Though Chris and I arrived in Toronto on February 28th, we would still like to recap our adventures in the Philippines. Photos will be up soon! Stay tuned!
The next few days after getting back from Boracay was a whirlwind of family visits. There are still quite of my parents' siblings who still live in the Philippines and I think everyone we visited in our last few days I hadn't seen since I left the Philippines 23 years ago. wowza.
Wednesday - we had dinner with my mom's brother, his wife and their grandchild (my cousin's kid). The restaurant was on top of a swanky hotel that overlooked the city. Great view! Too bad we forgot our camera. :( We were going to eat outside on the patio but the winds were super strong and it was actually pretty chilly!!
Thursday - Chris and I headed to another few malls (again!!!! Poor Chris!!). We went back to Greenhills so I could buy more pearls (went to the same lady and she remembered us! and gave us great deals! haha) and then hit the Megamall. My god. Again with these huge malls!!! It's totally insane, I still can't get over it. We walked around for a bit and then met up with my cousin Richie.
Richie is totally awesome and the adventurous and wild one. He was bummed that we didn't get in touch with him earlier in our trip because he wanted to take us out and see some exotic places. We (especially Chris) totally wish we had a chance to go out with him!!!
Richie and his girlfriend and their friends love to hike and mountain bike so they knew a lot of off-the-map places that would have been perfect to check out. He told us stories of these awesome islands and mountains that made us wish we could turn back time and have him plan our trip! lol
We had some great grub at a chicken joint and then met some friends at a local bar. It was a pretty cool place - a strip of bars along each side of this long road. I was feeling kind of icky with my head cold so I just let them buy me a few mojitos ;)
Their group of friends is hilarious and around our age so we got along really well. So well, in fact, that they not only invited us out to party (at a two-day party up in the mountains!!!) that weekend but also kept us out until 2am!
The only downside to that is that we were locked out of my uncle's house and Chris went to wake up the maids... which, in hindsight, I should have done because they could have attacked this strange white man at their bedroom door. Haha
Friday - my mom's other brother and his driver picked us up after breakfast (of course, after I had slept in... again) and we drove out to Quezon City to visit my aunt, Sr. Fe at the St. Paul convent. We hit tons of traffic because it was also the 25th anniversary of the People's Power Revolution (wiki is here!). Tito Senic is absolutely hilarious. I've hung out with him and his family before (they lived in the US for a while) and they're all pretty easy-going. We had a great time, even while in traffic ;)
When we got to the convent, it was a strange experience. First, when I got ready that morning, I had to be sure I wasn't wearing anything revealing (but instead chose something that showcased my gut. SIGH). I'd never been to a convent before! Neither had Chris! Actually, Chris isn't even Catholic! I believe he is Christian (someone correct me if I'm wrong about the religion of my future husband, haha).
St. Paul's is also where my aunts and some uncles went to school back in the day. It was run by nuns then and now! My aunt is like one of the head nuns. She took us around the whole school and showed us their new sections - like a hotel!! It's crazy! The nuns told us we should stay there next time we visit. I would... except I just found out when we got back to Canada that the school is haunted. SO. THANKS FOR THE OFFER.... (Chris: but the ghost is just the spirit of Jesus!)
Sr Fe was so sweet and we met a lot of the other Sisters. She also showered us with lots of treats - and where I discovered my favourite brand of banana chips - Baby Juan Monkey Banana Chips! People, I can't enjoy any other brand. These nuns know where it's at! :) Sr Fe and I hadn't seen each other in probably over ten years so it was just great to finally see her in her element.
Then we had lunch at Max's Chicken!! SO GOOD! We stuffed ourselves silly with friend chicken and more crispy pata (Chris' new fave!) We decided we'd definitely have to check out the location in Canada to compare.
After lunch, we headed to the gas station my uncle owns. He had to check up on it and we also wanted to see it! Took pictures for the family, because I think we're the first ones to
have been there. And this is where we scored Calamani flavoured Ice Tea!!!! AMAZING!!!
We then proceeded to Manila Memorial, where both sets of my grandparents are buried and where my great-grandparents on my father's side are buried. It was a really emotional time for me. I'll take that tangent to another post...
It was time to introduce Chris to more family and see Tito Senic's home. My aunt and cousin were there so we had some snacks before heading out to see some sites. We went to a crazy looking banquet hall/dome thingy wherein my uncle convinced us to pretend we were scouting wedding locations so we could get in. Even though there was a wedding going on. haha So funny! Looked really cool and we actually met with one of the wedding planners and everything! hilarious!
Tito Sen took us to the Country club he's a member of where we pretty much ate a pre-dinner. Chris had mentioned my love of pizza so Tito Senic made sure to order pizza for me, lol. And then shrimp. So we were stuffed!!!
Then we headed to dinner!! lol Really delicious Japanese food with great company. My other cousin was able to join us so it was a nice reunion since we hadn't seen each other in maybe six years? We all get along really well - same sense of humour! ;)
Saturday - The day started off a little slow because my relatives that were to pick us up had to detour to a quick visit to the ER. My cousin (the aforementioned Richie's sister) is pregnant and has been having a rough time with her second child. :( It was a bummer, but she was okay and still managed to beat us to the restaurant where we were having lunch!
My aunt that picked us up is actually my godmother also, and - here's a fantastic bit of family trivia- she is my dad's cousin and my mom's best friend from school. Tita Chit is the one who introduced my parents to each other!! :)
Richie was apparently insistent we eat at a local Filipino restaurant called Kanin Club. They have a lot of the traditional dishes and make some with a twist! Richie even got Chris to try some foods Chris swore to me he'd never eat! lol Delicious food and it was really nice getting to know the family more. I haven't seen any of them since we left and don't often have contact with each other. My cousin Honey's kid is so cute, too! Caleb wasn't really shy and was super energetic. His poor nanny had to chase him around everywhere!! He keeps her busy ;)
After lunch we went to have dessert around Bonifacio High Street and Serendra, which are kind of like outdoor mall-resto areas. Really awesome. Chris and I popped our heads into various dessert places and finally chose gelato (probably because they were the only ones who offered samples). Chris was also smitten with the idea they would put warm Nutella on your gelato!!! Amazing! I had a warm brownie topped with white chocolate gelato. Heaven!!
We walked around a bit and shopped some more (Chris: Are we really shopping again?!?!) before they dropped us off back home.
It was a whirlwind of family!!! But very fun and I really wish we had more time to spend with them. It's really true - even three weeks isn't enough time to visit the Philippines when you want to see the sites and family as well! (at least if you have a family as big as mine).
We really hope they can all come to the wedding (TBD, haha) because I think it would be awesome to have a family reunion! We have heard from each family member mentioned above in this post that they'd us to get married in the Philippines. I told them I'd keep them updated on my Lotto winnings ;)
Friday - my mom's other brother and his driver picked us up after breakfast (of course, after I had slept in... again) and we drove out to Quezon City to visit my aunt, Sr. Fe at the St. Paul convent. We hit tons of traffic because it was also the 25th anniversary of the People's Power Revolution (wiki is here!). Tito Senic is absolutely hilarious. I've hung out with him and his family before (they lived in the US for a while) and they're all pretty easy-going. We had a great time, even while in traffic ;)
When we got to the convent, it was a strange experience. First, when I got ready that morning, I had to be sure I wasn't wearing anything revealing (but instead chose something that showcased my gut. SIGH). I'd never been to a convent before! Neither had Chris! Actually, Chris isn't even Catholic! I believe he is Christian (someone correct me if I'm wrong about the religion of my future husband, haha).
St. Paul's is also where my aunts and some uncles went to school back in the day. It was run by nuns then and now! My aunt is like one of the head nuns. She took us around the whole school and showed us their new sections - like a hotel!! It's crazy! The nuns told us we should stay there next time we visit. I would... except I just found out when we got back to Canada that the school is haunted. SO. THANKS FOR THE OFFER.... (Chris: but the ghost is just the spirit of Jesus!)
Sr Fe was so sweet and we met a lot of the other Sisters. She also showered us with lots of treats - and where I discovered my favourite brand of banana chips - Baby Juan Monkey Banana Chips! People, I can't enjoy any other brand. These nuns know where it's at! :) Sr Fe and I hadn't seen each other in probably over ten years so it was just great to finally see her in her element.
Then we had lunch at Max's Chicken!! SO GOOD! We stuffed ourselves silly with friend chicken and more crispy pata (Chris' new fave!) We decided we'd definitely have to check out the location in Canada to compare.
After lunch, we headed to the gas station my uncle owns. He had to check up on it and we also wanted to see it! Took pictures for the family, because I think we're the first ones to
have been there. And this is where we scored Calamani flavoured Ice Tea!!!! AMAZING!!!
We then proceeded to Manila Memorial, where both sets of my grandparents are buried and where my great-grandparents on my father's side are buried. It was a really emotional time for me. I'll take that tangent to another post...
It was time to introduce Chris to more family and see Tito Senic's home. My aunt and cousin were there so we had some snacks before heading out to see some sites. We went to a crazy looking banquet hall/dome thingy wherein my uncle convinced us to pretend we were scouting wedding locations so we could get in. Even though there was a wedding going on. haha So funny! Looked really cool and we actually met with one of the wedding planners and everything! hilarious!
Tito Sen took us to the Country club he's a member of where we pretty much ate a pre-dinner. Chris had mentioned my love of pizza so Tito Senic made sure to order pizza for me, lol. And then shrimp. So we were stuffed!!!
Then we headed to dinner!! lol Really delicious Japanese food with great company. My other cousin was able to join us so it was a nice reunion since we hadn't seen each other in maybe six years? We all get along really well - same sense of humour! ;)
Saturday - The day started off a little slow because my relatives that were to pick us up had to detour to a quick visit to the ER. My cousin (the aforementioned Richie's sister) is pregnant and has been having a rough time with her second child. :( It was a bummer, but she was okay and still managed to beat us to the restaurant where we were having lunch!
My aunt that picked us up is actually my godmother also, and - here's a fantastic bit of family trivia- she is my dad's cousin and my mom's best friend from school. Tita Chit is the one who introduced my parents to each other!! :)
Richie was apparently insistent we eat at a local Filipino restaurant called Kanin Club. They have a lot of the traditional dishes and make some with a twist! Richie even got Chris to try some foods Chris swore to me he'd never eat! lol Delicious food and it was really nice getting to know the family more. I haven't seen any of them since we left and don't often have contact with each other. My cousin Honey's kid is so cute, too! Caleb wasn't really shy and was super energetic. His poor nanny had to chase him around everywhere!! He keeps her busy ;)
After lunch we went to have dessert around Bonifacio High Street and Serendra, which are kind of like outdoor mall-resto areas. Really awesome. Chris and I popped our heads into various dessert places and finally chose gelato (probably because they were the only ones who offered samples). Chris was also smitten with the idea they would put warm Nutella on your gelato!!! Amazing! I had a warm brownie topped with white chocolate gelato. Heaven!!
We walked around a bit and shopped some more (Chris: Are we really shopping again?!?!) before they dropped us off back home.
It was a whirlwind of family!!! But very fun and I really wish we had more time to spend with them. It's really true - even three weeks isn't enough time to visit the Philippines when you want to see the sites and family as well! (at least if you have a family as big as mine).
We really hope they can all come to the wedding (TBD, haha) because I think it would be awesome to have a family reunion! We have heard from each family member mentioned above in this post that they'd us to get married in the Philippines. I told them I'd keep them updated on my Lotto winnings ;)
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