Kusina Selera

Last night, we had our late dinner at a new restaurant. It has nice interiors, cozy ambience and well-lit dining areas. We came to Kusina Selera found in Legaspi Suites at Legaspi Street. We left full and satisfied but not so impressed with the food. Well, I think they're still at a hit-and-miss stage.

They serve Filipino dishes. Food that you would also enjoy at home but is just much more comforting to eat at their restaurant. Our appetizer was the pomelo salad. It's a toss of chunks of pomelo, slices of tomatoes, unripened papaya and nuts on top swimming in a boat dish of fish sauce (patis). My first impression is that the tangy-ness of the pomelo is overpowering and made the other ingredients useless. But the nuts makes it interesting and I like that the fish sauce isn't so overpowering. You'll hardly even notice that it is what it is.

Our entrees are Bistek Selera and Boneless Crispy Chicken. My sister also ordered the Steak Rice. To start with, Bistek Selera was my order. This dish is good for two. It is like Bistek Tagalog but the catch is there are breaded onion rings on top. Well, that's what the description said but we didn't get the breaded ones, only the usual onion rings. This, however, I realized after we have finished eating it and found it too late to bring to their attention. Next is the Boneless Crispy Chicken. According to our waiter, it's a favorite among their customers and I agree. It's delicious. My only concern was that it's a bit pricey to pay for a half fried chicken on a sizzling plate with gravy. I don't think it can be shared by two. It's like Bigby's Chix Ahoy but I must say, Kusina Selera's tastes better. And finally, the Steak Rice was my sister's order. It's literally sauteed rice with tenderloin tips. This dish is so-so. Although unique in its taste, I wasn't blown away. And the price again, in my opinion, is not worth it even if it has tenderloin tips. However, this can be shared by two but it wouldn't change my opinion on the pricing. It's still expensive.

I think the Dabawenyos' taste have evolved through the years. You'll see classy restaurants popping here and there. They are flanked by Dabawenyos at first but then die down after a while. That's our culture. We try something new but we almost always go back to the familiar taste. But I still do hope that Kusina Selera will eventually turn into a go-to place, somewhere we can all be familiar with. And I would most definitely eat there again because there are many dishes I haven't tried yet. My taste buds are craving for their desserts.

She's All That

I love romantic comedies especially the ones that make me giddy all over like a teeny-bopper (who uses teeny-bopper these days? LOL). Such is the movie I just finished viewing and after 10 years (yes, it's been that long), the giddy-ness is still there. And why wouldn't it be? With a yummy cast of Freddie Prinze, Jr. (Zach Siler), Rachel Leigh Cook (Laney Boggs...what is she up to now?) and Paul Walker (Dean Sampson). Also in the film are R&B artists Usher Raymond as the Campus D.J. and Kimberly "Lil Kim" Jones. Most of the members of the cast are known if not famous which makes She's All That, all that.

What I rave most in the movie is the simplicity of the plot and how spot-on the movie was to the real highschool scene. Any highschool in the whole planet has their own set of populars whom we all wanted to be and some succeeded and of course, the unpopulars whom many of us were and may still be. The whole plot revolves around Zach who made a bet with Dean, after being dumped by his girlfriend, that he can turn anyone Dean picks from the entire school female population into Prom Queen. And the lucky pick is Laney Boggs, the oddball in their art class. After spending tons of time with Laney, Zach found himself falling for her and vice versa until everything got messed up like how messed up high school should be.

It's a wonderful movie to be nostalgic with. Especially when I reminisce about my own giddy moments in highschool. I realized how funny and enjoyable that part of my life was. Things were simple back then and how I wish I could go back in time and do it all over again. But then I just have to settle for a movie rerun and channel my inner teeny-bopper.

Kiss Me... beneath the milky twilight...
Lead Me... out on the moonlit floor...
La...la-la-la...la-la-la...la-la-la
*blushes*

Noynoy is not Ninoy

I find it ridiculous to collect 1 million signatures to help convince Sen. Noynoy Aquino to run for president when he's not really into it. Let the man decide for himself. It's peer pressure but then he's not in high school anymore. Although the administration was not in the right place to tell Noynoy to cease using his parents' status as his pedestal, there was some truth in it.

In my opinion, he didn't do much while in the Senate. He was invisible not until his mother's death and the invitation to run for presidency/vice-presidency. I believe his heart is not in the right place and we cannot afford any more regrets.

Vote for the true guardian of democracy. I don't know who and I don't think I'll vote in the 2010 elections mainly because, my vote is not worthy of the present candidates. I just have to wait and see...

Super Bowl

A typical meal at Rai Rai Ken is an order of Gyudon, California Maki and a can of Pepsi (because they don't sell Coke products). But that day, I decided to try something else and I wasn't quite hungry.

After many minutes of reading the menu over and over again, I ordered a Tantanmen. A bowl of ramen that is salt-based and hot and spicy. Yum...

I was mainly concerned about how hot it would be and if I could finish it when lo and behold, I was served with a huge bowl of Tantanmen. I grew even weary. But before I knew it, I consumed everything and emptied the bowl as empty as I can. I have discovered a new favorite food at my currently favorite Japanese dining place :) It's really tasty and hot but the spicy-ness is bearable. The toppings are not enough though to create a balance with the volume of noodles. Halfway through it, I was left with much noodles to finish and it makes it kinda boring at that point. Still, anyone who's into hot & spicy noodles will surely get your money's worth. It's a must try!

Mother Earth is Menopausal

The climate is changing and at an alarming state. After learning about the Japan quake, I felt a bit afraid. Our country has been hit with recent catastrophes too like the landslide and floods caused by typhoon "Kiko".

It's a call for us to take better care of our earth. Sooner or later it's going to turn against us and we'll all be dead and extinct. Maybe our world is going through a transition phase to restoring its original state of purity.

Like what Michael Jackson sang, "I'm starting with the man in the mirror. I'm asking him to change his ways...If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change". That's right. Even with the little things we do like not littering would be of huge help because who else would save it if not the ones who exploited it.

G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra

My favorite American Heroes, the G.I. Joes, the action figures from Hasbro will always be in my heart. However, the real-life G.I. Joes in the movie Rise of the Cobra will forever be in the back of my mind--way, way back and will most probably be forgotten.

The movie was a disappointment and it was not worth lining-up for. It was action-packed but it got boring midway. I even almost fell asleep. Noteworthy though, were the Accelerator suits in action. Although they were more destructive than helpful at times, Duke and Ripcord were fun to watch in those suits.

The story is a little dragging. I think the action scenes and the dialogues didn't have a continuous flow that made the movie mishy-mashy. They focused more on the action.

The actors were ok. Most of them were well-known but they didn't do much for the movie. I think the actors were too big for it. Any actor would've sufficed.

All in all, I wouldn't recommend this movie to waste money on. But if you want to see the action, go ahead. The scenes were not that great. I think the scenes you have imagined when you were playing with your GI Joe action figures would've been far better.

I give this movie a 2/5.

I Have Fallen in Love (with the Same Woman Three Times)

While watching the on-going funeral service for President Cory Aquino on TV, I heard Jose Mari Chan sing the poem that was written by Ninoy Aquino for Cory when he was a political detainee. It shows how dedicated Ninoy is to his wife and what certain circumstances can make love stronger. I hope that as I embark into a married life, my soon-to-be hubby and I will be as bonded and loyal to each other as Ninoy and Cory was.

I Have Fallen in Love (with the Same Woman Three Times)
poem by Ninoy Aquino
interpreted into a song by Jose Mari Chan

I have fallen in love
with the same woman three times;
In a day spanning 19 years
of tearful joys and joyful tears.

I loved her first when she was young,
enchanting and vibrant, eternally new.
She was brilliant, fragrant,
and cool as the morning dew.

I fell in love with her the second time;
when first she bore her child and mine
always by my side, the source of my strength,
helping to turn the tide.

But there were candles to burn
the world was my concern;
while our home was her domain.

and the people were mine
while the children were hers to maintain;
So it was in those eighteen years and a day.
’till I was detained; forced in prison to stay.

Suddenly she’s our sole support;
source of comfort,
our wellspring of Hope.
On her shoulders felt the burden of Life.

I fell in love again,
with the same woman the third time.

Looming from the battle,
her courage will never fade
Amidst the hardships she has remained,
undaunted and unafraid.
she is calm and composed,
she is God’s lovely maid.

Source: http://www.inewscatcher.com/2009/08/i-have-fallen-in-love-ninoy-cory-lyrics.html

Smile

A song for all that have lost a loved one...
A song for the mother of all Filipinos...
A song for President Corazon "Cory" Aquino...

Smile
tho'
your heart is aching,

Smile
Even though it's breaking,

When there are clouds in the sky- You'll get by,

If you
Smile through your fear and sorrow,
Smile and maybe tomorrow
You'll see the sun come shining through- For you.

Light up your face with gladness,
Hide ev'ry trace of sadness,
Altho' a tear may be ever so near,
That's the time you must keep on trying,

Smile- What's the use of crying,
You'll find that life is still worthwhile,
If you just smile.


- Charlie Chaplin -

Jack

I just watched 1/4 of the movie, Jack at StarWorld. I sat through the final moments because after all this years, it's still such a great movie and I still held back tears.

It's about a boy named Jack who was born with a unique aging disorder that makes him age four times faster than a normal person. And to make things more interesting, he goes to a public school by the age of 10 (well, 40 in his case). I got school troubles by the age of 10, what more for a 10-year-old boy in a 40-year-old body? But we also have a similar experience which is a difficulty fitting in. I was a year advanced in my schooling and I had a hard time fitting in with kids older than me because well, they think more "maturely" ; Jack is bigger than the rest of the kids, older-looking, hairier and probably looks scary to his classmates which makes it hard for him to fit in. But we both went on with our lives and dealt with it (after thinking about giving up).

The movie gives hope. It sends a message of being always positive in difficult times and to do our best in everything. I especially like the part when Jack's private tutor said, "You are not regular because you are spectacular". I agree. We are not Regular Joes. There is a Spectacular Jack in each one of us. It is up to us to let it shine.

I almost kissed goodbye to blogging...forever

Just when things are starting to pick up, disaster struck. A certain genius didn't read the warning and lost all blog entries.

What I really wanted to do was to delete drafts but instead, I clicked "Yes" to delete all posts. Some genius, huh? My heart sank then I got angry at myself and then I ranted at my Facebook status. And exposing my stupidity turned out to be my deliverance. It's nice of some friends to sympathize. It didn't help bring back the entries but what matters is that they cared. I guess they also knew how hard it is to pour your thoughts and feelings in correct English and end up having one or two avid readers (my bestfriends, in my case). And an avid reader helped me retrieve my blog entries by copy-paste. She e-mailed them to me after.

I was so happy and thankful. Honestly, I would've kissed blogging goodbye indefinitely if it hadn't been for her initiative. And I can't stop thanking her because I poured my heart and soul in all my past entries and risked a nosebleed as I wrote each one.

Again, thank you Ymae
Mwah! ^_^

12 months to go

One year of preparation isn't exactly my cup of tea. I've always been the crammer. But when you have a fiance who's more organized than you are then you'd better get your act together.

I've been engaged for months. And we just started planning this July after we decided that we are going to get married July 10, 2010. Finally, the date is set and it pushed me to be serious with planning...hopefully, not too serious. Well, you'll be the judge.

At the beginning of the month, we bought wedding magazines which I think are not much help because by next year, the trend would've changed. Still, we wanted to know what was "in" for 2009. The motif for 2009 was red and yellow. Uh..No. Not my style. I promised myself that no one, absolutely no one, will dictate the color motif of my wedding but myself. Then we looked at dresses. We searched the internet too. I saved images of dresses that I liked. My fiance also gave me ideas on what he likes on me. Of course, I wanted to take his breath away when he sees me at the other end of the aisle. That is my moment after all. We went to a designer. Well, I didn't have much of a choice because my fiance and his parents are paying for my dress. Hehehe Thank goodness that the designer and I got along well right away. He did sketches for me and my entourage (which is still also a blurry part of the wedding plan) after I gave him ideas on what I want. I like his designs on the entourage and I wished I was part of the entourage instead of being the bride. Anyway, I had chosen a color motif which I will keep as a secret. No fun when it's out as early as now.

We also went around different churches in hopes of blocking the date for our wedding. Our efforts proved futile because they don't allow reservations this early. Some were not taking us seriously because they think we are too excited and just waved us off. At least we are doing it because we WANT to get married and not because we HAVE to. However, reservations are done six months before the date. Well then there's nothing we could do but wait.

Like any other couple, we wanted our day to be extra special. And so, we go to extra lengths of preparation. We've already gone to different photographers and/or videographers, events organizers, florists, makers and printers of invitations. There aren't much choices in Davao City. We even opted to outsource to other cities like Cebu and Manila but their asking price is too high for out-of-town events. Luckily, we have found pretty outstanding suppliers here after much searching around the city. We didn't do booking yet instead, we just asked them to give us first priority when the situation arises that another couple wants to book on the same day as ours. It's better to be sure.

We also did our guest list. I'm sure there will be changes upto the very last minute of printing the invitations. As of today, we've reached an approximation of 450 guests. And there's only one venue in Davao that fits this many people. I have to say goodbye to garden wedding or beach wedding dreams. Unless one of us wins the lottery some time this year, it's going to be another typical reception venue. But then, who cares as long as the people I really care for will be there.

So far, our wedding plans are coming along. The succeeding months will probably just zoom by. I hope that I will not be a bridezilla but then again, maybe it would be groomzilla this time. That would make this wedding more interesting. We'll soon find out.

The Proposal

This is not a review of Sandra Bullock's latest movie. This is a recount of an ordinary Sunday turned extraordinary. This is me, reliving the day I got proposed to by the guy who never makes my life dull and who always puts a smile on my face.

It all started like any group of friends who likes to go on an adventure. On March 22, 2009, we went to Outland Adventure at Ma-a Diversion Road to try our luck at The Xcelerator. It's the fastest zipline as of today in the city. It's reason enough to ride it. Little did we know that it's not the Xcelerator that we came for.

When we arrived, we were briefed on safety tips and what to expect on the entire journey. There would be a 10-minute trek towards a river that we have to cross by raft. Then another trek up towards the platform where the start of the zipline is. Of course there were second thoughts. I was in the point of giving up 'cause I AM afraid of heights. But what the hey, I do not want to be left alone while they were having fun ziplining. And so we got into our safety gear--helmet,harness,prayers. They made us sign a waiver and gave us numbers to know who goes first and who goes next. My boyfriend and I got the last two numbers. And the journey began.


When we arrived at the platform, we took a few minutes to catch our breath and take some photos (SOP). We still managed to smile and pose even though we were so tired from the trek. Then, the moment has come to face The Xcelerator. But I guess for my boyfriend, riding that was the least of his worries. I saw the guys get strapped and zipped down the line like Superman while the girls did the sitting position. Then, it was my turn. I opted for the sitting position too. With a digital camera set on video, I zipped that freaking line of hell. I wasn't able to enjoy the scenery 'cause I closed my eyes the first few seconds and I was looking through the viewfinder of the cam.



Surprise, surprise! As I reached the end of the line, there were our friends. They were particularly happy and I didn't understand why at first. Then I saw the message on the ground. That was when I knew. I didn't know how to react. I didn't freak out too. I was more dumbstruck. As I waited for the crew to get me down, my mind was a complete blank. The crew didn't let me off yet. I'm still strapped to a line. After a few minutes, I saw my boyfriend coming towards the end of the line, doing a Superman and holding something in one arm and unraveled it once he reached the end.

No questions asked. Again, I was dumbstruck and just stood there. I guess he already knows what I'm going to say. He did this for me and I wouldn't have asked for anything more. Only three people knew about this. My boyfriend and his two friends. I applaud them for a great job and a wonderful surprise to many of us there.

Now, it's up to my fiance and me to plan a perfect wedding (perfect enough for us, at least).

Overdrive at Tagum City

It literally means I "over drove" all the way to Tagum City. The journey was not planned. It was Mom and mine's spur of the moment and I ended up driving for two hours back and forth. It was tiring and it came to the point that I wished our car was automatic instead of a stick shift. However, the roads were paved except for some parts where work is still being done.

After a coffee-infused breakfast at McDonald's, we decided to seek out a mall somewhere in Panacan. It was supposedly, a 30 to 45-minute drive. I just drove where the highway took us and kept moving forward. And on we went through foreign areas. We had no idea where the mall is and when the journey will end.

We passed Sasa, Panacan, Panabo, Tibungco. I was amazed at the vastness of the shipping yards found on both sides of the road. I was in awe at the humongous cement factories of Holcim. There was something cool about those industrial plants. I realized that there are much, much more to explore beyond the city bounds of Davao.

I wouldn't have seen them if it weren't for the paved roads and wide lanes. Also, I would have driven back where we came from right away when trucks, pick-ups, buses and other SUVs would overtake us left and right. The roads made me feel secure in broad daylight. I wouldn't dare to drive if we went at night.

We kept moving forward and over bridges. Mom was eager to see the City Hall of Tagum. She had heard that it was a sight to see. And what a sight indeed.
Apparently, there was nothing to see. What caught our eyes is the city's color-coded tricycles. All tricycles are colored at the same shade of green. And they're the kings of the road. I managed to capture a picture of one of the little buggers on the street. I've seen more tricycles than jeepneys in Tagum city. And they look neat in one color. Unlike in Davao city, wherein they're such nuisances and they're everywhere. Dabawenyos hardly walk these days and I wonder why. But that would be another blog entry.

Anyway, after evidence-gathering, we headed for home. The drive was faster but still with the close encounters of buses, trucks, pick-ups and SUVs left and right.

I felt relieved that we have arrived in Davao city. But believe or not, I gained a sense of contentment that I live in a beautiful city--where everything is accessible in a few minutes, where traffic is a minimum, where life is laid-back. It was like love the second time around, only it wasn't lost in the first place. It got deeper. I love Davao!!! and I'm a proud Dabawenya!