SM Aura !

All roads lead to SM Aura ! 

I just had to get a glimpse of the new premier shoppping. mall.  Located at The Fort in Taguig, it boasts of an Imax theatre , a Skypark and the most important of all is the green architecture. It had opened last May 17 and has been packed with curious shoppers.

It's SM shopping mall has a first class feel compared to other SM branches.  The Skypark is for al fresco dining.  However, it was raining hard that day so we were not able to enjoy this part of the mall. 

Not all shops are open yet and the parking is not finished yet either (we parked at the lowest basement parking - does that make sense ?, that still smelled paint).  The restaurants are not all open yet so the volume of all people created a lack of seats so we just ate at the food stalls of the supermarket. Do try the dimsum there - it tastes good ! 

I must admit, I like the feel of this new SM Store

A new cupcake place called The Royal Touch gourmet cupcakes.  Had tried the chocolate flavor and I like it (it doesn't crumble at all).  I learned that the creator Carolyn Robb was a peronal chef to the Royal family of  UK.  So much class here even inside their store.



This is the food court called Food on Four (on the 4th floor, of course).  Not a lot of food stalls opened yet and the line is very long (it loops!).

The Skypark is supposed to be for Al Fresco dining but I think the rain was just too much that day

Stores like Kultura , I think, should be in all malls to showcase Filipino products and ingenuity

The main celebrity who graced the opening of SM Aura - Ms. Sarah Jessica Parker!

Enjoy !

Mall of Asia weekend !

My cousin visited from Davao and the first place that I thought of bringing her was Mall of Asia.  Why ? Aside from being the largest mall in the Philippines, it has everything we needed and wanted - Time zone for the kids , nice resto's, snack shops, a bowling center , skating rink - everything !  But what we really wanted to see was the big EYE ferris wheel and be able to walk around near the bay.

Location :
SM central business park 1, island A, Bay City, Pasay City

What we tried :

Magnum ice cream from Selecta.  This is new and it really tastes yummy.  It's rich vanilla coated with Belgian chocolate.  Or you could opt for the chocolate truffle which is chocolate in chocolate. 

Pancit ng taga Malabon.  It's rice noodle with shrimp and fish sauce.  Yummy ! 
Tip :  Try the small bilao for a group of 5 to 6.  It's worth the price.

MOA from the bay view

Time Zone.  My kids just love this place and they got to use their VIP certificates (a gift from my friend).

There was even a musical band that performed during that day which made me feel like we were in a fiesta !

Here are some of the resto's in MOA

Fish and Co.

Krispy Kreme invades MOA

The Tokyo Cafe

You can opt to go by the bay and try the 4 wheel scooter.  Looks like fun !

The 4 wheel scooter

You can go to the Nido Science Discovery Center which has a planetarium.  Fun learning for the kids !

My kids love this !

Or ride the ferris wheel which is , I heard, about a 10 minute turn

The Ferris Wheel

For my finale , the Team Pacquiao shop !

The great and famous boxer from the Philippines

All this and more from Mall of Asia ! Enjoy!

Pergola Mall in BF !

My husband and I were waiting for our sons to arrive from their field trip and what better way to wait than to sip coffee and read a good magazine or newspaper .  And that's exactly what we did !  We headed off to Pergola Mall in BF Paranaque and had our coffee at Kopi Roti.  To be honest , I didn't think I'd like the coffee but to my surprise - it's one of the best I've tasted.  Their kopi is made with condensed milk and it creates a different kind of sweetness.



Kopi and toasted bread with Kaya spread and butter



Pergola mall is my fave place to stay on a lazy day because it's also my go-to shop.  It has a bookstore, CDR King (a gadget and techno hub) , resto's, coffee shops , Robinson's grocery store and the latest addition would be the Japan Home Store where everything is Php88 !

Head on to Pergoma mall for your needs and then some...

Tip :
There is an every Saturday Scrabble club at Sugarhouse.
On every occasion, there's sure to be some happening at Pergola mall !



Some of food stalls at Pergola Mall




Oh yes, Figaro is also there



Ichnigo Japanese food stall



The new Japan Home store where I buy most of my home stuff



Big Better Burgers' also there !

Enjoy !

Alabang Town Center weekend!

Being with the family is a lot of fun specially if you get to just walk, hold hands, talk about silly things and just plain fool around.  We usually do this in our favorite mall spot - Alabang Town Center.  We love it here because it feels so cozy.  There is a feeling of warmth  especially at this time of year - Christmas.

In the Philippines, Christmas starts as early as September.  Christmas carols are playing, decorations are   set-up and giant christmas trees abound ! Here are some pics that I hope would inspire all to go out and celebrate in any way the spirit of the yuletide season.  Cheers !

Tips :
> the place is being renovated so there's more good things to come!
> Powerbooks is our favorite bookstore here
> Timezone is a cool place to hang out where both adults and kids will enjoy


How to get there:
coming from south superhiway, take the Alabang exit and it is located along Alabang Zapote road.

the giant christmas tree!

our favorite powerbooks where the kids could sit around and read their fave books

our fave walking area..

love the christmas atmosphere

christmas flowers - the ponsettia

Enjoy !

Grocery shopping weekend !

I love grocery shopping !  It somehow releases some of my stress - and so , I just had to put this in my blog.  It's also one of the things that we cannot do without.  We need to eat and we love to eat.  However, we also know that families nowadays have to cut on some costs in order to save up for a rainy day.  Whichever part of the globe you come from, saving and expense cutting are inevitable. So, here are some grocery shopping tips that I have learned through experience.  Hope you learn something from it.

1. Don't  shop on an empty stomach
         I tend to shop more when I'm hungry.  And when I do, more often than not, I end up buying food or grocery that I later do not end up cooking anyway.

2. Plan ! -the menu
        Whether you shop every week or every 2 weeks, have a menu planner ready.  Sometimes, you may not find the ingredients in one store and that's okay - just replace with another but almost same type of viand.

3.  Compare ! - the prices
       If you're buying laundry soap, for example, check out the cheaper one and compare.  If it meets your needs, then go for the cheaper one.  Try it in small packs first so that you could test the quality.  Later , you could buy them in bulks.

4.  Take advantage! - of store sale
     Some grocery stores have a sale each week of the month.  Find out what and when in your usual store, and go for it !

5.  Check out !- the store brands
       They usually are good products.  And if your grocery store has a name to preserve, chances are their store brands will be good.

6.  Ask ! - the cashier to ping you on your budget amount
       I frequently ask the cashier how much my total bill is so that I could decide on the priority items.  No harm in leaving some items on the cart.

Tip : 
I just have to say this.  If you are in a hurry, check out the lines at the cashier first before going in the store.  I learned my lesson when I insisted to shop late at night while I was trying to catch another appointment.  I ended up leaving the cart full of grocery items and not buying them.

Let me know if this article is useful for you.  Feel free to leave a comment.

Enjoy !