Wedding Prep: The Venue

We're getting married!♥♥♥


Our love story is not the typical one. When we met and started getting close, he didnt ask if he can court me. He didnt ask me to be his girlfriend. One day, I told him "I wanted to be your girl!" That demand came up because I wouldn't want to invest time and emotion only to find out that I am being friendzoned. haha! The boyfriend hasnt been into a relationship quite sometime, reason why I think he's soo shy to pop the question.

He smiled and from that they forward we became official. I felt that he's just waiting for it and me being the bold one just couldn't wait any longer and made the first move.

Fast forward, were on our 5th year. That was fast. I couldn't even remember a single fight during those years that were together. The only usual conflict we had is where and  what to eat and our unmatched schedules - petty things. One ordinary day, I popped a message to him via sametime "Boyfriend, our wedding will be on January 2019. Our budget will be $$$ with only 150 guests. Ok?" and he said SURE. haha and that was it!. On my mind Ang dali talaga kausap nito! No proposal. No man on his knee. No usual will you marry kind of thing. But this is US. That's the way we are ever since. We are not romantic but we love each other and we are sure and we are secured. That's more important for me.

I know I wanted it to be in Tagaytay. So after we decided on the date of the wedding,  I inquired on those venue which offers garden for Christian ceremony - Hacienda Solange, Casa de Corazon, ClearWater House, Estancia and Narra Hills. Those are my options. After reading online reviews and requesting quotations, I decided to go with Casa de Corazon. They just opened this year. The place is relatively new and offers a good view of Taal Volcano.  I wanted to wed with Taal lake as the back drop. This is one of my non negotiable. Bakit pa ko mag Tagaytay wedding kung wala din naman view ng taal lake dba? :)

Platform for wedding ceremony.

 

The door where the bride enters to walk the aisle.

 The aerial perspective of the whole garden.

Aside from the garden where you can have your ceremony, Casa de Corazon also have a large pavilion you can opt to use for lunch or dinner reception. The garden area is for wedding ceremony or if you'll be having a Church wedding, one can maximize the over looking garden for a cocktail area.

The pavilion ceiling is already fully draped. This will be another savings  for us since full drape service could amount to almost 20k. The venue also includes light and sounds on the package. A good deal already!

Fully draped ceiling with hanging articial white flowers on the center.

The venue also includes an air conditioned couple holding area. This could be used as resting place after the wedding ceremony. The area is complete with bed, table and sofas which the couple can use while taking a quick snack or retouch before the actual reception program starts.

An whats more exciting? Just last April, Casa de Corazon opened its Mini Hotel. Casa de Corazon Inns and Suites is now open for brides who wish to have their wedding preparation on the same place. Very convenient indeed!.

Mini Hotel facade grabbed from Casa de Corazon page.

I couldn't wait to get married!!

A taste of Ramen in Jipan

We found a new favorite! The boyfriend likes to eat ramen. Even in this scorching summer heat, he will always have time to look for a place serving ramen.

We have tried Ippudo few times in Megamall and Eastwood but a simple dinner would cost us more than a thousand peso. Not so much budget friendly. Good thing, we tried Jipan in Glorietta.

I fell in love with the dynamite roll. Its such a generous serving of ebi tempura, kani, tamago, cucumber, crunchy tempura bits, kewpie. Right there, I know I will always go back to Jipan because of this. The boyfriend on the other hand raved for Pork Katsudon (breaded prkchop, green onion, egg and donburi sauce) and Chuukara Ramen. The ramen is made of special spicy broth, spicy ground pork, slices of pork tenderloind, greeen onion, buttered corn, soft boiled egg

 After a week, the boyfriend craved for ramen again and tried Jipan in Capitol Commons.

Dragon Roll (ebi tempura, kani, tamago, cucumber, crunchy tempura bits, kewpie).
Chuukara Ramen (spicy broth, spicy ground pork, slices of pork tenderloind, green onion, buttered corn, soft boiled egg). Gyudon (Thinly sliced beef, vermicelli, donburi sauce, fresh green onions)

California Maki

Seafood Ramen (Chicken and garlic broth, squid, shrimp, fish cakes, kani, soft boiled egg)

Pork Katsudon (breaded porkchop, green onion, egg and donburi sauce)

Holiday at Acuaverde

Its holiday and its Labor Day! I am one of those escaping the metro for a quick getaway. I initially planned to book Sabangan Beach Resort because its cheaper compared to other resorts within the shoreline of Laiya Batangas but unfortunately its already fully booked on Labor day. I searched for other resorts and found Blue Coral, Acuatico and Acuaverde and immediately inquired for room availability.Among the three we ended up booking Acuaverde because of the positive reviews online and affordable price.

The staff at the reception area shortly brief us when we arrived. We didn't have to register since we did an online booking. We just sign the papers and were given our room keys. The resort also offered welcome drinks upon arrival. The boyfriend is raving about the tamarind juice! Its cold, sweet and give you a splash taste of natural tamarind.

View from Casa Montana room (2nd floor)

I read online that the owner of Acuatico is the same as that of Acuaverde and they are only renting out the area for Acuaverde. I prefer Acuaverde because of its greenery feel. A lot of trees surrounds the rooms and giving shade along the resort. Pets are also allowed for a minimal fee.

The amount you pay for room already comes with full board meals Dinner, Breakfast and  Lunch. We got the arrival lunch since we arrived early at the resort. Excited lang😃 They allowed us to check in early at 12PM. The buffet style lunch was set up at Cocina restaurant overlooking the beach.

View from Cocina Restaurant

The food served were delicious. During our stay, the lunch served were relyenong bangus, sauteed vegetable, beef stew. There's also hot soup (mushroom soup) and variety of fruits. You also have the option to order from the ala carte menu. For those coffee lovers, brewed coffee☕ is available all day.

Dinner at Cocina Restaurant

Buffet area

Swing hanging from Tamarind tree

Stringlights at night time

I was actually expecting for the beach to be rocky but its different.The beach along Acuaverde is not that rocky. Although the sand is not that fine compared to Boracay, the water is clean and clear. You can walk along the beach without hurting your feet. I didn't even have to use aqua shoes.The resort offered a free kayak you can use and enjoy. There's always a guard on the look out for safety.

The water is clear along the shoreline

Guard on the look out! 👀

The next day, I got up early to make sure I can catch the sunrise. It's wonderful! I wish I had better lens to capture its beauty. I only have my iphone unfortunately🙈

  

Catching the sunrise at 6AM!

Sunrise at 6AM

Marco Polo

If there's one hotel that have the best customer service I would say, Marco Polo would top it all. They have the best people - genuine people. Staff working on the floor are very pleasing. Smiling all day and willing to extend help at all times. These are just the simple things that guest really appreciates.

We only booked Superior Room since we only planned to stay overnight. Luckily they decided to upgrade our room to Continental Deluxe Room for no additional charge. I was so happy since this room is situated on topmost floors of the hotel tower. That means that we will be having a good view of the city and us staying on a larger room.

The room is equipped with coffee and espresso machine. I also saw three red apples on the table but I decided to just take it home when we check out😁

What I love the most is the bathroom.I find it more exciting than the bed. I wish I could sleep on it the whole day - on the bath tub with warm water and epsom salt. I'm dreaming! Since we went out after check in I only got to use the bath tub before sleep.

The accommodation comes with a buffet style breakfast. I am more than satisfied with variety of food served. The buffet table is complete with variety of breads, cereals, fruits and different kind of juice and overflowing coffee. You can also request if you'd like fruit shakes.

Cucina at Marco Polo. Grab from Marco Polo site

An overnight stay at Marco Polo although pricey is worth every penny. I would definitely be back but would make sure to book two or three days to enjoy all the facilities. I forgot to mention we also enjoyed an afternoon dip at the infinity pool at the 22nd floor overlooking the cityscape.

Singapore Vacation

Its been a while. I almost forgot I owned this site. I've been hooked up with Instagram and Facebook that most of my time I'm doing nothing but scrolling up & down my news feed expecting something new or something would come up worth criticizing . Lol! I'm just kidding. Anyways, these photos are long overdue. Guess one thing that triggers this post is these wonderful photos of Singapore. We recently planned a 5days vacation in Singapore. Just a quick getaway from the stress of work.

Singapore. Oh Singapore. I would really wanted to come back for the train. They are fast, convenient and are really impressive. The numbered bus also wont disappoint. You would only need a map, mrt card and off you go! No need for a tour guide really. So enough of my words and let me share some of the photos we took on our trip.

Changi airport

We booked in Foresque Residences through Airbnb.

 

 

 

 

 

I wish I could share more photos but I'm afraid all of those pictures includes Me and the boyfriend. Lol. You may get annoyed. So there you go!