Floridablanca

November 1, 2013

I rarely look forward going to Pampanga as it is practically an extension of Manila for us. we go here at least once every quarter ata and it has always been the same.

sure the travel is much faster and more convenient and we now have better mobile phone signal + wi-fi + cable; but beyond that there really is nothing much else left to do. (oh no, I'm starting to sound like my younger siblings na!)

#agileworking Pampanga style

over the weekend however, whilst there was work to be done (which addresses my issue on the lack of anything to do) I was able to see our home town in a really different light, unintentionally, haha

Floridablanca Town Hall

I went along with my parents to Floridablanca, which was just right next to Guagua, the town Mama grew up in. they had to buy some things at the market, and I badly needed to get meds naman for my colds

while waiting, I walked around muna and made my way towards the church. I know I had mass in this town a decade ago pero I couldn't remember if this was the same one.

I only got to take photos from my outside since it was already quite dark na. I already applied some filters in the one I took below just to make it more visible

this was the San Isidro Labrador (St. Joseph the Worker) Parish Church pala which was built in 1867 and it was actually considered a heritage church... sweet!

actually just before we reached the town proper itself, we also passed by this house below:

reading about it when we got home, it turns out to be another historical landmark, this time in the form of an ancestral mansion

this house was referred to pala as the Bahay na Puti or the Alvendia House

it is presently owned, preserved and maintaned by the Justice Carmerlino Avendia Sr. -- galing!

since we only passed by it, there was only so much info I can get. so I made a mental note to make sure I get to go back and have more time to spend in this town and see what else I can discover!

speaking of, just before heading back to Guagua, I chanced upon this Coke-branded bicycle --pretty cool!

looking forward to where else my feet will take me!

Weekend Eats (Round 5)

October 27

more weekend food finds this time with the family:

after mass, with grumbling tummies but no specific destination in mind, we set forth towards Aguirre Avenue to look for a place to have dinner

I was thinking of Mama Lou's, while Mama was thinking of Shabu-Shabu naman, tapos si Papa wanted something light, while the little sister just wanted Silvanas. period. haha.

somehow though we ended up in Dusadee Thai. 

I first chanced upon this place weeks back, when Jeff and I were in the same situation. unsure about where to eat. but we sped by fast and I only got to see the sign

the place was small lang but it was well-lighted and I liked the ambiance naman kahit open-air sya

I'm quite selective when it comes to Thai food particularly because of some herb/spice used in cooking (which one it is I can't recall lang now); hoping for the best in this one

Mama had an interesting choice in the form of the Tamarind juice (Php 35) which was surprisingly good

we each ordered Bagoong rice which came with mangoes and onions, strips of scrambled egg and our meat of choice: fish, chicken or beef (Php 80 each)

I also ordered a Pad Thai (Php 120) for sharing

I found the Pad Thai a little too saucy and peanuty but it was good naman. it was the first time I tried it with kalamansi, and I have to say I'll take it as is next time

yung Bagoong rice lacked flavor pa. but I did like the sides. yung meat was a tad too sweet for me and medyo I didn't like the chili powder they had in the store.

while service was quite fast, the food wasn't that hot though when it was served to us, so that's an OFI. still sulit naman for the price and while I could never say 'aroi makmak' or sobrang sarap about Dusadee Thai; would be keen to take Jeff here para I can try their Tom Yum soup naman

just before we got to Dusadee Thai, we also chanced upon Marisa's; and since the little girl craved for Silvanas, we made sure to drop by here just before coming home

Marisa's was just across Serenitea, also along Aguirre Avenue. it had a home-y feel because of the front porch area outside + the sofas + paintings inside the shop

neat artwork

and without further ado we went straight to the cashier to get the little girl a box of Silvanas (Php 222); (it was actually Php 18 each. so a box of 12 should just be Php 216 right? hmmm. I just realized that when I was doing this blog. shouldn't it be cheaper when you buy a box. Php 6 for packaging doesn't seem right?)

oh well. it came in 4 flavors: Original, Pandan, Ube and Chocolate

well little girl's verdict was it wasn't the best she's had but pwede na. haha. kasi the one that she likes a lot can be bought pa all the way in Pampanga, so a nearer option is good enough.

I have to say I liked the Pandan flavor a lot. so-so lang ung Ube, but the Chocolate variant naman we did not like at all

still a good option for a dessert fix if within BF area. they also had cakes so should be good to try rin next time

Dusadee Thai

40 Aguirre Avenue

BF Homes, Paranaque City

Marisa's

Silvanas & Sans Rival

67-A Aguirre Avenue

BF Homes, Paranaque City

Rexona Run 2013

October 20

this truly was the biggest rexona run ever. my parents and I have been joining this run since I started working in Unilever in 2010 - so yes this was our 3rd run!

what's different this year was the theme Run to Your Beat. throughout the race there was pulsating live music from guest DJs and bands

actually muntik ko pang hindi maisama ang parents ko. haha. as a ULP employee, we got to sign up for this for free months back. kaso the procrastinator that I am. akala ko kasi they'd have discounted sign up booths again in the office just like last year kaya I held off in signing up at the Riovana stores.

so I think I kind of underestimated the force that the Rexona run had this year. at least 2 weeks before the run there were news that they've closed registration na and had run out of race kits.

that got me worried since my parents would look forward to this run every year.

buti na lang I came across a tweet about extended sign-ups in the Riovana store in BGC. and thankfully nakapag-sign up pa ko for them!

that was a hard lesson learned! haha. I'll be sure to sign up in advance na next year :)

following the theme, the race had to start way earlier than usual. last year we signed up for 5K and the gun start then was at 5:30 am. this year though, 5K started at 3:45 am!

since we signed up na for 10K our gun start was at 3.30 am, so as early as 2 am we were already up to prepare.

when we got to the MoA complex, most of the open air parking slots were already full! sobrang daming tao! we had to park pa in the covered parking slots adjacent to the mall.

when we got to the race area, it was just 10 minutes before the 10K gun start. we made it just in time. haha

pre-run shot of my parents

and after a quick warm-up we were off!!

this truly was one running spectacle!

one thing I looked forward to was the tunnel of lights before the 1K mark

it really got everyone excited when we got there. and you couldn't help but stop and take a quick photo.

I think I had a good start in the race up until the 5K mark. it has been weeks since my last run so I really did not get to prepare well for this.

still I think I ended in an acceptable time naman. haha.

finally caught up with my parents post-race

by this time Rico Blanco was about to perform so after claiming our finisher kits, we headed off inside to the concert area.

this truly was a first of its kind race. it was actually a good refreshing way to end that 10K run.

they were actually giving out ice cream and there was also a mobile bar. and there were a lot of brand booths too. actually when you use the official #: runtoyourbeat and rexonadomore to post photos, you can claim print outs! really cool!

my parents seemed to have a really good time and we ended up staying until the end of the programme!

can't wait for the next Rexona Run! wonder what they will have in store for us next? :)

P.S. our official race results below, haha :)

Tagaytay - Cavite Weekend

October 20, 2013

I never seem to get tired of going to Tagaytay especially when with the family. the last we were here was for a distant relative's wedding and prior to that was our mini-reunion gathering at Bag of Beans.

this time we were meeting up with a family friend from Japan who came to visit. originally I thought we were just dropping by her relative's place in Amadeo. yun pala first on the agenda was an early lunch in Tagaytay.

I've always thought Leslie's was overrated. the last I ate here was with Jeff's former colleagues in DSI. but that was in another branch in Batangas. after that we'd often go to Green ATS na for our bulalo fix. so this was technically my first time at Leslie's Tagaytay

first look

I have to say consistent talaga sila sa ambiance. it had a the woodland type of vibe which was  similar to the one we ate in before.

what's unique about this one though is of course the scenic view of the Taal lake, which is no match for the other bulalo places, I have to say

whenever we get to go to a bulalo place. I only have 2 requests - syempre bulalo and fried tawilis

for a group of 8, we ended up ordering for 10 people. haha. apart from Bulalo and Tawilis, our meal also included Fried Kangkong, Ensaladang Mangga, Inihaw na Liempo, Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw, Fried Chicken and Leche Flan -- that was really a mouthful!

our photo below was a before shot. so you could just imagine how fuller we looked post-meal

by this time the fog had started creeping in. thus the view of the lake now gone

and after what probably was a 3-hour lunch, we then set off for Amadeo to visit Tita Menchie's relatives

here are some shots of the place:

side trip | backyard pineapples
taken from my IG account @jobnacpil

the property was actually within a golf course as they were the ones looking after the place.

it was quite a laughter-filled afternoon sharing stories and making plans about future trips back to Japan. we even ended up taking home bunches of banana, papayas and cooked-ube.

nothing beats a day spent with family and friends :)

Leslie's Tagaytay
Aguinaldo Highway Crossing
Silang West, Tagaytay

Family Field Trip

July 21, 2013

I've always wanted to go to the Mind Museum. I first read about it from a blog in early 2012 and got excited by the galleries and how visually stunning the exhibits were kaya I knew I just had to go!

The last I've been in this sort of museum was back in college pa. We went to Museong Pambata as part of our Special Projects Class. And if I remember it right we went to the Philippine Science Centrum back in SPC.

And since then, I would like to think that a lot has happened in the scientific field so it would be cool to check out what they had to offer.

I was not really fond of going to the Taguig area kaya I kept putting off my plan; but when I came across a voucher online-- I knew I finally had to go.

and so last week, I brought along my family with me to the Mind Museum.

told you I wasn't too fond of the area

we arrive at a little past 10 am and had my vouchers checked in the ticket counter and were then given these tickets which we can also use to enter the parks

on top of that we were also given these arm tags to wear

there were not too many visitors when we arrived. yun pala there was an ongoing talk about wildlife.

first peek

instead of joining the session, we decided to take advantage of the situation and went on in exploring the various galleries.

it was a self-exploration type of museum so we could go around at our own pace but of course to make the most out of it, guests would really need to read thru each of the signs in the various exhibits

our first stop was the Atom Gallery: The Strange World of the Very Small

give me a piece of that!

this is probably one of the most photographed/documented portions of the museum. would often see site feeds taken with that humongous chocolate bar

here were some of the exhibits within the gallery

Atom Centerpiece

Electric table

Whirlpool

inside a molecule

my folks trying out the static ball

static shock!

Mama had a hair-raising great time

fission -- fusion

I forgot what this corridor was called (if at all any) but I think it had to do with cell structures ata :p

next gallery is the Life Gallery: The Exuberance of Life

it featured a DNA exhibit

Mama and Kat trying out the DNA quiz

the huge, labeled human brain

try again! genetics quiz

the cell

zoooming in on the human body

trying out the digital microscope

fish out of water: the Butanding

the towering hand

monster tongue and the ever active taste buds

The Web of Life

reunion? haha. The Human Story replica

just right beside it naman was the next gallery--the Earth gallery: Nature across the breadth of time

within the gallery was a mini-theater called Nature's Hourglass which featured a film on the Earth's history with specific focus in the Philippines

we had the theater all to ourselves

3D glasses on!

it was sort of like taking SIBIKA all over again!

the main attraction in this gallery was of course the T-rex exhibit

stunner!

this has got to be the very first exhibit of its kind anywhere in the PH. came to know though that this was a cast made from the real fossils of a particular T-rex that was found

really liked the phrases etched on this wall below the T-rex

the gallery also contained exhibits on landforms

volcanic eruption exhibit

Mama the paleontologist

mountain formations

then just right before getting to the next gallery -- its the spinning tunnel!

it was really amazing how much our vision affects our perception about situations. the spinning motion of the cylinder which was around the ledge was enough to make one dizzy.
it was as if the whole world was spinning talaga!

speaking of world. past the tunnel was the Universe Gallery naman: its beginning and majesty

it had a mini-planetarium and representations of stars, planets and other heavenly bodies

the phases of the moon

sayang lang I didn't get to take a lot of good quality photos in that gallery because of the lighting

and other than that I was keen on moving on to the next area in the museum which was the Lightbridge

how could anyone not be excited by the visual display of light

x-ray vision of a monkey reading a newspaper while sitting on a toilet bowl?

solid - liquid - gas particles

as it was all things light, they also had this contraption which showed movement of light when you turned on the knob

playing with light

time to go up to the next gallery

the Technology gallery: The Showcase of Human Ingenuity

haha human ingenuity pala ah

body symmetry mirror

Kat peering through a kaleidoscope

closer look

Mama's bag coming through

the sewing machine then

Mr. Pharaoh

the scent of a coconut

why hello, thanks for asking

in hindsight I wish I had taken more details about each of the exhibits. but over-all it was really intended for experiential learning anyway.

the museum sure is a far cry from the other science museums we have today. sana lang they would do regular checks on the each exhibits that they feature kasi first gallery pa lang that we went to, most of the contraptions weren't working na.

but still worth going to provided these minor issues are fixed. looking forward to more installations in the future

undoubtedly a female washroom

my parents still kids at heart

free goodies from Knick Knacks

we all had a blast at the Mind Museum

P.S. credits to some blogs for details on each of the galleries/exhibits

http://marliestravels18.blogspot.com/2012/06/mind-museum.html

http://www.ourawesomeplanet.com/awesome/2012/03/mind-museum-at-taguig-guide.html

http://spreadsomeawesome.com/2012/03/18/the-mind-museum-in-taguig-city/

check out the Mind Museum website too for more information: http://www.themindmuseum.org/