2009 February | Ajay's Writings on the Wall

February, 2009

Boracay, Penang & 44 Places to Go in 2009

February 28, 2009 by ajay

This piece of news is a tad too old, but am retelling it here because I don’t think too many local bloggers made mention of the fact that Boracay Island made it to the New York Times list of “44 Places to Go in 2009.” (January 11 issue, ugh.)

In fact, I just stumbled upon this a few weeks ago while researching about Penang, Malaysia – the other Asian country in the list, along with Phuket, Thailand and India. It does make we wonder if they made the list before the security situation in the latter two countries.

Not to be a killjoy about it, but don’t you think listing Boracay JUST NOW is too late in the day? Boracay as one of the “44 Places to Go in 1999 ” would have been more apt, as all my friends rave about how a gem it was back then in the early days, without all the overcrowding, pollution and high prices.
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Category Travel | Tags: | 4 Comments
Jollibee opens in New York, a first in the East Coast

February 27, 2009 by ajay

Thanks to Spanx for giving Pinoy foodies a heads-up on this piece of news:

Philippines’ Most Popular Fast-food Chain Lands in Queens. Via Grub Street.

500 overseas branches, and counting? Wow! This is just positive news, especially as we don’ t really see too many Filipino companies going global. I did see Pancake House International during my last visit to Malaysia. I had to blink twice. Kudos to these firms for expanding.

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Category Life & Living | Tags: | 2 Comments
Litratong Pinoy 47: Bulaklak

February 27, 2009 by ajay

Ngayong linggo sa Litratong Pinoy, ang pinag-uusapan ay bulaklak.

Kapag sinabi mong bulaklak eh wala akong maisip kundi ang magandang bouquet ng dilaw na calla lily na hawak ko nung kami ni WhizHeart ay kinasal kamakailan. Sobra akong nabighani sa bulaklak na ito kaya di ko sinunod ang tradisyon na itapon ito sa bouquet toss. Ganun na lang ang panunuksong inabot ko sa aking kabiyak at malapit na kaibigan. Selfish daw ako, hehe.

Ngayon ko lang naisip, nandun ang bulaklak sa bawat mahalagang bahagi ng buhay ng tao. Halimbawa na dito ang kasal, Valentine’s Day, pagkakasakit at pagkamatay. Ano ba ang ibig sabihin nito? Supposed to be nagbibigay tayo ng bulaklak para mapasaya ang isang tao. Bakit nga ba sa mga burol ay may bulaklak pa rin? Hindi naman siguro ito nagpapahiwatig ng kasayahan sa isang pangyayari. Ninanais lang ng nagbibigay ng bulaklak na sumaya ang mga nagdadalamhati.Ito’y sapagkat sa ating kalungkutan, nagbibigay ang bulaklak ng paalala ng kagandahan ng buhay.
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Category Life & Living | Tags: | 4 Comments
Sunway Lagoon Theme Park, Selangor

February 25, 2009 by ajay

When you’re in Malaysia, I’d highly recommend a visit to Sunway Lagoon if you’re tired of the whole Kuala Lumpur shopping-eating scene. The resort is just a 40-minute taxi ride from KL. As I didn’t grow up with cartoons, I find frolicking in its chlorinated waters better than romping with Buzz Lightyear in Hong Kong Disneyland. Sunway reminded me of a bigger version of the Fontana Resort in Clark and it is also better than Genting Highlands because the latter looks really old and cramped.

If you can zoom through this picture, you’d notice that there’s a suspension bridge (reportedly the world’s longest, at 428 m) and somebody negotiating through a zip line. It is one of the attractions in their Extreme Park which also includes paintball games, rock-climbing and the reverse bungee jump. Not for the faint-hearted like me, hehe.
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Category Road Adventures, Travel | Tags: | 1 Comment
Beryl’s Chocolate Kingdom, Malaysia

February 24, 2009 by ajay

During this trip, I was glad to discover Beryl’s Chocolates and to visit their showroom-cum-museum in Kuala Lumpur. Actually, it’s a big house converted into a commercial structure. I was thinking that it was such a nice marketing ploy, to promote the brand, and products that are proudly made in Malaysia.There was a steady stream of tourists like us a-visiting, for who can refuse chocolates?

My son, the dessert lover, enjoyed our little tour, particularly as they were giving us free bites of chocolates to sample.

I ended up buying $70 worth of chocs to take home. Silly me forgot to take note of the prices, but they’re definitely lower than Royce.

I absolutely love their Potato Chips Chocolate. You wouldn’t know the difference from the more famous ~~Japanese~~ brand.

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Category Munchin', Shopping Etc. | Tags: Beryl's,Beryl's Chocolate Boutique Penang,Beryl's Chocolate Kingdom,Beryl's chocolates,Beryl's Chocolates Malaysia,Beryl's Malaysia,chili chocolate,chocolate factory,durian chocolate,potato chips chocolate,tiramisu chocolates | 20 Comments
Kuala Lumpur street scenes

February 22, 2009 by ajay

I have this thing against going to the same place for a second time or a third time, when visiting other parts of the world is tempting. However, I could not say the same thing about Kuala Lumpur, a favorite city. I just love the food! And the shopping. Don’t forget its character and spirit. You’d get hungry at 3:30 a.m. and there’s decent food to be had. Unfortunately, its street scene is more alive than Manila too

Here are some pictures I took from our recent vacation:

When in KL, I always stay in the Bukit Bintang area. In fact, I’d advise my friends to get their hotel rooms here to optimize their stay. Everything’s just a walk away – the shops, the malls, the restos and the bars. Will save you from taking a taxi each time. It’s also amazing to note how accommodations are cheaper in Malaysia because guests are charged per room, and not per person

Jalan Alor is the place to note when one wants authentic hawker food in the heart of KL. Most of the street-side restos are owned by the Chinese. Don’t forget to order local specialties like the grilled stingray, curry crabs, rojak, satay, barbecued chicken wings and sotong.
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Category Travel | Tags: | 7 Comments
Sakae Sushi: Manila’s high-tech sushi place

February 21, 2009 by ajay

Eating Japanese was the best thing that happened to me this Saturday. It was at Sakae Sushi in Mall of Asia, reputed to have the city’s longest kaiten or conveyor belt. It’s the nearest thing you can have to those places in Japan, only that this one is a Singaporean chain.

See the plates passing by th conveyor belt? They’re color-coded. Purple plates are priced at P39, yellow at P59, green at P79 and red at P99. Sakae Sushi’s eat-all-you can buffet has been packing them in among Asians living in Manila, we heard. Read this sign, the sign looks like something we can try again and again

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Category Munchin' | Tags: | 15 Comments
Ipanema: the best flip-flops for summer?

February 20, 2009 by ajay

You just know summer’s fast approaching when you get invited to an event sponsored by a flip-flop company.

The good thing with events like this is that you get to discover new brands. In this case, the Made in Brazil “Ipanema.” Silly me has seen this before but stopped short of buying. It happens to be more expensive than the other popular brand (insert H word here ).

But now that am a proud owner of a pair of Ipanema (as a result of a shamelessly-procured schwag bag), I must say this posh brand is l-o-v-e. I like the way it treats my rough feet like royalty because of its soft rubber padding. And the designs just rock!

This is my Ipanema wedge sandal of choice. The sole (hidden from view) has these lovely leaf designs and is part of their environmentally-friendly Summer 2009 GB Seeds Collection. It has other extraordinary details like a three-strip strap and a metal spiral button.
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Category Shopping Etc. | Tags: | 8 Comments
LP 46: Tipanan (date)

February 19, 2009 by ajay

Ito ay isang lumang litratong kuha ko sa siyudad ng San Pablo, Laguna. Sa unang pagkakataon ay dumalaw ako sa lugar na ito at nabighani sa tahimik na lawa. Ang San Pablo ay tinaguriang “City of Seven Lakes.” Doon nga’y nakita ko ang babae at lalaking ito na magkatabi at nag-uusap kaharap ang tubig.Di ko alam kung magkasintahan sila kasi di naman nakayakap si Mister kay Miss. Pero kung ganitong lugar naman ang pagtitipanan nyo, it sets the tone, ika nga. Maraming magagandang nangyayari kung maganda ang paligid. Nagiging mas makulay ang buhay, di ba? ~~Echoz!~~
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Category Litratong Pinoy | Tags: | 16 Comments
A Valentine Meal for My Sweet, Year 2

February 17, 2009 by ajay

This post is rather late, I know. After the deep appreciation for last year’s A Valentine Meal for My Sweet, it seems hubby now wants it to be an annual affair. I can’t complain, as planning for the V-day’s little feast always brings out my resourcefulness and creativity. It has been a busy month though. After getting wed, spending our honeymoon, travelling, going back to work and suffering from a car breakdown on the first week back, it seemed practical to focus on easy-to-prepare meals such as these ones ( I even forgot to prepare the soup).

Here’s to you, Mah Dear <3:

Salad: Tomato and Cheese Fans

A different way of presenting good’ ol Tomato and Mozzarella Salad I must say. Only that I didn’t have mozzarella. So I used the kesong puti (native white cheese) instead. I don’t regret it one bit. The trick is to pick an extra-large tomato, begin slicing it but stop short of cutting it all the way through, then insert cheese slices. Slather with some olive oil, season with salt, and decorate with chopped onion, herbs and what-have-you.

Pasta: Bangus-Malunggay Pasta, made from scratch

I’ve always wanted to make pasta from my favorite canned good of the moment, Century Tuna Gourmet Bangus Belly Spanish-style, (about fifty bucks from the supermarket), and this was the result. Instead of herbs, which I couldn’t find, I used malunggay leaves from the garden instead. Yeah I know, Europeans south of the Mediterranean Sea will crucify me for this, but I gotta experiment sometimes. This was a successful pairing
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Category Munchin' | Tags: | 4 Comments

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