Summer!

AnI think this has to be one of my busiest summers ever! I feel like I have something to do every weekend – from flights, to boating, to road trips! I guess the lack of international travel (for the first time in 4 years) is a sign that I should spend more time exploring the country instead. Anyway, it’s more fun in the Philippines, right?

I’ve been enjoying simple and not-so-simple pleasures lately. Last week, I splurged: I flew to Manila for the weekend and indulged in some R&R. I met up with friends, I attended a cocktail party at the official residence of the US Ambassador to the Philippines, and I went shopping. The shopping part did me in. It was not part of my plans, but I just had to shop. My next schedule to go there is still in September, there was no better time to check out stores that has my size available.

This weekend, I’m going island hopping around Samal’s Talikud Island for our company summer outing. I wasn’t supposed to spend, but I had to buy a new swim suit – they’ve been challenging me to come wearing a bikini, and I said “sure, why not?” but of course I won’t be playing their games so I am not. I’ll bring a pair though, just in case I get naughty.

Anyway, to end this post allow me to share a picture of an office mate’s pet.

Oh no. You’re not seeing things. That is really a TARANTULA. And yes, it’s alive. And it’s a PET. Somebody is actually crazy enough to have this hairy creepy tarantula as a pet!

Of course I wasn’t very comfortable about it, but I just had to dare myself to hold this monster in my hands. After a few self-motivating talks, I summoned the courage to pick this spider (this sounds too tame to describe the tarantula) and hold it for a few seconds. Let me tell you, it can grip. Like in an only-insects-can-give-you-this-kind-of-creepy-feeling way. The worst – but most exciting – thing about this is that I couldn’t hold it in my palms. I might get the urge to squeeze it to death, and I don’t want to be stung by its venom! I was already patting myself on the back after I let it stay in my hands for a while, but then it started going up my arms and that’s when I panicked! My office mate actually had the gall to laugh at me and taunt me by not picking it up immediately – I think I made such a racket at the office when I started shrieking all over the place and begging my office mate to get it off me!

I swear I’m never touching another eight-legged monster like this anymore!!!!

That said, I think I’m going to bed. I have a 6AM call time tomorrow – I need to be there early because I don’t want to miss this summer outing!

Next week, it’s Camiguin for me and my MBA friends! How exciting!

Destination: CEBU

Originally posted at Eleat and Co.
June 5, 2010

And just when summer is about to end, Eleat and Co. went on an unforgettable adventure in Central Philippines! Yes! Level up na kami ngayon! Out of town na ang drama! Weeee!

QUEEN CITY OF THE SOUTH

You know you’re in Cebu when, while riding the cab, you pass by a store named “DAPNEY” (Daphne)! But I love it anyway. Yay for seeing my dad after a month!

Getting There

An early start for the weekend! Bryan, RB, Frank and I met up at the Davao Int’l Airport already, while Chic came in from Manila, and Lady was already in Cebu. I won a little basket during the in-flight game in Cebu Pacific! Our flight left Davao 30mins early. There’s supposed to be an hour difference in our flight and Chic’s but because of the change in ETA, we decided to meet up with everyone at the condo already instead of the original plan of waiting for Chic at the airport.

Accommodation

Thanks to my Tito Jerry for the free lodging in Cebu! We stayed in his condo unit (right across the hallway from my dad!) for a night! Weee! The girls stayed in the bed while the guys made do with the couch and the floor!

  

Transportation

We took a plane to Cebu, and while we were there we used public transportation before my dad went to pick us up in The Terraces for dinner! From then on, free ride!

Just for fun: we bought our Cebu plane tickets on sale last February. We spent around 2,300php for round trip tickets. And for the benefit of those going to Cebu, public transportation (Jeep!) costs around Php7 generally. Taking a cab is also not so bad. The traffic’s a little heavy but if you’re going somewhere near, I think it would be okay.

Tip: At the airport, do not take the yellow airport taxis or the fixed rate taxis right outside the Arrival Area. Instead, cross the street going up to the Departure Building and walk up the stairs. Turn left and head to the other end of the building and there you’ll see the regularly metered taxis!

Food Trip

Moon Cafe

We decided to have lunch at Ayala’s The Terraces. It took us a while to choose which place to eat because there were just lots of seemingly nice restos! In the end, we settled for Moon Cafe. With its name, I originally thought it was a Chinese Restaurant (read: Moon Cake), but it turned out to be a Mexican-inspired food haven.

The place was pretty warm – not so good considering it was scorching outside – and super packed. It was obvious the restaurant is popular in the metro. The food was also delicious! Of course we had to get Chimichanga because we don’t really frequent places that serves them! Nom nom nom.

Must Try: Baby Back Ribs! Not so expensive and oh so yum yum!

Casa Verde

When my dad agreed to have dinner with us our first night, we both decided to bring the crowd to IT Park’s Casa Verde. My sibs had been ranting about it when we were there last year, and because I haven’t been there, I decided to try it with the friends.

My gosh. You really wouldn’t believe how affordable the food it – considering their serving size! Daddy and my brothers were right, the food there is divine!

Must Try: Brian’s Ribs. For only Php188, you’ll get a plateful (and more!) of awesome steak goodness!

Sight Seeing

We actually didn’t have much time to sight-see while we were in Cebu. We went to Ayala for lunch. Bryan, Chic and Lady said that The Terraces looked like a mix of Trinoma and Greenbelt. We also went to SM. I wish we also have a North Wingversion here in Davao! The boys went with Lady to her school at CIM. And later that evening we had dinner at The Walk in IT Park. IT Park is pretty self explanatory. Most major call centers in Cebu are located there so there are a lot of 24/7 establishments outside the area. It’s like Cebu’s very own version of The Fort.

Of course, the best sights of Cebu can be seen from the 38th/37th floor of Crown Regency Hotel via the Edge Coaster and the Sky Walk. From there, you can see a great view of the city including their White House inspired Capitol building.

Before leaving Cebu for Bohol, we couldn’t miss going to Basilica de Sto. Nino and Magellan’s Cross. The church never fails to give me goosebumps when I go there. Oh, not the creepy kind! It just feels so holy and happy when I’m there.

MUST TRY

When going to Cebu, never miss the opportunity to drop by Crown Regency Hotel’s 38th and 37th floors! The Extreme Adventures that are the Edge Coaster and the Sky Walk are a must! For the Edge Coaster, you will be seated in a coaster that goes around the side of the building, and that can incline up to 55 degrees, giving you a view of what lies below the 38th floor. It’s stomach churning! I don’t think we dared incline it to it’s full angle – that’s how scary it was for us, but we sure had fun! As for the Sky Walk, while the waiting takes a really long time, it’s very exciting because you get to walk in a glass pathway that surrounds the outside of the hotel’s 37th floor. The only thing between you and the ground are the glass and the harness.

 

The downside to these activities though are the cost of the photographs. The rides are ok, but the photos are way over priced! We had to pay 550php per pair for only 6 photos for the edge coaster; and 1300+php as a group for 20 photos for the Sky Walk because we weren’t allowed to bring our own cameras. BOO. HISS. But the expense notwithstanding, it was a pretty cool experience!

That’s it for Cebu! Watch out for my next blog on Bohol!

 

telai

 

Click HERE for original article link.

Party Pilipinas in Davao

First of all, I just want to say: KAPAMILYA ALL THE WAY.

Last Sunday, Party Pilipinas was in Davao. Unilever was a sponsor because of the launch of the Best Ever Sunsilk, so we got VIP passes. It was in the middle of the day when the sun is at its hottest. BOO. Say hello to the Unilever people at the show:

So anyway, before the program started, one of the staff picked three from our group to pose as fans for Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera. Guess who got picked? WAAA. Here’s the video of all the embarrassment I’ve experienced! (Note the shades and the hat to hide ze face. LOL)

 

A lot of my friends and family kept texting me that they saw me on TV! Hahaha. Just to clarify things, I AM NOT A DONG-YAN FAN. And the whole thing was scripted so whatever. HAHA. *Defensive mode*

Say hello the pretend fans, Glen, Chinny and I!

So anyway, despite the heat, I had fun. It was fun making fun (huh?) of our knowledge, or the lack thereof, about GMA talents. We didn’t finish the show by the way. The show was not worth staying under the scorching sun for much longer. A while after the Sunsilk launch, we left for the so much cooler mall nearby.

okthxbye

Holy Weekend: Easter Sunday

I got bajillion photos from our recent trip during the Holy Week weekend which wasn’t actually too holy for us. For the first time ever, we never stepped into a church during the Holy Week. Before, no matter where we were, we always make it a point to visit a church especially during Good Friday. This year, we all got lazy. Uh-oh.

So anyway, back to blogging about our trip. And since this is the last part of this blog series, prepare for a VERY VERY VERY long post!

After having breakfast at the hotel, we headed straight back to Dahilayan Adventure Park in Bukidnon.

 

Holy Weekend: Black Saturday

           

We travelled north to Bukidnon early Saturday morning. We went to this spring resort recommended by the friends we were with at Camp Sabros. Giant slides, “cable car” ride, zip lines, and the whole works. My sibs only availed the pool though while I stayed in our table. We stayed long enough for lunch.

Second stop was the dairy store near CMU. We drowned ourselves with Milk Bars and bottles of chocolate milks! NOM NOM NOM.

Before going to Cagayan, we stopped over at Dahilayan Adventure Park to check it out. It was already after 5pm so we couldn’t avail of the facilities anymore. But the place was great. It was raining that day, so 4000ft above the ground, we were shivering through our teeth! Loves it!

An hour and a half later, we were checked in at our hotel in Cagayan, Harbor Lights, and were off to Lim Ket Kai Mall to explore. The place was big and empty. LOL. After texting my Tito for dinner suggestions, we finally settled at Bourbon St. in The Site. I’ll make a food review soon! The owner was kind enough to sit at our table, chat a little and take photos. After, as per Zhaun’s suggestion, we went to Candy’s for some desserts. The place looked great, but Lachi’s still win in the desserts department! TEEHEE.

All in all, it was a very long day! After settling in at the hotel, we all headed straight for bed as it was going to be another long day for us the next day!

 

okthxbye

Holy Weekend: Maundy Thursday

    

Maundy Thursday was spent in Digos. We had lunch at my grandmother’s, and then went to join some friends from our hometown up the mountains to Camp Sabros. 3 zips, one an 820m ride downhill, and a cable car ride later, we were still at it with our cam whoring.

We then spent a very “quiet” day at home for Good Friday.

 

okthxbye

ELEAT, March 2010

   

Thanks to Chic, we really went all the way with our adventures last month! We weren’t even given enough time to think things over. Things happened in just a *snap*! And it was so awesome!

I can’t wait for our May adventures!

 

okthxbye

Frustration

I’m a frustrated and trying hard photographer/model. LOL

And because I couldn’t sleep yet, allow me to share some of the photos I took of my sibs today while we were in Digos.

Black and White

These photos were taken at my grandmother’s house in Digos City.

Natural Light

Application of the “rule of thirds”. Taken outdoors at Camp Sabros in Kapatagan.

Portraits

 

Photos were taken using a Sony Cybershot (Black and White, and Natural Light) and Samsung point-and-shoot cameras (Portraits). Frustrated indeed, yes?

 

okthxbye

Color of Summer

I’m definitely feeling the summer heat already. Shall I stock up on more turquoise and fuchsia stuff?

okthxbye