We’re almost through the week! I’m trying to get over the incredible and heartbreaking loss of the Brazil team at the World Cup. Sigh. I am happy for the Germany team, though. It’s really a world-class team that loves nutella likes the rest of us.
As a humpday treat and celebration, let’s have a snack. During my visit to Germany a few months back, I had an afternoon snack at the bakery Merzenich. I tried their famous Erdbeerschnitte and washed it down with a latte. Happy Wednesday!
The best morning I’ve had so far this year was on January 2. My family and I had spent the night at Kabayan beach resort in San Juan, Batangas. I woke up really early to catch the sunrise. My mom and brother joined me on my walk along the beach. We were partly waiting for the sun to rise, and partly looking for a pan de sal vendor. Didn’t have much luck with finding bread, but we luckily found a taho vendor. When everybody was up, we rented a boat that toured us around a bit. When we were back at the resort, it was bright and warm enough for a nice morning swim. Bam. Perfect morning.
Hi everyone, I hope you had a great weekend. To ease my way into Monday, I thought of sharing about a more fun day (or to be exact, one day before): my birthday! I thought long and hard about celebrating my birthday this year – I usually have a low-key lunch or dinner with a few of my relatives, because I don’t like having parties for my own birthdays. The months leading to the imminent arrival of my 30th were very tough on me; I had never gotten so many bad news and rejections in such a short period of time before. I was really down and heartbroken. Then, two weeks before my birthday, I received one piece of good news, and although that didn’t solve all of my problems, I felt such a huge relief and immense gratitude that I just had to celebrate. With not much time to plan, and a lot of my friends being out of town or committed to other events, I decided to have a small get-together. Nothing wild, but something fun and something I’ve never done before: casino night!
I sent out Gatsby-themed invitations and treated my friends to Casino Wien‘s birthday package. We were warmly welcomed at their Schlumberger bar with bubbly and canapés, followed by a tour through the casino.
We were then taught some basic Roulette skills, followed by a little tournament. This was super fun, and we laughed a lot; little did we know that at the ‘real’ Roulette table, things were a lot more serious!
Not only did I have beginner’s luck, I also had birthday luck, because I won €55! We then moved on to the slot machines, which I was super excited about.
I was pretty lucky with those, too. After cashing in my win, we went to the casino’s Cercle bar to have celebratory drinks.
Love their beautiful ceiling and lights.
I ordered the perfect birthday cocktail: their Gemini drink!
Cheers!
What was your fun birthday party like?
Hope you are having a great weekend! I’m mostly sleeping and relaxing. Just wanted to share some photos I took at the Isdaan Floating Restaurant, in Calauan, Laguna. Doesn’t it look like Bali, Indonesia?
On the weekend of June 13 – 15, Fesch’Markt, a market festival for art and design, was held at the Ottakringer beer brewery. A fun event with chill-out music, great food, and really cool, under-the-radar design.
Polka-dotted and gray shirts are always a good idea
Flight seats re-purposed as a couch
This would be a great addition (get it? haha) to any home
I absolutely love these plates, and I would have gotten them if putting food on them would cover the design
These miniskirts with built-in hotpants (to prevent from slipping) from Minirox are just too cute. I bought two!
The next Fesch’Markt is on on November 14 – 16. Looking forward to visit that one, too!
College was one of the best times for me. It was so much fun, because it’s where I got to know some of my best friends, with whom I still have contact. Our reunions are always fun – we’ve been to an arcade, sang karaoke, had cheesy studio pics taken (we loved to get neoprints, and when our budgets allowed, studio pics taken) and had many a meals with even more funny stories and laughs. During my last visit in December, we decided to meet up at our old stomping grounds – our college, the University of Santo Tomas.
Founded in 1611, the University of Santo Tomas is the oldest university in Asia and is the alma mater of Filipino heroes Jose Rizal, Emilio Jacinto, Marcelo H. del Pilar, Apolinario Mabini, presidents Manuel L. Quezon, Sergio Osmeña, Jose P. Laurel and Diosdado Macapagal, and most importantly, Yikee.
Yikee, what my friends and I call our group. The UST varsity team (which of course none of us un-athletic bunch of people were part of) is called the UST Growling Tigers, hence the “roar” pose.
This spot in front of Miguel de Benavides’ statue is also where class pictures were taken. I heard a story about how the Japanese military apparently hid gold under that spot before they left the country when World War II ended. Only Benavides knows.
Channeling Benavides while waiting for my friends.
The Arch of the Centuries. There’s an inside joke that passing through the arch will transport you to another time and dimension. I tried it a few times, but nothing happened. 😦
Robbie didn’t want to take a photo with the very touristy sign (it wasn’t there yet when we were students), but we insisted and it turned out great.
How was your college life? Were there some urban myths or inside jokes about your campus that you remember?
In high school, we had to learn about our province Batangas through the Aral ng Batangueño. We even had a book, and some sort of vow, and while I don’t remember much of what I ‘learned’, at the time it was nice to find out about the different towns and cities my crushes were from in Batangas. I never asked people from other places, but now I wonder if they had subjects about their provinces, too.
Anyway, when we went to Taal to attend a wedding, my brother and I snuck out of the ceremony to walk around the town. Taal is known for producing balisong and barong tagalog (an embroidered formal dress shirt), so people would travel to the town market to get these.
This is kaartehan sa palengke.
They sell colorful dresses and wedding gowns, too!
Oh, and the houses. So beautiful. Let’s take a walk…
When I still lived in the Philippines, every Good Friday, my family and I used to visit different churches around Batangas, and the Taal Basilica, or Basilica de San Martin de Tours, was always my favorite. I loved the old facade, the stairs leading up to the church, and how simple it was even in its grandness. So different from the usual opulence one sees. These days, whenever I visit the country, I try to visit Taal Basilica. Last December, we attended a wedding held there. I was so excited because I heard the church was newly restored.
I love the combination of blue and gold.
I wonder how many people had their pictures taken at this spot!
Okay, the Taal Cultural Center nearby isn’t really part of the church, but I loved the steps and the casual red carpet.
I was easily distracted by the ceiling (or is it a dome?). The light coming in was so beautiful, I couldn’t really capture it with the camera. I was so mesmerized that I didn’t take that many photos inside the church. I just wanted to look at it.
Mary among bricks. I didn’t see any sign nearby, but there must be an interesting story to this.
It’s 4AM Vienna time, so why not blog about food at this hour? I love Chinese food; it’s really good comfort food, but it also reminds me of celebrations. I usually haunt the same few places for some good old eat-all-you-can buffet, but last Saturday, I wanted to try something else. Some place with good reviews and recommendations, a great ambience (none of the stress of trying to eat all you can), and nice location. So off to Sinohouse we went.
Our aperitifs – the Sinohouse Mojito for me, Campari Orange for Julie – and free appetizers!
Baked fish with sweet chili sauce on mangoes ❤
The Chef’s Mix Dim Sum selection. Except for the Siu Mai, I don’t know what the others are called, but everything was good!
I love their lamps!
The star of the meal: the Singapore style pepper crab. This is a must- try!
I gave Vicky some temporary tattoos. She wanted to have one on her back, like Tante Ody. Some role model, I am.
Mochi! Different from the Japanese mochi I’m used to, this has coconut in different tastes and textures.
My favorite among the desserts we tried: sticky rice with mango. So simple, but so heavenly.
Green pancakes with toasted and candied coconut shreds and coconut cream on the side.
My dates.
Sinohouse
Himmelpfortgasse 27
A-1010 Wien
Manila has not been my home for the past seven years, but I will always have a soft spot for it. Whenever I am in the Philippines, I always squeeze in a few trips to the city to see my friends and go shopping. The visits have become quicker and less frequent, I admit, because I enjoy doing absolutely nothing but eat, watch TV, and read in my parents’ home in Batangas. A few days after I arrived in the Philippines last December, I went to Manila to attend the last day of a workshop that my boss has organized for one our Asian projects. The last day was mostly for concluding the meeting and to take the participants to Intramuros, the walled city and historic center of Manila. It is one of my favorite places in Manila.
I love the classic coolness of this coachman.
Spot the napping coachman!
Comparing the Philippines’ National Hero’s footsteps to mine
Jose Rizal’s well-preserved wool coat
This would still be very stylish today
Words that sparked a revolution
No Stopovers 