Fresh Ideas

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I’m here again trying to ward off my writer’s block. It is the end of the month again and I almost forgot to write our February birthday travel to the stunning queen city of the south, Cebu.

I really wanted to go and experience Cebu and fortunately the girlfriend want us to celebrate my birthday a little differently from the usual drinking sessions with friends. I heard so many good things about Cebu that the excitement builds up right before the girlfriend asked me if I want to travel 4 months ago.

Cebu is diversely rich in culture. With limited time, we wanted to experience much of it as possible. I spent hours after hours every day scouring blogs and websites to compose an itinerary for our trip. I also asked some tips from my ever reliant friends and coworkers who already went there. There are several ways to spend your time in Cebu and it is hard to decide what route you will be taking. Endless possibilities await you once you step in Cebu.

The itinerary that we created seemed to cover the base and we have little leeway to wander off. We managed to extend our stay from 3 days to 4 days due to the usual incapability of Cebu Pacific to handle its operations, but I would say that this also might not be possible if the company didn’t released any promos and I bet all of you readers will agree that it helped a lot to us travelers who want to spend wisely.

Well, fast forward to the travel date; Day 1, it was a sunny morning and we got off at Mactan International Airport at around 9AM and then we hailed off a cab. We didn’t took the cab with a fixed rate and the one that has an additional fee; we opt to fall in line on the metered fare cabs.

Our first stop was Lapu Lapu Shrine and Magellan’s Marker at Punta Engaño, Mactan Island since it was the nearest spot at the airport.

There is no entrance fee on this destination, just a donation box for the maintenance. There are several tourists, mostly foreigners and we didn’t waste time and took several pictures around the place.

Next stop is Plantation Bay Resort and Spa. We haggled with a cab driver to take us there and use the meter. The girlfriend is eager to go to this resort to take a peek and experience high class resort amenities and we are not disappointed. We now head to Cebu City pier to get tickets to Bohol via fast ferry. Later on, I realized that we should have first tried eating at the famed Sutukil restaurants at the Lapu Lapu Shrine where you can buy fresh seafoods and have it cook 3 ways, Sugba, Tula and Kilaw. I cannot elaborate on this further because we haven’t experienced eating here but we will surely try this on our next trip to Cebu.

After getting our ferry ticket, we head to CnT restaurant at the front of SM City Cebu to eat our lunch and to order the lechon that we will be bringing back home. Unfortunately upon arriving, there are no more lechons and only the normal meals that they usually serve. We just tried the restaurants on the other block. After which, we now head to our hotel, Gran Tierra Suites, a boutique hotel situated near Osmena Boulevard to drop off our luggage.

After relaxing a bit, we hailed a cab going to Taoist Temple. The temple is fantastic and I cannot help but awe at its splendid awesomeness!

After taking the tour, we wasted no time, and we’re off to downtown and went to Magellan’s Cross, the most famous historical landmark in all of Cebu and a popular tourist attraction, due to the fact that it is the spot where Ferdinand Magellan planted the Christian cross upon arriving in Cebu.

The cross is housed in a small chapel with mural in the ceiling depicting the scene of the first mass.

Next to the chapel is the Basilica Minore del Sto. Nino; a 16^th century church. This basilica is under care of the Order of St. Augustine. This is also Cebu’s oldest Roman Catholic Church.

It was almost 5pm and our adrenaline is starting to build up by simply thinking of Sky Adventure at the Crown Regency Hotel. We want to experience the Edge Coaster and see the Cebu skyline before dusk and do the Sky Walk Extreme at nighttime. But this was not the case. We are trying to find our way riding a jeepney, and we kind got lost without even trying to ask some locals for directions. We are almost heading off to Fort San Pedro, which was originally on our itinerary on our first day but we haven’t got the time to go, and there it is almost several meters in front of us without us even knowing it! We just rode the jeepney that drove us to our hotel to take some important things.

It was already dark and we went to Larsian near Fuente Osmeña instead to grab a bite of its famous street food mecca lined up with grilled meats and seafoods such as pork and chicken barbeque, chicken skin, gizzard, liver, intestines and also some chorizo, longganisa and different kind of seafoods such as squid, fish and a lot more. It is a gastronomic festival!

You can select what your heart or should I say stomach desire and then it will be grilled to perfection. You may then eat it as is or with puso, or the hanging rice. The price is reasonable and for sure satisfaction will not be left behind! After this eating escapade, together with the long lost cousin of the girlfriend, which eventually became our tour guide around Cebu, we now went straight to our hotel to call it a day.

Our bodies are so tired and aching of this entire day exploration of the city. I forgot to mentioned that the hotel by the way is quite new, the room is spacious enough with amenities that you will see in first class hotels, the staff are accommodating and very friendly and you would not have a hard time hailing a cab or ride a jeepney. It did not even crossed our mind to change hotels after our trip to Bohol, but that is for another day.

Tomorrow is a different day as we will try to see the sights of the countryside of Bohol on our Day 2 Cebu-Bohol trip.

For details on the trip, you may read on these related posts:

• Day 2 Bohol Experience
• Blood Compact Shrine: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Baclayon Church: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Dine at the Loboc River Cruise: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• A Day with the Tarsiers: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• The Magnificent Chocolate Hills: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Butterfly Center and Man Made Forest: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Crossing the Hanging Bridge: Day 2 Bohol Tour
• Pasalubong galore at Aproniana Souvenir Shop: Day 2 Bohol tour

The month is ending today and because of my busy schedule, I have not got any time again to write anything for the month of February. Yes, this is the month of love and many of us are celebrating a particular day with our beloved one and yes this is another date that companies are seizing the opportunity to earn a whole lot more by offering specials that consumers will certainly bite. There is too much consumerism and commercialism that one can handle before, during and after Valentine’s Day that it already created a murky image of what this day meant for lovers.

Well, my dearest one and I decided not to celebrate it at all and just let it pass. But I cannot help myself but to treat her in a splendid dinner and spend a good time with her the weekend after Valentine’s Day. I researched for weeks to find a good restaurant in the metro, and I always see a restaurant that seems to be exceptional in terms of its menu and ambiance. I also noticed that reviews are good at the most and many bloggers out there are recommending it. This is none other than Adarna Food and Culture restaurant.

Adarna Food and Culture

This restaurant has a certain cultural feel that I have not experienced yet to other restaurants that we went to before. You will feel at home while dining, and every corner offers a collection of memorabilia that will blast you in the past. The menu is rich and extensive in historical and heirloom recipes from all over the Philippines.

Fried Vegetable Lumpia

First we are astounded by the vastness of the menu, many of which we have not heard of before. We ordered a known appetizer just to be on the safe side; Fried Vegetable Lumpia, which we know would not hurt us since it is a mainstay in all Filipino tables. We did not ordered any soups or salads because we still felt full from the merienda that we ate a couple of hours ago.

Piassok

We then ordered Piassok. I heard mostly good reviews for this particular dish and I myself am curious how it tastes. Piassok is a native Sulu dish made of beef chunks cooked in smoked coconut milk, buttered and grilled before serving.

Rellenong Sugpo

The next dish that we ordered was the Rellenong Sugpo. The sugpos are stuffed with minced pork, shrimps and vegetables and rolled in butter and fried. It comes with a special sweet and sour sauce.

Garlic Fried Rice

As for rice, we are checking out the Batanes Yellow Rice. It seems exotic to us, but because of a review that I read that it is not that good enough, we just went off with the normal Garlic Fried Rice. Later on I regret ordering it, not because the garlic rice was not good, but the feeling that we should just have tried taking our chances on something new.

Gulaman at Sago

We did not order yet any desserts as we are having hard time choosing. My girlfriend opted with the normal Gulaman at Sago because she was craving for it before.

The dishes did not take long to be cooked and a the same time, we are entertained by the richness of the setting. The dishes are served in high quality china that makes you think that everything here is special.

The lumpia is simple, nothing extraordinary, just like what my dad and mom cook for us.

The presentation of the Piassok is visually enticing enough as well as for the taste buds. There is a certain aroma created by grilling the beef and combining it with the richness of coconut milk.

I really liked the Rellenong Sugpo; at first glance we were amazed that it looked pretty much like fried chicken legs. The taste of pork overcomes the taste of shrimp; but nevertheless it was excellent. The sauce really complements the dish. The special sauce somewhat taste like honey with certain sourness in it.

The rice is just like any other garlic rice; which is plain and simple also; as well as the Gulaman at Sago. It is so sweet in the palate even if we already put lots of water in it just to dilute the sweetness.

We spent the night satisfied; however, the only misfortune that we experienced was the food that was switched when we asked the leftovers to be packed because we were not able to finished it all up but the service is good and the whole experience is wonderful. All in all, this restaurant proved to be a really nice dining place for lovers or not.

Another year is about to end…Moments are cherished. Photos are saved, printed or uploaded. Memories good are bad are charged to experience and will forever be remembered.

I do hope that the highlights of this year overshadow all of the downsides that we all experience.

Everyone is in high spirits that the year is about to end and all are expecting a fruitful year to come.

Happy New year to all of you!

His speed clearly made up for what is lacking in height and weight. His more than excellent performance is shown from the start. Manny Pacquiao completely dominated Antonio Margarito on their title fight for the WBC Super Welterweight at the Cowboys Stadium, Texas U.S.A. this Saturday evening, November 13, 2010.

After the weigh in, Pacman’s weight is a mere 144.6 pounds compared to the Tijuana Tornado’s 150 pounds. His reach also exceeds Pacquiao’s as well as his enormous height. As soon as the fight started, you will see the difference in their physique, but do not be fooled by that, the speed and accuracy plus the techniques that Pacquiao showed in the fight explained how rigorous his trainings were.

The punches are like lightning bolts that continually pounce the helpless face of the former three-time welterweight champion. Margarito really took a beating round after round. His right eye is so swollen the referee could have stopped the fight early on but did not. Pacquiao’s combinations are landing through and his footwork is a clear sign that he is indeed prepared for this duel.

Margarito in fairness kept on trying to throw in lots of strong punches in exchange for Pacquiao’s heavy artillery. He manages to put Pacquiao across the edges of the ring most of the time, but Manny knew how to get away in being cornered. And that is one of his tactics to keep going.

All of us are hoping for a knockout because of what seems to be a clear victory for our Pambansang Kamao, but Antonio still hangs on until the 12 round and his determination and heart shows his character as a true fighter. Quitting is not in the vocabulary of this fantastic fighter and we salute you for a good fight that you shown us!

Manny Pacquiao won every round from 119-109, 120-108 and 118-110.

Pacman is truly a world-class boxer of our time! Mabuhay ka Manny Pacquiao!

November 2, 2010 is a very depressing day for the surfing community. The world of surfing is currently in mourning right now because of the sudden death of three-time world surfing champion Andy Irons.

Before he passed away, he was reported to be suffering from dengue fever, a life-threatening disease that occurs in tropical countries. Mosquitoes are the normal carrier of this disease and the symptoms are fever, severe headaches and joint pains. Methadone, a powerful painkiller was found in his room by the Medical Examiner’s Office. An autopsy is scheduled to determine the real cause of death.

Andy Irons is indeed one of the best surfers in the world and his unexpected death is a great loss for us who love riding the waves. He is the world champion from 2002 until 2004. He also won 3 Quiksilver Pro France titles in 2003 to 2005 and 2 Rip Curl Pro titles in 2006 and 2007. He is known for his aggressive approach, so fearless, a thing that sets him apart from other surfers and competitors. His recent win in Teahupoo this year for the Billabong Pro is what the surfing community regarded as the long awaited return after a year-long hiatus.

He was 32 and at the time of his death, his wife Lyndie Dupuis was seven month pregnant on their first child.

He is my favorite Hawaiian big wave rider and up until now I could not believe that my idol is gone. He will be forever remembered as we get stoked on our next ride!

To tell you the truth, I’m a little bit confused right now on to what the Big G is looking for in a website to index its pages. I noticed last week that the post that I made last August was indexed right away, without me even promoting that post that much. And it is really confusing me more about those posts that I tried very hard optimizing…link building, blog commenting, social bookmarking and everything that I know in off-page optimization, but still was not effective enough.

One thing I noticed so far is that the post that i made last August is about my blogging life and what are my objectives and dreams was indexed right away compared to majority of the posts here which mainly tackles everything about making money online. I tried very hard to get fresh ideas regularly and to prevent the writer’s block. But the more I tried composing something, the harder it gets to visualize what I wanted to convey. And boy, indeed it last for not only days, but weeks and months.

I hope internet marketing gurus will notice this post someday and provide some guidelines on to what I am doing wrong and give me some pointers, because I tried hard to write contents that are not copied elsewhere and I make it more informative to be at least helpful to someone like me that is trying my way up in learning online marketing. However, it is so odd that the post that I did not even think about and just think of my personal experience will be the one that will be indexed by Google.

I know that there are tons of internet marketing strategies and criteria that search engines are looking for to index a page and as far as i know, as long as you have fresh content and you do your homework in off-page and on-page optimization, then there is a good chance that the page will be indexed immediately, get a lot of backlinks, visitors and ultimately rank for a given set of keywords.

There are times that I am tempted to get the help of SEO specialists to do Search Engine Optimization work for me. It is really pathetic for a blogger that chose the highly competitive niche of making money online just to seek the assistance of others and pay for it. But I know that nobody could attest that they knew everything outright when they started and almost all of us tried very hard to seek resources and work day and night to see improvements on our own targets.

Getting fresh ideas in making money online is not easy as most people are thinking of. Too many obstacles will come your way. Your own self will be your greatest enemy if you will not learn how to control yourself from the urges of wasting your precious time to nonsense things.

I have learned the hard way and without sacrifice and patience, I would not go this far and not earn what I am earning. But going back to my agenda in writing this post, i do hope that this fresh content for this month, together with the help of my search engine optimization skills, will not only help it be index right away, but more importantly, give the boost that I needed to write relevant content at least more than i usually do.

StarCraft II Wings of Liberty

The long wait is here!!! The first PC game that caught my attention way back in 1998 and caused endless hours of playing and sleepless nights of trying to finish episodes has released its second installment. Today, July 27, 2010 is the official release date of one of the world’s greatest real-time strategy game, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. This game as we all know was developed by Blizzard Entertainment as the sequel of one of the most successful video game, StarCraft. Together with its expansion pack, StarCraft: Brood War, it captured a big niche for gamers that are in dire need of a superb strategy game. The storyline is well-written and the campaign episodes are exciting to play, as well as the network game.

Blizzard’s other renowned games that proved to be worth playing are WarCraft, a real-time strategy game and Diablo, an action role-playing game. The former has several installments already and the latter has a second installment; Diablo II with expansion pack; Diablo II: Lord of Destruction and is now finalizing the third installment, Diablo III. WarCraft has indeed evolved to be one of the well-played games of all time because of its franchise set from WarCraft: Orcs and Humans, WarCraft II: Tides of Darkness, WarCraft III: Rein of Chaos and to the most successful massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), the World Of WarCraft.

I remembered the times when I almost skip classes because I was not aware that I played for so long that it is past my bedtime already. But I studied diligently in school to prevent my parents from grounding me for being addicted to this magnificent game. I together with millions of other people across other countries and continents are waiting for this new game to be released. Teasers are produced by the developers and several characters were introduced and the game itself is upgraded. The graphics are so crisp that it is really a joy to simply watch the characters do their thing! It is also so nice to see that some of the old characters and buildings were retained. But of course, as a new chapter or new episodes of our favorite games are developed, we are expecting more innovations and new introductions. As for my favorite race; the Terran, several new units were introduced, such as the Thor, Marauder, Reaper, Hellion, Viking, Medivac, Raven and Banshee. I will not explain their attributes as this can be seen on their official homepage. As for the next race; the Protoss, new units such as Stalker, Sentry, Immortal, Collosus, Phoenix, Void Ray and Mothership graced the game. For the ravaging Zerg, the Baneling, Overseer, Roach, Infestor, Corruptor, Nydus Worm and Brood Lord are good additions to the voracious swarm. The heroes and characters also make a return from the last expansion set like Jim Raynor and Arcturus Mengsk for the Terran, Zeratul for the Protoss and Sarah Kerrigan for the Zerg.

These new units have their own advantages and there are units that can counter this. New maps are drawn and the entire playing field is restructured to be almost 3D like. It is so much overwhelming to see the new episode to be entirely.

Even if there are pirated copies spawned everywhere of the beta version, there is no doubt that I will prefer to purchase the original game. Let us support the fight against pirate syndicates. If this heinous crime will be tolerated, there will be no room for companies to produce and develop more games and the doom for the gaming industry altogether.

I’ve been in hibernation for so long I could not remember how to write again. My schedule in my work plus other work-related things have prevented me to update this blog. However, I could not let the chance just pass by without saying anything about this wonderful event. Well, we are proud to say that we passed the mark of 36 months of being together last May 9 and we celebrated this special day out of town on a well-kept beach resort, named Coco Beach in Puerto Galera.

To start off the story on how we spent that weekend, I somehow managed to hide my plans from her because she haven’t gone yet to Puerto Galera and I wanted to surprise her. I checked their website and I got a good deal on our accommodation and got a room on top of the hill overlooking the ocean and the sunset view is strikingly beautiful. I particularly chose this area to see it first hand and we are not disappointed. The room is detached and we got the feeling of isolation and privacy. The room is clean and spacious enough for two even if there is no air-conditioning. The feeling is really soothing. This is what we are looking for…a place to relax and recharge and look back on how we started.

What I really liked in this is it is isolated from the rest of the other resorts. The beachfront is short but still the sand is fine and powdery white. The entire resort is well planned and the overall design of the resort is fantastic. The staffs are accommodating and it has several restaurants to choose from. It also has a wide range of menu and different activities to do. We like the pools very much and spend most of the time taking pictures of ourselves there much more than in the beach itself.

The only downside is our dinner. I forgot to reserve the dinner by the beach or on the revolving restaurant. Yes, you see it right! There is a revolving restaurant where the entire floor area of the round restaurant tower revolves slowly to give the guests a 360 view of the resort. We are at awe on how this was done. We only managed to dine in the main restaurant. They are understaffed at that time and it is frustrating to see that the waiters are prioritizing the foreigners instead of native guests. Well, it is really sickening in this country to see your fellowmen discriminating instead of the other way around. Fortunately, it is only on that evening and overall we were served well.

The next day, we took the complimentary breakfast buffet, which is really filling and then toured the entire resort. After that, we board on the free boat ride to a different beach and haggle with the boatman to take us to an underwater cave, which astonish us and then went to a mangrove location wherein there are lots of fishes and went snorkeling. Joanne hesitated because she doesn’t know how to swim and was very anxious, but thank God, she agreed to swim as long as I assisted her. The underwater view was fantastic and nothing can beat the environment here!

If only we have more time, I would spend more days in this wonderful resort. It is really invigorating and spending a special occasion with your special someone is truly a blessing.

I know I’ve been talking more about the resort instead of us and looked like more of an endorser of the resort but what I wanted to let everyone know how wonderful we spent that day wherein we saved beautiful photographs enjoying ourselves. I just wanted to spend quality time and be isolated from the rest of our known worlds and just be carefree for once and focus on her and on our relationship.

It is a really great feeling to know that we managed to stay happily in love in spite of what we went through. Several times that we almost broke up, but we handled everything and accepted our faults whenever we have an argument. We never grew tired of each other and tried to spice our relationship whenever we felt that we are going into circles. In short, we are blissfully in love and fully trusted each other. And that is it!

To see the pictures, just click this links:

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=171306&id=691877087

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=171309&id=691877087

It’s been a month already and I am still contemplating while writing if I should write or not. I don’t know but days just passed and I haven’t yet got the initiative to write something about our heart’s day date. I even got a post for my birthday, which was 2 weeks after V-Day, but still haven’t got any on our date last Feb 14. Me and my girlfriend talked whether I will write a post about it or not. I have shift on that day, fortunately, I was on the morning shift and I went home early to buy flowers and the humongous card that I saw in the bookstore. The message is really cute, not mushy at all. This is the first time that we celebrated hearts day on the day itself because we don’t want to go with the crowd and all the hassle, but there is always a first for everything, right?!

I checked out several restaurants about 2 weeks ago before that date that I wanted to try but this restaurant got the highest positive reviews above the rest and given a short notice, Bellini’s was able to accommodate us. For one, this was the venue of the movie of John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo, which we watched. My girl really liked the film. Well, the restaurant seemed cozy and has an authentic Italian ambiance. Amongst the reviews, many food enthusiasts said that the food was excellent and the atmosphere transported you out of the metropolis and the feeling that you are in Italy.

We went there at around 7 pm. For those who don’t know it, it is by the way in Marikina Shoe Expo, right in the heart of Cubao.

I was impressed by the reviews in Bellini’s that is why I chose to go there on Valentines 2010. However, I am not at all satisfied at the food and the service after we went there that day.

First, we we’re served with the mixed appetizers of breadsticks, bread with something like liver spread and eggplant with cheese, ham and tomato. The eggplant appetizer looked and tasted like it was prepared 4 hours before we order it!

The first plate of pasta was good. I got the Ravioli Rossi Al Tartufo, which is red ravioli with spinach and ham in truffle cream.

My girlfriend got the Fresh Fettucine Scampi E Pomodoro, which is fettucine with shrimp in marinara sauce but also it was good but nothing extravagant about it. It is salty to my taste.

For the second plate, I got the Rotolo Di Pollo Con Formaggio E Panceta or the Chicken Roll with Cheese & Bacon in White Sauce .It was also good but only reminds me of a dish that is served by a caterer everytime I am in an occasion like weddings or birthdays.

My girlfriend got the Pesce Amore Mio Alla Toscana , which only has a single prawn, two clams and two mussels..the serving is really small, a kid might not even appreciate it, like the first one, it’s just a mediocre dish.

Then the waiter suddenly told us that the dessert that we ordered, the Panna Cotta were already out of stock! After eating everything! Why didn’t he told us in the first place?!

The dessert that were offered to us were Tortella Alla Crema Di Fragola or Strawberry Cream Tart and Obama Cake. Both were truly great but my girlfriend could not eat much of the tart and the slice of cake because it is too sweet and your blood sugar will surely shoot.

Waiters are shouting at each other while attending to customers. I need to get their attention twice just to get the bill, and received it after 15 minutes!

The price on the set menu didn’t justify at all the food and service. It is really high beyond expectation. They are taking advantage of this special day, well, may be not only this restaurant, but also other establishments including other restaurants, hotels and resorts out there.

The food and service is not that really great as expected after all the hype about this place, but considering the day itself and the person that I am celebrating it with, I can say that our date was perfect!

Got mixed feeling about today’s personal event. I don’t know what to expect.

Things are running wildly in my mind, priorities are all scuttled. Thinking what future may hold and how the past molded me. I’m thinking did I lend a hand to others that needed me? Have I ever made someone happy?

I have been asked about my plans for this day for a couple of weeks already by family and friends, but I cannot think of doing something worth relevant. Spending my time with them is all I can think of.

I just remembered my post last year. I read it again to see how I fare, and I think I am much happier right now. You may read it again through this link:

http://www.melvindiaz.com/2009/02/26/seize-the-day/

Today is February 26 and the date of my birth and I have a lot to thank for. My family and how their guidance has shaped me. My friends and how they managed to provide support every time I needed it. I will also thank all the trials and difficulties I experienced; for those circumstances have assisted me and made me what I am today. But most importantly is my ever loving and considerate girlfriend that never ceased in loving me even if all are already lost.

I am feeling these all sounded like I’m making a speech in an awards night hehehe!

I fervently hope that as I grew one year older, wisdom will also follow. Together, age should accompany wisdom. And with wisdom, anything can be possible. Things are not rushed and decisions will be wisely made. Regrets are but a thing of the past.

Well, I may have age a little bit, but still have more to prove.