(Sooo sorry for taking so long. Hope you guys enjoy this post!)
Day One
We had to board a 1 a.m. flight so I didn't have much comfortable sleep on the first day. We left the house at 9 p.m. on Sunday and I only managed 2-ish hours of sleep from the 4 hour flight. The immigration lady was such a ... b-word. When it was my turn, she did the usual key-in crap and once she was done, she just threw my passport back at me. Like what the heck, man? AND she threw my departure card away, by accident or not, god knows. But I wasn't mad, unlike my mom who was FURIOUS. I guess I'm okay-ish with it due to the fact that I'm used being treated like sh!t. Pardon the language. So much for my mabuhey (greeting). Miss Melissa M. Navarro, I'll remember you. Anyway, time for some lighter stuff.
We were met there by our tour guide for the WHOLE TRIP, Juan. Man, he's big, 6' 5'' at the very least. He has only been to KL once, and that was at KLCC. I was puzzled: Of all places, why there? He later revealed that he went there for the Petronas Basketball Competition. He certainly looks like a basketball player, bald and all. The sun had risen as early as 6 a.m. and we took the time to admire the sunrise as the 12-seater van drove about the highway.
We were met there by our tour guide for the WHOLE TRIP, Juan. Man, he's big, 6' 5'' at the very least. He has only been to KL once, and that was at KLCC. I was puzzled: Of all places, why there? He later revealed that he went there for the Petronas Basketball Competition. He certainly looks like a basketball player, bald and all. The sun had risen as early as 6 a.m. and we took the time to admire the sunrise as the 12-seater van drove about the highway.
The we began our 2 hour drive to Tagaytay. I tried oh so hard to sleep during the drive, but the bumpy surface of the road made it impossible to sleep. I was struggling enough, trying to keep my neck from dislocating. I got some 15 minutes of power nap, miraculously. But we haven't reached Tagaytay yet, it was only a rest stop for breakfast. It was about 7 a.m. then. We went to the nearby 7-Eleven to grab some snacks and drinks. There were a group of people at the table outside, drinking some beer. Can you imagine that, drinking beer at 7 in the morning?? Then Juan explained that they were workers at the call centre working the night shift. This was their sleeping time: in broad daylight. There was even a lake there, filled with Koi and Karp, even a boat ride around the lake.
*Well, I just drained some 9% of battery life typing this section out. Gotta type quicker next time! Lunch is here!!*
We reached Tagaytay at around 8.20. There was some mix-up during check-in, as they only had one room for us, when my mom booked for two, and the management of which my mom booked from can't be reached as it was not office hours yet. In the end, they gave us another room, thankfully. And it was a twin room, all the more better! We unpacked our stuff and headed out for breakfast. Almost every eating place here in Tagaytay has a view overlooking Taal Lake and the volcano. We had some of their speciality beef, stew, also known as Bulalo here, along with some Beef Stew and Pork Knuckles.
Bulalo served with Fried Egg and some rice
Beef Stew
The place where we ate, Green Ats
The beef there was sublime. All of us were stuffed so full that we called it the day! No joke. We just went shopping at the SaveMore grocery store, where I got mistaken for a local when a saleswoman wanted to advertise some Vaseline body wash on sale. We just ended up buying some 3-in-1 coffee and Cebu Dried Mango (a local favourite there) and retreated back to the hotel. The store had a few interesting food up for sale, though.
Like these two:
Durian, Guava and Mangosteen Spread
I took the break to play some games on my notebook, while my dad and granduncle took a nap. We left for dinner at around 6.45 p.m. and it was already as dark as night by then. We ate at Josephine's for dinner, a very famous place for their Kare-kare, a Philippine stew. It is made from peanut sauce with a variety of vegetables, stewed oxtail, beef, and tripe. Yes, I had to refer to Wikipedia for further explanation. Again, we stuffed ourselves with the wonderful food there. Notable mentions would be the wonderful view with gazebos and benches placed outside in the vicinity of the blistering cold and their Crispy Kankung, crisp and paper thin, served with homemade Mayonnaise. Absolute bliss.
And to prove how GOOD the Kare-kare is, they displayed their certificate of acknowledgement.
Victors hands down.
Day Two
We went far away from Tagaytay today, about a two-hour drive. I kinda forgot the name of the place. It's said to be a good viewpoint for the volcano. It was incredibly windy up there and my hair was all over the place. The hill was interesting as it was private property to one of the ministers back then. He decided to leave it as it was later on. There's even a private chapel there for him. I encountered what would be the only Filipino who couldn't sing. He was video-ke-ing (karaoke, but with video instead) and his singing was all over the place. Juan implied that he was very, very drunk. We all couldn't agree less. The worst thing is the dreadful singing can be heard from everywhere as the compound was small. He even scored a 92 over 100 in some songs... Loose wires, I say.
We had dinner at MushroomburgerRobinsons to grab more Dried Mango because my mom (who ate it WITHOUT ME) said it was that good. We bought 40 packs.
The next day we went to Sonya's garden, a private estate initially which was later opened for the public to view. It was such a lovely place, with many colourful flowers all over the place. I snapped a mad number of pics, since Macro is what I like doing. Here are some of the pics.
We had dinner at MushroomburgerRobinsons to grab more Dried Mango because my mom (who ate it WITHOUT ME) said it was that good. We bought 40 packs.
FORTY. UNGODLY. PACKS. OF. DRIED. MANGO.
Heck, we freaked the store out! It amounted to around RM 150. Achievement unlocked. For dinner, we headed back to Josephine's to eat as it was that good. No prizes for guessing how much we ate.
Day Three
We later found out that Sonya has a book published no where but here. She insists that it is personal and that's why it can only be found at Sonya's Garden. My mom decided to buy two issues, one for her and one for my dad's client. When we purchased the books, the lady asked us to stay there for a while. We were puzzled. Stay here? What for?? She explained that she's going to get Sonya herself so that she can AUTOGRAPH the book personally. Whoah! It was that personal to her. Not just that, we got to choose from a variety of scented inks and coloured wax seals. That was another pleasant surprise. Unfortunately I didn't snap any photos; my sister did that. Then Sonya suggested we try the food out here.
So heeding her advice, we went to check out the food. They had this buffet offer, which costs some RM50 if you were to convert it to our currency. But this people were all incredibly health conscious: all they had in the menu was spaghetti and greens, NO MEAT whatsover.
We gave up and snuck out quietly so that the waiter didn't notice us. They had already served us drinks.
Then we tried to go to Breakfast at Antonio's, which was the only restaurant to make it to the Top 50 list of best restaurants in Asia. It was the only place in all of Tagaytay where no Filipino was dining there. I got skeptical. And then we saw the menu. Hot dang, it was expensive!! A drink alone was equivalent to one and a half meals somewhere else!
So we again, ditched the place and headed to Jerry's Grill instead. They had, again, nice food there and we were stuffed. Juan told us that the restaurant will have a Halo-Halo (THE BEST DESSERT I'VE TAKEN) on the house if it was your birthday. But all our birthdays are months away. So my father claimed that day to be his birthday. We all kept mum. Typical Malaysians. Hahaha!
Day Four
Thursday, we went to another distant place suggested by Juan as Tagaytay was getting monotonous already. I didn't catch where we were heading, so the place we visited still escapes my mind. Something like Escudero Mansion. It took us some 3 hours or so to get there. But we had a carabao (bull) cart to bring us around the whole compound. At the back of the carriage sat this elderly couple who provided the live music to serve the occasion. They sang rather beautifully olden classics like "You Are My Sunshine" and "月亮代表我的心" (yep, they knew the song). It was nice at first, until my sister and grandmother joined in. Then it got a little... annoying. Ah Mah, you know I love you a boatload but it was a bit (I stress, a bit) hair-pulling to hear you and my little chipmunky sister singing.
Then we had a buffet lunch at a man-made dam. It was very unique of an experience (but a pricey one!). The rocks were slippery due to the moss and I cursed myself for not wearing my slippers. I was terrified when guiding my grandmother across the stream. A small slip would spell disaster for her aging body. Nevertheless, it was very soothing to feel calm, cool water rushing fast your feet. Very serene.
Then we tried to go to Breakfast at Antonio's, which was the only restaurant to make it to the Top 50 list of best restaurants in Asia. It was the only place in all of Tagaytay where no Filipino was dining there. I got skeptical. And then we saw the menu. Hot dang, it was expensive!! A drink alone was equivalent to one and a half meals somewhere else!
My grandmother and granduncle admiring the wall of photos there
So we again, ditched the place and headed to Jerry's Grill instead. They had, again, nice food there and we were stuffed. Juan told us that the restaurant will have a Halo-Halo (THE BEST DESSERT I'VE TAKEN) on the house if it was your birthday. But all our birthdays are months away. So my father claimed that day to be his birthday. We all kept mum. Typical Malaysians. Hahaha!
Day Four
Thursday, we went to another distant place suggested by Juan as Tagaytay was getting monotonous already. I didn't catch where we were heading, so the place we visited still escapes my mind. Something like Escudero Mansion. It took us some 3 hours or so to get there. But we had a carabao (bull) cart to bring us around the whole compound. At the back of the carriage sat this elderly couple who provided the live music to serve the occasion. They sang rather beautifully olden classics like "You Are My Sunshine" and "月亮代表我的心" (yep, they knew the song). It was nice at first, until my sister and grandmother joined in. Then it got a little... annoying. Ah Mah, you know I love you a boatload but it was a bit (I stress, a bit) hair-pulling to hear you and my little chipmunky sister singing.
Then we had a buffet lunch at a man-made dam. It was very unique of an experience (but a pricey one!). The rocks were slippery due to the moss and I cursed myself for not wearing my slippers. I was terrified when guiding my grandmother across the stream. A small slip would spell disaster for her aging body. Nevertheless, it was very soothing to feel calm, cool water rushing fast your feet. Very serene.
The whole bunch, kung-fu mom attached
We were stuffed when we left and the staffs there kindly gave us copious amounts of tissue paper to dry our feet. To make matters more interesting, my grandmother asked them for more tissue paper - in Malay! Boy was that awkwardly funny.
Then we visited the museum there. It was started by the Escudero family, who were closely tied to the Americans when they occupied Philippines, according to the tour guide. The current generation of the Escudero branch is the sixth and they still reside in that exact estate. Photography was prohibited so I couldn't take any pictures. But the entire ground floor hosted tons of Jesus Christ statues from churches all across the nation. The second floor showcased the antiques from the past century, like Ming vases and other commodities bartered in the early days. They even have the clothing of the nation's leaders and patriots such as Emilio Aguinaldo and Jose Rizal. I also took some opportunity to flex some History know-how.
We then hit a shopping mall for dinner. We finally had out hands on some Jolibee and god it was SUBLIME for fast food! Juan was once a manager there and he revealed to us that their policy of keeping food fresh was responsible for making them the fast food powerhouse in the country. He said that if the chicken is not sold in 15 minutes, they'll dispose of them. And the food is actually as good as Carl's Jr.!
Day Five
We felt that Tagaytay had nothing more to offer so we headed to Manila since they have cheap motels which can be rented for half a day. So we first went to shop around a little where I took the opportunity to get the polvoron molds from the Goldilocks store there. It would be one of the most epic scenes of my life. That event can be broken down to four stages, each stage represented by a worker I talked to.
Stage One
I went to the lady working at the cashier and I asked: "Do you sell polvoron molds?". She looked past me at the rack selling polvorons and pointed there. "Ah, polvoron.", she said. "No, no. The molds." I replied showing the action. She just frowned and asked me to confront another lady.
Stage Two
The next lady worked at the custom cake making and delivery department, so I presumed her command of English may help me out. I asked the same question, adding "the one used to make the polvoron itself" at the back of that question. She mistook shape for flavor and replied: "Ah, chocolate." and pointed to the rack beside me. So I proceeded to Stage Three.
Stage Three
Back to the counter I went. I asked her the same question from Stage Two and added (again) another "it's to create the shape". She replied: "Yea, only oval shape." I rephrased the question and she just pointed to the basket of polvoron on the counter. She got puzzled and went to the back to get more help.
Stage Four
Along came this young woman with gloves from the bakery at the back. I tiredly asked her. And she (surprisingly) gave me a straightforward answer: "No we don't." And that concludes my quest for the polvoron molds.
Then we went to the seaside to witness the sunset. Here are some pics I took with my phone.
Then we went to this huge shopping complex known as the Mall of Asia. Seeing it in person, I could understand why. It was easily FOUR TIMES LARGER than One Utama here. And we were just in time to witness their fireworks display. It was wonderful, however due to the dark surroundings, I deemed it the Night of a Thousand Flashbangs. I managed only three photos as my phone's camera has no proper scene mode for night photos, not to mention the slow shutter speed.
Inside, they have a ice rink where we witnessed an amateur ice hockey tournament. We also bumped into this shop called Spoofs. They sell shirts with - you guessed it - spoofs on them. Like the Got Fatter (instead of God Father) and Fart and Furious. I got the one which says Facebulok (bulok - inferior in Tagalok) and my sister got Twoilet (from Twilight).
And then... nothing much significant happened besides the shopping and the sleeping at the motel.
Day Six
We woke up and had to board the flight already... So we said our goodbyes to Juan, and he gave my brother his jersey he wore during the Petronas 3-on3 basketball competition he participated in years ago, autograph included.
And THAT! Ends my month-long post. Hope you guys didn't burn your eyes out reading this. You can also check out part one, part two and part three of pictures taken by my sister. Though it may contain lots of useless pictures, no offense. Cheers. And till the next trip, happy reading.
Stage One
I went to the lady working at the cashier and I asked: "Do you sell polvoron molds?". She looked past me at the rack selling polvorons and pointed there. "Ah, polvoron.", she said. "No, no. The molds." I replied showing the action. She just frowned and asked me to confront another lady.
Stage Two
The next lady worked at the custom cake making and delivery department, so I presumed her command of English may help me out. I asked the same question, adding "the one used to make the polvoron itself" at the back of that question. She mistook shape for flavor and replied: "Ah, chocolate." and pointed to the rack beside me. So I proceeded to Stage Three.
Stage Three
Back to the counter I went. I asked her the same question from Stage Two and added (again) another "it's to create the shape". She replied: "Yea, only oval shape." I rephrased the question and she just pointed to the basket of polvoron on the counter. She got puzzled and went to the back to get more help.
Stage Four
Along came this young woman with gloves from the bakery at the back. I tiredly asked her. And she (surprisingly) gave me a straightforward answer: "No we don't." And that concludes my quest for the polvoron molds.
Then we went to the seaside to witness the sunset. Here are some pics I took with my phone.
And here are some of the sunset.
Then we went to this huge shopping complex known as the Mall of Asia. Seeing it in person, I could understand why. It was easily FOUR TIMES LARGER than One Utama here. And we were just in time to witness their fireworks display. It was wonderful, however due to the dark surroundings, I deemed it the Night of a Thousand Flashbangs. I managed only three photos as my phone's camera has no proper scene mode for night photos, not to mention the slow shutter speed.
Inside, they have a ice rink where we witnessed an amateur ice hockey tournament. We also bumped into this shop called Spoofs. They sell shirts with - you guessed it - spoofs on them. Like the Got Fatter (instead of God Father) and Fart and Furious. I got the one which says Facebulok (bulok - inferior in Tagalok) and my sister got Twoilet (from Twilight).
And then... nothing much significant happened besides the shopping and the sleeping at the motel.
Day Six
We woke up and had to board the flight already... So we said our goodbyes to Juan, and he gave my brother his jersey he wore during the Petronas 3-on3 basketball competition he participated in years ago, autograph included.
And THAT! Ends my month-long post. Hope you guys didn't burn your eyes out reading this. You can also check out part one, part two and part three of pictures taken by my sister. Though it may contain lots of useless pictures, no offense. Cheers. And till the next trip, happy reading.
Wonder - Dan Black
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