First, was last year's migration. United States? Who would've thought I'd pass the interview. When the appointment came, I was totally surprised because I almost started to give up the American dream. After the interview, I didn't wait too long to fly to America. I was sad, I was in shock, I was afraid. It was my first time to ride a plane. Time to leave my life behind.

Coming to San Francisco, I thought about Manila most of the time. Everything was different. I looked around, and everything seemed so big. As I walked the streets of San Francisco, I didn't really feel I belong. Everyone is a stranger. I didn't really feel like I was home. I rode the bus, I rode a train, I met my mom, and I started to fit in. I was not alone anymore. Things went better.

A few months later, came Sidney. He showed me Sacramento, and the beauty of San Francisco. I felt more at home. Most of my later travels are with him. I remember he would drive from the Bay area to Sacramento and back, two times. I felt sorry for him because it's just too far, and the car was just rented. Too much stress, too much money. So I looked for a more convenient way for us to meet. I have to ride a cab, and 3 trains. Travel time: 3 hours. I spend 6 hours a week to go back and forth from Sacramento to Bay Area. Cost: $55 - $82, one way. But it was alright. I get to see Sidney, he won't be too tired, I could play my games, we could walk around San Francisco, and sometimes watch a movie or two.

On my birthday last year, we went to Six Flags, the one close to Fairfield. It was a lot of fun. I got to see some animals, and animal shows, and get on on some rides. There's a lot of things to do in Six Flags. A lot of walking as well. I couldn't forget the tiger show and the one with the dolphins. A great birthday it was.

Then we went to the San Francisco Zoo. I didn't know zoos were cool. Apparently, a few years back, a tiger went lose on this zoo. It killed a person and injured another. In my opinion, it wasn't really the tiger's fault. There were rumors that the guys that were causing trouble for the poor animal. They threw rocks and rattled the tiger's den. Too bad for them, and too bad for the tiger because they had to put him to sleep. Anyway, there was this farm-like area inside the zoo were you can pet and feed the animals. The goats were pretty scary. The pigs were so cute. And the llamas were just too hungry. Loved it.

When Sidney's mom came to US, I met her and we went to see more of Sacramento. We went to old Sacramento and went inside a train museum. It was fun to meet her mom. She was so nice and cool.

Then after a while, opportunity arose. Cheap tickets and hotel accommodations to Seattle, WA. Sweet. It was my second time to ride a plane. It was still pretty scary for me. What can you do in Seattle for 2 days? A lot. We went to the Space needle. It was amazingly high. We went to the public market. We went to the EMP and the Sci-Fi Museum. Very cool places. Went to two museums, and one of them is the Museum of Mysteries. There you can get infos about UFOs, Paranormal activities, Witchcrafts, and more. And then we went to eat at Crab Pot. Delicious Seafood! Seattle is one of the places in the US where I would like to go over and over again.

After a while, we decided to go to Napa, and Sonoma, CA. It was me, Sidney, and his best friend, Fabrisio who went there. We did some wine tasting. And later in the afternoon, we had a picnic by a small lake. The weather was just right and the cheese and wine were great. A very nice country experience.

We scheduled another trip before 2009 ended. We went to Lake Tahoe. It's the first time I get to see and touch snow. Most of the people in our country would dream about experiencing some snow. They thought it was cool and fun and happy. But snow wasn't as cool as I imagined. It's just too cold and depressing most of the time. I told Sidney, I couldn't believe I wanted to see and hold something that I could literally see and touch inside the freezer, only in huge amounts. But nonetheless, Lake Tahoe was a lot of fun. We stayed in Truckee. There's not a lot of things to do there. Well, at least for me. There are snowboarders, skiers, and stuffs you could do in the snow. I get to ride Snowmobiles this time. And yes, it was my first time. The mountain sceneries are just so cool. The snow is so white and looks so clean, you could eat them. And that I did too. After that we rode all the way to Nevada. And get to see a small part of the state. And there's not much I could say about it.

Early this year, Sidney's cousins came to US. We went around San Francisco, and Santa Cruz, and Monterey, and Carmel. Sidney's cousins were the coolest. They have this strong bond which I admire the most. These trips weren't as exciting as the ones we had. But it was a lot of fun to just hang out and talk and keep up.

Recently, we went to Los Angeles. We went to Hollywood to see the Kodak Theater, the Chinese theater, the Wax museum, and Ripley's museum. Los Angeles is full of people, tourists and locals. Lots of people means lots of traffic. The traffic in Los Angeles is the worst I've experienced. The next day we went to the Griffith Observatory and Santa Monica. Must-go places.

Travelling is a lot of fun. Specially when you're not the one driving. I go to Bay Area every weekend and ride two 2-hour trains. I like looking outside the window and just unwind and leave your worries along the tracks. It's easy to get lost in the beauty of our planet as you go around its corners. It's very relaxing and somehow invigorating. I want to travel more. I want to see more of the world. And here I come. :)