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A Two-day Pre-Valentine’s Day Celebration: Cafe Laguna and More

Posted on by Leia Bartolome

With the insane amount of work that I still have yet to do, I felt the need to blog just to keep myself together.

So where have I left off? Oh yeah!

I just oughta randomly show you this beautiful chocolate door of the room where we spent our night together at Mallberry Suite Business Hotel as I mentioned here.

And here’s a little room sneak peek as well. Oh hello. That’s us right there having an obligatory mirror shot. I guess this was taken before we before left for SM. 

Side note: Our main business in SM was to avail of their “Advantage Card” and that’s about it. We really didn’t stay there too long because we needed to be back to the hotel before 9 P.M. so we could have dinner at Cafe Laguna. Gladly, we made it back to the hotel before Cafe Laguna’s closing time with some time to spare.

Okay, here’s what we had for dinner…

Fresh and crunchy green mango slices with the perfect “bagoong” (shrimp paste) for dipping as our appetizer. Behind is the BEST fresh green mango shake that I’ve had for ages! No kidding. The last time I had green mango shake that good was in Davao back when I was still in my teens. Gosh, I feel so old already.

Here is a platter of crispy and crunchy “chicharong bulaklak”. How come I don’t remember it to be this deliciously good when I first had this years ago?? I reckon I must had a dysfunctional sense of taste back then.

I love how this “hipon na sinigang” (shrimp tamarind soup) just had the right amount of tanginess and seasoning albeit I wished it had more shrimps and vegetables.

Woah, I can’t believe that was all we had for dinner. Wish we had more.

Since there was no more Night Cafe, we took advantage of this coffee shop inside the hotel (thank goodness it was still open around 2 A.M.) and ordered smoothies and some pasta to be delivered to our room.  

Sorry I completely forgot the name of the pasta… But anyway, I think the cook must have accidentally slipped chili oil instead of olive oil. It was ridiculously spicy even for someone like me who has high tolerance to heat. It really made me wonder how it would’ve rated on the Scoville scale…

After having our midnight snack and a few jump shots later, we fell to sleep.

We decided to skip breakfast the following day because we woke up around 10 A.M. and we still have yet to bathe and pack our stuff. And so after everything, we had lunch at Kagay-anon Restaurant and went malling.

And as usual, we ended our day with our fave coffee blends at Bo’s coffee (I find Starbucks is a little too overrated but I do go there every once in a while because I’m a hypocrite like that). 

A Two-day Pre-Valentine’s Day Celebration: Ramen Tei and More

Posted on by xerox

Remember this blog post that I once submitted as an entry for a food blog contest?

Well, I am very proud to announce that both my boyfriend and I made it through the first round of the Sooo Pinoy’s Search for the Ultimate Food Blogger Contest!

Just imagine how ecstatic and excited we were when we found out that we are actually contenders for the second round! The moment we got hold of the news, we immediately prepared our own food trip itinerary set for the weekend.

So fast forward, Friday came and off we went to Cagayan de Oro as planned. After what seemed to be an eternity in the bus (the ride was wayyy longer than usual due to road repairs), we were finally able to take a taxi from Bulu-a Bus Terminal to The Mallberry Suite Business Hotel so we could leave our bags and book us a room for the night. 

FYI: Our food trip was actually a two-day thing because that’s how we roll and, also, we wanted to experience the “Night Cafe” together so that explains why we had to stay for the night because it’s more convenient that way (sadly it wasn’t until later on that night when we found out that it has actually been discontinued since Sendong which is pretty disappointing).

It was already way past lunch time by the time we were able to secure a room. Absolutely famished, we decided to put something Filipino on hold for lunch because we wanted something that would really make both of our grumbling tummies happy. Through a friend’s recommendation, we had our lunch at Ramen Tei. 

Ramen Tei serves authentic (and I must add really awesome) Japanese food. The place is really consistent with the Japanese theme. Even the waiters kinda look Japanese! Insane! Bet Ramen Tei’s management screens all of their staff members aesthetically first before proceeding to hire them… 

Nothing but a tray of Japanese condiments. There’s something different about their vinegar. It has some sweet notes to it. It’s the kind of vinegar that doesn’t have an overpowering taste; Instead, it complements the food perfectly. I wonder where I can get that…

A dish of assorted mind-blowing sushi. The best sushi I had ever!

A delicious battalion of mixed maki. I couldn’t stop helping myself to these! They were just really, really good!

A closer look. Gah, I am missing them right now!

I hate to abruptly end this post right here but… Surprise! This is just sort of a teaser of what we had. Expect another post within two days.

Breakfast in Kalibo and Dinner in Boracay

Posted on by Leia Bartolome

The long awaited continuation of my vacation saga has finally come!

Before I begin to flood you with photos (as I narrate about my Kalibo-Boracay experience), I must first explain why I don’t really have any Kalibo, Aklan photos…

It was with great misfortune that I was not able to realize that my camera was running on empty on Day Five. Because we were constantly on the go, I completely forgot to recharge its battery and it died on the night we arrived in Kalibo. Kill me please.

Oh well… Anyway, Behold, Day Six! 

After having had a relaxing warm bath in a tub at La Esperanza hotel was breakfast at Latte Cafe. Now, why do I have to explicitly mention that warm bath in a tub? Good question. T’was my first time. Pathetic, I know.

Okay now, moving on! Here’s how Latte Cafe looks like inside…

I can perfectly picture myself staying here on (rainy) afternoons… 
Sipping a cup of coffee as I browse through the Web with my laptop or maybe read a book.

Umm… It’s just a little strange though that they have some flip flops for sale. Really unusual for a coffee shop. Just saying! 

I haven’t tried their pastries but they sure look tasty! I do want to give them a try whenever I get the chance to visit Kalibo again. Hopefully, it’s not going to take me N number of years where N stands for Never-again-in-my-goddamn-life.

And because I didn’t post any last time…
It’s time for some obligatory food photos! YEAH! 

My morning coffee. I like my coffee cold.

Waffles topped with bacon and whipped cream. Y to the U-M-M-Y.

Some sandwich (I forgot what it’s called please forgive me!) with fried potato chips on the side. Reallllllyyy gooood beyond words, I kid you not!

Best breakfast of my entire life (so far)!

Just to fill you in, Carlo fetched us from the hotel where we stayed so we could have breakfast with him before we were finally going to take a bus to Caticalan (for Boracay). 

Note: Carlo is another friend of my boyfriend (the last time they met before this was ten years ago!). I swear my boyfriend should be crowned Mr. Congeniality because he has so many and too many friends all over the Earth that I lost count already.

If you can remember, as I mentioned in a previous post, in the Panay Island, they cram as many people in buses as much as possible. I did promise to elaborate why bus rides are quite dangerous there. So here goes…

So this bus that we were going to take only had one more seat available, okay? But they still insisted that they could accommodate more. Unfortunately, the next bus is not going to be until probably ages later. So, much to my dismay, we had to take it. Now, because my boyfriend is such a gentleman, he offered the last seat to me. He, left without a choice, had to sit in a plastic stool beside me in the middle of the bus aisle for three whole hours (so did other people who weren’t able to find proper seats anymore)! As much as I really wanted to take a nap, I didn’t. I really had to hold him real tightly around his arm all throughout the entire ride because I was afraid that he might fall over or something. Due to this, I officially abhor taking bus rides in Panay Island. Consider this as a warning.

But anyway, so much about that… Look!

This was the small boat that was going to take us to Boracay Island. This can carry up to, more or less, 25 passengers. 

Finally, Boracay! Packed with so many tourists from all around the globe! But I’m guessing like 50 percent-ish of the tourists are Koreans. 

The water is sooo clear and the sand is as fine as powder. 

Boracay transforms so beautifully at night. People who love to party will find that Boracay is the place to be.

So random and cute! 

Our epic dinner at Epic! We had Ceaser salad and lamb shank with mashed potatoes and veggies on the side.

Our dinner was exceptionally good!  

Lamb was something that my boyfriend and I never had before so we really had to give it a go (never minding the huge dent it caused on our wallets). No regrets though! The lamb shank was beyond heavenly! I could easily say that it was best meat I had in my entire life! The meat was so tender that it fell off from the bone really easily. Oh, I’m not a fan of mashed potatoes but I don’t know how they made it really good! Even the veggies and the salad were irresistible!

I can’t wait to immerse myself in Kalibo and Boracay again soon! 

And this now finally concludes my Panay Island vacation saga. Till next time!

Seafood Capital of the Philippines in Black and White

Posted on by Leia Bartolome

It was Day Four and we barely had any sleep from last night. All the vigor and excitement for our planned Boracay get-away quickly faded away when we heard that our hometown, Iligan City, was deeply stricken by calamity.

PAG-ASA only gave a heads-up about an upcoming storm on the eleventh hour almost literally. But both my boyfriend and I never took that warning seriously because tropical storms in the Philippines normally go up North and never bother the part of the country where we live. To top that off, Iligan has been known to be closely guarded by nature and has been dubbed “Typhoon-free”. 

But on that dreadful night, this tropical storm named Sendong decided to take a strange detour. Nobody was equipped for what was going to happen that night.

Sendong came like a thief in the night. It severely hit both Iligan and our neighboring city, Cagayan de Oro. The constant heavy downpour, strong winds and power interruption during an unholy hour was the perfect blend for disaster. Over a thousand of lives were instantly lost (and some are still missing up to now) in a blink of an eye.

People were very quick to post photos of the storm’s aftermath. We not only saw that Sendong drowned both cities in muddy flood waters, but it also dragged along with it tons and tons of logs from the mountains which destroyed everything that crossed their path…  It was very ugly and heartbreaking. 

Obviously, we were both in shock and in sheer disbelief. 

I never knew about the illegal logging activities going on in Lanao del Sur until Iligan and Cagayan de Oro felt the fury of Mother Nature. I have never hated illegal loggers this much in my entire life and I am still extremely indignant of what had happened. Their selfish acts for personal gain has stained their hands with so much blood. I believe that Karma shall slap them in the face with a mighty sledgehammer andI cannot wait for the day of their retribution. 

We really wanted to go back home right there and then, to be with our families and to help out our fellow Iliganons but can’t. The soonest that we could go back home was not until three days later. 

So we took solace in making long-distance phone calls to our families and friends to feel assured that they were okay… And indeed they were. 

With a big sense of relief, it was easier to carry on with our vacation. However, my boyfriend decided to postpone our trip to Boracay anyway because of the bad weather that day. Instead, we went to Capiz (a little earlier than initially planned) which is just a 3-hour bus ride away from Iloilo City (but depending on traffic and weather conditions it could only be 2 hours).

Hello and welcome to the Seafood Capital of the Philippines (Roxas is the capital city of Capiz) where every mollusk, fish, crustacean and everything edible that comes from the sea here are probably mutants on steroids! Nothing is exempted from being jumbo in size. Not even shrimps! Oxymoronic, I know. 

To all seafood lovers of the world, this is paradise! Fish, shrimp, squid, oysters, scallops and everything seafood are priced ridiculously rock-bottom here that they’re almost for free! Must I mention I blitzkrieg them all. Hey, it’s not everyday I could have “last supper” meals you know.

In this post, I won’t be showering you with photos of food (because it won’t suit the black and white theme too well) so just simply take my word for it.

Pedicabs are the main mode of transporation in Capiz. I bet there must be only 1 four-wheeled vehicle, be it a jeepney or a private car, for every 20 pedicabs at the very least.

La Capiz Provincial Capitol. This is located in the heart of Roxas City. In its vicinity is Colegio de la Purisma Concepcion (a school where my boyfriend finished his highschool), Parish of Immaculate Conception Metropolitan Cathedral and a plaza if I remember it correctly.

La Museo de Santa Monica. This is now located in Pan-ay, Capiz. We did not have the opportunity to take a look inside unfortunately. This is just right next to a beautiful church established in the 1500s.

Glorious isn’t it? That’s now a wrap for our Capiz trip. Up next is Alkan and Boracay!

Have I left you hanging? For bits and pieces that I missed, you can check out my fave Filipino travel blogger’s post here on his trip to Capiz. Enjoy!

Exploring the Heart of the Philippines (Part Two)

Posted on by Leia Bartolome

On Day Three, my boyfriend took me the “Old City”, this is the historical center of Iloilo where structures with Spanish architecture abound.

Usually, we went around Iloilo in a taxi cab but at this time we were fully committing to the whole “real street” experience so we took jeepney rides.

You probably can’t tell from the photo but the jeepneys in Iloilo look different from the ones in Iligan. There, the jeepneys are generally stubby at the front and are very elongated at the back; And what’s great is that they are also wider. Therefore, it’s more spacious and it keeps you from feeling really cramped inside when more people get in.

Old structures are pretty evident.

We were about to grab some lunch at Crave Burger, a burger joint that my boyfriend was incessantly talking about ever since this happened.

That beautiful water fountain (just right in the center of the city) distracted me.

Here is a peek of what’s inside Crave Burger. I like how the look and feel of this place seem to be very cozy and inviting. And I especially love how we didn’t have to wait so long for our food to be done. I think we only waited like 10 minutes tops. Now here’s what we had…

Twister Fries. Seriously, who doesn’t love twister fries? They’re not only fun to look at but their also fun to eat. I love how the fries were done.

Crave Ultimate Burger. This burger…

Wait! Somehow, a funny random thought just came across my mind.
The burger in the photo reminds me of this…

A wild Pokémon appears!
Notice the resemblance? Now, who’s that Pokémon?

Anyway, back to where I was…
The burger contains 100% beef patty seasoned to perfection, topped with maple bacon, American cheese, lettuce, caramelized onions and a slice of relish pickle. I love how everything in this burger is in perfect harmony with each other (and now I’m shaking my head and wishfully thinking to have a good twelve-month supply of Crave Ultimate Burger shipped to me right now).

And finally the dessert…

A pint of green tea ice cream. I’d like to just put it out there that green tea ice cream may not be everybody’s cup of tea (no pun intended!). Some might dismiss this after their first try. But I personally love it. I enjoy how its flavor develops after every spoonful.

Once we were done, we took a bus to Miagao to see this marvelous centuries-old church that I’ve been wishing to see with my very own eyes.

But before I go show-and-tell, I feel the need to say that bus rides in the entire Panay Island are uncomfortable (and dangerous–will talk about this in a different post) in general.

Not because all their buses in this island are dilapidated, like in the photo above (certainly this is not the case), but rather because they forcibly accommodate more people than the actual sitting capacity.

For jeepneys, it’s a norm anywhere in the Philippines. But for buses? We are talking about long-distance trips here. I was literally sitting for two hours with one of my butt cheeks hanging out from the edge of the seat because I was sharing a two-sitter seat with two other strangers. But left without any choice, there was really no room for me to complain…

Boy, I was glad when I finally saw Miagao Church because it sort of justified my butt-balancing act.

Isn’t it beautiful?

The front doors look like some kind entrance to a royal castle. I actually wished to get married here but now I am starting to have second thoughts all thanks to the gruesome butt-numbing two-hour ride.

After marveling at its beauty for a while, we took two jeepney rides so we can go back to Harbor Town Hotel (yes, we moved again) immediately because we were already getting tired.

Trivia: Harbor Town Hotel is owned by my boyfriend’s relatives. Remember his cousins who treated us dinner? Yup, them. Apparently, they also offered us to stay in their hotel for free. They’re a lifesaver.

But on our way back to the hotel, we stopped for a while and grabbed the opportunity to take a photo of Molo Church.

Actually, there are lots and lots of beautiful old churches scattered in Iloilo. However, it is impossible for me to take photos of them all considering our very limited time and our physical condition then (we both got sick after Day Two and that still continued even a week after the end of our trip).

Since this post is already miles long, I’ll end it now with what we had for dinner at Ponsyon by Breakthrough.

From top to bottom: Sizzling Sisig Bangus, Crab Fat Rice (just by mere looking at it gives me hypertension!), Crab in Coconut Milk Soup and Fried Shrimps.

I’ve never had a freakin’ delicious seafood feast like this for dinner!

P.S.
I thought this post is going to be shorter than the last one. My mistake.

P.P.S.
Pokémon photo courtesy of gtsplus.net

P.P.P.S.
The featured Pokémon is Shellder in case you still haven’t figured that out.

In Transit Teaser

Posted on by Leia Bartolome

Let me start this post by saying that I feel more than blessed to be in a relationship with someone who is more than I truly deserve. Not many know that I was away from home for more than week for a short vacation with my boyfriend… Who, by the way, paid for almost everything. Transportation, food, hotels and everything else. It was his way of celebrating my graduation and I guess our 7th month of being together.

Here’s a sneak peek of where we were about a week ago on our first day in Iloilo.

Iloilo is such a photogenic place! Just perfect for photo walks given on any day at any time. More about the trip in the next post!