This special place has been inviting more and more visitors. Most of them are to view all of my Charice Pempengco’s entries or because of my Anawangin posts. I have received negative comments from people who had bad experiences of the place but I guess our group understood that the place [having P150 only as entrance fee] promised nothing of the regular beach resort convenience [that means : no lifeguard, no concrete establishments, no bars, no hotel accomodation, etc ]. And since there are more pictures I’d like to post, here’s another one.
Aside from my Sagada trip wherein cellphone signal dies down around 10pm [their curfew time], I can’t believe that I spent two days and one night in a place devoid of any necessities [and what more, conveniences] offered by the modern world. And damn, I do declare: Lou, Ryan, Beto, Ivan, Joanne and Mia will forever be my friends and that Anawangin Cove was LOVELY. Sure, I had my little dramas “I miss my bed, I want a massage, I want flushing toilets and a proper shower, I want fried chicken, I want a chocolate milkshake, I want to go back home and blog, I miss blogging moments, but all in all, we fared pretty well.
Oh no, that’s an understatement. If there’s anything we learned about ourselves this escapade, it’s that surviving in the wilderness on a remote island [with no electricity, no running water, no cellular reception, and no fresh-off-the-deep-fryer KFC chicken] skills? we have them and we have an Ivan and Joanne to guide us through. And I shit you not when I say we had to gather wood for fire [eventhough we have butane burners]. As Lou said, while we were dragging the firewood from the beach back to our tents: How primitive. I shit you not, too, when I say that it took all of us to cook a pot of rice. Everyone was there lying and waiting for our food to be ready for devouring.
Anawangin Cove is, hands down, one of the most beautiful beaches I’ve ever been to. The landscape is amazing and something I’ve never seen before [probably because I tend to stick to tried-and-tested vacation destinations]: mountains, a gorgeous beach, pine trees, a river, a lake, foliage, chickens [seriously, chickens at a beach??], and the clearest moonlit night sky. It all sounds cheesy until you get there, so shut up, asshole.
Unfortunately, everyone had the brilliant idea of going there the same weekend as us. The place was substantially peopled, not really much to our annoyance [because we’re not that greedy and we particularly embraced the idea of sharing two toilets with strangers ], but it was an all right crowd. I guess. It’s not like we had a choice.
It is also worth saying that although we had with us several bottles of alcohol and one drunken master and a drama princesito, this camping trip earns the Most Sober Fun I’ve Ever Had My Whole OWC Life award. Two thumbs up! Manood kayo!
And yes! That coconuter written on the sand was inspired by the coconuter himself.
I have all been pressured by the sudden turns of events for these past days. Even people from work noticed it. I was angry, pissed and wanted to kick someone’s face at gunpoint. After our agreement, our new landlady has gone MIA [missing in action]. All our stuffs were packed and ready. I tried sending her SMS and calling her but she was not responding. We’re supposed to move in to the new place today but that big-fat-ass-bitchy-landlady just informed us the other day that she cannot allow us to take the new apartment because of some shitty excuses which we know just came from senseless gossips of our current landlady.
We have spent the last 2 days looking for another place. Each one of us had different designations as we conducted our scouting. My sisters already cried out of desperation and that’s one thing I cannot take. These times I could have gone Rambo but thanks to friends who kept on reminding me to be calm. I’m ultra sensitive when my family is involved. Of all people, not my family please…
Anyway, I won’t be writing so much of that as it may ruin my day. I’ll write about that next time nalang. Here’s the lighter and hearty side of my day.
I had pasta! It’s been ages I tasted a home cooked pasta!
Whew!
Pero puta**-in* talaga ‘yong mga taong ‘yon!
You ride a bus, say your destination, pay your fare and then what? What do you normally do inside a bus? Do you check everybody’s face? or you go straight to closing your eyes and sleep?
I have this weird fear while riding a bus. Everytime I’m on one, I feel like somebody’s just gonna approach me and declare “holdap ‘to”. I really don’t feel comfortable.
There’s one thing though I really enjoy. It’s when you have all these vendors come inside and start doing their chants in unison.
He goes inside seconds after the bus stops on one of EDSA’s loading destinations. From the entrance to the end and back, he moves with a basket full of goodies. All are priced at P5 a pop which covers five individually wrapped candies repacked in clear plastic. I’m a big fan, I always make fun of “tinderos/tinderas sa bus”. Mia, Joanne, Cj, Beto, Ryan and the rest of our gang would usually laugh their hearts out soon as I start imitating their chants. When we went to Zambales, I have mastered their - “Wapul, tubig, chichacorn, kiyemerlu” chant which is of course waffle, tubig [distilled water], corn chips, and the kiyemerlu? I used that because I couldn’t understand Tatang’s word. The last Candyman that I patronized was this small sun burnt man with gaunt features. He went around the bus chanting:
“kinde. kindehhh. kinde, kindehhh… kinde. kindehhh. kinde, kindehhh kayo dyaan.”
He spoke like a drunken man; rather, like a man who has lived half his adult life in drunken stupor. When he sells his stuff, you’d hear this sharp raspy voice and words that feel like he has recited them a hundred million times.
“kinde. kindehhh. kinde, kindehhh…”
He passes by. I ask him for my fave of the lot. I give him my P5 coin for the exchange and then he leaves me, continuing his mantra.
[Pictures here were from my Sagada, Zambales, Batangas and Mindoro trips]
I love the Candyman. Below are the delights he peddles:
White Rabbit – Lower version of the real white rabbit that we all grew up with. This caramel flavored hard candy is my favorite although unlike its sibling, you cannot eat the secondary wrapper. My advice, open and consume two at a time for heightened caramel goodness.
Snow Bear – Hard mint candy; I’m not sure if it has a chocolate center. I’ll have to check.
Orange Swits [no typo, it’s really Swits] - Four pieces of orange flavored… er, non translucent gummy bear like candy. Good to chew on but always keep some water handy for the killer sweet because of course you’ll be all thirsty.
Mentos – known as the new school of street candies with a wide following among yuppies and the young. Slogan alert: “Mentos, the freshmaker”. See the Foo Fighters’ video for Big Me for the alternative slogan: “Footos, The Fresh Fighter”.
Stork – I remember back in the 80’s; well back in the 80’s you could say I remember back in the 70’s. Stork is one of the grand daddy’s of bus candies. It has survived political strife [Martial Law, EDSA] and countless natural [Storms and Earthquakes] and man made [PR; a TV show covered its factories revealing how dirty the place is. Cockroaches were involved] disasters. There is even a rumor that if you consume too much Stork, you become, sterile. Either way, Stork will probably go on far beyond our life spans.
V Fresh – Alas, Juicy Fruit bowed out of the street and got a better image; it has since been replaced by V Fresh, a fun gum with the same annoying tenacity of the old Juicy Fruit when accidentally stepped on on the streets.
Halls – We get two flavors: the classic yellow wrapped Honey Lemon and Halls White. I was never a fan of the former; the latter on the other hand is good for a ciggy combo.
Maxx – Another candy with a twin presence in the Candyman’s mobile storefront. You can choose between Cherry and Green. I really don’t know why, but I always come out thirsty after enjoying the Maxx brand.
The bus rolls along, humming angrily in its wake. There is no one here who can say NO to a free goody offer from the Candyman. There will always be something for someone, no matter what. I guess the only sad thing is that the bearer of delights is usually a hard working man thinned by circumstance. It’s like seeing an emaciated Saint Nick bearing gifts. I guess the best way to help is to always buy. What’s a P5 coin for a few treats every time you ride a bus; well, it means a lot to the Candyman.
Hah! and here I am again in front of my computer. It’s 12:18am of a Thursday, I’ll be out by 7am. Few more hours and I’ll be home again. What’s out there? A good life I wish.
My nephew - Francis who just came back from our province impresses us with his fast absorption of new information. Aside from his being so malambing one moment and stubborn on the other, he’s really playful. One of the games that we play is asking for the sounds of different animals.
Sweet natured, the young boy would answer whenever they requested for a particular animal. An appeal for a snake would elicit the sound, “Ssss…”, dog’s will be “aw!..aw!”, cat’s - “meow-meow”, a plea for the monkey sound would generate an, “Unga-unga!”
When my sister mentioned his lola, it triggered a coughing fit. Concerned, we rushed over, only to find him beatifically smiling at us.
Then we realized that he was just mimicking how his lola usually sounded — with a cough.
Toink!
I have received some comments and queries for the dopie sandals I wore in some of my posts. I haven’t been able to answer them and almost forgot to even acknowledge. Good thing, I checked on my previous posts. So here it is…
Correct me if I’m wrong, but you either love sandals or you positively hate them and, in truth, I personally fall very much in the latter category – though this probably has more to do with the fact that I rate feet as being just about the most unappealing part of the human body.
Having said that, I can see why sandals would appeal to others without a curious aversion to feet though it must be said that the basic design of your everyday sandal is hardly the most inspiring of forms. That could be about to change, however, thanks to this new take on sandal design known as the Dopie.
With the current popularity of ‘flip-flops’ [Havaianas, Crocs, et al], I bet that the importers of these new sandals would make a killing should they decide to bring these to the Philippines. These are called Dopie sandals. You place that notch between your toes and pray that your cool sandals don’t fall off. A strap is included for ‘Dopie beginners.’ By making sure that they bring over all the colors available, and of course by making sure that they’re unreasonably expensive, the flip-flop fashionistas would be on this like stink on poop.
Apparently the result of a “search for a sandal in a simpler and purer form”, the Dopie, apart from having a cool name, are manufactured from EVA and rubber so as to provide comfort promoting flexibility whist being light and are designed to remain firmly attached to your feet courtesy of a sole that folds up between the toes. And, for those new to wearing Dopies they even come with a detachable strap to assist beginners with learning how to wear them.
Dopie is best to be worn when going out and strutting it around the metro but not on beaches or rough roads.
I got mine for Php1500 at Chocolate Clothing Co., Robinson’s Galleria. Not all of their stores have these sandals though.
Since it was planned to watch Hancock at MOA, We [Kiko, Jc and I] took time to visit Seaside first. The place looked so inviting that we lost no time in going there and it was there where we had a fabulous dinner.
Seaside Macapagal takes on the Filipino concept of “dampa” in cleaner and much better surroundings plus the “lansa” of course. It’s composed of individual establishments in one complex where you are supposed to shop for fresh seafood in the wet market then have it weighed and cooked in the adjoining restaurant. You can choose to dine indoors or al fresco, while listening to a musical band. In the evenings, the landscaped gardens can be a romantic setting for your dinner date, if only those families out with their kids weren’t too noisy [ugh!].
In the fresh market, you can have all the seafood your heart desires like lapu-lapu, maya-maya, salmon, tuna, scallops, squid, bivalves and the like. Meat and vegetables are also sold in neighboring stalls.
The three of us settled at Aling Mahsya’s and ordered for grilled squid, baked mussels in garlic and cheese, shrimp tempura and sinigang na maya maya. We were even saying that “Sana kasama natin si Ralf” because our total expenses for buying all the food and having it cooked as well as the drinks amounted to almost P1,600 [less than $30] for three persons and the foods were really hefty. This is definitely cheaper than if we had dined in a hotel. We also enjoyed the restaurant’s staffs because of their gay antics. We called them “beau-coneras” as they seem to join gay pageants the way they act and move.
With the proliferation of “Dampa Style” eateries, I find this to be the best in terms of orderliness and cleanliness. You can call it “bourgeois mentality” but thankfully, this place is out of the easy reach by the common masses in terms of distance and location. I am not even sure if there are jeeps that ply a route passing by this place. Some friends tell me there are. Anyway…
Like in many of those dampa eateries proliferating in the metropolis, you will find just every kind of seafood that you’d like to have. There are even those that you thought are not available in the Philippines or not at all existing as creatures from the sea! Shrimps, prawns of all sizes and colors are aplenty. Yes, I never thought they come in different colors! Some are yellowish, some are black-and-white, some are the normal brownish gray and yet some are pinkish gray! Crabs. Oh crabs! Yes there are the “alimango”, the “alimasag” and other weird-looking crabs. Yet the vendors and the restaurant owners will tell you how delectable those are.
Don’t think though that only seafood can be found here. Many of the stalls are awash with fruits and vegetables to go with your “fresh catch” from the sea! And, while waiting for your food to cook, you can browse through the many other stalls that sell music CDs, movie DVDs, PC games and applications – all of the pirated kind of course.
Parking is ample in this place – then again you’ll have a little bit of time looking for a slot during weekend evenings. Oh, while all of them restaurants have piped in music or TV sets to entertain you, some of them even have live bands playing different genres!
Well, after all, aside from this place being by the shores of Manila Bay, what is the difference to other dampa eateries? As I said earlier, its just a bit cleaner, less crowded. Yes too, and a bit more expensive. But that’s a bit more to pay for taking care of your sanity!
Seaside Macapagal Blvd. [near the Mall of Asia] is highly recommended for those family get-togethers and giving your balikbayan/foreigner friends the fresh seafood market experience. No wonder, the place is always full!
And since I decided to make this blog more informative, from now on I’ll be trying to post here also the contact information of each of the place I visit. I’ll also try to provide the same for my previous posts.
I’m sorry for forgetting to give credits to whom it was due. Highlighted parts were from this site = http://philippinetravelnotes.blogspot.com/2007/06/dampa-macapagal-boulevard.html
Seaside Paluto Restaurants & Market - Macapagal Branch
Macapagal Boulevard
Pasay City
Philippines
info@seasideph.com
phone: 5561779
fax: 5561778
cel: 09209625215/09189281270
Jc, Kiko and I had a great time out last Saturday. We went to Sea Side [aka Dampa] near Mall of Asia for a “full” dinner and then proceeded to MOA to watch Hancock. [Dampa post will be after this]
Hancock was a bit of a surprise. It’s a story about a superhero who’s down on his luck and is looking for redemption. It was a genuinely funny movie that only descended into cornball cheese a couple of times. I knew nothing about the story before I went to the movie, so there were a couple of very unexpected bits.
It’s not the best story in the world, but it works pretty well for a dumbass blockbuster movie.
Hancock is very much in the spirit of Iron Man, from earlier this summer. Our hero is an anti-hero… drunk, smug, angry, selfish, and powerful. But unlike Tony Stark, his story starts to turn not when he is beaten into a change of perspective but because there is something going on inside of him that is clearly aware of an ambivalence about his behavior. Even as he “saves the day” and screws up massively in the process, causing tens of millions in damage as he “helps,” one gets the feeling in the audience that he is a bit of a fuck-up, but also a bit willful about being lazy and missing the mark, like a teenager who has grown into the body of an adult but who hasn’t gotten over the itchy need to show everyone that now “I am a man!”
Just thinking about one of Hancock’s destructive take-offs [destroying a bus bench and leaving a massive hole in the cement it was screwed into] or landings [leaving car-sized holes in streets]… can anyone who has dealt with a brooding teen male be unable to imagine that kid taking off and landing exactly like that. “Stop playing with the X-Box and save that damned busload of children!” “Damn it! Why are you always interrupting me before I get to the next level!” SLAMMM… through the roof… another destroyed TV set…
Truth is, one of the things I missed in the movie was any real effort by Hancock when he felt even a little bad about breaking stuff to put it back together. You know, kick all the rubble back in the hole… pick up some of the debris… something like that. But like most teenagers, they will leave stuff just anyway… out of sight, out of mind.
The transition for Hancock begins when he saves one man, Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), who is a PR man who is not very good at his job. It turns out that in spite of the business he has chosen, he actually wants to save the world, not just convince people that he does. As a result, Hancock immediately becomes his new project, a super-lost-puppy into whom Ray feels he has insight.
Ray brings Hancock home… or vice versa… and so begins the Henry Higgins-ing of the hard-edged, super-powered Eliza Doolittle. There is an immediate comfort between Ray’s young son and Hancock. Just as immediately, it is clear that Ray’s wife, Mary, is not comfortable with this guy in her house. Hiring Charlize Theron to play “The Wife” is a bit like watching and episode of Law & Order and seeing a familiar face from TV or stage wander in and out of the first act while the cops have the story all wrong. You’re really trying to figure out what she is doing there.
The story continues… Hancock agrees to be incarcerated as Ray plots to turn his image, really selling Hancock on getting past the pain of being disliked for all his “save the day” heroics. Again, this is kind of a classic dramatic idea… very My Bodyguard, as the little kid not only gets protected, but finds the heart of the not-so-gentle giant in the process.
The thing that is so compelling about Hancock through this part of the film is that Hancock has the feel of “one of us” given these kinds of powers… and that part has been pretty much universally praised as being entertaining as hell. Ironically, the “I am alone here” speech you’ve seen in the marketing materials is part of a somewhat cynical, prepped speech before he goes into jail. But Will Smith’s performance makes it clear that he is reading a speech… and actually believing it… almost freed to feel by the artificial nature of what he has been given to read.
It is a key element to this whole movie that Ray is right about Hancock, from start to finish. He sees what no one else really can. It is his love, which is oddly free of judgment – even when he is criticizing – that moves Hancock towards his better self. And this becomes the theme of the entire film… the power of love and the power of self-sacrifice and self-awareness.
Another interesting element is the anticipation of what Hancock will actually do when he is “saving the day.” His choices are often unexpected, even to himself. And they are often emotionally driven. His mood has a lot to do with how he makes choices. And faced with a life in which apparent consequences are solely how others see you and how you see yourself, the choice not to indulge himself endlessly is an issue of nothing but his increasing maturity.
I really enjoyed the first half of the movie but a sudden twist of the story destroyed it all.
When the story soon exposed Ray Embrey’s wife’s true character, I started to feel that something is getting so wrong. I just think that it didn’t fit. I was expecting more of Hancock and how he can be a better hero. I expected more of him pursuing what Ray Embrey has started. I would have appreciated if some villains from another planet came in and Hancock defended the world.
I don’t know. I guess I’ll leave it to you guys to decide.
While easing the boredom of a Saturday with JC, checking friendster and some blog entries, YM-ing Ed and two “7-11 big gulps” to drown ourselves with, I came across Kiko’s blog. We were stunned by an embedded video he featured. It’s the international release for what used to be a “Richard Guttierez - Angel Locsin - Iza Calsado” horror film - Sigaw.
If you are one of hundreds of thousands of Filipinos “sick of Philippine politics,” and “getting tired of being Filipino,” here is something to shout about.
Director Yam Laranas’s film Sigaw [internationally released as The Echo] has been drawing raves in Hollywood after producer Roy Lee watched the movie and confessed: “I found myself jumping at certain scenes and I have seen many other horror movies where that never happens.”
You’ll appreciate that quote more if you know who Roy Lee is. He’s the hot Hollywood producer who brought Japanese horror movies The Ring, The Grudge and Dark Water to Hollywood and turned them into critically acclaimed, international box office hits. Right now, Roy Lee is executive producing The Departed starring Leonardo Di Caprio and Matt Damon, and directed by Martin Scorcese.
How Roy Lee discovered Yam and Sigaw is fast becoming the stuff of legend in filmmaking circles. It is absolute proof of the power of good word of mouth. Roy heard about Sigaw from someone who watched it and loved it and knew other people who saw Sigaw and were raving about it as well.
Without a single centavo spent on Marketing and PR, Sigaw outlived the hype and hysteria of the 2004 Metro Manila Film Festival where it quietly cultivated a cult-like following.
If you have been able to watch the original version, you would see the twist they made for the new version. This time The story of Sigaw revolves around a young ex-con who moves into an old apartment building, only to learn his neighbor is an abusive police officer who savagely beats his wife and daughter. When the ex-con tries to intervene, he becomes trapped in a curse.
Yam - the Filipino filmmaker got his wish with a screening of the movie at the Hall Theatre on July 17 at 7:15 p.m. He will be on hand to present his 90-minute thriller, which stars Jesse Bradford as Bobby, Iza Calzado [who reprises her role], Amelia Warner, Kevin Durand, Louise Linton, Carlos Leon and Pruitt Taylor Vince.
This is something we can all be proud of isn’t it?
[*damn! i can't post the video trailer... ill post it another time]
I’m just posting this for my cousin’s friendster… I’ll be deleting this soon as she grabbed her pics : )
Joanne sent this earlier and I can’t help but to share it with you guys. You may have known me through my posts that I’m not a believer of love [or in denial] but I won’t take the inspiration this might give you. Be in love.
An incredible love story has come out of China recently and managed to touch the world.. It is a story of a man and an older woman who ran off to live and love each other in peace for over half a century.
The 70-year-old Chinese man who hand-carved over 6,000 stairs up a mountain for his 80-year-old wife has passed away in the cave which has been the couple’s home for the last 50 years. Over 50 years ago, Liu Guojiang a 19 year-old boy, fell in love with a 29 year-old widowed mother named Xu Chaoqin…
In a twist worthy of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, friends and relatives criticized the relationship because of the age difference and the fact that Xu already had children.
At that time, it was unacceptable and immoral for a young man to love an older woman.. To avoid the market gossip and the scorn of their communities, the couple decided to elope and lived in a cave in Jiangjin County in Southern ChongQing Municipality .
In the beginning, life was harsh as hey had nothing, no electricity or even food. They had to eat grass and roots they found in the mountain, and Liu made a kerosene lamp that they used to light up their lives.
Xu felt that she had tied Liu down and repeatedly asked him, ‘Are you regretful? Liu always replied, ‘As long as we are industrious, life will improve..’
In the second year of living in the mountain, Liu began and continued for over 50 years, to hand-carve the steps so that his wife could get down the mountain easily.
Half a century later in 2001, a group of adventurers were exploring the forest and were surprised to find the elderly couple and the over 6,000 hand-carved steps. Liu MingSheng, one of their seven children said, ‘My parents loved each other so much, they have lived in seclusion for over 50 years and never been apart a single day. He hand carved more than 6,000 steps over the years for my mother’s convenience, although she doesn’t go down the mountain that much.’
The couple had lived in peace for over 50 years until last week. Liu, now 72 years, returned from his daily farm work and collapsed. Xu sat and prayed with her husband as he passed away in her arms. So in love with Xu, was Liu, that no one was able to release the grip he had on his wife’s hand even after he had passed away.
‘You promised me you’ll take care of me, you’ll always be with me until the day I died, now you left before me, how am I going to live without you?’
Xu spent days softly repeating this sentence and touching her husband’s black coffin with tears rolling down her cheeks.
In 2006, their story became one of the top 10 love stories from China , collected by the Chinese Women Weekly. The local government has decided to preserve the love ladder and the place they lived as a museum, so this love story can live forever.
Uh well, I guess it’s not the right time for me to comment.
Have you experienced planning to go somewhere and when the time comes you feel half hearted? Visiting Caleruega wasn’t the main reason we hied off to Batangas, it was Joanne’s birthday. I was still nursing a flu then but since she’s really a treasured friend, I made no excuse. It was a night of singing, drinking and food binge-ing. Funny thing, it was raining cats and dogs outside but we didn’t care.
After two days of non-stop raining, it was time again to go back to the reality of Manila. Joanne, being so nice, decided to take me to a tour first. It was then I realized I almost missed the beauty of the place. Caleruega is just walking distance from their house. On our way, we passed by Evercrest and the Chapel on the Hill. It is owned by the Don Bosco fathers.
Rather than words, I’ll put in these pictures. The place is so laid out that it inspires prayer.
Caleruega, on the other hand, is well known for weddings. In fact, the movie “Sukob” was shot there. Owned by the Dominicans, it houses retreatants and there were quite a number around. It is a very relaxing place with koi pond, elevated walkway and hanging bridge to boot.
Rising tall and majestic in the highest point of Caleruega is the Transfiguration Chapel. Its facade is a reproduction of the original chapel in Caleruega, Spain…
hence the stained glass design below:
On the left is the prophet Elijah, the middle, Jesus, and the right, Moses with the two tablets of stone.
On the way to Caleruega were a number of houses and townhouses, a few of them looking like they had seen better days. I felt sad looking at them, among them is this…
There were also new townhouses with nary a caretaker nor security guard. What a pity if they don’t take care of it.
CALERUEGA-PHILIPPINES
Brgy. Kaylaway, Batulao,
Nadugbu, Batangas
mail: caleruega_philippines@yahoo.com
Contact Numbers:
09212709890
Ask for:
Ms. Jackie
Ms. Melda
Ms. Cristalle
Racism is rampant in some countries. I just don’t understand. While we all give our best “whatevers” to people of different race we tend to be treated like we don’t belong in this world. I hate the thought of being treated “unfairly”. I know it has existed throughout human history. It may be defined as the hatred of one person by another — or the belief that another person is less than human — because of skin color, language, customs, place of birth or any factor that supposedly reveals the basic nature of that person. It has influenced wars, slavery, the formation of nations, and legal codes.
The same goes with intimidations on social class, education and gender. What’s the problem people? Whoever says that social classes are things of the past needs to get their illusions shattered.
I wikipedia-d this… Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions [or stratification] between individuals or groups in societies or cultures. Usually individuals are grouped into classes based on their economic positions and similar political and economic interests within the stratification system.
Just go to a nearest BPI branch, and one counter is clearly labeled “Preferred banking clients.” Yes, if you are not rich enough, you are not a preferred banking client, and you cannot line up in that counter.
I am no communist, but I just want to disillusion people about this Enchanted Kingdom.
PS: I paid my BPI bill at this BPI branch, and took me an hour just to pay a five-hundred peso credit card bill.
“We’ll take you farther.” Errrrr. It should be “We’ll waste your time.” More appropos, I guess.
I’m a sucker for good food. When I go out, it should always be accompanied by a stomach-full meal. Too bad I have to control my appetite for months or else I’ll be your “big fat ass” next door.
I miss my days at the province where I could just eat anything without thinking how much it will cost especially the seafoods. I’ve always loved seafood and shrimp is on top of the list. I always sort of feel bad for all my friends who have this allergy for these shelled creatures. Who could resist eating shrimp…? with all its juice streaming down your chin as you put them in your mouth one after another.
So have you ever been on a shrimp boat? Then head on over to Bubba Gump now for a mighty shrimp fest. I had a sumptuous meal earlier at Greenbelt. Tired and hungry, we couldn’t resist to request a quicker service, we were both looking forward to the meal. I was literally turning over my brain trying to decide which of my favorites I would order.
This is the first time I ate there with him and since I’ve been on diet for months, I took the opportunity to order appetizers. I scanned the menu and a funny name jumped out at me. “Ping Pong Shrimp”. Hmm… I play ping pong and I love shrimp but do these two go together? Technically they don’t but hey I’m not one to argue as long as it tasted good.
I then ordered the “Mama Blue’s Southern Charmed Fried Shrimp” as I was not in the mood to do some peeling to order the others on the menu. Oh and of course I got the full size.
The appetizers were served and it looked too delicious. I had to shout in protest to keep him from forking the dish as I wanted to take a picture first.
Delicioso! I was scared at first because the menu said spicy and I really don’t have the tongue for that. [Exact description: : Lightly breaded Shrimp, and just a little spicy! Topped with a Mango Pineapple Salsa]. However, it was not what I expected. It was mildly spicy with a sweet twist. All I can say is once you finish one, you cant help but eat more. But it is after all just the appetizer and boy did it really whet my appetite.
My fried shrimp was as expected. Large, hot and crispy. My friends did not think I could finish the whole thing but really, was that such a hard task?
Bubba: Shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey’s uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There’s pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that’s about it.
Bubba Gump Greenbelt
Level 2, Greenbelt 3, Makati City
Tel : [+632] 757-5154
Telefax:[+632] 757-5104
email: customer@bubbagump.com.ph
I go to gym. I do cardio exercises. I trek, I roam around in my dopie, I walk and even walks the walk of life.
I have nothing against walking, the sun, and walking under the sun. It’s something I actually enjoy doing provided the right circumstances, the right setting, the right people and provided that I won’t have to do it on a regular basis [and with my lifestyle— I don’t]. But walking under the sun, IN THE CITY, in LONG SLEEVED POLO after a nine-hour shift at work just irritates the shittles out of me — especially when it could’ve been easily avoided if only the people around me weren’t such idiots.
[On my way home yesterday, I took the bus because I feel so tired to just thinking of MRT stairs. A woman got on the bus somewhere in the Crossing area and sat next to me — no, squeezed her sticky self next to me, even though we were occupying a three-seater. We were to get off at the same place: Boni, and it was CRUCIAL for us to get off right there because the bus was taking the fast lane and the next stop would offset me by [I'm guessing] more than a hundred meters.
We were seated near the back of the bus and she took her time to get up and move when the bus was ALREADY AT OUR STOP. I had already stood up and was nudging her slightly [she was in my way]— a signal that she should hurry her ass down the exit because unlike her, I have to be somewhere. She didn’t. And so we I miss my stop and am inconvenienced. [*Unnecessary anger]
Walking through EDSA isn’t my number one most hated thing in the world [that honor belongs to gaining weight] but it comes in pretty close. It’s a scorching Tuesday afternoon and the diseased masses of Boni move as if they were going for a Sunday stroll in the park, seemingly unbothered by the vehicular fumes. Sometimes, they’re also unmindful of other people and act as if they own the fucking city and block the way. Oh look, stairs, perfect!; let me stop RIGHTHERE and send someone a message on my phone. Who the hell cares if I’m a goddamn obstruction— I don’t.
You know what else I hate? Groups of people who stand around by the entrance or the exit and discuss where to go next or whatever. MOVE TO THE GODDAMN SIDE AND LET PEOPLE THROUGH.
I’d like to post something and let everyone know that I had a happy day. As I started to type in my happy thoughts, I felt [using all my senses] something not right. I then decided to stop and have this instead.
Uh well, I guess there’ll be time to post a happy thought.
We all know Manila. The stress of daily living, the traffic, the heat, the neverending rants.
As far back as the summer started, I’ve been wanting to get away from the city even for a brief respite from the doldrums of commuting to and from work, the usual thing you do day in and day out that sometimes makes you wonder of living into a groundhog day the moment you wake up eyes staring at the ceiling wishing you had a terrible case of hangover just to feel different this time.
I was really excited for what awaits us in our roadtrip to Zambales. Nothing beats travelling with your friends, it’s like you get to know them even more, bond with them more or do and see stuffs you won’t normally get by hanging out in the city.
We went there first not knowing what to expect. All we know? we’re up for an exciting adventure…
To make the story short, I’ll just shift to a photo blog in detailing the rest this escapade.
I already have posted some Anawangin - Capones entries before. You can check it here and here. Enjoy reading !
I love food. I go to gym and somehow follow an eating plan [by Ed] but still coudn’t resist binge-ing even if it’s not Wednesday or Saturday [my legal binge day]. I love almost everything. From pasta, coffee, arroz caldo [the best one can be found at Abra de Ilog Pier], sopas ni Mama at Lola Alta. I love sandwiches. And it sucks that in a country where rice is a staple, there aren’t much sandwich bars around. I get most of my sandwiches from cafes. I am a loyal fan of Grilled Chicken Foccacia at Figaro and the Roast Chicken Chipotle at Coffee Bean. I have these sandwiches twice every week for my lunch or a heavy snack. So when I stumbled upon a new juice bar in Podium called Jugo Juice, I was absolutely thrilled to see that they served sandwiches and wraps that looked like those that I consume abroad. Jugo Juice is a smoothie bar, much like Fuzion. I don’t know if it’s a franchise or not, but the place was well designed and neat. There were sticker labels for their cups on display above the shelf.
I ordered the Jugo Classico [P135 for a small size]. I forgot the contents of the drink but I remembered it had strawberries and peaches plus 3 more fruits I think. My date got the Lemonade [P125] - who? [my "neighbor/bf" from Pureza].
He and I decided to share so we got two sandwiches, the Tuscany Wrap and the Chicken Caesar Sandwich. They were served in nice boxes, which you can easily take out. This is great for on-the-go people like me.
I loved their Chicken Caesar as it tasted like my favorite sandwich Chicken Mozarella that could be found in the sandwich bar beside Dairy Queen in the Singapore International Airport. I was so ecstatic, I wanted more.
The Tuscany actually didn’t taste like a Tuscan wrap, although it had a lot of tomatoes. It wasn’t as good as the Chicken Caesar, but good enough. The wrap was also toasted and flattened that it looked like a flat sandwich.
In any case, I am still happy that more and more sandwich bars are mushrooming. I don’t like Fuzion’s menu so much, so Jugo Juice is most welcome in my list.
Jugo Juice is located at the Ground Floor of the Podium in Ortigas Center. It replaced Goodies and Sweets.
Are you the type who still fall stupid for love? who believes in the word? I still do. I know. I might appear to be too tough outside but I’m just being defensive I know.
I remember one of my most favorite movies- How to Lose a Guy In Ten Days. The movie, having Kate Hudson as the protagonist, tells of a story of a young woman, who writes for a magazine, in which her column concentrates on “How To’s”. The story revolved around the things that a woman must not do if she wants to keep her relationship healthy- like never be too emotional, don’t leave stuffs inside your boyfriend’s place, never mess with the “guy’s night out”, don’t ever make your boyfriend’s place look like its your own, don’t give him plants or pets and act as if its your babies, and other really funny stuffs.
Humorous or not, this movie, somehow showed me that the way I loveD [big D] is totally not right. I can tell, if I have a checklist of how many rules I have broken, really, I must have had an almost perfect score. I watched Hudson’s film way back , and since then, I try to act as if everything is cool [I’m using this due to the lack of the right word to use].
Honestly, I am trying to evaluate as of now, if that decision came out to be very useful or not. Since for a number of years now, I can tell that I can manipulate my emotions very well. Well, its not as easy as how I put it actually. Like, for instance, if I realize that I guy whom I am dating and eventually fell for, was not really serious or just fooling around; I can make myself forget relatively soon and move on. If I feel like my boyfriend’s gonna dump me soon, I’ll dump him instantly, I still cry, but I move on relatively fast. I don’t know if I’m putting this right, or I am able to communicate the essence of my experiences the way they I wanted them to be told; but somehow, I learned to not trust on the idea of love anymore. Perhaps, my highly materialist and logical nature allowed me to understand it in a biological and evolutionary perspective. With this I admit that I am being unfair to those who are falling in love. Especially if they belong to my world. I’d like to say sorry to Ron [my dear friend] because until now, I don’t like him being involved with his recent guy. I just don’t feel right. Sorry po ulit.
I just realized though that due to the lack of confidence on the utopian idea of love; my biology somehow learned to naturally adopt to pain that is usually brought forth by every relationship. Every time that I got hurt, or offended by the person that I love, the natural response of my psyche is to shut it all inside. Perhaps, another part of my personality that I’ve learned to develop is strength and competitiveness. I always try to be strong on every situation, for every problem. This attitude is not really done for the sake of novelty as if projecting that I am a superman or something; but that is just how I should be due to the nature of my role as a person in my complex human state of affairs.
Going back to pain and my natural biological response to not talk about it, the pain even how little or huge it may be, becomes a factor for my psyche to erase all hopes of a lasting relationship, and then eventually not loving the person that I used to love anymore. The effect is somehow irreversible, as maybe for some people, if they got hurt, and the other person promised to change or something like that, the feelings will return again, or for that matter, the confidence.
I guess, this has now became my standard, my natural response, an effect of my conscious effort to initially protect my self against pain; eventually has become one of my most dreaded fears. To protect the one that I love from pain, inconveniences of arguments [does make me so negative about Ron's affairs, my sister's or almost anyone near me], and the likes; eventually brings me to a state of negativity- the lack of love and the absence of hope. The price that I have to pay and the sacrifice that I have to carry everyday of my life. Someone might tell me to just use my will power to change the course of events. I wanted to tell that I can and I wanted to; but the thing is I am not yet ready to put down my armor; I’m not yet prepared to die [again].
Our new Yaya who just came from the province is a multimedia person. Wondering why I call her that? Well, for the simple reason that she loves listening to radio, play games on the laptop, watch TV etc… So it’s always one thing or the other.
I’m not the type who can always tolerate “pag-iingay” if I’m sleeping but since she’s the one who’s taking care of my pamangkin, we’re all “takot” for she might take it against my nephew.
She’s always tuned in to this weird radio station which normally plays “tagalog or local” versions of english songs. One thing that really caught my attention was this… I know I’ll be catching more of her stuffs but I’m sharing this for now.
Just for laughs… harharhar*
I had just gotten off from bed and s%$t!, it’s already 7pm. My shift starts at 9pm so I hurried. Not that I live too far, just that I’m not feeling good yet so I’ll be moving a little bit slower.
Still sick weary and troubled, I ride the bus, trying hard to relax. I can’t. I have a severe headache. I kept on saying “I should have taken a cab, baka mahimatay pa ako dito”. That has always been my fear. I also have a couple of very small office issues that need sorting. Haaay… I shouldn’t be experiencing these. If SHE only understands her own words - conctructive criticisms and the sencerity of being sorry. Uh well, that’s where true intelligence is needed.
the Konduktor comes:
“sanpo sila?”
“Megamall galing Boni.”
I hand him a hundred. the fare is P11.
“mamaya napo sukli.”
I nodded and closed my eyes. Less than a minute passes and the Konduktor hands me my change. I accept it without saying a word while trying to concoct a possible attack angle to my problems in the office.
He leaves. we arrive in Megamall. I stand and as I disembark from the bus, I ask the Konduktor for my change. We stare at each other. I get pissed and ask him again:
“yung sukli sa 100, Megamall galing Boni.”
more staring. He relents and gives me my change. I walk towards the mall. In each of the front pockets of my jeans is an 89 peso set.
And then I realized, God. I just stole P89 from someone.
I feel bad. I could try looking for the guy but then needles lost in haystacks are a lost cause. Lesson learned: be wary of your change while riding the bus; It goes both ways - I could’ve lost P89. it’s a very common occurrence while riding busses when you give a large bill for the fare:
“mamaya napo sukli.”
Danger danger. You could forget that you have change and just go down when you reach your destination and make the Konduktor richer. or, the Konduktor could forget that he already gave you change and give you change again; I am a living breathing example of this.
My fear of course, is that somewhere out there is a very angry man who thinks he got scammed by a passenger. And this man remembers my face and he has practiced a revenge scenario in his head should we meet again. Its ok. I remember his face too. All I need to do is look at the Konduktor’s of the busses I ride; at least for the next few weeks or so.
I am a fan of almost everything ABSCBN would come up to. Being a true KAPAMILYA, I have always supported their programs. But due to my work schedule, I missed quite a few. Can you imagine I missed this?
Salamat sa makabagong teknolohiya! See? galing niya no? So for PDA, Liezel tayo!
I can remember Goldilocks from the snack cakes that used to fill my lunchbox in gradeschool if my Father would come from one of his Manila trips. It was quite a childish act for all of us to brag about our Goldilocks. From the polvoron to the lollipops they used to have, to the simple cakes.
At that time, it was the only bakeshop I knew and loved… until others sprung up.
Because of the “others” and my evolving taste and standards for great cakes, I must admit I have not tried to Goldilocks in a long time. In fact, when faced with a variety of choices, I would most likely not choose their cakes. I always think that Goldilocks would all be about icings ang just sweet “nothing”.
So it was indeed a treat to have the chance to try out their cakes again. Cj thought of having theirs when we planned to give one for Joanne’s birthday. I was dumbfounded because thay have different flavors now. We decided to buy two. And here’s what we used for the wish cake…
Doesn’t it look just utterly good? I was giddy with anticipation of tasting it.
I took a very big slice for myself after dinner.
The base cake was chocolate. But you will only be able to discern that after going through heaps of icing and what appears to be strawberry flavored layer. The chocolate cake was ok. But the combination was… shall I say - childish. The taste reminded me of those locally made and sold chocolate marshmallows that are sold in your neighborhood store. Oh no not the marshmallows that I just recently wrote about. But those tiny ones that used to be sold at 25cents each. They were colored pink marshmallows that were covered in cheap chocolate. The taste was… pink. Going back.. The whole cake tasted candy-ish. My kids love it and I wasn’t surprised. Maybe it was made especially for them. Good thing we also bought a Brazo Mercedes. This time it didn’t fail us.
Happy Birthday my dear friend. Happy Birthday Joanne!!!
Last Saturday, as we’re [i,cj & mia] on our way to get Joanne her birthday cake, we passed by the Transformers Exhibit along SM Megamall. Being the Transformers lover even then, we didn’t let ourselves miss the photo op.
As the world eagerly awaits for the biggest and much talked about movie debut of Transformers on June 28, millions of Transformers fanatics from practically all walks of life had been fortunate to have their favorite league of transfiguring robots loaded with exciting and explosive line-up of events, fun-filled activities, trailblazing merchandises and other great surprises to celebrate the comeback and the undying legacy that is Transformers last June 21st.
We didn’t even know what was needed to have our pictures be taken but we just braved the crowd and posed for the cameras. Talking about being “makapal” har har har.
In the recently concluded MTV Movie Awards, the world’s largest television network had given Transformers a stump of approval after being chosen as the Best Summer Movie You Haven’t Seen for 2007, placing Pirates of the Caribbean and Bourne Automatic behind the pack. The Transformers live action movie brings the battle of the two warring robots of Cybertron, the Autobots and the Decepticons to Earth leaving the future of humankind hanging in balance.
Transformers originally featured the heroic Autobots headed by Optimus Prime and their main opponents, the Decepticons with Megatron as the leader. Transformers are best known as an intelligent machines that are able to transform and reconfigure itself into innocuous form such as car, aircraft or animal. There have been a number of popular spin-offs based on the original Hasbro toy line including the widely read Transformers Marvel Comics series and animated TV programs that began airing in 1984.
Consequently, the equally awaited market release of Transformers licensed products will be officially launched on June 29th at Event Center of SM Megamall Bldg. A. The whole day event aptly dubbed as The Transformers : Transform and Roll Out! the Movie Merchandise Launch will feature an art exhibit, drawing & trivia contest, video game demo, panel discussion for hobbyist and Transformers collectors, stage performances, movie promotion and a whole lot more! The Transformers thrilling live action movie is directed by Michael Bay with Steven Spielberg as executive producer.
I can’t wait to see it!
This Blog is an outlet for the random thoughts of an amateur opinionator.
What's an opinionator?
An opinionator is somebody who has power without responsibility, and the ability to spout off on any subject without worrying too much about the consequences of what comes out of the mouth. All you need is an opinion and the opportunity to voice it.
TV is full of professional opinionators. The internet gives the amateur his chance.
0 Comment
