Shangri-La Mactan

I had the most relaxing, restful, and revitalizing holiday at Shangri-La Mactan.

I had been hearing great things about Shang Mactan for a really long time now but prior to this trip, I hadn't gotten a chance to stay there yet. It has its own private beach and a couple of swimming pool areas and as I mentioned in my previous post, this was something I was really looking for. As it is a luxury hotel, it is definitely not cheap but it ticked all the boxes and I hadn't traveled in more than 2 years so I felt it was worth spending more than I normally would on a trip.

I decided to stay there from Monday to Friday to avoid the bigger weekend crowds. While I initially thought of going out of the resort in at least one of the days I was there to see a bit more of Cebu, I scrapped that plan and just spent the entire time at the resort.

I arrived on Monday at around 1pm and I was told that my room was still being sanitized. I told the person behind the counter that I would just have lunch lobby lounge since I was already hungry. I had a beautiful view of the resort from where I sat. As soon as I sat down, I already started to feel very calm and relaxed. At that point, I knew I would have a fantastic holiday.

View from the Lobby Lounge

I booked a Sea View Room which is more expensive but when I entered my room, I immediately felt it was worth it. The view was spectacular! The fact that I had a balcony where I could sit and relax and just look out onto the resort grounds and the sea made was just absolutely perfect.

My Sea View Room

I didn't really get to do anything that Monday. After checking in, I looked for a place where I could to buy water and other supplies (I found a 7-Eleven about 800 meters away from the hotel). On the way back, I swung by the Promenade Mactan which was practically right across the street from hotel. Here I saw 32 Italian Deli & Kitchen and noticed they had a selection of wines so I got a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon (I was certain the wine at the hotel would be a lot more expensive). Once I got back to my room, I got cleaned up and fell asleep for almost 3 hours (I had very little sleep and was so stressed leading up to my flight; I will write more about this in my next post). It was past 8 when I woke up so I decided to just rest and read a book that evening.

I got to enjoy the resort a lot more the next day. Buffet breakfast was served at Tides Restaurant and this was my first buffet since the pandemic started. My initial plan was to go to the beach and read my book before hitting the water a little later in the afternoon so it wouldn't be too hot. However, once I found an available beach bed with its own giant umbrella and got settled, I felt the sea calling out to me. I applied some sunblock to my face, my neck, and the exposed parts of my arms but I hadn't put any sunblock on the rest of my body before hitting the water. Needless to say, I had a pretty bad sunburn after that haha. Nevertheless, I felt so at peace while in the sea. I'm sure it helped that there was almost no one else in the short section of the beach where I was in.

Later that afternoon, I went to the main pool to swim a bit more. I enjoyed a meal at Buko Bar before heading back to my room. (I got room service every night I was there. Some restaurants were still closed and there were a few items in the room service menu that I really liked that weren't available in any of the restaurants so I decided to just have dinner in my hotel room every night.)

Chicken Breast from the room service menu

I had the same routine on Wednesday. In fact, I got the exact same beach bed where I stayed the day before. Later in the afternoon, I decided to try the Ocean Wing pool. There is a sign that says the Ocean Wing pool area is restricted to guests who are staying at the Ocean Wing but since the hotel was still not at full capacity, all guests were allowed to use any of the pools. Cool!

Shang Mactan has a cultural show at the Buko Bar on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. During my stay, the only chance I had to see the show was on Wednesday but since I had settled into my room already in the late afternoon, I didn't feel like heading out. However, at 7pm, I started to hear a very invigorating drumbeat coming from Buko Bar. I got a jolt of energy and I decided to head down. I'm glad I did because the show was really enjoyable.

Cultural Show

More people seemed to check in on Thursday. When I went to the beach at around noon, most of the beach beds were occupied and I didn't feel comfortable lounging too close to other people. I decided to just spend the afternoon at the Ocean Wing pool area where there were still many pool beds available.

Friday was my final day in Cebu. My flight was in the evening but thankfully, I was given a late check-out time of 3pm. The breakfast area was pretty packed that morning so I was really happy with my decision to book my holiday from Monday to Friday. After breakfasst, I managed to get a pool bed in front of the infinity pool in the Ocean Wing area so I stayed there for a while. I read a bit and swam a bit before heading back to my room to check-out.

Shangri-La Mactan is a really beautiful resort. I love the grounds and I also love the fact that it has its own private beach. I prefer staying at the Ocean Wing pool area because it looks out into the sea and is more shaded but the main wing pool area is really photogenic. The staff is also very courteous and helpful and the service is excellent. I definitely recommend Shangri-La Mactan and I hope I get to stay here again in the future.

Next Post: Final Thoughts On My Trip To Shangri-La Mactan

Traveling Again!

For the first time since the pandemic, I went on a trip! I spent a week at Shangri-La Mactan for a much-needed break.

I say that because I had been tremendously busy the last several months, and things got even more hectic in the last few months due to a huge project I was assigned to. (It was completed successfully a few weeks ago, hooray!) I also just organized my grandmother's 95th birthday. To say I was exhausted would be a huge understated. I decided to go on a solo trip so that I could detach from the world and not worry about anything or anyone else.

I wanted to stay at a high-end resort that had both a beach and a pool. I wanted a beach because it had been five years since I had last been to one. I chose Cebu because the only requirements to travel there are a vaccination card (or vaccination certificate) and a valid ID, making it really easy to visit.

I ended up staying at Shangri-La Mactan because it is one of the best resorts in the country and I felt that it would the perfect way to reward myself. I will write more about my holiday here in my next post. 

Next Post: Shangri-La Mactan

Quarantine Stories Part 19

I bought a Fitbit! I had been thinking about getting a Fitbit for a while now so that I could monitor my heart rate more proactively and so I could check how many steps I take each day. However, it wasn't until a friend of mine shared some of the statistics her Fitbit was providing, like how much sleep she was getting. It was then that I decided I wanted to get one. Another friend purchased his Fitbit from the main store in Lazada so I decided to get mine during the Lazada 5.5 Sale. (I got more than P1000 off!) I chose the Fitbit Charge 5 because I was telling my friend that wearing a watch all the time sometimes felt a bit heavy on my arm so he suggested I get the Charge 5 instead of the Sense, which is like a big watch. Hopefully, my new Fitbit can help me lead a healthier lifestyle.

My new Fitbit Charge 5

That wasn't my only recent gadget purchase. I also bought a cooling pad. I had been noticing that whenever I play Steam games, especially Scythe and Terraforming Mars, my laptop would heat up. So while doing some errands recently, I passed by Datablitz to purchase a Redragon Ivy Laptop Cooler. I didn't really feel like studying what cooling pad to get so I decided to get the exact same one that my nephew asked me to buy for him about a year ago. I figured he researched what he wanted to get so the Redragon Ivy must be at least a decent cooling pad. Another friend said it has a pretty big fan so it should be good.

Redragon Ivy Laptop Cooling Pad

I also purchased an electric fan. I've been working from home a lot since the pandemic started and I noticed that while I do have air conditioning at home, because of its placement in my apartment, only my upper body usually feels the cool air. My lower body tends to feel a bit hot. I felt that having an electric placed on the floor and directed towards my lower body would help me feel cooler overall. I passed by the SM Appliance Store and this Hanabishi floor fan was the smallest and most inexpensive one I found so I decided to get it. So far, I haven't been disappointed and it has indeed helped me feel cooler overall.

Hanabishi Floor Fan

I also had another game night! My friend Cla had been wanting to play board games for a while so we decided to schedule one.  I decided to bring my Herbaceous Sprouts which I purchased back in 2020 and hadn't played with other people yet (I only played the solo variant) and I'm glad people had fun playing it. We also played MicroMacro - Crime City (I had previously played an online version of this), Tiki Topple (this was such a fun game), and Canvas (which I just played for the first time last month). I played Canvas horribly, with one of my paintings scoring really low. While I ended up in last place, I did put together a pretty cool and interesting painting called Precious Pride. (The person in the painting looks just like Freddie Mercury in Queen's "I want to break free" music video!)

Precious Pride, my best painting in my most recent game of Canvas

I also finally went out for drinks on a weeknight for possibly the first time since the pandemic started. My friends Pia and Marco wanted to have drinks and they invited me to join them. Since my project at work had just completed and I wasn't too busy, I decided it would be nice to go out and. We ended up in The Spirits Library which was an interesting bar along Guerrero Street in Poblacion. There was a really good band (or I guess technically it was a duo with a singer and a musician) performing the night we were there but I forgot their group's name. I also like the cocktails I got to try. I surely wouldn't mind going there again.

While we are still in a pandemic, I guess because most people are vaccinated and boosted, we are now able to do more things that we avoided in the last two years. I still make sure I have my mask on whenever possible. Hopefully, things continue to get better and Covid starts becoming more like the normal flu.

Congratulations UP! UAAP Season 84 Men's Basketball Champions!

Congratulations to the UP Fighting Maroons for winning the UAAP men's basketball tournament! Amazing!

UP Fighting Maroons is #UAAPSeason94 Champions! #UPFight pic.twitter.com/pfdPmAGGFZ

— UP Fight Club | CHAMPIONS✊🏻 (@upmaroonclub) May 13, 2022

This was such an amazing win on so many levels. The last time the UP men's basketball team won the UAAP championship was in 1986, back when Benjie Paras, Ronnie Magsanoc, and Eric Altamirano played for the team under Coach Joe Lipa. More recently, UP had been knocking on the door of greatness in the previous two UAAP seasons but were unable to take it home. They lost to Ateneo in the finals of season 81 and in season 82, they were second after the elimination round but lost twice to UST during the stepladder semifinals. (Season 83 was not held due to the pandemic.)

In the final, they also had to contend with Ateneo Blue Eagles, a team that had won the last three seasons and went undefeated in the most recent one. In fact, Ateneo was favored to win, being at the top of the standings after the elimination round. However, UP did manage to beat Ateneo by the smallest of margins, 84-83, during the second round of the eliminations. That win snapped Ateneo's 39-match winning streak that stretched all the way back to 2018. It must also have given the Fighting Maroons greater belief.

UP then had to face La Salle in the semifinals. Since they were second in the standings, they were twice to beat. But that didn't seem to faze La Salle, who beat UP 83-80 and forced a second do-or-die semifinal. And in that game, many people thought La Salle had it in the bag when they were up 70-56 with 7 minutes remaining. However, UP refused to go away and took the game 78-74, thanks in large part to the last minute heroics of Rookie of the Year Tamayo.

As if that come-from-behind win against La Salle wasn't enough, they had to do it again in the finals against Ateneo. Twice! In game 1, Ateneo was ahead 70-64 with 53 seconds left. But a 3-point-play from Lucero and a 3-point shot by Spencer allowed UP to take the game to overtime where they eventually won 81-74! Ateneo won a tight Game 2 69-66 and this meant that it would all come down to one final game to decide the championship.

Game 3 featured a major seesaw battle that saw the lead all throughout but in the final minute, Ateneo was up 59-56. However, a 3-point shot by Cansino took the game to overtime again. Ateneo had the upper hand yet again as they led 69-64 with less than 2 minutes remaining. It was then that JD Cagulangan stepped up big-time, being involved in an 8-0 run by hitting a three, making an assist to Finals MVP Diouf, and hitting another three to give UP the championship!

CAGULANGAN PUT THE TEAM ON HIS BACK AND SCORED/ASSISTED ON UP'S LAST 8 POINTS. AN ABSOLUTELY LEGENDARY PERFORMANCE FROM UP'S POINT GUARD.#UPFIGHT pic.twitter.com/Mi3jE3YJkG

— Ryan Alba (@_alba__) May 13, 2022

With the UP Fighting Maroons still pretty much intact for season 85, they must be considered a serious contender. That said, I don't even want to think about the future. For now, I will join the rest of the UP community and relish this amazing win. The team just had a magical run that involved multiple come-from-behind victories to bring home a trophy that they hadn't won in 36 years. Congratulations again, UP Fighting Maroons!

Mother's Day Celebration

Since the pandemic started, all our special celebrations have been at home. For Mother's Day, I thought of trying to make it extra special for both my mom and my grandmother. Obviously, you can't have a celebration like this without cake. Since my mom has been trying to reduce her sugar intake recently, I decided to get a keto cake for her. I ordered the Bordeaux Chocolate Fudge cake from Chrisha's Kitchen and interestingly enough, they were offering specially decorated cakes for Mother's Day. I got another cake for Nanay. Patisserie Le Choux-Colat had been popping up quite a lot in my social media feed and I had been interested in it for a while so I decided to order their Yema Cacao Entremet Cake. It looks really beautiful. I ended up trying both cakes and they were both good. The keto cake was surprising because it's very low in sugar and carbs but you don't feel like you are being being deprived of enjoyment when you eat it.

Bordeaux Chocolate Fudge cake from Chrisha's Kitchen and Yema Cacao Entremet Cake from Patisserie Le Choux-Colat

I also put in a bit of effort thinking of what to get them. I got a Tempur pillow for my mom. I figured it would be a bit of a unique gift and hopefully she would enjoy it. I also added another gift - a pair of pre-loved Christian Dior sunglasses. My friend set up a business that sells pre-owned items and she had several sunglasses for sale. I watched one of her live shows and I saw these Dior glasses that I thought looked really classy and stylish. That said, I wasn't sure if they would look good on my mom so I asked my friend if I could borrow them first so my mom could see if it fit her well. My friend ended up handing me all the sunglasses she's trying to sell. That way, my mom could try them all on and pick which one was the best. In the end, the Dior sunglasses not only fit, they looked great on my mom so I ended up getting them as an extra gift. 

Pre-loved Christian Dior sunglasses I got for my mom

I wasn't sure if my grandmother would have any use for sunglasses but I asked her anyways if she also wanted a pair. Interestingly enough, her current pair was broken so she said it would be nice to have a new - or well in this case, a pre-owned - pair. She tried on all the sunglasses and we felt that a pair Cath Kidston shades looked best on her so I got them as an extra gift. (I think they might have been new because the tags were still attached.)

Cath Kidston shades I got for my grandmother

I say extra gift because I wasn't planning on getting those shades for my grandma, which means I had other gifts for her already. Since she can feel a bit cold sometimes (not this summer obviously), I ordered a couple of light robes from Zalora. I also got her bedroom slippers (also from Zalora). She actually thought the slippers looked too fancy and didn't want to use them but I told her that it would be a waste if she had these nice things and never used them. I'm guessing she liked what I got her because she posted a picture of all the gifts she received.

Bedroom slippers I got for my grandmother

I also ordered a lot of food, including a Caesar salad tray (my mom really loves salad) and lengua (which my grandmother really loves). While we just celebrated at home, it was still pretty special. I'm also happy that my mom and my grandma liked the gifts I got for them.