He-Man and the Masters of the Universe

* photo from madman.com.au

Prince Adam lifts his magic sword and by the power of Grayskull transforms into He-Man, the strongest man in the universe!  I came across some episodes on Youtube, and this brought back some good memories.  The TV series was obviously aimed aimed at the kiddie segment, and each show would have a spiel about the lessons of the day's episode.  But nevertheless, I enjoyed watching the TV show; somehow my spirits would lift with each small triumph of good over evil!

Double Boiled Soup

The ground floor fast-food center beside the V Hotel on Lavander St. was a haven for Singaporean food.  I found myself attracted to the counter of the double-boiled chicken soup, looking for that special flavor and aroma that comes naturally using the double-boiled method.  How can you go wrong?  S$10 for something that sells for around P700 in Manila!

Straits Bar

The Tower Club in Manila is elegant and refined, but the views from the Tower Club in Singapore is absolutely awesome.  Over the past ten years, I've seen how the Marina Bay area has blossomed and how it is fast becoming the new CBD of the Lion City.  Pretty refreshing site to behold!

We had a quick yet sumptuous buffet at the Straits Bar, which had all the stuff I had wanted; a mild laksa that had subtle hints of lobster/shrimp, fresh tuna sashimi, and succulent roasted tenderloin.  Our hosts were truly gracious and we had lots of good conversation, exchanging notes on both the Singaporean economy and the Philippine elections.  Ah, the benefits of economic progress!

Tomo Izakaya

Ellie and I were in Clark Quay to have dinner, and we saw several groups enter Tomo Izakaya.  It looked like the place was a crowd favorite.  I was afraid to enter; my tummy acidity had been acting up and I couldn't take any alcohol.  After all, wasn't alcohol the essence of what izakaya (Japanese gastropubs) were about?

We still went in, and luckily, the small plates were absolutely heaven-sent!  We totally forgot that we were obliged to have a sake or a beer.  Instead, we had sushi, some ramen, grilled squid and robatayaki sticks.  Kudos to the chef, indeed everything was flavorful and worth the visit.

Cuppachoice

Hot Ceylon tea from Cuppachoice... I can get used to these lazy afternoons...

Guan Kitchen

There's a quaint restaurant along River Valley Road that serves one of the best crispy fish skin that I've tasted.  Mind-boggling; even better than that prepared by one of the local 5-star hotels.  We stumbled onto Guan Kitchen by sheer luck (we were too tired to walk further without refueling our tummies) and after that meal, I made a mental note--I'd surely make a beeline for this restaurant the next time I'm back in SG.

The beef ho-fan wasn't bad, and it was our merienda tummy filler.  The crispy fish skin, however, was the delight of the afternoon.  It's secret?  It was covered in minced salted duck eggs before it was fried, hence the extra flavor!  Spent something like S$18 which wasn't bad at all.

Memo

The hotel's ground floor attraction was Memo, sort of like a cross between a daytime cafe and and night time lounge.  I just love their mouth-watering display!

F&N

I never paid attention to F&N products before, since they were common everywhere in Singapore.  What caught my eye at the 7-11 store this time was Yuzu flavored mixed juice drink.  What was Yuzu?  I figured it was a cousin of the grapefruit, so I had to try some. Bought a carton of orange juice too.  As expected, the Yuzu juice was just like grapefruit juice.  The orange drink was the revelation--thirst quenching and absolutely yummy!

Studio M Hotel

The flight to SG was quite a bumpy one, and getting out of Changi, I was still in a sorry state of stupor, my Dramamine having worn off right after touchdown.  You can just imagine how happy I was to check-in at our hotel, Studio M Lofts which was in a relaxing neighborhood on Robertson Quay.  Some peace and quiet at last!  

The moment I saw the self-check-in computer terminal, I knew it was a hotel geared for millenials.  The room was only 22 sq.m. in size, but the large window panels gave a spacious feel.   One just has to get used to climbing up to bed, rather than plopping down at will.

The drawback is really the bathroom and toilet, which was just around 1 sq. m. in size each. Well, small but it'll work.  Simple amenities--WiFi, pool and gym.  Room was priced at something like US$150, if I recall right.

Tokyo Joe

The SM Manila Mall is so close to Lola Dee's house that we can pop in any time we want to. Vicky, Monique and I had just finished ordering the bicycle for Andi, and we decided to have a quick Japanese merienda at Tokyo Joe.  I guess we went overboard with all the items we ordered--pork ramen, 2 kinds of sushi, and gyoza.  That was almost like P250 per person, which we wolfed down in under 15 minutes!

Coralview Beach Resort

Our lazy drive to Bataan brought us to the Coralview Beach Resort.  We had wanted to check out the facilities of some of the better resorts for our summer vacation, and it seems that this one is a good candidate.  Easy drive, decent facilities, and reasonable rates.  I can't wait for summer to come!

Tom Jones

* photo from philstar.com

Did I hear it right?  The radio plug mentioned that Tom Jones would be coming to Manila next month for a one-night concert at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.  I remember watching his television shows in the seventies with It's Not Unusual constantly playing in the background.  I remember our late night drinking sessions with my college buddies, toasting drinks (i.e. Landing In Normandy, which was scotch and vermouth) to the tune of Delilah.  I remember smiling over his successful re-imaging with the song Sex Bomb.  Great times, indeed.  I'm sure his Manila concert will be a blast!

Milkcow

Oh my, it's got a honeycomb in it!  Monique introduced me to Milkcow, a Korean ice cream franchise.  I just love it!

Early Bird Breakfast Club

Post-movie, we were still hungry.  The Eastwood Mall has a lot of new eating places, so we decided to try the Early Bird Breakfast Club, which was something we hadn't seen before. We had sliced sausages with diced potatoes and caramelized onions, and a giant stacker of a cheese sandwich, with baked chili con carne on the side.

It's a shame that we were the only customers on a Thursday night.  The ambiance is pretty relaxing and it's a great place to have tete-a-tete with your significant other.  I guess that most people can have only so much brekky!  Prepare something like P500 per person.