What's your favorite Katsu place in town? YABU!!!

Yabu, duh. I cannot describe how they perfectly cook their melt-in-your-mouth katsus, you have to be there to taste for yourself. Luckily, Jake's mom loves to recommend places where we can eat and Yabu was just one of those happy discoveries. You wouldn't expect to find such a hidden gem of an authentic katsu place right smack in the middle of Megamall, but here we are--I'm already anticipating my next Yabu fix.

First up: the ambiance. Since it's in a very, very busy mall, Yabu can't exactly sell itself on the basis of being a fine dining katsu place. They also cannot go into that fast food concept ala Tokyo Tokyo which would ruin the whole point of serving top of the line katsus. However, they managed to mix an elegant vibe while throwing in some funky casualness in the form of the Anime-ish wall dividers and the loud slogan shirts of the staff. Add to that the impeccable and EXCELLENT, and I do mean excellent service of the waiters and manager, and it's pretty much a perfectly acceptable date place. I love how the manager would always check on our food, and once he even made sure the waiters gave us a free refill of miso soup when we spilled it. That, and the ever so attentive waiters offering to refill your rice/cabbage/and iced teas just makes the place worth the hassle of going to Megamall on a sale weekend.

I am a very ma-condiment eater. I don't know how else to put it but I always need to have a dip or a sauce to go with my food. So, I really appreciate Yabu's sesame dressing which I practically pour on my cabbage salad. There's also an oil-based spicy dressing along with some Japanese-y seasoning.

And my favorite part: grinding the sesame seeds to make your own katsu sauce! They will give you a wooden pestle that you'll need to grind the seeds with. I have finally figured out the perfect technique where you do it in a circular motion while bearing down on the seeds. 

And then, you pour the sauce depending on your taste. I find three heapfuls of sauce enough for one serving of 120 grams of katsu.

I ordered the chicken katsu set again and this is where you'll appreciate the price: for Php 325 you get 120 grams of chicken katsu (THE BEST YOU'LL EVER TASTE), unlimited Japanese rice, miso soup, unlimited cabbage, and a bowl of fruit. I can barely finish the 120 grams by myself. I had to ask Jake, who ordered the 180 grams at Php 360, to finish the remaining two slices for me. They also serve 90 grams at Php 310 if you want to eat light.

It is worth every penny. Every Japanese restaurant I've been to always serve crappy katsus and rely on their sushis and other Japanese menu staple. Yabu finally met my criteria for an awesome katsu experience. Since we've always ordered the chicken katsu, I can't wait to schedule another katsu date so I can finally try their Rosu katsu (and can't remember the kind of pork for the super expensive premium katsus). Happy times!

Death and taxes...and self-serving politicians

So here's the deal: I grew up in a family who loves Marcos and hates Cory, who supports Gloria and hates Noynoy (A LOT!). Growing up, I'm often on the minority side of the argument when forced to defend my opinion on the subject of Philippine politics. To sum up, Team Aquino would wax poetic about how Cory/Noynoy SAVED the Filipino people/government/insert thing that needs to be saved here. I, on the other hand, would just state the facts on how Marcos (not based on my actual experience, being a 1988 baby) and Gloria actually WORKED on fixing our economy and the country. No, I really don't care about how corrupt they were because let's face it, all our politicians are, in one way or another, corrupt. Some are just really good at pointing fingers to distract from themselves. My family does not suffer fools heroes useless leaders gladly. Either you make things work, or GTFO.

You see, I was raised not to tolerate weak people whose successes and glorification were only brought about by the sheer luck of being in the right place at the right time. When Noynoy suddenly wormed his way into the 2010 elections, no one saw it coming that a newbie senator with no noteworthy accomplishments would actually win the election, and all because his dad is Ninoy and his mom's recent death automatically made him the standard bearer of, of what? Justice for the Filipino people? Since when did praying and rallying equate to serving justice? The problem with the masang Pinoy is that they are easily swayed by icons and battle cries. I was Team Gibo all the way and had hoped he would win. If not, let Gordon win. We needed an intellectual and action-oriented leader. Not someone who "rules" by yapping about his detractors, looking for girlfriends, and playing a sick game of dictatorship against people who actually had the guts to defy him. I mean, come onnnn. Hacienda Luisita, anyone? I am willing to bet all the contents of my closet that Noynoy's handpicked CJ will suddenly find it in his/her heart in the not-so-distant future to re-examine and re-open all anti-Cojuangco/Aquino/Aqunio ally cases. Rules? What rules? Whatever it takes to make His Excellency happy, y'all.

P.S. I'm really hoping people have learned how to take a hint and managed to decipher Joker Arroyo and Miriam Defensor-Santiago's statements during the verdict. The issue at hand is no longer Corona and his SALN, we already judged him guilty right from the start anyway--no thanks to the excellent PR efforts of Tupas and company. The issue is letting a frustrated dictator carry out his personal vendetta against his perceived detractors by manipulating the judicial system to bend to his whims. I admire the politicians who spoke their minds and risked re-election rather than be bullied. As a person who would rather make enemies and be ostracized than conform to what other people think I should do or say, I do wish I have a way to wipe off all the hypocrites from the Senate and Congress. I'd like to see Noy's administration exert the same amount of effort in reviewing the transparency of the members of his cabinet and party list. Whatever was applied to Corona should be applied to all, right? After all, you would like us to believe that by unleashing a witch-hunt on this man, you yourselves are perfect and innocent. There's nothing to hide if you're all perfect and free from corruption, yes? I'd like to see the tuwid na daan concept applied to ALL, not just the anti-Aquino politicians. If you're all gonna fall, might as well fall from grace together and spare the hard-working, tax-paying Filipino people your hypocrisy. 

Now, back to my regular programming! Yabu post up next!

Staring at the seashell waiting for it to embrace me

I almost forgot how tiring Friday night classes can get; and today was a particularly stressful one, work-wise. So here I am, de-stressing myself with happy thoughts of Boracay and to finally finish sharing our trip's highlights.

You know, thoughts of coffee, omelets, and calamansi muffins for breakfast.

Calming memories of getting a massage on the roof deck with an awesome view of the beach.

Happy thoughts of lemon cheesecakes and mango madness at Lemon iCafe with my favorite boys. Or getting to walk around in nothing but a bikini and no one gives a shiz.

 wearing Topshop bikini

Sigh. Why can't I just live near the sea, wear Topshop bikinis, and live la bohème life?

From matching pastel blazers to ballet flats

My officemates and I have searched far and wide for Mango's latest line of pastel blazers. We were planning to get one each (pale yellow for me, pale pink for Dana, and the beige one for Mitch) but the damn things sold like hotcakes and every branch soon sold out.

And because we're too impatient to wait and see if they will re-stock, I was thinking we can settle for these darling MNG ballet flats in the meantime:

Don't judge. When we're all stressed and swamped with work, it's the shallow stuff that makes us happy.

DIBS ON THE YELLOW ONE!!!

Bros in sombreros!

A trip to le isla boheme is never complete without grabbing lunch at Mañana! I've been craving a decent quesadilla and can't find anything here in Manila that's as good as Mañana's, ya know 'cause Ristra's just doesn't cut it for me anymore.

And the best part about eating there? SOMBREROS FOR MI AMIGOS!

We worked those sombreros. Never mind the heat! We looked like stupid fools but as I like to preach: who cares? Who's lookin'?

wearing Mango cover up

(No, those are not my boobs. My bikini straps were WEIRD.) 

The boys had burritos and chimichangas, I was muy satisfecho with my ham and cheese quesadillas! Muy perfecta, as always. I was a happy girl.

And since I'm out of Spanish phrases to throw around, adios lovers!

Game of Thrones' new girls on the block

Have you met the new girls of Game of Thrones? I just came across the Fug Girls' tweet about how Jayne Westerling looks like Jennifer Love Hewitt. Those crazy bitches were right.

In between stealing flirty glances at Robb and attempting to be a maester in the battlefield, this girl could totally pass for Le Hewitt. I find her boring, though. My latest favorite character (AFTER DAENERYS!!!) is Maergery Tyrell. Girl knows how to bitch and scheme around! And did I mention that she looks like Michelle Trachtenberg? I can't get over how she delivered the "I want to be THE queen" line. I'm totally placing my bets on her against Cersei.

And I loooove her plunging, as in plunging to the navel, gowns. Keep bitching around, Lady Tyrell!

No, don't ask me about Ygritte. I don't care for her and her red hair.

Photo cred here and here

Grown-up problems

I'm on sick leave today due to an insistent tummy ache, but instead of sleeping all day, I'm glued to my laptop in hopes of sending an email for something urgent and work-related.

Why, world. Why. You make it so easy to want to do this:

Photo cred

Puka Beach sunset funset!

Island hopping in Boracay is never a sure deal. The boat pimps, as I like to call them, always say yes to your requests of all the islands you'd like to see. Me, I was pretty reasonable when I asked for only Baling Hai, Puka Beach, and a bit of snorkeling at Crocodile Island. The other islands are overrated and frankly, I'd rather hire a boat to spend the whole day at Puka Beach if given the chance.

I was not disappointed when our actual boatman started whining about how far Baling Hai is and how the waves are too yada yada yada. I was pretty pissed by the time he dropped us off in the middle of nowhere to snorkel and only passed by Crocodile Island in an attempt to show us how it's shaped like a crocodile, despite our protests that we should be snorkeling there 'cause that's where the good corals are. No, he set off determinedly to Puka Beach with a reminder that we only had an hour to frolic about. Ass.

Good thing we were all about enjoying the company and making the most out of the snorkeling and boating. Have you tried laughing underwater with a snorkel mask on? Don't, but it's funny. 

In between waving at the other boats and pretending they're terrorists, the boys were a good distraction from my annoyance at the boatman (and at not seeing my hot bartender at Baling Hai). Good times.

When we set foot on Puka Beach, we decided to ditch our boat and just hire tricycles back to Station 1. Best move ever! We stayed there until sunset and had the beach almost to ourselves.

I always keep coming back here, if for no other reason than to see the clear blue water and the puka sand. It's always quiet in Puka and the forest by the beach gives off a feeling of being stranded on a secret island.

JO wanted to see Pacquiao's mansion and left with the boat on the way back. It was a funny sight waving at him as he sailed off into the sunset.

And the rest of the boys started splashing and playing around, looking for huge shells to throw at the water and at each other. Call me taong bundok, but it was my first time to see someone successfully skip stones across the water. After that bit, they resorted to a stone throwing contest.

It's still a funny thought whenever I remember the jump shots and the gay silhouette poses.

And THAT is how you watch the sunset (funset).

Hey I heard you were a wild one

Sand and roof deck parties.

 wearing Topshop top, denim shorts from tiangge

Running inside District when it starts to rain at exactly 2 am every night.

Learning to waterproof our wallets and phones the night after.

So we can drink and shiver under the rain.

Armed with mango banana shakes while sleepless at 5am.

 wearing Zara top, American Eagle denim shorts

Ready to watch the sunrise then sleep again til noon.

Crazy sailing into the sunset

A trip to Boracay is never complete without sailing on a paraw. Last year, I bribed Jake with beer cans just so he'll ride on one with me (I know). Lucky for me, we were all excited to sail this year and even forgot to buy beers!

So, the eight of us hopped on a paraw just in time with a mission: to watch the sun setting over the horizon while we're in the middle of the sea.

Mission accomplished!

And because I'm with seven crazy boys, the whole ride was one big laughing fit from start to finish. I can't count the number of times I had to yell at Jake to hold on tight and to not dip his toes in the water while we're hurtling at full speed. My yells fell on deaf ears.

Brushes with falling off a paraw aside, nothing beats the colors of a Boracay sunset.

And have you met The Situation? This photo's too funny to pass up. I think the boyfriend didn't realize how douch-ey his thug pose turned out. Haha!