Beko Sale Happening at Automatic Center in ATC and Market!Market!

Looks like shoppers in the south would be in for a surprise this week as Beko gets you deals and surprises in physical stores of Automatic Center in Alabang Town Center and Market!Market!.

 

From August 26 to 31, you can score huge discounts on Beko appliances like the Beko fridges, Beko’s Side-by-Side Inverter Refrigerators (the GNO5231XPPH only costs Php 40,792). The electric cooking ranges like Beko’s 60cm Freestanding Electric Cooker with 4 Hotplate Burners (FSM66100GX) now only costs Php 28,891. If you're tasked with laundry, there's an 8.0kg Top load Fully Automatic Washing Machine (model number WTLI080SP) which you can now get for Php 10,792. If you want a 10.0kg Frontload one that is Fully Automatic and has got a ProSmart Inverter Motor, it only costs Php 39,992 if you're raring for an even better deal.

They promise to also spruce up the place making everything into a festive mood while the sale is happening for consumers just on these dates. Beko Air Fryers are also up for grabs for those who take a selfie at the event, so really, there's a lot of things to look forward to til the 31st. Take the trip down south to Automatic Center Alabang Town Center and Market!Market! to get savings and discounts if you're looking for European appliances which are now available in the Philippines!

You're gonna LOV'EM BLOOMS at Ayala Malls!

Flowers make me happy. The variety of colors, the way they look or even smell makes me produce endorphins more than the usual. Last week, we were surprised by Ayala Malls at the center of Greenbelt 5 with a diverse display of Philippine Orchids, ornamental plants to signify the start of summer. They've been the best looking mall chain bar none, but they made an effort this whole month of April to surround us with lush flora, green landscapes and beautiful gardens. Now how's that for fun?!

All these flowers and more will be now seen in Glorietta, Greenbelt, Alabang Town Center, TriNoma, Fairview Terraces, Ayala Center Cebu, Centrio Mall, Ayala Malls Solenad and UP Town Center. This is part of their Lov'Em Blooms campaign to support sustainable green living and they're doing different events to further celebrate this!

You can now sign up for Green Walks so volunteers from Philippine Native Plants Conservation Society Inc. could tell you about native trees, flora, that can be easily found inside Ayala Malls. They'll also be displaying some of the most beautiful orchids this April 16 at the Fairview Terraces, April 23 at Ayala Malls Solenad and May 7th on the Alabang Town Center. They're also promoting arts and crafts workshops on May 7-8 in Alabang Town Center, a photo contest with Ayala Alabang Camera Club plus art activities on May 20-22 in Greenbelt. 

Here's a little taste of what's in store!

Oh and for those who are not blessed with a green thumb (like me I think LOL) you can get tips from Joey Quintana and the whole Alabang Garden Club so they can teach you how to get them survive your hands lol. This will be on May 7th then they'll have a Mother's Day activity on May 8th. If you are fond of tea, Greenbelt has an edible garden on those dates so stay with a bunch of amigas and enjoy it like in England. For those who fancy to get the blooms to their own special occasions, the suppliers, local producers, growers florists, designers, stylists, name it, they'll be in Greenbelt from April 15-17, May 6-15 at Ayala Center Cebu, May 7-8 at Alabang Town Center, May 6-8 at Abreeza Ball, May 21-22 in TriNoma, June 3-5 in Glorietta, June 22-26 at Fairview Terraces and June 24-26 at Centrio Mall. You basically have the whole half year to enjoy these flowers, plants and activities because this is Ayala Malls.

They've got more, so just look at their social media pages today and bloom away!

For more information about their events this year:

Ayala Malls 360

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Visit their official website

http://ayalamalls.com.ph/

Wingstop’s UAAP Sports Snack Bundles

I'm a Warrior and I've been watching all the games of my alma mater since the start of UAAP Season 78. It's unbelievable because the impossible just became possible as schools who initially had the greatest players, the greatest hopes and reviews on their lineup suddenly became vulnerable by other schools who everybody thought would just lose their games in the first round. My school was part of that roster but look at where we're at now! It's those run and gun games, fantastic plays, the good old school spirit that made the journey so different that in a rookie laden school, we became the great story in every sports related website, TV show and whatnot. It's the heart of the players, the tough battles we've conquered that makes my school the best. I'm sure you've got your UAAP story to tell but after every game, every match and every hymn played in Smart Araneta Coliseum or Mall of Asia Arena, there's nothing but the best thing to do but bond over food and drinks. That's where WING-STOP comes in!

Aside from the 10 lovely, savory, sweet and spicy flavors they have for the Chicken Wings, they're taking it up a notch by offering Wingstop UAAP Bundles. Imagine for Bundle A, you've got 25pcs Wings, 25pcs Boneless Chicken Bites, Texas-Style Fries, Onion Rings, Chipotle Rice and a 1.75 liter Coke in a pitcher.

Bundle B on the other hand has 25pcs of Wings, 12pcs Chicken Tenders, Texas-Style Fries, Onion Rings, Chipotle Rice, and a 1.75 liter Coke served again on a pitcher. Now if they ask you what flavor to order, might I suggest the Garlic Parmesan, the Atomic (for deadly spice lovers), the Mango Habanero and the Teriyaki. It's my personal favorites but you can always order the others. The plain ones are as good too. Now that they've bundled it, you don't have to point fingers anymore who's going to order what, or get them in trouble if you didn't like it. It's that simple, they've actually done everything for you!

Currently, these bundles are all available on their BGC Stopover, Alabang Town Center, UP Town Center, Glorietta 2, Greenhills Promenade, Estancia, Fairview Terraces, Eastwood CityWalk and TriNoma branches. Make sure you get those sour cream dips too because they're too good to pass on when in Wingstop! I ate a ton of these, so make sure you get them before the promo ends soon! Each bundle costs Php 1999.00, totally worth it!

Trust me on the wings!

For more information about their wings:

Wingstop Philippines

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Visit their official website

http://www.wingstop.com.ph/

Plan International Philippines and their fight to end Teenage Pregnancy

Carin van der Hor, Plan International's Country Director in the Philippines and Marco Savio, Plan International's Deputy Country Director for Programs.

Alarming. The Philippines is actually leading in teenage pregnancy rates according to a recent survey. Plan International says every hour 576 more babies are born in the Philippines. There is a big correlation between poverty, but the major cause of it is lack of education. Ms. Carin van de Hor of Plan International says even though they are working with local government, and national agencies, it's still not enough and they have to start with something. The National Youth Commission gave them really good numbers that have been put to good use in statistics, then used for other agencies. These teenagers have no access to information and it's time to take action. Aside from that, there should be health reasons why this shouldn't be the case. A 14 year old for example should not undergo birthing yet because their bodies are not ready the child will have growth stunting - and not have life to its full potential. This cycle will keep repeating and if we don't work on the education and awareness of these teens, of which they are part of the demographic. It's a very sad statistic they exclaimed. They work in health, disaster risk reduction and the rest, but they know they had to have a more holistic approach. This is how it's supposed to be addressed.

Marco Savio, Plan International's Deputy Country Director for Programs says "We have education projects and we target areas that are also run by the government and address the reasons why they don't go to school and such. We tailor support to the children and we are doing 15,000 now (just on this project). We are using systems that are already approved by local government. We are helping them to support the children in their areas. There are a lot of problems, in the Philippines, parents know the importance of education and we are working on this. We have never had parents tell us they never want their children to school, like building bridges, pay for transportation, this is where other foundations come in. Right now, we have Dubai Cares here celebrating with us with their CEO. They've funded projects like these and provide for more children in places like Samar, Leyte and others. We measure success by the number of schools completed, the rate and number of graduates, how many of them move on and have highschool or college degrees and other KPI's. "

"We also check their health status, the number of pregnancies, no malnutrition, and the rest. There are different reasons in rural areas, distance and stuff. In the urban areas, the slums, the lack of work, there are a lot of things too. We are working in Mindoro, like with Mangyans, we give them knowledge and give them the ability to have choice. We work with different private organizations and help the government with their own programs. We do that in certain levels. We also work very closely with UN and their other divisions. They don't just fund, they share resources and we put our strengths together. We have stayed here for 53 years and we have a lot of areas that already have seen results. We help them do peer education as well so they can do it on their own. We do a lot of creative work so children go back to school. We support the structure of the community so everyone would be able to benefit. We do this in any given time and move in different areas in the country. We have offices everywhere and we hope to be able to bring these communities to be self sufficient and have all their issues resolved in 10 years or less." adds Ms. Carin van de Hor.

They also held a mini concert in Alabang Town Center that afternoon to bring awareness for the cause.

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Plan International's "Because I'm a Girl" Mini concert featuring Suitcase101 Band and Voces Aurorae Girls Choir. Even if it's raining, they sound heavenly

View on Instagram

I hope they get to help more people. Teenage pregnancy is indeed a big issue and we should start to learn how to tell the young ones how to have a healthier lifestyle, a successful life and a great mind to know when they should have their own offspring. Not when they are kids themselves. Thanks to Kairos Solutions and AnakTV also for helping them to reach that goal.

We also had Ms. Mikee Cojuanco Jaworski and the Ms. Earth Philippines candidates helping to raise awareness for the cause. They also had a short bike event in Marikina earlier that day. Mikee believes that aside from the parents, children should have a community of people who they can look up to, to have the knowledge and wisdom that could empower them to be better people. Education should start from the home and she adds that it should be to a point where girls would be able to decypher for themselves a sound decision, a right decision, one that they formulated themselves. In giving them education, she believes that we will get to have them achieve more. On the teenage pregnancy situation in the Philippines, she feel sad because teenagers are not ready because they haven't lived a full life themselves yet. Children should not suffer hunger later on and suffer consequences which their parents have decided on. The responsibility of bringing up a child is big, you can't learn that as a girl if you're still too young and haven't even played yourself and see the world as it is. That is just selfish. They don't know that yet.

She made a really good point. I hope together, these foundations and Plan International would be able to succeed in their goal of bringing the teenage pregnancy rates down in our country. I hope it's not just a dream.

For more information about their cause:

Plan International Philippines

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

http://www.plan-international.org/philippines

Azumi Boutique Hotel: Where The Sun Also Shines Down South!

I've seen the sun rise in the east but I didn't know it would also look this good when the sun sets down south in Alabang. This right here is going to be my home and office for two days. This is the Azumi Boutique Hotel. I think they have about 16 floors including the Penthouse which I'll tell you about in a bit plus 3-4 floors for parking and a full restaurant in the ground floor. Let's check in shall we?

The Room

This is my room, they call it the Queen Room probably because its got a queen sized bed. I was alone when I checked in but this is good for two (or three if you have a kid hanging around). The wood panels, cabinet and bed is probably done to present a more simple, minimalistic Japanese looking theme.

You may think the room might be a tad small in square area but I didn't even feel cramped because they designed the interior with mirrors and transparent glass (on the shower) which made the illusion of a very continuity conducing place. 

 

You've got the basic toiletries available; soap, shampoo, conditioner, toothbrush and towels. Don't worry about the open glass panel because there are blinds on that same spot. It would be a good thing for honeymooners though, I can imagine. Aside from that, one feature that I like about this is the Rain Shower. It doesn't feel like high pressured water is pointing straight at your skin. The water temperature is also perfect if you want to relax in a hot shower.

You also have 2 complementary bottles of water and a full fridge/mini bar. The drinks cost 50/80 bucks but if you prefer other drinks, there's a Puregold, 7-11 and various stores around Azumi Boutique Hotel that you can go to for whatever you need.

You can prefer to close the shutters but if you look around, I've got a quite nice city view. If you see the buildings in the center, that's actually Alabang Town Center. You can shop the whole day and just go back to your room whenever you want to. I also had lunch at Nathaniel's which is just by the road in front of Azumi Boutique Hotel for variety. They Puto Pao and Palabok is legendary, I took home lots of it.

Then I went a few floors up. Then... I thought I was dreaming.

The Infinity Lap Pool

The Penthouse has got this huge lap pool. It's like an oasis around the concrete jungle of Alabang. I love this place so much that I'll surely go back and swim in the evening. It's not to crowded either, so it's the perfect thing if you want a break from the city without even leaving it. It's also got a function room on the same floor that can probably fit around 50-100 people, as a matter of fact there was a party going on when I went there hence no shots. You can get arrangements to rent it off with the Azumi Boutique Hotel staff. Call if you must!

Then I got the chance to have an even better treat... 

I got to do a bit of night swimming. I also got to see this beautiful city at night while resting on the edge of their pool 16 stories high! No selfies when I'm half naked of course! It was relaxing, really cold and so nice up there. I called it a night.

Then the next morning I was able to walk around the hotel and check out what they have on the ground floor.

This is Romulo Cafe. I'm a huge fan of this restaurant especially the one in Jupiter Street, Makati. I love how they put a modern twist to the usual Filipino food they serve. They don't make it too fancy, in fact I can actually categorize this as a comfort food place because I'd love to indulge with whatever they have on the menu. The stay in Azumi Boutique Hotel that I got had a buffet breakfast along with it. I'd like to recommend you get a lot of the tapa they had on the table. It just had the right amount of seasoning and not too salty. Loved that part.

The hotel also has their own dedicated Nail Spa that occupies the huge right wing of the building's ground floor. It's perfect for Mothers, daughters or friends who want to have a nail sparty and bond over making themselves beautiful.

The Lobby and Checking Out

Their lobby is classy, fit with neutral colored accents and filled with chairs and sofas that are very comfy. I checked out at 12PM and was expecting a long queue on front, but no. They even knew my name when I gave them my keys. After that, they didn't even have me stand and wait for it on the counter and asked me to sit patiently on the sofa. Everything was settled in around 5 minutes. I headed on to buy "pasalubong" (gifts) for people at home and bade good bye. I love impeccable service.

Azumi Boutique Hotel would be a great place to start if you want to do business in the south. I was relaxed, I had fun and was yearning for more. I think I understand the charm of this quaint place.. they make everything easy and accessible for you. They don't make things hard and give you your money's worth. I've checked the prices online at Agoda and their rooms cost around 2,5K - 4,1K a night. The other rooms are called the King Room (which has the King sized bed and a larger bath area) and the Garden Room (which has got it's own lawn that's almost big as my room). I think you can hold small parties there and entertain guests on a good sunny day.

For what it's worth, Azumi Boutique Hotel definitely was a good choice for business but it didn't feel like I was there for work. I felt very comfortable and right at home. This just means I have to travel more even within city limits, into places I haven't been to in Manila. Azumi Boutique Hotel ranks high in my books and I hope I get to spend time with my friends there soon. I still feel the Infinity Lap Pool is still so inviting! I didn't know the sun would shine like this down south!

Azumi Boutique Hotel is located at 2205 Market Street, Madrigal Business Park, Phase III Alabang 1780 Muntinlupa City. You can call them for reservations at 8699888 or email reservations@azumi.ph for any inquiries.

For more information about their hotel:

Azumi Boutique Hotel

Like them on Facebook


Visit their official website

http://www.azumi.ph