Kooky & Luscious

(N.B. This is a long overdue post. Due to a cold war and the fact that photos were captured by a mobile phone belonging to the axis powers made this blog post late. Pardonez moi. ~ The Authoress)

Last January 18, fresh from our four-day sojourn in Cebu, I missed eating pasta. Good thing my boyfriend* also missed his all-time favorite pochero. Without further ado, we went to Kooky & Luscious at Metrocard Building along Ayala Avenue.

A well-loved fellow corporate refugee introduced this cozy food spot in the heart of Makati. I remember very well (it's not that distant past, yu know**) that my boyfriend used to treat me to lunch here after his court hearings.

Here are my stomach fillers:

 

 Mushroom bacon cream pasta (Php 150) 

 Maling*** & egg sandwhich (Php 50).

 My boyfriend had pochero**** (Php 150), of course.

A trip to Kooky & Luscious won't be complete without the sinful dementia (Php 130/slice). 

*Due to insistent demands of my boyfriend, I had to change "the boyfriend" to "my boyfriend". It's much more meaningful. If you've been observant, I always tag him as "the boyfriend" in previous posts. And if you've been extra observant, he was "God's gift" or "GG" in some earlier posts. Peace be with you, MY BOYFRIEND.
**I'm just glad that Pacman will finally, finally be in the spotlight again on March 13. I hope future opponents of  the Pound-for-pound King won't do a Mayweather. Click here for full details. Yey!  

***A famous brand of luncheon meat which I often associated with my younger years. It was rumored to be made of carcass. MaLing (as shown in the can label) continues to be my favorite next to Spam.

****It's served with brown rice. Perfect for health-conscious people.

Spaghetti Factory at Glorietta 5

(N.B. This is a long overdue post. Due to a cold war and the fact that the photos were captured by a mobile phone belonging to the axis powers made this blog post late. Pardonez moi. ~ The Authoress)

I dig Italian food.

Last January 13, we dined at Spaghetti Factory after strolling at the seemingly new Glorietta 5. We discovered this Italian resto a few months back and we found out that prices are relatively cheaper than Sbarro's.

One note-worthy thing about this resto is their pasta directory.  Below is an excerpt from their website.

"A. SPAGHETTI stringed pasta

B. SPAGHETTINI fine pasta

C. CAPELLINI angel hair

D. LINGUINE little tounges

E. FETTUCINE little ribbon

F. FUSILLI long hallow twist

G. PENNE short tubes

H. FARFALLE butterflies"

 

That's a quick lesson on Pasta 101 for you, buddy.

 

I ordered cream-based sauce alfredo in penne noodles. According to their menu, it's a creamy & classy bestseller and it really is. 

On the other hand, the boyfriend picked the something fishy red seafood in linguine noodles. The menu described it as "seafood in tomato sauce, our No.1." I have yet to find that out, on my own. 

Oh, before I forget, it's worth telling that their focaccia bread is not that good. I strongly think that it's a reheated slice of a week-old monay bread found in a neighborhood bakeshop. The menu also says that their pastas are served with "freshly grated parmesan cheese". Yes, the cheese was grated in front of us but maybe, they should try grating a few more seconds. The grating stopped in the twinkling of an eye. No hint of cheese as I ate. Invisible cheese, almost.

I had to remind myself that I should not expect much for Php 159. Tsk.

Here goes my second "Tsk" moment. I ordered mango juice with my pasta and I was a tiny bit disappointed when it meant a Del Monte mango juice in can. So much so for Php 45. Nevertheless, I call it as substantial compliance.

A Peace Treaty Signed at Yellow Cab

Who: The signatory parties

What: Peace Treaty

When: February 3, 2009

Where: Yellow Cab at Insular Building

Why: World peace, no matter how overused it is.

I think the Five Ws above are sufficient enough to show the gist of this post. Apparently, I'm an Italian food fan.  

Dear Darla Pizza and Chicken Alfredo Pasta

I was curious of this particular pizza. It makes me salivate everytime I swipe my card at the choo choo train station in the CBD. Here's what I found after a quick detour to Google: 

"The pizza, named after the puppy love between characters Darla and Alfalfa in the iconic “Little Rascals” movie, offers alfalfa sprouts and arugula leaves [Caveat: Both may taste a little bitter to non-veggie eaters. ~ The Authoress] as main ingredients. They are served in a box along with a pie cut into rectangular slices, sparsely topped with the default tomato sauce, cheese, olives, onions and pepperoni."

Now I know. Cute!

 

And here's the wide-mouthed big rascal enjoying his Dear Darla Pizza.

One particular square of the black and white wall of this food chain says it all. The right side, that is.

The Culprit: Shuffle Mode

I should have never set my iPod in shuffle. With shuffle mode, I'm the unwilling servant of my yesteryears. Songs that I uploaded out of boredom, songs that remind me of my teen-dom, and the pains of first love and then love after that, songs that remind me of the stage where I wallowed in pain and other emotions worthy of memory space. You got it. My iPod literally represents my life in various rhythms, high and low notes. 

Then one song stuck my to mind, rendered me motionless for a moment, and then the what-ifs played in my mind. That song. That one particular song. Out of 1,595 songs in my iPod, this song was played. Fat luck. It brought me to that one particular day of my life in a very historical town (present status: city) in the north, circa 2001. The hot summer breeze, the sound of rustling dried leaves on the front yard, the deafening silence of the house and the smell of the fabric conditioner from the clothesline. And myself. The heartbroken version of my young self: sniffling from the fact that she remembers too much of the pains of first love, entertaining thoughts of what-ifs and reenacting in front of the mirror her farewell lines in case she'd be swept into a time machine and land in year 1996.

Now, I'd think twice in hitting shuffle again unless I want to go emo randomly.

Wonder what the song is? Brace yourself. It's a classic. Here it is.

Anna Fegi's Saan Ka Na Kaya Ngayon?

The Way Forward Is With A Broken Heart

*scratches head* 

Just what the title says, and I apologize for the incoherence that will follow. And so I have my bad days. Today is one of them. Everyone does, and other people have behaved far worse.

I ate my large lasagna serving at Greenwich alone, and I almost flirted with a cute yuppie to my left who was alone too. Oh well, it's normal. 

As if the cheesy lasagna didn't meet my daily cheese requirement, I bought some outrageously cheesy cheese curls from 7-11. I felt guilty with all the junk I'm putting into my body lately so I also bought pineapple juice to detox. I hurriedly munch the curls like someone's going to grab my bag of junk. 

Then I learned in the course of my Googling that my former 1st year high school classmate who recently topped the nursing board previously worked as a Japanese interpreter at the NAIA. Cool. Bogging, as we fondly call her, certainly inspired me. I quickly remember that we have two common interests back then: first, we are members of the Sweet Valley High exclusive classroom reading club and, second, we are MJ fans. In one of our weekend gatherings at her house, we would jump up and down watching MJ videos. Then I fell asleep while Natasha Bedingfield shouted lyrics to my ears.

Anyway, two things I want to ramble on in the daily routine called going home:

1. Do not go home between 6 to 7 p.m. Traffic in the CBD of this godforsaken country is sooooo frustrating, time-wasting, *insert another negative adjective*. Lesson learned. And what was I thinking? I rode the bus instead of the choo choo train. I logged out around 6 p.m. and arrived in Cube-aw at 7:40 p.m. Going home sometimes really sucks.
2. Not convinced to go home just yet, I went to Booksale. Hey, I found a copy of The Color Purple, a famous novel by Alice Walker many years ago. The novel, which had been converted to film and Broadway musical already, talks of colored people. Wait, I detect a trend here. The last novel I've read (Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees) also involved colored people. I've always admired themes like finding one's worth amid life's challenges. I mean, who doesn't?

*yawns*

Oh, the title. Too hot for a topic and I'm too lazy to mull about it.

Saving My Bubble

I sense it that my bubble wants to burst. I'm the one and only savior of my own bubble. I have to do something.

Time's running out already. And I don't have sufficient patience for a whiny bubble. I've reached my boiling point and I've no plans to stay at the mythical point more than a minute, even a second. Staying will only burst my bubble. I could see the many pricks multiplying in the wind and they want to prick my bubble any chance from now.  I fear that. I fear that all the contents of my bubble will be scattered to the wind and be gone forever. I'm afraid that I will not have the energy to save my bubble in the wind. Time's running out so I better move fast. I have to guard my bubble.

I checked my logview and I don't have the luxury of time. Well, not a problem. My bubble's well-being is more important than others. I have to seek refuge somewhere to protect it. And somewhere might be the only place where my bubble will get an additional layer of protection.

Get lost, mighty wind! Don't you get near my bubble, not even a micro inch.

EDSA billboards

Surprisingly enough, I've been entertained by EDSA billboards.

There's something about those billboards that make me crane my neck and stare at them for a while. True, a lot of them are simply eye-catching. Some are funny that I get tickled inside. Some are downright serious or simply informative and educational. Some made me wonder how many smirks or smiles did those giant billboards receive from commuters. Some possibly received praises and undue criticisms especially those with gorgeous faces and bodies of celebrities plastered on them. And a heck of reactions probably which I don't want to focus on as I feel it's not my business anymore.

On my way to Netopia, the following were captured by my memory card despite my semi-slumber mode:

1. "Topsilog" sign a couple of streets from EDSA Crossing. Whoa, new Pinoy food? I was tickled pink by that.
2. "Feel ko ang pinagdadaanan mo" political billboard of senatoriable Raul Lambino. I literally froze and mentally said, "What did the ad say?" Kudos to him for such an unforgettable one-liner but no, siree, you won't gain a vote from me.
3. Ascof Lagundi ponkan flavored cough syrup billboard. Images of Mang Kepweng, the most famous albularyo (quack doctor), and Manny Villar sprung to my mind. I'd say that it's commercialism at its best.
4. Technomarine's "The Wil To Stay On Top" billboard with TV host Willie Revillame. I understand that the cruise watch is being associated with the TV host since the latter owns a luxurious yacht. Words such as "yacht" and "cruise" can truly attract a girl's attention in his social range, but I doubt if the text lingo style of his name can. Hmmm, what do you think?

In all cases, I guess it's part of the EDSA charm. My morning bus rides won't be complete without seeing them. Can you imagine? My EDSA travel experience went up a notch, or even ten. Entertain me more, giants!

Cheap Thrills in Life Series: Green Mango and Bagoong

Let's be honest. My salivary glands are going full force in their natural functions while I'm typing this entry. I just drank water like a fish after devouring the green mangoes and sauteed shrimp fry or bagoong. Eating this classic combo is equally a classic way to perk myself up. I prefer actually the Indian green mango for a very obvious reason --- less face deforming.

If the Philippines will be declared uninhabitable and the Chief Executive (Holy moly, who?) will randomly send any Pinoy soul to an uncharted territory or to Uncle Sam or to Rasputin's domain and I happened to be one of those poor unfortunate souls (who knows?), I'd stash bottles of bagoong and mango seeds and wait for 3 to 5 years for fruits. My point is, I simply love this duo.

Monday Morning Talk

Fact: I associate anything with anything hovering in my memory bank.

Myth: I don't like it.

Concrete example: On board a bus going to fictional Netopia.

So what comprises the "anything" on the fact premise? Three stand-outs this time.

1. The checkered bus curtain which reminds me of the school uniform of City High School in the City of Golden Friendship. It seems that all the alumnae donated all their ancient skirts to this bus company. I'm not complaining but I find it amusing. The school's just beside my prestigious (oh yeah) learning center (City Central School) which taught me the ABCs of life.
2. The icky familiar scent of a generic bus. Ew, it really gives me an instant migraine. A very clear albeit imagined shot of a "biyahilo" sufferer throwing up in my shoulder frightens me. Blame that memorable FX ride in college when a toddler threw up at a Escolarian colegiala's shoulder and I happened to be seated right beside that poor girl. Paranoia, dear.
3. The bus conductor who's a deadringer for Jojo Veloso, a controversial pimp of a manager wayyyy back. He managed one of my all-time eye candies, Matt Mendoza. Hahaha!

I do bank in my memory. Occasional bouts of amnesia, funny or weird, mysterious or plain blah, I don't care.

Heavy Dinner at Gerry's Grill

My friend Princess and I are both self-confessed gluttons. During our law school days, we can gobble up everything edible and halal (BTW, she's a Muslim) on the table while updating each other with life's ups and downs (read: chika to death). She feels utmost concern of her family's plan for her in 2011 ARMM elections. I  told her she should follow her heart... to honorable-ness! After dining at Gerry's Grill in newly-renovated Ali Mall, I feel I'm as bloated as a penguin and, after a few moments of contemplation, I feel I'm a donkey travelling in a desert complete with saddle bags. Okay, I'm very full. 'Nuff said.

Sinigang na hipon... Yummy-ness!

 

 Kilawin na tanigue

Bagoong rice

Chicken lollipop with garlic mayo dip

Lovely four seasons drink

A drink fit for (a) Princess!

 

 Good ole buddies

 

Simot-plato gang (except the half-rice)

Burp! Thanks a lot, Princess! As-Salamu Alaykum!

Cheap Thrills in Life Series: New Books

Thump-thump-thump. That's the sound of my heart when I entered Booksale store in Shopwise Arcade in Cubao this morning. My heart did a somersault, big mental grin flashed behind my mind and childlike excitement filled me upon seeing lotsa books there. Never mind the fact that I didn't find James Patterson's thrillers.

So here are my latest reading pleasures:

Sue Monk Kidd's bestsellers: The Secret Life of Bees (Php 115) and The Mermaid Chair (Php 70)... Amazing!

 

Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights,(Php 145), Robert James Waller's Old Songs in a New Cafe (Php 35) and Rebecca Wells' Divine Secrets of Ya-Ya Sisterhood (Php 20)

And last but not the least, a tribute to the courtroom drama fan in me... Reel Justice: The Courtroom Goes to the Movies (Php 75).

Cheap Thrills in Life Series: Claudette's Brazo de Mercedes

I've been wanting to start a series here in (where else?) my blog. I think it's time. I just want candid and whimsical entries. Anything that catches my attention during the day, no serious material, simple things that make me smile or hope for something positive. Yep, positive. It's the only catch-all term I can think of as of now. 

Brazo de Mercedes

Claudette's (I ♥ Cakes)

Valero Street, Makati City

 Php 370/roll

To start off, I want to make a tribute to one of the cheap thrills in my corporate refugee life --- Claudette's Brazo de Mercedes.  It's my first delicious taste of this creme-filled log roll of Spanish origin. During my younger years, I didn't like eating this cake since the ones I've eaten are poorly made or substandard. Even Goldilock's version is not that good. But Claudette's version is the best by far. It's not too sweet and the consistency of its cream filling is similar to yema, a childhood favorite. The best part is, it's only a stone's throw away from Netopia.

"Monkey D. Luffy" Sails On

My seafarer brother Ivan will fly back to Hamburg, Germany tomorrow to continue his One Piece* adventure.

It's his third time to be away from us for nine (9) months. I can only imagine the loneliness his wife feels everytime he's away. But the pros always outweighs the cons, so all we can do is to pray, pray and pray for his safety.

On his apprenticeship stint on board an oil tanker plying the Asia-Africa route, he saved all his monthly allowances. I think it changed him all right since he emerged to be more mature after that trip. In fact, he never asked for a single centavo from my parents when he decided to marry his then long-time girlfriend (now his wife). He eventually managed to give a pretty decent wedding to his fiancee from his own blood, sweat and tears.

After he passed the marine deck officer board exam, he embarked on another sea adventure in European cities. He told us that this stint gave him more time to relax compared to his apprenticeship days. Plus, travelling from one European port to another usually takes 6-8 hours. That's a big relief compared to his Asia-African stint which involves 2-4 days of sea travel.

It's a prevailing fact that seafarers who opted to go overseas earn in dollars. But the story behind the financial uplift is never easy. Imagine yourself travelling for days, even weeks in the midst of never-ending ocean with occasional big waves. That's not easy. Hard-earned money indeed.

And hey, he's generous to me despite the fact that he's known to be the most stingy among the brood. First, he gave me thirty thousand pesos (Php 30, 000) last March 2009 when I learned that Netopia's sending me to Virginia, U.S.A. Although my mother insisted that it should be a loan, I still think that he gave the money out of his generosity, hence should not be paid. Let's see. Second, he gave me $100 as a pasalubong after his Europe stint.

And tomorrow, my once-upon-a-time little brother will again embark on another journey to the seas. Monkey D. Luffy sails on!

* His favorite cartoon series which kept him company on board the big ship

James Patterson's 4th of July

This is my last James Patterson novel on hand but it keeps me craving for more. Now, it keeps me craving for Women's Murder Club series. I think this is the upshot of my being a Nancy Drew fan in my younger years. I'm officially a Lindsay Boxer  fan, and I aim to buy all her thrillers in no particular order. I think it all boils down to their availability in thrift bookstores in the metro.

1. 1st to Die
2. 2nd Chance
3. 3rd Degree
4. 4th of July 
5. The 5th Horseman
6. The 6th Target
7. 7th Heaven
8. The 8th Confession 
9. The 9th Judgment (available in stores on April 26th according to JP's website)

I hope to catch all of them.

A Peace Treaty Signed at Superbowl of China

The war lasted for five (5) days. I had my fair share of sleepless nights and worry coupled with anger. Proof of my anger were some blog entries which I chose to keep. They will be my teachers when a brewing war comes along. We really don't know when my craziness strikes.

We sort of celebrated our moment of peace last Tuesday. I did not report for work that day because seeing him might only aggravate my, oh well, anger. I truly need to enroll in an anger management class. So, when we thought that pride must be set aside and that love and affection must prevail more than anything else, we agreed to meet. It's a date.

Hey, we're here to eat, by the way, and not to take silly pictures.

Superbowl of China bestsellers: Yang chow rice, seafood chopsuey, crispy chicken with I-forgot-what-sauce & complimentary prawn crackers... Yummy!

Without doubt, my hat's off to whoever said the classic line "make love, not war".  That's all for our belated, cheesy seventh monthsary.

Thirsty Thursday

I named this entry as "Thirsty Thursday" to commemorate my longing (a.k.a. thirst) for something new, something fabulous, something exciting, something clever, something educational. Nothing new, fabulous, exciting or clever has came into my life yet, hence the thirst. Call it boredom but I intend to cure this thirst as soon as I figure out how. Right now, I have no single clue yet.

Okay, just to comply with my vow that I should publish a post on a daily basis, I'll do a run-down of things that happened on this thirsty day.

1. I experienced my worst case of being a standing passenger in a bus plying the Fairview-Ayala route. I boarded in Cubao and yet I had the chance of being seated in Crossing. I cursed every moment the driver hit the brake in the midst of morning rush (translation: heavy traffic) along EDSA. A somewhat heavy shoulder bag, a lunch bag, three-inch heeled sandals. Argh. I think I developed a bulge in my arm muscles in my struggle to cope with the damn brake.
2. Another boring day of workup training. This is the third stage of the process training in the Land of Enchantment. No choice left but to go through with it.
3. Wow, it seems that familiar souls from law school just invaded the 41/F. New project: Jury verdict. Period: 3 months.
4. First day of my monthly period.

Whoa, maybe #4 has something to do with my seemingly low moments of today. I concede to that. Period. :)

Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta 2010

I'm truly excited for this event in Clarkfield, Pampanga.

Up, up and away!

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Is It Morning Yet?

The night went like a blur;

No streak of humanity,

No buzz, dreams and whispers.

Is it morning yet?

Tears freely flowed to my cheeks;

Wiping didn't help,

Remembering pain so deep.

Is it morning yet? 

Darkness inside and outside;

Frantic beating of heart,

Loopy thump-thump-thump.

Is it morning yet?

I curled up like a fetus;

Pillow serving as the sole comfort,

Cold blanket reeking of body scent.

Is it morning yet?

-Betrayed, who hopes she could just shut her eyes to betrayal.

Folks' Pearl

     

The heat is on in Saigon  
The girls are hotter 'n' hell
One of these slits here will be Miss Saigon

God, the tension is high, not to mention the smell
The heat is on in Saigon
Is there a war going on?
Don't ask, I ain't gonna tell 

        

Wife always spoke at ninety miles an hour. Her voice a rhythmic rat-tat-tat.

Husband acceded regularly for the sake of world peace. His silence admirable.

Pearl's fast approachin', dude.

Weekend at TriNoMa

My sister-in-law Sheryl gave us three (3) movie passes for Jackie Chan's newest comedy film The Spy Next Door. So I tagged along my sister Nikki and nephew Dave to Trinoma to watch the film. That quite saved me some bucks for some weekend movie. Thank God for Citibank freebies!

Jackie Chan never failed to make me laugh since time immemorial. Yep, it's slapstick humor but a martial arts comedy movie generally lives on the corniest execution of stunts. Overall, the film was a wholesome material for the family, similar to The Pacifier.

After the movie, we tried The White Hat Italian frozen yogurt for the first time. In all fairness, it was  refreshingly good, despite Dave's constant pleading to go to Time Zone. The kid can be so persistently annoying in a good way.

Create Your Own HAT: Regular with strawberry preserves & green tea flavored yogurt with kiwi

Dave, simply bored

Cleaning Out My Closet

For the sake of domestic peace, I finally cleaned out my closet. I don't want to burden Annabelle Rama anymore as she had enough by merely raising five (5)  big kids and one grade schooler.

While cleaning, I find it alarming that I'm scourging my closet of five (5) jeans. Reason? They don't fit me anymore. I've gained an inch or two or maybe three for  two years. Apparently my fitting problems stem from my slow metabolism. That's what happens when you're hitting 30. Darn. 

So long farewell, my jeans!

I think it's high time to fret about my waistline. The pair of jeans on top was only a year old and it won't zip anymore. I had to struggle zipping the buttons over a two-inch gap called flabs. Oh my.

Political Noise

I was still half-awake in my bed when some political noise jarred me completely out of sleep.

A barangay kagawad (name withheld) is holding a bingo bonanza in the middle of the street as her way of reaching out to her constituents on her birthday. How typical of a Pinoy politician, huh? Louspeakers galore. Obvious orchestrated clapping of hands. Argh. 

I could only imagine the people's money used in buying the bingo prizes like bags of grocery items and appliances. There's even a soup kitchen! Sopas in styro cups were distributed among the bingo participants, and, yep, the bingo host repeatedly pointed it out. "Hey, there's soup for everyone!"

The whole affair reeks of dirty, phony game of Pinoy politics.

Introductions went like this... "matulungin, madaling lapitan, tunay na malalapitan, pinakamamahal, napakahusay, ating kaagapay, kabalikat sa pagbibigay ng magandang serbisyo, ang rek(c)ord na di mapantayan, ang puso ng Barangay Pinagkaisahan, ang tinatanyag na si... " If I could only grab the megaphone and say, "Talaga po?"

Then, a not-so-loud clapping followed. Not satisfied, the host raised her voice a bit higher, "Bigyan po natin ng malakas at masigabong palakpan." Loud clapping now.

It has the same party flavor of local noontime shows and it redefines the concept of public service. Sigh.

Unless one is deaf or blind or simply dumb, you'd know it's premature campaign for May 2010 elections.

Then a lot of barangay kagawads participated, gave their promises, thanked everyone and introduced one after another politician, barangay-level, city-level, congress-level. The same superlatives were used in the introduction. My second argh. Damn this political noise.

Oh wait, I can smell Bistek* now. Another argh.


*a mayoralty hopeful in the City of Stars

A Funny Recipe

Ingredients:

1. 200 kgs. of pork pigue or kasim, preferably from a snorting, stinky glutton of a pig
2. 140 pieces of tablea (cocoa bars from the far-flung mountains)
3. 4 liters of HIV-positive blood of a GMD

Directions:

1. Chop the pork into tiny pieces with a sharp-bladed knife till it becomes dull.
2. Crush the cocoa bars with bare hands until the smell of bitterness will waft through your nostrils and your hands will have traces of cocoa till kingdom come.
3. Mix the pork cutlets and the crushed cocoa until you cringe in pure disgust. Set aside.
4. Boil the blood in high fire till it reminds you of Dark Prince's cauldron. 
5. Drop the first two ingredients to the boiling pot. Put water, if necessary.
6. Stir constantly and, voila, an instant carcass soup reminiscent of  the tragedy in Haiti.

Serve in high-quality polypropylene container.

The Amelioration of Goya Choclits Part 3

I discovered more Goya varieties today, so allow me to holler once more: Yey Goya! Upon seeing these choco treats on the shelves of Rustan's Supermarket in Gateway Mall, I could feel myself being transformed to a grade schooler, wide-eyed with happiness. This may be surprising to some people but, right there and then, hoarding of Goya immediately followed.

Here are the Goya varieties I found today:

Goya Fun Factory varieties: Chocolate Coins (milk chocolate), Silver Cup (milk chocolate) and Golden Crown (milk chocolate with rice crispies)

Box types: Orange Peel (dark chocolate with orange peel) and Dark Mint (dark chocolate with mint)

O'Nuts varieties: Almonds & Crispy Wafer in Goya chocolate and Almonds & Crispy Wafer in Goya dark chocolate

Goya Dark on White Almonds (whole almonds covered in white & dark chocolate) and Goya Nuggets (cream white chocolate)

Goya Almonds & Raisins (covered in milk chocolate) and Crispy Chocs Mint (crunchy rice crispies in mint flavored dark chocolate)

And these two really piqued my interest: Goya Seashells with praline filling and Dark Seashells with dark chocolate filling. These seemingly high-end types of Goya are made in Belgium. Truly, this is the amelioration of Goya chocolates!

As always, I look forward to more Goya chocolate varieties. 

Trip to Cebu

I had my first out-of-the-metro getaway from January 14 to 17. It was a memorable family trip, and I think it's best to list the down the reasons why.

1. It's my first time to attend a novena mass for the celebrated Sinulog Festival;
2. My boyfriend had the chance to bond with my family apart from his usual Sunday visits at home;
3. My first cousin San-san finally tied the knot with the love of her life;
4. I also fulfilled my silent longing to see Moalboal's white beach; and
5. After almost a decade, I got the chance to see some of my relatives, mostly in mint condition.

Hence, my eagerness to blog about this trip.

 January 14, 2010

We took the 8 a.m. flight via Cebu Pacific. Mind you, my family was already at the NAIA-3 terminal two (2) hours before the flight. Yep, I'm blessed with obsessive-compulsive (OC) parents. Hahaha! My boyfriend arrived thirty minutes later since he's from Makati.

My brother Popo is the most scaredy-cat during airplane take-offs. He has been travelling with my parents since he was a kid, and up until now, he still gets ghost-white whenever there's an air turbulence and during take-offs. I think he got this unfounded fear of flying from watching too much action films.

We stayed at Carcar Travellers Inn in Valladolid, Carcar City, a two-hour ride from Cebu City. We opted to stay there as my aunt's house is predictably full of relatives who will be attending my cousin's wedding.

The picture on the right typifies a "nosebleed" moment. My boyfriend hails from Leyte and he can only understand basic Cebuano terms.

After lunch at my aunt's house, my boyfriend and I headed to Cebu City to roam around or "suroy-suroy". We hitched a ride with cousin San-san and his fiance Jerwin to the city. Below are my pics at the Magellan's Cross, a famous landmark of the Queen City of the South.

Inday was here.

My amen pose.

"KANDOL, bai!"

Cebu locals who are peddling candles near the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño (Church of the Holy Child), touted to be the oldest church in the Philippines, usually pronounced their merchandise as "kandol". It's uniquely Cebuano! It feels like home to me.

At this point, rain began to pour. We attended the 2:30 PM mass/novena which was held in the Pilgrim Center. The latter is sort of an extension of the Basilica because hundreds of devotees are expected to attend the week-long celebration of Sinulog. The "Batobalani sa Gugma" (Magnet of Love) song was sung accompanied by swaying of hands by the devotees who were, mind y'all, soaked up.

After the mass, we went to SM City Cebu armed with a big appetite. We ate at Cowrie Grill, a Filipino-themed resto.