To Be 33

It's been weeks since my 33rd birthday and it was probably one of the most favorite birthdays that I've had in years. I have this habit of making my birthday such a big deal, at first I would tell myself not to but I would always end up doing it. Not that it created harm to anyone or any creature walking this planet but it probably irritated some people (NOTE: I DO NOT CARE! Muah!). As much as I wanted to spend my birthday with my friends like a mostly do, I decided to just plan a trip on my own. I've never went on a road trip with no companion. All road trips that I have done would either be with my friends Wiji, Carl, Mark or the entire Igans or with my family. This plan was easy since I just wanted to go to the beach and La Union was the first and only destination that was on my mind. So I booked my room at the San Juan Surf Resort then woke up early on the 5th of October to take a bus going there.

 

Me at the first stop over having my coffee.

 

This was waiting for me when I arrived.

I'm not really what you call a high maintenance traveler although I'm also not the type who would sleep on a tent, and comfortable sharing a bathroom with a stranger. That is why the room that I got at the surf camp was perfect. It's their fan room that's actually good for 2 people which is already inclusive of 2 breakfast (what I did was I had both breakfast cooked in the morning, eat one then have the other one heated for lunch! HA! Nice!) and you have your own bathroom. 

I met up with Elaine Abonal, the proprietor of Surfistatravels.com. It's a one stop shop travel company that helps out people who are interested to learn how to surf, who are looking for the perfect accommodations, transportation, people who are interested to acquire really good, quality surf paraphernalia, etc. Elaine was with a company of French Canadian men from Oui Surf. They're surfers and webTV producers who have been traveling all over the world and now in Asia documenting the surf and its lifestyle in different countries. I hung out with them at times but I enjoyed relaxing on the beach the most. 

During the first night in La Union, I decided to go to San Fernando for dinner. Every time Wiji and I would go to San Fernando, we would always make sure to check out the nightly banchetto at the plaza. I did just that and I ate some food that made me and my tummy happy! And also, Elaine, Derek and Ben from Oui Surf together with Mandy, one of the local surfers of San Juan, and I went to party crash somebody's birthday in one of the bars near the surf camp. It also served as my birthday salubong! Yehey!

It was my last meal as a 32 year old so I made it good!

 Good times, good times! Cheers to being 33!

The entire day of my birthday was spent just lying down on the sand, basking under the sun, trying to answer all the greetings from people who remembered and ate some more. Night time came, a few of us just sat by the beach and started a bonfire. My friend and surfer Luke Landrigan took care of our drinks that night and let's just say that twice I woke up with a hangover but all was worth it. 

 

This is what happens when it's your birthday and you're having dinner with some French Canadians and they decided to sing you a Happy Birthday in Tagalog

Eraserheads' Marcus Adoro was there and gave me an orange as a gift.

It was time to leave San Juan the next day to go up to Baguio for an overnight stay. It was just a spur of the moment thing that I decided to go up the mountains. I thought hey, since it's always been a tradition of my friends and I to go up to Baguio for lunch before heading down to Manila might as well do it. But for a change I decided to stay an extra day (which was bitin) so I can eat some more. I was such a glutton that weekend, I really felt guilty on what I did to my body ha ha! I took a bus going to Baguio in San Fernando, and it took about 2 hours to get there. I stayed at Hotel 45, a suggestion made by my friends Eric Poliquit and Enzo Mondejar. I was surprised by how cheap it was (P800 a night) considering that the room was really nice. It was very clean, it has cable TV, of course your own bathroom with a water heater! Thank God for the water heater. I would not be able to take a bath in Baguio if it wasn't for the water heater. I attempted to wash my face using the ordinary faucet and I think my hands went numb! I'm serious! It was really cold! It really woke me up. 

  Off to Baguio. On the road and in my hotel room at Hotel 45

I didn't waste any time when I arrived in Baguio. Like someone who hasn't been fed for days, I put on my beanie and jacket and went out to look for a restaurant. I first went to Cafe by the Ruins but unfortunately it was being renovated that time. Sayang kasi I really wanted to drink their hot chocolate again. So I ended up eating at Sizzling Plate. I know, I know, why did I just do that? Yes it's the same Sizzling Plate that you can find at the SM Food Court. I was already hungry and it's still steak so it's OK in my book. After that filling meal, I walked going to Session Road and passed by Burnham Park to look for strawberry flavored taho but unfortunately, I couldn't find any so I decided to go to Oh My Gulay! for dessert. My friends and I would usually eat lunch here before going back to our mundane worlds. Every good thing about this place has already been blogged so I will no longer hype it up by saying that it's one of my favorite places to go to ever! I ordered the Mansanas crepe and lemonada for my dessert.

HONG LOMIG SA BOGYO!

As I was on my way out, I saw the restaurant's owner and film director Kidlat Tahimik. I immediately sent a message to his son Kidlat de Guia and said "Andito ako sa Oh My Gulay! At andito ang tatay mo. Magpapapicture ako! He he!" I approached him while he was in a meeting and asked if we can have our photo taken together which he graciously said "yes." 

 "Sabihin mo kay Kidlat (Jr.) na nagkakilala na tayo." -- Kidlat Tahimik

Full from everything that I ate, I walked from Session road to my hotel. I just stayed inside my room and watched cartoons until night time came so the question that was running through my mind was where to eat dinner. Good thing I posted on Facebook and asked for suggestions from my friends. My friend JP Balboa suggested to eat at this restaurant named Canto. He said that they have the best baby back ribs in town. I was not difficult to convince especially if its about food so I took a cab and went to the Ketchup Food Community which is a newly opened compound along Romulo street near Wright Park with different restaurants to chose from. I went straight to Canto and ordered a half slab. The slab came with your choice between mashed potatoes with gravy or rice and salad, I picked the mashed potatoes. It was the best baby back ribs that I've ever tasted. The meat just slides from the bone and it wasn't too sweet and wasn't too tangy either, it was just right! The salad and the mashed potatoes were yummy as well. Basta! Ang sarap nya lang talaga, panalo sha! I also ordered the pana cotta for dessert, and it was really good as well. 

Dinner at Canto

Sleep wasn't elusive when I was in Baguio. It was probably because of the tiring walk and the travel, and all the fatty food that I ate that made me sleep like a log. The next morning, I asked the guard of the hotel as to where I can buy a strawberry flavored taho, he said that there are taho vendors that would walk pass by the hotel and he'll just call me when he sees one. And it did not take him a while to inform me that a taho vendor was already waiting for me outside of the hotel. I was a bit disappointed when I saw that the arnibal of the taho was too blended that there were no chunks of strawberry that you can actually eat. I remember buying a cup at the Burnham Park the last time that I was in Baguio and there were strawberry bits that you can actually see. 

With Strawberry bits!

With No Strawberry bits!

But nevertheless having that strawberry flavored taho made my Baguio trip already complete. I still had about a few more hours to kill before I head on home from Baguio so I decided to go to Hill Station, which is a classy restaurant just a few blocks away from where I was staying. It's beside Casa Vallejo, a boutique hotel along upper Session road. I had a difficult time deciding on what to eat for brunch since everything on the menu looks delicious. I asked the waiter what he can suggest and he said to get the Slow Cooked Roast Beef which was one of their best sellers so I did just that. The restaurant was a bit swanky for my taste but it was really beautiful there. You can see that the place is old but has been well preserved and renovated. The waiter served the complimentary bread with olive oil and spices for the dip and soup, he then served the roast beef which was like heaven in my mouth. It just melts. Sarap mashado!

Brunch at Hill Station along upper Session Road

A really cute bookstore just below Hill Station called Mt Cloud

So there, see, being 33 is not so bad. I don't know why I even worried for a bit that it's going to suck but honestly now I really feel that it will only get better from here. I'm not one to regret the life that I have live for 32 years since everyday had been a learning experience for me. Like any other living creature in this world, I've been thru ups and downs but almost all of them have been subject to my approval. Things don't happen unless you want them too...ika nga ng mga kaibigan ko "ginusto mo yan!" I will learn to enjoy and live my life the best way I know how and while doing so I'll try not to hurt anyone along the way. When all of these are achieved then all is well.