Be Part of Art: Art In Island

warning: excessive groupfies ahead. HAHAHA #sorryNOTsorry 

(c) Jess, Yenki, Jo, & Glads

Syepmre, group GGSS shot muna bago umakyat.  Say kmchi! hehehe

This month, two friends from my church are celebrating their birthdays. And how best to take advantage of your (their) special day? Freebies! Well, at least for them. We'll be tapping into our inner kids as we enjoy Art in Island. I have wanted to go since last year when it just opened but couldn't find the time. Now, I'm more like "'kay, let's just go and cross this off my checklist" hehe the excitement may have died down. With someone's pictures/album of their visit popping out at least once a month on my newsfeed, I thought there's not much to see anymore.

What is Illusion Art?

I didn't know how many paying guests there should be for a birthday celebrator to get in for free. But for those paying, P500 entrance fee is all you need to shell out to enjoy the three (or so) hour tour of the whole place, considering the volume of people of course. And for the guests of honor a.k.a peeps celebrating their natal day the day before/of/after visit are free, just bring 2 IDs for validation. For students, P400 and free for children below 3 ft. 

From this point, this will be more of a photo essay. Again, you were warned of our GGSS shots. Art in Island wouldn't have been called the selfie museum for nothing after all, right? :-D We're kinda sucky at posing, though. hahaha

Minus birthday girl no. 1. The disadvantage of bringing a camera? You go behind it. hahaha Thank you tia Evz!

We're complete! Look for the nice staff in yellow shirts near the art work. They're more than willing to help even if they had to take the same shot, twice, per camera that is. So in this case, I believe we had about ten.hahaha Nahiya na yung iba ibigay pa kay kuya ung phones e :P 

This is how you keep yourself from being eaten i guess. Right, Jo?

I guess if the executioner / dagger thrower is this bad, you'd be this happy, too.

Birthday girl, Jaggy with the kissy fishee. :-*

Since we can't wait for people to clear, this will do. We love you, Olaf! :-*

Oh, and have i mentioned how to best celebrate the day? Freebies, right? So there, I didn't know we were working on a tight schedule. No, not until it was almost five and birthday girl no.1 said she had a Vikings date with other friends. What??? Okay, it IS your day after all, so i just had to rein in my b*@$#y self and did not complain a lot. I would have loved to try their coffee but time restrictions would not permit that apparently. Oh, well there's still plenty of time to hit the mall for a quick caffeine fix. heheh

With the artists. Charot! hahaha

But would I go again? Maybe but not anytime soon, and not on a weekday, too.  

Now, I will RANT...

A good example of a "bad example" heh.
While some have an afterthought to duck (but still very much in front of the photographer) and still get caught in the picture, this woman just coolly strolls by.
 

It maybe our fault choosing to go on a Sunday. I can't speak for the ones who enjoyed the birthday treat. P500 may not be that steep but you definitely want your money's worth, we get that, but some people can be inconsiderate. I/We can wait for our turn on the frames, and were conscious enough when there's already a queue behind us. But it doesn't mean other people also packed on as much courtesy as others did. In three hours or maybe less, you'd lose count of how many times people would photobomb your shot. I was counting loud enough to give hints to a group, who's been on our tail for most of the tour, that i haven't captured the moment yet. And there they were, marathon gunstart position too close to my subjects. What the??? I believe I was polite naman in asking that they move a little but they were deadma. I need some of the staff's assertiveness when they ask photobombers, unintentional and just plain b1$@#y both, to remove themselves from the frame. After all, that's so that the line could move along. But what can you do when some people are simply unconcerned? "Uhmm, 'kay, next painting..." So there's my extra long version of: Go on a weekday if possible, and bring patience.

Nakalabas na, pictorial pa rin

P.S. Happy birthday Yenki and Jaggy! Stay pretty, stay blessed! <3 

Art In Island

175 15th Avenue, Barangay Socorro, 

Cubao, Quezon City

Open: Tuesdays - Sundays 

9:30 am - 9:30 pm

Where to eat in San Juan, Batangas: Cafeño

A Cafeño visit would be very easy to squeeze in the itinerary.

Walking distance from Alps bus terminal, just across Petron gasoline station. 

This summer season I seem to have put my quest for quirky, cozy, and inexpensive coffe shops to a rest. Not because of summer being hot and all, coffee is a staple for me no matter how unbearably scorching summer gets. exagg? :P It's just that these days I've been allocating the funds on beachineering, huzzah! hahaha With my recent escapade to Batangas, the land of kapeng barako, it would be a sin not to have a sip of the trademark drink though; hence, the sidetrip to Cafeño before going back to the concrete jungle.


We did not just chance upon the place. I saw it in a blog and thought that the place looked familiar even though I've been to Laiya just once, and seven long years (or so) at that, hah! Too bad, I wasn't able to salvage pictures from Friendster days. The then and now images would have been nice. But here's how the cafe looks now: 

The sign by the door says: home made ice cream :)

Know your barako...

How do you like them sweets? 

Cafeño mugs for sale

Antique sewing machines adorn tables, or rather tables were antique sewing machines so handle with care.
   

Because coffee is our fuel...

Anyways, other reviews did not clue us in on how much to shell out, but it seemed budget friendly (and if this is the cafe I've been to way way back, then it IS budget friendly) so into the itinerary you go Cafeño. ^^ And I believe the girls enjoyed that we did drop by. 

The aftermath...pardon the messy table. hahaha

We left Naambon on full tummies so we just planned on having light meals here. And, here's what we had:

Almost half of us ordered pasta of the day: Puttanesca P90

Quesadilla with Eggplant P100

Eggs Benedict (with rice) P135

Barako Float P135

Barako Condensada P85
One shot of Kapeng Barako + condensed milk = love in a cup 

Halo-Halo P150, good for sharing
What would summer be like without you, halo-halo? hehehe

Chicken Burger P120

Grilled Cheese Sandwich P85

They also have an art gallery which, by the time of our visit, was closed. We were told by staff that it houses works of local artists, and said paintings were already sold. Great for these artists, too bad none for us to see then. hehe  


I don't know when I'll be beachineering in San Juan again but I'm sure there's one place my sixth sense (coffee sense.haha) will be pulling me ~ Cafeño. Hope to see you again next summer! :)



Cafeño

9 Gen. Luna Street
Poblacion, San Juan, Batangas

budget per person: P250

Valentines Day Largey: Island Hopping and Camping at Nagsasa Cove

It's 3 am on Valentines Day. The girls and I are off to the North, our game: beachineering baby! 

Who's excited? Kahit walang tulog, smile lang. :)

The call time was a little early yeah, but that's how we like it. We actually made the request to adjust the time. It's a weekend, a sweldo weekend at that, a bunch of people for sure were thinking the same thing, that is escaping the busy metro. And we sure were glad we made the request. What with getting lost along the way and all, our supposedly 3-hour travel time took significantly much longer than that. Long enough that when the sun broke (by the time I woke up) at around 6am we were still in Bataan, asking for directions. I was asleep most of the time so I guess I didn't really mind. It would have been better however, if the timeline was closely followed. More beach time, chika time, and photo op. Anyways, I think I dozed off again and we were already in San Antonio when I opened my eyes again. Barangay Pundaquit will just be a short distance away.

A quick stop at San Antonio market. Chel and I got hats for P100 each, cheapo right? 

While Ate Joie, Echie, and Jayson were buying supplies, we also took the time to do some last minute chichirya shopping since they'd cost more than double in the island. 

And then after some more driving, tadaa we've... landed? hehe

Pictorial sa Pundaquit. Sorry kuya bangkero, hindi pa kami ready e. :P 

Better. :) This isn't the whole group, though, it's just us from the office with ate Joie, our organizer. 

Island hopping time. Leaving Pundaquit. Medyo mahangin sa labas. Hehehe 

Again, mahangin sa labas. :P

The first stop - Camara Island. 

Apparently, the most decent shot is the one where I was not present.Pssh Wait, so, I ruin the photos? Hahaha 

We, from the office, traveled with these new friends. Ja, Jay, Jayson, and Echie. (Er, Echie, our adobo master, I've met before.) The latter two were our guides and are with Ate Joie in the biz.

Where's Waldo? Where's Joie, I mean. I had to make this photo bigger, in case you can't see Ate Joie dangling from that big rock formation. #astig :D

Next Stop. Capones Lighthouse. :) At this point of the tour, pictures were taken using my phone and obviously the resolution's lower.pfft Had to leave Luna, my trusty p & s on the boat because the water here is higher above our waists. High enough to make protecting just one gadget a challenge since I wasn't able to waterproof all my things. Girl's got a lot more to learn in "beachineering 101" hehe.

Capones' rocky beach. My view from the steps going to the lighthouse.

The steps in question. The lighthouse is about a good ten minutes of hiking from the shore. And even though the hike seemed intimidating from the boat, you'd reach your destination soon enough. Easy peasy, heh. Sooner than you could take the perfect jumpshot when you've reached the landing from these steps, which, pfft! Needless to say failed attempts of said jumpshots would not be posted here. hah!

zeh lighthouse in Capones

Photo op again, of course. :) 

Back at the shore before heading to our last destination and our home for the day - Nagsasa. :D  


After being (slightly?) battered by the waves, on the rocky beach of Capones, it's now time to head to the cove which will be our home for the rest of this vacay. Yay! And since it's already past lunch time, needless to say, we're hungry but our destination won't be in sight until after a half hour or so. But our guides had that covered, we're going to have lunch right then and there. Yes, at the boat. Everyone's already too hungry and tired that no one thought of documenting this part of the ride. 

Or so we thought. Heh. Thankfully Miss Ja took a few shots before eating, so again, yay! 

(c) Miss Ja

And this was what shut us up, hahaha. The experience of eating this after the challenge of getting on the boat; on that rocky, slippery, and wavy Capones shore was just wow! Exagg ba? We don't think so. Shout out to our bangkeros for the yummy lunch! :D 

Now, with our bellies full, we're all a little sleepy. And the gentle swing of the boat was like a hammock for us. Hayy, baboy lang ang peg? Hahaha Anyways, whatever opportunity of napping we had was snatched away when it started drizzling, which, oops! Of course we still haven't changed and were still wearing the clothes soaked in Capones but no one was ready to get rained on, right? Thankfully that was it, just a drizzle and it didn't turn into a full on rain. We reached Nagsasa Cove dry, uhmm almost.

Now with our tummies full we can have all the time we have for beach bumming. Ohhh, this is the life 'sall I'm sayin. We dread for 'going home time' to come. But for now pictorial pa more! Hahaha 

Touch down. Change outfits. Pictorial. Boom! hahaha 

LOVE. Because hey, it's Valentines Day.

Sorry not sorry. pa-cute pa more :P hahaha

And there you go. The Nagsasa Cove leg of this vacay will be posted separately. :)


We would like to thank Ate Joie of Joie's Events, Travel, and Adventure, and our guides Echie and Jayson. :D 

Weekend Eats. Don Day Fresh Korean BBQ Restaurant

The restaurant was located on the second floor of the building in front of Budgetlane in Antipolo at Circumferential road, across the street from Seisha and Max's. 


Well, hello there Antips, we meet again! Heh I have made it a quest to try out different restos at least every sweldo weekend. I'm just so happy that my friends have the same interest - food trip! And this time our palates are craving something Korean. (Well, I kind of influenced them into craving something Korean.kkk) 

There are a lot of choices in Makati and Ortigas area. However, it's a weekend and I make it a point to shun Ortigas Ave or C5 since traffic is terrible no matter what day it is. Such. A. Horror. Story. (I know, it took you longer to read that.kkk mianheyo) The savior: Mareng Google who pointed us to the right direction that is LA, Lower Antipolo?hahaha Antipolo City is just less than half an hour away. Don Day Korean Restaurant is the one nearest my place, so Don Day it is. 


Don Day offers buffet lunch and dinner. The price though, is really not that buffet-ish.Hahaha I mean, starting at P239, this is a deal you should grab, right? 

Their price list. Posted by the (mini) buffet.

So after the Cell Group sesh at church, I made yaya my friends to have dinner in Antipolo. An easy feat, I must say, since it's just near Seisha in circumferential road. It's a coffee shop we used to frequent. Hence, finding Don Day is easy peasy. We left Cainta at past 6 pm and we were already at Antips at around 7. We still had 3 hours or so to enjoy our Korean dinner. So without further delay, tada... The food...

The rate posted above was actually still slashed for their 2nd year anniversary.
We had the Regular buffet + unlimited samgyeopsal (pork belly) which was originally for P335 but we just paid P299 each. The staff is unsure though when asked how long this promo will last. 
As of our time of visit - February 1, prices were:


Regular buffet                               P199
(lunch only)

Regular buffet + unlimited pork     P299
Regular buffet + Pork (5 plates)     P399
Beef (5 plates; combination)
Shabu Shabu                                 P399
Regular buffet + Shabu Shabu        P447

This was how round one looked.hehe Yeah, the plate looked bare. I didn't want to cram everything since I could just go back. We're having a buffet, and you know there's some reminder/tip about not eating too much before sleeping, right? Might as well do some leg workout by going to the buffet table for ... times :-P So what were in it? Banchan: pajeon, kimchi pajeon, baby potatoes, gimbap, tamagoyaki (egg rolls), and chicharon (because who passes up on chicharon?haha) Spicy fried chicken, jeyyuk bokkeum, bulgogi. 

Unli Samgyeopsal, yay! That's Meann's plate at the corner. They also had japchae but I passed on that. I'm not a fan of the sweet potato noodles. 

Others that I didn't try were mandu (dumplings), spring rolls, sisig (by the looks of it, it was definitely sisig but I'm also not sure if they have a version of that in Korea. I might need to ask my students to confirm.kkk) and the other leafy banchan. There were also two kinds of soup, egg and kimchi chigae according to my friend who did try them. 

 

Fresh fruits for dessert. They also had Bingrrae ice cream, frozen yogurt, and popcicles which were priced cheaper than other Korean restos I've tried.hehe Above: Frozen themed strawberry yogurt P60, and coffee flavored ice cream P30.

Flashing the "V" sign while munching on something.kkk Annyeong Haseyo! :) 

Ahh...mashitaa ^^ There were no more pictures of the succeeding rounds. I just had two. And after the ice cream round, I was done. I don't usually go to buffet restaurants because  feel like I can't get the value of my money. But then again, P330 for a filling dinner plus ice cream is not bad. So, where will our hungry tummies and happy feet take us next?.. Did anyone say Marikina? :) 



Don Day Fresh Korean BBQ
Cicumferential Rd.
11 am - 2 pm; Lunch
5 pm - 10 pm; Dinner