SAMU'T-SARI

Trip na Trip: Bohol (part 1)

2009-06-04T07:19:00.000-07:00

We checked out early from NS Royal Pensione and managed to get a taxi right away. It was a Monday morning; we anticipated a slight congestion in the roads leading to the port area but the traffic turned out to be so light we arrived in Pier 4 in 10 minutes. We paid 10 pesos at the pier’s entrance and the taxi driver dropped us off in front of the Supercat terminal. Security checks completed, we waited for about 30 minutes and then we started boarding the ferry. Bye Cebu, Hello Bohol!

We arrived in Tagbilaran at 10:45 am, took a few snaps with the “Welcome Port of Tagbilaran” sign as background. Tourists, you know. I overheard a lady said “first time?” with all the sarcasm she could muster. I had to fight the urge to retort a resounding, “Yes, it is my first time here! Got any problem with that?” But no, no one can ruin my vacation.

Our guide and driver, Tatsky was holding a piece of paper with my name on it. I approached him. I’ve known Tatsky through pinoyexchange.com, upon recommendations of fellow PEXERs who’ve availed of his services. He had a white Adventure with him and with just 2 passengers, it was a comfortable ride. It was getting unbearably hot contrary to the weather forecast.

First stop was BQ Mall. We bought bottles of water and chips and then went upstairs. My friend needed to buy a pair board shorts.

Baclayon Church. This centuries old church is marvelous! I muttered a short prayer and started taking pictures. We were about to leave when I saw the sign near the museum’s entrance: You haven’t been to Baclayon if you haven’t visited the museum (or something to that effect). Tourist trap. We paid and entered the museum.

Loboc River Cruise. By the time we got to Loboc River, it was already lunch time. Our guide took us to the Riverwatch booth where we hastily paid 900 pesos as we invited the driver to join us for lunch. People were already partaking in a banquet of grilled parrot fish, pork barbeque, fried chicken and an assortment of forgettable dishes. The floating restaurant left the dock and made its way to the river. A heavy set man who seemed to have borrowed a shirt from Lito Atienza or Raul Roco started strumming his guitar and belted out Frank Sinatra classics.

We stopped in front of a makeshift stage where children clad in pink gleefully serenaded us with their ukuleles while some of them danced the cha-cha and the tinikling. I thought it was the renowned Loboc Children’s Choir but it wasn’t. It was still a fun sight, if only they stuck to Filipino songs. The youngest of the group, a boy of about 7 years old was easily the star to the eyes of the visitor. He danced nonchalantly as the tourists cheered him on. Picture, picture!

We browsed through the souvenir items when the boat returned to the dock but we found nothing of interest yet. We passed by a small park where there are tarsiers and flying lemurs and asked the driver to stop. I was very disappointed that the pictures I took were blurry. Tatsky assured us that he will take us to a place where we can actually hold the tarsiers.

Hanging Bridge. We crossed the hanging bridge. My friend and I each had buko, sipped the juice and then ate the young coconut meat. It’s another first for him. Buko King was daring everyone that he could unhusk a coconut in seconds for 100 pesos - a feat that got him on TV. If you’re pressed for time, you can forego this one.

Chocolate Hills. We passed by the Man-made forest on our way to the Chocolate Hills. It was such a long trip but so worth it. This is what I’m talking about! I could stay here for the rest of the day and not feel bored at all. The hills are so amazing!

It rained heavily on our way to Carmen but it somehow stopped when we arrived at the foot of the viewing deck. Of course, we simply had to do those jumping shots like everyone else. I paid a photographer 50 pesos to take our pictures using my camera.

Butterfly Garden. After almost an hour in the Chocolate Hills, we made our way back and stopped at the butterfly garden. We were given a short tour with matching explanation about the stages of a butterfly’s life. I learned something new. What I knew when I was little that flakes from butterfly’s wings can cause blindness is a myth. We, however, forgot to try their famous ice candy.

Tarsier. True to his word, Tatsky took us to a small tarsier park and we actually got to hold the tarsiers. They’re so small and vulnerable! The boy caretaker fed one tarsier with a live cricket. The tarsiers could easily escape if they wanted to but they choose to stay, we were told. It’s so hard for them to survive in the wild.

The “actual” Blood Compact Site. This, they said, is the actual blood compact site. We were made to relive history by donning costumes. Since I looked every inch a native, I wore Sikatuna’s salakot (hat) while my Chinese friend wore Legaspi’s armor plate. I’ve already forgotten about this part of early Philippine history that I wrongly explained the blood compact process to my friend. Our guide corrected me in time.

We then went to see Prony, purportedly the biggest python in captivity and after that, the “other” blood compact site. We made our way back to Tagbilaran City and looked for an ATM. All these “donations” and entrance fees have depleted our wallets.

Hinagdanan Cave. It was already dark when we arrived at the Hinagdanan Cave. If I had my druthers, I would have gone straight to the resort. We were pretty tired from the almost 9-hour tour. We paid the 10 pesos entrance fee which included a guide who told us the history of the cave. We only stayed there for about 30 minutes. My friend was so surprised that he was able to buy Mango Shake for 20 pesos that actually tasted like one.

We skipped Bohol Bee Farm and went straight to Alona Tropical Beach Resort. We headed to the beach after we put our stuff in our room and strolled the whole breadth of the Alona Beach shoreline. We had dinner and called it a night. We had to wake up early the following day for the sea tour.

Trip na Trip: Cebu

2009-06-03T02:25:00.000-07:00

I’ve been too excited about this trip that I booked the flight way back in October. Cebu Pacific changed the departure time twice that I ended up going to Cebu a day earlier, on May 23, lest my friend, who’s visiting the Philippines for the first time gets lost since he will be arriving on an earlier flight from Manila. I, on the other hand, am coming from Tacloban. As I haven’t seen the island of Leyte from above before, I spent the entire 30-minute flight looking out the window, pointing out the places I could identify. A group of islands right off Cebu, however, held me in awe – longest stretches of white sand I’ve ever seen! I still have to figure out what islands those are.

The flight was perfect, no turbulence, whatsoever.

After queuing up for 30 minutes, I was finally able to get into a cab and off I went to Cebu City. It took us 30 minutes to get from the airport to NS Royal Pensione in Mango Ave. I checked in.

I walked around the area, found that there were a lot of bars but were still empty. It was only 8 in the evening. I was bored. I texted friends who were also in Cebu that time but they were tired, they just came back from Bohol. I went back to the hotel, asked where the nearest Starbucks is and walked to find the Crown Regency Hotel, as directed by the concierge.

I had Coffee Jelly Frappuccino, lit about 4 Dunhill Lights and I was still bored. Oh, I forgot to bring my iPod. No, I was traveling alone!

I walked back to the hotel but felt that it was too early to hit the sack. I went to the Vibe, sat in an empty table outside and was completely ignored for like 15 minutes. I went to the bar area before that and was accorded the same reception. Hello? I’m a customer here. I may look destitute but I certainly can pay for my drinks (I was just wearing shorts and Billabong flip-flops - not the revered Havaianas.)

I waved (should have flogged) a waiter for the menu. I ordered 4 bottles of San Mig Light and Nachos, busied myself texting an ex, pretended to be happy to learn that she’s engaged and getting married soon. I just had to make the most of this UNLITXT thing, you know.

I paid and left.

I woke up at 7 in the morning the following day, showered and had the free breakfast at the hotel’s café. My friend’s flight from Manila wouldn’t arrive until 11.30. I had plenty of time to kill. I bought a map for 99 pesos at the National Bookstore in the corner of Mango Ave. I never got to use it because a classmate in grade school sent me an SMS confirming that he can take us around Cebu after lunch. Good.

I also learned that a former student and a friend, Marco (aka Chubby Lita) was performing at 22nd Street, a comedy bar located beside the National Bookstore. I should have gone there last night, I thought.

I hailed a cab and went to the airport. I still had an hour to wait. I bought a Sunday paper for 40 pesos (cover price: 20 pesos) and flipped through the pages. Nothing interesting. I had two celebrity sightings, though. First came PBB’s Budoy (1st Celebrity edition, I believe) and then Maritoni Fernandez. Wala lang, masabi lang na me celebrities akong nakita sa Cebu!

Finally, my friend arrived. We went back to the hotel and then went to the nearest Jollibee for lunch. This is our national food, I told my friend, referring to the piece of Chickenjoy he’s chomping on. You’re supposed to dip the chicken in the gravy, I further told him. KFC in China don’t have that, they don't even serve rice there.

We then went to Ayala Center and bought souvenir shirts from Islands Souvenir. My grade school classmate arrived and we took a cab to the Basilica de Sto. Nino. There was a mass in progress and people were overflowing to the streets. I took some pictures discreetly and stayed for a while when the Lord’s Prayer was sung. I lit some candles for good luck. My atheist friend just looked on amused, he’s never been to a Catholic church in his life. We took some more pictures at the nearby Magellan’s Cross.

I suddenly remembered that we still had to buy our tickets for the ferry to Tagbilaran so we took another cab to SM Cebu. The level of customer service at the Supercat (2GO) ticketing office was infuriating that my friend (the classmate) volunteered to wait for the ticketing officer, who was biding her time, to attend to us and the rest of the clueless customers. I was on the verge of losing it. Neither explanation nor apology was ever provided for the delay.

My classmate suggested we visit the Taoist temple next. We arrived there at around 4.30 pm. Having been to a number of Chinese temples here in China, the place never had an impact on us except perhaps the view it afforded from the top. After a while, the guards politely informed us that they were about to close. We went down and waited for the taxi driver whom we’ve asked to come back for us. He never did.

We had to walk a good distance before we were able to finally hail a cab. It was already dark by this time but was still hot. We were famished.

We had CnT Lechon Cebu for dinner. Yum! Cebu’s lechon is so tasty you don’t have to dip it in any kind of sauce to enjoy. Meanwhile, my Chinese friend started his Mango Shake obsession here. He’d have Mango Shake every chance he’d get.

Tired and sticky, we went back to the hotel. We rested for a while, changed and made a round of the bars in the area. Just as it was crowded the previous night, all the bars were practically empty that Sunday night. It was utterly disappointing. Nevertheless, we stayed out until 1 am and got back to the hotel just slightly inebriated.

Philippine Bar Exam Results Out

2009-04-03T02:46:00.000-07:00

Announcement of the results was originally slated at 4 pm but was moved to 6 pm due to a delay in matching the answer sheets with the names of the examinees, according to a SC spokesman.

*As of 6.40 pm, however, the Supreme Court's website crashed and Inquirer.ne t still has not uploaded the results on its website.

*7.10 pm. SC's homepage is back up but no word on the results yet. What's going on?

*8.45 pm. Agony of waiting continues. My mobile finally died from refreshing inquirer's breaking news page every minute.

*9.00 pm. GMANews.tv was the first to upload the results. I've opened all the links in the SC's website and all of the others were either empty or in the process of uploading.

Out of the 6,364 law graduates who took the exams in September 2008, a total of 1,310 passed.

Topnotchers:

1. Lardizabal, Judy A. - San Sebastian College 85.70%
2. Amerol-Macumbal, Mylene I. - Mindanao State University 85.65%
3. Baclay, Jr., Oliver P. - Ateneo de Manila University 85.60%
4. Jala, Majesty Eve L. - Ateneo de Manila University 85.55%
5. Liceralde, Ma. Elizabeth L. - University of the Philippines 85.40%
6. Macapagal, Micael T. - University of the Philippines 84.15%
7. Dy, Denise S. - Ateneo de Manila University 84.00%
7. Regis, April Love C. - Ateneo de Manila University 84.00%
8. Tan, Christine Joy K. - Ateneo de Manila University 83.80%
9. Jacob, Jihan A. - San Beda College 83.75%9. Velasquez, Shirley G. - University of the Philippines 83.75%
10. Raymundo, Vanessa C. - San Beda College 83.70%

For the complete list of bar exam passers, click on any of the links below:

GMANews.tv
Inquirer.net
ABS CBN News

Congratulations to Atty. Ma. Gloria Alphine S. Lariba for passing! Same goes for the 1,309 others who made it through.

Jollibee in New York!

2009-04-02T10:04:00.000-07:00

My uber-favorite Filipino fast food chain has opened its first store in New York, bringing a taste of home to the Filipino community in the East Coast. How about us in Hangzhou/Shanghai then?

I so can't wait for May. I actually dream of Chickenjoy these days. :)

Here's a brief review that appeared in the New York Times:

Jollibee Brings a Filipino Addiction to Queens

By MATT GROSS
Published: March 11, 2009

Jollibee
62-29 Roosevelt Avenue (63rd Street), Woodside, Queens; (718) 426-4445; jollibee.com.ph.

On a recent Sunday afternoon beneath the No. 7 train tracks in Woodside, Queens, a thin, pale man with a goatee approached the 30-odd people waiting to enter the shiny new restaurant with the friendly apian mascot, and asked what was going on. A jumble of excited responses followed, which he summarized thusly: “So it’s a Filipino thing?”
Yes, Jollibee is a Filipino thing, a fast-food chain from the sprawling archipelago, with 600-plus outlets there, across Asia and on our own West Coast.
The Woodside branch is New York’s first, and since its mid-February opening, expatriates have lined up for a taste of home, on weekends waiting as much as an hour just to get in the door.
Jollibee is known as the McDonald’s of the Philippines, and its menu will be familiar to anyone who’s passed under the golden arches.
Chickenjoy, Jollibee’s specialty (one piece, $2.99; three pieces, $6.89; 18 pieces, $38.99), is straightforward fried chicken, with moist meat, a crispy but not too thick batter and, when ordered spicy, a dusting of potent chili powder. It’s a bit salty, but as one diner explained, that’s why Filipinos enjoy Chickenjoy.
After a passel of forgettable burgers ($1.39 to $6.29) and fresh, honest sides (buttered corn, mashed potatoes — regular $1.99, large $3.59), the menu heads for odder territory.
Spaghetti ($4.49) is topped with a sweet, hot-dog-and-ham-studded tomato sauce, and is frighteningly addictive. Palabok Fiesta ($5.79) is the only recognizably Asian dish: rice noodles in a gummy-but-yummy sauce of fish flakes, pork, shrimp, egg and crumbled chicharrón.
Jollibee’s signature deep-fried peach-mango pie ($2.29) is crusty and intensely fruity, at once a Filipino thing, a Georgia thing and something else entirely. It’s worth the wait.

Springtime in Hangzhou

2009-03-31T21:06:00.000-07:00

Singapura, Singapura...

2009-02-10T05:37:00.000-08:00

Malaysia, Truly Asia

2009-01-18T02:16:00.000-08:00

So says Michelle Yeow on adverts airing on Starworld, CNN, etc. Honestly, I haven’t given Malaysia much credit before I’ve found this thread in one Philippine forum where people seem to be oh-so-crazy about Kuala Lumpur. A few months ago, this country would have been ALMOST in the same league as India and Pakistan – countries I wouldn’t dare travel to even if I’m given a free round trip ticket and first class accommodation.

Aside from the Petronas Towers, what’s there to see, anyway?

Sleep and lack thereof

2008-11-30T00:24:00.000-08:00

I hate sleeping, I think it’s unproductive. I mean, you wouldn’t find me in a state of slumber on my days off. I only doze off when I needed to (e.g., hangover) and only when I couldn’t subjugate my eyelids to remain open. I have a plethora of mundane things to do instead if I could help it. Sleeping on a corkboard for a mattress makes the experience even less appealing. However, it so happen that I do need sleep as the next person and like everyone else, I’d want an undisturbed and hopefully, dreamless sleep.

I live in the quieter part of town - less vehicular traffic and conveniently near a park. It seems rather perfect, or so I thought. A few months back, a family moved in to the unit right below mine and guess what they brought along with them, a metal workshop! It wouldn’t have been a problem if I work during the day or if I can block out the irritating noise of metal cutting through metal, or if I sleep like a log. Not to mention these women who love talking to each other at the top of their voices from midnight till god knows when and there’s the occasional family squabble that often end up with something getting smashed and the police summoned.

As if it wasn’t enough of a torture, people have started to occupy the new apartment complex adjacent to my building. Naturally, there ensued some sort of construction frenzy. Yes, incessant pounding and more of the metal grinding noise. I sometimes think they’re having a secret contest or something as to who can make the loudest and most unbearable, head-splitting, shrilling drill sound and I am the unwitting judge.

But I lived through that and somehow kept my sanity intact (have i?). Keeping the windows shut all the time somehow mitigated the oppressive noise. I’m kind of comfortable with my place to even bother contemplating about moving. I have come to accept this “minor” inconvenience as something I couldn’t control though, it never stopped me ranting about it from time to time.

At the start of winter though, it became oddly quiet. Either the workshop had been ordered to close or it had simply become too cold to work. Whichever it is, I was just gratuitously thankful for the momentary absence of any auditory annoyance. I’ve heard enough scraping metal to last a lifetime and beyond. Well, until last Monday…

It’s a classic case of the gods conspiring against me, really. Just when I had to work 12-hour night shifts for a week did I hear unbelievably annoying noise from the room right above me. I could only stare helplessly at the ceiling when the noise gets too loud, fearing it would cave in any moment. I think they’re using a jackhammer up there, from the sound of it. Not to be outdone, two other people are pounding on the concrete wall (or the floor, for that matter.) I could only wait until they’re done for the day before I could finally sleep, leaving me with just a couple or so hours before it’s time for me to wake up again for work. It really sucks, big time. I’m grumpy, lethargic and unreasonably irascible throughout my waking hours.

As I’m wrapping this up, it’s past 4 pm already. On a Sunday… They’re still at it up there. As for me, I still have to catch a wink…

Chucks!

2008-10-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

Went out today to have dinner with Pam and Nanette at Ravaud and to have my usual grande mocha frappuccino at Starbucks but I ended up going home with a pair of Chucks! Got 'em on sale, yes! :)

This is the 3rd Chuck Taylor in my shoe rack. Simply love them. I mean, who doesn't? hehe.