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Adidas King of the Road, 21K

I'm all set for my 21k Adidas King of the Road run. I'm excited to complete the 21k KOTR and I will attempt to run an additional 10k to finish my scheduled 30k run. In the spirit of What's in your bag, here are the gadgets, and marathon stuff that I usually bring during a run:

1. Nike Plus Airmax 180
2. Nike + iPod Sport Kit
3. Nike Dri FitSocks
4. Ipod Nano 2gb with Power Songs
5. Sennheiser PMX70 Sport Line Stereo Neckband Headphones
6. Adidas King of the Road Race Packet
7. Adidas Dri-fit Red Shirt with Race Number
8. PowerBar Gels (Green Apple, Raspberry Cream, Strawberry Banana, Vanilla, Caramel)
9. Petroleum Jelly
10. Nathan Marathon Belt Fuel Bag

Paeng Nepomuceno, The Greatest Filipino Athlete of All Time

Aidan with The Greatest of All Time Bowler, Paeng Nepomuceno

We realized that Paeng's achievements were super underrated and when he gave the opening inspirational talk, it was a standing ovation that I've never seen before in our company. It was Paeng's first corporate talk and everyone agrees that it was one of the best speeches we have ever heard. In fact, Paeng's inspirational speech was a lot better (in my opinion) than Nadia because of his achievement of winning 6 international championships in 3 decades vs. Nadia's 1976 Olympic Glory. He reinvented himself over time, by mastering the fundamentals and having the self discipline that made him the greatest Filipino athlete of all time.

The picture above was taken 3 months ago as a promotional photo for the sport of bowling. He wanted to have an abs like Manny Pacquiao and show the world that Bowling requires the same fitness as any other sport. He was able to do it at the age of close to 50 and he challenges us that we can do whatever we set our minds on.

I actually shed a tear, when he shared with us one of the critical incident that happened in the First World Cup in 1976 in Tehran, Iran. An American insulted him by criticizing the Philippines and Filipino Bowlers in general. He said that in the Philippine Islands, the bowlers use coconuts and the lanes are made of nipa. (Of course, he delivered it in a very emotional way) He won that First World Cup and a total of six-(6) World Bowling Titles! It made me proud to be a Filipino and that is why he wears this special dri-fit shirt patterned after the Philippine flag.

Related Posts:
‘A truly sporting treasure’ by Chino Trinidad
Paeng Nepomuceno's Official Website

Nadia Comaneci, The Greatest of All Time Gymnast!

Aidan with The Greatest of All Time Gymnast, Nadia Comaneci.

Nadia gave the closing inspirational talk to the Greatest of All Time P&G Operation in the World.

It was so inspiring to be in the presence of the Greatest of All Time gymnast, Nadia Comaneci and to hear her message for all of us. I would like to share them with you since the event was an exclusive P&G event and I'm sure not even the media was privy to this talk.

• No one would really know that you are making history at that moment. There are no books, training or manual on how to create or handle such historic events. The key is to challenge yourself and to do a little better each day. There is no such thing as best, only better. Don't take your success forgranted.
• The key is to have B.A.L.A.N.C.E in life:
• B --e bold and set high goals for yourself
• A --gile and flexible to embrace changes in life
• L --ove via continuous training and self improvement
• A --accountability in all the things you do and no excuses
• N --ow! You should deliver your best performance now.
• C --hallenge your self.
• E --nergy. Hang out with the right people.

It was a standing ovation after her speech.

Nadia Quotes:

" Don't pray for an easy life. Pray to be a strong person." - Nadia Comaneci

" When my coach asked me to do 10 routines, I always did 15 instead. That's the discipline that made me the Greatest of All Time. What is your 15 routines equivalent" -- Nadia Comaneci

Vivere Suites' Skyline

"Vivere Suites nestled in the heart of Southern Manila's premiere business centers, Vivere at the Richville Regency Suites is the first 5-star 30-storey high full service residence -- hotel equipped with amenities for the discerning businessmen."

The Vivere Skyline view never cease to amaze me. When it first opened, we immediately fell in love with this place. This is a must place to visit when you are in the Filinvest area.

The infinity pool and the banahaw touches give a boracay feel to the entire 31st rooftop bar and restaurant.

I want to jump into the pool overlooking Laguna de bay.

This is the look of the room where we stayed last night.

Fully Booked -- 5 Storey of Books!

Wow! The Flagship store of Fully Booked in Bonifacio High Street is now open in Serendra! We just visited the first floor where the children's books are strategically located. They have a complete line up of moleskin and other novelty notebooks in the first floor too. This is another reason to go to Serendra.

Cafe Mary Grace, Serendra

I've always noticed that Cafe Mary Grace is always full when I visit Serendra. We never bothered to check it out since we originally thought that it was just a crowded ensaymada place. I was pleasantly surprised that the salads and pasta servings are good --- perfect for the light Sunday lunch with the family. Little did I know that Cafe Mary Grace serves different kinds of tsokolate (or chocolate drink) which is actually a perfect match for its ensaymadas. Also, it was interesting to read all the nice letters by customers used as decorative designs on top of the table. That is an awesome concept which added to the overall ambiance and experience when dining in Mary Grace. I definitely have to add this to my top 10 Serendra restaurants and remove Guava from the list :)

The Best of Serendra by Our Awesome Planet
Piazza Serendra slowly coming to life...
Bonifacio High Street and Serendra Piazza (a Photo Essay)

Top 10 Restaurants In Serendra by OAP
1. Chelsea, Chelsea by the Market Market!
2. Abe means good filipino food!
3. Duo of Serendra: Chef Mao and Larry Cortez
4. Breakfast at Portico's
5. Cafe Mary Grace, Serendra
6. Mezzaluna-First Night High!
7. Cupcakes+Sonja: Opening Nights and Creating the Cupcake Craze in the Philippines?
8. Balducci Birthday Bash
9. Aloha Polu Kai!
10. Thai at Silk @ Piazza Serendra

Cafe Mary Grace Menu Cover
Mary Grace Letter, Dear Friends
Starters and Salads
Flavorful Pastas
Hearty Sandwiches, Home Made Iced Teas, Merienda Fare
Hot Chocolates and Delectable Desserts
Mary Grace Specialty Products, Classic Squares, Classic Cakes

Nadia Comaneci and Fun Run With Special Kids

There are only a few public events that Nadia agreed to include in her schedule. The first one is the fun run with the special kids in CCP this afternoon. Lastly, there is a press conference tomorrow at 11.30am in Alabang and a photo op with employee's kids in the evening at around 6pm.
She agreed to came to Manila to primarily give an inspirational talk to all the P&G employees tomorrow. She was supposed to have a 1on1 interview with Boy Abunda but I heard it got cancelled. The only one that pushed through was the interview with Quinito Henson.

It was fun running with these kids and some of them runs fast at 6km/ min. I'm proud to be part of this event.

The P&G Running Team attended the event and these are the guys who are training for the July 22 marathon. Our boss, Jim Lafferty coincidentally is celebrating his birthday today --- Happy Birthday, Jim!!

I was on the tail end of the 800m fun run. Come to think of it, I'm so blessed that I can run 21km and I'll be forever grateful.

Nadia Comaneci in Manila

I'm excited to meet and hear Nadia's inspirational talk to the entire P&G company tomorrow together with Paeng Nepomuceno. Nadia arrived in Manila yesterday and I can't wait to meet her!

Related Posts:
Nadia Comaneci arrives to deliver inspirational talk by Inquirer.Net
Nadia Comaneci - The Perfect Ten