Madame Tussauds London

Wax works museum you looking for? There is only one place to go, the very famous Madame Tussauds. Madame Tussauds is a wax works museum originated in London and now has chain branches in major cities around the globe. It was founded by Marie Tussauds (1761-1850) which was also known as Anna Maria Grosholtz from France who married to Francois Tussaud in 1795. She went to London in 1802 and settled in Baker Street in 1835 and opened a museum.

It was my very pleasure to visit, actually, went inside and tour around Madame Tussauds when I was on a holiday in London with my boyfriend. I have made a list of places that I want to visit before I flew to England from the PI that serves as my agenda to do on my stay in the UK. It was a rainy morning when we arrive in Marylebone Road where Madame Tussauds is located. Of course rain wont stop my eagerness and curiosity to see and witness what Madame Tussauds really is. So, we went inside, fall in a very long queue and paid £28.80 each to purchase tickets to enter the said museum. I felt like I was a celebrity joining the Oscars Awards when I step out of their very elegant lift and walk through a red carpet. In the very end of my red carpet rampage, there, I saw the first batch of wax figures which are actors Russel Brand, Leonardo Di Caprio, Tom Cruise, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Harry Potter itself  Daniel Radcliffe, Bruce Willis and George Clooney. Actresses like Kate Winslet, Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman. Singers Cristina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus, Cheryl Cole from Girls Aloud, Victoria Beckham of Spice Girls, Shirley Bassey and more both from Hollywood and Bollywood.

The next batch was the Sports Icons that consist of the footballer David Beckham, Nicole Scherzinger’s boyfriend and Formula One racing driver Lewis Hamilton, Muhammad Ali and Englands Rugby Union player Jonny Wilkinson and followed by the set of the Royals, Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Prince Charles and Camila, Prince William and Harry and of course the Englands Rose, Princess Diana of Wales.

Now were finished on the 3 sets of wax works figures, now, we proceed to Madame Tussauds Cultural Figures started of course by the founder Madame Tussauds followed by Sir Albert Einstein, Pablo Picasso and Charles Dickens. The next stop was the singers and bands figures; The Beatles which came from Liverpool in England, Leona Lewis, Beyonce, Bob Marley, MJ, Elvis Presley and Lady Gaga. They also have this religious figures (Pope John Paul II) and world leaders like UK’s Prime Ministers Sir Winston Churchill and David Cameron also the current US President, Barrack Obama.

It doesnt end there yet! Madame Tussauds also got a treat for you before you finish your tour around. Its up to you if you want to go or not and its up to you to find out what’s the “Mystery Treat” is like. After all, You will end up in the room where they showcase the steps on how to make a wax figure and of course wont be completed without a souvenir shop.

It was a spectacular day for me as I have seen (even they are just replicas) the famous stars and icons around  the world. Not real though but the most important is they deliver their jobs very well done and we enjoyed roaming round and taking pictures. I recommend Madame Tussauds to visit on or before you left England. Madame Tussauds is open everyday apart from Christmas Day. Opening times may vary due to private functions.

Here is the Link:

http://www.madametussauds.com/London/PlanYourVisit/OpeningTimes/Default.aspx

Happy Reading!

Coffee Shops in Davao

I’m not a big fan of coffees but I so love going to coffee shops, funny isn’t it? Well, as we all know its not just coffee that coffee shops do offer. Coffee shops these days also got cold drinks, pica2x or snacks and meals. They also serve shakes and frapps that has no blend of coffee for customers that dont fancy any coffee flavourings in their drinks. I, myself tried some coffee shops around the city and mostly prices are in the same ranges, has good place and ambiance, very approachable, neat and clean staffs, most of them has free WIFI, wide variety of drinks selections, cold or hot and mostly located in the heart of the city.

Here are my TOP 5 Coffee Shops that I always visit to hang-out with or without my mates.

1. Chiccos Di Cafe- JP Laurel Ave. in Bajada beside Mama Marias Pizzeria. My favourite drink in there is their Banana Berry that cost you around £2 (P130) plus fries for 70pence (P50). Good WIFI, small place but not bad, nice-big toilet, friendly staffs and convenient location.

Frapps!

2. BlueGre Cafe- Landco Building, Bajada. We had Larcepuccino there with Nathan and it cost us P155 each. Nathan also ordered Choco Warm Cup ala Mode for P95 pesos. Nice place, Nice ambiance, quiet but quite expensive for me.

Larcepuccinos

3. Coffee Cat- Quirino Street, Davao. Its just in the compound where Sutherland Teleservices is located. Try their wide selection of cold drinks/shakes at the price range of  P135-P155, Avalanche they call it. Nice interior design, very unique and clean. Friendly staffs they also have.

Avalanche

4. Starbucks Coffee Abreeza- I always order a venti Mocha Frapuccino for P155 in Starbucks Abreeza but its not as good as what they serve in England. Not bad, small place, bit crowded at night, wifi spot, friendly-smiley staffs. Its just the toilet is a bit dirty specially when the place gets crowded and busy.

With my mate “E” at Starbucks Abreeza

5. Purple Bean- Catitipan, Buhangin in the Star Oil Petrol Station. Its just near where I live so convenient for me. Very nice place, quiet, nice interiors, friendly staffs, very good venue to hang-out if your doing school and office work because its not crowded like other coffee shops in the city. Newly built, two storey building. But I can say that their employees are not well trained on making frappes, blending flavours and shakes but not that really bad.

Friends at Purple Bean Coffee Shop

Nice to have some place to chill and relax. Just drinking, availing free wi-fi and having some peace of mind once in while.

Have a  nice day!

UK Visit Visa Application (SPONSORSHIP)

Here are few Tips for those Filipino’s who wants to apply for a Visit Visa with their British Citizen Sponsor.

*If you wish to apply for a visit visa with your British citizen sponsor these few line ups of tips and requirements might help you out to prevent refusal.

Documents might needed upon the application:

-Your Passport.
-You and Your Sponsor’s photocopy of passport including the pages in his/her passport with stamps.
-His/Her 6 month’s of payslips. His/Her bank certificate or bank statements and yours too if you have.
-Western Union Receipts, ATM Pull out receipts that shows He/She was supporting you for approximately 6 months long or more.
-Pictures of you both that shows you have met each other, Hotel Booking print outs or receipts.
-Chat Logs, Email messages, FB/Twitter messages, Phone bills, Scratch Cards and letters that proves you both are kept in touched by each other for 6 months or more.
-If you been out of the country, present the itinerary receipts and boarding passes of you together with your names on it or if he/she visited your country include his/her boarding passes and itinerary receipts.
-Letter of Sponsorship and Your application Letter that states the reason on coming back to Philippines after the visa expires and plans of what your going to do and where you going to stay in England.
-Find and sign the Application Form in this http://www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk/Welcome.htm and print it all out.

After filling all up the boxes with your details schedule an appointment for visiting the visa application office at Pasong Tamo Extension, 6th floor ECO Plaza Building, MAKATI, Manila Philippines to send your documents. There are two ways of Appointment. The VIP appointment that cost you P1,800, it covers the free courier pass-back of your application, no queuing, refreshments and snacks, SMS and email updates about your application. The other one is the free of charge but will took you a long wait specially on peak season. Better to be in the building 30-45 mins before your appointment. They don’t accept cash payments so you will go to the Union Bank near the Application building and pay there the visa fee of £76 plus the bank charge of P150.oo. They will give you a receipt after that you pay the said amount. http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/fees-spring-2012.pdf

Upon entering the centre, you will deposit your bags, turn off your phones and will be inspected by the security guard. They will give you a paper to fill up and they will write your number and what batch you are in. The centre is equipped with CCTV camera’s. If you are not happy or not agree with this you can leave the centre immediately and forget all about your application. They will call your number and send you to the number of the counter where you going to pass your documents, ask you few questions and do the biometrics. After that they will just say we will process your visa and will send you updates through text and email. The visa will take 15-25 days of processing so it is a bit of a long wait. I got the confirmation message that my passport and application is ready for collection on the 15th day since I sent my documents and application in the centre.

Wish and hope this article will help your visit visa application for UK.

Happy reading!

Idiopathic Hypokalemic Paralysis

I, myself experienced this paralysis several times. You will experience muscle pains before the actual attack will happen. You cannot move your arms, legs and body even you can’t stand for a wee unless someone will help and carry you.

Idiopathic Hypokalemic Periodic Paralysis is when the level of potassium in your blood is low. I often experienced this paralysis when I take too much of Carbohydrates and fatigue. They said it triggers when you take high sodium content meals or even being excited which I am always like.

It was dinner time and my mum cooked mixed veggies, I ate lots of rice cos I skipped lunch. It was okay after the meal but when I woke up the next morning I am completely paralysed. I cannot stand, lift a spoon, fix my hair or even wipe my tears cos of too much nervousness if I will die or be paralysed forever. I woke up the next day much better but pains on my muscles remained with lots of questions playing on my mind why I experienced that kind of paralysis. It then happened all over again ’till I finally figure the reasons why after I went to see a specialist last Oct 2010.

Few questions were asked and answered till he said I maybe having this kind of paralysis. To make it sure he then subjected me into sodium-potassium laboratory test. When the result came out, my potassium is low 2.82mmol/L (normal value is from 3.5-5.1mmol/L) while my sodium is 142.7mmol/L (normal value is from 136-145mmol/L) which is normal. The doctor confirmed that I have IDIOPATHIC HYPOKALEMIC PARALYSIS and explained to me why it happens to me and can cause life threatening problems like CARDIAC ARREST or even death. He prescribed KALIUM DURULE for 4 days and 2 bananas that I will take after each meal. After the 4 days of taking the prescribed medicine and following the experts advice, I underwent another laboratory test again on potassium and it came back to normal value of 3.59mmol/L.

I still experience some signs of IHKP sometimes but I am much aware now that this kind of illness needs attention. This can threaten life and can lead to death if it gets too bad so take actions as much as I can to prevent me from getting down again.

We must be so aware about our health because we only live once so lets make it perfect and memorable. As much as possible take the opportunity to live healthy and safe from diseases and illnesses. It’s always been said PREVENTION is better than CURE.

LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST PEOPLE!