the canDIshhh tales

Yesterday when my Panget and Kailee were on their way to school.  This Pajero with plate ZGA 800 almost rammed them head on.  This was along Broadway Street in New Manila. Broadway is now a TWO-WAY street with signs every so often.  I have faced this problem for a while now, but have chosen to be quiet.  But yesterday my Panget said this particular car almost rammed them.  And since he was with Kailee - I couldn't ignore it. I am posting the picture he took yesterday morning. What the Pajero did was NOT right.  It was COMPLETELY WRONG.  Look where he's at and where my Panget and Kailee were.. This is one of the reasons why ACCIDENTS happen.  Drivers don't seem to understand the concept of waiting.  Everyone is rushing, I understand that - but not this way.  Counter flowing is DANGEROUS!!   I have always said that Pinoy drivers lack DISCIPLINE.  And I mean that in every sense.  They don't know wh...

The last time I saw a legitimate musical was when Miss Saigon was playing in CCP.  I fell in love with the show and didn't mind to watch it a second or a third time.  I was told that since I've already seen it, so why watch it again?  I can't explain it - but the closest one is - if you have a favorite movie, you won't mind watching it over and over again, right?  Well, that's how I am - I am a creature of habit. When I learned last year that we were going to London - I was excited.  I knew I wanted to watch a musical in London's West End.  I don't think a London experience would be complete without watching a musical.  My BIL (Brother In law) and SIL were deciding which musical to watch - of course, I suggested Miss Saigon!  Haha.. But they were thinking of something different.  For one, we had a lot of options as there were really so many shows in London.  Then my cousin Andrea - who vacationed in London just recently, suggested that...

It's here! I first saw Costa Coffee when I was in London more than a month ago.  It was everywhere - literally EVERYWHERE.  On the street where we stayed - I think there were 3 Costa Coffee stores!  I was told by my London based friends that I should try Costa Coffee because in their opinion - it was way better than Starbucks.  Sadly, I never got the chance to try their coffee because we were always rushing around London.  London is a very pretty city with very friendly, proper and polite people - but that's for another post!  Hahaha.. My friend, Ro - invited me to the store preview of Costa Coffee.  She mentioned to me that I might be familiar with the brand since I recently was in London - and I told her that it was literally everywhere!  Hahaha.. Here is Mark, he is from London! He's helping out and training the staff for the grand opening today!! Costa Coffee is brought to our shores by the Robinson's group their first bran...

Tempur makes one of the most comfortable beds EVER! I first encountered Tempur during my travels.  I was able to *try* it out and it was sooooo magical!  I mean really magical.  Why?  Because it was really soft and comfortable!  Imagine, when you lay on a Tempur bed - it's as if you want to stay in that position FOREVER!  Seriously, you won't want to get out of bed!  Hahaha..  It was a different kind of bed because you feel totally relaxed with it's soft cushion. Kailee and I were treated to a movie night by Tempur.  Honestly, I was really boggled on how they'd do the event.  I was thinking a LOT of beds?  When we got there, I was really surprised to see actual Tempur beds - and we were told to pick whatever bed we wanted because it was to be our *station* for the night.  We arrived a bit late because of the horrendous traffic around Makati - but instantly, we found a bed and my gosh when we sat down it was soooo soft -...

I honestly don't remember where I first encountered Pria's Kitchen, but I do remember that I followed her on Instagram.  I then asked Pria to email me her menu - I kept it in preparation for our New Year's Eve dinner last year. It was only last Saturday night when we celebrated early Father's Day with my in laws did we push through with the order.  My SIL was the one who decided on the menu and did the ordering.  I was very excited to be honest - because seeing Pria's IG feeds, made me salivate every singel time!! So here are what we got: Paella Valencia This is one of the BEST paella that I've ever tasted.  It's moist, full of flavor (as you can see the prawn, mussels, chicken, chorizo and pork pieces!  They're huge!) and really delicious.  I was impressed when I saw it since I saw the big pieces you can really taste the toppings and there's more for everyone.  What I liked most about this paella was that the ingredients were not scri...

This is a shameless plug for my future sister in law.  She's the master baker behind Annlee's Kitchen and she makes really good cakes.  I'm not biased, I'm just telling the truth.  Her cakes are really good - you know why?  Because she uses only the finest of ingredients, makes them herself and doesn't use substitutes! Last March, when Kailee celebrated her birthday - she made us a cake.  It was very pretty.  I gave her free hand on the design, with just one small request - to make the cake as pink as possible! Tada! Very pretty right?  Kailee was just so happy!  Look at her smile!! :)  The cake was made beautifully and it smelled so good toooo!  We were all very excited!!  Of course, I had to slice the very pretty and well made cake - and look at the surprise inside!  MORE PINK!  Hahaha!  That's three (3) layers of PINK cakes!   Galing diba ??  Look at the detail!! OMG.. I can't help gushing.. ...

When you say trauma, one immediately thinks of a very bad experience that scared the bejeezuz out of you at one point.  But it's actually not - trauma means *scars* scars that we brought on by certain situations and instances.  Like say when toddlers cry - there is an emotional scar - it may be small, but it's still a scar - thus, it's called *trauma* Last week, I was lucky enough to meet and listen to Christine Foong-Wong speak on the topic *Understanding childhood Psychological Trauma and it's effects on parents and children*  I learned so much in a short time, and I'm sure there will be more learnings if you attend her session on June 27, 2015 at the Ortigas Library. When I first encountered the topic, I thought - wow, it's quite a heavy one to digest.  But then as Christine spoke, it made perfect sense.  We are who we are because of the experiences that shaped us.  They may be bad and they may be good - but in total - they're all life experience...

When you've lived in a certain city for a long time.  Looking for a place to eat is hard - why?  Well, for one, you feel like an expert and tell yourself that you've eaten in most of the places you know.  What you don't know is that - there are new restaurants sprouting in the area.  I admit, I've become complacent on the restaurants in the area - I know my favorites, but what I don't know are the new ones.  Take for example - Terrace45!  I learned of this new place from my friend who lives in Makati!   Ang layo diba? A few weeks ago, when my Panget and I took Connor out on a date - we were looking for Terrace45.  We couldn't find it.  Apparently - they're closed on Sundays.  So, we were forced to go somewhere else (and it turned out so lousy)  Then last week, my Panget decided to try our luck - and since it was a Saturday - perfect! Terrace 45 isn't hard to find.  Just go along Scout Santiago and for sure you'll see t...

Whenever I travel, there is one thing that I look forward to the most - the food!  Yes, there's a reason why I'm this big.  Hahaha!  I love to eat!  I'd rather spend my money on food that on shopping.  True story!  For me, it's all about filling my tummy with good food!  Hahaha.. I was very excited to have some fish and chips in London.  I was literally trying to order fish and chips in most restaurants that we went to.  Hahaha!  I didn't mind eating just fish and chip because as they say - When in Rome, do what the Romans do!  I like fried food (who doesn't!) and of course, I live on potatoes, I would be happy just eating fries.  Seriously. My brother in law was nice enough to look for an original fish and chips place.  He was our *tour guide* and he brough us to this place in Covent Garden.  He says that travel books credit this place as the oldest one in London.  True enough, according to the restaura...

Montmarte is a very charming place in Paris.  It's quite a distance from where we were staying but we were told it's a must to see the area.  I had no clue what was in Montmarte - well, except for the Moulin Rouge and being a huuuuge fan of the movie, I wanted to see the real thing.  And we did.  But that entails another post.  Hahaha!!  But before we walked to the Moulin Rouge, we had lunch first. We had lunch in a small pizza place.  I was craving for pizza and we just so happened to pass by one.  My Panget searched on Yelp and saw that it had good reviews.  I didn't get to take pictures of the facade anymore because we were really hungry. The pizzas that they made were rectangular instead of a round one.  Plus, they sold it by weight.  It meant that I can have the pizza cut to as big as I want it to be or as small if I just wanted to take a bit and taste it - and they will just weigh it. Here are the pizzas that we got. ...

Sip 'n Go with the newest Starbucks Frappuccinos! Strawberry Cheesecake Frappuccino This is one of my FAVORITE Starbucks drinks and I'm so happy that they brought it back!  Yeeehaaaa!!  I love that there are biscuit buts that give the drink a bite!  Hihi.. (Tall - P175.00 Grande - P185.00 Venti - P195.00) Caramel Triple Coffee Jelly Frappuccino I am very excited to try this as I loooove coffee jelly!  Ever since Starbucks brought in coffee jelly, our Frapp experience has never been the same!!  And guess what, the whip cream is an espresso mix!  Cool huh?! (Tall - P175.00 Grande - P185.00 Venti - P195.00) Here are some of the new food items that I am looking forward to trying! S'mores (P70.00) The American *treat* is now available for us to try!  So glad it's not going to be messy! The Clubhouse (P165.00) I personally love Starbucks sandwiches because they're tasty and filling.  I'm excited t...