Happy Holidays

I have been out for a vacation and will soon blog about the Boracay trip, the wedding and other Holiday shenanigans me and the crazy friends have been upto the last two weeks...but for now I just wanted to wish everyone a...

Happy Holidays!!!

Must Try: Food Tripping, Japanese Style

The fiancé and I have decided to try all the Japanese restos near our place and rank them accordingly. Of course dear Best friend wanted in on the challenge when she found out.

Hence, for the past few night outs we have been chowing down on Japanese dishes. Not complaining here!

1.) Zensho – Love the place. They serve some of the freshest sashimis this side of Quezon City. Ambiance-wise – it’s just ok. I’m not such a huge fan of the white fluorescent lights but if you’re not planning to go on your first date night here, you should be safe.

$$$: Relatively affordable. Will cost you about Php 1500 – 2000 for 2

2.) Terriyaki Boy – It had recently undergone a renovation. And while the ambiance looks much much better from before I cannot say the same for the food. I hope it was only because fiancé and I ate there when it was about closing time. The salmon sashimi was a bit frozen and hard. Their chawan mushi was cold and service was twice as bad.

Dear fiance at the newly renovated T-Boy

$$$: Affordable. Sashimis cost about 150 bucks a plate

3.) Tempura – This is just the exact replica of Terriyaki Boy. They even had their restaurant renovation at about the same time

4.) Kimono Ken – I love this place. Perfect place to have dinner with the family. And I usually eat here during Sundays with my siblings. No chawan mushi though (sad face for my fiancé – it’s his favorite) But the rest of their food selection are a must-try. Their Unagi is one of the best I have tasted so far

$$$: Relatively Affordable. Dinner for two will cost anywhere from Php 1000 to Php 1500

5.) Omakase – Hmm.. this is somewhat like Kimono Ken only a bit pricier. But just like Zensho - it has uber fresh sashimi's.

6.) Josu – Ooooh this is the newest Japanese resto on the block. I am sooo loving this place. Ambiance is perfect for date night it’s also perfect for hanging out with friends and just relaxing. Their salmon sashimi platter is just delish!

I love their salmon selections

$$$: Quite Affordable. Small servings but won’t break the bank.

Next on our list: Nippon

Where: all restaurants are along Tomas Morato Street

December 14: Oldies Gone Wild?!?

The fiance tinkering with his laptop just before the guests arrive

Last Tuesday I had to perform future wifely duties. Attended the Christmas party of Rotary Club of Chinatown.

Thought it was going to be boring as hell. Until Pete started with his parlor games. Hmm imagine 40 something women – playing the boat is sinking.

Rock and Roll Christmas

Now this is my kind of party. Cool music from the 90s! Definitely my generation! From Nirvana to GnR - the band played some really rocked out tunes that made everyone jumped up and danced.

The theme was rock and roll but unfortunately I was unprepared for it hence i was dubbed as the band manager

Where: Rockpoint, San Pablo Laguna

When: December 15, 2008

It's Party Time...

Sigh... I finally found time to do some blogging. The whole week has been crazy. The craziness of which will probably echo throughout this week from the looks of it..

Nestle Christmas Part at Sofitel

Fantabulous time. A night filled with music and so much more. Everyone was glammed up as usual. Loving what Pones was wearing! Rocker Chick talaga!

The night ends at Cuisine with lucky Casino winner Nikki treating us for a round of drinks.

Event Hopping: Citizen Watch

When: December 2, 2008

What: Citizen Event

Where: Cav/The Spa Hi Street Fort Bonifacio

Dear Fiance's Birthday

Paintball Wars...

Fiance together with his friends threw a party a few weeks back to celebrate their birthdays. Being the overly mushy girlfriend that i am, i decided on a whim to threw him a surprise on his actual birthday. So asides for the sneaky gift i have been planning for months now with his friend Tisoy, days before his birthday - decided to call Global Gutz to reserved some slots for a paintball game. The fiance has been wanting to do that for awhile now.

The plan was to have around 8 of his friends plus the 2 of us to have 5 vs 5 teams, unfortunately my favorite guy friend (of his) couldnt make it. So decided to invite some of my girlfriends, hey what's better than girls sceaming crazily inside a field right?!

Mark ruined the surprise haha - just kidding. The jist was, we were supposed to go to Fort Boni to get some mysterious thing from one of my suppliers before we head to our day. On the way to the parking lot Dear Fiance spotted Mark loitering around. The surprise still hasn't sanked in until he saw Jody's car. hehe (later the fiance would tell me he thought i was going to meet Mark for our 'proposal' CD.)

Anyway - we had to wait for the late comers...yes, that would be my friends plus Jax. But well worth it. I was trash talking the entire time even as i know i would be one of the ultimate scaredy cat inside the field.

First Round. Got hit straight on the hand. Thanks a lot Vince. Ouch. Second Round. Was too blinded by the fog and the light, i stayed behind the bridges all throughout.

Dear Fiance's team won. Which was how it should be.

Happy Birthday Bear!

Facts that will get you no where...

I just found out, Multiply is the fastest growing social network here in the Philippines. In fact 60% of the entire database users of Multiply are from this side of the planet. So that leaves just about 40% for the rest of the world. Moreover, 1,000,000 pictures are being uploaded on a daily basis. With 30% of the Multiply traffic originating, whereelse?!? from the Philippines.

Whatdoyouknow!! And what did lil 'ol me do soon after?! Start posting pictures on my multiply site. Hehe... Trying to keep my part of the 30% baby!


Source: Meeting with MRM Worldwide this morning hehe

Happy Birthday Dear Fiance!!

December 1 - Together with his and myfamily we had dinner at Zensho.

Wedding 101: The Search for the Right Photographer

Amongst all my wedding to do list, nothing comes close to the amount of solicited and unsolicited advice the fiance and I get than which photographer to choose.

Some of the top choices from friends:

1.) Lito Sy – of course his entire package cost about an arm and leg….yes that’s 263,000 bucks for you and me (ouch ouch!).

- 120 pictures lay-outed in 40 pages 11x14 SOHO -US made album
- 1,000 plus images using NIKON Digital Cameras (10.2 mega pixels)
- 1 pc. 16x20 blow-up canvass
- all shots stored in CD as proofs
- with studio set-up for formal portraits
- 2 photographers
- 2 videographers with 2 units of 3CCD DVcam Cameras
- SHURE Wireless UHF transmitter & receiver for audio recording
- 2 units of ARRI professional lighting system
- 2 pcs. edited DVD copy
- Pre nuptial pictorials
- album
- on-site video editing
- AVP
- Projector

2.) Pat Dy – Surprising Pat Dy, though famous, is quite affordable. His rates start at 80,000 and it includes pre-nuptial pictorial. Videos not included.

3.) Wally Gonzales – He did Claudine Barretto’s wedding and some other celebrities… (or wannabe celebrities hehe)

Package that seems ok would cost around 143,000, which would include the following:
- 2 Photographers
- Unlimited shots
- 40 pages 10x10
- Digital Storybook Layout
- Imported Magnetic Album
- 1 16x20 blow-up canvass w/ frame
- 2 Parent's book
- Proofs in Photo CD/DVD
- Videographer
- On-site video editing

We were able to choose our photog, but he didn’t rank among the top 3 most mentioned. However he does have an immense talent at a very reasonable package. Best tip for would be brides and groom – book your photographers on site – they will throw in a lot of freebies such as on-site editing, AVP slideshow. But of course - don't go on booking without any background. Best to research their shots beforehand and wait for wedding expos to come around! :)

Wedding 101: Wedding Expos and More...

Busy little bee. So much stuff has been happening the last couple of days. Will be posting about the surprise I pulled for Dear Fiancés birthday yesterday, the Saturday “gimmick” with the guys and much more but first off, I’m happy to report that as of last Saturday the fiancé and I had finally had officially secured our stylist/florist plus lucked out and found a photographer/videographer that suits our tastes.

Themes and Motifs hosted a wedding expo at Shangri La Hotel. Since we were planning to get Tropical Blooms already as our stylist/florist we decided to sign the contract there – you know try our luck to win the raffle promo (which we missed out on – 15 minutes late damnit!) Anyway as I said in the previous post, I’m loving Tropical Blooms because Angel is so easy to talk to. (hmm with the new changes in the contract I want to implement I hope he is still as accommodating) He even created a “sample” for the dance floor designs we were talking about when we first met. So we forked over the downpayment already (ouch!) And plan to crash his client’s December 20 wedding at One Esplanade (ok, so he invited us) to check out what can or can’t be accomplished there.

(never mind the green stuff, it's from a different booth hehe - i love hanging topiaries!!!)

Arrangement by Robert Blancafor

Arrangement by Shangri La Hotel Stylist

The Fiancé and I have been encountering some church dilemmas as of late. Everything is booked!!! So we found a neat trick to discover other churches that would look as aesthetically pleasing. At the expo – we checked tons and tons of portfolio by the photographers and would ask about the church instead of their rates. Hee. Keeping my fingers crossed that St. Pancratius is the church to beat for now! Loving the ambiance – it seems so romantic and intimate. I’m a bit worried though that it can only fit 150 people…Most likely this would be vetoed afterall how do you tell guests to just come to the reception instead? Hehe

They don't accomodate reservations through phone - personal appearance is a must apparently hehe and hey it's air conditioned!!

Looking Forward: Happy Thursdays!!

Got this from a workmate....What better way to spend Thursdays, right?

Weekend Wanderlust

With friends at the anniversary party of Il Ponti.

Looking Forward: Drawing up some House Plans

We met up with our architect Thursday to show her the floor measurements that fiancé and I have done last week. Measuring was hell. I felt filthy and tired and totally unsure if we were measuring the right things. But when we showed our “drawings” to architect all uncertainty went away. It’s pretty exciting. Our plans of renovating the dream house is finally starting to materialize. Architect will give us a the layout sometime soon, this already incorporating the changes we wanted to input (i.e. bigger bathrooms, powder rooms, breakfast nooks, walk-in closet and a tub for dear future hubby)


Closet Pegs:

Miss Teen Queen or Not

(Pictures to follow)

I don’t remember ever not cringing when watching a beauty pageant. The pivotal cringe moment usually comes when the question and answer portion ensues. So last Wednesday, the fiancé together with his friends (who were there to try to score some points with the contestants) watched the Ms Chinese Philippines live at Avenue, it was time not just to cringe but to slink down from our seats, shift from side to side in uncomfortable feeling. Seeing that none of the girls tickled the fancy of the boys (well except for #7) we decided to make the night interesting by placing a wager on who’s going to win.

Question and Answer Portion
Host: What’s the most honest thing you have done in your life? – (ok, I give her some cred, this is really a stupid question. It presupposes that you have lived your life mostly in a deceptive state)
Contestant #2: Looks around in pain
Host: Again, what’s the most honest thing you have done in your life?
Contestant #2: Umm, (looks around in even more pain)
Umm….the most honest thing…. (looks like she was about to cry…) I’m sorry.

Then she returns back to her position. Slinking lower and lower at my seat.

Must Try: Lunching at Pepper Lunch

We finally got to eat at Pepper Lunch. The fiancé has been nagging for some time now about this place. It opened months ago in Rockwell and every time he picks me up, he would look longingly at Pepper Lunch as we pass it by.


Verdict? Hmm pretty ok. I don’t like waiting for my food to be cooked in front of me, which beats the purpose of going into these kinda places – because heck – that sizzling plate is the whole novelty behind it, right?



Be warned! I did smell like pepper afterwards.


Photo creds: Chuvaness.com

Wedding 101: The Church Dilemma

We still don’t have a church to get married at. In frustration, I jokingly mentioned to Fancé that we should maybe consider converting to the protestant religion so that we can have a garden wedding instead of trying yet again to find another potential church venue. Umm yeah, the Fiancé scoffed at the idea.

I wonder why there is much-a-do about getting married in churches anyhow. I mean why can’t the priest just “go out” of their four walls to perform the ceremony. Is the sanctity of the ceremony really sacrificed if it were not done inside? Better yet, if you have little flower girls throw petals at the aisle could they not just cleaned that up? Why oh why – do they have to issue all this rules!

Prospect of switching religion denied, guess it’s back to church hunting once again I guess.

Fashion Alert: Toe Crushing Shoes

Last night was the traditional inter batch dinner. My feet were killing me the whole day. I wore this uber-fasyon purple Nine West strappy shoes that unfortunately proved to be a no-no for the toes.

Together with good friend Riz, we walked (um she walked I limped) to nearby Power Plant to go find me some shoes for the dinner. Another 5 minutes in those things would have killed all the life out of my poor lil toes. We found the perfect pair at Stella Luna…

Don’t you just love them!!!

Onitsuka Tiger Arrives in Manila!

It pays to be best friends with someone who works in the magazine industry. We get free invites to a lot of parties and store openings that we otherwise wouldn’t have. (Umm yes, my work in Nestle has brought me to the different parts of the Philippines – to check out palengkes and supermarkets! Argh)

We weren’t supposed to go anymore – good thing we did. They gave all their guest vouchers for one pair of Onitsuka Tiger sneakers for FREE!! Dear Fiance and I will go sneaker shopping later at Greenbelt5.

Wedding 101: Securing the stylist

I have finally secured a stylist/florist for the wedding! Woopie! After three weeks of search – and at one time seriously considering the idea of working on it by myself (you know – be a SuperBride and act as my own stylist –stupid idea, really, it's just going to drive the fiance over the edge with my crazy antics) – We have finally found a stylist that we can work with and work with our budget as well.

First Meeting: Jen Hen of D’ Flower Facade 0920-9063503

She is the sister of Jun Hen – famed stylist, who came highly recommended by my sister. Everyone I knew who came to my sister's wedding had nothing but praises for the styling that he did. So even if my sister warned that Jen might not be as good as Jun, i told her it's ok so long as she is at least 75% as good. I wasn't able to see her portfolio – cause she brought Jun’s and a bunch of books about flowers. But being the Eager Beaver Bride-To-Be that I am I really wanted the meeting to work out. And despite my discomfort about not seeing her actual work – we pushed ahead. I showed her the pegs I had for the look I was going for – for the reception, church, entourage. Being completely taken over by the wedding bug, I had already printed out more than enough pages of wedding styling days ahead and even brought along trusty laptop – just in case she needed to see my other pegs. She was very amenable to the ideas, which is a good trait you should look for in a stylist. Better, by the way she was talking about it I believed that she can actually pull off the vision. Then again, the discomfort of not seeing her actual work sinks in hours after the meeting. Another factor to note – she had limited materials to pull off the dramatic flair I wanted to incorporate. No white carpet for the church, no tables, no Tiffany chairs. (sad face)

Cost: Php 130,000 - Php 150,000 (ouch - too rich for my blood)

Second Meeting: Joyce of 2171 Flower Creations

Her portfolio was impressive. And I was really excited when I was talking to her because I knew that she can execute our vision into close to perfection. She has done similar flower arrangements before against what I wanted. Another plus factor is that she is very accommodating as readily gave out contact numbers of other wedding suppliers (for Tiffany chairs, for the sound system) however I was already getting a feeling that she might be too expensive. She kept on mentioning that we wound be using around 20-25 dozen of roses per guest table – which let’s face it doesn’t sound cheap.

Cost: Php 201,000 (church, reception background not included) – (double ouch!!)

Third Meeting: Angel of Tropical Blooms 0919-443-3936

Bad start. We were supposed to meet up by 7, but was moved to 430 to 530 and finally to 630. He is the same stylist for two of my friends who are getting married (not to each other) and his latest claim to fame was that he did Cheska Garcia’s wedding. What I like about him is that – he will take your pegs as inspiration to draw out something new that would suit your theme. The best part – he threw in 20 Tiffany Chairs for free and all the table arrangements for the presidential and VIP tables. (which was something I was worried about – seeing that Gloria Mariz only has circular tables) He even invited me to take a peek on this December 20 wedding he will be styling at One Eesplanade. To see what really is possible and what's not given the venue. After sifting through one photo after the other, I was able to make my decision.

Cost: Php 112,000 - Php 120,000 (everything included! The white carpet, the chairs, the backdrop, the tables 35 guest table arrangement, cake table arrangement, 4 VIP tables, 1 presidential table plus 4 “special” arrangement for the dance floor) – A good deal indeed I must say!!

Lesson for the Bridezilla

The jist:

We were supposed to pay reservation fee for both One Esplanade and the Shrine of Jesus Church a few days back. Being the overly nagging bride-to-be that I am, I have reminded Dear Fiance to not forget this oh-so important task

Meeting with Possible Stylist/Florist # 2

Stylist: San yung wedding nyo?
Eager Beaver BTB: We booked sa Church of Jesus
Stylist: Yikes! Talaga? I know they have their own accredited suppliers to arrange the flowers inside the church.
Eager Beaver BTB: Talaga? Oh no! Baka bulok
Stylist: Well,..
Dear Fiance: Mukhang ok naman, remember we saw last Saturday
Eager Beaver BTB: Oo, pero sobrang plain. Hay.

Discussing flowers for the entourage:
Stylist: For your flower girls, I’ll make a bag shaped flower nalang.
Eager Beaver BTB: I was thinking, they would be holding a basket, para while they throw the petals
Stylist: Bawal magtapon ng petals sa Shrine ah
Eager Beaver BTB: WHAT!?!?!? Seriouso ka ba!?!?
Stylist: Yes, they’re very strict about that.
Dear Fiancé: Oo nga bee, pansin ko malinis yung carpet nung Saturday. (ok, way to put more salt into the wound)
Eager Beaver BTB: Seriouso ba to!? Oh no! This sucks! Dapat pala hindi pa tayo nagbayad
Dear Fiancé: Oo nga eh. Pero nakabayad na tayo eh (duh!)

The Unveil:

Middle of the day – the fiancé called to say that reservation fees for both the church and reception venue were taken care of. I was so proud of him – all my bridezilla tantrums has made him very proactive in the wedding preparation. Hence you can imagine the wave of regret that wiped my sanity when I realized – my eagerness has actually resulted to a no-turning back situation for us – church-wise.

While watching TV at home

BTB: Bwisit bee, how come there’s a rule like that. Shet sana di pa naten nabayaran.
Dear Fiancé: Sige, try ko irefund
BTB: Huh? Pwede ba yon you paid for it na eh
Dear Fiancé: Umm, (shift uncomfortably) checque naman ginamit ko…baka pwede.
BTB: (Starting to sense something was up) Pano mo babawin yon, I don’t think that’s possible…
Dear Fiancé: Ahh…
BTB: HINDI KA PA NAGBABAYAD NOH!!!!!
Dear Fiancé: Hehehe

Turns out – reservation fee for One Esplanade was more than what was written on the net, so when he got to the church he only had 8 grand with him. Since they don’t take credit cards or checque he was planning to “quietly” pay the next day. Sigh. Who knew a “white lie” (as the fiancé likes to put it) would turn out to be a blessing!!

Hmmm…I think he was trying to teach me a lesson, either that or he was just torturing me. Probably serves me right, no more bridezilla attacks in the future I hope.

Must See: Hairspray The Musical

The show was about to start and I was still stuck in the office. I was supposed to leave by 6pm however our storyboard presentation with McCaan went on longer than anticipated. So I kept glancing at my watch, hoping that all the chit-chats would soon end.

But when it did, miscommunication with Dear Fiance’ resulted with me killing another 30 minutes outside our lobby while he was waiting at the parking area. Sigh. Murphy’s Law to the Nth power.

We finally got to Star Theater (which first of all wasn’t the most ideal place for play-watching). College buddies already inside and for some annoying reason, I couldn’t get a hold of them to get my ticket. Waiting waiting…until finally Jezer shows up with tickets in tow.

Sigh. All that behind us now…

Hairspray has finally arrived in Manila. We all know the story. Young girl with a big heart and big talent wants nothing more but to sing and dance. Fate gave her the chance to appear at the renowned Corny Collin’s show and it seems like she is headed towards Ms. Hairspray-dom. Set against the backdrop of 1960’s, wherein segregation was the reality, Tracy challenges the norm and tries to get her black friends to dance with the “white” folks together on the show as well. Comic relief, heart-warming moments and some of the best dance number ensues.

Atlantis Production, the same brains behind Avenue Q, was able to scout for some fresh new talents to include in this musical. Madel, Ching, the girl who plays Tracy I found out was actually discovered from Ateneo Blue Reportory. Supporting Madel are some veterans such as Michael De Mesa. I love him as Tracy’s mom Edna Turnbald. Very funny indeed, especially when he uses his manly voice to intimidate Tracy’s nemesis’ mom, Velma von Tussle.

The guy who plays Link wasn’t bad but wasn’t as good as Seeweed when it comes to the singing department. But maybe that’s because Seeweed is being played by Nyoy Volante – who’s some serious musician here in the country. And heck, Link doesn’t need such a great voice anyways – he’s there as the token eye candy for the show.

Definitely a must-see.

Hairspray” runs Nov. 14-Dec. 7 at the Star Theater, CCP Complex. For tickets, call Atlantis Productions at 8927078, 8401187 or Ticketworld at 8919999.

Wedding 101: Church Hunting

Yesterday, the Fiance and I officially have chosen our church and reception venue for the wedding. It was a sign! – When we got to The Shrine of Jesus Church at the reclamation area right beside SMX, a wedding was just about to be concluded. Being the overly chismosa couple that we are, we managed to sneak in the side entrance to check out the décor and space inside. Beautiful!

Next stop was at One Esplanade. I have attended several functions there before but I haven’t seen it yet through my bridezilla eyes since it was first suggested as a possible wedding reception venue.

Church. Check. Reception Venue. Check. Finally!!!

I Spy with my Eyes

What i wore at during a weekend party.

Black lacy top & mini fluffy skirt both from Topshop

Current Obsession: Philipp Tampus

Team Philipp! Posting his finale collection... I'm loving the very feminine detailing. Flowy with just the right amount of frou-frou. Check out how he was able to modernized crochet... Pretty neat!

Finally!! - Project Runway Finale

Rushed home, despite the usual Kick Off meetings during Wednesday. All to watch the finale of Project Runway Philippines. So... I was wrong, Philipp didn't win (sad face). Darn it, I wanted him to win so badly. He always had the IMHO the strongest designs. And his finale collection was very strong as well. He was able to make crochets look hip and modern. Yes even made me want to wear a crochet swim wear in Boracay.

But yes, he didn't win instead Aries was declared the very first Project Runway Philippines winner. In terms of the collection unveil, I must admit that Aries had the strongest collection, maybe not in terms of cohesiveness (umm hello, orange finale dress?!? Where did that come from) but in terms of production value. He has a great gasp of what will make the audience tick.

Exhibit 1. I thought it was weird when the model in the center first enter the runway. The dress was definitely an odd ball in the context of Aries' collection. But when the two other models entered and they all stopped mid center for "The Transformation", I had a feeling Aries had a 95% chance of winning (for sheer production value)

Exhibit 2. Yes! That dress in the middle was "transformed" into this three piece wardrobed. Very futuristic eh.

Exhibit 3. Hair, make-up - check

I really hope PRP gets picked up for a second season!!!

Note: Photo cred: empress maruja

Current Obssession: Black Stockings and Plaids

Ok, so I haven’t been able to do an outfit post for awhile – yes, even lil ol ms vain me gets embarrassed once and awhile. Now that my brother has been sent off to Davao for work – I have no one to bully to take my photos. (Asking the maid is just out of the question – as she always has this smirk whenever I get out of my room – I sense judgment!)

Dear Fiance is now my official blog photog, here are some outfit I wore during the week.

WORK OUTFIT - White Polo Shirt: Regatta, Jumper dress: Dorothy Perkins, Black Stocking: SM Department Store Shoes: VNC

Finally got to wear plaids!! I’m loving this Fall trend. Good thing I don't live in Scotland - otherwise this would be something men wore during a wedding or dance ceremony.

Casual Saturdays: Running wedding errands and watching Quantum of Solace outfit

Plaid shirt: Topshop, White Shorts: Bayo, Stripe Hat: SM Dept Store