The Island Explorer

It's been more than two months since I've been to Greenbelt, and I really haven't explored much of the new Greenbelt 5. So when I saw the new row of restos in their ground floor near the garden, I just had to try one of them. For this, we wanted meat, so we headed straight to Myron's Place. The ambience in this part of Greenbelt was classy, and I thought Myron's interiors weren't as great as the others around it. Though with a garden outside like that, it's so inviting to just take a table outside. However, we sat inside because I was feeling hot. Unfortunately, the aircon was not working properly, so it eventually became hotter inside than outside. Quite a big no-no for a high end place. Anyway, on to the food. We were given dark rye bread for free. It wasn't great, but the butter cream was good. Our appetizer, the Risotto Balls with Chorizo was then served. We initially wanted oysters, but decided to jsut go with something new. Hence, the risotto mixed

After eating at Manang's (yes, the timeless Ateneo College food spot), we had this sudden craving for ice cream. I was headed back to the office in Ortigas, so I figured, why not make it the best time to try FIC Ice Cream Bar in Rockwell (a bit out of the way I know, but I really wanted to visit this place a long time ago). FIC Ice Cream Bar in Rockwell is located at the shops a the ground floor of Joya, one of the newest condos there. The place is bright and cheerful with its white interiors. It really does look like an ice cream bar from childhood. I am a fan of FIC Ice Cream, especially its green tea ice cream which I think is my most commercially favorite ice cream. Serve it, I'll ask for more. FIC has really stepped up its presence by opening this place and I must say, I just want to congratulate the owners. I have no other thing to say but this place is perfect. Seeing the menu will make your mouth water instantly. I wanted this and that, seeing the fantastic ice cream sh

Ok, the name attracts. It works. Put art in the name and the restaurant instantly charms. Leona Art Restaurant is located along White Plains Ave., just near the intersection of Boni Serrano near Monterey Meatshop but on the opposite side of the road. It was a spur of the moment visit, as we were headed somewhere else for dinner. But I always keep passing by this resto, and I just had to stop and finally visit it. The place is indeed charming. It's a house converted resto, and I just love the ambience of these kinds of places. I was surprised to see that the place was full on a Tuesday night, so I was expecting. It seems that big groups frequented the place, since it also doubles as a great drinking spot (cheap beers). So, that was a bit of confusion. When a resto becomes a beer joint, questions about the food are raised. The menu was simple. Rice and pasta dishes. There was pizza and some other stuff. Not that much to choose from, but they have this cool concept of making your own

I love islands, so even though I am an avid promoter of Philippine beaches, I still manage to land in a lot of islands in Asia. Having been to a lot of beach destinations around the region just lets me compare the ones we have here and theirs. The latest destination was Koh Chang, a side trip weekend during a business trip to Thailand. It has been almost 6 months since I last visited Thailand, and being there almost every month before, I told myself I should visit a beach while there. I was choosing between Samui and Koh Chang. I ended up with the latter, given my limited budget. Going to Koh Chang can be done conveniently by bus. The journey on a first class bus from Bangkok Ekemai Station is 5 hours, with a stop for around 15 minutes. The ride was so comfortable and the government bus I took even served snacks (think airplane). I dozed off for most of the trip so the next thing I knew, I was in Trang, the province where the Koh Chang Marine National Park is situated. A 45-minute ferr

After more than a month of hibernation at work, I am back. I hope to get this blog updated. The next entries will be a mix of my adventures here and abroad particularly in Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand. So come back in time for a barrage of experiences.

Baguio has had a reputation for being haunted ever since the 1991 earthquake. There are a lot of ghost stories that have been passed on to every visitor. In search of a venue for an activity for an event, we decided to head out to one of the noted haunted sites in Baguio, the place formerly known as the Diplomat Hotel. I don't know much about the Diplomat, only that it was a landmark in the early days. It is now a condemned building, after fires and the earthquake literally put the hotel in ruins. This was the highlight of our trip. The mysterious and eerie sensation that engulfs the entire structure was definitely an experience to remember. The fog was even thick as it has just rained. The place was both picturesque and somber. I was imagining having pictorials and video shoots in the confines of the hotel. The fountain gardens on both wings of the hotel made it look like a scene from the movie, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. The headless and armless angels on the founta

The Tam-Awan Village near Naguilan Road is one of the best kept secrets of Baguio. Tucked along a steep slope, the Tam-Awan Village is made up of Igorot huts that one can rent for night for as low as P500. This is a very nice option for backpackers who trek up to Baguio. You get to live in actual Igorot huts and experience their culture. The Tam-Awan Village is also a repository of art works. There is an art gallery in the compound that showcases fabulous local work. I wasn't able to take a picture of the gallery, since picture taking wasn't allowed. However, in their shop, there are a lot of a paintings and sculptures that are on display. Sometimes, there are performances here by local artists, musicians, dancers and the like. You could also have yourself drawn for P100 by the local artists present there. You sit down in their make shift studio and artists pen away their renditions of your image. You get to choose in the end which drawings you like to take home with you. The T

Having breakfast in Baguio must be a treat, so we decided to have it in Cafe by the Ruins. It was my first time to have breakfast there, though I have visited the famous restaurant many times in the past. Breakfast is served here from 6:30 to 10:30 AM. As most places in Baguio, Ruins serves great bread, and they are particularly known for their whole wheat pandesal. An order of the Pandesal with Kesong Puti consists of 2 pieces of pandesal, the mouth watering kesong puti, with butter and delicious strawberry jam on the side. Next up is the Shitake Mushroom Omelette. I always have eggs for breakfast, so I had to order this. Surprisingly, the dish was excellent. The shitake mushrooms were huge and tasty. You knew they were fresh. Finally, my new addiction: the Classic Champorado. What made this Champorado special is the carabao milk that topped it. The chocolate was like Belgian, and the softness of the rice was perfect. It was also served with dried fish, like those served in provinces.