Pico de Loro 2015

I forgot this happened.

Naw I'm lying. I just never got around to blogging about this trip. We went to Pico sometime last month; meanwhile, I got back from another Batangas beach trip just last week. (The latter went undocumented for unknown reasons.)

Oh look it's da parentals. Hi parentals.

Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell. I dunno what it is about the beach that makes reading so damn chill, but there was just something about the sound of the waves and the setting sun that made for a great late afternoon read.

On that note, the entire trip was pretty chill.

The place had this ace lake (pond?) where you could feed some fishes. Honestly, it felt like a big set up for some horror flick. With the many facilities this place had (a karaoke place, bowling alley, kids daycare, etc.), it almost felt like I was just waiting for a cult to come and murder me. Guests arrive, they get brainwashed, and before they know it they're in some freaky Human Centipede meets Hostel kind of situation.

Members of the resort could meanwhile massacre guests (ala Hostel), the hierarchy of which was dictated by your wealth in terms of which room you booked. I joked that the dead remains and bodies were dumped in the huge lake. (It got pretty creepy at night, and I almost half-expected some limb to reach out to me from the depths of the lake.)

Inside housed some framed pencil art installation. I don't know why, but they made me think of Ana.

Getting away from the city brings you closer to the stars. It made me happy... and it also made me wish I had a dSLR with those screens that flip out.

There was this hanging bridge that was insanely wobbly, and it led to a small patch of land in the middle of the lake. We first discovered it at night, and it got a little creepy, especially after I -- still running on the whole cult thing -- joked that the small island was where the 'sacrifices' took place to summon some kind of demon lord, or maybe to appease the cult leader.

SHRUG You never really know. Especially since this place is owned by da hotshots a.k.a. SM Group.

But hey, spotted in SONYA'S GARDEN OF ALL PLACES was my favorite shirt ever.

The cardinal rule of Sonya's Garden is to never leave without at least one picture of flowers. I broke this rule the last time I went there.

Tagaytay was crazy traffic on the way home, so we took some other, obscure (and freezing) route that led to the Marcos house. Very interesting. Very haunting.

There is also a video, because why wouldn't there be a video?

February-March 2014

In hindsight, I'm pretty glad I got to vlog every month of 2013 (save September, a.k.a. The Dengue Month as I incessantly mention too often), because I haven't actually been able to document much of my life anymore. Mostly because my everyday life is pretty boring, so having been able to travel a lot in 2013 really worked in my vlogging favor.

Anyway, I scrummaged several clips that were left unposted, mostly from February and March. I decided I'd just put them together since there weren't enough clips to produce a standalone video for each month.

It's pretty all over the place, featuring the Lang Leav book signing, a little bit of travel, and random tidbits of home life.

Pictured above are books whose titles hold significance in the Terina friendship.

And of course, obligatory picture with Lang Leav herself. Alex was with us as well, though there is only evidence of such in the video. I find that it's fitting for me to post this now of all times, as Lang Leav's Lullabies book is out already. I intend to get a copy of my own, though as of late I have yet to do so, mostly because I'm lazy (read: stingy) since there was a bit of a disconnect between myself and  Love and Misadventure.

I went to La Union for the first time, met some cool people, and took lots of pictures that aren't worth (nor probably allowed) posting since I was there for work.

Early mornings are only really pleasant when you don't have to get up for work.

One day, en route to my aunt's house, the sky was breathtaking. This picture was taken in front of a church, and looking back, maybe that was God trying to tell me to renew my faith or some kind of holy sign for something in my life. I don't really know.

I remember that being such a nice time in my life though. I miss it.

Boracay: June 2014

Early this June my family and I went to Boracay as a sort of joint birthday celebration for my mom and I. The last time I was in Boracay was in the summer of 2012; that trip was something I wish I could relive, not only because summer of that year was great, but also because I FELL SICK IN THE LATTER OF HALF OF THAT TRIP NOT COOL BEANS.

My cousin was insistent that I could NOT leave without having tried this drink from this one... bar. I don't even remember the name of the drink nor where it came from. I think this is a jar of Weng-Weng?

There's also this vlog, which isn't much to be honest, besides a bunch of shaky clips underwater. I was testing out my shiny new ~*~GoPro~*~ (I know, so very #laboracay #summer2014 #gopro of me), hence the really random, nonsensical video.

January 2014

I kindasortamaybe can't believe sometimes how it's already been a year since my first monthly vlog. January last year I was still panicking over #THESIS, man. I'm surprised that I've even held out this long with vlogs, to be honest, but I'm glad I've been soldiering on!

January was my final trip to Hong Kong. As usual I'll be keeping photos from my HK trips separate, but in the video you get to see some snippets of Sino Centre and that time I met up with my friend Pam. Watching this vlog makes me a little sad sometimes because it makes me miss Hong Kong, but then again, being the sentimental kid that I am, when am I not going to miss anything?

When we got back, my parents and I got to try out Yakitori One. (Hi Ana!) Noms.

I've been wanting to try out Toast Box since October, so my parents and I finally decided to try it out as well. It made me think of my jeogiyo Camille because anything Singapore reminds me of her. More noms.

Jam hosted the advanced screening of I, Frankenstein, and since being friends with her has its perks she was kind enough to take us along with her. Personally, the film's nothing great I guess (but I don't even watch movies to begin with, so...) You can skip it, but it was a joy to watch with my friends. All the crack.

Tintin the beloved.

Beau the accident.

I think Beau spilled some sauce or something on himself, so he went to the washroom and... this happened??!?

My sister now lives in Pampanga, so one weekend we paid her and her family a visit. She took us to this American surplus place which sold a bunch of random goodies, ranging from shoes to glass jars to old toys and so on.

Hardbound copy of Jane Eyre. The fact that it was a hard copy felt so legit with the yellowing pages LOL

90s PARTAAAAY

~*~How to bring sunshine into your nights~*~

A week after our I, Frankenstein date, we got to see Snowpiercer, again c/o Jam (thanks bb.) Lemme tell you man, Snowpiercer was INTENSE. Those mind-blowing plot twists at the end like I-I-I- GO WATCH IT IF YOU CAN PLS

One does not simply step inside a convenience store without mirror shots.

I think that last one was supposed to be our Snowpiercer face. But then Beau.

YEHET FOR GETTING THIS POST UP!