Kagay-an de Oro: Day 1

We booked the Cagayan de Oro trip during the Piso Fare Promos of Cebu Pacific last March. I don't remember why we booked it for Dec 11-15 when the flight period could be anywhere between June 1 - December 15.

One thing I learned, it can be quite stressful since you don't know what happens in 8-9 months time. As it was nearing the end of the year, there were still a lot of work at the office. Not to mention, I was getting a new BM the week before the trip. Mental note: Never plan too far ahead.

We had five days to spend and didn't really know how to spend it. Good thing Myra was so gung-ho she did a lot of research so here's how our trip went:

Day 1 - Flight was 4.45am. I picked up Kath and went to the airport together. We both didn't have printed copies of our e-ticket! Good thing Myra was a girl scout and was at the airport ahead of us. We checked in just as they were to close the counter. Whew!

Arrive in CDO 6.30am. Check in at Mallberry Suites. I took a quick nap. Meanwhile, Kath and Myra had breakfast.

We loved staying here. Thanks to Kath's supplier for recommending this hotel. It felt like a 4 star hotel. It was conveniently located behind Robinson's Mall and Lim Ket Kai Center which also had a row of restaurants around it. Mike asked me isn't it Mulberry? I answered back, No it's Mallberry, probly coz it's berry near the Mall. hwe.hwe.hwe.

At 9am, the cab that Myra's friend rented for us arrived to take us to Bukidnon. (There are buses to Bukidnon but going into Del Monte Clubhouse will require a private vehicle as no public transport would go in that far. Cab rental cost us P3K which I thought was expensive since to get rent-a-car with driver costs as much.)

The 40 minute drive to Del Monte allowed us to see the beautiful countryside of the area. The mountains and fields were flourishing in its greenery. We went around Camp Phillips the community built by Del Monte for its employees. American-style houses decked the road side which led to a playing field. It reminded me of Camp John Hay. Going thru the pineapple plantation was quite a site with pineapple plants as far as the eyes can see. The Del Monte Clubhouse was set against the greens of the golf course with pine trees all over the place. It smelled really nice out there. Very peaceful. It reminded Kath of Canada.

Del Monte Clubhouse is known for its luscious steaks. We tried a large porterhouse and roastbeef to share. Of course we drank Del Monte Pineapple Juice with it. Unfortunately, the porterhouse was a bit overseasoned though still good to eat. We finished it. The roastbeef however was too dry. Oh note worthy, it was my first time to eat sald with ketchup as dressing. Needless to say, it was weird. We spent around P1700.
After lunch, we headed towards Benadictine Monastery which was 1.5 hrs away. Full to our tummies and with the rain cooling our car, we fell asleep during the drive. At the Benedictine Monastery, we found out that there were old and new monasteries. We visited the old first which was a chapel situated on a hill. It was quite and peaceful. Disruption only came from the splattering of rain outside. Myra and I said a short prayer. Kath stayed in the car as she didn't have protection from the rain. Afterwhich we wanted to try the infamous coffee and bread of made at the Monastery. It turned out they've closed the shop quite some time ago as they didn't have enough visitors to sustain it. They now just sold Monk's Premium Coffeebeans or Ground Coffee for brewing. A small back of the ground coffee cost only P72 while the bigger bag cost P114.

The new Monastery was bigger. It had a beautiful view of the surrounding place. It would have been a good place to have a retreat. We met an old man cleaning the place. He was sooo sweet and accommodating. He told us that we could go up behind the altar and see the wooden sculpture of the Madonna & Child up close. He also told us that we can visit the chapel behind the main monastery as well. All these he instructed in Bisaya. Somehow we managed to pick up some words to understand him. Later he was telling me, people who visit their province should learn to speak the dialect and if he ever visited Manila then he should learn to speak Tagalog. Made sense to a certain extent.

After this we decided to head back to CDO. It felt like gruelling 3hr trip back though it was just for 2 hours.

Back at the hotel, we took some nap and decided to go to dinner. We wanted to try a local restaurant. Going thru the mall, we asked the customer service any good local restaurants and the guard pointed us to Kagay-anon Restaurant.
My 2000 edition Lonely Planet described it to be popular among locals though a bit expensive. Overall we enjoyed the food: Ostrich salpicao which tasted like beef, Adobong Kangkong (which arrived too late, we were almost done eating), baked Tahong, Sinigang na Hipon and Buko Juice for me and Myra, Kalamansi Juice for Kathleen. We spent P988.00 here.

And that concludes day 1.

Like an Aristocrat in Old Manila

Last August 31, the Company's SVP for Brand Marketing visited us and our Division President decided to treat him to dinner together with the entire Marketing team, heads of our Agency partners and our Bottler's President at La Cocina de Tita Moning located at San Rafael Street , Manila near Malacanang Palace. Kandy chose La Cocina not only for the Filipino-Spanish dishes it served but also for the turn of the century dining experience that the Legarda ancestral home provided its guests.
The evening started with cocktails as we waited for our party to be completed. During cocktails, ladies in uniform served vegetable sticks with a creamy sauce, some kind of butter and cheese spread mildly toasted on soft bread and a gingery tasting juice (failed to ask what it was). The servers constantly, albeit graciously, kept going around offering us the snacks as we chatted about the evening's traffic incident.

After a few minutes of waiting, we were then led by our guide, Edel, to the entrance of the main house. She told us about the Legardas who lived there and how San Rafael Street was like when the house was built. First room to your left as you enter the house is the Train Room. Dr. Legarda had bought a collection of model train set in 1970 which was originally from the late 1930s but never opened it. I think it was in 2001 when the granchildren decided to build the train set. It continues to be a work-in-progress. The room across the Train Room was turned into a selling area for their recipe sauces and dips. Next to this room is the Library. Musty smell of old medical books and Life magazines from the time filled the room. Across the Library entrance is a small hallway that led to Dr. Legarda's Clinic and Camera room. To this day, the Clinic still had his examination table, x-ray machine and actual human skeleton. We were told that at the time, medical students had to source their own cadavers thus the skeleton in his clinic. It also still had several bottles which had unborn fetuses of unsuccessful pregnancies but you could hardly see them as these were at the top of high shelves. Meanwhile the Camera room boasted of antique and different types of cameras. And pictures of the family were displayed all over the house as a manifesto to this lifelong hobby of Don Legarda.

Following this was the tour of the upstairs of the house. The living room area had original Juan Luna and Felix Hidalgo paintings. The house also featured a bedroom and a dressing room. The dressing room featured a designer's body form that wore a wedding gown with a long intricately embroidered veil and other wedding accessories around the room. I would have appreciated the lovely dressed but since the body form was made to face the wardrobe mirror had a really creepy effect matched with the old musty smell of the room. It's really quite an elegant spaceous house.

Finally it was time for the meal.

As there were about twenty of us, we were seated in two long tables at the main dining area. It was a sit down dinner with complete table settings. I've lost the copy of the menu that evening but needless to say it was satisfying. Not great but satisfying enough. Personally I think one really pays more for the experience of being waited on, having a bell to ring to call the "help", using the antique table settings and being in an almost majestic old house in Manila.

It was indeed a different dining experience but only if you have the cash to spare.

High School Life, Oh my High School Life

I always heard people say that the best time of their lives was during High School. I beg to disagree. I preferred college. Maybe more because of the sense of liberty: being able to choose my class schedule, being able to absent myself from classes without a need for a letter from my parents or even leaving the university grounds anytime I wanted like if I wanted to watch a movie in between long breaks or just eating lunch that's not canteen food.

But when talking about reunions or get togethers, I think High School reunions are the best. Mostly because these are people I've known longer, owe to the fact that we've been together since Grade School and for some since Kindergarten. We've seen each other grow up literally. We saw each other when we were tiny and scrawny; when we were awkward as we went through puberty and sometimes envy at how others developed earlier than some. As we entered High School, different cliques started forming as most of us moved from a set of friends in Grade School to a different group in High School, which is really but natural as we grow up in different and sometimes separate ways.

I recently attended a batch get together with approximately 25 in attendance. This is a far cry from the 250 students of our class but it was a great mix of people. And it's so much fun to see how much people have changed and haven't changed at all, how barriers are broken down and what used to be cliques are no more but just girls we've known for so long or that what we used to know about them are no longer true at this point in time.

The get together was held in Katips, a pinoy grille restaurant along Katipunan avenue. We tried to say hello to everyone who was there stealing a few minutes to cram the last 17 years into snippets to answer the questions, "kamusta na?" and "ano na ginagawa mo ngayon?". Moms shared pictures of their kids. Joanne Duque, once known to be snobbish and would only stick with her own friends, was quite friendly and played the role of photographer and making sure she caught everyone in her camera. You would have never thought you'd see certain individuals in a picture together! Chinky Antonio (who btw won class president during the evening's election) reluctantly played host to the trivia game with questions like: "Which teacher got pregnant every year?" or "What was the favorite expression of Jean Romero?"

It was truly fun to reminisce old times.

This brings me back to my best memories of high school, one of which would be our very organized lunch periods. In our senior year, there were seven of us who ate together: Me, Auey, Chix, Zet, Tikoy, Lynette and Gina. The canteen I remember was still open air. A covered walkway led from the HS building to the canteen area. If my memory serves me right, there were aprroximately 20 tables which could seat 6 each table. We "owned" a table that was four rows from the food selling counter and was on the column which looked out into the garden between the HS building and the covered canteen area. I say we "owned" the table because nobody would dare use the table during recess and lunch as we were always expected to take our place there especially in our junior-senior years. One time, a couple of students one batch lower sat in our places and Zet arrived early which Chix, I think. She waited a few moments but when it didn't seem they were moving, she directively asked them, "hindi pa ba kayo aalis? andito na kami." Other times, it was as simple as moving lunch boxes meant to save the table to other tables. (But I don't think you can call us bullies yet as there have been others who were involved in fights almost every other week. Our group has never really been in a fight with anyone.)

I mentioned that our lunches were very organized. Let me demonstrate why: we expected high student traffic during lunch so we assigned everyone different tasks. I just don't remember the assignments now but someone would be lined up to get our pooled money exchanged for chits, someone else would be lined up to buy the food, another would be checking out the food and telling the person in line what to order and a couple others would be lined up to get the drinks. Hence, we're normally one of the first few students who got served right away and were finished eating within 10minutes from the time the lunch bell rang. The remaining time was spent chatting and playing Tracy Chapman songs on the guitar or whatever fancied the guitar player. We all tried to learn a song or two. I usually played "The One I love" by REM or "Father & Son" by Cat Stevens mainly for their easy chords. hehe.

And so, unlike Romy and Michelle who dreaded going to their High School reunion and with the need to impress, I look forward to the 20th Anniversary Batch Reunion which will hopefully happen in 2010 and expect to meet old familiar faces and possibly renew friendships with those I've lost communication with in recent years.

What's on TV?

I was just reading the blog of Zsa Zsa Zaturnnah author Carlo Vergara and he mentioned being invited to a TV show to talk about comic books. He also mentioned being only on TV twice which reminded me of also being on TV twice. hehe.

The first time was as a freshman in college. The 90s dating program It's a Date (hosted by Plinky Recto and Tom Lupton) went to our university to do a show there. Tom was going around campus with a camera man interviewing students. I was sitting in our tambayan at the College Canteen doing some posters announcing the general assembly of our org when Tom spotted me and pointed the mic to my face. He asked me if I had a boyfriend. I answered truthfully yes. My folks didn't allow me to have a boyfriend in high school so I haven't exactly told them about my relationship yet. The following Sunday, the episode shot in our school was aired. My mom and aunts at home were watching and saw my confession on TV. Thank goodness they made a big deal more about my being on TV rather than my little declaration of guilt.

The second time, I was already working as brand manager of the local soda pop brand. We launched the product in can packaging at the Araneta Center and part of the agreement was a segment spot during the giant Christmas tree lighting event which was to be aired simultaneously on Channel 9. (Coincidentally, It's a Date used to be aired on Channel 9 as well.) I was interviewed by Rica Peralejo (pre-boob job days) and Kristine Hermosa (pre-Jericho and Diether Ocampo). Rica absent-mindedly introduced me as the brand manager of our then competitor brand. I told her off while smiling just as I stepped into the spotlight. Surprisingly, aside from my family, a few other people saw my appearance live. Mike actually taped it but I never wanted to see it. I've never been telegenic and I just hate the sound of my recorded voice.

I guess a career in TV will just never be an option for me. As if! hahaha!

Planet Terror: Planet Rodriguez

I always knew that Roberto Rodriguez was an unconventional director. I became interested in his work the first time I saw El Mariachi (which incidentally I rented at then ACA Video on tape, can't remember if it were already on VHS hehehe). I started to admire him more with his works on Four Rooms and From Dusk Till Dawn. I thought he showed diversity with his flicks for the young, Spy Kids and The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl. And Sin City really showed his cutting edge directorial style.

Indeed Roberto Rodriguez knows his movies and his audience.

So when Planet Terror (aka Grindhouse) came out, I didn't hesitate to watch it even with the bad local version of the poster which forcibly featured Fergie just because she's the more recognizable talent in the Philippines.

But Planet Terror is all about Planet Rodriguez. I bet this is a movie he's been raring to do in quite a while. He made this movie more for himself than anyone else (and possibly a tribute to all other B movies). I can almost imagine him tripping with buddy Quentin Tarantino during the process of this movie making.

Between me and Mike, only Mike saw the humor of this movie. Really a guy's movie.

Re-discovering Hong Kong

June of last year I went on a day trip in Hong Kong. It was actually a stop over from my trip from Canada. While I always loved the HK, I just found it too crowded during that day trip. There were just too many people walking the streets. It felt almost chaotic.

This June 2007, I visited Hong Kong again with Mike, his brother, Bob, and Bob's girlfriend, Joy. It was actually a choice between Singapore and Hong Kong but the brothers chose the latter since it had Tom Lee, a large musical instrument retailer where products ranged from classical instruments (wind, percussion, string, pianos) to electric guitars and other musical paraphernalia.

This trip allowed me to rediscover the charm of this bustling city.

Hong Kong remains to be a tourist friendly place. Arriving at the airport, you are instantly met with booths carrying brochures on what to see and do in the area. Also, a tourist information center with available street maps welcome you into the city as you exit the immigration area. Most signs are accompanied with english translations and now, streetsigns in pink help direct you to the most common tourist destination. An example would be a pink sign along Nathan Road that points you to the side street which would lead you to the Jade Market or the Ladies Market.

We were able to make advanced bookings at Eaton Hotel which gave us 15% savings on accommodations and the location is quite convenient too. The hotel is situated along Nathan Road, just a few minutes walk to Jordan MTR station. Also, it's quite near Temple St. Night Market. The rooms are cozy and clean and not too small at 17-19 square meters. I guess it also helped that the hotel is currently being renovated. The staff were helpful and friendly as well. Breakfast wasn't so bad. (I have a bad memory of HK hotel breakfasts as it always meant scrambled eggs and toast that was just not to my liking.) Eaton continental breakfast consisted of assorted bread, butter, jam and fruits with coffee/tea and juice which was fine with me since I'm not a heavy breakfast person anyway. Mike and the others weren't too happy as breakfast is the most important meal of the day for them. So, on the 2nd day, we tried their buffet breakfast which was quite a feast (sausages, bacon, salmon, assorted breads, cereals... the works!) but we had to pay an extra HK$50 each. It was well worth it. It only lacked fried rice to make the breakfast buffet perfect for us Filipinos.
While the weather wasn't as cool as I hoped it to be, it was still the tail end of summer after all, it was comfortably warm and walking along Nathan Road wasn't a bother at all. Seeing the familiar assorted shops from jewelry stores, local snacks and goodies, magazine stalls and of course a Giordano in almost every other corner exemplified the entrepreneurial character that is very Hong Kong. Not to mention the distinct smell of their food.

Speaking of food, while my companions preferred to eat at McDonald's most of the time(in fact, on our last day, breakfast, lunch and afternoon snacks not to mention our first HK meal was spent at this world famous fast food restaurant --- I swear, I've never eaten that often in McDonald's my entire life!), we got a taste of local food at a restaurant along Pak Hoi street towards Temple Street night market. I really enjoy Chinese food and this was no exception. Despite the carinderia atmosphere and lack of service hospitalilty we are used to, the food satisfied my taste buds and my hungry belly.

While food is expensive, HK is still a place full of bargains. With good negotiation skills, the numerous clothes, bags and knick-knacks sold in the street markets all over Kowloon side is definitely a treat for the bargain hunter. And Bob didn't waste any time. Looking for plus size shirts has been a constant challenge for him in Manila but the street market seem to have successfully provided him his shirt needs for the next six months! Likewise, the brothers enjoyed the significantly cheaper prices of guitar gears i.e. blues driver, tube amp, etc. in Tom Lee (on Cameron Lane, in Wanchai and in Causeway Bay) and Nelson Piano, distributor of DiMarzio, located in Mong Kok. Personally, I only shopped for pasalubong for the family which consisted the usual champoy and a few shirts that were on sale at Giordano.

The trip to HK also meant for us, a day spent at its newest attraction: Hong Kong Disneyland. But that is worthy of another blog entry. :-)

Now a visit to HK won't be complete without a trip to The Peak, the highest point where you can take a peek at both Kowloon and Hong Kong island. It was my first time to visit this place at night and the view was just amazing! The night lights, the cool breeze and peaceful atmosphere seem to take you so far from the urban madness; only to be jolted back to the reality by a swarm of over-zealous tourists.

Amidst the madness and seeming chaos, HK will continue to be a destination for me and most tourists alike. City persons like me continue to feel at home amidst HK's busy streets as navigating around the city is convenient and easy but few train rides and short walks bring me to amazing destinations that tell me I'm still on vacation.

Motorcycle Diaries

I hate motorcycles! Ok it's really the motorcycle drivers I hate. They're all crazy maniacs if you ask me.

Lately, Manila has been experiencing a spurt of this form of transportation. Blame it to better financing schemes offered by the distibutors where one only needs a P2000 downpayment and a monthly installment of P300 and you're a proud owner. And so, more and more motorcylces have mushroomed in the streets of Metro Manila the last couple of years.

Blame it also on ignorance (and the LTO's inability to educate vehicle drivers) that these motorcycle drivers don't think (or don't know) that there are actually traffic rules and regulations for them on the road. And so you always find a motorcycle:(1) criss-crossing between cars to get ahead
(2) over-taking using the 1-2ft of space from the pavement that a car usually leaves when it is on the right most lane; i've had several near misses making a right turn just because these motorcyles are trying to zip by on your right
(3) if it's really traffic, you find them riding over the sidewalk where only predestrians should be
(4) they practically ignore traffic rules and regulations, usually crossing red lights or turning left when there is a no-left-turn sign whenever they feel like it
(5) they carry more than one additional adult passenger whenever the need arises even having an entire family of four with kids and babies between two adults.

Hence the increase in accidents involving motorcyles on the road.

My recent visit to Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam has cemented this hatred for motorcycles. Though there seems to be an attempt to keep the motorcycles on the right side of the road, the sheer volume and the distance these motorcycles keep from larger vehicles make everything so chaotic. Oh, interestingly you've got all sorts of people on motorcycles, from young adult males to older men and half of them even women in skirts and high-heels. I may be exaggerating when I say this but it did feel like there were 10million motorcycles on the road at any given point in time.

I really hope that Metro Manila streets don't end up this way.