Thanks to Potato Starch – Everything is Perfect while Frying

I know how all of us are looking for things we can do during this time of Covid-19 Pandemic as most of us are working from home and e-learnings. We have some spare time to do activities such as painting, reading a book, biking, watching movies, among others. While for me, I’m currently into cooking. Yes, we all need to increase our productivity. We can’t just stick ourselves on our laptop from time to time. 

Ever since I was a kid, I would always help my mom in the kitchen, either slicing some onions or sautéing, whichever I can do. My mom loves to cook, well she has now a Facebook Page where you can order home-cooked meals: Estrevalle by Divinia, feel free to choose on her menu and leave a message to order. Getting back, I think I inherit her passion when it comes to cooking. I’ve been loving to cook nowadays and even started again on baking. Aside from that, I’ve been very observant on foods. There’s always two questions in my mind: 1) How they prepare it? and 2) What ingredients they are using? Even while watching CLOY (hello, to all my fellow K-drama fan), I really got fascinated to their Korean Fried Chicken which looks so crunchy and yummy, so I did some research on how they do it. From what I garnered, one of the key ingredients to get their perfect crispy fried chicken is by using a potato starch. And totally yes, it really makes my fried chicken so crunchy while juicy inside. 

I got my potato starch from Molina and Sons. They are licensed distributor in the Philippines for various brands, which include Polar Bear, Suncraft, Sunsnack, Lune de Miel and a lot more. And what I like the most is they offer an affordable price.

Look how cute they are, they gave those little candies as freebies. 

You may check them out on the following social media accounts:

Shopee: Molina & Sons

Instagram: @molinaandsons

Facebook: Molina & Sons Phils. Inc.

Things I Love about Changi Airport Terminal 4

Singapore’s Changi Airport is known as the “World’s Best Airport”.  According to Steve Meacham of Traveller.com,  it has won more than 500 awards since it opened and it is the leading international air hub in Asia. It serves more than 100 airlines with connections to 380 cities in 90 countries around the world.

The world’s best airport has just become even bigger, and better. Terminal 4 opened October this year and they are planning to expand again. Currently, the Terminal 5 (Changi East) is under construction and will possibly open in 2020. Can’t wait to go back again!

It is the smallest Changi terminal. There is no train station inside the airport, so you need to take a bus that is going to/from Terminal 3.

Our flight is around 4am, going back to the Philippines. We got to the airport around 10pm, the night before so can have time to explore the new airport. Unfortunately, most of the shops are already closed.

Anyway, the following are the things that you will surely love too:

Self-Service Kiosk

Sobrang bet, ang techy! You can skip the long queue with self-service check-in, bag-drop counters, immigration clearance and boarding with the use of Biometric technology which makes your travel experience even faster. Do not fret if you do not how to use it, you will be guided by an airport staff through the process. Unfortunately, I didn’t take photos of the machine. There’s no hassle even in the immigration.  You don’t need to talk to the person in the immigration kaso yun nga, mas lalo akong nawalan ng pag-asa na mahanap ang ka-forever ko. Chos! Hahaha! And for those people who loves to collect stamps in your passport, you’ll be kinda disappointed since everything that you will use is through computer. No one will stamp on your passport because you will just tap it and go.

Shops

My very first stop shop is the WHSmith. Their store offers everything I love —stationeries, and I find it cheap, so I bought a moleskine’s classic collection plain notebook and some pens.

Food Places

There is no problem when it comes to filling you up before you take your flight. They have a lot of different choices of food depends on your cravings. My favorite food place there is the International Food Hall. 

Coziness and Ambiance

The terminal vibes is so relaxing. It is filled with real trees and comfortable chairs and they also have garden and indoor pond (which I find it so cool!).

My sister enjoyed her stay at the petal-shaped bed.

You can also enjoy a live theatre production, Peranakan Love Story, you can watch while waiting for boarding. The short musical takes you back to 1930s, a love story between musicians living next to each other.

Free Use of Desktop

There is also a free use of PC for one hour which is very helpful for some people that might want to check their social media accounts or email (pampawalang antok lang).Pero yung balak ko talaga that time eh mag-aral para sa final exam. May yellow pad pa ako diyan at calculator ah kaso nauwi rin sa Facebook. Hahaha!

If you are looking for a WIFI, let say for your phone or PC, passengers are asked to scan their passport into a kiosk and then receive a code that entitles them to one hour of WiFi.

Techy Cleaners

The Changi Airport Group (CAG) embraces automated cleaning robots at the terminal to keep its place clean. Housekeepers are trained to programme the robot to mop, clean and pick up small items, among others. It really feels like you are living in the future! Sayang, I wasn’t able to take a photo of it. HUHUHU

Toilets

The toilets are themed accordingly with a British colonial-style design. I love how it looks so elegant, and I love how tissues and hand sanitizers are available in every cubicle.

*This photo is not mine* Photo Source: thesmartlocal.com 

A year-end blog post. Happy New Year everyone!

One of The Best Places to Unwind in Metro Manila: PRISM PLAZA

Prism Plaza is located at the 4th Floor, TwoE-Com Center, Mall of Asia Complex. One of the best places to hangout with your friends or family. It offers a great experience of dining. and lots of choices for you to eat at.

Every time I run for a cause along the MOA Complex, I always see the structure of the Prism Plaza that capture my eyes all the time. I love how it simply standouts in all the buildings out there which keeps me imagining how it looks like inside. And It never fails me, WOAAAH! So stunning. I’m in loveeee.

The very first time that I went here is with my groupmates. We had an interview at the TwoE-Com building. We didn’t know that it is open for public and we can stay there while waiting. You can sight the picturesque of Manila Bay and unwind and appreciate the beauteousness it offers. This is the best place to chill out!

View from the Prism Plaza

Some restaurants here are the following: House of Wagyu, Uncle Cheffy, The Burger Lab, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and many more. Sorry, I forgot some of them pa and there are still a lot more to discover in this place that you will surely love.

 

Hope you like this post!

Feel free to like, comment and share this post. Thank you!

 

You may check The Prism Plaza on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PrismPlazaMOA/

Instagram: The Prism Plaza

Twitter: @ThePrismPlaza

PART 2: Five Songs on My List

A year ago I posted my “First Five Songs on My List” on this blog. I really miss this portion of my blog which I usually share my taste of music. I love listening to different kinds of music, like EDM, pop rock, electropop & wait, ano pa? Wala na akong alam! Hahaha. Right now, I’m currently into throwback songs and some other new songs that were released this year.

Here are my top five songs:

1. Want You Back by HAIM – I love this song and their music video, as well. It is like an old school modern music. Feels like I want to walk around the street (like in their music video) and do their moves. I watched a video of them performing live, omgg!! Sobrang talented! Kabooowg!
2. Don’t Leave by Snakeships & MO – The most heartbreaking song! Basta I love it. I love every single beat of the song and you can hear how MO’s voice sounds so painful.  Na-feel ko siya. Charaught!
3. You and Your Crown by Matthew Mole – This is basically the theme song of my college life. Many times, I just want to quit college and take a break from all the stress and deeply think about what I really want to. It came to the point that I’m not enjoying with my course anymore. I always keep on asking myself If I would want to still continue my major. I did, I almost quit! But this song enlightened me. It changes my perspective in life and gave me such motivation to pursue what I have started. Even if I feel down, NO! I have to win the fight and bring that crown. I know there is a better reason why I’m here. And I’m not afraid to go through because I know God is always there to lead me in every direction I’m going to.
4. Lost in Your Light by Dua Lipa – Since Dua Lipa had a collaboration with my forever crush, Martin Garrix. I started to like her. She’s so beautiful and has a powerful voice. I love this song! I love her voice, feel ko magkaboses and magkamukha kami. Okay, masyado na akong feelingera. Hahaha! This song keeps playing in my heart and soul. Yes namern! Push.
5. ILYSB by LANY – LANY is now my favorite band! I have a huge crush on Paul Klein. His voice makes my heart melt and he is totally hot! I can listen and stare him every day. I love you so bad, Paul. Just to add some information, he made this song while driving and there is a girl on the passenger seat of his car having a phone call with the girl’s sister and said I love you so bad. It all started there! Fast forward, that girl struck him the most. Ewan ko lang kung dahil ba doon sa phone call kinilig siya eh, hindi naman kasi siya yung sinabihan diba? Masyadong feeler hahaha! Wala eh na-inlove siya ng bongga kay Gurl. Para daw talaga kay gurl yung song so wala na akong pag-asa sa kanya. Okay bye! By the way, LANY is coming in Manila this August. Can’t wait to see them Live. For details, Click Here.

I hope you like my choice of songs! Let me know if you hear all of them & what’s your favorite song on the list. 🙂

The Great British Festival at BGC (Late Post)

LATE POST!

This event was held last February at Bonifacio Global City High Street but I still want to blog it since it was one of the best events I’ve ever had and not just because of FREE foods but everything! 

British Festival was a three-day event (Feb. 24-26). The event was mainly composed with street artists, art workshops, car displays, British fashion and foods.I love this British Got Talent booth! I was supposed to audition na eh but I think it’s not the right time. Chos! Hahaha. There was a cutie guy na contestant daw ng BGT that was in the booth but I haven’t given a chance to take a picture with him kasi I’m shy and I don’t know him rin kasi. Look how cute these miniatures of United Kingdom landmarks that were set in the venue! You don’t need to travel to UK for a photo with the Big Ben, Buckingham Palace or travel to the magical world of Harry Potter to see Platform 9 3/4. Hahaha!#TitasOfManila #LolasOfManila #PabebesOfThePhilippines

I’m with my british friend Kat. She’s the one who tagged me on a post regarding this event. We never thought that we were able to go since we have school works that time and lot of things to do pero OMG! We made it!

Sobrang saya namin sa free foods. Actually, lahat ng nasa shopping bags namin puro foods din. Hahaha.

For further events or updates, kindly follow these accounts of British Embassy here in the Philippines:

Facebook: British Embassy Manila

Instagram: @ukinthephilippines

Website: https://www.gov.uk/government/world/organisations/british-embassy-manila

KATSCHRONICLE

Launchora is a storytelling platform where you can write, explore stories and share anything — your thoughts, experiences, ideas, everything that comes to your mind.

My friend, Kat has been working with her poem and look how wonderful all her writings.

Make sure to check her out https://www.launchora.com/katschronicle and follow.

 

Her writings:

I think I’ll stay stuck for a bit

Just life and things #1

sorrow X regret

 

Mt. Marami

Mt. Marami is located in Maragodon, Cavite where you can see the grandeur view of Cavite. It is just my fourth time to hike and for me, this is one of the longest hike I’ve ever had. Many people is often compared it to Mt. Pico de Loro and they were like sisters daw, same features.

Just to add up some information, the name of the mountain is coined from the Tagalog term “marami” because the mountain is composed mainly of numerous gigantic rocks. The open trail of the mountain will lead you to experience the “Silyang Bato” which can be found on the summit.

Jump-off point: Sitio Bangkaan, Brgy. Talipusngo, Maragondon, Cavite
Alternate jumpoff: Brgy.Ramirez, Magallanes, Cavite
LLA: 405 MASL (1,328 feet)
Days required / Hours to summit: 1-2 days / 2-3 hours
Specs: Minor climb, Difficulty 3/9, Trail class 1-3

Source: http://www.pinoymountaineer.com/2007/09/mt-marami-405.html

Note: In Brgy. Talipusngo, you can bring your car to shorten your hike hours, don’t know in Brgy. Ramirez if you can also bring.

Here are some photos on our trip

“Welcome to the Silent Hill” Hahaha no, i’m just kidding.Nainggit sa pose ng cow chos! Hahaha pero kapagod na gurl.Pabebe pose pa more! HAHAHAHA

Miniso Opens at Glorietta

Are you looking for a one-stop shop? Where you can buy affordable products including, health and beauty products, fashion accessories, office supplies, home necessities and many more. MINISO is the perfect shop to go!

Last last Friday, March 17 Miniso had its grand opening at Glorietta 2. It is already their 15th store here in the Philippines. Super late upload na since I need to finish some school papers and my laptop got minor problems.  Anyway, everything is fine naman na. Thank god! Okay, back to the blog. 

Miniso ensures that all of their products are high-quality, creative in design, and affordable for all. Over 80% of the brand’s product designs originated from Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, China, and other countries.

Established in Tokyo, MINISO, the Japanese fast fashion designer brand, was jointly founded by Miyake Junya, the chief designer of MINISO, and Ye Guofu, the Chinese young entrepreneur. MINISO advocates fashionable and relaxed lifestyle and directs a superior products consumption pattern.

The MINISO’s executives, general Manager of Glorietta, Gabbie Garcia and Rocco Nacino were among the attendees.

Miniso has been expanding globally,  it opened more than 1,800 stores around the world. Currently, MINISO has signed strategic cooperation agreements with more than 40 countries and regions, including the U.S., Canada, Russia, Singapore, Dubai, Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong (China), and Macao (China).

Miniso is like a combination of Uniqlo, MUJI & Daiso. All our favorite shops combined into one. You’ll surely love it.

Here are some of their productsThese hats are perfect for this summer!

I like their nude colored bags

They also offers eyeliners with different tips (ends), lip liners and other make up products.

These are the things that I picked. I can’t wait to try them!

Check out their stores here in Philippines:

ROBINSONS PLACE MANILA (Padre Faura Wing – 2nd Level)
SM CITY SAN LAZARO (2nd Level)
SM CITY MANILA (2nd Level)
SM CITY EAST ORTIGAS (2nd Level)
SM CITY FAIRVIEW (UG Level, Annex 1 Building)
SM SOUTHMALL (2nd Level)
SM CITY SUCAT (2nd Level, Building A)
GATEWAY TOWER MALL (UG Level)
LUCKY CHINATOWN MALL (3rd Level)
SM City Baliwag (Ground Level)
SM Center Sangandaan (2nd Level)
SM City Marilao (2nd Level)
SM City San Jose Del Monte (UG Level)
SM City Trece Martires (UG Level)
Glorietta 2 (2nd Level)

Soon they’re going to open more stores in SM Makati, SM City North Edsa, and SM Store Cubao.

Website: www.minisohome.com

Facebook: Miniso Philippines

Twitter: @miniso_ph

Instagram: miniso_ph

Best Camera for Traveling: Sony Alpha A5000

Nowadays, traveling is what most people do. I know this line is kinda gasgas or you can see or read it many times on different social media sites “Traveling is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.” I definitely AGREE! And even make it as good investment. Trying different cultures, food trip, do adventures, talk with the locals and learn everything from them can help you to come up with new ideas and to discover new information. There is a lot of information provided by your life experience as you travel around the world which is very relevant in your road to success.

But of course! Your travel would not be complete without taking amazing shots or videos about the trip, right? Photos and videos will serve as a remembrance for every travels your going to.

Wanna know what will be the best camera for travel?

Here is the Sony’s ALPHA A5000 Mirrorless Camera

Source: http://www.sony.com/electronics/interchangeable-lens-cameras/ilce-5000-kit

This camera would probably the best camera for travelers. With its size, features and an eye-catching style, that you would fall inlove.

This camera has 20.1 MP Exmor HD APS sensor which is incredible when it comes to detail and enlargements. BIONZ X Image Processor, Sony’s latest processing engine: truer color rendering, better noise reduction, and hyper-real detail via high-speed processing.

Its size is way smaller than your smartphones which is really nice for traveling or doing adventures. I remember when I need to cover a documentation as I climb up to the mountains which took us about 3 or more hours to reached the mountain top. I used my DSLR and imagine how heavy and difficult it is to carry along, so with the Alpha A5000, it would be easier to shoot since it is very handy and lightweight. This camera is best known as the world’s lightest interchangeable-lens digital camera. And what most travelers, bloggers/vloggers, including you would totally love in this camera is that, it has a WiFi, so it is not difficult for you to transfer video and photos that you’re going to upload.

You can easily capture a selfie by just flipping up the LCD screen. This is the most useful part for those solo travelers. It records stunning high quality Full HD 1080/60i/24p or 1080/30p MP4 movies.

This camera also features:

• Soft Skin Effect –  it smoothes any wrinkles or dullness.
• Face Detection and Smile Shutter – ensures that faces look fantastic, with clear focusing and smiles captured at that perfect moment.
• Auto Object Framing – this function crops your shot for maximum appeal—without marked loss of quality.

Low light situations are not a problem. There is built-in pop-up flash in a compact camera. Compact Power Zoom 16-50 mm kit lens, a convenient zoom lever on the body of the camera allows for effortless one-handed operation and smooth zooming even when shooting self-portraits, bringing compact camera convenience to the realm of interchangeable-lens models.

The following are some of the camera features:

• Battery Life: take up to 420 shots on a single charge.
• Auto Object Framing fills the frame with your subject.
• Scene Selection:  Type of scene you can shoot are the following: nine Scene Selection modes, including Portrait, Sports Action, and Macro.
• Manual Shooting: four modes (P/A/S/M) make it easy to enjoy the creative.
• Anti-Motion Blur
• DRO (D-Range Optimizer)
• Sweep Panorama

To learn more about the ALPHA A5000, visit: http://www.sony.com.ph/electronics/interchangeable-lens-cameras/ilce-5000-kit/specifications#specifications

Yugatech’s Website: http://www.yugatech.com/

Sony Philippines’s Website: http://www.sony.com.ph/

Food Trip at Maginhawa Street

Once you’ve heard Maginhawa, what comes first in your mind? I know, most probably it would be FOOD. FOOD TRIP. Everything about FOOD. As we can see a lot of posts from different social media sites, Maginhawa Street will take you in an instagramable places/restaurants.

Let me share my own experience in Maginhawa. At first, I thought Maginhawa street is just a street na tabi-tabi yung mga restaurant na it wouldn’t be difficult for us to find a place to eat at. (Sorry, I’m from Cavite, I don’t have any idea about it. Hahaha) But when we already reached the place it was different from what I’ve expected. So Maginhawa street is located inside the U.P. Village, some are in Teacher’s Village and Sikatuna Village and hindi tabi-tabi yung mga restaurant. Medyo malalayo sila sa isa’t isa. Hahaha! Para itong nasa main road ng village (please correct me about this, main road nga ba? hahaha)  and it’s like 3 houses before ka ulit makakita ng restaurant. (well just some of them) We really had a hard time to find a particular place to eat. Anyway, I’ll give some tips for those first timers, like me and for those people who are not familiar with the place.

TIP# 1 Before going to Maginhawa make sure that you know the restaurant you want to eat. Kasi based on what we’ve experienced, we forgot to search online for the restaurants. It really consumes so much time for us. Luckily, tricycle drivers around the village are familiar with those restaurants. Kahit i-describe mo lang, kuya, yung may harry potter motif or you can ask them kung saan ang pinakamagandang puntahan. May mga ire-recommend sila sa inyo. 

TIP# 2 Wag kayo masyadong magpa-late mas lalo na if that’s your first time. Around 4:30pm na kami nakarating, and that was month of January pa so medyo mabilis dumilim that time and we still can’t decide where to eat, what to eat. So we ended up like, 3 restaurants lang.

TIP# 3 I think it’s better to wear comfy shoes mas lalo na if wala kayong dalang car. You really need to trek. Hahaha

Thanks to manong tricycle driver for dropping us by here in 150 maginhawa food park. Hindi na kami nahirapan para maghanap uli nang makakainan. Forgot to take pictures of the food. Natakam agad ang lola. Anyway, here are some of the photos 🙂

If you have questions, like how to get there or kung ano pa. Feel free to contact me by clicking this or tweet me @itsmeloraineE 🙂 Will try to response as soon as possible.

Casa Quesadilla

Address: Unit 1, 176 Maginhawa, Sikatuna Village, Lungsod Quezon, 1101 Kalakhang Maynila

150 Maginhawa Food Park

Address: 160 Maginhawa, Diliman, Lungsod Quezon, 1101 Kalakhang Maynila

Crazy Katsu

Address: #81 Unit I Maginhawa St., Teachers Village, Diliman, Maginhawa, Diliman, Quezon City