GOTTA LOVE LIFE!

Groupon

2011-07-28T21:32:00.005+08:00

Groupon is a portmanteau derived from "group coupon". It is a deal-of-the-day website that features discounted gift certificates. My first encounter with this was when my friend invited me to join localroam. Whoever was the first one who came up with this idea of a "groupon" is pure genius. I'm such a miser so I love bargains/sales/discounts. Shopping at outlet stores is pure bliss for me so I was pretty pumped up when I discovered groupon. Imagine buying a product or making a reservation in a hotel for a much needed vacation with a 90% discount. It's unbelievable but it's so true. My friend is actually addicted to groupons that I often see her at work surfing the net and printing all her vouchers.

There are also other groupon sites that offer a lot of good deals. For instance, ENSOGO today offers a P499 per person/night accommodation with breakfast based on quadruple sharing valid from August to Dec 15, 2011 and June 1 to Dec 15, 2012 at La Carmela de Boracay (valued at P4160) . The rate is discounted at 88% so you save P3,661.

La Carmela de Boracay

-image from ensogo-

Dealgrocer also offers discounted travel packages. Their offer today is a 3-day and 2-night full board stay for 2 in a deluxe water cottage in El Nido Resorts valid from July 31 to October 28, 2011. The offer is worth P29,500. Original price is P58,440.

El Nido

-image from dealgrocer-

Mount Mayon

2011-07-27T21:48:00.006+08:00

I'm a Bicolana but I only got to see Mount Mayon last September 2010 when my family and I went to Bicol to attend the wedding anniversary of my uncle. It's nice to actually see Mount Mayon and the Cagsawa Ruins up close for the first time. The Cagsawa Ruins are the remnants of the Cagsawa church built in 1724 and destroyed by the 1814 eruption of the Mayon Volcano.

The ruins of the Cagsawa church are now the site of the Cagsawa Ruins Park, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Albay. There are a lot of stalls selling native Bicol products surrounding the park. What was pretty amazing for me were the boys who earn extra money just by serving as guides to the visitors. They would come up to you and tell you about the history of the Cagsawa Ruins and they would readily be your photographers taking interesting shots of you and Mount Mayon or the Cagsawa Ruins.

I'm Back!

2011-02-06T03:55:00.004+08:00

It has been a long time since my last blog post. But now I'm back...still lovin' life! I'm looking forward to a better year...hopefully more travel...happier memories to share! :)

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Lord Stow's Bakery

2010-08-09T21:58:00.004+08:00

I love the egg tarts of Lord Stow's Bakery. There are only a few branches here in the Philippines so buying these heavenly egg tarts is always a treat for me every time I go to Mall of Asia.

There are other yummy treats from this store but I always go for the egg tarts! :)

Camayan Beach Resort

2010-05-10T16:13:00.009+08:00

My family's favorite destination whenever we want a weekend of relaxation is SUBIC particularly the Camayan Beach Resort. Subic is just a short 2-3 hour ride from Manila. And thanks to the new SCTEx (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway), the short road trip is not a hassle anymore.

We prefer the Camayan Beach Resort because the guest rooms are situated near the beach. We love it because we can wake up each day and see the beach which is a few meters from our rooms. We can swim whenever we want without having to worry about paying extra for beach entrance fees, cabanas and chairs. Guests also have free breakfast buffet. If we have checked-in in one of the hotels along Waterfront Road in Subic, we would still have to wake up early and travel for about 15 minutes so that we can swim in one of the Subic beaches. More importantly, the resort is also dog-friendly. We actually brought our dog with us during our last trip. ( We've grown so attached with our dog that we carry her around as much as possible wherever we go.)

These additional rooms were just built recently to accomodate their guests.

A band would play at certain times in the afternoon playing reggae songs.
I remember even watching a fire dance perfomance in one of our visits at the resort.

There's also a lifeguard who keeps an eye on the guests!

The guests were playing tug-of-war here.

I prefer these rooms because they're a few meters from the beach.

The view just outside our rooms.

This area behind the wooden fence is for resort guests only
so the guests don't have to rent plastic chairs or cabanas
if they want to stay outdoors.

Caleruega: Close To Nature, Closer To God

2010-04-24T08:34:00.007+08:00

Caleruega is a "house of prayer and renewal". It's actually one of those tourist destinations that shouldn't be missed. I can't even remember how many times I've actually dropped by the place before leaving Tagaytay just so I can have some quiet time for myself.

Caleruega is open for outsiders. Weddings, retreats, recollections and seminars are held there all year round.

Earth Day Run 2010

2010-04-20T01:25:00.005+08:00

National Geographic Channel's Earth Day Run 2010 was held last Sunday, April 18 at the Mall of Asia complex. Proceeds of the event will support the Design Against The Elements Compe tition in "bringing innovative solutions to climate vulnerable communities in developing countries".

Waiting for the start of the race with my sister.

Fontana Water Park

2010-03-30T09:06:00.009+08:00

My family and I went to Fontana Water Park in Clark Field, Pampanga 2 weeks ago. We went there on a weekday so there were only a few guests (which I loved! As you all know, I hate crowds!). Entrance fee is P300 per person. Visitors are not allowed to bring food and drinks so we had to buy food from their small snack stand. And if you're interested, dogs are not allowed too. (so we had to leave our shih tzu at home!)

What's great about Fontana Water Park? It has kid-friendly pools with water level just about one to two feet high. ( My nephew really enjoyed the place!) Lifeguards were everywhere. The place was well-maintained. The shower and comfort rooms were clean as well.

Fontana Water Park

My nephew's fave pool with a big pirate ship in the middle.

Water Factory

Lazy River

The lazy river can be seen at the lower right side of this picture.
It goes around the water park.
You can just ride the big yellow life saver (floaters)
and the water will just carry you around the park.

Giant Slide

Wave Pool
( Visitors get to experience huge waves every 30 minutes)

31610

Sol Gelato

2010-03-26T20:32:00.003+08:00

I was able to try out Sol Gelato for dessert when my family went to The Piazza at Mckinley Hills, Fort Bonifacio. The ice cream store was small but had great interiors. I specifically loved the floor to ceiling painting (or picture) of the Grand Canal placed on the wall. The ceiling looked like that of Las Vegas' The Venetian -- it was sky blue with painted clouds on it. I actually forgot about it until I saw the store's online website.

For their ice cream (or gelato), you can choose piccolo, grande or cone. You can choose 2-3 flavors of ice cream and if you're not sure what to order, you can have a free taste first. My personal favorite is Mascarpone Cheese.

Sol Gelato

Wall at the right side of the store with the picture of the Grand Canal

Different ice cream flavors to choose from

Summer in Boracay

2010-03-14T17:33:00.010+08:00

It was the first time for me to visit Boracay two summers ago. And I only have one word to describe the place....PERFECT! A lot of people have been raving about the place but I never had an urge to take my vacation there until my brother gave my parents a free trip to Boracay as an anniversary gift. I just joined them the last minute.

Boracay is a perfect summer destination with its white sand, blue waters and skies. No wonder a lot of tourists frequent the place. I hate riding in small airplanes but Boracay is so worth it.

My brother booked us at Boracay Regency Beach Resort and flight arrangements were fixed via Seair. What I like about Boracay Regency is that from the time we arrived at Caticlan Domestic Airport, we were already assisted by their employees on where to go next which was great for first timers like us.

From the airport, we proceeded to Fairways and Bluewater Resort where we rode a small boat to take us to Boracay.

View of Caticlan from Seair

Our small boat which took us to Boracay

Picture taken while going to Boracay

I think Boracay Regency Beach Resort was one of the main reasons why we enjoyed our Boracay trip so much. When we arrived at the hotel, we were given welcome drinks while waiting for our room. Our room was clean and their housekeeping staff was very efficient. Our balcony wasn't overlooking the beach area but it was okay since the hotel was only a few steps from the beach. Their breakfast buffet was great. There were a lot of choices to cater to both Filipino and foreign tourists. There were also 3 swimming pools to choose from if you get tired of the beach. ( What we did was we spent the day at the beach and then we'd go to the hotel's swimming pool for night swimming.)

Boracay Regency Beach Resort

Hotel Lobby

A view from the hotel lobby's glass window

Steps leading to the beach front

It was April when we took our vacation there so the weather was great too. I told my mom that even if you're not a professional photographer and you're just using an old camera with low resolution, the pictures would still turn out to be beautiful. Our timing was also perfect since it was before the Holy Week ( I hate crowds!) so there were only a few visitors when we had our vacation there. So if you want a relaxing vacation, try visiting the place during the lean months.

Puka Beach is situated on the other side of Boracay Island. You can reach the place via boat ride. Some prefer island hopping so they rent boats for the day. But since I don't like boat rides, we went there via tricycle! ha!ha! What's nice when we visited the place was that there were no commercial establishments along the beach so it was just pure nature at its best!

Puka Beach

I super love this picture.
It looks like it was taken from a postcard.
And to think I just used my ordinary digital camera
when I took this picture.

The grotto -
The water here is just chest-high
so you can just walk towards the grotto.

It's nice to spend the day sitting infront of the beach
appreciating nature's beauty.

Beautiful sunset of Boracay!

Kainan sa Dalampasigan

2010-03-12T20:42:00.008+08:00

My family ate at Kainan sa Dalampasigan last month when we went on a vacation at Nusugbu, Batangas. We decided to eat there before we checked-in at Canyon Cove Resort.

My brother suggested to eat at Kainan sa Dalampasigan and it was actually my first time to hear about it. I later found out that the place is a bit popular among the locals and it has been featured in several magazines already.

Kainan sa Dalampasigan

Okay..for my first impression...I actually thought it was a small restaurant since from the outside, you can only see the gate and driveway and there were several cars parked along the street. I soon realized that there was ample space for parking at the back and the place was big enough to entertain 150 guests.

I think that what made the place unique was that it seemed that the restaurant was built amidst a garden full of tropical plants. I especially loved the driveway full of hanging vines.

The restaurant was like a big hall with a high ceiling and furnished with wooden chairs and tables. Once we entered the place, we were greeted by a small man-made falls surrounded by tropical plants and orchids. The place didn't have any air conditioner but surprisingly the place was cool and airy.

Man-made falls surrounded by plants

The restaurant was full when we got there. It was lunchtime and there was also a birthday party at the other end of the restaurant. Unlike other restaurants, there wasn't anyone to usher us in. We just had to find an empty table by ourselves. It took awhile for someone to clean our table and get our orders. And then we had to wait for about 20-30 minutes for our food. Since it was the only decent restaurant in the area and there were no fastfood restaurants nearby, we really had to patiently wait. Besides, we were also curious if their food was good.

The place served the typical Filipino dishes. In my opinion, there was nothing exceptional with the food. Although my brother liked the Tanigue Steak (which according to him was the retaurant's bestseller!). We ordered the Bilao sa Dalampasigan - which was a platter of different kinds of viand like grilled pork and fish, buttered shrimp, baked mussels and ensaladang mangga (a combination of sliced green mango, tomatoes and onions with shrimp paste)

Bilao sa Dalampasigan

.
My final verdict: I still recommend the place. It's interesting and unique. If you're looking for a cozy restaurant in Nusugbu which serves home-cooked Filipino dishes, the Kainan sa Dalampasigan should be in your list.

Trip to Canyon Cove

2010-03-08T11:34:00.002+08:00

My family went to Canyon Cove Resort in Nusugbu, Batangas last February to celebrate my dad's birthday. Travel time was okay. It took us about 2 hours to reach the resort from Manila. The first thing that I noticed when we arrived at Canyon Cove Resort was the unfinished, old building overlooking the entrance. I think it's supposed to be the residential apartment for club members but due to lack of investors, they weren't able to finish it. Anyway, it's an eye sore to anyone who'll visit the place.

When we got inside, we were again greeted with more rows of unfinished buildings. The main building was painted (thank God!) and well-kept. The resort had ample space for parking. The lobby, which was already filled with tourists mostly Koreans, was spacious and modern. A view of the beach and pool area could be seen already from the floor-to-ceiling glass windows of the lobby.

We arrived at the resort at 11am. Check-in time was around 1pm so we were able to check out the place first and took a couple of pictures. We then decided to eat outside at Kainan sa Dalampasigan for lunch.

After lunch, we went back to the resort to check-in. I must say that despite the unsightly unfinished buildings inside the resort, I was pretty pleased by the main hotel's guest rooms. The bedroom and the bathroom were small but very clean. The balcony was overlooking the pool area and the beach.

A view of the resort from the lobby

A view from our room's balcony

It's nice to take pictures in the morning because that's the time when you can truly appreciate the calm, blue water and sky of Batangas.

This shot makes the pool look like an infinity pool.
It seems as if the pool water and the sea are one.

Watching the sunset

Canyon Cove @ night

2-1-10

Joaquin's 1st Birthday Party

2009-07-16T00:44:00.000+08:00

A sign infront of Fun Ranch greeted the guests to Joaquin's birthday party at the Big Red Barn!

Another banner inside the barn.

A video clip of Joaquin's pictures was shown during the party.

Waiting for the guests to arrive...

Joaquin loves Barney but because there wasn't any Barney-themed cakes available, we settled for the Sesame-Street-themed cake... which was quite nice and expensive too! :)

A FunRanch magician performed his tricks in front of the kids.

For those who want a hassle-free party, The Big Red Barn is the place to be. :)

A Celebration of Firsts

2009-07-09T22:29:00.000+08:00

I have to dedicate my first post in this blog to my favorite nephew, Joaquin Carlos ( Wax to his dad but JC to me!), who turned 1 year old last July 5. He celebrated his birthday at the Big Red Barn at Frontera Verde, Ortigas Avenue with close friends and relatives.