AN ADVANCED ANNIVERSARY DATE


Next week we will be celebrating our 8th year anniversary but it so happens that the hubby will be out of town to drive for another unit’s team-building …he wasn’t sure what time he’d be able to go home so rather than risk waiting for him to come home so we could spend some time together, we decided to just have our ‘date’ in advance. We started with a bit of shopping at Bench (for undies and perfume…hmmnn…?) then we had dinner at Kenny Rogers – someplace we can afford to eat only during special occasions like this (because its prices are really steep but worth it naman!) Then we watched a movie – Indiana Jones – where we saw an aging Harrison Ford still trying to swashbuckle his way against aliens this time. The movie was OK…not spectacular, not boring either, full of action despite the main actor’s age (hehehe)…truly a good way to spend our bonding time together…I just hope we’d have more moments like this …just like the old times!

Food tripping in Tagaytay

On the last week of May, our unit this time (coz the last one at Ocean Park was my husband’s unit outing) had our team-building or maybe I should say 'food tripping' in Tagaytay. It was originally planned to be held in Boracay, in consonance with the office working trip to Bacolod but there were problems with the scheduled return flight from Boracay to Manila… well, I wasn’t really too keen on going after I learned that we had to take a one-hour ferry to Iloilo, a three hour road trip (by van or bus) to Aklan and another 30-minute boat ride to Kalibo; and besides, I didn’t want to go if my husband wasn’t coming with me so I opted not to join the outing. But when plans for the return flight became awry, they decided to just scrap it altogether.

And so a week after we got back from Bacolod, we decided to just have our outing at Tagaytay. Still, the hubby wasn’t able to go with me because they had an important basketball game to win that day so I took my son, Keith. Besides, I knew it would all be just one big food trip and who better to take with me than someone who has an appetite big enough for the two of us… and so off we went that rainy Wednesday morning for a trip to that cool city which proudly boasts the smallest active volcano in the world.

First stop was coffee and breakfast at Bag of Beans. We left the office at around 8 and I offered that we take the shortcut via the Southwoods route since it is what we usually take when our family goes to Tagaytay. But our driver apparently did not know the way so we ended up not taking the shortcut but the regular route even passing by the towns of Dasma and Silang; oh, well I guess it’s my fault for not remembering the exact directions…

We reached Tagaytay at around 11, a bit late for breakfast but still way too early for lunch so we decided to just eat light. We only ordered bottomless kapeng barako and a few kids’ meals like pancakes and kiddie cheeseburger. While the others, including me, just ordered pie (shepherd’s pie, beef and mushroom pie and apple pie) Little did we know that their servings would turn out to be quite humongous or that the pie (even if a bit on the small side) – was totally filling and delish! (just check out the pics!) Even the place was so cool – the resto was set in a garden and there were wooden tables and metal ones with an umbrella canopy. There were also huts/cottages for diners who may opt for a little privacy. There was also a completely covered and screened dining area that can be closed off for gatherings/seminars when the need arises. We left the resto after a few pic taking, totally satiated and raring to walk off all the gorgeous food we just consumed.

I recommended the trip to Paradizoo – after having visited the place just last March, it was truly a sight to behold, one I wouldn’t mind going to again. Besides, the one-hour tour would surely be enough for us to shake off all the fat and carbs from our previous meal and make enough room for the next scrumptious lunch we had planned. And so off we went to the sleepy town of Mendez. We only paid a hundred each for the Paradizoo tour since we decided to forego a visit to their other zoo, at the Residence Inn.

We had a different tour guide this time – a girl and she seemed a bit tame or not so energetic like our last tour guide (whose name I completely forgot!) Or maybe she just got so overwhelmed by the kind of questions the guys in our group asked --- you know the totally inane ones that guys just ask for the sake of asking… I guess she may be a bit pissed but just didn’t show it.

Well, anyway the tour started with the dromedary camels with single humps and we took pics feeding the camels. There were also some deer, sheep, ostriches and the five-legged bull (Bulltes five, I think it’s name was) in nearby cages. There was also a funny-looking zebra – a brown one with white stripes… turns out to be a horse they painted with white! Next stop was the goat/sheep cage where the last time the kids were able to bottle-feed baby kids and try for themselves how to milk a goat but the guide told us that this time this wasn’t allowed – only during weekends… tough luck huh? They should have given us a discount if some parts of the zoo were not totally functional…well, at least we got to see some goats though not all because some of them, even the big one named Sid was out at pasture.

Next were the llamas and alpacas which the guide warned us not to get too near to because they tend to spit on people whenever they’re angry. So we kept our distance and moved on to the gardens. There were lotsa pretty flowers and organic vegetables, enough to make a salad but as always we didn’t get to buy any (budgetary constraints!) We also saw some pretty orchids before going down to the fishing pond… I remember also visiting a mushroom growing facility near the gardens (the last time I was here) so I knew our guide didn’t really take us to all the areas we needed to see but I didn’t push her na…maybe she has her reasons for not taking us there, I also didn’t want the others to know we were shortchanged…

After the ponds, we passed by a campsite (which they rent out to those who want to stay overnight) on our way to the butterfly farm. There were only a few butterflies, the guide said because it was already rainy season. We also got to visit the honey factory with many bees. This time around they were offering us honey but at 120per bottle so we declined. Anyway, I still have some honey left from our trip to Abra just last month. Next stop was the pet cemetery then the piggery. Once again, we took another shortcut because the guide said we can’t go see the racing dogs because some of them got exposed to viruses and may in turn cause other people it comes in contact with to acquire the said virus. I’m not sure if she was just pulling our leg or truly wanted to cut our field trip short so off we went to the canteen to rest and have some drinks. The kids bought some trinkets at the souvenir shop but I didn’t buy any because the prices were a bit steep and I was still mad at the guide for taking shortcuts and not giving us the entire tour.

We left after a while to eat lunch at Leslie’s Diner. The place was nice and it had a breathtaking view of Taal volcano. The interiors of the resto were quite inviting and made of native materials and they also had small huts for small groups who want to eat and drink in private. We feasted on bulalo, sisig, ensaladang talong, and fried tawilis. The fish was fried so crisply that we were able to eat almost everything even heads and bones. The sisig wasn’t so spectacular but it was spicy and had a nice zing to it that would remove the ‘sawa’ or ‘umay’ that one would get from eating too much bulalo. But the bulalo wasn’t also all that magnificent. It tasted pretty much like the regular bulalo we have tasted the last few times we were in Tagaytay so it’s not something I would rave about. If you would notice the soup leftover was a bit brown as if too much patis was already added to the dish which made it a tad salty. Still and all, we had a satisfying lunch.

Next on our itinerary was a visit to Mahogany market to buy beef and pineapples. After that we visited Mushroomburger… no! not to eat again but to take out some burgers for pasalubong… and also eat as snacks on our way back home. It was 5 pm already and I wanted to go home na but the group said it was still too early. So off we went to visit the People’s Park in the Sky… yeah it’s someplace I’ve already been to also but what the heck! I took the hike with them, bought some souvenirs for my boy and posed for pics. It was almost 6 when we finally made the return trip back to Manila and though we didn’t encounter much traffic, we were still able to get home at past 9…I’m glad I brought my son with me. Not only was he a big help when it came to carrying our pasalubongs, it also gave us a chance to bond - just the two of us – no whining little sister or a bully of a big brother grabbing my attention away from this moment with him. I just hope he enjoyed it as much as I did…

Bacolod: The City of Smiles

Around the third week of May, the office embarked on another working trip to the City of Smiles – Bacolod City in Negros Oriental. Thankfully, our flight this time wasn’t very early so we weren’t pressed to get up in the wee hours of the morning like in our previous ‘working trips’. Office meet-up was set at around 7 am, we had time to eat Mcdo muffins and coffee for breakfast before leaving for the airport some 30 minutes later. We boarded the PAL Airbus 320 Flight PR 133 in Manila at around 9:30 am and landed in Silay City airport an hour later at 10:30 am. First impression of the city was that it was so hot…well, considering that it was summer – it was to be expected, but I am glad when we finally entered the hotel which was to be our home for the next four days… Planta Centro Hotel, located right at the heart of Bacolod city.

The hotel itself was quite a sight to behold – recently inaugurated in March of this year – the place was sparkling clean and the staff very friendly…after all, that’s why they’re called the city of smiles – because of the friendly people. And so for the next few days, we got busy and stayed mostly inside the cool comfort of Planta Hotel. Even the food they served was great!!! It seems they had an Italian chef and so each day we were served a different kind of pasta dish – so I am able to gorge on my fave food much to my heart’s content…Even their breakfast spread was superb because they offered so much variety even if their space was a bit too cramped. Well, anyway one can always choose to dine al fresco by the poolside although I never did try because even in the morning, the temperature was already quite sizzling!!!

But after three straight days of hotel food (no matter how good!) one would still feel quite bored with such type of fare so it was quite a welcome treat for all of us to finally be able to step out of the hotel (when our two-day workshop was finally finished) and eat their famous chicken inasal. But first we had a city tour with a guide from the city government to take us around. First stop was to buy another Bacolod famous delicacy – napoleones… the resto (Pendy’s, I think) offered free taste and we all bought many boxes for pasalubong. Then we visited a museum which featured their very colorful history…just too bad we weren’t allowed to take photos inside…they also had a toy museum that had so many toys (wish my kids could see it! but alas still no pics...) Then we visited another souvenir shop where we were able to buy many trinkets like masskara keychains and ref magnets, bracelets, others bought colorful bags and even tshirts. Then, we visited another food shop – Mercy’s where we bought still more food delights for pasalubongs – it seems Bacolod had so many treats for foodies like me! When we finally satiated our pasalubong shopping spree (and when our money ran out already), it was already time for our dinner!

The same local contact recommended that we eat at IMAY’s and we were rewarded with their delicious array of specialties including Bacolod’s famous inihaw na manok. We also had their seafood kare-kare, tofu veggie, sisig, and so much more… we felt so full after eating so when we returned to the hotel we didn’t sleep all at once but decided to hang out and eat (some more!) but only chips and soda this time while the boys had beer at the presidential suite which the madam did not use… check out the pics --- it’s just so cool and fun to be President!

The next day we had originally planned to visit this other famed Bacolod tourist site - the Mambukal Mountain Resort but based on our discussion last night with the group that went there ahead of us, it wasn’t so spectacular and even a bit overrated… and so we decided to just stay inside the comforts of our room and sleep a wee bit later than usual. We all took our sweet time having breakfast, some went across the street for some more last minute shopping --- that’s another beauty of Planta hotel, there were also souvenir shops just across the street so one can really do all the shopping without venturing too far from the hotel…we wanted to take in a little bit more sana of the city but we were unable to go anywhere else but the church, SM and the pier so by 11 we decided to have our lunch at another recommended resto – ABOY’s which is near the old Bacolod airport.

Sated and quite drowsy with all the good food we just ate, we lazily trudged back to the hotel to finish packing so we could proceed to the airport. As our plane prepared to taxi out of the runway, I looked down wistfully at the City of Smiles and as with other ‘working trips’ we had, made a vow to return once again – to fully savor all the city had to offer – maybe a visit to their famous sugar plantations, their sugar beach in Sipalay, the Masskara festival, mountain resorts, waterfalls, and so much more... truly one can never get tired of visiting the numerous beautiful islands of our country ...