Giveaway #2: One for the Mommies and the Kids at Heart

So okay, I'm sort of in the mood to blog...and not just write any blog entry, it's a GIVEAWAY! YEHEY! But this giveaway is for my Mommy followers (which I noticed increased in numbers) and to whoever wants to give these to their relatives with kids! :)

Up for grabs are complimentary coupons to MAMS Kiddie Funland worth P500! What's MAMS Kiddie Funland you ask? It's a haven for kids! A place where they can just be kids and have fun and not have a care in the world!

Managed by my good friend and fellow blogger, Koko Tamura, MAMS Kiddie Funland has been in operation since November 28, 2009 in Starmall Alabang. They offer rides and they have this huge play place for the kids. They also offer party packages, workshops both for parents and the kids, and educational tours.

It's not just playtime, kids and their parents could also learn some neat stuff! Perfect for family bonding time! :)

Now this is the part you guys should pay close attention to. To join this giveaway, simply:
1. Follow my blog. Just click on the follow button on the upper right hand of my blog page.
2. Click on the small BLOGGER button below the time and date I wrote this blog OR click on the "Create a Link" found below this entry, it's to link this blog entry to yours. I'm gonna check your blog if it's been done. :)
3. Leave a comment below telling me that you've got the link and your e-mail address.

It's that easy!

TWO LUCKY WINNERS WILL WIN A COUPON WORTH PHP500!! :D

I'll be announcing the winner on April 15, so you guys have 2 weeks to help spread the word about MAMS Kiddie Funland and leave your comment here on my blog!! :)

MAMS Kiddie Funland Center
3rd Floor, Starmall Alabang, Alabang, Muntinlupa City
Open EVERYDAY from 10AM to 8PM
Telefax: 556-6412
For their multiply site, click on this link.
For their Facebook page, please click on this.

A Huge Reason To Celebrate

Just before March ends, I just wanted to update my blog (after a long time). I'm sorry guys but I've not been in the blogging mood lately, and I am really sorry! Hehehe I promise I'll blog about my food escapades SOON! :)

Anyway, I just want to share with you, my dear readers and followers, this HUGE SOMEWHAT LIFE CHANGING NEWS! I PASSED THE DLSU GRADUATE ADMISSIONS!! And this May, I am returning to my very dear Alma Mater to take up my masteral degree in Marketing Communications.

It's been a little over 3 years since I graduated in my Mass Media undergraduate degree, and I am just so psyched to embark on an all new journey in the academic world. I'm just so thrilled because I really thought I wasn't go to make it in. I sorta psyched myself up for failure (whoever does that right?) just so it woldn't hurt so much when I got my results. But then, when I checked our DTS system this morning, it brought me GOOD NEWS! Talk about a GOOD MORNING!! :D

And I'm happy to be going back to La Salle in time for our 100th year celebration this June! Perfect timing! I am a proud La Sallian, and will forever and ever be loyal to this university! :)

So in May...it begins!

Animo La Salle! :)

Randomness Is Bliss Tumblr Version

I've been soooo lazy! I haven't blogged in 2 weeks! I promise I will make up for my lazy-assness and panic blog one time and maybe a little giveaway! :p I promise!! Sorry to my followers... :(

But anyway here's something you could do for me, maybe you could also follow my Tumblr account. Since I haven't been the most responsible blogger, I thought maybe Tumblr could help change that. I could post photos of my food trip and other small details that may or may not get included in my Blogspot. Then just maybe, I could do something to change this lazy habit of not blogging!

Anyway please click on this link to check out and follow my Tumblr account.

Thanks guys! I will blog soon...PROMISE!! :)

Brasilipinas Rio de Manila 2011

It was Trency’s idea for us to go party at this event. It was an idea she got from her sister, who attended a yoga retreat in La Union. They had invited the students from this samba school to play, and while they played, you just lose yourself to the music. It was that feeling that Trency wanted to feel for herself that night.


So after a cool Spanish dinner over at the Power Plant Mall, we headed on over to the Rockwell Tent for the Rio de Manila 2011. That night we danced to the lively beat of the drums, it was not your ordinary club scene. It was like Makati was transformed into Rio de Janeiro.

Right smack in the middle of the hall, was this samba group of Brazilians. They were singing and the Filipinos and Brazilians alike were dancing and going wild. The beat was totally infectious! And it was just sooo amazing that Filipinos KNEW Brazilian music. They were singing along to the music like it was a regular OPM being played on the radio station.








Turns out the lively group of Filipinos were capoeiristas, or people doing Capoeira. I’ve had the chance to interview Professor Fantasma (the guy with the tattoo sleeve in a yellow and green hoodie) before our health magazine, giving me a bit of background on the martial art.


There were also guest performances, like this guy, who sang like 3 songs. Since it was in Brazilian, I couldn’t understand it.

They also invited a chef who specialized in Brazilian cuisine. We didn’t have the chance to taste Brazilian food, since we were still stuffed. And Trency was just delighted to have a swig of flavored beer, Super Bock. It’s the only beer she could handle.



But the performance we were waiting for was from the Escola de Samba, the group Trency’s sister was talking about. I was surprised at how young they were! And they just brought the house down! Everybody was dancing to the beat, it was amazing!




I’d love to attend another event such as this. It’s amazing to discover other cultures without having to leave the Motherland! I swore we all became Brazilians that night! It was just so fun and no one cares if you have two left feet, just DANCE!

Rio de Manila was a free event sponsored by the Embassy of Brasil, Havaianas, and the Power Plant Mall.

If you guys are interested on Capoeira, here's the link to the first Capoeira school in the Philippines where Professor Fantasma teaches, Escola Brasileira de Capoeira Philippines.

For those interested in learning Samba here's the link to Escola de Samba.

The Feel of Espanya

The BFFs are at it once again! We are back on an eating extravaganza! And for our TGIF gimmick, we opted to be a bit more sosyal with our restaurant of choice.

We all met up at Barcino at their Rockwell branch. Thank God for reservations! Had I not reserved, we’d be noshing at another restaurant. We dined al fresco to complete the “sosyal” feel.

I asked my good friend Elaine about Barcino, and she says it one of the best Spanish restaurants in town. I was a bit iffy with this because there’s this one restaurant that proclaims to serve authentic Spanish fare, but really hasn’t hit the right target. My lola has impeccable Spanish culinary skills, and will know right away if you’re just a trying hard bitch.

Anyway, we had so much carbs for our appetizers. This was our freebie appetizer, bread with this dip that had olive oil. I don’t know what it’s called, but it was an instant hit we had to order another round and actually paid for it!

We also had another carbo-loaded appetizer, the Sobrassada de Mallorca. Nothing special. It was just like homemade pizza.

Amanda and Trency both ordered the Costilla de Adan, also known as pork ribs braised in BBQ sauce.

The meat was soooo tender, cutting it up (both with the knife and your incisors) was a breeze! Although we all complained it was too salty, not sure, maybe they bathed it in their barbecue sauce. For sure, this really went well with their garlic rice.

Although NOT a Spanish cuisine, I ordered Espagueti A La Carbonara with bacon, cream, egg, and parmesan.


I love pasta! I will almost, always order a pasta dish the moment my eyes see them on a menu. This did not disappoint. It wasn’t too heavy on the cream hence no umay factor and no heavy feeling in the tummy. It was good, except that it was lacking in bacon bits. Went totally well with our wine, too.

Mike ordered Callos A La Madrilena, or tripe stewed Barcino way.

I liked this one, the tripe was all over the place, and this is what callos is all about. So unlike the callos in Lorenzo’s Way and Dulcinea. This was yummy!

But the kicker for the night was the wine we ordered, Castillo de Maluenda Tinto.

Now, I’m no wine connoisseur but I liked this, however it was a bit acidic. I’d also like my wine to be a bit aged, 2008 is still a baby. It was a cheap wine (P650) but it had a strong kick to it. Had several glasses, and it made me a bit tipsy. Major check!

We spent a good portion of our Friday night here, just wining and dining, waiting out the time before we go to an event at the Rockwell Tent. It was drizzling, and we had to cramp ourselves in that tiny umbrella. We could also hear the other tables’ conversations, so if you want to talk about something personal, well don’t do it here.

It also feels good to eat inside the restaurant, amidst the wine bottles and kegs. There’s this room I saw at the Rockwell branch that’s perfect for a romantic dinner date!

All-in all Barcino makes one perfect place for a happy group, just like ours, to wine, dine, and have a little chitchat!

Barcino
143, R1 Level
Power Plant Mall
Makati City
Tel. No. 846-9423
Website: http://www.barcino.com.ph

Someone Turned a Year Older

The original plan for Gladys’ 25th birthday was to have dinner at Lorenzo’s Way and then party it up at Izakaya, all in Greenbelt. But then sudden changes in the plan lead to just having drinks at the latter. But it was all a little too late for me and the BFFs as Lorezo’s Way intrigued us. It was on to another foodie trippin’.

Although it didn’t exactly start out alright, Amanda called up the restaurant and reserved a table for us at 7PM. She sent me an instant message saying that it was a go. But then as the day wore on, it was going to be obvious that some people were going to be late, so I had to have the reservation moved at 7.30PM.

So I called and pretended to be Amanda, the girl on the other end of the line told me it was okay for me to have the reservation moved at 7.30PM because we didn’t really HAVE A TABLE RESERVED. We were FIRST ON THE WAITING LIST, and that was just whacked! So I told Amanda this problem and she called up again, knowing very well she was going to bitch! Good thing they were able to fix this or else we would have all thrown a fit! Don’t ever tell a customer that she has been reserved a table and THEN put her on the wait list. Number one that’s annoying and number two that’s really just plain dishonesty. Oh! And number three really bad PR!

I got there first, and then I find out that Lorenzo’s Way is like the hodge podge restaurant of everything from the LJC Group of Companies which own Abe, Fely J’s, Café Havana, among others. The popular face of Larry Cruz, the writer slash many other things who loved food, once again appeared. I remember having a good time at Abe and Fely J’s so I felt that they would have really good food.


When Amanda arrived, we started ordering. This dish we ordered because we saw the group of girls beside our table order this – Lechon Kawali with Kangkong in Oyster Sauce.

Although this was really good, the only thing I could say was that lechon kawali is supposed to be served crispy. But since it was served as toppings for the kangkong, it slowly started absorbing the oyster sauce making it soggy. But hey it was really good!

Up next was something we all loved over at Abe, Binukadkad na Pla-Pla.

The fish was really meaty. Trency the late-comer still had an entire side to finish. It was a good, healthy dish.

Amanda ordered this Callos.

Although I would have to say that their callos is WAY better than Dulcinea’s, at least this was the real deal callos. But I wasn’t sold on this, I swear my Lola’s callos is still the winner! At least this one had a generous serving of twalya (ox tripe), beef, and chorizo.

But the motherload would have to be the Lengua!

Oh my goodness! I can still distinctly remember how tender the meat was and how tasty this dish was! One of the best lengua’s I’ve had! Totally recommended! Plus it comes with a cup of rice already, so sulit na!

Although we knew we were drinking at Gladys’ party over at Izakaya, we decided to start getting sloshed. Lorenzo’s Way does serve really good drinks, and these two drinks attest to that! I had two right away – Lychee Coco Martini and a Frozen Margarita! Yum!

So after Lorenzo’s Way it was now time to go to Izakaya. Funny because the birthday celebrant was late! But it was just so fun to be with the HS barkada. We haven’t partied in a long time, so it made the night extra fun! Booze, booze, booze all over the place, maybe it shots of Jose Cuervo to Izakaya’s stupid sake cocktails. Remember these girls are hardcore drinkers, no ladies’ drinks for us please!!

So anyway here are pictures from the night of partying and sloshing!






Gladys! Happy, happy birthday! I love you so, so, so much. And even though you give us a bitch of a time when we invite you to go out of town or simply to have dinner, we will always, always be here for you! Love you bruha!


Lorenzo’s Way
G/F Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center
Makati City, Metro Manila
Phone: (02) 729-0047 / 729-0013
Business hours: Monday – Sunday / 11:00 AM – 12:00 MN
Website: http://ljcrestaurants.com.ph/lorenzos-way/

Izakaya
G/F Greenbelt 2 Ayala Center
Makati City
Tel. No. 757-4813
Business Hours: 5:30 p.m. - 12 midnight

Paying It Forward

“Life is a gift, and it offers us the privilege, opportunity, and responsibility to give something back by becoming more.” ~~Anthony Robbins

The youngest in our college barkada just turned 24 last February 27. At 24, Par has had the most success in terms of getting a job with a really decent pay (Par, wag kang mag-reklamo). She’s been into traveling lately – joining Travel Factor trips almost every week and had just come back from a trip to Batanes – and has also been totally against boring weekends.

Being the lucky girl that she is, on the eve of her birthday, she decided to pay it forward. She and her BFF Steph looked for a not-so-popular home for the aged to give donations to. After months and weeks of searching, the lucky recipient of the kind deed was Bahay Kanlungan ni Maria Domenica in Antipolo, Rizal.

We were all but for it, since I’ve had the privilege to help the less fortunate last Christmas Eve. The feeling is just really unparalleled and there are no words to describe how good you’ll feel afterwards.

Mariko and I arrived late so when we got there everyone had their own lola (grandmother or just a word to describe an elderly woman in Tagalog) to entertain. We saw them talking and laughing with them. Even if I wanted to talk to them, depression kicked in. I was looking at all those old, helpless women, and I knew that if they start talking to me I might end up inside my car bawling. So I told Par I’d rather take pictures instead.

Par’s group from her current work also prepared a program. They had games like Hep Hep Hooray (a popular game in a now defunct noontime variety show here), a sing-off and a dance-off thanks to the Magic Sing, and also ask the young ones what they learned from their lolas. Everyone had so much fun and it was nice to see the smiles on the lolas faces. We made them happy even for just a while. Even Steph’s boyfriend, Cyrian, serenaded the ladies with a Rey Valera song.






Besides the program, we were also asked by Par to bring donations for the home for the aged. Mariko and I bought toiletries (alcohol, soap, rolls of tissue, and shampoo). The rest donated used clothes, towels, and blankets.

During the program, I interviewed a nurse. She told me that there were 23 patients in the facility – 3 of them were cerebral palsy patients (although she said they don’t accept patients with cerebral palsy anymore). The rest were all indigent patients who were either left by their families or were just staying in the facility due to lack of space in their families’ homes.

Since it started its operations in September 15, 1998, Bahay Kanlungan has served as a home for these elderly patients. They are very hands-on with these patients, and we saw how close the nurses and doctors are to the patients. Even though they are old and frail, they all look healthy, an obvious sign of how well they are taken care of in Bahay Kanlungan.

As the Blessed Maria Domenica Brun Barbantini, founder of the Camillian Sisters, said, “Every sick, suffering or dying person is a living image of the suffering Christ who has to be attended to, listened to, and cared for, as a mother would for her only son who is sick.” I believe all the volunteers and the staff of Bahay Kanlungan keep this in mind and in heart.


Bahay Kanlungan is very much open to donations. You could be a monthly, quarterly, or yearly benefactor to an abandoned Lola or one of the handicapped patients staying there. Of course donations in kind are also welcome.

Par, happy, happy birthday! Thanks for letting us in on your “pay it forward” act. Even though, we were late and didn’t do much, we had so much fun!



Here’s the address and contact details of Bahay Kanlungan ni Maria Domenica:
#10 Sampaguita St., Lourdes Subdivision
Mambugan, Antipolo, Rizal
Tel. Nos. 682-6189 and 645-4198
E-mail: bahaykanlungan@gmail.com