May 3, 2011

Hi Ye,

What's going on? If you ask me, I'm pretty good. Let me tell you about Malaysia. It's a county where the people are predominantly Muslim. I was actually surprised how advanced Malaysia is. It is similar to the Philippines, but with a Muslim twist. The buildings are very nice, and the streets in the city of Kuala Lumpur are all paved. Even the regular buildings are very modern. I was especially awed by the main attraction of Kuala Lumpur, the KLCC twin towers. They are very tall with a bridge connecting the uppermost parts of the buildings. I was amused to see this as I had just seen the movie Entrapment starring Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta-Jones, most of which was shot at this building... most fascinating.

The people of Malaysia are very nice. They wear a veil type garment at all times of the day. Unlike the veils worn in the Middle East, the ones in Malaysia are colorful. People can wear whatever color they want. There are some exceptions but those people seem to be a lot more traditional.

Climate wise, Malaysia is almost the same as the Philippines. Public transportation is mostly on time and reliable. I think it is even better than ours. Have I told you this is the first time an Aircraft Carrier visited Malaysia? It's a big deal over here.

I'll leave it to here for now. Next time I'll talk about my trip to Singapore which is more interesting. Alright, until next time Bye!

Sincerely,
Dio


March 22, 2011

Hi Ye,

Hello again cousin. Here I am back again for a new tale and adventures of being in the U.S. Navy. Where were we? Oh yeah, I just left Japan with the ship heading to Singapore in 2 weeks. In those 2 weeks I would be in indoctrination for the ship. I would be with about 20 people in the class getting lesson on what to expect on the ship, military and personal conduct while on the ship, safety on the ship, etc…

While in the class I met several people that would become friends of mine for the next couple of years while being on the ship. To name a few of them, there was Butler who would be working as one of the ship's barbers and Pinzon who would be working on the military jet engines. All new personnel checking in the ship while in "indoc" would be sleeping in the same area. I was the exception. I already had a bunk bed with my soon to be co-workers. The department in charge of indoc was the training department.

Everyday life starts at 6am. The 1MC (shipwide megaphone) wakes us up using the sound of a whistle. It tells us the plan of the day, uniform of the day, and some miscellaneous news that is deemed important to announce. Breakfast is served from 5:30am to 8am. At 7am quarters are normally held. Quarters is the morning muster for all employees. During quarters we read exactly what was said over the 1MC. In addition to that, issues that affecting the office are also discussed. Normally this will last around 15 minutes. After morning muster we have a general shipwide cleaning time, which lasts around 30 minutes.

After shipwide cleaning, the work day starts. Our workday normal lasts for 12 hrs if we're out to sea and 8 hrs in port. My job is part of the executive department, to take care of the enlisted folks and only ship's company which is about 2500 personnel at one time. We take care of their pay, transfers, receiving, and other miscellaneous duties that need to be taken care of for our fellow shipmates. We take turns in taking lunch and breaks. On a normal day we will finish at around 7pm. Again at this time we will have quarters with the night crew (oncoming shift). After a couple of minutes we are free to do whatever we need to do.

We normally just relax after work, watch TV, go to the gym, or take classes. And yes we do have classes on a ship especially on an aircraft carrier. Then around 10pm, we get a prayer from the chaplain onboard the ship before going to sleep.

Well, this is it for now. Until next time. Bye!!!

Yours truly,
Dio


March 15, 2011

Hi Ye,

How are you? If you ask me, I am fine. Well, where was I? Oh yeah, I left the U.S. and now headed to Japan. We landed at Yokota U.S. Air Force Base. And yes, there is a U.S. Air Force in Japan, just like in the Philippines where there was Subic U.S. Naval Base.

We arrived around mid Morning. Upon arrival, we had to check in with base personnel. After 30 minutes I went on a bus going to Yokosuka. It would take approximately 4 hrs. to get from Yokota to Yokosuka. I sat in the front of the bus to get a full view of the road going to Yokosuka. I was pretty excited to be there. I'd always dreamed of going to Japan ever since I was a kid. The ride was a bit long, but not bad at all.

Once I reached Yokosuka, I had to walk around half a mile to get where the ship was berthed. It wasn't fun at all carrying a military duffle bag and a backpack and adding to that was a hot day. After several minutes I saw my ship. Seeing the aircraft carrier USS Constellation (CV-64) for the first time was exhilarating. Here was the ship where I would be stationed and be living for the next 4-5 years of my life. It was a stunning thing to see for the first time.

Once I arrived on the ship, I checked into the personnel department (which is also where I was going to work). I was checked in on the ship by Airman Hitchcock. PN1 Orosco was the supervisor on duty that day and also going to be my supervisor in the office. After checking in, I was escorted by Hitchcock to our berthing (sleeping quarters) and he gave me a quick tour of the bathroom, mess hall and other locations deemed important. After the tour, Hitchcock advised me to just relax for the next three days because the ship was currently on a port call in Japan. This means only necessary on-duty personnel were needed to be on the ship. Normally a person would be on-duty for only one of those days that we were in Japan. Since I was a new arrival on the ship, I wasn't assigned to any duty day.

For the next couple of days I just wandered around and outside the base. Outside the base I didn't go too far because I was scared to get lost. I also don't know how to speak Nihonggo which is the official language in Japan. But I saw enough of Japan to see my dreams come true. Inside the base I was also ecstatic. I saw cars that I had dreamed about that you cannot see back here in the U.S. -- like the Nissan Skyline R34, and modified RX-7's. I was actually surprised to see a Filipino restaurant inside the base. That would be the last thing I would ever think of seeing inside the base.

On the last day of our stay in Japan, I saw a friend of mine that I had met in Meridian who got stationed on a ship which was home ported in Yokosuka. I forgot his name, but I was amazed to see someone who I knew in Meridian who would end up in Japan. I was told in boot camp that people you meet once in a duty station you would most likely not meet again. But here I was and saw one of my friends.

Well I enjoyed my stay in Japan and loved every minute of it. Now I would start my adventures onboard the Connie (the nickname of the ship). Who knows what lay ahead in the vast, blue ocean.

Until next time. BYE!!!

Yours truly,
Dio


March 1, 2011

Hi Ye,

How are you? If you're asking me, I'm fine, thank you. Where did we leave off last time? Oh yeah, I left Meridian, Mississippi to go meet the ship I was going to be stationed on.

But before that, I was forced to take a week of vacation. I had to go on vacation because the ship was out to sea and I was to fly off to Japan to meet it.

So I went back to Pinole, CA in June where my dad and my stepmom are living. I was glad to be back home. I hadn't seen my parents for over 4 months. When I saw my dad I hugged him tightly. Being away from my family for that long made me miss them so much. But I survived. And now I was back.

I hadn't been in contact with them for a while. I didn't even know that my brother had joined the U.S. Marines while I was in boot camp. I was surprised that my brother had joined the Marines. I knew before that he was looking into joining the Air Force, but the Marines… more power to him. I cannot even fathom joining the Marines. Their boot camp lasts 3 months, and they endure more physical activity than the Navy.

My parents and I tried to catch up on stuff that I had missed while I was in Illinois and Mississippi. I told them about my experiences in boot camp at NTC Great Lakes in Illinois and NTTC Meridian in Mississippi. We would talk for hours at end. I also asked my stepmom to cook me some Filipino food that I missed so much while I was away. I asked her to cook because she is a very good cook -- not just Filipino food, but overall she is one of the best cooks I've ever known.

While I was at home I literally became a bum. I did not do anything. I was trying to compensate for the time I was always busy at boot camp and training. I would watch T.V. the whole day. I didn't exercise.

So the week passed by very quickly. Next thing I knew I was headed to SFO airport to fly to Japan and meet up with the ship. I was dropped off by my parents. I was staring out of the car on the way to the airport, imagining the life ahead of me living on a ship for the next 5 months. I hadn't done anything like this before. The ship is the size of a small town, with around 5000 people. But before I knew it, we were at the airport. It was time to say good-bye to my parents again. Parting was such sweet sorrow.

I left SFO and headed to Los Angeles to board a military flight from Los Angeles to Yokusuka, Japan with a stopover at Seattle. The total flight time was around 20 hrs. It was a long flight. But I got there safe and sound. I'll end this letter for now.

Until next time, yours truly,
Dio


February 22, 2011

Hi Ye,

Here I am again. How are you? Well let me continue my story when I joined the Navy. After boot camp in Chicago, I went to Naval Technical Training Center Meridian, Mississippi for my Navy job school. I got to Meridian around the end of May. I was so excited and also scared once I got to Meridian, excited because I was on a new adventure, meeting new people, and learning new stuff, and scared because I wasn't sure what was in store for me.

There was a bus waiting to take us to NTTC when we arrived in Meridian. On the way to NTTC, I was struck with the beauty of Meridian. It was also my first time in a small southern town. The population was only around 50,000.

Once I arrived at NTTC Meridian, I was processed to check into the barracks and school. I checked into my room with 2 other guys. Luckily for me the other 2 guys had also finished boot camp, as I did. The adjustment period with them was quick since I knew them before. Two of us were also in the same class for our navy job. We had to wait a week before our class actually started.

We were expected to be in class for 4 weeks (plus 3 days to learn how to properly type on a computer). Our days were pretty much the same every single day (with the exception of weekends, of course). Wake up in the morning. Exercise every MWF (the days we didn't exercise, we woke up just a little later than usual). We tried to eat breakfast whenever we could. We normally has to travel/march in formation if we were in uniform. School was normally from 8am until 5pm, like a normal working day. In my navy job, (which was as a Personnel man) we trained on computers and paperwork all day long. We had to study information about service records, pay, transfers, receiving and separation of enlisted personnel in the navy. School was not too hard although it could get tedious once in a while.

After school, we could do whatever we wanted: eat dinner, exercise some more, hang out, watch TV, or whatever else we wanted to do. But if we had duty then that would be our priority. Duty was normally 4 hrs. long (just like what we will be doing once we join the fleet). There were several duties that could be assigned to you. We could be rovers (walking around to make sure nothing is afoul), man the lobby, or other duties. And that normally constituted our days.

Extracurricular activities were bowling, nature trail, hiking, fishing, or going to the mall. Now going to the mall was an adventure in itself. There was no bus that went into town during weekdays. Unless someone had a car, we just had to wait until the weekend for the bus. On the weekends there was a bus, but the schedule was staggered. The mall was pretty small compared to the ones I am used to in the San Francisco Bay Area. Other than the mall, just the ride itself on the way to the mall was spectacular. If you are a nature lover, this is the place for you. I also loved it when we passed by the old streets which I believe was the old downtown. I saw an old drive-thru diner, but unfortunately it was closed. But I can still imagine it in its heyday.

That was basically what my stay entailed in Meridian, Mississippi. It was fun and I met good friends. I learned not only what my job entailed, but also the experience of living with other people. I wanted to stay a bit longer, but I had to start my journey into the real U.S. Navy. Until next time, Bye!!!

Sincerely,
Dio


February 15, 2011

Hi Ye,

Greetings from the land of Milk and Honey! How are you? I'm okay here. I just finished my tour in the U.S. Navy. I was in the Navy for 4 years. And those were great years for me, If I do say so myself.

Let me tell you my experiences. I joined the Navy when I was 19. I joined on March of 1999. I went to boot camp in the Naval Training Center Great Lakes in Illinois. When I got there, it was the end of the winter and beginning of spring, and the last snow storm of the season was in progress. It only lasted for a couple of days and spring arrived.

The first couple of days in boot camp were pretty rough. I was getting yelled at by the instructors. You really had to follow the instructions or else you would get yelled at. We all got buzz cuts. We also had to wear sweats the first couple of days until we got our own barracks to sleep in.

After we got our own barracks, we had to do a routine for the next 6 weeks. It was waking up at 4am, exercise, breakfast, Navy classes, lunch, Navy classes, dinner and some extracurricular activities. The exception was Sunday, when we got to wake up late, go to church, and had no classes. Basically, it was a rest day of sorts.

Then came the graduation/end of boot camp, one of the proudest moments in my life. I shared this moment with my mom and her husband. I felt that I will make a difference in my life.

I have to go, but will send you a letter again when I go to Mississippi for my formal training for my job in the Navy. Until then, Goodbye!!!

Sincerely,
Dio


February 8, 2011

Hi Ye,

Greetings from the land of milk and honey. How are you? If you're asking me, I am fine. So I just finished my first full semester of school in City College of San Francisco. And I can tell you it is hard but fulfilling at the same time.

The start of the semester was scary and exciting at the same time. Scary because this is my first time going to an American school and exciting because I will be able to meet new people. I took a Japanese class, an ESL class (this is for the people whose first language is not English) and a math class. At first, all the classes were intimidating. But as the days went on, it got easier. I met some interesting folks while attending CCSF. I met a girl named Yuki. She is so nice. She is also Japanese. She helped me in my Japanese class. One Phrase in particular that I still remember until now is "watashi wa, daisuke desu", which means literally "I like you" (but also nowadays it means "I love you").

I also met different persons of different nationalities in ESL, mostly Chinese, but also some Latinos and Russians. I also learned a lot in class. For example, some sentences that sound good to me, aren't necessarily correct. I learned to read them carefully and analyze them each time.

As you know, I am not a student who is good with books. I like to learn from the person teaching in the classroom. If I don't learn it from them, then I won't learn at all. So with this information, I can tell you that I struggled from time to time in my studies. Even though all my time is dedicated to school, it seems so hard to make time for studies and being immersed into the American way.

At the end I survived my first semester in school. It was an experience to remember. I loved the teachers and my fellow students for the insight I got from them. Learning from them is something I treasure. Truly in school you learn in many different ways.

Goodbye, see you later. I will be back.

Sincerely,
Dio =)