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Diplomatic Incidents

in Berlin, Diplomatic Incidents, Personal Musings

5 Major Adjustments When Moving From Asia to Berlin

June 16, 2017

It’s been two months (!!) since we moved to Berlin and I thought I’d share an update on how it’s been. We’re slowly settling in and getting to know the city. So far so good! But I thought I’d share with you some adjustments we had to face when we first arrived.

No complaints in being this city since I’m now really enjoying it. However, I want to share some realities with you in case you’re thinking of moving here or to some other city in Europe as some bits may be applicable. Just to avoid a teeny bit of shock and hopefully, help you adjust faster. 😉

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in Berlin, Diplomatic Incidents, Expat Life, Personal Musings

We’ve Moved!

April 19, 2017
4 Comments

In case you’re a personal friend, a relative, or if you’ve been following me on social media, you may have noticed that we’ve moved posts. Yes, my treatment of this personal space of mine online has been quite appalling the past few… Err… Weeks? Months? But between packing, tying loose ends (freelance work wise), saying goodbye to dear friends, and moving from one continent to another, there just wasn’t enough time to actually sit down and pen something down.

So where in the world am I?

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Diplomacy, Protocol, Diplomat, Diplomat's Wife, Making Introductions, Introducing Yourself
in Diplomatic Incidents, Etiquette, How-Tos

Diplomatic Incidents: Making Proper Introductions

January 23, 2017
2 Comments

**I’m finally starting an Etiquette Series! That took a while – like everything else that I promise, come to think of it. It’s not you guys – I’m sorry! It’s me and my workload. But here it is finally! Hope you enjoy this and find it helpful as well! xx**

So as not to commit a grave faux pas back when I was a diplomatic journalist, I read up on some of these topics. It turns out that proper introductions are sort of an art among certain crowds – I kid you not. Mix it in with protocol and then you get rules.

Back when I was a young(er) and cocky reporter, I scoffed at the thought of having rules for such seemingly minor things. Later on, however, I noticed the importance of it at formal events and made it to a point to remember how to do it properly – especially when I’m doing it for other people. We all want to be respectful, don’t we?

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in Personal Musings, Uncategorized

That Extremely Late Year Ender

January 13, 2017

When it comes to year ender posts, this has got to be one of the last that will come out. However, I still wanted to do it for reasons that are quite sentimental.

The past year was indeed something a lot of people would like to forget. I admit that there were some things that did leave me feel gutted despite being physically (and somehow even figuratively) detached from them. Like the deaths of Carrie Fisher and Alan Rickman as well as news of violence all over the world and of course, there’s politics – but I wouldn’t go into that anymore.

Despite all of those things, 2016 ended up being good year for me personally. It was a year that brought me a lot of good things. From my career to my relationships, it’s been pretty great and I’m nothing short of thankful.

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breast-cancer-awareness-xixili-2016
in Fitness, Personal Musings

The C Scare

November 22, 2016

Last October, I got the fright of my life – just in time for breast cancer awareness month. I imagine it would be nicer to say that I’m only writing about it now because it took me a while to get over it. It sounds more dramatic, doesn’t it? In reality, I just didn’t have the time to do so. I’ve never been the dramatic type – well, at least in public.

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Cheese-European Cheese-Cheese Master-Fromage 101-Cheese Platter-How To
in Diplomatic Incidents, Home, How-Tos, Recipes

The Anatomy of the Perfect Cheese Platter

November 4, 2016

 

Cheese-European Cheese-Cheese Master-Fromage 101-Cheese Platter-How To

I’m a serial cheese eater. Pair a great cheese plate with wine then add great company, and a cosy living room and you have a very happy Carol right there. This is the really Danish bit of my personality, I guess. (Hygge!)

So it was quite amusing how, when my husband and I decided to host one of our first dinners with friends from the diplomatic corps at home, I found myself struggling when it comes to putting together a cheese plate.

The struggles of a diplomat’s wife are quite mundane to some, I know. Failing at this won’t start a world war nor turn into a major diplomatic incident. However, to fail at something so minor may kill the perfectionist in me inside.

In fact, I was having a minor panic attack that day. Surely, I would have retained some knowledge from all the diplomatic events I attended as a journalist and later on as a wife? I knew the most popular cheeses. How they taste and their textures. But choosing was a different story and I have a tendency to overthink then just want everything in there.

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National Day, Philippines, Philippine National Day, Filipiniana, Modern Filipiniana, Affordable Filipiniana, Mix and Match, Modern, Fashion, Tribal, OOTD, T'nalak, T'boli, Ditta Sandico Ong, Wrap, Ditta Sandico Wrap, Mariposa, Filipiniana Wrap,
in Beauty & Fashion, Diplomatic Incidents, Events, Fashion Tips, How-Tos, Video

Beauty + Fashion: Dressing up and getting ready for National Day 2016 (Without Breaking the Bank)

June 10, 2016
2 Comments

Ah, National Day. Usually the biggest event an Embassy or a Consulate will host for the year. It’s something that a lot of people either enjoy or stress over – depending on your role for that night.

As a diplomatic reporter and later on as a diplomat’s wife, I’ve been attending a whole lot of National Day celebrations and Embassy events from Manila to KL. Too many for me to count at this point – to think I’ve only been in the diplomatic circle for 5 years. (Diplomatic life does mean events left and right)

Such events are usually a good opportunity for a country to share something from home – their food, culture, history, the talent of their people. For us Filipinos, there’s usually a part of the program dedicated to how talented Filipino performers are.

National Day, Philippines, Philippine National Day, Filipiniana, Modern Filipiniana, Affordable Filipiniana, Mix and Match, Modern, Fashion, Tribal, OOTD, T'nalak, T'boli, Ditta Sandico Ong, Wrap, Ditta Sandico Wrap, Mariposa, Filipiniana Wrap,

One thing I love about attending diplomatic events is the dressing up that it comes with. I happen to love wearing Filipiniana – all forms of it. From the well-known Terno and Maria Clara down to the clothes worn by the different tribes all over the Philippines. However, one thing about National Dresses/Outfits is that they can cost quite a bit. I’ve had one too many fellow diplowives telling me that dressing up for National means parting with a hefty amount. The fact that it happens annually means you also have a repetitive (big) expense.

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in Diplomatic Incidents, Personal Musings, Uncategorized

Expat Life: On Making Friends and the Struggle for Something of My Own

February 23, 2016

It’s always a lot harder to do this when you’re older, no? But let me back track a little.

When I first moved to KL with my husband, I would have to admit that while I was looking forward to our new adventure, I found myself feeling sad during the first few months. This is probably the first time I am ever talking about this. But I guess, it’s time.

I was in a different country with no friends, no job to keep me occupied, and nothing to do for the first few months except scour the internet for interior design inspirations and trying to nail down a ‘look’ for our new home. A job that I was even sharing with my husband who also has a passion for interior design and homeware. (A post on this later, I promise)

https://www.instagram.com/p/BCDPy3eiqeV/

I won’t say I was homesick as I have always been very capable of adapting to a new place. I didn’t get the urge to hop on a plane back to Manila and I was hell bent on making it through whatever it was that I was feeling.

It’s the first few weeks or months where you have nothing to keep you busy that are the hardest. I was on my phone a lot – a lot more than usual – bugging my closest friends from home and egging them on to tell me about what’s been happening back home. I was in the mall a lot during office hours, window shopping by myself and thinking to myself – for the first time ever – that it would be nice to have a friend around.

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Almost Diplomatic - carolific - Diplomat’s Wife - Wedding - Wedding Planning - Affordable - Alvin Malasig
in Diplomatic Incidents, How-Tos, Personal Musings

Marriage: How we got our dream wedding without breaking the bank

October 12, 2015
18 Comments
Almost Diplomatic - carolific - Diplomat’s Wife - Wedding - Wedding Planning - Affordable - Alvin Malasig

Everyone at my wedding! (Well, almost! Francis, our photographer, was obviously taking the shot)

Four things: Lots of research, careful planning, friends and family who love us dearly, and a teeny tiny bit of luck

When my husband proposed on February 2013, we got into planning our wedding right away. We had a theme, a budget in mind, and 8 months to get everything in place. Sounds like a challenge, doesn’t it? But truth be told, wedding planning isn’t as bad and excruciating as some people might think. It was actually a breeze for the both of us. (I didn’t turn into a bridezilla at any point in the planning and even on the wedding day!)

Almost Diplomatic - carolific - Diplomat’s Wife - Wedding - Wedding Planning - Affordable - Alvin Malasig

Nope. No bridezilla! Although I did cry on our wedding day – a lot.

With a husband who gets a kick out of planning along with friends and family who were ever so supportive, we got what we always wanted. A very classy (if I may say so myself) and intimate wedding with just our closest family and friends where we were able to talk, laugh, and mingle with everyone which made everything just oh-so special.

Plus, we were also able to go on a honeymoon in Singapore and Bali within the wedding budget! How much did everything cost? Php 250,000 (Conversion rates: MYR1=Php11.04, EUR1=Php51.92, USD1=Php45.69)! Which is basically unheard of in the Manila wedding circuit these days.

**In case you’re looking into having your honeymoon in the Philippines, you can check out this post by Honeymoon Backpackers!**

Almost Diplomatic - carolific - Diplomat’s Wife - Wedding - Wedding Planning - Affordable - Sofitel

In fact, someone who writes for a wedding magazine found out about our wedding, saw the photos, and was eager to write about it for a feature on intimate weddings. However, when I told him how we did everything by ourselves and how much money we saved by not going through planners and all the people in the wedding business, he told me he couldn’t write about it anymore. Why? Because the magazine will lose advertisers. 😛

So I won’t go into detail about everything as this is not a timely wedding guide anymore since it was two years ago. But I hope what you read here will be great advice to anyone who’s in the planning stage! 🙂

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in Diplomatic Incidents, Events

Food: Best of the Philippines! Try Our Food in KLCC till Friday!

September 30, 2015

Filipino food is seriously underrated. Despite living in Malaysia where food is an actual tourist attraction, I have to admit that there are times when I still miss what we have at home.

From our world-famous mangoes, crab paste (which I tend to mix with everything), and down to my favourite Tinola (chicken soup with ginger and chilli leaves), there’s just something about our food that will make you want more. Ours is the next type of food you should be trying before it even becomes too mainstream. 😉

In fact, if Malaysians have their staple breakfast food called Nasi Lemak, we Filipinos are proud of our -Silog meals! Which I should talk about on a different post so as not to veer off the topic for this one. But if you ever find yourself in Laguna Restaurant in KL or Merienda de Eva in Damansara, order yourself a Tapsilog and thank me later.

If you’re currently in Kuala Lumpur, please do drop by the Food and Hotel Malaysia 2015 expo and visit us! The Philippine Pavilion is located at Hall 1, booth 1111.

We have mangoes, chili sauces and dips (which left my Malaysian friends wanting more and wondering why they are not available here!), sweets like polvoron, and as well as healthy juices and cooking aids – calamansi juice and coconut vinegar, anyone?

Side note: That coconut vinegar makes an awesome chip-dip!

Business owners and food importers are also welcome to ask for details on how you can bring our products here in Malaysia.

Our booth will be in KLCC till this Friday, the 2nd of October. See you there!

xx,

Carol

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