In just a little less than three(!) hours, clocks in my side of the world will strike 12 and we will officially say goodbye to a decade and herald the start of a new beginning.

What is it about new years that make people giddy all over? I mean, I know we have Christmas and birthday blues, but have you ever heard of anything like new year blues? If you're scared to grow one year older maybe, but if you embrace life, then there's nothing like seeing the sky being  lit with beautiful fireworks and hugging your loved ones as you welcome the new  year. Maybe it's the food, the fireworks, the firecrackers. For me, it's the feeling of beginning with a brand new slate, the promise of something NEW, and the feeling of being open to new POSSIBILITIES. People just feel overwhelmingly festive and cheerful and it's a lovely experience!  Ü

Yesterday, I experienced one of the best ways to cap an awesome year. I met with my friends from college (some of whom I haven't seen since we graduated almost three years ago!) for an out-of-town trip to Tagaytay. It is a popular summer tourist destination because of the cold climate due to  its high altitude. So why did we go there in December when it's already very cold even here in the city? That's just how we roll. And it's partly because we wanted to eat bulalo. Ü

We planned to meet up in Glorietta at  2pm and from there we will ride our rented van to our destination. Expected time of arrival is 3pm. Guess what time we left Glorietta? 5pm. Talk about including not being late in your New Year's Resolutions, people! But no one's complaining though, I guess we were already used to plans being changed at the last minute. :D

Anyway, we were not able to reach Picnic Grove in time to see the sunset. Such a shame since I was really looking forward to having my photos taken during daylight :D

I braved the cold in a white eyelet tube dress

I brought a jacket though so no worries :D

The gang

Karlo, Dewi, me, Khel, Lucky, Mines, Ed, and Glen

Ü

Glen and me

Dewi and me

Ed and me

Karlo, Dewi, Glen, Ed and Mines were my classmates. Khel was actually from the lower batch while Lucky is a friend of Ed's. It was a cool coincidence that all of us are Mass Communication graduates. Ü

We ate at Leslie's. I was too full I cannot even begin to describe it :D The food was yummy and very, very satisfying indeed! We ordered Yang Chow, Crispy Pata, Sinigang na Sugpo, Kare-kare, Chop Suey, Dalandan Shakes and Hot Calamansi Juice, and of course, Bulalo. (Too bad we weren't able to take photos of the food. We forgot because we were too hungry x_x)

waiting for our food

with our tummies already satisfied

After eating we took more photos. We passed by a 7-11 to buy Tanduay Ice for them which they drank (as you know, I do not drink) when we parked at a roadside to listen to music and make like we were in a bar, dancing. Fun! :D

them with their drinks :D

It was a night spent singing to songs and changing the lyrics, remembering "celebrities" of our childhood, laughing too much our insides hurt, badgering the driver to park in the nearest fastfood as some of us had to pee, and reminiscing our sweet ol' college days.

I reached the apartment at 1:17am. We could have gone on a farther road trip had I not needed to go to work today. Sucks to be me at these instances, I know, but good thing they understood my predicament and my need to have at least 4 hours of sleep in order to function :D I slept in the van almost half of our way home :D

A photo which encapsulates the night for me:

:D

Memories of this night will stay with me forever. It was a perfect year-ender, indeed!

PS: Thank you Karlo and Ed for your Christmas gifts, you're so sweet!

3 pairs of H&M earrings from Ed's recent Hong Kong trip and a thick(!) journal from Karlo

And so now, I am bidding 2009 the sweetest farewell, and welcoming 2010 with pink, shimmering kisses!!

Happy New Year, everyone!

Let's all rock 2010!