I'm Jonessa Crystal (Ysai) Heredia. Born and raised in Cebu and have been living here since. I try to bask myself in the wonders of this city and others hoping to try new things. I'm really up for any good experience and share them through this blog hoping for it to be useful to others.
Bohol - Eco Green Island
For the size of this island, it’s amazing that there are so many must sees to it. Cebu may have a ton as well but Bohol has an interesting terrain that I had enjoyed discovering the place.
The whole island is so clean and green with a breath of fresh air that we all appreciated. Though Bohol has become a popular tourist spot, the people never succumbed to having their place become highly commercialized to the point of having nature’s wonders destroyed.
Panglao had admirable beaches and it’s natural beauty had still been preserved. I hope that it stays that way unlike how commercialized Boracay Island had become. Though Boracay has it’s own charm, natural beauty always surpass the damage urbanization can cause.
And for the first time, I had finally seen what our civics and culture textbooks back in grade school show as the “Chocolate Hills”. During the summer, these hills turn brown because of the hot weather. And from the view on top, you could see bumps of earth until the farthest stretch your sight would allow you to. Some of the hills were already brown but some were still green.
The Man Made Forest also reminded me of the movie Twighlight for the place fitted the setting of that movie. It was so cold, damp and dark; the best place to hide a vampire.
We also went to a zoo (forgot the name) so we could find some tarsiers but had no luck. We were told that they took these tiny monkeys away because the other animals in their pens were too noisy for them. These tiny critters preferred a much serene dwelling place, much like the Boholanos.
We did get to see iguanas, ostriches and massive pythons instead. They said that the pythons were tamed but they still scared the pants off of me so I didn’t dare to touch it.
And last but not the least, the Bohol Bee Farm. I had enjoyed our stay there the most. The food, the place and a bit of Bees 101. I have a separate post for my experience there so read it from there instead.
I have yet to visit the Hinagdanan Cave, tarsiers and the Loboc River so I’m surely to do a 2nd trip here since it’s just an hour away from Cebu. We did pass by the Loboc River but didn’t ride the cruises. Our friend Vanessa, who was from Bohol, said that their buffet cruise is expensive but the food was not that good. But just to try it, I’d still go for it the next time I’m there.
Ysai was Here <3
Who ever thought that flowers were edible? Some may have, but I sure didn’t. Flower power salads are one of the delicacies of this restaurant but they mostly boast of their organic dishes; healthy fresh food served with ingredients grown right out of their own garden.
PROs
It’s not only the food that’s home grown but their furniture and fixtures as well. From the place mats, decors, tables, chairs and even the ceiling decoration (which also serve as ventilators) are all hand made by the locals. You can see them crafting these items as you enter the Bee Farm.
And did I mention the view? Let the picture speak for itself.
That’s good healthy food, cool nice ambiance and a view to die for. What more could you ask for? And the servers were nice too. So I guess none. No CONs here.
Complimentary
Our meal had started off with complimentary squash bread with mango and pesto spread. The bread was served hot (fresh from the oven) which made it more enjoyable. I even ended up taking home a jar of their mango spread. It’s that good.
We ordered a glass of Lemon Grass juice as well because we were told it was their best seller. But based on experience from one of our friends, Louie, lemon grass juice is not that good. So we ordered a glass first before getting the whole pitcher to try it out. And he was right, it tasted like we were drinking the juice of lamas from a lechon. But it is lemon grass after all so I guess it’s how it’s supposed to taste.
The Halang-halang Soup
Served in a freshly cut coconut, this soup is deceivingly good. It tastes sweet when it first touches your tongue because of the gata and the spice then rushes in as you swallow it. It’s interesting but a good combination!
The Entrees
Single servings of their entrees are served with brown rice and their garden salad already.
Their famous garden salad has fresh greens and colorful flowers which you can eat. Yes, FLOWERS. Not artificial or flower-looking fruits; but flowers. It first sounded weird but the salad dressing made it seem like it was a normal thing. One of our friends even took 2 bottles of their salad dressing home too.
Honey Glazed Chicken
Spare Ribs
As seen on the pictures, you could tell we had underestimated their serving ratio. We expected the plate to come with more meat than with more rice. We had ordered 3 extra rice with Eddie as the factor but even he gave up when he had finished the extra 2.
We did order a plate of grilled fish as well (no picture taken; consumed before it could pose) so we could level the viand with the rice.
Seafood Pasta
Had I known that their seafood pasta would be that good, I would’ve brought with me a pack of anti allergies to battle my allergic reaction to shrimp. I had to stop after a minimal intake. Why the curse?
And our food trip did not end there. As we were going about their bakeshop (where you can buy the spread, salad dressing and the rest of the products) they had a ton of free samples for most of their goodies. Hello free dessert!
We were so stuffed and I was blessed to have worn a loose dress or my belly would’ve seemed like I had grown a baby inside. We did not get to finish the pasta and rice because the volume was too much to handle. It even took us 2hrs to finish lunch since we had to take in between breaks to finish what we had.
Their icecream is a must try as well but we decided to do that at their branch in the Island City Mall a few hours after because our tummy needed a break.
Though the food did not come that cheap, the experience was all worth it! No complaints - hands down. So if you’re in Bohol, do yourself a favor and make a stop at the Bohol Bee Farm and surely, you won’t regret it.
Ysai was Here <3
**credits to Louie for the pictures.
On the last set of pix: Poor Michael - cutest dork ever! haha
Michael Cera and Brie Larson.
COFFEEEEEE!!
(via funniest10k)
Monopoly Card Game
With unlimited mojitos, mini burgers for dinner and Monopoly for entertainment, Friday’s was turned into a fun Saturday night.
Coming right after the moshing mahem at the Pulp Summer Slam 12, Eddie and I went straight to TGIF to join our friends for the night out. We did miss out on the Ribs they had from Racks but the mini burgers had sufficed. Somehow. When we joined in, they were already fussy about this new game they discovered.
Our favorite board game we once grew up loving during our childhood days is now available in the card game form. According to our manila friends, this is the new trend that going on over there. Group of friends tend to chill at coffee shops or cafe’s and play the game.
I didn’t actually get to join them since we came late but watching them play was fun! I was to join the next round but the game takes a while and we were running short of time.
Looking forward to the chance to play it myself. I know it’s soon! hehe
Ysai was Here <3
On Beau Bokan:
His twitter page says that he does NOT smoke or drink. I can’t verify that yet but omg! This should inspire other rockers or wannabes to quit it.
*credit to whoever took this pic. I intended to reblog it but downloaded it instead. When I tried to track back where I got it from, I got lost -_- sorry..
Pulp Summer Slam 12
It absolutely hurt me that the sound system was total mahem but seeing ABR live was definitely awesome! Matt Griener’s drum solo was divine and it made me love him more <3
Though it got me worried when Eddie left to mosh at the pit, I wouldn’t have held him back anyway because he’d be moping if he didn’t get to. I can’t stop him from talking about it anymore. (LOL)
Having to hear all their songs in my iPod played live was a great life experience. I was with those who screamed for an encore after their last performance.
The rest of the line up was good too along with Darkest Hour where I heard a new found favorite guitar player Mike Schleibaum. Plus, having Beau Bokan stripped down to slim fit ripped jeans was also a good sight. He also did a stage jump but ended up in epic fail. Kudos to Beau for being a brave soul. Wish he would’ve jumped in our direction for I’d be happy to catch him! haha
Blessthefall sure knows how to put on a good show despite the fact that it took them almost an hour for sound check. But again, I can’t blame them because the sound system really sucked (especially on our side of the audience). I can’t say it was the same for the other parts of the stadium but it surely was my spoiler.
It was a good show and the organizers are to be appreciated. Bringing all 6 international bands at the damage of 400php is not bad at all. Will definitely watch out for next year’s gig!
Ysai was here <3
Thanks Oli! They’ll be a great addition to my playlist <3
via dolliecrave
(via dolliecrave)
#88 Bought a ticket online.
I’m such a newbie. Why don’t they just get more international bands to come here in cebu??
