Joei & Me

 

Ask yourself this...

Located in the vicinity of Alabang Hills, Alabang 400, and Hillsborough Alabang Village is a new hole-in-the-wall restaurant called The Farm Organics.

One of those days during campaign season, I craved for an honest to goodness burger.  So at the end of a long day, T took me to Draft Gastropub.

Ironically, in my last OOTD post, I claimed that "It's Still Summer!".  Well, not anymore.  It's been raining for the past two weeks and it sucks!  Despite complaints last May, I realized that I'd rather dress for the heat than for the rain.  I hate getting my feet wet and destroying my favorite pairs of shoes in the process.  So rain boots are definitely a must!

Basically, it's pretty masking tape.  But what sets it apart from other tapes is that Washi Tape is made of durable paper and can be removed without leaving that icky, sticky residue most tapes do.

Washi Tape originated in Japan, which explains the name.  But there, it's probably just called masking tape and I'm guessing that's why the ones I got from Fully Booked had the mark "MT" on it.

My other blog post on Press Cafe:
Press Cafe in Alabang, Revisited... And Disappointed
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During my college days, Fully Booked used to be located at the lower ground of the Powerplant Mall in Rockwell.  It had a cafe with an outdoor area named Press which became a fast favorite of mine.    But when Zara got that space and Fully Booked and Press Cafe transferred to the 3rd level by the cinema, the vibe wasn't the same.  I rarely went there anymore.

That's why I was ecstatic when T told me that he saw a Press Cafe sign inside Fully Booked in Alabang Town Center.  I have been passing by the area often, even bugging Lucy of Fully Booked via Twitter  about the branch's opening.

Yesterday, T said that Fully Booked was open already.  He joked about this a few times back so I wasn't sure if he was just pulling my leg.  Since we had an hour to kill before watching 'Man of Steel' (which was a bit of a disappointment for me),  T and I walked towards that area.

 

Great news!  Teriyak Boy now delivers!  Perfect for this rainy season when you just want to stay in, read a book or watch TV while eating good Japanese food in the comfort of your own home.

To counter my blogger's block (which also affects this travel writing course I'm taking), I thought I'd write daily, even just short blog entries.

For today, since it's Independence Day, I want to share with you a fast fact about two different kinds of hot chocolate drink in the Philippines, the Tsokolate Eh and the Tsokolate Ah.  I think not even all Filipinos know the difference between the two.  Some may have an idea but don't know which pertains to what drink.  So here's a brief history lesson.

In Noli Me Tangere, a controversial novel written by the Philippine national hero Jose Rizal, these two different kinds of hot chocolate arose because of a Franciscan priest named Salvi.   Obviously, Spaniards and full-blooded Filipinos were not treated the same when Spain ruled the Philippines.  So when Padre Salvi has Spanish visitors or important people coming over, he would tell his help to prepare Tsokolate Eh, which is his code for rich and thick hot chocolate drink.  But when Filipinos or not so important visitors are coming over, Padre Salvi will ask for Tsokolate Ah, which is his code to serve a much more diluted and watery chocolate drink.




Nowadays, Tsokelate Eh and Tsokolate Ah have nothing to do with status in society but is based only on taste or preference.  Here are the best ones I've tried.

While driving along Makati Avenue, T and I were still undecided where to eat dinner when I saw a sign that read "Unli Tempura and Sushi for P499 only".   I was surprised to see that it was another branch of SumoSam, one of our go-to Japanese restaurants at the Powerplant Mall in Rockwell.  So we made a U to check it out.

Thank you Zest-O for sending me these goodies and bringing all those happy childhood memories back!

Apologies for the lack of posts recently.

I went on a birthday trip and when I came back, my photo host made some adjustments which affected a lot of photos in my blog, making it appear that most of them are unavailable.  That contributed a lot to my blogger's block (or the lack of enthusiasm to write) and from around 2,000 hits per day, only less than 1,000 check out my blog daily.  I'm guessing that's probably because I have no updates.  Sad.   So I figured it's time to break whatever this is and do a quick, no-brainer OOTD post of my outfit yesterday.

By the way, my birthday giveaway has been extended!  So if you want to win a pair of sunglasses, click HERE.  It's open to all readers of Joei & Me, local or international.  Good luck!