The Rental Side of the Aqua Tower

My parents bought a condo, but here's a youtube video showing what the rentals are like.



Also, a video on the amenities:

New Home

Congrats to my parents for signing the papers on a new condo in downtown Chicago! The bought a convertible 1br on the 62nd floor of the Aqua Tower, which has already become a historic landmark even though the building isn't finished yet. Chicago has always been known for having fascinating, and oftentimes daring, architecture, and this is a fact that seems to fly under the radar unless you're an architecture-aficionado or you've actually been to Chicago and paid attention to the varying architectural styles. If you have any plans of going to Chicago, then I HIGHLY recommend going on the Architectural River Tour. It's relaxing, you learn a lot, and you get tons of great photo ops. Anyways, not only is this building very modern and striking, but it's also the tallest building in the world that was designed by a woman.


The amenities at this place are insane. It makes me feel like I'm going to be like royalty once I move there. Really nice gym, indoor pool, outdoor pool, cabanas where you can hook up your own tv by the pool, terraces/park, outdoor grills, theater to play your own dvd's, game room, free shuttle to certain places, washer/dryer in every unit, and heated underground tunnels to the Water Tower Place, and not sure where else. I still can't believe the ridiculously low price my parents got this for. YAY for buyer's market and property being so far less than NYC. It's also across from Millennium Park, and we have a view of the lake, which really looks like the ocean. Just saying. I'm 100% certain that the price of the condos in this building are almost 3 TIMES LESS than an average apartment of the same size in NYC...with no amenities, no view, and no special location.

Anyways, I admit I felt like I had to write this disclaimer on the place because I know that once people see pictures on Facebook and my blog, they're gonna be all, "Wtf, who has this kind of money." It's not like that in Chicago. Property is so affordable there, and you get a lot for what you pay for. Well, that's how it is nowadays since it's a buyer's market. No one is buying.

Alright, that is all.

A Dominican 24th Birthday

As many of you know, I never really celebrate my birthday other than dinner with my family and Gabe. And really, it's always just been more of an excuse to go out to eat. I only recall having two birthday parties with friends when I was a little kid - my 8th birthday party at a bowling alley, and my 9th birthday at the ice skating rink where I took classes my whole childhood. And then I had my 21st birthday party in the Meatpacking District in NYC, for the sake of it being my 21st. So yeah, I'm not a big birthday person, and I really had absolutely no intention of even acknowledging it this year with all the craziness of studying and being away from my family, Gabe, and friends in NYC - these are the people who are my blood.

Before I could even remove my birthday from Facebook (so people here wouldn't find out), Ren, one of my closest friends here, basically gave me no choice but to go out to dinner with our circle of friends in celebration of my 24th. It was probably one of the sweetest offers ever, so I couldn't refuse. Really, no one has ever done something like that for me. I think we had at least 20 people who were originally going to come, and that was just my closest friends. It shrunk down to 16 people, but these are 16 people I really do love. I can't thank everyone enough for making me feel so special and taking me out. And I definitely can't thank Ren enough for making this happen. He is so sweet.

I often times feel a little bit sad because I am constantly missing my friends (for life) back in NYC. I've always known and believed that nothing could match up to the dozens of amazing friendships I made in that city. They are people who I will have for the rest of my life, no matter what city, state, or country I move to next. They're people who know me for who I really am.

It's a little different being in med school in Dominica. I feel like we all just mostly know each other in the med school context. We don't talk about much else besides school. And I'm not gonna lie...I'm way more reserved and awkward here than anywhere else. It's almost like I regressed back to my high school days. While I always knew that I made a few good friends here, the birthday dinner that they threw for me showed me that in spite of the rigors of med school and not having much time for socializing, these people have become like family to me. They truly are among the most genuine and thoughtful people I have ever met, and I really can't thank them enough.

With that, here are pictures of me and my friends at Riverside restaurant.


Me and the ladies.


Me and the guys.

Check out my Filipino rapper med student friend

At Ross University's cultural show last night, one of my closest med school friends, Ren, represented Filipino Union (and Chicago!) and gave a rap performance. He's an unsigned rapper out in Chicago, and he's awesome. Check out the video.

Also, here's his Myspace if you're interested: http://www.myspace.com/renwexl

I know I haven't updated in forever. School has been rough on me, and things have just been so busy.

For now, enjoy the vid.