cali Trip (Part 2) - SFO

Have you seen a 25-year-old lady running on snowy and icy trails and jumping for joy? You should've seen me acting like a 10-year-old kid when I got to see snow in Cali.

On January 21, 2017, I traveled from Los Angeles to San Francisco through Virgin America. As a flight attendant who takes another airline, I tend to observe the cabin, the crew, and their routines. I noticed that closed window shades are fine during take off and landing. But the pre-flight safety demonstration amused me!

I arrived at San Francisco International Airport in the morning. My Aunt Carol together with Uncle Ross and my cousins picked me up. It was actually an emotional meeting because my aunt and I cried. Well, our family is known to be that mushy. Haha!

My first day in SF was long. We just dined at a restaurant that offers a delectable Asian cuisine then off we went to tourist spots. California is such a lovely place! It has beautiful landscapes, alpine mountains, fine deserts, impressive skylines, etc. Here are the attractions I saw on that day:

1.) Twin Peaks

2.) Golden Gate Bridge

3.) Palace of Fine Arts

4.) Lombard Street

I used my phone in taking photos, but I could not find the. Sorry...

5.) SF Downtown
Unfortunately, there were people rallying around, so, we were not able to disembark.

These 5 spots were visited in one day. So, I was knocked out in like 5 minutes as soon as we arrived in their house in Daly City.

I woke up early on my 2nd day. It was raining outside. I found my uncle watching news. He was getting an information about the weather in South Lake Tahoe and the accessibility of the roads. I was worried that my dream of seeing a snow will not come true. Oh my! I was praying hard in my seat. Haha! We eventually pushed through the bipolar weather. Aunt Carol told me they are also excited to see snow because the last time they experienced it was 10 years ago. My two cousins, Neil and Lenard, were still little back then.

There was a sparkle in my eyes while we were wending our way south. We passed by various beautiful cities. When we were getting near our target place, piles of bright powder were welcoming us. I wanted to jump out of the car and throw myself at it. Haha!

We stayed at a resort. It was so beautiful! There we played with other kids. I myself became a kid. Yay! We just had some meals at Taco Bell before we headed home.

My remaining days were spent by meeting our relatives in San Francisco.

I look forward to exploring Cali in summer. Maybe, before this year ends?

10 years and I am left counting

How will I forget someone whom I thought I'd spend forever with? How will I let go of a person I've been with since I was 15? How will this love that I've been feeling for 10 years already be evanesced? 10 years... That's 10 years of my life.

I've been loving a person for a decade already. He's my high school sweetheart. I was 15 and he was 16 when we started the romance back in our senior high in Riyadh. It was not actually a good start. We kept our relationship a secret, but we took the wraps off when we finally got our parents' approval. We graduated from high school together.

At first, we thought what we had was just a "puppy love" and that we would eventually break up. But our love was strong. We wanted to be together, so we continued our relationship and head off to college. We did long distance for 6 months, with me staying in Riyadh and him, beginning his college life in the Philippines. It was for a short while but tough. After 6 months, the long distance became a semi-long distance because he lives in south (Cavite) and I live in north (Pampanga). Additionally, my parents allowed us to see once a month only, so we could focus on our studies. That means, we got to spend 12 different days together out of 365 days. 

High School Graduation

College Graduation Pictures

Our college years were the best years. We witnessed each other's awkward stage (my braces and clownish makeup and his punk-rock hairstyle), but learned to embrace it and fell in love even more. We discovered new things together. We excitedly explored and ventured. We snuck just to be together. We made sure that our monthly meeting is special. It was full of surprises. This was the phase where we commenced planning and building our future together. We talked about our garden wedding with American Mouth's "Flightless Bird" playing in the background, living in our 2-story house with 2 dogs, the musical instruments he will play with our 2 kids named Blue Franco and Misty Pink, and the car that he will buy for our family. We were full of dreams and hopes.  We fought over petty things, but learned a lot from each other and admired how much progress we've made since we were teenagers. We saw each other graduate college.

"High school sweethearts" was just one of several things we were to each other. We became best friends, each other's number 1 fan and cheerleaders, hero and heroine, partners, and soulmates.

Things were going great until we stepped into adulthood. I got lost...

People inevitably change. Our wants, needs and perspectives on life changed. We started experiencing major conflicts. We stopped dreaming together

One day, we just woke up as completely different persons.

The story about our decade of love ended lest year... Well, technically, it did few years back. I just did not want to close the book. Simply, because I love him. But now, there's no more reason to continue writing our story.

This month of May could've been our 10th year anniversary. It would've been a date in Maldives. This could've been a special month for the both of us. But this month, we called it quits.

Currently, I am hurting... So much. He is my stone but now I am left alone. I do not know where and how to start. I don't even know if I will ever get over this.

To my high school sweet heart, to you Daryl... Happy (supposed to be) 10th anniversary. I hope and pray that you'll be happy with her.

My Cali Trip (Part 1) - LAX

I never created a bucket list. But at the back of my mind, I have those things I want to accomplish/experience/master before my hair turns grey. One of them is to touch a snow and play with it. I was not lucky enough to see snow on my layover, so I decided to spend my days off in California. And at the same time, see my relatives who are residing there.

My flight to Los Angeles was on January 19, 2017. It's my first time to enter USA as a passenger. I admit I got daunted by the immigration officers as they asked few questions. Haha! I know it's their job, I just felt uncomfortable for some reasons. When he asked what my job is and which airline, that's the time he stamped my passport. Well, my job as a flight attendant must have helped me prove my intent to leave the state on time. Haha!

Winter at the beach be like...

w/ Ate Mariza

"Lord, thank You po!"

My cousin, Ate Mariza, fetched me from LAX. I was still a college student the last time I saw her. We had a quick lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant then headed to Laguna Bay. It's winter so only a handful of people were surfing and out-spanning. But it's so beautiful! I was standing by the shore, looking at water, listening to the waves... Aaah! I couldn't help but spread my hands widely, feel the wind... I tell you, I shouted, "Lord, thank You po!"

When the rain stopped for 5 minutes...

Our Disney Land turned into Spectrum park.

I booked a suite at Staybridge Suites Lake Shore for 2 nights. We were planning to go to Disney Land the next day, but the rain poured down endlessly. You guys know how much I love amusement parks. To our dismay, we just had a shopping spree and ate a loooot at Spectrum Irvine.

New friends

I spent my last night with Ate Mariza and her friends. I was so amazed that most of her friends are Kapampangans. We went to a bar for a drink then munched Korean food.

We woke up early on the 21st to catch my flight to San Francisco.

I was not able to see Disney Land, but I'm still grateful for I saw my cousin and made new friends.

Cappuccino & croissant

Cutesy

Staybridge Suites Lake Shore

Staybridge Suites Lake Shore

Staybridge Suites Lake Shore

Awra sa Irvine