Teambuilding at Caliraya Resort

Our annual company outing/teambuilding was held at Caliraya Resort in Caliraya, Laguna. It was a three-hour drive from the city, which extended to four after several unplanned stopovers. Traffic was heavy in Pansol due to other vacationers who wanted to swim and relax in the different hot spring resorts in the area.

We arrived at the resort at 2pm, the check-in time, but the rooms were not yet ready to accommodate us. To compensate for our inconvenience, they served us free merienda consisting of a tasteless hamburger and cough-syrupy juice. Good thing the lobby had several sofas and chairs where we were able to relax a bit.

After a change of clothes and rest time, we went out to enjoy the fresh air and take in the view. The resort was expansive with lots of green grass and horses (some were untied) happily munching on the grass.

Earth ball

Our group was divided into two teams and we were excited to play the "Amazing Race". Puzzle game, wall climbing, swimming, canoeing, basketball shooting, obstacle course, and mud slide were the activities each team must go through. It was a lot of fun but very exhausting! I even tried to wall climb but just reached half the wall before quitting. My fear of heights got the best of me. Good thing there was no picture of me in that activity. :)

Food
We were served dinner, breakfast, and lunch, buffet-style. Some of the food items were good, some not so.

The next day, we tried the other facilities in the resort such as the Zip line, swimming pool, and the man-made exercise equipment. We could have done alot more if we were not pressed for time.

Images are taken by my office mates


Caliraya Resort Club

Brgy. Lewin, Lumban, Laguna, Philippines
HOTLINE Numbers:
+63 2 637 7027
+63 2 638 0515
http://www.caliraya.net/

5K Run

One of my goals for 2012 is to be able to join a 5K fun run, if possible during my birthday week in August. I joined a 3K run last 2009 and I want to do it again but I have to level up.

I'm not an avid runner. I have a sort-of love-hate relationship with running. Having a goal like joining a fun run will prompt me to actually start running again. 

At first I thought running might further jeopardize the position of my cervix ("mababa ang matris" ko, I don't know if there's an English term for that.) but I've been putting off running for a few years now because of that. Right now, I don't want to be a person who puts her life on hold.

I've searched for a training plan to use and found this perfect plan for me at The Running Bug. The pace is just right for me, being a sedentary person for years. I don't want to rush into running, afraid of injuring myself in the process.

Wish me luck!

Overseas Communication



image here

 Being a girlfriend-turned-wife of a seaman has its fair share of ups and downs. Aside from the temporary separation (which some may see as an advantage, hehe), one of the downside of having a husband overseas is communication.

Hubby always makes it a point to call me whenever they are in port, or when there is a signal and he has a call card. In a month we're lucky to hear each other's voices 2-3 times. That's amidst the telephone noise, message delay, and time difference. There were times when his calls would wake me up around 2 or 3 in the morning (the hour of deep sleep!), or I wouldn't be able to sleep, expecting his call. Sometimes, his next text message will come weeks after the last one due to lack of network signal, usually when the ship is at sea.

It's hard not to be able to talk with your husband every single day, especially for us when we are just in the early years of marriage. We are just grateful for every opportunity for us to communicate. Every text message is precious. Every call is hoped for.

It's not a Scarf! It's a Furoshiki

Furoshiki is a piece of cloth widely used in wrapping items, especially lunch/bento boxes, in Japan. When I was young, I watched "Japan Video Topics", a show about Japanese culture, and there I learned about this useful and eco-friendly cloth.

Japan Video Topics showed how to use a furoshiki in wrapping different items such as bento box, books, bottle of wine, and even a watermelon. It was so cute, like doing origami. Since then, I wanted to have a furoshiki just to try wrapping items with cloth. I can use a scarf, but I think I should use the real thing.

Thanks to my sister's friend who was in Japan for several months and who just arrived recently. He brought home a furoshiki. My very own.

Here's my first furoshiki-wrapped item (my lunch box) in a basic carry wrap. I got the instructions here.

Otsukai Tsutsumi

Change of Habit

I've successfully done my Habit #1: Morning Power Drink. Since February, I've been drinking pure calamansi juice every morning, one hour before breakfast. Calamansi is always in my grocery list. I buy 1-2 kilos of this local lemon weekly.

Now, I think I may have to find another source to get pure Vitamin C in my body. The reason? Price increase! The price of calamansi jumped from P57/kg to P93/kg in just three weeks! That's higher than the oil price hikes. I'm not sure why this drastic price increase. Calamansi harvest is going low nowadays? I don't know.

I'm sad that I'm discarding my Power Drink. I know I can still find another alternative source of Vit. C that is not in pill form.

Dona Jovita Garden Resort

you can't miss this giant jug along the highway

Our family had our yearly summer outing last Saturday at Dona Jovita in Calamba, Laguna. This is the third year in a row we spent our outing there.

The resort is expansive, they have two types of accomodations -- Garden and Mediterranean. We always go to the Garden resort where trees were preserved and there are lots of plants around. You barely feel the sun's heat because of the foilage. Unlike in other resorts where all you see are gray, dull walls. 

tree house

We brought my godchild and so-called "foster child" in this swimming escapade. At first, she was hesitant to play with the water or join other children in the kiddie pool. After seeing other kids having fun, she slowly splashed some pool water and I let her play with our beach ball. She had so much fun frolicking in the pool! 



weee!

Dona Jovita Garden Resort
Km. 57 National Highway

Bagong Kalsada, Calamba City, Laguna
http://www.jovitaresort.com/