My Cebu Adventure: Best Pig in Town!

I know Sinulog isn't 'till January, but Cebu is pretty packed with people now for the Ironman 70.3 race that's taking place here in Mactan on Sunday! My dad and uncle are both racing again, so the whole family came with to cheer and support The A-team! :)

Outfit for the day:

Chiffon top: Forever 21 - Denim shorts: Bayo (DIY pants I just cut off) - Accessories: Taipei - 

Sandals: H&M - Hat: Terranova - Bag: Gift

We flew to Cebu via (PAL) Philippine Airlines. It wasn't exactly the greatest flight. It was tremendously bumpy, while in the air up until landing. 

We hurried over to Shangri-la Mactan to get my dad's race kit.  

I swear, every year I watch all these people especially my family do triathlons and I say to myself 'One day, one day..." It is definitely part of my bucket list to finish at least one triathlon!

The dinner everybody's been waiting for the prominent.. Zubochon! Cebu's best lechon. :)

Claimed to be the BEST PIG... EVER! By Anthony Bourdain, renowned international food critic. 

Zubochon Lechon

Small (1/2 kilo) P240.00 Large (1 kilo) P490.00

True enough, it did suffice to its motto. It was the crispiest lechon skin I've ever tasted! Cebu's lechon is known to be eaten without sauce. It's just THAT good. :)

Banana Turon with Dulce de Leche 

Doesn't that just sound SO tempting? The Dulce de Leche was definitely a good addition to one of the filipinos all time favourite snack. 

I highly recommend you try Zubochon when coming to Cebu! It was definitely the best pig I've ever tasted. :) 

Zubochon

Mactan:

Islands Stay Hotel Lobby

M.L. Quezon Avenue

Lapu-Lapu City

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Dreaming Out Loud

Dreams 

A series of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations occurring involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep or a wild fancy or hope; as defined in the dictionary.

Everybody has dreams, whether big or small. As cliché as this may sound, I was raised by both my parents to dream big and to never stop believing and because of that, I choose to do so without abandon. 

Here are a few of my dreams: 

1. TRAVEL THE WORLD!

Paris, France

The city of love, said to be one of the best cities in the world. Where they have the best macarons and chocolate croissants, I hear. Ahh, I just can't wait to try them first hand. <3

Tokyo, Japan

Japanese food & culture + my favourite, cherry blossoms. Need I say more?

Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), Iceland

Who wouldn't want to see a beautiful sight such as this?

Those or not necessarily my top three places, but are definitely places on my never ending bucket list. 

2. PUT UP MY DESSERT CAFE!

For all you readers who don't really know me, I aspire to become a pastry chef and my dream is to put up my own dessert cafe entitled 'Enchanted Desserts'. 

 I actually already do sell cupcakes now and you can click *here* for more details and maybe like the page if you want? :)

3. BECOME FIT!

This blog entry is after all entitled 'Dreaming Out Loud'. Every girl dreams of having a body like these Victoria Secret models. I know that we shouldn't be influenced by all the media, but I just can't help but wish I could find the motivation to work hard and be as fit as them. 


Well, a girl can only dream right? :)


I'd like to end this post with my favourite line from one of my favourite poems, Invictus. 


"I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul."


These are just a few of my endless list of dreams. What're YOUR dreams? Big or small. I'd love to hear them! So be sure to leave a comment down below. <3 

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My Taipei Adventure: Day 2

My second day in Taipei would have to be my favourite among the 6 other days spent there. Only because I felt like it was the day where I got to really appreciate the city. 

Here are some snapshots of places I visited and things I did that day.

This shot was taking around 9am when I had to walk over to the nearest bank to have my money changed. 

(Word of advice: Have your money changed in Manila before coming so you won't be charged extra. Also, they DO NOT change pesos.)

My grama and I came to Taipei on a business trip. To visit the Taipei Food Expo was one thing on the list. 

Beside me are other Filipinos who came with us on this trip. All who have their own businesses and own hectares of land around the Philippines! It was really interesting listening to all their backgrounds. :)

The yummiest egg tart I have ever tasted. I kept coming back for more! I probably had 8 of those. :")

Yes, there was free sushi!!

At the Japan booth. Part of my never ending bucket list is to visit Japan. :)

I had lunch at my favourite place where they serve the best Xiao Long Bao I have ever tasted! Din Tai Fung. :)

I got to visit the tallest building in Asia which stands 101 floors! (Hence the name, Taipei 101.) Honestly, not much to do up there but admire the whole city from the 88th floor. :)

I found these flowers real pretty! The colour, similar to my favourite tree: Cherry Blossom.

I also got to visit the Chang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Not many people were there considering I went on a weekday so I got to really appreciate the whole place which was nice. :)

Thanks again for touring me around Taipei, Sab! Best tour guide ever. ;)

There's nothing I love more than nature. I honestly wished we had more parks instead of more malls in the Philippines! 

Such a tourist pose. HEHE. Forgive me, I'm sometimes awkward when a solo shot is being taken of me. :")

Later on that night, I was brought to the renowned Shilin Night Market where I got to eat yummy street food and shop at a very cheap price! *click here* for a look at my Taiwan Market Experience and *click here* for a glimpse of what I got to buy at the market. Enjoy! :)

Pastels and Denim

This is what I wore today when I had to go and fix my visa for my trip to Taiwan next week. Super last minute, but I'm pretty excited! I've only stopped by Taipei's airport last time I went to the US.

I love to travel, and I'm not going to lie.. when ever I think about traveling, I think of going out of the country just to getaway from the Philippines. But today, I came upon this 

      'It's More Fun in the Philippines' video and was amazed at how beautiful our country is. Part of my bucket list now, is to visit more islands in the Philippines. :) Click here to watch the video!

                         

I absolutely love prints and recently have been addicted to floral prints in particular. When I saw these pair of shorts, I knew I just had to have 'em!

I'm a flats kind of girl because they go with mostly everything and their extremely comfortable! 

Growing up, I was influenced into reading 'The Adventures of Nancy Drew' by my mother. These loafers certainly do remind me of her very much as she'd wear ones similar to them to all her adventures and misadventures. :) 

Outfit for the day:

Denim polo: Banana Republic - Floral shorts and shades: F21

Loafers: Archaeology, Rockwell - Bag: Mango

Hope you enjoyed this short entry! So what're the top 3 places you'd love to check off YOUR bucket list? :)

My Singapore Adventure!

Come on a ride with me as I reminisce on my Singapore adventure last February of 2012. :)

P.S. Just to warn you, this may be photo heavy. 

Traveling is one of my favourite pastimes. Part of my bucket list is to travel around the world. I love everything about it! The thrill of experiencing new things just makes me happy. :)

This trip was very memorable because it had a lot of firsts. 

1.) It was my first time to travel alone (well, with my brother) to a different country that is.

2.) It was my first time visiting what is known to be the cleanest country in the world, Singapore. 

3.) It was my first time to watch Wicked!!

My mum even made us step-by-step note cards to follow as we embarked on our little journey. 

My brother and I were extremely scared traveling without a parent, but afterwards loved the experience and asked to travel without a parent again. HAHA.

We stayed at The Fairmont Hotel. It was pretty awesome because it was connected to a mall! So Josh and I went around while waiting for our mum.

We were both famished. We wanted to try Skinny Pizza, and our meal consisted of this...

We ordered their best selling pizza, which was "The English Breakfast". It was pretty good! We really enjoyed it. The crust was crisp and the toppings were really fresh.

As we were reading the menu, we couldn't help but order this. It was a pretty safe choice, but it was a good choice too. I'm a big pasta lover and mozzarella is one of my favourite cheeses'. 

We were surprised with assorted macarons from Canele in our hotel room. I personally love macarons. I've tasted quite a number of them already and I would have to say that this is one of my favourites. The shell is crisp but moist and it is generously filled with buttercream or ganache. I was very satisfied. :)

On our first night, we took a stroll down the most popular shopping enclave in the city of Singapore, Orchard Road. 

Visited a few stores and did a bit of shopping but had to go because they were preparing to close.

When traveling, I try to bring ensembles that I can pair with several outfits like this denim jacket and my brown sandals that go with mostly everything.

Outfit of the day: 

Grey dress: Topshop - Braided belt & Denim jacket: F21

Sandals: H&M - Peace necklace: Bazaar

 

Being the Ice Cream lover that I am, I was very excited for the Ben 'n Jerry's scoopery! 

Taking the train is the most common source of transportation in Singapore. I wasn't as stressed because unlike the Philippines, it was very clean and organized. 

For lunch on our second day, we decided to eat in Din Tai Fung. It was awarded one Michelin star as one of the world's Top 10 Best Restaurants in the New York Times. 

If you guys haven't tried it, I highly recommend that you do! It seriously was the best Xiao Long Bao I've tasted. We ordered 30 pieces and had 10 each. HAHAHA the little fatties inside of us came out. 

Couldn't help but have my photo taken with the Abercrombie floor models because I found their polaroids so cute. 

Had an early dinner at Mozza. Mario Batali's restaurant! Everything we ordered was good. The margarita pizza infused with truffle oil was my personal favourite. :)

Wicked, the reason why we went to Singapore in the first place. I was at a loss for words as it was definitely the best broadway play I've seen so far! 

 I love musical theatre! As I myself, loved to perform as a child. 

Wicked was too amazing for words. I was getting "goosies" as they were opening the curtains. The cast was from Australia and not New York, but they did exceptionally well! I seriously couldn't find anything wrong with the performance. Usually, there's someone that isn't so great vocally, or the costumes are tacky, or the set was just so-so. But this show was perfect! 

Got to have our photo taken with the actor that played Fiyero!

It was inevitable that I would love Singapore because of it's utter cleanliness, but I also really fell in love with the city's architecture. It was all so refreshingly modern. 

Being a kid at heart, I couldn't pass on not visiting Universal Studios! It's much smaller compared to the one we visited in LA but it was still fun. :)

I'm not much of an adventurous person when it comes to rides. I'm terrified of roller coasters that have loops because I had a very traumatizing experience as a kid, but rides like these I can do. 

We waited in line for about an hour with no exaggeration. I almost wanted to leave because I was really hungry. (What's new. HAHA!) But I'm glad we didn't because it was really awesome! It was a 4D stimulation ride, and I didn't want it to end. 

I actually liked how this shot turned out! I didn't even have to edit it because the natural light was good enough. 

I couldn't help but buy this at the candy store! I love Kinder Bueno and I absolutely love white chocolate. 

To be honest, it wasn't all that great. The original is still so much better! 

We had a chinese dinner at the Fullerton Hotel over looking the beautiful Marina Bay Sands.

We ordered the usual Sweet 'n Sour Pork because it's our ultimate chinese favourite! It was good, but we weren't really used to eating it because it wasn't boneless. 

Being the tourists that we are, we took the Singapore Flyer. The world's largest giant observation wheel!

Our experience was so much more memorable on the giant wheel because somebody proposed in the same chamber as us. With 'A Thousand Years' by Christina Perri, A bouquet of flowers, and a ring in his hand. It was just so sweet, I couldn't help but smile. :)

The infamous Merlion, which is used as the mascot of Singapore. Definitely one of the tourist-y places when visiting.

My outfit for the day: 

Striped top: F21 - High waisted pants: Zara - 

Flats: H&M - Necklace : Bazaar

Forgive us for my mum wanted to take a cheesy tourist shot. HAHA.

The book I was reading on the way back. It's entitled The Best Of Me by Nicholas Sparks, as cliché as it may sound he is one of my favorite authors. :")

Thanks for coming with me on this journey to Singapore! I know it was really photo heavy and quite long but I hope you did enjoy reading it. 

So what do YOU love doing in Singapore? :)