Baguio City - Cheap Accommodation.

This is one of the few series I'll be doing about our Baguio trip last May. We spent 5 days there and its one of the best vacations we've ever had. The nicest thing about it was we were with Nyx. It was Nyx's first time to see Baguio and I wanted him to see all the beautiful places and people of Baguio. One thing that stopped us from doing that was the weather. It was rainy then.. But I noticed the trend.. It rained during afternoons only... So we spent time touring the city before lunch. We leave the house as early as 6 AM and get back home when it starts to rain. Anyway, this was anticipated. Since weather in Baguio is generally rainy. I should know, since I spent a year there when I was still on my freshman year in college. :)

I haven't tried staying at a hotel there whenever we visit there for vacation. Hotel accommodations range from Php 1000 - 4000 per night. I don't have that money to spend on travel expenses plus I enjoy my Baguio trips as much as hotel-lodgers do. So I just got used to staying in transients. I stay along Engineer's hill drive (either lower or upper) since it's just located at the back of Victory Liner terminal. Aside from it's affordable rates, it's also very accessible to some local tourist spots like Burn ham Park, Session Road and SM Baguio. 

Its the road just behind my 2 boys. :)

Super lapit diba? It's walking distance so it saves a lot on transportation expenses. :)

We stayed in the same transient Erick and I usually stays. Its very cheap @ Php 300 per night. Nyx's accommodation was of course free of charge. I highly recommend this to people who are not too "maarte" when it comes to lodging. All we needed was a television, clean rest room and clean room. And this transient house met our criteria.  Here's how it looked like: 

This was the room, with one cabinet.

Our kitchen area.

Restroom :) not so nice pero atleast its clean. :)

Very spacious living room area. (TV and sala set not shown in this photo, on far right corner)

Dining area. :)

Family picture taken in the living room. :)

Nyx staring at the window. :)

It was very homey. It felt like we were just home. Since we stayed there for 5 days, we had to save up on food so I cooked our meal most of the time. Just across the street, there were "talipapas", sari sari stores and "ihawans" where we can get practically everything we needed. It was really convenient for us. The only difficult part was we were on the 4th floor, rooftop. We chose to occupy this area since its most peaceful here plus we didn't have to share it with other occupants. :) This place was really convenient for us. :)

I know some may not like the place, but for those travelling in groups and would wish to save money, you may try out the place. You can go to Baguio for a little over Php 3000 including travel expenses. :)

If you want to know more about the place, just ask me. :)

Related post: Baguio - on the road.

First Yakimix Experience! :)

Erick and I are not usually fond of buffets. We are not usually in to trying new foods. But I guess its about time that we try something different. Last week, we were invited to hold our team mini reunion at Yakimix, Alabang Town Center. It has a unique variety of Japanese cuisines which offers buffet and fine dining at a relatively affordable price. You may also check out their menu here. 

Lunch buffet starts at 11 AM and ends at 3 PM. We were there ahead of time for reservation. Since its usually crowded, its best if you come in before 11 AM. We got there around 10 AM and I was shocked when I saw the long queue. 

We waited for our name to be called and from then on, everything went on smoothly. Customer service was great and the ambiance looked so posh and light. It just so happened that the burner where we were seated was defective so we have to call the crew each time we needed to grill. It was a hassle in a way, but since the crews looked so accommodating, we didn't mind. :)

This was how the buffet looked like:

There were like 4 rows of cuisines ranging from meats, Japanese foods, dessert, some known Filipino foods like Crispy Pata, chopsuey, veggies, sea foods and the like. Cake was from Red Ribbon and Ice cream was from Nestle. I didn't enjoy the main courses as much as my friends did, but I super made sure I'd take in as much sweets as I could. It was like being in a food paradise. For someone who loves Japanese food, it was superb. I can tell by the looks of my friend's faces. :) Here's how their plates looked like: 

I enjoyed the grilling part. I tried all sorts of meat available. :)

And to here's the part I enjoyed the most. 

Yes, I tried all of it! :)

This was a happy place for me. I guess you can bring me anywhere with lots of sweets and I'd approve it. I am not really a good food critic since I don't eat all types of food. I am picky and choosy in a way. :)

We paid for Php 735 each, with unlimited drinks. We were offered their privilege card for Php 600 + and was given 10% discount since we charged it on my friend's credit card. They are offering 15% discount if you pay for cash. :) I am not sure of their price ranges but you can check it out here.

By the way, we initially placed a reservation for 12 persons. So we reserved 3 tables. 3 of our friends did not arrive as planned so we ended up as 9 persons.I was so worried because they billed us good for 12 persons. I thought we would need to argue with the manager but was surprised because they just reprinted the receipt with our desired head count. I was amazed and I honestly didn't expect that. Great customer service indeed! :)

Overall, it was a happy experience. I would definitely recommend this place. And I will maybe try other buffets more often. Here's a look of our happy faces:

It was super fun! Lots of chikahan with amazing food experience! :)

Yakimix, Alabang Town Center 

Opening Hours: 11 AM- 3 PM Lunch Buffet (Mon-Sun)6 PM - 11 PM Dinner Buffet (Mon- Thur)530 PM - 11 PM Dinner Buffet (Fri - Sun)

FIRST in a playhouse - Austin land SM Bacoor

Hi!

It was Nyx's first time in a playhouse. By playhouse, I mean.. ung ganito - a venue where Nyx mingled with a bunch of kids na hindi nya kilala. This was 3 months ago na din.. Ang tagal na nito sa drafts ko.. I forgot how much we paid na.. What I remember the most is this was the primary reason why I enrolled him in summer class. He wasn't interacting with kids kasi during this time.. Gusto nya sya lang nagpplay sa isang play area.. 

When he started schooling.. his socialization skills improved a lot.. 

Nagpapicture lang kami dito kasi wala kaming shot sa SM Austin land.. :)

The amenities were nice. I think we paid some Php 120 for the 30-minute play... Everyone was required to wear socks for hygienic purposes.. So I suggest you bring socks na lang kasi they sell socks for Php 100.00 per pair (too pricey!).. Photos of guardian were taken upon entrance for the child's security... 

Overall, it was a fun experience!

Nyx loved it!

:)