Sawasdee Ka! Temples and Buddhas everywhere in Thailand

There's an ongoing Bangkok photo contest on Facebook and I was planning to enter one of my photos but as usual, I was sidetracked by memories of our trip last year. Take me back to the land of shopping, pad Thai, temples, and elephants, please?

And because I never got to blog about our 5 day trip last 2010, here are some pictures from the Land of Smiles! Most our tour was actually all temples, temples, and more temples! We went to Ayutthaya to explore the ancient temples filled with gold statues of Buddha. It was a couple of hours from Bangkok by car. We were sick of temples and Buddhas at the end of the day but it was awesome nonetheless. 

Golden Buddha! There was an ongoing worship going on and about fifty people were chanting, bowing and pulling the HUGE orange cloth around the buddha and around themselves. It was an awesome thing to experience.

Because I have a thing for elephants--here's an offering to buddha. You have to respect these offerings so be careful not to move or touch them.

I'm THIS small standing beside the gold-flecked feet of the reclining buddha.

Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho!

We then went to a complex where there are ancient crumbling temples filled with buddhas. 

I ran up to the top like crazy, and my legs were shaking on my way down that I almost fell twice. My reward, though, was seeing the lone monk manning the place of worship on the top-most part of the dome. People seemed to worship him.

Ancient temples at Ayutthaya.

And yes, the Sleeping Buddha!

And Pou, our tour guide/driver told me these were the oldest buddha statues in Thailand. I swear, Thailand is amazing. 

Unicorns and Cupcakes

I woke up with a killer headache this morning, no thanks to my period. I was way beyond late for work and while on my way up the stairs, I tripped and the whole sole of my gladiators fell off. Great way to start your day, yes?

So I've been trying to perk myself up and have been zen-ing my brain with things that make me happy. Hence, the following:

 

Welcome to my weird, immature mind.

Photos from Unicornsandcupcakes

Romulo Cafe with the motherlies

It's a late post but I'm craving Romulo so here are a couple of scenes from Mother's Day 2011 lunch with my mom and my ever so lovely lola. I reserved a table for the four of us, including my bratty sister, at Romulo Cafe because my lola wanted to try it after hearing me rave on and on about the food every time Jake and I eat there on dates. Also, it should be on the record that it was my treat. Haha! I rarely foot the bill (yes yes, my mom has long since complained I'm a useless daughter) so this was a significant moment for me. Hey, it was Mother's Day after all.

It was raining that day and our driver managed to get lost trying to find Scout Dr. Lazcano, the residential corner which Romulo Cafe occupies. The place was still packed when we got there past 2pm, as per usual with Romulo.

On the table: tinapa rolls, Vigan longganisa wraps, Tito Greg's kare-kare, tamarind chicken, and flying tilapia. Romulo Cafe never fails to make me full and happy!

Scariest-looking food I've ever encountered but it was perfect! Crispy and tasty especially with the three sauces, this was my Lola Mely's favorite--the Flying Tilapia!

And because it was Mother's Day, they were giving out free sorbetes to all the moms!

With my lovely Lola!

Mom and I took a tour of the upstairs function rooms and I asked her to pose with the I am a Filipino mural, it's tradition when you eat at Romulo.

 

We finished late and here's my sister outside one of the dining areas. I've never seen Romulo without the usual crowds and I'm loving the minimalist design outside. Since it's a converted house, eating there gives off a homey ambiance vibe. I'll always keep coming back to this place, it really serves the yummiest Pinoy food in the Metro!

When it's dark and dreary outside

I like to think of happy days, lying on the grass with the sun on my face.

Oh, who am I kidding. I'm perfectly happy with the weather. I'm already looking forward to cuddling under the covers with a good book and a cup of hot chocolate and my TV endlessly playing FRIENDS on mute. Ah, rainy season shivers.

Singapore-lah Day 5

To wrap up my Singapore vacation series, here are the pictures from our last full day at the lovely Singapura:

It was Easter Sunday so I went to mass with Maan, and because my mom would kill me. I had to take pictures inside the church as proof for my lovely mother. St. Joseph's was a short walk from our hotel. Their version of a Catholic mass was slightly more formal and a bit shorter compared to our drawn-out masses here in Manila where you can walk in or walk out at any point. They have ushers at every aisle so you can't just sit anywhere.

On our way back to the hotel, we passed by the National Public Library and because we were both book worms, Maan and I were sorely tempted to skip breakfast and read books all day. The place is a mecca for book lovers. Plus, the architecture was just awesome. It's Benilde's SDA meets RCBC Plaza. Our own National Public Library does not stand a chance.

 wearing Dorothy Perkins top, Zara skirt, Kickers loafers, Longchamp Le Pliage

And for brekky, we headed over to the hawker center in front of our hotel and I had my last authentic Hainanese and Milo dinosaur. I also ordered spring rolls that come in a fried shell, yummy! I'm getting all hungry reminiscing about chicken rice and Milo. 

There was also a snake charmer outside our place and a man with a flock of trained African lovebirds walking out and about the ground. I love where we stayed, Bugis area is a cultural melting pot.

After a quick stop at the awesome Iluma mall for shoe shopping, we headed straight for the Singapore Flyer. The view was amazing but you can barely feel the thing move.

 

After a final shopping stop at Cotton On (sob!), I met up with Jake at Orchard for the Golden Wedding Anniversary celebration of his grandparents. The whole clan went to Singapore to celebrate! It was such an awesome feeling meeting all his uncles, aunts, and cousins from Bacolod--they were such a happy, loving, and inspiring family.

Waiting for the others at his hotel lounge.

Dinner at No Signboard Seafood restaurant at the colorful and vibrant Clarke Quay!

 wearing Topshop tube top, Due cardigan, Forever 21 skirt, D&C ribbon flats, Le Pliage

Cereal crayfish FTW!

It was great seeing Manong Jake with his little cousins. He truly is a little kid at heart.

After dinner, we set off for Park Hotel at Clarke Quay for the surprise celebration. Thing is, Papa Quining spotted this tell-tale sign at the hotel lobby before we went up to the function room. :-)

Inspiring, touching messages and tributes kept us laughing and smiling all night. I felt so lucky to have been invited to celebrate with such a warm and loving family. This was really the perfect way to end my Singapore trip. I was wide awake with memories for our 6am flight the next morning. :-)

 

Your daily dose of sunshine

Jake sent me a photo of his dog, Chuck, yesterday. He's too cute and dirty and fluffy for words.

Photo taken by Nikki

And then here's his sister, my dog Pepper. She's the feisty one.

I'll do another blog post on my other dogs when I have the time. :-)

For my boyfriend who is the ultimate Robot Unicorn pro

I couldn't find one with Cyclops on it.

Photo from unicornsandcupcakes

Singapore-lah Day 4

Ah, yes. The "Indonesia" day. We were originally scheduled to head to Indonesia's Bintan island for our official beach day but we were too tired from all the walking around and sightseeing for the past three days and decided we'll just check out the beaches Sentosa has to offer. We spent the entire morning and afternoon checking out Marina Bay Sands, the Helix, and Chinatown.

I never thought I'd see a dog in Singapore! I kept looking around for dogs and cats on the streets--this chalks it up to a total of two dog sightings during my entire stay. I only saw one stray cat sitting primly under a bus stop on our way home from Sentosa.

At the Marina Bay shops, it had a nice little pool where you can ride a gondola in circles. It's nothing compared to The Venetian's gondola ride with the soprano singers in Macau, but hey.

We all got free tans courtesy of all the walking we had to do from Marina Bay to the place where you can hail a cab. It was nice walking through the helix bridge, though. Such a bummer that the Merlion statue's under construction when we were there.

I absolutely loved Singapore's version of Chinatown--all the buildings were painted in bright colors and this was the only part of Singapore where there's traffic jam and double parking everywhere. We had a nice lunch of garlic prawns, peppered spare ribs, and chicken at a local restaurant.

Shopped some more at Cotton on at Vivo City and had a nerdy fun time at the National Geographic Store.

And finally, the "beach"!!! I have no idea why decided to name it Palawan Beach as it has NOTHING to do with the beauty of our own Palawan. At best, the sand was creamy and fine and the pink lounge chairs were a hoot but murky, bubbly, dirty water and a narrow shore does not make up a beach, in my opinion. Although it was relaxing sitting there until 7pm with the sun still out, and we even managed to do a couple of jump shots.

 

On our way back, the others shopped some more at Vivo City while I went ahead (yes I'm so proud to commute by myself!!!) to meet Jake at Orchard Road for a  late night Ben & Jerry's date. It was just right beside his hotel. The waitress managed to mess up our order and gave me a brownie ala mode instead of my double cookie euphoria--it was just as yummy, though. Nothing beats my chocolate therapy and Jake's chocolate chip cookie dough combination. Perfect Singapore desserts date <3