Ayala Triangle Gardens Christmas Lights Show, Golden Spoon

In the last couple of months I've lost my urge for frozen yoghurt, perhaps due to the emergence of Serenitea . However, due to some Facebook posts, I've noticed the growing popularity of the Christmas Lights Show in a new place called the Ayala Triangle (which is actually the field behind Makati Stock Exchange). After Christmas, I went with J and some friends to check the area out. We were supposed to eat at Wee Nam Kee. Sadly we were No. 45 in the waiting list, and after an hour the queue has moved from No. 11  to No. 15! So no dinner at Wee Nam Kee for sure! To think we were there by 6PM!

Anyways, here are pics of the Christmas Lights in the Ayala Triangle. It shows every 30 minutes form 6-8PM everyday, until when in 2011 I'm not too sure. It's really nice to watch, laser and fog and music are involved, though nothing super fabulous. But it's really great for photo ops! Check it out!

It's much prettier in person =D

My friends and I were able to take a lot of nice shots with that as the background. A lot of people were there, and most of them walked from Glorietta (it's about a 10-minute walk. I walked there a few days later with our staff). But not uncomfortably full. Near it, at the center of the Stock Exchange Building, was a ginormous Belen, also great for photo op purposes!

Anyways, let's talk about Golden Spoon. As I was saying, I haven't had Fro-yo in a really long time. While waiting for a table at Wee Nam Kee, we walked the restaurant lane along Ayala Triangle.  Restaurants there include Omakase, Bfast by Chef Laudico, Bon Chon Chicken (I'm dying to try this!), Banapple, Kanin Club, Momo, Cara Mia, Pho24, and Amici. And of course, Golden Spoon! The only place that had a free table at that time was Golden Spoon. I mean, come on, who has fro-yo at 6PM when you're starving right? *Raises her hand.*

Golden Spoon is the first stall you'll see, because it's right by the Christmas Lights. In fact, if you have some Fro-yo, you can watch the show from inside (sans the music). This is actually great for girls who die in their heels, like me.

At first I thought that Golden Spoon was your typical fro-yo place, because the counter makes it seem that way. Apparently, the specialty of Golden Spoon is the yoghurt itself, not the toppings. "Cake Batter" is their best-seller.

Calorie Info

I got the kiddie size (P85) of the Simply Tart and Cake Batter. With the Cake Batter I added Candied Pecans, which is like Pecans with caramel syrup. I just wanted to check if the Simply Tart was good compared to the others. Here are the shots (excuse them for sucking, I couldn't help myself, I ate from both though I was supposed to share.)

Notice the "Golden Spoons"?

The Simply Tart was okay, it was as good as the other fro-yos, nothing super duper. But the Cake Batter is another story. So good! So good. So good. If you're not into it being super sweet though don't add the candied pecans because it's really sweet. But I really loved it, hubby too!

The place is small but very clean and nice. It's really a great place to chill out in. They sell Golden Spoon merchandise, in case you become a fan =D

Simple Setup and Signage

A couple of days later I chanced upon the newly-opened Golden Spoon in BF Homes, Paranaque. It's located at Pergola Mall at Phase 1, beside Via Mater. I wanted to check out if the quality is the same. It was! The Cake Batter was equally delicious. And for P85, not bad! So here's your chance South people! Go give it a try!

Cebu Pacific PISO Sale 2010

Oh Cebu Pacific, why make me paasa like this? LOL

For those who don't know, Cebu Pacific had their Piso Sale from December 23-25. I, however, being busy wrapping a bagillion gifts, found out on the eve of the 24th of my brother. By the time I got home (Dec. 25 1AM) let me assure you, there were NO seats left for the sale. Trust me. I checked even the most non-visited places, for all the dates of November 11-December 11 of 2011 (Travel period) and there were nooooneeee. This is why some people say this promo's "panloloko" but I think the travel agencies just snatched it all up. Sucks to be us! But either way I was tempted to book for Hong Kong for November 2011. Ah. Patience is a virtue, patience is a virtuem, patiece is a virtue. Tsk tsk.

Booking Hong Kong Flights and Hotels on a Budget

Oh, so many ways to get to Hong Kong! Though my friends only fly Philippine Airlines, my family and I (being cheapos) prefer Cebu Pacific. I mean, come one, what are the chances that we'll be doomed? Nevermind, moving on. Anyways, for the tickets a travel agency took care of this. Two-way ticket was approximately P7,500/person (yes, even children have this rate, I know some of you aren't sure). Foreigners, that's approximately $168 for you.

As our families would be separated from the beginning (though we meet up in 5 days to spend 3 nights in Butterfly on Pratt Hotel together), J. and I booked our hotels early on to try to get the best deals. From all the research I did online (obsessed, I tell you), I was able to gather that Agoda.com was one of the easiest, cheapest, and dependable ways to book a hotel. It's a London-based company, according to my credit card bill (hahah....ha). Seriously though, that website has got some SKILLS! Though later on I had some trouble rebooking one of the hotels (my friends decided to follow us to Hongkong so we had to change some dates), I would definitely use Agoda again and again and again... actually I used it again on our last 3 days there! More of that later if I still have the will to type that far about the trip.

For your info, I booked the following hotels using Agoda.com:
1. USA Hostel, Nathan Road, Hong Kong (Total of 4 nights)
2. Royal Hotel, Macau (2 nights)
3. Walden Hotel, Wan Chai, Hong Kong (2 nights)

Let us start with USA Hostel (Approximately P2,500/night, or US$50)
If you are a seasoned traveller that prefers clean, spacious accommodations, please do not choose USA Hostel. However, if you are totally Gung-Ho about travelling, and would rather spend your money on things and not your hotel because you'll barely be in it, then by all means, this is the place for you.

We got the Deluxe Room I believe, which had a queen-sized bed and a single bed. The bathrooms are part of the room, separated by a plastic divider (okay, it's not as bad as it sounds), with the toilet inside as well.

Towards the end of our trip, we stayed at Walden, where the rate was the same but the accommodation was by far more luxurious. However, USA Hostel has every right to charge what it does, regardless of the simple and tight accommodations, for the following reasons:
1. The building it's in, as soon as you go down, it's the MTR. Literally. Like, I can trip, and boom, there's the MTR. I can't tell you how great that is considering Hong Kong runs on it's MTR system. EITHER SIDE OF THE BUILDING has an MTR entrance. Insange.
2. It's a 10 minute walk to Harbour City, one of the best malls in Hong Kong, as well as the port for the cruises. I lived in Harbour City, it's really fantastic there.
3. It's a relatively safe place. When you first enter, you may be mortified to see that the 1st level is a like a Mall/Bazaar with money changers, and, pardon my frankness, Indians. Not the Native Indians, just people from India trying to sell cellphones and Ipads. But in all seriousness, it was really safe! In fact, so many people shop there. Nathan Road is one of the busiest shopping districts in Hong Kong.

If your husband is paranoid though, I suggest you find a more suitable hotel. My husband almost made a run for it, if I didn't ask him to give me a chance. When he figured out we'd be out most of the time, he decided to stay. Oh yeah, elevators are quite slow because it's shared by a whole building, so if your kids and husband aren't into that either, you know what to do. USA Hostel is only 2 floors of the building, I believe.

Be polite to the owners, who man the entrance. They speak enough English, but if you have any miscommunication problems they're not "malambing" so to speak. They were very kind to us but I've seen them having trouble with other Filipinos who don't speak English well. Should this happen, they have Filipina maids, and please talk to them so they can properly translate to the owners.

Would I stay here again? My husband said probably not, but there's really something special about that area of Hong Kong where Nathan Road is (Tsim Sha Tsui). It reminded me of New York.. almost all stores were open until 10 or 11, the Restaurants and lights open until 1AM. It's really a special area, worth the discomfort  in staying in USA Hostel for a bit.

Oh yeah, if you have kids who aren't very patient with these kinds of things, book another hotel for sure. The TV only has 4 channels (yes, my kids were very much alarmed). Plus, none were in English! But it's alright, they had their PSPs so they didn't mind so much.


Free wifi BTW, and it worked perfectly while we were there!

Royal Hotel, Macau (P3,500/night, approximately P$75)
I had no idea Macau accommodations were so affordable, considering this was a 5-Star Hotel! And it was really really beautiful. The staff was so accommodating (mostly Filipino, I think). This was not the same side of the Island as the Venetian, but the area around the Hotel was simply wonderful. This was a great find in Agoda! See pictures below of the Hotel to see see why we were so pleased. McDonalds and bakeries are a ten minute walk, and the fabulous casinos were about a twenty-minute walk away. You could literally walk everything! more of Macau in a later post. Wifi is free, and there's Internet cable provided inside the bedroom table. Sweet.

Walden Hotel, Wan Chai, Hong Kong (P2,500 a night)
Chamba is the correct word for this hotel. I found this hotel on Agoda on my 3rd to the last night in Hong Kong because my family hadn't booked hotels for the last 2 nights. We were feeling adventurous and decided to move to the other island of Hong Kong, and I made the decision to stay in Wan Chai! For the rate, the rooms were clean, though the bathrooms were quite old (don't expect to be able to use the bathroom!) However, there was TV with cable, beds and rugs were clean, spacious room. It was pretty good, and the rate was excellent. However, it's between Causeway and Wan Chai exits, so it's a 15-minute walk to the nearest MTR station. Otherwise, it's a great deal! Wifi is free, but you have to bring/buy your own Internet Cable.

On a side note, we also stayed at the Butterfly on Pratt hotel, but since I did not book the rooms I can't really give a detailed account. The rate is about P8,000/night or US $200. The rooms are quite small, but luxurious. It's a Boutique Hotel (so expect it to be small) but the rooms and rugs are clean. If you are staying in the same room as people you can't be naked around, please request a room with bathroom doors that aren't clear, because their bathroom doors are clear. As clear as day! Outside the hotel, there are a lot of bars if  you like those kinds of things, and small eateries. It's a 10-minute walk away from MTR. A block away is a cheap laundry place that can do your laundry if you're struggling with that on your vacation. Staff are EXTREMELY hospitable. There's free wifi but I heard some rooms don't have great working wifi, so you'll have to go to the lobby where there's free wifi and 2 computers for your use.

More pics to follow! But as you can see, Agoda really provided excellent choices for my booking, and even when I booked the night before, I had no problem! Hope this helps you out!

Serenitea

Before I post more about Hong Kong love, just want to write a little about my new fave drink place - Serenitea!

Much has been blogged about this place. I'll admit, at first I wasn't too hot about it. Serenitea had been in BF Homes for a while and I would just pass by it and wonder what they offered.

My friends told me it was realllly good so I decided to give it a try (because I'm a sucker like that). It wasn't really love at first sip though. I asked the counter lady what was good and she suggested Wintermelon (though they do have a list by the counter of their bestsellers). I got it in Large (P105), because if your drink is large you get a stamp on the loyalty card. Then I chose to have the "pear balls" sinkers (think Zagu).

The cool part is you get to choose your sweetness level. I gave mine at 100% (I'll work out the diabetes later). It was pretty good, but nothing big for me. See instructions below on how to create your perfect drink!

The snacks there are quite cool too, if you're not paranoid about vetsin, salt, and pepper. They have grilled corn covered in pepper (P60) and chicken chops also covered in pepper (P60). Really easy on the budget. Tasty.

When I returned from Hong Kong (oh land of the milk teas), I found myself craving more and more for milk teas. My friends and I had milk teas regularly in Hong Kong, and having some here brought back nice, fond memories of the vacation. Cravings were intense. Like, daily. I would find reasons to visit it's branch in BF (woooh, free wifi kase) or pass by it in ATC (for this reason, it took me longer than usual to collect stamps for my Starbucks planner).

I was hooked on Hokkaido for a while (same sinkers, 75% sweetness). I tried the egg pudding, which is nice and soft an good if the balls kinda choke you up (ahahahha...ha).  But right now, I'm super hooked on Okinawa (#1 Bestseller my friend, and with good reason!) I've tried the Yakult drinks, it's worth checking out. I feel more alert after having the teas (psychological perhaps?) but I really like it. It's a great alternative to coffee addiction.


I suggest you go out and give it a try! Branches and contact info below:

Serenitea branches:
♚ Little Baguio, San Juan
♚ Aguirre Ave. BF Homes Paranaque - my favorite. Look for TonTon Massage, Serenitea is right across. For the mildly obsessed like me, this branch delivers. Ta-da!
♚ N Roxas St. Banawe, Quezon City
♚ Cinema Area, Alabang Town Center - nearer to where I live. However, only 8 chairs, so not a practical place to hangout if that's what you're hoping for!
♚ Adriatico Wing, Robinsons Place Manila

*Note - If you plan to go to Serenitea BF or ATC, for some, well, serenity, you'll have to do a take-out. BF Branch if full of High School kids (and we all know what we're like in High School!) and ATC is by the Cinemas/Timezone area. Go to the Spa instead for that kind of serenity haaha (baduy).

*Shots taken from Serenitea Facebook Page.

Hong Kong High & Macau Lovin' (Introduction)

For years I have longed to go back to Hong Kong. However, early pregnancy, finances, college and business have kept the Hong Kong dream at bay. But, oh joy, this year our clan decided to go to Hong Kong together, and the dream became a reality! I know for a lot of people, a trip to Hong Kong is as easy as a trip to Baguio. However the Hubs and I are a little weird in the sense that we equate everything to equipment we could purchase for the company. Raise your hand if you have these thoughts:

A plane ticket to Hong Kong = a brand new oven....
A ticket to Hong Kong Disneyland = repairs for the truck....
3 nights Hotel Stay in Nathan Road area = dear God, salary of 2 employees for a month.

So yeah, we're stingy in that sense. However, since this was no longer a matter of choice (Mom gave me an evil death stare when I told her that the whole trip looks like the equivalent of Child 1's tuition), it was a mere matter of how we could budget everything. And how we could fit everything into 10 days so we would never have to come back (I laugh out loud as I type this, because.. well, you'll see why later.)

The elders and most of the clan took the cruise (courtesy or Royal Caribbean) while Hubs, Kiddos and I decided to live out 10 days in Hong Kong. Yeah, you read that right. Ten days. When I told my friends this, we all laughed and said we would be bored out of our mins after 5 days. Oh, oh, oh, you apparently can be so wrong about so many things.

I'll divide this into several parts (a million actually...just kidding), for all you moms or teenagers who are wondering about the costs in Hong Kong now.

Seriously, this is going to be an epic writing, in full detail with photos because I was that obsessed. FYI, we travelled from October 30, 2010 - November 9, 2010. I may not be accurate with some of the rates (it's called memory gap) but I hope it helps you in making certain decisions before travelling and staying in certain places (i.e., may my mistakes gain you wisdom, and may you not err the same way I did, hahaha).

Good luck!

34th Milo Marathon

For photos and results please go to this link:

http://takboph.wordpress.com/2010/07/05/34th-milo-marathon-race-result-and-photos-2010/

For official website (and registration for other legs)
http://www.nestle.com.ph/milo/

Hahahahah. Best OBSTACLE COURSE RUN ever.

Not that there were any obstacle courses... perhaps I should rephrase. Best Human Obstacle Run  LOL. That. Was. A. Lot. Of. People.

Similar to Nature Valley Run. But The whole Nature Valley Run. In the 5K Fun Run. Hahahaha!! Mobs at every water station. HOT. You could barely run because you would slam into someone if you ran straight.

I had blisters from this run. Why? From all the braking and swerving to avoid being human roadkill, and to avoid tumbling over other people.

Worst part - thinking that you were near the finish line (presuming is more like it) and slowing down and pacing, only to find out that the finish line was about 1 km more away. Hasta la vista PR! LOL.
Seriously that was the hottest race. I saw some people collapse from the heat. The heat was mostly from everyone jogging so near each other, as well as the overhead sun. And lack of water. If you saw the mobs at the station, you would probably just pass it by too.

I did NOT appreciate all the pedestrians crossing while we were running. Also those people who stole the red halfway ropes and gave it to the people in the other side so they could cut. PEOPLE! You're just cheating yourselves!

But still an enjoyable run nevertheless, because it was for charity. But still, holy moly.

5K singlet
What is says on the back:

Back of Singlet

P.S. No results so far for the 5K Fun Run. I don't know if there will be results, but I don't know what they took our stubs for if there wouldn't be any time results for it!

Rock and Run (and a whole lotta Rain!) - June 19, 2010

This has got to go down as the most EPIC run ever!! Bwahahaha!!
I barely ran this run, for so many reasons:
1. Woke up from a short nap at 3:45 (had to nap as I only had 4 hours of sleep the night before) and was running really late. Not to mention I didn't even wake up from the nap.
2. Traffic at South Super, in front of Metropolis, was horrennndoouuss.
3. One huge, big-ass, black cloud was above Metro Manila by the time I was on the road (ironically, it was soooo hot that morning though.)

Called my bro up to check if it was traffic near Fort and if it was raining. He said, "well, it's raining now." I asked if there were still people going to run, and he said, "yeah, coz, they're all wet already." J, who was driving, warned me that he wouldn't run in this weather because we might get injured and sick.
FYI, this wasn't cute, sprinkly rain. This was big, fat-ass, CHUBBY rain falling on our car man. I told him that I was actually thinking of running in this storm, just for the experience.

When we got to Fort about 15 mins before the start time, the rain was just terrible, with matching lightning.
We parked near the Spa and ran for cover. By the time we reached cover, we were quite wet. We took a peek at the start line but couldnt see anything -- just heard loud drums and a huge roar from the crowd (the 10K crowd perhaps?) I realized that I left our bibs in the car, and we ran back. At this point, we were still undecided, as were the thousands of people standing by the covers of Serendra with confused looks on their faces ("shall we, or shall we just stay here in the shade?").

By the time we ran back with our bibs, we were soaking wet. Hundreds of people were huddled in the shades of Brothers Burger and Krispy Kreme. I looked at the dry crowd with their Ipods on their arms, then looked at J, and we just knew that we would rather be with the wet, roaring crown in the unseen Start Line. So we sprinted towards the line along with a few other people, and before we knew it, we were a whole crowd sprinting towards the start line.

Unfortunately for us the 5K left already while we were putting our bibs on, but no matter, we caught up with them. Damn that was strong wind and rain! First 1K was excruciating. We could barely see because the rain was in our eyes, our shoelaces kept untying themselves from the weight, I saw a lot of people stop before the 1K mark, I'm not sure if for good. But honestly, despite all those problems, I felt good. I stopped several times to tie my shoelaces, because OBVIOUSLY we weren't going for PR here. The crowd was really good, there was a great vibe going on.

I think the best part of the race came after the 2K mark. The stages set-up for the bands were rendered useless (lest we might run risks of electrocution) but there were crowds in them cheering the runners on. It was actually hilarious. Random JCI members or organizers were standing in the rain with the marshalls cheering the runners on and leading us to the drinks. It was entertaining. PLus we saw a guy in KISS costume running the rain, sticking his tongue out and making hand gestures (I don't think he won but he really brought such fun to the race too).

Traffic was horrible as the marshalls really refused to let the cars pass. The whole Fort was filled with beeps of angry drivers (sorry guys). But it really couldn't ruin the spirit of fun in this race.

Honestly, I love running in Rio-organized races, but just because of the rain and the support of different people at different corners, this was just one of the best runs ever. It was definitely the most MEMORABLE run ever.

Positives:
1. Safe. Daming marshalls, daming police. There were complaints daw of people getting lost. Really? J and I ran in parts between the 10K and 5K since we caught up, but we never got lost. Those marshalls were pretty loud. And JCI members were also ushering us in the correct paths and drinks. Grabe daming police, for 4000 runners. JCIs kase, I guess.
2. Such effort. J and I noticed about 20 cars on different corners and different sides of the road at 45 degree angles with lights on, parked. Obviously cars of organizers and JCIs, just monitoring and lighting the road. We really felt safe even if the whole Fort was so dark from the rain.
3. Singlets were so well made. They were light even when soaked, and puzzling, when I finished the race, they were just mildly damp.
4. You could really see the attempt to have an original event. Several media vans were present, and the band setups looked nice and expensive. They spent a lot for the setup, which was a shame that it wasn't used for the original intention.

Negatives:
1. Next time, we would like to get our singlets during registration, not have to go to Fort just to get our singlet. Frankly I think that pissed a lot of people from the get-go, just because it's not the norm.
2. Bigger signs for the Loot Bags area, and the different areas. And more personnel because I heard there was a huge mob in front of it. Please pack the bags before the event next time.  I guess most of the race personnel went to assist in the race itself, which is understandable. But also understand the obsession of runners even for the suckiest of loot bags.
3. According to other runners there were problems with the bag registry too, which was caused by the race director. Huge no-no.
4. Sucky loot bags (didn't even bother to get one, just heard). But this is for charity, and I really don't think they promised loot bags, so that's fine.

Can't say anything about the bands not performing. Hey, that's the rain man, that's nobody's fault. No contingency plan can make sure that it's SAFE for us to be watching the bands in the wet puddles. Duh.

We were super happy after the rain. I did not SMACK into anyone from overaccepting of runners, AND I really felt safe. I was NOT killed by oncoming cars of drivers with murderous stares as I slowly trudged across intersections.

Biggest surprise of the night - finishing at roughly 41 minutes. Had I not leisurely tied my shoelaces and waited at intersections, I would have beat my PR! Amazing!

Congratulations to the organizers, for the good attempt for an orginal concept. Perhaps it should be a yearly thing, to hope for rain on their race date. Hahahahaha.