Roxas City, Here I Come!

I just let Cebu Pacific’s latest promo pass.  I was thinking that I have to be more serious in saving this time for my future “ahem”.  Besides, I already have two (2) travels in queue for this last quarter.  

But, just after I arrived in my workplace, my colleague asked me if I was interested to come to Roxas City, her hometown.  I asked her why.  According to her, the PAL all-in promo fare is only Php1,792.  My next question was, “When?”.  She said, “from Nov. 27 to 30”.  I took a moment of silence… I’ve been kidding her for not inviting us to see her hometown.  Now is the time.  But I thought I couldn’t afford to absent myself for 2 days co’z  I have upcoming travels.  I didn’t realize it will be a long weekend.  Ok, good thing!  I still had one more concern – church commitment.  After checking the calendar, I realized there’s no conflict.  Ok, book, book. 

Now looking forward, it will be a truly indulging holiday, a weekend of seafood indulgence being in the Seafood Capital of the Philippines.  

Thanks to the Philippine Airlines’ More for Less promo*. 

* Sale period is from October 16 to 23 for travel period from November 4 to December 10, 2009  

Oh My Goolai!

At past 10 a.m., I was considering either a Starbuck’s Tomato, Basil and Mozarella Bagel or some gourmet sandwich from The Sandwich Guy for my lunch after having two full bowls of goto (beef stripe congee) and tokwa’t baboy (fried tofu and pork) at breakfast.  But, I still feel full and bloated a little before lunchtime so I thought a salad meal was a better choice.  I checked on Petron’s Treats across my office building for the available ready-to-eat salad items and I got this Goolai.  I opted for the mixed greens with chicken, peaches, grapes, kiwi and honey almonds in poppyseed vinaigrette over the one with creamy dressing.  The dressing was good, not sour for a vinaigrette, a bit tangy.  It was a good choice. 

Goolai is really another good option for the salad lovers.  It is reasonably priced at Php146 considering that it is prepared fresh daily by the Agri-Growers Multi-Purpose Cooperative.  A pack, which expires after 2 days, contains about 150 grams of lettuce and 200 grams of various toppings ranging from chicken, fresh fruits in season and nuts.  The vegetables are grown hydroponically – using carefully measured water instead of soil – to prevent bacteria and pesticide contamination.*  

Check out this salad at Petron’s Treats, Crossings and Robinson’s Supermarkets.  

*Source: Masigasig, May 2009 Issue Published by Globe Business for SMEs 

Missing Yoga

Last Friday, I happened to speak with a co-participant in a yoga class.  She has been noticing my absence co’z it has been really a while.  Let me count… I think I was able to attend about five times only since January.  I really love yoga but I just couldn’t squeeze it into my schedule these days.  If I fail to attend the aerobics class and go to the gym on Monday, my Tuesday yoga suffers.  That’s basically the reason aside from the really bad weather. 

I’m hopeful that starting tomorrow, I’ll be able to join the class.  There are going to be a lot of “catching ups” by then on new poses and, most importantly, on flexibility. 

The Balinese Spa

It was another I, Me and Myself day. After my car registration, I went straight to Festival Mall to purchase a few items at Healthy Options, but because I ended up in the covered parking area, I accidentally saw (again) the The Balinese Spa which is sitting at the entrance.  This suddenly brought out the spa-holic in me.  So my visit to Healthy Options was deferred until later that afternoon.  It was almost 11 a.m. so I thought it was fine to have the massage and then lunch afterwards. 

The spa has two couple’s rooms and one single room only.  I didn’t pay much attention to the interior design of the spa maybe because the whole area seemed squeezed in.  Everyone, however, will never miss the Buddha wood carving prominently hanged on the end wall of the alley. 

I opted for the signature massage which costs Php550.  After a few minutes of waiting at the lounge, I was led to my room which is the biggest so far among the spa rooms I had been to.  Sitting on the batik-lined bed was a set of blouse and shorts, also in batik (cloth which traditionally uses a manual wax-resist dyeing technique).  I liked it!  

There is only one separate shower room and one toilet for women.  Both are quite spacious but I wondered how the spa-goers will deal with the limited number of shower room and toilet during peak times.  I knew the answer.  The spa was really small  with only one (1) single’s room and two (2) couple’s rooms.  One good thing is this spa has a dry sauna (my favorite spot in every spa) that can accommodate around 5 persons at a time. 

The whole massage was basically Swedish-like – lots of kneading and gliding.  Relaxing, but I could not distinguish the difference from other types, if there was any hint of Bali style in it.  I forgot to ask my masseuse.  Like other spas, after the massage, you will be offered either a complimentary pot or a cup of tea. 

The overall experience was satisfying.  I guess that’s the magic of touch, esp. if your masseuse is good.  I walked out of the spa in a state of euphoria, oblivious (again) of my stresses in life.   

Just started with My Farmville!

This is how my farm looks like on my third day. Not bad, right?

I’ve been seeing my friends’ status updates at Farmville thru Facebook for months before I decided to check on it.  I tried it last Saturday at the height of Ondoy wrought.  It was really fun.  Addictive! But as a neophyte, of course, I had very limited resources so I opted to purchase seedlings that can be harvested in the shortest possible time.  I needed to harvest my fresh produce at around 10 p.m.  Unfortunately, I lost my DSL connection at 9:30 p.m.   Wahhhhh!

All of my farm produce wilted.  Everything!!!  It was because my DSL connection was restored last night only after referring it to the technical support of PLDT.  That was a week!  I should have reported it earlier.

Anyway, I’m back…  I hope to upgrade it to something nicer and bigger soon.  My friends have huge farms and some are really nicely, very well and artistically planned and laid out.

Those who have not tried Farmville yet, come on… join the bandwagon.  Start building your own farm now.