Frannywanny

"Life offers you a thousand choices...all you have to do is to take one."  - Frances Mayes, Under the Tuscan Sun Don't you just love the quote above? This is perhaps one reason why I love the movie Under the Tuscan Sun  aside from the fact that every scene is making me wish I can just hop on a plane and jet off to this sunny part of Italy. How I wish I can just spend at least a week of peace and quiet, far away from the rest of the world (or at least any cellphone signal) where I can just eat, sleep and write without a single interruption. Guess, it's time to start planning for my next trip! :) Speaking of trips and travelling, let me tell you about the time my family and I spent two days at our favorite getaway destination -- Tagaytay. We had Kong Kong (grandfather), A-I (aunt) and even my in laws in tow so with a big group, we seriously have to plan our meals properly. For one of our lunches, we headed to Marcia Adams'  as it's one of the few restau...

June was a fun month for me. It began with a bang where in I celebrated my birthday for the first time here in the Lion City. This was followed by a quick visit by my friend Leslie  and finally the week that I've long been waiting for has arrived. My family came over to visit too! I tell you, it was the happiest week of my life! I didn't mind that I get to go home later than usual and Paul and I would normally end up sleeping past midnight. We'd also be really exhausted from all that walking and commuting too. I also didn't mind that we had to do all those touristy stuff and get all sweaty and sticky due to the Singapore heat. In other words, I was just too happy to mind. I couldn't be home for Father's Day but I made it a point to celebrate this with my dear Papa a few days in advance. It was a no-brainer on where to take my dad out for dinner. He loves steak so I began researching on where are the good yet affordable steak places in town.  Then c...

As Paul and I followed the week-long news coverage on the wake and funeral ceremony of the late King of Comedy, Dolphy , it has been mentioned a number of times by friends and loved ones that Dolphy loves going to Hizon’s or he would gift someone with a box of Hizon’s ensaymada. At some point, this led to Paul telling me that he has never dined at Hizon’s or more specifically at the coffee shop adjacent to it called Za’s Cafe . I was shocked! Between the two of us, he grew up in Manila and I just can’t believe he has never been there. Whereas for yours truly who was born and raised in Quezon City , I has been frequenting this classic restaurant since I was a toddler. I guess that just goes to show that I would really go the distance for good food. Anyway, I really love sharing a piece of my childhood with my husband. Be it trying a glass of halo-halo that I grew up enjoying or something like this – taking him to Za’s Cafe one rainy Sunday afternoon. I am pretty proud of mysel...

A couple of months ago, I was lucky to be chosen to win a romantic dinner date at Restaurant 101 by Pond's . Time went by so fast that Paul and I realized that the certificate was expiring next month and so we have decided to use it right away. It was just timely that we celebrated our last monthsary before our BIG day last Saturday. Overlooking the sentence that says to call 72 hours in advance, I just took the chance and tried to book a reservation barely 6 hours before dinner time. With our fingers crossed, we waited for the confirmation from Restaurant 101 . Luck must have been by our side that I immediately got a reply saying that we may proceed with our reservation for that evening. Yay! Arriving at Restaurant 101 , I was at awe with the grand interiors and the exterior reminds me of old western architecture with huge beams and high ceilings. Entering the restaurant, we were ushered by a nice Korean girl who happens to be a student of Enderun College , the culinary sc...