Iloilo trip

I'm back lovies!!! Iloilo was fun and i can't wait to go back..The only drawback was that it was a 6-7 long hour drive from here to Bacolod..which is why we had to make pit stops along the way just to stretch our stiffened legs or snap snap snap take a photo or two..

Lili, Ate Anne and Marc

View from the top

We took the Supercat and arrived in Iloilo another hour after..so that would make the whole trip approximately 8 hours long..We decided to give ourselves some well-deserved rest so we checked in at the Grand Tower Hotel which was just a good 5 minutes away from the pier. 

At dinner, we ate at a restaurant called the Fish Fort. My uncle was the least bit enthusiastic about the place of choice. He is quite the cannibal you see..doesn't eat anything that's green or anything "fishy"...he's also the major coke addict and is repulsed by all Pepsi products. So you could just imagine his despair when he found out that there's not a single coke product available at Fish Fort..The absence of meat was one thing, but the non-existence of a coke bottle after a loOooong trip was a whole different story for him. tsk.tsk..Poor thing!

Waiting for the food

Speaking of the cannibal, meet David Claire a.k.a. Blueboy (because he eats his bloomers..haha)

So next day came, that was Monday..on top of the list was finding a good apartment. We asked around and was lucky to even find a vacancy. Apparently, it was "apartment-hunting" season. So we had to grab our chance while we still had it. It was just near WVSU along Abella Street...probably 15 minutes walking distance away from the school..not bad..but I'd still prefer somewhere nearer..U know me, i'm not the morning kind of person..for the first 21 years of my life, it was my father who woke me up in the mornings. He was my alarm clock and soon, that alarm clock will be 178 kilometers away from me. :( But on a happier note, the apartment was more than big enough for me and my twin sister..we've got a kitchen, living room, and a bathroom at the first floor, two separate bedrooms in the second floor and another bathroom in one of the rooms--sweeeeeT! I didn't get a chance to take a snap shot of the area..my bad..anyway, i'm hoping everything goes well by the time we move in!

Seeing the apartment from the outside..need to work a bit of magic to make this look more appealing..but it's actually pretty neat inside!

So Tuesday came and twas interview day!! Woke up early to get a headstart, put on a semi-formal outfit..hmm..a little make-up won't hurt..then we called a taxi, and arrived at the venue. The other applicants were already inside a room and seemed to be writing something. So i did the same. Did i bring my ballpen?! (looks inside my bag)..Oh yes! Lucky for me there's a functioning pen inside my bag! We had to fill out information sheets about ourselves..twas about 8 copies of the same thing so that kinda pissed me off. We also had to answer in more or less 200 words the question they posted on the black board-- What is your opinion on physicians joining politics? As far as i can remember, here's what I had to say:

"It is of my opinion that physicians can do whatever they want, as long as it's legal and does not entail harming another human being. Running for office is not all that bad as what many people might think. In fact, joining politics can be a means to achieve the necessary changes in the health sector, which by the way, is almost always ignored or given less importance by the current government. As citizens in a particular community, I think they have every right to join politics and be an advocate for health. I think that more than ever, people should now focus on the significant impact that health has on the overall performance and progress of a certain community. Case in point, people should prioritize their health so they can be more productive and can contribute more to the community rather than become a liability."

After that, I had to go the second floor for my interview while my sister had hers in the first floor. Hmm..now comes the boring part..waiting for almost 3 hours before it was my turn! Geeez! Gotta do something to keep myself busy..Darn!..I forgot to bring my earphones..so there's not much to do except to listen to the other applicants speak Ilonggo and another one snore in his seat..I took the liberty of taking a shot of my immediate vicinity...just out of boredom ..

8:30 am......9:30 am.....what is taking them so long??....10:30 am..feeling kinda hungry..11:30..Time to go in!! Finally! My name was called! 

I was a bit surpised to know that we'd be interviewed together--by batches of 6-7..I thought it was a one on one interview..But a panel of doctors were lined up across the room and we were seated opposite them and juxtaposed together...for comparison i assume?! ..But I wouldn't really know why..Anyway, the interview went well. At first, I think I stammered a bit in the beginning. Grrr..I hate it when I do that and i especially hate it when I feel like i'm running out of breath and feeling that something is wringing down my neck..not good..but i think i regained my composure towards the end..hmf..Here are the questions they asked us and my answers to them:

• So, tell us something about yourself and what you like most about medicine and also, what you like least about it.

Good morning everyone! I'm Angela E. Sison. 21 yrs. of age. I come from Dumaguete City and graduated from Silliman University with a course in BSN. I just recently passed the board exam..What i like most about medicine is the opportunity to help patients and treat them. I was inspired by my doctor when I, myself, was a patient. I want to instill in my future patients the same kind of hope that my doctor has given me. Knowing that things are going to be alright because you're in good hands is so comforting. What I like least about medicine is the responsibility of having to tell patients about their diagnosis or prognosis--be it good or bad, especially if it's bad. (what was i thinking?! Isn't it supposed to be a good thing when patients have a good prognosis..Ugh! I'm such a dunce..) (Continuation..) Being in that position would be so hard but I guess that's just something we have to learn whether we like it or not.

•  Ms. Sison, why did you not apply at Silliman school of medicine?

Hmmm..although Silliman School of Medicine has started to make a good name for itself--owing to the recent 100% passing rate they had garnered in the board exam, I think that West Visayas Univ has already done that a long time ago--with a good track record of top notchers in the past board exams..Also, my mother has colleagues/fellow doctors who come from WVSU whom she speaks very highly of.

• What is your greatest challenge so far, and how did you cope with it?

I would have to say it was back when I was in 3rd year college. I fainted in the middle of a school day and was brought to the emergency room at a nearby hospital. My mother was a nervous-wreck because she thought I was pregnant--i was also vomiting back then--which pretty much explains her reaction. When the results were in, her mood changed because they were negative. However, she wanted to make sure nothing was wrong with me, so she sent me to have an ultrasound. They found out that I had a pseudocyst in my pancreas and so I had to be sent to Manila to go under the knife. To make the long story short, I coped up by believing in myself--that I could continue my studies without any delays. Besides, I didn't want my sister to graduate ahead of me. We were supposed to graduate together--that was always the plan. So there, I passed all exams and still managed to graduate with honors.

•  Are you always in competition with your sister? because you said you didn't want her to graduate ahead of you..

Not at all. I don't really see ourselves as competitors. We're more like a team. Besides that, ever since we were in elementary, she was always ahead of me.. She'd be rank 3, i'd be rank 4..but that hasn't bothered me at all..It's always been that way since I can remember.

• Do you have any leadership skills or experiences?

I think my leadership skills were honed partly when I was still in High School. I was always part of programs or school events. When I was in colllege, I also had experiences being a team leader in our nursing hospital duties, and every now and then, I'd also engage myself in organizing events such as dance workshops and the like.

So there you have it..Those were basically the type of questions they asked us. The best part was when one doctor said that he'd be sure to see all of us this June and that he was impressed by our group..Pssshh...really doc?? or were you just saying that because you didn't want to dampen our spirits, twas already past 12 anyway and everybody just wanted to freakin' eat something?! :) But anyway, thanks for that doc!

Finally done! Nothing beats the stress away than to watch a feel-good movie! So we decided to go for Rio Rio Rio!!

I've already watched the movie back in Dumaguete but my loser siblings still haven't. hahaha..My mother was also stubbornly reluctant at first because those weren't the kinds of movies she'd be able to watch through until the ending. But contrary to what might be expected, i was surprised she was laughing the whole time. And in my case, seeing the movie the second time around was as much fun as the first time i watched it. Talk about fulfilling my cinematic needs! All in all, we had a great time!

So that wraps up the important things that happened during the trip..Till then! Halong Iloilo, see you soon! Kapoy gid but worth it! :) Here are other snaps taken while we were there...