Simple Joy #2

i needed new shoes for a friend's upcoming wedding, so i shopped.


at four inches above ground level, i seriously need tan not to leave my side during the wedding to avoid fashion mishaps, i.e. sprawling on the floor.

as with all shopping adventures, here's the impulse buy:


technically, shopping's not a simple joy since it requires a whole lotta effort as well as a really really fat wallet. effectively lessens the frustration though. so here's a product of this weekend's shopping that shall count as my simple joy #2:

really really cute hair thingies. i know the bears aren't really age-appropriate, but i couldn't resist. they're checkered! at least i don't do pigtails anymore.

Hohoho to Huhuhu

where do i get the christmas joy and cheer i hear so much about?

here's how i picture a perfect christmas setting:


minus the fireplace of course. a small but fully decorated tree, perfectly wrapped gifts (and patience not to open any of them 'til christmas eve), cozy couch with pillows and a blanket, and soft instrumental music. very inviting, very relaxing, sweet, and simple.

so, santa, here's what i want for christmas:


if you can't, this will do:

no gift wrapping necessary. ^_^

ok, back to reality. it's the 11th, and i haven't the slightest clue on how this year's christmas will turn out. having a stressful work environment (despite the buy-out) sucks so i'm looking for ways to make this december better. been calling my saturday overtimes "sacrificial saturdays" already. it's a crazy rat race and i can't even see the finish line.

dear bosses: you're scrooges, every last one of you!

somebody, somewhere, has to know the answer to my question. i need a serious boost on this chirstmas spirit thing!!

Simple Joy #1

so i'm always always stressed at work, right? i recently decided to take another step towards self improvement. here's what i decided to do... every now and then, i'm going to try to have simple joys --little things that make me happy or lift my spirits even for a bit. it's just to remind me how blessed i am, and so i can have something of a reference of what to do, get, or have to fix an otherwise hateful day.

today's simple joy is my pregroe shampoo. no, i do not have a strong desire to thicken my hair, nor am i thinning up there. my hair up top is just right.

i chanced upon this while shopping for puppy bottles and vitamin droppers pre-birth of the babies at mercury, trinoma. as i'm tried of the more advertised brands, i try some less popular ones every now and then. my first qualifying factor is almost always the smell. i abhor the tutti-fruity kinds as much as the heavily floral ones. pregroe has a mild scent that somewhat relaxes me.

for the actual usage, it didn't disappoint either. after shampooing, it left my hair smooth and easier to brush. unlike the more commercialized brands, i had no tangles even during the rinse. i haven't noticed if my hair has actually thicken, but hey, if it does, all the better, right?

Literally z_z

the boss gave me more stuff to handle.. and although flattering.. i'm almost always stressed, fatigued, and just plain tired. if only my salary could catch up with the workload, i could pamper myself to make up for it.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Ohemgee Puppies

sometime after 2 in the morning of october 10, our mini schnauzer started labor and pushed out 4 super cute puppies by 5:30. it was my first time watching something/someone give birth. It was messy, tense, and somehow still magical. definitely not in a glittery-cartoon-children’s-fantasy-magical, but more like touching-miracle-magical.

thank God for our super sweet and malambing dog, fifi, and now her 4 uber cute pups!

they look like longanisa sausages when they come out, but they look like really really cute rodents when dry.

have i gushed enough on their cuteness?

Impressed with Acqua

this is to formally acknowledge acqua salon’s commendable effort in valuing customers like me. here’s the story:

last month, i wanted to get a haircut. my criteria were simple: the salon had to be accessible and must have accommodating but not pushy stylists. based on that as well as a dozen tabs worth of internet research of good reviews, i came up with acqua salon, trinoma.

unfortunately, as narrated here, i was not able to do as planned due to bad timing. i came in early to avoid crowds, but that morning, acqua was understaffed. i went to a different salon instead and then blogged about the day’s experience when i got home.

i actually have no idea how or where they got my blog address, but last night, i noticed a comment on the said entry coming from acqua salon apologizing for not being able to serve me that time. it even went on to request for a private communication via email. considering they did not really disappoint me with a bad haircut and/or service, i was really impressed with their effort to compensate and especially with the fact that they did not even try to make excuses. these admirable gestures just goes to show how exceptionally nice they treat their customers regardless if you're a patron or a first timer.

dear acqua salon,

i've heard and read a lot of good things about your salon and I’m really delighted to experience the courtesy firsthand. it's just a case of wrong timing that time i went there. No apologies necessary. I'll be looking forward to visiting and having my hair done by Ms. Laila sometime next month.

Random

i've been out of blog-circulation for a bit with laziness being the culprit so here's a few random stuff that's been happening in my life lately.

due to recent outings, i've turned into a common negrita. while i do not have anything against morena people, dark skin, especially on the face, does not suit me. so i then start my quest to try and speed up the process of getting back my old complexion.

i decided to get the power peel at forever flawless, plus a whitening mask after. the pricking during the facial cleaning hurt a bit, so did the peeling, but it was bearable. then there's the usual (at least my due diligence research says it's normal) after procedure hapdi. but all in all, it was ok.

after that, as per my brother's advice, i needed to get sunblock for my face. apparently, office and household lights contribute to skin darkening as well. so i got a mild exfoliating toner and a whitening sunblock at the face shop last week.

i think my face is actually starting to lighten plus they actually smell nice. my boyfriend says so. :) so i'm hoping they're really working and it's not just all psychological. ^_^

next, my new sling bag. it's a nike cordura. i got one in black for tan a while back to replace his dilapidated oldie. he liked it and so did his sister. unfortunately, it went out of stock and we were not able to get one for tintin. anyway, it recently went back on the shelves and tan got me one to match my cebu-bought doll shoes. yey!


hmm, what else? trying to lose some weight in time for christmas pictures.. really really hard, but i'm somewhat determined. um.. trying to cut down on shopping and unnecessary purchases.

oh, and waiting for our dog to give birth!

that's all for now.

September Hangover

still for september, here are a few events i feel the need to post about..

haven't had the time been too lazy to blog about my cebu-bohol trip last september 13-17. also haven't had the time been too lazy to print and crop pictures for the album and this blog.
i've actually been to bohol four years ago. back then, we did the loboc river thing, man-made forest, the tarsiers, chocolate hills, and too much churches. this year, we did all of that minus the churches, and more of some other stuff.
since pictures do paint a thousand words, see what these say..
may 2007:


september 2011:


that being the week of my brother's birthday (16th), we celebrated at johnny rockets on the 18th. just me, him, and tan. i was not able to take a picture then.

the next weekend, september 24-25, i spent with tan's family at poracay, porac, pampanga. it was perpetually crowded, noisy, and soooo much fun! ^_^ they're all so nice to be with and very accommodating.

i miss them already :)

that's it.. ciao!

Third Quarter Evaluation

apparently, 2011 is the year of weddings, baptismals, and travel. here's a list of noteworthy events, some of which i regret to have been unable to attend:

1. family's hong kong, macau, china new year trip - january 2011

2. chad's wedding - january 2011

3. magalawa trip with tan, jay, jane, rommel, and viviane - january 2011

4. sir nic's wedding - february 2011
5. ip ilustrisimo's baptism - february 2011

6. my birthday at boracay with tan, eybi, rain, gio, and nel - february 2011

7. renz's wedding - march 2011

8. pingul's wedding - april 2011 (this i was not able to attend T_T)

9. family trip to puerto princesa, palawan - may 2011

10. lassie's wedding - may 2011

*a little 2-month break*

11. ady talan's baptism - august 2011

12. cara buenaventura's baptism - august 2011

13. cebu bohol trip with tan, eybi, rain, gio, and nel - september 2011

14. athena rosel's baptism - september 2011

i haven't even included the fontana long weekends here. this coming weekend, we have a pampanga overnight scheduled. by december, it'll be arjay's wedding. i wonder if i'll get to go to sagada before the year ends. :)

for the rest of the year, i have the following goals:

1. lose the pounds i gained before the year ends

2. run and actually place in the closing of sportsfest for 5k

ThisClose to Poking My Eye Out

as previously shared, i had my first pair of contact lenses last sunday. without the basic tutorial session that should've been given by the optical shop, i struggled to put the contacts in without poking my eye out and losing or damaging the lenses.

first time
i got it in in 30 minutes. too darn long, but still good since i'm a newbie.

second time
spent 15 minutes to no avail. gave up coz i was late for work.

third time (this was today)
after more than 30 minutes, i had the right one in, and was ready to throw out the left one. wanted to just rip it all to pieces out of frustration, and have thought, but not said a number of profanities in my head.

fourth time (still today)
got both lenses in in 5 minutes.

so, ok. here's what i was doing wrong.. i used my right forefinger and thumb to fish out the lens from its case, in the process wetting my poking finger. i washed the lens on my left palm making both hands wet with solution. this caused the contacts to stick, slide, and whatever it is called when it folds into itself and refuses to form the bowl shape i want.

luckily, my youngest brother woke up and taught me the right way to not get my poking finger wet. this time i got it in quick. maybe i should do a youtube video on how to do that, just the making it go bowl shaped part, not the putting it in part.

here's the short version: (note: this is for a rightie like me)
place the lens on your left palm, spray with solution. use your right pinky to rub and clean it, and your right middle finger and thumb to pick it up. transfer it to your left hand by picking it up by the edge with your left forefinger and thumb. put it in a bowl fashion over your dry right forefinger and poke it into your eye. done.

hopefully, my future attempts would be as easy as my fourth try.

Haircuts and Contact Lenses

well, hello there.
i've realized that my last entry was written like crap so i'm trying to reconstruct to make sense of my ramblings. here goes..

it never is "just a haircut". as i try to recall how many times i've been to a salon and have come out disappointed and/or not entirely satisfied with the service i paid for, i decided it's time to try something new. so with a 200-350 budget in mind based on the regular 250 haircut plus tips i usually spend on bench fix, i consulted my ever reliable friend, google. according to reviews and customer feedback, i should try trinoma's acqua salon. they supposedly offer affordable services, which as per the satisfied patrons are sulit because of their accommodating staff, the lie-down-completely-instead-of-breaking-your-neck-in-an-awkward-leaning-fashion shampoo and conditioning, the 5-10 minute massage, and the meticulous stylists. oh, and of course, don't forget the ice tea.

determined to try and get my money's worth, i set out to trinoma. the agenda was to
1. go get a haircut at acqua
2. get my long overdue contact lenses

accompanied by my brother, we headed to the mall. touchdown at 10:30am. according to the sign on their door, they were still closed. my brother suggested to get the contacts first instead.

now, my vision is not that impaired. i can actually read and see things without my glasses on. unfortunately, being near sighted as i am, with astigmatism, everything blurs after a few feet. this presents challenges during office presentations, non-mrt commuting (i can't read the jeep signs unless they stop right in front of me), and most of all, ordering from places with the menus listed above the counters, i.e. jollibee, mcdonalds, and tokyo tokyo.

there were no george opticals nor eo shops in trinoma, so i settled with the optical shop. bad choice. sure, the lady was nice enough, but she was simply not accommodating. as advised by both my brothers who had their contacts years ago, the clinics/shops would usually ask whether you're a first time contact lens user and provide you with options on which type of lenses would best suit you. in addition to that, they'd teach you the basics of putting them on. there was none of that here. she just gave me a brand and a price, that was it. worse, there were no freebies. no contact lens case (is that what it's called?), no free little bottle of solution.. nada. for the test procedure, they had the usual peek into a hole with a picture, click click click, and now look at random letters on a wall. wait, it wasn't a wall. the letters were on an ipad being randomly shuffled and adjusted according to preferred sizes at the lady's convenience. voila, the wonders of technology. anyway, i was done in less than 30 minutes, happy with my contact lenses, but not with the service. i'm never going back there again.

back to acqua. first glance at the same sign told me the salon was still closed, but wait, there's more. on the other door, my brother spotted another sign that said it was open. go figure. anyway, we went in the same time the receptionist went out. she was arguing with someone over the phone with a less than professional volume and tone. we were left standing by the front desk with other staff just plain looking at us. we were there for more than 5 minutes and no one felt the need to ask us what we wanted. i glanced over the service price list and found haircuts priced at 300php. thought about getting my eyebrows threaded. the 5 minute wait felt like 15. when the lady finally went back in and asked what we wanted, i told her i just wanted a haircut, fighting the urge for a sarcastic "what the hell else would i want in a salon" to avoid the risk of embarrassment since i'm fully aware that they offer services other than cuts. (do i still make sense?) well, she then tells me that they only have one stylist available, and he's just about to start on a customer, but has 2 more lined up. needless to say, my plans went kaput.

my brother suggested menage instead. when we got there, menage had a "menu" of their services outside already, so it was fairly easy to look up what i want. i decided to get the 250 haircut. we were immediately greeted and ushered in. waiting time was less than 2 minutes and i found myself comfortably seated in a fresh, clean, spa-like environment. my stylist (i forgot to ask his name T_T) asked me what i wanted. i told him the details including my wash and wear requirement. i was offered something to drink, but i politely declined since i didn't know how long the process was going to take and i didn't want to need a wiwi break in the middle of it. a lady then placed a cold folded towel over my face and started a light massage. it was relaxing. i then had my hair showered with a choice of warm or cold water. then the cut. i'm not really one to watch everything they do, but after an hour, i could say that both the stylist and the blow dry person were meticulous. nothing felt rushed, unlike when i get my hair done at bench fix galleria. For 250 (+tips), it's definitely worth it (both the service and the results). see you in a few months.

It's Checkered and Pink!

pipay's camera sucks, but here's my new oh so big backpack!


i love that it has the laptop space thing and the padding


and it even has that little pocket at the top for my mp3 player and/or ipod. will have to look for ways to lock the zipper though.

What I Want For Christmas

i know it's still a long way off, but what the heck, here's what i want for christmas this year:


too much?
it's a canon powershot sx230 hs, and right now it costs 21,950 php. i know, i know. i'm not techie, but it's really really pretty, and any camera i can use for macro photography works for me.

crossing my fingers for holiday sales, promos, and 0% installment plans!

(edit: i would settle for the sx220, without the gps, costing around 19,950 php. that's 2,000 php off! besides, it comes in purple! ^_^)

Fun? Maybe Not So Much

ran 5k yesterday morning at the company's fun run --sports fest opening ceremonies. my last run was last year's sports fest closing ceremonies. needless to say, i hurt all over. who knew even your neck could hurt after a 5k run under the rain? well, even though i had no practice whatsoever, i was pretty frustrated at myself. armed with my mp3 player and my ever supportive boyfriend, i finished around 41 minutes with at least 6 slow-down-to-a-walk uphill climbs.

reminiscing, i looked back on my first fun run ever. i miss running regularly... wish i could practice enough to have a less embarrassing turn out at the closing.

Archie

lookie what i got on kindle... ^_^

Almost Clicking Unfriend

sunday is a day for catching up. catching up on my much needed sleep, catching up on doing laundry, catching up on blogging updates. catching up on some social networking for updates on friends, events, and what nots.

unfortunately, this supposedly peaceful moment is bound to be ruined somehow by some people who seem to be catching up with their pity wagons. i'm not sure if it's just me, but i'm not really a fan of pity. i'm particularly irked at those who do paawa especially on social networking sites. sure, i do get the venting rants; there's only so much frustration a person could take.. i even understand the whole "spreading the happiness" or "too good to keep to myself" thing, but for the death of me, i can't seem to understand the "i'm so kawawa, you'd have to pity me" posts. that someone would have to be pretty desperate and a hundred percent of a loser to actually solicit pity or try to get people on your side through facebook. i try so hard not to judge, but really, some people are just begging for it.

dear facebook friend, i know we are not that close for me to even try and give you an advice you'd probably be too stubborn or ksp to listen, but here goes.. yes, i do realize that you are starved of attention, and yes, you're probably used to having your way or getting what you want, or so i've heard, but then again, whatever you got is what you deserved. in the first place, you knew the person was attached, yet you stupidly cling on, what, wishing everything would be given up for you, an attention hungry, thisshort of a home-wrecker? apart from this weird craving for people's sympathy, and of being noticed and/or being the center of attention, God is fair, so you probably have some good traits to balance that corrupted part of you. i suggest you stop the emo thing and move on. there is a difference between can't and won't. stop wallowing in people's pity, you'd most likely drown in it. and for goodness sakes, stop posting sh*t, or so help me, i will unfriend you.

if you really do have to let it all out on cyberspace, please, please, create a blog. give us the option of whether or not to read it, and not force flood our facebook updates. come on.

My Favorite Excuse: Stress

stress levels have reached alarmingly high levels. i am now officially dependent on caffeine to function. oh, starbucks dark mocha, what do i do without you?

speaking of stress, it's my excuse for the most recent purchase. obviously, i wasn't successful in cutting down on unnecessary expenses as originally planned. sure, i tried to bring lunch everyday so i could avoid spending too much on junk or fast food, and yeah, i don't get to shop at malls as often as i used to coz i'm almost always on shopping ban (imposed by my bf)... what i saved went to something i ordered online:


two shelves. don't ask. i swear i'll find a way to insist that they're necessities.
thanks, pa, for setting them up for me.

2011 Movies So Far

tons of great movies this year, and i've only grazed the tip of the iceberg. this, by the way, led me to tag my posts from now on. for the sake of being organized. anyway, so far, i've watched the following, wherein i would attempt to summarize my "feelings" in one or two lines:

1. death race 2
a far cry from death race 1, but still good. our (the boyfriend and mine) theory is that this might've been originally death race 1, if not for the bit boring parts

2. the mechanic
i know i've watched this, but i can't seem to remember the story

3. i am number four
sucks. i fell asleep halfway through. stupid movie.

4. hall pass
eh.. so-so

5. adjustment bureau
action sci-fi turned chic flick. good start, bad ending

6. beastly
another teeny bopper movie. a thumb up (yes, just one) just coz it had a fairytale ending

7. red riding hood
surprisingly good, but not spectacular. kinda guessed who the wolf was.

8. limitless
another action sci-fi with a good start, but ended bad

9. insidious
surprisingly a good thriller even though the story's not that good. this one gave me todo goosebumps!!

10. source code
i didn't like this only because it was tiring to watch. sci-fi turned chic flick

11. rio
ok for a kiddie movie

12. fast and furious 5
although this one was good, it wasn't great, and it didn't deserve the hype it got.

13. thor
another movie ruined coz it was turned into a chic flic

come on, not every movie has to have a chic and/or a love story.

14. pirates of the caribbean 4
anything with johnny depp is gold! the first three movies were better since they had tons of incredible fight scenes. this one takes the cake on the effects.

15. kungfu panda 2
awesome!! haha. jack black movies are easy to like as long as i don't get to see his face and/or any part of him for that matter

16. this brings us now to my latest weekend movie:


got to watch transformers last friday. while i am not a fanatic like some people i know, i enjoyed it. as expected, the storyline was not that deep, which for a change, was ok for me. you could say that i didn't want the hassle of trying to guess hidden agendas nor the stress of analyzing what just happened or why while watching awesome cars go eh-eh-err-gshh-gzz-zzz into kick-ass robots.

onto mirage. meet mirage, the red ferrari 458 italia, which caught my eye. su-weeeeeet!!


been meaning to watch monte carlo just coz i still like teeny bopper movies. looking forward to captain america, green lantern, x-men, harry potter, breaking dawn, saw 8, puss in boots, sherlock holmes 2, bourne 4, and so much more!

Renovations

so i had my site renovated. not sure if i got tired of the old layout or i just wanted a new look. might be both. anyway, for some reason, i couldn't seem to be able to post a new entry yesterday at the office, so this one's my new post since the redecor.

sadly, i lost blog links.. will try and look for them later. also plan on tweaking the template a bit to add buttons for easy access like i had with the old one. too bad i have no knowledge of css or whatnots, but like before, i'd probably manage. :)

also, the post a comment link doesn't seem to be working. >.< hafta do troubleshooting.

cheers to a new look!

(edit: have added a few blog links back. [p, i can't remember your link. you don't update much kasi eh. text me] also fixed the comment button, it works now)

My First Havs

here's what i got last night...


it's actually my first pair of havs. i don't know why, but before last night, i have never bought myself a pair of outdoor slippers, and have never related to crazy fads launching them. usually i'm in step-ins or in heels. when i go to the nearby grocery i just wear my old house slippers. tan thought it was a good idea and i could actually use it when i go visit him and/or when i go to the mall, aside from the grocery thing. he assures me of the quality by reminding me his pair is still in a good condition after 4 years. (my ipanema literally broke in half after a year)

on other news, he also likes my idea of white and blue or white and green for room colors.

oh, before i go... i just want to add this last thing... i want this! please help me find it.

On a Boring Monday Holiday

woke up with a severe backache today. i'm getting old. T_T

i'm blogging just coz i'm bored. have already changed my beddings; too lazy to get a picture. planned on going to trinoma for my first ever back cleaning and a not so first pedicure. then it rained, again. canceled it, and had tea instead.

currently watching NCIS series and loving it. i just wish my downloads for the next two seasons goes faster than the rate i'm watching the current one.


it's the next best thing since CSI: LV. ^_^

Random Stuff

tomorrow's monday and i couldn't be happier that it's a holiday. we always always get monday madness in the office courtesy of slave drivers et al.

this is why i'm somewhat making the most out of my weekend. slept in til noon for a well deserved rest. doing laundry right now. planning on doing a bit of cleaning and bedding changes later today.

here's how my bed looked the last time i cleaned:


obvously, that isn't what it looks like anymore. -grin-

i'll post a picture after i clean later. in the mean time, i've setup an order for two shelves to help organize my "bed clutter".


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Space Savers

what i really wanted to be was an architect. sure, i don't really have the talent and/or gift in drawing pretty pictures of stuff, but hey, that didn't stop me from taking UST's entrance exam with architecture as my first choice and interior design as my second. sure, i passed for both even with the required drawing thing, but the career was foiled by my mom who wanted me to pursue my management engineering course at ADMU. i used to think it was for her bragging rights having a daughter studying ADMU's best course, but now, i'm thinking maybe that's just 50% of it. why or how i ended up finishing five years of ECE is an altogether different story.

anyway, i was contemplating yet again how cramped the room i share with my brothers was today and inevitably got that familiar nostalgia of what should've been. i sooo want to design my own house, or at least my own room.

found a few pieces through the web. unfortunately, i didn't remember to take note of the sites where i got them from, i'm real sorry. thus, let it be clearly stated here that all pictures in this post does not belong to me and i don't claim any contribution to them as far as ideas are concerned.

i started checking out some for shared bedrooms and got this:


on some others, i just liked the clean and fresh setup. if i could dream up my own room, it would probably look a bit like these:


of course i gotta love my blues and my greens:

i really prefer checkers over stripes, but i don't think checkered wallpaper would work too good in a small room.



here's one that tickled my fancy just coz there's a mini walk in... i mean, crawl in closet under the bed. ^_^

Childhood Memories Trashed

oh for the love of everything that's sane!!!

i still can't believe i actually looked forward to reading this crap. it effortlessly shattered my childhood memories of walking the halls of my high school engrossed in the series. i'm trying to remind myself yet again of why and how i fell to liking it 15 years ago.

well, this particular piece was a whole lot of sh*t. i stopped reading by the time i got to 50%, and went ahead to read online reviews and spoilers instead. (my spoilers ahead)


if you're not really familiar with the francine pascal twins, and would likely sprout a dozen questions on the history, forget reading the rest coz i'm not in the mood to recap.

anyway, here's the deal. the garbage novel starts with the napakalandi, inggitera, and super selfish twin stealing the good pushover twin's longtime boyfriend. eto namang super idiot and apparently malandi ring boyfriend, pumatol naman. that was how many years ago, which was repeated again after a few years. of course this started a kalimutan-mo-nang-magkadugo-tayo stage with the twins. but, surprise surprise, in the end, the pushover twin forgives the two cheaters and moves on.

as twisted as the author's sense of values and/or humor is, the book further reveals sexual affairs left and right. talo talo na lang lahat. and by lahat, i do mean LAHAT.. the twins' brother is gay, and even though married, is having an affair with the malanding twin's childhood crush. then, all that's good in the world have gone down the drain. the nerd friend turns out to be a schmuck when he earns his moolah, and eventually commits suicide. the best friend, or should i say ex best girl friend, became an arrogant doctor who also had a lover. the best thing that probably happened is that the guy who tried to date-rape the weak twin eventually turned out to be a good guy in love with her and is not her best friend turned boyfriend, but even that is really twisted.

in all this, my conclusion simply is that the author was probably an illegitimate child of none other but the devil himself. nobody else could probably think up a what's-a-worse-word-than-twisted-? story as a 10-year comeback to a teenage series.

Summer Family Getaway (day 2)

i finally get around to doing day 2. oh, laziness, why are we friends?
anyway, here it is.. we started out with the underground river. it's this river through a cave slash mini-mountain and it goes out to sea so the water's brackish.
you go through the cave in a boat with a guide. the boat's equipped with lamps similar if not exactly like car headlights. it's peacefully dark and damp inside except for the occasional bat calls and water drips. the cave features exceptional stalactites and some other rock formations molded by years of water movement, and like what we experienced during the firefly watching, it's one of those experiences you take home in your memories coz our rookie cams aren't really worthy of capturing the sights.
being an underground cave, drips are frequent and really, they can't be avoided. the thing with the drips though, most are mountain water, but every once in a while, bat poop. the way to distinguish the difference in the dark according to our kuya bangkero is the temperature. if it's cool and wet, then it's water. if it's warm and has solids, it's the other thing. and as my luck would have it, on the way out the cave, something landed on my left shoulder right on my life vest. turns out, you won't need to test the temperature to differentiate. it stank like a week old diaper filled with senior citizen pee! but hey, experience is experience. ^_^
the underwater river's actually a candidate to be one of the new 7 wonders of nature. in my little way, through my 1 and a half readers, i'm encouraging voting for this wonder. (link here)

we then travel a few miles out to do some cave trekking. the objective simply is to go up via the hollow side of a mountain that passes off as a small cave and upon reaching the top, zipline back down to civilization. so here we are all geared up in our safety helmets and gloves.


we assumed the equipment was for the zipfly already. well we found out how wrong we were when we had to twist and turn our bodies to fit into nooks and crannies leading to more crevices we had to pass through to get to the top hot and sweaty only to be confronted by another different set of safety stuff. we change and had our turns zipping down, enjoying the view on the way.


dinner at a local resto and that was it: our day 2. :)

Summer Family Getaway (day 1)

just got back from a family trip to puerto princesa, palawan. left manila at 8am sunday morning, 1st of may and headed for a 4-day adventure. ^_^ just a little heads up though... i'm expecting my narrating skills on this particular post to suck. i'm real tired right now, please bear with the lazy monologue. i'll start with day 1 and continue with the rest some other time.

although family bonding every once in a while is really nice, i can't help but wish tan and tif were with us. after all, they're part of our family already. :D

for our first day, we had a basic city tour going by pasalubong stations (yes, we did this on the first day, haha), crocodile farm, the mitra residence, baker's hill, and binuatan creations. after that we had firefly watching. somewhere among those, we also passed by a church i can't remember, and would have totally forgotten if we hadn't taken a picture.

pasalubongs comprised of cashews, the typical souvenir shirts, rain makers, and pearls.

i'm somehow sawa of the croc farm already since we've been to lots. nothing special really, except that palawan's facility is more of a reserve, where they treat and rescue almost-smuggled crocs, than a zoo.


the mitra residence was nice. the view was similar to tagaytay, but definitely without the cool atmosphere.


after that, we went to baker's hill for their famous hopia. we did not get to buy hopias since they were all out of their best sellers, but we did get to buy bread and some pastries. yes, we took pictures. the owner's residence was really elegant, except for the thousands of people visiting everyday.

the binuatan creations featured weaving local grasses and making them into bags, placemats, and more. there was one bag i liked but didn't get coz i realized 1. i still have a lot of almost-new bags and 2. i probably won't get to use it often. hooray for EQ.. or just plain ol' common sense.


we then went on home (and by home i meant the apartment we were staying in) and took showers and had naps to get ready for that night's firefly watching.

that night was a far cry from the city tour we just had. while the tour was a so-so thing, the firefly watching left me speechless. wait, i'm getting ahead of myself... after freshening up at the apartment, we had a quiet dinner at asturias hotel. the food was ok, but not really omg-great. we then traveled 15 minutes to the iwahig river where we will be sightseeing that night.

ok, let me do this justice.

1. the sky was all clear and i've never seen that much stars up there ever-ever-ever in my whole life! if i had basic knowledge of astronomy, i'd bet i could do a roll call on the zodiac and they'd all be there, including constellations and falling stars! (my brother saw one, btw)
2. i've never seen that much fireflies before. sure there were some at the ateneo grounds the time i was doing my thesis, but that was one or two at a time. those at palawan could literally light up a giant christmas tree! it took my breath away.
3. if those weren't enough, looking down at the water, our boatman's paddle was glistening! it lit up and glowed as though it was a magic wand. the river had glowing plankton!

the sights left me with mixed emotions of wonder, amazement, and a lot more. since capturing this on cam was virtually impossible with our low-tech noob cams, i was left wishing i could bottle up that moment and remember it forever. sigh.


to be continued...