Joyfully Yours

Classic Valentines

2012-02-08T22:59:00.000-08:00

Thinking of ways to impress your lady or man?

Manila Chamber Orchestra Foundation is having two weekend concerts this weekend in celebration of the month of hearts.

Soprano Camille Lopez-Molina and Pianist Najib Ismail will be at the Filipinas Heritage Library on February 10, 2012 (tomorrow), 6:30pm for "Songs of Love (from a woman's perspective)." Repertoire includes Robert Schumann’s “Frauenliebe und Leben,” Giacomo Puccini’s “Si, Mi chiama no Mimi” ( From La Boheme), Richard Strauss’ “Ruhe meine seele,” “Morgen,” “Heiliche aufforderrung,” Peter Illych Tchaikovsky’s “None but the Lonely heart, Why?,” “Weather by Day” and Anton Dvorak’s “Song to the Moon” (From Rusalka).

On Saturday, February 11, 2012, Vocalist Oggie Benipayo, Soprano Thea Perez and Pianist Jed Balsamo will be seranading at the 2/F Luna-Amorsolo Room of the Ayala Museum at 6:30pm. They will be singing famous songs from some movies namely, High Society, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Thomas Crown Affair, Modern Times, Yentl, An Affair to Remember, Love Affair, Sabrina, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Evita, Ikaw Lamang, Bituin Walang Ningning, Dayo, An American Tail and Beauty and the Beast. This concert has been bought also by the Recovery Circle Foundation, which bought most of the concert tickets so there is only a few tickets left.

All tickets are at P500 with special discounts offered to senior citizens, students and faculty.

For ticket inquiries, please contact MCO Foundation at 750-0768.

Skin Reborned

2011-10-19T10:02:00.000-07:00

It's been years since I have last visited a dermatologist or have a facial. My last visit to a dermatologist was back in college. My dermatologist moved somewhere so I have no choice but to take good care of my skin and always clean it well.

Nowadays, there's so many clinics and celebrity dermatologists that makes one really confusing. To be safe than sorry, I do not go to any dermatologists. Whenever I have pimple breakouts, I just self medicate with the available medications in the market. However, deep inside me, I've always wished I can find another dermatologist as good as my last one.

When I learned about The Skin Sanctuary, the one who recommended it has a clear white face. It's been so long since I had a facial and judging by this person's face, I'm quite convinced that I should go give it a try.

Stepping into the place, there's a feeling of freshness because of the white and green colors. The place has a relaxing feel that really makes it a sanctuary.

The reception table (The receptionist was quite shy for a picture)

The very inviting couch which I think is a good angle for a photo shoot after a nice facial.

Unlike other facial clinics, The Skin Sanctuary requires everyone who goes in to be checked by their resident dermatologist Dr. Leslie Colleen Tiongson first to make sure that one gets the proper and right treatment. Sometimes, there are people who get treatments that they don't really need. Dr. Tiongson is the one and only resident dermatologist for now. Also, she's a shareholder so rest assured that she will take care of her patients well.

While waiting for my turn, I looked around to check the place's cleanliness which is very important for a facial clinic.

The Skin Sanctuary has four stations. The three stations are for regular facials while the fourth station is a closed room station for back cleaning. Even though there were no patients inside the facial stations, the place smells good which shows that they clean the place well and it's well maintained. Since there's only one resident dermatologist as of the moment, I feel comfortable that they don't have too much stations because the dermatologist can check each station with watchful eyes.

The three facial stations


This is how each station looks like. The sheets are white and very clean.


This is the fourth station which is a separate room with a door that closes. This room is used for back cleaning.

Despite being a small place, it is quite organized. The shower area is separate from the sink and bowl so that two people can use the washroom at the same time. Also, it can avoid long waiting time and cleaning time.

Shine like the sun after your shower in the shower room.

Ring this bell if you feel like you can't hold number 1 or 2.

It's a very thoughtful touch to have the amenities beside the sink. I love how it makes one feel at home.

Just by looking around, I already like the place because of its color combination, size, cleanliness and thoughtfulness. When my turn to meet the resident dermatologist Dr. Leslie Colleen Tiongson came, she was smiling at me and asked me nicely if I have any questions or problems about my skin. She's quite different from my past dermatologist who scares me about how bad my skin is. Anyway, Dr. Tiongson listened to my complains about my skin as she writes down my skin problems and history of my skin problems one by one.

Dr. Leslie Colleen Tiongson at work.

This is the smile I got from her when I first went in. I asked her to smile again for this picture.

I have a zit on my chin that day and instead of scaring me on how bad it is, she gave me three options on what we can do about it. I felt like I was in charge and responsible for my skin and not the scared type who have no choice but to say yes to the doctor. I went for the slow medication option since I've been always afraid of the needle. She prescribed me a soap and toner which she made then told me to go to one of the stations to have my face cleaned up and have a diamond peel. It's my first time to get a diamond peel so I quickly asked if it will hurt and she said no. I trusted her so I just went into the station with the therapist.

The therapist brought me to one of the stations. The first thing she did was cleaned my face with warm water using a towel. She then put a cream on my face. I think the cream is the cleanser. Since my eyes are closed, I wasn't able to see what the cream looks like. After wiping out the cream, she said that she will be applying toner on my face while cooling it with a fan. The toner stings a little so after she has applied it, she continued to cool my face with the fan.

My face being cooled by a mini fan after toner was applied to my face.

The fan actually gave a big help to lessen and gradually take away the stinging sensation which the toner gave. When it was dried and over, moisturizer was applied to my skin. When I thought cleaning was over, there's actually more and I was so surprised that it's going to take long. This is probably the reason why one must go to facial clinics such as The Skin Sanctuary so that the skin is thoroughly cleansed.

Cotton patches were put on top of my eyes after the moisturizer was applied and for a second, I felt a warm steamy air was hitting my face. I asked the therapist what she was doing. She said that she is steaming my face to open up my pores to let the dirt come out.

There's steam coming out of the tube at the right side but it's not obvious in this picture.

The steam is not very hot but it's enough to make my face sweat. I wanted to wipe my face because it's quite itching but the therapist asked me to hold it. The itching is caused by the dirt coming out of the pores which opened. After the steaming, the therapist wiped my face with a damp towel which feels very satisfying. Next to steaming, the therapist told me that she will start extracting the remaining dirt in some of my pores which might hurt. Yikes!

While she was extracting, it actually was not so bad. Her hands were light and a lot of times I did not feel anything which is amazing! Dr. Tiongson went in that time to check on my face and how the therapist was doing. She stayed for a bit to see everything then went back to her office. The therapist extracted the dirt on my nose last because it has the most sensitive part of the skin. I think it's true because it's the part where it really hurts when she extracted the dirt inside the pores of my nose's corners. To give me some time to recover, she stops a bit after extracting each corner.

During extraction

After the extraction, the therapist brought out a vacuum for the face. The vacuum sucks the remaining dirt on the skin. With all these cleaning, I think my skin is all cleared up! When the vacuum was over, there was a roller-like-equipment that was rolled on my face to close the pores. Then a gauze was placed on my face for the high frequency treatment. According to the therapist, the high frequency further closes the pores.

High frequency treatment

During the high frequency treatment, there was a funny smell that smells like artichoke. According to the therapist that this smell is emitted during treatment. For those who love artichoke, you might get hungry.

When the high frequency treatment was done, I had the diamond peel treatment. I was so surprised that the diamond peel treatment is not a facial mask to be peeled off! It actually looks like the vacuum tube except the ends of the rubber has tiny diamond bits to scrap off the dead skin and revitalize one's skin. Dr. Tiongson was right that it doesn't hurt. In fact, it feels like my face was vacuumed again.

After the diamond peel, a moisturizer was again applied to my face then I'm good to go. However, Dr. Tiongson suggests not to wash the face for 6 hours since the pores are not quite closed yet and the moisturizer is being absorbed by the skin.

The Skin Sanctuary is located at 1047 Metropolitan Ave. San Antonio, Makati with contact numbers (0949)4345239 and (02)9030368. It is open from Mondays to Saturdays from 12nn to 9pm. Its services and prices are:

Basic Facial P299
Hypoallergenic Facial P299
Anti-aging Facial P499
Quick Fix Facial P499
Gentlemen's Facial P499
Diamond Peel P799
Intense Diamond Peel P1,199
Chemical Peel P599
Back Cleaning P999
Wart Cautery starting at P999 to P1,999 per area

Other procedures include:

Skin Punch Biopsy
Excision Biopsy
Intralesional Steroid Injections
TCA Cross/Needling
Mesotherapy
Sclerotherapy
Botolinium Toxin Injections
Fillers

What is more amazing is that the doctor's consultation is free! So if you just want to have a skin check up for a piece of mind, just go there. For more information about The Skin Sanctuary, visit them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theskinsanctuary.

Let HerWord.com Treat You Ladies Right

2011-10-14T05:06:00.000-07:00

HerWord.com is celebrating its 10th year entitled, “A Day of Treats: HerWord.com's 10th Anniversary” to be held on November 30, 2011 (Wed) at the Eastwood Central Plaza from 11am – 12mn.

It is BusinessWorld's premier site for women which started on 2001 aiming to be the site for the Filipina professional, with everything she could possibly need and want, and more. Celebrity profiles, features on shopping, beauty, fashion, home and gardens, fitness and health, business, law, personal finance, entertainment, family, parenting, child-rearing and relationships - everything can be found here!

Even men, who want to get to know the country's female movers and shakers, subscribe to HerWord.com to get informed.

See all the different sections of HerWord.com come alive! The booths will be sub-divided into Pantry, Her-o-scope, Tester, Gallery, Healthdesk, Her Rights, Her Money and Unwind. The sections you see on their site is what you'll get and more.

“A Day of Treats: HerWord.com's 10th Anniversary” will create a venue for HerWord.com subscribers to meet-up, network and enjoy all the fun of being a woman. HerWord.com will be treating everyone not just for food and goodies but also a chance to meet and greet your favorite columnists personally as they discuss their favorite topics that they write about.

Workshops, seminars, entertainment by various artists and other activities will be held at the stage area from 11am to 9pm.

November 30 is Bonifacio Day which is a holiday, it is a payday and a day before Christmas! It is a very good excuse for you ladies to swing by and shop for good deals! Let HerWord.com treat you ladies right! So go out to join the fun and celebrate being a her with your family and friends! Sorry guys, all you have to do is give your ladies some cash and carry all her shopping bags!

Companies and bazaaristas are also invited to be a sponsor, an exhibitor or a partner. For interested parties, please call 5359923 or 5359901 locals 706-710. To get more information about this event, email marcom@bworld.com.ph.

“A Day of Treats: HerWord.com's 10th Anniversary” is co-presented by the Eastwood Mall with media partners BusinessWorld and Mellow 94.7.

For Herword Fair updates, keep posted to HerWord.com by registering online and subscribing for free at http://www.herword.com/site/main.php?id=Join. You can also like HerWord.com on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Herword or follow them on Twitter @wwwherwordcom.

Cabaret for a Cause

2011-09-15T04:51:00.000-07:00

MMQ on its fifth year presents Le Cabaret 5 on September 17, 2011, 7pm in the Sofitel Philippine Plaza. It's one of those dinner shows that won't make you feel guilty for eating good food and having fun because everything goes to charity!

The beneficiaries of this year's Le Cabaret goes to the Chosen Children's Village, the EVA Charity Foundation and Hospicio de San Jose.

MMQ, which means "Making Miracles Quickly," is a multicultural non-profit arts for charity foundation with the goal to help uplift the lives of unfortunate Filipinas and children formed by Michelle Washington and Sandra Tockes. Michelle is the president of MMQ who works as a professor of theater arts in UP Diliman while Sandra is the vice president of MMQ who works as a business development consultant of Somerville-Manila. Both Michelle and Sandra are American expats who have been staying here in the Philippines.

MMQ President Michelle Washington, me, MMQ Vice President Sandra Tockes

and MMQ Board Member for Events and Development Mari Moya

Enjoy a four-course French dinner, a beautiful show, free flowing wines from Le Cellier and get a chance to win a fabulous prize like spa treatments, restaurants gc, jewelry, resort packages and a business class ticket to anywhere in Europe from Etihad for only P4,500 a ticket!

Special rates awaits in Sofitel or Philippe's Salon if you mention "MMQ" or "Le Cabaret!"

It's going to be my third year now to go to Le Cabaret and my favorite group of performers there are The Drag Ons. I can't wait to see them in action this year! I can't forget their reproduction of Beyonce's "Single Ladies" music video! How I wish I can see them do that again.

The beautiful and sexy The Drag Ons

The other performers this year includes the Philippine's own E-Force, Fil-Am saxophonist Michael Young, Scottish singer Diane Ross, Anarina Amistoso, British singer Jacqueline Silver, Czech Cabaret Artist Marnie Hurst, along with the MMQ Band.

For tickets call 0927.3839517, 0917.7906488 or email to mmqtheatre@gmail.com. For more information about MMQ, add them on Facebook “MMQ Thtr” and check out www.mmqtheatre.com.

Many thanks to the sponsors below who make all these possible for MMQ! Cheers to charity and a better Philippines!

Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival 2011

2011-09-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

Every year, whenever the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival comes, it marks the middle of the autumn and starts the countdown for winter. It's not a big holiday here in the Philippines because there's no winter here but I think it's one of those festival that must be celebrated as a holiday.

What's so good about the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival? It's actually when the biggest full moon of the year appears because it's nearest to the earth. In China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam and in other countries whose majority are made up of Chinese nationalities observe this festival. It is the time of the year besides Chinese New Year when the family gets together to catch up. And there's another agenda which is to appreciate nature. It's also when lanterns are made for children and children at heart to go out of their houses to look at the big bright moon.


Lanterns in Hong Kong (Image from discoverhongkong.com)

Tonight, I tried capturing the big bright moon. It's quite hard to do with my point and shoot camera but the moon was quite big and bright today.

First attempt

Second attempt (Look at the brightness of the full moon)

Last attempt (My hands were already quite shaking and I was trying to stop it.)

I remember when I was still little and my grandma still lives in Hong Kong, my family usually goes visit her at this time since there's no classes in school (I studied at a Chinese school). We will go to Victoria Park to look at the moon (since the skyscrapers covers the sky) and also there's a lantern exhibit for everyone to enjoy.

Lantern at Victoria Park (Image from discoverhongkong.com)

Somehow I hope I'm in Hong Kong on this day to look at the fabulous lantern exhibits. I'm sure there are lots of people in Victoria Park right now. Also, it's a non-working holiday tomorrow there so everyone's surely enjoying the scenery with their family.

For so many years since my grandma moved here, my family have been spending the Mid-Autumn Festival here in the Philippines. We still get together at this time to eat a simple dinner and talk about anything under the moon. We go out of the house and literally look at the moon then thank God for blessing our family and letting us be all together on this day.

Aside from the simple dinner, of course the mooncake must not be missed! This year, we have a box of mooncake from Hong Kong! I actually find the box's design very beautiful and meaningful. I also love the smoothness of its "lin yong" (Lotus Seed Paste in Cantonese) which melts inside the mouth and tastes a lot better than what is being sold here.

Maxim's Mooncake from Hong Kong

"Yuet" (Moon in Cantonese) hence the drawing

"Peng" (Cake or cookies in Cantonese) Since it's year of the rabbit, the rabbits are exchanging mooncakes. So cute!

"Mei" (Beauty in Cantonese) represented by an illustration of the Moon Lady

"Sum" (Heart in Cantonese) represented by an illustration of Hong Kong where the mooncake was made from

Another reason for me wanting to be in Hong Kong at this moment aside from the lantern and holiday is the variations of flavors of mooncake they have available that can't be found here. Just by looking at some pictures online, I'm already drooling and want to try them out! They're also made and sold for a limited time only so when I go to Hong Kong next time, I won't be able to buy them. Too bad icy mooncake melts so I also can't ask someone to send one for me. :'(

Icy Mooncake by Wing Wah (Image from wingwah.com)

(Very yummy looking) Mango flavored wrapped in mung bean paste icy mooncake (Image from wingwah.com)

Why eat mooncake on this day? The mooncake's sweetness is a reminder of the family's togetherness and happiness for being together. The salted egg in the middle of the mooncake reminds us of a war which the Chinese won centuries ago for the freedom which we are now enjoying. Oh yeah...there's also that legend of the moon lady who took the fountain of youth and flew to the moon!

Happy mooncake day, everyone! For those people in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam and Korea, enjoy the Mid-Autumn holiday! Lucky you! As for me, I'm back to work tomorrow and will just wait until the Halloween-All Saints Day Holiday which I wish will be longer.

Battling Hunger in Africa

2011-09-02T23:03:00.000-07:00

Whenever I hear the word Africa, I always think about the images of children suffering and dying from famine which I see on the news or on Discovery Channel. It's really sad why it is happening to them. That is why I make sure I get enough food I can eat to prevent left overs since not all people can eat three times a day.

There are 13 million people in the Horn of Africa facing a hunger crisis. The World Food Programme can provide life-saving nutrition to one person for just 50¢ per day (in US Dollars). Donations made here can save lives!

Below is a map that features operational data collected from organizations responding to the humanitarian emergency in the Horn of Africa. The featured data was provided by the Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) and the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit-Somalia (FSNAU).

Population affected numbers are calculated by the FSNAU according to the urban and rural population estimates and the food security status of that region. Food Security Conditions layer data was provided by FEWS NET. Food security is classified in five IPC phases, with famine being the most severe.

Give your support to feed these people. They need you!
For more details and information, visit http://horn.wfp.org/main.html.

The Surprising "Little Shop of Horrors"

2011-08-21T00:23:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, I was invited to watch Ateneo Blue Repertory’s “Little Shop of Horrors.” The only thing I know from this play is that it is directed by Toff de Venecia who is a good friend and has always been a wonderful partner of the company I work for. Since Toff is a friend and I’m free to watch the show, I have decided to give my support to go to Ateneo De Manila University - a long time rival of my university whose grounds I’ve been to less than my hands could count so I have to ask a favor from my very loving fiancé to drive me there.

The director: Toff De Venecia

Given that I’m not familiar with the place, when we reached the university grounds, we asked a security guard standing outside Gonzaga Building where the Fine Arts Theater in Gonzaga Building is. Surprisingly, the security guard pointed us to another direction where the theater is supposed to be although it is written on the invite which I’ve received that the theater is inside Gonzaga Building. Because my fiancé and I believed the invitation more, we have parked opposite Gonzaga Building and went inside it to check if the theater is really there. As we go up on the 3rd floor, the theater is there! I think the guard smelled that I am an alumna of their rival university so he wanted to drive me away but he failed. Hahaha! It’s good that I followed my senses.

Darrell Uy, Maronne Cruz and Luis Marcelo

While waiting for the show to start, there were students welcoming us. I was prepping myself that this is a student’s production so I must not set my standards really high. Going in the theater, I noticed that the theater is quite small, the set is quite simple and they had plastic chairs so it made me feel that this is really a student’s production.

Gelo Lantaco

When the play started, a trio of girls started to sing. The trio is composed of Crystal (played by Roxci de Leon), Ronette (played by Cassie Manalastas who by the way can talk like an African-American) and Chiffon (played by Abi Sulit). My mouth almost fell open with their voices! They had the most beautiful mixture of voices any student music group would want to have!

Abi Sulit, Roxci de Leon and Cassie Manalastas

Abi Sulit and Roxci de Leon

As the series of events go on, each character started to appear with Mushnik (played by Darrell Uy) coming out first. Then followed the careless, nerdy, good boy but miserable Seymour Krelborn (played by Luis Marcelo) stumbling out.

Darrell Uy

Luis Marcelo

Later on enters Seymour’s colleague and the love of his life, Audrey (played by Maronne Cruz).

Maronne Cruz

We learned from the dialogues that Audrey has a boyfriend named Orin (played by Gelo Lantaco), who will later on come in the picture, has a very crazy but infectious laughter. Gelo will also play other roles as well with different accents in a snap.

Gelo Lantaco

As the challenges were presented by Mushnik, Seymour introduced to everyone his new found solution, Audrey Two (played by Tina Ramos). Audrey Two is a weird looking plant with an attitude that will shoot Seymour to fame but also create troubles for him.

Tina Ramos with Luis Marcelo

As the show went on, I have totally forgotten that these actors and actresses are college students. They sang and hit the high or low notes perfectly. Their voices blended harmoniously that one will feel happy or sad as the story went on.

Maronne Cruz with the trio at the back

By the end of the show, I have nothing but praises for all these actors and actresses. I told them that they should try acting professionally and try to audition for roles outside of school. I really think that they can make it out there. I also asked when they started rehearsing for their roles since they really look very used to their roles. They answered that they started end of May and have ever since practiced every night for the show. No wonder they’re so good because they were really trained well by Toff!

Gelo Lantaco and Tina Ramos

By the way, my fiancé thought that they were professional actors and actresses until the press con after the show started. He was so surprised that these are college students acting! Good job, kids!

The trio

Aside from the casts, the lighting effects are really good! The lighting directors Jie Dela Paz and Anj Florendo did a fantastic job!

Luis Marcelo with Gelo Lantaco

An understudy of Audrey, Carmela Tan, will be on some shows. The other members of the artistic team are Arya Herrera as Assistant Director, Ejay Yatco as Artistic Director, Miyo Sta. Maria in charge of lighting design, Monica Sebial for set design, Gabi Perez and Maronne Cruz for costume styling, and Nina de Leon together with Nikki Surtida for choreography.

The Artistic Director, Ejay Yatco, explains the theme of their shows this season which is man against himself

The production team is led by Company Manager Tomik Tendero, Abbey Manliclic as Production Manager, Dupsy Rillo as Head Technical Director, Bien Marasigan as Props Head, Georgia Uy as Head Stage Manager, Chiz Jardin, Antoinette Altomonte and Angela Escudero as Stage Managers, Mica Fajardo as FOH Head, Aldrich Alcantara as Marketing Head, Sam Lim as Promo Head, Dar Uy and Anna Gabriel as Finance Representatives.

The casts with Toff De Venecia

“Little Shop of Horrors” will run until August 27, 2011 at the Fine Arts Theater, 3rd Floor, Gonzaga Building, Loyola Schools, Ateneo De Manila University. Shows are on Wednesdays to Saturdays at 7:30pm. There are matinees on Saturdays at 2pm. For tickets, contact Mica Fajardo at 09178908795. I assure you that going to ADMU and watching the show will be so worth your time!

Banapple is a Treat

2011-08-14T03:00:00.000-07:00

It was last year when I first heard of Banapple from "QC Na Year 3 Awards Night" at the Imperial Palace Suites. Banapple was awarded for being a very successful restaurant business that have started in Quezon City. The restaurant first opened its doors at 225 Katipunan Avenue, Q.C. (tel no. 439-2675) which became a hugh success. The place is always filled up with parents and students from the schools and universities nearby. It opened another branch in 2nd level Il Terrazzo, Tomas Morato, Q.C. (tel no. 413-2675). Since the first branch of restaurant in Katipunan is always full, it opened another branch opposite it at 206 Katipunan Avenue, Blue Ridge, Q.C. (tel no. 438-2675) which is also always full despite having two branches on the same street opposite each other! Because of its success, Banapple branched out to other areas opening in Ayala Triangle Gardens (tel no. 756-2675) last December 2010 and in Connecticut St., Greenhills (tel no. 477-2675) last February 2011. Despite its fast growth and award-winning success, it is only recently that I've tried this place to learn what the fuzz is about.

Banapple logo on their placemats

It was in the morning when I went to their Greenhills branch. The place is very cozy with the lively colors of red, yellow and green which makes it feel like a cool summer hideout no matter what season it is. There are bookshelves lined up on their walls welcoming visitors to sit, relax, hangout and read a book or two while waiting for their companions or just simply enjoying the day.

Banapple (Greenhills branch) inside and out

Their tables are as colorful as the surroundings that makes one just want to stay and stare at their table top. I think the round edges of the tables are made up of marbles or holen in Filipino.

Banapple's table tops with their logo and a flower. Notice the green, red and yellow colors?

I absolutely love their red lampshades which ignites my imagination that they look like little apples floating around.

Banapple lampshade

Looking at the menu, the first thing I ordered is their Banapple Smoothie. The smoothie tasted more banana than apple with lots of milk. I think that apple in it made the mixture less thick and less creamy than the regular banana smoothie which can been seen on its top. But the apple made the smoothie smoother, easier to sip and swallow.

Banapple Smoothie

One of my companions ordered a Fudgy Banana Smoothie which has chocolate syrup stripes and very thick on top as compared to my Banapple Smoothie.

Fudgy Banana Smoothie

For appetizer, we had Super Caesar Salad, Banapple’s House Salad and Grandma’s Corn Chowder.

The Super Caesar Salad, true to its name is quite big for one person. The dressing is quite creamy and sweet with a little salty crunch from the bacon bits playing on one’s taste buds. There’s a tickling sweet after taste brought by the pecan praline bits.

Super Caesar Salad

The Banapple’s House Salad is a mixture of all the yummy greens one can think of like corn, cucumber, lettuce and bell pepper bits. It is mixed with crunchy sweetness of crumbled banana chips and honey peanuts that gives a bit on sweetness to the sour balsamic-caesar dressing. There’s a generous portion of shredded mozzarella cheese to mix in a little saltiness.

Banapple's House Salad

I did not have the Grandma’s Corn Chowder since I have other orders and I don't want to be too full. Of course, I still have to watch my figure out so that I can still eat more good food in the future. I just looked at my companions having their soup and observed. The soup is full of corn and potatoes. The mixture is thick and there’s a strong aroma of cream.

Grandma's Corn Chowder

For our entrees, we ordered their best-seller Hickory Smoked Barbecued Country Ribs as recommended by their waitress. We also ordered Breaded Fillet of Cream Dory with Honey Thyme Mustard Sauce. Then, we took their new offerings Banapple Beef and Sausage Stew and Bacon Fried Chicken Steaks with Milk’shroom Gravy.

The Hickory Smoked Barbecued Country Ribs has a very generous amount of sauce. The meat is very soft that it debones itself.

Hickory Smoked Barbecued Country Ribs

The Breaded Fillet of Cream Dory with Honey Thyme Mustard Sauce is crunchy, sweet and has a hint of lemon sourness.

Breaded Fillet of Cream Dory with Honey Thyme Mustard Sauce

The Banapple Beef and Sausage Stew smelled really good. The scent of soy sauce and beef mixed together is quite dominant. The beef is very soft.

Banapple Beef and Sausage Stew

The Bacon Fried Chicken Steaks with Milk’shroom Gravy does not have a generous amount of sauce but it’s just perfect to retain the crispiness of the chicken. Unlike regular gravy, their gravy has a creamy milk taste which complements the salty bacon and chicken.

Bacon Fried Chicken Steaks with Milk'shroom Gravy

All the entrees served came with garlic rice which has a huge amount of toasted garlic that gave it a crunch of garlic goodness and paired with either corn relish or glazed butter carrots.

Garlic Rice with crunchy garlic bits good for garlic lovers like me!

For dessert, there’s so many cakes to choose from that can make one go crazy because they all look so delicious!

Cakes of Banapple Greenhills

To be able to review this restaurant perfectly, we got their best-sellers Banoffee Pie and Apple Caramel Crumble Pie.

I love their Banoffee Pie! It’s filled with chocolate shavings that I can’t help myself to pick them up with my fingers and eat it right away! The cream was not very sweet so it’s a good match with the caramel inside. The bananas are not too sweet and are still quite firm so it’s easy to pick it up with a fork, mix it with a little bit of cream and caramel then some of its salty crust before putting it all inside the mouth. It’s so yummy that getting one bite will lead to more!

Banoffee Pie

The Apple Caramel Crumble Pie is good for those who are not into very sweet dessert. The apple filling is not so sweet so the caramel crumble on top is needed to give it some sweetness. It’s served hot so it’s good to be paired with coffee or maybe ice cream on top!

Apple Caramel Crumble Pie

Aside from all the lip-smacking dishes this restaurant offers, I noticed that the price of each dish doesn’t exceed P200! Lastly, Banapple also offers other baked goodies like muffins, cookies and breads which one can take home for snacks or breakfast on the next day. They also deliver so if you’re getting hungry because of this post, you better call the branch nearest you with the numbers I’ve given above! Now I know what the fuzz is, I do agree that Banapple is definitely a wonderful place to hangout and have a happy, decent meal. I can't wait to go back and bring my fiance and family with me!

Banapple menu

For more details about Banapple, visit their website or add Banapple on Facebook.

Sweet Charity Hits Manila

2011-08-13T01:55:00.000-07:00

9 Works Theatrical is currently showing one of Broadway's most sensational spectacle and critically-acclaimed dance comedy musical "Sweet Charity" at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Makati. It was originally directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse. Fosse also choreographed "Chicago" which was turned into a film on 2002 with Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere who starred in it.

The musical comes alive with the spirit of the 60's in a Manhattan night club. It is the story of Charity Hope Valentine, a very optimistic woman, who looks for the happily ever after type of love but always ends up with the wrong man. She is a bubbly dance hall dostess who has been used and dumped by a number of wrong man but she's not giving up to find the one. This year, coming back to the theater after "Legally Blonde," to play as Charity is Nikki Gil.

Nikki Gil with Kris Lawrence

Oscar Lindquist, the claustrophobic guy who Charity met in the elevator, is played by Kris Lawrence. Charity hopes that he will give the love that she has been longing for. This will be the first time that Kris is going to act on theater. According to some friends who have already watched the show, be very surprised on what he can do!

Nickie, one of Charity's closest confidantes at the Fandango Ballroom is played by Shiela Valderrama-Martinez. She was Julia at last year's "The Wedding Singer."

Shiela Valderrama-Martinez

Ciara Sotto comes back to play as Helene after playing Mimi in "Rent" last February. Helene is another close confidante of Charity.

Ciara Sotto

Sheree Bautista, another Mimi in last February's "Rent," comes back to play as Carmen - one of Charity's co-dancers at the Fandango Ballroom.

Sheree Bautista

The ladies of "Sweet Charity" performs "Hey Big Spender"

Herman, the owner of Fandango Ballroom which means he is Charity's boss, is played by Miguel Faustmann. Miguel is one of the most well-respected actors in Philippine theater. He has been in Repertory Philippines for over 20 years. He was the actor in one of my favorite play, "Duets" and lately, I learned that he played as the king in Repertory Philippine's "The Emperor's New Clothes" which was the first play that I've watched back when I was in elementary.

OJ Mariano also comes back after February's "Rent" to play two roles as Vittorio Vidal and Daddy Johann Sebastian Brubeck.

OJ Mariano with the girls

Other casts includes Angela Padilla (who plays as Ursala March the girlfriend of Vittorio), Job Bautista (who played as Angel, my favorite character, in February's "Rent"), Anthony Tarrosa Ong (who played as one of the goddess in Atlantis Productions' "Xanadu" last year), Caisa Borromeo, Chinie Nepomuceno, Vinia Pamplona, Carmelle Ros, Topper Fabregas, Francis Matheu, Peter Alcedo and Chai Relucio.

Artistic and production team is of course led by the director of this show, Robbie Guevara, and Santi Santamaria, the Executive Producer.

Robbie Guevara

Santi Santamaria

Lorenz Martinez, who played as Robbie Hart's bestfriend in "The Wedding Singer", is the Assistant Director of the show. Other members of the artistic and production team includes Joseph Tolentino as Musical Director - Pit Orchestra, Sweet Plantado as Musical Director - Vocals, Mio Infante as Scenographer, Martin Esteva as Lighting Designer, Mio Infante and Hanna De los Reyes as Costume Stylists and Designers, Dale Amon as Graphic Designer, Roy Macam as Photographer, Anna Santamaria (Santi's wife and a cast of "Noli Me Tangere") as the Company Manager, Toff de Venecia as Marketing and PR Director, Toots Tolentino as PR Consultant, Jonjon Martin as PR Manager, Carlos Canlas as HR Manager, Sunshine Domine as Production Manager and Aries Alcayaga as the Stage Manager.

Toots Tolentino

Toff De Venecia

"Sweet Charity" will be on stage until August 28, 2011. For ticket reservations, please log on to TicketWorld. For inquiries, contact 9 Works Theatrical or call (+632) 586.7105 or (+632) 557.5860.

Special thanks to Dusit Thani Manila for accommodating 9 Works Theatrical for the delicious lunch during the press conference last June.

The lunch menu and dessert of Dusit Thani Manila

Atlantis Productions' In The Heights Teaser

2011-08-11T06:56:00.000-07:00

Catch Atlantis Productions' In the Heights teaser performances on August 19, 2011 at 8pm in the Venice Piazza, Mckinley Hill and on August 20, 2011 also at 8pm in the Eastwall Mall Open Park, Libis. This teaser performance is presented by Megaworld in partnership with BusinessWorld and HerWord.com.

In the Heights tells the universal story of a vibrant community in Manhattan's Washington Heights – a place where the coffee from the corner bodega is light and sweet, the windows are always open, and the breeze carries the rhythm of three generations of music. It's a community on the brink of change, full of hopes, dreams and pressures, where the biggest struggles can be deciding which traditions you take with you, and which ones you leave behind.

Watch the casts, Ima Castro, Felix Rivera, Nyoy Volante, Calvin Millado, K-La Rivera and Jackie Lou Blanco perform some scenes from the musical to give you some ideas on how good Filipino talents are! This Tony Award-winning show is conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda, music and lyrics also by Lin-Manuel Miranda, book by Quiara Alegria Hudes, and directed by Bobby Garcia.

This show will be staging at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati on September 2 to 18, 2011. For inquiries or ticket details, call Atlantis Productions at 892-7078, +63917-4940226 or visit www.atlantisproductionsinc.com.

Hong Kong Roast: Bringing out the Chinese in You

2011-07-20T23:44:00.000-07:00

Filipinos love Chinese food because the taste and food comes very close to Filipino cuisine like fried rice, fried noodles, roast or barbecue chicken or pork and lots of other sweet, salty and garlicky food. It's quite an effort for the residents and office workers of Makati to go all the way to Binondo (Chinatown) just to have their Chinese food. With the growing demand of Chinese food in Makati, Hong Kong Roast Food Express (HKR) opens its doors at Bagtikan St. in Makati to make Chinese food within the Makati people's reach.

One can quickly notice this as they enter HKR.

The owner, Mary Chan, have been travelling frequently back and forth from Hong Kong and China just to make sure the food she serves are of quality. Mary studied Hotel & Restaurant Management at the Dominican College and was also trained by Chef Gene Gonzales, director of Center for Asian Culinary Studies, when she was still a student.

The menu of HKR includes everything that Filipinos love in Chinese cuisine like asado, noodles, yang chow fried rice, etc.

Dine-In Menu of HKR

They also offer special promos and menu to fit the Filipino lifestyle of having afternoon snacks and of searching for something new.

HKR's Promo Menu and Special Offers

Usually, I don't like ordering drinks to lessen my sugar intake but I was interested to try their Milk Tea with Black Pearls just to know the difference of their milk tea from the other milk teas in Metro Manila. The milk tea is not quite sweet which fits my taste and the milk has a strong flavor. For the black pearls, it's quite soft and there's a chewy center. If you like very chewy pearls, these are not the chewy ones. The texture is like the pearls inside mango sago.

Milk Tea with Black Pearls

The first dish that came out is Siomai. It is still quite hot when it came out. The skin of the siomai is not soggy which is good. The meat is firm and not oily which makes it really yummy in every bite.

Siomai

The Yang Chow Fried Rice came out next. The yellow color of the rice gives a hint that it was fried with salted egg. The wonderful smell of the egg mixed with asado makes one want to attack it right away.

Yang Chow Fried Rice

Asado (also known as Chinese-style barbecue pork) is one of the best-selling dishes of HKR. The recipe for this was learned by Mary with her chef in Hong Kong and Shenzhen to make sure that they perfect the recipe. The meat of their asado is quite fat which I think is something that they should improve on. The taste is sweet, salty and smokey which is how asado really tastes. No need to put on soy sauce since it's already quite flavorful.

Asado

The Roast Chicken that came out next smells really good. I'm not sure what they have put inside their chicken but you can smell the herbs that they've used in it. The taste complements the smell and the meat is quite soft and tender which can easily separate with the bone.

Roast Chicken

Beef Hofan (flat noodles) is one of my favorite Chinese dish. Their beef hofan is not salty and a little crisp because of the bean sprouts. It's something one can eat without any dimsum or other viand and feel happy for the whole day.

Beef Hofan

The next dish is actually a very unique and HKR's special dish called Black Chicken Sesame. Black chicken is known to be used by the Chinese to make medicinal soup for those who are weak and for mothers who have just given birth. As a Chinese, it's my first time to see black chicken cooked as a viand and not as soup. The chicken is actually quite good except it has many bones and little meat.

Black Chicken Sesame

Beef Curry Noodles came out with its strong curry aroma filling the restaurant which made people from the other tables look at our side. The noodles were cooked al dente. The curry is not spicy but flavorful which fits those who dislike spicy food.

Beef Curry Noodles

For dessert, we had Coffee Jelly and French Toast.

The coffee jelly has a very strong and quite bittersweet coffee taste. The creamy top gave a smooth feeling and added sweetness to the jelly. It gave me a little bit of caffeine rush that gave me additional energy to do my other activities for the day.

Coffee Jelly

The French Toast is my favorite out of everything that I had. It's french toast with a surprise center that tasted like a fusion of custard and salted egg. When I asked Mary what's inside, she said that it's a secret so it was quite a challenge for me to guess what's inside.

French Toast

HKR is located at 7467-C Bagtikan St. San Antonio Village, Makati. It also delivers to the Makati area. For orders and seat reservations call (+632) 5537846 or (+632) 9847760. Add them on Facebook with email hkroast@yahoo.com and Twitter with hkroast_makati.

Take-out and Delivery Menu with a map to HKR

Empanada Nation: From Ilocos with Love

2011-07-17T07:37:00.000-07:00

One of my unforgettable trips last year was my trip to Ilocos. It's one of my dream destinations here in the Philippines because of the windmills, old churches with very beautiful architecture and almost untouched nature. It's when the nature and old infrastructure blend into each other that everything looks very peaceful and romantic.

My friend Caca outside Paoay Church

My fiance Johan going down from Kabigan Falls

Aside from all the scenery, the food was also fantastic! Even though I'm not a fan of fatty and fried food, bagnet and empanada seem to be an exception. I was told by my fiance during our trip in Ilocos last year that one can't bring bagnet to Manila because it will only get too dry and hard so we have to eat bagnet until we satisfy our cravings because it might take long before we'll have it again. For the empanada, we first had it on a stopover on our way to our resort. I have to admit the first empanada which we had did not taste as good as how they say it tasted. However, we did not give up on this dish and had empanada outside the Laoag airport before we left. Amazingly, the empanada we had outside the airport tasted really good! How I wish I can bring some back to Manila but I was afraid it might not be crunchy outside since it will be soaked with oil and water while in the paper bag so I took a picture of it instead for memories.

Last empanadas that we bought outside the Laoag Airport

When I got invited to try out Empanada Nation, I've wondered how can this be? Can Ilocos dishes really be brought here to Metro Manila? There's only one way to find out which is try it out!

Looking for Empanada Nation is quite easy. It is located at 26 Sgt. Esguerra Avenue, Quezon City. It's beside Getaway Spa, Chocolat and N20 bar and resto. There's a big orange and white tarp that shouts its name Empanada Nation.

Getaway Spa, Chocolat and N20 bar and resto

26 Sgt. Esguerra Avenue, Quezon City

Walking into the orange and white restaurant which looks like the colors of empanada, I was already so excited to have some empanadas!

Al fresco dining area

Aircon dining area

Marnie, the PR and Venice, one of the owners, welcomed me to their restaurant. They introduced themselves and told me how the restaurant came about. Venice is actually Ilocana and she loves to cook Ilocano cuisine so her friends have asked her to open up a restaurant. With the help of some friends, Empanada Nation came about. The ingredients are mostly shipped to Manila from Ilocos so one can be assured of the authenticity. The strong odor of the sour vinegar is one of the proof that made me thankful they're authentic!

L-R: Denise Calnea, Omar Itay, Ferdinand Bondoy, Marnie, Venice, Florencio Jusay, Flowell Galindez, Enzo and Jeman Villanueva

The first dish they made me try is Sarabasab which is made out of pork and pork liver. According to Venice, this dish is eaten during breakfast by the Ilocanos. I do not like pork liver but for the sake of knowing why this dish is eaten for breakfast, I've tried a little of it. Sarabasa is actually not so salty that one can eat it as is but it is best paired with fried rice.

Sarabasab

The fried rice that they serve is fried rice with toasted Ilocos longanisa bits which made the rice tastes salty with a hint of vinegar sourness.

Fried rice with Ilocos longanisa bits

There's also Igado which is another breakfast dish that has red bell pepper, pork, pork liver with green peas. The taste of Igado is salty with a little spice that can wake the senses up.

Igado in the kitchen

Igado served

As the main course, we were each given a plate which consists of rice, bagnet, KBL sauce which stands for Kamatis (tomato in Filipino), Bagoong (shrimp paste in Filipino) and Lasona (onions in Ilocano), half salted egg and Ilocos longanisa. I did not wait any longer to get my fork and stab into my bagnet. It was quite crispy and it's not hard to bite! I dipped it into the KBL sauce like the Ilocanos do and ate it with my rice. The Ilocos longanisa is very good and tasted so much like what I've eaten for breakfast when I was in Pagudpud, Ilocos!

L-R: Bagnet, Ilocos longanisa, Salted Egg, KBL Sauce, Rice

Very crispy bagnet

In Ilocos, vegetables are always part of their meal. So came the Pinakbet which is made up of string beans, okra, bitter gourd (ampalaya) and tomato. This is also paired with the KBL sauce to give it a salty kick.

Pinakbet

KBL sauce

Another interesting vegetable dish called Puqui Puqui was introduced to us. In Filipino, the word "puqui" means a female's vagina but in Ilocano, it is a vegetable dish composed of eggplant and tomato cooked in vinegar. According to Venice, there's also an Ilocano dish called Adobong Utong. "Utong" means nipples in Filipino but it's string beans in Ilocano and they also serve it in the restaurant.

Puqui Puqui

Because of the intriguing names, Puqui Puqui and Adobong Utong are some of the bestsellers in Empanada Nation.

Of course, to top the Ilocos dining experience which I'm loving so much, they served empanada last! I was able to take the photos of each step of making my empanada before I finally devoured it!

Mixing the powder with atsuete (orange color made from plant)

More mixing

and mixing.

Putting a cover on the dough

Flattening the dough

Putting young papaya strips

Notice the circular papaya strips?

Shredding the Ilocos longanisa using hands and making the circular shape as well

Putting the egg in the center of the circle

Folding the dough in half

Cutting the top part of the dough with a plate

Tada! Deep fried empanada!

Unlike the empanadas which I had in Ilocos, this empanada was filled with young papaya strips which according to Venice is the authentic empanada. Unfortunately, what I had in Ilocos was filled with cabbage so it's not so authentic. According to her, it takes a lot of effort and love in cooking to drain the water of the young papaya to be able to make this authentic empanada. Some Ilocanos who would like the easier way, use cabbage instead of the young papaya but true Ilocanos will prefer the young papaya filling.

Empanada with young papaya filling

I really felt loved eating each bite of the empanada because I can now understand the love to serve authentic Ilocano dishes is the main cause why Empanada Nation was built.

Menu of Empanada Nation. One can customize one's empanada.

The Stories of Most Women (If Not All)

2011-07-14T08:48:00.000-07:00

Today marks the first day of another great show that has hit Manila entitled, "Love, Loss and What I Wore" written by sisters Nora and Delia Ephron. Catch it in the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Tower, Makati City on its one-weekend-only show!

When I first heard about the show being introduced to me, I already felt that it was going to be worth watching with lines such as "Birkenstock or Heels?" "I have no clothes!" and I also heard that it's being compared to "The Vagina Monologues" without the vagina.

On the press preview yesterday, when I saw the red carpet on the floor going towards the entrance. I thought that it was such a classy introduction to the play. Being a girl, I feel like I must walk on the red carpet so with my Marks & Spencer head to toe outfit and so I did. It was such an amazing experience to walk on the red carpet especially when I really dressed up for the show to celebrate the joys of being a woman!

The red carpet. Photo by Jen Adams of http://sexynomad.i.ph/blogs/sexynomad/

Walking in the theater, I noticed that the backdrop is made out of different cuts of dresses with the title of the show projected on the pile of cardboard dresses. Pretty neat idea! The creative guy who made this is Dennis Lagdameo, recent Gawad Buhay Awardee.

When the actresses in black walked to the stage and took their seats, the lights from the top highlighted each of them that made them look fabulous! Sought-after light designer John Batalla did a good job because the magical lights paired with the black outfits highlighted the faces of the actresses so that the audience can clearly see their facial expressions.

Jay Valencia-Glorioso as Gingy

The whole duration of the show was a mixture of different feelings of laughter, sadness and contentment from the different stories being told which every woman can relate to. What surprises me the most is the loud laughter of the men inside the theater! I can definitely relate to the love for Madonna and dancing like crazy to her songs since Madonna's the modern goddess of all women! The definition of black focused on how confusing the color can be for most women but anyhow, women love black!

The casts. Photo by Jeman B. Villanueva of http://orangemagazinetv.com

Young or old, straight or not, I believe the play is the stories of most women stitched together. Well, I say most and not all because there might be women who disagree or who might not admit to the reality of being a woman. The loud laughter of men during the preview definitly proves how they acknowledge the issues mentioned.

This Philippine run of "Love, Loss and What I Wore" is brought to you by CTE Productions, the same company that brought you "Defending the Caveman" last May. Casts includes theater luminary and current Associate Artistic Director of Repertory Philippines, Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, veteran theater actress, writer, and emerging director Cathy Azanza-Dy, TV host, model, performer, and creative visionary Teresa Herrera, thespian and music industry sensation Bituin Escalante, and acclaimed classical vocalist, theater performer, and executive director for Music Artes Philippines, Jay Valencia-Glorioso. The show is directed by the same tandem behind the hit show "Defending The Caveman," Michael Williams and Cathy Azanza-Dy.

The casts and crew. Photo also by Jeman B. Villanueva.

I would like to salute Cathy for being such a good actress aside from her superb directing! Kudos also to Michael who did a fantastic job! I think it's Michael's touch that made this show funny for the men who I think also can relate to the issue. Lastly, I'm so happy to see Bituin Escalante again after 6 years! The last time I saw her was during the shoot of Dr. Doy del Mundo's film "Pepot Artista." I was a PA at that time. During the shoot of "Pepot Artista," I truly feel so fortunate to watch her sing and dance to rehearse by herself while waiting for the rain to stop. It was like I'm watching a concert. It was pure talent right in front of my eyes! Bituin is one of the most talented artists I've seen on or off camera and now, on or off stage so watch out for her different accents as her personality changes on stage!

"Love, Loss, and What I Wore" will run starting today July 14 until 17 at the RCBC Theater in Makati. Shows are at 8pm with Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3:30pm. Catch this very limited run before it's gone!

For tickets, visit http://www.ticketworld.com.ph/events/loveloss.asp or call 2150788. Ticket prizes are PhP 1,545.00 for Orchestra Center, PhP 1,236.00 for Orchestra Sides; PhP 1,030.00 for Loge and PhP 515.00 for Balcony.

*My camera ran out of batteries during the show and I was able to capture only 5 photos. Must remember to charge my battery next time. Special thanks to Jen and Jeman for the nice photos!*

MCO Foundation Announces Great Performance Series 2011

2011-06-21T02:03:00.000-07:00

Manila Chamber Orchestra (MCO) Foundation, home of some of our country's finest artists today, is on its 26th year this 2011. Like their past years, this year's Great Performances are guaranteed to be very interesting with musicians playing different instuments and coming from different countries. As Executive Director of MCO Foundation Angeli Nacino said in her email, "Celebrate life through art and music with the MCO Foundation!"

Got kids?

If your kids love music or play any instrument, bring them here to experience a magical night filled up with different sounds to enhance their love of music.

Want a romantic date?

Having a date here with your special someone will surely bring out the romance and start the fireworks. Just don't forget an early romantic dinner first to set up the mood.

Looking for a gift?

Giving MCO Foundation's concert tickets to your parents, siblings or friends will show how much you care for them to have a relaxing good night filled with wonderful sounds serenading their ears. Impress your the parents of your special someone or your boss by giving these tickets to show how cultured you are!

To start the Great Performance Series 2011, "Marimba and Friends" will be the first concert on July 16, 2011 (Saturday) at 7:30pm in Philamlife Auditorium, United Nations, Manila. Listen to the sounds of marimbist Dena Fernandez, saxophonist Michael Young and pianists Peter Porticos and Lourdes de Leon Gregorio as they play classical, romantic, neo-romantic and tango music to spice up the night.

Repertoire includes: Liszt's Rhapsody #12; Duet arranged for Marimba and sax (Bach's 2-part invention #8, Canon by Pachelbel and Libertango by Pizzola); Bach's Concert #4, 3rd movement; Mozart's Sonata #13.

Carmencita Sipin-Aspiras, the first Filipina to graduate from Vienna Academy for the Performing Arts will be staging a piano concert on September 11, 2011 (Sunday) at 6pm in Philamlife Auditorium. She is also the first Asian and the only Filipina grand prize winner of the Bonn International Beethhoven Competition. She will be playing the music of Brahms, Chopin and Schumann.

On November 2011 at the Philamlife Auditorium, a concert entitled "Flute Divertissimento" will enchant its viewers with principal flutist Ullrich Muller-Doppler who is one of the most sought after soloists and flute pedagogues in the world today. He has played with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Rome Festival Orchestra, the Belgium Symphony Orchestra and has given masterclasses in Boston, Atlanta, New Orleans, Virginia, Rome, Poland, Russia and Sweden. Accompanying him will be flutist Caitlin Coyiuto and pianist Rudolf Pelaez Golez, both of them are from the Philippines. Caitlin is one of today's most promising flutists in the Philippines while Rudolf is the Grand Prize winner of the First Asian Chopin Piano Competition.

Ticket are available at www.ticketworld.com.ph. Ticket prices are PhP1000 for Orchestra Premiere Seats (Limited); PhP500 for Orchestra Left; PhP300 for Orchestra Right; PhP500 for Balcony Center and Left and PhP300 for Balcony Right. Students and faculty members get 50% on any seat!

For more details, you may call MCO Foundation at 750-0768.

Siargao's Del Carmen Town promotes Eco-tourism at the Agri-Tourism Expo

2011-06-15T19:20:00.000-07:00

Mayor Alfredo "JR" Coro, mayor of Del Carmen town on Surigao del Norte’s Siargao Island, has confirmed his municipality’s participation as one of the exhibitors at the 1st International Agriculture and Tourism Expo on June 30 to July 2, 2011 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. He will lead his town’s drive to protect the mangrove areas in which his municipality is very rich in. He is also promoting his town as the next tourism destination.

Del Carmen’s eco-tourism push is the centerpiece of the “Siargao Adventure,” which the town will be launching to promote Siargao Island as a prime destination for eco-adventure and sports tourism.

Image taken from http://www.kalinawresort.com/

Mayor Coro hopes that by joining the Agri-Tourism Expo, his town will get the needed exposure locally and internationally in its quest to attract tourists and sports enthusiasts to his town.

The Expo intends to promote Philippine agri-tourism programs of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Tourism to the international and local markets, taking advantage of the amazing growth of travel and tourism industry worldwide, a phenomenon that is expected to boost our tourism. Del Carmen town will ride on the crest of this worldwide tourism boom by pushing not only travel but environmental protection as well.

The municipality boasts of a superb biodiversity and unique location being surrounded by both sea and forest lands, which are recognized by residents and the local government as the town’s treasures.

Mayor Coro said that the vast hectares of mangroves and swampy areas in the town accounts for 21 percent of Siargao Island’s total land area. It is a sanctuary for endemic crabs and endangered “Crocodylus porosus,” or the salt-water crocodile, as well as other marine resources highly regarded for their potentials as important assets in global investment and trade.

Del Carmen is one of the oldest settlements opened by the Spaniards in the cluster of islands in the Pacific Ocean which is east of Surigao del Norte's mainland. Surigao del Norte, also known as Siargao, comprises of nine municipalities. Del Carmen is one of its municipalities. The town is already adapting to the world of modernity from a conventional type of governance. The new leadership led by Coro is set to implement several infrastructure development projects and programs that will align the town with its eco-tourism drive and push it as one of the alternative tourist destinations in the country.

Mayor Coro is one of the early birds who reserved an exhibit booth way in advance for the 1st International Agri-Tourism Expo. He said, “It will be a big opportunity for our town, being part of Surigao del Norte, to be known in both the agriculture and tourism industry as the next prime destination.”

Ralph Balmaceda, one of Coro’s tourism consultants and the person who will be in-charge of Del Carmen’s exhibit booth, said, “Aside from educating the people about Del Carmen’s mangroves, we will also launch Siargao Adventure, the program that will promote Siargao Island as a prime destination for eco-adventure and sports tourism.”

According to Balmaceda, "Siargao Adventure packages will also be presented with special promotions and discounts for those who will book during the Expo."

The above news is from A-Linx Events, the organizer of the 1st International Agriculture and Tourism Expo. Please visit the exhibit booth of Del Carmen Town on June 30 - July 2, 2011 at the World Trade Center, Pasay City to get good deals to visit this beautiful place.

I have to admit I haven't visited the place but looking at the pictures of Siargao made me want to visit the place. From my research in Wikipedia, it states, "Siargao Island contains the largest mangrove forest reserves in Mindanao, at Del Carmen." It also describes, "The coastline is marked by a succession of reefs, small points, and white, sandy beaches." I have also heard from commercials that the place is a surfing paradise with its "Cloud 9" waves. I still do not know what "Cloud 9" means but it's probably the shape of the waves.

Just the mention of "white, sandy beaches" is already very tempting! I hope that someday I'll be able to visit this beautiful place in the south and write about my adventures there in this blog.

My Eye

2011-06-12T18:58:00.000-07:00

Since March, a sty has been bothering my left eye. It is not obvious when you look into my eye because the sty is quite hidden in my eyelid but when touched, there's a bubble-like thing inside my eyelid.

From the size of a peanut, the sty reduced to mung bean size in a long span of three months. What I did was putting warm compress three times a day and for the past month, I've been using Tobrex which was prescribed by an eye doctor. However, the sty did not disappear which made me really worried that I might have to undergo incision of my eyelid to drain the pus of my sty.

This problem has been re-occuring back when I was in college. It started after I got my course card during my first Fotocam. I failed my photography class and it was so hard accepting it because I've poured my heart out for this subject. I cannot understand why can someone fail photography. I was not able to stop myself from crying after seeing my course card with my contact lens on. After that day, I got a sty which did not subside until the eye doctor made an incision to drain the pus then another came out then back to the eye doctor who made another incision and another came out. There was a total of eight times that the sty came out with the eye doctor making an incision and the he kept telling me to practice proper hygiene and avoid dust but no matter how careful I am, another one still came out which made him inject something on my eyelid.

Since the very painful injection, I did not get any sty for years until last year when I had another sty on my right eyelid. The good thing is that it subsided after putting on warm compress. This year, this sty on my left eye came out and for three months, it did not disappear which made me quite worried and afraid that I might have to undergo incision again so I finally changed my eye doctor for a second and third opinion.

The first time I went to an eye doctor this year was last month who prescribed Tobrex to me. The medicine helped reduce the size of the sty however, it did not disappear. The doctor told me that after two weeks if the sty did not disappear, my eyelid will be incised so I decided to look for another doctor.

A friend introduced me to a doctor whose name when I told my mom rang a bell. Fifteen years ago, she had a doctor with the same last name who might be this doctor's father. Then we found out that the father is still a practicing doctor after all these years. According to my mom, this doctor is the one who operated my late grandfather's cataract years ago so I felt at ease going to this doctor.

At first look, Dr. Cosme Naval looks quite old but do not under estimate his age. At 79, he still sees a lot of patients everyday and he remembers the cases of his patients clearly. When he looked at my eye, he told me that my left eyelid needs to be operated right away because I have a cyst. It was the first time that I've heard I have a cyst. I asked if I can just take any medicine or put on eye drops. He said that it's because of the cyst on my eyelid that caused an infection because my body is fighting it. This infection turns into a sty every time I lack sleep, I'm stressed or ate something oily. After a moment of shock, I've decided to have it operated.

While I was being operated, Dr. Naval said that the cyst looks like it has been there for a very long time since it was deep and big. As he was saying this, memories of what have happened to me on that dreadful day back in college when I received my Fotocam course card. I think that somehow that sad event has caused this cyst. Don't get me wrong, I'm not angry with my professor but I'm really mad at what he did that caused this. I know that the dusts, finger prints, black and white must be back and white not gray, shadows, blur, out of focus, etc.. in the negatives or pictures which I've developed are the reasons why I failed. Behind it all, I really think I took some good pictures. I have some samples of the pictures I took during that class which I've loved over the years.

I hope that someday my professor realized what he has done to me and learns to become more considerate to his students who really work their hardest (skipping meals and sleep) to pass. I know that it's the skills we must learn during that class but with technology, I think what really matters in a photo is its subject's composition and the tension of the photo which tells a story.

A big thank you to Dr. Cosme Naval for discovering the cyst and removing it. I'm now recovering slowly. It still hurts when my left eyelid is touched and there's holes which I can feel on my fingertips but I hope it heals soon.

That's me with an eye patch taken on the day after my eyelid was operated.

If you're having the same eye trouble like mine or would like to have your eyes checked, Dr. Cosme Naval can be found in the following clinics:
- Cardinal Santos Medical Center
Suite 206, Medical Arts Building
Tues & Thurs 10AM - 1PM
727-0001 loc 2206

- Makati Eye Laser Center
Fort Palm Spring Condominium
Suite 7GH, 7/F, 1st Ave. cor. 30th St.
Fort Bonifacio, Global City.
Monday, Wednesday & Friday 10AM - 2PM

Studiyo Maternity Promo

2011-06-12T03:14:00.000-07:00

This 2011, Studiyo offers free photo session to all pregnant moms out there!

Studiyo understands that this is a very special moment that moms would like to record together with her husband for their child.

To celebrate those nine months of pregnancy adventure, the free photo session includes a low res CD copy of pictures with watermark and 50% off on the photo shoot of your baby when the little one comes out. Prints are not included but can be ordered at a very affordable price.

This promo is only valid for Metro Manila residences.

For more details and information about this promo, please call Yo at +63917-89-PHOTO(74686)or email studiyo@ymail.com. To view photos taken by Studiyo, visit http://www.facebook.com/studiyo.photo.

Note: Above photos modelled by Bryan and Marijoy Mancilla – future parents

Gastronomic Inventions of Joey Pepperoni

2011-06-11T22:40:00.000-07:00

Joey Pepperoni opened to the public on December 2005 at the G/F RFM Corporate Center, Pioneer St., Mandaluyong City. This is where they have invited me and their other guests to try out their new menu.

(Top L-R) The facade of Joey Pepperoni. Its interiors in black and grey colors with their lamp covered in their brown paper bag. (Bottom L-R) Joey Pepperoni's Marketing Manager Carla. Pizza. Salad. Joey Pepperoni's Chef Anna.

Over the years, Joey Pepperoni has invested with the New York mafia image with the colors black, grey and red which was also their main colors for their previous menu however, since Filipinos are very festive and love colorful things, they have decided to change the look of their menu.

Joey Pepperoni's Marketing Manager Carla presents the new colorful menu and explains the items.

Spearheaded by their marketing team together with their chef, Anna, the team created new variants of delicious pizzas, appetizer, gelato and lunch meal in their delectable Italian-American inspired menu.

Joey Pepperoni's Chef Anna G. tells us the ingredients of the food being served.

Chef Anna explains to us the first dish that they're serving us which is the Baked Cheesy Fries. It's made out of rusette fries with their house special meat sauce (the same sauce they use for their pizzas), sprinkled with chili flakes to give that spicy kick, white onion, cheddar cheese and their special cheese sauce. Despite being topped with so many sauce and toppings, the fries remains crisp on the outside.

Baked Cheesy Fries

Another starter was introduced to us called Shrimp Fresh Salad. True to its name, the ingredients in the salad are really fresh like the light pinkish-red shrimp has the right amount of firmness and the green Romaine lettuce maintained its crunch in every bite. Other ingredients in this salad includes its honey mustard dressing, parmasan cheese and croutons to give additional crunch to the salad.

Shrimp Fresh Salad

Before the pizzas come in, they introduced another meal to us that is one of the all-time Filipino favorite, Barbecue Chicken Wings! Yes, you heard it right. Joey Pepperoni wants to satisfy every Filipino by bringing to Filipinos their favorite chicken with rice so that you don't have to worry about lunch when you're on a rush. The deep fried chicken is tossed with Joey Pepperoni's special barbecue blend at the right temperature and served at the exact correct time to maintain the chicken's crunch mixed with the mouth-watering sauce to give the crunchy and saucy satisfaction Filipinos love in their chicken. Having a bite will surely make you want more.

Barbecue Chicken Wings with rice

The pizzas in Joey Pepperoni have always been in thin crust but this did not limit them in putting more toppings in their pizzas which their crust can handle. The dough of Joey Pepperoni is always freshly made so it takes some time for the pizza to come out but the good thing is that it's guaranteed fresh which will not disappoint you.

Carla explains the difference of their pizza from other pizzas.

Their flavorful pizza lies heavily on their dough because of their secret ingredient as said by Joey Pepperoni's Marketing Head Carla. Their new collection of pizzas called Double Tops Pizza consists of four amazing flavors.

The first Double Tops Pizza served to us is the 3-cheese and Mushroom Pizza. The combination of three cheeses - mozzarella, white cheese and cheddar - gave the pizza a perfectly salty taste. These cheeses were mixed with bechamel sauce to make it a little bit creamy, anchovies, mushroom and caramelized onion. The toppings of the pizza created its mixture of salty, creamy and sweet taste.

3-Cheese and Mushroom Pizza

The next pizza is their Beefy Mushroom Pizza. If you love meat, cheese and mushroom, this is the pizza for you! The first layer of the pizza consists of a bed of mushroom topped with mozzarella, cheddar, toasted bacon bits and white onion. This is for those who would like to go on a diet without depriving themselves of good food. I personally love this pizza because it's a lighter alternative to a bacon with mushroom and cheese burger. Just a slice of this is enough to satisfy that burger craving.

Beefy Mushroom Pizza

For a Mexican twist, meet the Taco Pizza. It's an amazing pizza with all the taco fillings on top of it - beef, mozzarella, tomatoes, white onion, cheddar cheese and taco seasoning for the tickling spicyness. Unlike the real taco whose shell breaks and create a mess when you take a bite, this naked taco is not difficult to eat. The toppings stay on top as you bite into the dough. It's a wonderful way to eat a taco without creating a mess! It is a very convenient way to enjoy this Mexican treat! What more can you ask for?

Taco Pizza

The fourth and the last one for this season's Double Tops Pizza series is their Mushroom Alfredo. The dough of this pizza is smothered with bechamel sauce topped with mozzarella, ham, garlic, mushroom, red onions and bacon bits. It's alfredo less the pasta. Another choice for those on a less-carbs-diet. It's less sinful because there's no overflowing pasta and just a slice can already make one happy.

Mushroom Alfredo

As per Carla, it is true that their dough is flavorful. The dough tastes like a crunchy thin bread which absolutely fits their toppings! I can't wait going back to this place and have another pizza after this taste test!

Any sumptuous meal would not be complete without sweet endings under the name of dessert. So when the Cookie Dough with Vanilla Ice Cream came, I was really amazed that the cookie dough is shaped like a slice of pizza which fits into their theme. The cookie dough is soft and crumbly which holds the vanilla ice cream well as one digs into it.

Cookie Dough with Vanilla Ice Cream

The last dessert is another favorite of mine. Oh yes, it's Gelato! A lot of people are confused with the difference of gelato and ice cream. They might look the same but their taste is quite different. Gelato are creamier and softer than ice cream. It has less fat. Also, after you freeze a gelato that has melt, it still becomes a gelato unlike ice cream which becomes ice! The gelato in Joey Pepperoni is made from scratch so it's fresh and creamy. The price of the gelato is amazingly lower than other gelatos in the market which is a wonderful reason why one must have dessert here!

Gelato in cups: Oreo Cheesecake, Chocolate and Pistachio flavors.

The only downside in having this el cheapo gelato is that it's not available in all Joey Pepperoni branches since it's specially made. Even though the price of the gelato is inexpensive, as you can see on the picture above, the serving is generous at 100 grams per cup! So better hunt the closest Joey Pepperoni to try it out!

At present, Joey Pepperoni has 21 branches. Half of it is company owned and half is franchise however, the quality of their products are the same everywhere since Carla and her team really goes to each store to try the food and check. The branches of Joey Pepperoni Pizzeria can be found at the following places: Robinsons Place Ermita, SM Mall of Asia, Fairways Tower at The Fort, SM Mezza Residences in Araneta Ave, SM North Edsa Annex, Eugenia Arcade in Iloilo City, SM Center Las Pinas, SM Cubao, The Columns in Ayala Ave, SM City Manila, Graceland Mall in Malolos, SM City Dasmarinas, DBP Bldg in Makati, SM City Lipa, SM City Tarlac, SM City Baguio, One E-Com in Mall of Asia, SM Calamba and SM Masinag.

Aside from the new menu, Joey Pepperoni still offers their Awesome Twosome! with either Pizza! Pizza! or Pasta! Pasta! combo for only P199. For those who might have heard this combo and are wondering, yes, you've heard it before. Joey Pepperoni was in charge of Little Caesar years ago. The group has reorganized itself and created the new Joey Pepperoni but they still have the rights on using the Pizza! Pizza! and Pasta! Pasta! combo which will forever stay. The only thing that will change is the choices of pizza and pasta. It is truly affordable and easy on the pocket for those who are working on their office and would like to have good food during their lunch breaks!

Awesome Twosome! poster inside Joey Pepperoni-Pioneer.

Before we left the restaurant, I was surprised that we were given packs of Kornados. Joey Pepperoni's gastronomic inventions does not only stop in their restaurants but they also make snack foods under the name of Kettle Foods Corporation (the makers of Kettle Korn popcorn). There are three variants of Kornados which is the original flavor, cheese and barbecue. It's a 3D shaped corn snack that's bubbly and crunchy. The bubbly texture is helpful for the flavors to stick on the snack and not on one's fingers. Kornados is now available in all grocery stores.

Kornados 3D-Shaped Corn Snack

McDonald's Philippines Presents 2 Exciting Comebacks

2011-05-26T08:14:00.000-07:00

Po of Kung Fu Panda is back to become "The Dragon Warrior." He, together with his friends, The Furious Five, protect the Valley of Peace.

To celebrate the much-awaited sequel of Kung Fu Panda, McDonald's Philippines partnered with them to make the Kung Fu Panda 2 Happy Meal! Kids can recall and recreate the adventure of Po with The Furious Five against the fierce Kung Fu Warriors gang by collecting all 8 characters. Each character shows their special kung fu moves with their battle face.

Do you know that in every Happy Meal 50 centavos goes to Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC), the charity of choice of McDonald’s and its programs Bright Minds Read (BMR) and Bahay Bulilit? So kids don't only get a good meal with wonderful toys but also, they get to help the less fortunate children. Isn't that great?

Another exciting surprise is the comeback of McDonald's Shake Shake Fries! The Shake Shake Fries costs only PhP55.00 which comes in Cheese Rush and BBQ Kick action-packed flavors.

As usual, there are Shake Shake Fries Combos that you can choose from to make your meal more enjoyable. Here are the choices:

1. Watermelon Sprite McFloat with Shake Shake Fries for PhP85.00
2. Green Apple Sprite McFloat with Shake Shake Fries for PhP85.00
3. Coke McFloat with Shake Shake Fries Combo for PhP80.00

These combos are very refreshing specially it's still very hot here in the Philippines despite the rain.

I'm starting to crave for one now because of writing this and the picture! Just look at it! Isn't it inviting? I think the last time I had them was around 2 years ago so I suggest you better hurry up and get one before it's gone! I'm sure that I'm getting one soon. Maybe after watching Kung Fu Panda 2, you can go to the nearest McDonald's from the theater with your kids and enjoy these 2 exciting comebacks!

Sabre by Lizanne Sample Sale: Designer Swimwear and Resort Wear

2011-05-16T08:53:00.000-07:00