Laguna adventure

My friends and I weren't able to go to the beach this year and we haven't gone on any photo trips yet, so despite being uberly busy at the office I looked for a nice place we can visit before the year ends. Ta-da! We're off to Sitio de Amor in Laguna this Saturday! I will definitely post an entry about the place--with pictures of course. And oh! Am excited about the long weekend :) Two long weekends this month, actually.

There's this somethin' somethin' that's got me feeling a bit...I dunno...hmm...nevermind, I'll keep my mouth shut about it first.

Today's a frumpy day so I wore my tapered pants to make me feel frumpier. Haha! Will post a picture later (if I feel like posting my frumpy self on the web :).

I ♥ ♥ ♥ Thursdays...coz' it's like the day before the weekend starts. I consider Fridays as part of the weekend already since mid-day I'm already thinking of non-work related things to do at night. I hate traffic on Fridays, though.

decent knickers for Christmas, please :)

I have this thing about cute undies. I dunno...there's something about having decent, nice-looking knickers. You know when you go out, it feels different when you know you're wearing a good pair of undergarments. Gawd...I think I know what I'll ask my mom for Christmas. Anyway, every year I always ask my mom to buy me undies. Weird, eh? My fave place for knickers is Topshop , of course. It has the cuuuuuutest designs and the girl boxers and thongs are quite comfortable. Okay, TMI. Hahaha!

photo credit: Topshop site

I still can't sleep so I decided to make my very first looklet outfit. It's very simple, but that's usually the look I go for :)

after 10 years...

My family's finally going on a trip outside the country. Yes, it's been THAT long since our last trip oustide the Philippines. We're going to Hong Kong and Macau. Well, we're going to Macau just for a day and spend the rest of the trip in HK. I'm sure my little brother's excited to go to HK Disneyland. I'm more excited about the shopping my mom and I are going to do. Hahaha!

We'll be leaving on December 21st and we'll be back by the 24th...just in time for Christmas Eve :)

photo credit: http://richeyxx.hkbloggers.org

happy happy weekend

This weekend was just amazing. No, I didn’t go bungee jumping or do anything spectacular. I spent the weekend doing things I’ve never had the time to do for the past month. I started my weekend early so as I mentioned in my previous entry, I had my nails and hair done this Friday. On Saturday, I spent my morning at Lay Bare. In the afternoon, I met up with my friend Dianne so she could teach me how to use my Smena 8m Russian lomo. We were able to do a bit of catching up as well. Dianne and I talked about a lot of stuff. I had fun just hanging out, with Dianne’s hot chocolate and my lite dark mocha frappe (no whipped cream, of course) on our table, and us just chatting away. It’s a good thing I was able to meet up with Dianne. Unfortunately, her family also lost everything in the typhoon. They actually had to wade through the flood to be able to leave their home in Cainta. I feel like Dianne really needed to talk about it. I know it was hard for her to share what she went through, but I think talking about it relieved her a bit. On the lighter side, we talked about Glee—which happens to be my current favorite show. I’m so glad that there’s a show about the glee club. Finally, a show that isn’t about fashion, ‘popular’ kids, and what-not. I’m sick of that storyline. I guess that’s why I’m not so drawn to Gossip Girl and 90210. Anyway, I spent a good couple of hours with Dianne at the Starbucks in front of our univ. It’s been a while since I last visited Pearl Drive. My office is so near my former school but I really don’t have the time to visit it.

After my coffee date with Dianne, I picked up my friend Val at her house. It took me an hour before I was able to reach her house. Blame it on the horrendous traffic from Ortigas to Commonwealth. I knew I should’ve taken the UP route. Anyway, Val and I wasted no time so after I picked her up we started our trip to Tagaytay—which is a good 2 hours away from Manila (coming from her place). Thank God traffic at EDSA was a bit light. We arrived at Tagaytay around 9 p.m. Val and I decided to have dinner at Café Platito, one of the restaurants at Cliffhouse. Good thing we stayed there since the ambiance was relaxing and conducive for good conversations. I had steak and fries for dinner. Hahaha, I know I’m supposed to be on a diet but I couldn’t resist just having a decent meal for dinner. It’s been a while since I’ve eaten steak, might as well indulge a bit. Val had the tuna sandwich since the other fish dishes weren’t available. The food was okay, nothing spectacular that I’d really rave about. But the entire feel of the place was really nice. I’m giving Café Platito 3 out of 5 stars. They can improve on the food, but the ambiance made up for it.

Val and I were supposed to have dessert and coffee at Café Breton (right across Café Platito), but we were informed it’d close at 11 and it was already 10:30 so we decided to just go to one of the Starbucks—I think the one across Josephine’s. Val and I just chatted the night away. We spent a good 4 hours just talking about a lot of things, sipping on our hot coffee, and almost freezing to death because it was so cold! I miss the cool weather of Tagaytay already. It’s been awfully hot here in Manila—which is a good thing, I think. With the floods and all…the Sun is very-much appreciated by us Manilans.

Today’s a Sunday, and I spent the entire morning sleeping. My little cousins arrived this afternoon, and I spent the rest of the day with them. I love it that this weekend was so relaxing. I’m looking forward to next weekend because I’ll be (finally) seeing my friends and we’re going off for another photo-adventure.

my kind of weekend

I wasn't able to come in for work today. I don't think I would've been much help at the office if I did go. They'd probably just rush me to the ER. Anyway, at least I was able to get some decent shut eye. Seriously, it's been a while since I've had a good night's sleep. I felt so relaxed when I woke up.

I decided to start my "weekend of pampering" early. I had my hair treated this afternoon because it's been so dry. I've neglected my hair for the past two months. And, I had my nails done (at last!) If you've seen my nails recently, you know that if my nails could talk they'd scream "help!". I spent a couple of hours at the nail spa. It feels good to be able to finally be pampered a bit. All I need is a massage and I'd be a very happy girl.

Tomorrow, I'll be meeting with my friend Dianne who's going to teach me how to properly use my Smena 8m camera. Then I'm off to Tagaytay with Val. Yay!

How are you guys spending the weekend? Have a great Saturday and Sunday, everyone! :)

-untitled-

After my client presentation this morning, my brain hasn't been functioning ever since. Hahaha! Seriously, I've been staring at the computer screen since 1 this afternoon and until now I haven't been able to do anything for work. I'm not really absorbing anything related to work, which is so inconvenient considering I have to be done with a long report by Monday. I decided not to work this weekend so I only have today and tomorrow and Monday morning to finish an entire report--a comparison of two waves of...oh, nevermind. I think my brain slowed down because I haven't been getting enough sleep. Plus, I've been eating only one meal a day and I don't eat that much because I feel like I want to throw up.

I hope I'll be able to buy a decent camera this Christmas...I've been wanting to buy one since last year but haven't been able to save up for it because there are bills to pay...and I tend to go retail crazy. It's soooo hard not to shop when your office is surrounded by malls (take note: mallS--plural), and my house is also near two malls. Speaking of Christmas....70 days till Christmas day!!! :) Which reminds me...I haven't been able to fix the products for the bazaars I'm joining this November and December. Shoot.

I want give myself a much-deserved pampering this weekend.

Things to do:
1. Get a hand and foot spa. That's 3 hours at the nail salon. Hahaha!
2. Go on a mini-photo trip--beginning with my Smena tutorial with Dianne in the afternoon.
3. Go to Tagaytay with Val. I haven't seen her for a month and we've been wanting to go on a mini-adventure so yeah, Tagaytay's the best place to go to that's not too far from Manila.
4. After church on Sunday, I'll just sleep the entire day...or maybe get a massage.

I want to destress and relax and, I know this will sound so weird, I've been thinking of cleaning my room. Believe me, it's very relaxing to just clear out the clutter and put away stuff.

Anyway...I've been thinking about a particular "issue". I decided to just face it. I don't need to be off the radar. What's the point? I mean, obviously a decision's been made and it's just making my head hurt thinking about it. And I'm tired of being at the losing end...again. This'll sound weird, but yeah...I'm taking it like a man...even if I'm a woman. Hahahaha!

turned to stone

The lack of sleep is obviously making me very cranky and slightly crazy. And yeah, I'm on shrew mode now to make it easy for me to work and not lose my center. Blogging is now the only way by which I can be 'emotional'. Writing is therapy for me, so yeah anything goes. I do tend to edit myself and end up removing or editing entries. I'm human, I can realize I'm wrong and change my mind right? Seriously, I want to sleep but I have to finish a couple of things for work (still). I want this week to end so I can finally take a break and rest this weekend. I'm hoping, if things go well at the office this week, that I can be off the radar until Monday. I want to just go off somewhere and be away from people for 3 days. Or maybe I could just lock myself in my room during those days so I wouldn't have to spend.

once again

I can't work. Still at the office, spacing out. I've had only 2 hours of sleep since yesterday--which seems to be the pattern for the past 3 days already. And with what happened this past weekend...well, let's just say it's taking a lot of effort to wake up and go to the office and not just stay at home and just sleep the entire day...

I hate always ending up not being the choice. There really must be something wrong with me.

Anyway, I decided to remove a couple of my previous entries because they're so full of drama. No, it doesn't mean I'm not semi-depressed anymore and yes, I still do want to just curl up on my bed and not go out but hey I have work and I have a life to live so..there.

Ilocos, when will I ever visit you again? part2

Day 2--August 30, 2009.

This will probably be more of a photo album entry than a written post. I took more than 300 pictures this day, but don't worry I'm not posting everything...just my favorites :)

Let's start!

We first went to Fort Ilocandia, a really nice hotel/resort in Ilocos Norte. I don't have a nice picture of it, though, so I won't be posting a shot of it :p Our next stop was the Malacanang of the North. Just a bit of a background...The Malacanang Palace is the Philippines' equivalent to the White House. Our presidential house is in Manila (for obvious reasons..it's the capital of the country, duh). The reason why there's a "Malacanang" in Ilocos is because Imelda Marcos had it built for her husband. Our tour guide actually told us that Madame had a thing for houses overlooking bodies of water which is why the Malacanang of the North has a lake behind it. By the way, Imelda's room is bigger than Ferdinand's. Hahahaha as in waaaaay bigger.



Our next stop was the Paoay Church. My gosh...It's so beautiful! The structure was just so amazing. It's been around since the 1500s and the binding material for the stones was made from a mixture of egg whites, lime, and something (I forgot :p). The style's quite unique compared to a lot of colonial churches here in the Philippines because it's Moorish, not so much Gothic or Baroque.

I fell in love with the wall :p

My favorite shot for the entire 3-day trip :)

We then went to Batac, where Ferdinand Marcos' mausoleum is...honestly, I was a bit creeped out with...Taking pictures inside isn't allowed...and I didn't really want to take pictures :p The mausoleum is actually beside the Marcoses' house which also had a mini museum of the late President's things from his political days..After we checked out the museum, we bought a few things we could take home as pasalubong.

Marcos' notes from exile

On our way to Vigan, Ilocos Sur, we bought lots and lots of garlic. Ilocos is well-known to produce really good garlic..so my mom and grandmother practically horded bundles of garlic. Imagine how weird it was for us to stuff our bags with garlic just so we could bring them back to Manila...must've looked strange when our bags went through the machine at the airport :p

When we arrived at Vigan, the first place we went to was the pottery shop of Fidel Go, a National Artist (I think...don't take my word for it...I just remember our tour guide telling us that Mr. Go's a National Artist for something..or National Folk Artist? hahaha). It was sooo hot inside the shop but all the pots and large vases were so nice. My mom wanted to buy 2 large pots but each one weighed 30 kilos.

My mom and grandmother talking to Fidel Go

We then headed to Grandpa's Inn for lunch. The place is actually also a hotel, with all the rooms being on the upper floors and the restaurant on the ground floor. The restaurant had a lot of cool paintings and antiques. Our guide told us that it's haunted, though. Well, a lot of the houses in Vigan are haunted (supposedly). It's an old, old city, what did we expect? Hahaha

I like brick walls :)

After lunch, we bought Abel Iloco blankets. We were also toured in the shop where they would make the textile. Abel Iloco products are made using the traditional weaving loom. I think my grandmother was interested to take one home. Hahahaha!


After going crazy over blankets, we went to Baluarte--the home of Ilocos Sur's famous/infamous (?) Governor Chavit Singson. I wasn't able to take decent pictures because there were a lot of people. What I can say about it is that: a. It's like you're in a zoo...I mean, literally there are exotic animals there! b. I don't know how many tigers a person needs...there were more than 10 tigers, my gosh! c. The good thing about the place is that it's open to the public so you can check out all the animals, the governor's submarine (yes, he has one..it's displayed I think beside the Llama pens..).

We then headed to the Hidden Garden. And yes, it is a hidden garden. Hahaha! My mom and grandmother, who're both in love with plants and flowers, were giddy when we went there. I think they also wanted to buy a few plants but decided not to since we had no idea how we'd be able to bring them back to Manila.





After the Hidden Garden, we checked out two family museums. The first one we went to was the Crisologo Family Museum. The second one was the Syquia family museum. Both families were strong political families in Ilocos Sur before. Actually, what made the entire thing interesting for me was that the reason why the name Crisologo's so familiar is because here in my district (in Quezon City), our congressman is Bingbong Crisologo. Lo and behold, the museum we went to was his family's!! I mean, that's the house where he grew up in. Just amazing. The Syquia house, other than being so huge, was actually the ancestral home of Elpidio Quirino's (a former president) wife. Aaaand, his grandson actually lives in the house! We were able to meet him (I couldn't speak because I was just in shock that I was just a few inches away from someone related to one of the former presidents of the country..haha!).

I was surprised to find out that the museums were maintained using donations from tourists! There's a donation box by the entrance and you can just drop any amount.

Gov. Carmeling was pregnant when she was ambushed...when she had her forced delivery, she aptly named the baby Bullet :)

Our last stop for the day was the Vigan Heritage Village. My gosh...It was so picturesque! I wish I had a better camera. Hahaha! Oh well, I had to make do with my mom's digicam...pictures would've turned out better if I was using a dslr.


My last entry on our Ilocos trip will be...I dunno when :) Hahahaha! It's taking me a lot of time to make an entry on each day of our trip...I took a total of more than 500 pictures for just a 3-day trip so I have to choose the shots that are nice or decent enough to post :)