The Preview Best Dressed event at the Embassy was a big success.
The person I styled was the hands down winner in her Tina Daniac dress, with the exception of Preview’s editor-in-chief Pauline Suaco and July cover girl and awardee herself, Anne Curtis, was so well-dressed for the event. She was accompanied by her husband and her mother, and we were seated at the publisher’s area. We were with Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng, her sister Robina and brother Lance, and as the old man of the Gokongwei empire John said in an interview prior to his retirement, he is so proud of Lisa for turning a rag tag company into a respectable entity in the local publishing industry, starting with Preview in 1995 followed by imported titles like Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, Men’s Health, T3, Entrepreneur, the defunct Prevention & Game Masters, and the soon-to-be-launched Town And Country Philippine Edition, and local titles such as Candy, Real Living, Yes!, and the new food magazine, Yummy! The other awardees were Karen Davila, Valerie De Los Santos, Mia Borromeo, Susie Go, Patty Estaquio, and Marie Lozano of Star Patrol of TV Patrol. When I saw Mario Dumawal, her boss from Channel 2 who was covering the event, he told me that Marie just gave birth a week ago, thus, she couldn’t make it to the awarding.
The event lasted until midnight, and the people transferred to the VIP room of Embassy afterwards. I bumped into Tessa Prieto-Valdes and she just kept on laughing about the Marie Claire interview where she saw my photo with my two pooches, Beaver and Charlie. She was seated with her sister-in-law, Ria Francisco-Prieto, who is also with Phil. Daily Inquirer and was formerly with Summit, prior to her wedding with Paolo Prieto.
After the event, I decided to go home and planned my monthly novena trip to Manaoag. I left Manila the next day, after attending the Meg’s anniversary at Rockwell Tent. I just dropped by to say my hellos to the editorial staff headed by Peewee Reyes-Isidro. I saw managing editor Mabel David-Pilar outside waiting for husband Peejo, and bumped into Meg’s former EIC Pierra Calasanz-Labrador with photographer husband Toto. Other Mega Magazine’s editorial people such as Manual’s Mela De Luna and Paolo Lorenzana, Girlfriend’s Beverly Dalton, advertising staff Iaree Reyes, Ana Celdran and the event’s group headed by Sophie Menor were having their hands full enjoying the party. I also saw my good friend Belle, and she said she saw me at St. Jude hearing mass. It is to Belle that I owe my devotion to Sacred Heart Of Jesus since she introduced me to it last 2002. I told Belle that I am going to the Shrine of Our Lady Of Manaoag and she expressed her desire to visit the Shrine soon. I had 3 cheeseburgers from the Wendy’s booth and 3 fruitshakes from Fruit Magic as well as 2 Cokes, how’s that for an appetite?
It was raining the evening of Saturday and I had second thoughts of leaving for Manaoag. The weather was so perfect for snuggling in bed, however, I felt guilty that I was not able to make my trip last June so I decided to time my trip on the first Sunday of July, which fell on first of July. I waited for 2 hours for the bus along EDSA under the drizzle and it was enough for me to postpone my trip since I won’t be able to make it to the first mass at 5 a.m. I boarded the bus at around 3 a.m. and I am really amazed how God turns things around.
The travel along North Luzon Tollway was a breeze and I just slept all the way to Manaoag, Pangasinan. I was surprised that I was in Manaoag at exactly 6 a.m., a mere 3 hours travel time. The Sunday crowd in the shrine was jampacked, for it being a Sunday. The line alone to touch the Blessed Virgin at the altar took me an hour, I think I should visit the Virgin on a weekday and try to make the 5 a.m. mass since the church’s doors open at 4 a.m., giving me ample time to light candles and be the first in line to touch the Virgin Mother. I heard the 8 a.m. mass and left for Baguio at around 9:30 a.m.
The driver of the van was half-crazy, he darted along the treacherous Kennon Road as if it was a one-way zigzag road and there were couple of times that we almost bumped into an incoming vehicle from the opposite lane. I slept throughout the 30-minute trip, but I heard my co-passengers complaining about the driver’s driving skills, or lack there of.
Upon arriving in Baguio, I was looking forward for my favorite breakfast, the Ole Nick’s Fish Sandwich from Café By The Ruins, followed by a hot champorado (chocolate-flavored rice porridge), and the fruit salad laced with honey as dressing. I was really hungry, and when I went to the resto’s location, I found out that it has been closed for renovation starting last month, June 12, and lasting for 4 weeks. With the exception of Bacquen Realty and the Café By The Ruins’s bakeshop window, the entire place is undergoing major, as in ceiling-to-floor makeover. Now I have another reason to visit Manaoag this month and do a quick detour to Baguio to visit the newly-renovated Café By The Ruins.
Craving for champorado on a balmy Baguio day, I trooped all the way to Max’s restaurant in Burnham Suites, and upon arriving in the building, I found out that they have closed Max’s in that location. I have no choice but to troop all the way to SM Baguio wherein there is another Max’s store. I decided to check first some stores in Session Road, especially the magazine stalls as well as those puppies being sold by the sidewalk. I love puppies, and if I have enough resources, I could have given Lolit Solis a big challenge. Nanay Lolit has 47, count that, 47 dogs in her house. That’s why she has the perfect excuse to make “harbat” (“to get everything” in gay lingo) leftover foods in presscons and showbiz party because she has to feed 47 mouths, plus another set of human mouths.
Upon reaching SM Baguio, I was so famished. I went up and down, up and down, using the escalators, the stairs, but no Max’s in sight. I had to ask the guard which exactly is the third level, which is supposed to be the location of Max’s, then I was told that it is in the viewing deck level or the atrium, how’s that for clear direction. Upon reaching Max’s and I ordered champorado for breakfast, I was told that not all Max’s branches serve breakfast, including champorado. I guess I have to say goodbye to champorado for breakfast.
Out of frustration, I just ate at Andok’s near the bus station and decided to go home since I didn’t find anything in SM Baguio, no books or magazines from Booksale, no sale at Adidas, although Nike Free is being sold at 20% off, and I was tempted to buy one when I realized that I had to pay my Globe bill first since it was disconnected already by Globe. And for the first time after numerous trips to Baguio, I did something out of the ordinary. I bought my first ever “walis” (broom) from Baguio. Yes! I am guilty, the reason I never bought “walis” before in Baguio is that I find it tacky, the things that tourists buy, together with everlasting, peanut brittle, strawberry jam. At P35 per piece, it is actually a steal because I pay P100 to buy “walis” made in Baguio in Shopwise or Rustan’s, so I get to save P65 at least. Well, for this trip, including the P700 round trip fare, a P65 saving means a lot, especially for someone who has nothing much.
Upon reaching Manila, I decided to heat some water and opened 2 sachets of my favorite Maggi champorado, added some more Milo, and I had my serving of what I always wanted 12 hours earlier. Now I should make my Thursday novena at St. Jude before lunch so that I can order champorado at Max’s near Malacanang gate.
How can a social climber eat champorado, buy walis, hobnob with the rich and famous, and stay grounded? I guess all the novenas will do the trick. To you TNT persona non grata, eat you heart out.
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