Living a Sugar Free Sweet Life

I am still in Bacolod City and we'll still be staying here until the 29th. This trip was more tiring than I expected. We started touring almost the whole of Negros Occidental to visit my husband's relatives as it is our first time to visit this part of the Philippines.

One of the town that we visited was Sipalay City. It was a welcome surprise that we were brought to a part of the city where the white sandy beaches are. The place reminded me of Boracay before the bars and the crowds sprouted in the island.

The white beach of Sipalay,however, was smaller than Boracay. It was just a few kilometer stretch of white sandy beach. You will not need to ride a boat to reach it but it approximately takes four hours to reach Sipalay from Silay City where the provincial airport is.

Though I experienced internet-less days in that small paradise, I can honestly say that I enjoyed the experience I had away from work and everything else. It gave me a chance to bond with my family. Heck, I didn't even care if I'll need blackhead treatments after the days I spent under the sun.

I am going to post photos as soon as I get back to Manila. Stay tuned! :)

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I never knew I'd be as excited as I was this afternoon when my boy and I reached Enchanted Kingdom. You see, in the five years that we spent living in Santa Rosa City, I've only been in the park twice. The first time was right after we moved in and the last was weeks before we got relocated back to Manila. I guess I really missed Enchanted Kingdom so much that I took so many pictures of the place. Rap and I were lucky to be part of the 50 bloggers who spent Valentine's Day at Enchanted Kingdom. We were brought there to witness the park's Enchanting Hug-a-Palooza event. Too bad my husband had to be on duty in the office today and had to miss all the fun.

We rode the bus provided for us by the Enchanted Kingdom guys and arrived at the park a few minutes before 3 in the afternoon. The heat was unbearable, I tell you, but I wasn't able to resist my boy who pulled me to go and try the rides immediately.
But while our special pink wristbands gave us ride-all-you-can access, I wasn't able to muster enough courage to ride these...


Nevertheless, we enjoyed the bump cars, the Wheel of Fate, Up, Up, and Away, and the mini-train ride before the Hug-a-palooza program started.


We were up in the giant ferris wheel when the lion dancers danced around the park in celebration of Chinese New Year. Belly dancers also wiggled their bodies in one part of the park.


By the time we got off the Wheel of Fate, it was only a couple of minutes before the Hug-a-Palooza program started. So we decided to have snacks and refreshments at the foodcourt using our complimentary Wizard Money.


After our snacks, we chanced upon the other bloggers who were lined up for shots in the photobooth.


The band played lively music to everyone's delight!


At 6 pm, all of the rides were stopped to give everyone the chance to witness the program. Young and old; families and lovers; the EK staff, traditional media men, and us bloggers; were all gathered in front of the stage to witness the incredible feat of having the largest number of people hugging each other all at the same time. The program was hosted by the owner of the park herself with Mr. Tirso Cruz III.


At exactly 7 pm, music was played and it cued the official start of the Hug-a-Palooza. Fireworks lit up the sky, too!


Families with the most number number of members present at the event were given special pins and other prizes. Other park attendees, that means us included, were showered with chocolates and candies. We also got free sampler bottles of Colgate Plax. Before the program ended, it was announced that more than 6,000 people attended the event that day. Therefore, Enchanted Kingdom's aim of bringing families close to each other this Valentine's Day was a success!


It truly was a happy Valentine's Day for me and my boy even when we missed having our Dadijun around. Thanks to Azrael Colladilla and Enchanted Kingdom for giving us a chance to be part of this wonderful feat. By the way, this is just the first as Enchanted Kingdom will be holding Hug-a-Palooza every Valentine's Day starting tonight! Special thanks also goes to Mikco Maiquez of Enchanted Kingdom for taking good care of all of the bloggers who participated in the event.

You can view more of my Enchanting Hug-a-Palooza shots HERE.


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By the time you read this, I'm probably in Bohol already. Woot! Yup, it's another step to a dream come true. The mole on my sole compels me to be hungry for travel. My dream is to visit different places in the Philippines as much as I can. I bet it will take me a lifetime to even visit three-fourths of the 7,100 islands of this archipelago. It's better than none at all, don't you agree?

I'll by travelling with my husband and son, my parents, and my mother-in-law. I'm glad that our budget permitted us to tag our parents along. What makes it extra special is that we are celebrating two wedding anniversaries in the family - our 10th and my parents' 35th!

We're flying via Cebu Pacific again. It's my airline of choice because it's the budget airline that is stationed at the NAIA Terminal 3 which is very big and convenient. Although some friends had problems with Cebu Pacific and I've also read some complaints about hidden charges and all, I still chose Cebu Pacific. I won't need an insurance quote anymore as the ticket fares already included the travel insurance fees.

Make sure to check my future posts about this travel experience!

Living in a tropical country makes me ignorant to ski holidays. I have never seen snow in the flesh, yet. This is one of my dreams in life. And while I am still waiting for that opportunity, our Wii game console gives me the opportunity to play a winter sport. My husband bought the "Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games" disc and it's where I play skiing and snowboarding.

Skiing vs.snowboarding, is one better than the other? I have been somehow engrossed in the sport since I starting playing the Mario & Sonic game. Of course, the real thing will be as doubly harder than the Wii game. I enjoyed it so much that I had to make some research. Here are some of the thoughts I gathered:

Skiing gives each of your leg a ski which means you have more control of your movements through a snowy terrain. Snowboarding makes both of your legs strapped to one board. Leaning forward and sideways are the ways you can control your descend.
Snowboarding gives more chances for exhibition moves than skiing. This is the reason why the sport is preferred by the more adventurous skier. Skiing is best for skiers who want a relaxing glide down the snowy mountains.
Skiers can get on and off lifts immediately. Snowboarders need to unstrap their boards first.

With all of these in mind, I think I'll be better off skiing than snowboarding. The again, I still have more time to decide on this. Probably, this will be possible when I get the chance to visit my relatives in Canada or the United Kingdom. For now, I'm gonna train my ski legs playing Mario & Sonic.

Sa wikang Griyego, ang salitang photos ay nangangahulugang "ilaw" at ang graphein ay nangangahulugang "pagsulat". Sa dalawang salitang ito nagmula ang terminong photography. Kung kaya naman, pinaka-importanteng aspeto sa photography ay ang ilaw. Sa totoo lang, ang mga larawang nakikita natin ay iginuhit ng camera gamit ang liwanag.

Paano na lang kung kulang ang liwanag sa isang lugar? Paano kaya kukuha ng magandang larawan? Ito ang challenge sa aming mag-asawa noong Bagong Taon at kami'y nasa Camsur Watersports Complex. Makakapal ang mga ulap sa Bicol mula noong kami'y dumating ilang araw bago mag-Bagong Taon. Siguro'y dahil na rin sa pag-aalburuto ng Bulkang Mayon.

Ang solusyon, gamitin na lang ang makakapal na ulap para magkaroon ng drama ang larawan. Silhoutte effect na lang. Maganda na, naitago pa ang aking mga bilbil, hahaha!

Light is an important aspect in photography. In fact, the word "photography" originated from the Greek words "photos" and "graphein" which mean "light" and "writing" respectively. The pictures that we see are actually products of light written by our cameras.

My husband and I were quite challenged during our New Year's Day celebration at the Camsur Watersports Complex. Thick clouds hovered above the Bicol region since we arrived days before the New Year. It's probably because of Mayon Volcano's ash emissions.

We resolved our light problem not by using the flash but by maximizing the darkness that the thick clouds brought. It allowed us to shoot silhouette photos. The results were beautiful and dramatic. And the best thing about my silhouette shot is that it hid my love handles! Hahaha!

My husband called me up to tell me that we have to use the Mandarin Oriental voucher he's keeping before it expires by the end of the year. I felt excited even if the hotel is just within the heart of Makati. I'm excited because it's a chance for the three of us to spend the night again in a place other than our home. I believe the last time we were able to do that was back in the summer. I'm sure Rap will be elated, too.

Now I'm thinking of activities to do in Makati while we're there. Or probably we'll just hang around in Greenbelt till the wee hours and go back to the hotel when it's sleeping time. It will be just like sleeping over at a friend's house!

It's always fun to spend moments like this one with my boys. I know it's not as grand as getting booked in one of the nuevo vallarta hotels but it's not the place that's important. What I'm really excite about is the bonding time I'll get to have with my boys.