Celine's Life Adventure

2013 has been a good year to me. I travelled a lot (more than I expected, actually), met new friends, and ate a lot of food as well. Just like last year , I will try to summarize my year of travel with this blog post. I've been to Bontoc, Mountain Province for the first time this year and I went there twice! It was my first time in Indonesia and Malaysia. I even went to Malaysia twice (once in Kuala Lumpur and once in Kota Kinabalu)! I've been to the Bicol Region (Legazpi City and Naga City), Misamis Region (Cagayan de Oro City and Ozamiz City), Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte for the first time! I came back to Pangasinan before the year ends and enjoyed the food there as well. I went to Baguio City and Cebu City four times this year!

I thought I wouldn't be travelling for December anymore and yet the opportunity came when  +GBG Pangasinan  and  +GBG Dagupan  organized  +Google Code-in  Meetup for the students in Lingayen and  +GDG Philippines , and +GDG Baguio  helped for the said event. Lingayen, Pangasinan We left Manila around 6:30 AM aboard the Victory Liner bus going to Alaminos. We had two stopovers and was sleeping most of the way. As instructed by our friend  +JR Padilla , we alighted in Socony and rode a mini-bus going to Dagupan. We asked the bus conductor to drop us off in front of Bangsal Suites. It is the place where we would stay for the night. Bangsal Suites After checking in and dropping off our things, we had lunch in Rudy & Jing Seafood Restaurant. We had the most delicious grilled catfish and milkfish. The meat was sweet and tender. It was the first time in a long time I had fish those delightful. 

Recently, I moved near to restaurant and food melting pot - Kapitolyo in Pasig City. Guided by our dear friend  +Mitch ,  +Jomar  and I am starting to see the many restaurants Kapitolyo has to offer. Bà Nội's (The Fresh Flavour from Vietnam) 12 East Capitol Drive, Kapitolyo, Pasig Our first dinner together was at Bà Nội's. It is a Vietnamese restaurant that used to have a branch in Makati. I was able to try their food in Makati, and here I am eating their food again. We ordered the food below: Ga Hho Cari Ha / December 16, 2013 Bu Loc Lac Corn Trang Steamed Rice / December 16, 2013 Goi Cuon / December 16, 2013 The food was good. Though I am not a fan of Vietnamese cuisine it was still good food and as always great company.

Background Story : My parents and siblings are flying to Canada on December 14, 2013 (Saturday) and I will be left behind here in the Philippines. The need is to buy a condominium that I could occupy as soon as possible. The Find : We keep on searching and inquiring for a condominium that is easily accessible via the major roads like EDSA. My mom searched online and found The Gateway Regency online. She called up the broker, and the scheduled an ocular. They saw a one-bedroom unit that seems right. As early as the ocular, my mom keeps on repeating to the broker and the marketing employee of Robinsons Land (Valerie Mijares), that we need to move in as soon as possible and before the flight of my family. We want them to expedite the process, and they confirmed that it is possible. The Payment : We paid the reservation fee last November 26, 2013, and the balance on December 3, 2013. Both payments were funded from our Metrobank account to the Metrobank account of Robinsons Land to avoi

Last December 6, 2013, our company had annual planning. We wanted to conduct it within Metro Manila, but the ambiance should not feel like you're in the busy metropolis. After searching and thinking, we end up with The Bayleaf Hotel in Intramuros. Morning View from the Conference Room For Php 1,250.00 per person, we had a conference room (complete with a television, marker, whiteboard, etc.) from 8:00am to 5:00pm, AM and PM snacks of our choice, and breakfast buffet at 9 Spoons . Not bad of a deal, right?

On our last day in KK, we woke up a bit late and was sweetly taking our time as we prepare to check out. We had another round of delicious Malaysian breakfast then off to Le Meridien. We thought of riding the bus, but it was taking too long, so we walked going there under the heat of the sun. When we ( +Jomar ,  +Svet ,  +Mitch , and I) arrived there, Mama  +Chelle  and  +Wayne  were missing. They came around an hour later after having breakfast. We decided to chill in the room and then had lunch in the recommended place nearby Kedai Kopi Seng Hing Sunsuran . They serve good food, and I loved their Tuaran Mee (it's a dried noodle dish that originated from the town of Tauran in East Sabah). Curry, Sweet & Sour Pork, Fried Fish, Tuaran Mee, Laksa, and Tom Yum

Good morning 2nd day in the City of Kota Kinabalu! +Jomar ,  +Wayne , and I had breakfast together. I particularly like the chicken wings they served today. After preparing for our beach trip, we went down at the lobby and met with  +Svet ,  +Mitch , and  +Lorna .  +Chelle  and  +Murphy  are waiting at the lobby of the other building. We started walking going to the Gaya Street Sun day Market where they are selling all sorts of things. Some of us decided to buy this cold Malaysian drink while  +Jomar  and I were busy hacking portals. Next thing we know, Wayne started shivering, and Mitch is hugging him trying to keep him warm. We started giving out the shawl that we have ready for our beach trip. I have a cardigan in my bag and gave it to Wayne as well. Thanks to  +Lorna  and  +Murphy  for helping us find the nearest clinic. Later on, an ambulance picked Wayne up to go to Queen Elizabeth Hospital (a public hospital).

Good morning Kota Kinabalu! Magandang umaga Sabah! Selamat Pagi Malaysia! It was our first day in Malaysia and  +Jomar , and I enjoyed the breakfast buffet of  +King Park Hotel Kota Kinabalu . I particularly remember the Beef Rendang because it was the only food I am not familiar with that they offered. GDG Devfest Kota Kinabalu 2013 After making sure that we're ready for the long day,  +Jomar ,  +Mitch ,  +Svet  and I started walking towards the Wisma Bandaraya. It is the venue of the first GDG Devfest Kota Kinabalu and is two blocks away from our hotel. We saw  +Sebastian  outside the building trying to figure out the entrance. We also bumped into  +Loretta  as we figure out on which floor we should go as the building lobby is empty.

My life goal right now is to travel and see much of the world as I can. Last June, I was in Yogyakarta, Indonesia for the Google Southeast Asia Outreach Summit. Little did I know, that I would be travelling out of the country again, this time in the Capital City of Sabah - Kota Kinabalu.  +GDG Philippines  were asked to help  +GDG Kota Kinabalu  with their first GDG Devfest KK. +Jomar  and  +Wayne  discussing Java best-practices while waiting for our food in Kenny Rogers.

We were in Baguio for my birthday last November 8. Aside from celebrating my birthday in my favourite city in the Philippines,  +Jomar  and I were also speakers for the Google community Baguio events last November 9. He will be speaking at  +GDG Baguio 's Devfest while I will be sharing about Google+ and Google Search for Education for  +GBG Baguio 's gDaysXBaguio. The morning started with a round of breakfast from  +Azalea Baguio . The joint morning program happened while we moved from one room to another and we also visited the ongoing launch of  +GEG Philippines  in  +Berkeley School Baguio . We had lunch at Canto in the Ketchup Food Community. Delicious food from Canto!

I celebrated my 24th birthday last November 8. Below are highlights of the week that I had. To start, last November 4 -  +Jomar  and I had my fave Kare-Kareng Gulay from Giligan's. November 5 - for my love of Mexican food, +Jomar  and I had dinner in Mexicali

Crazy Katsu In Maginhawa Street, you will find the original branch of Crazy Katsu. As the name of the restaurant suggests, they serve all sorts of Katsudon and other Japanese meal. I love the Katsu Curry. The curry sauce was one of the best that I have tried and at a reasonable price (Php 190.00).  +Jomar , on the other hand, ordered the Katsudon (Php 150.00) which was equally good. The chicken was tender and served hot. The only disappointment of the day was the Gyoza (Php 120.00). It tasted like how a refrigerator would smell when you have not to clean it. Overall, I would go back to Crazy Katsu because of their delicious Katsu Curry.

There are some areas in Metro Manila melting with restaurants left and right worthy of a food trip. On top of my head, I could think of Maginhawa Street and Timog in Quezon City, Kapitolyo in Pasig, and Wilson Street in San Juan. For this particular post, I will share my experience in another melting pot of restaurant in Banawe, Quezon City.

Last October 2013, I was able to visit the City of Naga and below is my food trip in CamSur. Casa Moderna Freshly baked bread on a huge brick oven and some Pancit for snacks on a lazy afternoon. That's how I enjoyed the soft pastry and meaty Pancit in Casa Moderna. Currently, they have five branches all in Naga City. Be sure to visit at least one of them. Meaty Palabok

Our flight is at 10:45 AM via Cebu Pacific. The hotel service will pick us up by 9 AM going to the airport. It means  +Jomar Tigcal ,  +Wayne Manuel  and I still have time to explore Naga City and visit the parks and Churches there. We woke up at 6:00 AM to visit the places below: The closest park to our Hotel is Rizal Park (Freedom Park) . A Huge I <3 NAGA sign is there as well.

Bicol Youth for Technology Exposure 2013 +Jerome Locson  invited me to be one of the speakers for BYTE 2013. I will be sharing about Gmail (with Contacts & Tasks), Calendar, Google Search, and Google Sites.  +Jomar Tigcal  will be sharing about Android development while  +Wayne Manuel  is going to share about Google Maps API.

My previous post ended with  +Jomar Tigcal , and I on our way to the Terminal to ride a van going to Naga City. After two hours (around 3:00 PM), we got off in front of SM Naga. Tricycle, taxi, jeepney, and vans were everywhere. My first impression was it is a progressive city and a whole lot busier than Legazpi City, Albay. We rode a tricycle and headed to our rest for the night: Naga Regent Hotel . Probably a review of the hotel in another post! After dropping off our stuff and resting a bit, Ms.  +Aileen Apolo  sent us an SMS informing us that we should have snacks in her cousin's place, Casa Moderna .  +Wayne Manuel ,  +Jomar Tigcal  and I got lost because there's a branch near our hotel - we went there first, and after searching for Ms. Aileen to no avail, we asked the waitress and found out that there are five branches of Casa Moderna all over the city! Quince Martires Monument

At last! After more than two months of staying in the city, I found myself in a new place again! I could not be happier when Jerome Locson invited Jomar Tigcal, Wayne Manuel, and I to be speakers for the Bicol Youth for Technology Exposure (BYTE) 2013. It was my first time to visit the Bicol Region, and I am ecstatic to be there! The event was on the 19th of October 2013. Instead of flying to Naga, Jomar and I took the flight via Legazpi to see the beauty of Mt. Mayon and explore what time would permit in Legazpi, Albay. Mt. Mayon seen in the Legazpi Airport

I've been working in Makati for three years now and have tried different food places around the busy city. In the first round of my food trip around Makati, I will be sharing about Commune ! It's a coffee + bar + restaurant found in the corner of Valero and H.V. Dela Costa (near Trafalgar and BDO Towers). All-Day Breakfast I loved their chicken longganisa! It was the first time I tried last October 2, and it was delicious. The only reason I don't have a photo of it is that I finished the food before I remember to take a picture of it. Gutom eh. Ultimate Food Trip I love Commune and the different food adventure  +Jomar Tigcal , and I have when we have dinner here. Jomar is more adventurous in trying all the viands available while I stick to the food that I like. August 8, 2013: Daing Na Bangus and Chicken Adobo Sa Gata

It was the first time I organized such big of an event, and I am sincerely thankful that God blessed me with wonderful teammates:  +Wayne Manuel  and  +Jomar Tigcal . As you might have noticed, I didn't travel at all this month of September 2013. The reason is that we are busy organizing the biggest event of  +GDG Philippines  called GDG Devfest Philippines 2013 .