Sweet Deals: 1837 TWG Tea Salon & Boutique Promo: 50% off on French Macaron

It's almost tea time. If you love pairing pastry with your tea, try the tea infused French Macarons in 1837 TWG Tea Salon & Boutique that some foodies has been raving about. So delish with a good amount of warm "Weekend in Shanghai" tea. Good news is they are selling it at 50% off, instead of P 60.00 per piece get your choice of Macaron at P 30.00 only. The bad news is the promo has been running for several days now and it ends today. They offer new flavors that are exclusive for this particular promo. I got some tea infused goodies last night, box of 12 for only P 360.00 instead of P 720.00 . Good buy, eh?

12 pieces of happiness in a box

Singapore Surprise-Promo Exclusive

Bain de Roses

Hazelnut Macaron

Sakura Macaron

TWG Tea Salon & Boutique
Shangri-La Plaza East Wing, Unit 2340
Mid-level 02-03, EDSA corner Shaw Boulevard,
Mandaluyong City, Philippines
Tel: +632 654 1421, +632 654 2557

Opening Hours:
Monday to Sunday 10am - 12am

TWG Tea Salon & Boutique
R2, 2nd Floor, Archaeology Gallery
Power Plant Mall, Rockwell Center,
Makati City, 1200 Philippines
Tel: +632 478 6136, +632 478 2782

Opening Hours:
Monday to Thursday 11am to 9pm
Friday and Saturday 11am to 10pm
Sunday 10am to 9pm

TWG Tea Salon & Boutique
Greenbelt 5 Mall, Level 1-049, Level 1
Legaspi Village, Makati City 1226
Philippines
Tel: +632 720 8665, +632 720 8667

Operating Hours:
Monday to Thursday 11am - 9pm
Friday and Saturday 11am - 10pm
Sunday 10 am - 9pm

TWG Tea Salon & Boutique
Century City Mall, L119B1-L119B2 & L127,
Kalayaan Avenue, Barangay Poblacion
Makati City, Philippines
Tel: +63 2 403 7776 (Salon) or
+63 2 403 9821 (Boutique)

Opening Hours:
Monday to Sunday: 10am - 9pm

TWG Tea Salon & Boutique
Resorts World Manila,
Ground Floor, Shop 17B Newport Mall, 100 Andrews Avenue, Newport Cyber Tourism Zone,
Pasay City, Philippines
Tel: +632 551 0696, +632 551 0925

Operating Hours:
Monday to Thursday 11am to 12am
Friday to Sunday 11am to 1am

 Source: http://www.twgtea.com/ourlocations.html

Caffeine Talk: Starbucks Macchiato Monday

Hey! Today is Macchiato Monday! Starbucks is treating everyone with a 'Buy one Caramel Macchiato, Get one free' promo.

source: https://www.facebook.com/StarbucksPhilippines

Apparently, Team Caramel won in the coffee competition against Team Hazelnut with a whopping 2,800+ difference in number of votes. Personally, I love the new Hazelnut infused espresso drink in their core line up. The nuttiness compliments the richness and aroma of their Espresso Roast. I always find Caramel Macchiato sweet (but you know all their drinks are exceptionally sweet that's why I get mine in non-fat. Ha!).

It's only for today, March 17, 2014 so get your Caramel Macchiato now and enjoy it warm or iced with a friend. :)

All of Me by John Legend

Drove home last night worrying how to crawl my car out if I ever get caught in traffic due to Valentine's day rush, it was all over social media. Miraculously, I got through C5 north bound like a breeze. And John Legend was my BG music. Meehehe <3 Perfect song to cap the night.

THE FAULT IN OUR STARS

The shortest tearjerker video ever and probably my personal favorite, most awaited movie for 2014.

Gus (played by Ansel Elgort) is just as I imagined him to be when I was reading the book back in December 2012. But I always thought of Hazel (played by Shailene Woodley) as thin, frail and perhaps a little smaller. I knew the actress from George Clooney's movie "The Descendants" and turns out Shailene Woodley was also Amy Juergens in "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" (2008). But she was smaller and younger back then. She grew taller I guess (or my judgment is playing tricks on me?) and looked a little different with short hair, in a good and mature way.

I really look forward to watching this movie because I cried a river while reading the book. It's a fact that a motion picture can't possibly capture all the readers' favorite parts and highlight everything at the level of their sky rocket high expectations, (because I have not seen one so far) but I definitely think this movie will not disappoint. Let's cross our fingers, Okay? 'kay. 

Favorites:

"No matter how hard you kick, no matter how high you get, you can't go all the way around." - Swing set ad by Augustus and Hazel

*  *  *  *

“May I see you again?" he asked. There was an endearing nervousness in his voice.

I smiled. "Sure."

"Tomorrow?" he asked.

"Patience, grasshopper," I counseled. "You don't want to seem overeager. 

"Right, that's why I said tomorrow," he said. "I want to see you again tonight. But I'm willing to wait all night and much of tomorrow." I rolled my eyes. "I'm serious," he said. 

"You don't even know me," I said. I grabbed the book from the center console. "How about I call you when I finish this?"

"But you don't even have my phone number," he said.

"I strongly suspect you wrote it in this book." 

He broke out into that goofy smile. "And you say we don't know each other.” 

*  *  *  *

“Some people don't understand the promises they're making when they make them," I said.

"Right, of course. But you keep the promise anyway. That's what love is. Love is keeping the promise anyway.” 

*  *  *  *

“there is no shortage of fault to be found amid our stars”. 

UAAP Season 75 Cheerdance Competition, Painted Maroon!

A big fuss has been spreading around about the winners of the UAAP Season 75 Cheer Dance Competition. Different arguments ran around UP's unconventional dance routines with a slight slip-up at the end, and FEU's unparalleled cleanly performed piece.

Cheerdance champs for the last three years and owning their 8th title from this season, is the University of the Philippines Pep Squad. The UP dancers' shaved heads embodied their bold theme for this year's routine, "Freedom and Equality". My personal favorite was when they represented each emblem of all the UAAP participating colleges as they danced through their performance.

Even though the final stunt was tainted with a premature fall, I think the confidence in standing tall after that and the offbeat dance routines made up for it. 

To show you more about it, here's a video of UP's performance at the Mall Of Asia Arena last September 22, 2012 linked from Youtube. 

Roaring at second place is the Far Eastern University Pep Squad that has executed an intensely clean moves and pretty interesting theme, something that has to do with the wild or the jungle. Every step, throw, pyramid, back-flip and all-kinds-of-flip were finely coordinated. I can't point my fingers on what my favorite part of their routine is, because basically, their feet are just shaking in harmony. It's crazy, wild, and fierce all at once! 

If these tickles your curiosity, Here's a video of the FEU Pep Squad's performance.

Beating UST on 3rd place, National University Pep Squad dancing with Disney Classics theme. Few trips and falls did not stop these first time top 3 winner  to showcase what bulldogs are made of. 

University of Santo Tomas Salinggawi Dance Troupe comes in 4th again like last season, performing in fiery costumes and theme inspired by Brazilian celebrations and festivities. De La Salle University Animo Squad landing in 5th place for their physically challenging routines that is boxing. 6th and 7th place came the Ateneo Blue Babble Battalion and Adamson Pep Squad, both unwavering with their funky themes: Voltes V and K-pop. UE coming in last, performed as blonde warriors, which might have been more criticized especially by people that are still sentimental on UP's swift win last season with the same hair do. 

This year's Cheer Dance Competition was undoubtedly neck-and-neck, hard fought battle. But the squabble is really all about fresh ideas and clever strokes versus clean fine maneuver and intensity. I don't know, I think they both did great and I'm sure the judges had a hard time deciding. All I know is that when it's this time of the year, I miss college. :)

Say, the UP pep squad's final stunt went on spotless, would we all be so psyche to argue who should or should not win? Would there be a fine line between the Champ and the First-Runner Up title? Just a thought.

Rear View Mirror

Let your mistakes be in your rear view mirror - Far enough to forget, but close enough to guide. -Adapted

So I have been a little under the weather these past few days, and my motivation was no better. Last Monday, for some uncanny reason, my colleagues and I were throwing inspirational phrases, talks and whatnot that one of my seniors finally asked, 

"Nasan ba ako ngayon? Nasa simbahan ba ako? Wednesday bible sharing?" (Where am I? Church?)  

"No sir, nasa mga recovering addicts and alcoholics talk ka." (you're in the middle of a recovering addicts and alcoholics talk),  I replied laughing.

I'm not sure what it is, maybe we all need a little something to animate us while we stumble upon work, catastrophes, stress or LIFE itself every now and then. Who doesn't? ☺

Cake of Opportunity: Cake2go!

It's my sister's birthday! (the eldest: Ate Ann) Went out for lunch and she's paying! But mom and I decided we can't just go empty handed so a newly opened branch of Cake2Go in Pearl Drive, North Fairview (in the internet it says Don Antonio branch for whatever reason) saved us. I have heard about the pastry shop, their mini cakes, delivery services and how they are expanding but I have not tried it once. Their branches before were far and I have so many pastry shops in mind to explore. But hey, it's a cake of opportunity!

Few cake selections but I was not surprised. The space in the shop is a little narrow and manned by a single courteous employee. They could have been more artistic with the cake but they have sugar-free selections (bottom row), that's a big YES!

I might try their cookies next time. Partially empty humongous jars convinced me! 

In search for the cake of opportunity for my thoughtful sister, I drooled over these:

But their featured cake won us over, the Mango Meringue Cake. The taste quite frankly, reminds me of Mango Bravo of Conti's in a homey and petite style. 

My sister and the folks seemed to enjoy it after a sumptuous meal. Happy birthday ate Ann!

Cake2Go is gradually expanding, going big on delivery services as their road to the market, a certain factor that consumers in this generation consider and some pastry shops oftentimes ignore. Way to go!

Sucky camera settings. Sorry. Not sorry. :) Toodles!