After visiting Regina RICA, we went on a 15-minute drive on the main road and about 5 to 10-minute drive into the mountain side until we reached Daranak Falls.


We all were excited as this would be our first time to swim into fresh water.  We pulled in into the parking lot and the lush greens surrounding the place added up to the excitement. After paying for the entrance fee and picnic shed, we walked onto the bridge leading to the falls right after the entrance.

Date of visit: March 28, 2014

Read full story HERE :)

Our initial plan was to go to JE Camp, Regina RICA, and Daranak Falls, but because we spent almost 3 hours at JE Camp, we just decided to drop the other two destinations from the list after our very late lunch at Halamanan.

Just like how we got to know about Pinto Art Museum and JE Camp, Regina RICA was also just a recent discovery of Mark and I because of my mom. Thanks to her adventures with her friends, we got to know of another sanctuary not very far from our hometown.


Regina RICA (Regina Rosarii Institute for Contemplation in Asia) is a pilgrimage site that's relatively new and has become well-known for its huge statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Date of visit: March 28, 2014

Read full story HERE :)

I've said in my last post that a tour in JE Camp hotel and Resort would probably take around an hour, depending on how you want to explore the place. Well I guess we were so much captivated by the beauty of the whole place that we finished our tour after almost 3 hours haha! :p


We were supposed to go to Daranak Falls and Regina Rica, both still in Tanay, but because it was already getting late, we just had to drop them off. And so right after the tour we headed to Julia Bandoma Vista Restaurant, or Halamanan as what it's well-known for, to have our lunch, a very late lunch that is. :p

It was just an ordinary day when Mark suddenly thought of heading out for another adventure. My dad, who's fond of asking our whereabouts from time to time (yeah he's sweet like that :D), did his morning routine of asking what we (Mark and I) plan to do for the day, so I told him that Mark wanted to visit JE Camp in Tanay, Rizal. I guess my dad was also up for an adventure that time that he thought of going there too with the whole family.


And so there, after breakfast, we found ourselves all packed up and set for a family bonding. :D We arrived at JE Camp in Tanay, Rizal, after around an hour-long drive from our house.

Date of visit: March 24, 2014

Read full story HERE :)

I'm already aware of Mark's plans of going home for a vacation but I never really knew the specific date when he'll be back. It was just a day before his flight when he finally told me that he's coming home. And so we didn't really got to have any plans on how we'll spend his month-long vacation here in the Philippines.


Good thing there's Pinto Art Museum. :D Aside from my little talent when it comes to art, I also do have an eye and appreciation for it. I just never thought that Mark also have the same interest and appreciation for art as I did. He was actually the one who insisted that we come and visit this place. :)

Date of visit: March 18, 2014

Read full story HERE :)

Please forgive me for another long overdue post. I'm just trying to cross out each one of my backlogs. :D

Part of the series of the pre-birthday celebrations that I had was another lunch out with my family. It was actually an impromptu lunch out. I guess Daddy was just feeling a little lazy to cook that time that he decided to eat out.


I already knew that we will have to dine at a Chinese restaurant, as that is the only cuisine that somehow keeps up with my daddy's meticulous palates. :) Good thing the Chinese food choices within Antipolo are already expanding. We now also have North Park here in our place. Yay!

Almost a week after our family fun at Altaroca, our family once again enjoyed some summer fun last Wednesday, April 17, but this time without my dad. My dad wasn't able to join us because of work. It was just actually my mom's aerobics group's summer outing, and families were allowed to be tagged along. :)

Mom's aero group's summer outing was cancelled a day before, but since we were all set, with Mark and Jeff already at our house because they were also coming along, and with Jaoey very much excited for it, we still pushed through.


After having breakfast at home, we headed to Cristina Villas. There were already a number of cars parked at the resort, and since we're not fans of crowded places, we were hesitant at first. My mom, together with Jaoey, Chino, and Mark checked the place out and got back with a go signal for us to unload our things.

Had some family fun over at Altaroca Mountain Resort here in Antipolo last Monday, August 8. Daddy was on leave from work so it was a perfect time for some summer fun. Her sisters were also free that time so we invited them over. My cousin, Aya, and Mark were also tagged along. :)


The resort is just a few minute drive away from our house. We had our breakfast at home and got to the resort around 9am. Since the owner of the resort is my daddy's friend, checking in was a breeze. The resort was big enough, with 3 pools (a kiddie pool, a lap pool, and a pool lounge), a few huts, some tree house, a cafe and bar, and a hotel with function rooms and a grand ballroom.

Happy birthday Daddy!!! May God bless you with more love, happiness, wealth, and good health! We love you!!! ♥♥♥

Date of visit: January 2, 2012

Was off from work on the first working day of 2012, because I was nursing a sprained ankle and lower back pains from a minor accident on New Year's Eve. But that didn't stop me from having some fun with my family on my special day. :)

We still had lots of food from the New Year celebration plus the weather was really good so we decided to have a pre-birthday celebration by having a swimming party. After preparing all our stuff and food for the swimming party, we went off and searched for a nice resort in Antipolo.

We didn't think that we'll be having a hard time in searching for a place since we thought that most of the people were at their provinces to celebrate the holidays. But we were surprised when the resorts that we eyed were all packed. Even the private pool resorts that we usually frequent were already booked.

Since a lot of our time were already wasted, we all agreed to have the celebration at Loreland Farm Resort. We don't really frequent this resort because of one reason: the place is always packed! But then again, we still decided to give it a try. We didn't book ahead of time, but if you're planning to book ahead, you can book Loreland Farm Resort, Antipolo City with Traveloka.

We were supposed to get the floating nipa hut, unfortunately it was already booked. We roamed around the place to search for a nice spot until we finally saw Phase 3 which was vacant, perfect for our swimming party!

Here's a photo of the Phase 3 pool. I was really tired from the long walk around the area so I didn't have the energy to take photos of the rest of the pools.

We went back to the admin office just to be told that Phase 3 was closed for the day. Ugh! We were told that most of their pools were closed for maintenance, and all the open pools were already booked. We were walking around the place under the scorching sun and were already losing hope until we came across the lifeguard of the Phase 3 pool who confirmed that the pool was open for the day. So we had to go back to admin office (which was really far from the pool area) to book Phase 3, but the personnel just won't allow us. My dad and I also had an argument with the personnel as she was insisting that Phase 3 was closed! Until finally she was able to talk to the lifeguard and confirmed that we can book the place.

Date of visit: November 27, 2011

We love to eat! :D

I've already shared in a previous post how Shakey's has been my family's favorite and how we would always dine there after my dad's work every time he's on his 2pm-10pm shift. This was when Shakey's still had a branch in Antipolo during my elementary years, unfortunately they got closed after a few years. So whenever we go out weekends, if there's a Shakey's restaurant nearby, we make sure to indulge in our favorites at Shakey's.

So just imagine how delighted we all were when we knew of the new Shakey's Antipolo branch which opened just last December 2010. We already expected a long queue of customers but this did not stop us from giving in to our Shakey's cravings. :p

Shakey's Antipolo

Jaoey immediately got hold of the menu as soon as we were seated. Here are what he had:

Last Friday, June 18, was my parents' 27th wedding anniversary. We had a simple yet super fun celebration with the whole family at Bosay Resort.

We got to the resort around 4pm and started the celebration by having merienda. My dad cooked Pancit Canton and bought Sapin-sapin and Biko for merienda.

Sapin-sapin

Biko

The kids immediately dove into the waters after they finished their food.