Vegeta's Tribute to Whitney

The news is all over, Whitney Houston was found dead at her room in the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel.  Anita pointed out this tribute to Whitney by Vegetta, husband of Bulma and arch-rival of Son Goku, courtesy of You Tube.  Take a good look!

Ms. Polly's

Vicky was able to take home a chocolate cake from Ms. Polly's, the piece de resistance for our Valentine's Day dinner.  Quite heavenly--the cake itself was spongey, soft and the icing was thick, moist, glistening, truly chocolatey, with just the right amount of sweetness.  We left the cake out at the dining table surrounded by a moat, not refrigerated, so as to keep the spongey texture.  It was still great today!  This is a real find, and at P540, is pretty reasonable to me.

Country Chicken

Celebrated Valentine's Day with chicken delivery from Country Chicken, a roaster which has been around since the early eighties.  I must say that the chickens that arrived were pretty big and juicy, but this time around, I was a bit disappointed as I felt the chicken per se lacked a bit of flavor.  Of course it came with gravy, but I feel that chicken should be tasty enough even without gravy--which would just be an added bonus.  The gravy itself was a bit spicy and on the sweet side, which to me sounds more like chili banana ketchup, and isn't exactly my idea of what gravy should taste like.  Overall still okay, but a bit pricey at P320 each.

Fitflops

As we went malling in Greenbelt over the weekend, I happened to pass Restoerun, a store selling Fitflop, a British brand of footwear that specializes in footwear with a Microwobbleboard inside.  This technology uses 3 midsoles of different densities that create a squish-squash sensation on the foot, supposedly allowing one to have a mini "gym workout" session while walking.  I had no intention of buying a pair, but upon the insistence of the saleslady, I tried a pair of leather shoes to feel the sensation.  I must admit that it felt slightly different from regular shoes in a couple of ways--first, the midsoles are about one and a half inches thick, which threw me a tinge off-balance and made me feel a bit awkward, and second, the heel of the shoe is curved, such that there is a bobbing action and thus a semi-grinding sensation on the stride.  After some thought, I bought the shoes to see if it works, and I've tried it on for a couple of days now.  I must say that it takes some getting used to--I feel that it takes a bit more effort to walk in these shoes, and perhaps that is the "workout" that is advertised?  The shoes are not cheap--I got mine for P7,500.  Here's hoping that there really is some long-term benefit in using this technology!

Marcona Almonds

I've always thought that all almonds were the same shape, and moreover, i believed that "Marcona" was simply a more expensive Spanish brand of almonds.  I found out today that I was totally wrong on both counts.  My cousin Cliff gave us a bottle of Marcona almonds, and the first thing I noticed was that the nuts were slightly smaller than regular almonds, were much flatter, and had a rounder shape too.  After checking the internet, I found out that the Marcona is a type of almonds primarily grown in Spain--not a manufacturer's brand.  We opened the bottle today and the nuts were much softer and easier to chew than regular almonds.  Great for a mid-day snack!

NAIA Terminal 3

I was booked on Cebu Pacific on trip to Iloilo last week, and as such, I had to use NAIA Terminal 3 to board my flight.  I had arrived around 5am, and I was surprised to find out that the parking lot was already full at such an early time.  Thinking that long lines would delay my entry, I rushed inside only to find that the the place was hardly full.  Aside from Cebu Pacific, I understand that this terminal is also being used by Air Philippines; while I saw some signboards of Zest-Air, I did not see any Zest-Air operations being conducted in the terminal (Zest-Air continues to operate at the old Manila Domestic Terminal, known as Terminal 4).

It's such a pity that Terminal 3 is not operating up to its potential.  The place can obviously handle more passengers (the only problem being the lack of adequate car park buildings).  I understand that the hullabaloo on the ownership is already settled (the government has reimbursed the original BOT proponent of the Terminal), and the current administration has started work on correcting the physical deterioration of the facility.  It seems, however, that a little bit more effort has to be put in to maximize the operating capacity, and this has to be given focus, specially now that Terminal 1 is reportedly slated to close for rehabilitation works.

Jasmine

I was invited for a fast business dinner at the Jasmine Chinese restaurant at the second floor of the New World hotel.  The restaurant is an elegant and quiet place, suited for business meetings and guest entertainment, a little different compared to the family-style Chinese restaurants more commonly found in the Metro.

We had a fast meal consisting of spareribs topped with mayonnaise, prawns & scallops with broccoli in egg, and dried fish fried rice.  I was looking at the set menus for the tables, and the starting prices came to around P1,500 per head, going all the way to P6,000 per head for the exotic menus.

The food was tasty and served in the authentic Cantonese manner--as I understand it, since both the Hyatt and the New World hotels are owned by the Chow Tay Fook holding company of HK billionaire businessman Cheng Yu Tung, the chef of the restaurant was actually seconded from his original posting at the Hyatt's Lili.  Thumbs up for the food and serene dining atmosphere!