SSS.... It's 2008!!!
My niece promised me that she'll treat me an ice cream. Thus, after lunch, proceeded to
Glorietta for that promised ice. But first, stopped by the cemetery to visit my
Nanay, lit a candle and said a prayer.
Before proceeding to the theaters, bought first food needed for our New Year's Eve celebration. Bought cakes and pastry at
Goldilocks. It was the
The Landmark's supermarket for the "round" fruits like grapes, oranges, apples, etc.
It was
Sakal, Sakali, Saklolo for us. A sequel to the successful romantic comedy
Kasal, Kasali, Kasalo, the movie did not disappoint. (Oh! My niece bought me an Oreo blizzard from
Dairy Queen. hehehe!) This time, it is the chapter on the lives of Angie (Judy Ann Santos) and Jed (Ryan Agoncillo) with their new baby, Rafa. And because of the new grandson, it is a "battle" between the in-laws. The movie did not fail to make its audience laugh, a great feel-good movie.
After the movie, we had our early dinner at
Pizza Hut Bistro in Glorietta 4. This is to take advantage, too, of the 10% discount coupon we have whose effectivity is until today. LOL
(The mall would be closing early today. The 3PM screening is the last full show for the movie.)
There are lots of "beliefs" for the change of the year. One is that the dinner table should be full of food (with round fruits included) to start the year bountiful. At the strike of twelve, the children should jump so that they would grow taller. There should be money in all the pockets of what you're wearing so that one will not be in need ("
may madudukot kung kailangan")--some even wear round design (for coins) or clothes are colored green (for dollar). There were firecrackers to ward of evil (but these, I think, is more of Chinese tradition).
While waiting for twelve midnight, we played
Wii to while the hours away... c",)
A happy and prosperous 2008 to all of us!!!
Enchanted Kingdom
It is becoming a tradition...
Almost every year, with my nephews and nieces in tow, we go to
Enchanted Kingdom (EK), the Philippines' Theme Park.
Meeting place is at my aunt's house since most of the kids live within the area. Before the agreed time of departure, we were already there; thus, left earlier than 9AM. A good decision since a portion of the South Express Way is being repaired. This gave us time to be at EK before their opening at 10AM.
Surprise! Surprise! Bamboo is also having a concert there at 7PM. Definitely a nice treat for the teeners in our group.
As soon as we entered the theme park, rented lockers for our belongings, was the first to ride the
Dodgem (bump car), followed it with
Roller Skater. We were also the first to ride the
Anchor's Away. Then, it was
Bump N' Splash. They rode again the Anchor's Away.
For the brave, they took the
Space Shuttle, an 11-storey high and triple loop coaster. Tried our hand at
Kart Trak before finally having our lunch.
After lunch, we decided on a "milder" activity. We went to
Rialto, which featured "Spongebob Squarepants". Then, it was
4D Discovery Theater. Finally, they changed the movie! It was "Pirates", starring Leslie Nielsen.
Just in time, we were able to watch
Oliver's Water Show of Switzerland, a show where divers perform spectacular diving stunts.
Alas! There was a drizzle. Thus, decided to ride the
Rio Grande Rapids lest we get wet. LOL. Since the kids were already wet, they proceeded to
Log Jam.
It was the first time I rode an All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) at EK's
Exodus. There were also small ATVs for kids younger than 12 years old. I think I like the ATV better than the Go Kart. The disadvantage of the ATV ride is you can get dirty. c",)
We had an early dinner at 6PM, in time for the start of
Bamboo's New Year Concert. As the teeners watched the concert, the rest of the group took another round of the rides. Our logic? Since most would be watching the concert, there would only be few people queueing up for the rides... (",)
My cousin and his family followed, in time for the concert.
The fireworks display around 10PM is our sign that it's time to go home...
Shake, Rattle & Roll 9
For the first movie to watch that is included in the
Metro Manila Film Festival, it was the ninth installment of
Shake, Rattle & Roll.
An anthology of three horror stories titled "Christmas Tree", "Bangungot" and "Engkanto". In "Christmas Tree", a family's Christmas has been disrupted by what seems like a haunted Christmas tree. In "Bangungot", a woman lives in fear of nightmares which plagues her family. In "Engkanto", a group of young people got lost in the wilderness.
After the movie, attended the anticipated Mass and had dinner at
TGIF.
Last Working Day of 2007
I am to bring pudding (baked by my Nana). There would be
palabok, hotdog, barbecue, chips and dips, sodas--potluck!
My last working day of the year found me at our Makati office. We were invited by our previous boss in her house for her Christmas treat. Our small
salo-salo is around
meryenda time. We're definitely full! Burp!
Christmas Day!!!
Normally, they would be coming to our house. It was decided that it would be a rotation. So, for this year, it would be at our Aunt's house.
There were singing, eating, raffle and lots of chatting. c",)
And I won PhP1,000.00 in the raffle!
Claus
Decided to go to Glorietta to attend the Mass; but first, visited my mom in her resting place, lit her a candle and said a prayer.
Since it is still early, watched a movie--
Fred Claus. A comedy film about the brother of Santa (Nicholas) Claus... and we didn't know he had a brother! Fred Claus always lived in the shadow of his popular brother. No wonder he turned-up into a bitter, cynical, con man. When his brother Nicholas bailed him out of jail, the former has a condition: Fred should move to the North Pole and work for him.
D' Proof is in the Crocs
Stopped first at
Cityland to pick up my refund. Then, decided to stress test my new
Crocs. So, instead of taking a jeepney ride to
Glorietta, walked my way there!
It is also a good excuse to see the different Christmas decor, mostly
belen, depicting the birth of Jesus in the manger. They would have looked awesome at night, with their lights on.
My walk led me to
The Landmark where I bought additional items needed for our Christmas feast. I also picked-up there the free green tea for using my credit card to purchase items at said store.
Obviously, my next stop is the movies! Watched
Death Proof, a Quentin Tarantino movie about a crazed, retired stuntman who stalks a group of women and eventually murders them using his "death proof" car. The car is death proof for those seated in the driver's seat. But, he eventually met his match with a group of girls, two of which are stunt women by profession. As expected, the movie has the Tarantino touch. The car chase is something to look forward to in the movie. c",)
After the movie, did some window shopping, attended the anticipated Mass and had dinner at
Super Bowl.
Despedida
Another one would be "flying away from the coop" to a greener pasture. This time, he's going to Malaysia.
Several of us treat him for lunch at
Dencio's for a
despedida.
Christmas Groceries
Decided to play Wii today, alternately wrapping my Christmas gifts. Then, my brother called and asked me that I be the one to buy the grocery list for our Christmas feast.
Since my niece wanted to watch the romnantic drama movie
Batanes, decided to watch the movie we want (I would be watching
Catacombs, instead) and buy the groceries later.
Catacombs is a horror, thriller about a woman attending a secret party in the Catacombs, the network of underground limestone tunnels underneath the streets of romantic Paris. As she got separated from her sister and her sister's friends, that's when she becomes prey to a mysterious threat.
Since the producer of the movie is the same who produced the
Saw series, it worked on the same plot of harnessing the fear of the protagonist. Maybe because of this knowledge (same producer, that is), I was able to guess what would be the film's twist. Stick to the Saw series.
After the movie, me and my niece had an early dinner at
Pizza Hut Bistro (we've got a 10% discount for watching in one of Glorietta 4's cinemas). It is also then when I noticed that my favorite slipper/sandal,
Braziliano Praia, is broken. That's when I decided to buy a replacement. Went to
Nothing But Water, but my slipper/sandal is no longer on sale. Thus, it was
Crocs for me (which I was able to buy at
Rustan's).
We, then, proceeded to
The Landmark as my niece would be buying gifts for her friends. While she was doing her shopping, went to
Mr. Quickie to have my slipper/sandal repaired. And it only cost me P30.00!
Finally, we were able to buy the groceries. It was a breeze as I was familiar with the supermarket of The Landmark. We also stopped by
Conti's at
Serendra to buy a cake--Mango Bravo.
Christmas Shopping!!!
Today's my niece's turn to buy her Christmas gifts. She requested that I accompany her. But first, went to
Cityland to pick up the title of my condo unit. Starting next year, I would be paying the real property tax of my unit.
Went back home to pick up my niece and proceeded to the
SM Mall of Asia. Took two jeepney rides to reach our destination. Upon arriving at the mall, decided to have our lunch first at
Pancake House so our shopping would be uninterrupted.
My niece was able to complete half of those in her list--and almost all were bought on sale. I, too, was able to buy gifts for my
inaanak and her sister plus my nephew (her cousin).
Took a taxi home to drop the items we bought and proceeded to the
Glorietta for more shopping. Slowly but surely, my niece was able to tick-off a lot from her list.
We, then, attended the anticipated Mass and had dinner at the
Pancake House (again) as my other niece requested Pancake's taco as
pasalubong.
Oh! Piolo Pascual was supposed to have a concert at the Glorietta Activity Center, sponsored by
Bench, from 6PM-7PM. We left the mall around 6:45PM and Piolo was still not around.
Christmas Party!
Today's our unit's Christmas party at AFP Commissioned Officers Club in Camp Aguinaldo. And the theme is hip-hop.
There are raffles, game and presentation (contest). Did not win, even a minor prize... c",)
Weeeeeehhhhh!!! (Wii)
Today's the day I started distributing gifts for the office. So, left their gifts on their desk for those based in Makati. This way, as soon as they arrive on Monday, it would really be a good start for the week.
Then, attended the anticipated Mass and bought myself my (additional) Christmas gift--Wii games.
(Last Tuesday, December 4, bought me a Wii. It already includes a game: Wii Sports. Last night, me and my niece spent the night playing with our new toy. Hehehe!)
Enchanted
Second of the three-day weekend. Decided to watch another movie. This time, it's
Enchanted, an animation, comedy, fantasy film with the usual Disney flair.
A fairytale princess is thrown out into the real world by en evil queen/witch who wanted to retain her crown. With the help of a handsome lawyer, the soon-to-be princess must adapt to the strangness of the modern day New York and find her way back home. The movie is a perfect family fare, with humor thrown here-and there.
After the movie, attended the anticipated Mass and had dinner at
Italianni's. Checked the choir performing at Greenbelt 4 Park and did some shopping at Marks & Spencer for they have a two-day sale with 10% off on all items.
