Sidetrip: Puerto Galera

I have not been to Boracay nor Palawan, but so far Puerto Galera is my most favorite destination. My first time at the place was  in 2008 with my mom and sister, and it was the best vacation of my life. I love the view of the sea, trees(lots of them), mountains, truly relaxing and breathtaking.
Just this weekend, my officemates and I went for an overnight trip there and albeit short, I was surprised of the unexplainable connection I feel in this place. We did not do much except for an afternoon trip to White Beach to enjoy the sand, banana boat ride and the fun crowd during dinner time. I was not even able to snorkel because it's late already. But I had a great time. I had a body massage on the shore at dusk, and later that evening, a yummy sleep(though only 6 hours) and the nicest dream I've had in a long time. Then, waking up the next morning to silence and just a magnificent view of the bay. Aaaah, life.
I'm quite afraid riding the speedboats because of the tragedy years ago, and the travel time is long and tiring, but Puerto Galera is just beautiful and inviting, I'd love to go back.
There goes my birthday wish..

FINALLY opened a bank account. YEAAAH!!!

For real. With small but actual savings in it. Seriously?
Saving is probably one of the hardest but necessary tasks in my 2012 project.
For a impulsive shopper such as yours truly, it took me quite some time to save enough and go for this practical and mature decision - that is, to open an account. I read somewhere that one should pay himself first. This means that before you go spending off your salary in needs and wants, save some for yourself because it in this amount do you truly care for yourself(Now I sound like a self-help book. no way!) My parents keep on insisting me to save, save, save. Too hard-headed to listen, I ended up being broke a lot of times, most significantly, when I quit my first job. 


With this, and the realization that I'm almost into 2 years of working but with zero peso saved, hit me and made me write it down as one of my things to accomplish this year. And gladly, I did it this month by myself. I'm pleased. Woot, woot. 


I still have a long way to go, building up my saving discipline and all, but this is the beginning. 

Reader's Corner: Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

Twenties Girl is my latest acquisition of Sophie Kinsella published books, thanks to National Bookstore's Summer Sale. It took me a while to decide on buying this because I was more into the Shopaholic series, and I thought the "ghost" synopsis will not work for me. It was corny, or so I thought.

I read(and finished it) one lazy Sunday afternoon in April, and boy, was this bestseller amazing.

It was the first Kinsella masterpiece which made me laugh out loud, giddy, protective, touched, sad, angry, happy and in tears, throughout the story. The protagonist Lara's and the "ghost" Sadie's crazy but lovable characters jived well, and that it is in their strange relationship and journey in finding a missing necklace, that makes the book an exciting read. In addition, it was through their connection that the characters discovered more about themselves, learning from each other. 

I'm more of a fifties soul, but I have to give it to Twenties Girl for warming my heart and inspiring me to go for the ones(people, things, dreams) I love. 

My Sophie Kinsella book collection(hope I could post them soon) is now completed and unintentionally,I saved the best for last. Go Twenties Girl!

Sidetrip: Hacienda Darasa

A month ago, my officemate treated us for a weekend getaway in Batangas for her birthday.

Fresh air, lush surroundings and some peace and quiet - just what we needed after a tiring week at work.

Happy Birthday Ate Joy!

A Backpacker's Trip to Ilocandia

I spent my Holy Week this year crossing out one of my 2012 must-visit destinations, Ilocos.

Making good use of the 5 day long weekend, my sister, aunt and cousin joined me in this 3 days & 4 nights adventure up north. With Google material in handy, I organized an itinerary for us that would cover the best of sightseeing in Ilocandia.

Day 1 - Pagudpud (Ilocos Norte)

From Manila, we traveled 12 hours(7pm-7am) to the seaside area of Pagudpud. We checked in at Madrid Beach Resort (located in Saud beach) had breakfast in Emohruo Restaurant and off we go to a Tricycle Tour. In the morning, we visited the Southern parts of Pagudpud - Boreajador lighthouse, Kapulupuran Rock Formation and the spectacular Bangui Windmills. In the afternoon, we headed to the northern part and were in awe at the sight of Patapat Viaduct. Next stops were the white sand Maira-Ira beach & Blue Lagoon(where we also had our late lunch), Bantay Abot Cave, and we hiked to Kabigan Falls. Back at the resort, my aunt and I swam for a bit until sunset, had grilled stuff and halo-halo for dinner, and henna tattoos before bed time.

Day 2 - Laoag (Ilocos Norte)

After some beach lovin' and breakfast, we left Pagudpud and traveled for 2 hours via bus to the capital, Laoag City. We checked in at Isabel Suites around noon, freshen up a bit and had lunch at the nearby Jollibee. Then off we went to an afternoon tricycle tour of our Laoag must-sees - Malacanang of the North, the stunning Paoay Church, Marcos Mausoleum and the Paoay Sand Dunes. Around 5pm, we were dropped off in front of the Sunken Bell Tower of Laoag. We walked around and took pictures at the Laoag Cathedral, Plaza and Capitol. While my sister and cousin rested at the hotel, my aunt and I watched the Good Friday procession. In the evening, our group met up, walked and found the popular and jampacked Cafe Saramsam, where we had Ilocano dishers for dinner. We tried the Saramsam Pasta and Pinakbet Pizza. Walking back to the hotel, we dropped by the capitol to take more pictures, stopped by Ilocos Stop(ala Mini Stop), got ourselves some ice cream, then it was time to rest.

Day 3 - Vigan (Ilocos Sur)

On out third and last day, we left Laoag shortly after breakfast and rode a bus that would take us to Vigan. After a couple of hours and tricycle rides later, we were at the cobble-stone steps of Calle Crisologo and Heritage Village, the top destination in Vigan. With our heavy backpacks, we walked around the place, visited the Cathedral and Burgos Plaza and had lunch at McDonald's. Afterwardsm we went on another tricycle tour that took us to the Bell Tower of Vigan, Jar making area, Hidden Garden and Baluarte zoo. We dropped by the local market to grab some Chichacorn, and were back by 4pm at Calle Crisologo and had yummy Vigan empanada and okoy at Insiang's. Then, we headed off for some souvenir shopping and met up with my other cousins who were also in Vigan at the time. We had some delicious barbecue at Plaza Burgos before our group bid goodbye. Early evening, we were at Partas Terminal where we bought more pasalubong(Bibingka and pudding) c/o Marcia's Delicacies, before we rode the 6:45pm bus that would take us back to Manila. After 8 hours of travel, we were dropped off at an NLEX gas station and we are back in Bulacan by 4am.

Traveling to Ilocos is exhausting but I'm glad I did it, at least once in my life. There are so much places to see, food to try and activities to explore in Ilocandia. I'm proud to cross-out this destination off my bucket list, and more so because I paid for this trip myself. Yessss!

Life Lessons for March 2012

I sure am one lazy blogger. Well, I have not much updates to supply anyway since 2 planned March getaways were canceled due to fortuitous events, or in Oblicon lingo, "force majeure".

Read on for my monthly dose of lessons learned.

61. What does not kill you will make you stronger. (Fighting!)
62. Thick (but approachable) face, Dark (but kind) heart.
63. Pay it forward.
64. Never let you past dictate to you who you are but let it be a part of who you will become.
65. From buying something to choosing friends, from tasks to be done to having fun, quality over quantity.
66. Love your job, love your boss, love your team.
67. Learn from other people's mistakes. You can't make them all yourself.

68. What I never had, I never miss.
69. Give yourself a break after a long day's work. Some me time to relax, refresh and recharge to face curve balls ahead.
70. Never let the fear of striking out keeps you from playing the game.
71. The only perspective is to really be there.
72. Breathe. It calms the mind.
73. No matter how good or bad the situation is, it will change.
74. Happiness comes from within. Love yourself for who or what you are.

75. Envy is a waste of time. You already have what you need. (Noted!)
76. What you can measure, you can manage.
77. Be better than before, better than others and better than expected! (Company motto FTW)
78. Live without apology. Own your life.
79. Seek first to understand, then to be understood.
80. Before feeling inferior about others doing something useful and valuable, realize that you are doing something useful and valuable too.
81. Knowing the enemy is winning half the battle. (Art of War)
82. When making decisions, always use your reason. But consider your heart for heart has reason even reason could not understand. (Overheard)
83. Don's speculate. You need evidence before you come up with conclusions. Ask, research and study first. (Morning lesson)
84. You don't have to agree on everything. Voice out your opinions when you have to.
85. Sometimes you really have to do things you are not comfortable doing. Pero ganyan sa business, walang personalan.
86. You try, you fail. You try, you fail. But, the real failure is when you stop trying.

87. If it's a broken part, replace it. If it's a broken arm then brace it. If it's a broken heart then face it. (Details in the Fabric)
88. Hope is the only thing stronger than fear. A little hope is effective; a lot of hope is dangerous. (Hunger Games)
89. Embrace your weaknesses and turn them into strengths.
90. It's okay to be happy. For as long as you don't trample others' feelings to get happiness.
91. Be spontaneous. When a planned getaway is cancelled *ahem*, there's another adventure waiting for you. Go and be game.