celebraTINg exisTENce: September 2015

If you're planning to go to El Nido, I think it would be best to DIY (I'll tell you the reasons sa tamang panahon. Haha!) your trip especially when you're travelling with your friends and make sure to spend at least two days here to make the trip more worth it.

I'm not complaining though that we only did one tour but... but... there are so much left to see! Babalik na lang for you, El Nido kaya Tour A muna tayo.

For this post, I'll be sharing two places from El Nido's Tour A and they are: 7 Commandos Beach and Big Lagoon.

Before starting the tour, our guide oriented us and one thing I liked about El Nido's tourism rules is that they don't feed the fishes during snorkeling.

I'm glad that El Nido's practicing responsible ecotourism although there definitely is a lot more room for improvement.

BUT STILL, THE BEST ECOTOURISM SITE FOR ME IS DANJUGAN ISLAND OF NEGROS OCCIDENTAL LINK: HERE.

Posted this because I look like a long-legged person.
The tour guides are more than glad to take your pictures. Tama nga naman, andun ka na eh. Sabi nga nila, mas madali magbura dahil sobra ang pictures kesa kulang. hehehe.

This was in 7 Commando's beach. Palpak lang talaga ng rushguard ko. Ang sikip. HAHAHAHA. Lalo akong nagmukhang suman.

This is the sand of 7 commando's beach and my feet's tan lines. Are those tan lines? Haha. I don't even know why this is the color of my feet in the picture but it definitely showed one thing, kahit ang itim ko na, may ita-tan pa rin ang kulay ko. HAHAHA.

Parang okay na nga rin na buong araw ka na mag-stay dito eh. 'Yung sa bandang likod ng mga puno, mga bato ito namang nasa babang picture.

Ang ganda mo, El Nido! <3
Ito talaga 'yung nagpapa-unique eh. Mga limestone karst cliffs almost everywhere.

The water's similar to Leyte's Kalanggaman Island link: here.

The reason why I am not putting a lot of captions is because El Nido left me speechless. Grabe. Kamiss. Worth it pa rin kahit may mga palpak. Hehehe

This was taken while we were on our way to the Big Lagoon.

May statue si Mama Mary oh.

Ito 'yung Big Lagoon. We were allowed to swim here for around 15 minutes. 'Yung madalas mong makita sa postcards and Tourism ads? Yes. Ito nga 'yon.

Sabi ni Kuya guide, naniniwala raw ang mga scientists na itong mga 'to ay dating kweba (million years ago) na gumuho kaya nagkaroon ng mga lagoon.

The funny (or probably not. ako lang natuwa) thing about this trip is how I always made sure that my lips aren't pale Haha. Naka-ilang retouch ako although buti na lang hindi agad nabubura 'yung akin kasi may pagka-lip tint 'yon.

I don't know what he was trying to get but I still took his picture to show you what's in the water. For me, hindi 'yung water at lalong hindi snorkeling kaya nagpupunta ng Big Lagoon kundi para sa mga limestones pa rin na nakapaligid dito.

Ganda talaga.

Iba eh. Ang sarap titigan nung mga rock formation. (Huwag mo na 'ko tanungin kung anong lasa, basta masarap. haha)

I read that the limestones here are similar to those found in Guilin, China; Krabi, Thailand and Ha long, Vietnam because they are all part of Sunda Plate.

Habang dumarami 'yung mga napupuntahan o nalalaman mo tungkol sa iba't ibang lugar sa mundo, e dumarami rin 'yung lugar na gusto mong puntahan. Kung pwede lang mag-teleport o magkaroon ng unlimited na pera at oras. Haha. Haaay buhay ng lakwatsera pero hindi maaring mawalan ng pag-asa dahil para sa 195 countries pa na meron sa mundo, hintayin niyo lang ako. Someday, I'll get there. Kelan naman 'yung someday? Well, well, well hindi ko pa masasagot 'yan pero alam kong may tamang panahon kahit hindi ko alam kung paano. Tiwala lang! Ngayon pa ba? :)

One thing naman about this picture is how we visualized it months before going there. The goal was a sexier back but... :)))

Hindi ko man na-achieve 'yung sexy back na gusto ko sana e nakarating pa rin ako sa El Nido. Haha! Nako noh!! Kahit anong itsura ko, picture pa rin. Keri.

I can't put all the places we've visited in one post because I have a lot of pictures so to follow na lang.
Claim lang ng claim.
God bless.

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It has been months since I last made a post under the label SaveSaveSave but here I go again.

What to do if you're a first time credit card user link: here.
BDO JCB Credit Card link: here.

Ito 'yung bago kong card BPI Family Credit Card link: here.

A break muna from my Palawan series, I'd like to talk about the newest addition in my card collection (card collection talaga hahahaha), my BPI Family Credit Card (Mastercard).

Tuesday: I received a call from BPI Family and the lady on the other line told me to drop by the bank since I have a pre-approved credit card. All I have to bring is my valid government-issued ID.

I told my mom that I have another pre-approved card and her reaction was the same as mine, "Pano? Bakit ang dali?" It's a question that I can't answer for I really don't know the reasons as well but it's something that I am glad to have. hehe. Sa totoo lang, I never thought of applying for another credit card since my JCB is already enough for me and wala talaga ko ng lahat ng requirements na ipapasa sa bank if I apply for one. Hahaha! Bigla na nga lang dumating 'yung JCB sa bahay eh. Pero since andun na, edi grab ko na. In the hopes that I'll have another out-of-the-country trip kaya ko 'to kinuha kasi para sa internationally accepted card. Baka ito na naman ang lucky charm!! Claim lang ng claim. Maga-out-of-the-country kasi ako ulit! Hahaha! Nawili.

Thursday: I went to the bank and filled out the application form though it was just to update my records since the card was pre-approved nga. Usually when you have a credit card, you pay an annual membership fee but they had a promo that if you apply before September 15 and spend five thousand pesos within three months upon the receipt of the card e free na 'yon for life so no annual fee na. Waived 'yung JCB card ko for the last three years, never pa ko nagbayad hopefully never ako magbayad ng fee for both of my cards forever. Sana kami man lang may forever. Hahaha! Tipid ng P 2,500 taon-taon din 'yan.

Monday: My card arrived at home via messenger/mail.

So ano?

With greater purchasing power comes even greater responsibility.

I've met a lot of people who say that having a credit card is a bad idea but for me, okay lang. It's a neutral thing - 'yung pagiging good or bad is dependent on how you use it eh. Just don't think of it as an extension of your money and pay your bill on time then you won't be charged interest. Okay ako for convenience talaga.

If there's one thing that I'd like myself to be after getting my second card is to become more responsible in handling my money especially now that I have two temptations in my hands. Lagi ko nire-remind sarili ko na pag hindi kailangan wag bibili. And it actually helped that overtime, I became more interested in travelling (sabi sa book, experiencer ako) than acquiring material things so even if I fall into impulsive spending sometimes mas madali ako mag-control pag, "Lakwatsa o iyan?" Haaaaaaaay!!! Pero tao lang, I fall into temptations pa rin mas konti nga lang compared sa dati.

Papairalin ko ang pagiging wise at ilalabas ang sangkatutak na self-control. Para sa out-of-the-countries at out-of-towns. GO PUSH!

GOOD LUCK AND GOD BLESS SA'KIN!!! GOD BLESS DIN SA'YO!!!

KAYA NATIN 'TO!!!!! Ajujuju. :)))

Salamat, BPI! Baka naman kasi nababasa niyo posts ko at alam niyong nagb-blog ako tungkol sa inyo kaya nabigyan ako ng pre-approved card. HAHAHAHAHA. Feelingera. Edi wow. Joke lang:))

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It was past 12 midnight when we arrived at El Nido and we were warmly welcomed by a guy when we reached Jurias Pension house. He asked what our preferred breakfast is and gladly escorted us to our room. Huhu. Bed finally!!! Where to stay in El Nido? Pwede dito.

I had no idea where this was nor what does it look like prior to arriving but yeah, it was fine for me. It may not be located at El Nido town proper (maybe less than 5 minutes tricycle ride) but it's near a wet market and the bus/van stations.

We had two beds, 'yung isa hindi pa nadi-"discover" when I took this picture. Dun ako natulog sa hinihilang bed sa ilalim nito.

The bathroom was nice and clean.

Here's the address of Jurias Pension.

For two persons we had: Two beds, TV with Cable, Wi-fi, Private bathroom with hot and cold shower.

It's a place I can recommend to others.
Dito na kayo mag-stay. hehe

GOOD MORNING, EL NIDO!!!!!!

NAKAKAMISS KA NG BONGGA!!!!!!!!!!

This was the common/waiting area. We arrived too late and tired that I wasn't able to pay attention to this the prior night.

The door of our room.

Reception Area

I wasn't able to get their contact details but I'm pretty sure you can find it in the internet. Ang tamad ko maghanap. Haha!

I asked my friend, Louise, to take my picture here and then I looked up and I saw the limestone mountain. That exact moment when I pointed it to her was captured in this picture. Sobrang excited ko, nawala ako sa posing. Haha!

This view for our breakfast! <3
More than glad to experience eating breakfast in this patio with this view even once in my life. haha! Pero malay ko ba, this is definitely not the last time for El Nido and Me. <3

This was okay for a complimentary breakfast. 'Yung view talaga ang nagdala. Hehe!

Aside from the limestone mountain or cliff, in the view from the patio, is the seven commandos beach (left side).

I haven't tried staying in a hotel or pension in El Nido town proper so I can't compare where would be better but this is a definitely a good place if you don't mind not being able to stay along the seaside and not being in the town proper. Para sa'kin, okay na rin dito at least away from all the people na nasa town. Sa susunod siguro (SANA MAY SUSUNOD TALAGA!! TOUR B, C, D, E, F at kung ano-ano pang dapat gawin. Haha!), dito ulit ako tas ibang night na nasa town para ma-try. hehe.

About 10-15 minutes walk naman to El Nido town or 5 kung mag-tricycle.

To follow: Our Tour A experience. <3

Book your El Nido Accommodation click: here.

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POSTING THIS WHILE WISHING THAT I WILL HAVE ANOTHER FLY OUT FOR 2015. HAHAHA!!! Yan talaga ang makakating mga paa. :))

It took me two months to finally start my Palawan trip series because it's really hard to decide which pictures to include in each post. But anyway, here it goes.

Because of several operational problems, our flight was delayed for like more than six hours so what we were expecting to happen on our first day obviously didn't happen.

Supposedly our flight was early in the morning but we spent almost the whole day at NAIA Terminal 4 and arrived at Puerto Princesa at 4:20 in the afternoon. Yuppppp, this is... Sparta. Jk. That was the longest time I spent waiting because of a delayed flight.

When impatience started to creep in, iniisip ko na lang na, "Hindi naman ako lagi nabibigyan ng chance na maghintay because of a delayed flight, pwede na." Although of course, those lost 6 hours are supposed to be used to tour Palawan City but yea... travel through watching movies at catch up sa FB dahil second day ng Aldub phenomenon 'yon. Haha! July 17 ang flight namin. Learn to appreciate the gift of pause... hehehe

Maybe to appease the impatience and displeasure, we were given this Jollibee meal for brunch. Well, thanks for this Airasia Philippines pero mas maa-appreciate ko kung next time e laging on time na tayo please. hehe

We were given this too. You'll know that your flight is so delayed when the airline keeps on feeding you. haha. Charot. I appreciate the food but solving those operational problems ahead of time would definitely be better.

Kailan na naman kaya ang next flight ko? Lalalala. I am waiting for my next adventure, universe!! Pakibilisan. Tengga na ko sa traffic ng Manila ng ilang buwan. Naks, ang arte!!! Ilang buwan lang, nagi-inarte na!! Hahahahahaha. #pagbigyan

Haaaaaaay, <3 FINALLY!!

When you're going there, you don't need to go far to find restaurants or canteens where you can eat at because a lot can be found near the airport.

The initial plan was to go to Robinson's Place Palawan to leave our bags so that we can tour around first though obviously scrap 'yon. We didn't know what to do so we still went but it turned out that it is not the best idea since there are not much homegrown restaurants here. Kahit na sabihin kong mas masarap ang Mcdo sa Palawan e iba pa rin pag local talaga eh. Stay na lang sa vicinity ng airport.

EL NIDOOOOOOOOOOOO...

I can't decide which mode of transportation would be the best for the roads to El Nido. I want to try riding a bus the next time I go there just for the sake of being able to compare which vehicle would be more comfortable for a 6 hours long travel in the zigzag winding roads to El Nido.

Gosh, I hope they develop more paved roads soon because saying that the road is bumpy and the travel is exhausting would be understatements.

Pero kahit na maraming delays and maraming di inaasahan na nangyari, thankful pa rin for this. <3

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EKSENA SA UPTC:

Tin: Gusto ko ng La Lola, meron pala silang product na may matcha ice cream eh.
Mama: Sige, subukan natin 'yung Mama Lou's muna. Malapit lang naman sa La Lola 'yon.

We were 15th in line when we went there. 15th?! Are you kidding me?! I mean like I haven't eaten a decent meal the whole day because we were insanely busy and I'll be waiting for another 45 minutes to 1 hour before we get a seat????? But it's rare that my mother suggests a restaurant 'cause it's usually me who chooses where we eat so okay, willing to wait. Hahaha. Arte lang. Hindi ako nag hysterical dun. Ano magagawa ko e ang daming tao.

15th in line. Calmly gave the receptionist (kung ano man tawag sa kanya) my cellphone number. Went to Mercado to buy some groceries. After around 40 minutes, the receptionist called and told us that our table was ready e nakapila pa kami sa counter para magbayad... buti na lang walang topak kapatid ko, binigay ko lang pambayad sa kanya tapos pumunta na kami ng nanay ko sa Mama Lou's.

SO AFTER NG MAHABA RIN NA INTRO KO AT BACK STORY, KASING HABA NG PAGHIHINTAY NAMIN,

IS MAMA LOU'S WORTH THE WAIT?

The first thing I noticed was the parmesan bottle. Parang ako, patay ka. Ubos ka. Hahaha.

But the food we ordered were flavorful and delicious on their own that there was no need to put additional parmesan cheese on them.

After ordering, we were served this bread and tomato dip. This was the first time I tried a tomato dip for my bread in an Italian restaurant because it's usually vinaigrette and olive oil but I liked this too. MABUBUHAY AKO SA ITALY, GUISE. :))))

Mozzarella Sticks
180.00

I loved this paired with the sauce.

I wanted to try other dishes especially those I haven't tried eating yet but since I was with my mother and sister, we stuck with our usual orders.

Large Pepperoni Pizza
P 395.00

Yep, our usual order is pepperoni pizza because my sister's picky with her food. For me, this is easily one of the best thin crust pepperoni pizzas I've tried. This is coming from someone who orders pepperoni pizza in almost all restaurants she's eating at ah.

You know (if you've read some of my previous reviews) that I suck at describing the taste of my food but when I say it's good then it's good. Haha!! Edi wow, noh?

The next time we'll go here, I'll definitely order Mama Lou's Special pizza - that was the order of those seated beside us and it got me so curious. Ang kulit kasi ng itsura tas mukha namang enjoy sila. Haha.

Spaghetti Meatballs
P 295.00

This took a looooooong time before it was served to us. I almost cancelled this order since nabusog na kami sa pizza but when I followed-up, the waitress told us that ilalabas na raw in two to three minutes, so okay, we waited. And again, glad we didn't cancel and glad we waited. The noodle was cooked just right - al dente. The sauce was sour but sour in a good Italian pasta way. Do you get what I mean? Hahaha! Gosh sobrang hirap mag-explain plsssss. :))))

The place was really busy but infairness to the staffs, the service was still good. They were attentive and courteous. They were also constantly refilling our drinks even if we weren't asking for any. It was just kind of hard for the kitchen to catch up with the orders because there were a lot of people that night so forgiven ang na-late na spaghetti, masarap naman.

Overall, I'd say that Mama Lou's is worth the wait. With great food and serving that's good for its price, mothers undoubtedly know best. Hehe.

Next time na si La Lola, hindi ko na kinaya mag-round two kahit na matcha ice cream pa 'yon.

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All alone imagining

What might have been
What could have been

If I had been theeeeeere yeah yeah yeahhhh

Haaaay, someday we'll know why.....

Daan lang, huwag tatambay!

Ano pa ba para makaramdam pa ng more positivity?

Good morning.💕 #quote #elnido #nature #lostinph #relatedungquoteeh 😂😂😂

A photo posted by Tin Gallemaso (@xtintina) on Jul 22, 2015 at 3:14pm PDT

Life, I am not a player. Isa isa lang! I don't know why my body chose to have dysmenorrhea, flu, colds and headache all at once. Isa isa lang!!!! Stick to one sakit. Mahina (literal na mahina) ang kalaban. Haha. You know when you're sick, you'll think about the times you were healthy and how you took those for granted. Sorry na nagpaulan ako kagabi may kasama pang paulan at pasok sa airconditioned room, sinamahan pa ng puyat. EDI WOW. Naghanap talaga ko ng sakit. Ayan, I had no option but to spend the day at home. Hindi ako makabangon kaninang umaga eh! Medyo sayang ang araw huhubells pero wala eh.

Sobrang hilo at sakit ng ulo na kahit nasa bahay ako, hindi ko pa rin pinanood ang KalyeSerye today. Kung di ba naman sobrang di talaga okay, matitiis ko ba naman 'yan? NASAN KA NA BA YAYADUB?! Team9PM pa rin ako kahit nasa bahay lang naman ako. :((((

But I've started to feel better or so I was before I started to make myself feel bad again. Ito nga't nagpo-post na ko para malabanan kasi hindi na nga ko okay physically kaya I have to feel good emotionally. HAAAY! Sobrang downer mo, curiosity! Nag-stalk stalk kasi ako sa Facebook kanina dahil feeling okay na ko't walang magawa. HAHAHA! Alam mo 'yung, "Isa lang. Titignan ko lang recent post niya." Hanggang sa 'yung masamang pakiramdam mo e lalo pang napasama dahil sa kalokohan mo. Haaaay. Okay ka na eh! BAKIT BA NAMAN KASI (&@^^@!%!! Ito mahirap pag hindi busy, maraming time para sa kalokohan. Kanina sakit lang ng katawan ngayon parang ang sakit na rin ng puso... HAHAHAHA. Charing!!! Natatawa na lang ako sa kabaliwan ko. Hindi na mauulit 'yon, promise. Ayoko na. :))))

Salamat, blog I have a place to realign my thoughts. I have the best thing in the world that reminds me about those things I should be grateful for. Ano ba 'yan nararamdaman ko, LET GO AND LET GOD. Ajujujujuju. Ultimate bahala na talaga.

I have a lot of backlogs so I can distract myself from doing those self-harming things. Gusto ko sana magpost ng iba pero sabi nga sa Inside Out kailangan din talaga natin si sadness kasi hirap din pag manhid manhidan poreber kaya ito na lang haha. (Saka teka, hindi 'to laslas levelz ah).

Channeling all the time I have for stalking into something worthwhile like updating this blog with this malapit na maging worthless and super random post. Haha! Bilang sobrang dami ko talagang dapat ilagay at nakaka-guilty na ganito lang... sige na nga, tapusin ko na 'to.

Thank YOU. ;)