Sagada is Ganduyan

The Lenten holiday brought a dozen (and then one, Jeff) of us to Sagada, with the main man behind http://www.visitsagada.com/ , Benj. I had a very nice time and the trip was very memorable (spelunking, taking the long walk to our inn with just one flashlight that really shone in the darkness, and a birthday celebration).

To cap off the evenings (and warm ourselves a bit), we drank The Bar, gin and a bottle of red wine.

Hanging coffins at Echo Valley, Sagada

Big Falls

If we weren't on a hurry, it would have been nice to stay longer at the Big Falls and have a couple of beers. Don't you think?

On our last night, we stayed at Residential Lodge. I had a massage and was able to find out why it was called Sagada that I later shared when we were having a few drinks at the cozy living/kitchen/dining area.

Guess what was on the table?

Benj accidentally left the bottle of Vodka Hanoi on the bus on our way home so we never got to try it.

The Bar at Nagsasa Cove, Zambales

It was an awesome Full Moon Weekend at Nagsasa Cove last January 30-31. Our itinerary was simple:

3:00 a.m. Meet at Victory Liner Caloocan (across Grand
Central Mall, near Monumento Rotonda)
*the bus leaves at 4:30 a.m. for San Antonio, Zambales

4:30 a.m. Bus from Manila to San Antonio, Zambales (3
hours)

7:30 a.m. ETA in San Antonio. Buy food in market. Take
tricycle to Pundaquit.

8:30 a.m. Pundaquit. From there, take boat to Nagsasa. Enjoy!

It was the first time I was introduced to The Bar Apple. And it was really good! See how many bottles we finished? (Well, some of these were Orange flavor).

24-Hour Tagaytay Hangout

After a dinner at Plato Platina, Blue Wave, my friend William suggested go to Tagaytay. And so we did (at 2 in the morning!). We took the Santa Rosa exit and turned right after the Tagaytay market. This place is past where Mushroom Burger is but is also on the left side of the road from Manila.

Beer, bulalo and breeze. Beat that.

7107 Islands Cruise

Beach. Sunrise. Sunset. Onboard party. Really. Check out http://www.7107islandscruise.net/

Seawind, Boracay

December 19 -- Seawind was the venue of the coolest beach wedding and party I have ever been to. Nothing beats great company, the beach, and flowing cocktails.

And the post-wedding party was ushered in with glasses of a cocktail specially concocted for this special day: the mingler. The men behind the "Mingler" are Junjun (the inspiration) and Tata (the mixer).

Congratulations to Junjun and best wishes to Heidi!

Vivere Azure

A deluxe resort hotel south of Metro Manila (Anilao, Mabini, Batangas), a glass or more of good wine is perfect when enjoyed near its inifinity pool.

Lamma Island, Hong Kong

The pier


Fu Kee Seafood Restaurant (okay, don't laugh)



Our boat...

Last October 31, we sailed to Lamma Island, ate a feast and had a nice time.

Fu Kee has good food, cold beer, nice wine. All you need is company you like and you're set.

Boracay's Hobbit House

A cold Red Horse beer at Hobbit House quenches the thirst =) At Don Vito Pizzeria Ristorante of Boracay Mandarin Hotel, order Don Vito Sensation, a vodka-based cocktail.
A slice of Black Rainforest is optional specially if you are calorie-counting.

Macau! Macau!

It may seem strange but I did enjoy Macau even if I didn't gamble. Walking tours and bar hops. I even bought a liter of Macau beer at a grocery (MOP7) but had to leave it at the airport because it wasn't worth checking it in.


Anyhow. Do check these places when in Macau.


San Lorenzo's

At the Fisherman's Wharf or "Yo Yan Ma Tao" look for San Lorenzo's at the New Orleans block. Beer is MOP30 whereas when you drink at a casino's bar/lounge, cheapest is MOP45. Heineken even comes in a lovely, slender glass (right photo). Seafood pizza (Pizza Frutti Di Mare) MOP98. Pizza and beer it is!


The View

At Sand's (walking distance from the Fisherman's Wharf), check out The View and be fascinated with pole dancers :P San Mig Light (in a clear pilsen bottle) MOP45++. Comes with free munchies (peanuts, chips, and dried meat).

MGM

MGM Lobby. Heineken draft MOP50++ comes with multi-grain munchies and live music. Good company just seals the deal.

Bellini Bar at Venetian

MOP40++ for beers. With house mixes like Bellinitini :)

Vodka at The Hague

So I have been having a "The Hague" bug lately. My friend, Dazzle, sent me these videos.

Lekker Tagay

Ariane's Kapiskora

More reasons to go to Holland!

Waterfront Hotel Lahug Lobby

Cozy interiors. Look up and see (read?) a bit about history.

A bottle of San Mig Light costs P114. something inclusive of tax and service charge.

After watching the presentation at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) called Festival of Festivals, we capped the night at the lobby of Waterfront Cebu City. But considering this was a nice hotel, the price is acceptable. I remember, a bottle of water in one of Manila's older hotels costs P100 already.

Kuching's Rice Wine

At the Bidayuh (land dayak) long house, you are greeted with rice wine. Our guide, Cornelia Dien told us that the right (and polite) way of saying you don't or won't drink it is to touch the glass and just say "Thank you."

Went to Kuching, Malaysia for the Sarawak Rainforest World Music Festival. The wet and muddy opening night had people (like moi) stuck in the Tourism Malaysia booth have a sake festival of our own (to keep us warm while we watch from the huge projector screen). The next day we went to the Semenggoh Wildlife Center to see orangutans and then to Annah Rais Bidayuh (Bidayuh is the second largest ethnic group in Sarawak)Longhouse. Rice wine, locally called tuak, greeted us.

Good morning, sake's kin!

Molino Grill

Typhoon Frank has just passed Bicol. I'm at Bean Bag, a coffee shop beside Molino Grill. Both are two of the older hang-out places along Magsaysay Avenue, Naga City.

Had dinner with bestfriend, Lovey (who by the way was the first inspiration behind how this blog was eventually developed) , at Molino Grill last night: Grilled Squid, Sinigang na Ulo ng Lapu-Lapu, 2 cups plain rice, 1 cup garlic rice, lemonade for P305.00 only. Not bad.


Molino Grill serves beer. I remember in December 2004, my high school classmates (and then one), spent a night of good laughs here over a few buckets of beer. And for these memories, it holds a special place in my heart.

Rasa Marina

Rasa Marina is in Sta. Ana, Cagayan North. It has beer in can and really good pultuan. Lobster is still a steal despite the fact that the foreigners have adversely affected the selling price (from P150/kilo to P1000!) It is near the port that takes you to the Crocodile Island where sunrise, they say, is really, really beautiful. Too bad, it was a cloudy day but the discipline to wake up, the soothing sounds of the sea and the early morning breeze made the experience really nice.

Just be sure not to break and leave broken bottles on the island (we found a lot).

Splendido Taal's Ladera Golfers Lounge

(left to right) The bell tower. Sizzling plate.

I know it's a bit late. I was supposed to post this last May 12. But I have been very busy.

Splendido's Ladera Golfers Lounge sells SML for P48 something so it's about P50/bottle. For the change in scenery and the nice weather, it is worth the drive. Or if you're looking for a wedding venue, it's a nice place to check out.

Anyway, it was my first time to have pink wine last May 12. It is light but not too light. It smells nice and has a soft finish.

Playa Calatagan

Last Saturday, I went to Bluewave Commercial Center ang got to watch two bands perform: Ministick and First Five and Half, I think. The latter's vocals are two bald guys who were kind of funny because they were straight (at least that was how they appear to be) yet were really game. Plus their repertoire included lots of 80s music. Ministick also was good.

So anyway, I went to Playa Calatagan, Batangas the next day. And as you can guess, I slept the entire trip. We had lunch at the Beach Club, the area that would be made exclusive for its homeowners. They serve beer here, P70 + 10% service charge and was playing chillout, beach music. For now, people can drive here and rent water cabanas (P300 small, P500 medium, P700 large) and just enjoy the facilities while the public facility which is called Beach Resort is under development. There are garden cabanas, too. Rates start at P500, i think. The rates are good for a half-day which means either opening to 1 pm or 1pm to 6pm (closing). Great for family outings because the water is really shallow so parents don't have to worry much. If you don't want to use the pool and/or would like to bring your own food and beverage, beer included, you can still access the beach at an area called The Picnic Area where there are several benches and tables. It's still free as of now. But of course, there will come a time when Landco will have to charge entrance.

El Capitan, Club Noah Isabelle

Found on Apulit Island, Palawan, Club Noah Isabelle is the only resort being served by a small airport. Seair is the only plane you can ride to get here. From the airport, you ride a chartered jeepney and then ride a small boat that brings you to a bigger boat that takes you to the island (this takes about 40 minutes). But if you didn't get any sleep, this is the perfect time to catch some Zzzs. If you don't need the power nap, stay on top of the boat and enjoy the cruise (but be prepared to get wet when the sea gets rough).



Left is a day shot of El Capitan at daybreak which I took before we left the island. At night, it looks like what you see on the right.





Beer is $1.50 which is not bad considering it is an island resort. Must-try is Club Noah Special (rhum-based with four seasons) $5 because it's only here one finds it (I guess you can always mix your own but unless you drink it here, it's not qualified as "Club Noah Special"). The margarita, I think costs $4.50.

At El Kapitan, there is a pool table, a dart board and a nearby tabletennis table. You can also jam with an acoustic and tambol duo whose songs are mostly classics.