The Great Lifestyle Sale

When I learned about the sale in Bonifacio High Street, I immediately called Val to accompany me.  All the great brands - Aldo, Kashieca, Addidas, Charles and Keith, La Senza among others are on sale =)

[caption id="attachment_473" align="aligncenter" width="297" caption="The Great Lifestyle Sale"][/caption]

So after making my delivery at The Ramp, Glorietta (Beadazzle By Cat is available at Dressing Room), Val and I went to BHS.

[caption id="attachment_471" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Val at the BHS entrance"][/caption]

It's Val's first time there so I just had to take her picture. Teehee =)

We went to Dimensione because that is where the Big Sale is.  It's actually on the third floor of the building.  Racks of clothes and fab shoes are on display! I lav et!!!! Of course I went straight to the table of shoes.  I love Charles and Keith so I got a pair of ballet flats in silver - Price: P1799 - I got it for only P699! What a steal! =)

[caption id="attachment_472" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Charles and Keith Silver Ballet Flats"][/caption]

There are a lot of great shoes that I would really love to buy but the sizes are limited already and most of them don't have my shoe-size anymore (I'm a size 6 =)

I also got a couple of slippers for my sister and my nephew's Yaya from Human.

Lastly, I bought an Adidas Basketball shorts for a guy friend.  Super sulit! I got it for P500 from it's original price of P1100! =)

From the sale, we went to Oliver's to eat our late dinner. Of course I ordered my all-time-favorite "Creamy Egg Mayo." For some reason, Val also ordered the same. Duh! She should have ordered something else! Haha! We were overwhelmed by the richness of the EGG so we ordered Baked Potato Mushroom Melt.  It's really good =)

[caption id="attachment_474" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Creamy Egg Sandwich"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_475" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Yum!"][/caption]

Imagine eating 4 triangle slices of this! Argh! (Val, BLT please! =)

[caption id="attachment_476" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Baked Potato"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_477" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Val enjoying every bite =)"][/caption]

It was a pleasant Friday night.

The Great Lifestyle Sale will run until July 19.  Happy Shopping!

Lenka's "The Show"

I instantly liked the song The Show when I first heard it on the radio.  It's upbeat and refreshing and super fun.  I super love the lyrics too!

Lenka Kripac, the voice behind the song, is an Australian actress before she pursued a career in singing.  "The Show" has been featured as soundtrack for Old Navy as well as an Ugly Betty teaser.

[caption id="attachment_466" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Lenka"][/caption]

Here is my favorite part in the song =)

I’m just a little bit caught in the middle
Life is a maze and love is a riddle
I don’t know where to go
Can’t do it alone I’ve tried
and I don’t know why

I am just a little girl lost in the moment
I’m so scared but don’t show it
I can’t figure it out
It’s bringing me down I know
I’ve got to let it go
And just enjoy The Show

The song was supposed to be sad but it has this "light" mood to it that makes the listener feel an optimistic vibe! =)

Thai Traditional Massage at Ton Ton

I'm a big fan of massages. Being awake for almost 24 hours a day, having dual jobs, attending to my home-based accessory business, taking care of my family (lolo, sister and nephew) and going gaga over a budding relationship can be very BAD for my back.  When I feel that I can no longer breathe and every inch of bone and muscle in my back aches, that's a sign that I need to have someone "rub" my body - specifically my back.

I got a free voucher at Ton Ton Thai Massage Center (c/o Ms. JunJun. Thanks! =) which ends today so I invited my friend, Val, to come with me since I do have an extra voucher that she could use.   Ton-Ton Thai Massage has many branches not only in Metro Manila but also in provinces like Subic and Cebu.  But since I live in Makati, I decided to have my massage at Ton Ton Salcedo Village branch.

We arrived at the center and was asked to fill up some forms.  Then the guy at the reception area asked us if we want body, back or foot massage.  Since Val and I were both stressed, we decided to try the one hour-back massage.

Ambiance: The rooms are divided by curtains and you get your massage on a thin mattress on the floor. You have to wear a pajama that they provide.  The rooms are dimly lit and the temperature is kinda' okay.  Aesthetically, the place doesn’t look appealing but it was okay considering the cost of their services – P300 per hour for all the massages, may it be back, body or foot.

Service: Ton Ton Massage uses the Thai Massage technique which is very much like Shiatsu.  There's a lot of stretching involved plus pressing of pressure points which can be very relaxing.  You'll be wearing your pajamas all the time (Thank God!) and they don't use any lotion or oil (Thank God again!).  I've always liked dry massages over the use of oil and other massage chuvaness! =)  Since we got the back massage, we thought that concentration will just be on our backs. But fortunately, our masseuse touched other areas as well such as my legs and my head. I super loved the way "Aya" rubbed my nape.  It was so relaxing =)

The experience was okay but I felt a bit sore when I got home.  I guess it's because of the way the masseuse used her elbow to rub all the "lamigs" in my back =) tsk. tsk. tsk.  But hey! It was a free massage afterall so I guess I just have to endure the pain =)

My Favorite MJ song

Since the day Michael Jackson died, I was in deep thought of what my favorite MJ song is.  Songs like Gone Too Soon and Man in the Mirror are definitely in my list but my most favorite of all is the song Ben.

Ben is a pet rat.  This song is one of Michael Jackson's favorites too, and it was his first #1 hit as a solo artist.  It doesn't speak of  cheese, garbage and rodents.  It's a beautiful song that speaks about friendship.

I don't know about you but I usually get teary-eyed when I hear this song. The pureness of MJ's voice (he was 14 when he recorded this song) and the heartfelt lyrics will make you feel all the sentiments you have for your best friend.

***

[caption id="attachment_455" align="aligncenter" width="200" caption="Michael Jackson - Ben"][/caption]

Ben, the two of us need look no more
We both found what we were looking for
With a friend to call my own
I'll never be alone
And you, my friend, will see
You've got a friend in me
(you've got a friend in me)

Ben, you're always running here and there
You feel you're not wanted anywhere
If you ever look behind
And don't like what you find
There's something you should know
You've got a place to go
(you've got a place to go)

I used to say "I" and "me"
Now it's "us", now it's "we"
I used to say "I" and "me"
Now it's "us", now it's "we"
Ben, most people would turn you away
I don't listen to a word they say
They don't see you as I do
I wish they would try to
I'm sure they'd think again
If they had a friend like Ben
(a friend) Like Ben
(like Ben) Like Ben

***

Moon Cafe

I read a lot of blogs about the restaurants in Cebu as soon as I found out that I'll be going there with my friends.  One name that has been in almost all the blogs that I've read is Moon Cafe.  It's a mexican restaurant which offers great tasting mexican food at a very affordable price.

Since my friends and I stayed at Marriott Hotel, we decided to try the Moon Cafe restaurant in Ayala Center Cebu (which happens to be beside the hotel =)

We loved everything about the place.  The interiors, the menu,  food and the fan! =)





The price of their food is very affordable.  A chimichanga costs P80 and a family pizza costs only P250!

[caption id="attachment_447" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Chimichanga"][/caption]



[caption id="attachment_449" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Carbonara"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_450" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Shrimp Pasta (I forgot the name =)"][/caption]

The Shrimp Pasta was so good! We almost finished the serving when I remembered to take a picture of it =)

[caption id="attachment_451" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Pizza Margharita"][/caption]

We had a great time at Moon Cafe! It was the perfect ending to our 2-day trip in Cebu.

I just had to take a picture of this very pretty fan =)

Larsian Barbecue

My recent trip to Cebu made me realize how popular barbecue is.  My friend suggested that we should eat at Larsian Barbecue, located at B. Rodriguez St. near Vicente Sotto Hospital.  I wasn't ecstatic when I saw the place as it looked like a wet market with lots of "ihaw-ihaw."  But since I read in most of the blogs that trip in Cebu won't be the same without trying this out, I told my friend "cge na, try na nga natin..."

[caption id="attachment_437" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Larsian Barbecue (dining area)"][/caption]

We didn't walk inside anymore as the floors are wet and sticky so we ordered from the first store near the entrance.

[caption id="attachment_438" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Jane getting our sticks =)"][/caption]

The barbecue is so mura.  It costs P5 per stick so we got 20 sticks of pork barbecue.  Jane got some isaw also and balunbalunan. We also tried their chicken barbecue.  Our tour guide said that a lot of people dine in this place at night especially foreigners.

[caption id="attachment_439" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Lots of sticks waiting to be grilled =)"][/caption]

I really like how their order of rice looks like.  They call this "puso" - rice wrapped in banana leaves (not sure if banana leaves. hehe. basta leaves un =)

[caption id="attachment_440" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption=""Puto" "][/caption]

The serving is so small. It's like 1/4 of our 1 cup of rice here in Manila.  So I had 4 servings of this.  Wahahaha! =)

[caption id="attachment_441" align="aligncenter" width="225" caption="Sherry enjoying our lunch"][/caption]

Ooops! Just a reminder, the manongs there will give you a roll of plastic for you to use when you eat with your hands =)  Even the plates are wrapped with plastic - so that they don't have to wash the used plates. Hmmm...

[caption id="attachment_442" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Happy People =)"][/caption]

Over-all dining experience - Good! =) Yum! =) Now I know why it's a must to eat in this place.

Papa P....

I just need to post this...Got this photo from one of my favorite blogs- chuvaness.livejournal.com

[caption id="attachment_434" align="aligncenter" width="209" caption="Papa P"][/caption]

Isn't he divine? =)

Isometric Exercise

As part of our workshop,  I introduced some Isometric Exercises and Oral Motor Exercises to the teachers to help them strengthen their facial muscles which will enable them to have better enunciation and pronunciation.

"What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object?” The answer is that your muscles will get stronger without actually moving.  This is what Isometric Exercise can do.  These are exercises that involve muscle contraction through pushing, pressing and pulling against an immovable object.

The teachers had a great time! This became the highlight of the 2-week workshop =)

Check out some of the photos.

[caption id="attachment_426" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Tongue Press"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_427" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Stretching"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_428" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Jaw Isometrics"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_429" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Jaw Isometrics"][/caption]

Try this at home!

This is a Tactile exercise which can awaken your muscles =)

Putting ice on the lips will certainly help "wake up" those muscles. You can use a plain ice cube for this exercise, but ice pops are easier to use and add some flavor as well.

Run the ice from the middle of the lips outward to the corner. Do this on both sides and then ask your loved one to smile. Repeat the icing movements and the smiling attempts several times.

[caption id="attachment_431" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Icing"][/caption]

Recipes

Filipino food is not really my favorite but I like it when some restaurants offer the usual home-cooked Filipino dishes with a twist just like what they do in Recipes.  Two dishes on Recipes' menu that I usually order is the Gising-gising, a warm and spicy concoction combining coconut milk, chopped vegetables, and ground pork, and the Crispy Tilapia, served as thin strips with a sweet-salty sauce.  These are my favorites! Along with their Adobo Flakes and Talong Salad with Chicharon.  I usually bring friends there for a tasty, affordable and fun dining experience.  They have branches in Greenbelt 3, Trinoma and Robinson's Midtown.

[caption id="attachment_420" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Crispy Tilapia"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_421" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Eggplant Salad with Chicharon Bits"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_422" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Crispy Tadyang"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_423" align="aligncenter" width="200" caption="A very happy Jane! =)"][/caption]

Tuliro

Spongecola's "Tuliro" has been my favorite for the past 2 weeks...Does it have something to do with Yael, the vocalist of the band? Hmmm...He's really cool and a cutie too =) Wahahahaa! OMG!!! My teenybopper hormones are acting up again =)

[caption id="attachment_416" align="aligncenter" width="233" caption="Yael Yuzon - Spongecola"][/caption]