Wickedly Rue

While waiting for my laundry to soak, yes I soak  then pour the ever reliable powdered Ariel and wait for an hour to let those phosphates do their job, I decided to do a 1-hour blog about  some of my 2014 favorites. The pub in Makati,-Rue Bourbon Bar and Resto, my favorite play- Wicked the Musical and my favorite lime-light person- Taylor Swift.

Bourbons and Big Ass Beers

Favorite, yes. Frequented? No. In fact I was only there twice, both for this year. The first is in febuary after watching Wicked the Musical in CCP and again in May when we went here to watch Taylor Swift's RED concert in MOA. Before you jump and call me names, let me just point out that it's impossible to frequent the pub when I'm living in Cebu. But demographics could not stopped me from liking this bar. I often wonder why I always end up my Manila escapades with a visit to Rue. And I often look for pubs that would remotely resemble Rue in Cebu but to know avail. Uhm, pub franchising, anyone? I know what your thinking:  this is just an ordinary pub. Well, is it now?? 

Can you associate ordinary when you look at that monster glass?? I bet not. Or your just too cocky to tell the truth. Cocky or plain alcoholic, perhaps?? Believe me, they are not  as harmless as they look.  You might be fooled by the naughty sweet names like Caramel Big Ass beer or Cucumber Big Ass but they packed a wallop. How else could I place blame on the drunken and tipsy-shitty faces looking back at me when I gather myself together in the restroom? This is truly a quiet place for drinkers. Oh, except when we're there.  And I distinctly remember a night with an Indian and a broken glass. Despite of what you may think, we're not alcoholics. We just momentarily turned into one once we start chugging down baby Big Ass Caramel over here. Clingk!

Best thing about the pub, you get a birthday shot on the house! But you might want to check if dear old waiter has turned your birthday candles upside down? A 9 is not a 6. Or you'll end up having "92" over that damn cake!  And yes, for food chasers they do have some sick selection of yummy platters. Well, broken glass and all we are now planning to visit the Eastwood branch.  Salud to the Big Ass!    

Trails of Wickedness

We're all smiles after we witnessed the beauty that is so wonderfully Wicked. I remember how we searched for those cheap  makeshift paper binoculars because we just can't afford the one sold in the toys department inside the malls. Well, except for Geear. And yes, u guessed it right, we end up taking turns at it. :)  I remember how Arts gripped my right hand while we we're stunned in awe-struck silence gaping at the scene unraveling in front of us. Elphaba seemed to be clad in nothing but darkness while she's suspended up on a broom singing Defying Gravity like it's the most defining moment of her character. Well the moment was indeed defined perfectly, for me  at least, Talk about cold damp hands with goosebumps all over in an I-can't-get-over-it-can-we-pause-and-rewind-please good way?! Beautiful. Wicked. We should have shouted for an encore! If only there are no codes of conduct involved in watching a play then I would have shouted some creative profanity that can closely described that moment when I realize that how lucky I was for just being there. Well, maybe not but it would definitely still crossed my mind.

Red lips and RED in MOA

We were close to have given up. Tickets were thought to be sold out. But then comes the silver lining. An expensive one but for me it was all worth it. The shouts. The tears. The songs. The happiness when she finally went on stage. It was priceless. We may be far from the VIP section but it did not stop us from pouring our hearts out in all of her songs. As in, all of it.  Yep, we were ecstatic. We all have our weak spot. Ours turn out to be a towering 5 ft. 11 in. superstar. You don't agree?  Well, I got one word. 1989.  She spot the one right through the hoop. It did not even grazed the net.:)

*** Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed my 1-hour blog challenge. Till next time :)

I Fell in Love with Dear Old Bukidnon

The travel time from Mukas to Bukidnon is roughly 4 hours after a 30-minute barge ride from the port of Ozamis. Lucky for us- me, Arts, Kat and Jen- we were spared from the exhausting bus ride since my friend's mom was kind enough to lend us their car. It was a quiet ride. Arts slept like a babe in the passengers seat while Kat dozed off beside me. Traffic has not congested the road yet and the blur of the scenery that was moving past us is a different kind of beauty in itself. I could just feast my eyes on the enormous lakes and the mountain sides. The familiar traffic reemerges along with the day to day lives when we arrived in CDO. We made a quick stop in Ket Kai mall to pick up the rest of the gang who flew late- Tin, Choi -and Geear ,who had to ride a boat to CDO and some supplies. 

Then we're off to Bukidnon. Upon seeing the winding roads ahead as we exited the road leading to Barangay Dahilayan in Manolo Fortich I couldn't help but feel the excitement ran through my travel-weary veins. The anticipation of what's to come is roaring in my bone-tired body-  tired from the lack of sleep from the previous night. The road leading to the Camp is not well-paved and its dusty but it only added to the appeal of dear old Bukidnon. Along the dirt roads are rows of young pineapple plants that goes on and on bearing their God-given crowns.

attempting the obligatory "jump shot"

You'll pass by this iconic giant Pineapple landmark somewhere along the road reminding you that an enormous plantation is just ahead.

Upon reaching the vicinity of Dahilayan Adventure park we checked ourselves in the Kubo Huts @ Saddle Ridge Camp and hunted for lunch. The huts are adorable, no pun intended! Best part is it's really cost efficient for only 1500 php for 3 to 4 paux.

We met a new friend while waiting for the food. I call her Suzie yet I'm not really certain if there's a lack of dog balls thereof. Boy how glad I am that Suzie is as tamed as a carpet rug when we started browbeating the crews for a really lousy service. 

  

First thing that got my attention are the Horses. Damn those beauties really do belong in Bukidnon. Young boys shy of 12 years old expertly riding a trotting and galloping horse is just another normal sight.  After lunch  we got ready for the the adventure park.  Yeah, baby!! Carbs plus adrenaline is a great combo when you need all the energy you can get to survive those rides! Then it hit me. I was enraptured by the  scene laid  out for me. Cliffs surrounding us with rolling green hills on the edges and towering pine trees . But nothing beats the freshness that fills my lungs when I breathe the cleaness air I've ever tasted, so far.

That's Tin and Arts on the picture. Shamelessly destroying what could have been the money shot. But I forgive them but not as much as I forgive my hand :)

I could just live here forever.. with cable tv and wifi, of course. Or how am I supposed to update  the blog? I bet arts could also live here, if the good entrepreneurs of Bukidnon decide to build her coffee shops and movie houses. Or Te Jen and Tin could live here if our gov't decides to build satellite labs here; that's malls for Choi; The One for Kat with her quiet dark places and as for Geear, he can live anywhere. 

We head up to the Park and purchase the tickets for the Unlimited Zip-line, first.  Gear up, baby!! It's gonna be one bumpy ride!

And I ain't joking around:

What the fudge, right?! But that's how they do it in dear old Bukidnon. U gotta experience it all or nothing at all. The only way to get to the first Zip-line is through a death-defying 3-5 minute ride in this ATV with a reckless-for-hell of a driver giving you a complete yet insane experience- Dahilayan style! If you cant see whacked-in-the-brain crazy fun on that video then I will feel sorry for you and your sense of adventure. 

Then comes the Zip-lines. I never fully understood the concept of acceleration until I did the superman Zip-line against Kat- a.k.a The Skinny B. Boy! Superman himself couldn't haven been much faster. I was like a bullet train and the whole time a little voice inside my head is wondering how the hell should I stop?

One of the nicest background view I've seen taken from a running Zip-line. Good job pre!

- to be continued- 

****Next in I fell In Love with Dear Old Bukidnon are the heart-stopping Dropzone and the cozy bonfire bonding. :)

The World Through My Mini Eyes

On the second week of a one-month temporary relocation in Manila, I decided to pursue my blog . Well, given that this is already two years in the making- one and  half of that is what I call the "gathering stages" which can be roughly translated to months of staring into the unknown and yes, procrastinating- I strongly feel that I'm a long way behind in tapping those keyboards.

What should YOU expect from my blog?  Everything and absolutely nothing :) 

What should I expect from my blog?  That my friends got my back... especially when I'm writing some things in their expense- which is alot! I hope they never find out about this blog :)

I suck mostly in? Swimming. I think I have a better chance in cooking than learning how to swim. And I can even managed to burn fried eggs. 

Now the question really is "where should I start?".  Yes, this is usually how I end up in "staring into the unknown". But no, sir! Not this time, Jose :) So lemme start my blog journey by sharing one of the highlights of my 2014- The Bukidnon Trip.

The Bukidnon trip is the second stop of our Ozamis-Bukidnon-Cagayan escapade. This might sound ambitious on a 4day/3night vacation and the amount of time we would spend on the road traveling to Oza from CDO's Laguindingan Airport and back from Oza to Bukidnon via CDO but boy did we conquered this one with a big badass boom! To read  more on our Bukidnon Trip please check out my second blog- I Fell in Love with Dear Old Bukidnon.