Summer, we've been waiting

"Summertime,

Child, your living's easy.
Fish are, fish are jumping out
And the cotton, Lord,
Cotton's high, Lord so high."

I love this Janis Joplin song. It has always been number one on my summer soundtrack. I've managed to create one a year ago, check this link. I'm tired of winter, it's cold and I want a little heat back. I want to go to the beach, wear my shorts and tees, and not freeze to death. Summer isn't really something you look forward to when you live in the desert. Well, this summer is a little bit different. My friends and I are going to Maldives. It was one of those "I finally did something spontaneous!" moments. I was caught up in their excitement and agreed to go along. 

We managed to book a flight and get a hotel reservation just about two weeks ago. Now I'm on to a bigger challenge, deciding what to wear, hahahaha. It's shallow I know, but I learned in a recent study that choosing outfits for work, nights out, dinner parties, holidays, gym and other activities means the average female will spend 287 days rifling through their wardrobe. The study - which was based on an adult lifetime from the age of 16 to 60 - found most women will spend around 20 minutes deciding what to wear before hitting the town on a weekend night. Weekend pa lang yan ha, paano na kaya kung holiday trip diba? Stuck in panic mode, we hit the mall right away. 

This summer, I promised myself to be more girly. I'm really the shorts and tees kind of gal. So for a dash of a little spice in my boring life, I'll try to sneak in a bolder wardrobe. We hurriedly went to the mall, and in one store I found gold! Kidding, here are some of my great finds from Zara. Some of them I already bought (excited), some I'm still lusting about. 

Two piece dress

 Printed dress

 Open-back dress

 Digital print dress

 Shirt with tulle front

 T-shirt with lace back

 Palm tree dress

 Draped dress

Combined t-shirt

 Dress with contrasting hem

 Open back shirt

 Skirt with asymmetric hem

 Flag t-shirt

 Open waist dress

 Blouse with print on front

 Dress with lace details

 Extra long shirt

 Printed skirt

A lot of good stuff considering this all came from one store.  You might want to stick around for the beach wear edition.  Rach and I found a lot of fantastic stuff from Asos, some items are on sale so you better do some serious mouse clicking now.  Filled with enthusiasm, my crazy Rachell made a manual-like photo collection of what we must have for the trip and surprisingly it made things easy. It gives us direction 'cause it's easy to lose focus when you're in the mall (parang gusto mong bilhan lahat, chos).  More to come so stick around. I know, I'm so stoked.

“So here’s to all those summer nights when my feet hit the sand and the waves break my fall and all my friends around me out number the stars.”

~Unknown

Liv Tyler's INXS cover for GIVENCHY.

"An electrifying meeting between the world of rock and the universe of perfume", this is how Givenchy describes the ad campaign for their latest scent  Very Irresistible Electric Rose.  Liv Tyler has long been a muse to Givenchy's product line (scents, make ups, women's wear).  She modeled for the brand since 2003.  The French fashion house released last week the online video premier of Liv's modern cover of Inx's classic hit "Need you tonight".  

It is known to everyone that she is Aerosmith's front man Steven Tyler's daughter so I was kind of expecting something as dauntless like this from her. She must have gotten the pipes from her dad, attempting to revive the rock and roll heritage.  This is a bold and risky move for her since her previous campaigns stuck to the normal classic stylish poster ready ad.  This eye opener could give you a complete surprise feeling at first watching her rocking it for the first time on screen.  Such a refreshing change, I must say she pulled it off very well.

Photos for the print ads below.

Here it is, Liv Tyler's singing debut.  Video was directed by John Renck and New York-based musician David Andrew Sitek, who has collaborated with indie bands including Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Liars and Foals, produced the record.

Australian band Inxs official music video for Need you tonight

The Very Irrésistible Givenchy Electric Rose will be available for purchase in stores in April 2012.  You may also check their website www.givenchy.com.

"And the things that come to those that wait may be the things left by those that got there first." - Steven Tyler

Faith and Food

Vacation time is family time. Eating out - whether it’s at nice sit down restaurants or a greasy fast food chain, has always been a habit whenever the family's complete. It's a proven money-sucker but we don't really overdo it. It's just that we're certified foodies. So it’s no surprise to anyone who knows me that any vacation is going to include great food. While some seek for tremendous adventures, we find ourselves always hunting for a good place to eat. When you go out of town or out of the country, do you make it a point to check out where's the best place to eat? I do, all the time.

Sad thing about moving miles away from home is that aside from my family, I miss the food terribly. I guess I haven't really adapted to the Middle Eastern taste. Never reaching a point where I can eat most Arabic food without saying or thinking "This is so bland!". That's why I'm really thankful for Filipino groceries and restaurants, at least I have them to turn to when I'm tired of awful food. The one good habit I'm proud of is that we always go to church every Sunday. We were just raised like that by my parents. We always wake up early and hear mass before having breakfast, yeah, that early. When I was a kid, I always complain (weekend kaya masarap gumising ng tanghali), but as I grew older I got used to it. 

These simple habits made us want to spend time with each other all the more.  About a month ago we discovered several new restaurants, almost turning this page into a food blog 'cause I just can't help but share our experiences. Yes we're the adventurous foodie type but still we're also creatures of habit when it comes to dining places.  If we find something we like, we tend to keep going back for more. So here are some places we went back to when I was home last month and it appears that indeed, old habits die hard.

Inside St. James the great parish

The altar

Angel

Metal fan

Side

Kalachuchi

FK in church

Dressed improperly for church day, I know.  It's not a Sunday, we just prayed after dad came out the hospital

Christmas Parol!

Flowers along the aisle = A wedding.

=)

Fountain outside

=)

Church facade

Almon Marina - This is one of the regular places they like to go for casual dining.  Sandwiches are their specialty but there are also a variety of food to choose from.  Price is reasonable considering the freshly prepared food and fine service you get from the crew.   

Whoah! Sausages!

Salad

Kinatuwa kong makita ang Barilla pasta sa mini store nila =)

=)

Barilla pesto

=)

=)

Umbrella

FK, daddy and mommy

=)

FK's order

Salmon lasagna

Yum!

Timog Avenue hawker center - I forgot the name of this center but I have been eating here since I was in college.  I was craving for grilled jolog food that night (isaw, bbq, tenga, atay, dugo, etc). Dito ako dinala ni JM at ang dami kong nakain. 

Jay-J's Inasal - Some say it's more of a drinking joint but seriously I don't care. I love their inasal!  It's one of those places where you can get an affordable meal with decent quality of food.  My favorite inasal place has always been Payag in Tagbilaran City Bohol.  I know that's Chicken Inato they serve over there, I don't really know the difference, ang alam ko lang masarap siya. LOL. In Manila, Jay-J's is my top pick for Inasal. 

Ensaladang Mangga with Talong

Sizzling BULALO FTW! Sobrang favorite ko to.

Inasal

Oh my GULAY, sarap!

Sobraaang sarap!

La Piadina - You might get intimidated reading this resto's menu, you may of course ask the servers for assistance.  After finally understanding your choices, you'll come to appreciate the wide range of food options.  The dishes are grouped based on the region of origin  - Puglia, Emilia Romagna, Piemonte, and Toscana.  It's like taking a tour of Italy through the food that they serve.  

 =)

Kaya =)

Grissini di PizzaGarlic bread sticks with their own special cheese dip

Kid's meal

Fish for daddy

Pasta Arabiatta

=)

=)

Foodies!

Pancake House - Don's stereotype this place as a mere pancake house.  Daddy always comes here because of the steak.  He wanted to change the name to Steak House nga sana eh, hahahaha.   Sadly, he can't do beef anymore but as I always tell him, "Nakailang steak ka na ba sa buhay mo?  Enough na yun for one lifetime no."  That made him smile.  So I'm glad it was merienda time when we went there, because if it was lunch or dinner I'll definitely order steak and I know it would be hard for dear Jose.  So here's what we ate that day.

=)

Pwede bang mawala to? Crayons!

Busy girl

Serious

Seafood Gambero

Oks na si daddy dito

Mac n Cheese for Kaya

Chocolate Marble pancake

Suddenly craving for this. Hay.

Kaya took this pic.

And this too.

My Princess

My turn

Martin Lawrence

And my heart melts. Banana split for dessert

Here I am again utterly torturing myself looking at not so old photos of food, fondest places and my family.  I know it seems pathetic but I kinda' like it.  These photos are great in reminding me how much I love home and the happy times we had there.  It is very important to me as it is helpful to remember the merry hours when I take a recess from the everyday "stuff" that gets in the way.  

"The family that eats and prays together, stays together." - A