Sunday Snoozing

Sundays are best spent just lazing around or taking naps whenever and wherever you feel like it.

And no, I'm not talking about myself.

This is one comfy cat who spends Sundays snoozing. (An alliteration!) 

Cats are so lucky.

Suman to join me

Yesterday, I was just telling Ate and Ray that I miss my usual routine of buying plain suman outside OLPH after hearing the 10am mass. After all, it's been 5 months since I last heard mass there - physically, at least.

So, for breakfast today, Ray got these!

Yup, it's my favourite plain suman. He bought it in Rizal after biking with Kevin this morning.

Ah, this is the stuff Sunday breakfasts are made of!

Slow Sunday

Since the week went by like a blur, let me celebrate the weekend with a song by "Blur."



Such an apt ditty to cap the week.

Let sleeping cats lie

Here's a little dose of cat cuteness on a Sunday.

Wouldn't it be great to sleep like this?

Cat-atonic

It was such a joy to see this cat lazily lying on the pavement, unmindful of people passing by and the ruckus around the area. It was literally unfazed by all the action around it.

Don't you wish you can just do that everyday?

Of Sagalas and Skateboards

Ortigas Center, particularly Emerald Avenue, is a joy to visit on Sundays.

Today, I passed by and saw two events unfolding on the street.

First, it was a sagala featuring some beauty pageant candidates.

Then, a few steps down, there was a skateboarding competition.

Two competitions from both ends of the spectrum, and from both ends of the street. Where else can you find something like this?

Monas on a Sunday

The Jakarta National Monument, or as the locals call it - Monas, is one of my earliest recollections of Jakarta. As the country's national park, and the symbol of the country's independence, it was one of those must-visit-tourist-places. Thus, we made a stop there.

Monas to Indonesia is what Luneta is to Manila and what Quezon Memorial Circle is to Quezon City. It's a place where people can relax and unwind, especially on weekends.

Yesterday was a Sunday, so I thought I'd go back to Monas and go back down memory lane to my first visit to the city.

As expected, Monas was packed! There were thousands of families and friends enjoying the park on a Sunday. There were families having picnics, friends gregariously taking photos, there were groups engaged in sports like badminton and soccer, and there was even a battalion of police cadets running around and chanting.

Needless to say, it was a busy Sunday at Monas.

It was fun just observing and assimilating with the crowd. And it was also nice to see what the Indonesians do to relax on a weekend.

After all, Monas is the place to be on weekends.

Sunday is the best desert

Walking along Emerald Avenue on a Sunday is such a pretty sight. It's so different from the bustle and traffic that we see on a daily basis.

The streets are deserted, and the only people you see on the road are joggers, meanderers, and kids gleefully riding bikes to and from Julia Vargas.

If it were like this everyday, it would be more fun to come to work.

Super supper

The celebration of the September birthday babies turned out to be a night of Filipino food and fun.

Throwing all caution - and blood pressure worries - to the wind, there was crispy pata, kare-kare and other signature Filipino dishes on the table. There were also lots of chocolate, courtesy of Rona. And like any D' Frendz celebration, there were a lot of fun stories going around.

Thanks to Dip's camera, we were able to capture the storytelling in this last-supper-inspired photo which I think is super.

To the next birthday celebration! (Wait a minute. That's us!)

Hey Aidan!

Spent Sunday hanging out with the newest member of D' Frendz - Baby Aidan!

Yup, it's a Sunday well spent.

Taking the (pan)cake

This morning, I did something that I haven't done in a long time.

I cooked breakfast!

In particular, it was chocolate chip pancakes. And instead of the usual chocolate chips, I used Goya Chocolate buttons which melted perfectly into the pancake.

I should cook for the family more often.

Garden of delights

Another Sunday, and another get together with D' Frendz. Last week's brunch was courtesy of Grace, and for today, it was my turn to treat everyone.

I told them that we'd go off the beaten track and go somewhere they haven't been to before. I've been to Isabelo's Garden Restaurant a couple of times, and surprisingly, none of them have. So, it was the perfect opportunity to bring them somewhere nice and new.

Isabelo's recently opened their brunch service called "Rustic Mornings at Isabelo's." They sent me the menu and I was sold! After quickly whipping up and invite, we found ourselves in this delightful venue on a nice and sunny Sunday.

Rustic is the best way to describe the newly opened dining area of Isabelo's. It was the ultimate in shabby chic! Ornate mosaic tiles, beautiful wooden furniture, homey paintings - all these elements came together in one homey and cozy atmosphere.

The blue and white motif was carried everywhere, all the way to the place mats. Everything was so beautifully put together, which isn't a surprise because Isabelo's is known for that.

Their breakfast/brunch menu is extensive and impressive. Mona was the first one to order, so we had the chance take photos of her breakfast fare. It was something we weren't able to do with the food we ordered, basically because we were famished!

Here's the crispy waffle with strawberries. True to its name, it was delightfully crispy and buttery. Portia said it was one of their best sellers, and I can see why.

Here's another best seller, the crispy tawilis plate. The wansoy salad was awesome! I wish the tawilis was crispier, though. I'm sort of used to the ultra crunch tawilis that they serve at home.

One by one, D' Frendz arrived, and everyone started to enjoy the food.

Here's Maricar showing us her Michael Jackson shoulder action.

We also learned that Audrey is now in a "photographer" phase. She prefers to take photos instead of being in them. Cuteness overload!

There were so many cameras around that day that we had to take one shot 4 or 5 times. You can imagine how many photos came out that day. But bar none, my favorite photo has to be this one! It's the "Hi, I'm Lucas and this is my party" shot.

By the time the afternoon rolled in, everyone was stuffed and happy. I was glad to find out that everyone was completely satisfied with the Isabelo's experience, and everyone swore that they'd be back soon. I told them I'd be back sooner because we're planning to spend Mom's birthday here.

Delightful venue. Delightful food. And delightful company. It was really a delightful Sunday with D' Frendz and Isabelo's Garden Restaurant.

Sunday's sorbet shades

Cool colors are one way to beat this oppressive summer heat. That's why on our summer get together at Mona's house, we all ended up wearing different shades of sorbet. (Or "sakura colors," as Mark observed.)

It might have been hot outside, but hey, at least we're cool inside.