1,000!

Another year, another milestone. This is my 1,000th blog post! Amazing. :) I've had busy months and slow periods but over the last nine years, I have been able to write one blog post every three and a half days on average.

Probably the greatest use of my blog is when I have friends who are traveling to places I have visited in the last several years. One of my friends went to Iceland and picked up on some good things to do and places to visit from my blog. Another friend was going to Oslo and he was thinking whether he should go to Bergen or not. He only had a few days in Norway so he was inclined not to go. When he read about my Bergen and Norway in a Nutshell tour experiences, he decided to go. Another friend traveled to Brunei and found my posts and proposed itinerary quite useful. I shared my South Korea trip to friends who also traveled there and some other folks were inspired to visit Batanes and Russia because of what I wrote about those places. Cool!

Can't believe I've managed to remain active even after almost nine years of blogging. In fact, I think I've become a bit more prolific in the last year or so. I'm not that far away from my next milestone - my 10 year anniversary. I am definitely looking forward to that. :)

Tagaytay Food Trip 2: Java Jazz Coffee

I learned about Java Jazz Coffee from tripadvisor, where it is currently ranked #3 among restaurants in Tagaytay. After reading more about this place, seeing pictures online, and checking out reviews, I knew I had to visit. And might I say, it definitely lived up to the hype.

The main thing that drew me here was the fact that there is an art gallery inside. The Java Jazz Coffee Shop Blogspot calls it "Sining sa Sahig" or "Art on the Floor". The low, angled ceiling doesn't provide a lot of space on which to hang the artwork so several paintings are just standing on the floor and set against the wall.

It's a small restaurant so there were only a couple dozen pieces on display, but that meant that I was able to spend more time carefully looking at and appreciating each painting. I didn't ask but I'm guessing that at least some of the pieces there are for sale.

I already had a few cups of coffee earlier in the day so while in Java Jazz, I decided to order the Tsokolate - Eh! (P85). This is pure tablea chocolate served without milk. I like my Filipino chocolate to be more on the bitter, strong-flavored side and I found this to be a bit too sweet but it was still pretty good. I paired it with a chocolate chip cookie (which cost around P20-25, I think).

There were a lot of Filipino sweets for sale there so I decided to buy a box of chocolate-coated cookies-and-cream flavored polvoron. I ate one there and I took home the rest. It was my first time to try chocolate-coated polvoron and despite my sugar overload that afternoon, I quite enjoyed it.

Adding to the quirkiness and cool-factor of this restaurant was the fact that the men's toilet featured some pretty interesting (and appropriate) art. :)

I spent the afternoon here soaking in the art and ambience, reading a book, and listening to classical music on my ipod (how cultured! LOL). Java Jazz Coffee is a perfect hideaway where you can escape from the hustle and bustle of the city while enjoying a cup of coffee or hot chocolate (their menu also includes a variety of other items such as pasta and rice bowls). I can understand why this place has been rated very highly and I am now a fan myself. I am definitely visiting Java Jazz again.

Java Jazz Coffee
442 Tagaytay-Calamba Road, Sungay West
Tagaytay City, Cavite, Philippines
Tel. No. (046)8602699
Directions: From the Tagaytay-Sta. Rosa Road, turn left onto Tagaytay-Calamba road heading towards Picnic Grove and People's Park. Java Jazz Coffee will be on the left side of the road, right before Ina ng Laging Saklolo Church, Keni Po, and T House.

Tagaytay Food Trip 2: Mano's Greek Taverna

I've seen Mano's Greek Taverna on multiple occasions since it is located right along Calamba Road just a short distance from the Rotonda. I enjoy Greek food so I thought it would make sense to try this place out.

I wanted to have the Spanakopita, which is a savory spinach pie, for my appetizer but it was unavailable. So instead I ordered the Keftedes (P190) or Greek meatballs. I thought these were just okay. It could have done with a bit more flavor.

One of my favorite Mediterranean dishes is Moussaka (P300). The ones I've tried before are mainly eggplant-based but the one in Mano's also has potato. I found this a bit overpriced since you can get really good moussaka in Cyma for the same price (P290) and in Cafe Mediterranean for a lot less (P190). (Or maybe that's just because I have come to realized that I prefer moussaka without potato.)

The restaurant interior is quite simple but it is interesting to note that the tables are covered in blue and white, matching the colors of the Greek flag.

I don't know if it was just for that evening, but they didn't accept credit cards when I was there so if you choose to dine here, make sure you have enough cash to cover your meal. It's probably not the best restaurant in Tagaytay but I don't think there are a lot of other Greek options in the area so if you are there for a while, then I guess it's worth a visit just to change things up. Since I wasn't wowed by the food that I tried, if you do visit Mano's, I would suggest that you try something other than what I ordered, like the shawarma or the souvlaki.

Tagaytay Food Trip 2: Chine

Chine is a Chinese restaurant in Casino Filipino. It currently has a 4 1/2 star rating in Trip Advisor and some reviews talked about this place having the best dimsum in Tagaytay. Feasting on dimsum sounded like a great idea so I included this resto in my food trip itinerary. While it seemed like a good plan, it didn't exactly turn out the way I hoped.

Before I got there, I was planning to stuff myself on multiple plates of dimsum like siomai, hakaw, and beancurd roll which is what I normally do when I eat in Causeway. However, when I saw the menu, I realized that the dimsum menu was very limited. I think it had siomai, wonton, and siopao. That wasn't really what I had in mind so I changed my plan and instead opted for one order of dimsum and a main course. I ordered the Pork and Shrimp Siomai which was pretty good, although I think the Causeway siomai is still better (and cheaper, even without the 50% off).

I also ordered the Minced Pork with Lettuce. (Unfortunately, I forgot to note down the exact names of the dishes I ordered and I also lost my receipt so I don't know how much each item cost.) I'm not exactly sure what ingredients were mixed in with the meat but it had a lot of flavor, similar to what you would get in Chinese restaurants in Metro Manila.

I remember spending around P500-600 for these two items plus a Coke Zero so it is a bit on the expensive side. While the food is good, the ambience is definitely not up to par. It does photograph well from a distance but a closer look will make you realize that it isn't exactly the cleanest place and they could do with new table linens.

I wouldn't recommend that you go out of your way to have a meal in Chine. The food is good but the restaurant is a bit dingy (and the restroom here really sucks). If you are already in Casino Filipino and you don't feel like heading out for a meal, then this is a good option for you. I'm guessing that it has good reviews online because people in the casino can order from the restaurant which allows them to enjoy some dimsum and Chinese food while gambling the day and night away.

Chine at Casino Filipino
Aguinaldo Highway, Tagaytay City
Casino Filipino is located right across Taal Vista Hotel

Tagaytay Food Trip 2: Breakfast at Antonio's

This wasn't the first time I had a meal in Breakfast at Antonio's. When I had lunch there back in 2008, I felt it was overrated. Nevertheless, me being the big fan of breakfast food that I am, I decided I wanted to give it another try. Thankfully, I did because I just did a complete 180! Maybe I ordered the wrong thing the first time I was there, or maybe they had a bad day. Whatever the case, this time around I became a massive fan.

I got there mid-afternoon and I still hadn't had lunch yet so I was pretty hungry when I arrived. I ordered the Roesti with Bacon, Swiss Cheese & Over Easy Eggs (P320). And wow, this dish is soooo exceptionally good!

The potatoes (roesti is a Swiss potato pancake) served as the base and every other ingredient was delicately and carefully piled on top of it. The eggs were perfectly cooked and I loved how the yolk just gently oozed out into the rest of the dish as I cut it up. You could taste every single ingredient, from the silky egg to the crisp and salty bacon to the flavorful cheese to the delicious potatoes and everything just worked perfectly together. This Bacon Roesti has now been elevated to one of my favorite dishes and it makes me want to go back to Tagaytay just so I can have it again. :)

The dish came with freshly baked bread and it should be enough to fill anyone's stomach but I was committed to trying another item on the menu so I also ordered the Apple Pie (215) for dessert.

It's actually quite a big apple pie and it can be shared by 2-3 people or more. The pie crust was soft and flaky although I do think it was a bit too thick. Clearly, I wasn't able to eat everything so I took the rest back to my hotel and enjoyed it later that night.

Breakfast at Antonio's also serves bottomless brewed coffee (P180). I had a few cups of coffee to complement my roesti and apple pie. To make the overall dining experience here even better, the service was incredible. I guess it helped that there were just a few other customers there at the time. :)

This is one restaurant I am definitely visiting again!

Breakfast at Antonio's
Aguinaldo Highway, Barangay Bagong Tubig
Tagaytay City
Phone number +63 (46) 413-0738
You can check out the map here.

Tagaytay Food Trip Part 2

I had a surprisingly great time when I did my first Tagaytay Food Trip a couple of years ago that I decided to do it again. My food trip this time around consisted of the following:

1. Breakfast at Antonio's
2. Chine
3. Mano's Greek Taverna
4. Chateau Hestia
5. Restaurant Verbena
6. Bag of Beans
7. Java Jazz Coffee

I'll have separate blog posts about the places I didn't go to during my first trip. I did revisit a few places, though. I had dinner in Chateau Hestia and this time, I ordered the Set Menu (P795). It was supposed to come with a specific soup, salad, main course, and dessert but I was told by the waiter that I could replace almost all of these items with something else on the menu. I ended up replacing the Viennese Potato soup with the Lobster Bisque, which was very flavorful and had small bits of lobster in it.

I stuck with the Hestia Garden Salad...

and the main course, the Rinds Rouladen or beef roulade filled with onion, bacon, mustard and parsley and flavored by its own sauce. This was pretty good and once again, the portion size was quite hefty.

For dessert, I had Panna Cotta, which was light and creamy and topped with their home-grown passion fruit jam. Together with coffee, this provided the perfect ending to a very good meal.

My return trip to Restaurant Verbena was a bit different since I had a friend who was also in Tagaytay at the same time and we decided to have lunch there together. We ordered the Black Truffle Risotto (~P590) which doesn't seem to be on the menu anymore (I took this trip several months ago). I love risotto and you can't go wrong with truffle oil and panchetta in the same dish.

For our main course, we decided to share a Grilled US Angus Rib Eye (P2000+). Pretty good steak. :)

I will say though that I enjoyed my first meal in Restaurant Verbena more. If I do a third food trip, I may re-order the Verbena sampler. :)

I also enjoyed some coffee and dessert in Bag of Beans, but this time in visited their place near the rotonda. I ordered their bottomless Brewed Barako (P120) and their Chocolate Mousse (P110). The mousse I had came straight from the freezer (I'm guessing they all do?) so I had to let it thaw a bit first but it was pretty good.

Next post: Breakfast at Antonio's.

Customer Service Surprise at Conti's

Last December 30, I passed by Conti's Greenhills to place an advanced order for their party-size American Grilled Ribs. The plan was for me to pick the food up at 4pm on December 31 so that it would serve as our dinner and media noche on New Year.

I arrived at Conti's on December 31 and I'm given a number for the pre-order pick-up queue. Once it was my turn to be served, I was not pleased when they told me that there was some mix-up in the dispatch of food and my order seemed to have been given to someone else. Ugh!!! They told me that my order was already being prepared but that it would take another 15-20 minutes before I get served. At that point, I had already been in Conti's for 20 minutes and given that I had to do a couple more errands that afternoon, I really wasn't happy to be kept waiting even longer.

Around 11 people who were in the queue after me were served - most of them with big orders! - before my food finally arrived. At some point, the manager spoke to me and apologized for the delay. I left Conti's feeling disappointed.

Anyway, several days later, I go back to that same Conti's to place an order for their party-size Baked Prawns and Chicken Pastel for my nephew's birthday celebration at home. (Conti's Baked Prawns are my nephew's favorite so I had to order it for him.) When I pick up my order, the manager approached me and told me that it was she who spoke to me on the 31st when I had a problem with my order. She felt bad that she was not able to give me anything at the time so she then handed me two boxes of brownies and told me they were complimentary, to compensate for the delay in my food order. Cool! It may have been several days late but I really appreciated the gesture (and the brownies). I also think it was great that they actually remembered that I had a bad experience there and tried to make amends the next time I was there.

The manager told me that they would be moving soon to a new location in Shaw. I do think the Greenhills location is much more accessible since you won't have to go through Shaw traffic but hopefully, the new location is bigger and has more parking options. In any case, I need to know where in Shaw the new store will be.

Nadal wins in Doha

What a great way to start the year. Rafael Nadal won the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, his first tournament of 2014, beating Gael Monfils in three sets in the final. He cements his position as world #1, adding 250 points to his current total and slightly increasing his lead over #2 Novak Djokovic. This win, on a hard court surface, should help Rafa's confidence as he heads into the Australian Open, the year's first Grand Slam tournament.

Doha marks Nadal's 61st singles title, moving him to the 8th spot in the list of ATP tour titles won in the Open era. He is only three titles behind Pete Sampras and Bjorn Borg now so there is a chance for Rafa to move to solo 5th in the list by the end of the year.

Dinner at URBN

I had a craving for cheese soufflé ever since I saw a soufflé challenge on an episode of Master Chef USA. I’ve had chocolate soufflés before but never a cheese one because I didn’t know where in Manila that I could get it. That is, until I stumbled upon a Deal Grocer voucher for URBN Bar and Kitchen a few months ago. I checked out the menu and saw that it had a cheese soufflé so I quickly bought a voucher. :)

When I finally made my way to URBN, I decided to get two items. For my appetizer, I obviously had to go with the Manchego Souffle (P395) to satisfy the craving I’ve had for months already. The photo doesn’t do it justice but I absolutely loved it! It has crispy Jamon Serrano and it is served with a healthy dose of truffle cream sauce. Wow.

For my main course, I got the Slow Cooked Beef Shank (P500). The beef was very tender and well-cooked and it tasted good. the portion was pretty sizeable. It was served on top of Fried Parmesan polenta and the saltiness of the polenta matched the richness of the beef very well. The green beans balanced out the entire dish. Since I already had an appetizer and the beef shank portion was quite big, I ended up eating only half of my main course and taking home the rest.

I am definitely going back to URBN at some point to have at least that Machego Souffle again. Hopefully another voucher becomes available on Deal Grocer so I can get the food at a good discount. :)

Youtube Rewind 2013

Here's a cool video that celebrates stuff that went viral on youtube as well as some of the most viewed youtube videos in 2013.


video courtesy of YouTube Spotlight

Mini Family Reunion

Last Rizal Day, I visited Mama, my grandmother on my father’s side, and Tito Raul who lives with and takes care of her. The last time I saw them both was when Tita Florence and Tito Mario celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary which was several months ago. Strangely enough, our extended family didn’t have a big family Christmas or New Year celebration so I decided to organize my own mini-reunion.

I thought it would be a good idea to buy groceries for them and as it turned out, Tito Raul told me that I probably had mental telepathy because a lot of the stuff I brought were things they liked or were planning to get. I brought fruit cocktail and Tito Raul told me that Mama really loves fruit salad and the salad he made for her a few days before was almost fully consumed. I also brought ingredients for spaghetti with meat sauce and Tito Raul told me that Mama had recently asked him to prepare spaghetti for her. Tita Raul also told me that he recently asked Tita Susan to send him a box of Swiss Miss (she now lives in the US) and I brought a box of Swiss Miss for them. Pretty amazing! I also brought a whole lot of other stuff (Mama also said she loves chocolates so the bag of assorted Hershey’s chocolates I brought was very well received) and that should last them at least a few weeks.

They live near Lourdes Church in Quezon City so we had an early dinner in Aristocrat Banawe which was just a 5-minute drive away. We ordered sotanghon guisado, fish fillet in sweet and sour sauce, laing, and of course chicken barbecue. After all, Aristocrat is the 'home of the best chicken barbecue in town'. :)

It was a good meal that all of us enjoyed. We clearly ordered more than we could eat at the time so Mama and Tito Raul took home the leftovers. Aristocrat Banawe is right next to Formosa bakeshop so after dinner, I got them a couple of bread items and yema cake.

It was such a great experience spending time with Mama and Tito Raul. I need to make sure I get to visit them a lot more often.

New Year resolution?

For the nth time in the last few years, I am trying to get back into the habit of exercising regularly. I will always manage to get on the treadmill about 2-3 times a week for a few weeks then I somehow end up stopping for one reason or another and it takes a long while before I get to hit the gym again. Obviously, I'm not getting any younger so it becomes even more important for me to keep fit.

The question now is how long I can keep going to the gym now. I know I can exercise regularly since I've been able to do this in the past (albeit around 3-4 years ago). I now need to channel that experience and discipline and make sure I stay on the fitness path now.

Happy 2014!

Happy New Year! :)

It’s amazing how many things happened in 2013. As I read though my blog, I realized that certain experiences that feel like they happened a couple of years ago actually happened in the last 365 days. Here’s a quick look back at some of the highlights (and lowlights) of the year that was.

Family time
My grandmother celebrated her 90th birthday, my aunt and uncle celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, and my nephew graduated grade school.

Travel
A couple of firsts: I traveled to Russia with my mom and I also took my family to Legoland Malaysia. We revisited Singapore and Universal Studios Singapore. I also went to the Hundred Islands for the first time since I was a little kid.

Entertainment
I watched The Killers, OneRepublic, Cecile Licad, the Philippine Madrigals, and the Little Singers of Monaco. From classical to pop to rock, it was a pretty eclectic set of concerts that I got to see and I enjoyed each and every one of them.

New experiences
Apart from visiting new places like Russia and Legoland, I also got to try several new things. Food: Pistachio Sans Rival of Delize, Dutch Bread Hauz, Opus (for dinner, not for drinks), the Wildflour Croissant-Donut, cupcakes from The Royal Touch, and Nomama Artisanal Ramen, among a whole lot of others that I didn’t write about. Services: Zalora, Big Bert’s Auto Detailing, and Kimstore. Hotels: Fraser Place, Crosswinds Tagaytay (which I have yet to write about), and Hotel Stotsenberg (which I also still haven’t written about yet).

Random experiences
I was forced into a ballroom dancing competition for the first time in my life, our bowling team won first place, I had a photobook party with my friends, I organized and participated in Tree Planting and Tree Nursery activities, and for the first time I got to write one blog post per day for an entire month (January).

Of course, there were things in 2013 that weren’t great. My aunt and my cousin passed away, we lost our dog and I had stomach problems and also back problems. On a bigger scale, the Philippines was beset by major calamities: the Visayas Earthquake and Yolanda. With the PDAF scandal and the Zamboanga siege, 2013 is probably a year that the country would love to say goodbye to.

The great thing about having a blog is that it also serves as an online diary. I can always look back at stuff that happened during the year and remember in pretty good detail the cool experiences I had. I’m definitely looking forward to experiencing and writing about more great stuff in 2014.

Pop Danthology 2013

Before we say goodbye to 2013, here is Daniel Kim's mash-up of the biggest hits of the last year.


video uploaded by kimaginati0n

The Royal Touch Gourmet Cupcakes

I've been hearing a lot of good stuff about The Royal Touch Gourmet Cupcakes. I noticed it when I visited SM Aura for the first time, and shortly after that, a friend told me that he had just tried the cupcakes there and they were pretty good. More recently, another friend went there and posted a lot of pictures online that further piqued my interest. Finally, a couple of weeks ago, a colleague was given a box of Royal Touch cupcakes and she let me try a bit. The ones I tasted were so good that I knew I had to get my own box. :)

I finally got to go on Sunday afternoon. There is a huge variety of cupcakes here and I ended up getting a box of six with assorted flavors:

Clockwise from top-left: Princess Rose Petal Cupcake (P95), Chocolate Cherry Baronet Cupcake (P80), Caramel and Date Squire Cupcake (P90), Apple Duchess Cupcake (P80), Chocolate Strawberry Marchioness Cupcake (P80), and Red Velvet Empress Cupcake (P80)

I decided to have the Caramel and Date Squire Cupcake in the store and I paired it up with brewed coffee. The rest, I set aside for my family.

This Caramel and Date Squire Cupcake was pretty good. The icing was smooth and silky, the cake was moist and delicious, and the whole cupcake, including the bit of caramel at the top, was just the right amount of sweet. I've never had a cupcake with dates before so this was a first.

While these cupcakes are not cheap, they aren't more expensive than a lot of others in the market (cupcakes often sell in the P60-90 range now). They are definitely worth the price and Royal Touch has now been elevated to my favorite cupcake shop!

The founder of The Royal Touch is Carolyn Robb, who was Executive Chef to Prince Charles, Princess Diana and the Royal Families so it's not surprising why these cupcakes are really good. I am definitely going here again. I want to try every item on the menu LOL but of course, it will take some time before I can go through their entire selection. Can't wait for that to happen, though. :)

Random holiday season stuff

I was driving along Ayala Avenue the other day when I got caught in some pretty bad traffic. As it turned out, I ran smack into the victory parade for newly-crowned Miss International Bea Rose Santiago. I got to see her waving to the crowd amidst a shower of confetti while I was stuck in my car and despite my annoyance at the traffic, I actually ended up waving back at her LOL.

*****

I was there because I was going to Greenbelt to meet up with my good friend Daday. We had lunch in Kai then moved to Caffe Ti-Amo for coffee. At some point we ended up talking about how she missed out on seeing the metro stations in Moscow when she went to Russia so I ended up showing her my photos of the Moscow Metro  as well as the rest of my Russia pics. I then accompanied her to Globe before we went our separate ways since I had a haircut appointment at 4pm. It was another long day as I then drove to Shangri-La Mall to do some after-the-fact Christmas shopping since I still had several gifts to buy and I also had to have the batteries replaced in four of my watches.

*****

The night before, I met up with another good friend, Che. She wanted to have Spanish food so we tried Relik Tapas Bar in BGC. The Baked Australian Brie was a bit bland, the Tenderloin was okay, and the Arroz Con Pollo was pretty good. It's been about a year since I saw her so there was a lot of catching up. Once the noise level in Relik started to go up, we moved to Kuppa which was just downstairs to enjoy some coffee.

*****

A bit of bad luck right before Christmas. As I was walking to my car after picking up food from Conti's, I noticed that the rear right tire of my car looked flat. I drove to the nearest gas station and had it filled with air before bringing all the food home first. I then went to my friendly neighborhood vulcanizing shop to have the tire looked at. As luck would have it, my tire was punctured. Ugh.

Not sure how that happened. Thankfully, it didn't completely deflate while I was driving and that the vulcanizing shop was open the afternoon before Christmas.

*****

And of course, the Christmas season brings with it extra weight. I've gained about five pounds over the last few weeks from overeating. There will be more food to enjoy over the next few days but hopefully, once January comes in, I can start going to the gym again to lose at least some of the extra weight. Good luck to me!

Seasons Greetings!

Merry Christmas, everybody!

In honor of today's holiday celebration, here's a really cool video of Christopher Lee reading Tim Burton's original poem "The Nightmare before Christmas".


video uploaded by fill10000

What a day

It's not very often that you end up being more exhausted and having a fuller day when you are on leave than when you are working, but that's exactly what happened to me yesterday. Then again, a lot of people do experience this when Christmas is right around the corner, so I guess I'm not all that unique. :)

It started out when I took my car to the shop in Bonifacio Global City to have it looked at. I would get my car back at around 4pm so I decided to do personal errands over the next several hours. BGC isn't that big and I did have time to spare, so I decided to take a 10-minute walk to the bank to pay my credit card bills before heading to Early Bird Breakfast Club to try it out. I ordered an Eggs Benedict:

Eggs Benedict at the Early Bird Breakfast Club

The verdict? I thought it was just okay, considering the price (P420). Along with the coffee, I spent close to P600 here. My poached eggs were a tad overcooked - the silky yolk didn't start spilling over everything when I cut into it - but the shoestring potatoes were a unique twist.

After polishing off my food and coffee, I made my way to The Spa in Bonifacio High Street to get a gift card that I planned to give out for Christmas. I then headed to Conti's so I could place an advance food order that would serve as my family's noche buena and Christmas food. There was a relatively long queue of people at the take-out counter - as there always is during the Yuletide season - so by the time I had placed and paid for my order, it was already close to 1pm.

I had a couple of errands to do in Market! Market! but I also knew that Ender's Game would be showing in SM Aura at 1:35pm. I only had a couple of days to catch it because the Metro Manila Film Fest starts on the 25th but when I got there, I realized it was being shown in the Director's Cut theater, which meant I would be in a crowd of only a couple dozen people and I would get to sit in a lazy boy with free popcorn but it would cost a whopping P350. After thinking about i, I decided it would be a new experience so I got myself a ticket. It was an interesting experience (it is definitely comfortable having a lot more space!) and the movie was a decent sci-fi flick with pretty good effects.

After the movie, I went to Market! Market! to look for Dulcelin since I wanted to get their strawberry cake for Christmas. It took me a while to find it - apparently, there is no Dulcelin shop but instead, Dulcelin items are sold by Pelican Farms. Unfortunately, the only dessert they had ready was the mango torte; everything else is for pre-order. So I went into the mall to look for the place where I bought my watch before to ask if they also sold batteries but apparently the store is gone. It was at this point that I got a call saying that my car was ready for pick-up.

I wanted to watch Frozen as well but I had to pick up my car first. So after settling the bill and heading to the mall to catch the 6pm showing of Frozen, I saw that my right headlight was not working. Bummer! I called my service attendant and he asks me to bring my car back to the shop. Apparently, my headlight was busted and I needed to replace it but the shop was about to close so I was told to just return later in the week. What a hassle.

I still had enough time to make it to Frozen. Two movies in one day! This was a pretty good Disney movie, with excellent character development and a very unique take on the Snow Queen fairytale. I wouldn't be surprised if it ends up winning Best Animated Film at the Oscars.

As if my day wasn't long enough, I decided to go grocery shopping after my second movie. Thankfully, malls and supermarkets stay open a bit longer nowadays. I then drove to Aristocrat along Jupiter to buy a Torta Delos Reyes chocolate sansrival cake (I only got the small one since I am still hoping I can get a strawberry cake from Dulcelin in Times Street).

Torta Delos Reyes (photo courtesy of http://www.aristocratbakeshop.com.ph)

I had a hot, hearty dinner at around 10pm before I got home. Despite the full and productive day, I still have a lot of stuff to do. While I have almost completed my Christmas shopping, I am still missing gifts for all the kids I plan to give presents to. I also still have to return my car to the shop. I also need to have batteries replaced in a couple of my watches. Nevertheless, I am happy that most of my to-do list has already been crossed out. Hopefully, I can get some much needed rest during the Christmas break. :)

Alex and Sierra win X Factor USA

I'm really happy that Alex and Sierra won The X Factor USA, especially since it's rare that a contestant or team I'm rooting for actually wins. They first caught my attention when they performed an acoustic and version of One Directions' Best Song Ever. Their individual voices sounded good but it was their unique arrangement and their great harmonization that really made them stand out for me. However, it was their standout rendition of "Say Something" that locked me in and made me become a fan. Take a look at what I think was the performance of the season:


video uploaded by eduardoox03

I had goosebumps watching and listening to this. The song, originally by A Great Big World, is now one of my current favorites. There aren't many current artists who are like them so I'm looking forward to Alex and Sierra releasing an album soon.

Nadal wins a poker tournament

Talk about an uncanny ability to win. Rafael Nadal recently participated in the EPT Charity Challenge in Prague, his first-ever live poker tournament. Amazingly, he won! And not only did he win, he did so in style be coming from behind and actually knocking out Poker World #1 Daniel Negreanu. You can read the play-by-play in this link, but here's a snippet of that link showing how Nadal took down Negreanu:

6.15pm: Nadal hurricane knocks out Negreanu in 4th, €5,000
Wow. The last few hands have seen Rafa Nadal go from short stack to chip leader! He first doubled through Negreanu jamming all-in with Q♦3♠ and caught a queen against Negreanu's A♠9♥. Then he doubled with Q♥9♥ against Negreanu's pocket threes catching a straight on the river, then he won a huge three-way all-in against Negreanu and Andriy Shevchenko to give him 80,000! More details to come.

This poker tournament win came with EUR50,000 prize money that would go to charity of Nadal's choice. Way to go, Rafa!