celebrating with mer-nel's

Yesterday was my dad's 56th birthday so we had a lot of food in the house last night. And while I decided not to eat rice, I don't think I should be proud of having achieved that. 'Cause even though I did not have rice, I did eat A LOT. I had pancit canton + 2 heaping bowls of lomi + clubhouse sandwich(ES) + french fries + chocolates for dinner. Yeah. Glutton me struck again. Boooooo.

Oh, and to celebrate, my sister (who studies in UPLB) brought home a chocolate cake from Mer-Nel's. Mer-Nel's is popular for their heart-shaped choco cakes. I had a small slice and found that it was good but too sweet for my taste. (Pero mahina ang tolerance ko sa sweets so baka ako lang ung natatamisan masyado.) Anyway, Happy Birthday, Tata! :) (I call my dad Tata but my sister calls him Papa - thus the greeting on the cake. I think my brother calls him Tata too. Weird but that's just the way it is. We all - me, sis and bro - call our mom Mama, though.)

Gaaaah. I just realized that I missed today's episode of Junior Masterchef Pinoy Edition. I saw just the last few minutes of the show. :( (Mukhang sosyal ang mga batang contestants ha. :P) I was soooo looking forward to watching it because I loved JMC Australia. I wonder where I can stream this online...

Hmmm...

 **off to find a site that streams JMC Pinoy Edition. buhbyeeeee.~**

jawbreaker

Why is it so hard to stay on a diet once you've "decided" to go on a diet?

Zark's Burgers' Jawbreaker

I want this.Right now. Someone take me to taft, please. I can't wait to sink my teeth into this masterpiece of a burger. Just thinking about those thick patties makes me drool. Hey you, jawbreaker. Get ready. This is one girl who has been told, on multiple occasions, that she has the appetite of a construction worker. :P

Prepare yourself to meet the depths of my tummy.

Aaah. Gluttony at its finest. :)

isaw love

this post is brought to you by my love of isaw and my ability to eat a hundred pesos worth of isaw in one sitting. :)


i discovered my love for isaw while i was in college. i think UP Diliman has the best isaw in the country. (though my housemates tell me that the isaw in tagaytay is much, much better.)

Mang Larry's isaw (near kalayaan residence hall) and the one across the law building (formerly isaw-ilang as it was located across ilang-ilang residence hall in my college years) were two of my favorite isaw spots (i prefer the latter, though). but sometime within the last two years, my housemates introduced me to Maong's (which is just a brief walk from where we live). since then, Maong's isaw has been kinda like the official isaw of our inuman sessions at home.

the photos above were taken by my housemate for one of his fraternity brothers using my digital camera. taking the opportunity, i had him buy 60 pesos worth of chicken isaw which i quickly devoured for dinner. 

note: if you happen to come across this blog and have no idea what isaw is, it's grilled chicken/pork intestines.

going back to work? must go travel first. :D

may taling ako sa talampakan. i guess this explains why i love to travel. but i haven't done much travelling lately. so i'm looking for places i could go to before i start working again..

so i decided to make a list to pick from. so here goes. my top 5 places to go to before i go back to work. :)

1. sagada : i've wanted to go there since college. at nag-enlist ako nung college ng PI100 class dahil nagpapafield trip daw sa sagada ung prof na yun every sem. but it was just my luck that above-mentioned professor decided not to hold a sagada field trip during the semester that i was in her class. hay. i saw 2 travel packages the other day (both linked from philippine beaches' page sa facebook) and these are the packages:

package #1

Sagada Caravan Tour for only 2,750.00/person

Inclusions:

* Roundtrip Air conditioned Van Transfer (Manila-Sagada-Manila)

* 3days/2nights accommodation

* Service of a Tour Guide (except at Sumaguing Cave and/or Burial Cave)

* Entrance Fee

* Gasoline, Toll Gate/Parking Fee

* Day Tour at the following sites:

— Echo Valley, Kiltepan Rice Terraces, Sagada Weaving House, Sumaguing Cave and/or Burial Cave, Bomod-ok Falls or Mount Ampacao and Lake Danum,St Mary’s Church.

Publish package rate is good for 4 persons and above. For 3 persons and below package rate will be Php 3,000/person.

package #2:
Places to see:

Banga-an Rice Terraces, Bomod-ok Big Falls, Lake Danum, St. Mary's Episcopal church, Calvary Hills, Echo Valley, Hanging Coffins, Sagada Weaving, Kiltepan Viewpoint

Inclusions:

3D/2N accommodation, 9 meals (3 breakfast, 3 lunch, 3 dinner), round-trip transport (Manila-Sagada-Manila), van rental, entrance fees, guide fees, souvenir shirt (your own size)

Number of participants: 6 pax and up

Price: P4500/head, minimum of 6 pax

hmmm. parang ang laki ng difference ng price. ganun ba kamahal ang souvenir shirt? hehe. :)

btw, package 1 is from here and package 2 is from here. :)

 2. ilocos : so i've been to ilocos (both sur and norte) when i was 18. but i did not bring a camera and thus, i feel that i was robbed off of the experience. haha. seriously. sayang, we went to a lot of churches, beaches, to the light house, toured vigan etc. but i don't remember some of the places na. if  i had pics eh di sana i could just go through the pictures and say, ah i remember this was taken at so-and-so where it was blah-and blah.

3. bangkok : international naman. para makalabas naman ako ng pilipinas. :) want to shop and explore thailand's culture. add the fact na it's probably cheaper to go to bangkok than to mindanao. :) kaso mukhang malabo na makapunta ko dito dahil sino naman ang pwede kong yayain pumunta in such short notice? i don't want to travel alone. mahirap na. i'm sooo bad with directions pa naman. (at wala pa nga pala kong passport. di ko kasi sinipot ung interview ko for passport eh. haha.)

4. khao pad : ok, so hindi naman talaga to place. hindi din cguro macoconsider as travel. (hmmm.. kelangan ko ba baguhin ung title ng blog entry na to?) but i stumbled upon a blog about this restaurant. it's a restaurant formerly known as the UP thai canteen. shet. bakit ngaun ko lang nalaman to? eh tambay ako ng ortigas... dito na pala napunta ang thai canteen. weeeh! buhay pa ang thai canteen! :D grabe. its been at least 5 years since i last ate there (nung nasa balara pa cya). i remember a few years back, i wanted to eat there kaso nagsara na daw. have. to. order. mixed seafood. aw. i missed thai canteen. *must control squid cravings, now na.* btw, it's located at ortigas home depot sa OJV behind starbucks.

5. one of carlos celdran's tours :  because i believe that there is much to rediscover in manila. :) at kahit napuntahan ko na tong places na to, i was probably there for a grade school/high school field trip and didn't care much or just passed by the places while on  the way to a different place and paid no attention at all. :p

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK!

Intramuros Regular Walking Tour

Includes: Manila Cathedral, Walk on Walls, San Agustin Museum, Plaza San Luis

Note: Tour has slightly mature content (2 hours)

Recommended for ages eight (8) above

Php800.00 - Adult

Php400.00 - Student

 

LIVING LA VIDA IMELDA!

Walking Tour of the Cultural Center of the Philippines

Tour of the National Theater, Philippine International Convention Center, and CCP grounds.

Note: Tour has slightly adult content (3 hours)

Recommended for ages 14 above.

Php700.00 adults

Php350.00 students

 

DOWNTOWN EXPRESS!

A Stroll through Binondo and Quiapo

Note: Recommended for all ages.

Php600.00 - Adults

Php300.00 - Students

i'll probably take my sis with me to go to #5. goal ko to join at least 1 of the 3 tours listed above and go to one more place from my top 3 places. khao pad is definitely somewhere i'll go to within the month. :) btw, visit carlos celdran's blog here to see the dates available for the tours. :)

sintones, sagimes, atbp.

Kumakain ako ngaun ng sintones. Hulaan ko reaction mo: “huh, sintones? Ano un?” Well, mas kilala mo siguro cya sa pangalang dalandan. Pero sintones ang tawag dyan dito sa min. Hindi ko nga malalaman na ito pala ung dalandan kung hindi nauso ang mga dalandan flavored drinks at nagkaron sila ng commercial sa tv. High school o college na siguro ko nun.. Kahit hanggang ngayon, pag gusto kong kumain ng dalandan, “sintones” pa din ang pinapabili ko..

Parang turon. Alam mo bang dati, hindi ko alam na turon pala ang tawag dun sa saging na binalot sa lumpia wrapper. Sagimes kasi ang twag namin sa turon eh. At dati, naweweirdan ako sa shape ng turon. Kasi ang sagimes (na paboritong paborito ko nung bata pa ko) eh square ang shape. Parang ganito:

Pati ung tinapay na tinatawag nyong monay? Ang tawag sa min dun eh bangka. (Ung pronounciation nito hindi ung pagppronounce ng bangka na ship ha. Mahaba ung bang. Baang-ka. Malumay lang un pronounciation.) At ang laki pa nyan nun. Ung pisong bangka dati, mas malaki pa sa limang pisong bangka ngaun. Naalala ko pa, ang everyday merienda ko pag bakasyon eh isang bangka na may palamang peanut butter (ung walang brand na peanut butter na nakalagay sa malaking plastic container) at softrinks (8oz na coke o kaya mirinda o 7up, hindi ako umiinom ng sarsi). Kaya naman nung bata pa ko, tumataba ako lagi pag bakasyon.. :D