Subic April 2010

We went back to Subic last weekend (to avail of the second stay of my twice a year privilege of using the Company staffhouse). This time, Dad, and my brother and his family were with us. We started our Subic vacation with lunch at Teriyaki Boy. Shopping at the newly opened Puregold was next in the agenda. A refreshing change from the crowds in Royal Subic, Puregold had wider aisles too. Although they didn't have Havaianas, they had FitFlops and Ipanema, and a wide array of factory overruns of popular brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren and Abercrombie and Fitch. We bought the usual snacks for the weekend, plus some to take home.

We had a relaxing afternoon doing what we felt like doing, which included internet surfing, reading, sleeping, taking walks, playing with Baby S at the playground and biking before everyone got hungry for dinner. Since Mom was going to treat, we let her choose the dinner place. Her choice was our favorite Indian restaurant Rama Mahal.

The next day, we enjoyed breakfast cooked by Mom (yup, she can cook!) and enjoyed our airconditioned rooms until it was time for lunch. We tried the Korean BBQ Chicken. Their spicy chicken is so good!

Valentine's and Chinese New Year Weekend in Subic

The first of my twice a year privilege of staying in the Company staffhouse in Subic was perfectly timed for Valentine's and Chinese New Year. It was a truly relaxing and refreshing holiday doing what we enjoy most--- eating, sleeping and shopping!

We started out with lunch at our favorite Indian restaurant Rama Mahal. They have the best Spinach Paneer in my opinion. Loved their Grilled Lamb with mint sauce and Shrimp Rice Biryani too. Then it was Royal Subic for our usual chocolates and chips. Havaianas slippers are cheaper here by almost P100 so if you are in Subic, take advantage of those.

We had the whole afternoon to do whatever we liked, E went biking while Mom and my sister T caught up with sleep. I alternated between sleeping and surfing the net.

For dinner, we were invited by our cousin RP, who is a doctor based in Subic, to his home. We had a most wonderful dinner with his family -- they served steamed crabs and shrimps, grilled pork and tilapia cooked in coconut sauce. Everything was so yummy!

Loved this weekend!

Weekend in Subic

It was my annual privilege of using the Company staffhouse in Subic and so my family trooped to Subic. It was raining throughout the weekend so it was mostly shopping at Royal Subic, and eating and sleeping in the house.

We got to visit one of the newest resorts, Segara Villas (Waterfront Road, Subic Bay, Tel. No. +63472528632). It was a beautiful place. It had a number of villas surrounding an infinity pool, and they had gazebos around the place with lounge chairs.

The main lobby of Segara Villas:

Lunch at Asian Spices which serves Filipino, Thai, Indonesian and Malaysian food:

The villas around the infinity pool:

One of the gazebos:

On our way home the next day, we stopped by Pancake House for lunch.

It was a truly relaxing weekend! Weekends in Subic are the best.

Long Weekend in Subic

E and I have found our favorite local destination...Subic! Now just 1.5 hours away from Manila, it's so easy to go and escape. This long weekend was spent with E's family, and we had a great time! Except for a take home meal of Reyes Barbecue on our first day and a KFC lunch on the way to Manila, all meals during the weekend were cooked in the "vacation house". We had grilled liempo, fish and eggplant on our first night and steak (bought from Meat Plus Cafe at around P150 per 100gms for the NY striploin) with corn and vegetable salad on the second night. We also had longganisa and corned beef for the other meals. The kids went on the Zoobic Safari and saw the tigers and also went swimming. The adults were just happy to laze around the house. Everyone enjoyed duty-free shopping, and I got my mint chocolate supply for the next few weeks, plus a few bags of chips:-)

What To Do in Subic

... aside from eating, sleeping and shopping!

Zoobic

Camayan Beach

Dolphin Show at the Ocean Adventure

Ocean Adventure

Where to Eat (and Not to Eat) in Subic

I have to say that my family is very easy to please when it comes to dining. Serve us good food and give us good service, and we will be loyal to you. With that said, let me continue with the Anniversary weekend.

We passed Rama Mahal (Crown Plaza, Sampson Road,Open 10:00 am to 10:00 pm ,Tel No:(63-47) 252-3663), an Indian Restaurant several times while going around the SBMA. And the more we saw it, the more curious we got. So for lunch, we said that it might be an interesting experience. We were so glad we tried this place. The food was so good! We ordered the vegetable samosas and fried onion rings with mint sauce, humuus with pita bread, mutton masala, chicken curry, shrimp biryani (rice) ,spinach with paneer cheese, and fried chicken and fries for Baby S. Their fresh juices were also delicious. In addition, the service was very good, the waitress was very knowledgeable with the dishes, and the manager and the owner were very gracious. It was definitely an excellent dining experience.

A delicious lunch at Rama Mahal

Now dinner was a different experience. For dinner, we decided to go to Gerry's Grill as some of us were craving for good old Crispy Pata. We expected the dining experience to be pleasant. Unfortunately it was not. We went to the restaurant at around 6PM and requested to be given a table at the airconditioned area as it was very humid. The waiters' spiel was that it was going to be used for a function and so we couldn't be accommodated. When we left, the airconditioned area was still EMPTY!!! I was so disgusted with them. Nagtitipid lang pala ng kuryente! In addition to that, it took 5 waiters and 30 minutes before I finally got my Coke Light. Before this incident, I was a loyal Gerry's customer. I would treat friends and workmates there. But because of this, I will never go back to any Gerry's Grill if I'm going to pay (hehe, may qualifier pa rin, syempre if someone else is going to treat, join pa rin ako dyan).

Gerry's Grill

The only good thing going for them that day was the view of the waterfront:

But there are other restaurants along the waterfront. The last time we were in Subic, we dined at Pier One, and our experience there was definitely more pleasant. I'm sure you'll still get a good view of the sea and mountains from there.

Anniversary Weekend in Subic

Everything went according to plan, we were able to reserve a four bedroom house in the Kalayaan Heights residential area. It was a nice house, had a kitchen and had the basic appliances and furnitures for a comfortable stay. The house had centralized airconditioning,had running hot and cold water, and had complete cooking appliances and things for a fraction of the cost if we were to stay in a hotel. It was actually very hard to go out, everyone wanted to stay indoors! Centralized airconditioning and food were the best reasons to stay indoors

And since we brought our Wii, we spent HOURS bonding over the game. The whole family played Bowling and Tennis. And the boys played Boxing and Baseball.

On our first night, we only went out in time for dinner. E and I suggested Meat Plus Cafe because we remembered the place to serve good and cheap steak. The Meat Plus Cafe looked many times better than how we remember it, but sad to say, the food and service were not as good. If you decide to dine there, stay clear of the Tenderloin Steak. It was anything but tender! I was very disappointed. Also, the server only informed us that they didn't have lasagna when all the other orders were already served! And the lasagna was meant for Baby S, who was already hungry by then. We would not be in a hurry to go back to that place.

After dinner, we still had time to go duty-free shopping at Freeport Exchange which is right across Meat Plus. We bought mostly food items, especially breakfast items such as Spam and Corned Beef. Also chips and chocolates.

In front of our "home" in Subic
More bonding time over Wii
Dinner on our first night at Meat Plus Cafe

The next day, after a hearty breakfast of Spam and Corned Beef Rice, we went to Holy Mass and said special prayers for our Parents. We also took some photos near the church:

The celebrants with their favorite apo after the Holy Mass
By the Subic Chapel after Mass

Revisiting Subic

I can barely remember my last Subic trip, that would be maybe 5 years ago. This weekend, E and I, together with my family went to Subic and stayed at my Company's staffhouse. I didn't expect to have a fantastic time, but I did! (So sorry I completely forgot to take pictures! I guess documenting is still not in my blood...). We stayed at a renovated navy officers' home in Binictican and we loved the place! Some highlights of our stay:

1. Shopping at Royal Subic and Freeport Exchange. Prices at Freeport Exchange were slightly cheaper. We bought mostly food stuff (mint chocolates, chips,canned goods). Lay's potato chips sold for USD1.80 (Php73.35) while in Manila groceries, those are selling for Php95.
2. Dining along the Boardwalk (Waterfront Drive). There are several restaurants there, our choice was Pier One, which had an al fresco dining area as well as an airconditioned area.
3. My 17-month old niece had a fabulous time in Ocean Adventure and Zoobic! These are great ways to introduce animals to kids, and to increase kids' awareness to animals. My niece kept saying "wush, wush" which her dad figured out meant "fish".