I was born in the Philippines, where I lived until I was a teen. I left Manila with my sister and joined my mom in Cambodia. It was during the war in Indochina. It was there amidst the heady atmosphere of danger and flying rockets and sounds of gunfire that my love for Photography was awakened. Maybe part of the reason for this was that many of our friends were photojournalists, partly because the newness of living in a different country from my own made me want to put the experience down in some way. It was there that I saw my first Vietcongs dead in their black pajamas on the street one misty morning, and it shook me. I think I aged right on the spot. 
On a lighter note, another experience stands out from my old Cambodia days is that our last house there was haunted. I had been hearing stories from the other family members about hearing noises and things going bump in the night. Well, one of the last days we were there, it was New Year’s Eve. We had friends over earlier in the evening, then I decided to take photos of the sunrise of the new year from our rooftop. Villas there had a flat roof/terrace, so I sat in a corner, smoking and waiting with my camera. I took my pictures and went to bed. I was sharing a bedroom with my sister. As soon as I settled in bed, I heard the sounds of some heavy metal being dragged across the rooftop above me! And I knew there was nothing on our roof. During peacetime it may have been pleasant to have chairs there, but with the rockets, people gravitated towards the bunker rather than the roof, you understand. I froze in my bed, cold sweat and all. I managed to glance at my sleeping sister on her bed but couldn’t utter a sound! Quelle experience.
Among the many people I met there was Pat. We kept in touch even when we moved to Bangkok after we were evacuated from Cambodia. We got married in Thailand.
My son Bryan was born in Jakarta, Indonesia. He now attends college in UMBC, which is in Baltimore. It’s not far from home here in Severna Park, Maryland. He is a budding artist, check out his link to view his work. He also plays guitar. He’s the one who helped me with my page. It’s a long, slow process, but someday, it’ll get done.
Peace, Love, and remember to keep your f***ing head down!
Sunny
Left: Pat with a Cambodian friend.
Since then, Pat and I have lived in the following countries: India, Thailand, Indonesia, Canada (two months), Madagascar, Ethiopia, Philippines, and of course, the U.S.of A.! We have seen a lot more of the world during holidays, of course. High on my list of dream places to retire in are the Seychelles and Myanmar (Burma), and of course, the Philippines (not Manila but most anywhere outside it). I have to also mention that we have repeatedly gone back to HongKong to visit my sister and her family, and we love to visit and shop there! Africa was a great experience, and it was totally different from Asia, I’m glad we were able to live there. One of the highlights of our stay in Addis Ababa was that I got to meet Audrey Hepburn when she went there for UNICEF. I loved Nairobi in Kenya, and we were able to go to Djibouti and Mauritius too. Pat of course has traveled to so many other places in his job, but then he can tell you about them himself.
My hobbies include Photography, Crafts, Cooking, New Age. The books I like reading are travel essays that have a lot about food in them(like those written by MFKFisher, Peter Mayle,Frances Mayes,etc.), certain biographies, and a lot of New Age stuff. I may start to write more someday, it is after all, in our blood. My grandfather, father, uncle, sister, and cousin are all writers, and once in a while I get the urge.
