Discovering Las Casas Filipinas in Bagac, Bataan

It's been quite a long while since my last entry.  Got few paid ops offer but got no time to do. I just hope I won't get blacklisted. Sigh!  I'm now back to the usual household tasks again after the well treated "angel" extended her Holy Week vacay in her hometown in the far North.  Not sure yet when she's gonna come back. .(or does she have any plan of coming back at all?   I dunno! ...my oh my!!)

Anyway, at least I was able to enjoy the long weekend holiday.  My itchy feet would not settle for a simple rest at home! ha ha!  My family, together with daughter's friend who took over the wheel headed to Sis' place. If you would ask why didn't hubby drive for us, well, he was on the road ahead of us on his bike from our place in Novaliches all the way to Balanga, Bataan!  That's about 123 Km distance, if I'm not mistaken. Well, that's his passion for now. He's happy with it, let him be! Just like the one TV commercial line that goes.. "kung saan ka masaya, suportahan ta ka!" (I'll support you on whatever makes you happy!)

As I was saying, I'm thankful that Sis' home is always open for us.  It was always like a feast with all the good food she prepared for us! My mouth still gets watery everytime I think of what we had while we were in her house. Big crabs, prawns, seafood kare-kare, and all except pork. Ha ha.. she knows I'm avoiding pork, that's why!  Can't thank her enough!.

I'm sure I have already mentioned before that the Province of Bataan oozes with beautiful beaches and historical sites.  Up to this moment, gorgeous resorts keep popping everywhere. The latest amongst those is the Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar located in Bagac, Bataan.  I'm thankful that Sis got a membership card to this awesome resort and the benefits are being shared to us.  The development of this first class resort is still on-going but almost complete. Every house constructed is a clone of the houses of the past from late 19th to early 20th century.  My hat's off  to the people who conceptualized this antique houses' village. They brought forth the time of our ancestors for the present generation to feel and see. It's quite hard to explain the feeling while I walked the paths of cobblestones and antique street lamps while my jaw dropped in admiration to those grand old houses.  In addition, they have swimming pools and well maintained beach which are another exciting attractions for tourists.  Anyone who'll visit this place will be awestruck like us and would surely come  back again and again and again!!,

Daughter by the lovely door taken thru Jonathan's camera.

A group enjoying the raft on the bay.

The resort's beautiful beach facing Western Philippine Sea..

My niece Mae, posing for the resort's Caretela.

Our host, my loving Sis.(and my son at the back.)

The big kiddos enjoying the Resort's  pricey refreshments.

Posing for the bridge at the background.  (And who's that couple at the far left?)

Hubby's bike while resting from his pedal ride to Bataan.

Obviously, it was a worthwhile escapade!  The photos above were taken on two occasions. The first time was on noontime of Friday, April 22 and the second one was when we came back on afternoon of Sunday, April 24.  The other days were spent on a beach in Iba, Zambales.  Nevertheless,  that calls for another page of blogging.

Thanks so much for coming by.   I hope you are having a wonderful week!

Postscript: Marina Bay Esplanade, Singapore

We visited Marina Bay on the second day of our Singapore getaway.  I purposely didn’t include this itinerary in my past entry simply because I thought I got too many shots to share.that would need exclusive posting.  Unfortunately though, my lappy crashed then I learned that the hard disk has to be replaced.  It goes to say that all the documents stored in it will be irretrievable including the tons of photos I had saved. Good thing I was able to upload some in the net before it crashed and few I  was able to snatched from the big kiddos albums.

Anyway, we scheduled our visit to Marina Bay late in the afternoon so as to catch sight of the place in both daytime and nighttime.  We first looked for the Merlion Park, where the popular icon is located.  We walked from end to end around the bay looking for the famous icon but we were haplessly disappointed to find that the Lion mermaid was enclosed by the makeshift Five Star Merlion Hotel. We were so disheartened to have made a visit on the wrong time! What we saw was just the tail of the famous statue underneath the hotel.  We had to content ourselves with the new small version of it raised on a nearby park.

Overall, Marina Bay is undeniably  breathtaking and mesmerizing!  Located around the vicinity were the Durian like Esplanade Auditorium,  numerous skyscrapers which include Fullerton Hotel and the most prominent of them all, the Marina Bay Sands and SkyPark.  So marvelous by daytime and utterly awesome by night. Striking lights and water show starts as soon as it gets dark.  Beam rays of dazzling colors hit the sky from the towering SkyPark to various directions.  It is spectacularly captivating as it blends with all the other colorful lights around the promenade. I can only wish we had more time to stay on such splendid place overnight!

We were supposed to try the Singapore Flyer located in a distance despite the price being a little expensive (which includes meal).. However I was surprised when daughter backed out and chose not to push through the acrophobic ride. I only learned the reason why when we reached Marina Bay Mall. She asked me to pay for her shopped items insinuating  that she helped me saved a lot from that expensive ride.  Ha ha.. wise decision in a way!


Vigorously walking,  looking for the Merlion Icon/Park.


Stopping by the Marina Bay Sands Shoppes and watched this unique fountain.


The Merlion Icon we were looking for but didn't see.. (photo not mine)

 
...Because the Lion mermaid is now enthroned inside the red painted
Marlion Hotel. (photo not mine.)


A closer look on the hotel encasing the famous landmark.


 
 The interior of the Merlion Hotel. (photo not mine)


Marina Bay Sands at the start of its lights show. Singapore Flyer on the left.


Blending of colorful lights and water.


Getting one last glimpse on the awesome Marina Bay Sands Hotel and Skypark.
(Photo taken from our taxi on the way to the airport.)

Finally, this ends my journal on our Singapore escapade.  Thanks for taking time to read!

Have a good start of the week everyone!

Singapore Day 4: Orchard Road, Suntec, Airport

It’s kind of melancholic to face the day knowing that it’s gonna be the last day to relish the wonderful place that is Singapore!  How quick 4days/3nights were!  We spent the few hours left strolling down the shopping area of Orchard Road and Suntec City.  The kiddos got themselves some shirts, caps and other personal stuff.  Guess what I picked for myself?  Guess!  Yes, a  Guess handbag it is! I found it in OG Orchard.  This department store show cases lots of high end brands of shoes and bags but I had to ignore  Otherwise,  I’ll resort to using my credit cards. Ha ha..! That’s what I’ve been proud of myself this time.  I didn’t use my cards even when I was very much tempted to.  Well, I may not have ransacked the shopping malls but I’m very glad that I won’t be expecting any credit card bills coming next billing month. What a relief for hubby! Lol!

Suntec City:  Our first destination for the day.

Daughter posing infront of the Singapore Visitor's Center

Along with other foreigners trekking Orchard Road.

For our lunch, we went back to the Hawker’s Centre near our hotel and I had my last taste of their superb Roast duck rice. 

 

My fave meal in Hwkers Centre near our hotel.

This black bird stayed  near our table for a long while.

After the satisfying meal, we had enough time to rest at our hotel's lounge before proceeding to the airport.

Daughter while waiting for our taxi that would bring us to the airport.

Singapore Airport's Budget Terminal (Ain't the name discriminating? Lol!)

Our McDonald's Snack at the Airport.

Checking-in our Luggage.

No boring 3 hour  flight  when you have these to munch.

 Thank you Singapore for the lovely memories!  

Singapore Day 3: Universal Studios

I must say that the primary reason for our trip to Singapore was to see Universal Studios.  Nevertheless, we were more than delighted to have seen other marvelous attractions this “tiny red dot country” presents.  Three nights and four days were definitely not enough to cover the countless attractive and fun places it offers. You need to stay longer to enjoy more! On the contrary, even only with the very brief stint, it was extremely fulfilling and satisfying getting the feel of that Singapore experience!

 

First and foremost in our plan was to get to USS early on a weekday. The reason of which was, #1: the ticket is cheaper and #2.: the place would probably be not too crowded.  Evidently, we were wrong on presuming the latter. Despite our early arrival, we were stunned to see the place already crammed and rocking!

Universal Studios of Singapore has Seven Theme Zones.  1. Hollywood, 2. New York 3. Sci Fi City  4. Ancient Egypt   5. The Lost World:  that includes Jurassic Park and WaterWorld  6. Far Far Away  7. Madagascar

At Universal Globe

Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood Theme Zone

Lights, Camera Action : Shows how movies' special effects are made.

Madagascar Theme Zone

Castle in Far Far Away Theme Zone

Shrek in Far Far Away

Ancient Egypt

Lunch at Lost World Food Court

WaterWorl in the Lost World Theme Zone

Live Entertainment

With the big kiddos at the Universal Arch Way

Strollin' in Ancient Egypt

Battle Star Galactica Roller Coaster Ride

Ancient Egypt Theme Zone

Celebrity Cafe and Bakery

One of the many Snack shops

The big kiddos

Jonathan and Janina with a Sci Fi Theme Zone Character.

  

Thanks for taking time coming to this site. See you around and God bless everyone!