Cagayan de Oro Weekend (Day 1)

A fairly late post but here goes...

I had a pretty interesting weekend last April 5 to 7. I went to Cagayan de Oro to administer the PhilNITS examination for that region. It was Sir Melvin who recommended me to take the job. Thank you sir! ^_^

I was originally assigned to go to Zamboanga but due to safety concerns, I was reassigned to CDO. Either ways, both places are unknown to me. I just happen to like visiting new places. :)

The day before my flight, I went to the PhilNITS office to pickup a heavy box which contains the exam materials. Since I don't have a car, and I can't take the train (because of the LRT/MRT insecurity protocols), and no taxi driver is willing to go to Tondo, I just asked the taxi driver to drop me off at Buendia/Taft, so I could take the Moriones bound FX. :|

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It was a smooth and fast plane ride to CDO. In flight, I took some pictures, played Brain Age 2, ate some snacks, and took naps in between.

At CDO, I was welcomed by Mam Christine and Reggie. After exchanging greetings, we headed for Hotel Conchita in Cogon.

I left the heavy box at the Hotel then we went to Bigby's in Rosario Arcade for lunch. I had a half Rack-A-Bye Baby and a Monkey Business Freeze. Reggie took the remaining half. I used to share this meal with Dennis, during our Cebu days. It's really nice to dine in Bigby's again. ^_^

While eating, I had the chance to know more about my new friends. Mam Christine was a professor in PLM a few years back before she joined STI-CDO, then transferred to Capitol University. She's the current dean of the College of Computer Studies in CU.

Reggie, on the other hand, graduate from STI-CDO last year (I think), and currently handles several computer subjects in different colleges in Capitol University. He's a smoking buddy, drinking buddy, bar hopping buddy, food trip buddy and a good friend of Mam Christine. He's originally from Sta. Mesa, QC until he moved to CDO 4 years ago. He hasn't return to Manila since then.

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After our nice meal, we proceeded to Capitol University. It was part of the protocol that I examine the room one day before the exam. We also took some time discussing some issues about the exam in the dean's office.

Before I returned to the hotel, I asked Mam Christine if I could go around and check the campus. She generously agreed and even requested Reggie to show me around. We spent around half an hour going from one building to another. CU is a really nice campus. Their president, Casimiro Juarez is doing a really good job.

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After covering the significant locations in the campus, we left CU, took a motorela and went to LimKetKai Center. LimKetKai is the most popular mall in CDO, and is probably comparable to Glorietta. Personally, I think LimKetKai is bigger and better.

After LimKetKai, we went back to the hotel. I wanted to go to Sun Burst for dinner but because I became a little lazy, I opted to stay in the hotel and get some rest. >:)

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My hotel room is nice but it was pretty boring and lonely, specially without a computer. The view from the window is not that nice too. Good thing there's an unsecured wifi access point visible in my room. It felt really good to be online, even if it's just through my PDA. :))

I decided to order some hotel food for dinner. While waiting for the food, I chatted with Jas over YM, and played with my DS Lite. After a few minutes, dinner was finally served. :)

Shrimp and Broccoli in Oyster Sauce... These are the times when you can be thankful that you're alone in your room. >:P

After dinner, I spent a few minutes playing with Brain Age until I finally hit the hay.

To be continued...