CORON: Akyat Sa Mt. Tapyas

Bilang unang adventure sa Coron, inakyat namin ang 700 steps ng Mt. Tapyas. Sa totoo lang I have been dreading this part of the trip ever since sinabi sa akin. :p Kasi naman, naranasan ko kung gaano kalakas manginig ang mga binti ko nang mag-fire drill kami dati noong nasa AUB pa ako. Gawd, ang hirap tumayo pagkatapos. Nag-hagdan lang kami mula 31st floor, at actually dapat pa akong magpasalamat dahil walang 13th at 4th floor sa building na 'yun. Nagpapanggap na lang akong maayos ang lahat. Pero sa totoo lang para akong tinamaan ng Jelly-Legs Curse (Locomotor Wibbly). -.- At ang tagal ng effect niya ah, isang linggo mahigit din yata 'yun. Ako na ang walang exercise. -.-

Pero, wala na akong magagawa. Nagtiwala na lang ako na lilipas din ang lahat. At kung nagawa kong magpanggap na maayos lang lahat dati, kakayanin ko rin dito. :)) Saka naisip ko pwede namang magpahinga, hindi naman nila ako iiwan. :))

Tapos, akala ko noong una ay lupa-lupa ang lalakaran. Alam mo 'yun, bundok talaga at magte-trekking talaga kami. Hindi pala. Hihi. May hagdan, sementado. May railings at mga pahingahan spot pa. :p

May sumama sa aming bata, si Brando, nagtitinda ng mga tubig at energy drinks. Kasama rin 'yung aso niyang si Brownie. :D Sagot niya rin ang kwento at pagkuha ng mga pictures sa amin. Halos araw-araw niya raw ginagawa ang pagpanhik-panaog sa Mt. Tapyas para makapagtinda ng mga inumin sa mga turistang umaakyat dito. Ginagawa niya ito pagkatapos ng klase niya. Ang galing lang eh, ang bigat na nga ng bitbit niya pero sobrang lakas niya at parang hindi napapagod. Oh well, nasanay na rin naman kasi siguro siya. Kumbaga na-train na nang husto ang katawan niya sa ganoong trabaho. Nakakainggit. Dami nagiinarte sa Manila sa mga lakad-lakad at kahit sa kabilang kanto lang, magtataxi pa. :p

Jomai: Peace!! :D
Si Brando 'yung batang nasa kaliwa ni Jomai. :))

CORON: Patungo at Pauwi

At para sa taong ito (2012), sa halos kaparehong araw ng aming Caramoan getaway, napagpasiyahan naman namin na magtungo sa Coron, Palawan. :D At masaya pa rito, nadagdagan kami. Siyam kaming lahat - Au, Al, Kyle, Guillard, Jomai, Mich, Ate Cere, Ate Ana.

Salamat na magmuli sa Cebu Pacific Seat Sale for making this trip happen. *thumbs up*

.=.PATUNGO.=.
Sinundo ako sa bahay at hinatid ako sa airport ni Edmund. <3 Grabe wala na naman siyang tulog. At siya pa nagbuhat ng mabigat kong bagahe. :p

Sa byahe naming dalawa, narealize kong naiwan ko ang Monopoly Deal. -.- Nakakaiyak lang. Naeexcite pa man din akong huwag matulog sa unang gabi dahil maglalaro kami. Tapos, narealize ko rin na nalimutan kong dumaan sa 7-eleven sa kanto namin para bumili ng toothbrush.

Nagkita-kita kami nila Au, Al, Ate Cere, at Ate Ana sa NAIA Terminal 3. Pinaspasan namin ang pagkain ng lunch sa Kenny's at super sakto sa boarding time ang pagdating namin sa Waiting Area. Nang makita na namin ang sasakyan naming eroplano, medyo nag-alala ang mga kasama ko. Masyado raw kasing maliit at mat propeller pa sa magkabilang pakpak. Magiging rough daw ang ride. Ako naman, hindi ko masyadong iniisip, siguro kasi, wala naman akong nasakyang ibang eroplano pa na uber smooth ang take-off at landing. So akala ko, ganoon talaga. :p

Wala ako sa window seat, stranger ang katabi ko. Sina Au at Al, nasa kabilang kanang side. Magkatabi. Okay lang namang matabi sa ibang tao, basta nasa window sana. :)) Gusto ko kasing magpicture-picture ng mga clouds at bumuo nga mga kwento sa mga makikita kong hugis nila. Wala ring magazine sa pouch sa harapan ko, tanging ang safety precautions manual ang nandun. Muntik ko na makabisa ang mga emergency exits ng mga eroplano dahil sobrang walang mabasa. :)) Hindi ko kasi naisip agad na pwede ngapala akong magbasa ng e-Book sa cellphone ko.

Ang paghihirap na pagkasyahin ang mga sarili sa picture.

Ewan ko anong iniisip ng katabi ko, hindi ko alam kung may kasama rin siya at napahiwalay rin siya. :p Maya-maya tahimik na lang siyang natulog. :p At that moment, gusto kong iattempt na dumungaw sa bintana. Kaso baka magising eh, nakakahiya.

Tapos merong babae sa bandang harap na nakatinginan ko for 3 seconds siguro. Creepy. Siguro may kamukha na naman ako, tapos iniisip niya kung talagang kakilala niya ako na matagal na niyang hindi nakita o talagang kamukha ko lang. :p

Nakakatawa 'yung part na maglalanding na kami. :)) Kasi naman, nagkukuwento ako nun kina Al at Au eh. Biglang hindi na sila nakikinig, nakakapit na lang sila sa mga armrest ng upuan nila for dear life. :p Tapos nakapikit pa. Ang panget kasi sa feeling ng parang matatanggal na 'yung kaluluwa mo habang bumababa ang eroplano. Siguro dahil tatlong beses na akong sumakay sa Anchor's Away at nasubukan ko na rin ang EKstreme Tower Ride sa Enchanted Kingdom kaya kaya ko na tiisin ang pag-landing ng eroplano namin.  :))

Paglipad

Ako ngayon ay lumilipad

Tumatagos sa malalambot na ulap

Tanaw ang sulok ng ating kalawakan

Kasabay ng mga ibong

Humuhuni ng pagsulong

Tungo sa bagong lugar na kanilang titirhan.

Pumapaimbabaw sa bahaghari

At nagpapadulas sa kabilang bahagi

Hinahamon ang pitong kulay

Pagkat kahit maging walo pa sila

Isang libo't higit pa ang tinataglay ng aking buhay.

Nagpapatangay sa hangin

Mula sa kung saan ay umiihip

Nakikinig sa ibinubulong nitong

Halakhak ng maraming tao

At sinasagot ko ito ng isang malaking ngiti

Sapagkat hindi kayang dalhin ng hangin

Ang sarili kong halakhak na ubod ng dami.

City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende

City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


A children's book that already teaches about nature, politics, religion, and culture. *thumbs up*


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Thanks to Alyssa for giving me the book! :D

First Baking Attempt: Oreo Chocolate Cream Cheesecake

The result of my first baking attempt with Edmund and Alyssa. :D We followed the recipe from Kraft Foods. Well, not quite because Edmund and I can't find BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate in the grocery. We bought one 500g Dutche Chocolate Bar, which is the only available brand of chocolate for baking.


Alyssa was in charge of the crust. I can tell that she was well-suited for the job. She put all her strength into crushing the Oreo cookies - pounding it with the end of a butcher knife, and even pounding it with bare hands against the wall. :)) After ensuring that the Oreo biscuits were finely crushed, she baked it for 10 mins. Igniting the oven for the first time was very dangerous for us. :p A portion of Edmund's hair on his right hand got burned. -.- But the experience was still funny because of Alyssa's immediate reaction when the oven suddenly blew a large breath of fire as it sprang to life - she instantly backed-off and glued ala spider-woman against the wall behind her. :))


I was in charge of melting the big chocolate bar. I don't know but this is the same responsibility I got when I was still a freshman in high school and we were baking a chocolate cake during our Home Economics class. Haha! I laboriously melted the small-to-medium chunks of chocolate that Edmund chopped and occasionally put on the pan. The chocolate was melted through the steam produced from boiling water while constantly stirring the chunks of chocolate until it was completely in liquid form. From time to time, we can't resist dipping our fingers and tasting the melted chocolate. :9 It was very delicious. :9 Thumbs up for Dutche chocolate bars. :D


Lastly, Edmund was in charge of mixing the filling itself. :) He worked as a substitute to our future mixer. :)) He carefully measured the amount of sugar, vanilla, and cream cheese required for the filling. As mentioned above, he was also responsible in other slightly more demanding  tasks as well like igniting the oven, chopping blocks of chocolate, putting and lifting pans off the hot oven or stove, etc.

Kada Meow at La Mesa Ecopark (= ^_ ^ =)

From plans of spending the summer at Puerto Galera to Zambales to Antipolo, our Kada Meow summer get away escapade happened last June 10, 2012 at La Mesa Ecopark. :))
Meet-up at KFC.

We saw each other 9AM at KFC Concepcion. We also bought our lunch there.
From left to right - Anika, Dawn, Kathleen, Margot.

Taxi Ride to Ecopark.

We rode a taxi to Ecopark. During the ride, we were praying for a good weather every time that droplets of an impending strong rain were splattering the taxi's windshield. Funny how the clouds seemed to tease us by pouring at random intervals some of their accumulated water. :p  Luckily, upon arrival to the park, God granted us a very fine weather. :D  


And Feels Like It's Our Own Paradise.
Also, thanks to the NBA Finals and the Pacquiao-Bradley fight, there were few people in the park. We can practically own a portion of the whole place. 

And so, after eating our lunch we decided to invade the playground first. :D

Next, we owned the [main] road and took jump shots until we perfected it and until our legs complain of the ordeal. :))

At Hana and Choto Stop in Little Tokyo

Through Edmund's navigation powers we  finally visited Little Tokyo last June 9, 2012. :)) Little Tokyo is situated along Chino Roces Avenue. Just find a way to reach Park Square One Mall and your just one jeepney ride away, you can always ask the driver to let you off at Little Tokyo. (But in our case, we had to take a different path because the shuttle didn't reach Park Square One Mall.) 

One of the two entrances to Little Tokyo. :)

When we arrived, I was a bit 'Ito na 'yun? (This is it?)' :)) I was thinking that the place would be more.. hmmm.. grander? Or just a little bigger than what it actually is. Hehe. There were also so few people around. Most shops were also closed. Maybe because it was a Saturday. But isn't it that more people is supposed to be out on weekends? XD Anyway, that was good for us because it meant lesser people are needed to be served. It also meant less stress from walking around while dodging people along the way. :)

On entering and going through what felt like a tunnel to Diagon Alley, we immediately saw the well-renowned Hana restaurant. :D

When we went inside, we were greeted with several "いらっしゃいませ！" :D
(Romaji: Irasshaimase! English Translation: Welcome to the store!) 

After taking our seats, the lady who assisted us gave the menu. And wow, I was overwhelmed with Kanji characters. =)) I really hope that I took the time to study and memorize at least five Kanji characters a day so that my Nihongo lessons are put to practice. XD Anyway, we ordered California Maki (a forever favorite :9) and bento without the gyoza.

This arrived shortly after we ordered our meal.
This one costs around Php200++.

Secret Recipe Unlimited Cakes and Coffee!

For my birthday this year, Alyssa and Aubrey gave me a cashcashpinoy voucher. :D

Secret Recipe branch at Level 5, Shangri-La Mall, Mandaluyong City

Edmund (he had his own voucher :D ) and I finally availed the promo this month.
Here are the cakes that we indulged ourselves with. :9 We all enjoyed eating them with a hot cup of jasmine tea. *thumbs up* Why tea instead of coffee? Well, we were given a choice between tea or coffee and we chose tea. :)

I forgot what each of them is called. -.- But my favorites include strawberry (top left), mocha (top right), and the one with a banana-like taste (middle, right). I never thought I could finish three slices of cakes within an hour. Haha! :D

Thank you, Al and Au! :D

Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King

Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



"There ain't no power in heaven or on earth that can stop people from thinking the worst when they want to."

"In those days I still believed the love of a man for a woman and a woman for a man was stronger than the love of drinkin and hell-raisin -- that love would eventually rise to the top like cream in a bottle of milk. I learned better over the next ten years. The world's a sorry schoolroom isn't it?"

"...A coward is more afraid of being discovered than he is of everything else, even dyin."

"Sometimes anything a woman says to a man is bound to be the wrong thing."

"The fact is, sometimes we do have to be cruel to be kind -- like a doctor givin a shot to a child even though he knows the child will cry and not understand."

"...My mother always said you c'n catch more flies with honey than you ever can with vinegar..."

"Houses do have their own life that they take from the people who live in em; I really believe that."

"But listen to me, all three of you, n hear this if you don't hear nothing else: everything I did, I did for love... the love a natural mother feels for her children. That's the strongest love there is in the world, and it's the deadliest. There's no bitch on earth like a mother frightened for her kids."


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SCANDAL Band ❤: Taiyo Scandalous

Came to the office today and read an email from jpopasia regarding SCANDAL's new single! The title will be "Taiyo Scandalous" (Scandalous Sun) - so summer~. :D
It will be produced by NAOTO of Orange Range - the same band who sang Code Geass's first opening song, O2.
(Yay! O2 is one the DTXMania songs I always play. <3 I will never know that information if not for Margot. Hehe. So arigatou gozaimashita, Margot-san. :D)


I'm now looking forward to July 11. :D