OUR AWESOME PLANET

Genki Umbrella - OAP Readers' Review

Good News! All the people who commented on the blog post: Genki Umbrellas - The Coolest Transparent Umbrellas in Town... (until everyone has one) will be given a Genki Umbrella for your review. I will be sending an email separately on the date and time of the Genki Umby pick-up in Kape Isla, Serendra. Tamang tama, umuulan na. I want all my OAP readers to look cool in the rain :) You can send me a photo via email or a comment on this post about your Genki umbrella experience. You can also post the review in your blog and please let me know so that I can link you up! (Link Love from OAP!)


I love these cool umbrellas so we decided to launch the Genki Umby Photography Contest! It is simple to join. Just send me a creative photo of the Genki Umbrella via email. I will be posting all the photos I received in OAP. My wife and I will decide the most creative photograph (captions would help). We have a surprise gift to the person who would have the craziest and coolest photo.

Thanks to Jane for sending the first Genki Umby Photo!

" The Genki Umbrella is a significant item during my almost 1-month stay in Japan. It was light to carry around the huge park and just big enough to cover me thus letting me enjoy the rain without getting wet. Attached is a photo of me using a Genki Umbrella during a drizzling visit to Ritsurin Park. " - Jane of Between Bites www.janedchua.com

Kape Isla, Serendra - a Blogger's Secret Haven in Serendra

Kape Isla is turning out to be our favorite bloggers' hangout in Serendra. They have all the elements to enable a blogger to be productive:

FREE WI-FI. They are the only FREE WI-FI in Serendra. Internet access should be FREE! I don't understand why establishments continue to charge a fee to have internet access.

Good Advocacy. Kape Isla promotes Philippine Coffee. So every time you drink a cup of coffee, you support the Philippine Coffee Bean industry.

Writer's Ambiance. On weekdays, you can have all the cafe to yourself. Most people go here to write, to study or to surf the internet. I want to promote Kape Isla a bit so that it does not close down.


For less than P100, you can enjoy Kape Isla all day long. However, they should have a killer dessert or meal to attract people to visit their place.
Kape Isla Menu
Hot Drinks, Coffee, Pandesal, Pasta, Salad, Rice Meals
House Specialties, Bars, Cookies, Loaves, Danishes and Cakes

Rogin-E Update: Progressing Slowly

It is very hard for me to provide an update on the Rogin-E challenge because I'm progressing slowly. I would like to celebrate my small successes and share them with you:

1. The challenge was able to bring me back to the gym last April. That is a significant personal achievement for me because after 5 years, I am going back to the gym again. It feels good to feel those ab crunches' pain again.

2. I lost some weight enough for me to fit in my old clothes. This gives me the motivation to continue with my goal even without this Rogin E challenge.

3. I'm more determined now to replace the guy here in the Rogin-E website (someday...). Check out the Rogin-E unbreakable challenge section in the website.

My immediate goal is to weigh under 200lbs... a long way to go.... Thanks to Rogin-E for pushing me to pursue my personal unbreakable challenge.

Text and Photos by Anton Diaz. Copyright 2008.

A Raining World Pyro Night @ Hooters

I was amazed that the Canada's World Pyro performance continued despite the heavy rains. The Genki umbrella was cool and we were able to use it as props for our shoot. My brother, Rommel was able to take a shot of the lightning above. He was experimenting on taking the fireworks with lightning.

Some additional tips for the World Pyro:
1. The WPO will continue rain or shine. It seems to be raining every Saturday night these days.
2. It is also very interesting to take World Pyro shots with lightning in the background.
3. For Genki umbrellas would be perfect for the World Pryo either to use it to watch the show or use it as props.
4. All the restaurants in the San Miguel by the Bay offer a very good view of the Pyro.
5. If you want to get a good parking spot in San Miguel by the Bay, better to go by 5pm to get a slot. By 6pm, it becomes very difficult to get a parking spot.


The rain stopped already before the 9pm performance. I was bored with the monochromatic performance of France.


We were not able to execute this properly but the idea was to have a Hooter Girl with a Genki umbrella in the foreground and World Pyro in the background.


We tried the super hot 911 wings while waiting for the fireworks. The wings still failed our expectation because it was not too hot at all and something is missing in the taste of its wings.


I was able to talk to Madel and Rhya about how they felt about the Hooter's comments in this blog post: Hooters Philippines. I learned that most of them came from Fridays The Fort and some were just hired because there were limited people applying to be a Hooters girl. In 100 days, they will be evaluated and so expect to hopefully see new girls after that period.

Text and Photos by Anton Diaz. Copyright 2008.

Avenue Q Manila, The Final Run - Buy Your Tickets Now and Get a FREE Genki Umbrella!

Related Posts: 5 Reasons Why You Should Not Miss the Opening Nigh of Avenue Q's Final Run!

OAP is selling the best value tickets for the opening night of Avenue Q’s Final Run!
In partnership with Ticket 2 Me, I’m personally selling limited tickets to the June 13, Friday 8pm Opening Night and June 14, Saturday 8pm Opening Night for the Avenue Q Final Run. The shows will be sold out before June. I want my OAP friends to never miss this opportunity to watch Avenue Q's final run!

MOTHER'S DAY OFFER!!
Also, we have surprises for people who will buy their tickets from OAP. For all the people who already bought Avenue Q tickets from us, we have already reserved each buyer one Genki Transparent Umbrella! That is a way of saying thank you for buying your tickets early from OAP. For those who will buy Avenue Q tickets over the weekend (until Mother's day), we will also give you a FREE Genki Transparent Umbrella! We will prioritize Avenue Q buyers (of course) for the Genki umbrellas -- but only until this weekend. Remember, this offer is valid only until Sunday.

“Avenue Q is what has become of Sesame Street while we're away getting a college degree.

Coming back, we find a grungier, less innocent neighborhood.”
- Socky Pitargue, Tennis and Conversations

Avenue Q: The Final Run! June 13, 2008. Friday. 8pm. RCBC Theater
June 13 Seatplan. Reserve Your Best Seats Now!

Orchestra Center (P 1, 300). Special Online OAP Price $ 30.0
Orchestra Sides (P 1,100). Special Online OAP Price $ 25.0
Loge (P 1,000). Special Online OAP Price $ 23.0
Balcony (P 500). Special Online OAP Price $ 11.0

All Major Credit Cards are accepted. No Service Fees or Processing Fee. Compare Prices @ Ticket World.

Avenue Q: The Final Run! June 14, 2008. Saturday. 8pm. RCBC Theater
June 14 Seatplan. Reserve Your Best Seats Now!

Orchestra Center (P 1, 300). Special Online OAP Price $ 30.0
Orchestra Sides (P 1,100). Special Online OAP Price $ 25.0
Loge (P 1,000). Special Online OAP Price $ 23.0
Balcony (P 500). Special Online OAP Price $ 11.0

All Major Credit Cards are accepted. No Service Fees or Processing Fee. Compare Prices @ Ticket World.

Alternatively, you can reserve via email (anton@diaz.ph) and pay me in regular peso rates by depositing payment in my BPI bank account.

Text and Photos by Anton Diaz. Copyright 2008.

Genki Umbrellas - The Coolest Transparent Umbrellas in Town... (until everyone has one)

Are you a fan of transparent umbrellas that you've seen Charlotte holding in Sex in the City or Scarlett Johansson of Lost in Translation (see a sample of the umbrellas in Shopcrazy)? The company asked me to review and feature it. I don't usually write these kind of stuff and I told them that the only way I will put it in my blog is if they would give me 100 umbrellas to give away to OAP readers. They agreed.

So, I'm giving away 100 transparent Genki Umbrellas which comes in white, pink and violet. Just buzz me if you want a Genki umbrella. Reviews and photos will be greatly appreciated. Please send them at anton@diaz.ph.

I'm reserving the first few umbrellas to OAP readers who already bought Avenue Q tickets and to past winners of the IKEA contest. For the rest, I'll give it on a first come first serve to people who would ask for it. We need to meet, of course, so I can give you the umbrella, preferably in Makati or Serendra area. I will be giving umbrellas away until supplies last! I can assure the first 50 people who commented below to have one.

BTW, the umbrellas are really cool! I like the white while Rache loves the violet...and pink. Though they are only cool until everybody in Manila has one. The umbrellas that I have to give away are manual umbrellas and they say that the plastic used is easily worn out. Also, you cannot use it for sunny days since it is transparent.

Watch out for my Genki umbrellas photos -- I'm just waiting for the rain so I can get a shot of the Genki umbrella in action.

Text and Photos by Anton Diaz. Copyright 2008.

PS If you want to buy in bulk, I can connect you with the distributor here in Manila.

I Love Berries Frozen Yogurt -- The Best Froyo so far in Manila...

I Love Berries is so far the best Frozen Yogurt in Manila! They don't have an outlet yet and they are doing their rounds in the bazaars. Unlike Cold Spoon or Haven Frozen Yogurt in Pampanga, they use fresh fruits and their frozen yogurt is more creamy than tangy in taste. Aidan did not like the frozen yogurt in Cold Spoon because of its maasim taste but he loves to eat the yogurt his Momma buys for him. I Love Berries Froyo is similar to the taste of Pink Berry and I'm sure Aidan would love its creaminess taste (like ice cream already).

Related OAP Posts on Frozen Yogurt:
Cold Spoon Frozen Yogurt - The Next Dessert Craze in the Philippines!
Sorry Ice Cream, I'm On My Way to Pinkberry!
Red Mango-licious
I Love Berries Frozen Yogurt -- The Best Froyo so far in Manila...
Ice Cream Bar (Flavors by FIC)
Yogurbud
The White Hat - Let the Fro-Yo Wars Begin in Manila!
The Buzz About Froyo's
California Berry Frozen Yogurt
Lulubelle
After Lego Island, Enjoy Yoh-Gurt Froz!

You have to try their Tropical Mochi Frozen Yogurt! You can find them this weekend at Karl Edwards Bazaar in NBC Tent on Mother's Day weekend (May 10-11). This is the closest thing that you can get in Manila. Please let me know what you think of their Froyo (as people would call it :) For more info: check out their multiply site: iloveberries4.multiply.com

Tracking Down the Maverick Chef Ed Quimson

The name of Chef Ed Quimson has been name-dropped and attached to restaurants a number of times. From Fig & Olives which replaced the original Chef Ed's, to the now closed Filos at the Fort, to the so-so spanish food at La Esquina in Splendido, to Tootsie's in Tagaytay. But these restaurants never came close to the famous Chef Ed's spanish mestizo cuisine which only the original Chef Ed can do. I've been intrigued by this chef with no formal culinary education except in the Tuazon's kitchen. I have been tracking him down to get to taste his cooking. Finally, I was able to fulfill that quest when I got invited to a special food writer's preview of Paseo Uno's Pasos del Tiempo (A Walk Through Time).

He is now part of the JAKA group and working closely with Heny Sison. Mandarin's Paseo Uno will be featuring Chef Ed's Quimson's Filipino heritage dishes with Spanish Influence. In short, he is featuring the dishes they ate at home, cooked by his mother and grandmother in the Tuazon's kitchen. His dishes will be featured on May 26 to 31 at Paseo Uno and he will be there in Mandarin Hotel to celebrate the Filipino Heritage Festival. Here is a scoop: his carinderia named Petra and Pilar will soon open in the JAKA building. But what I'm excited is that he is planning to open 21. It is a special by-reservations only room for 21 people for P15,000 only (consumable for food). Chef Ed will do a freestyle cooking for 21 people that will surely rock the foodie world of Manila!

Going back, I got to taste Chef Ed's menu line up for Paseo de Uno and you'll know that you are in the presence of slow-cooked-with-love food that your taste buds will never forget. We (my wife and I) were honored to be invited together with respected names in the food writing industry. We were in the presence of great food and great food writers -- we are so thankful for that. In return, I would like to share with you our experience with The Chef Ed Quimson's Spanish Mestizo cuisine based on home recipes of the Tuazons.

Chef Ed's Quimson's Menu @ Paseo de Uno's Pasos del Tiempo (May 26-31, 2008)

Sotanghon con Caldo. Sotanghon soup with a ball of chicken, ham, pork & prawn.

The amateurish adjective delicious is not enough to describe the soup. It is unique, home-cooked, and the type of soup where you just close your eyes and savor its taste.

Baked Fish Fillet with layers of potato, tomato and onions in white wine. Served with toasted bread immersed into the soup to absorb the white wine sauce.

The good thing about Chef Ed is that there is no cooking secrets and he is generous enough to share how he created the food. He said that the white wine sauce was made of olive oil, soy sauce, laurel, lea perrins and white wine. I don't cook but I appreciate how complicated the taste of the soup because of its ingredients.

Carne Frita, appetizer. This is Chef Ed's favorite and this is how his grandmother would cook it. I honestly did not like it because it was all meat and it is more appropriate to be a pulutan with an ice cold beer. ( Chef Ed -- Isn't this out of place in the overall menu? )