An Exclusive All Domestic Travel Expo

Admittedly, I have seen more of the places outside of the Philippines than within. This year, I am glad to have seen certain places in the country that I haven’t before. Although I think I am all set for my travels until the end of 2010 (because believe me, it is really hurting my bank account), I couldn’t resist going to this event when it was all about travel. I thought it would be a travel expo kind of thing.

Which indeed, it was (or rather, it will be), only not on that night. But on September 3 to 5, head out to the Megatrade Hall in SM Megamall as the 21st Philippine Travel Mart, organized by the Philippine Tour Operators Association (a.k.a. PHILTOA, the largest association of registered inbound and domestic tour operators) and Department of Tourism, happens and unveils several domestic packages that promised to be truly budget-friendly.

A whole range of travel packages await, from land tours to the ones that include airfares. I suggest for these packages to be recommended to our friends abroad to entice them to come to our country so that we can help in our country’s tourism. Packages vary from City Break, an all day itinerary, which includes the Binondo Culinary Tour, Batangas Beach Tour and Mt. Pinatubo Trek among many others; Kulinarya Tour in Bulacan, Pampanga, Batangas, and Tagala; City Escape which offers overnight getaways in Cavite, Corregidor and Tagaytay; and not to be missed are the Island Getaways in Boracay, Banaue, Cebu, Davao, Palawan and Puerto Princesa.

For the companies that aim to seek for new venues to hold their team buildings in, this expo is just perfect. The travel sellers are said to offer great deals with a lot of options. There will also be seminars that will educate those interested to know more about the travel industry. Tourism Quiz Bee, WOW Tour Guide contest, Cultural Dance Competition and Eco-Chorale Competition are also to be held during the said dates.

I like the advocacy, promoting tourism within the country, exclusively. It is amazing because there are so many unexplored beautiful places in the Philippines, we just have to unfold them one by one and promote them. I am glad that there is PHILTOA that is currently helping with the mainstream destinations, at the same time, a possible avenue to promote the off-the-beaten-path ones.

Thanks to Mr. Cesar Cruz, president of PHILTOA for such a wonderful business mission and Nix and Cathy of GMCI. :)

The Philippine Travel Mart will be held in partnership with DOT, Tourism Promotion Board, PAL, PAGCOR, Primer Group of Companies, Resorts World Manila, Smart Communications, SBMA, TIEZA, Citibank (so don’t forget yours on September 3-5), Jeepney Tours and San Miguel Brewery, Patio Pacific Boracay, Marco Polo Davao, Two Season Resort Boracay, Shangri-la Mactan, The Legend Palawan, Maribago Bluewater Beach Resort, Boracay Tropics Resort Hotel and Hilton Cebu Resort & Spa.

Excitement in Romulo Lounge

The concessionaire on the 25th Floor of the Ayala Tower One has changed, I have been told when I first came for work. I was informed that the name has become Romulo Lounge (I’m not sure what the name was before). It rang a bell, but because I really bad with names, I ignored it. For an assignment, I checked out the menu for event. The restaurant serves Filipino food, with the menu showcased their Kare-Kare as one of the best. And because I love food and that I can surely recall, I remembered reading about Romulo Café in Anton’s blog… and how he said that the kare-kare was indeed good. From then on, I wanted to try the food here but the establishment is located in Quezon City, which is quite far away from me.

Since then, I couldn’t really wait to try it out, since it’s just a few hop (okay, fine, steps then :P) away from where I work. The following dishes were ordered:

Cheese Sticks (Php 120) – appetizer anyone? This is something you can order to warm up your stomach. However, it is nothing out of the ordinary though the ranchero sauce was a nice touch because of the kick it gives from the plain tasting cheese sticks. It tasted a little Mexican and tomato-ish which was good.

Romulo Style Chicken Pork Adobo (Php 180) – this was twice cooked chicken and pork with adobo sauce… on the side. This came with a serving of rice. The dish is good for one unless there are some other dishes on the table, then it can be good enough to share. The adobo sauce was oozing with flavour. Both chicken and pork were cooked fried with a hint of saltiness. I wonder if they would refill the adobo sauce as I’m sure if I was the one who completely ate this meal, the sauce would be gone before I was halfway through it.

Tito Greg’s Kare-Kare (P280) – I wish I know who Tito Greg was but judging by the taste of the kare-kare, I think he is really someone amazing. The kare-kare was absolutely delectable. The peanut sauce was unusually thicker than the usual Kare-Kare I am familiar eating but it was bland and flavourful at the same time. Confused? So was I. But it went really well together with the shrimp paste it was served though I would have preferred for the paste to be less sweet. I was actually waiting for the saltiness to kick-in but it didn’t. It was still good though because there was a good amount of tripe in it which I loved. This also came with a cup of rice.

You know what I absolutely love about Romulo Lounge? The price. Everything is reasonably priced but I guess they differ from the one in Quezon City (I have read that the one in Quezon City is more expensive). But they will add 10% to your bill for service charge. The ambiance in the Executive Lounge has always been quiet, when there are relatively few people because the tables are spaced widely. Based on the pictures I saw, the interior and ambiance of their establishment in Quezon City is way better, but for now, this branch in the Ayala Tower One will do. Oh, I almost forgot, the servers are friendly too.

Romulo Lounge

25/F Ayala Tower One

Ayala Avenue corner Paseo de Roxas St.

Makati City

Edit: Romulo Lounge had a price change after only less than 6 months of operation on the 25/F of Ayala Tower One. I was shocked when I ordered their kare-kare to go, they billed me Php 423.50. Price increase from Php 280 to Php 385. What I didn't like was that they charged me service when the dish was for take out (is this legal?). Also, the pork binagoongan is now at Php 350 from Php 180, that is almost double the price. They claim they increased the serving size. I'm so disappointed. Tsk tsk. :\

Deutsche Bank’s Home

I would absolutely love to write about this trip, city per city, but due to a lot of things happening in my life, I am lagging a little bit behind. This post was actually triggered by FlairCandy’s nomination of my blog as one of her Top 10 Emerging Influential Blogs for 2010 (Banana, thanks so much! I appreciate it!). Kindly nominate me if you think I deserve it (lol).

Hannah mentioned in her post about my travels and I feel bad that I haven’t really written a single post about the most exciting trips I had. So, for now, while I haven’t found the journal I wrote while I was on the trip and compiled all the maps I have gathered, here are a bunch of pictures I would like to share of Frankfurt. The city was my first stop during the Eastern European trip I did. I promise to write some information and to share my experiences soon.

For now, allow me to have a vain moment as the following are either pictures of myself or the pictures I took. I love taking photos and I try to do it as often as I can, so hopefully you like them. Ten photos to follow, enjoy!

Before I go, I just want to say, I miss Europe, terribly. I know I will be back soon.

I love the trees displayed along the main shopping road called Zeil. I passed along a Mc Donald’s and thought this display outside was interesting.

I saw these while I was walking the streets to go to Römer. thought the one on the left was photogenic. I think this was taken at the back of St. Bartholomeus’ Cathedral.

It was Sunday when we were there so there were a lot of shops closed and I guess the Germans like to keep their Sunday a rest day. This is Römer.

On the left is the skyline across the Main River. I thought of taking a picture of the right one because it struck me as very suburban. This is a nice place to spend your Sundays.

Here are pictures of Deutsche Bank’s Twin Towers. The buildings were being renovated while I was there. I am not sure if they are all done now.

The famous Euro sign sculpture at the European Central Bank. Truth be told, I can’t remember what building was on the right photo. I shall find out.

I took a photo of the street signs because for a minute, I thought, we were lost. There was no establishment in it anyway so it was a useless reference. Also, I just like doing so when I am in a foreign city. The one on the right is just a random shot I took that I like.

The one on the left is the old opera house called Alte Oper. I would have loved to see this at night. The right picture is Frankfurt’s Central Station called Hauptbahnhof

This sandwich was my lunch. I love sandwiches and pastries in Europe, they are all really tasty. This one was tomato, lettuce and cheese. The baguette was a little tough but that was expected. On the right were the things I bought from the grocery. See my necessities? Water, without gas please, plus a bunch of Hanuta, most of which I brought home. I love it and I wish I can import that little piece of snack here in Manila.

And then here’s me, all over. I shall be back and roam around some more come night fall in the future, I am sure the city looks great. More details coming up soon. :)

Eat All You Can at Tong Yang Shabu-Shabu

I can’t remember the last time I ate in this restaurant. I was young then and hot pot cooking was really in. I didn’t know it has evolved into something that it is today, a place where you can eat-all-you-can. I remembered staying away from this type of restaurants because I have allergies to almost everything and processed meatballs of sort always give me some rashes.

There are pre- cooked food ready to be eaten just in case you get really hungry because usually, the line during weekend nights is really long. There is fried rice, japanese rolls (okay, those don’t have to be cooked), kimchi, and a bunch of other appetizers that will tame your growling stomach for a bit. The main point of eating here is their hot pot cooking (or what they call shabu-shabu). You can choose what soup you want and I often choose just the plain one (chicken soup), others like the satay soup which should have just a faint taste of spiciness in it.

During my first time (and this is how I usually start in buffets), I went around scouting on what might tickle my fancy. I saw a lot of processed food (quite dreadful for me, allergic attack waiting to come by), vegetables, seafood (scallops, shrimps, marinated squid, etc.). For grilling purposes, they have a wide variety of choices of striped meat. They have the bacon like slices for both beef and pork meats. I prefer the one that’s beef and doesn’t have fat incorporated in it (I have no idea what’s it called). The meat are really flavourful and very easy on the mouth. If you cook it right, they are really chewy and a delight to eat. Aside from those, you may also grill some sausages and skewered meat. Choose the sauce you want to dip your grilled food into. They have around eight for you to choose from.

Drinks are already included. They have soft drinks, juices, iced tea, even beers. Dessert is also included. They have ingredients for halo-halo, slices of cakes and pastries, as well as different flavours of ice cream.

Staff are accommodating, even if the place is always packed by a lot of people, they would easily attend to you when you need soup refilling or for them to turn the heat on or off. Also, they have function rooms if you want a little privacy. I’m not sure if they have a minimum spend required.

It’s the experience and probably a thrill for some to be cooking their own food. As for me, I am just one happy eater. And yes, you’ll see me here again.

Grill and Shabu-shabu: M-S Lunch: Php 515 / M-S Dinner , Sunday Lunch, Holidays: Php 585
Shabu-shabu only: M-S Lunch: Php 445 / M-S Dinner, Sunday Lunch, Holidays: Php 515
VAT Inclusive, no service charge

Tong Yang Shabu-Shabu & Barbecue Restaurant
34 Jupiter cor. Planet St., Bel-Air, Makati City
(63-2) 8993388

An All Pink Night

Earlier this year, I have heard of Legally Blonde being staged by Atlantis Productions here in Manila. I couldn't contain my excitement until I heard that Nikki Gil and Nyoy Volante would be playing the lead roles. Don't get me wrong, I like them just fine. It is just that for me, I doubt when mainstream actors / singers play theatre roles. I'm not sure why, and I don't even know the basis of this bias but I believe in the experiences of those who literally breathe theatre their entire lives.

I wasn't planning to watch this because it is staged in Meralco Theatre, which is too far away from work. This was until I saw some contests online, then I just decided to try my luck. I was lucky enough to qualify for Anton's 20% off on tickets for a Saturday afternoon show and Chuvaness' 2 free balcony tickets on opening night. I decided to get the latter as I'm recently on a budget right now and I'd rather not spend. Also, I've never caught any theatre productions on opening night before. Truth be told though, I was hesitant to take the tickets because I could remember Meralco Theatre being a big venue and I was afraid I won't be able to see anything. My brother, who I went with, actually teased me that he will bring binoculars so that we could see the stage. Turned out he was serious but he forgot to bring them anyway.

Good thing that the balcony seats turned out to be quite okay seats. We could see something and it was good enough for free. However, we arrived a little late. I guess we entered at the “What You Want” number already. That night was quite horrible. We were stuck in a very slow Friday traffic with strong rains and flooding, hungry and lost. We were literally lost, I didn’t know if I was in Ortigas or in EDSA (I’m just really a Makati person). I got in the theatre with quite wet lower pants and literally dripping. I was cold.

I was relieved to find out that the musical just started. Legally Blonde is from a movie that starred Reese Witherspoon. It’s a story of a modern stereotyping of a blonde into someone who can’t do anything but be pretty. The protagonist strived to follow her pursuit for happiness (her “love”) to Harvard Law School, even if it meant going out of her own comfort zone, and discovering her full potential along the way.

I watched the movie too many times before. I even caught the sequel but it wasn’t as good. It was pure entertainment which should be good. And so was this musical.

Anyway, let me list down some of the good points from the musical:

• I loved Geneva Cruz as Brooke Wyndham doing “Whipped into Shape” number. Singing while doing jumping exercises is not a joke. I can barely hold a tune standing still, how much more moving, let alone jumping. It is amazing for me that she was able to do this number extremely well.
• How cool was Mr. Mailman UPS Guy? I loved him. His stints on-stage were very entertaining and he was very credible. I loved the music that would play whenever he would arrive and Paulette would be mesmerized by him.
• - Nikki Gil’s voice and dancing. She has done great studying the dance steps in this musical. Her voice was also right on pitch. I loved it when she would blab away like she was doing a monologue, she was entertaining. It was a bit obvious though that she was quite nervous, but I do hope that by now, she would’ve been accustomed doing the musical.
• Cris Villonco’s portrayal of Vivienne Kensington. The role suited her really well and I loved how awesome her hair was (it’s really similar to what Vivienne had in the movie). I wish she had more singing parts because she was a delight to watch.

However, there were a few things that the musical can do better. I watched during the opening night but I do hope they already have some changes on the things that I point out below:

• The stage design. I have imagined for Legally Blonde to be with much gloss and glamour. Sadly, the props weren’t able to cope up with my expectations. It didn’t look luxurious which I can’t really pinpoint how. I wish they could have put more glamour and ooomph to make the set more appealing. I would’ve loved for my eyes to go “wow”.
• Sound system. The microphones of the actors would go silent which was very annoying and distracting, of course. I was very into the musical following the story and all of a sudden, I couldn’t hear what the actors were talking about. I hope by now they were able to do something about this.
• Nikki Gil’s costume while she was in black corporate attire. I know Elle’s character during that time should portray like she was fitting-in with the Harvard Law School crowd but the long skirt looked really lousy on her.
• Brooke Wyndham’s hair style. Geneva could do better with a different wig, seriously. I’m not sure if it was just me though. It looked very stiff which didn’t suit Brooke’s personality in my opinion.

I have to commend the hard work of the entire cast especially Chari Arespacochaga and Atlantis Productions who made Legally Blonde The Musical possible to be staged in Manila. I hope those who went enjoyed the show. It w as a good thing that this was brought here for us to see. I love it every time there’s a new musical or play being staged because I feel like our theatre industry is flourishing. Soon to be staged is CATS (which I don’t know how I would catch because the tickets are quite pricey, I have yet to win anything from their weekly contest online). I will also try watching Equus this weekend or the next. I read good reviews about it.

Legally Blonde will run until July 18th at the Meralco Theatre so get your tickets from Ticketworld at (63-2) 8919999 or contact Atlantis Productions at (63-2) 8927078.

Going Loco in Boracay

I was walking by the main beach of Boracay as I usually do when I’m there. I noticed how people had the same tumbler while strolling as well. One day, after when I first set my foot on Boracay’s sand, I discovered Loco Frio.

Loco Frio is actually a place, almost a stall but not quite (because you can lounge for a while by the stairs where they placed some comfortable pillows) where you can get flavoured beverages on crushed ice to go. Flavours include lime margarita, mai tai, mojito, blue hawaiian, strawberry kiwi and mudslide. You may opt to have alcohol in your drink or not and what is even better is that the cheerful and accommodating staff can suggest on what type of alcohol goes with your chosen drink.

For Php 250, I think this is a reasonable deal judging by how much you consume. They have servings in 16 oz or 20 oz. Loco Frio also donates by letting you drop a coin to the pocket-like container representing your charity of choice. What is really awesome about this is that it veers you away from having the same fruit shake (don’t get me wrong, I’m such a Jonah’s fan) and offers you not only a new drink but a new way to enjoy it while you are on vacation. Cheers!

Loco Frio

Add them in Facebook

Look for them along Boracay’s Main Beach in Station 1.

Around Shangri-la Boracay and Cielo

The real reason I went to Boracay this year was to help my brother settle down in Boracay Shangri-la. For a few months, he’ll be doing his internship there so my worried parents sent me to check things out. Thankfully, everything was fine.

Shangri-la Boracay would be one of the places I would spend at least a night at. I know I better start saving for that. The resort is occupying a large chunk of land at the tip of the island. Shangri-la developed the place into a gorgeous tropical paradise. When you see the place, you would want to just pack your entire life in the city and stay in Boracay for good. The overlooking from the lobby would make you wish you own the property, even just a cluster of it.

Due to the limited time that I had, I was not able to really go around the property and take a peak on their villas. I would’ve gone but it was just me who wanted to make that effort of going back. My Mom however was able to go around and did an ocular. I wanted to see the villas because I am staying there the next time I come back (says me, hehehe).

Cielo is one of the many restaurants in the resort, one of the two that was by their very inviting pool. Private function was about to happen when we were there so the staff were setting up. We chose a table that sits by the pool. Trees were hanging over us which provided for our shade in our already roofed position.

We called for service and waiters from the bar near the pool came. We ordered the following:

Seafood pizza (Php 450) – one of their oven baked pizzas that has generous toppings of different seafood you can think of (grilled prawns, fish, squid and mussels). There was enough saltiness in the pizza. It had a thin, crispy crust topped with some tomato and cheese. The toppings tasted amazing and were really cooked well. I especially liked the fact that the squid was not hard to chew.

Four cheese pizza (Php 400) – this pizza has gruyere, parmesan, mozzarella and gorgonzola. This was wonderful. It had the same oven baked crispy thin crust as that of the seafood pizza. It had enough kick of saltiness that came from the cheeses which I loved.

We managed to consume the two pizzas while spending a nice afternoon exchanging stories and taking photos in between. It was good and relaxing especially with the view of Shangri-la’s landscape. I will be back, that’s for sure. ;)

Cielo, Shangri-la Boracay

Barangay Yapak Boracay Island
Malay, Aklan 5608, Philippines
(63 36) 288 4988

Boracay Island’s Chori-Burger

Chori-Burger is sliced and grilled chorizo that comes with grilled bread. It is being widely offered in Boracay as it gained popularity amongst people who frequent the vacation spot. I only got to hear about the words chori-burger on the island itself, so I thought that it was unique to there.

If you happen to see a barbecue stand with hotdogs, pork-barbeque, dried squid and the likes hanging around, chances are, chori burger is available. I got to try this sandwich just last year. And I’d like to think that I (together with my friends) discovered the best tasting one (at least for us) in Boracay.

That barbecue stand located just outside of D’Mall is the one I’m talking about. The stand has MYMY’s B.B.Q. Stand written on it and is across Villa Rhazel Resort Hotel to be exact. They actually boast that their chori-burger is the best. Maybe it has something to do with the barbecue sauce that they spread on the chorizo. Also how grilled the bread is up to the point that it got a bit crispy on the outside yet really soft and hot on the inside. Not to mention the taste of the chorizo which had a slightly overpowering taste but is evened out by the bread that it comes with at the same time.

MYMY’s sells the sandwich for Php 50 each, while the rest of Boracay sell this for Php 40 only. My best friend then tried to haggle with them and he was told to just order someplace else. I didn’t know if I was going to laugh or be pissed. In any case, he still ended up buying from them and we still ended up hailing MYMY’s to have the best chori-burger on the island.

You also get to choose if you want to slab in some spicy into your burger. As for me, I like mine a bit sweet. This is actually best combined with fruit shakes I think, or if not, some cocktails during the night. It’s up to you however you want to enjoy your chori-burger, my only point is that, just have a taste when you find yourself in Boracay. It sure is a nice snack to eat while strolling by the beach admiring the landscape.

MYMY’s B.B.Q. Stand
Outside of D'Mall, Station 2,
Boracay Island, Philippines