Unexpected Expected Engagement

Marc and I haven’t taken a very open road to engagement ever since we plunge to give love a second chance. Sure, we talk about our future – how we want to design our house, which car we want to purchase once we start to have kids or even where to go on our honeymoon. But it has always been set in my mind that the first step to fulfill OUR dreams is to get formally engaged because that would mean we are both ready. Actually, a year before we broke up in 2007 (when the 5 year curse attacked), Marc has proposed to me in 2006 (SORT OF). ...

It was on our 4th year as girlfriend-boyfriend when I left for UK to stay with my sister’s family during fall and winter. Before I entered the airport security , he slowly handed a small test tube with rolled stationery inside, tied up with a fancy red ribbon and sealed while saying, “...buksan mo na kapag nasa eroplano ka na ha?…” (open once you are settled on the plane) and I did. The small note said a lot of farewells and good lucks, then at the bottom of the letter was saying “will you be my fiancee?” I really couldn't remember if I had ever answered back over the phone,  via email or in IM.  >_<  I was a brat then and I had a lot of different plans for myself, and all I knew was that he was willing to wait till  I come back to the Philippines again. After a year, things have changed; we broke up and the rest is history!!! :)

So going forward, after three years of being apart, we tried to rekindle the flames and thankfully, our revived relationship now looks like we definitely learned from our mistakes we have done when we were younger. (nung bagets pa kaming dalawa!) :)) We really took each step very SLOW even if everyone around us kept pushing to take the fast lane and get married right away. I think taking our relationship very slow was one of the BEST decisions we made together.

#TheBESTBirthdayEver

I'm not going to pretend that I don’t have any idea about his wedding proposal happening anytime soon. Six months back or so, Marc would tell me the songs he would want to play on our wedding day. Then sometime in February 2014, he was counting by his fingers how many months away from my birthday. I immediately felt he was seriously preparing for something and I thought maybe he’s proposing soon!  (was that woman’s intuition?) After that, I almost connect everything he does or say or not say leading to the proposal. Though very EXCITED, I secretly KEPT it to myself just because I was so afraid my intuition wasn't true! One time, he accidentally mentioned that he went out with her sister, Ken, one weekend. As soon as I asked where they went, he immediately changed the topic! As in I really felt he didn't want to talk about it! Another instance inside the cinema, he was holding my hand like crazy – with his left hand then right and navigating through my fingers ( turned out he was getting the ring size without blowing the element of surprise! @_@) Poor boy, I don’t wear ring so he had to improvise to get my ring size. :-D In March 2014, my intuition has gotten a little stronger when he asked me one time in Google Hangouts (our official chat tool) to make sure I file vacation leave on my birthday because he would be throwing a surprise treat for me. I absolutely got very excited; I smiled with matching wide eyes. :-D

Few months later, nothing has changed, we still talk about the future,  we had maintained our “WE” time and “ME” time, we chat all day long, we watch movie marathon at Mall of Asia, I still laugh at his silliest jokes, and until I almost forgot the idea about the proposal – maybe it would be happening soon or I thought maybe NOT…

End of April 2014 came, a few weeks before my birth month and he was still disguising his proposal plans by telling me that he had not decided where to go or what to do on my birthday and that he was busy at work so he wasn't able to finalize his “surprise” plans. I even offered to help but he refused immediately. A few weeks after, he asked to me to bring three sets of clothes on my big day: swim wear, formal wear and HIKING attire. I must admit… INTUITION knocked again after that!!! My internet browser went flooded with searches like “marriage proposal on top of the mountain” or “proposal after hike” and even “Mt. Batulao proposal” because he mentioned Mt. Batulao a few times before. I knew I was taking away the element of surprise the more I read stuffs in the internet about the proposal ideas out there… but, my god, I couldn't help myself!!! HAHAHAHA!!!! :) :) :) I was such a loser, right? :)) Our chat conversations were full of stuffs about the hike, I thought I had to be wearing my best when he pop the question! :) I was smiling like an idiot all the time.

 And because I didn't want to ruin his plans, IF ANY, so I just gone with the flow, stopped my own personal investigations and KEPT my expectations VERY LOW. And there were DISTRACTIONS… A few weeks before, I told him that I would be attending the KForce company outing in Antipolo on the weekend before my birthday. And then he also told me that he would be attending an organized outreach program in Bicol on the same weekend. WHAAAAAT?? BICOL? As in 12 hours away from Manila??! I thought to myself, if he planned to be proposing ON MY BIRTHDAY, AFTER THE HIKE, why on earth he would be attending another TIRING event before that? So I got confused again. My office friends, Kat, Shiela and Zeny, could tell that part of me was still hesitant and refusing to dive into THEIR ANALYSIS that Marc’s surprise could be IT! But clearly, I was still focusing on preparing about OUR hike. Hehehe! :) I exercised my legs and did Zumba from the Youtube a few times to get ready and bought arm warmers just like the real hikers have! :D 

The weekend before my birthday was indeed a tiring one. Our team outing was mostly physical activities which we won 1^st place by the way… Marc was supposed to pick me up at my house Monday morning but he sent me a message that they were still navigating SLEX from Bicol and will be arriving later than expected. After a few hours, he arrived at my house later in the afternoon. I still didn't know where he was taking me but since he started driving south, I thought it could be TAGAYTAY or BATANGAS! PWEDE! :) Either way, Mt. Batulao is geographically near Tagaytay and Batangas. HEHEHE! When we reached Mendez, Cavite, he asked me to close my eyes and I did (bring it on!). I felt a few turns before he eventually said I could open my eyes. We were on a parking lot, a lot of trees in my blurry view and I could not really recognize the place. "Where are we?" As soon as we unloaded our things, I eventually saw the sign “Camp Benjamin”.

After a few peek at the resort, he asked me to go to Bag of Beans restaurant in Tagaytay for some light snack. While driving to the restaurant, he asked me if it is okay if we drop the hiking activity because of these and that – .....................SO I KNEW IT WASN'T GOING TO HAPPEN… :-( It made me sad a little bit pero okay lang, keri na. Anyway, I still have my birthday dinner treat from him :)

At Bag of Beans resto, Marc asked me to order light snacks so we could still have room for dinner. But since I was really hungry, I ordered a bowl of Spaghetti Bolognese, Blueberry Cheesecake and Banana Split. Taaaaadaaaaah!  :D 

We went back to Camp Benjamin before dusk after driving around Tagaytay. Around 6:00PM, he said it was time for my birthday dinner and asked me to try the dress he asked me to bring. I actually brought two – a tight fitting red dress in asymmetrical sleeves and a set of halter top and satin short. I tried the red dress first and he approved. Since he LEFT his polo shirt in the car, he went out to get it. Although he approved the red dress, I was not comfortable wearing it; it was just too tight and tiny. I tried the other dress and I decided I would just have Marc see if it would be better than the tiny dress once he comes back. Thirty plus minutes past, no Marc came back. Then someone knocked at the door, not Marc but one of the female receptionists at the lobby. “Ma’am, ready na daw po ba kayo?” HUH???! NOOOOOO! I haven’t combed my hair and I was waiting for Marc to see if he would like me to wear the other dress instead. I said, “wait lang po…” The girl insisted to wait outside so she could accompany me to the restaurant because Marc is already waiting. POOR ME. Unprepared, I went outside and followed the girl.

BUT WAIT... She wasn't really taking me to the restaurant but inside another building. I could not remember everything, but she disappeared in the dark as soon as I saw candles leading the path to the resort’s infinity pool.  Uh Oh! The lights were off but I saw the shadows of two people opening the big door and I was hearing instrumental music playing in the background. Then I saw Marc standing beside the table while holding a bouquet of flowers on his hands. AHA!! HAHAHA! He really pulled off the surprise dinner! Clap! Clap! Hindi man natuloy ang dream HIKING ko… PWEDE NA ITOng surprise na ito, sabi ko sa sarili ko. :D Bad thing... I was not able to take a picture of the entire setup.

It was a 4-course dinner under the moonlight (full moon nung gabing yon) with a bottle of red wine. Surprisingly, it was just us in the pool area (and the Waiter of course). I asked how he did that, he said it was just part of the plan. We were laughing at each other the whole time and I was secretly feeling KILIG inside about everything that night – the candles, the flowers, the music, the moonlight, the food, the sound of the Jacuzzi at the pool, the wine, the idea about the surprise dinner and his tight face with fake smile from time to time (parang natatae look) HAHAHA! 

"It was such a nice birthday surprise... "

After the 3^rd course, Marc gave the cue for the dessert. The waiter cleaned the table and revealed THE birthday cake! It was a fondant cake with huge green ribbon on the top and a cute “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” sign in front of me. He asked me to tell him my favorite song and I said “All of Me” (by John Legend). The song immediately played! :-D Seemed choreographed... Then he lit the candle and asked me to close my eyes to make a wish…

AND THEN as soon as I opened my eyes, the cake was turned on the other side and revealing the “MARRY ME?” sign in front of me! AAAAAAAAAWWWWW!! I thought to myself, "is this really happening??????"

I saw him knelled on the ground while holding THE engagement ring. I started to cry…  he was saying something (like a speech! ) but I couldn't remember ANYTHING! He started crying too! I was crying of happy tears and grinning like a fool whenever I look at him. All I could remember  were the last words "WILL YOU MARRY ME?" ... I smiled at him and said.. "YES na YES!".  I thought it was just a birthday dinner. He put the ring on my finger and I hugged him. We even argued a bit where to put the ring. HAHAHA. It ended up in the middle finger... but we were both bothered and googled it the next day -- now in the ring finger!  :)

It was a magical evening for us.  :')  It was so planned that even if I had asked him to bring the polo inside our cottage when we were  unloading our things from the car...  He had his SHOES kept in the trunk so that he could still escape from me. 

To Camp Benjamin staffs who participated in the preparations. I will forever remember this.

To the restaurant staff who played as the Waiter during our dinner. You did a good job!

To Manong Guard who almost blew the proposal. who said “Sir, sya na po ba?”when we got back to the resort from Bag of Beans. Good thing, it meant nothing to me at the time.

To the girl staff (Marc’s coordinator about the proposal in the resort), thank you for the big smile you gave me when our car passed by you. It made me think you were a weird person but it made sense to me now. I also learned from Marc that it was the first time someone setup a proposal at Camp Benjamin. How nice… ^_^

I think the most interesting and amazing part was HIS FAMILY’s preparations about the proposal… Special THANKS to his family who helped him every step of the way for his plans. Later he revealed that they were the one who brought the flowers, THE two-faced cake, candles, setup the music and place. They were already at the resort in the morning with him. He had to say he couldn't pick me up early because they were actually busy in the preparations. He also had to make sure I won't be asking to go anywhere near the pool area that was why he kept me busy the whole afternoon. Also for helping him find the perfect ring and negotiate with the baker who made the lovely cake (IT WAS A CLEVER IDEA to have the cake disguised the “MARRY ME?” sign on the other side.

And most importantly, to The ONE who gave you to me, all honor and glory to HIM forever!


YIHIIIII! We are officially ENGAGED! CHEERS!
Salamat,  MAHAL... 

Road Trip: Baler, Aurora

Road Trip: Baler, Aurora

Last February 2014, we visited the lovely province of Aurora out of curiosity in one of KrisTV episodes – she has her way to make INGGIT her viewers and she was right! Our Baler experience was quite different from other road trips we already had (North Luzon Loop, South-West Luzon, South-East Luzon) – we DO love Luzon, don't we? :)) ha ha ha. Google should hire us to navigate and map out Luzon! But seriously… Baler road trip is something to look forward to and you have to read ahead to know why. J

Getting There

Getting there is not as easy as taking an hour flight to Boracay or Cebu – you have to deal with at least 6 hours of driving. YES, at least 6 hours! Probably the same as going to Ilocandia but with more obstacles on the road. I remember getting annoyed with Marc several times because he wasn't being careful on the humps and ended up crushing under! CRRRrrrrk! Poor White…

From a Friday work, Marc waited at his office in Ayala at 1:00AM until I picked him up since it was my car's turn to take us on a road trip. Then we went back to Imus to pick up Khen and Joseph.

Here's our route from Cavite to Baler c/o Google maps (we went to SCTEX going to Cabanatuan and followed Pantabangan road) I normally tag the route with stars so I don't have to rely data connection when on the road especially on remote areas.

FoodAside from the yummy peanut butter, you’ll be able to find the cheapest yet satisfying food here! Most blog sites talk about the buffet at Gerry Shan's Place so we had to try it too. If you are really decided to get your stomach FULL, then you'll have to (1) go straight at the cashier to pay P185.00 per person, (2) follow the restaurant usher to take you to your table (3) Get your food and wait for your bottomless iced tea to be served :)Kids do have special rates, P135.00 for 4-7 years old and P65.00 for 3 and below.They serve sumptuous Chinese and Filipino dishes. They have fruits and desserts too! I'd say NOT BAD for only P185.00 pesos!!! The food that Marc and Joseph consumed definitely NOT more than P370.00.

Things to See

  

Dinadiawan

Our landlady at Secret Spot suggested Dinadiawan as side trip before we head back to Cavite. It was a 1.5 hour travel from Baler proper via Dicadi highway. The road wasn't safe due to falling debris and steep curve roads but it was a cool destination after you have stayed for a while in Baler. Dinadiawan beach is one of the best beaches in Aurora province. It has white stretch of sand and a preferred swimming area (due to fewer waves than in Baler). I can imagine the perfect sunrise facing the great pacific ocean. We only stayed here for few hours because this was not originally included in our itinerary.

Overall, our Baler trip was such a new experience for us. White survived the twist, turns and bumps.along the way.CLAP!! CLAP!!!! This was her first ever trip after got flooded last year.

Balay Indang (Red Ginger Farm and Garden) – A Weekend Paradise

I could be the worst critic at times because I usually become the easiest person to please. But hopefully, I am perfectly right in telling that Balay Indang is your perfect place to unwind from your stressful life in the Metro.

The two-day vacation was a birthday treat for me last May 2012. I did not find it hard to get a reservation because there are a lot of blog sites talking about this quiet and secluded place in Indang, Cavite. Although the place did not have an official site during the time I was collecting information about it, unlike Sonya’s Garden in Tagaytay, the owners relied on people who have visited the place to spread their experiences. But just a few weeks ago, I came across http://cavite.info/mywebsite/balay-indang.html which pretty much their new way to promote the place.

How To Get There

The easiest way to get there is to go to Tagaytay City and follow the Mendez - Tagaytay road until you reach: 88 Mahabang Kahoy, Indang, Cavite. If you are going to use Google Map, the mark is about one kilometer over from the actual location of Balay Indang from Tagaytay City. The GPS kept telling us, “You have reached your destination…” but not really. Because of this, we had several back and forth’s before we finally reached the place! Tsk tsk tsk.

The entrance is behind a huge wooden gate marked number 88 on the left side of the wall and there is a huge chance for you to miss their signage because of its visibility and it blends along the road. Just pay more attention on the left side of the road. If you will come from north via Trece-Indang road, you should be able to see it on the right.

      

Activities

When we decided to go there, our intentions were to rest on their serene rooms, commune with nature and enjoy their sumptuous food – and we did!

Jogging or Biking around the perimeter. The place is surrounded by a meter-wide pathway within its 2-heactare land which enables guests to bike, walk or jog around. Just don’t forget to put on some mosquito repellant lotion on your skin if you want to be safe from insect bites. Also, watch out for bees and ants all over the place.

There is also an area where you can walk barefoot on the stonebed and it will massage your feet while walking on it. On the other end, there are sets of stone blocks in different heights which you have to balance yourselves while hopping on them. These are interesting activities and you should try it!

Swimming. The pool is open until 11:00PM daily. The deepest end is 7 feet while the shallow end is safe for the kids to swim. In case you happen to be with other guests in big groups or company outings, you might not enjoy swimming at some point because I think it is not enough to accommodate big groups all at once. But during lean season, you will find this place very relaxing, together with their cozy cabanas and the warm water in the pool.

Billiards, Darts and a number of Board Games. If you like indoor type of activities, you will enjoy this part of Balay Indang. This part is located at the house beside the main building.

Picture Taking. Who doesn’t love taking pictures? We are all about preserving memories especially those happy ones. The garden is the best part to take lovely pictures. There are lots of wild colorful flowers, lovely cabanas and beautiful landscapes – perfect backdrop for your next profile picture! LOL! You will also be able to catch the lovely sunrise and sunset.

Don’t forget the interesting pieces inside the main guesthouse. There are a lot of vintage items, paintings, sculptures and figurines which complete the rustic and classic theme of Balay Indang.

Basketball, Tennis and Badminton. On the left of the main entrance, there is an area for bus parking and courts for outdoor games like basketball, badminton and tennis. Most company outings do their team building activities in this area.

The Food

The food is served 5 times within the day – breakfast, morning snack, lunch, midday snack and dinner – which you can request for another round unlimitedly until you pass out. Hehehe! So make sure to reserve some space for the next one. The food is good, comfy food and mostly home-cooked. It was like your Grandma cooking for you on a perfect weekend. :-)

Most fruits and vegetables are grown on their gardens so you can feel the freshness! If you are conscious about the food or you have known allergies, do not hesitate to inform the manager about your needs. They will surely attend to it.

Rates

Balay Indang changes all-inclusive rate of P2,500.00 per person per night for a minimum of 4 people. If you are going to dine only, buffet dinner will cost you P600.00 per head. For an overnight stay with buffet breakfast only, they will charge you for P1,200.00 per head.

I would recommend that you call the owner, Ms. Marge, before visiting. This will give ample time to haggle. ;-)

Marge Tan
Balay Indang
88 Mahabang kahoy Cerca, Indang, Cavite
(+6346) 775-6886
(+63917)866-5825
info@balayindang.com

Joy
(+63917) 837-4261

Do People Often Spell Your Name Wrong?

Do you usually have to spell out your name again when asked because they always get it wrong? … You are not alone! I do! LOL I’m not too sensitive about it nor frustrated but I belong to those who already accepted the fact that I have to live with it ^_^v

I had a reservation one time,
and here's my name on the table

Do baristas mispelled customers name in purpose?
hmmm, maybe just for fun!

Project365 - Photo of the Week #18

Week#18 Theme: "TREE"
Here's our Tamarind Tree with the warming colors of the sunset... happy weekend

DIY: The Healthy Nuts

A delicious, quick and very easy snack that is ideal for the whole family is this post all about. The individual type of nuts below will make up our healthy mixed nuts:

The Ingredients

And CASHEWS of course :-)

And PISTACHIO NUTS too!

But of course, RAISINS will be the
fruit basefor your mixed nuts.

Add some SUNFLOWER SEEDS!

Just pour everything in a container 
and mix, mix, mix!!! Whoallla! Yummy snack! 

Deep Fried Shrimp

Here's a very simple meal that you could try for you and your family. 


Ingredients:


Shrimps
Salt and pepper (to taste)
Cornstarch
Oil (enough to deep fry you shrimps)


What to Do:


Wash the shrimps, Remove the hairs. Dry the shrimps with paper towels. Put inside a plastic bag, pour some cornstarch, salt and pepper and shake until the shrimps are coated with cornstarch. Heat the oil in a pan and deep fry.


Enjoy!!! Ulam namin to kanina ^_^

White Screwed Again!

It does bother me that, for the second time, one of White’s tires got screwed again. This time is the front right tire. Just few months ago, some same type of screw hit the rear right tire! Gggrrrrrr! Why meeeeee????

I am telling this story because some of you might smack the same fate in the future… But I hope NOT *fingers crossed*!!! I was going to work last Wednesday when I heard something very very unusual with my car. I knew there was something wrong because I always bring my car to the office every day, so I know at the very least what’s normal.

Around 500 meters from our house, I heard this recurring sound (TUG TUG, TUG TUG) and got me more freaked out when I was reaching 35-40kph… the sound was even more louder and faster. I immediately went back home to avoid any more damage to my car! Ano ba yan! O_o Fortunately, my boss was very considerate enough to allow me to work at home after learning what happened.

When I reached home, I opened the hood and stepped on the gas pedal while in neutral mode to see how the engine was – okay naman, nothing unusual with the sound even if I reach 2500rpm – I was relieved! I checked out some articles/blogs from Google and got some ideas that it might be something about the ball joint or the tires.

Just in time, I had an appointment the next day at Honda Cavite for the warranty service of my backlight. As soon as I checked in my car, I asked my servicer to check up on that sound right after the backlight service.

After few hours of waiting, test drives and checking, it turned out there was a screw at the front right wheel which was already hitting the mags because the tire was already deflated BIG TIME. Tumatama na daw sa mags kaya may rhythmic sound.

I paid P490.00 for the checkup and diagnosis, which it could be waived if only I knew my tire was screwed in the first place. Also, I paid an additional of P100.00 for the vulcanizing service in Imus.

One thing bothers me is that the same screw hit my rear right wheel..same screw on the first time!!! Onoboyon!!!!

Have a safe trip, girls!

Project365 - Photo of the Week #17

Week#17 Theme: "GROWTH"
Here's a photo I took over the weekend in Villa Escudero Resort and Plantation of an old tree that have grown from an inch to a building-tall living thing, watching over more than seven hundred enjoying guests.

Villa Escudero Plantation and Resort

If you visit Villa Escudero, prepare to taste the country life for your whole stay—in Filipino style.

It was supposed to be a mini reunion with my closest friends from high school but it ended up with a mini road trip with Jog and Mike. This is totally different from the rest of my trips because this is the first time I drove from Cavite straight to Quezon (walang Marc, walang Joseph)!

How to Get There

The easiest way to get there is via SLEX. Since Bacoor was our starting point, the nearest SLEX entry point is via Alabang.

Actually, we have miscalculated our travel because we came too early at the resort. Not bad because I did not have to worry about my driving. Our initial call time was 5:00AM but since Jog and I woke up late, ggrrrrrr, we ended up reaching Mike’s house at 6:00AM. Hahaha! From Bacoor, we took the Molino Road going to Daang Hari. From there, we arrive at the gate of SLEX in Alabang. Toll fee is P95.00 until Sto. Tomas exit. And because we were chatting all the time, we missed the (50A) Sto Tomas exit, so we had to head straight at Star Toll. However, it made our travel shorter than I have planned.  From Star toll exit, we paid an additional of P25.00 and then we looked for the Pan Philippine Hiway until we reached Quezon “Welcome” arch and turned left right away. Hindi nyo mamimiss yung “Villa Escudero” signage sa kaliwa ;-)

As early at 7:50AM, andun na kami!

If you are bringing car to get there, here is the driving instructions I took from www.travelsmart.net   

• Take the South Luzon Express Way (SLEX)
• Exit at 50 A (Lucena exit) (sa kakakwentuhan namin, na miss din namin yung Exit 50A!!!! Nyahahaha!)
• Turn left at Sto. Tomas junction (Nakabalik naman kami dito hehehehe!)
• Head straight South. By pass the towns of Alaminos and San Pablo
• Slow down upon seeing the Quezon Province Boundary Arch. The Villa Escudero entrance is immediately to the left.
• Follow the instructions of the gate officer when turning into the Resort.

Parking

When we arrived at the resort, there were already around 15 cars and vans there. I didn’t have a choice but to park under the trees and maalikabok sa parking, sobra. Parking entrance is at the right side of the welcome hall.

Also at the parking area is a mini Pasalubong store where you could buy puto bumbong, pulburon, and other yummy sweets from Laguna.

Welcome Area

There were gulaman drinks, served by the ushers wearing baro’t saya, waiting for us at the hall. Gutom na gutom kaming tatlo! Hahaha. Buti na lang Mike brought pandesal! Wooohoo! We missed Jollibee and Mcdo along the way… ambilis ko kasi mag drive at kwentuhan kami nang kwentuhan!

The welcome area is where you pay your entrance fee as walk in customers OR where you get your tickets if you have RESERVED for overnight stay. By the way, credit cards are accepted and the Day Tour fee during our visit was P1,500.00 per head. This includes buffet lunch, cultural show, boating, carabao/horse ride, visit at the museum and access to pool.  The complete rates information can be found on their website at the end of this post.

This is also where we first met some of the statues depicting Filipino cultures. These statues are EVERYWHERE! Hahaha! I sometimes thought they were real people in the gardens!

Carabao Cart Ride

As soon as you get your tickets and confirmed your accommodation information at the Welcome Hall, you will start to experience the Philippine country life right away. We opted to visit the Museum in the afternoon before we leave the resort just to keep away from the crowd who were already there… so we headed straight to the Carabao Cart area. We were warmly welcomed and taken around by a carabao-drawn cart until we reached the resort proper – with someone at the back singing kundiman songs and playing guitar.

The Resort Proper

There were several areas that are still under renovation and the drop off point at the resort proper is one of them. Just follow the path way and you will reach the River area.

Boating at the River

It was around 10:00AM and the sun was just about starting to give its magnificent heat. The bamboo raft or balsa only has two seating area on it so I volunteered to just took the pictures of the two of them and look an eye of our things.

Another thing… I HATE bodies of water in color green. O_0 Hahaha! Parang may crocodile na lalabas. That’s also the reason why I am not a fan of swimming at the falls. So I watched them paddle across the calm river until they were almost too small from my view. Pagbalik nung dalawa, mga nakasimangot… may ugly smell daw yung vest na suot nila. But I think other than that, mukhang enjoyable naman ang boating ^_^

Café Inigo

You don’t have to worry about getting hungry inside the resort because they have a restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch, miryenda and dinner meals at the resort. The resto is overlooking the river which makes your dining very dramatic! Hmmm.

Pool Area

They have two medium-sized swimming pools – one for the kids and the other for adults. The adult pool has a slide but we did not try. This time, Jog watched over our things while Mike and I take a dip into the pool. This was also the time Mike and I had a chat with the latest about our lives, reminiscing old memories and even sharing our future plans.  Wala kaming picture kasi tong si Jog!

Buffet Lunch at The Falls

Since we were very very hungry, the buffet lunch was the MOST anticipated event in this trip. Hahaha!!! Hindi ako pwedeng magutom!!! By the way, buffet lunch starts at 11:00AM. But if you were not able to reserve your visit, based on their policy, you will only be allowed to go to the buffet lunch area at 1:00PM. Uunahin kasi nila yung mga nakareserve and you don’t want to get hungry, trust me!

The food is just OKAY. They have grilled eggplants, singkamas, sliced tomatoes, green mangoes, rice, pansit, chicken tinola, beef caldereta, grilled pork, grilled tilapia, chicken inasal and ginataang gulay. I would say they all tasted flat. Honestly, na miss ko ang mas masarap na luto ni Ate Dollyn. So if you want to make the most of this buffet lunch… get FULL and appreciate the cold water coming from the man-made falls that rushes to your feet while eating and chatting with your long lost friends…PRICELESS!

They sell buko juice for P30.00 each. J

The Cultural Show

The cultural show was the best experience in Villa Escudero. Nakalimutan ko na hindi ako masyadong nag enjoy sa pagkain nung lunch. ^_^ The performers are oozing with dancing talents. Mabubusog talaga yung mata mo sa panunuod. There were a lot of colors dancing at the center stage and the costumes are amazing! Kumbaga hindi tinipid.

Surprisingly, all performers are the same people who ushered us earlier that day – the girls from the welcome area, maintenance guys, cart singers, museum ushers. Ang galing! Thumbs up! The cultural show was held at the wedding Hall while the original venue is under construction.  

The Museum

Last from our list was the museum. The Familia Escudero are true travelers and collectors! I was drooling about their travels and collections – they truly set the history from their large collections of artifacts not only from the Philippines but also from the whole world! Pictures are not allowed inside.

I had a great time reconnecting with my old friends. It would not be possible without our experience in Villa Escudero. However, there is a very small chance that Iwould go back to this place very soon. J

Formore information,please visit their site: http://www.villaescudero.com 

Villa Escudero Plantations and Resort

San Pablo City, Philippines

Manila Office

1059 Estrada Street, Malate 1004 Metro Manila

Telephone Nos.

(632) 521-0830

(632) 523-0392

(632) 523-2944

Fax Number:

(632) 521-869

E-mail: info@villaescudero.com

Provincial Mailing Address

P.O. Box 4 San Pablo City 400, Philippines