TAIPEI TOP PICKS - 1

#1 Architecture
From the world's 2nd tallest building to the heritage sites

Taipei 101, 1,671 ft tall!




We paid NTD400 each (roughly Php560 each) to access the view decks.


The 89th floor indoor observation deck.


We rode the world's fastest elevator to get here -- took us only 37seconds from the 5th floor (where you buy your tickets) to the 89th floor!


The 91st floor outdoor observatory.


Museum at the 88th floor.


The mall housed by Taipei 101






The Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall
Erected in memory of the former President of the Republic of China


89 steps to represent Chiang's age at the time of his death


We were lucky to have chanced upon the changing of guards.


I'm not sure how often this is done in a day.




Chiang Kai Shek's Memorial Gate


Liberty Square
View from the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall


The National Theater


Amazing details!


The National Concert Hall





The Longshan Temple, Wanhua District
One of the oldest, most popular temples in Taipei.


Offerings


Longshan Temple crowd



Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall
A multi-purpose social, educational and cultural center for the Taiwanese public



The Presidential Office Building
Zhongzheng District



The historic Red House
It was originally a market building but was used as a theater from 1945 onwards.


Security Office at the National Theater


Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Walk Way
Like HK, SG, and our very own Makati (SM-Glorietta-Greenbelt-office bldgs) the malls are connected by walk ways, so convenient!






The very posh Bellavita mall






One of the buildings between the New York, New York Dept Store and Bellavita



Photos: Mine and J's

LOVING LONG WEEKENDS

Who doesn’t love long weekends? For my 34th birthday, J gave me, us, exactly that. We left for Taipei Friday, July 30, and returned to Manila Tuesday, August 3 – a five-day weekend we loved, loved, loved!

[Photo: Mine. Giant "Love" installation, Taipei 101 entrance.]


Taiwan is not on people’s “to visit” list. And somehow that was an additional attraction to us.

So why Taipei?

1) Seeing new worlds is one of our joys. It doesn’t have to be a popular destination. Besides, we’re not really into popular choices (we’re childless by choice, remember?). As long as the place has points of interest, is safe to visit, and within our budget, we’re game!

2) It was part of Cebu Pacific’s seat sale. Wala kaming pinalalampas!

3) We got interested after catching episodes of Discovery Travel & Living’s “Fun Taiwan.” Confession: J finds the host Janet Hsieh very pretty (crush niya!). We actually had a silly wish: to see Janet filming while we were in Taipei. Such fans! LOL






According to the Lonely Planet, “In the first decade of the 21st century, Taiwan is increasingly drawing travelers of all stripes: from spiritual seekers looking to experience the island’s religious heritage to gourmands in search of the perfect night-market­ meal to computer geeks scanning the horizon for the latest high-tech gadgets. Taiwan offers visitors a hypermodern skin, an ancient Chinese skeleton and an aboriginal soul.”

True!

Thank you, Taipei, for a super fun birthday weekend!


For more on our Taipei trip, check out Top Taipei Picks 1, 2, 3, and 4.

OUR BANCHETTO EXPERIENCE

Every working soul understands the importance of ending every work week with a bang. This week, we celebrated Friday with a heavenly 70-minute Foot Massage at Beijing Foot Spa, Il Terrazo, QC; then we headed to the first street food fiesta in Manila, Banchetto, Emerald Avenue, Ortigas.


The kebab photo from Our Awesome Planet
(Posted last week, "Let's try this!" blog entry).
Surprise! J's long-time friend's boyfriend (got that?) owns the kebab stall! You must try the Food Guru's kebabs!

V and D treated us with their Angus Beef Kebab! Yummy!
It was very tender and flavorful! I love the marinade / sauce they brush on it.
Thanks, V and D! We'll be back!

Longing for longganisa (Philippine chorizos)?


The Vigan longganisa: OK lang.
We've had better. =)


Chef's desserts: any 3 for Php100.


Yummy mini leche flan!
I remember making these with my mom when I was in Grade School.


Brownies. OK.
Used to make this too. I had my baking phase in High School.


V's reco: Oatmmeal Bars. Better than the brownies.


We'll try the Mongolian stall next time. Busog na eh. LOL

HAPPY WEEKEND, PEOPLE!

THE TY LIST GOES ON

I'm grateful for big and little blessings, especially after surviving such a scary storm (Typhoon Basyang just left Metro Manila in shock -- no one expected it to be that strong!).

Here are today's items on my Gratitude Journal:

1) The train, especially when EDSA's on a standstill (last night).

2) Our building's emergency power supply. As the city went into a black out last night, we're grateful that our ref, lights and fan could still work.

3) My fold-able umbrella and pocket-size raincoat. Ready for the rains.

4) My parents' house survived Typhoon Basyang. No flood, no damage, nothing to worry about. (This is a great blessing for any home devastated by last year's Ondoy.)

5) All my loved ones are safe and healthy.

6) The howling winds are gone. (It was too creepy for me last night, the winds sounded like Ondoy's.)

7) We got to sleep, even just a bit.

8) News bulletin, 4pm, July 14, Manila Time: The MRT is now working, but only from the North Avenue Station to the Shaw Boulevard Station. How perfect is that? (FYI: The trains were not working most of the day due to the city-wide black out.)


Count your blessings.

Hope tonight's a better one for all of us.

I'll end this with a quote posted by my dear cousin M on her FB Wall, "LIFE IS NOT ABOUT WAITING FOR THE STORM TO PASS, IT'S ABOUT LEARNING TO DANCE IN THE RAIN."

TAKAW!

Our recent dates have brought us to...

The President Tea House, SM North EDSA Annex
Yehey! We don't need to travel to Binondo, meron na sa QC.


House Tea


PTH Dimsum: Pork Siomai & Shrimp Dumplings
OK but I still prefer Causeway's dimsum.


PTH Spicy Spareribs
Yummy!


PTH Yang Chow Fried Rice
We love this anywhere. =)


Recipe's Nido Soup (Shangrila branch)
I was feeling sick last weekend. Wanted this soup specifically. =)


Nasi Lemak's Ginger Tea with Honey
Potent! We weren't able to finish them.
(NL Galleria branch)


NL Hainanese Chicken Rice
We miss SG's Chicken Rice!


Pancake House's Smoked Tinapa meal
Sometimes, I love having breakfast for dinner. =)
J had the two-piece Pan Chicken meal.
(PH Megamall)


Uno's Iced Tea and Freshly Baked Bread
Happy!


Uno's Pasta with Bacon Bits
Good.


Uno's Special: Roast Chicken
J loved this!


Cafe Med, Podium


CM Beef Kebab
We missed this.


C2 Tilapia
I love fish. =)


C2 Bagnet
OK lang. Sorry for my bad pictures.


So where have you been recently?

LET'S TRY THIS!

We often drive by the Friday food stalls along Emerald Avenue, in Ortigas (it's around three blocks from our condo). After seeing the blog entry (and photos) of Our Awesome Planet, we're definitely stopping and eating...soon (like this coming Friday?)!

We're kebab fans...


Longganisa lovers...


Mongolian maniacs...

GOOD VS EVIL

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

I'm proud to have spoken up. Fought. And walked away.
Good riddance.

A PEEK INTO MY GRATITUDE JOURNAL

God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say "thank you?"--William A. Ward


Life ain't perfect. And I am no saint. But I sure am one grateful person. I've kept a Gratitude Journal (yes, I'm an Oprah fan), started one during my single life's low point. Since then, I've started each day with a Prayer of Thanks, usually done on my way to work.


I'm thankful for...

1) Each new day.

2) My life.

3) All the *love* in my life.

4) My wonderful husband. My best friend. My mentor.

5) Our marriage.

6) My family life.

7) My Papa and Mama; and all the love they continue to shower upon us.

8) My sister P for teaching me about unconditional love. She's growing up to be a very smart, creative, thoughtful, kind person. Proud of her!

9) My brother and his family.

10) My niece S for bringing every one so much joy.

11) Each day that all my loved ones are safe and healthy.

12) Quality Time. With Hubby. With Family. With Me.

13) Our lovely little home.

14) Our daily dates.

15) Laughter. Lots of laughter.

16) My relatives. Especially those who've been with me through thick and thin.

17) My friends. Especially those who've proven to be true.

18) Our travels. (Small steps, small steps.)

19) Hugs.

20) Little acts of kindness.
Today, someone offered us free concert tickets!
Last week, an Optical Shop repaired my sunglasses for free!

21) Meeting new people.

22) Seeing other worlds.

23) Milk Tea.

24) Long walks.

25) Gray skies.

26) Second chances.

27) Learning something new each day.

28) Books.

29) Movies.

30) Food.

31) Mistakes. And the lessons that come with them.

32) Friendships that came with expiration dates. Thank you, God, for delivering us from evil.

33) Challenges we've survived.

34) My job. It's not my *dream* job but I'm doing something I enjoy.

35) The view from our condo.

36) My happy childhood.

37) Our dreams.

38) That I feel better today after being very sick yesterday.

39) Photographs.

40) Technology. It's now so much easier to stay connected with family and friends.

And my list goes on...


What are you grateful for?

GROCERY DATES

One of our simple joys -- doing the grocery together. We really allot time for it. We go down each and every aisle, from end to end, even if we know exactly what we're buying (I always make a list!), just to window shop. We like comparing items -- from price to content. We also like checking out what's new. If it piques our interest, we try it. But like every one else, there are the "regulars."

Ours...

1) Coke - J's must-have

2) Summit or Absolute - my water brands

3) Alkaline Water - his

3) Uncle George's Gourmet Whole Wheat Bread or Gardenia's Oat Loaf

4) Nestle's strawberry yogurt - to make me feel better about my junk food addiction

5) Nestle Melon Milk - I love melon!

6) Nestle Fresh Milk - I'm into milk and tea. We don't drink coffee.

7) chicken breast fillet - he loves loves loves chicken sandwich, chicken adobo, chicken tinola, etc

8) cheese singles - any brand

9) Lady's Choice Mayo Lite

10) eggs - organic, preferred

11) Lipton Milk Tea - OK substitute for SG's Teh-C which we love so much!

12) brown rice

13) my chips - I'm so bad!

14) Purefoods Lean & Mean bacon - We feel less guilty, hehe.

15) Dole sweet corn

16) fresh tomatoes

17) bangus back fillet

18) onions & garlic

19) Joy Anti-bac dish washing liquid - You had us at "anti-bac", hehehe

20) olive oil


What's regularly in your grocery cart / pantry / ref?