2 Weddings, 1 Weekend

glad to have been part of two dear friends' weddings over the weekend :) it was a good opportunity rin for Jeff and myself to get ideas and think about our future wedding naman

January 3, 2014

Jopa and Dan's Wedding in Tagaytay

Jopa is the third in our GS barkada to tie-the-knot! it was quite a long but amusing Church ceremony. admittedly only found out about certain details in their relationship during the priest's sermon. :)

mabuhay ang bagong kasal!

it was also the first time ever that I got to attend a ceremony in Calaruega. Jeff and I visited here a few years back, but we didn't get to go inside. the chapel setup was quite intimate and it sure was different seeing the place at night

friends of the bride photo op

I think Calaruega is really an ideal venue for weddings; however the local government really should do something about the road; it was not asphalted/cemented + there were no light posts in the area too; considering what I think would be a huge number of couples who get married here, they should at least exert some effort in improving the roads leading to the chapel; especially for ceremonies held in the evening

the ceremony ended at around 830 pm na; we should have followed the earlier advise to take heavy snacks talaga haha; we then headed back up towards Alfonso to reach the reception venue: Rosemont Gardens

it was a simple venue but was transformed to a really nice wedding reception place; I loved how the arrangements came together and you could really see how much effort had come into each detail of the wedding

a photo of Jopa and Dan + the menu (hehe) welcomed us in our table

cool personalized M&Ms as part of their dessert table

Paulinians + partners reunited

cheers to the newlyweds!

the matron of honor. Fria delivers a message to the couple

Coders missing Jo and Fayme

cute photobooth backdrop :)

the wedding was made more special with the wonderful messages from family and close friends; sayang we didn't get to stay until the end; but we sure left very excited and a bit pressured thinking about our own hehe. :)

#db1314

Transfiguration Chapel
Caleruega, Brgy. Kaylaway, Batulao, Nasugbu

Rosemont Gardens
General Aguinaldo Highway, Laurel, Batangas



January 4, 2014

Lem and Joyce's Wedding

buti na lang hindi on the same day ang wedding although admittedly ang hirap rin pala ng magkasunod na events! hehe. it was quite a long drive from Tagaytay to Libis, but glad we made it on time naman

it was another first for me to attend a wedding here at Christ the King

since it was a particularly hot afternoon; it was a relief to have a church with AC; made me think that should be a consideration too when we plan ours hehe

I think the walk down the aisle is usually the most emotional part of the ceremony if not for the vows; sayang I missed Jopa's walk but I was near the aisle during Joyce's + seeing Lem crying then--couldn't help but feel emotional too (pano pa kaya when its our turn na!)

it was a more straight forward ceremony; the 'you may now kiss the bride' portion came in the middle this time then the signing towards the end; while Jopa's had that naman in the middle and the kiss portion was in the end; there was no single format pala for a wedding 'no?

I was pretty impressed with their wedding planners/faciilitators I must say, hehe. very well organized and they seemed to have a lot of 'pakulos' planned :) it was the first time too that I've seen 'male' wedding organizers

Christ the King church - the couple's first kiss as newlyweds - the sweetest kiss including their parents

so the question from everyone is: kelan daw kami??

first photo op with Lem and Joyce

from Libis, we then travelled to Makati for the reception at the Rigodon Ballroom of the Peninsula Manila

loved the accents/details of their reception venue; they even had a 'front porch' setup for the newlyweds area; they placed this in the middle section of the ballroom which made it more accessible to all the guests vs the usual front near the projector screen

upon entering they provided give-away snacks to each guest consisting of mixed nuts, raisin and M&Ms; on the tables naman there was a canister of mints

when the couple entered the ballroom; Lem sang while they were walking to eventually lead them to their first dance! 

A for effort Lem!

we enjoyed watching a video of their love story + Lem's proposal though we've already heard it from him before :) what we enjoyed more though was taking photos and hashtagging them all to get printouts haha

looking forward to having dinner with the team this time in the couple's new home naman!

#lemandjoyce1414

Christ the King Church
Greenmeadows Avenue, Quezon City

Peninsula Manila
1226 Makati City

Hello Singapore! (Day 3)

November 20, 2012

if there's one thing I was really looking forward to doing in Singapore -- it was jogging/running.

and since we were not meeting up early today, I had planned on going jogging early in the morning. I even googled and asked my colleagues what their recommended jogging area is and I finally planned on going to the Botanical Garden

see I even had a map on the way from the hotel

so I was awake na as early as 5 am and was out by around 5:30; however, when I went around the corner which was barely 50 meters from the hotel, nagsimula nang kumidlat. and since I wanted to jog/walk to Botanical lang, I knew I would have a hard time coming back if it starts raining

kaya I just decided to go back to the hotel and try out the gym facilities. 

cozy looking waiting area

sa totoo lang hesitant pa nga ako nung una. I think I've never been one to rely on machines to move around; parang yung anxieties ko lang sa scuba diving, haha

kaya sa gym sa office, I only attended the group classes, kasi ayoko or hindi ako marunong mag-operate ng machines. haha..

pero since sayang naman ang outfit, I gave it a go. it actually took me awhile to operate it properly. but eventually, tumama naman ako sa napindot ko and I was able to run 5K!

and now I'm looking forward to trying out our gym facility na when I get back!

yes! na-conquer ko ito!

indoor running #firsttime
photo from my instagram account @jobnacpil

and since the pool was right outside the gym--cool off muna before preparing

steaaadddyyy
photo from my instagram account @jobnacpil

fast forward to lunch.. a late lunch at that. Astons, which was just within Mapletree Business City..

packed even after normal lunch hours

hmm.. what to get?

Astons was known for their steaks. however I opted for a 'healthier option'

Chargrill Chicken

not bad for less than 8 SGD it came with 2 sides na

like good 'ol times in MNL with Mazelle and Leng

PH HR team then and now

fast forward to dinner...

met up with Jo around 7 pm. had a bit of a hard time getting in touch with her since my mobile phone lost its signal na. good thing we talked about a specific meeting place: basement area of Somerset 313 mall.

however, the mall had 3 basement levels pala!

searching

eventually nagkita naman kami haha

and of course, first things first: find a good place to have dinner!

there sure were a lot of options, and knowing me I have trouble deciding when presented with numerous choices especially pa when it comes to food

pero para iba naman we went for irish food at Malones

Malones dinner with @joch77
photo from my instagram account @jobnacpil

Malones sampler

we had the sampler set: Riblets, Irish Fish cakes and the Fried Camembert Cheese--which I particularly liked a lot

Irish Caldereta?

we also ordered the Guinness Beef Stew which later on I realized was not called Guinness Beef Stew for nothing. haha it had a hint of beer in it which maybe added to the tenderness of the meat. the stew was pretty good din. however, we didn't get to finish it considering the generous serving size

having had a lot (perhaps too much) to eat we went for a walk in Orchard road to burn off some of the calories kahit papano haha

I actually had a good look at the displays around Orchard on board a taxi during my first night

its a different thing to actually go under/around/near the fixtures

stopping by for dessert

brand love

syempre Wall's. :) hehe. what's unique about this is they had ice cream which was made into blocks. tapos uncle sliced a piece and placed it in between 2 wafer bars:

this was Jo's green tea ice cream ( I think)

uncle handing my ripple bar

yumm!

more lights!

kaleidoscope!

more turista mode shots

yes.. high-end

since it was a bit late na and we both had work the following day, we headed back to Traders na but of course not without me experiencing the MRT!

ang MRT nila though is not a train but a bus system

waiting by the bus stop

regular passengers would have cards na so they just need to swipe as they come in. had to pay  I think about 10 cents (if I remember it right) 3 stops away from where we boarded

since my stop was right across the Tanglin Mall, more turista shots for us!

don't we just love huge Christmas trees

shots with a little help from a couple of Pinay tourists

new friends #elves @joch 77
taken from my instagram account @jobnacpil

Jo stayed with me a bit pa sa hotel and this was how I discovered the TLC show Extreme Couponing! haha

I had a really great time catching up with Jo and we made plans to meet again on Thursday since I got extended until Friday -- looking forward to that!

*watch out for Hello Singapore! (Day 4)

Uno

November 11, 2012

Uno stands for both Virg's baby boy to come's nickname plus the fact that she's the first in the barkada to have a baby :) and of course a baby shower at that

we all met up betweeen 4-5 pm at Virg and Titan's place in Taguig, armed with food, decors, presents and stories to share

Tita Fria's banners and Tita Jopa's balloons

it was really great to see the girls again.. I think the last I saw them was last year pa!

we were all supposed to be dressed in baby blue - pero may mga pasaway haha..

baby blue dapat

less 1 cupcake - dahil I knocked 1 down ;p

apart from the cupcakes we had Pancit Malabon, two kinds of chicken: Chicken Lollipops from Amber and Buffalo wings, and Carbonara prepared by Virg

busog na!

besides dressing up in baby blue clothes, Jopa also brought along animal headbands for us to use

the original theme kasi were animals as she was supposed to bring along a cake designed as a bear

with our animal headbands this time

we each brought along gifts as well for Baby Uno

time to open the presents!

gifts from Tita Jopa

gift from Tita Mae

gift from Tita Job

gift from Tita Hazel

I just realized I didn't get to take a photo of Fria hehe.

Code Blue, haha

we then moved to the poolside area

quick dip, anyone?

more stories by the pool

stolen shot

with Fria and Mae

sayang hindi na nakahabol si Jo! she was coming from a friend's wedding. so medyo alanganin na rin in terms of time. since it was a Sunday and we all had work the next day, we didn't get to stay up late na rin and left before 8 pm.

I think aside from catching up with the girls, this had been a good opportunity as well to think about the future.

I have always kind of been a bit sure that I wasn't ready yet to move to that next stage in my life, but I think it's about time I start thinking about that more...

interesting nga when we all got together, a common question on the room was who's next. so sino nga kaya? haha. wonder if that would be me? hmm. hula ko si Fria or Jopa! ;)

sa tingin ko lang though, a particularly funny memory from that night was re the pinwheel. Virg was describing to us how the building's pinwheel design helps improve the airflow / ventilation

just when we're leaving, we all found each other staring up and trying to figure out where the pinwheel design is in the buildings, haha.

so guys.. if you're reading this.. here is the illustration:

pinwheel nga

next meet-up: sa Makati Med naman once Baby Uno's out!