There’s No Place Like Home

So, an obligatory vacation entry before I start writing of other things. Heh.

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Got ourselves a brand spankin’ new camera before we left because our old camera was adopted by my sister-in-law. It was that or a new video card said ze husband. We got a nice package from Harvey Normal which included an extra SD card, extra battery, a tripod and a camera bag in addition to the kit. I was sweet-talking the sales guy to give us a UV filter for free but in return he said, we had to buy a digital frame / photo printer. Guess who are now also proud owners of a digital frame / photo printer?

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Anyway, after three hours of pressure-filled ear (I think it has something to do with me sitting in the middle chair), we arrived in Manila. Proceeded to our old apartment in Makati to leave our stuff. Met with a bunch of our college friends in Gerry’s at Insular Life Building for some Pinoy food. ILU, sisig.

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Why is it so f*n hot in Manila?

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Visited my old office for a bit of QT with my crazy ex-colleagues.

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Went back to the apartment to get some of our things before going to Los Baños since it was our friend C’s wedding the following day. Ate itlog ng pugo during the bus ride and C2 Apple. Hrhr. Checked in to the Splash Hotel. Room was kinda disappointing.

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Met with my cousin P and his girlfriend A for lunch in grove. Went back to the hotel to prepare for the wedding. Massive traffic jam ensues because of the numerous fiestas. Had to ask the hotel for car service to bring us to the place without having to go through the jam.

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C and L’s wedding <3

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I miss my bestfriend L.

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After wedding party with friends at LB Square then resort. Don’t remember much except me chatting with A about our orgmates. Haha.

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Back to Makati then home to Pacita. I really missed my boys.

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Dinner with friends at Bubba Gump. Then off to C and K’s condo to chat some more and to get our e-tickets. (of course I left the one I printed in Singapore). I have so much love for these guys.

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Zamboanga adventure with in-laws and other relatives. My in-laws are great! Ate crabs almost the whole time that we stayed there. Did a bit of sightseeing and shopping for more pasalubong.

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Went back home to Pacita for a bit more quality time with my family.

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GPE2. Friends. Family. SF2. Tekken. Tequila slammer. <3

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Shopping for things to bring back to Singapore.

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Flight back.

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See you again in July, Manila. You are awesome.

IKEA Field Trip

Today, I decided to go out of the condo and spend the afternoon in IKEA.

Waiting for the bus

View from the double decker bus

Welcome!

First order of business, lunch. Kids' meatballs, salmon nuggets and coke. Nom.

Bye!

The IKEA 2009 Holiday collection is now available! Huzzah!

Today, I…

• …waited and rode the free shuttle service to and from IKEA.
• …took the bus instead of taking a cab home.
• …did not buy anything from IKEA.

How was your day?

ONEderful

It’s that time once again – the time when productivity level drops to its lowest, credit card companies get richer by the second and the Cebu Pacific Air website is hardly accessible. Yes, friends the Cebu Pacific Piso Fare promo is back!

The plane fares are unbelievably low that some of my friends have already booked more than one trip! And since J and R’s wedding is included in the travel period, I’ve decided to book my flight back to Manila for a grand total of *drumroll please* S$ 42.00 (~Php 1344)! This includes S$ 7 insurance (husband insisted since it’s not too expensive) and S$ 8 for seat selection (which I didn’t know they charged for). I was reluctant to pay for the seat selection bit but the husband said that the total cost of this trip is less than my weekly allowance so I conceded.

As I said, the website is slow during this time (Remember checking your e-mail via dial-up during the olden days? Yeah, that’s how slow it is.), so here are some tips:

1. Be patient. This is the most important thing to remember. Think of the money that you’ll save! You can use that to buy yourself a nice trinket to wherever it is you’re going. Or maybe it’ll allow you to buy another ticket to somewhere else. Wouldn’t that be awesome?
2. If you encounter an error at the initial stages of booking, start again. This happened to me while I was booking. Then read advise #1 again.
3. Have your credit card by your side. You would not want your session timing-out and having to start over, right?
4. Again, be patient. It really takes a bit to complete the booking. Personally, I’d advise you to not do anything while the transaction is being processed. I’m paranoid like that. So, no harvesting, no cooking, no killing, no tweeting or anything like that.
5. If your transaction hanged during the “Complete transaction” stage, open another browser and see if you’ve received the confirmation e-mail. That’s what I did, anyway. [Mile adds: You can call Cebu Pacific at +63 2 702 0888 to confirm if your booking is successful so you can get the booking code.]

With these tips, I hope you book your transactions without any hassle (or minor ones at least). Good luck!

Things and Places Not To Be Missed in Singapore: Food

A trip to Singapore would not be complete without tasting the unique local food fare that have impressed many famous foodies such as Anthony Bourdain and Andrew Zimmern. There is a wide selection of food items to choose from so you can throw that diet plan out the window. Heh.

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At the heart of the food scene of Singapore are the hawker centres. For those not familiar, these are the local versions of a food court. Hawker centres contain several food stalls that offer various cuisine to entice the hungry traveller. Another great thing about them is that the prices are very affordable (A meal would range from around S$ 3 – 5 only). Some of the famous Hawker Centres are Lau Pa Sat located in the central business district, Newton Food Centre is Newton and Maxwell Food Centre near Chinatown.

Hawker Centre in Bedok

• The Chicken Rice is one of my favorite local food. As the boyps explained to me, it is named as such not because of the steamed / roasted chicken but the how the rice is prepared as well. In the episode of No Reservations in Singapore, Anthony Bourdain explained that the broth where the chicken was cooked is used to cook the rice as well to add flavor.

Chicken Rice

• Satay is skewered meat (usually chicken or beef) that is grilled or barbequed and accompanied by peanut sauce. This makes a nice alternative to the barbequed meat that I am used to in the Philippines.

Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

• I have never been big on spicy food but I am rather fond of the chilli crab. Some say not as spicy as they were expecting, the sauce is semi-thick made of tomato and chilli sauce. Paired with deep-fried buns, this makes for a very good meal. This is served on restaurants such as Jumbo Seafood and No Signboard Seafood as well as on some hawker centres.

Chilli Crab

• I love, love, love cereal prawns! These are deep fried prawns that are coated (and covered) with cereal. Ask for the de-shelled ones for the best dining experience. The best ones I’ve tried are from Jumbo Seafood.

Cereal Prawns

These are just some of the many good things to eat in the Lion City. Check out Lori’s 4-part Dessert Comes First feature on Singapore for more food stuff.

Happy eating!

Things and Places Not To Be Missed in Singapore: Attractions

Despite it being the smallest nation in Southeast Asia, there are a lot of things to see and do in Singapore! For people who are in this island city-state for just a couple of days, here are some of the places that I think are worth visiting.

Remember to wear comfortable footwear because you are in for a lot of walking and always bring an umbrella since the weather can be fickle in this side of the world.

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The City is a nice place to start getting acquainted with the Lion City.

• Stroll through Suntec City and its many shops, check out Duck and Hippo Tours for their sightseeing packages. The largest man-made fountain in the world, the Fountain of Wealth is located here as well.

Fountain of Wealth

• Ever heard of a subterranean mall? The City Link Mall is one. What is cool is that you get to shop and eat while on the way to other places of interest. You can go to Marina Square or to Esplanade via the link. And it goes directly to the City Hall MRT station which is awesome.

• Not far from the City Hall MRT is the Raffles Hotel where the famous Long Bar is located and where the Singapore Sling was invented. Oh and feel free to throw the peanut shells on the floor as this has been a long-standing tradition.

• Get your gadget therapy in Funan DigitaLife Mall. If you’re in the market for a new phone, laptop, music player, game console, and other electronic gizmo, this is where you must go. Be sure to compare prices between shops to get the best deals. And don’t forget to ask for the GST Refund form upon payment!

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Ranked #5 in Luigi Di Serio’s Top 15 Skylines of the World, the City at night is a sight to behold. The City Skyline, Esplanade, Fullerton Hotel, Merlion Park and Marina Bay Sands are a must see for photography enthusiasts who like taking night shots!

Marina Bay Sands under construction

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What is great about the Singapore Zoo is its “open zoo” concept. Unlike most zoos, the animals are not seen inside cages but rather in what seems like their natural habitat. The visitors are protected by moats, water ways and plants. There are animal shows during the day as well as a chance for visitors to feed and have pictures taken with the animals for a nominal fee. Walk around the zoo or choose to ride the tram to go around while waiting for the Night Safari to open.

White Tiger at the Singapore Zoo

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The Night Safari is a unique experience and one of the best attractions of the country. The set-up is similar to the “open zoo” concept of the Singapore Zoo but with a tropical rain forest setting. Visitors can start with the guided tram ride that takes them to the different areas. You can hop off the tram should you decide to go through the different walking trails. Another highlight of the Night Safari is the Creatures of the Night show which is a performance by the animals. Oh and make sure to turn off the flash of your camera!

Pink Flamingos at the Night Safari

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Visit Chinatown if you are in the mood for a spot of shopping and to see the Chinese cultural influences. Trinkets such as key chains, figurines and other souvenir items are sold in the several shops lined up in the streets.

Busy street in Chinatown

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Sentosa Island is probably the most famous tourist destination in Singapore. It’s an island resort with several attractions to provide a varied selection of experience for the visitors.

• The Merlion and Merlion Walk is an alternative for those who have not had the chance to go to the Merlion Park in the city. There is a viewing deck at the mouth of the statue where visitors can see a bird’s eye view of Sentosa (for a fee, of course).

• The Underwater World is an oceanarium that houses thousands of sea creatures ranging from sea angels, rays, sharks, crabs and other similar animals. Bundled with the ticket to this attraction is the admission to the Dolphin Lagoon which is home to the pink dolphins! Be sure to catch the show to get a glimpse of the dolphins playing and doing tricks with the help of their trainers.

• Songs of the Sea is my favorite of all the tourist attractions! I’ve seen it three times but I never get tired of watching it. Be prepared to be amazed by pyrotechnics, laser and water show! [TIP: There is another gate at the left side of the main entrance wherein visitors can queue up. Try to get the front and center seats to get the best view of the show!]

Songs of the Sea

These are just some of the usual tourist haunts in Singapore. Visit Singapore is a great guide to the other places of interest and it even offers an itinerary planner that can be customized depending on your preference.

As the Captain Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat) said in third installment of Pirates of the Caribbean, “Welcome to Singapore!”