Driving Safety Tips

Road accidents that involve the people we love or even just the people that we know from our circles are such horror stories to hear. It’s traumatic, breaks your family’s hearts, damage you car and pocket and most especially there are victims of the accident O_o. Just recently, my officemate got involved in a mishap over the holidays (Biyernes Santo). Nothing serious happened to him and her companion but unfortunately, he had hit a 44- year old man riding a motorcycle – drunk and not possessing a valid license.

Here's one of our road trips in Laguna with my family ^_^

Yesterday, I was finally able to hear the real story from him and he looked calm and relieved that it is almost ending. He just had to go back to the province where it happened and get some documents for the insurance. I asked him if he is okay now, and he said he is J.

Nobody wants it. Even I had a very minor accident when I was starting to learn driving and it really almost explode my heart during that moment. My car engine went dead at the intersection so when I panicky tried to start the engine of my car, it went backwards a little bit and then the bus hit my trunk (maliit lang naman hehehe) I did not have my license at that time – the most irresponsible act in driving – so I had to take the damage on my car. After that incident, I gain extra cautiousness whenever my engine stops – I learned to be a LITTLE BIT calm. Hahaha! It’s because I still shout P@%^^*&*!!! whenever it did. Sssshhhh!

You know how i love love love being on the road through my road trips so I’m writing this to serve a reminder on drivers out there to take extra measures while driving, especially on me – BE A DEFENSIVE DRIVAAAH!

http://www.goodyear.com.ph/labs/safety.asp

http://www.saferoads.com/drivers/tips_drivertips.html

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/car-driving-safety/accidents-hazardous-conditions/10-safe-driving-tips.htm

Do you have a driving story to tell? How did you survive it? J

Miryenda From My Loving ‘Ate’

Look what my Sister cooked for our miryenda!

I sure get the love from a mother and a sister—in one! J

Chicken Sopas is simple and easy to cook. I have the recipe below from http://panslasangpinoy.com just in case you need one after looking at the image

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter

1 medium sized onion, diced

Chicken Sopas!

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, diced

32 ounces chicken broth (about 4 cups)

2 cups elbow macaroni

3/4 cup celery stalk, chopped

3/4 cup carrots, diced

3/4 cup cabbage; shredded

3/4 cup fresh or evaporated milk

1 cup water

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Cooking Procedure

Heat a cooking pot and put-in the butter. Allow the butter to melt. Add onions and cook until the texture becomes soft. Put-in the boneless chicken breasts and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle some salt and ground black pepper and stir. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Pour-in water and milk and wait to re-boil. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Add the elbow macaroni and cook for 8 minutes while stirring once in a while. Put-in the carrots and celery and simmer for 3 minutes. Add the cabbage and cook for 2 minutes more. Turn-off the heat and transfer to a serving plate. Serve hot. Share and enjoy!

Number of servings (yield): 6

And here's our panghimagas!

From our Mango Tree!

Manila Ocean Park

Our visit here is my first taste of summer getaway this year. It was just a day tour but I enjoyed it so much with Jaimie and Jelly! Tulog na tulog yung dalawa sa kotse on our way home. Hahaha! It was actually my treat for them because they made it to be on top of their class this school year once again. They both bagged medals as honor students and as a surprise reward, I took them to Manila Ocean Park. Weeee! Galing galing! I’m one proud Tita! J

Going There

Manila Ocean Park is located at the back of Quirino Grandstand along Roxas Boulevard in the bright city of Manila. Since we are coming from Cavite area (South of Manila), I referred to an online map with SM Mall of Asia as my starting point. By the way, we travelled by car. For more direction assistance whether you are travelling by car or by bus, I found this site very useful: Directions, Routes, maps, Shortcuts in Metro Manila (http://www.metromaniladirections.com/). The map on the website of Manila Ocean Park (www.manilaoceanpark.com) also helped me memorize the route going to the park. Grrrr. Unfortunately, I turned right too soon at Star City so I had to turn around at Buendia back to Macapagal Ave until we reached CCP Complex again. After a few kilometers, we reached US Embassy and then the Quirino Grandstand at the left. There is a little chance you will get lost at this point after turning left at the traffic lights because you’ll immediately see the Manila Ocean park signs.

Parking

At the end of the road, you’ll see a paid parking area, which could be your option when the main parking inside the park is already full. Turn right to go to the main gate of the park. Don’t forget to get your parking ticket because you don’t want to pay extra when you exit. Parking fee is P25.00 for the whole day (flat rate).

Buying Tickets

The ticket booth is located at the entrance of the main building beside H2O hotel. There are attendants who could help you decide on the perfect packages for you and your group or whether there are great promos available on that day, so do not hesitate to ask them what’s best for you. Read ahead and you’ll find the available shows/areas you could visit and enjoy!

For our visit, I picked the Ultimate Experience for P800.00 each. The promo runs until April 15, 2012.

The Sea Lion Show

That's the two smart sea lions with their two trainors and two new friends.

This large open stadium is located across the ticket booth. Thirty minutes before the show starts, guests may enter the area and find their seats. The moment we entered the show area, Jaimie blurted right away: “Tita, you should have told me to bring swimsuits!”. It’s because the park allows guests to swim at the pool inside the show stadium. This kiddo was totally drooling to swim! When the show is about to start, swimmers are asked to get out of the pool and join other guests to watch the performance. The show, for the most part, displays the intelligence and charisma of the sea lions. And they incorporate educational message against water pollution. I loooove to see then clap their fins ^_^, wave to the audience and look shy! Hahaha! Artista ang lola mo! Although there are instances where the male sea lion did not follow instructions from his master, but the female was so into her performance!

The show is scheduled 3 times within the day: 11:00AM, 2:00PM and 4:30PM

The Oceanarium

Right after the Sea Lion Show, we headed straight to The Oceanarium, where most guests go because the next available show is after 3 hours pa. This area showcases different marine animals in large tanks of sea water lighted with beautiful colors. Flash photography is strictly prohibited in this area so turn this off on your camera flash settings to avoid scaring the marine animals ^_^

At the shark area

Jaimie and Jelly while enjoying the fishes

At the dome

At the shark area.

Camera flash is prohibited in this area so we have to maximize
the light source at the back :-)

The Penguin Encounter (The Antartica)

This is not included on our chosen package but if you want to see live penguins, you need pay an extra P300.00 for the Penguins exhibit. Who doesn’t want to know why penguins wear tuxedo!? ;-) Hahaha!

Eating ice cream at Antartica??? Hahaha!

The Fish Spa

The doctor fishes are always in! Fish spa is definitely an exciting activity here but I think ten minutes for each session is sooooo bitin! They are also called the nibble fishes, which nibbles the dead skin leaving the healthy skin to grow with teeny tiny sensation but without pain.


According the Manila Ocean Park site, admissions are the following:

Php 120 per head
2 ft & below free of charge

Monday & Tuesday
10:00 am - 7:00 pm
Last selling of tickets: 6:30 pm

Wednesday to Friday
10:00 am - 8:30 pm
Last selling of tickets: 8:00 pm

Saturday, Sunday & Public Holiday:
9:00 am - 8:30 pm
last selling of tickets: 8:00 pm

The Souvenir Shops

Manila Ocean Park also has interesting shops and offers pasalubong sales for their guests. There are a lot of stuffs to choose from especially for balikbayans and foreigners. There is also a BPI automatic teller machine(ATM) which I find very convenient especially for those who run out of cash.

Restaurants

There numbers of restaurants and food kiosks inside so you'll never get hungry just prepare for the pricey food!!! So i suggest that you bring enough water and snacks so you don't have to spend too much. It is located after the souvenir shop.

Jellies

One of the areas that we enjoyed is the Jellies room. There are several illuminated tanks of jellies inside perfect for the dancing lights. Don’t forget to get your pictures taken at the largest tank like we did ^_^

I created a mosaic showing our favorite Jellies shots!

The Musical Fountain Show

The show that I enjoyed the most is the Musical Fountain Show at 7:00PM- 7:30PM daily. There is only one show for the day so make sure you’ll be at the stadium at around 6:30PM. The red-colored seats area in the middle is the most perfect place to watch the show.

The amazing Fountain Musical Show!

H2O Hotel

They also have a hotel and spa named H2O. So if you feel like having overnight with your friends and families, this a perfect summer getaway for you!

We spent 6 hours to enjoy our ultimate experience package and headed straight to Yellow Cab in Macapagal Ave for our late dinner J All in all, it was fun… except for the pricey tickets! ^_^v

For more information, please visit Manila Ocean Park website:

http://www.manilaoceanpark.com/

Cheery MeeeMee

Jelly has become a very brave and independent girl. 

I think one of the least favorite times of parents and ironically the best time to show love as parents, is when their children get sick. I am neither yet married nor a parent but with my nieces, I feel like one. ^_^

My oldest niece, Jelly, was sent home over by her teacher two weeks ago. I was sleeping from work, graveyard shift by the way, when I was waked up by her nanny because Jelly was sent home earlier than the usual. Later we knew that she needs medical attention. Apparently, her pee got blood and who doesn’t freak out about peeing blood! My sister, Jelly’s mom, was out for work and her dad as well. I sent them text messages about Jelly’s condition right away and I decided to take her to the hospital immediately. Kahit may muta pa ako. Hehehe.

Something about hospitals that creeps me out but I do not have much choice to avoid going especially being the only place to go to. Hehehe. Just few weeks before that, I also took my Uncle to the ER because of his asthma attack. I had several visits as well with my Tatay because of dizziness. But as luck would have it, our family bond gets better during these times. I make sure they feel taken cared of very well, just like I want to be treated when I am not feeling well.

Poor girl, she was not able to join her classmate on an
intermission dance number for their school graduation.

She was admitted to the hospital for about three days. It turned out she had urinary tract infection because of salty foods that she eats. She was treated with anti-biotic along with her low-salt diet.

We were giggling the whole time when Tatay was there with me to take care of Jelly because he used to ask from time to time to turn off the air-condition. Hehehe. Lamigin ang aking tatay. And he is the one sleeping most of the time! Hahaha!

Tatay sleeping. So sweet, he brought Jelly a bottle of Singkamas.

We are just happy to know that there was nothing
very serious about her condition and in a few days, she'll be okay.

And when the time came that I was the one who was brought to the Emergency Room few months ago because of my sprained foot, it was my sister, Ate Doll, became my cheerer.

This was last year. My sister took a picture of me
 while waiting for my turn at the X-ray room.

I believe that there is a Higher Being that guides my family and hears my prayers everyday, especially during times we need Him... He is always there!

Blackbeard’s Seafood Island Restaurant, Mall of Asia

Wakeboard on the wall

A view of the sea (Manila Bay), surf board hanging on the wall, boat-like design of the ceiling, waiters wearing nice hula shirts are just some of the things will catch your eyes in this restaurant and could make you feel you are on the beach.  

One thing I love about this place is that even if you are on a budget, you can still eat like you have three stomachs or until your neck gets numb and can’t feel your toes anymore. Hahaha! Watch out diet-conscious people out there… this is not a good place for you! ^_^v

Actually, it was our pre-valentine date when we had our first visit on this place. We were actually looking for a place to chill out and try out something new. We walked our way to San Miguel bay area at the north west side of SM Mall of Asia in Pasay, just in time for Marc’s photowalk, while their large posters caught our attention. Nothing discourages us about seafood, basta seafood go na go kami! Marc and I feasted Palawan Shores from a wide range of boodle feast selections on their menu. They have two serving choices for their boodle feasts: good 3-4 persons & 5-6 persons. Well, you can only make the most out of their servings if you are on a group. They also have single orders on their menu if you don't feel like feasting about seafood. 

Palawan Shores

For more of their menus and contact numbers, you may visit http://www.munchpunch.com/2949/blackbeards-seafood-island-market-market/menu

Blackbeard's Seafood Island Mall of Asia (MOA)

Bldg. G SPACE 15 & 16, North Lighthouse
SM by the Bay, Seaside Blvd. 
SM Mall of Asia, Pasay City
+639273118213

It was a fun experience! We did not use plates and ate on banana leaf. If you order any boodle feast menu, the food will come in on a pre-arranged table top together with the banana leaf and the food, ready to be served on top your table. Do not forget to ask for a basin of water with lemon so that if you feel like using your hand in doing the crabs or clams, you are ready to roll!

Dapitan's Pride

We loved our first visit so much that we did not hesitate to have our dinner again there for the second time. We momentarily forgot about “trying something new”.. sa susunod na lang. Hehehe. That time, we ordered Dapitan’s Pride. We were happy and satisfied customers that night.

For the third time, I took my family here with me to celebrate Tatay’s 72^nd birthday last March 25. It was a perfect place for us because besides being seafood addicts, we are all extremist boodle feasters in the family! Another plus is that they serve fresh buco, which I really really love!

We ordered Tali Beach and Chang China Chow!

Here's my niece enjoying her Fresh Buko

Tatay's birthday... He was opening crabs for us :-)

Paalala po pala, if you go on a Sunday, please bring with you an extra patience to wait for your food to be served completely because Sunday’s are family day and people go on this place in large groups. Your order may take about 30-40 minutes. ^_^v 

Visa and MasterCards are accepted. 

Other photo credits are from http://ph.openrice.com.

Cooking Class Is Where Food and Fun Meet

It has been over two months now since my older sister, my niece and I enrolled in a cooking class. Yes! Cooking class indeed! I’m very sure I made the right choice in joining because aside from all the new skills I have learned and the chance to bond with my sister and my niece, I also find the time to do things outside my day-to-day professional work as a System Developer, which I think is absolutely a different kind of stress-reliever. 

I couldn’t stop remembering when I was little, I always wondered to join a swimming class but because of limited means, I only got a chance to have it when I was in college. ^_^v… in Physical Education 102! Sure it is not too late for anyone to fulfill one’s dreams. *So what are your little dreams?*

This is the first time we wore our uniforms; we loved it sooo much.
We only borrowed it from our classmates.
The week after, we had our own!

This photo could tell how we are taking the chopping board seriously!
 Hahaha! Being in the kitchen for long straight hours,
 standing, in a room with high temperature, time-pressured…
Bow na bow na ako sa contestants ng Top Chef!

Here’s my Grilled Cheese

Here’s our Chocolate Mousse

.

Here’s Food Carving Day!

.

Here’s Chicken Lollipop, Mayonnaise,
Béchamel and Grilled Sandwich. 

Here’s Makisushi and Vegetable Tempura

Here’s my niece, me and my sister
holding our masterpieces during the examination 

 .

Working in the kitchen is a passion. The stress, the pressure and body pains are worth it once your food and dedication are appreciated. Our mom would be very proud of us. We may never recreate her heavenly food exactly the way she did it, but everything we have done and wish to do are all dedicated to her. I know she’d be proud of me even more when I have my own family.

Never be afraid to try something new. It always opens up a new possibility for you to enjoy your life ^_^ What are you waiting for....Start NOW!

By the way, if your are near Bacoor/Imus Cavite area, and interested to enroll a cooking/baking class, please feel free to visit St. Emilene Academe website below for more information.

St. Emilene Academe
167 Gen. Satorre St., Imus, Cavite
Tel. No.: (046)-4711384 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            (046)-4711384      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            (046)-4711384 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            (046)-4711384      end_of_the_skype_highlighting      end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Fax No.: (046)-4718744
http://st-emileneacademe.50webs.com/

Cooking Class Is Where Food and Fun Meet

 

It has been over two months now since my older sister, my niece and I enrolled in a cooking class. Yes! Cooking class! I’m very sure I made the right choice because aside from the new skills I have been learning and a chance to bond with my sister and my niece, I also find the time to do things outside my day-to-day professional work as a Developer, which I think is a stress-reliever.  

I couldn’t stop remembering when I was little, I always wonder to join a swimming class but because of limited means, I only got a chance to have it when I was in college. ^_^v… in Physical Education 102! Sure it is not too late for anyone to fulfill one’s dreams. *What are your little dreams?*

This is the first time we wore our uniforms; we lovedit sooo much. Beside me is our Chef instructor.

 

This photo could tell how we are taking the chopping board seriously! Hahaha! Being in the kitchet for long straight hours, standing, in a room with high temperature, time-pressured… Bow na bow na ako sa contestants ng Top Chef!

 

Here’s my Grilled Cheese.

 

Here’s our Chocolate Mousse.

 

Here’s Food Carving Day!

Here’s Chicken Lollipop, Mayonnaise, Béchamel and Grilled Sandwich + Carrot Cake!

 

Here’s Makisushi and Vegetable Tempura

 

Here’s my niece, me and my sister holding our masterpieces during the examination.

 

Our mom would be very proud of us. We may not recreate her heavenly food the way she did it, but everything we have done and wish to do are all dedicated to her. I know she’d be proud of me even more when I have my own family.

 

I Hear Laughter In The Rain

 

There is always a first time for everything. Fun Run in the middle of heavy rain is something new to me, but hey, I felt that it was way better than the usual! So true, maniwala kayo! Sana lagi na lang umuulan kapag may fun run, :-D oh sige na nga, joke lang.

I did not get a chance to be bored from my first step up to the last because, for 5k at least, most joiners were kids and high school students – trust me, it was way too unpredictable. I saw a kid left the sole of his rubber shoes and he just then went barefoot! I think that was smart and one less smelly feet from all of the wet runners. And mind you, teens are just sooo energetic. Hindi sila mahabol ni Ate Meeyeow! Hahaha!

And you just might understand where the fun was coming if you read further from the conversations I overheard along the race:

©©©

 

A girl was left behind by his friends and met at the other side of the track just after the U-Turn near Coastal Mall:

Girl: “Pwede ba? … magshortcut?”
Boys: “Cge, pwede yan!”

… Until they were noticed and stopped by the marshal. Tsk tsk. Buking!

©©©

 

A guy kid blaming the girl kid:

Guy Kid 1: “Kanina pa sana ako natapos kung hindi kita inantay kanina!” (taray!)

©©©

 

At the water station:

Kid 1: “Wow, tubig ulan!” (indeed! Hindi malayong 50% ng laman ng mga plastic cups ay tubig ulan! hehehe)

©©©

 

A boy struggling to get to the finish line:

Boy: “Para kay Obet!!!!” (That’s the spirit!! Remember Obet, the recipient of new rubber shoes in the Milo commercial? Awwwww!)

©©©

 

A teen after getting his race certificate:

Teen 1: “Yahooo! Pang dagdag to sa credentials to pag nag apply koooo!”
Teen 2 (to Teen 1): “Papasa na tayong magnanakaw!” (mabilis tumakbo, nga naman…)

 

Getting to the finish line wasn’t easy for us (me, my sister and Jelly) and the start line is even harder! We had to go back to the nearest U-Turn because Macapagal road turned one-way. We were 30 minutes late from the gun start and it was still raining!

After the race, we stayed for a while to take pictures, kid around and wave to the helicopter covering the event. Yeah baby! Sana nakita ang big smile ko sa TV! Hahaha! No loot bag this time (baduy!). But we saw Sheh, William and Mae; quite surprising to see them in the crowd of around 34,000.

We don’t know our official time yet. My senses are telling me around 50 minutes for 5 kilometers. I’ll update you soon! ;-) For now, I will deal with my headache, body pain and a blister on my foot but definitely no injury! Next race is RunRio Leg 2! If my training at work will not fall on the same day, I’ll be joining this race and enjoying Boracay a week after because I cannot be in same place at once… I’m hoping for the best!!!! Hooray! :-D

Thank you, Lord!