Sunday, July 31, 2011

Warsaw Entertain

Being in a foreign land isn't easy, especially if you don't have much friends and mingling with the locals around is hard when the language is the number one problem.
However, for my 6 months beyond staying in Poland, I made a bunch of friends around both Poles and fellow foreigners. I just realized then, that you need to be actively member of any organization that involves foreign activity.
One of that is Warsaw Entertain, I was being invited to join the group in Facebook and participate on their nightly activities. For the first time, I attended their summer English video-karaoke held at an Irish Pub inside the Warsaw Towers.
I had a blast and met fellow foreigners and Polish party people, I sang that night just as the Pinoys love to sing and addicts to video karaoke, yet, I was missing a good pitch the reason I refused to sing again...blame it on the stage freight.
The best of that was I met new friends, it may not be the closest that you'll get, (who knows?) better yet its nice to expand your friendship.


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Sunday, July 24, 2011

Can't See Clearly nor Understand It

I can't tell what's up with the weather up here in Poland. One day the sun is out and everyone is coming out of their houses wearing summer clothes. The next day, its raining and cold. I can't really understand it, it suppose to be hot 'coz it's already summer. Been asking my Pinoy housemate "is this what they called summer?", I rarely seen the sun coming out and giving its full shine enough for the people to enjoy the season of summer. My housemate would just simply answered me, "you can't expect a summer in Poland like in the Philippines", yeah right, geographically speaking Poland is in the north-eastern part of Europe, which the freezing wind coming from Siberia (coldest part in the north)goes down to Poland the reason why we can't fully get a taste of summer.
Being in Poland for more than 6 months now, I didn't see the sun made its final appearance. I'd completely feel that Poles people are so thirsty of sunshine & it's heat, 'coz too much cold is no longer fun at all. From freezing winter to colder spring and strangely cool summer. Despite of a little rain, cool gloomy summer, my housemates and I find ways to enjoy summer break - travelling to the nearby places of Warsaw for a perfect weekend to a somewhat boring summer break. We went to a famous lake in Warsaw, where Polish people surf, jetskiing and yachting on a lake while winter is way too far to come. For some odd reason mother nature hasn't decided to that it wasn't quite time for summer to arrive & quickly sends some chilly weather filled with clouds, & rain. I am expecting that this August would be the final amount of hot summer.


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Thursday, July 14, 2011

Summer in Warsaw

Was blog absent for a long days. Better yet, I am blogging now.
Experience summer in Warsaw! The months of June, July, and August are great for travelers to the Polish capital city. Polish people's getting active and alive...
Warsaw summers are warm and the evenings are comfortable. If you plan to be out and about all day, sunscreen is a good idea, and a compact umbrella for a darker skin like me, referring to Asians and Africans who are in Warsaw, remember that Warsaw is a northern city, so you may experience a chill in the air, especially at night or at the start and end of the summer season.

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Friday, July 01, 2011

Life Lessons from the Movie Kung Fu Panda 2

I downloaded a recent movie Kung Fu Panda 2, at first I was hesitant to do it since it's cartoon and more on kiddy type of movie thing. However, my instinct wins so I watched it and realized the lessons we can practically get out of the story of the movie itself. Practically recommending this movie to adults especially to those are battling to get inner peace within theirselves and appreciating who they are. Herewith, is a long list I got online about the Life Lesson we can get from this movie Kung Fu Panda 2, it's a long texts to hit but worth to read.

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In KUNG FU PANDA 2, Po's new life of awesomeness is threatened by the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. He must look to his past and uncover the secrets of his mysterious origins; only then will Po be able to unlock the strength he needs to succeed.
Who would’ve thought a movie about an overweight Panda and a vengeful peacock would give us goose bumps? Seriously, from start to finish we were endowed with little nuggets of wisdom,
and quotes cleverly delivered by the various characters. Animated or not, wisdom can be found anywhere. All you have to do is look and listen with an open mind.
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Lesson # 1 : God’s will, will be done.
Po didn’t even know he was chosen; he was selected long before he was born. But there was this peacock who knew from an oracle that a panda would finally seal his fate. So he had his minions kill all the pandas in China. He was an ordinary old panda. But God uses the ordinary, and no matter what anybody says, no one can stop God’s will for your life, not even cocky little peacocks.
You are the master of your destiny: No-one and nothing can come in between you and your destiny, except you. Take destiny by the horns and have fun.
Lesson # 2 : A Pretty Plume won’t make you happy.
Shen the peacock had a gorgeous plume, but he still wasn’t happy. Because he wasn’t happy, he spent his entire life trying to make everyone miserable. When he meets Po the Panda he is in awe of how peaceful he is. Po has nothing going for him. Yet he was comfortable with himself and had inner peace. As Master Shifu stated, “Remember…anything is possible if you have inner peace.”
You don’t need to meditate for hours and hours to attain inner peace and enlightenment. You need only see, feel, act from the heart. Let the heart guide you to your peaceful enlightenment.
Lesson # 3 : The only thing that matters is what you choose now.
Shen (the peacock) asked the Panda how he did it. Shen reminded Po that he’d killed his parents and almost killed him. Po told the peacock he had to let go of the past and choose right then to move forward. The point here is that holding on to pain from the past keeps you from obtaining inner peace. We have to choose now to embrace inner peace and let go of the things that hold us down. Don’t push past memories deeper inside of yourself. Let those memories breathe and let old wounds heal.
Lesson # 4 : Having it all means absolutely nothing
Shen had it all. His mother and father were rulers of the land. He was rich. He was smart. He was a pretty peacock with brilliant feathers, but he was empty. He wanted more. Even though Shen had everything, he still ended up with nothing. Po (the panda) on the other hand, had absolutely nothing. No one thought he’d amount to much except maybe a good noodle maker, but he becomes a hero. Be ONLY Yourself because Inner peace, calmness comes only when you are completely at ease with yourself- physically and emotionally.
Lesson # 5 : Anything is possible with inner peace
It’s a good thing we watched Kung Fu Panda 2 then. Thanks for the reminder Master Shifu! Come to think of it, when we are peaceful within, there would be a lot more peaceful and happier communities. (Isn’t that how the song – One More Gift – goes: “Grant me serenity within.. for the confusions around are mere reflections of what’s within.. what’s within me?”)
Achieving inner peace is also achieving inner strength.
Lesson # 6 : I know who I am
This reminded me of the importance of knowing who we really are – we are all, whether you choose to believe it or not – sons and daughters of God. “Who we are” is not so much defined by what we can do (remember Po, who said that if there was no Kung Fu, then he wouldn’t know who he was anymore?). We are who we are. Beautifully, wonderfully created to bless the world with our unique talents and skills.
“I know who I am. I’m your son.” – Po to Mr. Ping
Lesson # 7 : Good gifted friends are good gifts
Po had a group of friends that never let him down. They accepted him for who he was and helped him develop his weaknesses into something he could use. All of Po’s friends were super duper Kung Fu fighters, but they were all skilled in unique areas. They weren’t jealous of one another, and once they pulled all those gifts together they made an unstoppable team.
Friends are those who stay with you through thick and thin. No questions asked. Time spent sharing with good friends is equivalent to a thousand meditations. Good friends calm you and help you unburden.
Lesson # 8 : Work together as a team
The other lesson that was taught in the movie is the aspect of team work. There is a success trait called the “Circle of Influence”. The concept is that we are the sum of the 5 most influential people in our lives. Po was surrounded by friends that had common interest and goals, they had to work together to achieve maximum success. Ultimately, they were stronger together then they were apart.Share your gift with the world. Who knows,how many lives you are saving just by doing so. Your gift not only helps you, but all those you come in contact with.
Lesson # 9 : Investing in the next generation.
When Goose Dad saw Baby Po, there was no return of investment immediately. He patiently took care of Po, fed him and treated him like his real son. We as men should invest in our kids and the next generation. Guard the legacy that we have and pass it on to our sons and daughters.
“It takes a village to raise a child”
Lesson # 10 : Go with your gut.
Po could fight back and win against the most notorious enemy. The same is true in our real life, if you believe in yourself, nothing is impossible. You can do anything, as long as you believe you can. Go with your gut, because it’s an awesome conductor.
Your intuition is always active and alive. Go with your gut. It’s an awesome conductor.
Lesson # 11 : Notice the signs and take the lead.
It may just be a life lesson that you need to take. Life is never a bed of roses. If you do not recognize the lesson for what it is, you will find yourself continually stuck or attracting more of the same. You are in a vicious cycle, unable to break out. Step aside, take notes and learn from there. Notice the signs and take the lead. Then, you will find yourself moving on, becoming a more evolved and higher Self. The Universe is constantly giving you signs and messages for your journey. Notice them. Take the lead.
Lesson # 12 : Embrace your awesomeness
What Po dreamed about was right: you can’t really have enough awesomeness in your life. Embrace your awesomeness and dream your biggest dream and have faith it will come true. If Kung Fu Panda did it, you’ll do it too. There isn’t any, really. That’s just a fact!!!

Original text taken from: http://www.slideshare.net/bright9977/12-life-lessons-from-kung-fu-panda-2-8384210

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My Favorite Instrumental Music