Win a free BORACAY VACATION PACKAGE!

It's been more than two years since Baks and I went to Boracay for the first time. We stayed there for a week and never wanted to go back to Manila, haha!I saw this promo from WOW Philippines and you guys might wanna check it out as well. The prize is really cool! I'd love to go back there soon but I'm still not sure if I can attend our friend's wedding at the Discovery Shores in Bora this December since baby's EDD will be on the first week of December as well. Promo details are noted below:

Win a Free Boracay Vacation Package by WOW Philippines Travel Agency

WOW Philippines Travel Agency, Inc. is celebrating it's 5th year in business during July of 2010, and we would like you to have a chance to celebrate with us, so we have decided to give-away a FREE Boracay Package complete with 3 Star accommodations at the luxurious Artista Boracay Resort on Boracay Island. The lucky winner will win the following Boracay vacation package.

Vacation Package Inclusions:

- 5 Days / 4 Nights Luxury 3 Star Accommodations at the Artista Boracay Resort
- Flights to Boracay from Manila to Caticlan Airport on Philippine Airlines
- Island Transfers - Door-to-Door from Manila to the resort and back to Manila Domestic Airport
- Three (3) Meals each day, Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Boracay Activities - Horseback Riding, Island Hopping, Glass Bottom Boat

Read More Information: http://www.boracay-packages.com

Kikomachine Komix Blg. 6

I've never been addicted to Pinoy comic books until I found out about Manix Abrera's Kikomachine Komix. It was an afternoon at Powerbooks in Greenbelt that Laura and I saw this weird but funny-looking cover of Blg. 2 and it instantly got my idea of fun. I started collecting all other available Kikomachine Komix and I had all four of them signed by the creator himself in a VPE event at the Cubao X few years ago before I left for Singapore.

[caption id="attachment_377" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Kikomachine Blg. 1"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_380" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Kikomachine Blg. 2"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_379" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Kikomachine Blg. 3"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_378" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Kikomachine Blg. 4"][/caption]

Blg. 5 was launched when I was still in Singapore so I had to ask my housemate Mark to buy me a copy when he went back for vacation. It's the only Kikomachine Komix that's not signed yet. Now, I saw this and it thrilled me to death! haha

Finally, another Kikomachine Komix for the avid readers! I'm sure this will be very nice. I hope I can get it ASAP. And have it signed by Manix Abrera with my copy of Blg. 5. Can't wait! :)

PINOY-STYLE PASTA WITH CHICKEN MEATBALLS

Last Monday was Prince's dad's birthday so I cooked pasta with meatballs for dinner. For some reason, I've been having short-term memory gaps so I'll try to remember how I came up with this, hehe. ;-)PINOY-STYLE PASTA WITH CHICKEN MEATBALLS

Ingredients:
500gms penne [or preferred pasta], cooked according to package instructions
250gms ground chicken
1 small carrot, grated
1tbsp cornstarch
2tbsp flour
1 small egg
1 medium onion, minced
6 cloves of garlic, minced and parted in half
2tsp tomato paste
1 medium pack of Pinoy-style spaghetti sauce
1 cup of water
1 1/2 cups cooking oil
1tsp basil
1 cup grated cheese
salt and pepper

Procedure:
1. Mix ground chicken, egg, half of the minced garlic, onion, flour, cornstarch and grated carrot in a bowl. Add a dash of salt and pepper and make chicken meatballs.
2. Heat cooking oil in pan, deep fry meatballs and drain excess oil. Set aside.
3. Saute other half of the garlic in 1tsp cooking oil. Add spaghetti sauce, tomato paste, about 1 cup of water, salt and pepper. Stir and let it boil for 2 minutes.
4. Add deep-fried chicken meatballs to your sauce, stir then cover for another 5 minutes.

I immediately mixed the cooked penne to the chicken meatball sauce but if you prefer to top the pasta with the sauce, it's your call. Lastly, add grated cheese. ;)

Gender Frustration

Prince and I was out early today to visit the clinic where I should get my glucose tolerance test and second ultrasound. We were both excited, awaiting for the highlight of finding out baby's gender.

We arrived at the clinic at around lunch time and a number of patients were waiting patiently as the sonologist arrived late. Finally, I get to take my turn. Prince went with me inside the room where the ultrasound is performed. My first ultrasound in the same clinic is the transvaginal ultrasound, the sonologist was not as friendly as the one who performed the pelvic ultrasound earlier today. Prince was not permitted to be with me during the first one. We're glad he's allowed inside the room to be with me this time.

The sonologist was extra friendly. She initially warned me of the cold gel that she'll be putting in my tummy then she started to place the machine at the bottom part of my baby bump and we were able to see his head. She slided to different parts of my belly and we saw the baby moving all the time, as if showing off to everyone who watched him. The body parts were measured - legs, arms, etc. - to determine the approximate weight. When it's time to check out the baby's genitals, the sonologist said that the baby's strangling the umbilical cord between his legs so there's no means that we can see what the gender is at this time. Too bad. :-(

I will be back tomorrow to have my glucose tolerance test [apparently, you need to eat 2 hours before taking this test,and I just had lunch 30minutes ago]. The test results will be presented to my OB-Gyne on Tuesday next week for my monthly checkup. I'm just glad that we're able to see the baby in that monitor, healthy and looking excited to be born. I am still having second thoughts of changing my OB though. We'll see about that on Tuesday next week.

I Miss My Long, Black, Smooth, Straight Hair

I was browsing a couple of photos taken almost a year ago and I saw this:I realized that having a perm is exciting but the excitement and fun doesn't last long. I've been used to having this long, black, smooth and straight hair most of the time and I must say it has been the most low maintenance hair I've ever had. I just use my regular shampoo and conditioner, have it air-dried and I'm good. No mousse, serums, gel, spray or polish necessary.

Then I thought of having a perm last March, for the first time in my entire life. It was the month when I was still having a hangover for the ANTM cycle 13 where I think in all photoshoot, there's at least one petite model sporting a great permed hair. I was so wrong to think that it'll be easy to manage. My hair became dry so I needed to do consistent moisturizing. It looked bushy and it was exactly how the Hermione Granger character's hair in the HP books was described [except hair color]. The following month, I found out that I was pregnant and I can't do any hair treatments until after I give birth [at least I can revert it before Christmas]. I tried not to feel depressed about it but I really miss the low maintenance hair that I once had.

I know there's really a lot of national issues we need to worry of right now [no wonder PNoy is almost skinhead in his SoNA] but let me be selfish and shallow just this once.

Rants.

Ok, I will give myself a break from all those kitchen experiments I've been busy doing over the past few weeks. This time, I would like to blog about my views about different things that I've been reading [online news] and my opinion so in the name of democracy, please don't stone me to death.

I like our country's democracy but for some reason, I wonder if this is the reason why people don't have discipline. I'd like to think that the society values equality but everyday I witness how unequal everybody's getting treated.

Almost a year ago, the Maguindanao Massacre was all over the news. I wasn't able to look at the email that was sent to me with all those victims' pictures. I don't have the guts to even think how it looks like. I read in the news last week that the suspects were banned to use their mobile phones inside the prison. It sounded like a joke to me. What else do they have inside those cells? PSP's? iPads? Geez!

All the while I thought that divorce is not allowed in the Philippines. I've read a lot of celebrity couples who lived separate lives using a more acceptable way of separation - Annulment. It is by far, the only means to be out of a marriage and be allowed to marry again as legal separation won't. It's time consuming and bank account breaking at the same time. Then I read that Muslims in this country can have divorce. Therefore, I beg for equality for I am a Christian and I know that my God is an understanding God and He is just.

Afterall, I am still hoping for change. Tomorrow is the country's 15th president's first State of the Nation Address. I will stay tuned.

Rosemary Lime Prawns

I didn't know there's a lot of things I can instantly find in a supermarket - instant powdered coconut milk, powdered glutinous rice, 'raw' version of sago, bottled halo-halo, etc. Amazing. I think I'll hangout at the supermarket more often, haha!

Moving on, I needed an easy to prepare but special dinner for Prince tonight and came up with this:

ROSEMARY LIME PRAWNS

Ingredients:

1/4 kg prawns, peeled
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Procedure:
1. Mix prawns, lime juice, dried rosemary, salt and pepper in a bowl. Marinate for 15-20 minutes. [Prawns will turn a little orange in color]
2. Place stovetop griller in low heat. Melt butter.
3. Gently put prawns in griller one at a time. Cook each side for 2 minutes.

Best to have vinegar, a little salt and chopped garlic for dipping. Serve with rice or it can also be served as pulutan, hehe. :P

Basic Mac and Cheese with Meat Loaf

Another experiment using ingredients that are readily available in the kitchen. ;-)

MAC AND CHEESE with MEATLOAF

Ingredients:
200g del Monte macaroni
5-6 cups water
1 tbsp butter
1/3 cup milk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 small can Maling meat loaf, cut into small cubes
2 tbsp cooking oil
4 tbsp Cheeze Whiz [or more if desired]
1 tsp McCormick dried basil

Procedure:
1. Boil water. Add macaroni and cook for 10-12minutes. Stir once in a while.
2. Drain and place in a large plate. Add butter, milk, cheeze whiz, basil, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly. Set aside.
3. Heat cooking oil in a pan. Fry meat loaf for 3-5minutes or until toasted.
4. Add meat loaf to macaroni with cheese and sprinkle with basil.

FRUITAS: The Healthy Choice

NOTE: This is not a paid ad. :-P

Lately I've been wanting to eat as much veggies and fruits as possible to stay healthy and avoid gaining huge amount of weight during pregnancy. I read that pregnant women need to have at least 5 servings of fruits everyday. I don't know how true it is but I'm sure eating lots of fresh fruits is a healthy habit. Good thing the supermarket is just close to our pad but sometimes I'm too lazy to prepare or too naive to choose which ones are of good quality so I just found the perfect desert that meets healthy, convenient and great taste to the core - Fruitas' Buko Fresh Fruit Salad!

I've been loving Fruitas smoothies for years and I'm glad that they added the Buko [coconut] drinks as well as snacks/desserts in their carts everywhere - and I mean EVERYWHERE as they've got branches even in your favorite beaches around the country!A friend told me that pregnant women are prone to get UTI so I just get myself a 16oz. glass of fresh buko juice from the Fruitas cart in our office pantry everytime I guilt about not drinking enough water. Stay healthy everyone! ;)

Hawaiian Saucy Chicken

I've been doing some experiment in the kitchen and so far, this is the first recipe that I can share. Enjoy!



HAWAIIAN SAUCY CHICKEN

Ingredients:
1/2 kg chicken
1-inch ginger, cut into thin slices
1 medium sized onion, chopped
1 tsp cooking oil
1 cube chicken bullion dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water
1 small can of button mushrooms, drained
1 small can of pineapple tidbits
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 cup water

Procedure:
1. Mix water, cornstarch, soy sauce and sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. Set pan in medium heat. Add oil and ginger. Wait for the edges of ginger slices to turn brown before adding onion.
3. Sauté chicken and add dissolved chicken bullion. Cover for 20 minutes.
4. Place sautéed chicken in a plate. In the same pan, place the mixed cornstarch solution, stir for 3 minutes to produce a thick brown sauce.
5. Put the chicken back to the pan and mix for the sauce to cover each cut.
6. Add button mushrooms, mix then cover for another 5 minutes.
7. Turn off heat and add pineapple tidbits.

Rainy Day Reflections

Rainy days reminds me of being in a classroom, waiting for the announcement that classes are suspended so we can go home A.K.A. hang out at a friend's house. That was about 15% of my high school life.

It's been more or less 10 years since the careless days of my life. I would only think of going to school, attend my classes, goof around with my friends, go to the glee club practice and be busy with school events. Life was simple until adulthood makes it very complicated.

Maybe you won't realize how valuable time is unless you ran out of it. The things that we used to take for granted can be priceless someday.

Saturday Night at the Kebab X Meiday!

Last night was a Saturday night I haven't had for quite some time. Prince was waiting in our office building lobby after I ended my shift at 9pm. He was with their guitarist and his girlfriend, with some of my officemates and we're off to Cubao Expo for the Kebab X Meiday event which is about 10minute-walk from my office. We decided to try out the newly opened Kebab X for dinner [weeks ago, there were rumors that they will have the same garlic sauce as Mister Kabab's in West Avenue which is the best so far]. Prince already told me that it's the opening night, for sure it will be jammed but I insisted that I wanted to eat kabab so being the 4-month preggy that I am, he can't complain. :-P

We arrived before 9:30pm and were luckily able to get a table right away. Prince is the usual Mr. Congeniality so we saw a lot of friends, other people we met from other events [including Antonette of Lilystars and surprised to see some guys from the metal scene] and met some more people [such as Lui Cornelio of Darkuscase] roaming around enjoying good music.

It was a really crowded night as expected and we were informed by one of their nice waiters that waiting time is really long on the onset. I was ready to wait. A very busy kitchen can be seen from where our table is at and I understand that we need to be patient. I didn't prepare myself to wait for about two hours though. One of the busiest guy who's multitasking between serving customers and preparing in the kitchen gave us four glasses of iced tea and said, "It's in the house, sorry for the delay". At last, dinner was served and I must say that it's worth the LONG wait!

Both the chicken and beef kebab we're nicely done and I must say that the garlic sauce might not be as thick as the one in Mister Kabab but it sure makes up the competition. I asked what their regular operating hours is but the guy said they don't have a fixed operating hours yet. I guess everyone should just hang on and wait for announcements online. Good thing it's really close to my office, I can go there during lunch break everyday! haha

We finished eating before Pedicab started playing so I guess it was a perfect timing afterall. They have sessionist Japo [Paranoid City] on synths and drummer [I don't know his name] as Raimund and Mike's not around. Itchyworm's, Ciudad's and Us-2 Evil-0's set are equally fun but in my opinion, the best performance for that night came from Taken By Cars.

We left the venue at 2am, five more bands were about to play and Mei Bastes was onstage announcing stuff about RJ Frias who became popular last Meiday event [Febuary] but we ran out of energy. I still need to go to work the following day. Congratulations to another successful Meiday event! ;-)

The Orchard Road

Nope. I am not referring to one of the busiest streets in Singapore but I must say that they got the name from it - The Orchard Road is another one of the newest finds in SM Megamall. It is located at the 2nd Level of Building A and B bridgeway so since we visited the newly opened Forever21 recently, there's no way I'll miss trying this one out with Prince.

The ambiance is almost the same as common foodcourts in SG [it reminds me of the Food Republic in Wisma Atria and Suntec actually]. It's not very crowded which is a good thing. Since they didn't have Hokkien Mee in Makansutra [Manila], I don't know where else can I get it aside from The Orchard Road.

Their version of Hokkien Mee is not as good as the ones in SG's Food Republic though. Usually a 'medium' serving is good enough for two so we waited for our first serving before deciding if we'll order another one or not. Their serving is a bit smaller than 'small' and they didn't get the aroma that I remember. The sambal [chili paste] that came with it isn't as good as well. I concluded that it might be because the one in Singapore is served in a soft palm bark [like a light brown leaf] that adds something to it that I can't explain. We shared it anyway therefore we needed to get another dish to fill in. Prince liked the Makansutra [Manila's] Char Kway Teow so we tried The Orchard Road's.

It's weird to see Char Kway Teow without oysters in it. It's not as flavorful as well. Overall, including the glass of Bandung that I had, I was disappointed. The Makansutra at the Manila Ocean Park is way better, worth the time, travel and every peso spent. :(

UPDATED! GIN BLOSSOMS IN MANILA!

We've waited for them for about two decades and now they're finally coming over!!!

According to their official website [http://ginblossoms.net], the dates are:

11/18/2010	QUEZON CITY, PH	ARANETA COLISEUM
11/20/2010	CEBU CITY, PH	WATERFRONT HOTEL & CASINO

Tickets for the Araneta Coliseum are as follows:

Php5,500    VIP
Php4,400    Patron
Php3,500    Lower Box
Php2,420    Upper Box A
Php1,270    Upper Box B
Php530       General Admission

As I am a pregnant with my first child, Prince and I need to get to the VIP area. And then I saw this contest poster:By November 18, I will be on my 38th week and there's nothing that could stop me from attending this concert (who knows what age my son will be by the time Gin Blossoms will be able to come back here in Manila if I miss this one?!). So I NEED VIP TICKETS. I WANT IT. I NEED TO WANT IT AND I WANT TO NEED IT! haha! :)

For ticket inquiries call Bluedream Entertainment at 750-0790 to 91.

The Second Trimester!

There's going to be another check up tomorrow with the OB-Gyne and she told me that I'll get a flu shot. I know that by now, we'll be able to know the baby's gender but I'm still waiting for the doctor's go signal for me to have the next ultrasound. I'm just really excited!

I was with Prince earlier today looking for shops to buy a nice jacket but we ended up trying out the Orchard Road [I will write another blog entry about the experience] in SM Megamall. He needed to go to work so I just tried to look around at the infant's section of the department store and I found very limited selections so I went to SM North Edsa. I've been thinking that buying a crib is not a really good idea as there's a very small space in our pad first of all. Secondly, I've read in the internet forums that most new parents buy cribs because they thought it's necessary only to find out eventually that the baby won't be using it at all. And so I searched for alternatives and found a very good review of The First Years Close and Secure Sleeper: It's ideal so that baby can sleep next to me and Prince, we wouldn't need to get it to approach the crib everytime the baby needs something and it'll be easier to breastfeed. SM department store is selling it Php1,000 more than Amazon.com though so I think I'll just find a fair seller online.

I also found The First Years set of feeding bottles, automatic breast pump and other things I didn't know the baby would need. I don't know what tie-sides are for. I don't know what type of cotton is good. I realized that the urge to shop needs a wake up call that I was so clueless on what I have to buy! I guess it's just the excitement. Prince and I still have a couple of months to prepare. The most important thing right now is to keep our baby healthy and I can feel by the way I feel those little movements in my tummy that the baby is indeed healthy and just as excited to be born.

Gin Blossoms in Manila..?

Gin Blossoms Regarding the previous post...we're going to be performing in Pac-Man's home country soon! Very excited! It'll be our FIRST time over there!

Monday at 4:18pm ·

This is the the breaking news that Prince emailed me yesterday. Posted at the Gin Blossoms' Facebook Fan Page, it gained 250 LIKES and 161 COMMENTS as of today [July 01, 1:34pm]. Prince and I are both excited that they are hinting on performing here in Manila soon. We missed Tears for Fears a couple of months ago as all the tickets were sold out, I will skip Usher but definitely not Gin Blossoms.A lot of fans will be there for sure as we've all been waiting here for a while. :D

The Historic Bataan

The team was off to spend an overnight in Bagac, Bataan last weekend. It was also out first out of town trip that Prince and I had so I was really excited. It was about 5-hour drive up north of Metro Manila. We left at almost 10am and had a quick stopover for lunch at Gerry's Grill at SM Pampanga.

The food is as nice as always [I was starving and I didn't bother taking photos of what we had, hehe]. After lunch, we took a few minutes to rest and prepare for another 3-hour drive.

We arrived at the NPC Housing Village which reminded me of American movies when I saw the peaceful neighborhood, non-gated bungalows, fully-airconditioned rooms and I felt the laid back life that was in there during the 70's. Our teammate Dann was the one who suggested that we rent 2 houses in the said village and so we did. He also gave a bit of history as to how this NPC Village came about. According to Dann, at the time that Ferdinand Marcos was still president, this village was developed by the government to invest on a study of potential Nuclear Power Plant in the Philippines. The specialists from the US was invited to come over to conduct such study and as they were in here with their families, this village was designed as to how the American homes look like. The village had their own school [for grade school only, Dann said that the kids were sent to another country to continue higher education] with their own American teachers, a hotel, a supermarket and a clubhouse. However, when the Nuclear Power Plant was said to have a negative effect, the operation to build it was stopped and all of them were sent back to the US. Cool trivia. ;-)

About 30-minute drive from the NPC Housing Village is the location of the Philippine Nuclear Power Plant in Morong, Bataan.As the project did not push through few decades ago, this site is not operational and a couple of soldiers are now guarding the location. Inside the facility is one of the most quiet beach I've ever been - no vendors [they only have a little sari-sari store which sells very limited snacks and a lot of soda] roaming around, offering/insisting the products that they offer and it just made this location very peaceful.It was only an overnight stay but it's worth spending the weekend in Bataan. May I also add that we had a festive meal at The Original Razon's in Guagua, Pampanga on the way back to Manila.I may be really full after I ate the tocino with salted egg rice meal that comes with a glass of iced tea but it didn't stop  me from having the famous Halo-Halo, haha! :D