Yehess naman! Trying to make this a regular segment on my blog. Hahaha

Starbucks Java Chip Frappuccino Ice Cream

My family slept over in my unit to visit me! Sweeet! :”> We all attended the 9am mass inside my school and then Kathleen and I had ice cream for breakfast. We planned to go to high street the previous night but then my Dad had second thoughts, but Kathleen insisted on going since we were already hyped up to go out. With a little persuading with matching eyelash batting and mouth pouting, my Dad finally decided to push through with the plans. We circled Serendra a couple of times because we couldn’t decide where to eat, and we finally agreed to eat at Balducci Ristorante.

They served us some bread while waiting for our food.

Along with the bread comes butter, duck liver (?), and salsa.

Interiors

Estiva Salad

Filletto di Salmone in Padella allo Spumante

My Mom had this dish, and take note, she also took this photo! Fumu-food photography na si mother dear! Haha.

Kathleen’s lunch: Tortelli ai Funghi

One of the best Raviolis I’ve ever tasted! The sauce wasn’t too creamy and the pasta was so smooth.

I had the Calzoni Ricotta e Spinaci.

My goodness! It was gigantic! Good thing it was filled with spinach so I wasn’t too worried about my health. Hahaha. It was delicious! My only comment about this is that I wish the Spinach was sliced more finely.

I wasn’t able to take a photo of my Dad’s lunch. But from what I remember, I think he had the Seafood pasta (I forgot Balducci’s fancy name for it.)

And then finally, Fully Booked High Street!!! Five floors of pure awesomeness!

Kathleen and I spent a couple of hours just going up and down the different sections. From the camera section, to the novelty books, until we finally decided on which books to purchase. We also spent a lot of time laughing while reading some books from the novelty section.

Our parents, being coffee lovers, spent most of their time sipping their potion at the Starbucks located at the 3rd floor of Fully Booked. Coffee + Books = Heaven! This definitely made me love Fully Booked High Street even more!

After purchasing some books, Kathleen and I headed to Jamba Juice. The line in Jamba is always long and the baristas (are they also called baristas? haha. idk.) are always busy!

Photobooth while waiting for our drinks.

Jamba Juice Peanut Butter Moo’d

I was disappointed when I first tried Jamba Juice together with my friends, but having tried the Peanut Butter Moo’d definitely turned me into a fan! I guess I just have to explore their menu more.

Jamba Juice was packed with people inside, so we decided to hang out outside. I love how chill the mood is in BGC! I felt so laid back and relaxed. The only thing I don’t like about it is that there are dogs everywhere! There was like a dog convention! Haha.

My Mom bought some cupcakes from Cupcakes by Sonja.

Cupcakes!!! Om nom nom nom!

Cookie Monster Cupcake

I liked this the best out of the three cupcakes I ordered. It had chocolate chips on the cupcake itself, though I’m not really a fan of the huge icing on top. DIABETES!!! I guess I would’ve preferred it more if it were just a muffin.

Red Velvet Cupcake

The best red velvet cupcake I’ve tasted so far.

Lemon Drop Cupcake

The icing was sweet with a hint of sourness, I guess it was okay. Pwede na.

Hurrah for Sundays! My tummy and I are happy! And of course, it’s great to bond with my family. <3

Soyfresh Cappuccino flavored Soya Milk

While waiting for them to arrive, my stomach was already protesting about the pain it’s feeling. I decided to drink some Soya milk to fill my stomach while waiting for them.

S&R Vegetable Calzone

They brought me veggie calzone for lunch!!! My favorite from S&R aside from their yummehh pizza!

I tried to finish my school work right away. Good girl eh! Haha. It was a productive afternoon! I finished earlier than I expected so I had the rest of the afternoon to spend time with them. I had a heart-to-heart talk with my Mom about business and our family. I feel so mature discussing about business with my Mother! Hahaha. We also checked out new condo units around the vicinity. After talking to an agent, we went to Hollys for some coffee.

This is the spaceship-like number thingy that vibrates when your order is ready. Cool, eh?!

I ordered the Belgian Chocochip Hollyccino and it was UHH-MA-ZING!

I usually order the Dark Forest Hollyccino, but I wanted to try something new… and I certainly don’t regret it!

Kathleen ordered the Matcha Green Tea.

I have to say that it is one of the best (if not the best) Matcha Green Tea I’ve ever tasted! The green tea wasn’t too strong and it wasn’t too sweet either. Definitely ordering this for myself next time!

My Mom had the Vanilla Delight Coffee.

I sipped from her cup and rainbows started flashing in my eyes! Another new favorite from Hollys! Even better than their Caramel Macchiato, which is my favorite from their Hot coffee menu.

Mother dear, enjoying her coffee. She downed that cup pretty fast and said that it still wasn’t enough for her!

I have to say that Hollys serves great coffee and frappuccinos! They are a bit more expensive than Starbucks and CBTL, though. But, definitely worth your money.

They also brought me chocolates in lady bug wrapper! Here’s my Mom posing like lady bugs are crawling up her arm! Hahaha. Cutie patootie mother!

What a chill Sunday compared to my other Sundays where I usually cram to finish school works. Haha. More Sundays like this, please!

My Mommy advised me to drink LiberTea to flush out whatever bacteria is causing my sickness and I dutifully obliged like the good daughter that I am, but actually more of because LiberTea is my FAVORITE DRINK in ze worrrld! Haha. I drank three large LiberTeas to make myself feel better. My Mom offered to pay for the delivery charge because she knew that I would be “kuripot” as much as I can. Haha. And I also had to have it delivered because I couldn’t get up without feeling my whole body hurting.

Army+Navy LiberTea Iced Tea

Army+Navy Tortilla Soup

I also ordered Tortilla Soup to make the most out of the deliver charge, which is friggin’ P50!!! And also because it was hard to swallow especially with my soar throat.

The next day, I was already feeling a little bit better until my Professor got on my nerves which made my blood pressure high, and thus, put me back into being sick. Ughh!!! I treated myself with some oh-so-delicious Manang’s Chicken to make myself feel better. I used to prefer other chicken joints over Manang’s Chicken because I was not used to the sweet kick that flavors their chicken. But, when I got to try it several times with my friends, I got hooked! I fell in love with their chicken! <3 Hahaha.

Manang’s Chicken 4-pc Chicken Wings

I promise to take better care of myself. Getting sick does not feel good. It delays my schedule and hinders me from getting things done, which I hate! I should sleep earlier and eat healthier food.

1. Coffee is like water to me. It keeps me going and relaxes my entirety.

2. I am not in very good terms with animals, especially dogs.

3. I whistle like a boss. Hahaha. As in I can whistle an entire song! Cool ako eh, bakit?

4. I’ve been using a planner since grade school. My school provides us with a “diary” where we put homework and such, and it became a part of me. So up until now I still use one to keep track of my schedule and my life.

5. I’m very forgetful so I have to rely on my planner and post-its! Yayy!

6. I don’t get scared WHILE watching a horror movie, but it haunts me when I’m alone. (i.e. before I sleep or while taking a shower)

7. I have a wild imagination. Say one thing and I’ve already created a whole story line in my head.

8. I have a short attention span. *Oh look, the ants are fist-bumping each other!*

9. I find it hard to say no.

10. I’m a really REALLY bad liar.

11. I’m very competitive.

12. I’m superrr attached to my family. <3

13. I like taking my time and I hate being rushed.

14. I’m easily irritated which causes me to roll my eyes a lot.

15. I don’t like getting screamed at. Dude, you can say it in a nice way.

16. I brush my teeth at least 5 times a day.

17. I can eat corn all throughout my life and never get tired of it.

18. I name my gadgets and become unbelievably attached to them.

19. I always use a yellow highlighter.

20. Whenever I’m driving, I picture myself as part of a video game or like I’m on a race track.

21. I don’t like beer but I will drink it if I don’t have a choice.

22. Vodka and Tequila are my poison of choice.

23. I enjoy my time alone. It helps me discover myself and reflect on life.

24. “littlehotmess” which is my username for tumblr, wordpress, and (used to be) on twitter, came from a line in “Tiffany Blews” by Fall Out Boy. I miss them.

25. I think 999748472847 times before I say something. So when i say it, I definitely mean it.

26. I hate telephone conversations. They feel awkward for me and I’m not really good at it. Same with chatting online and texting, I perceive those kinds of communication as impersonal and words can easily be misinterpreted. Traditional face-to-face conversations are still the best!

27. I’m more of a listener. I’m just too lazy to talk. Haha. But it doesn’t mean I don’t wanna talk to you.

28. I can either be superrr OC or superrr KALAT. Depends on my mood and whether I’m busy or not.

29. I only read books that are under mystery/thriller, classical, and adventure. Romance books are okay as long as it’s only a side story and not the main plot.

30. I shouldn’t drink soda because I get heart burns. Good thing our family isn’t really softdrink-oriented. Hahaha. I like Dr. pepper, though. Gimme gimme!

And I only did this because it was trending on twitter and I don’t want to study yet! Good job!

Our house arrest has finally been lifted! Haha. I have no idea what lead us to go to MOA and Luneta, but from what I remember, we were talking on New Year’s Day and then Luneta finally came into subject and we all agreed to go there the next day. The next day, January 2, our last hang out day was almost cancelled! ERMENGERD!!! There was conflict in schedule and misunderstandings with the time, but we eventually came up with a solution. We left after lunch and went to MOA (Mall of Asia)! The adults and us kids separated because we wanted to do different things! Haha.

While the adults, Inay, Mom & Dad, had coffee at cafe France, my sister, cousins and I watched Segunda Mano! We heard good feedback about it and we just had to watch as a continuation of our horror movie marathon from the previous night! I was a bit disappointed because of the bad acting (sorry, I couldn’t bear with Kris’ fake scared face. haha.) and the fail attempts to scare the audience. I mostly laughed during the movie because of how Kris always looks constipated in all of her scenes. (I have nothing against Kris, she’s better off as a host.)

After the movie, we walked around MOA and embarrassed ourselves by causing traffic while taking pictures of the Christmas snow thingy in the middle of MOA. Hahaha. We got tired of going in circles, so we finally agreed to have coffee since we’re all still sleepy from staying up late the previous night.

I just noticed that they’re now using the new logo!

Chillin’!

We left MOA and headed to Luneta, which is the main reason why we went out. On our way there, we saw the awesome Christmas lights of  Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (Central Bank of the Philippines). Cooool! We just had to take a picture! I was supposed to get out of the car to get a decent photo because the car was moving, but my parents were scared that someone might grab my camera and thankfully my sister had a better view on her side… so this picture is by (c) Kathleen. Hahaha.

And we’re finally in Luneta! Helllooodurrr, Dr. Jose Rizal! I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve been to Luneta. It’s good to visit my good friend, Rizal. (Wow! Close! Hahaha.)

I love lamps!

Jumpshot! I hope we don’t get shot for having too many of it! Hahaha. There were several fail shots but I won’t post it because it’s embarrassing. Hihihi.

A picture on the fountain.

And now I present to you the new and improved Luneta…

Look at the purrdy (pretty) colors!

Pumi-pink and Luneta Park! Haha.

The fountain dances as if synchronized with upbeat songs blasting through mega speakers. It also breathes out fire! Haha. Our parents told us that the fountain already existed even before but it wasn’t maintained, until now! Yayy! I’m supposed to make an “It’s More Fun In the Philippines.” poster thing-o, but then I don’t know what caption to put. “Dancing. It’s more fun in the Philippines.”??! What’cha think?

We walked around for a bit and took more photos.

And then, our stomachs told us that we should grab some dinner. We drove to Yellowcab, Macapagal for dinner…

Told ‘ya, I loved lamps!

My “kargador” left hand. Hahaha. With a London ring courtesy of my fashyown sister.

I’ve always loved the Coca-Cola red! Ooh lala!

We ordered the set meal. I think it was Set B, which included Four Seasons Pizza (in our case, it was only three seasons since they ran out of one of the flavors), chicken and chips sampler, and ice cream! Look at all the forks already attacking the pizza! Everyone was already hungry so they couldn’t wait for me to take a picture before they dug in! Hahaha.

The chicken and chips sampler.

Vanilla and Chocolate Ice Creaaam!

This was our last day to hang out all together since my cousins, Ella & Erika, were already leaving for Bicol the following day. Good thing we got to spend the whole day together! I have to say that this has to be one of the best Christmas breaks I’ve ever had. I was worry free and I spent it with my genuinely loving family.

P.S. Have you hung-out with my boy, Rizal, yet?! Let’s not be tourists in our own country.

Just like what the new DOT slogan says, “It’s more fun in the Philippines!”

We were supposed to go to Town to watch a movie, but we weren’t allowed to go out because the year was about to end and my parents believe that during this time accidents are more likely to happen. We spent about half a day trying to bargain our way out of the house, lowering our request from Town to SM Dasma, but we still ended up going to Starbucks Dasmarinas instead. We didn’t make any more demands as long as we were finally getting out of the house. Yayy! If my memory serves well, we arrived at around 4pm because we still had to finish some chores at home.

We played Monopoly Deal while sipping some coffee. Sosh! )))

My cousins, Ella & Erika, shuffling the cards.

When the game has begun, we started getting serious about it. Stealing property, asking for rent, and trying to beg each other not to take our property. Hahaha.

After about 4 rounds of Monopoly Deal, we realized how dark it already was. Our original deal with my Mom was that we would be home before 6 pm, but the seriousness of our game made us forget about the time. Good thing my Mom extended our curfew! Haha.

I wasn’t supposed to get another planner because I already got one (which I gave to Kathleen), but Ella wanted a Starbucks Planner and my 2nd Starbucks Card incidentally only needed 5 more stickers for me to claim another planner. Look how happy she looks in the photos! Haha.

When I first saw Starbucks Dasmarinas being constructed, I imagined the interior to be small and a bit constricted, but when I got the chance to visit it last November, I realized how wrong I was. It’s pretty spacious and a cozy place to open a book while sipping some coffee. Here are the photos:

There are even seats outside allotted for smokers.

*Forgive my bad angling skills. We were already in a hurry and I need more practice taking photos in the dark. 

The parking lot.

This is actually my favorite parking lot out of all the places I frequent because it’s very spacious and I don’t really find it hard to maneuver my car into a proper parking position. Wooo! Haha.

Of course we found another opportunity to take photos! Haha.

The driver. Yehesss naman! Hahaha.

The lanterns that lined the streets and lamp posts of Dasmarinas. Nux!

We rushed home and thankfully arrived before 7pm. We brought my parents coffee to bribe them not to get mad at us for going home an hour later than we said we would. Haha.

December 25, 2011

After attending the Sunday Mass, which also happens to be the Christmas Mass, we went back home and had our annual family photo shoot with our Christmas Tree. After our family photo shoot, my cousins, together with my sister and I, went to the guest room’s balcony and had a photo shoot because we have nothing else to do.

Here are the best among the bunch:

Kathleen’s set:

This is my favorite photo of Kathleen for she looks like a fallen angel here. (Yieeeeeeee! Hahaha.)

Ella’s set:

Erika’s set:

Our photo shoot also served as our bonding time with each other, since, we rarely see each other. I wish we could have more photo shoots together. On another note, I need photoshop so I can edit properly! Huhuhu.

You can also check out the video from my sister’s blog: http://kathgaps.wordpress.com/2011/12/26/model-vibes/

Aaand, I almost forgot to mention that this post is entitled “5 Minutes” because we were shooting while that song was playing.

I wasn’t supposed to go back to Taft until tomorrow, but I had to attend a workshop at school so I came back today. The workshop was entitled “Volunteerism 101″ intended for the different organizations in DLSU that engage in volunteer work in different ways. I knew I had to attend this particular seminar because I’ve been quite inactive at COSCA-LOVE for quite some time, but I’m determined to participate in our future activities so I forced myself to attend this event. We had a sharing session about our experience in being a volunteer, and then we shared these experiences to the different organizations, and then there was a lecture about the life of St. La Salle. We also renewed our vows as a volunteer. They gave us ballers with “Proud to be a Lasallian Volunteer” embossed which put a smile on everybody’s faces. And then we painted our hands and stamped them on a banner which will be displayed on the La Sallian Action Week. I’m so excited to be active again and take part in the activities that can help other people as well as make me grow as a person. Attending the workshop was worth my time, I’ve been inspired by the other volunteers and I was reminded on why I joined this organization in the first place.

We were supposed to give my Mom a “Bicol” mug because she collects Starbucks mugs all-over the world and we thought itwould be a great idea if we gave her a mug from her homeland. But sadly, they didn’t have a “Bicol” mug… they only make mugs for cities that’s why they only have “Naga”. So my Mom told us that we shouldn’t buy one for her anymore.

While I was buying coffee, I took this shot. I didn’t know that we can’t take a picture of the counter but it was too late when the Starb barista (seen in the photo) told me. Haha. I’m too quick for you!

Here are the photos of the interior of Starbucks Naga. I got a few death stares from the barista (seen in the photo above) because I guess I’m not allowed to take photos, but she didn’t have the guts to reprimand me.

Kath and my cousins sitting on the comfy sofas while waiting for my order.

My ever beautiful Mother, patiently waiting.

And of course, an obligatory shot inside. Haha.

I actually also have a picture outside, but I don’t like it that much so I just have to settle with this one.

And here’s a picture of one of the “friendlier” baristas. He was making small-talk with me on why we were in Bicol, where we’re from, and other things that I already forgot because it was 2 months ago. Haha. Anyway, I’d like to commend his friendliness and hospitality that we can get from most Filipinos and how Starbucks baristas are trained.

Starbucks Naga is smaller compared to Starbucks 32nd and 7th and Starbucks Intramuros, but it surely has its own charm. There were very few people having coffee there, I guess only tourists visit this place to have a taste of the busy life in the city. The Bicolanos still prefer their local coffee shops which I have yet to try.

]]> http://littlehotmess.wordpress.com/2011/09/01/starbucks-naga/feed/ 0 littlehotmess starb1 starb2 starb3 005 006 008 009 004 001 IMG_5861 003 002 http://littlehotmess.wordpress.com/2011/08/13/starpreneur/ http://littlehotmess.wordpress.com/2011/08/13/starpreneur/#comments Sat, 13 Aug 2011 11:39:09 +0000 Kyla http://littlehotmess.wordpress.com/?p=404 ]]> Spent the whole day in school because I had to attend 2 seminars/talks and a game show. (Hurrah for incentives!!!) I actually woke up late and the first few words I uttered were “Oh shit.” because I knew I was going to be late. I crammed finishing my Green & White (Yearbook) stuff and rushed to the bathroom to get ready. I was going to withdraw some money from BPI in EGI but to my dismay, their ATM machine was offline! I was running back to my condo when I bumped into Bonna and she so happens to have some extra-moolah with her so I just borrowed from her so that we can pay for the Yearbook. (Ayyy! Yearbook is such a hassle!) After paying for our yearbook, we rushed to Andrew to listen to the risk-management seminar. It was a bit short, maybe because we came in late. Hahaha. After that seminar, we went to Sherwood to withdraw but they’re also offline. (Womp, womp, womp!) So we just ate lunch at Nomi because we were reaaally hungry! After our lunch we went back to Andrew for the F&F Gameshow which was a bit lame because there were very few people inside the auditorium and everyone seemed that they were just compelled by their professors to attend that event. (Which, by the way, is true.) I think I fell asleep for a few minutes.

And then finally, it was time for Starpreneur! It’s actually my org’s event so I had to help out with the registration. There were sooo many people in the hallway and everyone was struggling to get some air! It was that hottt! After about an hour of registration, I asked some of my orgmates if I can go ahead and watch the event. I wanted to listen to the Celebrity speakers and hear them share their experiences about business! When I entered the auditorium, Mr. Jaime Fabregas was on the stage and talking about his online networking business. He was quite funny but I was not able to understand the entirety of the business he has. I understood the part where you have to sell yourself to other people before you can sell your products, but the rest were quite blurry to me. Haha. There were several intermission numbers which were actually entertaining… and then finally, Mr. RJ Ledesma came up to the stage! I am not a showbiz type of person, I don’t even know the majority TV personalities, but I know how great Mr. RJ Ledesma is! My sister is an avid fan of his column-Pogi from a parallel universe-and he is one of the great minds who brought Mercato to BGC! Thank goodness for his fat mind! (Matabang utak. Haha.) He was very articulate and he spoke with such confidence that you are left in awe while he speaks. He really knows what he is doing and his passion for creating new businesses is contagious! I kept bugging Bonna that we should put up a stall in Mercato while he was talking. Hahaha. The tips he shared in doing business was very helpful, and you know that he has experienced enough for him to be able to talk confidently about business. After his speech, no one dared to ask a question. Well, he explained everything in great detail that you won’t be able to think of a question. I love him! And I shall follow his footsteps! Work at P&G -> Masteral -> Study abroad -> establish business -> study some more. HAHAHA.

There were actually two more speakers after him, but it was moved to another venue so I left. I went to buy some coffee and then sat in front of my laptop… Of course, I tweeted about how I was really inspired by the talk. I watched some youtube videos while sipping my coffee, and when I go back to Twitter… BOOM! There was a reply from Mr. RJ Ledesma! I was really shocked because 1.) I wasn’t following him on Twitter and 2.) I didn’t tag his twitter account. It actually made my day! Wooo! I sound like such a fan girl, but whatever. ) People like him are such inspirations to strive hard and do your best in your chosen field.