Saturday, May 23, 2009

Boracay ~ Day 1

I wasn't able to sleep, I woke up 4am and ate breakfast. No, I was not excited! Hehehe. Since our last vacation two years ago (honeymoon in Pangloa), Keith and I have been busy with work, the twins and managing the household, so this Boracay trip is really something to be excited about. We left the twins and the yayas with my in-laws, to make sure we get that much needed R and R. Oh, did I mention it's Keith's birthday today? :)

At 6am, we left for the airport. We got to PAL terminal 2 after 30 minutes. We checked-in our baggages and went inside the terminal. Our flight was 8:30am. We bought some coffee at The Tinder Box, and waited- in anticipation, LOL.

Finally, we boarded the plane but waited atleast 15 minutes on the runway, to give way for the other planes. Weather was perfect and you could clearly see the islands below. I had biscuit and tea for snacks. Overall the flight was smooth and touchdown was perfect.



We reached Kalibo at around 10am. We boarded a bus serviced by Southwest Tours. The bus was new and we sat comfortably, looking at the sceneries outside. We reached Caticlan at around 12nn. We boarded an outrigger boat headed for Cagban Port in Boracay island. From there, a service van took us to our hotel. We checked in at Grand Boracay Resort, received our welcome drinks and went to Room 104.

Grand Boracay Resort is located at station 2, and one of their gates lead you to D'Mall, making White Beach very accessible. Since it is non-beachfront, we had the privacy that we wanted. The place was also very peaceful and quiet. Staff were accommodating and hospitable. Just perfect!





So after securing our things, we went to Gasthof (station 2) for lunch. We had baby back ribs, calamari and rice. We were careful not to order tap water bcoz of the water problem in Boracay, so we asked for Sprite and bottled water. Lunch was yum yum yum!

We strolled along White Beach and enjoyed the spectacular view of the ocean. I asked Keith if he wanted to go to the Dead Forest (station 3) to take some pictures. He said "ok, lets give it a try". Since we didnt know where it was, we decided to take a tricycle. When I told the driver where we were headed, he didnt know the place. He hollered to his driver-mate who said "ahhh Bella Flores! sa station 1!". Teka, artista yun diba, hehehe. So we scrapped that idea and went back to the hotel.

At 4pm, we took a stroll along White Beach. The sun was up and it was really really hot! We took a dip at station 3, Angol area, where there were only a handful of people swimming.

At 5pm, we went to the Red Pirates Pub (station 3) for our scheduled 1-hour sunset cruise. There, we met Raymond and Arthur, the coolest paraw sailers in Boracay, who sailed us through White Beach, passing by Manny Pacquio's mansion, Shangrila and Puka Beach. We exceeded 1 hour, but they only charged us P500. I really recommend the Red Pirates for island hopping or sunset cruise. Don't forget to bring some beer, it will make your paraw sailing much more enjoyable! For inquiries, contact Jen at 09152030790.





It was already 6:30pm. We went back to the hotel to change and prepare for dinner. I decided to bring Keith to station 1 for some seafood buffet. On our way there, we passed by Willy's Rock and posed for pictures at the Grotto. We had dinner at Seawind, where their buffet offered oysters, grilled seafood like prawns, tuna, blue marlin, squid. They also have a pasta and dessert bar. OMG, I ate a lot!



Happy Birthday Hunny! :)

On the way back, we stopped by Bamboo Lounge, who had two fire dancers performing for the crowd. We also took a pic by a sandcastle, which I think is a required souvenir shot if you are going to Boracay, hehehe.



After that, we called it a night. :)

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Angels and Demons

We watched Angels & Demons today, with four of our friends Mike & Botch and Mark & Dianne. The movie was awesome and I loved Ewan Mcgregor's character- the chamarlengo, hehe.



After the movie, we went to Macapagal Ave to have dinner. We were craving for chinese food so we stopped by this chinese restaurant in Blue Wave. Then, went to Bagaberde, where Fat Session and Freestyle where playing. It sure was a fun night! :)

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Happy 80th Birthday Lola Nena!

My lola celebrated her 80th birthday today and my mom and my cousins gave her a surprise party at the Bethel Hotel in Dumaguete.



We really wanted to be there but Keith and I had work, and I also had a teambuilding to attend to. Anyway, the party was a success and my lola loved everything, esp the AVP presentation. There were also special (impromptu) dance numbers from each family. We watched the videos and they were hilarious, hehe!



My lola in blue, with her amigas.



Here is Lola Nena and Lolo Pancho. Aren't they cute? :)

My lola is a strong woman, with a very big heart. She is thoughtful, sweet, funny and very loving. She is very special to us, and we pray that God will continue to bless her with good health so she has more years to play with her great grand children. Happy Birthday Lola Nena! We love you very much! :)

Monday, April 20, 2009

Porta Verde Teambuilding

April 18-19, we had our teambuilding at Porta Verde Resort in Cavinti Laguna. We left Manila at 6am, taking the Rizal route to avoid traffic in SLEX. I got dizzy with the bituka ng manok (think Initial D), but our travel was smooth in general. We reached Laguna at 9:30am, and stopped by a convenience store to buy booze and ice.

Porta Verde was refreshing and nice. The lake was very serene. Our villa was perfect for us, and the view from our windows was awesome. We made a quick prayer before having lunch.



We had a cookfest challenge, with P1500 budget for each team. Here is Team Hajie with their dishes:



They served chowfan, chicken barbeque, spaghetti, one Thai dish, sago & gulaman and fruit salad. Just from the presentation of their food, you will be enticed to eat!

After lunch, we had some activities. I prepared two FGDs on Communication and Teamwork. It was fun!



Then, we prepared merienda. Here is Team Mau with our tacos and pizza breads. Of course everybody loved our food, especially the mango shake with tapioca. :)



After merienda, the girls went to swim, while the boys tried kayak. It sure was fun, and everybody was in high spirits.





Dinner was prepared by Team Rick. Even if we were all still very full from breakfast and merienda, we didn't pass dinner because food was great!



Then, we had some videoke and the classic one-two-three-pass. Losers got powered on the face, hehehe.





The following day, we had our boat ride by the lake. We saw a small island and decided to have some pictures. Cheers!



Thank you everyone! Until next time! :)

PORTA VERDE RESORT
Cavinti, Laguna
Contact Person: Anthony Nacion - 09075564214

More pictures here: http://good-times.webshots.com/myphotos?action=refreshPhotos&albumID=571220948&security=WgvSlf

Friday, April 17, 2009

Say – John Mayer

Take all of your wasted honor
Every little past frustration
Take all of your so called problems
Better put them in quotations

Say what you need to say
Say what you need to say

Walking like a one man army
Fighting with the shadows in your head
Living out the same old moment
Knowing you'd be better off instead
If you could only

Say what you need to say
Say what you need to say
Say what you need to say

Have no fear for giving in
Have no fear for giving over
You better know that in the end
It's better to say too much
Than never to say what you need to say

Even if your hands are shaking
And your faith is broken
Even as your eyes are closing
Do it with a heart wide open

Say what you need to say
Say what you need to say

The Bucket List, Soundtrack

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Knowing

Sunday, April 05, 2009

Saturday, April 04, 2009

First Drawing Book