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Life's been stressing me so much lately that my boyfriend invited me to his province in San Pablo City, Laguna. I met his family and we have toured in a view tourist spots of the city. Our first stop was the San Pablo Church or also known as the Cathedral Parish of Saint Paul the First Hermit.

It was a Sunday, so I haven't had the chance to take a picture of the interior as there was a mass going on and would be inappropriate to.

After then, we have visited one of the famous seven (7) lakes of San Pablo, the Sampaloc Lake.

It was dusk and have a limited time to tour around. There were quite a lot of people and a few food stalls too. I saw some people cycling and jogging around the area. This spot also overlooks the infamous sacred Mt. Banahaw in Quezon province.

I wasn't able to capture it though as it was covered by clouds this time.

#san pablo #laguna #philippines #phone photography #photography #potd

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Intramuros, Manila

When visiting the Philippines, one should not forget to visit the walled city of Intramuros.

Known to be the settlement of the Spanish invaders for 333 years, this place have witnessed a lot of historical events of the country.

The most remarkable probably is the imprisonment site of the country's National Hero, José Rizal, in Fort Santiago.

The Intramuros Administration has established a museum dedicated to commemorate our National Hero. Here are some pictures I took when I visited the place with my boyfriend.

Of course, to make it worthwhile, we have also visited other historical structures like the Manila Cathedral and the San Agustin Church which are the only remaining out of the originally seven (7) churches that once stood within the walls.

We have also walked on the walls and saw some of the known universities, Colegio de San Juan de Letran - the oldest college in the Philippines, and the Lyceum of the Philippines University - the only university founded by a Philippine president José Laurel.

#intramuros #manila #photography #original photographers #philippines

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The place where I took the risk of falling in love again. Hope this one works and lasts.

#potd #photoofheday #photography

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I like to go out for a walk when life's been very shitty. Another favorite spot of mine is the Manila Baywalk in Roxas Boulevard. I was fortunate enough to capture this beautiful sunset that time.

#sunset #manila #photography #phone photography

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Was invited to try this famous bar in Makati, the Filling Station Bar and Café.

Honest rating to the place 6.5/10

The ambiance is so cool with it's 50's vibes plus the chill music. But the service and the food were meh.

Their crew was not lively and looks like they just want to finish their contract while the food was, well let's just say there are other cafés I've been to with the same price but of greater taste.

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Ayala Circuit in Makati has been one of my go-to places wherenever I'm feeling in need of a bit relaxation. This, so far, is one of the photos I've captured - with a bit of editing - turned out so serene.

#photography #sunset

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Back in 2016 during my college days, we had this immersion in General Nakar in Quezon Province, which is almost a 6-hour ride from Manila.

We've stayed there for almost 3 days and got the chance to spend time and get to know some locals whom -if I remember well- are the indigenous people of the Philippines also known as the Itas.

There's no cellular signal nor any wifi connection which was also a great way for us to detoxicify for a while. The locals were really friendly although their way of living has so much to compare with living in the cities, which was challenging on my part as I have grew up in an urban setting.

These are some of the photos I took during the stay. It is so nice yet so scary living near the Pacific Ocean. We haven't had the chance to swim as the current is really strong that even the local don't dare lunge in.

#Philippines #Photography #ocean

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OUR YOUTUBE | OUR INSTAGRAM

@positiveseed​

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I have been decluttering the whole house for about 3 months now. I can not do it every day as I also have other chores to attend to and yes I also need a lot of time to rest lol. This journey was not easy as it pains me to see some things have to go away. I have grown up with my grandma who's kind of a compulsive buyer of anything she thinks will I inherit to use once i have my own family to spend my life with. But as I have realized some things, minimalism is something I have been interested and kind of devoted to.

It came to me that i dont need to have a lot of stuff to be 'happy' and that no matter how many or how much it has cost us to have the things we want, it would not matter once we die. I have decided to just spend most of my money on valuable stuff - those that can and will help me in improving myself. Most of my clothes have been donated to a church charity. Some I have posted to a Facebook group which is somehow a dumpster site for you, but might be a treasure site to somebody.

Of course there are still stuff that I cannot let go. The ones that my grandma told me to take care of - her hundreds and hundreds of kitchenwares, and the stuff that really mean to her, like the dining table that my late grandpa gifted but took them years to save up for. It still aches whenever i think of letting it go as i saw how important it is to my ever beloved grandma.

So what i do is i think of the things that my grandma has less of an attachment with. I could let go of my stuff easily but my grandma's means so much. It made it difficult for me to find an apartment to moved in to though. But things will work out fine, i hope.

#journey to minimalism #decluttering

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just leaving this here

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Day 17

This is by far the healthiest breakfast i've had this year. A bowl of oats and some black grapes on the side plus lots and lots of water. Oh and do not forget my journal which I use for almost everything I keep track on: to-dos, meal plans, my language practice book, etc. It's so handy and I also practice minimalism on this one too. I try to squeeze in every possible thing I could right into a page or two.

#minimalism #minimalist #journal #healthy breakfast #healthy meal

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Day 16

(sorry for the bad angle)

This was where I had my dinner last night, I've had tapsilog and noodles. Tapsilog is combination meal of egg and tapa. Tapa is a dried meat of either beef, pork, and even carabao. It's actually a student/budget friendly meal. One order of tapsilog comes with one rice and another extra rice will cost you less than 100 pesos in total meal. But instead of ordering another rice last night, I just had pancit canton noodles, which I missed so much ☹️ I know it's junk food haven't been able to control my cravings 🙃

#tapsilog #dinner

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Day 15

Today was kind of a long day for me. I've been to different locations in a few hours plus I didn't have my lunch, result, dead tired. Nearly going home, I grabbed my late lunch and my dinner alone.

Whenever I see people eating alone before, I'm the one who feels uncomfortable for them. Especially for someone like me, who experienced being alone all the time for years. Literally no friends to run or have fun with. But as time taught me to be strong, I started to feel comfortable with eating alone. I remember my first time, it was at Kenny Rogers restaurant in a mall and I was in my high school. I was extremely uncomfortable. I was anxious of other people staring at me, which I still feel til now, but slowly I am trying my best to fight it. 💪

This was my view today while eating a meal good for 2 😂. It's one of the busiest streets I've been to, yet so crowded as it's a complete metropolitan; near a hospital, public market, malls, and is even a center point for going to different cities of San Juan, Mandaluyong, and Manila. I was a bit conscious of people passing by and seeing me eat my meal, but I have kind of learnt to endure and not mind it somehow. I still face my phone every so often, just as a way to escape the uncomfortableness, but have practiced not to be so obvious of being uneasy.

#the unsleeping city #cityphotography #alone

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Day 14

I've been kind of consistent with eating something healthy everyday. Today, I tried this 🥝 kiwi for the first time which has been on the fridge for almost a week already. It's so ripe that it kind of taste sour on some sides but still gives off a sweet taste. I was tempted to save and plant some of the seeds lol. And since our food tray is almost empty, I'll be going to Divisoria again to buy some fruits. Can't wait to try new fruits 😊

#kiwi #fruits #healthy #first time

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Day 13 Nov 10

I wasn't able to post this on time since I had to do a lot of chores. When I was watering the plants in our mini garden, I checked on the egg tray that I have used as a seedling starter, and found one part that germinated ❤️

I remember planting a seed of custard apple (atis). All the other ones haven't survived though, that's why I was so so happy when I saw this when I wasn't expecting at all.

I have planted other seedlings before to, mostly failed and if they survive they won't be able to fully grow as I only have limited space. I am planning of donating the lucky and successful ones to tree planting activities so it won't go to waste.