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…

TAGAYTAY: Our family’s fave weekend getaway [March 1-2, 2008]

Twice a year or at times even thrice (if my Dad is feeling generous), our entire family hies off one long weekend to spend some time together in a totally relaxing place out of town. One such favorite place we often retreat to is a big house on Rodeo Hills, Tagaytay. Aside from its cool weather (definitely a plus), the house is quite spacious that allows our entire clan to fit in – no matter how many we were!!! (This time around there was only 27 of us, around 6 families. But during last year’s holy week I guess we were around 40 – 10 families with lotsa, lotsa kids, truly a raucous affair!) Sounds crazy, huh? But to tell the truth, the house only had three bedrooms, but it can accommodate all of us easily since they had many cushions – around 15. And they had wide open spaces, particularly the veranda surrounding almost the entire 2nd floor which allows just anybody to grab a cushion and sleep outside. No need for an electric fan either because as I said, the place had its own natural air conditioning. We only need to bring our own sheets and beddings, if you don’t want to freeze your ass off.

And as is our usual routine whenever we go to Tagaytay, we don’t usually wait for them (my Dad and Tita - coz he still plays golf in the morning while she goes to the market to buy enough food to tide us for the weekend). Instead, we go ahead (since we have the car, uhm this time the CRV was lent to us) so we can take in some sightseeing of our own and eat their ever famous bulalo for our lunch. This time, we had my two sisters as our co-passengers (coz my eldest kid had work) and we picked them up at their house at past ten. By the time we were at the SLEX, my husband and Keith were already hungry (not really surprising!) so we stopped over at the Shell select station to buy some hotdogs, candies and junk food to tide us over till we reach Tagaytay.

By 1 pm we arrived in Tagaytay and we decided to eat at this bulalo place near the Tagaytay rotunda where my husband ate with some officemates a couple of years back – The Diners. The restaurant itself was not spectacular – a little more like an improved version of the carinderia – definitely no view of the Taal volcano here because it’s smack in the middle of the city. But their bulalo tasted better than the one we had last year at that overlooking resto (whose name and taste is quite forgettable!) Even the other dishes we ordered tasted great – the inihaw na pusit, crispy fried tawilis, and ensaladang talong. My sisters and I agreed to split the bill and we ended up paying about 170 or 180 per person – quite cheap!...considering how full we all were. We were all quite satisfied with the food that we ate and our entire dining experience would have been quite satisfactory if not for the haughty attitude of the restaurant’s crew – especially the ladies taking our orders. They are the front liners of the resto and they should be more courteous to people coz their snobbishness really is a turn-off. Good thing we were already hungry at the time, so we didn’t decide to just leave and look for another place to eat. Definitely, it’s not a place we would recommend to others if only because of the discourteous staff.

After eating, we wanted to work out a sweat to taper off some of that totally fattening food we all ate, so we visited the picnic grove. My youngest sister also wanted to have her pics taken with the Taal volcano as background (for her Friendster account). So off we went to walk about a thousand steps - we paused by a bridge to have our pics taken; a halfway viewdeck – to have more pics taken; a hanging bridge where we had to walk slow otherwise we might fall off until finally we reached the top where we were able to get a truly breathtaking view of Taal. The spectacular view and the cool fresh air that greeted us at the viewdeck was so worth it! It seems no matter how many times I’ve seen Taal, it still never ceases to amaze me.

When we’ve had our fill of pictures with Taal, we left for the house. But before getting there, we chanced upon a sign just past Splendido and before Rodeo Hills that said Sonya’s garden… and I told them that I’ve read about how pretty the place is on the internet and so we decided to make a detour to check it out. And we weren’t disappointed!!! Just check out the pics and you’ll see how truly made for relaxation and comfort the entire place is …there were pretty flowers everywhere in various colors and arrangements… the relaxing lull of water fountains, the smell of roses and freshly baked bread, and very pretty nooks and crannies to lounge around in, have tea or coffee or even sleep… well, we didn’t get to do that because we didn’t have that luxury of time. Heck, we didn’t even have the budget to savor the smell of all the organic and backyard-grown food that was wafting from their kitchens or to sample the therapeutic massage services of their spa. We just contented ourselves with taking picture after picture after picture in every cozy corner of the place and with buying their bread at the bakeshop/panaderia and some organic beauty items at their country store. I would’ve wanted to buy their soaps but alas I didn’t have any money left… maybe next time coz surely Sonya’s garden is one experience you’d want to experience completely – it will definitely be on my list of places to come back to if I had more money to spare or if my daughter decided to have a garden wedding in the future (very far future, that is!)

By four pm we were already at our ‘house for the weekend’ and surprisingly despite all the places we’ve already visited, we were still the first to arrive. The others slowly trickled in as night settled in and we all feasted on bbq chicken and pork, chicken tinola, and pork binagoongan for our dinner. After gorging ourselves with all the delicious food (esp the bbq, my aunt will kill me if I don’t mention her famous bbq!) we chatted the night away – just talking about old times and doing our usual bashing of others who weren’t around (sorry guys, it’s your fault for not coming!!!) It was way past midnight when they started singing (coz they were also getting quite drunk with all the drinks they consumed!) and I took that as my cue to go to bed (coz I can’t really sing!)

The next day, I was up early again to indulge in one of my favorite past times – taking pictures of sleeping people in crazy positions (he,he,he check out my latest collection!) We ate breakfast in a while and since we all decided not to go to the beach, we just retreated to our own fave nooks of the house and do our own private things – the aunts continued with their chatter; dad was at his laptop at a spot in the veranda outside his room (the only place with a signal!) to check out the daily news and his emails; my stepsister and his husband were watching DVDs (their fave past time!); the guys played cards; the kids ran around and played in the slide in the yard; I brought the laptop but I didn’t get to use it coz my sister was playing Luxor. Good thing I also brought a book and so I was able to retreat in my own little corner to read in peace.

After lunch, the kids were once again getting restless –they grew tired playing outside and with the laptop so we decided to take them out to visit the new zoo near Mendez – Paradizoo. We got lost a bit going there coz the signs were quite confusing. But after a few hits and misses we finally got there. Entrance fee was a bit steep at PhP 199 for adults and PhP 149 for the kids but the tour took more than an hour and we were able to see unique animals (not quite your typical zoo) and experience first-hand life on a farm - so it was quite worth it…We even had a tour guide who explained to us little bits and trivia about the ten-hectare farm/ranch.

First animals we encountered were the miniature horses just after the restaurant and souvenir shop which the kids can actually ride (but did not coz it’s costly at Php 150 for only a few minutes). We continued with the tour instead and saw varied kinds of exotic animals which the guide said were imported from different parts of the globe. There were dromedary camels (with one hump) from Australia, some Kalahari goats (which we can pet and feed with all the grass readily available), dorper sheep which the guides showed how to milk (we can actually milk them and even the kids had fun feeding a baby sheep from a bottle). There were also fallow and russa deer, alpacas and llamas, fierce racing greyhounds (just too bad there was no race scheduled for that day so we didn’t get to see them in action), race horses and miniature ponies. We also visited a butterfly farm (my third for the year), a bee farm, an organic garden (with lettuces, tomatoes, carrots, even strawberries harvested and sold at the resto near the entrance), a fish pond where one can actually catch fish with a rented rod for PhP 100 (but you have to pay for the catch if you like to take it home otherwise it goes back to the pond), an orchid garden, a mushroom growing facility, a piggery where we saw Big Brother’s Peggy and her piglets, and so much more.

All in all, it was truly a very different but still fun experience because it wasn’t regular zoo animals in cramped cages that we saw but farm animals in wide open spaces. But what made the experience unique was the fact that it allowed visitors to interact and experience first-hand the kind of life in a farm. The ones who conceptualized this type of zoo should really be commended because they were able to give us – both kids and adults – a truly unforgettable experience… plus, if the kids still wanted to see more regular zoo animals, they offered a visit to the Residence Inn zoo – for free! (I guess, it’s already part of the Php 199 package) And so off we went to visit the other zoo where we got to see the regular animals like tigers, monkeys, a scraggly lion, different crocs and lizards, snakes, large fishes and birds, eagles, even a porcupine, etc.

It was about 4 pm already when we returned to the house and the kids were bursting with stories to tell of their various encounters with animals we saw in the two zoos we visited… they regaled the oldies with their stories as we ate spaghetti and cake. After a while, it was time to go home and bid goodbye to this wonderful place that we have come to call our very own ‘home away from home’… till next time!!!