okay sa ocular

Soon-to-be-maid-of-honor Jhen asked for wedding and bridal shower venues recently so we decided to spend last December 5 to conduct ocular visits on possible venues in Tagaytay. Chiqui heard about our plans and hastily filed for a leave so she could join us. Sa sobrang excitement namin, we forgot to check kung may bagyo ba or uulan ba on that day. Kaya yun, exactong pagdating namin sa Tagaytay, dumilim na ang sky at umulan na. Low visibility pa kasi the fog from Taal Lake was all over Tagaytay ridge! Haaaay, buti na lang, game pa rin kami.

Bag of Beans
The first stop was Pink Sisters Convent para we could say a proper thank you to God that we survived our MA coursework. The next stop, Bag of Beans, was Chiqui's suggestion. I've read about this coffeeshop and I've seen its facade several times before. Pero now lang ako nakapasok. And I loved it! Cozy ambience. Reminds me a lot of Sonya's Garden. Great venue for a reception. Food (we ordered pancakes and omelette) was yummy too. Sarap ng kape! Siyempre, dito na nagsimula ang pictorial namin. Hehehe.








Calaruega
It was Jhen's first visit to the place so tamang-tamang i-tour siya for an ocular. It was really raining when we got there. The funny thing was, super daming tao! It turned out there was a school retreat and a wedding at that time. Papasok pa lang sa lobby ng lugar, mega-kodakan na kami. We couldn't resist the sprawling staircase to the retreat quarters. Ang ganda talaga kasi! Then we went to the gardens that led to the church up the hill. Lumalakas na ang ulan at hangin pero akyat pa rin kami. We got stranded for awhile inside the church dahil bumuhos na talaga ang ulan, plus yung hangin was the type na sisirain na talaga ang payong mo. So mega-pray na naman kami -- para tumigil ang ulan, para maging okay ang upcoming compre exam (and para ma-meet na rin si Mr. Right. Hehehe.)










Nurture Spa
Next in our itinerary was this famous spa. First time nila Jhen and Chiqui so the staff gave us a grand tour, and provided us with umbrellas siyempre. Jhen loved the place and the services kaya she decided right there and then that a spa package was a great wedding gift for her kuya and his fiancee. We weren't able to resist the place either so nagpa-head and upper body massage na rin kami while were there -- yun kasi ang pinakamurang service eh. Hehehe. Di bale, may libreng ginger tea naman. Hehehe.

Josephine's

2p.m. na nung matapos ang massage so naghanap agad kami ng makakainan. We had to pick one na may indoor dining area kasi umulan na naman. So we decided on Josephine's. Masarap naman ang food. It wasn't super expensive either. And the view was superb -- kahit na we could literally see and hear the oncoming fog and rain from the lake!





The Public Market

Chiqui wanted to buy barako coffee so we went to the market for some beans. Ang bango ng kape, grabe!

Mocha Blends

Coffee seemed to be the obvious theme of our Tagaytay trip. Nagpunta pa kasi kami sa Mocha Blends for meryenda before heading back to Manila. The branch in Tagaytay was owned by the family of my mom's friend, Tita Jenny. Her daughter Jacqueline was there kaya nagpa-picture na rin kami with her.

We left Tagaytay around 6:30 p.m. and got back to Manila around 8:30p.m. Super traffic pa sa lagay na yun ha! We didn't mind though kasi tawa lang kami ng tawa the entire ride home.

Potential wedding / bridal shower venues: Check!

Coffee galore: Check!

Stress-free day: Check!