La vie magnifique, eh?

Yoga Girl and the Girl with a Dragon Tattoo

2012-02-11T05:07:00.000-08:00

First time yogi last Friday courtesy of my office friend Ronald - and yes, I am so happy since it was free! They are having a Valentine Promo of bring someone for free from Feb 10 to 12. I went to the power yoga class of Monique at Bliss Yoga, Jupiter, Makati.

The class was great! Monique tried to adjust me for a shoulder stand but alas, I just couldn't. Also, I'm not yet used to fully relaxing as I have been doing none-steady activities such as running and dabbled on boxing and muay-thai. It was a nice change though and would love to go to a class again and try not to giggle for once next time (I just can't help myself).

Come night time date with hubby was to watch The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I loved the film! It was very intense and had me anticipating on what would happen next.

OK fine, there were scenes that are 'not suitable for young ages' but that's why it's rated R-18, right? I would still recommend watching it. Btw, it is only showing in Glorietta now in Makati, no more in Greenbelt. And probably will read the book as well when I'm not lazy.

Feeling Like a Special Guest at Adarna

2012-02-06T08:52:00.000-08:00

I am continually becoming a fan of Spanish Heritage Houses here in the Philippines; so it isn't a surprise that I loved the concept of Adarna. We wanted to go to the said restaurant a couple of times already, but it was always either out of the way or just plain far for a good meal. Finally we were able to drop by the Diliman restaurant last Sunday for a good meal. Once you step inside the gate you will see antiques all around the garden with a fountain in the middle. First thing that came into my mind when we entered the restaurant was that it was like we were invited for a special meal at one of the heritage houses we've seen in Ilocos or Bataan - could've fooled me that we were just in Quezon City :)

The porcelaine plates are out from the cabinets
I love the interiors, specially the old chairs

Our meal of Chicken Relleno Circa 1940 at 480P was really good for 3 people. It looked rather small when it was served but it was heavy. The chicken was stuffed with chorizo, ham, quezo de bola, green peas, and raisins.

The salsa that came with the chicken was nice and went well with it. We asked for another serving of this :))

Batanes Yellow Rice at 77P for one serving is made of turmeric, garlic, pork, and coconut cream flavor was ok. The viand tasted too much that I barely tasted the rice.

My order of Iced Barako Latte at 95P was a simple drink but I loved it. The drink was so nice after the tiring run we had.

The classic Batangas Brewed Barako was still in the menu of course for 70P. The coffee made special because of the nice porcelaine cup

Probably next time we'll try their cheaper executive meal which would just cost us 500P for the two of us. I think the meal changes per month, but for February they have for 225P: Soup of the Day, Guinataang Kalabasa/ Squash, Adobong Batangas ala Adarna, Steamed Pandan Rice, and Kesong Puti Langka Fry - not bad, right?

Beautiful mother and child on a porcelaine plate

Mangrove Run, Ventosa, and Adarna

2012-02-06T08:09:00.000-08:00

It was 3AM and we were already on our way to Alabang for the Condura Skyway Run. We did 16kilometers this time. It was our first time running on the Skyway and the longest kilometer run for hubby.

Painting at the Mangrove Wall with my 16K medal

The race was well organized and we liked the U-turn route. It was a no fuss path unlike when we run in Fort bonifacio that there are many turns. They also had enough hydration; well, at least until we finished our 16K, I'm not sure for the 5 or 3K runners as they were already about to run out of cups when we were done. Only downside (which was not even marathon related) was that hubby's iphone fell on the floor and had major cracks when we reached the finish line - that and we lost our parking ticket and had to pay additional 200P.

Run Result: http://www.conduraskywaymarathon.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/16k.pdf

After the run we had a massage at Shui at Libis. The Shui branch here in Makati is super near our place but they were fully booked. It was my first time to experience the Ventosa Therapy (cupping method) coupled with Hilot (local relaxation massage). We were able to get vouchers from Ensogo and it was very worth it.

Lunch was at Adarna at Diliman/ UP Village. It was a good meal and I will write about it in detail. They serve Spanish-Filipino dishes

An Adarna Painting inside Adarna Restaurant

Yey! Milk Tea for the Lactose Intolerant

2012-01-31T07:36:00.000-08:00

I have admittedly become a milk tea addict and it's too bad that getting my hubby to drink just a sip will make his tummy churn :(

Good thing we bought a coupon at Deal Grocer for Saint's Alps and discovered a milk tea place that serves to the lactose intolerant! It is now our favorite milk tea shop :D

His order of Black Milk Tea with pearls and my order of Green Tea White Moustache. Their serving of milk tea is big at 95P, pearls additional 15P. The White Moustache series is the one with salted whipped cream; in other milk tea shops they describe this as cheese. Their milk tea tastes like that of Gong Cha with additional perks of being ok for the lactose intolerant.

view from the top

This was my meal for the deal I bought, regular price of the Taiwanese Chicken Chop is 195P. I got the deal for 200P which is already inclusive of the Chicken Chop and the White Moustache tea :) The Chicken Chop was dry, it's a good thing the waiter recommended to place sweet chili sauce on it.

Included in hubby's deal is the Beef Tapa with Garlic Rice and Egg also with a regular price of 195

Chinese Chow for the New Year: SaLido

2012-01-30T08:14:00.000-08:00

We had a couple of choices for our Chinese New Year meal but my family specifically wanted rice so hubby and I had to choose a good restaurant in our go-to map with good rice and viand. I then saw SaLido at the map and it said - specialty: Pork Asado... There's our winner :D

They actually moved location from the one in the map. We had to ask one of the guards for directions.
Yummy Roasted Pork Asado for 200+P. Good enough for 2-3 people sharing.

3 Cups Chicken - not sure why it is named as such, but it is yummy. We got the small serving which was also good for sharing for 200+P

My bro-in law's order of mami. Wasn't able to taste this. 115P for a meal for 1.

Yang Chow fried rice was fine, nothing new

This is actually 4 pieces - free butchi courtesy of the restaurant. Thanks! And yes, as I said at a previous post they gave free tikoy :D

Next time will be going back for their coffee... it smelled so good upon entering the restaurant!

Chinese New Year Long Weekend Escapade

2012-01-25T09:56:00.000-08:00

Thank God for long weekends! :D

For this Chinese New Year weekend we went to Laguna to have our team building at Forest Club then afterwards a group of us (hun, Ronald, Jerome, Jojo, Clarence, Draks, Channel, Ralph, and Courtney) had our own DIY trip to Pagsanjan Falls via the Cavinti route. Come monday, my family and I had a real Chinese New Year celebration at Binondo/ China Town. I'm planning to write the details at the hub pages soon :)

In the meantime here are some pictures from our Chinese New Year Weekend...

View of the boats from Pagsanjan while we were treking down via the Cavinti Route. Before they offered a trip via the Pagsanjan boat after seeing the falls via Cavinti; this time the Pueblo El Salvador Eco Park was disallowed to do so because they are a separate area :(

By the way, the current price as of January 2012 to see the Pagsanjan Falls via boat is 1250, compared to what we paid via treking - a measly 150P.

Inside the Devil's Cave - actually we were at the back of the huge falling waterfalls! Amazing experience :) 90P for the raft to the cave.

One of the many dragons during the Chinese New Year at Binondo. Afterwards we ate at Sa Lido. Yummy pork asado! And they gave us free tikoy too :)

The day wasn't over yet as we went to watch Underworld after our Binondo trip

Action packed with eye-candy Kate; but honestly, the story line is getting passe :/

Men, Men, Men... Defending the Caveman and Mission Impossible 4

2012-01-15T08:22:00.001-08:00

This weekend was all about men -

Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol had been shown in the Philippines December last year, but unfortunately the showing of the film was cut short due to the Metro Manila Film Fest. I almost thought we wouldn't be able to see it anymore.

I liked the film - action packed with Tom Cruise banging his head from time to time. What I didn't like though was the 6 year old looking kid behind me watching a 13 year old parental guidance film and kicking my chair! When the lights turned on more 6 year olds were running around the cinema with their parents. Come on Greenbelt 3, please don't let those kids in unless they are fit to watch the film! The content of the film is not for them and they are annoying!

Moving on...

Defending the Caveman shown at the Carlos P Romulo stage at RCBC was apt to describe our dinner the previous day with my best girl friends. Just a couple of minutes before the play started I asked my husband exactly one of the lines that came up during the play - 'what did you and (a boyfriend of one of my friends) talk about?'. He said 'work, computers, and diving'. I then replied 'So, what did you talk about?'. He repeated what he previously said. Yep, men don't talk details because it's difficult to describe their details :)) There were a lot more lines in the play that hit the spot. Although as hubby and I said, male and female can't be generalized these days, we've evolved - he cleans, I negotiate... etc...

Anyway, to cut the story short, we enjoyed the play even if it was just Joel Trinidad talking with us like he was just having a conversation with someone. The play was a bit short though, it was good they sold tickets at a cheaper price at CashCash Pinoy/Ensogo. We did however buy the tickets which were not on sale at Ticketnet for Balcony seats at 500+ but we were asked to move to Orchestra seats anyway - not bad.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

2012-01-10T09:33:00.000-08:00

The Hollywood films opened just last Sunday after one month of Filipino film fest and we made sure to watch The Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows immediately. It was as usual action-packed with the proper mixture of geekiness... needless to say, I loved it! :)

Cool with smart - perfect combination ;)

Oh, did I also mention freakishly weird? :))

Metro Manila Film Fest 2011: Manila Kingpin and House Husband

2012-01-06T21:19:00.000-08:00

We were only able to watch two films for the Metro Manila Film Fest 2011...

Manila Kingpin got the most number of awards in the film fest. I liked how the film was shot, hubby and I agreed that everything was so classic. He specially liked the rain drops while we found the biking scene while firing a gun too 'trying hard' and funny

Story-wise we liked House Husband better. And yes, Eugene is a good add on for the laughs

Christmas 2011 and New Year 2012 by the South

2012-01-06T20:30:00.000-08:00

We had our 1st year Anniversary at Tagaytay last December 23 (Christmas at home) then we were once again back in Tagaytay after an overnight stay in Batangas :)

Dinner is served at Chateau Hestia. We stayed at T House for 4650P. Lunch was at Sonya's for 600P per person. Details are here at our hub.

We stayed at Residencia de Riego Hotel and Restaurant for New Year with the family. I got the deal at CashCash Pinoy for 13999 for 16 people. We enjoyed this. Afterwards we passed by historical Taal Heritage then went to Tagaytay for Bulalo lunch and bread from Sonya's.

Happy Christmas and New Year to Everyone! :D

Chinese New Year Soon!

2011-12-27T08:58:00.000-08:00

My collection of Chinese New Year Bearista bear courtesy of hubby. The dragon bear for 2012 was fresh from the stock room of MSE Starbucks branch this afternoon :D

Dragon Bear cost 795P

Distrito at Makati

2011-12-03T23:29:00.000-08:00

We went last Friday to the freshly opened Distrito at the Amorsolo parking area (near Makati Med) which is a food market like Banchetto at Ortigas and Mercato at Fort Bonifacio. Distrito is open from Wednesday to Friday from 9PM to 3AM.

Actually, before these food markets became a hit, there was the Salcedo Market at the Salcedo Park, Makati every Saturdays and Legazpi Market at the Legazpi Park, Makati every Sundays.

Jampacked with office workers, we almost didn't get a chair. The place was small.

One of the hits at the place is the simple 'ihaw' area. We got a HUGE serving of isaw (chicken intestines) at 40P. Despite the simplicity, I liked this order the best :)

We also ordered at the Guac Truck. My order was tortilla chips with beef bits, sour cream, and corn salsa at 150P. It had a generous serving of beef giniling but I still found it expensive for the price.

Probably I could've done better in choosing?

Another hit is the Vigan Empanada at 100P. Hubby liked this empanada version better then the one we actually got in Vigan. This one was filled with bits of pork, strips of vegetables and an egg. I liked the one from Vigan better since it had Vigan Longganisa.

The best bite is the one with egg ;)

We'll probably be back for the Chicago style pizza next time. Oh, and also planning a Mercato trip soon.

DD Got Hot

2011-12-02T19:32:00.000-08:00

A new double down is in town one year after the original chicken DD

Cheese oozing out of our zinger dd. I find this better than the original double down 'cause even if it's spicy, it's less salty

and yes, you will be needing the dulce de leche crushers after your spicy zinger double down

Still enough for two seatings and afterwards, don't forget your push ups :))

Give Me Everything Pilipinas

2011-11-30T07:57:00.000-08:00

Just watched Pitbull's concert today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, Cubao. It was a post gift to hubby from me.

We arrived 2 hours earlier to get a good parking spot and grab something to eat. For dinner was Italian at Va Pensiero at Araneta Center.

Chef Giorgio was there at the restaurant

Bread was better at Italianni's, but at least they had free appetizer

Risotto Osso Buco at 350P wasn't exceptional

Fantasia Pizza was good - better to go for the pizza at 350P. They also had a promo of more expensive pizzas with free 2 glasses of lemonade at 499P

the tiramisu at 150P was also good with a little hint of alcohol

At exactly 7pm we were at the coliseum and got ourselves good seats at the middle of the stage.

Free seating ticket price for Box B was at 1585P. Before there was a big screen exactly shown at the upper box, but it was turned off this time - probably it's no longer working :(

The best shot I could get from my camera. We shouldn't have listened to the guards outside that cameras were prohibited, there were lots of people with one, some are even dslr.

Pitbull gave a lively performance and we enjoyed the show. Last song was 'Give Me Everything' and everyone was singing with him :)

Jamba Juice at the Fort

2011-11-24T18:04:00.000-08:00

Our first Jamba Juice experience at it's new store in Manila (Fort Bonifacio, just across Serendra) was fun. What made it interesting is not the product but the Photobooth inside the store :))

My order of Strawberries Wild with free Immunity Boost @ 135P still had small bits of uncrushed iced which I detest. Although it did taste good, you could get a cheaper version at other fruit stores minus the free booster of course. And yes, if we stayed I could've asked the store to re-do my drink since they have a 'perfection' policy, but we went back to the office after a quick buy.

Pasig Run 2011

2011-11-21T19:40:00.000-08:00

Ran for Pasig last November 20 at Mall of Asia. Race kit was 450P for 10K without a singlet but it was ok since all proceeds will go to Pasig River Rehabilitation.

Necklace in the picture is included in the registration and is handmade and. It took me quite some time to realize that it was rolled colored paper.

For those who are curious (like me) if 2011 run had broken the Guinness World Record last 2010, the answer is no. See here.

Although the race wasn't bad - I was expecting that I could no longer run due to the number of registered people, but turns out I was still able to. Not that many people at 10K, most of them were at 3 and 5K. I also enjoyed pacing with the synched running policemen :D

Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1

2011-11-20T21:10:00.000-08:00

Yet another two part film of the last book - we watched The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 yesterday with hubby's bros and the ticket courtesy of my sister ;)

ah, Bella and her boys
I loved the back details of her gown - the front part, not too much though. The picture was from a forum thread at wedding bee.

As usual, the book is better; but the build-up of the film was not bad and I enjoyed the wolf-vampire fight scenes and the talking/snarling wolf pack :D

Tagaytay with Family (Ilog Maria, Paradizoo, and Pig Out)

2011-11-20T20:09:00.000-08:00

We were at Fairview 6am in the morning to place dad's ashes at the church - rest in peace dad. Afterwards we headed to Tagaytay for some family bonding.

M&M Restaurant - note: they do not accept senior citizen card, tsk tsk

Hun treated us for his birthday at the M&M Restaurant which was already near Batangas.

view of Taal lake
a man was selling tawilis fish at 100P per pack

family bulalo at 345P was less than the usual family serving at Tagaytay but tasted good

fried tawilis also tasted good at 120P

Ilog Maria - we went there to shop for officemate's Christmas present. And the kids loved the place, specially running after the chickens and the geese :))

Paradizoo - was around 45minutes drive from the main Tagaytay city and is located at Mendez, Cavite. We had to ask several times to get to the place.

the popular 5 legged cow

yes, there's a camel!

We enjoyed the farm animals the most, but there was also a farm garden, flower garden, butterfly sanctuary, and fishing. One could also milk the goats and the kids could ride the small horse. The place is huge and could be a nice pre-nup picture place ;)

On our way home we ate at Nuvali's Pig-Out which also turned out to be a Bistro Group of Companies Restaurant.

Crispy Pata @ 695P to share size - crispy! Yet, is just like other crispy patas in the market.

We liked this - Korean Style Tapa @ 265P. Had a nice sweetness in it that complements the meat well. Btw, this comes as one of the freebies of the Bistro card. Although it became more expensive than before at 1500P for the card for 1 year (previously at 1000P).

I loved this soup's consistency. Well priced for 295P since it was able to serve all 7 adults and 3 kids ;)

Bohol: Panglao Tour

2011-11-20T19:54:00.001-08:00

Detailed tour of Panglao can be found at our HUBPAGES including the budget and the map :)

Here are some pictures of the trip...

Hinagdanan Cave. Canon camera was adjusted by our tour guide and he did it like a pro!

Dumaluan Beach Resort rates - not bad, eh?

the poor turtle in captivity at Daks and Gams - see the dirty pool :(

happy ostrich at the Ostrich Zoo

Dauis Church looking really classic

Bohol: Tagbilaran Tour

2011-11-20T19:53:00.001-08:00

Details of our November 14 trip at our HUBPAGES including the price per pax and itinerary :)

No picture at Blood compact, too many people :(

beautiful structure of Baclayon church

big, and really full python

the monkey at the Python cage just had to strike a pose :))

Sorry for disturbing...

buffet started early - the view before leaving

Cultural show stop-over during the river cruise

I enjoyed the river cruise

Majestic trees at the Man-Made Forest... best for jump shot ;)

at the Bilar Butterfly

The famous hills in green

On our way to Chocolate Hills

Hanging Bridge

Loboc Church

A beautiful structure with someone selling underneath it, tsk tsk

Bohol: Diving at Balicasag

2011-11-20T19:50:00.000-08:00

We went diving at Balicasag last November 13. Details of our dive are at our hub page :)

Sharing some pictures...

Alona Beach
Lots of sea star by the shore

finally a sea turtle! Lots of them at dive site black forest ;)

Colorful fish at dive site Diver's Heaven

After dive mass at San Agustin/Panglao Church. A list of churches in Bohol can be found here. They have lots of old-Spanish-time churches :)

Philippine Trip 2011: Bohol

2011-11-20T19:48:00.001-08:00

The white sand beach, the cute tarsiers, the famous chocolate hills, and not to mention the pawikan/ sea turtle overload while diving... We super loved Bohol! :)

For our blogs of the place, visit here for the Tagbilaran tour, here for the Panglao tour, and here for our dive at Balicasag.

shh, tarsier is fast asleep

yes, there is also a sea star overload at the white sand shore of Alona ;)

Philippine Trip 2011: Cebu

2011-11-20T19:02:00.000-08:00

Hubby's birthday was at Cebu - Bohol last November 12-13 (Nov 12 Cebu, November 13-15 Bohol). Details of our trip here at our hub pages -> fresh! hahaha!

And yes, I placed a table already with price/pax at our hub page as per suggestion of some officemates.

Here are some pictures :)

Mactan/Liberty Shrine

Where Lapu-lapu killed Magellan -> exact spot

Magellan's Shrine

written at the back

Taoist temple -> 2 big koi fish in the pond

Ancestral Houses

By Gorordo Museum

Magellan's Cross

Sto Nino Basilica

Here's the basilica

beautiful cathedral

Fort San Pedro

Our ride to Tagbilaran

Bohol to follow...

Ayala Triangle Laser Light Show 2011

2011-11-16T10:06:00.000-08:00

It's the 2nd year of the Laser Light show. We were able to watch the first show at Ayala Triangle. I was also there last year and it never fails to give me goosebumps :)

Ah... Christmas is in the air...

The show runs 'til December 30 from 6pm to 9pm. Each show is about less than 10 minutes. Too bad the video won't upload :(

11/11/11 Starbs Planner 2012

2011-11-11T12:45:00.001-08:00

Started collecting stickers for the Starbucks 2012 Planner a week ago (exactly 11/03) and claimed it 11/11 - yey!

picture courtesy of Ronald - it comes with a bag and freebies :D
the planner still had a plastic cover, hence the bounce from the flash

This year's sticker had 2 options - option 1 was 17 stickers with Christmas drink, and option 2 was 20 something stickers without a Christmas drink.

Where's the Dog?

2011-11-06T09:42:00.000-08:00

Been asking that question halfway through the film...

I didn't know what the film was about. Thrillers are always fun - gets you wanting to close your eyes but you're trying not to. The Thing is actually a prequel to the 1982 film of the same title, and surprisingly that 1982 film started with the dog which I was looking for.

too bad for Lars, I thought he lived, turns out his dog did

Binondo's Wan Chai and Intramuros Shoot

2011-11-05T09:58:00.001-07:00

We were planning to shoot a short film at Intramuros for an office meeting then afterwards have dinner at Binondo but it rained really hard and it went the other way around...

The fountain in front of Sta Rita church looks amazing

We walked towards Binondo for a second lunch. After eating a lot, our total bill was just 227P each. Oh and an additional 35P for hot calamansi juice
free tea

rice for 3 raddish cake with the sweet sauce tasted great

sweet and sour fish was just fine

spareribs was tasty

oyster cake was better at Sincerity Kitchen

beef noodles was so-so; either that or I just don't like noodles

yummy shrimps

steamed fish wasn't exceptional either

hakaw on the house - my fav in any Chinese restaurant - biased ;)

turtle soup anyone? I watched this turtle in Born to be Wild it's being sold at 50P at Pampanga

there's a steamed eel for sale too

After the Binondo walk we were still able to film. San Agustin at night was a site to see :)

Was with hubby, Ronald, Ralph, Jojo, Clarence, Dang, Kat, JC, Albert, and Jerome

Fely J's Revisited

2011-11-04T10:37:00.000-07:00

It was my second time to dine at Fely J's at Greenbelt 5 for our team dinner, last one was still 2008 with my ex-boyfriend, now husband ;)

Love the look of the menu
As usual, my favorite - gising gising at 250P. I didn't know that it was expensive. I guess it's because of the small shrimps?

the best bang for your buck in all the orders - fried tilapia @ 399P. Say O fishy!

Big fishy, good enough for three. With yummy sauce. Just not as well fried as the binukadkad na tilapia at Recipes

Squid at 200++P had a small serving and lacked taste. The tentacles portion was good though, everything else was bland

Another good order was the dilis rice @ 200++P. Good for sharing as well and the rice already had viand! As my officemate said, the only thing missing is an egg and breakfast is set ;)

Tea Time

2011-10-31T20:36:00.000-07:00

Have been addicted to milk tea since my SAP training in Singapore. They had this vendo milk tea at the training room. When I got back home I started to take my tea with milk/cream + brown sugar.

I am pretty happy that milk tea is becoming a trend now in Manila! Here are two milk tea places I frequent...

Chatime at Landmark is very accessible and I love their pearl milk tea with less sugar and less ice
Happy Lemon at Rockwell has an interesting twist of rocksalt and cheese with green tea which turns out to be yummy. My order of choco milk tea turned out to be mik tea with just a dash of Milo

Last Saturday, after our trip to Happy Lemon we watched In Time...

Uneven disrtibution of wealth is very real. The film is action packed but had a weird trying hard ending. I love the hair of Amanda though :P

Just Met Dr Fish

2011-10-31T08:10:00.000-07:00

It was a surprising four day holiday which led me to a panicked preparation for a vacation.
We were supposed to go to Tanay for some waterfall and lake adventure but we ended instead being stucked driving around Pasig due to heavy traffic and an 'unfortunate' event - first day gone. Good thing we went for a quick movie and Cha Time at Rockwell.

Second day I got sick due to staying at dusty stop-overs in Pasig and just stayed at home.
Third day was a trip to Tagaytay with the family for a supposed trip to Ilog Maria Bee Farm. For the nth time, I forgot that the store is closed on a Monday. We were already on our way when I remembered.

Admittedly I couldn't think of what else to do in Tagaytay - and we were with three kids. After lunch at Lakeside View for a good ole' bulalo, my sisters suggested to go to Picnic Grove for a walk. I was a bit hesitant, but it was nice to be with family and the highlight of the day was we discovered 'fish spa'!

They said the fish were a variety of Garra rufa and Chin Chin. As for the healing effects and the safety of the procedure, there are more information here. I have just read that the Chin Chin fish is not recommended and that it is in fact a family of 'Tilapia'. Funny, I was joking that after the fish eat my fish it will grow to become a Tilapia - it had some truth in it!
It was not bad for 199P - we all enjoyed the fish spa and the attendants massage well :)
Small fish for me - very tickling at first! then you'll get used to it and the fish were like very light electricity. I believe there's also a fish spa at Manila Ocean Park. We're planning to try it sometime :)
big fish for hubby - a bit scary looking for me
Catch a goldfish outside for 50P was also fun and very challenging since one would have to scoop the fish using nets made of a thick Japanese paper. Once the paper is destroyed, game over.

After the fish fun we had coffee as usual at Bag of Beans with their more convenient location.
Unlimited Kapeng Barako at 110P. Served with brown sugar and milk.
Dinner of coffee and Shepherd's PieThe carrot cake wasn't a cake, it was a loaf - not a good order.

Basically, the third day of the long weekend was fun :)

Nike Run 2011

2011-10-26T09:32:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since my last race - specifically, almost a year :-O
I still try to run consistently, but not as much as I did the previous 2 years and not as long - I was reaching a training of 10-16K two times a week already last 2010.

Good thing we joined the We Run Nike 2011 which was held at Bonifacio High Street. The price of 1300P for 2 runners was not bad at all, considering there was a shirt, a sports bottle, a finisher's USB (which, btw, they haven't given yet :P) and the best part was the concert after by Chicosci, Sandwhich, and Parokya ni Edgar. We also had our picture taken at a photobooth (although we had to line-up for an hour) and had a free massage afterwards.

cute orange shirt

Result of our run has been merged with my other results here:

http://pinkswarovski.blogspot.com/2010/11/help-where-is-adidas-kotr-2009-result.html

Thinking of joining the Energizer Night Run next, then the Run for Pasig - yes, I'm back! :)

Yakimix Filled Tummy

2011-10-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I didn't write about our food trip in Yakimix at Greenbelt 3. I've been wanting to try the restaurant since it opened in the said branch, but it took us quite some time before we did. And we made sure that we were really hungry - bwahaha!

blurd price picture - 499P lunch, 599P dinner, bottomless drinks at 75P

my seafood cooking

my first plate. as suggested, eat those that you will cook in the stove. the marinated meat are good, and so is the salmon

my next plate - not sure how I fit that in me :))

for dessert - didn't like the leche flan that much. I like those with more yolks, this tasted like it had lots of egg whites

there's still room for Japanese maki! so-so...

yep, there's ice cream. and I liked the coffee flavored gelatine

Another suggestion by our officemate for us to try is Sambo Kojin which also serves yakiniku buffet style although it's at Eastwood :(

Just so that I'll remember when I go back to this page in the future - we first ate here July 2011 and there was a long line. The line isn't that bad now... good for us, bad for business ;)

Sebastian's Blue Cheese

2011-10-19T20:13:00.000-07:00

Hubby and I always frequented Sebastian's cookie dough which had large chunks of cookies, but for a change, I ordered blue cheese at their SM North Edsa branch.

Acquired taste
My 5yr old niece and I loved it ;)

Spanish Film Fest 2011: Part II

2011-10-19T09:24:00.000-07:00

Continuation of Spanish Film Fest 2011...

Fuera de Carta (Chef's Special) was also a fun film, with a little drama here and there. Funniest part was when Ramiro was being interviewed.
Personal Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis can be found here

Didi Hollywood tells us the usual story of finding success in Hollywood - if you're a pretty girl with no money
Personal Rating: 2.5 stars

Synopsis can be found here

Chico y Rita was like Love in the Time of Cholera for me - with the punchline in the end that true love knows no age
Personal Rating: 3.5
Synopsis can be found here

I think the only problem with Tambien la Lluvia (Even the Rain) was that it was too real for me - I can actually see our country in the film (being colonized and called Indios, cheap labor, etc) that I could not bear to clap at the end. But the film was well made actually. New word - Yaku
Personal Rating: 3.5
Synopsis can be found here

Spanish Film Fest 2011: Part I

2011-10-18T08:49:00.000-07:00

The Spanish Film Festival just ended last Sunday and we were able to enjoy quite a few films. The selection for this year were great and we hope to watch another group of wonderful selections next year - and vote for the audience choice before the cut-off, which unfortunately we were not able to do.

October 8: El Secreto de sus Ojos (The Secret in their Eyes) was our favorite film. It had a great mixture of suspense, romance and comedy.
Personal Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis can be found here

October 8: Habitacion en Roma (Room in Rome) for me was like soft porn and not worth watching. I actually thought that they would just be talking... turns out...
Personal Rating: 2 stars
Synopsis can be found here

October 9: Mar Adentro (the Sea Inside) was a touching film based on the story of Ramon Sampedro, a quadriplegic who fought for Euthanasia. The film had me teary the entire time.
Personal Rating: 4 stars
Synopsis can be found here

October 12: I was surprised to see Ryan Reynolds during the start of Buried. The film didn't need any location or any costumes (except the coffin and Reynold's clothes).
Personal Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis can be found here

October 14: Primos (Cousinhood) was a fun film. We enjoyed it and laughed so much when they were doing 'As Long as You Love Me'

Personal Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis can be found here

Complete List of films for this year's Spanish Film Fest are here. We missed a couple of films we wanted to watch such as Gordos. Four more film to follow in Part II...

Film Focus: Hong Kong

2011-09-19T21:04:00.000-07:00

This weekend movies turned out to all start in Hong Kong -

Assassins from HK trying to kill Johny English. I found the chair going up and down the funniest part of the film. The rest I was just smiling - other times annoyed. The film gets too stupid it hurts. I want to kill Johny English myself, hayz... Mr Bean is better.

The virus that started it all was in Kowloon. Hubby said the moral of the movie was not to shake hands with a chef :)) Contagion was fine, quite sad and will get you placing sanitizer everytime.

We tried catching the European film fest, but was able to line up in a film we already watched *bummer, it was a 1.5 hour line* - Never Let Me Go. We didn't want to repeat that film since it was sad, depressing even.

Weekend Comedy

2011-09-03T09:54:00.000-07:00

Comedy films with sense... why not? :)

Crazy Stupid Love caters to the romantic side of people while showing 'some' ironies

Zombadings was laugh-out-loud funny with a lesson of gay acceptance. Oh, btw, the actor who portrayed Remington in the film was also there in Glorietta after the film :D

Philippine Trip 2011: DIY Ilocos (with typhoon Mina)

2011-09-01T10:00:00.000-07:00

Four hours before my trip with hubby to Ilocos, my teammates and I decided to dine in at Greenbelt 1's World of Chicken when an unfortunate thing happened - the waiter spilled an almost full glass of cold water inside my pants (I was wearing loose pants). I got sooo mad!

Little did I know that the next few days in Ilocos would still have my pants wet - this time with rain water. Still, it was a fun trip, and we 'almost' finished our planned itinerary regardless of the heavy winds and rainfall.

As usual, here is our DIY trip itinerary and budget...

August 26:
7PM. Florida bus to Pagudpud (Reservation is 2 days before; they have a sleeper bus but only until Laoag. 700P/per person. Contact Details - Sampaloc, Manila; 274333809)

August 27:
8:30AM. Arrival at Pagudpud (600P for the North Bound Tour for a maximum of 3 people. They have a very organized tricycle tour - all the rates are the same and it is posted inside their tricycles. Our very able and kind tricycle driver for two days was Kuya Nat. We were giving him 1000P since it was raining heavily but he declined and said it was too much. Also in every location he tells you the history of the place :) His contact number is 09162368324)

9AM to 1:30PM. North Bound Tour of Pagudpud:
- side trip picture of Saud Beach
- Kabigan Waterfalls
- Patapat Viaduct
- Agua Grande
- Paraiso ni Anton
- Timmangtang Rock
- Bantay Abot Cave
- Blue Lagoon
- Dos Hermanos Islands

If the rain wasn't that strong, 1 day would have been enough to finish both North and South Bound Tour of Pagudpud :(

1:30PM to 3PM. Arrival at Punta Azul Resort (2500P overnight for two, free breakfast). Rested a bit, got hungry - we wanted to try the recommended food of Kapuluan Vista Resort so despite the 10minutes walk under the heavy rain, we still pursued the place.

3:30PM to 5PM. Lunch at Kapuluan Vista Resort - approximately 250P per meal (except of course if you order lobsters, hehe)

5PM to 6PM. Walk around the Blue Lagoon beach and took pictures of the Dos Hermanos Islands in front of Kapuluan Resort. Didn't swim anymore, I'm not ready to challenge those big waves!

Slept early...

August 28:
6:30AM. All fixed up, but no free breakfast yet from hotel. There was no electricity and the typhoon was really bad outside. Texted Kuya Nat if he could pick us up.

7:30AM. Breakfast arrived. Slept on the couch while waiting for Kuya Nat

9AM. Kuya Nat arrived and apologized since he lives in Saud which is quite far from Blue Lagoon and yes, the rain was terrible

9AM to 1PM. South Bound tour of Pagudpud. 600P/tricycle, max of 3 people:
- Bangui Windmills
- Cape Bojeador Lighthouse
- Kapurpurawan Rock Formation (wasn't able to see this due to the bad road or should I say soil?)

There's a bus stop in front of the signage of Cape Bojeador - we were off to Laoag after the tour. Ordinary bus to Laoag was at 60P per person.

Souvenirs by the Bangui Windmills

we got medium sized solo pen hloders at 50P and magnet or keychain windmills at 3pcs for 100P

2PM. Arrival at Laoag. Check in at Isabel Suite's (1400P overnight for two, free breakfast). Fix-up, change rain soaked clothes.

3PM. We were supposed to eat at Saramsam but it was closed. The tricycle driver suggested La Preciosa instead (meal at approximately 200P each). Tricycle to location was 11P one way.

4PM to 6PM. Took some pictures of St William Cathedral and the Sinking Bell Tower then had to run to Mc Donald's for shade since the rain started to pour again. Thank goodness for their free wi-fi and bottomless coffee :)

6PM to 7PM. English mass at St. William Cathedral

7PM to 8:30PM. Took pictures of St William Cathedral, Bell Tower, Aurora Park, Tobacco Monopoly Monument, Ilocos Norte Capitol walking all the way to Isabel Suites at night - nope, it wasn't that far.

8:30PM to 9:30PM. Dinner at Cailian Grill - the restaurant of Isabel Suites. Vegetable meal for dinner at approximately less then 200P.

August 29:
7AM to 8AM. Breakfast at the hotel. Bargained with the line of tricycle drivers near Jollibee, just beside Isabel Suites for a tour of Paoay. Initally the price was 800P but we agreed at 650P which I think is reasonable and could still go lower since the places are all near each other, although Laoag to Paoay was far.

We decided to skip Batac since we wanted to save some time and we think there is not that much to see.

8AM to 11:30AM. Paoay Tour via tricycle at 650P - Kuya Toto 09183801853
- quickly passed by Fort Ilocandia, but Kuya Toto did not stop the tricycle. Probably we should have told him earlier?
- Malacanang of the North (by the way, is closed during Mondays)
- Paoay Lake
- La Paz Sand Dunes of Pasuquin (thank goodness the rain stopped!)
- St Augustine/ Paoay Church
- Herencia Cafe for a take out pizza at 300P per box

He then dropped us off at Batac for our bus trip to Vigan. Ordinary bus ride cost us 80P per person.

the beautiful UNESCO world heritage site - St Augustine church of Paoay

1:20PM - Arrival at Vigan. Got a calesa at the side of Vigan Cathedral by the Plaza.
1:30PM to 5:30PM. Vigan Tour at 150P per hour. Same with Pagudpud, the tour is organized and the same price for all kalesa. We rode a horse tagged as Sandara with Kuya JR as the driver/ rider?

Vigan Tour:
- Saint Augustine Church and Belfry (any amount donation. stuck inside for a couple of minutes which was again due to the pouring rain)
- Mansion Syquia (20P per person)
- Baluarte (any amount donation)
- Hidden Garden (there was an entrance fee, but we skipped this since anyway, we're not that into plants)
- Burnayan/ Vigan House of Pottery. Did gift and souvenir shopping here. Colored shirt at 180P, keychains at 5pcs for 100P, small pots at 35P each or 3pcs for 100P.
- Burgos Museum (closed)
- Calle Crisologo
- take out Vigan Empanada by the Plaza at 40P each for special Empanada
- take out ice tea at Cafe Leona at 80P

Dropped off at the Partas bus terminal for our trip back to Manila which lasted around 8 hours and cost 700P per person.

feel like the olden days riding your very own Calesa/ Kalesa around Calle Crisologo :)

So, that's it ... three days of non-stop rain and lovely sites; only this time, with the sun in hibernation. Yep, Mina rained on my parade, but she still wasn't able to stop us! :))

Picturesque Palawan: El Nido Island Tour (A and C)

2011-08-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

We had just half a day when we arrived at El Nido, but we were so eager to start our island tour so that we could make the most out of our trip. The Alternative Inn looked for a small boat for us around the small town to lessen the price of a half day tour with only two people - they were able to bargain for us at 1000P for a private tour. We opted to go to Tour A which was composed of the big, small, and secret lagoon and snorkelling at Miniloc and Simisu Islands.

It was amazing to see the islands of El Nido. It was like we were in a different world. Here we have the small lagoon. It was already low tide making it difficult to swim. We walked instead going in the hole. Good thing we had our boots on since there were hard corals and stones.
The sad part about El Nido though is that a lot of the corals are already black from dynamite fishing.

Inside the small lagoon
The small boat stopped after our trip in the small lagoon, making us wait for around 30mins. After it was fixed the water was so low already we couldn't go to the big lagoon anymore :(

Lots of fish during snorkelling and fish feeding at Simisu Island - perfect for picture taking!

the gorgeous resort at Miniloc Island
The next day we were in for a treat. A bigger boat was arranged by the inn and we were set to go to Tour C - the Secret and Hidden Beach, Matinloc Island tour, and Snorkelling at Tapuitan Strait and Helicopter Island

The finale of our lunch were fresh tropical fruit - and arranged very neatly by our boatmen

We were with beautiful people during the tour. 2 Polish girls, 1 Slovakian girl, a British guy and a German couple. The German guy asked me my nationality and I said I'm a Filipino - he asked me then 'What's your Island?'. I wasn't able to answer for quite some time, then I said I'm from Manila, the capital of the Philippines. Hubby corrected me when we came home, I'm from Luzon, yeah, he's right! :P

Going in the Secret Beach via swimming through a big hole. See the fin of our tour guide - wood shaped into duck feet... genius!

Ask for them in the inn, they're good - Larry, Ian and Coco (pronounced as Cuckoo :D)

The closed Matinloc Shrine. Too bad since the place looked really nice. Would love to go to church there

The view of Matinloc

unreal...

the altar at the middle of the island

Inside the Hidden Beach were a lot of monkeys

Snorkelling at Helicopter Island was also great. Even at shallow water there were already lots of fish.

Just don't forget to wear your rash guard all the time during snorkelling - there are jellyfish everywhere!

Colorful fish at Helicopter Island

Literally an island that looks like a helicopter

The next day we went to St Francis of Assissi Parish for mass - Regular Sunday Mass Schedule are 6:30AM and 8:15AM. The church is just a short walking distance from the line of inns in El Nido town.

We'd love to go back to El Nido! Probably for a dive next time :)

Picturesque Palawan: Alternative Inn and the Art Cafe nearby

2011-08-30T09:10:00.002-07:00

After the 6 hour ride via Fort Wally van from Puerto Prinsesa, we were so excited to see El Nido. There were tricycles that can be hired to the city from the van terminal.
(Fort Wally's Number: 09172762875, 09173488078 - from Puerto Prinsesa 700P, from El Nido 600P)

The view on our way to the inn. The tricycles look different and can contain more people.

Before this trip I didn't know that there was a town in El Nido, all I see in pictures are the pricey resorts

Upon arriving at the Alternative Inn my first impression was 'Oh no'. The lobby smelled like fish, the place looked old, and there were men playing poker. Then I saw a big rat run outside the back door.

Anyway, we just wanted to put down our things already and start the island tour. Btw, at night time footsteps could be heard from the restaurant. I guess the 2nd floor rooms were better.

Each inn/resort arranges trips for the tourists. Here are the rates for Alternative Inn. The guides from the inn were good - if we go back we'll get them again.

I got another 'oh no' with the rates. Although this should have been a happy shock since the rates are super low, I wasn't happy since I booked via Agoda. The 800P rates were at 1000P.

The upside of the place on the otherhand is that our room had a beach view. Actually once we stepped out of the room, there were chairs and a table and the beautiful beach of El Nido.
A homey crab just outside our door

The view

The resort beside the place was Scuba dog - I guess this is scuba dog :)) such a cutie

We had breakfast the next day at Alternative Inn's restaurant. We knew that there was NO ELECTRICITY in El Nido until noon, but we were expecting there was food at least since they were offering breakfast. We were served two eggs and a bread at almost 200P - expensive stuff.

Come night time we tried out a different restaurant that we read from a Puerto Prinsesa flyer. The Artcafe was just a couple of steps away from Alternative Inn and it became our staple dining place for the two days we were in El Nido.

Going up

There tour rates. They had no rooms, just a restaurant and tours.

their breakfast were more considerable

the best part of the place was the ambiance and the live band at night

there was also a happy hour of buy 2 take 1 alcoholic drinks

the food on the otherhand could have been better - here we have fresh arugulas from their garden. Ok, fine, it was fresh, but it tasted just fine.

Same with their pizza - it was just fine. A bit different because of the egg.

We did like the shirts they sold @220P though - the best, so cute! We got quite a lot.

Following is the Island Tours of El Nido....

Picturesque Palawan: Subterranean River Tour

2011-08-30T09:10:00.001-07:00

Included in the top 28 finalists for the new seven wonders of the world (http://www.new7wonders.com/) and is a Unesco World Heritage Site (http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/652), the Puerto Prinsesa Subterannean River is definitely a must visit in Palawan.

We were picked up early by the tourist van fixed by the hotel. Since Hibiscus Garden Inn was the nearest from the hotel we were the first one that was fetched and they still had to pick up in four more hotels. The land travel lasted for about more than an hour...

we passed by the Buenavista Viewdeck which had a good view of small islands

When we arrived at the port where we were to board a small bangka to the river tour, I met these kids catching small fish with just pieces of crab feet and a string

their catch for the day - dinner is served!

the short bangka ride

Inside the cave were formations of stalactites and stalagmites - once again a short description about their difference was said by our boatman/tour guide.

nope, the noise heard are not bats but birds - particularly the 'nido soup' birds or the swiftlet known locally as balinsasayaw

You have to use your imagination in the tour as the guide points to a certain stone and tells you what it looks like. For example - this is the holy family

The tour was quite short. The river is long but the tourists only see a small portion of it. The foreigners we met in El Nido were even luckier than us since their boatmen asked for an additional 50P each for them to see the recently discovered million years old sea cow fossil. They didn't appreciate it though since it wasn't explained what it was they were seeing. For them they were just seeing bones.

From what I heard from my officemate the tour to the said area is now made official. You just have to pay an additional fee (I don't know how much) - too bad that time it wasn't offered to us :(

After the short boat trip we took pictures arround the forest...

They said there are lots of monkeys and monitor lizards around the area, we weren't able to see them though.

beautiful view on our way back

lunch buffet after the river tour at the Sabang beach

there was a woman selling all of these for just 120P! :-O

There is an option to go caving and zipline at the Ugong Rock at Tagabenit. Named Ugong Rock because one of the big rocks create a loud sound.

Caving was fun and a good exercise

the zipline wasn't that high or that long, making it not that scary, but it was still great!

Picturesque Palawan: Ka-Lui, Kinabuch, & Itoy's

2011-07-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

Other than the dreamy view of Palawan, we had to try their best restaurants which were recommended by our officemates as well as the locals.

Itoy's was described by the hotel as 'their Starbucks'. Since we can't live without coffee we grabbed a tricycle and asked to be brought to Itoy's. Still the same 10P rate from Hibiscus.

Yes, coffee was good! They recommended the cheesecake but it was blah - gelatine made, I hate pretentious cheesecakes.
Pesto pasta was fine - still, go for the coffee. The rice coffee with muscovado sugar is a good buy already :)

Kinabuch was recommended by our city tour guide. He said we should try their local delicacies - sizzling ostrich and crocodile and of course, the one of a kind only-in-Palawan tamilok.

Calamares (breaded and fried) and kinilaw (fresh, just put in vinegar) tamilok or wood worm. For those who want to try the wood worm but can't take how it looks and their slimey mouth feeling, the calamares cook is perfect. For me though, the kinilaw is fine, it just tastes like fresh oysters :D

yummy crocodile - better than the one we had in Davao

Ka-Lui had a mixture of fine dining and homey feeling ambiance with their big pillows as seatings, 'no shoe policy', but candle lit tables and paintings all around.

tubbataha salad - combination of fresh raw fish and fish roe, pomelo, ripe mangoes, topped with guacamole and sea weed.

two cuts of grilled tuna came next - a bit small, but there were still...

sizzling seafood,

two big prawns, and

vegetables

simple but the best part - tropical fruits with muscovado sugar :)

Picturesque Palawan: Puerto Princesa City Tour

2011-07-24T08:53:00.000-07:00

Trivia: If one pronounces the word Palawan fastly, it would mean the tribe in Palawan... So say the name slowly if you are pertaining to the place - learned that from our City Tour guide :D

The City Tour only starts at 1PM - we had to wait a couple of hours in the hotel. For me the city tour was quite boring. If I had to re-do our trip to Puerto Princesa I would opt for Honda Bay + Subterranean River tour instead for a two day stay. As what was mentioned the tour cost 600P/person in a tour van with a guide.

First stop was the butterfly farm...
scorpion interaction (you can pose with it) - stinger removed

this butterfly aint scared. my face was so near it in one of our pictures :)

beautiful blue

Our next stop was the Baker's Hill...
their best for us was the hopia mongo @45P/ box

my favorite display at their garden :)

it started to rain really hard when we were there - this was my only view after buying at their store :))

After Baker's Hill, we tried to see Mitra's Ranch but it was still raining and very foggy to get any view at all of the islands; so we went straight to the Crocodile Farm...

young crocs... aren't they cute?!

this one's all grown up - and yeah, kinda shy

After seeing the crocs we went to Binuatan Creations...

they sell woven stuff made from buntal fibers

Ate taught me how to do the basic weaving, and I think I destroyed a part of what she was doing :)) After a couple of tries I opted to just buy stuff inside their store. I was able to purchase a camera bag for 295P and big @60P and small notebooks @3 for 100P

Then we headed to the Iwahig Souvenir Store...

Unfortunately not in Iwahig itself since our tour guide said it was set on fire.

Turtle keychains made of recycled plastic cups @ 8pcs for 100P

the croc keychains are really cool (also same price)

We then ended the trip with pearl shopping at Delma's. Hun got me south sea pearls for Christmas at 3000P for the earrings and 2000P for the pendant. I also got myself big round fresh water pearls @2000P with free earrings. The simple fresh water pearls are just 200P.

So the city tour basically became a shopping tour... aren't we supposed to get a free ride from the shops to shop? :))

Picturesque Palawan: Hibiscus Garden Hotel

2011-07-24T07:18:00.000-07:00

We booked our stay at Hibiscus Garden Hotel because of good reviews at Trip Advisor - and it was a good choice! The staff punctually replied to all of our emails and arranged for our subterranean tour as requested and even extended help to reserve our ride to El Nido via Fort Wally (who was not responding to our text messages).

Upon arrival at the Puerto Princesa airport a pick-up was already there holding our names for pick-up. The inn was just around 5minutes drive from the airport.

room with a/c, cable tv, wi-fi @ 1800P per night - no breakfast.

hammocks abound

beautiful garden

restaurant's view

breakfast was reasonably priced

beef tapa, two eggs, and fried rice for my breakfast - beef a bit hard

the fried fish of hubby was better. btw, it comes with coffee - brewed coffee with muscovado sugar

have been trying to take a picture of this bird in Davao, finally was able to in Palawan :D

Philippine Trip 2011: Picturesque Palawan (Puerto Princesa & El Nido)

2011-07-22T18:47:00.000-07:00

Just a bit past an hour we were about to land in Puerto Princesa, Palawan from Manila. We sighted small islands on our way down, then landed on an airport with lush forests at the side :)

Subterannean River

Our itinerary and budget for our 5 days in Palawan is as follows:

July 13

Cebu Pacific Valentine (buy-one-take-one fare) 2495.36P

Hibiscus Hotel (lovely hotel, wonderful staff) 3533.74 for two days

City Tour arranged in the hotel - using an a/c tour van 600P/person. Half day from 1pm to 6:30pm. A cheaper alternative is to hire a tricycle.

Ka-Lui (Fine dining looking restaurant. Cost us approximately 400P per person)

Itoy's (nice Coffee shop - 100+P for cold drinks)

Inclusion of City Tour: Butterfly Garden, Baker's Hill, Mitra's Ranch (wasn't able to see this, raining really hard), Crocodile Farm, Binuatan Creations (woven stuff made from Buntal Fibers), Iwahig Souvenir Shop, Delma Pearls

July 14

Subterranean River Tour (1500/person, whole day with lunch, park fee, van and boat transfer. Travel time 1.5hours, River Tour approximately 30mins, lunch buffet and beach bumming at Sabang, option to go caving, spelunking, and zipline on Ugong Rock going back to the city proper)

Ugong Rock (caving and spelunking 200P/person, zipline 250P/person)

Kinabuch Bar and Grill (known for their tamilok and crocodile meat - cost us approximately 250P/person)

July 15

Fort Whally Van to El Nido (Arranged by Hibiscus Inn staff, at 700P/person)

Alternative Inn (1963.38P for two nights, would have only been 800P if we booked directly at the inn rather than at Agoda :( )

Half Day Island Hopping Tour A - 1500P whole boat rented

Art Cafe (cool looking restaurant with live band - approximately 400P/person)

July 16

Breakfast at Alternative Inn (not a good move, 180P for two egs and two bread, good view though)

Whole Day Island Hopping Tour C - 900P/ person, shared boat arranged at the inn

Art Cafe dinner and shirt buying

July 17

Mass at St Francis of Assisi El Nido (6:30AM but started late)

Fort Whally van back to Puerto Princesa (500P)

Public Transportation Van back to city proper (13P/person)

Quick Itoy's stop

Tricycle to Airport (10P/person)

Beautiful El Nido at the morning

Sunset at El Nido

Transformers 3 (Dark of the Moon)

2011-07-09T12:15:00.000-07:00

We watched Transformers 3 last Sunday. The line was so long everywhere; we stopped trying to look for an available cinema after we've been to Trinoma, Rockwell, and Greenbelt 3. We were already set to just do groceries instead at Greenbelt 1, then voila - lots of available seats!

For me the film had it's hits and misses - the effects were definitely great, but the story itself was annoying. Except of course Bumblebee - Bumblebee will never be annoying, he's like a puppy robot :))

Yeah, and the sky dive from the top of the Sears is awesome!

picture taken from movie's official site
The golden retriever of robots :D

Yes, Cirque du Soleil is in Manila!

2011-07-01T21:57:00.000-07:00

I've heard about Cirque du Soleil around 2008. A friend of mine went to Macau to watch a show. I was thinking - what's up with the circus? Later on when we went to Las Vegas for our honeymoon I got even more curious. I wanted to watch their show Zumanity but we had a Grand Canyon tour the next day and didn't have time anymore :(

Three months after our honeymoon we found out that Cirque du Soleil would be having their first show in Manila! We quickly booked our tickets and waited patiently for three months.

Just last Wednesday we were finally able to watch Varekai :)

Here's a synopsis of Varekai from the Cirque du Soleil touring show website.

I enjoyed the show - it was not just a regular circus but it had a story, wonderful music, and costumes much like watching theater.

The crowd favorite was a mister bean look-alike comedian, everyone was laughing out loud when he was singing and trying to run after the spotlight pointing everywhere from the floor to the ceiling :))

My personal favorite was the closing act - men in red going from one big sisaw/swing to another. It is in the preview of their website as well. The first act was also awesome when the angel fell from the sky.

Well, all acts were fun, although there were some mistakes such as the kids tangling their ropes together and there were also some shaking arms while doing a head stand.

Nevertheless, it was totally worth seeing and they are still marvelous!

created tents at the Quirino, Grandstand

tarpaulin at the billet stands

Philippine Trip 2011: Under the Sea (Anilao, Batangas)

2011-06-20T08:58:00.000-07:00

It was a wonderful stay in Balai at Anilao, Batangas. The food was good - yummy seafood (unlimited crab, shrimp, and tilapia) and dessert! The room was just fine, but it was clean. The staff were also nice and helpful. Not to forget, we had celebrity sightings.

But the best part in our stay in Anilao was not the resort but our first open water dives...

Our instructor, Casty, asked help from another dive master Kuya Bert. It was good that he did since we were all terrible on our first dive. We were floating up one by one. Kuya Bert did a hell of a job pulling us down.

What I did to make myself comfy in the water during our first dive was to count how many sea stars I see. It was very relaxing - I stopped counting at 7 since they were too many and saw three different colors of them... blue, pink, and grey.

After we finally got better with our swim, we were already able to enjoy looking at the wonderful place we were in.

I specially enjoyed looking at the small black school of fish while they were looking at us while we were doing our CESA drill - they were really curiously staring. I could imagine their thought bubbles!

Here is a video of us during our 4th dive. Yes, we still need practice. I'm the one with the 2 OK's at the back :))

Here is a video of two frog fish we spotted as well during our 4th dive. It was taken by our dive master. As much as I would want to bring my camera, I can't since 1) It doesn't have a casing yet and 2) yah sure, I'm still managing how to float, how could I take pretty shots?

Here are the details of our dives :)

Open Water Dive Certification - PADI

2011-06-20T08:56:00.000-07:00

One of the craziest things I've ever done in my life is this - getting a diving certification. Admittedly I love sea creatures, and yes, if one believes in astrology, I should be fine since I'm a Pisces. But one thing is for sure, the biggest factor in surviving a dive is to be confident in the water. I just learned how to swim a month ago (not that well, but enough). For me, getting the certificate took some psyching up and lots of prayers.

Yeah, my officemate was happy :))

I was the worst student at the pool training - I felt terrible during the class at Scuba World at Makati City. I was out of sleep and I got pretty nervous with the exercises. Specially the part where we had the complete mask removal. We had to remove the snorkel mask then place it back on our face and remove the water in the mask via exhaling our nose. I did that drill around 4 times before succeeding. Thank goodness our dive master Casty Pambid was patient enough with me. The written exam as well as the required 30 pool lapse + 10minutes floating were OK though, I was fine doing those.

A week after the pool class we headed to Balai at Anilao, Batangas for our check-out dive. Surprisingly when I went underwater everything seemed fine. It was amazing under the sea. I read somewhere that if you like nature, the fastest way to see a lot of beautiful creatures is by diving - very true!

Here is the breakdown of our expenses as well as the fast-track schedule of our Open Water Dive Certification:

June 11 - 12 >

Pool Session at Scuba World Makati (includes pool exercises under 12ft of water, lecture, quizzes, and the final exam) 15,000P

June 17>

Left Manila at 1AM to go to Balai, Anilao, Batangas. Arrived at 4AM since we got a bit lost (Two of us were night shift, else we could have left earlier than 1AM. The overnight stay was free but the buffet breakfast cost 250P)

June 18 >

Balai stay (with 4 buffet meals), diving equipment rental and 4 tanks of air - Cost Approximately 4150+

8AM: buffet breakfast

10AM: fixed the gear

10:38AM: 1st Dive at Bebot's (39mins underwater, 40ft)

12:33PM: 2nd Dive at Caban Cove (44mins underwater, 32ft)

2PM: buffet lunch

5PM: 1 hr massage by Hilda (400P)

6:30PM: buffet dinner

8PM: socials with the other divers

June 19>

7AM: buffet breakfast

8:30AM: fixed the gear

9:13AM: 3rd Dive at Twin Rocks (34mins underwater, 55ft)

11:08AM: 4th Dive at Aphol's Rock (37mins underwater, 50ft)

Over-all it was an expensive trip, and very challenging for me... but it was worth the money, and yes, worth the scare ;)

Thrilling Holiday

2011-06-20T07:14:00.000-07:00

Today is a holiday - yey! Happy birthday Gat Jose Rizal! For our Monday holiday we decided to watch Super 8. We knew the movie is a thriller - we just didn't know what would be thrilling us.

Actually, if I knew ahead that it was produced by Steven Spielberg, I would have guessed what would suddenly appear.
It was a good film, hubby liked it. The movie had a well developed plot according to him. The young actors were also superb. The girl in the film actually reminded me of Dakota Fanning during her role in another Steven Spielberg film War of the Worlds - I just found out now that they are sisters... oh, okay :D

For the Love of Eating

2011-05-29T06:57:00.000-07:00

It was a double celebration yesterday - morning was hubby's brother then my sister's at the evening.

We had a heavy meal at Chili's Greenbelt 5 for bro's birthday. To cap it off...

Molten Chocolate Cake at 390P. Hot and cold - all sweet. I love this. Although the ice cream is really hard

Speaking of another happy eater - after the early heavy lunch we went to see Kung Fu Panda 2. It wasn't as funny as the first, but it was still amusing. There was also a dramatic portion - I got a bit teary eyed with Po's past.

Like always, for family gatherings I buy the cake. I was annoyed since we went past several of our favorite cake shops and forgot to stop to grab a cake - until it was too late and we were already in Fairview. We grabbed a Mango Cake at Dulcinea for 450P and it was utter disappointment!

Don't be fooled by the beautiful cake - the mango is sour and the cream coating and sponge cake is nothing special. First time I ever gave my family a disappointing cake :(

Congee Diet

2011-05-22T00:45:00.000-07:00

I had my usual dental checkup and found out I needed a root canal :(

Super ouch for three days, I just ate halo-halo and congee. Bad part was, I had a hard time looking for a congee place.

My only bet along the way - Chow King (@85P) only has congee in the morning, so I had to drop by and buy lunch before I go to work. My second congee place was Hen Lin in Paseo Center (also @85P). In fairness, I enjoyed both congee's just that I found Chow King's a bit small.

Speaking of congees and lugaw, our favorite is the one in Dragon Noodle Center. We watched about it at the show of Jessica Soho and read about it at SPOT.ph. It was really good. Too bad it's too far.

Halo halo Congee of Dragon Noodle House @95P.

Address of the place: 1037, M.H. del Pilar Street, Malate, Manila

Pirates and Mermaids

2011-05-22T00:18:00.000-07:00

The new installation of Pirates of the Carribean was action packed and full of artistic imagination. I loved the mermaids - pure chic evil :))

Jack is in-love ;)

Bicol TravelFactor: Bagasbas

2011-05-19T04:44:00.001-07:00

After breakfast at Calaguas, we just had an hour for beach bumming and tent fix-up then we headed back to the boat for another hour's ride to the bus. Bagasbas was just around 45minutes bus ride from the town.

We arrived a couple of minutes past 1pm since we left Calaguas later then the supposed time. Lunch was at Kusina ni Angel.

I was a bit nervous since the place didn't look inviting, but the food was not bad. The fish I had was actually tasty. While we were eating we were approached by Ate Mabel of Hangloose Surf School - the designated person by Travel Factor to plot our times for surfing. It was at 400P per hour with a surf instructor. Hun had a 3 to 4pm sched, I had a 4 to 5pm, so that we can take each other's pictures :)

After lunch we were brought to our fix-up place at Bagasbas. It was a resort named Catherine's. The shower room was basic, but the restaurant was pretty decent.

In front of Catherine's is a fountain and a pool

Our second surfing lesson (1st was in Baler) started in a few minutes. The surfing area was immediately in front of the resort

Most of the boards were foam. There were only two fiber glass, one of which hun got, and unfortunately had a broken fin which made him turn in all directions.

Practicing to stand on the board. My instructor for this trip was Kuya Jesse - he was pretty good, and really determined to make me stand on the board :))

After the tiring but fun surfing, we were thirsty and hungry.

We got ourselves some blueberry and strawberry smoothies from Catherine's at 65P each. It was good, but it took forever before it was served since only one person was making the fruit shakes and he had a lot of pending orders.

Beautiful aquarium inside the restaurant. Is keeping live corals legal?

The bar and the only person doing the shake

While waiting for our dinner, the group played pusoy dos

Squash and Egg soup with a full house. Personally I liked the soup, but it was weird for the others

Basic Bicolano dish - bicol express and laing.

The Bagasbas trip was short; but surfing is really fun. I wasn't able to stand that long (my balance sucks), but the mere fact that I was able to stand for a couple of seconds was already worth my trip ;)

Bicol TravelFactor: Calaguas

2011-05-18T07:45:00.000-07:00

We arrived at El Pueblo Ortigas a couple of minutes after 8pm - the meet up for the bus pick-up of Travel Factor. When we got in we saw a couple of people with four liters of water. A clear indication that we were in the right place :)

Dinner at McD's before boarding the bus.

The bus was cramped and it was a long trip. He drove slowly but he hits the break badly. My shoulders were aching terribly.

We were entertained by the local film One More Chance - in fairness, I wanted to cry every time John Lloyd Cruz cries :))

Upon arriving at our boat transfer to Calaguas we were asked to cross using a wooden ramp. I would've taken forever if the boatman didn't assist me.

Our ride was like a fisherman's boat made of bamboo and nylon strings. This time the 1hour ride made my butt ache.

The island before arriving at Calaguas

Calaguas and the boatman ready to anchor

All the body pain vanished upon seeing the beautiful beach. We arrived at the place around 11AM

clear turquoise water and white powdery sand - yeah, it's a paradise

boat by the shore

small store built by the caretakers of the island

Flowers led to the creepy restroom. It was being well maintained though by the caretakers. The door can be closed using a stem full of green bananas

pretty flowers

our cottages for the day

nice local kids approached me for a chat :)

Come lunch time, we were served Bicolano dishes...

kinunot - like the one we had in Donsol. Although it tasted differently and they said it was made of shark - bleh! I ate shark just two weeks after swimming with them :((

laing - according to hun, this was the best one he tasted so far

yellow fin was fine

After lunch I walked towards the end of the beach stretch. The rocks and the clear water was picture perfect

While we were swimming, three guys saw this by the shore. They were confused on what it is - a starfish or a jelly fish. I was too...

But when turned upside down, we realized it was a starfish

After the swim under the hot sun, we cooled up with a halo-halo from the small store. It was 25P. It had the usual jellies + a very unique add-on of marshmallows

The travel factor guides already set-up the tents for us. The good thing about joining trips like this is that you won't have to think of anything.

The best sunset I could capture at the island. The sun went down immediately.

Calaguas Island's beach was superb but staying overnight isn't for everyone though since there is still no electricity in the area and the caretakers had to pump water for bathing.

But for me, despite the aching body and fumbling in the dark- a few difficulties for an unspoilt beach is still definitely worth it :)

Philippine Trip 2011: Bicol TravelFactor

2011-05-17T07:58:00.000-07:00

Hun and I joined Travel Factor's Ultimate Beach Bumming Experience Calaguas + Survivor Bagasbas at Camarines Norte last weekend (May 14-15).

The price of the package which included everything from transportation, lodging, and food cost us 3,900P per person. The only cash out for us other than that was the surf lessons at Bagasbas (@400P per person - includes board and instructor), my Travel Factor Calaguas shirt (@250P), smoothies (@65P) and a stop-over noodles breakfast on our way back to Manila (@65P).

One and a half day was spent at the beautiful beach of Calaguas Island - very clear water and powdery white sand

Half a day spent on surfing at Bagasbas. Here's my board - I'm somewhere there :))

Our Travel Factor Experience?

Honestly, I didn't know what to expect with the tour. I was surprised when I saw a bus load of people who were grouped together. It was like the bus had 3 large groups and there were three couples and a solo traveler.

I guess some people wouldn't mind being the 'outsider' as our case was. But I did mind, I wanted to be comfortable. I am a sociable person, but not that much that I would be able to talk to big groups and fit in immediately. There was a socials night in travel factor's itinerary, but I figured it wouldn't work since we were huddled in a small circle and just trying to get a shot of the bar vodka. 50 something people - trying to get a shot - nope, not my thing. I just slept early.

It was not until day 2 that hun and I started to get to know the bigger groups - not bad, I think.

Here are my personal tips on how to squeeze in a large group in a trip such as this:

1. Share a tent

2. Talk about common interests

3. Surf!

4. Play pusoy-dos before dinner

5. Take their photo or talk about photography

By the end of the trip, we knew some of the people and had a few laughs with them. Got to share personal stories and travels and basically just had fun :)

Photos and details of the trip follows...

Calaguas

Bagasbas

Brad Pitt - Is that you?

2011-05-06T04:19:00.000-07:00

We watched Thor last Friday before our trip to Bicol. I enjoyed the film; it was like I was back to being a kid and watching a comics cartoon :)

Natalie Portman was so cute everytime she was kilig with Thor - OK, I can't find an exact English term for kilig, but she was kilig... Flattered perhaps? hahaha!

Oh, and Chris Hemsworth was totally a Brad Pitt look-alike - no? :))

Bicol Backpack: Donsol - Firefly Tour and Whale Shark Interaction

2011-05-04T09:45:00.000-07:00

Our Donsol Trip was amazing! We were in awe with the majestic whale sharks and the twinkling fireflies :)

Sharing our experience...

Outside Amor Farm Beach Resort. I had no problem whatsoever with this place. The staff were nice and all smiles. Just contact them at their cellphone number (09095181150 and 09278328359) when reserving the room then deposit a down-payment and you're all set

I agree with the reviews in Trip Advisor, they do have excellent food

This beach hut is cut in the middle to make two rooms good for three people each. The rooms are basic but clean. We took a fan, no hot shower room. It was fine, just that the shower was playing super splash then weak splash with me making it difficult to have a bath.

I was looking for the sunset deck - they meant the chairs by the bar... Oh...

take care of the ants by the tables near the view deck

We immediately went to the Tourist Center after checking in the resort to reserve our Whale Shark Interaction the next day. They had three batches - 7AM (which is the best time), 11AM, and 2PM

beautiful painting outside the center

We had to watch a short video with the do's and don't(s) in whale interacting

Hmm... Lots more to visit ;)

Met this cute carabao when walking back to the beach resort

It suddenly rained hard once again, and we were soaked when we got back to the resort. Weird weather...

We watched the sunset before we headed to the firefly tour

Lots of people packed in the boarding area.

But the colorful sunset made the waiting painless

boats to be boarded

Pitch black with twinkling stars in the sky and sparkling fireflies at the tree :)

Trying to take a shot of the fireflies but just got the tree

Got a picture but it just looks like a regular insect :))

Early the next day we were off to our Whale Shark Interaction. There were also lots of people; and it was annoying that even if we registered the previous day they let the other people go ahead first. I was already getting pissed, good thing the wonderful experience that followed erased the bad vibes

Our bio and one of our bro's. You will have a Whale Shark Spotter, a BIO (Butanding Interaction Office) and of course, the boat driver

Whale Shark passing by our boat

The Whale Shark and his little cleaner fishies ;)

We were in awe after the Whale Shark interaction! Our BIO helped me three times to go as close as possible near the Butanding. It was funny though that there was a time when I jumped the boat last and when I splashed in the water the whale shark was super close below me. I had to race up my flippers as not to kick him - wonderful really!

We finished the interaction earlier than expected since the water was already getting murky and the whale sharks were swimming down so fast. Anyway, it was already worth it since the group saw 8 whale sharks in all :) Personally I saw 6 since I don't swim that fast, haha! Jumped 10 times, but the two last was unsuccessful.

When we got back on the boarding area we got ourselves Butanding shirts for 200P and lots of small stuff to give away like magnets and pencils at 3 for 100P.

Back at the resort, we were starving and ordered Amor Resort's best sellers -

Bicol Express - was ok

Adobadong Chicken was good

Laing was a bit throat itchy, specially if you eat the stem. It also tasted good, but itchy

We liked the Kinunot the best - Pagi or ray fish with coconut milk. Sorry pretty fishy, but you are tasty :(

Beach front at the resort by the steaming afternoon sun...

We no longer swam in it since the beach was just fine.

The water was kind of blue grayish too, making it difficult to see anything

The experience of Donsol was so nice, everyone who went on our labor day weekend is planning their own trips again. As for us - we better have a good underwater camera by then ;)

Bicol Backpack: Legaspi City Tour

2011-05-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

It was a quick and full city tour :) Here is a run down of the places we were brought to by Jimmy, our van driver for the day.

Boulevard - Has a beautiful view of Mayon Volcano over the Legaspi Bay. Some people were doing aerobics around the area as well as jogging. We also passed by the mall being built called Embarcadero which is much like the one in San Franciso.

Madame Cross - It suddenly rained when we took our pictures in front of the cross.

The big cross was actually built to commemorate the people who died during the flash flood of 2006

Lignon Hill - It was a 20 to 30 minute walk up the hill for a wonderful view of the Mayon Volcano. There is also a zipline overlooking the volcano for 350P for superman position and 250P for the sitting position. Although it was quite annoying that the zipline was in all our photos of the volcano

pili nuts in front of Lignon Hill

difficult driving; even more difficult walking specially for people who haven't exercised in a while :(

too bad there was a fog on top - although the view of Mayon Volcano still is beautiful

Japanese Tunnel at Lignon Hill - Crawl in the tunnel where the Japanese soldiers used to hide.

Watch your head! as we said - they have hard hats; but it is on a 'while it lasts' stock. We were 9 in the group, only 5 was given the hard hats.

scary Japanese soldier mummified looking in front of the tunnel

Even scarier when you step inside the dark tunnel and see this man. Although I do admire the old type writer - cool antique

Cagsawa Ruins - Who would bypass the famous tourist attraction of Legaspi? It is actually a memorial to those who hid and died inside the church during the 1814 Mayon Volcano eruption.

front gate

getting foggier as the early morning passes

Daraga Church - Is another classic tourist attraction of Legaspi. I was quite disappointed that they were once again painting the antique church white.

the old and the new

Boklan Food Center - We were supposed to eat at Small Talk Cafe but they open at 11AM and the waitress seemed bitchy when she told us that we had to wait. It was a good move to transfer instead to Boklan Food Center which was recommended by our van driver. Don't forget to buy their chicken!

free hot tea

The pancit was also a bestseller; but it was just fine for me. Go for the chicken if on a budget

DJC Halo-Halo - We liked their halo-halo so much that we ate twice in the trip! Kuya Jimmy said our trip in Bicol wouldn't be complete without their popular halo-halo

Their gracious serving of ube and leche flan made it one of the best halo-halo I have ever tasted. We were making fun of this painting and said that there is also an orchid inside the halo-halo :))

toasted siopao @ 25P was like the 'putok' bread with meat inside - not bad

Oh, and don't forget the cheese on top...

Philippine Trip 2011: Bicol Backpack

2011-05-04T06:29:00.000-07:00

Seeing the Mayon Volcano at Legaspi and swimming with the whale sharks at Donsol was a very memorable experience we all will not forget. Everyone should do it! It was surreal...

Our budget for the trip was below 5000P, and it worked out superbly - with van pickups and yummy Bicolano dishes.

Here was our itinerary and budget for the two day one night trip :)

April 30 (9PM) - Bus to Legaspi, Bicol via Philtranco (@1100P for lazy boy)

May 1 (6:30AM) - Arrival at Legaspi. Tip: talk directly to the van drivers if you are planning to rent a van. The actual rate for a half day city tour is 1500P, if you talk with a tricycle driver they get additional 200 to 300P

City Tour (7:30AM - 2:00PM) : (van @1700P. Contact Jimmy at 09265739496/ 09301817033)

Boulevard and Embarcadero
Madame Cross
Lignon Hill and Japanese Tunnel (Entrance @ 10P)
Cagsawa Ruins
Daraga Church
Boklan Food Center (@1200P/9pax = 133.33P)
DJC Halo-Halo (@80P)

May 1 (2:30 - 4PM) - van to Donsol. Contact Nonoy at 09214568677 (@1000P: we were dropped off at Amor Beach Resort already)

May 1 (4:00PM) - check-in at Amor Beach and Farm Resort and sign up for the Firefly tour at the hotel (@ 3600P/9 - 3 pax per room)

May 1 (4:30PM) - off to tourist center to sign up whale shark interaction the next day (@3500P per boat - for 6 pax; 100P for local registration fee)

May 1 (6-8PM) - firefly tour (@1250 for 5 pax)

May 1 (8-9PM) - lovely dinner at Amor Resort (@1116/9pax = 124P)

May 2 (7:00AM) - first batch to interact with the whale shark :)

7:30 - 9:40AM - actual interaction with whale sharks
11:00AM - brunch at Amor; fix up; picture taking

2:30PM - 4PM - back at Legaspi (van @ 1000P); we asked the same driver we got going to Donsol to pick us up again at the resort. Way better than taking a tricycle from Donsol to Daraga then van to Legaspi which I searched on the net :))

4PM - 6PM - halo-halo snack at DJC (restaurant was just 5 minutes walk to the bus station) and shopping at the station. Got me a pretty 'sabutan' bag @ 320P and pili nut jars @ 75P

6:30PM-4AM - back at Pasay station Philtranco (@1100P)

Our tour group was comprised of my officemates - Marcial, Nel, Ciara and Elpie; and my brother in laws Frank and Naldz and his girlfriend Carol. And yes, me and hubby :)

Details of our Legaspi City Tour - here
Details of our Donsol Tour - here

Total Immersion: Seventh Day of Valentines Gift

2011-04-26T09:56:00.000-07:00

So OK, after a long holiday and a week of flu before that, I was back to swimming. Since I already forgot how to do the drills again, we had to retract back to the skating drill, then zipper skate drill which I was really bad again with. The session ended with the zipper switch, which according to my new coach (yes, I was transferred from Ang to John, but both are good), I was getting better with the said drill.

Most likely tomorrow I will be doing a few lapse of Zipper Switch then on to what they call as the Triple Zipper Switch. My classmate who was ahead of me one session finished his triple zipper last session and was taught the freestyle afterward.

Oh, and good news, I was able to reach the end of Shang's pool for the first time - yey! :)

Philippine Trip 2011: Bataan (Pawikan Conservation Center and Coral View Beach Resort)

2011-04-26T08:01:00.000-07:00

We were fortunate enough to be able to book the Coral View Beach Resort in Morong Bataan in a very short notice during the long weekend (April 21). I was actually not looking forward to the beach stay but was instead excited to see the Pawikan/Sea Turtle Conservation site which I heard was close to the place.

Upon arriving at the beach resort we were assisted by their staff to bring our bags and park the car. Entrance fee was 200P for adults and children was 150P. We got the 5000P room for four with AC. The place was clean and we even had a beach view. We thought we would have a satisfying stay, but come night time the electricity went on and off several times and we had kids with us who were afraid of the dark and they cried every time the light went off :(

the pigeon house was cute

the view of our room

Beach front - their site claims it's white sand. It's not, but anyway, it is fine though

floating nipa

don't forget to wear shoes, there are sea urchins!

More sea urchins... Take note, their website also says that the place is the 'safest' - yeah sure :))

Is there a thing such as sea spider? Because this definitely looks like one

Clumps of shell

A local showing me their dinner. Interesting...

The sunset was amazing by the beach

My verdict of the resort - as much as the staff are all nice and helpful, the electricity fluctuation needs to be fixed. As for the beach, the biodiversity during the evening was beautiful and even if there were lots of sea urchin it was still pretty; however come morning there was just sand under the water and nothing to see.

And the highlight of the trip (Well, at least for me) - the Pawikan Conservation Center which was just 10 minutes drive from the resort :)

Word of warning, some boatmen (for 1000P) and even staff of Coral View Resort (for 120P each) will try to entice you to ride a bangka/small boat going to the place. Don't do it - just take your car, it's easy! Go back to the National Road, then turn right going away from the town of Morong going towards the Nuclear Power Plant until you reach Barangay Nagbalayong. That's where the Pawikan Center is, you will see a sign board.

Poor monkey in front of the center. Not very animal friendly, eh?

Entrance is only 20P each and the profit goes entirely to turtle conservation

sea turtle life explanation

beautiful green turtle

The critically endangered Hawksbill turtle. I was ecstatic to see this turtle! Much more if I was swimming with them

They also have a adopt a turtle program. For 50P without a shirt or 300P with a shirt and a baller you get to release a baby turtle back to the ocean. Sadly, according to Kuya Lito from the center, only 3% of hatch ling population will survive :(

Kuya Manolo educating the kids. I only heard the part not to throw plastic bags since turtles mistake it for jelly fish.

My niece about to release her baby turtle. Good luck baby turtle!

Almost there... Hopefully we will see you again in 25 years :)

Upon getting our shirts, Kuya Manolo also informed us that you could join their night patrol and snorkel with them before or after the Pawikan Festival. We were planning to go back during the festival but he says there are too many people. The Pawikan Conservation Center also needs donors, so if anyone wants to lend a hand please contact the number below this page.

Btw, there is also a place to stay in the Pawikan Center - rates are as follows:

Dorm Type, AC Room, Double Deck Bed, with Toilet and Bath

16 persons = 4500P

12 persons = 4000P

10 persons = 3500P

4 persons = 2500P

Guest Room, AC, with Toilet and Bath

6-8 persons = 5000P

2-6 persons = 3000P

You can contact Manolo Ibias at 09066155546/09216302842

Total Immersion: Sixth Day of Valentines Gift

2011-04-09T23:01:00.000-07:00

My sixth day at swimming school was terrible - I totally forgot to focus.

I was too tired (but happy, because of a good news *wink, wink*) when I reached the class and was actually a bit late. The cold pool at the hotel didn't help either. I almost got sick after the class.

Anyway, I had four lapse of OK skating drills then when I added the Zipper I forgot to breathe. My two classmates were in the class for two hours and they were already going to do the next drill so I was asked to do the same. It was what was called as zipper switch. From the zipper drill, you would have to move your zipper hand forward then turn your body to switch to the other side. My right arm wasn't participating very well, it is my weak swimming arm I guess.

The drill should be like this:

I am actually pretty grateful that someone posted the drill in Youtube. At least I get to look at the proper way. It is kindda difficult to visualize what I was doing wrong :(

Here are other posts from the same user:

http://www.youtube.com/user/schlaufahr#p/u/0/HDrn6Hgmq0Y

I Wanna Go to Rio!

2011-04-09T19:53:00.000-07:00

The sights and sounds of Rio were superb! I loved the animation and I actually wanted to dance with the songs, haha! We watched the film in 3D at Trinoma (with a free ice cream :)) )

Yes, Blu doesn't know how to fly :P

Gang's all here

My fav clip!

PS. A tip from the movie - Lionel Richie's Say You Say Me works all the time... Well, that and a nice hair ;)

Total Immersion: Fifth Day of Valentines Gift

2011-04-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

Just three more days before I finish the eight session swimschool at Aqualogic :(

I am ecstatic to report though that I have 'finally' finished my skating drill - yahoo! The breathing with my mouth I envisioned after my fourth swim day worked superbly :)

Good demonstration of TI Skating drill

Fifth session was what they call as zipper which is from skating position you bring your arm up to your face then back to your body as you take air. According to a website, in the zipper drill you literally pretend that there is a zipper on your body with a high elbow and body on your side.

I was not quite sure if I was doing the drill properly since coach had a four is to one student ratio - unlike the couple of sessions that we were 1:1. Anyway, he said I was doing well with the said drill, but I'm still not quite sure, haha!

sample of zipper position taken from swimallday.com - this is terry laughlin, the one who developed TI (cool :D)

Here's a sample of the zipper skate:

What is the Source Code?

2011-04-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

Another Jake movie that is worth watching after Love and Other Drugs - Source Code was well thought of and just like a good book, I was asking myself quietly 'and then what happened' during the entire movie duration. If you liked the movie Inception, you will also like this.

Summary from moviesummary.net

Total Immersion: Fourth Day of Valentines Gift

2011-04-01T09:21:00.000-07:00

I stopped swimming for a almost a month since I had an eye infection during our trip to Davao. When I got back I had to do the two initial drills again to make sure I haven't forgotten them. After about four lapse I was asked to do the skating drill again. I was still struggling to do it! After some time I was getting better - but still struggling to breathe. Coach said I had to breathe out everything before I take air going up. It did help... My other problem was I always felt drowning going back to the water. Then I woke up while sleeping that night and realized I should try breathing with my mouth when I go up - not sure if it would work, but it's worth a try.

Anyway, I'm happy that I am not 'abnormally drowning' in the skating drill; since I tried Googling it and I found another person having the same difficulty! yey!

Here's the resolution to her question on how to breathe easier in skating position. Number one point is the same as what coach told me :)

Two things made the most difference: 1.) Continuing to breathe out thru my nose for a moment after my face clears the water. It would have taken me awhile to figure this one out on my own, seems counter-intuitive. It clears away all those stray water droplets, though. 2.) Raising my lead arm and head position a little

Taken from: http://www.totalimmersion.net/forum/showthread.php?t=571

picture taken from swimshack.co.uk

I do hope next week I could proceed with the next drill :(

March Movies

2011-04-01T08:56:00.000-07:00

Out of the three movies we watched for March, the best I liked was the least watched here in Manila...

Mars Needs Moms had me really touched. It had a good story and animation - I just don't know why it was hard to find a mall showing it. We still had to go to Shangri-la to watch the film even if we were in Makati.

Red Riding Hood is still in the line of 'werewolf hyped' film. The movie became weird and it was trying hard to coerce a logical thriller story but failed to. I only liked the part where the wolf was killing people :))

Battle of Los Angeles was about alien invasion and soldiers stopping them - not my thing. The effects were good though.

DaWOW Davao: March 7 Itinerary

2011-03-14T03:49:00.000-07:00

Our last day at Davao was an adventure trip...

I was honestly nervous with the trip to Maxima - the night before I was imagining a big slide then falling into 100m of water. I can barely sleep! Anyway, hubby was excited to do the trip s0 off we went.

Out of tripping, we rode the habal-habal. I actually thought that it is the same with a tricycle. My officemate told me that it was just a motorcycle with an extended seat. She was right. The motorcycle we rented was small; almost like a single seater.

The driver, hubby, and me were squeezed in this small bike - and let's just say hubby and I are not petite. I was nervous since we might fall, then happy with the wind blowing my face, then anxious to get off after a couple of minutes since my butt was already aching!

Finally we arrived at Maxima and this is the first thing a visitor will see:

OK - good luck :))

They had to verify our tickets since we had exchanged it for our supposedly free zip at Zip City courtesy of our Davao White Water Raft tour. After a while we were asked to proceed to the sliding and snorkeling area.

Just like Hagimit, there were a lot of stairs to go down (and up going back)

Just like a zorb ball but on the water

Seesaw on water. Both the ball and the seesaw are free to ride in.

There was also a free 10minute snorkeling. Our tour guide asked us if we had bread to feed the fish so that they'll come near. Good thing I had crackers with me all time - Skyflakes fit (the fish needs grain and wheat in their diet :-X )

Our tour guide with giant clams - the blue one was beautiful! He was touching then and they were closing their shells just like a scene from little mermaid :)

After snorkeling we were off to the highlight of the trip - the Abyss!

tour guide said we should look happy - uhmm

We were done with Maxima after four hours and it was one exhilarating four hours- for me at least. Hubby said the slide should be longer. Btw, the payment for the habal-habal to go to Maxima then back to Paradise Island Resort was a bargained 700P. Supposedly it was 300P per hour.

Back at Paradise Island we barely had a chance to take a shower. Check-out time was at 12noon but they were nice enough to let us extend until a bit past 1pm.

Picture taken night time at Paradise Island Resort's mini zoo. They had a nice collection of birds.

Just like in Eden they had peacocks

view of Paradise Island beach at night

Room was simple, but had the basics and was clean. Their toilet even had floating flowers in it :))

We got the room without AC - no need for an AC, it was cool in Samal

There was a small band playing while we were having dinner. The girl's voice was pretty. The man on the other hand made the Japanese visitors happy since he sang several songs in Japanese.

good idea for lighting

I liked their seafood platter and it something like 300P only

There was no corkage in eating fresh fruits so we had one of our Marang served. We bought this at the market for a measly 30P. I already forgot how Marang tasted until this trip - it was sweet much like jack fruit but sweeter and softer.

Cartoon depicting the Samal Island's activities

Going back to Davao needed a ride in their boat. As the picture said it just cost 15P per person (minimum of 7 people), but you could also hire the entire boat for a special trip for only 100P. We went for a special trip since we didn't want to waste our time waiting for five more passengers to board.

Back at Davao City we hired a cab to go to Lachi's at Ruby Street, Marfori Heights. Just tell the driver that it's near 'Value Grade School' since they know the place better.

Lachi's Durian Sans Rival was listed in the top 25 desserts of 2010 in an Inquirer article and I wanted to try it- anyway, it's not everyday we are in Davao :)

Reservation information on the table

We had to order a whole Durian Sans Rival since they don't sell per slice - and we were just two.

cute design on the wall

Their grilled pork ribs was delightful. It was soft and tasty. It's more or less 165P

Our dine-in slice of the Durian Sans Rival. We had to take out the rest and hoped it would reach Manila in one piece.

After the nice meal at Lachi's we once again dialed for a cab to pick us up - and it came less than 5minutes later. Super convenient!

We just had enough time for one more activity before our flight back to Manila and we opted for the longest zipline in Davao - the Xcelerator which was also at Ma-a near Crocodile Park.

We had free tickets at Zip City care of our white water rafting tour but we exchanged it to Maxima since we were not sure if we had enough time to zip.

There is a couple of minutes hike going up the start point of the zipline which was quite tiring. You would also have to ride this square wood to go across the man-made river. The hike up wasn't very safe so you better take care. The soil was slippery and there were lots of steps to climb and we didn't have any safety device when crossing this 10 feet water area.

Good thing they were building a new and longer zipline with which there's no need to hike. Our guide showed us the zipline being constructed and he said it would be functional by end of March.

I had fun with the zip - it was a natural high!

Btw, you can buy your photo for 100P, but you can't have a soft copy unless you get at least 3 pieces :(

The crew at Xcelerator were nice enough to call us a cab going to the airport after the zip. We arrived one hour before our flight, just to find out that Cebu Pacific's flight back to Manila was delayed for three hours... bummer!

We wanted to go back to Gaisano Mall for an additional pasalubong shopping since as usual airport stuff are double priced. Surprisingly when we got out of the airport a couple of drivers were saying they'll take us there with a 'fixed price' which was way higher and even said shopping was better in the factories with the location already near Eden Nature Park - hmm... so they do also have rotten taxi drivers there. Don't be deceived.

I immediately took one of the taxis which were properly lined in front of the airport.

cheap fruits at Gaisano and we got lots of candies

Marang's price was almost the same as market price

no one wanted a durian pasalubong :))

We only had less than an hour to eat and we made a very wrong decision to eat at Fiesta Dabaw at Gaisano's Food court. The rice was hard, the kinilaw was not fresh, and the tuna was hard and cold! I asked the rice and the tuna to be heated and they replied that the microwave was not functioning. I was so disappointed with my last meal before leaving Davao that I wanted to cry.

Good thing we still had the Sans Rival from Lachi - we ate a slice to calm me down. Their take-out packaging was great. Perfect for a trip back to Manila.

Our trip was tiring, but eventful. All I could say is I really loved Davao and Samal :) Definitely worth recommending!