I can shoot too! a Cristeen Quezon photoblog

CAMOTES 2016

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 15:32:00 +0000

Press the arrow to PLAY the music.

Camotes, here we go!

I have lots of photos of Marco and Anika together like this one, just staring at the sea. Enjoying comfortable silence together.

Headed to Mangodlong Paradise resort.

We just checked-in and these three were quick to gather to play cards.

Kind of settled. But where's Laurd?

Day two.

Nothing would beat Jula's nap.

Day three. We were out to explore the island!

Not bad for a public beach on Holy Week.

To the Baywalk for lunch.

Third stop.

These kids had no idea of what was in store for them at Buho Rock resort!

With Mike.

With Laurd.

A cliff jumping platform!

Laurd started the 15' jump!

Enzo.

Izac.

Just had to try haha!

Mike's turn.

Anika banana.

Chloe.

Marco.

Lucky to have experienced it at such a young age. They jumped over and over!

Laurd again.

So whaddoyoudo after a dive?!

Another jump, boys?! Oh yes, achi Jula!!

To jump or not to jump? That's 25' right there.

Go Johnny!

John, Gladys and Laurd bit the bullet and took the plunge!

They jumped off a cliff many times over! A day they will remember for forever.

Press the arrow to PLAY the music.

On to our fourth destination.

Cassava chips! They were so good!

Fifth and last destination for the day.

Baraha. Anytime, anywhere.

It looked like our timing was perfect.

Sunset cruise.

We were headed to that tiny island.

It was just perfect!

Luca, looking on at Gladys.

Sunset kiss from the newlyweds, John and Jula.

The look of happy.

We found magic that day.

Izac doing a 'Titanic'.

We reached the dock and the kiddies hurriedly jumped on the pedal floaties.

The kiddies had a blast! A day well spent.

Fourth day on the island.

Luca, everyone's baby.
Funny thing is, he thinks He.Is.Not.A.Baby.

John went to market and had the kitchen cook these and more!

Gladys on the kayak. I was at the right time and place. It was stunning!

Lovely!

Our last day. The view from our cabana.

Just chillaxing and trying to soak everything in before heading home.

All good things come to an end. Here we were on board Jomalia shipping, headed home, with full hearts.

Kawasan Falls

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Mon, 25 Apr 2016 12:19:00 +0000

Barili.

Lunch at Dumanjug. Had their popular manok bisaya, of course.

Stopped for some ice cream at the Milk Station.

Finally arrived in Badian. But we had to walk some 750 meters before reaching Kawasan falls.

There it was!
First time for the kiddies to see its beauty in person. They've read about it in their books in school.

Mike decided to book a raft so we could go under the waterfall. We were all super excited!!

The water was so cold!

Water was so loud and strong as we were approaching the waterfall.

Here we go!

Happiness is most powerful when shared. Getting on the raft was one of the funnest things we've done.

The water was so strong that it felt like a hard massage with the punches!

Balamban

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 24 Apr 2016 15:19:00 +0000

Drove up to Balamban one afternoon in February.

Our friends say they are the mini versions of Mike and myself :-)

January 2016

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 24 Apr 2016 15:06:00 +0000

Here's a bunch of photos from the start of this year.

We're eager for the new year. A new chance to re-start. To be refreshed.

My brother Inting and his family also came home to visit to celebrate their 25 years of marriage.

Our photo souvenir before heading out for our New Year's eve dinner.

Precious photo of all of us together, minus Justin, Robby and Michael. At St Luke's, Manila, when we learned of my mom's lymphoma.

Beach day with Inting, Tina, Fonzie and Enzo in Cebu with their friends.

Swingin' and swayin'

Anatole. They go a long way with my bro.

Anatole brought along his drone and took these amazing shots.

Fonzie :-)

Arrived at our lunch place.

Love this!

It was cool how Tina modified her gown from 26 years ago. She did all the work herself!

Fonzie and Justin twinning.

Grateful to be there with my family to witness the ceremony.

A great shot by Fonzie.
The party was awesome. We (including Mike!) danced a lot, laughed a lot and ate a lot.
No more photos for the party from hereon. But the memories will stay in my heart forever.

the nutcracker

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 10 Apr 2016 15:26:00 +0000

Anika was chosen to portray as Clara in Cebu Centre for Dance's annual Christmas presentation.
It was The Nutcraker for the year 2015.

It began with a press conference a week before the show dates. Several journalists covered the conference, including our friend, Jude Bacalso. (shown in the photo wearing a green top)

Sharing Jude's IG post after the press con-
My friend Anika Quezon fielded questions like a pro earlier at the press conference for the classic ‪#‎Christmas‬ ballet The Nutcracker.
"I feel nervous every time no matter how much I've practiced," she confesses, speaking in an even, confident tone beyond her 8 years. "But I just push myself."
I cannot wait to see her dance the lead role of Clara this weekend.

Anika and Chelsea, both chosen as Clara on the two show dates. Just goofing around, being kids.

After months of practice, the day finally came.
She was super duper happy that Kayla and her Momsie flew in to see her performances.
On the first show date, Kayla did all the works to prep her for her Arabian dance.

It doesn't quite show, but I knew she loved every minute of it!!

Of course, Momsie had to do the final touches.

I just loved these moments!

The day after was her BIG day. Here, with Momsie.
Kayla did all she needed to do for Anika to be Clara that evening.

Here we go!

Act 1
Scene 1: The Stahlbaum Home

It was Christmas Eve.
Family and friends have gathered in the parlor to decorate the beautiful Christmas tree in preparation for the party.

The party begins.

Having fun on stage!

By this time, Mike and I were teary-eyed.

Clara and Fritz. Fritz's character, portrayed by Mandy Climaco.

A march was played. Presents were given out to the children, including four lifelike dolls who danced to the delight of all.

Drosselmeyer has yet another toy for them: a wooden nutcracker carved in the shape of a little man, used for cracking nuts. The other children ignored it, but Clara immediately took a liking to it. Fritz, however, purposely breaks it. Clara was heartbroken.

Our little girl, in a big stage. Doing a solo dance. It was just super!!

It was then bedtime.
Clara returned to the parlor to check on her beloved nutcracker.

As she reaches the little bed, the clock struck midnight and she looked up to see Drosselmeyer perched atop it.
Suddenly, mice began to fill the room and the Christmas tree began to grow to dizzying heights.

The nutcracker also grew to life size. And their adventure began.

Scene 2: A Pine Forest

Clara and the Prince travel to the beautiful Land of Sweets, ruled by the Sugar Plum Fairy.

A celebration of sweets from around the world wass produced: chocolate from Spain, coffee from Arabia, tea from China, and candy canes from Russia all dance for their amusement; Danish shepherdesses performed on their flutes; Mother Ginger had her children, the Polichinelles, emerged from under her enormous hoop skirt to dance; a string of beautiful flowers performed a waltz.

To conclude the night, the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier performed a dance.

A final waltz was performed by all the sweets, after which the Sugar Plum Fairy ushered Clara and the Prince down from their throne.
He bowed to her, kissed Clara goodbye, and led them to a reindeer drawn sleigh.
Then took off as they waved goodbye to all the subjects who waved back.

Bravo to everyone for an awesome show!!

NOVEMBER 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Mon, 04 Apr 2016 09:36:00 +0000

Shangri-la, Mactan.

I know I've posted a number of entries for our times spent in this place.
Just lucky to live 40 minutes away from this paradise.

October 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Wed, 23 Mar 2016 14:59:00 +0000

Mr S., along with Dom, Den and Kayla came for the weekend.

The cousins instantly bonded.

So glad to be able to witness Sandro's first underwater experience!!

Mr. S having a big boy chat with Ahia Izac.
Grateful to have spent the day with all of them.

Halloween 2015 might be the last for Izac. Maybe or maybe not, who knows.

Her try at being a rocker chick.

They spent it with their friend Job.

camp enzo august 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Fri, 01 Jan 2016 07:06:00 +0000

Happy New Year!!!

I guess it's not too late to post these photos and make-up for the last few months of 2015.
I'm just feeling grateful and nostalgic that I'm browsing through my old posts back in 2009! I'll transport you by clicking here, here and here.

Guess who's in the front seat with Mike?

Got a message from Robby that he was in town and had no plans for the next day.
So the right thing to do was to drag him up to Camp Enzo! Haha!
Well, Robby's always a trooper!
So, that's not a problem.

Papa Laurd and Anika. I think my kiddies will forever call him that. And for that, Mia will always be, Mamma Mia!

Make way for this little charmer.

Kite-flying.

Or shall I say kite-running!

Step on the brakes, Marco!

Aaah, to be a kid and have all that fun is priceless. Whether you fly a kite or just run with it!

Luca hops on the bike as well!

It was a wonderful day and made a good decision to drive up to Laurd and Mia's cabin for some fresh air.

Mia wanted the kiddies to plant their own tree and watch it grow in the next few years.

Some of the best photographs are found when everyone is relaxing, having some booze and battling over what kind of fruit this was!

Our little men.
Where did the time go?!!
That is the million dollar question. Haha!

We all had a steady day, which we loved.

SUMMER ENDER AT PANGLAO

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 08 Nov 2015 13:01:00 +0000

We spent 3 days on the island of Panglao with Michael's siblings and their families back in June.
I've got way too many shots and GoPro footage but made it through the sorting and editing.
So here they are.

Cousins ready to spend the next three days together.

Arrived at Panglao Island Nature Resort by noon.

The resort had a cave within the property, so we decided to take a look right after we had our lunch.

There were bats inside the cave which was pretty cool.
Everyone knew about Izac's fascination with Batman.
So we joked around and told him to say to himself, with his arms stretched - 'I'm home!'

Went back to our rooms and agreed to meet up at the beach.

The view by the stairs. Izac and Anika waiting for Ahia Miggy, Ahia Derek and Achi Camille.

Found our spot.

Maker's Mark, Steely Dan and this view! The weather was perfect that afternoon!

Love this!

Hangin' out with us homies, haha!

The first day is always the most fun as everyone is excited to catch up on each other.
Not that the rest of the days are less exciting.

We stayed till dusk.

This couple came down by the beach to party at the small 'island' across.

I wonder what the brothers were up to.

The end of day was pretty.

These two were ready to swim.

Beautiful morning breakfast view.

Before any swimming took place, we strolled our way to Hinagdanan Cave, which was just a few meters walk from our resort.
But first, they secured some refreshments for the post cave visit.

Mike is headad for the statues.

10 A.M. refreshments Quezon Style.

The hotel entrance is right across.

Pulvoron in a cone.

"Let's see how strong this carriage is." Haha!

Back in the cabana to get ourselves ready for the pool.
Anika's carrying Auntie Arleen's big bag of goodies.

We all had a swell time. Also witnessed a tornado pass by across the sea. It was amazing!!!

Bottle Opening 101 - How to open a bottle of beer using another bottle.
No photos for the rest of the night.
Just fond memories of our time together.

Day 3. We were scheduled to head back to the city later that day.

Air cool Bohol style.

Of course Arleen and Izac are right in front of it! Haha!

Grateful for the time spent together.

Anika's summer recital & Izac's boodle fight celeb

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Fri, 06 Nov 2015 11:55:00 +0000

Our little ballerina can't wait to get to the venue.

The toddlers opened the show and were very cute!

Heard a lot of 'Awwwwws' when these little ones wiggled their stiff tutus!

Turn for Anika's group.

She once described to me that dancing is so exciting that it's magical!

A curtsy and a smile.

Looking forward to getting a bouquet after every performance from Mike and Izac. So girly, i know!!!

With Bree and her coach, Teacher Baby.

That wonderful day our boy turned 10.

Couldn't believe he now belongs to the double digits club.

Jaz and Jared in Cebu

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Thu, 05 Nov 2015 13:18:00 +0000

My last blog post was in June! OMG! I know, I'm so behind!

Now, that you're reading this...that means I'm back! Ha!

Aaahhhh Jared! That look again!

Super duper excited to feed the fish!

That look is priceless!

Doing the drop slide without letting us know! The attendant just informed me!

See everything as if it's the first time. Be a child, a tourist especially when in a place you've been to many times before.

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Mon, 08 Jun 2015 12:54:00 +0000

It was my turn to do a merchandise trip to Bangkok. Mike and I love this city for so many reasons.
The streets are vibrant, day AND night. People are very warm and very friendly. And the food is awesome!
I don't know, but on the countless times we've been there, there's just so much to see every time.

Mike and I couldn't wait to bring the kiddies to Bangkok and share with them our fondness for the city.

Some shots I took with my phone.
Consumed quite a number of red fruit and other fresh juices to beat the heat.

Grilled cuttlefish. Dipped in their special hot, aromatic sauce!

Al fresco. I could smell the broths and the sauces being prepared as I passed by. Aaaah!

Sidewalk dining.

Seafood toom yum! So. Good.

Bangkok's version of our kwek-kwek. Quail eggs in wanton wrap. Deep fried to your desired crisp. With sweet and chili sauce, Bangkok style.

Grilled prawns for just 200 baht a stick.

Street food festival at Central World. It was huge!

Pad thai with large river prawns.

Decided to have that for lunch.

Tuktuk dessert truck.

There's so much things happening at the supermarket of Paragon. One can actually dine in before checking out the shopping cart. Like this Itallian oyster bar.

Slabs of fresh salmon. Choose your size, have it sliced and find a spot to devour.

With my food cart in tow, I couldn't decide on where to start.

Got out of the supermarket and found some new interesting food stalls by the food court like this dak galbi station.

Ginseng, anyone? Yoohoo - Mike, Mia, Laurd! Haha! Remembered fond memories from our recent trip to Seoul.

Then there's Teraoka Gyoza.
The izakaya-style Teraoka Gyoza boasts of its seven-time gyoza champion from Gyoza Stadium in Tokyo, who serves specialties including dishes like sudachi gyoza (chicken gyoza with black pepper and lime juice dip), mentai cheese gyoza (chicken gyoza topped with cheese and fish roe sauce) and asparashi gyoza (chicken and asparagus gyoza topped with mayonnaise and sweet and sour plum sauce).

Googled the creator and was surprised to know that he was working in a shipping company in Cebu many years ago! Read about it here.

Took a vid as I waited for my order.

Dinner.

Freshly squeezed garlic added more punch on the ramen.

A can of Singha and some people watching after work the next day.

Siam Paragon has special parking space for these special cars. It looked very exclusive with black mirrorized columns and dark, shiny granite floors.

Just their normal weekend parking scene.

This yellow Lamborghini barely had room to park.

Happy Birthday, Anika!

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 07 Jun 2015 08:32:00 +0000

Our little lady woke up to this. She loved it!

Every year the kiddies get to plan their day. This is Anika's agenda.

In love with the colors purple and pink!

Anika wanted a cake from the Corner Baker Company also known as our dear friends Jason, Mimi and Jules. 'It's everything I imagined it to be', she says, upon checking the cake in the car.

Too cute to eat! Thanks for these extra cupcackes!

I sneaked off time out of the agenda. Hence, this quick blog post.
So, I'm outta here!
We've got to prep ourselves for the blowing of the cake, some serious Pictionary and end the day with a 'movie night'.
Anika's choice of movie, if you're wondering, is a movie called 'Home'.

Hong Kong SOTC

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Mon, 01 Jun 2015 13:54:00 +0000

Yup! No editing, no cropping. Just Straight Out of The Cam shots of HK.

Olympus E-P1 in-camera filters.

No filter for these three.

Exploring Seoul Day 4

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 31 May 2015 10:28:00 +0000

Our last day in Seoul. We were headed to Nami Island and snapped this shot of the kiddies before stepping onto the coach for an hour and fifty minutes ride.

63 kilometers to go!

The place was filled with buses and tourists!

There are two ways to cross the island. One is by zip-lining your way to the entrance.

And another is by a five-minute ferry ride.

But first, some Dakgalbi!

With full bellies, we were ready to explore the island.

Naminara Republic is a micro nation that requires a 'visa'. It has its own passport, currency, stamp and telephone card, and has promoted the establishment of Naminara in other countries.

The daddies have decided to book the 'cart' tour that would take us around the entire island.

Got off the cart and explored some more by foot.

The sun was bright and the weather was good. It was a good day to stroll.

The tree-lined path was quite impressive. I've seen photos that were shot in autumn and winter that looked stunning.

Cute Korean couple doing a self-portrait.

Our bus was scheduled to head back to the city at 4 pm. We had to be on that bus otherwise we won't make it to the airport on time!

The drop-off point was at the Pagoda Park, right across Insadong.

Before buying some Kkul-ta-rae. A court cake made of ripened honey. It used to be the king's snacks and is made of 16,000 strands of honey that represented longevity, health and good fortune.

16,000 strands of honey in just one minute! We got a box and I'd say it was pretty good.

Izac got my camera and took snaps from hereon.

Our last meal in Seoul. 맛있는 Mas-issneun!

Of course, Anika had to do some shots as well!

My dear friend Mimi messaged us prior to our trip. 'Eat a lot, take gazillion photos and build beautiful memories!'
I guess we did all that!

Exploring Seoul Day 3

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Wed, 27 May 2015 04:55:00 +0000

Annyeonghaseo! Another day. Another adventure.

Excited to explore another day in the city.

Marco and Anika.
These two can manage silence over conversation.
A relationship like this denies silly promises and persuasion.
Their love comes in wholes, not halves, not thirds.

This photo just warms my heart. Their friendship is precious. So is Enzo's and Izac's.

First order of the day!

Han-u 한우 refers to a breed of cattle raised in Korea, more popularly known as Korean beef. It is premium and it's so good!

Another round please!

Group hug! Mike's arms couldn't reach out for Enzo and Luca anymore. Haha.

Coffee was our choice of digestif after that heavy, sumptuous meal.

Insa-dong (인사동) is in the heart of Seoul. Just a block away from where we had our lunch.

Street food in Insadong were on both alleys! Also a good place to find some bric-à-brac, traditional or artsy.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Barely an hour after lunch, and we're eating again! I love vacations!

Anika's favorite stop in Insadong next to the food stalls is this shop. Where Mike got her a hand painted silk fan in purple and a mini chest for her trinkets with rose shell inlay.

Namsangol Hanok Village. A 'village' composed of traditional Korean houses (Hanok).

N Seoul Tower can easily be spotted from the garden.

Chanced upon a pre-nup shoot by the garden and of course we took some shots of the couple. The bride-to-be looked lovely in her Hanbok.

Meanwhile, the stylists couldn't keep their eyes off their phones.

Beautiful couple.

Now, it's Laurd and Mia's turn.

Then it's ours.

Laurd must have said something very funny that made us crack up so hard. Haha. Thanks Laurd!

Then, it's the kiddies' turn.

Another episode of Luca's "Lamborghini, Run!!!"

At the base of Namsan Park is Namsangol Hanok Village, a beautiful setting that includes five traditional-style hanok homes.

A collection of traditional Korean houses have been brought from across Korea and made a village here at the northern area of Namsan.

photo credit : Visit Seoul

Photoshoot situation.

The photographer was cool enough to let us join in.

At Namsangol Hanok Village, visitors can see the hanoks of important figures from the Joseon era including the house of Queen Yun's parents, who was the Queen Consort to King Sunjong, the jaesil (study) of Yun Taekyeong, King Sunjong's father-in-law; the house of Park Yeonghyo, the son-in-law of King Cheoljong, the 25th king; the house of Lee Seungeop, who was in charge of constructing Gyeongbokgung (Palace) and the house of Kim Chunyeong, a military official of the Joseon Dynasty. (source Visit Seoul)

Found our way out and walked a few blocks to Myeongdong.

Myeongdong 명동明洞 literally means 'bright town'. Recently listed as the ninth most expensive shopping street in the world.

Street food never ends! The boys got themselves some cone pizza.

photo credit : moustachemagazine.com

Marco is enjoying his snack like a local.

This was what he had.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Hotteok, gyoza and rice cakes (tteokbokki).

Live vertical garden at Nature Republic.

The place is so alive and bustling with people. It was nice to just stand in one spot and absorb the experience of being there.

N Seoul Tower with it's lights on. It was another day of fun, bonding and learning. Enough to get us all inspired and refreshed.

EVERLAND

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 24 May 2015 17:00:00 +0000

Day 2 in Seoul.
Everland.
9am to 9pm. Gee!
Full day.
Let's do this!

They're super excited!

Mike shooting our little shooter.

Anika wants to have her own camera on our next travel. Hmmm...

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Everland blooms with tulips!

We were in time for the Tulip Festival.

Rose Magic Tree.

It took us a while to get through the entrance. All those flowers were making us girls giddy.

A big smile from this little guy.

She's super duper happy to see all these tulips.

The brilliantly-colored tulips let everyone know that spring has arrived and the cold winter months are gone.

Soft pink tulips! If only Anika could have a photo taken with every color, she would!

First ride of the day.

The cable car ride brought us to the European Adventure zone.

The Four Seasons Garden can be seen from the ramp.

Circus time!

Took a peek at the garden as we were waiting for the circus doors to be open.

The Four Seasons Garden holds approximately 120 different kinds of tulips. Those tulips were planted according to their time of bloom, color, size, and shape.

photo credit : Everland.com

photo credit : Everland.com

photo credit : Everland.com

It's showtime!

A short clip from the show.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Sky High Ride.

The ride was super chill which I liked.

The T Express rollercoaster. It is the world's fourth steepest wooden roller coaster. It is also the world's ninth fastest, fourth tallest, and sixth longest wooden coaster.

Double Rock Spin vid.

We had lunch at the Beer Garden. That didn't sound right. But we did! Haha!

After the 4d Rio Adventure, were some macaws by the exit. It also led us to the area where the kiddies could do some feeding.

Marco.

Anika.

Enzo.

Izac.

Zootopia zone is next.

Safari World.

All eager to see the white tigers, tigers, lions and bears.

A bear! Oh my! It is huge!

We like to move it, move it!

We stayed until night time so we could watch the Moonlight Parade and the fireworks show. The Parade started at around 7:30pm and lasted for about 40 minutes. It was pretty cold since Everland is situated on a mountain. It was about 6 to 8 degrees Celsius.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Everland Resort's main characters Laciun and Laila (South Korea's version of Mickey and Minnie) greeted everyone from atop this float.

Final event for the day was the fireworks show at the Four Seasons Garden.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Cotton candy and fireworks-watching for Marco and Anika.

It was a grand show and I'm glad we stayed to witness it. I hope you will too, as you view this vid.

Just a few of the many, many rides that we missed. The place is enormous and two days won't even be enough to explore the entire resort, Everland and Carribean Bay included. Photos from Everland.com

Exploring Seoul Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 17 May 2015 09:51:00 +0000

A big jumble of snaps from our recent trip to Seoul with our dear family friends Laurd and Mia and their three boys.
Our plane landed in Seoul past midnight and we're excited!

8 degrees weather :-) We loved it!

The taxi ride for 60,000 won took almost an hour to get to our hotel. Car rides out from the airport always feel nice especially when it's your first time in a new, exciting place.

Knocked out at the Jongno Ramada Hotel lobby.

Good morning, sleepyheads! Seoul awaits you!

Feeling the first rays of the sun as we walked out the hotel lobby...the scent of new air...every place smells different. Eager to start our adventure!

First stop was Gwangjang Market for breakfast. Just five minutes away from our hotel.

Voila!

Kimbap...

and Bindaetteok particularly stood out among the great variety of food choices at the market.

Mia's handsome hungry bunch!

Back to the hotel for a quick break before heading out.

Arrived Gyeongbokgung Palace about half past twelve. Just in time for the changing of the guards ceremony. They do the re-eneactment daily at the palace at 10am, 1pm and 3pm.

The largest of the Five Grand Palaces of the Joseon Dynasty.

The season has passed but lucky to see a few cherry blossoms at the palace. One of Anika's dreams just came true that day!

Gyeongbokgung Palace, built in 1395, was the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty. Our kids' playground for the day.

Selfie time, but whatchagonnado :-)

Playing paparazzi on the Mr.

Anika, Papa Laurd and the Imperial Throne Hall.

Oh, how they love to run!

Luca goes 'Lamborghini, run!'. Then ran as fast as he could!

A snap of the old and the new.

Headed to Tosokchon for some lunch. Just a couple of blocks away from the palace. A classic restaurant that has been in business for over 3 decades. Their specialty is the Ginseng-Chicken Stew, or Samgyetang.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Read about the long queues they had daily. Good thing we got a table the moment we arrived.
Of course, we ordered the Ginseng Chicken stuffed with rice, Black Chicken and some soju.

photo credit : y-oonyee.blogspot.com

The dish wasn't salty at all. It was very aromatic though, but it didn't please our Pinoy palate. Haha!

Next was Samcheongdong-gil Road.

A pleasant walk around the block brought us to these lovely spots.

Super thrilled to see some lavander, her favorite flower and color. Another dream that came true that day for this little gal.

At the end of the block is the residence of the Prime Minister. Saw a cluster of media peeps by the entrance gate and more on the opposite building across armored with telephoto lenses. The guard in a glass box looked unreal. We were amused to see him get out of the box, and get back in. He never moves, once inside.

Samcheongdong-gil Road. A charming street full of trendy cafes and botiques.

The laid-back atmosphere at Samcheongdong-gil makes it extremely attractive if you are looking for a relaxed day in the fast-paced city.

We chose the rooftop at Cafe Breezin.

From the rooftop, you could have a clear view of Samcheongdong and Mt. Bugaksan in the background.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Loved the hipster feel in this place.

Next on the agenda was the Dongdaemun Design Plaza.

The architecture is just super. Truly a design marvel.

photo credit : Tumblr.

By the garden were about 20,000 rose led lights! It was pretty impressive in person.

I'm sure if Laurd had his way, he would spend the whole day here! The spatial flow and organization is just captivating.

photo credit : Virgile Simon Bertrand

photo credit : Virgile Simon Bertrand

photo credit : ayuavenue.wordpress.com

photo credit : Michael Quezon

Right across was Dongdaemun Shopping Complex. By this time we were famished!

Happy to have some beef bulgogi and ramen at the 7th floor of this place.

photo credit : Michael Quezon

It was a good first day in the city and proud to say that all our kiddies were such troopers!

Happy Birthday, Michael!

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Tue, 12 May 2015 03:51:00 +0000

Can you believe it 's your 43th?!!!? Happy Birthday, honey!

Thank you for all that you are. And for being a great father to our kiddies.

Loved this moment from that afternoon in Samcheongdong-gil Road 삼청동.

According to Anika, you do a better ballet-bun hairstyle than I do! She says your style is salon-style!!! Can't argue with that. :-)

Tired feet. Happy heart.

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Sun, 26 Apr 2015 10:17:00 +0000

Feels good to be home! Spent five wonderful days in Seoul with our dear family friends Laurd and Mia, along with their boys- Enzo, Marco and Luca, our kids' BFFs.

Chanced upon a photo shoot in Namsangol Hanok Village. Laurd and I asked permission to take a few snaps. The photographer was kind enough to let us join in. Cool!

I never thought this day would turn out to be so wonderful!

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 06:46:00 +0000

Those were Anika's words the day they got their pet rabbits.

Here she is with her pet, Grace.

Izac named his pet, Ocean.

Been making sorts of waffle meals for Anika and she super loves them! Well, I just wanted to show her these photos when she back-reads a few years from now.

Meanwhile, my nephews Jaime and Sandro are growing up too fast. Looking forward to seeing these cuties this summer.

Sunday FUNday!

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 06:15:00 +0000

Old friends gathered at Ricky's beach house a couple of Sundays ago.

All our kids in one kiddie pool!

Rain, Connie and Ricky's precious angel.

Just look at those dimples. What a cutie!

Tiny brought along his wakeboard. So we all hopped on the boat for some fun!

Uptown funk you up, Uptown funk you up! Our favorite song for this summer.

Someone's trying to put on a straight face! Haha!

Manger, Cynthia and baby Cael.

Someone got a hold of the spoon and the ice cream!!

Summer is here and we're loving it!

Thanks Connie and Ricky for an awesome day!

A good day to celebrate

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 09:35:00 +0000

We drove up to Laurd and Mia's stone cabin to celebrate Luca's birthday!

Photo credit : Laurd Young

Photo credit : Laurd Young

Manok bisaya, corn on the cob, country style ribs, squid, shrimps and chicken bisaya tinola were on the menu. Yumm!

Enzo ordering from "Marco & Anika's Store."

Struggling to get out of that hammock! If only Izac would touch the ground. Haha!

Mama Mia looks on with love and pure joy.

Luca asked me - "Tita Cristeen, please help me taktak my shoes." Of course, I said yes! But I had to snap this shot first. It was just too cute to let it pass without a shot!

Then he gave me this smile and said, "thank you, Tita Cristeen!"

The rest of the day went by slowly, which we all loved.

The thing Michael and I love about our friends is that we can count on them. Because they make sure our abs hurt from laughing! They also make sure that our bellies are full. As well as our hearts.
And that's good enough for us.

Compiled a short vid from that day. Enjoy!

Footage credit : Laurd Young

MANILA WEEKEND 2015

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Tue, 20 Jan 2015 16:16:00 +0000

We skipped off early for a weekend in Manila with family...

...and to watch this with Anika.
One of the highlights of the trip was to watch Beauty and The Beast as presented by NETworks and Broadway Entertainment Group.

So excited to be made up by Achi Jules.

This was it! Anika's big night out.

My little lady with the fluid staircase in the background. A creation by Leandro Locsin that keeps me staring for minutes whenever I'm inside this brutalist structure.

It was wonderful to share her first broadway experience with Jason, Mimi and Jules.

A photo op with Pop Francis' life-size image at the CCP.
The image was wearing the same raincoat he wore like everybody else while holding the mass in Tacloban earlier that day.
"Black and White" in the background. An artwork by Arturo Luz that never gets out of style.

Anika loved it and had so much fun! There were a lot of 'ooohs' and 'aahhhs' from her that night.
It was an awesome show!
Photos grabbed from NETworks.

Family time was next in order. We had a slow Sunday which we all loved.
It was a perfect sweater weather at 20 degress C. The pitter patter of rain on the roof added to the already relaxing and steady day we had.
Justin prepped portobello mushroom pasta with truffle sauce.
While Kayla quickly whipped up some chorizo nachos!

Jaime now walks and has grown a lot since summer of last year!

Carlos ngohiong was perfect for that gloomy and chilly day. Ha!

As I captioned in my IG - Photography shouldn't be a burden to create the next best image but rather let it reflect what you love about the life around you.
That is so true in this image. These two were just hanging and I just love that they're comfortable together.

Spideys on the loose! Always love photos shot by an Instax cam. Thanks Kayla!

Jaime, oh Jaime! Why so adorbs?!

Yup, the eating continues! Just one of the things we love to do together. Haha!
Effie's chicken parmigiana.
Mr. S! The cutest Spiderman ever.

Finally, a family photo souvenir.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

The Wizard of Oz

noreply@blogger.com (Cristeen Quezon) — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 14:43:00 +0000

The day finally came for their Christmas ballet presentation. After weeks of practice, here they were. All ready and excited!

Anika took part in two dances - Poppies and Emerald City.

The Wizard of Oz as presented by Cebu Center for Dance.

Dorothy lay on the ground after a whirling wind came down the farm.

When Dorothy learned of the aftermath of the disaster, she saw a spiraling yellow road before her. She also discovered a pair of feet clad in red shoes sticking out from beneath the set. The good witch, gracefully swishes about introducing the Munchkins, a gang of child dancers who skip out from the wings in whimsical multicolored dresses. The Munchkins hid their eyes when the green-skinned Wicked Witch came into view. Dorothy puts on the dead witch’s magical shoes and began her journey.

Dorothy met the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Lion along the yellow brick road.

Before Dorothy and her new friends reached the Emerald City, they encounter the Poppy corps.

Proud momma moment.

The Snow corps.

End of Act I. My little ballerina takes a bow.

Act II began with the arrival of Dorothy and her friends at the Emerald City.

The monkeys brought Dorothy to the Wicked Witch.
Dorothy, enraged by the witch’s taunting of the Scarecrow, tosses a bucket of water onto her, and the Wicked Witch dissolved into nothingness beneath a huge black cape.

They got rid of their enemy. Dorothy and her friends once again approached the Emerald City where they finally met the Wizard. He was able to grant her friends’ special requests.

The ballet show came to an end when Dorothy awakens to find that her farm life has returned to normal.

Another proud momma moment. Anika takes a bow at the finale.

Well done!

Just look at those big smiles! Bravo for a good show!