The El Nido Experience

For someone who has lived all her life in a city would most probably have an island tour experience jot down on her bucket list. Yes, I do. :) I have been to several places, provinces or islands in the Philippines before like Leyte, our family's hometown. But to get to tour around Palawan has been a lifelong dream.

Palawan, being the largest province in the Philippines and part of the MIMAROPA region, is known to be a tourist destination having because of its famous municipalities such Coron, El Nido and Puerto Princesa which are also composed of some of the most beautiful islands in the Philippines.

This year, 2019, I was fortunate to cross out Palawan in my bucket list as it was my first destination during my vacation last June (of course, excluding Manila). 

For that trip, we opted to be joiners in an El Nido - Puerto Princesa 4 day - tour package. Our first stop was El Nido. 

First day in El Nido was like our free time in exploring the municipality and experience the night life there. As expected, there were a lot of tourists roaming around the area. Then on the next day, was the island hopping. We first went to the Papaya Beach island which was perfect for dipping and the sand was fine. Second island was the 7 commandos beach. On this island, we had our lunch which were prepared by the boatmen/tour guide where one would really have that island feels.

After lunch, we went to Big Lagoon for some kayaking, cave visit and snorkeling. I was so impressed by the clear water of this place and made a little interaction with some of the fish there. :) We were supposed to drop by the Simizu island, unfortunately, the current was too strong so we settled in the Small Lagoon. Snorkeling was so much fun in this place as we were able to see how magnificent sea creatures are, and that includes the colorful fishes and eye-catching corals. Too bad I was feeling scared to jump into the water because of the current and knowing that I wasn't really good in swimming, I forgot to bring the camera and capture those amazing things under the water. :( 

The last island we visited was the Secret Lagoon. Its name speaks for itself as we have to enter a tiny hole in order for us to see this lagoon and be astonished of what to see inside. :)

After a day of island hopping, we went back to the inn where we were staying to pack up and travel back to Puerto Princesa for some city adventure the next day. 

Below is a short video of our El Nido exeperience. :)

Philippines in One Month

Sometime in April 2017, I received a phone call which gave me an opportunity to work abroad, and become an Overseas Filipino Worker. Come July 22, 2017, I flew from Philippines to Bahrain to be the university nurse of AMA International University. Fast forward to June 2019, which was a month before my second year in Bahrain, I finally had a vacation in my home country. :)

In my one month vacation, I was able to tour around some of the most beautiful places in our country; El Nido and Puerto Princesa in Palawan, some tourists spots of Cebu, a natural cave in Samar, our family's province - Leyte and of course, Metro Manila.

I have summarized that one month vacation in the Philippines in a three-minute video below. Please watch and see how fun Philippines is.

It was such a fulfilling experience to travel and see other parts of the Philippines. I feel so proud that we have an amazing country. Too bad one month and my budget was not enough for me to conquer the whole Pinas. Soon. :)

Put On A Happy Face - JOKER, A Review

Joker is a heavy, mentally and emotionally challenging movie to watch.

This film focuses on the backstory of Joker, Batman's famous nemesis, presented and told in a dark narration.

In here, we will see Arthur Fleck, as a mentally ill person dreaming on becoming a successful comedian. But Arthur was going through though times in life; having a sick mother dependent on him, investigation of a crime, struggle at work the eventually losing it, and the cruelty of the society.

Despite being an installment to DC comics or movies, Joker is another story depicting the Marxist philosophy where there is a division in the society-- the upper class or capitalists (bourgeoisie) and the working class or wage-earners (proletariat). And this conflict in the contributed on how the film highlighted the mental health issue.

When Arthur's character was being established during the first part of the film, he was seen as a man who has positive thoughts though he has special needs, probably because he had someone to talk to and a support system. But when this support system failed him, adding to the conflicts he was encountering from his family history and the society, his character started to develop, including his mental health status. And this leads to Arthur becoming "the" Joker now.

A lot of different factors may test one's mental fitness. In this movie, we are taught on how social class, lies and abuse triggered Arthur's personality that caused him several mental conditions that defined his behavior.

Joker came out in time as just we have celebrated the World Mental Health Awareness Day last October 10. A happy face does not guarantee that one is mentally healthy. Sometimes, they are just putting a happy make up on their faces to mask the pain and the struggle one's personality is going through. In the movie, we learned how important it is to have someone to share our thoughts to and that the stigma on mentally ill person must be eradicated because they need us, they need help.

While comics and/or the Batman superhero was giving us heroic entertainment, here, we witness how tragic Joker's past was and his story was told to us also in a dark manner. Maybe, we are to expect also that the future Batman movies will be as dark as this? We will soon find out. :)

10 Things I Loved About Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again

This summer, the musical film that we enjoyed ten years ago came out of cinemas again. And here are the 10 reasons why I loved this movie. :) 

1.       Sequel-Prequel. This is a movie sequel that tackles about the prequel of Mamma Mia released 10 years ago that may get us thinking that may be this time the story will tell us who Sophie’s father really is.

2.       The story. Here, we get to know the life of the young Donna before she finally got into an island in Greece. How spirited, a dreamer and free she was where most of the youth right now may relate with. I loved the feminism in this movie.

3.       The wardrobe. Oh gosh! It was a complete mix of the modern, 2018 summer outfits and the 70’s bell bottom pants, boots, ruffles and shiny, colourful clothes. It will definitely take us back in the day where these costumes were a trend.

4.       The location. The movie took us to the same setting, Kalokairi, an island in Greece, where Donna settled in. This place in the film made me want to go to Greece. J

5.       The production. It was just amazing! Mamma Mia 2 just pulled off a bigger production compared to the previous film. Here, there was a bigger crowd and there were boats where everyone in it was just singing and dancing in the tune of Dancing Queen. I had goosebumps everywhere in my body during this scene!

6.       Music and choreography. Just like the first movie, this film featured the songs of ABBA, and this time, I guess more songs from the group were used. The choreography of the huge crowd was awesome. Watching them was like watching a musical concert party!

7.       The Cast. The original cast that we loved in the first Mamma Mia, Julie Walters to Pierce Brosnan, were all ageing beautifully. Since the story of this sequel focuses on the life of the young Donna, there were new added actors who played the young men that got involved with the young Donna. Also the two (2) members of the Dynamos, who both have a great resemblance to the original Rosie and Tanya. Then the presence of Andy Garcia and of course, Cher herself, who played Sophie’s grandmother.

8.       Lily James. One of the new cast members that I have to exclude from the above because she played the young Donna very, very well. She has that charisma that may get you hooked to her as she sings and perfects being the young Donna. And oh! Yes. She is just so, so, so pretty as well.

9.       Meryl Streep. Who else but Meryl Streep, right? The anticipation of seeing the original Donna was just so high even at the beginning of the movie. Then at that moment where she finally came out… it was so on point and the timing was perfect. Waiting for her was truly worthwhile.

10.   Smile. Although there was a part in the film that I regret for not having tissue or a hanky on hand because I had to cry I tear, I did had fun watching Mamma Mia 2. I was just literally smiling throughout the movie even until I went out of the cinema!

Seeing Cher and Meryl Streep then Amanda Seyfried and Lily James, this movie is definitely for all generations. And if you are into a feel good movie after a stressful day or week, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is highly recommend for you!

Tula 06-24 Part 2

Muling binalikan ang nakaraan

Sa panahon na lahat ng oras sayo ay inilaan

Masaya, nakakatuwa, may pagmamahalan

Bawat sandali tila walang hangganan

Oh kay sarap alalahanin

Ang nakaraan na ikaw ay nasa akin

Habang nasa ilalim ng mga bituin

At sa iyong mga mata masayang nakatingin

Muli kong binalikan ang nakaraan

Naalala ang iyong pagbitiw at paglisan

Ang iyong mga pangako na walang katuparan

Ang noon na ngayon ay nasaan

Sinubukang hanapin ang pighati

Ang lungkot ay tila hindi na namumutawi

Puso ay hindi na pira-pirasong nahahati

Sa mga matatamis mong salita na biglang binawi

Binalikan ko ang nakaraan

Nung ikaw ay dumating nang biglaan

At ganoon din kabilis na lumisan

At ang tanong na “Bakit?” lang ang iniwan

Ngunit gaya ng una nang naisambit

Kinalimutan na kitang pilit

Upang mapawi na ang lahat ng sakit

Maialis na sa puso ang galit

Wala na ang sakit

Tapos na ang kahapon na mapait

Kalayaan ng puso ay hindi na ipagkakait

Sariling kaligayahan ay uunahin nang makamit

Maraming salamat sa mga alaala

Panahon na para piliing maging masaya

Sa iyo ay kailangang magpaalam na

Hanggang sa muli aking sinta

Part 1 -> http://ritaclarisse.blogspot.com/2015/10/tula-ng-pusong-nagmahal-at-nasaktan_0.html?m=0

Travel 2017: Tacloban, Leyte, Philippines

One of the resolutions to ought to make for this New Year is to be able to continuously update my blogs. :) And with that, I chose to write about the places I have gone and will be going to this 2017.

First stop, Tacloban, Leyte.

I went to Tacloban last December 30, 2016 to spend the holidays and celebrate the New Year with my family.

To maximize my short stay in Tacloban, my family made sure that I will be able to see some beautiful places in our hometown. Places I’ve never been to. And that excludes the historical places in our province because this time, they took me to different food spots in the city. :)

SurpRice

While accompanying my cousin with her shopping ecklavu, she decided to treat me lunch (which I actually deserve noh! Hehe.) This cute restaurant is located Gomez Street, offers different viands of rice toppings. Here, we tried one of their best sellers, the Chilli Chicken.

At first, I thought it wasn’t that spicy, but the more I eat, the more it gets really hot in my mouth! Whooh! :) Ranging from 100-150 pesos, customers can leave the place really full.


SAMSAM Bistro

After taking some rest upon my arrival in Tacloban, my family took me to one of their favourite restaurants in the downtown area. In SamSam Bistro, they presented us different types of pinoy foods such as sinigang, inihaw, pancit and Filipino desserts. We opted to order their combo of inihaw na manok, inihaw na baboy, sinigang na hipon and their version of halo-halo. Their service was good but it took them almost 20 minutes to serve our food. Overall, everything was delicious! :)


HIGHSIDE

Sunday, after attending the New Year’s Holy Mass, my family and I had our dinner. We decided to try the one the newest resto at the Robinson’s Place Tacloban, the Highside. 

This motorcycle themed restaurant offered some western type of food such as burgers, grilled pork in rosemary sauce, creamy beef and mushroom, chicken in tomato sauce and many more.



The food was good and delicious. But their service… sadly, we had a bad experience with their service. Our food was served after about 30-40 minutes after we ordered. Of course we would kinda understand if the food would take some time be served, but for a burger to take about 30 minutes??? And what’s even worse, customers who just came in and who seemed to be familiar to them were served first and were fully accommodated. We couldn’t help but complain. Good thing, their staffs were sincerely apologetic. Sigh.

SunZiBar

Having been unable to see each other for a long time, my college buddy residing in Samar, island next to Leyte, took some of his time and came to Tacloban to catch up with me. He took me to another restaurant in the downtown area, SunZiBar. This food spot offers steaks, pastas and salads. Jude, my friend who is much more acquainted with the place, ordered their bestseller, Diablo. It is a 2 piece thinly sliced steak served in hot and spicy sauce on top of rice and vegie side dish. Apart from their good service, I totally enjoyed the food! The spice was enough to compliment the steak and was perfectly cooked that I couldn’t resist finishing the whole plate! Haha! Thanks to my friend. :)

HQ Food Park

Who would have thought that food parks do not only dominate Metro Manila but also, Tacloban?!? Yes! This Yolanda-devastated-city in the Eastern Visayas region has moved on and has a lot of growing businesses. And I was just glad to see much improvement since my 2015 visit in Tacloban. Now, to see a food park in this city is such a delight!

January 2, my last night in Tacloban, my cousins invited me to hang out and chill. Since it was a Monday, not all stalls were open. There, we only had a few bottles of beer, nachos and fish balls! :)

My family and I also visited the San Rafael farm in Babatngon, Leyte. It is a lovely place just outside Tacloban which I will feature in my next blog entry. After a 4-day trip, I can say, I truly had a gastronomic stay in Tacloban which I definitely enjoyed.  :)

 

TRAIN TO BUSAN: A Movie Full of Different Emotions

  

At first, I never really had a plan watching this movie. But it was like, everyone (my colleagues, friends and on social media) has been raving about this korean film. And so last Saturday, I gave in and watched it.

Train to Busan, a Zombie thriller film that stars Gong Yoo, Jung Yu-mi and Ma Dong-seok, has been breaking box office from all over the world since its premier last May. The movie has that close similarity to that of Hollywood's World War Z where the lead actor tries to stay alive along with his daughter after being under attacked by Zombies. The difference is... a lot. In this Korean Film, story focuses on the characters aboard a train fighting for their lives against a number of zombie infected passengers. 

As I watch the movie, there were scenes that made me laugh, hated a character, cried a tear, but most of the time, I almost screamed and shout (but had to control it coz screaming is not my thing, hehe). At the end of it, I felt so tired because I felt every inch of emotion the movie tries to make its viewers feel. It made me feel like running whenever zombies are approaching and it has a very good shock factor that kept my nerves so alive. The struggle of the characters in order to survive looked so real that it made me want to kill those zombies. :)

I applaud the cinematography, the musical background, and the technology they used. The texture of the film so smooth and clean. I loved the fact that they were able to combine all those emotions in a thriller movie which we rarely see in some Hollywood film with same genre. Having to pull off a comedy scene plus drama, action and horror in one is so commendable. The ending is a little sad, and there were questions popping out in my mind after like, how, when, where it all started and was the ending really just like that? But overall, it was like a hyperventilating roller coaster ride in a train movie and I liked it a lot. Clap! Clap! Clap!

x's:

According to reports, there is a prequel to Train to Busan that explains how it all started, an animated film titled, "Seoul Station".