Aling Nene

Along Osmena Highway

 They have one of the best pork barbeque in the Metro. We've been going to this place since I was Happy's age. I didn't truly realize how good this place was until late college years on my way home, I'd stop by and get about half a dozen of pork barbeque.

Pork Barbecue

Pros:
Good food
Cheap and affordable
Huge selection of native Filipino dishes

Paksiw na Lechon

Cons:
Terrible parking lot
Beside a main thoroughfare
Too much smoke coming from the grill

Pork Liempo

Recommendation: Pork barbecue is their best seller. The rest are average.





So if you happen to pass by Osmena Highway, drop by this place and have a taste.

Taste: $$$
Price: $$$
Amenities: $$ (parking and seats)

Bohol

Blood Compact Site
 This was again one of our "gung-ho" trips that we decided to take at the very last minute. No plans, no definite itenerary and no clue to where we're going to-- priceless! Needless to say, I love this kind of trips since the chance of us going is really close to happening.

Baclayon Church


  A well-planned trip usually don't materialize... or at least in our case, that is.

Tagbilaran City

 But this impromptu trip back fired on us, no doubt. We hated the UNREASONABLY pricey hotel. Our rooms did have a nice view of the Tagbilaran City and Panglao Island. But beyond that, you can consider it next to nothing. The rooms had this distinct smell and felt muggy. The tasteless food were definitely inexplanably expensive. And to eat somewhere decent or shop, the local ride will cost an arm and a leg. Only upside were the pool that we practically had to ourselves and the good massage next door.


 Now onto the tour.

Virgin Island

We went to several historical sites and interesting places we grew up seeing in books or calendars... And boy we kid you not. Seeing it up close and personal was well worth the time and effort ...ok, even the heat! Glad to have experienced all these with our two-year old.

Chocolate Hills

Loboc River Cruise

Hinagdanan Cave

Loboc Man-Made Forest

Virgin Island

Vietnam or bust

 

And it's a bust. Next time, read the fine print.

We had everything planned for and our hearts were set out to go to Ho Chi Minh City. But when I called PAL to book our flight, the dates we wanted were not part of the promo AND...was three times the price!



I had no other choice but to look for another place to see and Bohol was easily our next choice. Not only it's a local spot, but it was the next best place to visit. Booking was a swift and so off we went.



We had the slightest idea and didn't know what to expect. But that was the fun part. And since we got our flight at PAL, we might as well let them book our hotel too. Wrong move. The hotel's situated on a mountain. Don't get me wrong, we had a very nice view of the ocean and the entire town but that's not all what we went there for.



We had to fork out 500 pesos for a ride to the beach... and practically everywhere else, for a one way trip. To sum it up, everything came out to be expensivo since there were many spots to see in Bohol that are strategically sparced out. It was however, well worth seeing. Two thunbs up Bohol!

2

We had simple day. It was just the three of us.



We decided to walk to Kabisera and celebrate Happy's special day there. Food was great and too much for the three of us.



We both found it so convenient living in the Metro since everything is pretty much a few meters away, two more tumblings and you're at the mall. Only downside was the laundry that had to be done in Laguna which was about 2 hours away during the day. If we had the capital, we'd run laundry business at the condo.

Crispy Kangkong and Ukoy

Crabs

Pinoy Bistek

there's more?

Razon's Famous Halo-Halo

Our goal for this trip is to travel and eat as much food as we can. Our trip to Vietnam was cancelled due to unforseen circumstances so we had to settle for Bohol instead.

David's Tea House


But our food trip was unstopoble. The moment we step foot in PI soil. We headed right away to Razon to have a taste of their famous Halo Halo.

Reyes Barbeque
>

Other restaurants we had to go through were Max Fried Chicken, Rai Rai Ken, Abe, Zong, Giligans, Toyang's at Macapagal, Shakey's, Dayrits, Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks.

Right now we're on our way to Tagaytay to eat, "again" and celebrate Happy's second birthday.

Dampa

One of the go-to places in PI when it comes to seafood is Dampa, located somewhere in Pasay. You get to shop at a huge array of seafood in different stalls. And then you'll get to choose the restaurant to cook it all for you.



My parents have been to this places many times while this was our first (Me, Anna, Happy & Mommy). I've never really had that interest when I was still back here. But since I was gone for years, my longing for fresh (and cheap) seafood was unimaginable. We can't get this sort of food back in SD unless we spend at least a $100 for a meal.



It was perfect timing too since my dad's side of the family were also here in PI for the holidays. We had a feast that night. I bet that they missed this more than we did since they came from Canada.



Everyone had a blast. The food was great, but since there were several restaurants in the area, you really can't tell which was the best one. But if you're really in for seafood, this would be the place to go. I would say that for a party of ten, you're looking towards spending $150-$200. Depends on the variety of food that you want to eat.

Mang Inasal

On our way to Manila we had to stop by on one of the gas stops by the expressway to have lunch.



Our choices were Jollibee, Chowking or Mang Inasal. It's either any of these three or another one for next 30 minutes or so. So we decided Mang Inasal since it's one of the three we haven't tried.



There weren't many choices and of course everything looked good/ok on the menu. Though small scale, I had high expectations since a lot of people were backing this statement up.



Alas, food was served... In tiny, dwarfed-sized portions! It tasted decent but nothing out of the ordinary. That would be the first and last time we'd eat Mang Inasal. If you want good Chicken Inasal, this is not the place to look for it. Sorry Mang Inasal, but you're officially crossed off our list.