Sonya’s Garden – Tagaytay City

More accurately, it’s in the “vicinity of Tagaytay City” as per its website. I guess ‘Alfonso, Cavite’ doesn’t have that same tourism appeal as ‘Tagaytay City.’

So we went there for our honeymoon. On the way there, we almost got lost.
It wasn’t actually hard to go there. From the main road, you turn right at Buck Estate and that road will lead you straight to Sonya’s Garden. Incidentally, there are also a big Sonya’s Garden sign on the main road so you’d know when to turn right. You won’t get lost.
But we almost did. You see, we had no idea where Alfonso, Cavite was. So when we went past Tagaytay, and past Nasugbu, I was worried. Maybe we missed the turn. Maybe we didn’t see the sign. Maybe it was hidden. It was Sonya’s Secret Garden…
So we made a panic right turn. Fortunately, after a few minutes, Joel figured it wasn’t the right, right turn. So we headed back to the main road and waited for the big sign to show up. And it finally did. It was definitely NOT in Tagaytay.

We finally got there and as we were waiting for the person in reception, we noticed that a wedding reception will be held that afternoon. When the receptionist arrived, I guess she noticed the white dress and the barong so she asked us “Are you the newlyweds?”
I had to think before I could answer. We were in fact newlyweds, but I don’t think we were THE newlyweds she was waiting for. And I don’t remember booking the room and telling them that it was for our honeymoon. So I said “no” and wished that it will not be construed as fraud.

So we were led inside. It was amazing.



It felt so natural, as if God merely sprinkled flower seeds and left it to grow. It didn’t feel like a professional landscape architect had a hand on it at all. There was no structure. It was a beautiful and cozy kind of mess. Makes you feel like home, actually.

When we went to our room, I kind of thought that we should have told them we were on our honeymoon because it wasn’t a room, it was a house. While technically it might have been a room, it had 3 king size beds, 2 couches and 2 bathrooms. We weren’t used to all that space. We actually thought of inviting the whole gang to join us.

It was really lovely though – not your typical commercial and impersonal hotel room. On the contrary, it had personality. As if someone actually lives there, like it was someone’s home: some rich Filipino’s ancestral home away from the city. It can even be my home. I could easily imagine my grandma coming out of one of the rooms telling us it's time for dinner. It was that cozy.



And the food was amazing - all grown in their garden. And the china... my dad will go insane as none of them matched. But each piece was exquisite.


While it was a bit expensive, it was truly worth it. One day, I’ll bring my Canadian friends there.

Potipot Island, Zambales

I've been wanting to go to Potipot Island for years now. So when my friends found out that I'm going to Manila, they organized a group outing. But the night before the outing, only 4 of us can go. The group outing became a double date.


And that wasn't the only surprise of the trip. Turns out, they don't cook food for the guests anymore so we had to go panic shopping at the marketplace. Good thing we found where the market was.

So the next morning, we got up really early to go to the island. It was lovely. It was super worth it.

But I don’t think everyone will appreciate the Potipot experience.

First, it’s an undeveloped island. No electricity, no running water, no restaurants and no amenities. It’s like camping – without the RV. So you bring everything with you: gas tank, gas range, cooler filled with ice, cooler filled with food, cooler filled with drinks. I don’t think my mom will enjoy it, unless she brings a maid or a cook with her. Her vacation must be housework free. As for us semi-domesticated yuppies, we did have fun cooking fried chicken by the beach.

And second, maybe it’s the timing, but it tends to get crowded there too. Remember: it’s a small island. Unless you’re spot is too hot, too rocky or is infested by insect, don’t expect seclusion. But for us, we enjoyed the crowd. We watched this dad make a fool out of himself, drunken silly. We saw him fall out of a chair, stumble over his 5-7 year old daughter, throw up on the ocean and pass out at the sunny part of the beach.

Some have called the island “the hidden paradise”. The 7 hour drive from Manila might give you the feeling that it’s hidden, but once your there, seeing all the people there with you. You’d think their giving away the map for free.

As for the paradise part, well I can’t argue with that. The place is beautiful.

Zoobic Safari

4D strikes again. They're out on another adventure. Today's conquest: Subic.
At dahil si Pau ay hindi pa nakakakita ng tigers, we went to Zoobic Safari.

hmmm... bakit di sya masyadong mukang masaya....

And because Pau wants to see tigers, we went to the tigers first. It was interesting. Kinda cool actually. If I weren't scared of big animals, I would want a tiger for myself. The first ones we saw were caged. And then we tried the one where we ride the caged jeep. Astig. The tigers jump on the jeep. Mejo scary lng ng onti.

in front of the caged jeep

view from the inside of the jeep

after the tigers, ostrich naman daw. we rode the pick up nalang kasi pwede naman daw yun. Again, Pau hasn't seen an ostrich.


So ang saya namin diba? lahat nasa likod. So fun!
Except when we actually drove thru the ostrich farm. My goodness, nilapitan kami ng ostrich. Nagpanic lahat ng nasa likod. Imagine naman... kung ganon kalaki yung ibong tutuka sayo... Mejo lang ha.

before the attack

After that we went to the crocodile farm. Cool din coz we get to see them attack the dressed chicken. (You buy the chicken, its attached to a pole and you lower it to the crocs)

croc in action

Overall, it was an interesting experience. In fairness, worth the money naman. Sayang lang coz I think we missed yung pwede hawakan na tiger cub.

San Juan Batangas

the cast from left to right: Siela, Mario, Simon, Monica, Dev, Eeza, Joel, Micoy and Bunny

finally! the beach!
about 5 days before i left for canada, my 4d friends decided to organize a beach despedida for me.
we went sa san juan batangas!


this is where mario stays when he studies for the bar. astig nga eh. sa beach.
yung beach, white pebbles sya. so mejo you have to wear slippers kung sensitive ang feet mo. tas yung waters, ang clear and calm. sabi ni mario, you can go snorkling pa dun sa mejo malayo.
but i don't think ok sya if you have kids with you. biglang lalim kasi yung beach so mejo scary. but if you're already grown-up, or magaling ka maglangoy, ok na.

outside the resthouse

inside the resthouse

ang ganda! its a kubo diba? pero kumpleto sa gamit. (except nalang tv at computer diba.) pero may lutuan, may sink and may dining table.... as in pwede ka talaga mabuhay dun. super conducive for studying... or relaxing... hmm... parang di pwede pagsabayin yun ah.
ANYWAY, its super hot outside diba? pero pag-pasok mo, super presko. and aliwalas ng feeling. sana nga ganun nalang ang mga bahay sa manila, para di mainit kahit walang aircon.

WHAKHE!

Fort Santiago, Intramuros

Starring: Siela Gala and Joel Pagkatipunan

Second part of our Manila fieldtrip was in Fort Santiago in Intramuros.
It's near lang sa Manila Cathedral area. If you go in sa entrance before the cathedral, sa yung unang kanto sa left. 50 pesos yung entrance.

outside the gate

inside the gate

cell of Jose Rizal, where the footsteps start

joel following Jose Rizal's footsteps

me and manong gwardya sibil waiting for them

entrance to another Rizal museum

mi ultimo adios

one of the first copies of Noli Me Tangere

creepier cell of Rizal, notice him writing/reading something

Baluartillo And Reducto De San Francisco Javier

Manila Ocean Park

starring: Siela Gala and Joel Pagkatipunan

Before I set off to Canada, me and joel decided to go on a little fieldtrip.
First stop: The Manila Ocean Park

It's behind the Quirino Grand Stand, so coming from the south, take Roxas blvd. then left on Kalaw or Burgos (depending on the one way routes)
The admission fee is 400 pesos for adults, a little cheaper for the kids.
The lines can get really long so we suggest to get there before lunch.

From the outside, it was obvious that the establishment isn't really finished yet. But when you go inside the oceanarium, you won't be able to see the construction anymore. So mukang tapos na sya.

(click on picture to enlarge)

Nice naman yung place. Fascinating yung mga fishes. Yun nga lang, mejo bitin. I thought kasi it was a super big museum. Pero ok narin. Worth it naman for P400. It looked expensive to build eh. Tas mukang mahal din yung mga fishes

oh yung overhead aquarium pala, nakakatuwa, pero sobrang liit lang! super dun ako nabitin. kasi naman parang mga 5 meters lang yun lalakaran underneath. tas pagnakalabas ka na, bawal bumalik.
But in all fairness, since ngayon lang ako nakakita ng ganon, natuwa parin ako.

But what I really really enjoyed was the fish spa. Additional 100 pesos lang. It's not super ganda yung place. At kung maarte ka, di mo siguro susubukan.
Anyway, you'll dip your feet sa wading pool tas yung mga fishes na maliliit kakagatin yung paa mo. kakatakot at first. kakakiliti. pero after a while, ok na naman.

Left: my feet. Right: joel's feet.

Ang daya. Mas maraming fish dun sa kanya.

Our little Embassy Adventure

Starring: Siela Gala, Eeza Ramos

Three years ago in Tagaytay:
Marl: Pare nagtampo nga si Pao nung isang araw eh.
Joel: Bakit naman?
Marl: Di daw namin sinama sa Embassy.
Siela: Bakit nyo kelangan pumunta sa Embassy?
And everyone within earshot broke into laughter.

Apparently then, Embassy was the newest gimmick spot.
And I was clueless.

ANYWAY, a couple of days ago, Monica invited me to her brother’s birthday party at Embassy.
Hmm… Why not? I haven’t been there still. (Surprise, surprise.)

So Eeza and I arrived at around 12 midnight. We texted Monica to meet us outside but no reply.
30 minutes, a million missed calls later, no Monica in sight and Nicky was still on her way.
Shoot, we might have to go inside on our own.

So we gathered our confidence and walked thru the velvet ropes.
We announced our names to the lady who looked at the guest list. Eeza got her stamp, but...

Receptionist #1 (to Siela): Miss wala ka sa guestlist.
Oh no... Syet pano yan?

Called Monica, no answer.
Syet, syet, syet. This is beginning to be embarrassing.

So I looked at my id and got a brilliant idea.

Siela (to Receptionists#1): Miss, Marasigan is not my last name, it’s Gala. Nakita ko kasi sa "M" ka naghahap kanina.
Receptionist#1: Ma’m importante kasi yung last name para malaman naming kung ikaw nga yung nasa guest list.
Siela:I know. Kaya nga, Gala is my last name so can you check again? Ang kulet ha.

Confusing kasi yung id ko. Buo yung middle name. Tas yung Gala nasa baba. (di na kasi kasya sa line) So siguro di nya nakita.

Eventually, she did find my name.

And now that we have our stamps, we got in.
Headed to the VIP lounge, Eeza got in and...

Big Bouncer (to Siela): “miss, di ka pwede dito”
what the F? Not anymore...

So Eeza went out, both of us baffled. We compared our stamps.
Sa kanya VIP, sakin tribal something. Kaya naman pala…
But aren’t we on the same guest list?

We decided to go back to the reception. Syet. Sooo kakahiya na ha.

Siela: Miss, can you check, we’re in the same guest list but we have different stamps. There must be a mistake.
Receptionist#2: (checked the list, got a stamped) ay sori miss ah. (stamped me VIP)

Good Lord! This must be punishment for going out on a holy Wednesday.

SO we finally got in the VIP Lounge. Hmm… Nice naman. But we can’t go past the crowd. Syet.
How on earth will we find Mon?
And my feet's killing me...

Rang Monica, no answer.
Shoot.

We find Nicky with a girl friend. After the introductions:
Nicky: O, where’s mon?
Eeza: can’t find her. Too many people.
Nicky’s friend: You guys want to transfer nalang? Mahal inom dito eh.

Everyone agreed. We head to Piedra.
There goes my first night at emba, I thought.
But I was just so RELIEVED to be out of there to even feel disappointed.

Minutes later, we find ourselves sitting comfortably on the couch, sipping our drinks, bobbing our heads with the music.
Haay… this is better.

We actually had fun that night, Eeza and I.
We met new friends. (Nicky’s friend, Nicky’s other friend, Nicky’s other other friend. Oh and Gino’s friend too. Don’t worry, at the end of the night, I did get to remember their names.)
I drank just enough to get tipsy.
And we danced ourselves silly.

Despite everything that happened earlier, the night turned out to ba a happy night indeed.

Oh! About Monica, she’s fine now. She just got a little drunk that night. Hihi.

Manaoag Adventure

Cast: Ace Bautista, Jay Castro, Marlon Castillo, Tin Delos Reyes, Anna Devanadera, Siela Gala, Joel Pagkatipunan, RC Posadas, Eeza Ramos, Jun Sanosa

Road trip soundtrack
Joel: “Ayos sounds mo p’re ah”
RC: “Embassy mix pare. Eto favorite ko” And changed the song to track 6.
‘Because of you’ by Neyo plays. And then the next track, and the next, and the next…
By track 9, RC goes “Pare, number 6 ulit ha. Ok lang?”
Hmmm… Popsy, favorite?

So 3 times naming napakinggan yung tracks 5-8 bago palang dumating ng NLEX. But in fairness, after nun, buong CD na yung pinapakinggan namin. From track 1 to 25 na. But since yun lang ang dalang CD ni RC, mga 6 times naming sya napakinggan.

Actually, may isa pang CD. MP3 ng mga love songs. As in oldies love songs ha. Parang pang prom nung 1980’s. Not that I know. 1997 ako nag prom. ANYWAY, thankful narin ako sa Embassy mix ni Pops.

Invading Tarlac
So we arrived in Tarlac. We went to Papa Jay’s head quarters first. We saw his office. Whoa. Kakabilib.

After that, we went to the house where we will stay. It was a 1 bedroom house. Super cute and cozy. Mukang vacation house nge eh. Coz though completely furnished, it even had utensils and plates, it didn’t have a gas range. So who ever lives there, laging kumakain sa labas. And mejo religious yung owner ng house ah. Maraming figure ni Mama Mary everywhere. Except sa bathroom. Doon, may wine and 2 glasses beside the bathtub.

Syempre, nag inuman sa house. We brought 1 box of canned beer (left over nung bridal shower ni fritz). But Papa Jay had his alalays buy more pa. And syempre they brought super dami food din. And di parin pala alam ni Papa Jay ang first name ko. So forever na Ms. Gala ang tawag nya sakin pag tatagayan nya ko. Yes. Sya ang nagtatagay. Sabi nga ni Marlon, kung boss si Papa Jay sa Tarlac, pag dating sa 4D, alipin na naman sya. Hehe.

After an hour or two, the girls called it a night. And we took it upon ourselves to fix the sleeping arrangements. Kasi, pag lasing na yung boys, kung saan saan nalang yun mahihiga. Baka mag-tetris nanaman sila sa higaan. Isang trait nga pala ng 4D eh magkasya matulog sa masisikip na lugar. There was only one bed but Papa Jay had some mattresses brought over so kung tutuusin maraming matutulugan.

And para dumami yung pwedeng higaan, we got the cushions from the sofa. Makapal, pero hiwahiwalay. At first, we thought na si RC and i-assign dun since ganun yun tinutulugan nya minsan sa Manansala. But no, di sya pumayag. Naghihiwalay hiwalay daw kasi yun. Shoot. Crucial pa naman na may humiga dun. So I told Dev, “Momsy, lagyan kaya natin ng blanket over. Para di obvious na hiwahiwalay.” Hmm… in fairness, it worked. Dun humiga si Papa Jay. But don’t worry, since hindi sya malikot matulog, di naghiwahiwalay yung higaan. In fact, ang sarap nga ng tulog nya eh. Sure ako dun dahil mejo lang, ang lakas nya mag-snore. But you know what? Ang astig ng hilik nya. Parang galing sa maraming tao. Actually, yung ibang sounds nga parang hindi galing sa tao. Tapos nagiiba-iba pa ng tempo and melody. Astig. Sa totoo lang, ang bilis ko nakatulog dahil dun. Promise! Tas hindi pa ko nagising during the night.

Dahil ang dami namin, and 1 lang yung bathroom, we had to make a schedule. Ang matagal maligo, mauuna. So kami nang girls yun diba? Sabi ni Dev, si Eeza daw dapat mauna. Sabi naman ni Eeza, mas matagal daw si Tin. Sige girls, magturuan pa kayo. ANYWAY, so si Tin na nga ang pumayag mauna, si Eeza, ako, then si Dev.

The following morning, I heard Tin get up to take a bath. I heard her finished and I also heard her wake up Eeza. So mukang gising na ko ng mga panahon na yun. Si Eeza naman, tumatawad pa. I thought na ako na mag-offer na mauna, pero syempre, kakagising ko lang, wala pa akong brain and mouth coordination. So naunahan ako ni Eeza. Sabi nya, I could go ahead.

So natapos na ang mga girls, so boys naman. Si Jun, ang nauna sa kanila since he was fully awake already. Yung iba kasi, totally asleep pa. Eventually, isa isa narin sila bumangon at kumilos. And may I just say, si Ace at si RC parang babae sa tagal maligo. Ang dami na naming na-okray, di parin sila tapos.

Since ang tagal ng liguan process, 1030 na kami nakaalis ng Tarlac. Di na kami aabot sa mass so we decided to have lunch nalang. We went to Isdaan. Sa entrance, may guard. Syempre, di namin pinalampas ang gaguhan opportunity:



And ang ganda pala dun ah. Parang theme park. So while we were waiting for the food to arrive, some of us went around to check-out the sites.

And because we are all waiting for the bar results, hindi rin namin pinalampas si Buddha.

You have to touch Buddha, make a wish then ring the bell.

Si Momsy, tuwang tuwa mag ring ng bell.

Ang saya no? Anyway, we went back to our kubo to eat. Mejo nakakahilo pala kumain sa floating balsa.

Manaoag

After eating, kahit anong saya ng Embassy mix ni RC, hindi nya kinaya ang halong puyat at kabusugan. I woke up nasa parking na kami ng Manaoag. Wala pa nga ko sa tamang huwisho nung bumaba ako. But anyway, nagising naman ako nung naglakad kami papunta sa Church. We got there 30 minutes before the mass. So we bought candles muna.

Ang dami ngang theories kung ilan kelangan bilin eh. Most of us bought 10 candles, one for each bar subject tas plus two para siguro sakto na sa suklian. Pero pwede rin 1 for happiness and 1 for world peace. Ako, 10 candles din, 1 for each bar Sunday, the rest para sa ibang intentions.
Marami kasi akong hinihiling. The best yung kay Marlon. Dalawa lang. One for him to pass the Bar and the other, for safety. Baka nga naman maka pasa sya tas masagasaan sya after. Hmm… May point sya. So yung isa kong candle, for safety narin.

We had mass first before we lit the candles. May blessing daw after the mass so we were thinking, we should have the candles blessed first before lighting it. Anyway, after the communion, dumadami ang mga tao na pumapasok at unti unting lumalapit sa altar. Sabi ni Jo, kelangan daw pumunta narin kami sa front kasi sobrang dami ng tao. We don’t want to end up sa likod na likod coz di na daw yun inaabot ng holy water.

So after ng final blessing, nakipag amazing race kami sa san damak-mak na tao na pasimpleng tumatakbo papunta sa unahan. Maganda yung spot namin. Di masyadong front, pero abot parin ng holy water. Sina Eeza, din a nabasa. Pero buti nalang, mag round 2 si father. Syempre, nagtakbuhan ulit kami dun. This time, para na kaming naligo sa ulan. Basang basa. O yan, Lord, pag di pa naman kami pumasa nyan ha…

We went to the lighting area. Daming tao ha. Yung spot nga na napili ko, halos puno na ng candles. At pati yung candle stand, nagliliyab na. Pero hala sige, light parin ng light. Mejo natakot nga ko ng onti. Mainit at mausok. Nun ko naalala na ayoko talagang mapunta sa hell.

After church, we went to Razon’s for merienda c/o Eeza.

We ordered the bilao for 16 people, halo-halo and some puto. 10 lang kami so baka nga sobra pa yun eh at may take home pa. But no. First round palang mejo paubos na. 4 nga lang ang naka second. Hanep.

Nang mabusog, at magamoy kornik, we went home. Balik sa pag aantay ng result.