Images of Christmas in Philipines 2011

Just a collection of images while i go around everywhere in Manila during weekends, workdays and anytime i feel like it. I made this because i haven't done this before (like collect the pics into a blog and share it). Its a shame i dont have dslr for better picture quality (which reminds me how much i wanted to buy one). Photos are taken from either my Nokia 6267, iphone, samsung/cannon digicam with equally acceptable resolution (not that i have a choice) ..

Well, i realized how happy Christmas season in the Philippines is, and i would like to remember it even if i am away (or would be away in the coming years). I'll shoot anything that fancies me, and share it until There's not a single thing i could see that means Christmas.

My Christmas Collections from the Cheapest to the Posh

(all are mere opinion, no advertising intended)

Shang's Candylicious Sweet Christmas


Shangrila Edsa's Christmas Decoration is awesome. Starting from Doors to walls to ceilings. Its theme is candy /cake / bread or whatever you call it. Not entirely a Christmas symbol aside from the fact that ginger breads were often served during Christmas seasons. Nonetheless, creativity had it.


Shang's main entrace facing Shaw Blvd. Fom the inside.


Lovely isn't it? those big lantern like cakes, muffins and gifts, rather train of gifts, hang from above.


The basement's view from escalator would show almost the same style, hanging decorations with lighting, really nice effect.


From below, basement floor, food court.


From below left wing. Left wing is decorated with cakes and muffins, while right wing is decorated with toy cars and gifts. Also hanging.


The gingerbread house. Its as big as a realhouse. Kids can actually fit. But they cannot open or go in, only take picture from beside it. When the security guard isn't in bad mood, kids can get inside the ring and actually take picture beside the house. even touch it.


A bigger view. Dang, my iphone cam killed the quality.


Is it a tree or a cake? or a cake tree?


These snowpals are undoubtedly the most popular in the showcase, almost all kids and even older ones stand ther side for a picture.




High isn't it?


Genuinely creative. Gingerbread dolls apparently made of cloth, foam, and intricate details are really amazing..



Even the Escalator aisle is adorned with garlands and gingerbreads made of styrofoam, colored clothes, fancy pins, sequins etc.

This is my personal favorite, the purple giant clown. standing out amongst the rest.


Yummy cakes and muffins and other gigantic things that hung but definitely not edible at all.


Just passing by at Shangrila, ofcourse you wont miss Rustan's. A Class-A department store for the well-off ones. I did not bother to go in cause im in a hurry going home i just took some shots from outside. I did not bother as there's a great chance taking pictures inside is not allowed.
Well, Rustan's have this very classy posh appeal that makes me actually feel like im in Singapore's Ion Orchard or Tang's.

A touch of native combined with glass, makes everything very flashy, very classic and yet indeed very Christmassy

A Visit to Divisoria : October 2011

Store owners and Christmas Ornaments vendors started taking out their 'old' stocks of christmas decorations and put them on super low sale.Some items are not old, but new ones, but mostly old designs (its October FGS). Just like Fashion,Christmas decorations are also a trend.

At 168 Mall in Divisoria, this is infront the 168 admin office. it used tobe a place where people can just rest on some stools lying around but now they lease it for some Bazaar like this.

The Big Santa and the Foil Garlands are soo from yesterday

A cheaper variation of table top Christmas Tree. I remember doing something like this when i was younger, only that, those were made of "walis tingting" upside down.

selling old stocks before new ones come and outdate them

native beauty, anything that's made from native looks rather classy than cheap. its actually more expensive

Christmas Trees of Different Sorts

Table top, turning and optically lighted trees, table top native trees, they also have built in music system that plays caroles. i think those make good gifts bec its very handy. but who would give a xmas tree for a gift? (well i did lol)

Native slim pyramids, those are actually christmas trees that you can use as lamp post, ideal to put on sides and corners. Normally made with metalbase and abaca skins, adorned with smal flowers, xmas balls etc.

Spruce tree this reminds me how much i wanted to change our christmas tree this season. the materials used in christmas trees nowadays are so much different from my old tree. well, its 10 yrs more or less lol

Another shop from the same mall but in different area, Filipinos can make anything feel christmas by just putting it all together. halogen lights, led lights, garlands, wreaths etc.

The Threats Coming

Dear Readers,
Okay this is morbid but i frankly tell you, this chain of posts may be able to help me after i am gone or anybody relevant to me or my father, for that matter..
How so? let me begin with a story.

A child(dsm) was born on 3rd june from a semi - spanish father(dm) and a cebuana mother(cv). child became boy and yet still to young and unfortunate, but both parents were earlier separated. the father was a womanizer and had another child (dms) with another woman(n), but also never settled instead found another woman(luz).(and who knows if there are any other women in between). the mother(cv) found herself a good man (rt) and settled a new family, with (rt) she raised 4 more kids (rt,ot,ct,st) now all grown up wives. the boy became a man, married a woman 31 years ago, raised their family with 2 daughters beautiful daughters. the man is my father, and of course i'm one of the daughter, i mean beautiful daughter. ha-ha.

I had a vague memory of my grandfather, but i know he was existent in our lives when i was younger. I was born in Pasig, we lived there for roughly 4 or 5 years, those were the first few years of my life, before we moved to Mindoro. I remember how my grandfather looks like, he's a mestizo, he had sunburnt most of the time, when i was still a kid, he was very macho. Oh he's a playboy afterall, how can he look dull? He would visit us once in a while and bring me a lot of Popsicles with monggo or buko. I remember him hugging me, and the scent of beer coming from his breath mixed with his strong masculine perfume is something i cannot forget. I was 4.

I grew up pretty fast. But i grew at the thought that my grandfather abandoned my dad. He was left at such an early age, during those years that broken families were not a trend and single parents were not an acceptable social status. Many years ago, lolo mestiso died,but the death of my grandfather is something that sadden me only bec i knew how my dad felt. He was abandoned, but never was an orphan to his dad, but now he is. Well, Blood is thick, as the saying goes.

Now.. many years after his death, my father has begun a journey in looking for some assets left to him and his mother. He has been working on getting documents and evidences many months ago. he has consulted lawyers.

Setting : a portion of the property left by my grandfather (conjugal property of lolo and lola) has been sold despite the HOLD ORDER to release title and or sell..
the property was sold to rom(ds) wife of ant(ds) daughter of an "alleged (DL)" (BLK).. the property being conjugal, and the hold being in place, my grand mother and father filed a case to adverse claim.

BLK is a known person in Marikina, he is rich and powerful. This is the start of the threat. to deal with a person like this may not exactly be the best move. My father have long known about this, since we don't have any means to pay a trusted lawyer before, he gave up hope in claiming his rights over the properties left by my grandfather.

Last Monday October 03, he went to San Mateo to file the case.
(Everything Beyond this will be in Tagalog)
Ang bilis nga naman ng usad ng impormasyon para sa mayayaman (at makapangyarihan) ano? Imaginin mo.. hindi pa tapos magfile ng kaso ang papa ko sa munisipyo, pero eto ang kinakasuhan.. tinatawagan na ang abogado ng papa ko.. ibig sabihin?? may tao ang mayamang DL na si BLK sa munisipyo?? hindi naman nakakapagtaka.. ikaw na ang maging 'makapangyarihan' at 'Alleged' DL. Alleged kasi hindi sakin nanggaling yan at wala akong basehan, pero galing yan sa paniniwala ng karamihan!
So nakipagkita si BLK sa abogado ni papa na si Atty Agui at nagkausap sila doon, well hindi daw magandang usapan ang nilabasan, dahil bastos daw kausap si BLK..(Mahinahon na tao c Atty Agui at ang kanyang mga proyekto ay para sa mahihirap).. Kahit noon pa, ayaw na sana ni Papa na habulin ang parte ng lupa na nabenta kay BLK, delikado daw kasi, pero ngayun, nagbago ang isip nya, gusto nya kasing mapakinabangan ang mga naiwan sa kanya ng kanyang ama. para naman guminhawa ang buhay namin. Ang sabi ni BLK, alam daw ng kapatid ni papa ang tungkol dito, at eversince, alam daw ni tita (dms) and pagbebenta ng lupa sa kanya.. Kung totoo ito, mabuti pa ang anak sa labas ano? may napakinabangan na..Subalit, nasa America c tita (dms) kaya sinulatan sya ng papa ko thru email, naka cc po ako at kapatid ko ang nagtype. Sa email ipinaalam ni papa kay tita (dms) na nagfile sila ng kaso at sinabi ni BLK na alam nya ang mga transactions ng bentahan ng lupa.Kahapon ang email(october 6)
Ngayun, wala pang reply si tita (dms)

Nakakatakot talaga, dahil indi namin alam ang iniisip gawin ni BLK, diba nga 'alleged DL' sya?? Napakaraming pwedeng gawin ng isang taong mapera at 'alleged DL'.. Kung totoo ang 'allegations' tungkol kay BLK, ipinagdarasal konalang na sana, ilayo sa disgrasya si Papa, sana maging patas ang batas, sana maging patas si BLK. Masamang pumatay ng tao!

Ngayun october 07 2011, tatawag c papa sa court para alamin from the clerk kung tapos na ung document na kelngan nitong itype dahil dadalhin un ni papa sa RD ng Marikina, ipapaannotate daw ung certificate..

Sana maging okay ang lahat..

(Somewhere in this blog u will find what those Symbols mean) for security and confidentiality purposes i will not be able to publicly give out names and identities. this is a personal blog, however this is also publicly accessible)

Gamja! Gamja! Garlic Potato

While waiting for my BF to fetch me,I strolled at the basement of Robinson's Galleria in search for a nice finger food. I thought of going for donuts or potato corner but before i reach their booths, i found this new shop located just exactly right infront of the Supermarket.

It smelled very enticing so i told myself why not give it a try :)

Gamja! Gamja!

Gamja is a Korean term for 'potato'. It is derived from the Korean side dish called Gamja Jarim. However despite being Korean in Nature, Gamja!Gamja! is not too spicy, there's a slight kick and due to it having garlic, but its just very mild, it is very calming. Gamja Gamja's taste is adjusted to Filipino taste not being too spicy, a little sweet and flavorful due to the combination of corn syrup, and a little bit salty due to the soy sauce.. Its a little bit sticky but the potatoes are also a little bit crunchy on the outside, tender on the inside.(in my opinion it is nicer to include the peel)

they also come in nice packaging container with holes on top.

saves u from the mess

Gamja!Gamja! is available in three different sizes: Potpot- PhP39, Jaja PhP49 and Garlee size PhP59.

Heres a little sample recipe

Ingredients

2 potatoes, peeled and cut (not too big)

onion, sliced

1 tbsp red pepper paste

1 tsp red chili powder(optional)

2 cloves of garlic, crushed (adjust amt depends on your love for garlic)

1 carrot thinly sliced (optional)

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp corn syrup or honey

sesame seeds for garnish

Cooking Instructions:

1. Stir fry the potatoes and onions in oil. Its nicer when its browned and a little crispy on the corners
2. Add the pepper paste, chili powder, garlic, soy sauce, sugar, corn syrup, and a little water.
3. Cover and turn down the heat.
4. Cook until the potatoes are tender.
5. Serve with sesame seeds and carrot as garnish.

I miss Celestia Luna

Did I mentioned from an old post that i am currently playing an online game? Well, i do.. I am playing Celestia Luna and loving it :) just recently i've been very busy with work so rather than playing, i just rest as soon as i get home. I thought of sharing my Celestia Luna experience so here are a few pictures.

I used to play a different game (rpg) but i quitted when i moved to Singapore. During the stressful days,i really long to be home, however i can't. Philippines is too far to often travel back and forth, not only that, its also quite costly to be coming home so often. I know i needed a new environment so i could enjoy time and detress. I asked my bf to look for an onlinegame since i dont want to go back playing rose or reviving other online games,after being gone too long i'm sure it would be very hard to go back to a long playing rpg. I wanted something new but something free, something fast paced but is definitely not something thats item mall centered at all. Just a balance gaming where hardwork pays off. We tried Celestia Luna, and we loved it.

This is my First Character, She is a Grand Master, wearing her typical gypsy set, a smart worm, +13 athena hammer and her brand new Industrialist Hair that makes her look like Tasartia. Lazy, i stopped levelling her after reaching a good level. Quite a failure in path i took with her, very hard to solo, good aoe but very slow cooltime. She stayed on my account, iuse her to shop, go around the game and deal with buyers and seller. Was never deleted ans never will be for she bears my name.
These two bunny babes are my vendors. Sometimes i use both but normally i use the yellow hair as i only vend on 1 char most of the time.. on a normal day my shop contains crafted gems, crafted weapons like Dominator and Death Maker, sometimes we also sell heaps of glasses and hats from Lucky 4th box bec it is available from the item mall for only 10GP. In our unfortunate luck for getting a pair of Hegemonic Rainbow, we ended up with tons of trashes that normallygoes dragged outside and destroyed while the others with descent stats gets sold at a cheaper price.
My main char shopping around the town of Nera at channel 1.At the moment, vending in Celstia Luna is concentrated on one map only and only first 3 channel out of the many is enabled to putting up a shop.
PVP IN CELESTIA LUNA: PvP comes in between me and my bf after (1)change job (2)reset (3)new gears (4)bored >:)
My BF and I on our PVP, just testing my damage after getting my new BWL suit from donation. Lets Begin!
this is me on my Sword Master winning over my BF whos a Magnus
Now im dead :(
Now its a Draw
But still I won !!Yey!!
Whenever we make characters ingame, we always make a pair, we always make it a point that the pair have a good team. This is my Assasin and this is my BFs Warrior. My Assasin has stayed lvl 80 and ihave since then kept her at that level for farming. She is stationed at Makas spot and changes channel to channel when we are farming. This is one way i earn my money ingame. I farm..Faithfully :)
GrandMaster ans Paladin. Our First Few days in Celestia Luna. When my BF crafted our first pair of wedding dresses.
Assasin and Gladiator
My Inquirer and my BFs Soul Arbiter.
My Cardinal and BF's Paladin
My SwordMaster and BF's Magnus
My Assasin and Lower Boss Farmer.
My SM and Naila Harbor Farmer
My Second Main. My Cardinal. Since i was getting bored and bored playing with myGrand Master myBF and i decided to make me a new char and since im quite fascinated with Mages, plus the fact that most of mygears were for mage, we decided to make me a Cardinal. I enjoyed every level playing with this cardinal. She can solo, She is fast, great damage, high def, great buffs.
My Third Main. My Inquirer. Almost as nice as the cardinal, great deal damager and awsome buffs too.
My Fourth Main. My SwordMaster. Definitely my only char that is not a mage but he most i enjoyed amongst all my chars. Imba skills, capable of soloing, great in PvP. This char is also my Naila Harbor Farmer.
my cardinal on her farming set and on her levelling set
my archer in the making :)
BOSSES and FARMING
My Makas farmer as she takes her rounds
My SM and BFs Magnus as we take turns farming the 3 bosses in one region, this area of the map has 3 bosses adjacent to each other.
Other Spots : We also farm in the Gate of Alker for Powder and in Naila Harbor for Ingot
DATING DUNGEON !! Lets go on a Date! This is the dating Dungeon of Celestia Luna, at the moment, only characters with opposite genders can date each other (i dont know if they will make changes in the future for same sex dating) Dating dungeon rooms are divided in terms of level. It is a place where exp is so much higher and monstersdefense are so much lower. Easy kill and easy EXP.
FASHION !! FASHION!! Hehehe. the photos below are taken after my bf and icompleted item mall sets for all of our first 4 chars (at that time we onlyhave 2 chars each). Ofcourse i wont miss it for another pictorial. We even made the chars danced together but end up with this. not synced but definitely not any lesser cute.
The two pictured below are my entries to one of the contest in Celestia Luna Forums for DressUp your Character. I draw the dresses thru adobe Photoshop (just a beginner kekeke) unfortunately i did not win, there are some other concepts that are nicer, also i should have made a pair to show also how the guy costume would look like.
My Sailor Inspired Sexy Babes
GUILD Well I said i am playing but i did notmentioned im living ingame so, i did not join a single clan in Celestia Luna instead my bf and I made a guild and put all our characters in there so it is easy to communicate with each other even if using a diffrent char. We created so many chars our guild points eventually enough to level the guild to Grade 3.