road3pper

Tagaytay 3p

2009-09-24T10:57:00.000-07:00

Recently, I had the chance to revisit the beautiful city of Tagaytay in the province of Cavite. It is also known as "Little Baguio" and "Paradise of Southern Luzon." me thinks everyone loves tagaytay! and please don't ask me why. You better get there to know the the reason why.

What TO DO:

Picture taking at Taal Vista Hotel

provides the Best Views of Taal Volcano and Taal Lake and the Best Shots for photos and Videos in all of Tagaytay City. The hotel is strategically located at the center of tagaytay and from there you can plan many activities to nearby attractions, dining places and nite spots. examples are casino filipino wherein you just cross the street.

--> fascinating view of the Taal Volcano

Entrance of Taal Vista

Taal Vista Hotel is in front of Casino Filipino so if you're feeling lucky, go for it or take a walk to Mushroom Burger.

The rooms in Taal Vista is spacious and homey with comfy beds and pillows. The bathroom is big and I love the bath tub.

-->the room

-->the bath tub

Gourmet's Cafe is the restaurant that started the trend of having an organic vegetable garden showcasing how fresh their salads are. The farm is very well maintained and use organic fertilizers so it is very healthy and environmentally friendly.
They also have excellent coffee and cheesecake.

Digging in: Fresh fruits

Fresh salads and sandwiches

Mushroom Burger

Me and my veggie nerd friends will gawk and awe over this delish mushroom burger! ts like eating in a burger stand yet you're getting all the nutrient of that "fungus" mushroom.

Check out their food here!!!

Try ordering their mushroom burger w/ cheese. truly a healthy snack that will surely satisfy your hunger... we ordered mushroom burgr king and mushroom burger royal! truly a healthy snack that is very satisfying.. we also added ganoderma lucider to our drinks, which according to the waiter.. its an herb in China, an antioxidant that reduces antibodies, prevent cancer, etc. :) nerd! lol

Zipline and Cable Car

ffordable and basic, the Zipline and Cable Car is actually inside the Picnic Grove compound. The zipline was a fun experience. The cage-like cable car looks boring though.

Zipline & Cable Car:
P200 one-way, P300 two-way on weekends
P100-200 on weekdays

Go picnic, dining, horse back riding and many more at Picnic Grove

Tagaytay is more in picnic haunt, everytime when we were there this activity is just like a tradition for my family They have picnic cottages and pavilions worth P150-P500 each go horseback riding, but it was too expensive. 200 Php for adults, and it wasn't even for an hour! Even taking pictures with a horse of your choice has a fee!

Real Farmville here people! Ilog Maria Honeybee Farm This farm is about 10-15 minutes drive from Tagaytay. It is actually located in Silang, Cavite.

There is a farm store in front where you can get pasalubongs made out of honey and other associated bee products. The prices are reasonable. I I love their products.

Sip hot coffee on Starbucks

I didn't like coffee.. well not until Starbucks came into the picture.. and what a great place to have one (whether hot or cold) in a cool place like Tagaytay! I love sipping my hot cup of White chocolate mocha, perfect match for my four-cheese pizza from Carlo's pizza. Yum!

So relaxing...always been my fave place to chill!

Sonya's Garden A restaurant with a fragrant garden where you could take a walk at night or lay in beds with nets for a romantic tryst. If you want to relax and feast your eyes on nature's beauty, It only has organic food on the menu, as I understand, and it also has a spa, country store and even its own bakery (where you can buy freshly baked bread). you could take a walk at night or lay in beds with nets for a romantic tryst. nice!

The service in the restaurant is very good, although a bit pricey at P610 for an eat-all-you-can menu of salad, pasta and dessert. I love their salad and that smashingly sinful homemade chocolate cake. I also like their tarragon tea because it puts away all the umay factor! :)

Check out my blog here for their food!

their rooms are truly amazing!

I also like the shower room, very spacious and really unique.

They have organic food on the menu, and it also has a spa, country store and even its own bakery (where you can buy freshly baked bread).

Bag of Beans

This is my favorite because I heart their bluberries cheesecake and their pies. Regular pies price range: 80 to 120 php while the shepherd's pie is around 150 php. Try their roasted Coffee Alamid, light and naturally sweet. The café has become a popular stopover for those on the lookout for an authentic English menu and a place to unwind after a round of binge eating.
Check out the food HERE!

Birthday Vacay in Boracay

2009-09-23T05:51:00.000-07:00

For months, I had been dreaming of going back to Boracay. But we kept putting it off. First, our baby was way too young and the transfers from plane to land vehicle to boat to land vehicle didn’t sound like child’s play or a baby's day out. Then, we knew we had to bring a laptop to check our clients online so it's mostly pleasure but we still have to work. (Bummer.) For me, it never sounded too much of a luxury for me and my hubby's birthday because we knew we really needed this vacay or else I think my migraine will just get even worse. I think we deserve some time to destress and have fun with all the hard work we're doing. But all of that is now behind us and we finally went last weekend. Besides, there's no other place to celebrate my birthday (or should I say our birthday) other than Boracay. Other hibernation havens we have in mind are Bohol and Palawan... to escape the city life and get a taste of paradise . :)Obviously, travelling in Bora with a 15-month-old baby is a new and challenging experience, though not nearly as hard as I'd anticipated. And, quite frankly, it actually seems easier to travel with Maia than to be at home alone with her all day. LOL Perhaps that is because she really does fuss less when she is exposed to so many beautiful sights of people, sun, sand and sea plus of course beautiful and smiling faces of people in Bora. Actually I'm quite sure it's a combo of all of these, plus the perks that all travelers glean… no meals to prepare, no dishes to wash, no rooms to clean, no work, etc..etc... And with a baby snuggled cheek-to-cheek, and a huge backpack in tow, I felt exhilarated to experience travel on a whole new dimension. haha nosebleed??! LOL
The weather for the last few days before our Bora trip didn’t seem to look so good. Our personal outlook at that point: bleak. But we were determined to have a good time. Nevertheless, I already psyched myself for this much-needed vacay or our very own Bora trip with a hyperkulit baby in tow so I bought loads of baby sun screen, cover ups, waterproof diapers (was given by her sweet aunt from US), sunglasses for the little sprout, a cute hat and beach toys ..you know the usual pail and shovel for the sand you know (Manny Pacquiao is that you? haha ) :) Anyhoo, I decided to go to Bora not only for us to relax from work but also for my baby girl to experience it too. I want to go to Bora for the food, while my hubby can’t wait to slather on sunblock and dive or plunge into the water. LOL I also like taking pics though my Sony T70 digicam is quite annoying or could be that I’m just such a crap shooter...and I’m a huge food & beach lover (in that exact order!) So off we trotted...

For our Day 1, we just walked by the beach and then let our baby swim in 2 of the 3 big pools of Boracay Regency because she doesn't like the icky feeling of the sand on her feet ( ang arte! hehe) She thought it was dirty... but actually, the fine white powdery sand in Bora didnt scratch my feet even under the scorching heat of the midday sun! Thank God for the beautiful sun and pleasant weather last weekend. We were actually scared of spending Boracay without Mr. Sun! I think that a wee bit of sundance really helps. LOL Eventhough my baby is a bit maarte and choosy like me hihi I am so damn proud of her, a lot of foreigners and locals are saying how cute and biba she is because she keeps on dancing even on any kind of music even on Reggae music, she's always smiling and flying sweet kisses. The Front Desk Officers in Boracay Regency was so adored and amazed with her and after some dancing and flying kisses, we found out that our room was upgraded from Standard to a Deluxe room with a veranda and we also had a free breakfast buffet! Woohoo! We're so lucky to have her.
.
So there, we just took a rest and then jumped in the pool and took lots of pics.
But its main pool with a swim-up bar was our goto option for cooling off and enjoying our cocktails and fresh mango shake for or lil Bora babe Maia.

You could just swim up to the fully stocked bar, sit on an underwater stool, and then sip, savor and repeat after me...ahh this is life! lol After we got tired swimming, we were so exhausted and famished (Nosebleed!) so we had a sumptuous dinner buffet in Regency,walked by the beach, got my henna tattoo of the my beloved Boracay sun and then dozed off to sleep earlier than we expected.

So it was actually one of our Lola nights in Bora! Clubbing on a Saturday night is actually one of the many things you can't do in Bora if you're no longer single with a baby in tow unless you bring the yaya! LOL Also, too bad we weren't able to meet up with other GT Boraddicts in Starbucks because I almost lost my cellphone that night.. blame it to the anesthesia. Amf! But what I really enjoyed that day was our dinner buffet in Sea Breeze Cafe, their food was overflowing, delectable and superb. The dinner buffet costs PHP475 but there are lots of other buffet in the island ranging from PHP250-500.

Day 2. We had our free breakfast buffet in Sea Breeze Cafe and from Boracay Regency, after a few dips in the kiddie pool, we transferred to another boutique hotel called Island Nook which is actually owned and managed by Trondz, one of the nicest people I know in Bora and GT forum (thanks for the BIG discount ^.^ ) though I haven't had the chance to meet him though. Because when he invited us to watch the sunset in the roofdeck of The Tides, we already booked our paraw sailing to watch the sunset for the next day. Review of our stay there is...to follow. :)

We also met one of the gorgeous Girltalkers who also spent weekend in Bora, Madz and her boyfriend who are sooo nice and down-to-earth.. We met at Carlo's Pizza (yes, it's the Carlo's pizza you also see in Tagaytay) besides Starbucks (they also have it now in Bora too) where we had our dinner. So just imagine those girls in skimpy bikini sipping up a hot latte... Hot! Bora is so commercialized already, even Shakey's and Andok's are there too. Needless to say, we both enjoyed parasailing that afternoon after our powernap. Love it but it's not fit for the faint of heart or afraid of heights, mind you! Nuff said.

Day 2. We had our free breakfast buffet in Sea Breeze Cafe from Boracay Regency, and after a few dips in the kiddie pool, we transferred to another boutique hotel called Island Nook which is actually owned and managed by Trondz, one of the nicest people I know in Bora and GT forum (thanks for the BIG discount ^.^ ) though I haven't had the chance to meet him though. Because when he invited us to watch the sunset in the roofdeck of The Tides, we already booked our paraw sailing to watch the sunset. I so love the soft pillows, 32" LCD TV and uber fast wi-fi in our room in Island Nook with its simple yet stylish and elegant design. Review on our stay there is...to follow. :)

We also met one of the gorgeous Girltalkers who also spent weekend in Bora, Madz and her boyfriend who are sooo nice and down-to-earth..

|"So to end the day on a sweet note, we had the best Tropical shake I've ever tasted that day! I just couldn’t get enough of the invigorating beverages in Bora...

On Day 3, the day was too pretty to waste just sitting, beach bumming and unstoppably strolling along the beach so we tried reef walking... we met early morning with Biboy, our very nice and baby-friendly boatman. He said its best to try reef walking or the so-called helmet diving early in the morning around 8 am because the fishies are still hungry and the water is crystal clear.

True enough.. the underwater view was really breathtaking and the fish (like the cutie Nemo) came up to us, swarmed in front of us and feed on pieces of bread tossed by hubby and me. It's actually ticklish when they're biting my fingers. :) The same kind of feeling you get when doctor fishies eat your feet's dead skin cells.. Eew.. LOL We had so much fun! :) The rest of the day with Mr. Sun and our Little Miss Sunshine was spent strolling, eating, swimming and napping. We also had a quick fix at Jonah's shakes that I truly missed so we walked by the beach and climbed up to the Boracay Beach Grotto even if it's already high tide while sipping a bottle of Mocha Rhum! Power Trip Alert!

I ordered my all-time favorite melon mango shake that Maia also learned to love while hubby shared a little of his Mocha Rhum shake with me! It was ummm...refreshing and awakening at the same time!

Maia was also able to conquer her fear of the Bora sand. Just look at that last baby standing! :)
Then before Mr Sun sinks into the waters, we went paraw sailing and watched the sunset.
The feeling vaguely reminded me of my first kiss back in high school. As the last trace of day fell , I pulled my hubby by the hand and grabbed our baby in between us for a yummy kiss that would undoubtedly erase any previous records. *mushy* Amf!
We also had fun watching the firedancers in a Luau party by the beach.

At 1 am, I woke up craving for the shawarma that we ate the last 2 afternoons we had in Bora. Talk about midnight hunger pangs!

Sure, the sunset was picture perfect while we were sailing. No frills. No drama. It was really nicer and more relaxing to watch sunset while sailing in a paraw unlike the usual watching it by the beach which is really not that impressive for me and I didn’t find it relaxing, I didn’t understand what the big deal was. I suppose it’s just fashionable and hip to be seen in Boracay. It’s hip to be with the hip crowd, that sort of thing. Really, I felt no excitement at the fact that I had to jostle my way through the crowded beach just to watch the sunset and the endless fashion parade on the beach seemed silly compared to sailing to watch the sunset, reef walking or helmet diving, snorkeling or gazing at the corals underneath the sea and playing among the colored fishies (that's my plural for fishy hihi) and then overfeeding them. LOL So for a change on our last night, we tried paraw sailing to see the sunset. I thought paraw sailing was boring at first but once we got started, I am already more than thrilled and happy that we decided to try it too!
The boatman was even following us for the last 2 days making endless sales talk. He started offering my hubby 1500 for an hour of paraw sailing and then it went down to 600. Not bad! I didn't know my hubby was even good in haggling. Here's more vanity pix LOL

We then brought our seafood bounty to one of the small restaurants in D'talipapa and had our fresh catch cooked for us. We had chili crab, grilled blue marlin, and buttered prawns and then we went haggling again for island souvenirs and pasalubong.
It's better and cheaper to buy pasalubong and stuff in D'Talipapa than in D'MAll having more upscale shops and resto. After that, we signed off...

On Day 4, we woke up pretty late and it was raining... so after packing our bags..we triked our way to the port and we decided to take the FastTrack boat which cost PHP60 which is a bit higher price than the regular boat ride of PHP25 to Caticlan airport. Tricycle ride from port to the airport is PHP100. Then paid the terminal fee of PHP20. Had our breakfast at Sky Cafe in the Caticlan Airport. We saw Ems and Roxy, another fab girltalkers who also went in Bora and took pictures again. LOL There are a lot more photos and stories that are worth posting but not today.

Overall, we enjoyed our trip in Bora with Maia even if it's all le fang and le kwatsa mode all day! 4 days and 3 nights in Bora is so bitin because I haven't tried a lot of things on my list like massage by the beach and island hopping that I really missed...well next time...And as the saying goes, ‘one good turn deserves another,’ so we'll be going back in August and Im sure there's no more pesky seaweeds mucking up the place,(another plus to travelling during the off-season because seaweeds usually make their appearance during summer time, guess they need a vacation too :). I am even more excited because hubby just got a Sony a200 DSLR and we're going to use it on our next trip!

Reality check. Time to eat dinner...at home.. There was much more in Boracay, but I think I've bored you enough. This turned out to be quite a long post, so thanks to those that actually read everything, and if you're still not that bored reading my blog, why don't you check out the things and must-eat foods that I haven't tried but would like to try in Bora this August. I'll try to make my next post shorter, but it's tough getting back into the swing of things after spending a few fun-filled days in Bora... so check 'em out! Go! Now na..

Note: More Bora pix on Facebook, add me up hushbaby22@yahoo.com or click this LINK! Thanks!

Boracay 3p

2009-09-18T02:38:00.001-07:00

Boracay is one of my favorite places on Earth.. it's all fun, sun, the beach...no drama. no frills. If you ask me what are the things that you should be doing here aside from beach bumming and getting a tan, here they are chicas...

Boracay at its best.

have a henna tatoo

Been dying to have a tatoo which you can change the design or remove afterwards? yeah, Henna Tatoo is the solution for that. Many stalls along the beach are offering this service. Price ranges form 100-500 pesos depending on the design. Just haggle!

pose at sand castles

have snap shots and pictures beside it (for a fee off course, which are negotiable) so when you see a sand castle, be ready to take a shot with your friends or family.

watch the sunset

Cheap yet fun way of enjoying Boracay.. a magnificent view of the Sun as it sets down and pave its way to the moon :-)

Just make sure you have our camera ready to get a shot of this beautiful masterpiece.

go shopping by the beach.. you'll find lots of shops at D Mall and D Talipapa... it's everywhere...

watch the fire dancers do their stuff.. quite impressive!!

have a relaxing massage by the beach

The best massage to be had outside of a spa is those masseurs who works on the beach that specialises in Swedish massage, shiatsu, accupressure etc, and charges P300-350 per hour. They have a bed for you to lie on and will tailor the massage to suit you - don't be afraid to ask for a harder or softer massage. Go in the evening, as watching the sunset while getting a massage is an absolute must! Room service is also available. we tried both! ;p

ATV or Buggy or bug car to Mt. Luho

Mt Luho is worth the trip if your in the area. It is the highest peak of Boracay Island that offers adventurers to an easy to moderate trek/climb and offer a panoramic view of the island. There's a view deck made of bamboo at its peak for an unobstructed view. Get there , either with Tricycle, a horse ride or with atv or buggy rides
<--Buggy or bug car ATV to Mt. Luho

I had the opportunity to ride ATVs (all terrain vehicles) in action on Boracay Island racing with tricycles and bug cars (either 1 or two seaters) and all I can say is....

This is fun!

Prices range from P500-600 Philippine Pesos per person. Bug car is much higher, ranging PhP 1000-1200.

paraw sailing

enjoy the boracay sunset on a paraw (local boat) Sailing a paraw can be an exhilarating ride on a windy day, or a gentle, relaxing cruise in calm weather. Sailboats are environmentally friendly, and it is much nicer without the noise and stench of an engine chugging away. Prices range from P500-1000 Philippine Pesos per hour.

visit the Butterfly garden to see beautiful butterflies, beautiful owl and endangered fruit bats

Take pics of the butterflies and watch the fruit bats as they show off their huge pangs. A really spectacular sight - their pangs are much bigger than you might imagine. Take a tour of this beautiful little butterfly garden on Bolabog Beach and see some of the many different species of Philippine flora and fauna.
Entrance: PhP 60.00 per person

parasailing

Parasailing is one famous activity in the island. A little bit pricey but its worth a try. You'll have a bird's eye view of white beach and the whole island of boracay. Price per person is USD50 or around 2,500 in peso. You can bargain upto 1,500 pesos and it's much cheaper during off-peak season. You can do single or double like the one we did. wink

see the beautiful view of Willy's rock while sipping mocha rum shake from Jonah's.. I love the mocha rum shake and peanut butter shake and also try the mango shake of Waling Waling's! The best!

Willy's Rock is the Landmark Attraction in Station 1, at low tide you can go here and just hang around and see the view.

Swim at Station 3

Although the bars, hotels and life of the party are in Stations 1 and 2, when you want a less crowded area and more privacy for beach activities like swimming, snorkelling, sun tan, etc. Station 3 is the best since it is farthest by the congested Stations 1 and 2. You can walk the 800 meter distance to station 3 or hire a tricycle (cost is 7 pesos a person, more expensive if it's special), either way, you can expect more privacy and the sands are finer!

reef walking

this is so much fun!!! you get to feed the fishes.. better do it in the morning though because the fishes are still famished and starving for pandesal at that time LOL

under water kung fu fighting

<--reef walking last August 2009 Prices range from P400-500 Philippine Pesos during off peak season per person. It'a a bit higher on peak season, around 500-750 ( peak season is usually from March-May).

Ride the Zorb

This is the newest and hippest activity in Boracay and all I can say is: Wow! Can you imagine how much fun it is riding down a hill inside a giant ball? It's awesome! It's a 3 meter giant plastic ball and you climb inside and ride down the hill.

The park is located in Yapak. It's fun for all ages and affordable. Prices range from P300-580 Philippine Pesos per person.

-->this is our Bora pic way back in 2004 (too bad I can no longer find our pix in Bora last Feb 2001) and Boracay was even more beautiful back then... but for me, Boracay will always be beautiful.

Boracay will always be Boracay.

here's a link to my recent post about Boracay last May 2009.

Singapore 3p

2009-09-18T02:32:00.001-07:00

There's a lot to do in Singapore...a beautiful place to go..been here a lot of times and it has always been my favorite.

-->Have a high five with a statue or have a drink at the Indochine Restaurant, which is next to the Asian civilizations museum. The museum is a nice stop if you are taking a walking tour of the Singapore River.

Sit at the restaurant's riverside terrace.

Look up at all the brightly lit skyscrapers.

Look at the bumboats that now take tourists on their rounds.

Sentosa

Attractions:

- Butterfly Park & Insect Kingdom
- Cable Car
- Sentosa Luge & Skyride
- Sky Tower
- The Merlion
- Sentosa 4D Magix
- Nature Walks and Beaches
... and more

Siloso Beach

One thing that keeps me going back to this city state is their beaches. They don't have beautiful beaches to die for as most of their beach are fake but who cares, their beach are always so hot hot hot!

Singapore Sling

Go to Raffles for a Singapore Sling. What a tourist cliché! 'cause if you’d been to Singapore and stayed at Raffles you hadn’t really been to Singapore. I’m a big fan of many cocktails so I do the tourist thing and order the Sling. And the experience was appropriate to my circumstances. Every sip affords you a sweet, tart, aromatic, bitter, and herbal flavor.

hmmm... I miss the merlion. LOL