Phantom of The Opera Date

Finally, 3 years after our first show experience at the Dubai Opera, my friends and I were able to watch yet another classic.  "The Phantom of The Opera" is in Dubai for a limited period, and we're so happy we were able to score seats on a whim!

Now if you know me, you'd realize by now that I have a soft spot for theatre.  While I did not major in theatre back in college, I earned a few units in my theatre classes and loved every minute of it.  So any excuse to watch a show is always exciting especially when you're in good company.

Dubai Opera as a venue never disappoints.  I am impressed with their acoustic design -- the sound is always crisp and pleasant to the ears.  The orchestra's beautiful music was given the justice it so deserved.  Hearing Andrew Lloyd Weber's famous "The Music of the Night”, “All I Ask of You”, “Think of Me”, and“The Phantom of the Opera” sung ever so perfectly is just incredible!

We got in right on time and were able to settle in 5 minutes before the show started.  The Act I was stupendous! I had goosebumps all over just hearing Christine sing.  Claire Lyon was perfect for the role! 

During the 20-minute intermission, we helped ourselves with a glass of Möet & Chandon because sipping bubbly and opera do go together, don't you think?  The phantom would approve! :)

Act II was even better, and I think the entire cast really gave their all until the show concluded.  The lights, the sounds, the stage design, the actors, the orchestra -- they were all incredible!  I just had to give them a standing ovation for their remarkable performance!  

You still have until 9th November to catch The Phantom of The Opera.  Tickets start at AED 350, and are available from Dubai Opera, Virgin Megastore & Platinumlist.

Dade's (and hubby's) First Metro ride

Dubai's own railway system opened September of last year. However, it took us months before we finally had a chance to ride it because we didn’t find any reason to take it in the first place. My first ride was around May, and I was with my cousin S. We took it from Mall of the Emirates to her apartment, 21st Century Tower which is just right in front of the Financial Centre Station (yep, a 10-minute walk from my office building).

Last month, we were invited to come celebrate our friends’ daughter’s 6th month birthday at their flat in Dubai Marina. Ryan and I thought it was the perfect opportunity to take the train with the little one since the JBR Station is just right next to our friends’ building.  And since it’s difficult to get a parking spot at Dubai Marina, we thought of taking the Metro and just leave our car in a mall in the other side of town.

Here’s a picture of our wee one on our way to JBR station:

The trip was long, I tell ya! It took us 45 minutes from Deira City Centre Station to JBR Station, which would normally take a little over 20 minutes by car at the maximum speed limit. It has a lot of stops so you can tell the little boy became fussy towards the middle of the ride. Despite our level best to entertain him with the view outside, he still insisted on getting off my lap and walking around, which we prevented him to do so and much to his dismay!

We were relieved when we finally had to get off our stop because the boy was annoyed already.  Good thing he was entertained by the walkalator so he was back to his usual self before we arrived at our destination.

The ride back went way smoothly because Dade was already tired then. but before he fell asleep, I took this picture of him and the Daddy as a little keepsake.

Blackberry Is Love

Ok, first thing's first. Blackberry is here to stay. Hooray!!

Let me give you the lowdown on that.  last August while on holiday in Manila, i got a BB Message from my bessie B saying that the TRA in the UAE announced the cancellation of the services of the Blackberry Internet Service (BIS) effective October 11.  We were all shocked and disappointed learning about this piece of news.  You see, a lot of people in the UAE, whether business people or not, are subscribed to BIS.  It makes it easy for people to communicate with one another, and chatting through BB Messenger is just the best thing ever in mobile phone technology :)

Anyhoo, we’re just soooo glad the ban was lifted at the eleventh hour.  And what better way to celebrate that than a complimentary coffee, doughnut, loyalty card and a Blackberry skin courtesy of Research in Motion and Caribou Coffee (yay, Canadian peeps!).  This promotion will run for 3 Thursdays in a row at the DIFC, Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates branches of Caribou.

I got my freebies this morning, and it sure did wake me up! Now i have this cheery self walking around the halls at work with my ponytail bouncing like a cheerleader’s.  See, told you I’m a sucker for freebies, haha!

Empty

This is completely unheard of from where I am from.



Surprisingly, this Starbucks outlet didn’t even had one single customer when we passed by yesterday at half past one in the afternoon, and to think that it’s situated inside a mall.  It’s so strange because for a weekend, this coffee shop should be busy with people and not look desolated.  Hubby and I could not believe our eyes!

We bet the reason why it’s empty is because they don’t offer free wi-fi :P

Free Coffee at Caffe Nero

This UK coffee chain has opened it's shop in our centre, and so one Thursday early evening, the husband and I decided to give their coffee a try.  I had vouchers for the buy one free one coffee so in case we get disappointed, at least we know we didn't pay for two cups and instead just wasted our money on one...haha!

We ordered Mocha Frappe Latte and Caramel Frappe Latte.  What’s different about their cold coffee is that they have ready-flavored coffee in their chiller, which you just have to grab. You bring it to the counter to pay, and then they will blend it for you with ice.  I personally didn’t like it because it doesn’t have that texture, and it felt like I was just drinking cold, thick coffee.

Anyway, free coffee is still free coffee, so what the heck!  I still have two vouchers good until November so maybe we’ll try & order other variants they have on our next visit.

What A Wet Weekend!

My son has developed a love for the waters.  He used to abhor taking a bath but now he loves every minute of being immersed in water and getting all wet.  I think he's fascinated with the splish-splash of water and the sound it makes.

Last weekend, he had a playdate with Klyde, Karlisle and Guianna at Le Meridien and swimming was their chosen activity for the day.  The afternoon was just perfect -- the weather was great, the water's temperature was just warm enough (and very little Chlorine was added, too!), and most importantly, we had the pool to ourselves.

people watching while sitting on his floater

hey Dade!

baby Karlisle

Kuya Klyde

the only rose in the garden, Guianna

Dade, Karlisle's just borrowing, ok?

strong grip (i'm there just about half an arm's length away)

I was quite suprised to find out how independent and strong my little boy is.  At 8 months, he could sit comfortably in his baby floater.  He kicked like mad trying to move from one spot to another.  He was also brave enough to immerse his head under the water twice.  I wish I could enroll him in some baby aquatics class because I could see that he enjoyed his time, and if given the proper exercises, he could learn to float like those other babies I see on TV. Hubby & I think that's what he wants to do.  If there are such classes here, I hope they're not too pricey so we can enroll him and see him have fun and interact with other babies, too.

Dinner was courtesy of Klyde & Karlisle's grandma.  Perfectly good to cap the day's fun activity :)

Thanks H for inviting us (and for the lovely pictures!)! 'Til the next playdate of our little ones!

Happy Easter!

Since this is Dade's first Easter, I decided to get him this cute bib from Carter's:

super pa-cute

I also dressed him up in his Easter outfit, and thought he looked really cute in it.  He must've thought it's real cool to be standing up already and  not holding on to anything so when we were about to pick him up to leave for dinner, he leaned forward and took a step.  Good thing both Ryan & I were just inches away else he had fallen off.

Mom's cutie patootie

Dinner was at Gourmet Burger Kitchen.  We ordered Garlic Mayo & Bleu Cheese burgers, and using my GBK card, we only had to pay for one burger (yeehaw!).  Our little boy, meanwhile, had Fine Green Beans and Potatoes washed down with 4 oz of milk.  Takaw!

feeding the boss

the 2 boys I love the most

a whopping burger no less

Hope your Easter Sunday went well, too.  Let us not forget to say a silent prayer to thank God for giving up His Son for us.  Take care everyone!  Have a great week & may God bless us all!

Hodgepodge

My mind is just racing with tons of ideas that I can’t seem to stay still. I'm multi-tasking and yet I still feel like I haven’t got enough time to do everything I wanna do.  For starters, I need to focus on keeping the house spic and span because we have guests arriving on Friday. I invited dear husband’s friends over for dinner after our Al Qasba date, which is just about 10 minutes drive from our place. I already have a menu in mind – I just hope Ryan will help out with the cooking :)

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I also am starting to prepare for the birthday party of Dade. I know I’m kind of late already, but I was just too swamped with work lately not to mention the fact that I have other things on my plate that need my full attention.  It’s really tough being a working Mom. *sigh!*

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After such a long while, I was able to go out for lunch with my colleagues at The Monarch Hotel. Ruth’s Chris Steak House is having a promo going on from yesterday till tomorrow. They’re giving out complimentary Prime Burger from 12 noon to 2:30 pm. All you have to do is make a reservation, show up, and pay for your drinks & anything extra.

Abbie & Gina

Auee & Marky

that's moi!

my lunch for the day with a glass of virgin mojito

I liked the chips and the burger but would’ve loved it if they were generous with the size. Gourmet Burger Kitchen & Johnny Rockets serve bigger patties in bigger buns.

(pardon the low quality BB pics)

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We finally fixed Dade’s nursery!  The little tot now has a play area where he can sit, crawl, and learn how to walk.  I love the mats that we ended up getting!  They’re 100 x 100 cm in size, and about an inch thick each, so Ryan & I can lie down with Dade without having to worry about breaking his mat…haha!

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I know this is sooo late, but i just have to say I love Sandra Bullock’s look at the Oscar’s!  So svelte!  That’s what you call a winning look!

(photo courtesy of Oscar.com)

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I am super attached to my Blackberry!  If one day goes by without a properly working Blackberry Internet Service (BIS), I go nuts already!  Blame it on the Blackberry Messenger & Facebook!

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I found the place where we could get our weekly fix of taho.  Thanks to New West Zone's Grocery in Al Ghusais, we can now savor the taste of this beloved soybean delicacy without having to fly home.

yummy-licious!

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These are just some of the things going on inside my head.  Expect a couple of cohesive posts in the next coming days.  I want the rest of my stories and thoughts accompanied by pictures.

Till my next post. Ta ta!

Our Happy Weekends

For several weekends, our young family has been busy meeting up with friends just to catch up.

Like one Friday morning, we had breakfast with bessie B, and went window shopping at Dubai Festival City.

Dade with Ninang B

having his breakfast, too

mall rats at 10:15 am

And then there was a Saturday morning where we went to the park with our college friends just to let the little ones have a dose of sunshine and a breathe of fresh air.

at the park on a beautiful morning

grumpy already

*pics courtesy of Armil

We also attended the Pinoy family day of the DIFC at Al Mamzar Park two Fridays ago, which was a real blast.

all about Dade

one of our few family pics

with my Pinay colleagues

*pics courtesy of Ivory

Another Saturday was spent in Gracita & Harvey’s apartment that turned out to be a wonderful playdate for the kids (and the Dads, too!)

with new friends, Annika & Sophia

well-behaved little boy (Mom's so proud!)

wasted after playing, feeding & pooping :P

We’re trying to squeeze as much activities as we can before the weather turns sour.  We have yet to spend an afternoon at Al Qasba in Sharjah, and a trip to Abu Dhabi to see Ryan’s Godmother and show off the baby. I hope the nice weather stretches further though.

A Weekend Movie Date

…made possible by my good friend at work, Abbie. yay!

We were so lucky Abbie volunteered to babysit Dade last Friday so we could watch Alice in Wonderland in 3D.  Despite the bad reviews from people who’ve seen it, we decided to give it a go as we never really get to go out frequently on a date since we had Dade.  Plus I like Johnny Depp.

So off we went to Abbie’s place at Uptown Mirdif to entrust our little boy to her.  After we settled Dade to his new play area and briefed Abbie on what to do, we left them in each other’s company, and drove to Dubai Mall for our much-awaited movie date.  Traffic was a breeze so we arrived kind of early at the theater.  Since we booked our tickets online the day before, it only took us less than 2 minutes to claim our tickets so we had enough time to squeeze in a healthy afternoon snack at The Frozen Yogurt Factory and pick up a tray of Nachos, hotdog sandwich and colas at the snack bar to bring to the theater.  Our date felt like a flashback of our dating years back in college – we had fun!

The movie was eerily dark for a children’s movie -- very typical of any Tim Burton film. Ryan got bored with the movie he slipped into a deep slumber in the middle of it.  After the screening, we picked up a few items for Dade – veggies, a new binkie, a Fisher Price Toy, and a new bottle & accessories keeper.  We also bumped into my ex-officemates in Manila, Sherry & Ryan at Mothercare who were also looking around for stuff as they’re expecting their first baby soon.

We reached Abbie’s place by 7:00 pm – 5 hours after we dropped Dade off.  And we’re so proud of Abbie because she did so well -- she bottlefed Dade, fed him his bottle of squash and potatoes, changed his nappy twice (both with poop!), and changed his clothes, too.  That was in between them watching Bolt on TV (where Abbie noticed how fascinated our son is with the credits), playing in his mat with his toys, and walking around the garden and the poolside. Good thing our son didn’t give her too much of a hard time. We capped the night off with a buffet dinner at Pizza Express at the Uptown Mirdif Mall, a few steps away from their apartment.

It was a beautiful Friday for all of us.  A million thanks to Abbie for babysitting for free! Till the next movie in our list (last installment of Shrek – again in 3D).

I Heart Mc Do

I have always loved Mc Donald's. Don't get me wrong -- I'm a fan of the Bee myself but there'll always be a special spot in my heart for this American franchise that I've learned to love since I was little. Who wouldn't, with their Big Mac, Mc Chicken, Caramel Sundae, & of course, their FRENCH FRIES! Their breakfast is also one of my faves especially the hash browns. Mm--mmmm!!

Mc Donald's is spread all over the world so it's the perfect place to go to when you're traveling, and with fear in no mood to try anything new. The first Mc Donalds outside the Philippines that I've been to was in HK 25 years ago. I still remember how bizarre it was for me to eat at a fastfood joint while standing. Other Mc Donald's I've eaten at were in Istanbul, New Orleans, Houston airport, Macau, and London. So yeah, talk about real love for the red-haired Ronald!

So imagine my joy when Mc Donald's here in the UAE decided to open their stores 24/7 -- WOW!! Now we have a place to run to when our stomachs decide to grumble in the middle of the night. And since they're now open 24 hours, that also means that they serve breakfast. Oh yes, the Sausage Mc Muffins are here!

After our holidays in Manila, we finally had the time to try their breakfast. On a fine Friday morning, we drove to their Jumeirah Beach Road branch and dined al-fresco to take advantage of the nice weather. And yup, you guessed it right -- we ordered big breakfast and pancakes with dollops of butter and lots & lots of syrup! Tee hee! :)

reading his book while Mom & Dad are having their breakfast

It was a perfect place to meet up with friends, Gracita & Harvey, with their beautiful daughter, Annika.

the daddies & their offsprings :)

with a glowing 2nd time Mama-to-be

with the little grabbers

So you see, Mc Donald's is truly a family place :)

I love you, Bee -- but I love Ronald, too!

My Friday With The Boys

Yesterday, we woke up early to meet Ryan's ex co-worker at the south of Dubai. After the quick meet up, we went for a little road trip down our favorite strip - Jumeirah Beach Road. Since I planned on going to the Magrudy's Warehouse Sale, we made a pit stop at Choithram next to Mercato to buy their yummy breads for breakfast. I got a Cheese & Chicken Roll while Ryan bought a Steak Pepper Pie, which we both loved. Yup, that's us - we love simple pleasures :) Afterwards, Ryan dropped me off at Magrudy's. he & Dade just stayed in the car while I did a little shopping.

on the way to Choithram

When I got to the Magrudy's Warehouse Sale, there was a bee line of people - kids and adults alike - who were just as eager as I was to get in to score some cheap finds. But I was bitterly disappointed when I got inside because the books were not properly zoned so you'd end up looking at each and every box to find a book to pick. The prices were really marked down to as low as AED 5 each book, but I didn't think it was worth my while to bend so low to scour through the boxes and elbow my way through those people on a covered parking lot at 11:00 am. All the toys were gone, too :( I guess the best deals were actually the Clark's Striderite school shoes and cute sandals for kids, which were priced between AED 50-100 a pair. I say that's really a steal considering their original prices were AED 310 at least. It's just too bad they didn't have sizes for babies. I left empty handed and wasted at least 30 minutes there.  Oh well!

Since the heat made me feel hungry, I asked the hubby to drive around and find Sugar Daddy's Bakery for a Red Velvet cupcake fix. We found ourselves getting lost as I couldn't remember which mall it is located (ok, now i know it's in The Village Mall - dang those malls in Jumeirah Beach Road - i always get confused!)

We ended up going to Kitsch instead at Umm Suqeim 1, near Al Manara Street. We were happy to stop for a while here, too, for Dade's lunch. It was our first time to try Kitsch, and we were happy with their cupcakes. Though their cupcakes were pretty dense, they had perfect sweetness!  Hubby and I both had Red Velvet flavors, but he chose the one with vanilla icing on top while I went for the cream cheese icing piece. Satisfied with the taste, we bought half a dozen to bring to our goddaughter, Yesha, for her birthday celebration that afternoon. Plus I went home with a loyalty card to boot. For every 36 accumulated pieces I buy, I get half a dozen for free :)

up for some cupcakes

freshly baked goodies

having his early lunch (EBM)

Suffice it is to say, dessert came first because after our stop at Kitsch, we went straight to Bobby & Ditas' place to have lunch to celebrate Yesha's 2nd birthday.  When they invite for gatherings, we always make sure we go because we are guaranteed of uber yummy home cooked meals! :)

We got the little princess a pretty dress from Carter's with matching bloomers, which we hope would fit her perfectly. It's a traditional summer dress every Mom would love because it brings out the youth and innocence of a little girl. *sorry, I just hate seeing little girls wear clothes inappropriate for their age!*

Ate Yesha & Dade

The afternoon was a good one spent with close friends as we all had fun celebrating little Yesha's birthday with good food and enthusiastic catching up. We're all excited as Armil's wife is due to give birth anytime, so another addition is brewing (and I say almost to a boil as she is already on her 39th week and ready to pop!) It's too bad we had to leave before I had a second helping of the food because I nursed a terrible, terrible headache & slept through the trip back home with Dade sleeping in his car seat next to me.

the Ranolas, the de Gracias & the Velosos

Looking back, it was a well-spent day with the boys outside, and I just can't wait for the cooler weather so we can enjoy spending more time outside the house. Fridays well-spent with the family are always the best!