Braving The Floods Just For Wingman

It was a Friday night, so me and the girls - Amanda and Trency - decided to take the night out and just chill out. The last time we were altogether as a huge barkada was December in super cold Tagaytay. We all wanted something different, so I think it was high time we tried this small place where they say served one of the best chicken wings in town.

Since I was still on a chicken high from really good garlic and spicy chicken chops, I knew I had to try CHICKEN WINGS this time around. And the place to go to is at WINGMAN over at The Collective in San Antonio Village in Makati City.

Amanda got there first and had already ordered Potato Wedge French Fries and Iron Skillet Queso.


I think this is were the spice fest at Wingman began. The queso and the fries had a little bit of a twang to it. Thankfully, I have taste buds that have already been exposed to spicy food!

Trency got there and was starving. So we ordered some more stuff to fill our hungry tummies and to perfectly match our drinking session. For the alcohol lovers out there, Wingman serves both local and imported beers. For the local beers, they serve San Miguel products and also new-player Manila Beer. For their imported selections, they have Stella Artois and Hoegaarden. They also have cocktails for those who opt to be a bit sosyal with their drinks.


Back to the food part, we just HAD to order Wingman Wings. You can choose from 9 variations of their wings - Buffalo Classic, Lemon Pepper, Garlic Parmesan, Hickory Barbecue, Honey Mustard, Asian Invasion, Mango Barbecue, Honey Garlic, and Teriyaki.

We ordered the Buffalo Classic with Medium Hotness Level. It was just sooo good. Not too spicy. Super tender chicken wings and it had really tasty meat! If we weren't eating out I swear I would've eaten those with my barehands! It was THAT GOOD I'm telling you! Order their Special Bleu Cheese, it'll make the wings extra tastier. The spiciness of the meet just blends so well with the sourness of the bleu chesse! PERFECT COMBINATION!

Trency had this Cajun Grilled Fish Fillet.

Unfortunately she wasn't able to finish it because it was too spicy for her. But she did finish her salad. Amanda and I finished the fish fillet for her, I think it's safe to say that we both enjoyed eating Trency's leftovers hahaha!

Since we've been drinking, we wanted to have some pulutan (bar chow). We ordered their Quesadillas, which was oh so good! We finished these in seconds. We didn't even give it a chance to actually go with our drink. We just DEVOURED it!

For dessert, Wingman has really cool stuff. They have Deep Fried Snickers Bar and Deep Fried Coca Cola. I was so intrigued I begged the girls to order one of the two.

We had the Deep Fried Snickers Bar. Sinfully good! Again, this was gone in minutes! It's actually a snickers bar inside this huge chunk of bread (?), served with vanilla ice cream! This really wowed us! Perfect with beer too! :)

The good part was as we drank, the flood waters started rising in an uncontrollable rate. I used to live near this area so I basically had an idea on how HIGH the waters can go. The cars were actually bobbing with the waves. It was scary!


It was funny because Trency and I had to go and withdraw! So we hailed a pedicab to take us all the way to Buendia where the ATMs are! Funny because somewhere along Malugay, our driver said we had a flat tire, but still he pushed on.

I really, just wanted to thank the owner, Eric, who was very gracious. He was entertaining and kept asking us if we were enjoying despite the sudden heavy downpour and the hassle it has created for our cars. Eric is also the boyfriend of fitness guru and fellow Scholastican, Reema Chanco.

Oh and besides Eric who entertained us, there was also this really sweet stray cat who we heard lived in The Collective. She was such a darling we couldn't help but fall in love with her (even dog lady Amanda couldn't help but give her a little hug)! We named her Amelia (as in Earhart) since we were at the Wingman.


Despite the rains, we all had a great time at The Wingman. Great food and great drinks! It was a really good way to end the week. I highly suggest you go to Wingman if you guys just want a chill place to hang out in. It's the best way to be with your barkada because it's just a quiet place, you can talk and laugh without having to shout at each other! Perfect! :)

And I will always, ALWAYS have a great time with the BFFs...Love you girls to bits!! :)


P.S. This has to be said about The Collective. Please be careful and weigh out the weather. Flood waters can get really high in this area, so if you're a bit OC with your car like me, don't even dare! The management of The Collective is a wee bit insensitive to their customers' needs. As the flood waters started rising they didn't really care if your car gets washed away, they wouldn't let cars in their really HUGE OPEN AREA inside which can fit about 5-8 cars. Super insensitive! Whoever gets to read this from THE COLLECTIVE management, please do something about this! You guys are doing a great job at turning off customers!

Wingman @ The Collective
Suite B, The Collective
7274 Malugay St., San Antonio Village
Makati City

WINNER ANOUNCED FOR First Ever Giveaway: Mo's Bacon Bar

THE WINNER OF MY FIRST EVER BLOG GIVE AWAY IS, NONE OTHER THAN: LLIMJOCO1234! PLEASE CHECK YOUR E-MAIL REGARDING DETAILS OF PICK-UP.

THANK YOU SO MUCH GUYS FOR PARTICIPATING! WILL COOK UP SOME MORE GIVEAWAYS IN THE FUTURE! STAY TUNED FOR THAT!! :D

I know I still got lots of blog entries lined up but still haven't gotten to write about them yet hehehe I'm sorry! But to make up for this laziness in writing my blog entries, let me entice you guys with my first-ever giveaway! And since it's almost Valentine's day, I made sure you guys are gonna get something very sweet! :)

Last night I was chatting with my Tito Romy, husband of my aunt in Facebook. Yes, that's how cool my tito is, he chats up his pamangkins (nices and nephews) in Facebook (ha!). He told me to get the package from their friend who came home to the Philippines a couple of days ago.

So today, we got the very treat-full of goodies from my aunt who lives in Fontana, California. I've specifically requested for the Mo's Milk Chocolate Bacon Bar when they asked last Christmas what we wanted from the US. After months of anticipation, it finally arrived.

Opening the package I was expecting just one or two chocolate bars. Of course my Mom and I had to taste it first.


It was really good!! The saltiness of the bacon bits went so well with the sweetness of the milk chocolate. We had a good time nibbling on the bacon bits, we didn't realize Mom and I had finished the entire bar! Yes, it was THAT GOOD!!

And so now here's the good part. I'm giving away 3 bars to a lucky follower! Yey! I know I promised a giveaway when I wrote about our Ilocos trip. To keep my promise and to thank you all for reading my blog, I think it's high time I gave you guys a treat!! :D And it's a perfect gift for Valentine's Day, too!

Here are the mechanics:
1. You have to be a follower of this blog. If not, it's just very simple. Just click on the FOLLOW button and VOILA!
2. Just place a comment on this blog entry.

That's it! This giveaway will only apply to those in the Metro. Sorry guys! I'll close the giveaway contest when I've reached 25 comments. Then I'll RANDOMLY select the lucky recipient of these goodies, as in I'll be writing your names in little pieces of paper and draw lots! Old school cool right? :)

So what are you guys waiting for?! FOLLOW ME AND COMMENT NOW!! :D

For more information on the Vosges Mo's Milk Chocolate Bacon Bar, click on this link.

UPDATED: A Sincere Appeal to Fellow Scholasticans

Since I have been promoting a concert for a university's cause, I think it is more than just right for me to blog about something closer to home.

As written in the picture above, she's Mrs. Evelyn Marasigan, a Filipino teacher from my Alma Mater St. Scholastica's College - Manila. No thanks to my rusty memory (I think I now have a memory of a goldfish), I can't really recall what year I had her as my Filipino teacher or if she even WAS my Filipino teacher.

But what I do recall was that she was one of them terror teachers in our school, and when it was time for her subject, you better behave or at least have read a good chunk of her reading assignments.

She had a really strong character, but was always so attached to her students. She was nanay (mommy) to her advisory class, but her momminess extended to those who weren't. Teaching was her life's passion and it showed big time. Her students looked forward to her classes and many years later have hung on to everything she has taught them. You could say she was one of the reasons why St. Scho was a second home to many students.

But then through my batchmate and now good blog buddy, Ana Gonzales, I found out Mrs. Marasigan got really sick. So sick she has to undergo an operation that costs P500,000 to save her life. Ana says that she needs this or else the next attack would be fatal.

Kudos to Ana and fellow batchmate Giselle Munoz they were able to collect P36,620 in just 2 days! They put up a Facebook page for the campaign to race P500K, and is doing a good job in letting all Kulasas in on the news.

So now I am appealing to all Kulasas (our fellow batchmates or older or younger) to please donate. Mrs. Marasigan was part of our lives, and I think it's high time we pay her back.

When we were all in St. Scho (whether forced or voluntary) we were always taught the value of giving back through our school drives and concerts for certain causes. We didn't know the recipients, but still we pushed on. But what more if you knew the recipient, and has personally touched your life, wouldn't you want to give?

Let's all help Gng. Marasigan get back her health! She may have retired from teaching, but let's help her get back her life which she has so dedicated to teaching and loving her kids.

For more information on Mrs. Marasigan's condition, please check out my high school batchmate and now blogger friend, Ana Gonzales' post Mrs. Marasigan's Race to 500! =)

Here's the link to the Facebook page, just please click on this: Mrs. Marasigan's Race to 500.

For those who wish to donate:
BPI Account
Evelyn Marasigan
Account No. 2779002023

Also to those who are abroad and wish to have money sent in via different couriers, here's Mrs. Marasigan's home address: 1801 Bauhinia Bldg., Tivoli garden Res. 69 Coronado St., Mandaluyong City

Once you've deposited, or sent the money, you can scan the deposit slip or whatever proof of your transaction, and post a picture on the Facebook page.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!! LET'S GO ST. SCHO!! :)

Ilocos Tour Part 5: Baluarte and Hidden Garden

I'm kind of rushing my Ilocos entries, I just realized my blog entries are piling up! This is going to be the second to the last entry for our Ilocos tour, and this so happens to be the last few places we got to see around Vigan via our cool calesa tour with Kuya Richard and Michelle.

After having a quiet moment in a Church in the town of Bantay just outside Vigan, we went to the famed BALUARTE of Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson. He used to live here, but now serves as a zoo and a conservation facility for endagered animals. But what's cool is that admission is ABSOLUTELY FREE!

Once you've entered, the first animals you see are these beautiful, colorful birds. We couldn't resist having our pictures taken! They were so sweet!


Look at these cute, orange birds. Don't they look adorable? Well...looks can be deceiving. When Milds tried to touch 'em, one of the little imps gave her a peck on the finger! NAUGHTY!!

But this one, MY GOSH! It knew I was taking photos of him or her. And he/she was just so game showing off all of his/her angles! Photogenic!



The big ostrich is also found here in Baluarte. It's funny because they kept pecking at the paint in their enclosure. Is that an ostrich's main diet?

Other animals in Baluarte are the Miniature Horses (you could take them out for a ride via a tiburin, or a small horse-drawn carriage,) and some kind of sheep or deer which we saw were grazing in the vast field. There were also geese, swimming around a tiny pond.



And lastly, this is Chavit's pride: HIS TWO TIGERS. It was so cool to see them lounging around. If they weren't wild animals I would've hugged them!

It was nice to see that Chavit Singson really makes sure his animals are healthy and have their freedom to roam around, and their sanctuary clean. The animals look happy their. Plus the kids had a grand time interacting with the animals. It's a great way to teach them about these animals and conservation. For that, I say KUDOS TO CHAVIT SINGSON! :)

Since we were kind of rushing around and also hungry, we left Baluarte for yet another clean-and-green area: HIDDEN GARDEN. Kuya Richard said there was a nice restaurant we could eat in (that will be in a separate post) so we hurried towards it. It's my first time to see these places, so I was totally psyched.

Although I'm not a big fan of plants, Hidden Garden was a breath of fresh air. There were lots of plants (most were for sale), my Mother would've loved this place!





The Hidden Garden has been visited by some local celebrities like Pops Fernandez and Gabby Concepcion, as evidenced by their wall with photos put up by owner Francis Flores, a landscape artist.. And it has also been used by the Going Bulilit (a popular gag show for kids) kids in one of their shows. I didn't really know that the place was THIS popular.

So if in Vigan, don't miss out on these places. They're really beautiful and it can help you de-stress! If only we had a lot of time in our hands, we'd really take time to go around and take in the sights.

For more information on Baluarte click on this link.
For Hidden Garden please click on this.

Other links to our Vigan tour:
Part 1: Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte
Part 2: Cordillera Inn, Night Shots and Empanada
Part 3: Crisologo and SyQuia Museums
Part 4: Bantay Bell Tower and St. Augustine Parish Church

Ilocos Tour Part 4: Bantay Bell Tower and St. Augustine Church

After looking at antique furniture and seeing how the rich people lived back then, it was again time to hop on our calesa to our next destination. Kuya Richard steered Michelle to the town of Bantay, just outside the heritage city of Vigan.

We got down in front of St. Augustine Parish Church which Kuya Richard says is one of the oldest churches in Ilocos Sur and probably even in Region 1 where the 2 Ilocos provinces belong.

Built in 1590, the church is named after the Agustinian priests' patron saint. Badly damaged during World War II, the church was reconstructed in 1950. The facade is of Neo-Gothic design mixed with Pseudo-Romanesque elements.

We took a look inside, and first thing I noticed was the long aisle and the cool arches. It was so pretty!

And up on the altar, is the image of Our Lady of Charity.

The church also serves as a Shrine for the Our Lady's image. Devotees say that the image has done numerous miraculous deeds. In 1956 Our Lady of Charity was crowned as the Patroness of Ilocandia, following the visit of the Papal Nuncio.

And right beside the church, is the Bantay Bell Tower. Kuya Richard gave us a juicy tidbit: Fernando Poe, Jr. used the bell tower in one of his PANDAY movies.

Pardon the next set of photos you are about to see. Apparently the people tasked to maintain the bell tower got some pretty good tricks up their sleeves. There was this guy who volunteered to take our photos, and we ended up having all these wacky shots.





And this was just outside. When we got in the bell tower, he asked us to do more poses. Funny!






After the photography tour of Bantay Bell Tower, I think it is customary to give the guy (or whoever volunteers to take your group's photos) some tip. I think we gave Manong P20. Oh! And there's also a donation box for touring the bell tower. Just give any amount and sign up on the log book and you'll be just fine. :)

Next up is Chavit Singson's BALUARTE. For the animal lover's, you wouldn't want to miss out on this animal haven! :)

Other blog entries from our Ilocos tour:
Ilocos Tour Part 1: Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte
Ilocos Tour Part 2: Vigan's Cordillera Inn, Night Shots and Empanada
Ilocos Tour Part 3: Crisologo and Quirino-Sy Quia Museums