Baguio Travel June 2011

This is my 2^nd day here in "Summer Capital of the Philippines", Baguio City – one of my top on the list when it comes to travel destination. It's a very nice and good day here, sun continue to shine while enjoying its cool mountain weather. This time, I’ve got a chance to enter the Benguet State University Campus as we buy some ube products produced by BSU students.

Bridge in BSU's mini park

Some student finds time to relax and have fun.

Wright Park, which is located across the main gate of the Mansion, is one of the scenic parks in Baguio City. It features body of water known as the "Pool of Pines" and the park circle which is on one end of the park. Postcard-type photographs are usually taken at both ends of Wright Park and when going there it is best to bring along a camera. Tall pine trees on both sides of the access road beside the pool decorate the park.

Mines View Park, no doubt, is one of the busiest and most visited parks in the city. In here, one can take a panoramic view of surrounding mountains and wide variety of views, from copper mines to mountains of pine tree to some residential areas between mountains. The first time I saw this park last October 1998, due to its beauty, I immediately think, if only my father would have a chance to see this magnificent view that Mines View has, well, he’ll surely utter how majestic is our Lord to create such wonderful place.

At the entrance to the park are stalls selling native handicraft. Wood carvings were one of the souvenirs known to visitors in visiting Baguio.

Dinner time, it’s time for me to try “Sizzling Pigar”. It’s a stripped beef meat topped with onions and served sizzling hot. Btw friends, It tastes great and deserves a second try.

"Sizzling Pigar"

Here are some of my night photography of the heart of the city, the intersection of Harrison Road and Magsaysay Avenue where Hotel Veniz is located. I’ve got my opportunity to take these pictures and I’m sharing it with you.

Bloggers Buffet at Carol's Texan 5

Last night, a number of bloggers were luckily invited to the first ever Bloggers Buffet held at Carol's Texan 5 at 2F 713 J. Abad Santos St., Barangay Little Baguio, San Juan, Metro Manila. Despite the outpouring of rain that night due to Typhoon Falcon, we are not stopped from attending this event. And I am glad we are for we enjoyed the event from meeting new faces to indulging with good food.

Foremost, "What is Bloggers Buffet"? Tristan Maharlika, the author behind this blog, explained to us that:

Bloggers Buffet is a food review and food events blog. It's about the enjoyment of the abundance of good food as part of the good life. Indeed, Life's one big buffet!

Hence, we all should be expecting a series of Bloggers Buffet events from now on. Believe me guys, each event will be an enjoyable one.

The first Bloggers Buffet was held at Carol's Texan 5 which I had blogged about about a week ago. Okay, let's discuss its anatomy. Carol is the name of the owner; Texan because the food being served here is American since Carol loves American food; and 5 because they got five main dishes to brag about.

We bloggers are very fortunate that we could savor Carol's dishes for FREE.

1. Ultimate Texan Ribs (includes vegetables and rice) - This one is a two-thumbs up! A must try in their menu. And if the serving is of this size, you'll never get out of the store hungry.
   
   
   
2. Tomato Basil Pasta
   
   
   
3. Dynamite Wings
   
   
   

I guess you just need to take a look at my plate to let the food speak for itself.


I emptied my plate and have to have a second serving of what I describe "good food".

Event Sponsors

Aside from Bloggers Buffet and Carol's Texan 5, following are the event sponsors that deserves a bountiful gratitude from us:

• Coca Cola
• San Miguel
• Cignal
• YOU Hair&Body Salon
• Cliqmanila
• Fern-C

And much appreciation goes to Ten Minutes Tops and ClubTravelNOW.org for organizing this event.

And I'm really glad at meeting new blogger friends! See you in the next events!

Upcoming Fun Runs

I know there had been a number of fun runs now in the country. Previously, they were just held mostly on Sunday mornings. But now, fun runs are held on Saturdays or Sundays, morning or night. Below are some of the fun runs that will commence in the months of July and August. More importantly, you can register in these fun runs via RunnersRunner.

Ateneo Diamond Blue Race: Race and SPARK - August 28, 2011, SM MOA

ATENEO DIAMOND BLUE RACE: RUN and SPARK
August 28, 2011
Assembly Time: 5:00 AM
SM Mall of Asia

Events:

• 3K: Php 500 1,500 slots (Early Reg: Nickname printed on the Race Bib)
• 5K: Php 600 1,500 slots (Early Reg: Nickname printed on the Race Bib)
• 10K: Php 700 1,000 slots (Early Reg: Nickname printed on the Race Bib)

Inclusive of:

Ateneo Diamond Blue Race Singlet, Race Bib w/ Raffle Coupon/Freebie Stub, Race Route, RFID Timing Chip, Donor’s Certificate (for Blue Plate: 4K Feeding Program, APS Disaster Relief Team and Ateneo SPARK Mission).

Registration periods:

• Online registration: On-going (while supplies last)
• Early registration: May 28 to July 18 (Nickname printed on the Race Bib)
• Late registration: July 19 onwards (while supplies last)

Stallion Run - 10 July 2011, San Juan, MM

Title: THE 2011 XAVIER STALLION RUN
Date: 10 JULY 2011
Events: 3K, 5K, 10K and 21K
Venue: Xavier School Grounds

Registration:

• P500 registration fee for 3K and 5K
• P600 registration fee for 10K and 21K

(includes singlet and freebies)

Project: Back to School Baguio Fun Run - July 16, 2011, Camp John Hay

Title: Project: Back to School Baguio Fun Run
Date (updated): July 16, 2011
Venue: Camp John Hay, Baguio City
Events: 3K/5K/15K

Event Details (Online Registration):

Paranaque Run for Knowledge - July 9, 2011, Macapagal Ave.

Event Title: Paranaque Run for Knowledge
Date: July 9, 2011
Venue: Macapagal Ave, Paranaque City
Categories: 3K/5K/15K

Registration Period : May 27 – June 30, 2011

RunnersRunner Improved Their Service

I am a witness to a number of registration and race kit collection flaws of running events. Well, my girl even had a number of rants about it. But, runners need not to deal with such hassle and worries - because RunnersRunner (RR) will make our runs worry-free.

Basically, RR is a one-stop shop of almost all the races that is happening in the Philippines wherein you can register online and have your race kits delivered right at your doorstep! You can check out testimonials of the satisfied runners here.

With all the "thumbs up" of RR is getting from the running community, they did not sit back and relax. What they do is improve on their service to make it from good to better to best. Last June 17, a launching of these new services was held at R.O.X. which includes the following:

1. Aside from their online presence, they are now at R.O.X. 2nd floor.
2. On top of their existing payment options, RR is now accepting credit card and bancnet payments.
3. Improved support via hotline (02-5078348), textline (0917-5352128), and online (www.runnersrunner.com/faqs)

So runners, worry not about your registration or race kits. Register your next run via RR and concentrate on your trainings! For running is not meant to stress you more, it should always be FUN!

Daddy's Day @ SM City Marilao

fter attending some important meeting here at SM Marilao, we headed to SM Marilao's The Event Center to take a look of Daddy's Day Vintage Cars, Bikes, Motorcycles & Cameras June 2011 exhibit. Below are the photos.

I can't help myself but admire and be amazed of the owners who were able to preserve these items for such a long period of time. Not to mention that Typhoon Ondoy hit the province. I, too, am hoping that I could preserve my bike and camera that I may be one of the owners of the items being exhibited in this mall in the future.

Carol's Texan 5

Carol's Texan 5, situated at 2F 713 J. Abad Santos St., Barangay Little Baguio, San Juan, Metro Manila, offers the best chicken and ribs in this side of Manila.


Food choices ranges from appetizers, sandwiches, main entrees, pastas, and desserts. Browsing it convinces me that the prices are fair. Would really love to savor Texan Grilled Chicken and Tomato Basil Pasta with Shrimp.


Currently, the store is offering the following services:

1. Dine-in and enjoy your best chicken and ribs at their store in Little Baguio
2. Delivery which is limited to San Juan, Mandaluyong, Ortigas and Pioneer area only
3. Event Food Booths that are are available for hire
4. Party Trays for your needs on any special occasions
5. Functions to have your event as awesome as possible
6. Kiddie Meal Sets kid's party needs

Store Contact Details:

Address:
2F 713 J. Abad Santos St.
Barangay Little Baguio
San Juan, Metro Manila
Philippines 1500

Tel.: +63 (2) 727-3843
Mobile: +63 (922) 485-0154
Email: orders@texan5.com
Web: www.texan5.com
Facebook: http:/www.facebook.com/texan5

So why am I blogging about this? Because there is an upcoming Blogger's Buffet at Carol's Texan 5 on June 23, 2011. Only 30 chosen bloggers will be invited. And I have to answer this question - "Why would you like to be part of the first Bloggers Buffet?" Okay, I need to be cheesy now.

Yesterday marks the 9 years and 11 months of my relationship with my girl. We have not celebrated our special day with an extra spice. But I really wanted to make up for it come June 23. Hence, I would like to be a part of the first Bloggers Buffet; and hoping that my girl will also be picked. It would be great to have a night of togetherness, making way despite our busy schedule.

If chosen, or even if not, would like to raise a hand for the organizers, TenMinutesTops and ClubTravelNOW.org.

FEBC's 63rd Anniversary

Since childhood, I have been celebrating the anniversary of Far East Broadcasting Corporation (FEBC) together with my family. Founded in 1945, it is a non-denominational, international Christian radio network that broadcasts the Good News in more than 130 languages from 128 transmitters located throughout the world.

This year, it injected a new activity in the celebration - running. It is dubbed as "I Run with a Living Hope", my family (my girl included) registered for the 3K category. Unfortunately, we were around 15 or 20 minutes late. So, we ended up just running less than a kilometer. With that, my girl and I headed on our way to CCP Complex to join the runners who were having their training.


After running for around 5km in almost an hour (walking for cool down included), we headed back to Bulwagan ng Panginoon (formerly known as Folk Arts Theater) for the anniversary.

A number of presentations transpired in the anniversary centering on who our Living Hope is. At the same time, FEBC introduced their aspirations for its future. We're not that close in the stage so I don't have a good quality photos to share. Sorry about that.

At the end of the program, we had our picnic just outside the bulwagan, beside the Manila Bay. Don't you worry, there's no stinking smell here.

After filling our stomach with good food, we proceed to Rizal Park (through walking) which deserves another post.