Before there were cellphones, the Internet and Wii, there was piko, sipa, tumbang preso, lakad lata, Chinese garter and patintero.

Byahilo jumping over the Chinese garter

Havaianas turned part of Bonifacio High Street into a playground for kids and the kids at heart, with game stations for different Filipino games that we played when we were kids. It was a great project, since we hardly see any kids playing these games in the streets (then again, Metro Manila’s streets aren’t the safest place to play in). It made me smile seeing young kids learning about these games, adults reliving their childhood and enjoying the games they used to play, and this one Caucasian mother with her two children, having fun playing Filipino games.

AJ and Marc racing at the lakad lata (walking on cans) station.

I’m not really into these games when I was a kid (really, I hardly went out of the house to play when I was little), so I just stood in the sidelines, taking photos and videos of my friends having fun. Things were just getting interesting over at the lakad lata section, when the guy taking videos of the event started directing the players where to go. The same thing happened in the patintero section, where he proceeded to order everyone around and telling them to let the other team pass. I can sense that the players only had fun during that brief 1-minute of play when he wasn’t ordering them around.

Eric keeps a tight watch over Fritz

All in all, it was a great and fun event. A good time was had by all, players and gawkers both. I hope Havaianas would have another Playback sometime soon. And maybe next time, we can play without a pesky cameraman directing how we should play *annoyed*

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Just to remind everybody, I’m currently running three contests on Justwandering.org. You can win a Mother Earth bag, a Wii Night at Redbox or a bag from Bratpack!

Popularity: 18% [?]

I have been going to Ace Water Spa since 2005, and it’s still the place I love going back to when I want a massage. What’s not to love? It’s just a short taxi ride away in Quezon City, and it’s basically just one big swimming pool.

Unlike other spas, at Ace, you don’t just lie down and have someone massage you. You’d have to move to different massage stations, depending on which part of the body you want massaged. Also, at Ace, instead of hands massaging you, it’s water. It’s either water pounding down on your body or water jets hitting the pressure points.

Hydrotherapy or “water therapy” is the treatment of disease through the use of water. Hydrothermal therapy is the use of water temperature, such as in hot tubs or spas. The focus of Hydrotherapy is to rid the body of toxins that may be causing joint pain and inflammation. Hydrotherapy treatments are also helpful in managing chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.

Source: Ace Water Spa Website

They are very strict: each patron must be wearing proper swimming attire, up to the swimming cap (which they provide upon admission). Board shorts and t-shirts are not allowed past the entrance to the spa. If you don’t have any swim suit, they are selling suits starting at Php 250, or you can rent (*cringe*) for Php 100.

Ace Water Spa is now attracting more patrons than before, even with their price hike. When I first visited Ace, the first thing I noticed was the number of seniors using the facilities. Last Monday though, it was mostly parents of kids who were taking swimming lessons, and couples in their 20’s. Adults are charged Php 550 and kids (4ft and below) Php 250 for the use of the facility. It may seem pricey, but that Php 550 is good for 4 hours use of all their facilities: the spa pool, the lap pool, the heated herbal baths, steam room and sauna. They have an ongoing promotion: Buy 2, take 1 in the morning (6am - 12 noon), buy 3, take 1 in the afternoon (12:15pm - 8:30 pm) on weekdays except holidays.

It’s best to take advantage of the weekday promo, because it wouldn’t be as crowded as the weekends. I went there last summer on a Sunday and the place was turned into a public pool. Not fun. If you have the time before or after work, swing by Ace Water Spa and relax.

Ace Water Spa
399 Del Monte Avenue (near corner Banaue street) SFDM, Quezon City
Tel. No.: 3678041, 3678062, 4150164, Fax. No.: 4152477
Email Address: acewaterspa@yahoo.com
Website: www.acewaterspa.ph

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If you look to the right, I’ve installed an Events Calendar plugin, that basically lets me list upcoming events, which I think might be of interest to JustWandering readers. If you have (or if you know of) a travel-related event, drop me a line using my contact form.

Two events happening next weekend, which I’m particularly interested in (and will attend) are Youth Trip’s Travel Writing with Chen Mencias and the 1st Pinoy Backpacking Festival. The travel writing workshop will be held at the Hope Center, Aurora Millenium Tower, Katipuna corner Aurora Avenue, Quezon City. The event will start at 1pm, and has a Php 100 registration fee. For more info, visit YTrip’s Multiply site. The backpacking festival on the otherhand, will span three weekends in various locations in the metro. The first will be next weekend at the Trinoma Mall, then moves to the ROX store at Bonifacio High Street, then on to the Alabang Town Center. For inquiries and registration, visit the ROX Multiply site.

Popularity: 25% [?]

There’s a new weekend market in town, and it’s right in the heart of Manila. Every Sunday this September, Celadon Residences brings us Pick Manila, a collection of food and lifestyle mini stores right outside SM San Lorenzo.

 
Similar to Salcedo, Legaspi, and the Lung Center markets, Pick Manila showcases goods that you wouldn’t usually find in the malls. There were fresh fruits, dried fish, handicrafts, and even hard to find books.

My favorite picks in the Market are the Italian soda (flavored soda, Php 50 each), yakisoba (fried noodles, Php 20), and takoyaki (octopus balls, Php 20). The one that intrigued me the most though, was this stall that sells organic rice and noodles. The noodles are similar to dried pancit canton noodles, but it was flat, like fettuccini and comes in different flavors: ampalaya, squash, etc. Best of all, these healthy products are all made in the Philippines.

Noreen drives a hard bargain

Nothing to do this Sunday? Why not head on over to Pick Manila? (After that, head on to One Esplanade for the Philippine Blog Awards

Popularity: 26% [?]

While preparing to go to bed after a long day, I just realized that I’ve attended two Wordcamp firsts: the first Wordcamp in Australia (Wordcamp Melbourne 2007), and the first Wordcamp in Southeast Asia (Wordcamp Philippines 2008. Darn you Beijing for holding one last year; it would’ve been first in Asia!)

Smug declarations aside, I’m pretty happy with today’s programs. Hands down, it was one of the BEST blog events of 2008. Wordpress is something all the participants were passionate about, and you can really see how much bloggers are interested in learning more about this powerful blogging platform. There was an eclectic mix of participants - newbies, probloggers, personal bloggers, developers, designers. All the breakaway sessions were well attended (because they’re all interesting), and the afternoon’s plenary session was especially interesting because it was when Matt Mullenweg delivered his State of the Word address and had a short Q&A session with the campers. I think Matt was amused at how we love to take photos and took plenty of shots of campers taking a picture of him.

Matt and his fans

 
Then there was the serious business of camwhoring after the program We all posed for a class picture with Matt, then the Wordcamp organizers and volunteers had their photos taken with the huge backdrop. Then comes the jumpshots. Matt was so amused by all of it, that he had to join the other photographers in taking photos and joining the organizers eventually. Almost everybody wanted a photo with Matt, and he willingly obliged to each request, even chatting up the groups who came up to him for a photo.

I guess that’s one of the reasons why this was such a fun event: Matt was so easy going and friendly. Despite his popularity and status, he remains down to earth. It really was such an honor to meet a person like Matt Mullenweg.

Wordcamp Philippines Organizers and Volunteers

Of course, a big part of why this event was one of the best ever are the organizers. I have to hand it to the Mindanao Bloggers; they really worked hard for Wordcamp Philippines, and it paid off. I was watching them work while I was waiting (because I arrived way too early), and I saw every volunteer doing their assigned tasks, and all the leaders working with them, instead of just ordering people around. That, my friends, is the recipe for a great event

Looking forward to Wordcamp Philippines 2009!
Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 35% [?]

4:46 pm

Matt is winding down the session with the Q&A session. Battery’s running out so this is probably my last update (and I’m getting lazy). Watch out for the proper WordCamp post later!

2:57 pm

It’s Ms. Google Earth Philippines, Aileen Apolo! She’s going to talk about Google Analytics. Woohoo! The crowd got really excited when she took out a Google shirt.

2:24 PM

Matt has the most awesome e-mail address, and I thought his url was already cool. Ria had a fan girl moment

1:59 pm

What’s this in the slide?? WordPress 2.7! It looks awesome! The Dashboard has been reorganized. It’s intuitive, you can even drag and drop the panels in the edit page! You can easily download and install themes and plugins right in your Wordpress admin panel. How awesome is that? We’d all have to wait until November though. But still… YAY for WP2.7!

1:48 pm

I won a Php500 Gift certificate from Italianni’s! But enough of that… it’s Matt’s turn on the stage! First thing he did was to take a photo of the Wordcampers!

1:28 pm

Lunch is done (thank you, Chowking!), and we’re just waiting for the afternoon’s plenary session.

Jeff and his cupcake

12:07 am

Apart from the overly technical stuff, this is really quite interesting. Specially since I need it for work and freelance projects. I’m really impressed at the sites Karla showed us that uses Wordpress as their CMS. They really doesn’t look like your typical wordpress blogs! Impressive.

11:50 am

Nosebleeding at Karla’s session. Should’ve gone to the presscon (g_doh)

11:31 am

The SEO session was PACKED. Eric and I are now inside Karla’s session, Wordpress as CMS.

11:19 am

We were late to join the other breakaway session, so we’re just hanging around the CSB halls. But at least we have pictures with Matt Mullenweg!

With Matt Mullenweg

Second breakaway session is over. Moving on to Wordpress & SEO!

10:42 am

Gail’s session is winding down. Important lesson: Don’t use your theme to spam! Oh, and while it’s often overlooked, it’s also important to edit your image.php and 404.php files.

9:59 am

Gail showed her work on the Pinoy Adventure Blog’s theme. Ang ganda!

PinoyAdventureblog.com

9:53 am

Gail’s talk is starting. She’s walking around the front of the theatre, wearing her Ateneo jacket. Kamusta naman.

Fritz, Gail, AJ and Hana

9:39 am

Migs is giving a run down of the day’s schedule. The two tracks will divide in a bit. I’m attending Gail’s talk on Creating WordPress Themes & CSS Power. A new travel blog will be unveiled.

9:36 am

Blogie is now addressing the campers and welcomed Matt Mullenweg.

9:31 am

Opening remarks by De La Salle Benilde Dean Benhur Ong of the School of Management and Information Technology.

9:29 am

Wordcamp is starting!

9:23 am

Still not starting. They said the program’s going to start in two minutes a couple of minutes ago. I’ve finally met Estan, on my way to the loo. Nggh, forgot to take a photo *face palm*

8:27 am

People are trickling in. I’m seeing many familiar faces, but there are plenty of new faces as well. All around me are people taking about variable widths, widgets, header.php, upgrading to Wordpress 2.6.1. My being an early bird got me a cute Wordpress button!

Mica and Arpee

7:23 am

I’m early. So early lol. I take comfort in knowing that I’m already the 3rd camper to arrive. The volunteers (save for the Rockstar Fritz Tentativa are hard buzzing about, making last minute preparations. The WC volunteers look spiffy in their black WordCamp Philippines shirt.

The Rockstar with his LG Secret phone.

 
I shall be updating this post throughout the day (or at least when I can remember), with the latest updates appearing at the top of the page. Here’s to hoping I actually pay attention and not Plurk all day!

P.s. The Fritz is now working.

Popularity: 33% [?]

UPDATE: How to get tickets for Third Eye Blind in Manila, and how long their set is going to be. Details are at the end of the post.

Yup, you read that right, San Miguel Pale Pilsen is bringing Third Eye Blind to Manila for the grand opening of this year’s Oktoberfest. On September 5, this world renowned rock band, along with Philippine’s top bands will be gracing one of the four stages along San Miguel Avenue. San Miguel is aiming to break two Guiness records with this year’s grand Oktoberfest: the most number of people toasting, and the longest bar. Apart from the copious amounts of beer, participants can also interact with SMB’s personalities, like Efren Bata Reyes and PBA players.

Through the years, San Miguel Oktoberfest has been enjoying strong support from the Filipinos, that the Department of Tourism now recognizes the event as a local Fiesta. Aside from the grand kick off party at the Ortigas Center, there will also simultaneous parties all over the Philippines: in Olongapo, Sta. Rosa, Lapu-lapu (Cebu) and Davao. San Miguel Oktoberfest 120 (siento bente) will span for 120 days, starting September 5, until December 2008. The kickoff party is open to the public. For only Php120, you can watch Third Eye Blind, Rivermaya, The Dawn, After Image, Rico Blanco, Pinikpikan and 35 other Pinoy bands.

San Miguel Beer is also premiering its limited edition beer, the San Miguel Oktoberfest beer. This beer is 100% malt, meaning it’s full flavored, light bodies, sweet to the taste and promises a smooth finish.

So… where will you be on September 5?

UPDATE:
To buy tickets for Third Eye Blind and Oktoberfest 120, call 632-2226 and look for Jel. Amanda called the number and shares this info:

Apparently the General Admission ticket (P120) only gives you access to the longest bar and when I asked the employee from San Mig if you can see Third Eye Blind from there she said that it’s very far from the area. Ugh. So, if you want a really good spot you have to buy the “Gold Ticket” (or whatever it’s called) which costs P1500. Gives you access to all the areas and also a front view of 3EB playing. Purchase of tickets is in the San Miguel building itself.

Tickets can also be bought at the gates during the event proper, but I’m not sure if they would also be selling the Gold Tickets then.

Juned further explains the Gold Ticket for 3EB access:

Ticket Type: Gold Ticket
Special Viewing Section: Php 1,500.00 per head inclusive of 2 San Miguel Pale Pilsens at General Admission Section and 3 San Miguel Oktoberfest Beers & food at the Special Oktoberfest Marquee Section

Source: Dilis Media

Reader Jel shares that the Third Eye Blind will perform for at least one and a half hours, playing around 15 songs. Cameras are allowed inside, so better have those batteries charged! Third Eye Blind will be performing around 11 pm.

Related Posts:
Third Eye Blind on San Miguel Oktoberfest 2008!
San Miguel Oktoberfest 2008 brings Third Eye Blind live in Manila!
Third Eye Blind at the Opening of San Miguel Oktoberfest
Details: SMC Oktoberfest & Third Eye Blind this September 5

Popularity: 100% [?]

After much excitement over the NAIA Terminal 3 opening, I was finally able to experience the terminal personally last weekend and yesterday night. Together with Eric and Melo, I flew out of Manila and into Cebu to watch (and shoot!) the Pasigarbo sa Sugbu, a festival of all Cebu festivals (which is different from Sinulog).

Plenty of open check-in counters

 
Now, I heard of horror stories about the terminal: flights getting delayed because they can’t assign a gate to use because most of it are broken, facilities not working properly, etc. Fortunately, none of these things happened to us. I guess the two weeks that the terminal has been in operation have helped them find solutions on making the most out of the huge airport.

The empty immigration booths

 
The first thing that would greet you when you enter the airport premises are the seperate lanes for private and public transport. Then, as you enter the cavernous terminal, you’re met with a blast of cold air. It’s too cold inside! Unlike the other airports, well wishers can accompany the passenger inside the terminal. There are food kioks in the outer area (Kopi Roti, Jollibee), so families and friends can spend some more time together before parting. Starting at the check-in counters, passengers are on their own. Well wishers, however, can go up the viewing deck and have a bird’s eye view of the area after the Immigration booths.

Plenty of wide open spaces

 
The airport was huge. Because not all flights have been moved to the terminal, the only crowded places are the waiting areas near the boarding gates. Beyond the Immigration, there’s a Delifrance, Go Nuts Donuts, and a convenience store, ensuring that you don’t go hungry while you wait for your plane. Smokers can likewise enjoy a stick or two inside the smoking area (which is basically an empty room with a window open and a view of the Makati and Taguig skyline).

Walkalators!

 
Lavatories are clean and have plenty of stalls. I saw some water fountain in some places, but wasn’t able to check whether they’re already functional. There are also power points around the waiting area, so you can charge your cellphone and camera batteries or plug in your laptop while you catch up on work (not sure if there’s Wi-Fi inside the airport though). And to further empahsize the size of the airport, there’s a walkalator, a standard feature in some of the world’s biggest and busiest airports.

Aquarium?

 
Each gate has facilities for front and middle loading. Unfortunately, these aren’t being utilized. We had to walk down a flight of stairs and into the tarmac to board the planes. It’s the same for arrivals. Depending on where your plane parked, there’s a pretty long walk from the plane to the terminal entrance. It’s fairly easy to find your way to the exit, as there are signs along the way. On the way out, we passed through the un-manned immigration booths and Customs inspection tables. Beyond that, are the doors that takes you out into Manila.

No lines at the loos

 
Similar to the old international terminal, passengers are advised to exit on the doors specified for the first letter of their surnames. This is to make it easy for friends and family coming to pick up their loved ones. If you’re taking a cab home, you have three options: take the expensive Airport Taxi, which has a fixed price (super expensive), a “metered” yellow taxi (I hear from Melo that they were charging a flat rate of Php 400. What the heck, right?), or the regular (and true) metered taxi. The first thing you’d see when you step out of the terminal are the airport taxis. Keep walking to the right and you’d see the line of Yellow taxis. I had a bad feeling about these yellow taxis, as I saw a huge concentration of their ilk in the airport parking lot, so I kept on walking, knowing that there should be a line for regular taxis, since I saw an MGE taxi pass by as I stepped out of the airport doors. True enough, there was a line of MGE and EMP taxis at the very end of the terminal, with nobody else lined up, since everybody’s already queued up for the airport or the Yellow taxi. Not only did I have to line up for a cab, the driver didn’t even give me a spiel about adding Php50 to the meter or trying to bargain a price for the ride to Quezon City.

Conveyor belts

 
All in all, I’m quite happy with my NAIA T3 experience. I can’t comment on the effectivity of the conveyor belts though, since I didn’t check in my bags (which was a boon, because I was able to get out of the airport before the hoard went out and a long queue formed at the taxi stands). I just hope my experience the next time I use the airport would be just as good.

Popularity: 60% [?]

Since I heard about the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 opening for a dry run, I’ve been itching to book a flight just so I can tour the controversial airport. But for now, I’m pacifiying myself with this walkthrough with Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) assistant general manager for airport development and corporate affairs, Tirso G. Serrano.

Update: I was able to finally try out the airport and I was quite happy with it. Of course, that’s just my opinion. Read my review about the NAIA Terminal 3.

Popularity: 72% [?]

I attended my first Wordcamp in Melbourne, and I’m looking forward to attending my second one right here in Manila, Philippines!

The Wordcamp is a gathering of Wordpress users and enthusiasts to talk about… Wordpress. Sounds utterly geeky, no? But I’m terribly excited about this. Wordcamp Philippines is on the 6th of September at the College of St. Benilde Taft Ave., Manila. I had my heart set on finally attending the yaoi convention, but alas, Wordpress beckons! I have to surpress my inner BL fangirl for a year more *strikes tragic pose*

Wordcamp Philippines is organized by the Mindanao Bloggers, and is made possible by the following sponsors:

• i.PH: the Domain for Individuals
• Free Online Flash Games
• Wazzup Manila Philippines
• Real Estate CRM
• Real Estate Website Designers
• Orange County Real Estate
• Auto Insurance Quotes
• Lane Systems Inc.
• RedMedia
• Orange County Business Lawyer
• Cebu Pacific Air
• Buddy Gancenia Reality TV
• SmartBro Wireless Broadband
• SPOT.ph
• Make Money with Performancing Ads

Popularity: 33% [?]