Bonchon Honey Citrus Chicken and Crispy Crepes

I've been a fan on first bite of their Soy Garlic version. My favorite order is their 3-pc thigh box (Small) that costed Php 185 ($ 4.24) before and increased to Php 195 ($ 4.47) now. The spicy version is not too spicy, which suits my taste at times.

Bonchon's newest flavor: Honey Citrus - will delight those who prefer oriental chicken salads with asian vinaigrette dressing. It tastes as sweet as Chowking's orange chicken but as crispy as the classic soy garlic. For me it beats the aforementioned.. Ü

Krispy Kreme Drive Thru in NLEX

I spend most of my time in the province so the Drive-Thru concept of Krispy Kreme is new to me. I'm not exactly sure if this is the first of its kind in the Philippines but it's my first time seeing such version of the famous donut chain. It's in NLEX Petron (northbound), before Starbucks Drive-Thru.

There's nothing new on their menu except for the expanded selection of coffee choices. The cashier know-how and service mimics that of a Starbucks barista but the taste of their food and beverages favor the sweet tooth.

Empire Steak

Ex bf and I decided to have yet another food exploration in Maginhawa St. I was hoping to chance upon a decent steak joint. Our search led us to this establishment...

Outside, the place seemed too small for a great steak.. But it had a uniqueness to it that we decided to give it a try. Heck, we were there for the food ü

The place didn't have its own parking lot, so we had to parallel park on the road itself in front of the establishment. They had 3 small tables taking over the side walk. It was a humid dusk that time so dining al fresco style was not an option. Upon entering, I was impressed with the store layout considering the very small venue they had. Here's a panoramic shot inside:

Clarisonic Plus

I'm pretty much addicted to new stuff (or at least new finds for me). While surfing the world wide web for skin care products, I stumbled upon CLARISONIC. It claims 6x better cleansing than hands alone and removes 30x more age-accelerating pollution than manual cleansing.

I tried to buy online www.clarisonic.com but was having problems checking-out. It won't accept the details I provided! Instead of wasting more time, I tried searching for other online dealers. I learned www.sephora.com offers the product with special offer - free cleanser, bronzer, extension handle (for back cleansing) travel pouch and a big discount: Php 9,853 ($225) only for a Php 13,883,02 ($317) value! I bought one, checked out and shipped through www.johnnyair.com ü Got my package in 10 days ü

Don Don Tei

If you're craving for Jap food while you're in SM Clark, try visiting the food court and look for Don Don Tei - sister company of Yufuin, an authentic Jap restaurant in Balibago. Being a major Yufuin fan, I was elated to know such fact ;-)

I grew hungry after going around the mall at about 4:30pm so I decided to have an afternoon snack with ex bf.

Though not on the menu, I asked if they serve sashimi. The cashier confirmed they do but only limited to Tuna and Salmon. For Php 120 ($ 2.74) I got 5 slices. Ü

Maybelline Baby Lips Pink Glow

Here I am again on my obsession with lip products.... this time, I've put Maybelline's famous Baby Lips line to test. Got the Pink Blast / Pink Glow variant:

This one costs Php 100 ($ 2.28) on retail. Ms. Beauty Consultant told me it's colorless, but I guess she hasn't seen the tester - it's more on the light orange side:

MacBook Pro with Retina Display ME866ZP/A

So I got myself an early Christmas present last year. I actually got myself and ex bf matching iPhone 5s 64GB Gold in that same month - but that's not the gift I'm talking about :D 

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I've never been addicted so much to Apple until 2009. Way back, I used to raise my brows to Apple fanatics and criticize the exclusivity of their preferred brand. I didn't see much use for an iPod then, I thought iPhones were tacky and absurdly priced, supported by equally absurd consumers willing to pay sky high for a phone. And then the most absurd product yet known to man: the iPad. What on earth was Apple thinking when it created the iPad?!? A more compact computer that had no computing power than running applications that work so-so on the performance department??!! I didn't see the point of iPad's existence before. It was merely an oversized iPod touch back then.. It was year 2009 when I finally joined the bandwagon and gave up my preconceived notion about the brand. Bought an iPhone 4, half curious of what the hype was all about and half daring myself to see and try the product. From then on, I was a believer. Apple products were built to perfection that I could not, for the life of me, criticize, even a single feature! I've never realized how much I was missing on touch screen until I used iPhone. From that time onwards, there existed just two types of touch screen phones in my vocabulary: one is iPhone and the other one is "oThers" (get it?? LOL) The responsiveness, ease of use, the speed - they never deteriorate in time, as compared to their other counterparts! Sorry Samsung, you had your chance with Note and the other Galaxy models but you just can't beat iPhone in a lot of ways. Yes, you're fairly fast at first, but Apple has something that you don't have: consistency in performance, for when your system's been filled with data (photos, videos, messages, music), the speed of the phone is lost whereas iPhone remains fast, unbeaten.

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Going back to the early Christmas present I got, since I'm so in love with Apple, I finally decided to give MacBook Pro a chance. The main problem of a MacBook for me then was the weight. I was not willing to carry around a computer the weight of a boulder on my shoulders or on my back. I knew I was missing a lot, I even considered buying a MacBook Air but I'd rather buy an iPad than that one. MacBook Air was (and still is) just a pricier version of the iPad. For me, 'twas Pro or nothing. Then news came to me that the new model was released, with retina display and packs a lighter weight! I checked it out in a Mac store and I was in love. I was torn between getting the 15" and the 13" but I finally reconciled the three most important features for me: weight, computing speed and battery power - so I chose the Php 92,990 ($ 1,799) Macbook Pro 13" with 2.6 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz, 8gb 1600MHz memory, 512GB PCIe-based flash storage, Intel Iris Graphics and Built-in battery that lasts up to 9 hours. I was in love at first use.

West Loch Park Hotel in Vigan Ilocos Sur

After the morning drive to Ilocos and the afternoon walk in Calle Crisologo and Baluarte, we drove a bit north to check in at West Loch Park Hotel for a much needed rest. I booked a Deluxe Room through  www.agoda.com. Price was a bit high that time because it was peak season (Holy Week, April 2014) but I think a Deluxe Room should range from Php 4,000 - Php 5,000 ($ 92 - $ 112) on regular days.

Armed with Google Maps, I navigated towards the location and saw an unassuming facade to my left. Parking slots at the hotel front are for about 3-4 cars only. Upon our arrival, all the slots were taken. Mr. security guard was quick to approach us to check if we will be checking in, and he was courteous and fast enough to open the hotel gates and assist us to a vacant slot. Checking in was a breeze, it only took about 3 minutes tops before they gave us the key to our room. Upon entering the room, I was surprised to see a well maintained, clean and modern room.

It's been my usual routine whenever I check in to a hotel to scrutinise the bathroom first before giving my thumbs up. I was not disappointed. The bath tub was really inviting so I gave in to a 45-minute hot tub reward after long hours of driving and walking around town.

Their towels smell great, just like the towels in Shangri-La hotels - I'm not exaggerating :) When I got out, I saw some hawaiian macadamia nuts (a can of Mauna Loa Macadamia Nuts) and a basket of fruits near the complimentary water bottles. Called up front desk to double check if the fruits and nuts were part of the generous compliments. They were indeed free, loved it! :) The room is equipped with wifi too..

Beijing Tour Scams

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Note: This is a repost from the old blog I have... took down the post from that blog already.
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My husband and I went to Beijing for a tour on May 7-11, 2013. We booked our trip through a licensed tour operator in the Philippines, Aboex Travel & Tours. It was stated in our travel voucher that we need to follow the whole scheduled itinerary and should we decide not to follow, all hotel rooms, tours and meals will automatically be forfeited, so we adhered.

On May 9, 2013 our tour guide, “Aimee” from Century Holiday (tour operator in China that partnered with Aboex) brought us to a Chinese Medicine Shop for a “foot massage” after our Jade Shop, Juyongguan Pass (Great Wall) & Lunch stops.

"Dr. Dong"

Lip Marker

This is the first time I've encountered such product: A lip tint in marker form. I'm familiar with lip tints, esp. benetint, but not in this form. Frankly, it works for me. Application is super easy, it just takes two strokes, unlike the usual lip brushes that take forever to apply evenly.

It's water proof and doesn't budge unless removed intentionally. Just be careful in layering, you might end up with a bright pink tint which is a tad far from natural. The color suits my acidic skin well.

Tint Lip Balm (The Face Shop)

Lately I've been visiting Korean boutiques frequently - they know assortment. Ask for a lip balm and you will be amazed on how much lip balm testers they have! Careful though, you might want to buy everything you try on after :)

I bought this one after testing a plethora of choices..

Tint Lip Balm (The Face Shop) Php 395 ($ 9.02)

Gel Like Surrounding Substance is the Lip Tint; Cherry On the Center is the Lip Balm

Here's how it looks on my lips (color changes in a span of 5 minutes - the tint gets darker in time)

Bene Tint (from Benefit Cosmetics) and Color Lips-fit Top Coat (from Etude House)

My complexion is that of a typical Filipina - I am not white nor dark, just in between. I am also the acidic type so picking shades of whatever make up for me is a careful decision. Many times I've bought make up just to regret it in the end.. I've been using body shop's lip and cheek tint since time immemorial but I really had problems with its staying power in my skin. The color change bugs me too! After much research and tons of reviews, I've settled to bene tint.

been using this tint for quite some time now.. (retails around Php 1,800 or $ 41.12)

I purchased online, back when benefit cosmetics were not yet available in the Philippines (now Benefit Cosmetics have boutiques in Greenbelt 5 and Trinoma). I was in love with the color on my

Gayuma Ni Maria

I was intrigued by the name. I first discovered it on one of my friends' facebook posts. The place seemed nice, so off I went with my ex bf.. ;-)