26th.

I have always loved Peter Pan (and I guess I always will) because just like him, I never want to grow up. And honestly, I kind of freaked out when I turned 25 last year. I knoooooow, so childish right? Let's just say I had a bit of a quarter-life crisis then. But this year, I feel (in)different. Signs of aging?? Haha I like to think of it as seeing things in perspective. Why sulk over how old you are when you can be grateful for another year to celebrate life? After all, that's what celebrating birthdays are for! And if you were born on a holiday like me, you'd look forward to celebrating it every year as the entire nation celebrates with you.

Yeah, I turned 26 today and it feels great to be alive. I have nothing but thanksgiving for another wonderful year so thank You, Lord, for 26 awesome years and for being with me through it all. With that, I leave you with 3 "Alive" songs I coincidentally discovered right before my birthday. Enjoy!

Last May 25th, I saw Yellowcard for the first time and I've had this song stuck in my head for days. Here's Yellowcard with Here I Am Alive feat. Tay Jardine of WATIC.

"They say you don't grow up, you just grow old. It's safe to say I haven't done both."

Next up: Am I Alive by TEAM. I discovered TEAM two weeks ago after bands I like started tweeting about them. I have a rough idea who the members are but as of now, they remain a mystery. I'm glad I listened to their first single though because it's so good. LSS guaranteed!

"Am I alive or just breathing?"

Lastly, here's Bo Bruce with Alive. It's MV was recently released and I just had to get Before I Sleep. So much emotion in her voice!

"What are we waiting for? We're alive."

So there, I hope you enjoyed listening to the soundtrack of my life. Chos! Happy independence day everyone! Enjoy the holiday~!

R&R at Balay Indang

On every special occasion, we try to go somewhere new as a family - be it a new resort, new show or just a new restaurant. So to celebrate Ate's birthday, we started looking for a resort away from the city. As a law student, she's been spending most of her time cooped up in her room studying so a getaway would be the perfect gift on her birthday. Luckily, Balay Indang responded to our inquiry pretty quick even on a short notice. We have no idea what to expect aside from the fact that we're paying Php 2,500 per head for an overnight stay which includes 5 meals (lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, breakfast and morning snack). Not bad!

So on November 2, we woke up at 4 AM and left for Balay Indang around 5:30 AM. Driving through the streets of Manila is a breeze during this time of the year since almost everyone's away in the provinces to visit the graves of their departed loved ones. Well, except us. Before we know it, we were already near Tagaytay at only 6:30 AM!

Big breakfast at Bag of Beans

We decided to stop by Bag of Beans for a hearty breakfast. The entire place is filled with the wonderful smell of freshly baked bread. Sure, it's enticing to look at the variety of breads displayed on the counters but we're all suckers for a great view so we headed straight to the patio where we can marvel at Taal Volcano's beauty all we want. Definitely worth waking up early to.

Ariel's 26th at Nomnomnom: Happy Food

My cousin Ariel has a weird way of scheduling trips from Palawan to Manila. He flies all the way to Manila to get haircuts, buy his favorite scent, eat some Krispy Kreme, or get on another plane bound for Coron because it's "cheaper." I don't mind though because he never fails to buy us baked goodies from Baker's Hill every time he comes to visit. But this time, it's different. He came to celebrate his 26th birthday with us!

The birthday boy at Nomnomnom: Happy Food

Aaaand that leaves me in charge of finding the perfect restaurant. Again. As a foodie, I usually don't mind. But this was quite a challenge. You see, Ariel's a vegetarian and obviously, there aren't a lot of vegetarian-friendly restaurants in the QC area. There's Pino/Pipino which we love but we wanted to try something new. Thanks to the internet, I found an interesting restaurant which serves vegan/vegetarian-friendly dishes - Nomnomnom: Happy Food. The SC girls and I have been wanting to try this restaurant out too so I recommended it to the fam and as usual, they just agreed.

The birthday boy and his guests

We arrived around 8PM so there were only 2 tables occupied aside from ours and it looked like they were almost finished with their meals so it felt like we booked the entire place. Pretty cool. The restaurant has a homey/canteen vibe to it. Not bad. I especially love their rainbow wall that says "Something good always happens."

Something good always happens.

See, what did I tell ya? Hihi

For starters, we ordered their Fried Ravioli (stuffed with cheesy Kangkong and mushroom). It didn't taste like Kangkong at all which is good news for us non-vegetarians. The dip complemented the crispness and cheesiness of the dish. We also ordered Nachos just in case but it turns out, we didn't need a fallback after all. For drinks, we ordered pitchers of Dalandan Juice and Strawberry Iced Tea which didn't taste like powder so it's good. For the main dishes, we ordered Nuggets Mo? (veggie nuggets with chili sauce), Crispy Tofu Skin (crispy tofu with shiitake mushroom sauce and nori rice), The Good Sisig (crispy fried tofu with green chili and onions), Lime Chicken with Alfredo Sauce (chicken breast marinated in lime and Rosemary drizzled with Alfredo sauce served with spring onion rice), Chicken Pops Rice Craters (chicken lollipops with pizza sauce served over buttered rice), Enchilada (filled with Kangkong, cream and cheese), and Pizza Margherita.

Clockwise: Fried Ravioli, Nuggets Mo?, Crispy Tofu Skin, Enchilada, The Good Sisig, Lime and Chicken Alfredo

L-R: Strawberry Iced Tea, Chicken Pops Rice Crater, Pizza Margherita

Over all, the food was tasty even though they were tagged as healthy. I was looking forward to dessert though but they didn't have any that night. Boooo~! :( So naturally, we just took pictures of the place instead before heading off to search for a dessert place.

Cousins and sibs ♥

Mirror, mirror on the wall...

Oopsie. Sorry Jots, I had to crop your hair off simply because you're too tall. :p

After our mini photo op, we were all ready to go. As in we had our bags in hand when I felt something was not right. Yep, we haven't paid for dinner yet! We forgot to bill out just because we skipped dessert. Oopsie. Muntik na!

With the official photographer this time.

Oh and we asked one of the servers if their "happy food" is similar to Cambodia's happy pizza*. He said they used to serve "happy food" but they no longer have a supplier so they had no choice but to take it off the menu. Aww sayang? Haha

Last hurrah!

A birthday dinner wouldn't be complete without a sweet ending so we headed to Afters Espresso & Desserts for cakes and gelatos. Funny how this lady was all smiles upon seeing us. I thought she was just extra friendly and accommodating. It turns out, she and mom know each other from Tai Chi class. Surprise surprise! She owns the place and she was gracious enough to let us try a couple of their gelatos. We ordered   7 cups of gelato and a slice of Reese's cheesecake. Perfect ending to cap off our Sunday night!

Gelato flavors: Cotton candy, Salted caramel, Cookies 'n cream, Mint chocolate chip, Stracciatella, and plain old Chocolate

Oh and thanks to Ariel, I got patron and lowerbox invites to see Lee Min Ho in November! Weeee~♥

*Happy pizza is just like a regular pizza but has a thin layer of weed sprinkled beneath layers of mozzarella cheese. You can even choose your preferred level of "happy-ness" from mildly happy to extremely happy.

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Nomnomnom Happy FoodTomas MoratoG/F GYY Bldg, 1 Tomas Morato AveKristong Hari, Quezon City(02) 502-2919
Afters Espresso & DessertsQuezon CityLansbergh Place, 20 Tomas Morato Ave cor Scout Castor StSouth Triangle, Quezon City(02) 791-8789

25th at Club Balai Isabel

Growing up, I've always celebrated my birthday with my family.  Since it always falls on a holiday, we make it a point to go on out-of-town trips during my special day or the weekend closest to it - kind of like a last hurrah before school work starts.

Welcome to Club Balai Isabel!

This year, we decided to celebrate my birthday at Club Balai Isabel in Talisay, Batangas.  It's one of those beautiful resorts (and popular wedding destinations) strategically located around the Taal Lake.  This means you get a breathtaking view of the Taal Volcano for free during your entire stay.  It's a perfect weekend getaway for those who just want to relax and feel closer to nature.  The ambiance is so relaxing, it's tempting to sleep in all day or better yet, cool off in one of their three swimming pools.

Magical.

That's my signature answer whenever someone asks me how it feels like to be 25.  It may not be true but I like the sound of it.  Honestly, nothing much has changed.  I still feel the same as I did before - still a little crazy.  And apparently, so are my friends!  Good to know I'm not alone.  Hah!

Balloons everywhere!  And I mean everywhere.

Last week, my favorite girls surprised me for my birthday - not only once but thrice!  And this time, it was different from all the other surprises they've pulled off.  They really stepped it up a notch.  Define unexpected!  I felt like I was in an episode of Ellen where the surprises just seem to never end!  Nakakatuwa na nakakatawa na nakakakaba.

Silver

Today, I'd like to say that I woke up feeling a little older and a little wiser but honestly, it didn't feel that way.  When I woke up, rain was pouring outside and all I could think of was how perfect it was.  Thank goodness, I was born on (Philippine) Independence Day which means every birthday* is a holiday.  I could do anything I want on my special day - I could even stay in bed for as long as I want to without feeling guilty.  But no, I didn't want this day to go to waste.  So I got out of bed and thanked God for another year.  Nothing beats the feeling of waking up and feeling thankful.  Just as the rain keeps pouring, the blessings just keep on coming.  So thank you, Lord, for another year!  And for your never-ending goodness and mercy.  So when does quarter-life crisis strike?  I hope it never hits me.  I'm 25 and loving life.

P.S.  This year, I MUST finally learn how to surf so I can call myself the silver surfer.  Chos! :))

* Well, except in 2007 when GMA and her holiday economics ruined the tradition.