The Wedding Banquet

I've been invited to a Chinese Wedding Banquet next month, and this will be my first time to attend one in HK. The last Chinese wedding I attended was way back in 1997 in Shunde. That was an unforgettable wedding because of the strong wine, and the very, VERY exotic food they served. (Snake, Boar and Eel, anyone?)

Their invite is simple and classic, which often results in something elegant. The silver stamping goes well with the matte silver paper. The envelope has their initials embossed. It's a good example of restraint that a lot of couples should practice.



When I opened the invite, there was something familiar and peculiar. There was a small envelope inside, which reminded me of a lai see. And as it turns out, IT WAS a lai-see.



My colleague explained to me that it was customary for the couple to give the guest a small token. This is their way of sharing all the blessings that were given to them as a couple. While talking to Mark, it turns out that this is also a common practice in Manila. His Kuya Patrick attended one such wedding where they were given money as token, too.



We then got into a discussion on how I could get a job as a "professional wedding guest" and live off all the tokens that come with the wedding invite. Then again, the token might just be enough to cover transportation, so that really won't be a profitable venture. Hahaha.

It would've been uber interesting to attend this wedding banquet. But it falls on the same day as Friendster Maya's wedding, so I'll be in Manila attending that.

I hope someone gets married again sometime soon.

Happy Father's Day!

When you have a Dad who's as cool as he's strict, as funny as he's serious, as crazy as he's level-headed, then you have good reason to have fun and celebrate (Just like we're all having fun in this old photo. And yes, it was Dad who asked us to pose that way.)

So from Hong Kong, Manila, Bicol and Atlanta, here's a big shout out to Dad who's now in Atlanta:

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

What's cheesier than a Quattro Formaggio Pizza?

The Fantastic Four. That's what!

Cheesy. Cheesy. Cheesy. Cheesy. Cheesy!

Not only was it cheesy to the point of lactose intolerance. The plot was as flat as a thin crust pizza. The characters and sub-stories were like heaps of toppings that didn't go together. (Think anchovies, lettuce, pineapple, parma ham and the occasional lap cheong. Yup, the mix was that bad.) And yes, the ending was as soggy as a 3-day left over slice.

Initially, I thought the effects would save the film, but alas, it didn't. Silver Surfer looked too CG-ed, and what did they do with Jessica Alba? Her make-up made her look draggish.

There were three saving graces, though. First was the uber cool ride that Reed Richards created. (Better than the X-men's jet.) Second was that little "sacrifice" that Sue Storm made near the end of the film. (Although it felt a bit too Jean Grey-ish.) And third, Stan Lee made a funny cameo role. (Snaps to Stan!!!)

But even with those three, I don't think I can bear to watch this film again - even if it's on TV or the only inflight film available. One slice is definitely enough.

Seeing Green

Feeling a bit famished and quite intrepid this Thursday, I finally decided to go down to the McDonald's store nearby and try this!



Yup, I've mustered enough guts to try the Green Tea and Red Bean Sundae. Since it's a "Shrek" related product, the topping was really Shrek Green. While I was examining it, part of my was expecting the goo to jump out of the cup and crawl around the table. Thankfully, it didn't.



The sundae isn't as bad as it looks. The topping does have a hint of green tea taste, but it's been overpowered a vanilla flavour, which I reckon comes from both the ice cream and the topping's sweetener. The red beans add an interesting texture in the mix, and I like how it disintegrates in my mouth leaving that thick, bean-paste taste.

Well, at least I've ticked that off the "to-try" list. Yes it's good, but I prefer the Haagen-Dazs Green Tea ice cream better.

Here fishy-fishy...

Two factors determined today's choice for a lunch venue. One, it was still raining and going anywhere far would result in sloshing back to the office. Two, my meeting extended well beyond lunch time, so I should buy something fast and filling. And the best option that's near, fast and filling was:

McDonald's!

They have a special Shrek meal to celebrate the opening of the movie on the last week of June. (And to think it's been showing in Manila since May. Talk about late.) The meal had a medium drink, a corn cup, and the main dish is:

Double Filet O' Fish!

Filet O' Fish is my all-time favourite sandwich. (Besides, one of the few things I can eat at McDonald's.) So having a double dose of Filet doubles my lunch enjoyment. Yup, some people get excited over Big Mac's two-all-beef-patties-special-sauce
-lettuce-cheese-pickles-onions-on-a-sesame-seed-bun, while others get excited over Double Cheeseburger. I, on the other hand, get excited over this:

Yum! Two servings of fish in one sandwich. What's not to love about that. I'm sure Mark will love this sandwich, too, because he's also a big Filet-O-Fish fan. (That's what he had during our first lunch.)

Another part of the Shrek Meal offering was a green tea and red bean sundae. It looked very appealing on the photo, so I was going to order one.

Good thing the girl beside me at the counter ordered it before me. When I caught a glimpse of it, the sundae looked like something that Linda Blair puked on while she was still possessed. The green had this slimy colour, and I immediately ricocheted. Maybe I'll save that order until I'm really, really, really hungry.

Original Pilipino Monday

Tomorrow is Philippine Independence Day! Mabuhay ang Pilipinas! Ever since the celebration of the Philippine Independence Centennial in 1998, I've been watching the parades, pomp and pageantry that usually accompanies this day. (Albeit vicariously since I only watch it on TV. Although I did go to Luneta during the Centennial - now THAT was a celebration.) Last week, I asked Ron if there were any programs or parades in Hong Kong, and he said that there was one last June 2.

How's that for an early celebration.

Anyway, I decided to do my own celebration by indulging in all things Pinoy today. And that included lunch at my favourite Pinoy fast food icon - Jollibee!

So it was off to Central this lunch time so I could "Bee Happy" this afternoon. Thankfully, Jollibee wasn't as full today, and getting a seat was easy. Lunch consisted of Palabok, Choco-Mallow Pie and Iced Tea. I must say, Choco-Mallow Pie is the all-time, best ever, super duper perfect dessert that they've come up with. I just hope it'll stay in their menu forever and ever.

But there's one product in the Manila menu that hasn't reached our shores yet - Nacho Cheesy Fries! Gosh, just looking at the poster made my mouth water. I'm definitely going to try this on my next trip to Manila. I just remembered that during my last trip home 2 weeks ago, I wasn't able to eat even one meal at Jollibee! Mom is in town and she was never a big fan of fast food. It's always "proper dining" with her, and all my meals during that trip consisted of sitting down in a "proper" restaurant with real plates and silverware. *Sigh* I miss the plastic basket, spoon and fork at Jollibee. Hahaha.

(Oh. While I was eating, I overheard the two ladies beside me talking about me. They said: "Ok din itong puting ito, mahilig sa Palabok...")

Another Pinoy thing that I've been indulging myself in today is music. Thanks to Mark, I discovered this site that has loads and loads and loads and loads of Filipino music from both past and present. As I was going through the play list, I was amazed at how they were able to compile songs from as far back as the 70s!

They had everything in that site. From the camp classics like "Bituing Walang Ningning" and "Sayang na Sayang" to jukebox favourites like "Suwerte Suwerte Lang" and "Magsimula Ka."

But this is what amazed me. When I was younger, there was this song I loved listening to, but never remembered the title nor the artist. All I could remember was part of the lyrics:

Hello Joe, Goodbye. I never thought I'd see you go, Hello, Goodbye. It wasn't really hard to know, we'd have to throw our memories behind and start anew. Until then, will I say Goodbye Joe, Hello.

This song was in their selection!!! And now I finally know the title. It's "Desire." Getting to listen to it after a decade makes poring through the 1000+ long play list well worth it.

Another song that I had fun listening to again was the original version of "Umagang Kay Ganda." This song is one of the best written songs in my book. Listening and analyzing the lyrics, its theme is similar to "Happy Together." Maybe that's why I like it so much. Plus, this song is memorable because I had to sing it in one of our high school programs. After all, singing is very much part of being a Filipino.

Ah yes, the joys of being Pinoy.

Details of a Saturday

Despite the rainy weather that inspires me to just lie in bed and read magazines the whole day, I managed to haul myself out of the flat yesterday and do something productive. Then again, compared to vegging out in bed the whole day, counting the number of windows at BP International Hotel is productive.

Not that I counted windows the entire day.

First, I was able to meet up with Ovvian and Romina for lunch. Looks like Ovvian is fast becoming part of the fashionable society landscape of Manila as she appeared in 2 fashion magazines last May. First was Preview, and the other was Mega. We met up for lunch, and I brought them to my favorite kebab place in TST - Ebeneezer's!



Ovvian ordered the Margherita pizza with extra feta cheese and Romina ordered the Moussaka with salad. They both loved the food, which was a relief because I've been raving about it before we got there. There's nothing worse than over-hype. Good thing the hype I did lived up to its promise. My favourite in this restaurant is their Greek Salad pita - and Mark is calling me a goat for liking it. (Me-e-e-e-, Me-e-e-e-e. Hehehe.)



But I eschewed being a goat today and ordered the fish tikka kebab. Here's the detail of my kebab - the red bits are fish fillet - yum! We stayed a bit longer at Ebeneezer's since it began to pour outside. Good thing the place was airconditioned, making it a perfect place to shield ourselves from the humid and wet weather outside.

Then the three of us hied off to Uniqlo. Romina liked their t-shirts and the design details that were on them. Ovvian liked this frilly blouse because of the detailed cut and shape. And I liked last afternoon's visit because of this little detail.




Hmmm... Ballon skirt. Maybe it's shaped like a well.

Then, the three of us went our separate ways and I had to pass by Jordan to buy some provisions. En route there, I saw one of my favourite shopping haunts just so see if there's anything interesting and new. And indeed, there was. Ate Bullet is liking black and white these days, and I found a perfect black and white dress. Nope, it wasn't the colour that made it perfect - it was the detail that made it so.



This is the hem of the dress. It had this intricate morrocan-style embroidery in black thread, which popped out against the white cloth. The craftmanship of this dress was impeccable. Plus the fabric is cotton and linen, which makes it go well for both day and night events.

Here's another detail, the bodice. It still has that same embroidery, but the pattern now is more chain-like. The black thing on top is the bustier type top.



When I checked out the size, VOILA! It was Ate Bullet's size. It was a sign. It was fate. It was me trying to justify yet another purchase. Hahaha.

But really, the dress was uber cheap. Considering it was made by one of the top labels in New York, and the attention to detail is remarkable - the dress was actually a steal. I showed it to Arnie this morning, and her reaction was: "Ay p@#* first prize ka na. Ang ganda!"

Yup, that detailed comment from my uber fashion forward friend is proof enough that it was indeed an excellent buy.

Haven't I seen you before?

While I was browsing through Bluefly in search of interesting jeans, I spotted something in the "best sellers" section that sent me deja vu-ing. They featured a green dress by Vera Wang and it was supposedly flying off the on-line racks. This was the dress:


A few seconds after I clicked the "enlarge image" button, I remembered why the dress was so familiar. It was this dress:



Yup, it's the same Vera Wang dress I bought on sale in Hong Kong last January. I was able to buy it sans the velvet ribbon belt, but that's really a non-issue since velvet trims are uber cheap at Carolina's and it won't be difficult buying a yard, or three.

The great thing is, Bluefly prides itself of selling designer clothes at rock bottom prices. I checked the price of this dress on the website, and I compared it with how much I bought the dress here for. And what was the price difference? I got the same dress for only 5% of the price they're selling it for.

Yup, bargains abound in Hong Kong. You just have to look for them.

Foxy!

Thanks to Arnie, I discovered how to maximize the features of this blog.

I've been accessing it through Safari, and noticed that not all command buttons on top are available. When I update my blog using IE, I see the b, i, link, block quote, spell check and add photo buttons. When I use Safari, it's only the add photo button that's available. So she asked me to try opening blogger through another program, so I did.

Now, I'm using Firefox, and yes, everything works! Note to self: beginning today, use Firefox to update blog.

O Sole Mio

I already had lunch planned in my mind. I'm supposed to have Vietnamese Shrimp noodles at Food Republic because it has been more than a month since my last meal there and my taste buds were craving for something light and has hints of lemongrass. But when I got there, the lunch crowd was thicker than usual. The queue at the Vietnamese place was around 20+ people, and my stomach couldn't muster the wait.

But as my former secretary says: "It's a blessing in the skies." My search for another place to grab a meal led me to Munch - an Italian fast food that also has a branch in TST. And Munch led me to this:



The Grilled Sole set. According to the poster, this is very new in their menu, like 6 days new. It's part of a new "grilled set" offering which also offers sirloin, grilled chicken, and a mixed set which includes pork, bacon and sausage. (Cholesterol-mania!) The Grilled Sole looked promising, so I went for that.

I'm glad I did. The sole is very fresh, with just a hint of sweetness. The serving was big and thick, and they had this light, cream sauce over it. The sauce complemented not only the fish, but the veggies as well. The beans were uber crunchy and the corn was... well... corn.



The set also came with a salad! While I was digging in, my mind was saying: "well, this is something healthy for a change." Hahaha.



This was an excellent meal for the price I paid. But whilst it's very satisfying, my mind is still asking me: "Where's my Vietnamese Shrimp noodles?"

Oh well, maybe tomorrow.

Dial M for Milk

Cool beans! One of my favourite milk brands is now available in Hong Kong!

I first discovered Big M at Shopwise Pasong Tamo during one of the shoots we had at Unitel, and I immediately became addicted to it. What I like about it is the texture - it's smooth, velvety yet thin, which is unusual because the taste is very, very creamy. After that, I'd make it a point to buy a few bottles each time I hie off to Shopwise.

It comes in three flavours: Chocolate, Coffee and Strawberry. Needless to say, this is my numero uno choice - strawberry! I'm not big on coffee and the chocolate one falls flat in comparison with Magnolia Chocolait. So this is definitely the best of the lot.

Of course, since this is Hong Kong, the price is double that of its SRP in Manila. Here, it's about P80 a bottle, while it's just P50 in Manila. But hey, what's an additional P30 if what I get is a taste of home.

Eye for Detail

While I was browsing my nephew Carl's website, I stumbled upon some of his artwork. He posted some of his current doodles, and I was pleasantly surprised to see how good he is at art. Before he flew to the US, he was more inclined to pursue music and so I didn't know he was in anyway interested in art and graphic design. But judging by these pieces he did, he's definitely got an artistic inclination.

This is a piece that takes elements from the Philippine flag and he abstracts them a bit. The entire piece has this surreal abstraction, but it also has flow and form. I can almost imagine the figures below as people carrying the flags during a parade. The details are impressive for someone his age.



Another piece he did was this play on shapes and colours. More than the shape, I like how he combines colours in this artwork. Carl plays with dark shades like black and gray, and integrates vivid colours like purple and ochre. The combination is so easy on the eye.



I've always been a fan of geometric shapes formed into emblems, and like to stare at design elements that combine these shapes. That's why I'm a big fan of hotel lobbies as they usually have a big design focal point on the floor or ceiling. This artwork that Carl did can easily be translated into a tile and put in as part of a house or hotel. Not only does the shape attract me, the colours captured my eyes again.



This is really good work for a 15-year old. Ate Lissa tells me that Carl's art teacher in Georgia wrote Biboy commending Carl's work. It's good to know that his work is appreciated, because it's really, really good. Design and art is all about details, and he has a good eye for that.

Looks like Carl will be the next advertising person in the family.

The Eagle has landed... sort of...

A month after I placed my order on-line, the package from American Eagle finally arrived. It was strange how long it took them to deliver it, considering my last order came a week after I made my purchase. Maybe it's the crazy sale season and multitudes have been on-line shopping in the U.S. But as they say, better late than never.

Looking at the package, I knew something was amiss. My order was for 7 t-shirts and 2 pairs of jeans. And what I got was a small, thin plastic bag.

Yup, upon closer scrutiny, my order was incomplete. After checking out the order slip attached, the delivery only consisted of 4 t-shirts. Nothing more, nothing less.



First thing that came to mind was: WHAT?!?! NO JEANS!!! Dang! I saw and placed an order for 2 low rise, straight fit jeans and none of them was in the package? The inhumanity! The pain! The injustice! The nerd! (As my former secretary would say.) I immediately called their 24-hour toll free number (and no, they didn't sound like they were Filipinos) to ask what happened. It turns out that the 2 jeans I ordered in my size were already out of stock the week before they posted it on the site. Ergo, it was back ordered, they tried to wait for the jeans to be back in stock. Ergo, my order came later than it should. But why were the jeans not there? It wouldn't be available anytime soon, so they just shipped whatever was available.

It's uber frustrating! I really wanted those jeans.

Aside from that, the 3 other shirts I ordered were also out of stock. I would've been major league disappointed if not for the fact that my favourite shirt - the one that I eyed and ordered first - was available.



But I still want those jeans. Oh well, back to the website...

Always something new to see

Spent the entire day yesterday in Macau. It's my Nth visit to the former Portuguese colony since settling here in Hong Kong. This time, I was joined by three Macau newbies: Adam, Grace and Donna, plus Alex, a 2nd timer.

The great thing about Macau is that no matter how often I come back and visit, there's always something new to see. Like these:





This part of Macau reminds me of the old houses we'd visit in San Luis Potosi in Mexico. I guess that's the reason why I feel an affinity with it.

Good enough

Just a week ago, Mark and I were talking about this 80s film entitled: "The Goonies." As it turns out, it was one of the films he liked as a kid. Initially, he couldn't remember the title, only the characters and situations. His recollections were quite specific: a group of kids, pirates, hidden treasure, and a Spanish nanny. Given those 4 clues, I immediately knew that it was indeed "The Goonies."

Like Mark, this was also a favourite film of mine as a kid. (Despite his insistence that we're very different people, we have the same favourite film.) I've always been drawn to adventure films: ones involving pirates, booby traps, hidden treasures and an old dilapitated map. In fact, when we were kids, we'd play "Treasure Hunt" at home. I'd hide candies and toys in one of the rooms in our old house in Morato, then make maps with clues as to where the treasure was. Then, my siblings would be the treasure hunters and try to get as much loot as they could.

Biboy would often be the winner. He was really good at this game. Maybe he was a pirate in his past life.

Aside from the film's genre, another reason why I loved "The Goonies" was because of Cyndi Lauper. She was my all-time favourite 80s female singer and she sang the film's theme song: "The Goonies R Good Enough." I'm trying to remember if she made a cameo appearance in the film. From what I remember, she did. But when Mark and I googled the film's cast, she wasn't there. Maybe it was an uncredited appearance.

Thanks to the magic of youtube, I was able to find the video of "The Goonies R Good Enough." I've forgotten how fun the video was until I saw this. Aside from Cyndi, it featured her posse of WWF wrestlers. (Cyndi and Captain Lou Albano were tight.) This sketch features Rowdy Roddy Piper, Captain Lou among others. I'm sure Erwin would have a blast watching this clip, it's really a blast from the past.

Here's to pirates, hidden treasures, Cyndi Lauper, and things I share with Mark.

Can you smell fear?

Apparently, you can.

That's what I learned in the seminar I attended today. Carolyn, one of the speakers, works at IFF - a company that provides fragrances for a range of products. This is the 2nd seminar we've attended together, and it was nice to catch up with her again. She always brings new things to the table, and today, she brought something amazingly new: a book of scents!

What's amazing about a book of scents? Well, this wasn't an ordinary book of scents. It didn't have the usual vanilla, sampaguita, rose and bergamot (which Mark likes). Instead, it had a range of scents representing different experiences.


Each scent represented a human emotion and experience. Things like hunger, violence, noise, and mildness. At first we thought the entire concept was odd and a bit impossible, but once she passed around the scents, we realized how experiences can indeed be captured in a smell. For example, the smell of "hunger" was something like yeast or unwashed rice. The smell of "mother" was like Noxema on skin.


There was also the scent of "sadness." First, I took a whiff, then the 4 other Filipinos in the room did the same. And we had the same reaction: "It smells like La Funeraria Paz!" The smell of sadness had that floral yet hospital-y smell that really evokes that feeling. Most of the people in the room started talking about lost loved ones after Carolyn passed around this scent. That's how effective her book of smells was.



She talked about a Russian perfumist who created the smell of "fear" and painted it on a wall and put it on exhibit in New York. Apparently, the people who stood close to the wall for a few minutes started to cry and cringe. Others just stood close to the wall, afraid to leave it. It sounded like an amazing experience, but one that you have to experience yourself in order for you to appreciate it.

They say scents affect a person's mood. After this seminar, I believe that a bit more.

Happy Together

Thanks to an impromptu karaoke get-together after the ASEAN Night, I found myself singing that song and getting a decent score for my efforts. During the course of my rendition, I could remember Joy saying how beautiful the lyrics of the song were. And I couldn't agree with her more. Happy together is one of those songs that speak of love, but in a very upbeat way. It eschews the mushy, romantic route (which isn't that bad, since I'm actually a big fan of mush...) and tells a story of love in a way that makes your head bob up and down, left and right.

The refrain is simply but beautifully written:

"I can't see me loving nobody but you, for all my life.
When I'm with you, baby the skies will be blue, for all my life."

When you've found the one you'll spend the rest of your life with, every little thing you do together turns into a happy event. Things that are seemingly simple and mundane turn out to be experiences that teach you more about one another. Things like talking a long walk home after dinner, hearing frogs croaking while passing through rice paddies with only the moonlight to light your way. Or eating microwavable spaghetti by the river as you watch your companions try to bag a fish or a duck. Or watching Grey's Anatomy from a computer screen past midnight. Or eating breakfast while playing Typeshark. Or making the bed a few moments after messing it up for the nth time the past 3 days.

These are things that a lot of people will find ordinary. But then again, nothing is ordinary when you're so happy together.



I can't see me loving nobody but you, for all my life.
When I'm with you, baby the skies will be blue, for all my life.

Lessons from a Spider

They had a Spiderman Marathon at TVB Pearl the past few weekends, and they did it to coincide with the showing of Spiderman 3 here in HK. After seeing all the three parts, I must say that the 2nd one was the best, and the last one was the worst. I felt like singing "Shiny, Happy People" in the end because they made sure everyone was happy and likeable before the credits rolled.

Oh well, that's Hollywood for you.

I like it how each of the 3 installments had a lesson to impart. My favourite one was the lesson in the first episode:

"With great power comes great responsibility."

The phrase stuck a chord today, and it's one of the few times that feeling responsible feels so good.

Another reason to love British Humour

I've always loved "The Catherine Tate Show" since I first saw it on the plane. Checked out HMV to see if they had a boxed set of any of the seasons, but they don't. Maybe they have it in Shenzhen. Hahaha.

Lauren is one of my favourite characters, and her classic line: "I ain't bovvered" has been in my mind eversince. I've always wanted to use it in a conversation or with one of my friends, but they probably don't watch the series so the humour will be lost on them.

Saw this on youtube and I must declare, it's another good reason to LOVE Catherine Tate. And another good reason not to be bovvered.

Jaslene is in!

The results are out, and the fiery latina has delivered!

Keeping her promise to put a little cha-cha attitude into America's Next Top Model, Jaslene prevailed over Natasha in the finals.


When the competiton started, I wanted Jaslene or Sarah to win. When they sent Sarah a-packing on the 6th episode, my wish for Jaslene to win just doubled. She's got this uber quirky attitude that made her a joy to watch. Eventhough she was Latin, she had this black sass to her which was just charming to watch.



Judging by her portfolio, and how she was the top name to be called in the first two photo sessions, it's easy to see why Tyra chose her over the more commercially viable Natasha. There's something in her that just jumps out in photographs - that elusive X-factor that everyone talks about.



Jaslene is the first Latina America's Next Top Model!



Exito! Viva Jaslene!

Happy Three Friends

It must've been the election "holiday", or maybe it's because the summer season in Manila is about to end, but there seems to be a lot of Filipinos vacationing in Hong Kong this week. Since Friday last week, i've been running into Pinoys en masse, at the MTR, in the malls, along Nathan Road, and of course, Mong Kok. Thanks to Cebu Pacific, traveling is now much easier.

Among those visitors were three sets of friends. Yup, I saw three sets of friends this weekend (and start of the week) and was able to show them around and brought them to my favourite haunts. (Both shopping and eating haunts. Reports about my being a shopaholic are grossly exaggerated. Hahaha.) Strangely, I only knew of one set coming here: Ginger and Dave. They're on their nth visit here, and their first after the wedding. So this might still be part of their honeymoon. The other 2 sets, well, they were a big - albeit a very pleasant - surprise. Too bad their schedules were packed, I would've wanted to spend more time with them.

With the Philippine Independence Weekend coming up soon, I'm sure more Pinoys are planning to come and visit. I'm hoping i'll be seeing more friends then, too. (Paging Lu-ann and company.)

Mango goes a-hawk-ing

Had lunch at Times Square today, and made my customary rounds through the shops. Zara still had the same old stuff, but it's noticeable that they're injecting a lot of colour into their wardrobe which only means that summer has finally arrived in Hong Kong. Club Monaco still had the staple black and white clothes. (Most of which are made in the Philippines. Yes, somewhere in Manila, there's a Club Monaco export overrun outlet waiting to be found.) FCUK was also not so exciting. Thank goodness there's always Page One and Papyrus - these two shops never fail to get my spirits up.

Then I passed by Mango on my way to the exit, and that's where I found the goodies!


Milla Jovovich and Carmen Hawk - better known as the fashionable minds behind Jovovich-Hawk - launched a capsule collection for Mango (or MNG.) They're composed of shiny dresses: some of the shine comes from the embellishment, while others from the fabric itself. There's a nice brown taffeta mini-dress with rhinestones and a printed jersey dress with a patent belt. Another part of the collection was composed of maxi-dresses made of silk, and they actually look light and airy. But they're obviously made with Europeans in mind because the length is too long for the "petite" majority of HK denizens.

While these may be hot property - capsule collections always are - this isn't as exciting as the previous collections that have been launched. It doesn't have enough oomph like Proenza Schouler's collection for Target (which Arnie has, lucky girl) and Roland Mouret's collection for Gap. But if the 3.1 Philip Lim collection is any indicator of how crazy people here are for capsule collections - famous or not - then the Jovovich-Hawk line might be all out before the week ends.

Wonderful Wireless Weekend with Mark

A very pleasant surprise greeted me today. And for once, it's not shopping related. Although i found some wonderful t-shirts for Javi this lunchtime at H&M. Here they are:


When I opened my computer at home, my MAC detected a wireless network and immediately connected. Ergo, I was able to go online and was able to spend time with Mark. It's been a while since we last spent Saturday together - both on-line and in person, so this is really a wonderful surprise. He's off having his late lunch, so here I am updating my blog from my bed! Cool beans!

(And Melvin, who's also on-line, agrees with me that I should be updating my blog this very instant. I told him I got connected at home and was equally thrilled. He likens this experience to a kid getting a new toy. A time full of amazement and wonder.)

Ah yes. Happy Surprises. Happy Saturday.

And yes Mark, I cleaned my desk at work. Hahaha.

Where wear you?

This morning, I once again had the daunting task of deciding which jeans to wear. That's the only drawback with having more than enough jeans - figuring out what goes well with the mood today can be a bit of a pain. Thank goodness I have a group of "safe jeans" which is what I wear when there's no time to decide. "Safe jeans" are jeans that have an uber classic cut and wash, and will go with just about anything.

While screening my jean stash, I found one still with a tag on it. It was a pair of jeans from K2, and after seeing the tag, I remembered that I bought this pair around November 2005. Which means it's been in my closet for about a year and a half without being worn!

Gosh! How can that happen? Well, I'll tell you how that can happen. My theory is that among all the jeans in my closet, I've only worn 3/4 of the lot. The other 1/4 still have tags and haven't been out of the closet since I've bought them. (But I think this pair I found might be the longest staying one.)

Anyway, since it's been mulling inside the closet for so long, I decided to bring it out and finally wear it. Here they are, my jeans in their long overdue debut!



The fit is very K2 (which is very Chinese/Japanese.) The rise is low, the legs are a bit tapered, and it's straight all the way down. Thank goodness I was able to fit in. It also has a lot of distressed details, such as these two big tears on the right leg. I'll give this a few months, and after that, i'm sure the frayed parts will become big holes. And people will once again remark: "You've got white legs!"



I also like the stitching detail on the knee. The thread they used is thick and heavy duty, which allays my fear that it'll just break open when I bend it while running, walking or bending down.


I'm certain this pair of jeans is relieved that it's finally seen the light of day after all that time. And i'm glad that I've stumbled upon it this morning, or else it might just have been in there for another 6 months.

Whew!

... now that was one long day.

Reese's Redux

I've always loved Reese's Pieces! While all the kids were carrying around their Nestle Crunch bars, their Snickers and Butterfingers, their Three Musketeers and Milky Ways, I was sitting in one corner savoring my little peanut butter cup. Making small bites and letting the chocolate melt in my mouth and give way to the peanut butter center. That was my definition of bliss.

Growing up, I've dabbled into other chocolates as well, especially after my Tita from Barcelona introduced us to the concept of European chocolates. Suddenly, the entire chocolate world opened and we realized that there's more to chocolates than M&M/Mars and Hershey's. Now, we had brands like Andes, Lindt, Perugina, Valrhona and Cote 'd Or. I suddenly became a chocolate polygamist and jumped from one brand to the next. There was even a time when I was addicted to Andes Chocolate Mint and Chocolate Orange thins!

But while these European brands dislodged all those American chocolates off our repertoire, Reese's still remained in my book. Once in a while, I'd find myself leaving Lindt in the fridge in favour of another Reese's Peanut Butter cup. This trend continues even up to now. While I enjoy indulging in Royce, Leonida's and Godiva, it still doesn't compare to the goodness of Reese's. I think it's more than the flavour that makes Reese's such an important chocolate for me, it's all those memories from childhood to adulthood that make it super special.

Memories like sneaking out of my room in the middle of the night to eat Reese's in the kitchen. Or how Xtine and I went grocery shopping in Long Beach and my eyes lit up at the sight of a big shelf of Reese's. Or how Biboy and I went back to Walmart because I wanted to check if they still had the special edition Reese's available. (They had white chocolate and dark chocolate Reese's.) Or how Mark visited me at Unitel with a pack of Reese's on hand. Or how, despite all these years, my parents, siblings and other relatives remember that i'm a big Reese's fan and send me some from the US whenever they have the chance. (The last bag they sent me was the Reese's with Caramel - and I still saved a piece at home.)

This weekend, while we were roaming around Wynn Macau, I saw a very unique pack of Reese's at the hotel's gift shop. Excitedly and without missing a beat, I rushed to the shop and bought two packs. This is how it looked like:



It turned out to be a special edition Reese's that features these yummy peanut butter cups in their original packaging. And instead of two cups per pack, it had three.

Needless to say, I bought it. (Ignoring the fact that it's 400% more expensive than the regular Reese's.) Why shouldn't I? The pack looks classic, it got me excited, and it has more of what I enjoy in every pack.

Yup, that's exactly what Reese's means to me.

Liking Lim

This weekend, I had a bad case of "accompanying-Kawei-to-shop-but-ending-up-buying-more-than-him-syndrome." It was totally odd since my job simply was to show him the good shopping places in Hong Kong so he can indulge in a little bit of retail therapy. Then i'd end up carrying bigger bags than him on our way home.

Let's see... It happened at H&M, at Cheong Hing Bakery, and at Uniqlo. But it was the Uniqlo trip that was definitely, de-fi-nite-ly worth it.

Since they don't have Uniqlo in Singapore just yet, we went to the one at Miramar Complex. While he was trying on a pair of pants and a blazer, I decided to just veg in the graphic T section. More than 15 minutes passed and he still wasn't back so I went around the store to look for him. It turns out he was at the Designer's Invitation Project section looking for a gift for his colleague, and that's when I spotted this.


It turned out that they launched the 3.1 Phillip Lim capsule collection for Uniqlo that day! We went there sometime mid afternoon, and most of the dresses were already sold. There were less than 10 pieces on the rack, and it looked like they'd all be gone in the next 10 minutes. Following my fashion instincts, I grabbed two of the dresses for my two sisters: one in black, the other in white.

Phillip Lim is known for his choice of fabrics and detail in construction. There's always a little detail in his clothes that give it a fashionable twist while still keeping it wearable. His clothes look good on the sidewalk as it does on the catwalk. Plus, since Uniqlo is a mass brand, it was very affordable. An original 3.1 Phillip Lim in New York will cost thousands of dollars, and I got two of these for just little over a hundred. Just looking at this pleated detail on the bodice and feeling the soft linen of the dress, I'm convinced this purchase is a steal.


Excellent fabric, unique construction and a retail friendly price. What's not to like about Phillip Lim?

Mind over Marriage Matters

Before this year ends, and as the next one starts, two friends of mine will be getting married. Contrary to the "June Bride" concept, the most popular months to get married in the Philippines are actually December, January and February. The main reason behind this is the weather - June is either scorching hot or rainy, while the abovementioned 3 months are cool, windy and comfy over-all.

It's been a while since I last helped put together a wedding. The last one was in February 2006 when Joannah got married in Manila. That was loads of fun because we were coordinating the wedding from 3 countries: Singapore, Hong Kong and Manila. Just as planned, the wedding was a low-key, elegant and fun affair. But the planning was just as fun as the event itself.

Now that I've got 2 weddings to "organize", i'm doubly excited and my mind is working double time. Ever since Claire and I became "accidental wedding coordinators" some 5 years back, I realized that conceptualizing weddings is a creatively fulfilling and challenging affair. And this type of fulfillment and challenge is a welcome break from thinking about commercials all the time.

Both weddings have actually been marinating in my mind the past months. And as the date draws closer, I think about them more often and much intensely.

How intense? I was thinking about Bonique's wedding too much this morning, I missed my train stop!

Black Eyed Betty

In the "Oshi" episode of Ugly Betty, they featured the song "Bebot" in all its tagalog-lyric glory.

Oshi - who I surmise is patterned after Yohji Yamamoto - travels with an entourage and his own background music. And yes, that background music happens to be the ditty that Apl de ap wrote in honour of his home country. I wonder if the producers are aware of this. Or maybe, one of the production people was actually Filipino and that's the reason why the song made its way in the series.

It was surreal to hear the song all of a sudden. Or as that often repeated quote (even by me) from Notting Hill goes: "Surreal but Nice."

Things are really getting ugly...

The "Ugly Betty" fever in the Morales flat is hitting record highs. I've been watching the series the past few nights, and i've finished all the episodes in the boxed set I bought.

But the problem when you put together an impatient advertising person and a whole season in a box is that you can expect a bit of cheating to happen.

I watched the first 5 episodes, and the plot was so interestingly twisted, I had the urge to find out how everything would unravel. So what did I do? After the 5th episode, I decided to watch the last episode and work my way up to where I left off. Some people might find this viewing habit uber weird, but it the more fun way of enjoying the series.

Aside from the plot, one thing I love about the series are the characters. It was nice to see Judith Light on TV again. After Alyssa Milano, she was my favorite actress in "Who's the Boss." Now, she's playing Daniel Meade's recovering alcoholic mother - Claire. Despite being out of the scene for a while, her comic timing is still impeccable.

Another favorite character is Constance. The immigration case officer who has the hots for Betty's dad. She lights up the screen everytime she appears, but this segment is definitely one of my favorite scenes with her.



Gosh! I can't wait for Season 2 to start. (And for the boxed set to be available.)