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Picnics…those were the activities that we used to do when I was a kid, particularly at Luneta Park.

Right into the heart of the capital Manila lies Luneta Park or Rizal Park, which marks the Kilometer Zero of the Philippines and the northern tip of Roxas Boulevard, overlooking Manila Bay. Built in the early 1700s, the park was the site of some of the turning points in Philippine history such as the execution of the national hero Jose Rizal and the declaration of the Philippine independence from USA. SOURCE.

Would love to have another picnic at Luneta Park again. Hopefully one of these days!

Luneta Park
Roxas Boulevard, Manila
* Located between Intramuros, Roxas Boulevard, TM Kalaw Avenue, and Taft Avenue.

For the second time, I was back at Manila Ocean Park’s Seriland Fantasy World and this time for my second little girl’s field trip.

I was excited for her because I knew she would enjoy it. Here are the things that you will experience in Seriland.

Seriland Fantasy World in Manila Ocean Park is the first Korean developed theme park in the Philippines that offers 3-Dimensional, real-like attractions such as the Trick Art Museam, Mirror Maze and 3D Cinema Plus. It also has a 200 square meters Kids Paradise that is perfect for parties and a Bear Museum.

Kids Paradise – A 200 sq.m. party and play world with jungle playpen, kiddie rides, air bounce, book cafe and toy world.

This one is probably the little girl’s favorite. She had so much fun here and wanted to go back again because of this particular area in Seriland.

Trick Art Museum – A gallery of 3-Dimensional art freehand painted by famous Korean artists. It highlights interactive paintings that visualize 3D optical illusions when a picture is taken with it.

Another interesting area in Seriland. The Trick Art Museum was unique and both my little girl and I enjoyed it so much.

3D Cinema Plus – A short movie that offers multiple special effects that can be seen heard and felt in a 3D attraction. Sonic the Hedgehog stars in this 3D horror film.

Intersting cinema. It was too dark though so there were small kids who got scared inside.

It was a very fun trip to Seriland. I highly recommend it to your kids because they will surely enjoy it!

Seriland Fantasy World
Manila Ocean Park, 1001 Manila
Monday – Friday 10:00am – 7:00pm
Saturday – Sunday 10:00am – 8:00pm
http://www.serifantasyworld.com

I’ve heard a lot of good reviews about Crazy Katsu, so when we were at the area one weekend, we decided to try it out. We went with the kids and they were excited to try it too.

Since I was excited to try their Katsu, I was disappointed when I learned that their chicken katsu was spicy!

Too bad the kids weren’t able to try it. But they enjoyed the bowl of sukiyaki as they fondly called it “the sweet soup”.

There were not much options at their menu. Hopefully they get to add more soon!

Crazy Katsu Diliman
Unit I Teacher’s Village, 81 Maginhawa St Teacher Village – East, Quezon City (02) 435-0030

We have a friend who works in Hennessy so when they had an event at Opus a couple of months ago, we were invited and were given FREE tickets!

When we entered the event, we were asked to login to our facebook accounts and “like” Hennessy’s facebook page.

Love this concept!

It was probably one of my best night out with Hubby and friends in 2011.

Unlimited drinks + Unlimited pica-pica = Perfect Night Out at Opus!

Opus
2/F, Newport Mall, Resorts World Manila.

This is probably our most favorite part of the Holiday Inn, Galleria when we were there last July 16.

The Swimming Pool!

When we told the girls that we were going to check in a hotel to celebrate their Daddy’s birthday, they were ecstatic because they knew that there’s going to be a nice pool. And boy, I sure was right. WE were at the pool almost the whole weekend! Ever since we arrived at the hotel, we went straight to the pool area. We came back after taking a nap in the afternoon and then after breakfast the next day.

The pool was at the 5th floor so it was a little windy in the afternoon. I don’t like to swim in the cold so I didn’t appreciate it. But Hubby and the kids didn’t mind at all and were having the time of their lives. But by morning, I joined them and loved the pool ever since. I wish we could go back again one of these days because we definitely had, fun, fun, fun!

I wasn’t expecting much from our FREE breakfast buffet for 2 at the Holiday Inn, Galleria. But I was surprised to see a whole lot of choices from fruits to cereals to full meal breakfast. Everything looked really good, we found it hard to decide which one to try first.

After checking out everything, I decided to try the Chinese cuisine which includes, congee, spring rolls, and more.

The American breakfast was next which includes corned beef, sausage, bacon, scrambled eggs, fried rice, and much more.

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My kids went crazy over the cereals and the fruit juices available.

There was also an egg station where you ask the chef to cook egg omelette. Hubby and I chosed all the ingredients in two eggs. It was delicious! I also went crazy over the breakfast desserts…

… and lastly, the fruits!

I would say it was indeed a great breakfast for all of us! It gave us a whole new energy to swim again at the pool. (*wink*)

FAB Restaurant
Holiday Inn, Galleria Manila
1 Asia Development Bank Ave.
Ortigas Center, Pasig City
Tel No. 6337111

One of the highlights of our July month is our overnight stay at Holiday Inn, Galleria to celebrate the Hubby’s birthday.

I got a 50% promo from Deal Grocer and we availed the promo last July 16, 2011. The kids were ecstatic especially when they saw the pool! I was excited because finally, I could relax even for a weekend.

After we spent a few hours at the pool (since our room was not yet available at 10AM), we decided to have lunch. We dropped by our room first to fix our things which was finally available by 12NN. Our view was perfect!

And our bed was very inviting…

But we couldn’t sleep yet of course so off we went to the mall for lunch!

It was definitely a great weekend for us. We were able to bond as a family, we ate as much food as we wanted, we had fun swimming, and we were able to sleep a lot. A memorable weekend with my family was definitely priceless!

This is very surprising considering that I see a lot of people who come to starbucks to smoke and drink coffee.

It is a big move indeed. Why are they doing this? In compliance with the new Smoking Ordinance Section 5 of Republic Act 9211 wherein smoking won’t be allowed in the following areas:

- Centers of youth activity such as playschools, preparatory schools, elementary schools, high schools, colleges and universities, youth hostels, and recreational facilities for persons under eighteen (18) years old;

- Elevator and stairwells;

- Location in which fire hazards are present, including gas stations and storage areas for flammable liquids, gas, explosives or combustible materials;

- Within the buildings and premises of public and private hospitals. Medical, dental, and optical clinics, health centers, nursing homes, dispensaries and laboratories;

- Public conveyance and public facilities including airport and ship terminals and train and bus stations, restaurant and conference halls, except for separate smoking areas; and

- Food preparation areas

I LOVE this new rule of Starbucks. Looks like I’m going to visit them often now compared to before. Kudos to Starbucks!

If you are from Manila, you would have heard of the Newport Mall at Resorts World by now. It’s new but you can’t miss it because it’s just in front of NAIA Terminal 3. It’s not one of those steel buildings that you find in Makati nor Ortigas. But the hotels like Marriot and Maxims were built in an artistic and beautiful way. I’ve eaten thrice at the Newport Mall and I noticed that most of the restaurants there can’t be found in the other malls in Manila. I had dinner twice at Crisostomo and once at Red Crab House. And all of my dining experience were really unforgettable. Aside from having good food, the ambiance was really nice too considering that we brought our kids with us.

Newport Mall is the first integrated tourist hub in the Philippines that is fast shaping up to become the most exciting destination in the country. As I’ve said, it’s just across just across Terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and adjacent to the Villamor Golf Course. You will never missed it!

Republiq is One of the Popular Clubs in Manila that is located inside the Newport Mall.

Their steel Building for the parking made me remember this site I came across this morning called CrownSteelBuildings.com. I’m positive that it’s sturdy and this made the Resorts World even more special. Parking our car there is always a breeze! Even if it entails a few meters walk to the Newport Mall, I think I would still prefer this over a PHP200 worth of valet parking.

Resorts World Manila
Newport Boulevard, Newport City
Pasay 1309, Metro Manila, Philippines
Tourist / Visitor Hotlines: +63 (2) 836-6333 and +63 (2) 908-8833
Email : customerservice@rwmanila.com

The whole family availed a Manila Bay cruise one weekend and I would say it was a new experience for the kids. Both the girls had fun cruising Manila Bay and seeing the sunset. Manila Bay’s sunset is indeed something we should be thankful for.

The cruise was organized by Prestige Cruises Inc. It usually includes dinner along with the cruise, but we didn’t avail of the dinner anymore since we had plans of eating afterwards. At around 7PM, we witnessed the fireworks in front of Mall of Asia (MOA). It was nice. Although the cruise was just ok for Hubby and I but the kids really had the time of their lives.

Prestige Cruises
(02) 8328967