Godiva's Chocolixir

Chocolixir is a frozen chocolate blended drink offered by Godiva. It comes in four varieties: Dark Chocolate Decadence, Milk Chocolate Decadence, Mint Dark Chocolate and Dark Chocolate Raspberry.

I first tasted this back in 2006, when I went to Hong Kong with my college friends. I got it in Victoria Peak near Pacific Coffee. I can't remember how much it was then but I know it wasn't cheap. Me, plus two of my friends, had one 12oz Dark Chocolate Decadence split into three. We were in heaven.

The first sip was the best. Pure bliss. The taste of the rich dark chocolate with the right amount of crushed ice was amazing. It wasn't too sweet, nor too bitter. There were little bits of dark chocolates settled at the bottom of the cup. These made the texture perfect. You have an option to hold the whipped cream or not. I always ask the barista in coffee shops to leave out the whipped cream (in the hope of not consuming too much calories), but in this case, I like my whipped cream just fine. Indulge to the highest degree. Hehe.

I had this again a year after, when I went to New York, and again when I went to Singapore. I grabbed one of these September of last year at the same place where I got it first. And now, from a recent trip, I was able to drink it twice for a change (one from The Peak and the other from Sogo in TST, both times in Hong Kong). All instances I consumed the Dark Chocolate Decadence, not minding the 600++ calories intake per serving. The 72% Godiva dark chocolate in the drink always makes it all worth it.

Question is, would you spend HKD42 or USD5 for this drink? If these drinks were brought to Manila, I wonder how much people would actually pay. Hmmm...

P.S. Once I get my hand on one of those Godiva shops again, I shall taste their ice cream. Belgian Dark Chocolate Ice Cream, here we go...
(Flavors include: Ivory Chocolate Chip, Classic Milk Chocolate, Strawberry Chocolate Chip, Belgian Dark Chocolate and Milk Chocolate Chip)

Hanuta Love

Nutella lovers, hear hear! This rich chocolate with hazelnut bits sandwiched between two chocolate wafer biscuits will surely make you drool.

I think this treat is under-rated. I'm still wondering why no one in the Philippines has imported this yet. And I'm seriously thinking of making this snack available in our grocery stores (if only it was that easy).

As far as I know, these are found only in Germany. I'm not even sure if the entire Germany carries this as I have only seen it in Frankfurt and Berlin. I got to first taste this from my colleagues since they travel to Germany for training. When they came back, they brought with them a lot of Haribo and Hanuta treats.

These are made by Ferrero Group from Italy, the same makers of Ferrero Rocher and Nutella among many others. But this particular product was made for the German market and is locally produced there.

This little treat is an instant pick-me-upper food. Since I can't understand the ingredients (all in German), I would assume that the cocoa butter is dark chocolate (because it sure tastes like one). Hanuta actually tastes a lot like Nutella, only that there's the texture of hazelnut bits which is a good thing. A suggestion though is that Ferrero should change the packaging of Hanuta. They should seal the biscuits one by one for the wafers not to loose its crispness. But for now, once you open a box, make sure to consume everything within a week (which is not really a hard thing to do :P)

I've seen this being sold in three versions. One comes in packs of 12 with a total weight of 250g (€1.99). Another comes in bags of 18 weighing 200g (Hanuta Minis - €1.99) and the other is being sold individually at I think around 40g each (€0.50).

A little trivia before I go. Hanuta is short cut for Hasel Nuss Tafel which means Hazel Nut Bar.

Roam the X Travel Fair

What: Roam the X Travel Fair where people will think travel, speak travel and breathe travel.

Launching of Roam Magazine's second issue, "Train of Thoughts" photo exhibit, free workshops on travel photography, travel writing, alternate traveling and scrapbook making.

When: June 12, 2009; 3pm - 12mn

Where: Cubao X (formerly known as Cubao Expo / Marikina Shoe Expo)

Cubao X is one of those places I want to see especially now that it is so happening. I heard about it being the hang-out place of the underground musicians and artists (Montmartre anyone? =P). This would have been a perfect time to visit because of this event, unfortunately, I will be out of town.

For more information, visit their multiply site.

ROAM THE X is in collaboration with Travel Factor, Lomomanila, YTRiP, Certain Kind of Hue, Anak ng Kwek Kwek, Weewilldoodle, Baka Nakita Mo, and a lot more! This event is sponsored by YKL, Canon, Calcium Cee Vitamin, Villa Anna Resort, Pretty Looks. Special thanks to PNR, Mogwai, Blacksoup Project, Heima & Cubao X

Nokia E63: My Mean Machine

This smart phone was released back in November of last year. I just bought a new phone then. I saw some reviews from gsmarena.com and I didn't become really interested since the reviews were talking about the e63 being thicker than the e71 (and yes, I didn't like that =P). Also because it has a QWERTY keyboard which I thought I was going to hate to use for texting.

Months after, my friend, Lush Angel, bought one for herself since her Samsung U700 gave up on her. Also, because another friend of ours, (Flair Candy) convinced her to get one. I fell in love with it when I saw it in ruby red. But my liking did not stop there. It was packed with features which my newly bought phone then didn't have. It can open Adobe PDF files as well as Microsoft Office files. It doesn't lag when I go to my inbox which I love. The best part about it? It was around Php12,000 (approximately US$240) when Lush Angel bought it. For a smart phone that has everything (okay, not everything, but you get the idea), this was surely a steal.

I brought the phone to my recent trip and I used it for currency conversion (because I was dealing with 4 currencies during the trip!). I used the worksheet in Quick Office that came installed in the phone. Nowadays, all my thoughts (which I often have, a lot of apparently) are typed in notes. I made peace with how thick it is (and it isn’t thick at all, hehe). And I was wrong, I love QWERTY keyboard. I get so impatient these days sending messages from my other phone because I have to be pressing the same buttons a lot of times to create one. Using QWERTY keyboard is so easy and it forces me not to text while driving (which, admittedly, I do often).

To prove how much of a sensible buy this thing is, currently, I know around fifteen people who have Nokia e63 already. It's crazy. I was especially surprised when a close friend bought one instead of a Nokia 5800 XpressMusic which he had been eyeing to buy for a while. If I could bring all my fifteen friends in one room, I will be thrilled to have all fifteen e63s in one picture.

Currently priced at around Php 11,500

For information about applications, themes, short-cuts, visit wikispaces

For full specs and reviews, visit gsmarena.com

See You Next Year, Summer!

I hate to say goodbye to the sunny season because I am such a beach person. But it has been raining for a few days now which makes it odd to be planning a weekend beach getaway. Besides, day pictures and sunset pictures wouldn't be as nice (I want my blue skies during the day and orange/red skies during sunset/dusk).

When I miss the beach, I turn to music. I am a reggae fan (especially Bob Marley's songs) but this year, this song has been playing in my iPod over and over again. I know it is old but it is such a feel good song and I find the words really sweet. Just close your eyes and it instantly brings you back to the shore. Enjoy!

Underneath It All
No Doubt

There's times where I want something more
Someone more like me
There's times when this dress rehearsal
Seems incomplete
But, you see the colors in me like no one else
And behind your dark glasses you're...
You're something else

[Chorus]
You're really lovely, underneath it all
You want to love me, underneath it all
I'm really lucky, underneath it all
You're really lovely

You know some real bad tricks
And you need some discipline
But, lately you've been trying real hard
And giving me your best
And, you give me the most gorgeous sleep
That I've ever had
And when it's really bad
I guess it's not that bad

[Chorus]

So many moons that we have seen
Stumbling back next to me
I've seen right through and underneath
And you make me better
I've seen right through and underneath
And you make me better
Better... better...

You are my real prince charmin', like the heat from the fire
You were always burnin', and each time you're around
My body keeps stalin', for your touch
Your kisses and your sweet romancin', there's an underside to you
That so many adore, aside from your temper
Everything else secure, you're good for me, baby
Oh that, I'm sure
Over and over again, I want more

You've used up all your coupons
And all you've got left is me
And somehow I'm full of forgiveness
I guess it's meant to be

[Chorus 2x]