Ayala Recyclables Fair - December 2011

For more information contact:
Maricar A. Dechavez
Development Associate- E&S
Ayala Foundation, Inc.
         dechavez.ma@ayalafoundation.org.
        (02)752-1084

Review: Clara International

Clara International is a Malaysian franchise "beauty center". I saw a
CashCashPinoy promo for electrocautery (or ECT as they call it) of
warts at 67% off or P500 instead of P1,500. I looked around online for
reviews but couldn't find any so I thought I'd write my own.

Appointment setting was hassle-free and the receptionist polite and
easy to talk to and ask questions of. I was glad that even with the
promo it didn't seem as if they were overbooked or overloaded.

I went to the QC branch at Sunshine Blvd Plaza along Quezon Avenue. It
was on the second floor up a rather dark staircase but the first sight
of the center is a reassuring one. The receiving area is large and
quiet and had magazines for those awaiting their appointments. I was
asked to fill out a form and although I was around 15 minutes earlier
than scheduled, the nurse Joanne was able to attend to me immediately.

I was led to room 8 but asked first if I could use the restroom. The
restroom was clean and dry and had the requisite toilet paper and soap
and hand dryer. I was glad clients get individual rooms. The
dermclinic that did my first ECT procedure on my neck had three of
those reclining chairs side by side without even a curtain between
them to provide privacy to clients. The aestheticians would talk to
one another while doing their thing---I guess one benefit of this if
you don't frequent such places is that you get to see how other
procedures are done. The room at Clara was small but not cramped. It
was carpeted (though the carpet had stains; I prefer a hard floor)
with a sink and a bed and piped in radio. The linens were acceptably
clean although not the best quality. A hospital robe is provided but I
didn't need it since I was having my face done.

I told Joanne I had low pain tolerance and after slathering on the
topical anesthesia, she left me for a good while. I couldn't check the
time since I had to keep my eyes closed with the plastic wrap on my
face but it felt like a good hour almost. Too bad I didn't get to
sleep. There was a button beside the bed on the wall that I could
press if I needed anything.

Then Joanne came back and took a good hour cauterizing my numerous
warts. I could smell flesh burning when she zapped warts close to my
nose. I was scared that those near my eyes would hurt but they didn't,
thankfully. There were a couple that hurt and she told me someone will
get them during my follow-up check-up in two weeks.

She told me I was not to wet my face for 24 hours nor expose my face
to the sun at all even with sunblock on and that I'd have to buy the
post ECT cream (whose ingredients neither she nor the receptionist
knew and cost P350) since I had so many and which I had to apply
thrice a day until the scabs fell off.

I now look like my lolo who had numerous dark warts. Two weeks later
most of them had fallen off leaving lighter colored spots which I
assiduously covered with sunblock daily before leaving the house. I
went for my follow up and another nurse took care of me. She
disappeared for 40 minutes and when she came back there was something
wrong with the machine and we had to wait for the other one to become
available. I think I waited almost two hours in total so I slept for a
good long while. She did the cautery so lightly that the scabs hardly
darkened. I hope there were no warts left and she was able to get them
all.

Overall I had a good experience at Clara and will not hesitate to buy
any other promos that I may have need of in the future.

Ayala Recyclables Fair: October 2011 schedule

**Revised schedule posted 9/29/11 For more information contact:
Maricar A. Dechavez
Development Associate- E&S
Ayala Foundation, Inc.
         dechavez.ma@ayalafoundation.org.
        (02)752-1084

Review: Cold Rock Ice Creamery

I bought a CashCashPinoy voucher for a sundae and a large cup of ice cream with two mix-ins. I'd specified the Trinoma branch but it closed before I could claim the voucher so we were forced to go to the last remaining branch at the Greenbelt 3 Cinema.

The servers were very helpful, explaining that for the sundae, we could choose three ice cream flavors and for the large cup, two flavors. We chose the chocolate indulgence and white macadamia for the large cup, with maltesers and cashews (I would have preferred almonds but cashews were the only nuts available) as mix-ins. For the sundae, we chose strawberry, green tea and macapuno.

I liked the large cup ice cream mix, served in a paper cup that wasn't really all that large. A scoop is around 2.5" across or smaller only. It wasn't too sweet and I really liked the cashews and maltesers. The chocolate indulgence flavor didn't have too much of a chocolate/cocoa taste. However, it was a bit too soft for me. I'd have preferred a harder, colder ice cream. By the time we were done with the cup, the sundae had started to melt. It was served in a banana split glass boat and had whipped cream, nuts and a cherry on top. The macapuno was too creamy for my taste while the strawberry did not have the intense flavor I wanted. But the green tea was pretty awful. The taste of macha was intense and it didn't go well with the creaminess of the ice cream. I wish there was pistachio ice cream available but the fruit flavors were just too tropical/Pinoy: langka, avocado, ube, etc.

For P280, the ice cream was an expensive treat (you can already buy half a gallon of supermarket ice cream for that amount!) but at P576? I doubt it! If I had dough to drop on expensive ice cream I'd prefer Haagen Dazs or even Dreyers. It's not like Ben and Jerry's is available in the Philippines!

Next thing to try: mochi with gelato!

American Idol Live! Tour Manila, Philippines September 21, 2011

The Idols seemed to enjoy their last show. It sounded as if their voices were at their last legs, and they were happy the tour's finally over. Speaking voices were low and somewhat hoarse. Pia, in particular, seemed languid and low energy--was she not feeling well I wonder?

Surprisingly (to me at least), the crowd seemed to love Stefano and Haley the most. Casey also had quite a number of fans. 

The view from the general admission bleachers was pretty awful and the screens weren't that big. I wish I did bring the binoculars. I am NOT in the future going to sit in GenAd if it's not a band I really like whose songs I can all sing. It's just not worth it.

More amusing than the people onstage were two very loud fans--one guy on each side of me. The guy on my left kept shouting "I love you Stefano", and "Pia, I'll take you home!" and he pretty much "I love you"d every single Idol. The guy on my right kept screaming at every single appropriate moment while taking videos and  pretty much deafened me. They both knew all the lyrics to the Idols' new singles (and their other songs, too).

People were shouting for more at the end of the show but naturally, nothing happened. That's what it's like at set shows like this.

It was ok as an experience but if I wasn't treating someone who wanted to watch and who never gets to watch concerts, I would think it was a waste of money. I would have preferred to watch the seasons of Jordin Sparks, the Davids, or Kris Allen if they'd come to Manila.

Review: Manang's Chicken and Bon Chon Chicken

I'd heard about about Bon Chon Chicken first then I heard that
Manang's is either the Pinoy version or the better version, depending
on who's giving the comment. So I decided to try both.

I ate a 1 pc chicken breast with mild spicy sauce, P75, at Manang's
Chicken in their first shop on Garnet Rd. in Ortigas. Service was
friendly and at 10 am, I was their sole customer. I guess that's why
the crew felt it was ok to talk rather loud and scold at the other.
Chicken tasted good although the neck was included and was difficult
to eat so there wasn't that much meat overall. The chicken was a bit
too sweet for my taste although the spiciness was just right for a
heat-wimp like me. I liked it overall but wouldn't be looking for it
anytime soon. I'd probably take KFC over it since they generally serve
meaty breast parts.

At Bon Chon Chicken in Robinsons Ortigas, service was friendly too and
the place was nice and cold even though it was packed. A single
chicken pc. with a drink was P95. Unfortunately, you can only get a
drumstick. I prefer white meat so I ordered the chops which come in
two pieces of breast fillet for P145. What a letdown! The fillets were
tiny, dry and worst of all, tasteless! I ordered the soy chicken
instead of spicy knowing the Korean predeliction for tongue-burningly
spicy food (even noodles!). The coating was crisp but the taste was
really bland. Next time I order Bon Chon, I will try the drumstick.
There's more meat in a drumstick than in their breast fillet.

Where Bon Chon won hands down was with the rice. The rice tasted great
and was cooked just right. On the other hand, the rice at Manang's
tasted like NFA rice and worse, there was one 1-mm stone, one insect
that looked like a large rice weevil, and one unidentified dark thing
twice as big as the weevil. I wish I had a camera so I could have
taken a picture of it.

Uncle Cheffy's Panizza Snack Treat!

Have a pizza snack with friends! Too bad it's only from 2 pm to 5:30 pm...

Review: Cafe Mori Caramel Flavor Cappucino

I've been wanting to buy instant coffee and whaddya think but I find some coffee on sale?

jardin Cafe Mori Caramel Flavor Cappucino

 ¡Ü Àðµ­ : 2010Ò´
 ¡Ü 20 ml,  \4900
 ¡Ü Cappuccino

Instant Coffee 7.7%, Sugar, Foaming Creamer[ Corn syrup, Skim milk pd.( Milk), Vegetable Fat, Acidity regulator], Vegetable Cream [Corn syrup, Vegetable Fat, Sodium caseinate]

A Korean webpage has these ingredients translated to English by Google Translate:

인 스턴트커피 7.7%, 백설탕, 포밍크리머[물엿, 탈지분유(우유),식물성유지, 산도조절제], 식물성크림[물엿,식물성유지, 카제인나트륨(우유), 산도조절제, 혼합탈지분유(우유)], 분말결정포도당, 덱스트린, 탈지분유(우유), 가공소금, 합성착향료(카라멜향) Instant coffee, 7.7%, Sugar, Foaming creamer [syrup, skim milk powder (milk), vegetable oil, acidity regulator], Vegetable Cream syrup, vegetable oil, sodium caseinate (milk), acidity regulators, mixed skim milk powder (milk)], decision powder, glucose, dextrin, skim milk powder (milk), processed salt, synthetic Flavor (karamelhyang)

The latter list looks more like it eh?

In 2009 the Wonder Girls endorsed this coffee brand:

How cute are the Wonder Girls endorsing the new Jardin coffee creation – Cafe Mori 'Stylish Coffee'.

Mori apparently, in the native australian language meaning "rising sunshine" and also comes from the old English "morish", which means "extremely tasty and willing to have more".

This doesn't make me more inclined to try it but I speculate it's something of a mass market brand in Korea.

Packaging review:
The Philippine packaging isn't as nice as the one pictured here. It's a dull dark gray box with 25 sticks of coffee and costing around Php250. At around P10/stick, it's a little bit more expensive than our local coffee brands. Great Taste Cappuccino comes at around P6.50/stick for example and Nescafe flavored coffees cost more than that. Neither the box nor the coffee stick has an ingredient list or "brewing" directions and I think this is something NexTrade Philippines should consider revising.

Coffee review:
A foam does form on top courtesy of the foaming creamer (what does non-foaming creamer consist of?) though it's not as foamy as a proper cap. I have a stick of Nestle Cappuccino from Australia which I'm saving for a want-to-be-indulged day and its ingredients consist of : Milk solids, vegetable oil, soluble coffee (15%) maltodextrin, sugar, stabilisers, salt, anti-caking agent. I can already tell it would have a better coffee taste and I like that it has real milk instead of just creamer. But that review is for another day.

It has a caramel-ly smell which is but proper but I think the mocha or

So how does it taste? Well, I gotta say local Nescafe coffee mixes have a better coffee aroma although Cafe Mori is a bit less sweet, which I like. You should use the regular coffee measure of only 160 mL of water instead of the usual full mug or it would taste too bland.

Conclusion? It's good at sale price but otherwise I'd rather buy local at full price.

Ayala Recyclables Fair: September schedule

For more information contact:
Maricar A. Dechavez
Development Associate- E&S
Ayala Foundation, Inc.
         dechavez.ma@ayalafoundation.org.
        (02)752-1084

Passport Renewal Tips

Tips for renewing your passport

So it's been five years or more and your passport has expired. Did you know that the DFA building has moved from Roxas/Libertad to Paranaque near MOA? Specifically here:
DFA Consular Office: ASEANA Business Park, Bradco Avenue corner Macapagal Boulevard, Paranaque City (Map)

Here's my account of how I renewed my passport a few days ago interspersed with some tips so you'll have a better experience.

All appointments have to be made online, you know that right? It's pretty simple actually. At first I made an appointment for 5 pm thinking I would be able to leave just an hour before official office hours end and not have to take a leave but it turns out that would automatically mean I wanted a RUSH application (10 working days instead of 20 but costing P1,200 instead of P900). So I had to cancel that appointment and get an earlier one. TIP 0. Probably the best time to set an appointment is the first slot in the day, if you have the choice. Getting there might be more of a hassle but this way, you're not caught in the backlog as I was and you'll probably get done more quickly as everyone is still fresh.

TIP 1. Do not forget to PHOTOCOPY all your requirements before going.

Getting there from the north is pretty simple. Take the MRT to Taft (the advantage of scheduling in the odd hours is that the train is not jampacked) and ride a jeep down the street going to DFA. They charge P10 although it's not that far. I would've preferred to take a bus (ph-commute.com says a bus marked "MIA-611 Tambo" passes by the DFA) but I didn't have the time to wait for one. Cross the street to the DFA building and do not line up at the first gate you see with a queue. Ask where applicants should line up because the first gate seems to be for those picking up their passports or who have other business.

TIP 2. If you're already a bit late for your appointment (as I was---you should be at the DFA 30 mintues before your schedule time), go straight to the guard and show your application form. It will have your appointment time printed on top and he'll let you in if you're late.

You'll be seated at the end of your batch. There were blocks of seats with a card showing me that those with 2:30 appointments still hadn't been served and it was already 3:30! It was almost 4:30 when were were finally made to line up to get in and have our documents checked.

TIP 3. Bring something to read, perhaps a magazine, nothing too engrossing because you will keep moving forward as the people file in. And bring a fan. It's breezy and there's a water-cooled fan but your seat may not be in the coolest area. Water is also something you might want to have handy.

So we got in and as usual, kept sitting down then moving forward a few seats at a time as people in front finally got to the counters. Then after getting your docs checked, you go out, look for another door and go up the escalator and line up to pay. TIP 4. There are usually 2-3 counters open but it may not be obvious from the back. Go forward and look for the shortest line. Immediately after paying, go to the guy who hands out numbers for the last stage of getting your photo, signature and thumbprints taken. You may now take the time to look for a good seat in front of a fan where you have a view of the board which shows you which cubicle is handling which number. Cool down and apply your make-up so you don't look as scary as I did. Take out your reading material and wait your turn.

My signature certainly has degenerated and writing with a plastic pen on a plastic surface didn't help. Cheap as I am I opted to have my passport delivered for P120 just so I wouldn't have to take another half-day leave. They take your receipt when you apply for delivery.

The whole thing took around 3 hours and getting back was a bit of a nightmare since I had an appointment to catch and the jeep I rode went around and around Manila, avoiding the traffic and passing by the schools for the deaf and for the blind then to the LRT before finally stopping near the MRT station.It's a good thing Taft is the last station so I was able to get a seat even at that time.There are more jeeps going to MOA than to the MRT and there's supposedly a shuttle from MOA to the MRT. I don't  know if taking these two rides would have meant a faster trip.

TIP 5. If you're bringing a companion, have the person wait at MOA. He won't be able to come in with you and there's nowhere to wait outside except maybe at the McDonald's across the street.

This new system has been in place for more than a year and although there are no more fixers waiting outside to mislead applicants, the whole process certainly could move forward more quickly than it's doing now. I don't recall having to spend three hours applying for my passport the last time. We're not even getting passports with biometrics, just machine readable ones. I wonder if the Philippines is the last country in the world to have handwritten passport details? Well, no more of those.

We'll see how things go in 2016.

Boredom

I've been seeing a lot of articles lately about boredom. I was 6 when I first learned the word while watching a cartoon show. A kid was lying back with his head in his hands doing nothing and talking to his pet. He says "I'm bored". A lightbulb went off in my head---that word is exactly how I'm feeling! I got really excited and when I tried it out by telling my mom I was bored, she snapped at me. I remember feeling bewildered and wondering what was wrong with saying one was bored. Maybe she took it as criticism of her parenting, haha.

I don't tolerate boredom too well. Fortunately, there are a lot of things I like to do, even by myself so I don't easily get bored.

The Unfortunate Christopher Lao

So law student Chris Lao drives his car through flood waters and is caught on national TV. The resulting interview doesn't gain him any friends. We probably laughed along with the crowd when we heard what happened or saw the video on TV.

But come to think of it, who of us hasn't done something monumentally dumb one time or another? Good thing there were no TV cameras then or online/social networking to spread the news to the whole world. Yet it still could happen to us one day. And if it does, what then?

In my case I hope I'd have to grace to admit I made a mistake and not try to put the blame on others (even if there may be some blame). And I'd hope people would put the Golden Rule into practice and not hold it over my head.

Lastly, I hope Mr. Lao has the fortitude not to let this affect him too much as he studies for the bar exams.

Ube Sansrival

I've long wondered about Cafe Ysabel's sansrival sold at the supermarket.
One day I found someone to share the container with (there used to be a smaller rectangular microwaveable container size but I don't see those anymore---just the 750 mL ones) and tried the ube version. It comes in original (buttercream), mocha, chocolate and ube variants.

For frozen sansrival, I guess it's forgivable that it's chewy and not crunchy but the meringue came in thick, spongy layers and not the thin crunchy layers I prefer. Also, there was just too much buttercream for me. The ube flavor was not distinct. The best thing about it was the abundance of crushed cashews.

I might try the mocha or chocolate flavors but only if they come in the smaller containers.

You can see how thick the meringue was in the photo below. Sorry for the quality--crummy cellphone camera.

Dunkin' Donuts: Big Dunk Chocolate Chocolate Kreme

I was surprised to see Dunkin's new huge donuts for P20. The Boston Kreme looked attractive but since I don't like bavarian cream much, I opted for the Chocolate Chocolate Kreme donut. Why two chocolates? Because the dough, aside from the filling, is chocolate, too!

Verdict? Bleagh. Dry, dry, dry and tasteless dough. Kreme's the usual high transfat, low chocolate flavor stuff you've always found inside.

No wonder I only like the Choco Wacko and Black Raspberry Filled donuts!

Durian Jam

A friend from Davao kindly gave me a bottle of Durian World jam. It's not as intensely durian-y as I would like. Perhaps it's made from hybrid durian instead of the native sort? I like the bitter notes and intense durian taste of the native variety as opposed to the Thai imports or hybrid varieties.

Aside from spooning the jam directly into my mouth and using it as a spread for bread, I like to use it to flavor a cup of brewed coffee. Add some non-dairy creamer and you have the cheap man's version of Blu-Gre's durian coffee!

I tried mixing it in to flavor plain yogurt but I don't care much for the effect. Durian jam and yogurt don't seem to go as well as yogurt with bananas or mangoes or even strawberry preserves from Baguio.

I'll try this one of these days

The Coffee Beanery presents:

The Orange Place Hotel-Kamias, (26 Kamias Road, West Kamias, Quezon City) 425-1398
Monday to Sunday 10am-9pm

The Orange Place Hotel-Santolan, (312 Santolan Road, cor. J.Abad Santos, San Juan, Metro Manila) 726-6712
Monday to Sunday 10am-9pm

West Avenue Branch (158 JL Fortune Promenade Bldg.,West Avenue, Quezon City) 4070308
Saturday 11am-12mn
Sunday and weekdays 11am-11pm

Today the available cakes are Devil's food cake, Chocolate caramel and Swiss Alps* at Kamias. And at West Avenue instead of the last, it's Double chocolate cake.

Does anyone know if the coffee and/or cake is good? With so much chocolate cake you're gonna have to take your coffee black.

Will report back if I ever do get to eat here.

* Have you been wondering what sort of cake Swiss Alps is? It's been bugging me so after a long, tedious search, I see this archived paragraph from BusinessWorld in 2001:
"Cravings Sweet temptations for August include Swiss Alps, a light sponge cake covered with white chocolate in alternate layers of black and white chocolate peaks. Available at Cravings branches in Katipunan Ave., Wilson St., Greenhills, Edsa Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Robinsons Place Ermita, Robinsons Galleria and Greenbelt Mall."

Double Flushing

Are people generally unaware that fresh water is scarce and must be conserved?

I hate it when you leave a toilet stall after flushing the toilet bowl and the next one right after you goes in and flushes it before doing her business. It's just been flushed for goodness' sake. What is wrong with you?!

Tea with powdered juice?

Drinking hot tea with lemon juice or other sour citrus juice is pretty common.
I wonder if anyone has ever tried hot tea with powdered juice? No need to add sugar since powdered juice already has lots of it!
One of these days I'm gonna try this even if the hot water would destroy the Vit. C in the juice.

Crepe for cake

Last night I wanted privacy to read a long document. I went to a food strip intending to try Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's pistachio sans rival which I had been curious about for so long. Unfortunately, it wasn't available and neither was My Little Oscar at Figaro. Starbucks didn't have any cakes I wanted so I decided to have a dessert crepe at Cafe Breton instead. I'd only tried one of their savoury crepes the one time I'd eaten there.

I was planning to try the butter and sugar crepe that I had once read about (it costs only P84+) so it would have been a lot cheaper than the cake I wanted. Then I saw the black cherry preserve and thought it would be a better option.  Desert crepes cost P40 for the crepe plus whatever the sweet stuff cost (I think apples were the cheapest option). However, what I got was a smear of preserves on top and not a filling


The black cherry preserve didn't taste as good as the cherry pie filling used in danishes at French Baker so I was disappointed. Also. they probably use the same batter for sweet and savoury crepes and my crepe tasted faintly of white pepper so it was a bit strange.

I guess I should have splurged on the Chicago cheesecake at CBTL instead. With the 5.5% service charge at Cafe Breton, my cheaper option only saved me around P16 anyway.

Hot Cocoa

I wonder why commercial hot cocoa mixes smell so good? I'm thinking Swiss Miss here since it's the most affordable and the most common one I've tried. Whenever someone else makes a mug, I sniff in envy and even if I make a mug of my cocoa-from-scratch, I have to say it doesn't match. I've tried several hot cocoa recipes (Alton Brown's for example)

Hot chocolate may taste richer but they're a pain to make.

Might as well post the recipe here:

Ingredients

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup cocoa (Dutch-process preferred)
• 2 1/2 cups powdered milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste
• Hot water

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. In a small pot, heat 4 to 6 cups of water.

Fill your mug half full with the mixture and pour in hot water. Stir to combine. Seal the rest in an airtight container, keeps indefinitely in the pantry. This also works great with warm milk.

Let's see how this works out! I have a feeling it might turn out to be a microblogging site with short, boring posts and no pictures but who knows? Might as well try it. Many would say it's about time anyway.