Filipinos Chocolate Covered Biscuits

Err... Should we be insulted??? haha :/ It was quite good though!

Fatima, Portugal

Our Lady of Fatima Basilica

Fatima, Portugal. They say it is a place of miracles. This is where Our Lady of Fatima appeared to 3 little shepherds-- Jacinta, Francisco and Luisa-- back in 1917.

Kneeling in front of the Chapel of Apparitions

Every 13th of May, thousands of people visit Fatima for their pilgrimage. This is the said anniversary of the first Marian Apparition. We actually arrived a week before the 13th and there were already so many people.

In another area, there was a group gathered around the crucifix. They started going around in smaller and smaller circles, hands all linked together.

Faith. It is a beautiful thing. It is what keeps us alive. :)

Salcedo Market: Where the Cool Kids Hang Out!

There are few places in this country where kids can run freely. I remember the days when all we needed were our playmates and we'd be set for an entire day of running and playing games like patintero, magic box and langit lupa!

Salcedo Market provides a venue for kids and oldies to share a fun Saturday together. While the oldies eat (and they have a VAST food selection) kids can play at the playground near by. 

For people who don't ever want to get dark. This just might be better than a sun block!

Jino got the Frankfurter and I got the Cheesy Sausage!

Had a hard time choosing what to eat next!

I love weekends like this! 

Visit Salcedo Market every Saturday, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Stone Walls and Horses

We wanted to do something different for our Valentine's date. We didn't want to have the expensive, fine dining dinner since we were already doing that with my family. I also couldn't go out of town, so after much thought, we realized... Why not tour Manila? 


With the pollution and the overcrowded streets, we tend to forget what a beautiful place this city is.


We have been hearing a lot of raves about Carlos Celdran's walking tour of Old Manila.  It is said to be very witty and highly informative-- a controversial guide giving you a tour which he calls, "Intramuros: If these walls could talk". Wouldn't you be intrigued?

We had to use Google Maps to find our way around Intramuros. Haha and I'm pretty sure you'd get lost too! It's time we get to know this country better!


The meeting place was outside Fort Santiago. We all expected to start the day with a quick tour of the fort, BUT our beloved president's family had the place closed down for a wedding. Or so we were told. Urk.


We all walked to the Manila Cathedral for the first part of the tour. And let me warn you, if you do not have a good sense of humor, you probably should not take this tour. You might end up whacking Carlos Celdran on the head. Otherwise, this is the best way to learn about our history. I promise you, you will not fall asleep.

First built in the 1500's, it has been destroyed and renovated a number of times already.

We needed to ride a Kalesa (my first time) in order to get to the next stop of the tour, Baluarte de San Diego. You have to move fast though, so many people would join the tour and there aren't enough Kalesas to accommodate everyone. The others had to take a pedicab.

Baluarte de San Diego is one of the oldest stone fortifications in Manila. We were given a few minutes to go around and take pictures.

This kind of looks like a miniature version of Rome's Collosseum! haha

A nice view of the Manila Hotel. You have to be really careful about taking pictures in this area. A girl lost a slipper. hahaha She was probably taking jump shots!

I hit my head when i stood up. haha

You won't have to worry about getting dehydrated. They carry around coolers with drinks that you can buy!

Before leaving Baluarte de San Diego, we all gathered for Carlos Celdran's discussion on the American Period of the Philippine History. I've always loved history, but I was never so fond of the stories on American Colonization. I just never had any interest in politics and the government-- but Carlos Celdran's lecture changed all that! He sure got me to listen. He's VERY entertaining. I learned so much that day!

Walked past Victoria Street for the lecture on the Japanese Colonization of the Philippines. 

Second to the last stop was the San Agustin Church. It's the oldest standing church in the country, it was able to withstand earthquakes and the war.

We ended the tour by heading to one of the small inns across the street. After almost 3 hours of walking, we were finally able to rest our tired feet. And the best part is, we were all given refreshing Halo-Halo to eat while Carlos Celdran ended the tour. 

All in all a great learning experience! I now wish that all of Manila still looks like Intramuros, stone walls and all!

In Love with Bohol

We chose to celebrate our first year as a couple at the beautiful Bohol Beach Club in Panglao, Bohol. 

You get the beautiful white sand beach of Boracay, minus the noise and the people. 

Can you sense my excitement? Haha

Truly nature at its best.

We decided to walk the long white stretch of the resort to look for a place to eat, and we ended up eating at the buffet at the end of the strip. The resort has about 3 restaurants offering buffet and a la carte meals. 

After satisfying our hungry tummies, we headed back to the beach to bask in the sun. 

Jino wanted to go snorkeling, so he went to the dive shop to rent some snorkeling gear for us. After a couple of minutes, and once the sight of sea creatures stopped being amusing, I realized how dirty the gear was so I left Jino alone. Haha he was able to take some nice pictures though!

The following day was spent on a tour around Bohol. There are so many things to see in this island. Tours can be booked at the resort lobby, and rates vary depending on the number of people in a group.


First thing to see was the Blood Compact Site, made in honor of the Sikatuna-Legazpi blood compact.

Next, we went to see the Baclayon Church. It is considered as one of the oldest churches in the country. Behind the altar is a steep staircase leading to the image of Mother Mary. People line up to pray and leave some offering. 

A lady stands at the entrance to hand out pieces of cloth to girls wearing shorts, skirts or sleeveless tops. Hence the very "fashionable" shawl. hahaha

There's also a museum holding old church relics, but if you ask my opinion, I'd say it isn't really worth seeing.

Our third stop, the famous Chocolate Hills of Bohol. The grass turns brown during the dry season and the hills start looking like giant Hershey's Kisses. Hence the name, Chocolate Hills. 

On our way to the Loboc River, we saw a sign that said zipline, and being the adventurous person that he is, Jino insisted that we check it out. 

Let me just tell you that I am scared of roller coasters. I've only ridden the Space Shuttle once and we got stuck on top. It  just stopped for 5 minutes, right before we were about to take the big drop. AND it was raining. Ack.

Anyway, I didn't want to be the boring girlfriend, so I agreed to try this out. AAAAH!!!!

It was quite awesome and the view of the Loboc River was amazing! But I was ready to go home after crossing the river the first time. However, when we reached the other side, we were told that the only way to get to the car was to zipline across the river. AGAIN. AAAAHHHH!!!!! And this time, you can't go together. I wasn't ready for this. 

Look how stiff I was! hahaha

Anyway, we made it back safely. And it was finally time for lunch. WE WERE STARVING. We planned to have our lunch at the Loboc River. There are a number of floating restaurants to choose from. Each restaurant would have a booth where you can purchase tickets for the boat ride. 

1 booth=1 restaurant= a different boat= a different departure time. Get it? hahaha

We chose the most crowded booth. That must mean they have good food right?

BUFFEEETTTT!!!!

Yum! And last stop before we ended our day was the Tarsiers. Yes. I get teased a lot for looking like these little critters. Oh yes I have big eyes. I know!

It was already 5:00 pm by the time we returned to the resort, and I saw the most beautiful sunset. I say I, because I experienced it alone. My romantic boyfriend wanted to rest instead. 

The following day was our last day, and we decided to spend it at the beach. 

The weather was very erratic-- it would be really sunny one minute and cloudy/rainy the next. But who cares when you're on this beautiful island right???

We saw squishy, jelly creatures on the sand and no one knew what they were. They were harmless though, just a little gross. Who am I kidding, they were REALLY gross. haha

It was tough to leave this island, but we can always go back. I really love this country!