REWIND: Vida Alegre - June 11-15, 2012

Vida Alegre was my house guest last month -- June 10-15.  She is my late friend Cynthia Alegre's only daughter.  Before last month, I had met Vida only once -- in Manila in 1997 when she was 9 years.  However, I had talked to her on the phone and chatted with her online several times since 2006 or 2007 when Cynthia migrated to the US.  It was during one of those chats early in 2008 when Vida informed me that her mom Cynthia was in critical condition in the hospital.  Cynthia Alegre subsequently died in August that year.

Vida has lived with her aunt and adoptive mother, Olive -- Cynthia's younger sister -- in Virginia City, Virginia for at least 8 years now, but she keeps up with news about Philippine movie and TV celebrities.  And seriously, too.  In fact her trip to the San  Francisco area last month was triggered by a concert near Sacramento where her longtime idol Piolo Pascual performed -- 2 days before she came to my house.

She called me earlier, weeks before the concert, to ask if she could come and visit me and if I could drive her around the Bay Area.  Sure, I said, and I asked her where she wanted to go.  She said tourist spots in San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Filipino restaurants Max, Chow King, and Jollibee.

Her other friends in the Bay Area took turns showing her around too, but I did take her to a few places.

 The Golden Gate Bridge view from the Vista Point -- northeast of the bridge.

Marin Headlands -- northwest of Golden Gate Bridge

The Jollibee restaurant in Union City.  There is a Chow King in Union City too, but Vida's old neighbor in Manila had already taken her there a few days back.  And her cousin had already treated her to Max -- in Daly City -- as soon as he picked her up from the airport the Friday before.

On Powell Street in San Francisco where people wait to board the cable car

In the cinema complex in Westfield San Francisco Centre

Just before we left my house for Oakland Airport on her last day here.  Her next stop was Los Angeles.  She had more friends to meet there, before returning to her home in Virginia.

See more photos of I took of San Francisco while Vida was with me:

San Francisco (Mostly Yerba Buena Gardens) - Jun 13, 2012

See also some pictures I took when we went to Marin Headlands to see a different view of the Golden Gate Bridge:  Marin Headlands - Jun 11, 2012